“How is she?”
“They’re treating her fine. Why do you even care?”
“Oh, I dunno – sometimes I just…want to know some odd things, that’s all! You know what I mean?”
“I see. Well, I appreciate doing business with you, Dr.”
“Quite the same – oh, and tell Georgie “Hi” for me, will ya’? I think he’d be happy to hear from me.”
“And with 30 seconds to go in the 4th quarter, Middelton High School finds its 10-7 lead over the Brookdale Horn Toads slipping away as the Horn Toads have forced a fumble and now have the ball at the 40 on 3rd down. Here’s the snap - short pass to Johnson - OOH! He’s leveled by O’Reilly! Wow, she is really making it clear to the Horned Toads that she’s no helpless princess, isn’t she? The twenty-fifth tackle tonight by Middleton’s first female player! She’s just stomping the old record of ten to pieces! And now it appears that – yes, the Brookdale coach had called his team’s last timeout of the game.”
Shego stood up and pumped her first at the Middleton crowd, which gave a massive cheer as she ran back to the sidelines. Thank god for Fridays. When she put on the helmet, she finally had some time to unleash all the extra anger she was keeping pent up inside of her as of late – anger over Kim’s case. Ron and Wade knew her secret, and Ron had apologized for being a douche. Wade had been trying for two weeks to find any information on the evidence they’d found at Dementor’s, but so far had only managed to discover that which the public already knew: A melted black clawed glove had been found near familiar green slash marks in one of the walls. The perpetrators had tried to destroy the lair and bodies with a makeshift bomb fashioned out of a motorcycle – which was quickly confirmed to have been the same one recently stolen a day earlier from a store in Tokyo - by none other than Motor Ed. And near two dead henchmen found on opposite sides of a room the fire had only reached halfway - both who had been clearly killed in the middle of a violent struggle – a few singed black and red hairs had been found.
“C’mon, Shennen!” Monique yelled from the stands.
“C’MON, SHENNEN!” Ron seconded her sentiments.
“GO SHENNEN!” echoed the Possibles – even Tim and Jim were in the stands watching.
The DNA matched Shego & Kim’s. Other than that? Nothing. It was around that time that Kim had been arrested and put in Barkin Federal Prison as she awaited her extradition hearing. Almost immediately, a media blackout had been put on the case, for “issues of National Security,” as the DA had so eloquently put it whilst arguing in favor of the action. As Shego was wanted in 11 countries (a notion that to this day, still made her smile), she and Kim were now viewed as suspected international terrorists in the eyes of Homeland Security. All case files became classified Top Secret, Level 6 - one level further than Wade ever dared try hacking into, there was too much risk in getting caught. Shego had suggested Global Justice, but Wade ixnayed it: GJ had just recently fallen under the jurisdiction of Homeland Security - no way in Arctic Hell would Dr. Director commit high treason against America by impeding an investigation being carried out by the Department that now oversaw and provided all of GJ’s funding.
Politics. Shego snorted in disgust as the ref blew the whistle. She adjusted her mouthpiece and ran onto the field with the rest of the defence, greeted by cheers as she got into a three-point stance on the line.
“Hut!”
Shego eyed the player opposite her on the line. He was doing his best to give an intimidating grin.
“42!”
This was going to be easy.
“Down!”
Very easy.
“Set!”
Shego gave the grin that chilled even Pain King.
The lineman flinched.
TWEEEET! Three referees threw their penalty flags.
Shego turned around so she could laugh uproariously as the lineman cringed at his mistake and a few in the crowd cheered. That trick never failed… The penalty was called. False Start, offense. Five yard penalty, repeat third down. Shego walked back to the line, and got in the three-point position again.
“Down!”
She still couldn’t believe it. The whole thing reeked of a setup, yet the public bought it - hook, line, and goddamned sinker. Why? One word: “Terrorism.” She knew the general public was stupid – but damn…
“Set!”
Shego refocused her thoughts. Blitz time…
“Hike!”
On the snap, Shego barreled through the lineman like he was tissue paper. The running back ran by the QB, but Shego saw the play-action fake from a mile away. She spun by the safety, threw her arms out—
“Oh! I could hear that! And with her twenty-sixth tackle tonight, Shennen G. O’Reilly finally adds her first sack to the list! And more importantly, she’s forced the Horned Toads into a desperate situation. It’s now 4th and 15 for Brookdale, with 24 seconds left to go in the game. A quick first down, and they’re within field goal range. That’s all Brookdale needs to tie it up and take this game into Overtime.”
“Down!”
“GO MIDDLETON!” Shego distinctively heard Barkin’s guttural bellow.
“C’MON, SHENEN!” Tara - now captain of the cheer squad – yelled.
“HIKE!”
Shego backpedaled upon the snap. Brookdale’s only chance was a pass - she’d crushed any hope of their running backs being very effective. She watched the quarterback’s eyes; saw them flit right while his head looked left. She hurdled over a block attempt by another lineman, and ran to the right side.
“Here’s the pass—”
She shoved aside another offensive lineman, turned her head and threw up her arms-
“IT’S INTERCEPTED BY O’REILLY!”
