Bulma's Ulterior Motive
It may not have been part of the initial tour, but the training room turned out to be an amazing first stop. The room, for the most part, was bare, with some weights and punching bags placed around the walls, but in the very center was a strange machine, reaching from the floor right up to the ceiling. Just looking at it, Kim could tell that it was more advanced than anything Drakken, Dementor or any of her villains had ever made.
Then, if that wasn't intriguing enough for you, there was the two boys sparring hard and fast all over the room.
"Whoa! Look at them go!" Felix cried, his face splitting into a stunned smile while his eyes zipped back and forth in their sockets.
"I'm...I'm having a little trouble keeping up." Kim stuttered, thoroughly gobsmacked.
"No kidding!" Felix nodded, though he looked far more amazed and excited than anything else. "They never stop moving. And look at their moves!"
Kim could only nod at that, she'd caught it too. Other than flying, the boys weren't using anything but your run of the mill martial arts, something Kim was adept in recognising and analysing. For seven and eight year olds, their skill level was amazing!
Trunks, she could tell, was a little more calculating in his moves, effectively blocking or dodging in ways designed to take advantage of openings before delivering powerful blows to the first vulnerable place he found, as opposed to Goten, who seemed to enjoy the thrill of quick flurrying attacks. He seemed particularly fond of blocking Goten's punches with his knee before spinning in the air and bringing his other heel down hard into Goten's upper back.
"BAAH!" Caught off guard, Goten crashed hard into the ground with a bang, immediately eliciting gasps from the watching teens. Protective instinct instantly kicking in, Kim sprung into action.
"NO!" Only for a suddenly freaked Bulma to snatch her arm and yank her right back just one step before she would have entered the training area, using her body to push back Wade and block the concerned Felix while she was at it.
"Bulma, what are you doing?" Wade cried, stumbling back onto his butt. "The kid-"
"Is fine." Bulma broke in, right as, sure enough, a near unscathed Goten shot back up with a flying kick.
"That won't work again, Trunks!"
"We'll see about that!"
"Huh?" All three teens could only gape as Trunks dodged and retaliated with an elbow jab only for Goten to flip in the air and kick it away before the pair of them sunk back into their original pattern. It was as if that crash never happened, ignoring a few small bruises.
"A Saiyan's durability is much greater than a human's and experience has suggested that the hybridisation with human DNA has only improved it, though we're not sure how that worked." Bulma explained, taking a calming breath herself before turning to each of them apologetically. "Sorry, there's a couple of things I probably should have mentioned on the way here and the dangers of stepping beyond this is one of them." She added, raising her hand as if petting thin air, only to stun the group as air started rippling like water. Following the ripples, they could only stare in amazement as they spread out until they reached the floor, walls and ceiling.
"Is this an air barrier?" Wade practically squealed, raising his hands and laughing as he created some ripples of his own. "Amazing!"
"We use the same compression systems we use for our capsules to prevent anything within the room from coming out." Bulma nodded proudly, chuckling as Wade continued to joyfully play with the air. "It was a challenge to set it up for an open space like this and to allow air to pass through, but it was well worth the effort. It saves both a tone of lives and money on repairs, let me tell you." She added, her mood shifting to fond exasperation as she turned back to her son. "These two combined are nothing on the destructive tendencies of Trunks' father. But it was dominantly designed to protect everyone outside the room from that!" She added firmly pointing right at the machine in the center.
"What does it do?" Wade asked, suddenly a lot more wary of the place. So were Kim and Felix for that matter. With the way Bulma spoke and had acted, Kim was just about ready to back far away and never come back.
"It's an artificial gravity machine." Bulma answered, staring hard at each of them with a look that reflected both pride and caution. "One specifically designed to reach up to ten times Earth's gravity."
"SAY WHAT!"
"Hu-WHAA!" Caught off by the screaming, both of the boys lost focus and plummeted hard into the ground. Groaning, Goten pouted as he rubbed his head while Trunks scowled at their audience, but Kim and her friends didn't pay attention to any of that. They were far too busy paling or gaping at the ridiculously dangerous machine that had previously been a point of minor interest, one that was humming and lit up, very much active.
