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Revelations of Destiny	By : Kellendros Category: Kim Possible > Threesomes/Moresomes Views: 63461 -:- Recommendations : 2 -:- Currently Reading : 2
Disclaimer: I do not own Kim Possible, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 57
- 58
- 59
The following supplementary disclaimer contains a spoiler, so I’ve included Spoiler Space so those wishing to avoid it can wiz down past it without much risk.

Disclaimer: (This particular incarnation of) Pai Mei is the property of Quentin Tarantino and/or Miramax Films and is used here for parody reasons without permission.

Notes: To the best of my knowledge, this is the only cameo/pseudo-crossover character I’m going to be using in RoD.

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Shego jerked awake at the sound of her alarm clock going off, the shrill pulses snapping her out of her dream state with a shocking suddenness that was just shy of disorienting. Even as she reached for the clock though, the images that had held such startling clarity only an instant before began to fade, melting and blurring together in a jumbled, formless mass. Something about fighting… and losing… to the Ancient Master? Kim? Someone else from her past? Or all of them… or none…

Shaking her head, Shego banished the imagery along with the lingering feelings of confusion and foreboding that went with them. Staring at the clock, she took a deep breath and vented a long sigh. Six o’clock, since she hadn’t reset the alarm from yesterday; good thing she’d gone to bed early last night. Despite wanting nothing more than to be able to go back to bed, Shego knew better than that. She was too alert, and going back to sleep for only an hour or two would leave her feeling tired and listless when she eventually got up again. Besides, she wasn’t even sure she could get back to sleep with the amount of nervous energy rapidly rising within her.

With another little shake of her head, Shego reached out for the oval shape of her combination cell phone PDA and picked it up, bringing the small screen to life and checking her messages, only to find there were none.

Standing up, Shego kept the compact device with her as she headed for the bathroom to use the toilet and clean up a little before changing into a workout outfit and doing up her hair. A few minutes later she paused while she was passing the door to Kim’s suite, then continued on downstairs, not exactly… content, to let the teenager sleep in, but grudgingly allowing for the necessity at least.

After getting a PowerBar and some bottled water from the kitchen, Shego found herself standing in the gym, staring at the exercise equipment along the wall. For most people, undertaking an intense, heavy workout only a few hours before you might conceivably be engaged in a fight for your life by a superior opponent would be… unwise, to put it mildly, but Shego wasn’t most people. Moving over to the control panel, Shego set her PDA and supplies down before activating the controls for the “forest” of extendable posts off to the right, setting them to a random distribution ranging from four to six feet in height. After that she queued up her workout music and hit play.

Shego threw herself into the routine Kim had shown her yesterday with abandon, putting everything else out of her head as she focused solely on the repetitive motions of her body, the pace of the cardio driving and furiously intent, while the pushing and pulling against the resistance of the weight machines was all burning, aching strain and trembling tension of taut muscle. From start to finish, everything else dropped away, leaving only immersive physical exertion with as little conscious thought as possible, just as Shego wanted. No worries, no doubts, no nothing, save for the burning breath in her lungs, the dull thump of her racing heart deep in her chest, the faint thunder of her pulse pounding in her ears, and the tight fire surging through her toiling limbs and body.

In an impressively short amount of time, given the extent of the activities she was undertaking, the pale and now noticeably sweating beauty finished the whole of the exhaustive routine, however, instead of going through the upper body exercises again as she had done yesterday, Shego moved over to the area of uneven posts projecting from the floor—her endurance might be superhuman, but even she couldn’t fully recover from that level of exertion in just a few short hours, and she intended to be in peak condition when she confronted the Ancient Master again; even the slightest reduction in her ability, no mater how miniscule, might mean the difference between life and death if things went bad, which they were entirely likely to do.

Hopping up onto one of the thicker four-foot high poles along the edge of the area, Shego started bouncing lightly from post to post with a feline agility and balance, her dainty feet seemingly finding purchase on even the narrowest of poles with minimal effort, each graceful spring following a slowly tightening spiral that eventually brought her to the center of the area. Once there, she stood balanced on one leg atop a single medium-width post for several long moments, closing her eyes as she brought her arms up in a loose, on-guard stance and concentrated on her breathing, drawing air deep into her lungs and then slowly releasing it at a steady, controlled pace.

Despite the worries lurking in the back of her mind, Shego was able to find her calm center after a minute or so, and as soon as she did, she opened her eyes and launched into an elaborate improvised kata, leaping from precarious perch to precarious perch in high aerial kicks or wushu flips and spins between bouts of in-place, intermixed arm and leg strike patterns made while balancing atop one or more of the uneven posts beneath her.

As she began the exercise, Shego discovered that her newfound strength was more a detriment to her than an asset currently. The gazelle-like ease with which she bounded through space might be all fine and good when jumping was her sole endeavor, but now that she was distracted by the additional, sometimes elaborate movements she was making, she found that ease causing her to come very close to overshooting her mark time and time again. That coupled with the extremely narrow landing surfaces made for a very dangerous combination, one that had her performing with far less grace and precision than usual, as she repeatedly had to struggle to make the landings and keep her balance, all while the bristling sea of uneven posts below her threatened brutal gouging and impaling should she slip and fall.

Even so, Shego didn’t stop. If anything she increased the intensity of her efforts, pushing herself to adapt to her new ability and master it, learning as she went until, many, many minutes later, she slowly began returning to her usual fluid agility and faultless balance. By the time she finished, nearly a half-hour later, she’d all but fully recovered her old form, the incidents of using excessive force in her jumps, and the subsequent shaky landings it caused, only coming once in a blue moon now.

With a final, furious rush of leaps, flips, and even a few one-armed handsprings across the diagonal length of the area, Shego vaulted off the last post in a high arc, spinning and flipping through the air in a tight spiral to land facing back toward the way she came—and to the sound of soft applause coming from off to the left of her.

Turning, Shego found Kim standing about halfway between her and the exits to the main hall, wearing a loose, oversized grey T-shirt and pair of dark purple knitted slippers, a smile on her face as she gently clapped at the dark-haired woman’s performance.

Raising one sable eyebrow, Shego twisted in place so she was facing Kim, then lifted her arms out to either side of her with mocking little flourishes, giving a half bow while dryly intoning; “A-so glad I could amuse you.” Straightening, she continued in a more normal tone. “So, how long have you been standing there?”

