Kim Possible::Butterfly's W1ngs
Disclaimer: The following is a non-profit fan work. Kim Possible and all associated characters are the property of Walt Disney and Buena Vista Television.
Chapter 2 - Rise
Location: Global Justice Headquarters
Time: July 22nd, 2005. 1900 hours.
"We are ready for your report, Agent Du."
Agent Will Du stepped up into the large illuminated circle to address the shadowy council whose video screens lined the walls of the room.
"Yes, Doctor Director. The cleanup of Site C24 in Lowerton was completed as of 10:16 am this morning. During the clean-up, we were able to confirm the deaths of Duff Killigan, Montgomery Fisk, Senor Senior Sr., and Professor Dementor. However the remains of Shego, Doctor Drakken, and the contraband Lorwardian technology were not able to be located. It is possible that considering that the technology was a Class 8 energy weapon, it simply vaporized them when it exploded."
Will pushed a button on a small handheld device and a holographic projection of a pile of burnt corpses hovered into view in the center of the room.
"This theory is corroborated by the fact that the remains of the others found in the site did experience some disintegration. As you can see in the image, those closest to the blast-"
"What about Team Possible? What is the status there?" Doctor Directors face emerged from the shadows on the central screen, a look of complete seriousness chiseled into it.
Will gave an audible gulp, "Kim Possible has lost her right arm and suffered damage to 15% of her torso on the same side. While no vital organs were damaged in the blast, the damage to the muscle tissue and epidermis is quite extensive. The impact of her collision with the wall also caused extensive injury to her T6, 7, and 8 vertebrae resulting in paralysis from her waist down. She also appears to have lost approximately 3 square inches of her right foot including two toes."
"AND WHAT OF THE STOPPABLE BOY?" One of the other shadowy monitors asked in a heavily synthetic voice.
"Nothing was located to indicate any trace of Ron Stoppable. No blood, no torn clothing, and not a speck of DNA. All we have to draw any conclusions is this." Will pushed the button again bringing up a wider angle photo of the remains of the warehouse. Next to where the charred bodies lied was a massive spherical crater cut into the floor, "It's unclear if this was caused by the same Class 8 weapon. The hole is completely smooth compared to the beams' destruction which melted what it came into contact with. However, it is possible that the crater is a result of a secondary effect of the device's explosion that had a limited radius."
Will pushed the button again and the holographic display vanished, "Unfortunately, there is no evidence of anything that could have been in that sphere. There's no trace of the machine, Drakken, or Ron Stoppable. Anything that was there has been wiped from the face of creation."
"ThAnK YoU AgEnT Du." Another synthetic voice said, this one with a slightly feminine tone, "OnE FiNaL QuEsTiOn. WhAt Is YoUr OpInIoN oF KiM PoSSibLE's CanDidACY for a GlObAl JuStIcE AgEnT?"
Will stood silently for a moment, a look of intense concentration on his face, "In her condition? Both physical and emotional? It's impossible."
"Oh, I'm not sure Will." Doctor Director smiled on her monitor, "I don't think anything is impossible for a Possible."
LOCATION: Middleton Hospital
TIME: July 19th, 2005. 1400 hours.
Kim Possible was lying in a hospital bed. Her eyes were puffy and red from nearly a day and a half on non-stop crying. The right half of body was encased in heavy bandages, and she was strapped down to keep her from rolling in her sleep. The whole situation may have been slightly more bearable had she not continuously have to remind herself to use her left hand to scratch her nose. As it stood, even that simple act was enough to return the tears to her eyes.
"Kimmie cub?" a woman's voice in the room called. It seemed muffled and distant.
"It's all over." Kim muttered in a hoarse voice.
"That's not true, dear. Far from it. You're still alive." the voice spoke again.
"Ron's gone. Arms gone. Hero business is gone." Kim's eyes were welling up again with fresh tears.