'Those boys...they're...' Kim couldn't believe what she was hearing. Who would build such a machine, let alone let your kids play with it? And what kind of bodies did these boys have? Survival should have been impossible, yet they were moving and flying around with ease! How...
"Obviously, the boys aren't using, or even allowed, to use nearly that high a setting." Bulma went on calmly, as if she was in the middle of a lecture, as she pointed to a screen on the center of the machine that was big and visible enough for them to see even from where they stood. "As the screen shows, the machine is currently only increasing the gravity to 1.5 times Earth's gravity, a setting that is survivable and manageable to even a normal human, as long as they have well prepared for it. To use a setting above twice Earth's gravity, something only Vegeta is crazy enough to do, you need a password that only a few people know. The boys are allowed to use up to 1.6, as the Saiyan body evolved on a planet that held much higher gravity than Earth and they have worked their way up from our planet's gravity level to that one level at a time. Given time for preparation, strength increase and adaption, I'm sure Kim would be able to reach the machine's current level and a bit beyond, but jumping in now would have had very damaging effects to anyone, so always take great care when entering this particular facility."
"Duly noted." Wade muttered quietly, the others simply nodding their heads at best. That was one dangerous setup the Briefs had going, and far too easy to enter to boot.
"Forgive me for asking, but shouldn't something so clearly only meant for superheroes' use be a little more difficult to enter?" Felix asked slowly, biting his lip as he finally turned back to Bulma, half expecting to be snapped at for the insinuation. However, all Bulma did was shrug.
"Nah, this area is well away from the labs and other frequently visited departments of the company. For the most part, only family members and close friends enter this area at all and everyone who'd ever have a reason to come here is well warned of the danger. Besides, no one ever wants to come here anyway." She added with a smirk. "Vegeta is quite terrifying to just about everyone. Particularly with that empty threat of his about blasting you into oblivion."
'Ok, not even touching that one.' Kim had had enough shocking events thrown her way to last the next few hours and more were on the way without an explanation behind some scary, temperamental Prince of the Sai...ok, apparently her mind was supplying information on its own anyway.
"So...this place is equipped specifically to train super strong aliens? Does it have any other...interesting features?" Felix asked, partially excited and partly scared of the answer. Though, none of that stopped him from lighting up like a Christmas tree and gasping in awe as Goten whipped up his palm and shot a small, blue blast point blank in Trunks' face, sending the purpled haired boy smacking hard into the wall. "Now that's cool! Those walls have to be as thick as a mountain!"
"Actually, while they are reinforced, they survive mostly because of the compression system." Bulma responded, shaking her head sourly. "You have no idea how many times I've had to have the damn things fixed! But to answer your question, there's also combat droids with different weapons and floating machines designed either to shoot lasers or deflect energy blasts. Depending on what setting you put them on and how many you fight at once, it's quite the workout. You're welcome to give a go later." She offered, smiling. "There are levels for normal humans too. Even I sometimes go in for a round. Though, I was once told that I should have competed in the old World Martial Arts Tournaments." She added with a laugh.
"To keep a son like that in line, I'll believe it." Felix muttered, only to get a snort from Bulma in return. "Still, my mother would love to talk to you about some of that sometime, Bulma. She's one of the leading specialists in cyber robotics worldwide, but this would impress even her."
"I'll have to remember to set up a meeting." Bulma smiled before heading back toward the main company. "And I doubt that will be all we talk about. Now, how about we get started on the actual tour of the facility?"
"I'm ready!" Wade practically leaped after her in his glee, heralding laughter from everyone, bar Trunks, who'd simply smirked at him before taking advantage of Goten's distraction with a backfist. Normally, Wade would be embarrassed by that, but he was in far too good a mood to care. In fact, he actually continued to basically skip along.
...
Once they actually reached the company portion of the building, the group found themselves a lot more relaxed and in their element. Not that even Wade was able to keep calm as they visited each lab, team and division. Though labs and advanced, complicated machinery were commonplace in the lairs of Professor Dementor or Dr Drakken, not to mention the space station where Dr Possible and Felix' mother worked, this seemed to be on a whole other level.
Though known worldwide for its capsule technology, Capsule Corp was far more diverse and at the front of a number of different waves in technology. From washing machines, to portable houses, to jet planes, if you could put it in a capsule, they were designing new, high tech versions for it. And just about anything could go into a capsule. The only limitation seemed to be if it was alive.