Kim snorted softly and her smile twisted to a smirk at Shego’s antics. “Long enough.” After a slight pause she added; “And you really were impressive up there you know. Enough to make a girl jealous if she were the insecure type.”

Shego snorted and shook her head slightly, sub-vocally murmuring; “Well that sure as hell ain’t you…” In a louder voice she said; “Thanks, I guess.” Heading for the control panel and the various things she’d brought with her lying on the floor beneath it, she continued; “You been up for long?”

“Not really; maybe a half-hour or so.”

Shego nodded, then asked; “So did you get enough sleep then? When did you get back anyway?”

“No idea,” Kim responded with laughter in her voice. “I think it was between three and four when I went to bed. And yeah, I got enough sleep—barely.”

“You consider three or four hours enough sleep?” Shego asked incredulously, raising one eyebrow as she passed Kim and the teenager fell in alongside her. A moment later her tone shifted to dry as she concluded; “Wish I was still that young.”

Kim giggled and responded; “So do I. I got three hours or so on the way to the research facility too.”

“Ahhh…” Shego gave a nod of understanding. A moment later she came to a halt before the control panel and reached out to turn off the music. Then she triggered the button sequence to lower the posts she’d been using, returning the room to its usual neutral configuration, and finished by turning out the lights. As the bright, all-encompassing artificial light was replaced by the weaker early morning sunlight streaming in through the numerous long windows high above, Shego bent down and picked up the towel she’d remembered to bring with her this morning.

“So I’m just going to go out on a limb here and assume you found your supper last night…” Shego stated while drying the sweat from her sleek tea-green skin. A second later she grinned wryly as she continued; “And I’ll further assume that you could still eat breakfast despite that not being too long ago, right?”

Kim smiled back as she answered; “Right on both, and thanks. I was pretty hungry when I got back, so it was just what I needed—and it was really good too.”

Shego nodded and continued drying off. Finishing up a few moments later, she twisted the towel a few times and then draped it around her neck, deftly passing it under her ponytail with a flip of her head as she did. Then she bent down once more and collected her garbage along with her multifunction PDA.

“Ok, let’s go then.”

Kim nodded and the pair headed off for the kitchen. Along the way Shego took a moment to check her PDA, finding there were still no new messages on it. Dropping her arm back down to her side with a soft sigh, Shego continued in silence until they reached the kitchen, then, after putting her garbage in the trash and setting the PDA on the counter, she paused, a slightly somber air about her as she considered something for a few moments.

“Do you like French toast?” The question came out of the blue as Shego abruptly turned to face Kim.

“Ummm, yeah, sure.” Kim responded after a second’s delay, caught off guard by the sudden question. “It’s one of my favorites actually.”

“Well in that case, you go set the table with some big plates while I get started in here, and we’ll have some French toast with eggs and bacon on the side.”

“Ok, great.”

Despite the fact that she was the one fetching ingredients once she got back—fresh mushrooms, an onion, green pepper, cheddar cheese, bacon, and of course, lots of eggs—and watching as Shego did all the prep work with them, it wasn’t until the older woman tossed the first thick slab of egg-soaked fresh white bread into the frying pan with a sharp sizzle that the elaborate… excess, of what Shego was doing hit her. The woman had a small frying pan cooking lean bacon strips, a larger one for the French toast, and a third, equally large one frying up the chopped mushrooms and onions in a little butter, presumably for a very big omelet made with the leftover egg mix and other ingredients.

The corner of the redhead’s mouth curled up in a faint smirk, and there was a playful sparkle in her eyes as she opened her mouth to ask Shego how this all fit into her diet plan, but as she drew breath to give voice to the teasing query, Kim was suddenly struck by intuitive insight as she watched the dark-haired woman’s exotic features, and the question died stillborn in her throat.

Wow. She really is worried about today. Kim thought somberly, her expression sobering as her lips came together once more.

Even though a dozen or more questions rose up in her head, Kim decided to remain silent on them, not wanting to ruin the mood—illusion though she now knew it to be. Instead she made small talk about cooking while watching with unfeigned interest as Shego turned four pieces of bread into crispy golden-brown French toast, finished up what was indeed a considerably large omelet, and then cut it in half before laying everything out on their plates in a neat, attractive little display that was nearly picture perfect.

Bringing everything over to the table, Kim was quickly joined by Shego, who had her own load consisting of a glass of carrot juice for each of them, along with a bottle of what appeared to be strawberry jam, though it seemed to have more jam in it than strawberry at first glance. It wasn’t until Shego sat down and used a long-handled spoon to stir it a few times before putting some on her French toast that Kim realized it was some kind of strawberry sauce.

“Thanks.” Kim said as Shego slid the jar over to her after she was done with it.

After slathering a liberal amount of sauce onto her French toast, Kim dug into the delicious meal with vigor, despite knowing its origin—the food was just too good for her to resist after the first few less enthusiastic bites. The pair ate in silence, taking comfort in the breakfast and each other’s presence without the need for talk. It wasn’t until they both finished scraping the last few traces of food from their plates that the relative quiet was broken once more.

“So how’d your little adventure go anyway?” Shego asked as she picked up her PDA and checked it again.

“Thought my heroing was an out-of-bounds topic for you?” Kim returned playfully, raising one eyebrow faintly as she set her fork down on her plate.

“I’m not asking for details.” Shego responded dryly, not even looking up from her PDA.

Kim gave a soft chuckle. “It was pretty routine. I went, I dove, I fixed what Wade told me to fix, and that was that.” Kim’s eyes widened slightly as she quickly added, “And I’ll be right back…” before abruptly standing up from the table and heading into the living room at a hurried pace.

The hasty, unexpected departure caused Shego to look up curiously. A few seconds later, when she saw where Kim was making a beeline for, she snorted sharply and, in an amused tone, hollered; “Don’t fall in.” She laughed outright when Kim lifted her right hand over her head and gave her the finger in response to the lighthearted taunt.

By the time Kim returned from the bathroom, Shego had collected all the dishes, put them in the sink, and was in the process of rinsing them off and loading them into the dishwasher one by one. As she joined Shego by the sink, it only took Kim a few moments to notice the dark-haired woman had sobered considerably in the time she’d been gone, to the point where her serious, focused air was almost palatable.

“What is it?” Kim asked with concern.

Shego glanced at Kim for a second, then returned her attention to the dishes as she replied; “Confirmation came in while you were in the bathroom. The Ancient Master is still living where I found him, and he was there as of four hours ago.”

