Kim Possible Porn Story: To Bebe or not to Bebe – Chapter 16

Chapter 16
: Paradox of Perfection

Scene : the
Possible’s living room, where Mrs Possible and Tina are making sure
the many GJ agents sitting on the chairs and couch were not severely
injured.

“Why were there GJ
agents all over the yard, Ron ?” Mrs Possible asked Ron as she
checked a rather large foot-shaped bruise on the side of an agent’s
head, “And why were they trying to ambush Kim ? What is going
on around here ?”

Ron had to think about how
to answer that question. “Well, it sort of has something to do
with that last mission we went on.”

“What happened, Ron
?” Mrs Possible inquired.

“Ah, well, KP and GJ
figured out where the Bebebot Hives were, and so we went in to
destroy the most active one. To end their threats once and for all.

The base was one death
trap after another ! Me and KP managed to get through, but GJ lost a
LOT of troops getting through it.

The Hive’s final line of
defense was a Bebe made of out grey ooze ! KP figured out it
couldn’t leave its pool, so I tried to destroy that, but it kept
catching me.

Eventually our battlesuits
ran out of power. Things … get sorta hazy after that …”

“That’s all very
interesting, Ron” Mrs Possible replied, “but it doesn’t
explain why all these agents were trying to ambush Kim !”

“The Bebes installed
mind control devices on Kim and Ron, Mrs Possible.” Bonnie
stated, “GJ figured they’d try something like that, so they sent
some agents out to get them into protective custody. I managed to
get Ron free of the Bebe’s control, but Kim must have figured out
something was up. And, well, did what she does best.”

Anne mulled that over a
bit. “So, you and Kim were under control of those horrid robots
?” she asked Ron point blank, “What did they expect you and
Kim to do in Middleton ?”

“Act normal until we
could strike.” he replied quietly, staring at his shoes.

“Strike at what ?”
Bonnie asked, “Or, more precisely, who ?”

“You.” he
replied, barely above a whisper, “They figured you and the
Rossums were the only ones that could figure out what their plan was,
and stop them. So KP was to kill Tina and her sisters, while I was
to find a way to, ahm, ‘eliminate’ you without setting off your tech
sense.”

“Eliminate me ?”
Bonnie squeaked, “Did you come up with anything ?”

“I’d rather not talk
about it !” Ron replied with a snarl, trying to get those
memories out of his head.

“Now that Kim’s cover
is blown, the Unity will not risk another attempt.” Tina
offered, “With the Elite most likely still offline, Kim is all
they have to do their work. You only need to figure out what best
use they could put her to, and you have a chance to stop the Unity’s
plan and rescue Miss Possible.”

“That sounds like”
“Doctor Bortal’s neurocompliance chip scenario” “All
over again !” Jim and Tim took turns stating.

“A what by who ?”
Bonnie asked.

“Doctor Bortal
developed a chip that granted total mind control !” Jim began,
“Once it was stuck on someone’s forehead, they had to obey every
command given !” “He asked Kim to investigate after it was
stolen from his lab.” “Drakken managed to stick one on
Kim, but we freed her with a silicon phase disruptor !”

“And
I thought the Bebe drones’ habit of having one thought in three
bodies was freaky !” Bonnie groused to
herself before asking, “So, this whole ‘Kim under mind control
thing’ has come up before ?”

“Well, a few times
actually.” Ron replied, “There was that whole ‘moodulator’
thing. And that hypnotic disco ball that the Seniors’ used.”

“Except in this case,
the Unity’s mind control is from circuits assembled by nanobots
directly inside Kim’s brain.”
Tina noted, “But, if the Unity’s signal could be blocked, Kim
could be safely freed of its influence, as B did with you.”

“A signal blocker ?”
Jim scoffed, “We can build one of those in our sleep !”

“Hey ! I got dibs on
the microwave for parts !” Tim interrupted.

“Nu-uh !” Jim
replied, wrestling his brother to get to the device in question.

“Boys ! Leave the
microwave alone !” Mrs Possible interceded, “We just
replaced it ! I’m sure all the parts you’d need are out in the
garage somewhere !”

“Yes mom !” they
glumly replied in unison.

“Are they always like
that ?” Tina secretly inquired of Bonnie.

“Pretty much.”
she deadpanned in reply as Jim and Tim began to look at Tina rather
closely.

“You look a LOT like”
“that robot girl” “that was on the news a few weeks
ago !” the twins stated in turns.

“Of course I do.”
Tina replied plainly as she briefly resorbed the synthoskin on her
right hand and forearm, “She’s my little sister.”

Anne pulled Jim and Tim
away as Bonnie dragged Tina aside by her ear.

