Chapter 11: Your Friends Close and Your Enemies Closer

September 15th. 2006, 9:34pm

Retroville, TX - Jimmy's House

"ARRGH! WHEN WILL THIS NIGHTMARE END?!" Sheen shouted as if he was tortured, when really, he was having to draw four cards. They played through various games and decided to end the night with Uno in the living room.

"Well that's what you get when you thought of skipping me in the first round, silly," Libby shrugged smugly.

"Uno!" Carl yelled happily, but still making sure to hide the card.

Carl's already down to his last card… Jimmy thought intensely. Judging by the reflection of his glasses his last card's either a green or a blue. I can't get him directly and if I whisper it to Libby, that's considered cheating. But I could tip the scale by using one of my red cards, but I can't tell what number he has, or if anyone would switch the color. If I had a skip, it'll be more certain that the color remains red, but- His thoughts were immediately interrupted by Sheen waving his hand over Jimmy's face, snapping him out of his train of thought. "Huh?"

"We don't have all night 'King Zora,'" Cindy quipped a tad impatiently. "It's your move!" Jimmy then looks down at the coffee table to a yellow 5 on top of the deck. He then used a yellow 8. Once it reached Carl, he had a wild card on the bottom, which meant he could win, regardless of color.

"YAAAAY!" Carl screamed at the top of his lungs. "I BEAT UNO!"

"NO FAIR! IF THIS WAS THE ULTRALORD CARD GAME (trademark) THIS NEVER WOULD'VE HAPPENED!" Sheen angrily shouted as he threw his hand of cards on the table. \

Hugh then came out of the master bedroom a tad annoyed. "Now now kids, it's getting a little late, so you may wanna wrap it up soon before Sugar Booger has to come out and use her "mom voice" to quiet you down. And believe me, that doesn't end well for the night, he thought to himself.

"Well since the game's done, we should probably head home," Libby chimed in with a yawn. After Hugh went back to bed, the five of them walked out the door and onto the driveway. "Thanks for the fun evening Jimmy," she put a thumbs up before walking home.

"I guess I'll see you tomorrow Jim to see Elkie," Carl waved on his way home.

"Later dude," Sheen casually said as he walked away.

"I-uh wanted to ask something before I leave," Cindy spoke quietly.

"Huh, what is it?" Jimmy wondered as he looked back.

She then started to tap her index fingers together nervously while looking away. "You know about the Fall Festival starting next Friday, right?"

"Yeah."

"And that the night of the first day begins with a dance…"

"You want me to be your dance partner?" Jimmy smiled knowing what she was gonna ask.

That's one way to put it, but it's a step in the right direction "Yeah, Libby's gonna be with Sheen all day and Carl and Nick seem to be taken, so…"

"Yeah, that'll work!" Jimmy said with a thumbs up.

"And don't go leaving me hanging like you did at the dance contest last year!" Cindy warned. "Had to go all the way to Shangri-Llama to find you, and I won't do that again."

"Don't worry, I won't pull anything, so long as you don't either," Jimmy held his hand out.

"I promise," Cindy half-smiles as she shakes his hand. "Anyway, I should probably get going. I don't wanna make my mom too upset. See ya around Jimmy!" She says as she heads across the street with one last wave.

Jimmy waves back as he walks over to the clubhouse entrance. Let's see what happens with *this* first, he thought to himself. Jimmy pulls a strand of his hair out and Vox scans him granting him clearance. He took the elevator inside the clubhouse down into the lab itself. He then walked over to a cage in the center of the computer room. In it layed an unconscious Evil Jimmy on an inflatable bed, hooked up to an enhanced Dreaming Injector 5000. This was modified to where Jimmy could enter anyone's mind that's hooked up to it without taking any physical injuries.

"BARK! BARK!" Goddard greeted Jimmy, almost tackling him.

"Hey boy! I saved you a few soda cans!" Jimmy happily said to Goddard as he tossed some. Goddard then started eating them.

"I need you to do a favor for me," Jimmy started. "I need you to watch over the both of us, as I put myself in the DI-5. The likelihood of anything happening is miniscule, but since my evil clone possesses my intelligence, anything could happen. Can you do that boy?"

Goddard nodded.

"That's a good boy," Jimmy said as he hooked himself up as he went to sleep.

Jimmy then found himself in a black void with nothing but green digital text raining about. He would keep walking for a short bit, until he found Evil Jimmy tied up in neon cuffs for his arms and legs, sitting on a chair resembling one he'd see in school.

"So, the wimpy dip managed to keep me alive, eh?" Evil Jimmy smirked. "Not a bold move einstein."

"That's only partially correct, clone," Jimmy said, maintaining a calm composure. "You were killed on the moon. From what, I'm not sure. But I used the Electro-Life to revive you. I know you can't be trusted, so I made sure you stay in a comatose state, within a reality I created for you. A mental prison if you will. Unable to wake up. So what do you think?" he asked as he smirked back.

"Hmm… first impressions?" Evil Jimmy pondered. "Not great. Could use a comfier bed, a purple flurp or a movie."

"Tell you what clone. You can have all of that. This can be a nice little home for you to reside in." Jimmy's semi-playful expression became serious. "Only if you tell me something: Who's REALLY behind the attack you took part in?"

"You know, for a genius you seem to miss the obvious," Evil Jimmy responded. To this, Jimmy raised an eyebrow. "You're looking at the ringleader of it all right here."

"I am a genius," Jimmy started. "That's why I can tell you're lying through your teeth. I know whomever sent the drone to shoot you was not your doing, nor how you got out of the Dark Matter Dimension. There's no way to leave that on your own."

"Maybe, I'm smarter than you realize and found a way out, sunshine…" Evil Jimmy shrugged.

"Hmm… Very well." Jimmy said as he started to walk away and press some buttons on his watch.

"Where's my 'comfier home'?" Evil Jimmy asked while attempting to use air quotes. "Don't tell me you don't believe me."

"You can make yourself comfortable with what you have until you're willing to cooperate. Until then, I bid thee goodnight," Jimmy said as he phased out of the simulation.

"Hmph," Evil Jimmy scoffed. "If only you knew…"

To Be Continued...