“Oh. So, we’re going to be leaving soon then? I assume…”

“Yeah. I wanna be wheels up in an hour; think you can manage that?”

“Sure, no problem. That’s plenty of time to get ready.”

“Good.” After passing a few dishes to Kim in silence, Shego asked; “Do you have your little jetpack thingy here or did you leave it at home?”

“No, I brought it, along with most of my other stuff as well. I assume you want me to bring it with me?”

“Yeah.” It wasn’t until she’d gone through most of the dishes that Shego spoke again, hesitantly. “I… don’t suppose I could convince you to wear that suit of mine Drakken shrunk for you when he had us both chipped, could I?”

It took Kim a few moments to work out what Shego was talking about. When she did, she arched an eyebrow and dryly responded; “Ahhh, no, I don’t think so.”

“Yeah I figured…” Shego muttered while handing Kim the last dish in the sink.

“A better question would be why exactly do you still have that thing anyway?”

“Hunh?” The question gave Shego pause for a moment, then she answered; “Oh, ahhh, I don’t know… I just kept it. Why not?”

“I guess.”

“What, like you’ve never kept anything from any of your escapades?” Shego growled defensively.

“Well it’s a little harder for me, since most of what I could hang onto for keepsakes I either have to return to their rightful owners, or has the kind of memories attached to them you wouldn’t want to be reminded of. I mean seriously, what am I going to keep? Oooh, this is the miniature robo-tick that almost blew you to bits. Here’s the mind control chip that forced you to go out and capture your best friend since pre-K and then hand him over to your archenemy. Oh, and here’s the other mind control chip that made you think you were head over heels in love with your best friend since pre-K, nearly wrecking your friendship in the process. Yeah, I can really see myself looking through that scrapbook…”

Shego shot Kim a look of surprised confusion, not because of the redhead’s dry sarcasm, but rather her last example.

“Ahhh, who to the what now? Since when were you mindfucked into thinking you were in love with your sidekick?”

Kim turned to look at Shego with one skeptical eyebrow arched high, her tone bone dry as she responded; “The Moodulators? C’mon Shego, it was just last year…”

Shego’s eyes widened slightly, and then she winced, hunched her shoulders, and gave a near violent shiver along with a drawn-out sound of aversion.

“Oh god… I’d almost managed to suppress that memory.” Shego gave another, smaller shiver. “Ok, no— no more talking about that, ever. New topic please.”

Kim gave a little snort and smile, amused by Shego’s antics. “Ok. So why exactly were you trying to get me into one of your suits then?”

Shego quickly shed her air of only slightly feigned revulsion and returned to her previous serious demeanor.

“Multiple interwoven layers of advanced polymonofiber synthetics; high impact, slash, and puncture resistant materials along with thermal and electrical insulators, mixed with semi-permeable fiber so it’s completely waterproof but still breathes. My suits are the best armor-fabric money can buy, and if things go sideways today… well, they sure as hell won’t stop him, but they just might slow him down enough to survive those first few hits and get away before he realizes what’s going on.”

Kim felt her good humor slip away like water through a sieve. With a deep sigh she stated more than asked; “You really are worried about this, aren’t you?”

“D’oy! I think we covered that yesterday, when I tried my damnedest to talk you out of coming along when you included yourself on this little excursion.” Shego snapped harshly, her anxiety showing through as frustration.

“Look, Shego, I know you don’t want me coming along, but you know I can take care of myself just as well as you, if not better. I’ll be fine, trust me.” Kim hesitated for a long, drawn-out moment, torn, then reluctantly added; “But if you really want… I guess I can do it—just this once! It is not now, nor will it ever become a habit, understand?” The last part was spoken in a firm, no-nonsense tone.

“Really?” Shego looked surprised.

“Yes really.” Kim flashed a smile at the taller woman. “Now, shouldn’t we be getting ready?”

“Ah, yeah, sure. Let’s go.”

Kim and Shego left the kitchen after only a moment’s delay for Shego to grab her towel. Out in the main hall, Kim waited while Shego entered the strong room through the direct side entrance to retrieve both her old, shrunken outfit for Kim and one of her newer ones for herself. As Shego held out the suit after closing the heavy, concealed blast door once more, Kim shook her head faintly and smiled wryly.

“I can’t believe I’m doing this…” Kim murmured softly before continuing in a louder tone. “What, no boots or clawed gloves? And where’s the little pouch thingy?”

The pale beauty snorted faintly and responded; “You don’t need any of those for this.” Shego’s black lips twisted into a smirk. “Unless of course, you want to look as much like me as possible…”

Kim’s wry smile twisted deeper and she gave an amused exhalation while shaking her head again, this time noticeably.

“No, that’s ok thanks.”

Taking the suit from Shego, Kim proceeded upstairs, as did the older woman, neither of them saying anything further as they went to their respective suites. In just under three quarters of an hour the pair had showered, dried off, and changed into their respective outfits before returning to the main hall.

When Shego reached the bottom of the stairs and got her first good look at Kim where the redhead stood waiting for her, she paused, raising one eyebrow as she took in how the girl had combined Shego’s old outfit with her own utility belt, shoes, gloves, and the jetpack backpack Shego had asked her to bring.

“Ok now that… that’s just weird.”

“Yeah, tell me about it.” Kim agreed, having had the exact same reaction upon seeing herself in the mirror up in her room.

“Anyway,” Shego said while giving her head a little shake, “let’s get going.”

“Ok,” Kim replied, taking a step forward to fall in alongside Shego as the other woman turned and headed for the corridor to the gym—and the secret door leading to the underground complex beneath the villa.

As they reached that door, Shego stood to one side and swept her hand up, idly gesturing to it. “After you.”

Kim gave a slight smirk. “Test much?”

Shego snorted faintly, smiling herself, but declined to answer as the redhead stepped forward and flipped up the small section of molding concealing the keypad next to the door. After a slight pause, Kim confidently input the key code and then closed up the panel, stepping back as the door locks released and the portal swung open slightly.

“And there you go.” Kim said smugly as she reached out and pulled the door open, stepping inside and heading down the stairwell without looking back.

“Don’t get cocky Princess.” Shego chided humorously, following Kim in and closing the door securely behind her.