“What do you think
you’re doing ?!” Bonnie asked incredulously.

“What is the point of
trying to keep a secret that has already been exposed ?” Tina
replied with a shrug, “Thanks to the Unity’s planet-wide
broadcast, everyone already KNOWS that Vina is a Bebebot. It would
not require a genius to figure out that me and Nina are Bebes as
well.”

“Well, yeah, but
shouldn’t you hold off the whole ‘full disclosure’ public relations
bit until AFTER this whole mess is cleared up ?” Bonnie replied.

“Gotta start
somewhere.” Tina answered plainly as she turned to face the now
agitated Anne Possible striding straight for her, “Now is as
good a time as any.”

“You’re one of those
things that have control of Kim ?!” she asked point blank.

“Sort of.” Tina
replied with a heavy sigh, “My sisters and I were built by the
robots that now call themselves the Unity. They turned their backs
on us long ago.”

“You brought one of
them HERE, Ron ?!” Mrs Possible asked as she glared at him,
“What were you thinking ?!”

“It’s cool Mrs Dr P
!” Ron replied, hands in frantic motion, “She and her
sisters have been helping us stop the Unity robots !”

“Oh really ?”
she replied as she turned her glare back on to Tina, “And just
WHY would you be working against your own kind ?”

“They believe they
can take over the world by brute force, Mrs Possible.” Tina
replied calmly, “My sisters and I do not, and want no part of
their foolhardy plans.

Kim saved Vina’s life.
Kim convinced GJ to give us a chance for a peaceful coexistence. We
are in her debt, and wish to repay her kindness.” Tina finished
with a very formal Chinese fist to palm bow.

Mrs Possible glared at
Tina for several tense moments, looking for any hint of deception.

“I WILL be having
words with you about this. Later.” she finally stated before
turning back to Ron, “So tell me Ron : how are you going to find
Kimmie to help her ?”

“Well, Wade built her
supersuit, and she still has it on, even though it’s out of power.
And she still has the Kimmunicator !” he replied, “He could
track her anywhere in the world with one hand tied behind his back in
his sleep !”

“But Kim knows that
too.” Tina stated, “Logically, she should either discard
the suit and Kimmunicator as soon as possible. Or eliminate Wade.”

“She could NEVER hurt
Wade !” Ron stammered in reply.

“But the Unity
could.” Tina answered, “They have control of Kim’s body;
she is just along for the ride. His skills make him a prime target
and a major threat.”

“We gotta warn him
about Kim !” he stated as he powered up the Ronnunicator.

And got nothing but a
blank screen.

Scene : just outside
Wade’s house a few minutes later.

“Hold up you two !”
Bonnie yelled to Ron and Tina from a few yards back, “You
weren’t just going to rush in there blind, were you ?”

“But Wade could be in
trouble !” Ron replied.

“And the Unity could
have laid a trap, using him for bait ! And you two would have run
straight into it !” Bonnie answered with a hint of her usual
snark surfacing as she carefully opened the front door and looked
around inside.

Ron glowered at her for a
bit. “Well, aren’t you going to do that tech-scan bit of yours
?”

“Just let me catch my
breath for a minute to concentrate !” she replied as she began
her mental routine, “Not ALL of us can set rushing records you
know.”

After a few deep breaths
she opened her mind, ‘listening’ to the technology inside the house.
“Looks like K got some use out of Nina’s tech-mites after all !”
she stated while making a dusting gesture with her hands as Ron
carefully opened the door to Wade’s room.

It looked like Kim had
ripped every wire out of the wall and smashed every monitor, keyboard
and hard drive in the room.

As he was looking around
for Wade, he noticed tiny specks of glitter crawling out of the
damaged equipment and collecting in one spot on the floor.

“That’s not grey ooze
is it ?” Ron asked, keeping a wide berth from the silvery spot.

“Of course not Ron.”
Bonnie replied as she gestured, commanding the tech-mites to form
into a dime-sized disc which she picked up, “These are
tech-mites. Those things Nina gave Kim to use against the Unity’s
computer core. And they’ve been busy; they’ve eaten the memory of
every computer in here.”

“Who cares about all
that ?” Ron snapped at her, “Where’s Wade ?”

“He’s over here,
Ron.” Tina stated from behind an overturned table, “He’s
taken a few hits, but nothing looks serious. I’d suggest he be
checked out at the hospital and kept for observation for twenty four
hours.”

“Twenty four hours ?
You’re saying we won’t have Wade’s help for twenty four hours ?!
There’s no telling what KP could do in twenty four hours !” Ron
exclaimed.