'If I couldn't see all this, I'd swear magic was involved.' Kim mused as a button was hit on a small cottage type house only for the whole thing to disappear in a puff of smoke, a larger than average capsule rolling around being the only thing left as the gas cleared. "That was just...wow."
"You guys haven't seen many of these, have you?" Bulma asked, watching with amusement as all three of them gaped in awe or wonder.
"No, they're a bit expensive for the average person." Felix responded lightly, a wry smile crossing his face as he turned back to her. That was actually a massive understatement. Naturally, this kind of technology was of high value, only made greater by the fact that there was no competition. Even companies that had tried to reverse engineer the tech tended to fail spectacularly, leaving Capsule Corp with full control of the distribution. Something they took full advantage of and had government circles all over the world annoyed.
Seeing their desire to use his tech for military advantage and other less pleasant opportunities, Dr Briefs had refused to make agreements with any leading political body, keeping that aspect of his company extremely private. As such, though the world over knew and desired their tech, Capsule Corp's companies only really operated in Japan, with a few small transactions with neighbouring countries. Put all that together and you'd find it equals finding a capsule is a rarity for most of the world.
Chuckling, Bulma gave him a conceding nod before moving on toward the less mechanical divisions, stopping briefly only when Felix cried out in amazement at the sight of a hover car that put Drakken's to shame.
"We even have a division working on new, better performing spaceships." Bulma mentioned as they waited for Felix to finish a conversation with an eager mechanic and designer currently testing the vehicle. "I think we're doing pretty good, but I'll admit that even we can't stand up to the projects your father develops, Kim. I'll have to try and get NASA's Middleton staff to do a joint project with us one day."
"I'm sure that my dad would love it." Kim grinned, before turning back to her wheelchair bound friend with a sigh. "And I'm also sure that he will not be ready to leave for quite a while."
"Probably not." Wade agreed, though he wasn't about to complain. Sure, he wanted to progress to where he'd be mostly working, but he was more than happy to wait. With the ship's designer in the bay and bragging about his pride and joy, the boys were happily learning about everything from how fast and high the car could go to the calibrations and fuel intake that allowed it to work. It was more than fascinating.
Still, Bulma seemed to have a plan set out for the day, so it wasn't too long before she reined them in and on their way. They moved on to large chemical labs, where they found scientists working on a number of almost random compounds and mixtures all over the place. One lab was focused solely on different types of fuel, while others seemed to be working on projects that reminded her a great deal of some of the things Wade gave her. She had a feeling a lot of her gadgets were going to be upgraded in the near future when Wade started bouncing on his feet, blabbering about his own comparable projects and the possibilities of advancement.
Wade would be spending a lot of time in there, of that everyone was certain. However, it wasn't until the end of the tour that they found the area where all the apprentices would work most frequently with Bulma.
"Welcome to our official area, my own, personal lab." Hitting a button on the wall, Bulma smiled with pride as a door slid open to reveal a very spacious room. Close to the Briefs' living area, the place was very high up and had one wall made almost entirely of windows. The area looked a lot like a miniature version of the company itself, sporting a little bit of everything in different areas. The corner nearest to the door was set up like a computer lab, with multiple benches each holding a computer, a printer, a basic scanner and one or two unique pieces of technology that Kim didn't recognise. The next area, up toward the windows, held a lot of mechanical equipment and tools, mostly meant for smaller tasks by the looks of things, while the other side from the door held benches and equipment designed for bigger constructions. A series of monitors and button bearing machines nearly coated the walls along all three sides, any function they could hold being a mystery to Kim, unless they were all involved with the computers or the ventilation system.
The final quarter of the room however, was much less sterile and more homey. Book cases lined the wall meeting the window while large, comfy looking couches form a semicircle around a low table, complete with a coffee machine. And there, sitting on the couches, were two teenagers that could only be the other apprentices.
"Hi there. I was wondering when you were going to show up." A girl with blue eyes and long, red hair, maybe the same age as Kim, smiled over her shoulder as the door closed behind them. Closing a very thick book, she rose to her feet and met them halfway across the room, letting them all get a good view of a very recognisable person. "It's nice to meet you all. I'm sorry, I know you're Kim, but which one of you nice young men is Wade?"