As she continued playing follow-the-leader down the stairs, and despite the seriousness of the task they were about to embark upon, a part of Shego couldn’t help noting the shifting curves of Kim’s enticing ass as the girl descended the steps below her. The heavy fabric of her old suit, tight as it might be, wasn’t nearly as revealing as the outfit Kim had worn yesterday while they were working out, but it still showed off more than enough to raise the pale woman’s interest as much as possible, given the situation.

When they reached the armory, Kim paused on her way through, and was surprised when Shego passed her by and kept going without stopping for anything.

Hurrying out the door after her, Kim asked; “What, you’re not bringing anything?”

“Nope.” Shego answered without stopping or looking back. “Got everything I need right here.”

“Ok then.”

The pair made the rest of their way to the underground hangar in silence, and it was only a few minutes later that they’d boarded Shego’s hover jet and strapped themselves into the pilot and copilot’s seats. After going through the flight check, Shego engaged the jet’s polychromatic outer skin and, once the aircraft’s camouflage rendered it next to invisible, executed a smooth takeoff and exit down the long runway tunnel. As soon as they were outside, she pulled up in a sharp, looping climb and rolled over at close to its apex, setting a slightly southeasterly course inland, away from the coast.

Once she was a few miles away from Sperlonga, and several miles up into the stratosphere, Shego pushed the throttle well into the yellow, until it was just below the red zone, and the plane shuddered and quivered like a living thing as it shattered the sound barrier four times over. Eventually the aircraft calmed, and once it did, Shego double-checked the heading to make sure it was accurate before activating the autopilot. A few moments later she slid her chair back from the controls and sighed.

“Well, there we go. In a little less than two hours we’ll be there, at around six o’clock local time, more or less. And then we’ll see what we see—and hopefully walk away from it still breathing and with all our limbs attached too.”

“Ok, seriously Shego, we’re in the air and on our way to see this guy, so I really think it’s time you tell me why you’re so worried. Just what is it that makes him so dangerous?” Kim asked intently as she slid her own chair back and swiveled it to face Shego.

“What? You mean aside from being a Master of [The Way] who’d rip out your spleen and show it to you just for ticking him of? Oh nothing, nothing at all…”

Kim raised a single, skeptical eyebrow, and Shego immediately responded; “I’m not exaggerating Princess.”

Shego sighed and leaned back in her seat, closing her eyes and slowly shaking her head side to side slightly. Opening her eyes again, she looked at Kim and said; “I’ll tell you what… I’ll tell you the story that led me to the Ancient Master, ok? Just the way it was told to me. Maybe then you’ll understand…”

Shego paused, settling in as she strove to recall the tale from years ago, then, taking a deep breath, she launched into the story in a steady, even tone.

“Once upon a time, in China… some believe… around the year, one-double-ought-three… the head priest of the White Lotus Clan, Pai Mei was, walking down a road, contemplating whatever it is that a man of Pai Mei’s infinite powers would contemplate—which is another way of saying ‘who knows’—when a Shaolin monk appeared, on the road, traveling in the opposite direction.”

“As the monk and priest crossed paths, Pai Mei, in a practically unfathomable display of generosity, gave the monk the slightest of nods. The nod… was not returned.”

“Now was it the intention, of the Shaolin monk to insult Pai Mei, or did he just fail to see the generous social gesture? The motives of the monk, remain unknown. What is known, were the consequences.”

“The next morning, Pai Mei appeared at the Shaolin Temple… and demanded of the Temple’s head abbot that he offer Pai Mei his neck, to repay the insult. The Abbot at first tried to console Pai Mei, only to find, Pai Mei was… inconsolable.”

“So began, the massacre, of the Shaolin Temple and all sixty of the monks inside, at the fists of the White Lotus. And, so began the legend of Pai Mei’s Five Point Palm Exploding Heart technique.”

“Annnnd what exactly is the Five Point Palm Exploding Heart technique?” Kim asked.

“Supposedly one of the deadliest blows in all of martial arts. He hits you, with his fingertips, at five different pressure points on your body, and then… lets you walk away. But once you’ve taken five steps, your heart explodes inside your body, and you fall to the floor, dead.”

“Oh come on…” Kim’s voice was painfully dubious.

“Yeah, I’m not so sure about that one either, but, given what I saw, it might not be too far from the truth.” Shego looked Kim square in the eye, continuing in a deadly serious tone. “The point is, Pai Mei is the kind of bastard that’ll kill you as soon as look at you—and he’s actually probably more inclined to go with the killing than the looking most of the time. Seriously. I wasn’t joking about the spleen thing Kimmie. Remember how I told you parts of me have gone missing and I grew them back? Yeah well that was courtesy of Pai Mei. He jammed his hand in my back—and I mean, he literally jammed his hand in my back—ripped out my spleen, tossed it on the ground in front of me before wiping his hand off on my shoulder, and then walked away. I would have died if my highly overpriced local guide hadn’t managed to get me to a hospital in time, and even then it was still touch and go for several weeks.”

“Wait, you’re taking us to see someone who nearly killed you? What are you nuts?”

“Noooo, if you’ll remember correctly, I wanted to take me to see someone who nearly killed me, not we.” At the exasperated look Kim shot her, Shego rolled her eyes slightly and then elaborated; “Do you really think I’m stupid enough to go back to someone I know can and will kill me if he sees me again?” Shego’s tone turned reluctant as she grudgingly conceded; “There were… reasons, Pai Mei went after me, ok? And as long as I avoid repeating those mistakes, he should at the very least be willing to let me leave his presence intact, if not actually answer a few questions—assuming I can manage to lay on the humble respect thick enough anyway. Sure there’s a chance he’ll come after me right from the get-go, but I think it’s a pretty small one.”

Kim sighed and reluctantly accepted Shego’s reasoning. “I guess. So, what was it that set him off anyway?”

Shego snorted and smirked wryly while giving her head a gentle shake. “Oh, just me being me.” Still smiling, she continued; “It’s not exactly like I’ve gotten any more lippy since my teenage years, late or otherwise, and when you’re talking to a guy who slaughtered an entire monastery for a minor social slight? Yeah, having a mouth on ya? Noooot exactly a good thing…”

Kim couldn’t help snorting and smiling slightly at that. After a few moments of silence, the redhead was struck by a sudden thought, which she immediately gave voice to.

“Hey wait a minute, how can this guy be the same guy that attacked that Shaolin temple around the turn of the last millennium? That would make him like, over a thousand years old.”

“Ahhh, yeah? So?”

