Noir and Ron circled each other, staring into each others eyes.
Despite his confident appearance, Noir found himself shaken to the core. He had planned to face Kim Possible, not Ron. Noir’s early programming had been a combination of influences, including Dr. Drakken. Based on Drakken’s input… Ron was a buffoon. A distraction. How had the buffoon found Noir, then? Especially after Noir had maneuvered Dr. Drakken into practically rolling out the red carpet for Kim.
Ron, meantime, was totally focused on the opponent in front of himself. He could not allow his concern for Monique interfere. Noir was his fault. Somehow, playing the clown had let the Evil Brotherhood create this dark copy of himself. Only one of them was going to leave this fight upright, Ron vowed to himself.
Suffer shook his head, clearing it, as he got back up on all fours. Still a little shocked from the impact from the wall, he growled. One of his massive fangs had cracked, breaking off at the gum line, but one fang remained. Suffer stared, trying to figure which of the four images in front of it was his master, and which was their enemy Ron Stoppable…
Rufus turned, seeing Suffer get back up. “Uh oh…” Rufus squeaked.
“Uh oh…” muttered Sheki, rolling back. A robot arm, equipped with a glowing red prod, thrust into the space she had just occupied. She gestured, a blast of green energy flying from her hands toward the robot. In response, it spun; a yellow energy shield on it’s back dissipating the plasma blast.
“Hey, no fair!” said Jim. “You left the Plasma-dissipater shield on full power!”
“Kasy was able to blast through it!” said Tim.
“You know Sheki can’t generate as powerful a blast as Kasy can, and even that blast wore Kasy out!” said Jim, pointing at where Kasy was curled up on a couch, fast asleep.
The two tweebs argued as their attack robot continued to attack at Sheki, the raven-haired girl barely managing to dodge each attack. The robot paused for a moment, resetting its attack routines. Sheki considered the situation, then decided on the optimal attack solution. She turned, running away.
The robot beeped, then rolled after Sheki.
“If Kasy could beet it, Sheki should be able to beet it.” said Jim.
“Sheki’s better with fine control, not raw power, and you know it!” said Tim.
“Hey, if she can’t… hey, where’d she go?” said Jim.
Suffer’s vision had finally stabilized, no longer seeing double. He growled, bracing to spring at Ron’s unguarded back. Just as he was about to leap, Rufus barreled into him tackling him. The two begin struggling, fighting each other; Suffer’s larger size and genetically enhanced musculature against Rufus’s greater life experience and training.
Yori glanced at the four combatants, then back at Monique. Yori’s training at the secret ninja school had included advanced first aid training, and right now it was taking all her skill to keep Monique alive. Noir’s blow had been delivered with full intention to kill, and she only hoped that both Ron and Rufus were up for this fight.
Monique drifted between states, not fully conscious and not fully unconscious. Despite being close to death, her eyes still tried to focus on Ron. Looking down at Monique, Yori realized how badly she had misjudged her. When she had first heard of Monique’s relationship with Ron, she had been sure it was just a passing fancy. Ron was the monkey master, granted a skill in hand to hand combat few could match. Yori was one of those people; Shego and Kim two others. It would take at least twenty years of intense training before Monique could hope to match those skills.
However, Monique had the will of a warrior. While she might not have had the strength or skill Ron and Yori both had, she had enough determination to match them step for step. She had kept up with Yori and Ron on their quest to find Ron’s dark twin; complaining, often… quitting, never.
Yori had at once time fantasized that she and Ron were destined to be together, before she accepted that his path was different then hers. She had come to love Hirotaka just as much as she had loved Ron. Yori vowed to herself that she would make sure that Ron would not know the pain she knew, from the death of her betrothed.
“Hold on.” she said to Monique, fighting for Monique’s life as surely as Ron did now, battling with Noir.
“Delete…. Delete….”
