"The Adventures of Professor Proton, Jr: The Proton Express…"
Summary: In my first longer Proton Jr tale, can Prof Proton Jr. aka mild-mannered Sheldon Cooper and Dr. Amy aka Amy F. Fowler save the world at Christmas…And can Proton Jr. keep that blond sob of an engineering genius Tom Swift, Jr. away from his girl?
Equally important…Should Cameragirl Penny allow this thing to appear on her acting credits or just accept that all hope of a professional career is gone and just enjoy while peddling her drugs?
Disclaimer: All is Chuck's…
Part LI…
"Is everyone all right?" Swift called. "Bernadette, Dr. Amy?"
"Remarkably so…" Dr. Amy noted. "Proton?"
"Ok, Tom." Bernadette, rising to her feet.
"Yes…Though I did bang my knee a bit." Proton, rubbing leg.
"Not bad considering we should have been vaporized on hitting the water." Swift noted.
"You would have been vaporized…" Sermek noted, a bit smugly. "I would have been singed a little."
("This is delightful…" Raj noted happily to Leonard, muting his microphone. "I get superstrength in a robot body and be snarky as hell to everyone, especially Sheldon.")
"And broken into about a thousand bits." Proton frowned.
"I self-repair, meat bag. Do you?" Sermek, definitely smug.
("Leonard…!" Sheldon called, annoyed. "Sheldon, we're going for a Smith and Robot vibe here." Leonard shrugged. "Really? I'm Dr. Smith?" Sheldon eyed him. "Minus the sabotage and the murder, and the murder attempts, yeah." "Oh, well then. Carry on, you clattering bucket of bolts." He addressed the Sermek automaton, Howard controlling.
"Yeah, just be careful Howard doesn't grab your you know what with one of those hands." Penny noted, cheerily. "He's been known not to know what to do with robot hands." Grin to Amy who offered smile back.
"Well, Sheldon has been a good sport in most of this." Penny noted off-handedly to Leonard.)
Mary's holoimage reappearing… "Is everyone well?"
"Yes, thanks Mary…" Bernadette spoke up. "Your ship is remarkable."
"We're glad you survived." Mary offering what they assumed was a smile. "I'm attempting to transmit our success to my creators. Hopefully the jamming has ceased. But we are still descending toward the ocean floor. Expect impact in one minute, twenty-five seconds."
"Will your hull hold?" Tom asked.
"With protective shields, similar to your repelatron, it should." Mary nodded. "But, I don't think we can maneuver in your ocean, I'm sorry."
"The specimens are safe?" Bernadette, anxiously.
"All containment systems are functional." Mary replied. "Not to worry, I'm keeping them safe."
"No way to stop and reverse us back to the surface, Mary?" Tom asked.
"I'm afraid not, Thomas." Mary shook head, in quite human gesture. "It drained my power cells considerably to manage our landing, though again, containment is secure."
"You'll be all right, Mary?" Dr. Amy, concerned.
"Oh, yes. My power systems will recharge. Just not able to help as I wish I could, Amy. I'm sorry."
"Not at all, you saved our lives as well as the specimens." Amy replied. "Thank you so much."
"Yeah…Thanks." Bwarry suddenly rising. And grabbing Dr. Amy… "All right, Swift…Proton, if you want…Ooof!" as Dr. Amy elbowed him in the gut. He falling back.
("Sorry, sorry, Barry." Amy, apologetically as he groaned. "I misjudged the force required…Sorry, Lesley." To a glaring Lesley who'd rushed to Barry.
"No, I'm fine." Barry straightening up. "Just trying to make it…Urggh…Realistic." As he vomited.
"I thought you rehearsed this!" Lesley angrily. "Come on, honey." Leading Barry off, he turning to wink at the stunned Amy…It's ok. Resuming slight groan.
"He's ok…" Penny noted to an anxious Amy… I really didn't mean to…We did rehearse… "I showed him how to fake it, he wanted to impress Lesley." Grin.
"I can't help wanting to encourage Romance right now." she beamed, indicating Wyatt giving Leonard a bear hug.
"Boy or girl, who cares! You're the best, son!" Wyatt noted to a nervously beaming Leonard, now released from hug. "I owe you my little girl's happiness, thank you for never giving up on her!"
"What?" Penny, staring… "You were about to give up on me? When? Why?"
"No, slugger." Wyatt, hastily. "I thought he might. Only cause you seemed to be so unsure and I knew why. But he never did. I just thought he was the best thing to ever happen to you." Fond smile to Leonard.
"Uh-huh. Well, that's true enough." Penny nodded, Leonard clearly relieved, a bit. "But…Daddy…"
"I couldn't let you lose him just cause you thought you weren't good enough for him." Wyatt sighed. "If that hurts you, I don't and didn't mean to. I was afraid you thought you didn't deserve a good man like him. I just wanted you to see that you did."