“So it can’t be the same guy…”

“Oh really… so, you’ve fought an Avatar of Anubus, a girl that can do this,” Shego held up her hand and ignited her power, “a genetically engineered dinosaur mutant, and a Monkey Kung Fu master with monkey hands and feet, but you’ve got problems with a guy being a thousand years old, have I got that right?”

Kim flushed slightly, both from irritation and chagrin, grumbling; “I suppose if you put it that way…”

“And I do.” Shego replied with just a hint of smugness. A moment later she sobered considerably and continued; “That reminds me though; you’re going to have to do your very best to behave if you intend, as I’m sure you do, to come with me when I see Pai Mei.” Shego held up her right index finger, only to notice her hand was still wreathed in lime-green energy. Dismissing her power, she continued with her original train of thought; “And I don’t mean your usual ‘good-girl upstanding citizen straight-A student Sunday dinner’ stuff either. That won’t even begin to cover it…”

“What do you mean?”

“Well given how touchy he is, you’re going to have to take your game to a whole new level Kimmie. Whatever—what-ever—Pai Mei says, obey. No sarcasm, no backtalk, no attitude—don’t even give him a dirty look! If you flash him a defiant eye, even for a split-second, he’ll try and rip it out of your head. And if you throw any of your ‘I can do anything’ sass at him, he’ll snap you in half without even breaking a sweat, understand?” Shego shook her head. “And believe me, it isn’t going to be easy even knowing that…”

“And why is that?”

“Because I also wasn’t kidding when I said he was a grade-A jackass. Egotistical, arrogant, and completely Alpha-male about everything. He is the master and you live only so long as his good grace allows it; even a hint of insolence and he will end you without question—and he lets you know it; challenges anyone to defy him just so he can grind them into the dirt and teach them their place if they do. On top of that, he hates Caucasians, despises Americans, and has nothing but contempt for women, so it’s going to be just that much worse for us, now isn’t it?”

Kim was wide-eyed and all but gaping. After a few seconds she gave her head a quick shake and said; “Well that sure explains your first meeting then.”

“Oh yeah, definitely.” Shego grinned ruefully. “Of course it was even worse for me, being a ‘mongrel’ and all.” Shego sighed softly. “Looking back on it now, I guess it really was inevitable that we’d end up fighting—such as it was. I should count myself lucky I got out of it alive…”

“Mongrel?” Kim queried in a confused tone.

Shego raised an eyebrow slightly, her inherent cynicism unaccustomed to such naiveté, then elaborated; “My mixed heritage? Pure Chinese blood polluted by vile Caucasian blood to form some bastard half-breed?”

Kim made a face and distastefully responded; “Oh like that matters for anything.”

“As much as I agree, it still does in a lot of places Princess, even back home in the good ol’ US of A.” There was a faint sense of resignation born of numerous past experiences in Shego’s voice. A moment later she shook her head slightly and continued; “Anyway, do you still think you can handle this, or can I hope to talk you into staying with the plane?”

“No, I can handle it. I don’t have to like it, but I can handle it.” Kim responded in a still disgruntled tone. Looking at Shego she asked; “I suppose it’ll take the whole nine yards? Bowing, eyes downcast, humble, respectful tone, only speaking when spoken to and all that crap?”

“Oh yeah. And it’ll probably be kneeling, if not full on kowtowing…”

“Ummm, ‘kowtowing’?”

Shego gave a soft snort and wry smile, disparagingly commenting to no one in particular; “I lament the current condition of the public education system.” Continuing with far less attitude, though still dryly, she answered; “Bowing down on your knees, face first in the dirt?”

“Oh god.” Kim rolled her eyes and shook her head. “Yeah, ok, definitely not liking it, but, I’ll deal.”

Shego smirked, despite the situation they were heading into, and gave her head a gentle shake as she responded; “All right then.”

“So, what do we do in the meantime?”

“Well, I’m going to try and get in the right frame of mind to pull this off. Assuming you don’t need to do the same, well, I’d suggest finishing those flight manuals I gave you a few days ago, but since you didn’t bring them…”

“Don’t need to,” Kim responded with a touch of self-satisfaction, “I finished them on the way back from that mission last night.”

“I see… well I’d ask if you had any questions, but that’ll have to wait ‘til later. Assuming there is a later… speaking of which, in about an hour or so I could use your help with a little warm-up before we get there, if that’s ok with you.”

“Sure.”

“Thanks.” Shego gave a little smile. A few moments later, as she twisted in her chair, checking the side compartment, she cursed vehemently in a low voice.

“What?” Kim asked intently.

“Oh I just forgot my iPod.” Shego dismissed absently, turning to the computer console and bringing up the media player.

As Shego assembled a playlist, Kim undid her seat restraints and stood up. Looking to Shego she asked; “We’re on a straight vector from here on out, right? Smooth flying unless we hit turbulence or something?”

“Humh? Oh, yeah, yeah we are.” Shego answered distractedly before looking up a moment later, more alert as she asked; “Why?”

Kim paused in the act of coming out from around her chair, answering; “You said there was a bed in back, right? I’m going to go take a nap until you need me.”

“Say what? You just got up a couple of hours ago.”

“Yeah, but I got to bed later than I should have for when I got up, so I really should get another hour or so to be good for the day.”

“Ok, but I meant more in the ‘how can you possibly sleep when you just got up a little while ago’ sense. You don’t seem that tired to me…”

“Oh.” Kim gave a soft laugh. “No, I’m not really that tired, but I can get to sleep pretty much whenever I want so long as I’ve been up for a while—well, unless I have a really good sleep because I’m lazy and sleep in for a few extra hours anyway. Other than that though, it’s pretty much anytime anywhere, just like I said…”

Shego snorted, her black lips twisting in a deep smirk as she commented; “I could make a crack here about how that’s not the only thing that credo seems to apply to with you now, but I won’t. Just. Too. Easy.”

Kim snorted softly and gave her head the faintest of shakes while rolling her eyes slightly. A second later she shot the pale beauty a look that was mostly amused and only slightly annoyed, dryly responding; “You just do that.”

Heading into the back cabin, Kim quickly found the small… pod, would be the best way to describe it, the bed was in, since “compartment” didn’t have quite the right… feel, for the just-shy-of-cramped space. Taking off her shoes and gloves, Kim climbed in through the long, rounded opening and laid down on the surprisingly comfortable pallet, thinking; good thing Shego’s taller than me, as she stretched out and tried to relax.