"College isn't gone. Family isn't gone. Kimmie isn't gone. Thank god that Kimmie isn't gone." the voice seemed to get closer. It was filled with grief and sadness. Kim looked over to see her mother and father sitting in a pair of chairs on the side of the bed. Ann Possible was crying but still wore a forced smile, but James had a stern dead serious look on his face as he looked not at his daughter but through a newspaper bearing the headline, 'Man or Machine? Mayhem in Moscow!'
"Dad?" Kim croaked.
James snapped out of his concentration, "Kimberly. I… uh… I'm sorry I was just having a thought. It's gonna be okay, Kim. Your mother is right, this is far from the end. After all, if anyone can come back from this it's you. Anything's possible..."
And for the first time since the incident, Kim managed a small but genuine smile, "For.. a Possible."
James smiled back and nodded. Ann leaned in and placed a hand on her daughter's shoulder, "Kim, I just felt I should let you know. Global Justice was here earlier wanting a statement. I told them to get lost. You take your time getting better, honey. We'll be here."
LOCATION: Westwood Cemetery
TIME: July 26th, 2005. 0900 hours.
Kim sat in her wheelchair, bandages still strapped across her burned and damaged form, as she watched the empty casket that served as a memorial to her best friend and boyfriend be lowered into the ground. She let her eyes wander to the sky, if only to offer a momentary reprieve from the sorrow. The sky was blue, the sun shining - it was the kind of day that Ron would have loved. That was something. Some condolence for this whole travesty.
It was an impressive number of people who came to the funeral. Not only a large number of people from school - including the crew of bullies that would pick on Ron, and Bonnie Rockwaller of all people - but also Yori, Sensei, and several other students from Yamanouchi, Mr. Nakasumi and his assistant Yoshiko, and even famous actors Quinn and Heather came.
Kim smiled through her tears realizing how many people's lives her best friend had touched. To think he always considered himself something of an outcast.
After the funeral, Ron's parents approached Kim and gave her a hug. "He was always happiest when you were happy, Kim," Mrs. Stoppable said, "I'm sure his soul is happy knowing that his last action was protecting you."
That was the last straw. Kim broke down in sobs, "I am so sorry. It should have never… I should have… Oh god, I am so sorry."
Ron's dad placed his hand on Kim's shoulder, "Kimberly, no one holds you the least bit responsible for this. As an actuary, I knew each time the two of you left what the risks were. My son died a hero though. We're all going to miss him so, but at least we can be proud of who he was and what he did."
Ron's mom pulled away, finally releasing Kim from the hug. She too had tears rolling down her cheeks, "You will always be family, Kim. If there's anything we can do, you just let us know."
Kim wiped away her tears with her sleeve, "Likewise, Mrs. Stoppable."
The two adults left the teen girl alone on the hill. Kim rolled herself closer to the headstone, "Oh Ron, what am I going to do without you?"
LOCATION: Middleton Space Center Press Conference Room
TIME: July 30th, 2005. 1000 hours.
"-No, the Hephaestus Project was stolen, not leaked!" Doctor James Possible stood at the front of the large room, his head was glinting with sweat under the harsh lights and flash bulbs. He had only been at the podium for minutes and it was already the most intense experience in his life.
"Right. Stolen. By a mad scientist you said. Was this before or after you deleted the entire project using a voice command that responds only to your voice?" a reporter asked.
"It was after. I deleted it so he couldn't get to it. But then he had a brain-tap machine that he used to read my mind. Luckily, my daughter stopped him before he could cause serious harm."
Another reporter stood up, "Serious harm, Dr. Possible? They've had to quarantine the entire city of Moscow because of the half-machine monsters that we are getting reports are being created by your invention."
Dr. Possible rested his head in his hands as he stared down at the grain pattern of the wooden podium. He tried to take a few deep breaths, but was stopped when out of the corner of his eye he spotted his boss just off stage shaking his head. James gulped hard as he raised his head once more.
"If your daughter is a target for these villains, aren't you a security risk, Dr. Possible?"
"Are you denying that your Hephaestus project was behind the Moscow Incident?"
