Emerging Compassions

Chapter 13: Trouble In Our Midst...

(Libby's POV)

I saw that shocked look on Neutron's face and asked, "What's so shocking, Neutron?"

After typing a few more moments, Jimmy fearfully replied, "Calamitous and Gorgeous have escaped from jail! There's no telling what havoc they're capable of wreaking on the entirety of Retroville, and eventually, the world! We need to find out where they are and discover what sort of plot they're planning to unfold in the near future! Let's go!"

Sheen, being the immature guy that he was, even though just a BIT more mature than at age 12, excitedly proclaimed, "To the rocket!"

Somethin' tells me we shoulda found out what their plan was before we started to actually search fo' 'em..., I thought begrudgingly to myself as we climbed into his rocket and blasted off. It wasn't long before we began our search for them, starting in the closest place they could be: in suburban Retroville.

We all got out of the rocket and Cindy asked, "Now what should we do, Neutron?"

"We should try to find a way in...," he told us thoughtfully, looking around some for a few moments to search for a panel or pressure plate that could let us in somehow.

"Who knows? We COULD be here awhile...," Sheen muttered, still having the same short attention span as he did in the past.

Then he apparently saw something, because he instructed, "Watch this!" He pressed the unobvious pressure plate on the wall of the house and an automatic door opened up in the ground next to the house that led via a diagonal, metal passage to the interior of the lair.

"This looks like fun! BANZAI!" Sheen immediately hollered as he slid down the passage into the lair. Once there, he hollered again, "C'mon, guys! Whatcha waitin' for?"

Jimmy just shrugged and muttered, "Ah, what the heck?" Then he slid down shortly after Sheen did, exclaiming, "Yaa-HOOO!"

"I'm next!" Cindy said, and slid down after him, shouting, "WHEEEE!"

"Right behind ya!" I yelled excitedly, and slid down, too, yelling out of pleasure, "Waaa-HOOO!"

"Wait for me!" Carl hollered, and was the last to slide down the passage.

Once we all got to our feet, I asked, "See anything, Neutron?"

"Nothing aside from his numerous old inventions," he observed.

"Wow, they must be somewhere else, then," I heard Cindy mutter. Then she started giggling a bit, saying, motioning for Jimmy to approach her and one of her hands on her slightly protruding stomach, "Hee, hee! I feel movement!"

"What is it, Vortex?" Jimmy began to ask, then exclaimed, placing his hand on her stomach with her permission, "He or she's moving? Wow!"

"Yep, that's the miracle of life for ya right there! That's our child, Neutron! Isn't it exciting?" she informed him excitedly.

"Yes, it is! I guess the most embarrassing accidents turn out to be the greatest blessings in life!" he told her gladly.

"Yes, I agree," I put in, feeling movement in my stomach, as well, "It IS a wonderful gift, but we need to focus on why we originally came here."

"Libby brings up a good point," Jimmy added firmly, "We need to find out where Calamitous and Gorgeous are hiding, and they're not here, so let's get going!" With that, he pressed a button on his watch and we were all teleported back to his rocket. We all got in and blasted off again.

While on our way to our next destination, Cindy suggested, "Couldn't you use your radar screen to search for them so we'd find them quicker, Neutron?"

"Great idea, Cindy! I don't know WHY this didn't occur to me before," Jimmy complimented her, then used his radar screen to do just that.

Then he muttered, "Just as I thought!"

"Where are they, Jim?" Carl wanted to know.

"Just where they were 6 years ago when we had to rescue Jet Fusion: the Himalayas of Asia!" Jimmy informed us.

"They're with a bunch of Asian cats?" Sheen guessed dim-wittedly.

"No, Ultra-DORK!" Cindy snapped, "The largest mountain range in the world, where Mount Everest is!"

"Sheen," I told him firmly, "Just shut up, okay?"

"Sorry," he said as we closed in on the Himalayas...