"That's me!" Wade grinned, quickly stepping forward and shaking her hand. "This our friend and new teammate, Felix."
"Nice to meet you, my lady." Felix nodded. "Am I correct in calling you Jazz Fenton?"
"That you are." Jazz smiled right back, moving to shake his offered hand before moving on to Kim. "It's not often I get to meet other teams in the world saving business. However...I feel like I have met you." A slight frown crossed her face as she offered her hand once more, which Kim quickly took in her own.
"You know something? I feel the same way." Something about Jazz was definitely triggering that fog in her head again. She knew of Jasmine Fenton, of course, her whole family was very famous. Danny Phantom was the only hero in the world who's fame and reputation were as well known as Kim's. Hell, he had a statue in every major city around the world for crying out loud! All coming to a head due to an asteroid disaster he helped to resolve.
However, he was hardly the only Fenton involved in that. Even before Phantom was revealed to be a Fenton, a huge amount of recognition went to the enormous amount of work Fenton Works put in to the technology that allowed his plan to become possible. In addition, the event assured the entire world that ghosts existed, rather than just being a gimmick Amity Park was using to fetch tourists, which not only proved that the Fentons weren't crazy, but put them all right in the international spotlight as the world's foremost experts on ghosts and ectoplasmic technology. Though neither a major fighter or scientist like her family, Jazz was well involved with a lot of Fenton Works' new business and did occasionally assist with volatile ghosts, giving her plenty of the spotlight herself.
Having such well known faces, it was obvious that they would know of each other, but one look at Jazz and Kim was sure that she felt the same thing. It wasn't as strong as the sense of knowing she got at the mention of Gohan, but it was much stronger than what she'd felt for the Z Fighters. Both were sure, though they couldn't remember it, they had met at least once or twice before.
"Huh, weird." However, while Kim was a bit stuck on it, Jazz was quite content to wave it off and figure it out another day. At the moment, she was much more interested in the other apprentice. "Henry, don't be antisocial! Come and say hello."
"Hmm?" That was when everyone turned their attention back to the couches and once again, the Deja vu returned. However, this time it had her a lot more on edge.
Sitting in a meditative position, just opening calm, inquisitive, grey eyes, was a teenage boy, about sixteen or seventeen years old and of Chinese decent. Messy, dark blue hair covered his head and though his green and brown clothes kept most of his body from view, Kim knew with the utmost certainty that though he was lithe in form, he still had sufficiently defined muscles and could throw one hell of a punch. Not only that, but the knowledge that this boy was surrounded by machinery also set off a few warning lights in her head and for a second, she could have sworn that his eyes glowed green. All in all, she was sure she'd met him before too and the experience wasn't a pleasant one.
"Sorry if I was being rude." Yet, strangely enough, Kim couldn't for the life of her figure out why she felt anything unsettling about him as he rose to his feet and bowed slightly before looking back up with a small, sheepish smile as he took everyone in. "I'm afraid I was in a world of my own. I'm Henry Wong. It is a pleasure to meet all of you."
Yep, Kim had no clue what could be wrong with him. The boy was the epitome of polite and well mannered. He held himself with much more restraint, both physically and emotionally, than anyone else in the room, but his face still suggested nothing more than a friendly, curious nature at heart. She'd pay attention for a while, but Kim was willing to try and ignore that initial less than pleasant feeling she'd had before. Who knows, it might have only been a result of circumstances or something. It wouldn't be the first time she'd misjudged someone.
She really hoped that she was right though. Kim simply couldn't shake the feeling that this boy could very easily kill them all.
"Very formal, isn't he?" Bulma commented lightly, petting the boy on the shoulder as she led everyone to the couches. Making herself comfy, she turned on the coffee machine and only waited long enough to take a sip of the completed beverage before moving on. "Ok everyone, as you know, to some extent, each one of you has been chosen for your intellect. Wade here," She started, waving her hand to the youngest person in the room. "Is an all round genius, with sufficient talent in all the average fields Capsule Corp involves itself in. Jazz was accepted dominantly for her knowledge of ectoplasm and technology that is powered by it. She also allows for a well developed business connection to Fenton Works while continuing her studies in psychology, among other things. Finally, Henry is an amazing programmer for his age and an even better engineer.