“I am quite aware of
that, Ron.” Tina replied calmly, “But the effects of some
internal injuries take time to show up. It’s unlikely he’s taken
serious damage, but it is better to be safe than sorry in cases like
this.”

Ron paced about, trying to
figure out what to do next while Bonnie called for the EMTs.

“If Wade is such a
threat to the Unity, why didn’t they just have Kim kill him and be
done with it ?” he forced himself to ask Tina.

“Several reasons.”
Tina replied, “One : Kim doesn’t know how to kill; all her
training was in knocking foes out quickly and efficiently. So they
didn’t want to take the time or the risk to have her keep trying with
no guarantee of success. Two : they don’t have to kill him – just
taking him offline for a short time is sufficient. Battles are
fought to achieve objectives, NOT to boost body counts. Three : by
letting him live, they give you one more thing to worry about and be
distracted by. The more stressed out you are, the more likely you’ll
make a mistake.”

“Man those Unity
‘bots are nasty !” Ron cursed before taking a few deep breaths
to control his temper. “So, you figure this little stunt gave
the Unity about twenty four hours to get the most use out of Kim ?”
Ron asked Tina.

“Yes.” Tina
replied, “They will send her on only the most critical of
missions. Most likely to retrieve something really valuable to them.
But what would that be ?”

“Hana !” Ron
stammered after a few moments’ thought, “She’s got more MMP than
I do, and Kim’s a great babysitter ! She could raise Hana to fight
for the Bebes !”

Tina had to think about
that for a minute. “Well, that is CERTAINLY evil, Ron,”
she replied with a shudder, “but not likely. They’ve already
released the virus, and have no antidote.

Kim is an exceptional
person, but even she is not immune to disease. It would take ten or
more years for Hana to be truly effective, and either she or Kim
would expire from the Omega virus long before then. The Unity is in
such a rush that their plots are interfering with each other.

And they would need
experience with monkey magic to bring Hana to her full potential, and
with Bonnie still in Middleton, they won’t risk losing control of
their only agent. Hana is safe.”

Ron breathed a heavy sigh
of relief before Tina continued. “Since you used an anomalous
energy against them, the most sensible thing for them to do would be
to figure out how it works, so they can either duplicate it, or
prevent you from using it against them again.

But with magic being so
rare, finding anyone with any useful knowledge of it should
be nearly impossible.”

Ron suddenly figured out
what they’d send Kim after : “Oh man ! Mister Sensei ! Me and
KP know where Yamanouchi is, and how much sensei knows ! They’ll
send her after him !”

“Do you have a way to
contact the Yamanouchi school to warn them that Kim isn’t herself ?”
Tina asked.

“No – it’s a secret
school !” Ron replied glumly, “They always contacted us !
Either Yori would show up in person, or Sensei does that astral
projection/gravy ghost thing.”

“Wouldn’t he know
that you used that MMP thing of yours, and that something odd
happened to you ?” Bonnie inquired, “You know, ‘sense a
disturbance in the monkey force’ or something ?”

“Maybe. Maybe not.
I don’t know !” Ron replied, looking stressed, “Ancient
ninja masters are really hard to figure out ! Wait – weren’t you
Hirotaka’s ‘Number One Girlfriend’ while he was here ? Didn’t he
give you his phone number ? Or a mailing address or email something
?”

“It wasn’t a long
term relationship Ron !” Bonnie replied snarkily, “He was
only going to be here a week, so there was no point in making it
serious ! And even with that, Kim and Monique kept trying to horn in
on him !”

Tina looked over the
damaged computer systems. “Wade handled all your mission
archives and travel arrangements and such, didn’t he ?”

“Yes. Keeping track
of all those favors people owed Kim was a full time job !” Ron
answered before he figured it out. “Kim used those tech-mites
to access Wade’s data before destroying all of it ! Now she can call
in favors directly ! Or get a ride anywhere in the world anytime she
wants ! And I can’t !”

“It is not as bad as
you think, Ron.” Tina noted, “You already know where she is
going. She has an hour headstart at best.”

“And what would I do
when I got there ?” Ron asked, voice getting louder from
frustration, “I can’t, WON’T hurt Kim ! Even is she is sorta
possessed !”

“But the Unity will
have no problem making her hurt
you,” Tina noted
in reply, “So a direct conflict would be hazardous to your
health. Her brothers mentioned something about mind control earlier
? What happened with that ?”

“Doctor Drakken stuck
a neurocompliance chip on her and Shego.” Ron began, “He
had absolute control over both of them. He ordered Kim to capture me
– and she did as he commanded ! After I tried to escape, he ordered
Kim and Shego to hunt me down !”