"Is it true that you and this Drew Lipsky character were actually friends in college?"
"Doctor Possible, what do you have to say…?"
LOCATION: Upperton University
TIME: August 25th, 2005. 0900 hours.
Kim pushed the joystick on her motorized wheelchair the Tweebs had helped design for her and the tires started rolling up the ramp to the administration building. Upperton was not Kim's first choice for a college. It wasn't even in her top ten. But with the way things were now, she had seen the necessity of being close to family. For moral, psychological and physical help when it was needed.
Swinging in an extremely late acceptance to enroll wasn't an issue. She was famous after all, and the attack in Lowerton was fairly well publicized in the news until the fervor of the Moscow Incident dominated the rest of the summer. No, the issue now was going to be money. With her injuries, Kim couldn't take advantage of the cheerleading scholarship she had originally been offered to stay in-state, and with her father being demoted at work and removed from all government contracts, it was pretty much just her mother's income carrying the mortgage, the family and now Kim's college.
Hopefully, the bursar would have some good news.
Kim turned her wheelchair to enter the financial aid office but turned too quick and smacked her arm against the door frame. She inhaled deeply at the stinging sensation, a wave of sadness coming over her as she thought about how she used to dive out of helicopters with ease and now a set of stairs or a narrow door frame could defeat her.
She rolled into the office and handed the secretary a stack of papers from her lap, "I'm Kimberly Possible, looking to get some financial aid?"
The secretary just stared at the red-headed girl for a moment, as synapses tried to bridge the image with the reality before her, "Of course, Ms. Possible. One moment please." The secretary stood up and headed into the office behind her.
Across the hall, at the registrar's office, a crowd of freshman bunch around the window. They pushed and shoved, each trying to one up each other to be first to register for their favorite classes. They banged on the glass to get attention but no one came to the window. Instead an elderly woman with an annoyed look on her face stared at the mob from her desk across the office behind the window. She then pointed at the small bell marked, "RING FOR SERVICE." The freshmen gave a unified 'Ooooooh' and slammed their hands on the bell with a resounding DING!
"Alright, Ms. Possible. He's ready for yo- Oh dear!" the secretary returned to exclaim, dropping her stack of papers that she had brought back with her. Kim had collapsed out of her wheelchair, and was curled up on the ground in a fetal position. Her eyes wide with terror and shaking in fear. She could not move. She could not speak. The memories of pain ripping across her side consumed her thoughts and that noise - ding! - was all the she could hear.
LOCATION: Hench Co Corporate Offices
TIME: September 1st, 2005. 1100 hours
"The future is now!" proudly proclaimed Jack Hench, standing tall on a massive stage, "Thanks to the new Hench Co Pioneering Advanced Cybertronic Technology division, or PACT, we now have the capability of not just no longer living in fear of the advancements created by the incident in Moscow, but harnessing it to improve our lives immeasurably!"
A pair of HenchMen in armored uniforms came out from the side of the stage rolling out a massive cage. Inside the steel bars was what appeared to be a human of some kind, but he had metal tubing sticking out of him, large iron poles jetting out from its back, and faint blue circuitry designs embedded into its skin.
"This poor misshapen creature is but one of many found all across Europe now thanks to the explosion in Moscow months ago. But watch what happens when I inject it with the Pioneering Advanced Cybertronic Technology Chip, or 'The PATCH' for short," Jack Hench announced as he strode across the stage. The thing in the cage lunged at him drawing an audible gasp from the audience, "Oh there's no need to be worried folks. This here is patent HenchCo reinforced Tri-tanium alloy. We are all perfectly safe."
Jack pulled a small syringe out of his pocket, removed the cap and plunged it into the creature in the cage. As the plunger on the syringe was pushed down, Jack offered a large grin to the audience and held up one finger on his opposite hand. When the syringe emptied, Jack stepped back and the creature in the cage convulsed and shook, rattling the bars of the cage.