"Well…You really thought I deserved him…?" faint smile.
"No one less for my slugger." He nodded.
"Yeah, well…." She shrugged. "Excuse us." She turned to Leonard, pulling him along as he stared. Outside the stage area doors, down the hallway…He looking about nervously till she pulled him into a small room.
"Sorry…" he began. "I wasn't…"
"Thank you for never giving up on me. I should have said that so many times myself." She eyed him. "Actually I sorta did…Right?" Careful eyeing.
"Sure…" he nodded hastily.
"Oh…Leonard…" she shook head. "If I could only really make you see what I'm tryin' to say here."
"I do. I get it. But Penny, I'm grateful too…You didn't give up on me."
"Leonard…I let Wil Wheaton nearly talk me out of you." She frowned. "Wil Wheation, for God's sake. But at least, believe me when I say, I have nightmares where I lost you for good. The man who saved me from a lifetime of Kurts. Who knew even before I did how badly I was letting myself be treated cause I didn't…" sobbing. "What my daddy, bless his interferin' soul said."
"Penny…"
"You coulda gone with Lesley…Alex even better…Prya…well, no way. I'd've killed her. All right. Alex, too. Maybe especially Alex." Smile.
"Don't tell Raj that. Or Alex." Stare.
"No. But I think he knows. And she ought to be able to guess. Though, I suppose…" shrug. "Don't you ever tell her this but she's my back-up if I croak too soon." Hard stare.
"Leonard, I may be terrified to tell you sometimes how much you mean to me…" she shook head. "But I love you more than anything in this world."
"I love you more, too. And no 'back-up' required, Penny."
"Well, make sure you take care of yourself, my lil homunculus." Tearful grin. "Cause the moment you go and the kids are ok…" wagging finger at him.
"Well, you take care of yourself, Mrs H." he insisted, mock sternly. "'Cause I don't wanna be here, except for the kids, a moment longer than you."
"We're damned good parents, aren't we?" she noted, grinning.
"Yes, we are…" Leonard nodded. "And while I may not be a proper judge of good parenting, I know bad parenting when I see it."
"Well, you let my daddy be your daddy too." She insisted. "Cause he's the best, like you. And you deserve the best, my poor darling." Kissing him.
"Oh, now don't you go crying too, Leonard…" she sighed. "We'll be stuck here all afternoon and we have our big scenes coming up. And Wil Wheaton to kill, cinematically." Arch smile.)
…
"All stations confirm no serious damage, Commander." Number One reported to the Commander. "We are maintaining course to try to match the ship's descent but it's headed for the bottom. We're risking crush depth."
"Hold at 8000 feet, Number One."
"Aye, sir." Slight eyeing. "The President…"
"We can't recover or destroy if our hull's crushed." She noted calmly. "Carry out my orders."
"Yes, sir. 4000 feet and descending."
…
"Mary…?" Tom looked up at the patient and kindly if insectoid face of the hologram. "Can your hull withstand the pressure at bottom?"
"Yes, Thomas. But…I cannot maneuver once we hit bottom and I can not offer much protection from the impact. I'm sorry."
"It's all right, we'll brace ourselves and the Sky Queen and my dad will pull us up. Everyone? Brace for the impact on the sea floor."
"We're being pursued, Thomas." Mary noted. Displaying a holographic image of the Lermontov.
"They're crazy if they go much deeper. Crush depth for that class is 10000 feet." Tom noted. "Is everyone set?"
"I wish we could get word to Bud and Dad." Bernadette sighed, lying on the floor of the ship.
"We'll try to amp our signal." Tom noted. "Proton, any way you could get Bernadette and Amy at least outta here with the dark matter unit?"
"Trying but I can't get a secure lock down here. And the unit has taken a beating." Proton noted as he viewed the controls of the unit.
"How's about letting another expert have a try at it?" the somewhat recovered, now tightly gripped by Sermek, Bwarry suggested. "It's my life too." He noted.
"Not a chance…" Tom, firmly. "But lets have a look at yours. Proton? Let me know if I can cannibalize anything. Sermek, maintaining the order, do not let Wyckcliffe go under any circumstances without my direct order."
"Gotcha, boss." Sermek, nodding head. "Wanna dance?" facing the fuming Wyckcliffe.
"Get outta my face, you cheap tin can. You know Putinsky won't let you take this ship! Pretty dumb to let us all die here, Swift." Bwarry called.
"Yeah, you'd think you'd killed your own sister, the way we don't trust you." Bernadette noted drily to his grim look at her.
…