The robot rolled through the corridors of the Golden Gun Girls Retirement Home, its head turret swiveling as it followed Sheki’s heat trail, into the aerobic exercise room. The area was dimly lit, forcing the robot to continue using infrared tracking. The heat trail clearly showed Sheki moving to hide behind a large stack of floor mats.
“Delete…. Delete…” the robot chanted, as it rolled toward the mat, confident Sheki would be on the other side.
On the other side of the mats, Sheki braced herself against the wall. She had watches as her sister had been forced to use every drop of her plasma powers to overload the electrical plasma-disruption shield on the robot’s back. Sheki knew she could not match her sister for raw strength, preferring to focus on accuracy. However, when the robot was freely able to maneuver, it could bring the shield on it’s back into any angle, blocking even the most accurate of shots. Sheki glanced at a side mirror… the robot had stopped on the other side of the mats, and was beginning to turn.
With a grunt, Sheki shoved back against the mats, with all the strength in her preschooler body. The mats tipped over, spilling onto the robot.
“Error…. Error…” it began to chant, the mats avalanching on top of it. Its combat arms were soon pinned by the mats, and other mats fell around it, making the robot unable to escape or defend itself. Sheki, grinning, moved over to the robot and pointed one finger at it, miming a gun. The very tip of her finger glowed, as she aimed at the robot’s vulnerable optic sensors.
The robot realized it was beaten, and responded. With a hiss, the robot split open. Sheki watched curiously; last time, the robot had revealed a soccer ball for her sister. Now, it revealed a stuffed, orange and blue animal.
With a squeal of delight, Sheki grabbed the stuffed toy, her finger ceasing to glow. Tim and Jim came into the robot, inspecting their robot.
“Great job, Sheki!” said Jim. He elbowed his twin. “See? I told you Sheki could beat the bot.”
“I didn’t say she couldn’t!” retorted Tim. “I just said you had it too high for her to beat it the way Kasy did!”
As Tim and Jim squabbled, Sheki wrapped her arms around the Tig-guin (Tiger / Penguin), hugging it happily.
As Ron and Noir fought each other, Rufus wrapped his paws around the Saber Toothed Mole rat (Prehistoric Saber Tooth Cat / Rufus’s own DNA), holding it in a bear hug. The larger mole rat hissed, thrashing in Rufus’s grip and trying to dig his remaining fang or his razor sharp claws into Rufus. With a heave, Rufus threw Suffer as hard as he could against the floor.
Dazed, Suffer got to his feet and snarled. Rufus sighed. The genetically modified duplicate seemed obsessed with fighting, and unfortunately, it naturally (or unnaturally, depending on your point of view) was a lot stronger and tougher then Rufus was. So far, Rufus had only survived by keeping Suffer off balance and dazed, and even then there was several spots where Rufus was bleeding, proof he occasionally hadn’t been fast enough to dodge Suffer’s claws completely. Rufus knew, if Suffer got ahold of him, that Rufus would be going to that giant building made of cheese in the sky.
Ron and Noir separated, panting. Noir’s right eye was swollen, making it hard for him to see out of it. Several other bruises were covered by his red unitard, and one shoulder of the garment had been badly ripped. While Noir had exactly the same level of skill as Monkey Fist when it came to Monkey Kung Fu, his early training had been done via computer; as a result, he fought like a robot, moving swiftly but mechanically. Several times, Noir had moved into the perfect logical countering move, only to have Ron’s hand or foot strike him where he had not expected.
Ron’s vision was partially obscured, due to blood dripping from a gash in his forehead. Her left arm was blood stained and he was panting heavily. Ron had trained with the Ninja High School and watching two of the world’s most dangerous women fighting; fist against each other, then together. Ron combined that experience with his own unpredictability, merging them into a combat style that had so far kept him alive. However, he lacked Noir’s pure bloody ruthlessness or pure raw speed.