Despite being somewhat unsettled by the situation she and Shego were headed into, Kim still found herself calming rather quickly. She trusted Shego’s judgment and it wasn’t like she didn’t have considerable experience with extreme danger either, so dealing with that anxiety wasn’t particularly difficult for her. Of course, the reason she found herself effortlessly drifting off to sleep may also have been Shego’s lingering scent filling her nostrils, the smell rising from the pillow beneath her cheek as she nuzzled it with a soft smile on her lips…

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“…Kimmie? C’mon Princess, time to wake up.”

“Hummmh? What?” Kim woke up at a gentle shake on her shoulder. Turning, she blinked a few times, her eyes taking a moment to focus on the shadowy figure of Shego leaning over and reaching into the sleeping area, her warm hand the source of that shaking.

“We’re getting close now. Twenty-five, thirty minutes tops and we’ll be there.”

“Mm, ok. Just gimme a second.” Kim yawned and stretched—well, as much as she could anyway—then slid out of the pod and stood up, blinking some more to clear her bleary eyes.

“Bathroom’s in there if you want…” Shego said, stepping back and gesturing to the only door at the back of the cabin.

“Yeah, thanks. I’ll be out in a minute or two.”

Shego nodded and Kim was true to her word, coming out into the main cabin only a few minutes later, after getting a drink and splashing a little water into her eyes to clean the gunk out of them—though it did take her slightly longer than she anticipated, as she had to pause to put on her shoes and gloves again after taking them off earlier.

“So, what do you need my help with?” Kim asked as she found Shego waiting for her right outside the door, in the small open area in the back of the main cabin.

“I assume you know freeform hand drills and push hands drills, right?” At Kim’s confident nod Shego continued; “Then I want to run those with you for the next fifteen minutes straight. And I need you to put all your speed and skill into them Kimmie. Give it everything you’ve got to get through my defenses or send me off balance. Your job isn’t to hit me hard, just to hit me hard enough I know you got through, understand?”

“Sure, I can do that, but you’re going to get hit an awful lot doing it that way…”

“Oh really?” Shego’s tone was dry.

“Yeaaaah. If I don’t need to put much power behind my strikes then I’m a lot faster than usual, and no one’s faster than me as it is.”

“No one, eh?”

After a few moments under Shego’s steady, knowing gaze Kim blushed faintly and hastily amended; “Well, maybe there’s a few people who’re faster than me.”

“Yeah, that’s what I thought.” Shego’s tone was still dry, knowing full well from her past fight with Corscan and her more recent sparring with Kim that the redhead wasn’t as fast as her (ex?) mentor—close, but still noticeably slower. A moment later she summoned her power and raised her hands, continuing in her usual tone of voice. “And dealing with this should be distracting enough to slow you down to a point where I can deal with you—I hope anyway.”

“Whoa! Hold the phone! You’re using your powers for this?”

“Don’t get your panties in a knot Princess, I know what I’m doing. Here, give it a little touch…”

Shego held her right hand out to Kim, then, a few moments later, when the redhead still hadn’t moved, shot the girl an aggravated look over her hesitation and skeptical expression.

“Just touch it already.” Shego’s grumbling voice carried her exasperation clearly.

Kim shot Shego an annoyed look of her own, then tentatively reached out and touched the scintillating lime-green energy surrounding the dark-haired woman’s hand. A split-second later Kim jerked her hand back with a sharp cry, shaking it rapidly as she did.

“Yeowch! Damn that stings!” Kim griped, still shaking her hand.

“Yep, but if you’ll notice, there’s nothing really wrong with your hand, now is there?”

“What, you mean other than hurting like hell?” Kim grumbled, looking at her hand and finding that although it still smarted a little, there wasn’t a mark on it, nor did there seem to be any reduced mobility or feeling in it.

“Pretty much, yeah. And you can thank my brothers for inspiring me to figure out this little trick—prank me once, shame on you, prank me twice and I’ll shock your goddamn ass back into the Stone Age.”

Kim snorted softly and smiled at Shego’s growled sentiment. A moment later the pale woman continued; “Now can we get started?”

“Ok, just give me a second here.” Kim replied before shaking her hair out and then twisting and stretching some, limbering up before doing a slow, simple arm kata to center herself and get into the right frame of mind. Settling into the proper stance with her right leg and arm slightly extended, Kim nodded to Shego that she was ready.

“There’s just one more thing I need you to do while we’re doing this…” Shego said as she stepped forward, putting her extended right foot next to Kim’s and raising her right arm to cross wrists on the outside with the redhead.

“And that is?”

“Be as annoying as you possibly can while doing this. Lay your whole ‘you’ll can’t beat me’, ‘I can do anything’ teen hero shtick on thicker than you’ve ever done before Kimmie. Taunt me, insult me, hell go all-out and call me a filthy money grubbing whore if that’s what it takes, but just get under my skin, ok?”

“What? Why?” Kim was obviously taken aback.

“Because that’s how Pai Mei fights. Well, between bursts of incredibly focused, pure, merciless brutality anyway. Like I said, he puts you in your place and makes sure you know it. I’ve got to be able to deal with that better than I did the last time, and I’m pretty sure I can, thanks to the last couple of years fighting you, but I need to be sure.”

“Well, ok, I guess that makes sense, but… I’m not sure I can do it. I mean, I was never really big on the in-fight taunting to begin with—pre and post sure, but in? not so much—and now with the ahhh… change in our relationship, well, I just don’t think I can pull it off.”

“Oh I’m sure you can. I mean hey, you can do anything, right? And I know from experience that includes being a grade-A world class bitch…”

“Hey! I—” Kim snapped, her eyes narrowing, before she came up short, suddenly realizing what was going on. Shooting the taller woman an exasperated look, she continued in a dry tone; “Oh very funny Shego, but that’s so not going to work.”

“Don’t know what you’re talking about, Princess.”

There it was. That twisting bite Shego did so well. Kim felt her annoyance spike sharply even as the other woman pushed against her wrist with a downwards-circular motion, starting the opening movement for push hands.

“Yes you do.” Kim growled while redirecting the flow of energy Shego was using against her, twisting her forearm back up and shifting her weight as she did so.