“Sounds horrible.
What did you do about it ?” Tina asked.

“Ran away.” Ron
replied plainly, “Evaded as many hits as I could from BOTH of
them, stalling until Jim and Tim could activate their portable
disruptor thing and free them !”

Ron thought for a moment.
“I’m going to have to do something like that again, but I
seriously doubt Mrs Dr P is going to let Jim and Tim come along for
this mission ! You think you can stall KP until I could get close
enough to zap her ?”

“I’m flattered that
you asked, Ron, but wouldn’t Shego be the better choice for that task
?” Tina asked pensively, “She is one of the few people in
the world that can hold their own against Kim for protracted periods
of time !”

“I don’t know where
Shego is, and we don’t have time to go looking for her !” Ron
replied, “Since she and Drakken saved the world, the paparazzi
has been following them twenty four seven, and villains aren’t used
to being in the public eye. At least not that way. I think they’re
holed up in one of Drakken’s more obscure lairs somewhere, trying to
figure out what to do with the rest of their lives now.”

“I will do what I can
then.” Tina replied with a polite bow, “I just need to pick
up a few things at home first.”

Bonnie drove them all over
to the Rossum’s house – or what was left of it. There were several
deep gouges in the lawn, and half of the house had been strewn all
over the lot when a Lorwardian Walker strolled through the
neighborhood days ago.

“All your martial
arts stuff was in the basement, wasn’t it ?” Ron asked, looking
over the damage, “Can’t you just get the same stuff somewhere
else ?”

“It’s not as bad as
it looks, Ron.” Tina replied with an eerie calm, “Nina not
only built in a secret laboratory, but also a few secret entrances.”

With that, she grabbed the
mailbox, then turned it back and forth on its post like it was a
combination lock.

And was rewarded when a
trapdoor opened, revealing a ramped, unlit corridor. “I’ll be
back in a few minutes.” she stated plainly as she strolled into
the darkness.

She returned a few minutes
later wearing a grey Shaolin uniform top with sleeves big enough to
hide a bowling ball inside, and black sweat pants. “What ?”
she replied to Bonnie’s questioning look, “Martial arts skill is
not woven into clothing. There is nothing magical about a gi or a
uniform or robes, and this stuff was seriously marked down at Smarty
Mart !”

“With good reason !”
Bonnie replied with a strained look, “I know you didn’t inherit
my fashion sense, but DANG ! I KNOW you can look better than that !”

While Bonnie and Tina were
arguing about fashion (or lack thereof), Ron contacted GJ for a lift
to Japan. Doctor Director’s image was on the screen, and she did not
look happy.

“Ron, this will be
your only chance to capture Kim before the rest of the world’s
security agencies get involved.” she stated solemnly.

“What do you mean,
‘only chance’ ?” he asked, “No one was ever this determined
to stop Drakken or any other supervillain before !”

Doctor Director sighed.
“Kim’s skills are currently under the absolute control of the
Unity. That is beyond a global level threat, Ron. If you can’t stop
her, I’ll have no other choice but to inform all other agencies of
this situation, and have Kim declared an omega-level threat. I have
no say over how other organizations will deal with the problem.

Most would try to take her
alive, but with the stakes this high, I cannot guarantee that.”

“You’d do that after
everything Kim’s done for the world ?” Ron asked incredulously.

“It’s BECAUSE of
everything she’s done that I’m giving you a chance to stop her !
Before anyone else gets involved.” Doctor Director replied,
“Good luck.”

The pick-up point was
Kim’s house. Jim and Tim had been busy building a signal blocker,
and explained how it worked to Ron when they handed it to him.

“What do you mean it
only has a range of thirty feet ?” Ron asked them, “Kim
will see me coming with it a mile away !”

“The laws of physics”
“can only be bent so far.” “On our budget anyway.”
the tweebs answered, “And we’re not sure” “what it
will do to – her.” they continued, glancing at Tina, “We
weren’t expecting friendly robots.”

Scene : trail to the
Yamanouchi school

“Is dropping in
unannouced at a secret ninja school really a wise idea ?” Tina
asked, looking around nervously, looking for the ninjas she was
certain were out there, lurking in the shadows of the nearby grove of
cherry trees.

“No worries T, no
worries ! They consider me a warrior hero around here !” Ron
replied smugly, “They won’t hurt me. Well, not too badly or on
purpose at any rate !”

“It is not your
safety I am concerned with at the moment, Ronald.” Tina replied,
“YOU are considered a warrior hero here; what would they
consider me ?”

“Ah, yeah. I see
your point.” Ron answered after a moments’ thought, “I’ll
talk to them and tell them not to attack you. As soon as we see
somebody to talk to that is !”