The fight had lasted much longer then either man had expected, and the reason was the Lotus Blade. It responded to both men’s minds, causing this to be a fight of both brain and body. When it seemed like Ron was about to finally knock Noir unconscious, the blade had reshaped itself to protect Noir’s head. When Noir had been about to stab Ron through the heat, the blade had bent aside, only cutting Ron’s arm.
Noir stepped back, pulling the sword back to swing. Ron stepped forward, planning to grab Noir’s arm, and stepped in a puddle, created when Noir and Ron’s blood co-mingled. Ron’s foot slipped out from under him, the lanky teenager falling to the ground.
Noir’s eyes seemed to glow with blood lust as he raised the Lotus Blade, preparing to plunge it into Ron’s unprotected form. Desperate, Ron focused every fragment of mental energy he could on the Lotus Blade, knowing that his only hope was to beet Noir’s own control over the Lotus Blade. “Rufus! I need you!” screamed Ron.
Rufus looked up from where he was holding Suffer in an arm lock. Realizing what he had to do, Rufus released Suffer and concentrated, his mole-rat mind reaching out across the distance to combine with Ron’s, desperately trying to reshape the blade that was plunging it’s way toward Ron’s heart.
The Lotus Blade pierced through cloth, through skin, through ribs. Driven by Noir’s powerful arms, the metal blade finally pierced the heart. Blood poured from the open wound, coating the magical weapon. Ron stared dumbfounded at the sword. He had never expected it to end this way.
The mad glare faded from Noir’s eyes as he stared down, first at Ron, then at the Lotus Blade. The Lotus Blade that had curved… and stabbed into Noir’s own chest.
Noir staggered back, as Ron scrambled to his feet. “Noir…” said Ron, shocked.
Noir tugged, pulling the sword out. His lifeblood pumped out on the floor, as he tried to lift the sword. Instead, the Lotus Blade slipped from his fingers. “You…” he said, staring at Ron. “I was… supposed… to kill you….”
Ron took a step toward Noir, then froze. He had no idea what to do now, watching as the clone fell to his knees. Noir reached out to Ron, his hands red with his own heart’s blood as if trying to plead with Ron.
And then… barely a month old… the Supremely Evil One collapsed.
And died.
“Ron!” screamed Yori. Startled, Ron whirled, afraid something more had happened to Monique. Instead, she was staring at where Rufus and Suffer were.
Ron turned. While Rufus had focused on helping Ron, Suffer had managed to gain the upper hand. It raised Rufus high over head, then slammed the molerat down on the ground. Rufus shrieked, then passed out unconscious. Suffer opened his mouth wide, revealing small, razor sharp teeth and one remaining fang, and moved to rip out Rufus’s throat before Ron or Yori could stop him.
-BANG-
Yori and Run both turned in shock. Monique looked up at them. “Had to save…. someone…” gasped Monique, then her eyes rolled back. The gun she had pulled from her left holster slipped from her fingers, striking the ground as Monique, the immediate battle done, allowed herself to slip into merciful oblivion.
Yori and Ron looked at each other. Neither thought that Monique would survive for long without a hospital, and there was no way she would survive the pick up they had planned for the Ninja Plane. Both franticly searched each other’s faces, hoping one of them could come up with a miracle to save Monique’s life. There had to be some way, some possible way to save Monique.
“Freeze, Noir!”
Ron whirled, seeing a sight he had thought he had seen the last of… Shego, preparing to plasma blast him. “Shego! Kim! Thank god!”
Shego blinked in surprise. Behind her, Kim looked suspiciously at Ron. “Ron? But you’re on vacation with Monique?”
“Both Monique-san and Rufus-san are badly hurt.” said Yori, from where she knelt, still cradling Monique’s body. “We must get them to a hospital. The evil that was created here is dead.”
Kim turned, returning in minutes with a collapsible stretcher. Working together, she and Yori picked up Monique’s body and placed it on the stretcher. Growing up as the daughter of a world renowned medical doctor, she knew how to help get Monique into the Kiminator.