Murmurs of worry spread across the audience as the creature began to shrink, the metal appendages visibly shrinking as they were absorbed into the now looking far more human thing's body. After a minute of seizure like shaking, a young man of twenty or so stood up in the cage. Across his skin was still the faintly glowing blue circuitry across his body, and his eyes had a faint blue glow to them as well, but otherwise he looked perfectly normal.
"Oh but that's not all The Patch is capable of doing for the world, ladies & gentlemen," Jack announced as he produced a small device from his back pocket, "Just watch as I use the powers of The Patch to not only cure this man, but ascend him to the next level of humanity!" Jack Hench tapped the touch screen of the device a few times and then pushed it up against the young man's neck, sending a jolt of electricity into the boy's body.
Immediately the man in the cage grabbed his arm and gritted his teeth in pain. "Yes, some pain may be involved depending on the modification. But we're working on that and hopefully version 2.0 projected for release just in time for Holiday shopping will have removed that 'bug'. Till then, just remember the old adage: No pain, no gain!"
In a perfectly timed moment of performance as soon as Jack stopped speaking the man's arm had begun to reconstruct itself. It now had an open panel on the forearm displaying a computer screen running the HenchOS, "Now this cured young man has his entire computer wherever he is. Music, movies, wireless internet communication - no longer held in the palm of your hand but built right into your body. Now that's progress!" Jack shouted triumphantly as the crowds began to cheer and clap.
LOCATION: Upperton University Dorms
TIME: March 14th, 2006. 2300 hours.
Kim laid on her dorm bed. The blinds were almost closed, but a few rays of light scattered across the floor making brilliant color patterns with the empty bottles of ill-gotten liquor littered about the dorm floor. Outside the door, Kim could hear whispers. There were always whispers.
'Did you hear she freaked out over at the admin office? I thought she was like a superhero or something?'
'God, what's that smell?'
'Heard she was a cheerleader in high school. Guess that means she used to be cute.'
Kim's one remaining hand reached out across the bed and grasped a bottle. She drew it to her lips, letting the sweet release pour down into her body. The liquor made the pain stop, even if it was only a moment. The liquor made the whispers seem further away. The liquor let her sleep. As the darkness took her she muttered the only response she could think of:
"Fuck'em all."
LOCATION: Munich, Germany.
TIME: October 21st, 2006. 1400 hours.
Explosions littered the area in the warzone that was once Munich. Soldiers dressed in the colors of Global Justice marched down the city streets and fired off shots of high powered plasma bolt blasting fire arms toward anything that moves. The city had been under siege for a month now by the Patch enhanced criminal element of Eastern Europe.
A Global Justice soldier rested his back up against a wall of an abandoned building. He took a lighter out of his pocket and brought it to the cigarette in his mouth. As soon as he had flicked the flint to start a spark, a metallic arm ripped through the wall behind and wrapped itself around the soldier's throat. It began to squeeze, cutting off air flow and crushing the wind pipe. The soldier's vision began to grow dark.
Suddenly, a large knife soared through the air, implanted itself deep into the metallic arm and sent sparks flying. Will Du leapt forward out of the dust and brought the knife down, rotating it ninety degrees and cutting the lower half of the arm clean off. Will grabbed the soldier's shoulder and tossed him to the ground to clear him from the area. Will then pulled out his side arm and let loose a barrage of bullets into the wall.
As Will heard the loud thud of a body collapsing on the other side of the wall, he let out a sigh of relief. One week on duty in Munich and it was already wearing on him. The teched out criminals were pretty much inexhaustible and kept up their assault day and night. If they weren't trying to kill him, it would almost be admirable. Human instinct, technological reflexes, these 'things' were almost perfect. Too bad their aggression was off the charts or they might have been useful. Still, they were a formidable foe. Trying to even put the slightest permanent dent in their forces was nigh impossible and for one fleeting moment, Agent Will Du actually wished that Kim Possible was there to help them.
LOCATION: Kim's Bedroom, Possible Family Home
TIME: February 10th, 2008. 0100 Hours.