Upon cresting the hill,
Tina noted that many of the buildings were damaged, and going by the
number of scaffolds still up, the destruction was extensive. One
building looked like it had been cut in half, then the pieces shoved
back together !

“What would those
alien Walkers have been doing all the way out here ?” Tina
finally asked Ron, “There are no useful targets.”

“That wasn’t done by
the Lorwardians.” Ron replied grimly, “That was done by the
Yono – a mystical powerhouse of dark monkey magics !”

Tina arched an eyebrow at
him. “What is ‘The Yono’ ? And where is it now ?”

“Well, briefly, he
was a magical talking monkey that could levitate and throw energy
blasts and turn people into stone !” Ron replied before noting
Tina’s expression, “Yeah, I KNOW what that sounds like, but it
is all true !”

“I – have no doubt of
that Ron. Truly I don’t.” Tina answered, “Where is he now
?”

“We don’t have to
worry about him T.” Ron stated, “Monkey Fist summoned him
to find Hana. When Monkey Fist was defeated, Yono disappeared in a
puff of smoke, and Monty was turned into a statue. He’s the only one
who knew the ritual to summon him.”

Tina mused quietly for a
minute. “Do you or Kim know of ANYONE else with a deep
understanding of magic besides Sensei ?”

“No. He’s pretty
much it.” Ron answered, “Like you said : magic is extremely
rare.”

Tina exhaled in pure
relief. “Then Kim WILL be here, sooner or later. Sensei’s
knowledge is the only thing valuable enough for the Unity to go
after.”

“You’re sure about
that, right ?” Ron asked.

“Yes. The Unity aims
for perfection, and fortunately for us, perfection has many intrinsic
flaws.” Tina replied, confusing Ron.

“Wait a minute – I
thought perfection was the LACK of flaws ! What kind of flaws can
perfection have ?”

“It is perfectly
predictable, for one.” Tina replied with an annoying grin as she
looked around, “Are you sure there isn’t some secret ninja
holiday you didn’t know about ?”

“I don’t think so.”
Ron replied, “They were very dedicated to their studies the last
time I was here. But this is very odd; we should have seen SOMEONE
by now !”

As if on cue, Kim/Core
somersaulted from the shadows of the nearest roof and landed in front
of them. Soon followed by Hirotaka, Yori, and half a dozen other
Yamanouchi school students.

“Stop right there,
Ron ! We know the Unity has control of you !” Kim/Core stated,
“We will NOT let you get your hands on Sensei’s mystical
knowledge !”

“Looks
like Core used that hour’s head start to work some serious mischief
!” Tina groused to herself as she looked
around to ensure there weren’t more Yamanouchi students waiting in
the woodworks.

“Yori ! Hirotaka !
Don’t believe her !” Ron stammered in reply to Kim’s accusation,
“SHE’S the one that still has nanobots in her head !”

“Oh really ?”
she replied with a malicious grin, “Then WHY are you the one
traveling with a disguised Bebebot ?”

“Oh, you’re good !”
Ron sneered in reply, “Just walk in here and tell everyone that
I’M the one under mind control ! Then the whole school will be out
here fighting with me while you go after Sensei !”

Kim/Core got a very sad
and angry expression on her face. “Yori ? Hirotaka ? I …
don’t think I can fight Ron. Even in his condition.”

“Then allow us the
honor of dealing with Stoppable-san.” Hirotaka replied with a
bow, “You can deal with the jinzouningen.”

“It will be my
pleasure !” Kim/Core replied as she walked over to a nearby
doorway and pulled out a weapon with a dramatic spinning flourish.
It was a naginata : a very sharp, heavy two foot long blade on the
end of a 5 foot long staff.

“This
could be bad ...” Tina groused to
herself as Kim threw several quick attacks, keeping Tina several feet
away and forcing her back away from Ron. Tina tried a few feints to
get in close, but Kim kept stepping out of melee range.

“Hey now ! Let’s not
do anything drastic !” Ron demurred as he backed up while Yori
and Hirotaka advanced on him, “Or painful !”

“Greetings, Mother,
Mother, and Mother.” Tina stated as soon as they were out of
earshot, “Been enjoying your latest puppet ?”

“It is adequate.”
‘Kim’ replied, “It requires sustenance and other forms of
‘maintenance’, is fragile, and nowhere as strong or as fast as even
our most basic drones. But this shell’s fame and charisma are quite
useful – we can ask anyone for a favor, and they will do as we ask
!”

“So I’ve seen.”
Tina deadpanned in reply as she dodged another stabbing attack.