"I hope to help you develop these skills individually, as well as help each other where your strengths and interests meet." She went on, opening a draw in her side of the table and pulling out three files, handing each one to her new apprentices. None of them wasted a second in opening them, all of them bearing varying expressions of excitement or curiosity. "These will be each of your individual and group criteria's. The work is challenging, but it will be interesting and very rewarding for all involved. Nooow..." Kim almost felt a shiver go up her spine as Bulma drew out the word. The sly, cunning smirk that instantly replaced her grin was near terrifying. "Has anyone gotten to the bottom of the contents page yet?"
Well and truly intrigued now, Felix and Kim instantly looked over Wade's shoulders and gasped along with him the second their eyes met the bottom of the page.
"VG Hero Collaboration?" Apparently they were the only ones caught off guard, for Henry was gaping at Bulma with sheer disbelief. "What's that about?"
"You know, VG sounds really familiar." Wade cried, frowning hard around the room as the gears turned in his head, trying to connect unseen dots.
"And you know, two apprentices do tend to work with worldwide heroes." Felix pointed out, pointing from Wade to Jazz before tilting his head curiously at the younger redhead. "You know, you don't look the slightest bit surprised, Jazz."
"Well, I'm not really." Jazz shrugged, though she was watching the smug Bulma thoughtfully. "After all, Danny's a much more personal part as to why I'm here."
"Actually, Danny Phantom and Jazz's situation is part of what started the idea of bringing all of you here." Bulma declared, immediately shutting everyone up as everyone's attention, now more suspicious than anything else, moved back and forth from her to Jazz.
Kim however, was barely paying attention. Her mind was reeling. VG. That was something she'd seen many times and knew, subconsciously, that it was a very important pair of letters. Now, after all the jumps of random memories she couldn't remember making that popped up today, they were even more important to her. Gohan, Roxas, Danny Phantom, they were all associated with these two letters.
'And so am I.' Slipping her hand into her handbag, she absentmindedly felt around until her fingers slid over a cold, rectangular piece of metal. Pulling it out, well enough to draw everyone's attention, she held up the device she'd found with a strange note on her dresser one day so many months ago that even Wade couldn't hack into. There on the lid that revealed a small computer, were the two bright, bold letters. VG.
"This was made here, wasn't it." It wasn't a question.
"That's right." Bulma grinned, sticking her hand into the draw again. This time, when it rose, it was holding an identical device. "Just like all the others. And it is because of these that Jazz came here and isn't a wreck at the disappearance of Danny. It's called a Vcom, a computer and communication device used solely by the Valour Guardians."
'Valour Guardians!' Those two words set off more in Kim's, and everyone else's heads than anything before it. What seemed like countless clips of a life forgotten surged through her head, faster than she could register, yet all of them fractured, incomplete. Most people were still in shadow, and she could never tell what she was fighting or laughing about, but still, so much information she hadn't realised that she was yearning to reclaim came rushing back.
"Wow, you really are skilled! It's rare I find someone with my level of martial arts at my age." Gohan had laughed as he told her that during a spar. She remember that he was the only one to match her skill with just hands and feet and she loved pairing up with him, though she was always a little nervous he'd forget to hold his massive strength back when he really got into it.
She remembered fighting Jack Spicer and Katnappe once with Danny and Roxas. She remembered Roxas having to go off and slaughter Jack's robots when the coward struck an emotional blow. She remembered a fun day at a lake with both those boys again and two others and ending up in the past. She remembered flying on the back of a dragon, fighting a man with long white hair and a black cloak who was floating before a heart shaped moon and so much more. And all of it revolved around those two words.
Pulling her head out of the fog, Kim opened the Vcom and turned it on, staring at the screen as it lit up with one word. Password. Looking up just long enough to see Bulma's encouraging look and the confused, disoriented ones of the others, she moved her fingers to the small keyboard and hit four buttons. 'VG03.'
She couldn't stop the surprised gasp from leaving her mouth as the screen, rather than refuse her entry like it had so many times before, came completely to life and revealing to her a series of options. But the one she was most amazed with was right in the center.