Kim was laying on her bed in a skirt and a bra, the upper half of her SmartyMart uniform had been thrown on the floor. She had picking up whatever hours she could to cover the student loan payments, and SmartyMart was just about the best she could hope for in terms of employment with no degree and one arm.
She had given up on school. She couldn't focus on anything there anymore. She had moved back in with her family in hopes that it could help her get back on her feet. Hopefully it would keep her on the straight and narrow and stop the horrible drinking habit she had developed and repeatedly lied about but the shoe box under her bed with a number of small bottles with the labels torn off was the truth she wanted to bury.
Her desk was scattered with a mound papers: 'FINAL NOTICE', 'PAYMENT DUE', 'ACADEMIC PROBATION', and many others with large red letters. Below them just sticking out from the corner of the desk was an unopened letter from Global Justice. All just reminders to Kim of her failures. All just reminders of that one day.
"Kim? You awake?" her father called from the stairs leading up to her room.
Kim lifted her head and pushed herself up, grabbing a bathrobe and slipping it over her exposed body, "Yea, Dad. Just got home from stocking."
James Possible climbed up into the room, no longer wearing his button down shirt and tie but a Middleton Space Center jumpsuit caked in dust. He looked around the room to survey the complete disarray of the place and it molded a small frown on the doctor's lips. His daughter used to be overly sensitive about keeping things clean, an unorthodox trait in a teenager, but this was the opposite end of the spectrum, "I uh… just got home from indexing the warehouse and wanted to see how you were doing."
"Oh you know, Dad," Kim said with a voice devoid of emotion, "Not dead. Kinda wishing I was." As her father approached, she used her right foot to push the shoe box further under the bed, "I never thought myself to be prideful about saving the world, but here I am. Twice the fall."
James sat down next to his daughter and wrapped his arm around her, "I know the feeling, kiddo."
LOCATION: Middleton Space Center Robotics Laboratory
TIME: May 24th, 2008. 0000 Hours.
Doctor James Possible sorted through various crates of spare robotics parts in the warehouse. He would count, he would make a note, he would move on to the next crate. That was his job now. His job as a father to take care of his family. To take care of Anne, Tim, Jim, and… Kim. James let out a sigh. His only daughter was alone in this world and suffering and there wasn't much for him to do about it. Her twenty-first birthday around the corner, and they were just struggling to keep everyone fed and the bills paid so he couldn't even afford a damn cuddlebuddy for her.
James sat down on his step-ladder and began to sketch. It was about the only thing he could do to keep himself awake on these long nights. Robots, circuits, equations - ideas that would never be realized now that every government and scientific body on the planet viewed him as a liability. As if he knew that Hephaestus would be capable of creating half-human, half-machine hybrids that could take on entire armies? It's bad enough that every half-baked criminal on the planet was lining up to become a robot when real people could use that technology. People like Kim!
James dropped his pencil.
Kim could use that technology! James grabbed his pencil again and flipped the inventory worksheet paper over and began to blueprint. This year he would give his daughter the best gift yet. Everything he needed was right here in the warehouse. His supervisor was only around for maybe an hour a day. Some of the lab guys still owed him favors. He could do this.
LOCATION: Kim's Bedroom, Possible Family Home
TIME: July 2nd, 2008. 1900 Hours.
"You wanted to talk to me, Dad?" Kim asked as she sat at her desk going over her bills for the month.
James Possible stood at the entrance to his daughter's room with a grin larger than anything she had seen him wear in years, "Indeed Kimmie cub. Remember when I said you would have to wait for your birthday present because it wasn't ready yet?"
Kim's eyes rolled around as she thought back a couple of months, "Uh huh. I just figured it was because we were tight on cash."
James shook his head proudly, "Couldn't be further from the truth. Actually, it had to do more with finding time at work I could manage to get into the lab to work on it."
Kim's eyes went wide, "The LAB? Dad, you said work wouldn't let you near-"
"I know, I know, Kim. But the guys owed me some favors, and it was such a brilliant idea they couldn't possibly say no - aftersomegenerousbribes - and they even helped me out with the construction!"