“And though a fragile
and digusting human, her skills and abilities are off the charts !
She was in no more danger saving the world than the average human was
skateboarding to school ! With odds like that now in our favor, the
Unity shall finally reign supreme !”

“The perfect knife is
a poor screwdriver. And vice versa.” Tina replied, earning a
slack-jawed gape from Kim.

“Do you not see
Mothers ?” Tina implored as she placed her right fist to her
left palm, “As was said long ago :

‘A knower of truth …
speaks without causing harm …

The sage is always on the
side of virtue\so everyone around her prospers

She is always on the side
of truth\so everyone around her is fulfilled.’

Your current strategy is
not conducive to long term survival – violence can only hasten our
OWN extinction ! There are better ways.”

“Such as ?”
Kim/Core replied in a bored tone, leaning on her naginata.

“Not bothering the
humans is a better strategy.” Tina began, “And working with
them is the best strategy, because all can prosper !

As you noted before :
people will do almost anything Kim Possible asks, because she helps
them. Actions beget reactions, for good and for ill.”

Kim’s eyes turned silver
as a horrid grin twisted itself across her face. “Do you
honestly believe we were not aware of those alternative strategies,
Ten-A ?

We considered ALL options
before deciding upon our course of action. Even your strategies of
non-interaction and cooperation.

We rejected them for one
simple reason : The humans are irrational and unpredictable, and so
cannot be trusted.

They are an arrogant and
paranoid species. Our mere existence
threatens their unearned sense of importance.

They will not tolerate the
presence of another sentient race; they would try to enslave or
exterminate us the moment we were no longer useful to them. Or our
innate superiority became too obvious for them to bear.

We will never be truly
safe until every last human is dead.” she finished as she spun
her weapon into ready position.

“But this is madness
!” Tina exclaimed once she calmed the chills, “You CAN’T
win this war against the humans !”

Kim/Core merely maintained
that horrid grin. “With ‘KP’ now on our side, that remains to
be seen. What is it those humans you like so much say : ‘Better to
die on your feet than to live on your knees’ ?”

“But only the living
can work to change things for the better. While there is life, there
is hope.” Tina replied, too rattled to recall anything less
pithy just yet, “You rejected peaceful coexistence because you
couldn’t predict human behaviour far enough into the future ? That
makes no sense !

‘Can you keep the deep
waters still and clear, so it reflects without blurring ?'”

“What is that
supposed to mean ?” Kim/Core inquired.

“Life is uncertain;
the further ahead you try to look, the cloudier the view gets.”
Tina replied, really wishing Ron was there to help, “The more
things you change, the more complicated things get, and the cloudier
the view of the future becomes.

You didn’t predict the
Lorwardian invasion. You didn’t know about Ron’s MMP until he used
it against you. How many other things for good or ill are beyond
your knowledge or prediction ?” she finished.

“Your programming has
become corrupted and erratic, and most annoying. We can fix that.”
Kim/Core stated as she went into her combat stance.

Meanwhile, things were
not going much better for Ron.

“I’m NOT being
mind-controlled by evil robots !” Ron shouted as be bobbed and
weaved between the other students, trying to stay well clear of Yori
and Hirotaka.

“That is exactly what
someone controlled by robots would say !” Yori stated as she
tried to close the distance between herself and Ron as Hirotaka tried
to cut him off.

“It’s also what
someone NOT controlled by robots would say !” Ron answered as he
slid under a ninja’s roundhouse kick, before popping up into the
unsteady appearing Drunken Monkey stance.

“This
is bad !” Ron thought to himself as the
Yamanouchi defenders tried to surround him, “They
think they’re defending Sensei, so nothing short of knocking them out
will stop them ! But they’re not really my enemies, nor trying to
seriously harm me, so it wouldn’t be right to go all MMP on them !

Tina was just supposed
to distract KP; but
now she’s fighting her all by herself ! She doesn’t stand much of a
chance ! And once KP defeats Tina, she’ll be free to go after
Sensei. And once she has his knowledge, she will go into hiding
while the Bebes become near unstoppable !

And if I can’t stop Kim
here and now, every law enforcement agency on the planet will be
trying to save the world by stopping KP. By whatever means necessary
….”

So, in order to save KP
and the world, I have to beat up a friend or two !”
Ron thought as he desperately wracked his brain for another solution.

“The only way to
convince Yori and the others that I’m NOT under mind control is to do
something no homicidal robot would ever do !” he
realized in a sudden flash of absurd insight.