Valour Guardians Online. Pushing the button without hesitation, she brought up a whole new screen, one that had five of eleven numbers lit up, each one, including her own, having a name and picture on either side of it.
VG01: Saiyaman. VG03: Kim Possible. VG04: Danny Phantom. VG07: American Dragon. She was a little thrown off for a second at the very human face next to that name, but a small, endearing smile grew a second later as her mind claimed that yes, this was the dragon and he was fun to be with. VG11: Really Incredibly Fast Guy. Now that was a mouthful! And what's more, her mind was drawing a total blank on that one. The picture of a humanoid Duck wasn't helping either. Her memory was far from perfect, but she was very confident that the number of Guardians ended at ten. That felt right. Nine, even more so. But still, she shrugged it off for now. Bulma clearly knew just about everything about all this. She could provide answers in a moment.
"So the Valour Guardians...They're a team...I think?" If Felix frowned any harder, he'd probably pop a vein as he stared down at the screen, his hands scratching vigorously at his head. "And Kim and Danny are both part of it?"
"That's correct." Bulma nodded, rising and gently pulling his arms down to his sides. All her slyness was gone now as she stared around at the gathered teens again, smiling brightly at each of them. "The Valour Guardians were a group of amazing teenagers, all coming from different groups and backgrounds, most of them, even teams. They first came together to fight an international threat known as Organisation 13 and continued from there, allying not only themselves, but their teams and entirely different aspects of the world, including the normal people, the magical creatures, ghosts, aliens, all of it. But after some time, another event happened that almost wiped us all out. I don't remember much of what that was; even I don't have a complete set of memories." She added quickly, as Kim opened her mouth, effectively cutting her off. "The long story short was that something happened that allowed the Guardians to fix it, involving a woman known as the Dimensional Witch, but this came with a price that resulted in the world forgetting what was hidden before the Organisation attacked and everything connected to it. However, while most of the world will never remember what happened and the unity it held, the Guardians and those who were well connected personally to them are starting to remember. This was accelerated by villains who attacked some of the Guardians in hopes of stopping them from reforming. Saiyaman, the American Dragon, Danny Phantom, and through them, me, the Fentons, and a few others, have gained a lot of it back.
"The event however, has left Phantom in another dimension." She went on, only stopping for a moment to have another sip of her coffee. A moment none of them could see over fast enough. All of them, bar Jazz, who clearly already knew all this, were staring at her intently, silently demanding more information. "He is on his way back, with the help of an alley by the name of King Mickey. And fortunately for the Fentons, when I designed the Vcoms, I took into account that two Guardians were capable of interdimensional travel. It took an enormous amount of work, but I did manage to develop them enough so that you can communicate over them with someone travelling the dimensional pathways. We'll get into the details on that later, I promise." She added, shaking her head with a smile as she watched each teen grow visibly more lost and confused. "The only thing you need to know up front about all this is that Jazz coming here, and she, Gohan and his travelling companions restoring a lot of my memories gave me the idea of gathering brains and tech support people associated with the Guardians. This way, we can reconnect all of them and operate in a possibly better way than ever before.
"Each one of you is connected to and assists one of the heroes that make up the Guardians." She went on. "Or even a full-fledged hero yourself, in one case." She added, with a grin Henry's way. "That is ulterior motive to all this. The hope that together, we can regather the Guardians and use the skills that allow us to support the individual we've worked with to help all of them excel."
The whole room went quite after that and Bulma just let it stay that way. She knew full well, the information she'd given them, the memories it might have triggered, it would overwhelm all of them. Wade, Henry, especially Kim, they were all holding their heads, almost in pain as everything buzzed around their minds. Felix was faring better, though the return of memories was very little for him, not really having much association with Kim's hero life before recently. Jazz was more or less fine. She'd dealt with most of it before. In fact, she was already out of her seat and guiding them all through the mental whammy, trying to calm and settle them.
Offering them all the time they needed, Bulma headed for the monitors and computer systems around the room, making all the preparations she needed. When they finally did get their heads wrapped around everything, they were both going to want and need more details. Fortunately, Bulma had found everything the Guardians had stored in their archives and within Capsule Corp. When they were ready, she'd have all the precise, detailed information they could ever ask for up and ready to go.