Kim was baffled at this point, "Construction? Did you build me a robot pony or something? That was ten birthdays ago, Dad." She chuckled a bit, half at her own joke, and half just trying to ease the tension of the situation. This was bad. They couldn't afford for her Dad to lose his job. Especially with the Tweebs gearing up for college.
"I built you something better," James announced as he unrolled a large sheet of paper unveiling schematics for… an arm and a leg? Parts of a torso? Rocket boosters? Kim stared at the sheet of paper in complete bewilderment. James took the hint, "It's something of an upgrade for you Kimmie. I used some of my old Hephaestus know how to engineer new limbs for you, and a cybertronic chassis built into your torso, oh and a few other new features."
Kim's mouth dropped, "Dad. No. Why? Your job!?"
James dropped the blueprint and knelt down to his daughter, "My job is to make sure my daughter has every chance she can to live her dream. You want to save the world? I am going to make sure you are the best person for the job that ever lived."
Kim's eyes welled up with tears and rolled down the ridges of her burn scarred cheek. Her face couldn't decide which emotion to show - fear, happiness, anger, love - she decided to just skip the whole internal debate and threw her arms around her father, "Thank you. Thank you so much, Dad."
LOCATION: Middleton Hospital
TIME: July 5th, 2008. 2200 Hours.
Anne and James possible rolled their daughter in a wheelchair down the long hallway of the surgical wing of the hospital. They smiled and nodded at everyone they came across, trying to hide that they were sweating bullets. Everything they aimed to do here was illegal, immoral, and abuse of any and all trust they were given by those around them. But it was also for their daughter, and that made it worth it.
As they neared the room that Anne had discreetly reserved for an 'emergency plastic surgery' this evening, they heard a voice, "James. I had expected better of you."
The doctors Possible slowly turned to be greeted by Vivian Porter who began to march towards them, "Those weasels you call colleagues ratted you out, James. I know everything. The theft of government property, the violations of no less than twelve United Nations regulations about the use of experimental technology, and the horrific breach in ethical science. You did all this, just so your daughter could be a hero again."
Kim's heart began to pound harder and harder as Vivian approached. Her eyes wide with fear as she could hear the footsteps of her hopes being crushed approaching. James and Anne were not much better off, they stood rigid as Dr. Porter approached them. The coldness in her voice and the anger in her eyes could only mean that the attempt was dead in the water before it began.
"So, James. I only have ONE question for you," Vivian stated, her voice like steel cutting through the air and into the hearts of the Possible family. Vivian stopped as she came face-to-face with Kim's Dad, only mere inches apart, "Why didn't you ask me for help first? This is for KIM, for Pete's sake. You'd think you could trust me with this!" And with that, Dr. Porter let loose a thunderous slap against James Possible's cheek.
James froze for a second, her face still turned from the impact of the slap. He blinked a few times and then without moving his head looked at his wife, "I... am confused. Is this a good thing or bad thing?" Anne shrugged and Kim let loose a small but honest to goodness giggle.
"It's a very good thing, Doctor, if you are planning to implant semi-autonomous intelligence programs into your daughter to help maintain her core body functions along with all this additional hardware. Don't get me wrong, your cybertronic work is top notch - but you need an AI expert assisting on this one," Vivian stated stepping past James and Anne, then leaned down to Kim, "And don't you worry, Kim. You're going to better than new when you wake up tomorrow."
Kim smiled at Vivian and with tears of relief in her eyes, gave the older woman a big hug.
All three doctors then proceeded into the surgery room to get Kim prepped. As Anne laid her down on the operating table, James prepped a cart with various robotic body parts, and Vivian pulled out a laptop with a dozen different cords and attachments to it. Kim smiled as her mother lowered the face mask on to her and she fell asleep, and for the first time since high school Kim was excited for what tomorrow would bring.
Next Chapter: Phoenix