Shego moved to Noir’s body, then looked at Ron. Ron ignored both Noir’s body and the fallen Lotus Blade. Instead, he carefully picked up Rufus’s badly broken body and, cradling it, moved to follow as Kim and Yori carried Monique to the awaiting Kimminator.
Left alone with Noir’s corpse, Shego spoke. “First Ron has an arch-foe, then he’s got a sleep-in girl friend, and now he defeated the bad guy before Kim and I could even show up. There‘s no WAY this is the right universe!”
“Shego!” Kim yelled. “We need you to get the Kimminator flying!”
“Right!” said Shego, picking up the sword and going to follow her wife.
On the other side of the island, chaos reined. It practically flooded, in fact. The secret island was no longer secret; soon, everyone knew, it would be crawling with Global Justice Agents. It was every henchman for himself, grabbing any valuables and transportation they could find before escaping.
Gemini paced in a secret, underground cavern. Watching on security monitors, he knew that their great Supremely Evil One was dead. Dr. Drakken, one of the triumvite, was also dead. Dead suddenly seemed to be very catching; and now, even his loyal soldiers were deserting him. His best chance of escape was aboard the special submarine in this cavern. However, while it was automated so that one person could control it, the person in question was unfortunately Senor Senior Sr. Gemini lacked the codes required to launch the escape vessel. Finally, he saw Senor Senior Sr. entering, carrying a suitcase in one hand and, with the other hand, leading a young child of less then five.
Gemini frowned. He know of no children on the island, unless you counted the now deceased Noir Stoppable. “Who is that?” he demanded.
“Always have a back up plan.” said Senor Senior Sr. He put his suitcase down, and then stepped back to reveal the blonde haired boy beside him. “Gemini, meet the OTHER Ron Stoppable clone.”
“Another clone….” said Gemini. Hope began to pour into his body. “Yes! The Ron Factor will still be ours! Together, we will raise him… train him…”
“Gemini.” said Senor Senior Sr, interrupting the slightly younger man in mid-scheming.
“Mold him, shape…. Yes, Senor Senior Sr?” asked Gemini.
“I am afraid there is one slight problem with that plan.” said Senor Senior Sr.
Gemini frowned. “What problem?”
“In the plan…. There is no room for you.”. Before Gemini could respond, Senor Senior Sr pulled a pistol out with his right hand and shot Gemini, straight between the eyes. The young boy watched silently, his hand never leaving Senor Senior Sr’s left hand.
“Come, grandson.” said Senor Senior Sr. “We must be off.”
Ron paced the narrow confines of the small house he and Monique had shared… Did share.
“You did all you could.” said Yori. “Mrs. Dr. Possible and Dr. Renton are both highly skilled surgeons. They will do all for Monique and Rufus that can be done.”
“They said…” Ron said, then sat suddenly on the floor. He pulled his knees against his chest, wrapping his arms around his legs for comfort. “They said… Monique and Rufus might not survive. That….”
Yori came over to Ron and hugged him tight. “We must hope, Ron-san….”
“Why couldn’t Kim and Shego have stayed?” Ron asked.
“They had to go get their daughters.” Yori said. “It is just you and I.”
Ron looked at Yori. “Yori… please…. I… I can’t stand the thought of being alone tonight.”
NoDrogs here. I hope you’ve found the story exciting so far. I’m not QUITE finished yet…. Not while Rufus’s and Monique’s lives hang in the balance. To Recap: Noir and Suffer: dead. Dr. Drakken and Gemini: dead. Senor Senior Sr. and Ron Stoppable Mark 3: Alive. Sheki, Kasy, Tim, Jim, and the residents of the Golden Gun Girl’s Retirement Home: Perhaps surprisingly, alive and unhurt. Ron, Yuri, Kim, and Shego: Alive. Monique and Rufus?
Anyway, as I said, this is a rough draft. If anyone wants to volunteer to make a list of corrections I need to make, please post it kpslashhaven . net