The ball tucked away tightly in her grip, Shego raced down the field hearing the cheers come and go from her ears like a blur, faking every lineman that didn’t get blocked by Middleton’s linebackers.
“SHE’S AT THE 30! THE 20! THE 10! SHE COULD! GO! ALL! THE-”
A Brookdale player made it past the linebackers and leaped into the air at her - but Shego simply ducked down under the tackle attempt and slid into the end zone, feet-first, like she was a baseball player.
“TOUCHDOWN, O’REILLY! WITH ZERO SECONDS LEFT ON THE CLOCK! MIDDLETON HIGH SCHOOL WINS! THEY REMAIN UNDEFEATED IN THE TRI-CITY METRO DIVISION! PLEASE DON’T SUE ME FOR USING YOUR LINE, CHRIS BERMAN!”
As the rest of the team swarmed towards her in celebration and the cheers of the crowd entered her ears, Shego discarded all of it and ran over to the Brookdale player who had tried to tackle her. He’d slammed into the ground hard, and was not moving now. When she reached him, she recognized him instantly: It was the same poor lineman she’d faked out with her grin earlier. “Hey, buddy, you okay?” she asked, tapping his helmet lightly. He still didn’t move. “HEY, THIS GUY NEEDS SOME HELP HERE!”
The crowd had gone silent as the trainers for both teams ran out onto the field towards them. Shego did her best to hide her anxious shudder. After a few tense moments, the guy’s eyes opened. Shego sighed in relief, and offered her shoulder as the Brookdale trainer did the same on the downed player’s other side.
The cheers returned, twice as loud, as the two helped the injured lineman stand up and walk off the field.
Kim kept running across the open field, towards the forest. She may have escaped a Federal Prison and their K-9 units, but she’d just put herself in more danger than had she simply stayed in the damn place.
Suddenly, she froze. There were already cops in the forest! She knew exactly what those lights sweeping back and forth were. She could even see hear the distant sounds of a helicopter’s rotors, getting closer.
Kim looked behind her. That was too fast. She'd barely escaped prison. No way the cops had mobilized themselves that fast. Whoever it was chasing her now, they'd been paid quite handsomely. But by who?
“YEAH! Middleton is 2 and OH-HOOOO!” Ron celebrated as he leaped into the front hall of the Possible’s house. “Yup – things are sure lookin’ up for the Mad Dog this year!”
“Could they look a little less up?” Shego taunted as she entered with the rest of the Possibles, taking back her helmet from the Tweebs, who had snatched it from her and were tossing it between them.
“Nah, I’d rather they not,” Ron said, grabbing the remote and flicking on the TV.
“…National Terror Alert raised to Yellow today, as Kim Possible, the former teen hero recently arrested in connection to the murder of her former foe Professor Dementor in Bavaria two and a half weeks ago, broke out of Middleton’s own Barkin Federal Maximum Security Prison, where she was being held awaiting her Extradition hearing. She escaped unarmed, but the bodies of two K-9s released after her, and the body of a top Government agent who was visiting colleagues who worked at the Prison was found not far from the woods in which she was spotted running. She is considered now to be the most dangerous woman in the world. Meanwhile, there have been no developments in the search for the former most dangerous woman in the world, Shego. Shego has also been implicated in the murder of Professor Dementor, but was last seen-”
Shego’s helmet thudded to the floor.
As Kim went to hide behind a tree, a twig snapped. She whirled and threw the masked figure down, pinning them quickly, in a way that made it impossible for them to get up without choking themselves.
She tore the mask off their face – and almost stood up in her shock. “Will Du?” She quickly overcame her surprise and accosted him violently. “WHAT’S GOING ON HERE? SPILL!” she screamed at him.
Will struggled, and Kim did nothing to get ease his pain. “Kim – gak – Icame to warn you… You and augh – Shego – now international terrorists – GJ – gawk – under Homeland Security now – National Terror Alert raised to Yellow - Dir – Dir-”
SHINK. Something hit him in the head and he went silent. Kim leaped back to her feet. Just what she needed – snipers. How could her day get any worse? And what had Will Du been trying to say?
“Dir-”
Kim smacked herself in the head. “Director!” Duh… Dr. Director.
She cringed as it all dawned on her. How had she not seen that?
“You bitch, Betty!” Kim growled silently. “I trusted you!” She ran on.
Can’t trust anybody these days…
GJ was after her. The FBI was after her. Local police all across the nation were after her. INTERPOL was no doubt after her. Hell – the Armed Forces were after her. She was an international terrorist. One of the most recognizable faces of hope in the world, and now it meant nothing but terror for those who saw it.
There was only one person who could help her:
Big Daddy Brotherson.
Only thanks to her, GJ knew who he was and where to find him.
And by his own means via the Lil’ Diablo incident, so did Drakken
Which meant if Kim didn’t get to him first…
However, the only way she could get to Big Daddy was by a ride. And therein lay the problem: No one would exactly prefer to give a ride to someone suspected of being an international terrorist – at least, someone with a face as well recognized around the world as hers.
That left only one option for getting a ride:
Stealing one.
END CHAPTER TEN