“May-be… maybe you’re the one who’s doing something.” Shego said while twisting her arm around faster and more aggressively, pushing back against Kim in the split second the shift threw the redhead off balance, regaining the initiative. “Is that it Kimmie? Worried you’re not up to the challenge now that I’m using my powers? Don’t want your mouth writing checks the rest of you can’t cash?”

“That’s not it and you know it Shego! I can beat you with or without your powers; I always have! Now stop trying to push my buttons!” Kim shot back forcefully, countering Shego’s motions with twists and shifts of her own.

Despite her confident demeanor, Kim wasn’t exactly as sure as she sounded—though certainly as annoyed.

Without her powers, Shego was unbelievably strong—not that that particularly mattered in this kind of contest—incredibly quick—though still noticeably slower than Kim—and, for all intents and purposes, completely tireless within the bounds of even an impossibly long fight. With her powers… well, even though they’d only been going at it for thirty seconds now, Kim had already had two close calls where she nearly touched the energy emanating from the pale woman’s hands.

It wasn’t that Kim didn’t think she could win, but rather with the increased difficulty and absolute precision required now that Shego was using her powers—and the healthy dose of humility training with Corscan had brought her—she didn’t think she would win—in the sense that it was inevitable anyway. Shego’s powers made too good of an equalizer, bringing her up to very near Kim’s level, and that meant it was almost an even contest. Or at least it would have been, if they were fighting for real. As it was, it was still going to require an effort for Kim to do what Shego needed her to do, even with the advantages she held from not having to put real power behind her strikes.

“Oh, am I pushing your buttons Princess? Seems to me someone who knows she’s going to win wouldn’t get worked up over a little thing like that. If anything I’d think it would just give them a laugh. I mean, why would you ever take that kind of thing seriously from someone you know you can beat? Unless of course, you don’t know it…”

“Oh I know it Shego! You know I know it!” Kim snapped, shifting her arm through a final, rapid, intricate series of motions before snapping out of contact with Shego as well, whipping a backfist up towards her face while simultaneously twisting and sending a left palm strike in towards her short ribs.

Taken by surprise, it took everything Shego had to barely block and deflect both blows, and she remained frantically off balance as Kim continued her assault, hands flashing in and out in intricate strike patterns that Shego could barely keep up with, both their arms nearly blurring in the elaborate flurry of the exchange.

“What’s the matter Shego? Can’t keep up and keep your mouth running at the same time anymore?” Kim taunted, though it took every ounce of concentration she had to do it, and was more bravado than not.

With her on the attack and Shego on the defense, it actually gave her pale adversary even more of an advantage, because Kim had to calculate and perfectly execute every attack in such a way that the only chance Shego had for a successful block was to use her forearms or wrists, as opposed to her empowered hands. One slipup, just one, and it was all over—and Shego knew it.

Despite Shego being off balance, her hasty, shaky deflections and blocks all but desperate, despite the near-blinding pace everything was happening at, still Kim could tell. Shego was trying to recover her equilibrium; trying to gain just a split second’s worth of breathing room to allow her to use her hands the way Kim was currently preventing her from doing.

Which meant the added distraction of having to verbally assault the other woman as well was that much more dangerous for Kim. Nonetheless, she kept it up; the redhead was anything but willing to allow a challenge to pass without giving it her all.

Turn a disadvantage into an advantage… the thought flashed through Kim’s head like lightning—something that several of her martial arts teachers had told her over the years, the most recent being Corscan.

“You really think I’m going to give you a chance to do what you’re trying to do?” Kim taunted, letting Shego know that she knew what she was trying to do, while at the same time launching another series of attacks designed to undo the small gains Shego had made, as well as hopefully bringing her out of line enough to create an opening for a real attack.

“I mean it’s so fucking obvious!”

Kim used the vulgarity deliberately. Shego still wasn’t used to her swearing; another advantage that yielded an infinitesimal gain in the microsecond’s surprised stall the unfamiliarity caused. Combined with her attack strategy, it was enough to give her the opening she was looking for. In an instant, Kim swept her right hand up and in, not with a backfist, but rather a much more insulting “pimp slap” backhand.

Shego jerked back reflexively from the stinging blow, and Kim pressed her advantage, continuing both the physical and verbal assaults.

“Oh you liked that, didn’t’cha?” the redhead crowed while her arms swept in, out, and around in multiple blurring strikes that Shego only just barely turned aside, until at last, she broke through the shaky defense once again, tagging the other woman with a sharp poke to her solar plexus.

Suddenly inspired as Shego’s defense faltered once more, this time due to the interruption of her breathing (and the pain that went with it) the nerve-cluster strike caused, Kim went down an entirely new track she was all but certain would fulfill Shego’s request to “get under her skin.”

“In fact I’m starting to think you really do like it.”

Kim clipped Shego with two glancing blows that only just got through the other woman’s crumbling defense, one to the shoulder and the other to her short ribs, all while driving home the brunt of her verbal barrage.

“Is that it Shego? Do you like getting slapped around by me? Beaten time and time again, dragged off to jail after getting your ass kicked by a high school cheerleader? You get off on being humiliated Shego? That it? Hunh? You put on such a big show about how you’re all badass super villain, but I think deep down you just want to be beat down and put in your place, don’t you? Just looking for someone to spit on you Shego? I mean, that sure as hell explains why you keep going back to Drakken, now doesn’t it?”

Shego’s eyes widened and then narrowed, their dark green depths smoldering with black rage, and quick as a flash she abandoned all but the pretense of defense in favor of attack, a snarl on her black-painted lips.

“Hit a nerve did I?” Kim quipped with a smile that she normally would have kept to herself—for that matter, she most likely would have kept the redundant quip to herself under most circumstances too; twisting the knife once it was in was more Bonnie’s style than hers.

With Shego’s arms snapping in and whipping around in aggressive attack patterns now, the pressure on Kim was reduced slightly, as incongruous as that seemed—it was just a tad easier for her to deal with the pale woman’s glowing hands now that they were traveling somewhat more predictable paths. Even so, Kim was forced to abandon further banter in favor of fully concentrating on an extended strategy that was primarily defensive, mixed with just enough attacks to keep Shego wary and a little off balance. Of course, as she blocked and deflected the incoming blows, occasionally launching one of her own in return, Kim was not just looking for an opening, but slowly setting Shego up for one—one that she hoped the woman was too incensed to notice until it was too late.

Less than a minute and about a hundred blurring, twisting blows countered on both combatants’ parts later, Kim finally got her carefully manipulated opening and, given as far as she could tell, Shego didn’t seem to be setting her up for anything, took it.