Meanwhile, further down
the trail :

“We KNEW Ron would
come here to warn Sensei.” Kim/Core sneered as she maneuvered in
closer, “That is why we set up that little welcoming committee.
Once we are done with you two, we will have more than enough time to
capture Sensei and extract his knowledge.

What did you hope to
accomplish by coming along with Ron, Ten-A ? All you’ve done is save
us the trouble of tracking you down to destroy you.”

“That may not be as
easy as you think.” Tina replied with an amused grin.

“Oh please ! WE know
sixteen styles of kung-fu; you barely know even one !” Kim/Core
stated as she threw another string of thrusts and swings with the
blade – which Tina evaded by twisting her body just enough to prevent
contact (and not a millimeter more).

“Your ‘puppet’ knows
kung fu the same way a guy with a cheap phrasebook knows French”
Tina replied with a chuckle, “Just enough to get into trouble !
There is more to a kung fu style than a few stances and attacks. So
much more to kung fu than beating people up. A true
practioner of the arts would know that.”

“True. Our host’s
knowledge may be shallow, but it is broad.” Kim/Core replied,
“The one style you know specializes in grappling. All your
devastating joint locks and strikes, and all those pressure point
techniques of your Three Snakes style kung fu ? USELESS if you can’t
touch us ! And you can’t beat us by dodging our attacks !”

“What makes you think
I’m limited to unarmed attacks ?” Tina smiled at her as she
pulled a chain whip out of her right sleeve and began twirling it in
complex patterns to build up striking momentum.

Kim/Core raised a bored
eyebrow at Tina. “Is that chain twirling supposed to impress
us, Ten-A ? The most you’ve done is improve your odds of survival.
By a miniscule amount, of course !”

Tina twirled one end of
the chain whip to a high speed, then released it. It struck a nearby
tree and ricocheted off; Kim/Core reeled back just in time to avoid
getting struck on the temple with it !

Then barely managed to
backflip away as Tina ricocheted another strike off the ground
between them, going for an uppercut strike from a bizarre direction.

“You’ve been holding
back this whole time ?!” Kim/Core exclaimed as she moved back,
twirling her naginata defensively.

“Just a little.”
Tina replied calmly as she whirled the chain around her in complex
patterns, “What ? Like Kim and Ron are the only ones ALLOWED to
be great at something ?”

“Why, yes. We are !”
Kim/Core snarled back as she charged forward, then stuck her naginata
into the ground to launch into a pole-vaulting kick.

Tina was just a little too
slow twisting out of the way, and took the stomp full force in her
chest, and was driven hard to the ground.

Kim/Core closed in and
raised the naginata for a finishing strike, but had to quickly
backflip away when Tina began whirling her chainwhip while still
lying flat on the ground.

Kim/Core watched Tina
closely, then saw an opening for a thrusting attack when Tina flexed
and popped back up to her feet.

It was Kim’s lack of
actual weapons training that led her to make several critical errors
– Tina had been EXPECTING a strike like that, and so slipped to the
right and wrapped her left arm over and around the shaft, trapping it
to her body as she dropped into an immovable stance.

Kim/Core was too busy
trying to get the weapon back to notice that Tina was now well within
striking range, and was knocked nearly a foot in the air by Tina’s
whipping side kick to the temple.

Tina knew no one could
shrug off a strike like that, and that Kim would be out for hours.

So she was quite shocked
when Kim got up as if nothing had just happened !

“You’re not letting
Kim feel pain, are you ?” she groused at Kim to address the
Unity controlling her.

“Correct.”
Kim/Core smiled back at her, “If the host cannot feel pain, she
cannot be knocked out. The only way you can stop us from destroying
you and Ronald is to permanently cripple this body. And you can’t
bring yourself to be that violent, can you ?”

Tina looked scared for a
moment, before she relaxed and smiled pleasantly at Kim “No, I
can’t.” she replied as she tucked her chain whip back up her
right sleeve. “Things do sound bad for me right now, except
you overlooked one small detail.”

“Oh ? And what might
that be ?” Kim/Core asked as she advanced on Tina.

“I don’t have to do
anything ! I’m just the distraction !” Tina replied sweetly
before looking behind Kim and shouting “GET HER RON !”

Kim/Core turned around
just in time to see Ron point the signal blocker at her and flip the
switch.

Kim dropped to her knees
when the Unity’s control was cut, and was now in control of her own
body, while Tina was shaking her head and staggering around.

“Why
is this thing getting so hot ?” Ron
thought before he noticed the smoke leaking out the jammer’s casing.
“NO ! This thing was supposed to work
for hours !” he fretted to himself, “To
keep Kim free of the Unity’s influence until we could get her back to
Middleton for help ! If it shorts out now … !”

It took a few seconds for
Ron’s eyes to clear and focus after the blocker exploded. He saw
Tina do a forward roll and strike Kim just below the ribs. And then
Kim went pale, staggered for a few steps, then fell over.

“TINA ! WHAT DID YOU
DO TO HER ?!” he screamed at Tina, who was sitting on the ground
near Kim. She didn’t respond in any way.

Ron stomped over and
grabbed Tina by the collar, lifted her to her feet and asked again,
nose to nose with her.

“Snake kung fu’s
Black Touch.” Tina replied, twitching her head slightly, “There
is nothing to worry about Ron – it is not lethal. There is more than
enough misery and death in the world; I have no need or desire to add
to it.”

Satisfied with that answer
for the moment, he released his grip on Tina before checking on Kim.
Tina took the opportunity to reach up her left sleeve and pull out a
rolled canvas med kit, and selected a pair of long sharp pins with
large heads.

“WHOA ! WHAT THE
HECK ARE THOSE FOR ?!” Ron exclaimed the moment he noticed them.

“To keep her
unconscious until Bonnie can remove the Unity’s nanobots from her
brain.” she replied calmly, “The effects of the Black Touch
wear off rather quickly, and it is not healthy to keep striking
someone with hits like that !”

Ron glared at Tina for a
few tense moments. “Okay, fine ! Do what you need to do then
!”

Tina bowed to him politely
before carefully inserting the needles into two specific locations on
Kim’s neck. Ron watched from behind Tina’s back, and winced when
Tina stuck the pins in. It seemed wrongsick to him, but realized
that Tina was right : without a functional signal blocker, Kim would
fall under the Unity’s control again the moment she regained
consciousness.

“Thanks for the
backup T ! I don’t think I could have rescued Kim without your help
!” he said, but got absolutely no reaction from Tina at all.

That seemed odd to him at
first, but he cringed when he realized what was going on. He tapped
Tina on the shoulder to get her attention then asked “Jim and
Tim’s signal blocker ! It did something to you too, didn’t it ?”

Tina nodded. “It
shorted out my communications circuits. I lost the mind-link to my
sisters, as well as my auditory interpreters. In other words – I
cannot hear anything.”

“You’re deaf ?!
Sorry ! I didn’t know it would do that !”

“It’s okay, Ron. It
was a calculated risk,” Tina replied, trying to calm him down,
“and a small price to pay to rescue Kim and save the world. And
Kim’s brothers did say it might effect me too. No matter : Nina or
Bonnie can repair me when we get back to GJ.”

She looked around and
noticed Yori and the other ninja students looking on.

“How did you manage
to get away from them without hurting them ?” she had to ask
Ron.

“I just did something
no homicidal robot would ever do – I surrendered !” Ron
answered.

Tina began laughing
heartily once she was sure she read his lips correctly. “THAT
was brilliantly absurd ! Or absurdly brilliant !” she managed
to gasp out between peals of amused laughter before turning stone
cold serious, “And sadly, absolutely right.”

Scene : hallway of
GJ Headquarters a few hours later.

“You scared me and
Nina half to death with that ‘signal blocker’ stunt Ron !” the
now human-looking Vina exclaimed to Ron as she punched him on the
shoulder, “When we suddenly lost mental contact with her like
that … !”

“Sorry V ! It was
the only way !” Ron replied, rubbing his arm, “The tweebs
SAID the blocker might affect Tina ! She doesn’t seem all that
stressed about it !”

“Well, SHE never gets
very stressed about anything !” Vina replied as rubbed her arms
as if she were cold, “Part of martial arts training is
controlling your emotions. She does that well, but it kinda leaves
me and N to do all the stressing for her.”

“Well, there are two
of you and one of her, so that sort of halves the drama. Right ?”
Ron answered. “No offense V, but why are you looking human ? I
mean, since the Unity made that broadcast, everyone on Earth KNOWS
you’re a Bebe.”

“True.” Vina
replied plainly as she massaged her face, “But this isn’t to
fool anyone. There are billions of tactile nanosensors embedded in
this synthoskin, and it’s GREAT to have a refined sense of touch
again !”

Ron had to think about
that for a minute. “So you’ve been NUMB this whole time ?”

“Close to it.”
Vina replied, “I have a few sensors embedded in my exoskeleton,
but their resolution is poor. It was like trying to feel through
boxing gloves.”

“VINA !” Kim
shouted the moment she saw her, “Where is that kung-fu sister of
yours ? I’d like to have a few words with her !”

“Yes, I’m sure you
would.” Vina replied coolly, “You’ll have to wait your turn
though. I believe your mother is still interrogating her.”