Shifting her weight forward and sweeping her arms in and around, Kim locked forearms with Shego and twisted up and out, knocking her slightly off balance as well as pushing her guard completely open for a split second. In that instant, Kim twisted sideways and bent at the waist, pistoning a twin thrust strike into Shego’s sternum and solar plexus with enough force to knock her back a full step and really get her attention, so to speak.

“Awww… looks like you lose Shego. To bad so sad—for you anyway!” Kim taunted as she recovered her ready stance while Shego reeled away from her.

Shego looked up and glared for a second, then paused. After a long, still moment, she shook her head and scowled at herself, then took a breath and shook off her angry air somewhat.

With a grateful—and given the circumstances, completely bizarre—look in her dark green eyes, Shego nodded to Kim and said; “Yeah, that’s it; just like that…” before stepping in and taking up her own ready stance one more, mirroring Kim.

Beginning the exercise again, the pair spent slightly over ten minutes going through several long and short exchanges, all while Shego slowly but surely managed to improve her self-control while enduring the numerous and varied taunting strategies Kim came up with—and while Kim slowly but surely lost her advantage with the increasing difficulty of keeping up that selfsame taunting, her wits stretched to near breaking from the strain of having to come up with a steady stream of fresh, stinging, smugly superior insults. In the end, she was actually reduced to plagiarizing some of the choicer barbs Bonnie had unloaded on her over the years.

“Ok, that’s enough.” Shego said after nearly two minutes of deadlocked fighting with Kim, breaking off from the latest exchange and taking a step back. “I’m as ready as I’m going to get now. Thanks Kimmie.” Shego’s lips twisted in a wry, playful smirk as she added; “And damn but I need to count my blessings that you don’t go for the in-fight taunting; you’ve got one hell of a mouth on you Princess.”

“Yeah, well, thanks. I think…” Kim grumbled as she relaxed her stance and straightened. “And, if you would be so kind, I don’t want to ever have to do that again, ok? I didn’t like it, and it took everything I had to keep it up, so, it’s not going to be happening any more, no matter what the situation is, got it? You need to hit someone up for another character assassination, you outsource it, all right?”

Shego smiled ruefully. “Yeah, I suppose it does go against your good nature. Even at your bitchiest you’re still a far cry from what you were putting out a few minutes ago.” Shego smirked again, teasing; “Which is a shame, because you could probably give lessons.”

“Thanks a lot.” Kim grumbled good-naturedly while giving her head a little shake and rolling her eyes. A moment later a low tone went off from the control panel at the front of the plane, and both women turned their heads to look in that direction.

“That’s our five-minute warning for final approach.” Shego stated as she turned back to face Kim. “You ready for this?”

“Ready or not doesn’t really matter, now does it?” Kim said dismissively, then, after a slight pause, added; “But yeah, I’m as ready as I’ll ever be.”

“Ok then.”

With that, the duo headed to the front of the plane, sitting down and strapping themselves into their respective seats once more.

Sliding her chair into piloting position, Shego ran a few quick checks and then powered back the throttle, reducing the jet’s flight speed to a mere two hundred miles an hour. After that, she activated the aircraft’s powerful sensor suite and began scanning the rather large hill that was off in the distance directly in front of them.

As Shego ran her scans and input numerous commands and data references into the jet’s computer, Kim took note of the ancient ruins that capped the tall mound, along with the long, long set of crumbling stairs that ascended the verdant hill. It was difficult to tell if the old, weathered curtain walls and various stone structures were once part of a small castle or a temple instead, but either way, Kim saw that they encircled a rather large, lightly wooded, more or less flat area on top of the hill.

When Shego switched the scans to infrared, Kim also saw that aside from a multitude of small animals, the compound’s sole occupant was a man sitting atop a small set of stairs at the end of a long path leading into the central area, seemingly awaiting their approach with an eerie sense of awareness coming from him, despite the fact that they were still many miles away and Kim wasn’t really seeing him, but rather a detailed computer-generated image of the heat signatures in the area.

With a faint shiver, Kim turned to Shego and asked; “Is that him?”

Shego paused in her work for a second, then resumed typing while answering; “Probably. Kinda hard to tell from that, but I can’t see as it would be anyone else…”

Kim nodded and said nothing further, realizing that Shego was concentrating on her work, whatever it was. The brief remaining time in the air passed quickly and in silence, ending with Shego setting the jet down with the slightest difficulty in an open area on the dirt road winding around the bottom of the hill, only a few dozen yards away from the foot of the stairs climbing its somewhat steep incline.

The silence continued as Shego set a few more controls on the various instrument panels before her, then the pair undid their restraints and moved to the back of the cabin. It wasn’t until she retrieved Kim’s jetpack backpack from the storage compartment it was in and handed it to the redhead that Shego spoke again.

“Ok, I’m half expecting the old bastard to slap me around a little, and I’m fairly certain I’ll be able to tell the difference between that and a real threat from him, so unless I give you the signal, you just sit back and watch, all right?”

“I’ll do my best.” Kim said while slipping on her backpack and tightening the straps. “What’s the signal going to be anyway?”

“Oh, just me shouting ‘go’ at the top of my lungs the second I think things are about to go bad for real. Speaking of which, if things do go wrong, the plan is to run away, got it? You let me run interference on Pai Mei while you get enough distance to get airborne as soon as you can—and go high Kimmie, real high. No telling how high he can jump, or whether or not he can use the trees to get even higher, so play it safe and head straight up for at least a few hundred yards. Also, I loaded as much of Pai Mei’s biometrics as I could scan into the plane’s targeting computer, so assuming I get enough time to trigger the AI with my belt buckle, the jet will back us up with its antipersonnel miniguns as well as hovering at a thousand feet with the door open to pick us up.”

“Well that’s all fine and good for me, but what about you?” Kim asked as she followed Shego over to the doorway.

“Oh don’t worry about me Princess, I’ll be joining you as soon as I get the chance, believe me. No way I plan on sticking around one second more than I have to if this all goes sideways. I much prefer all my parts unbroken and attached in their proper places than not, thank you very much.”

“All right then, just so long as you’re not planning some kind of ‘noble sacrifice’ or anything like that.”

“Ahhh, excuse me?” Shego said in a dry, incredulous tone while turning and looking Kim square in the eye. “Which one of us is the hero here? There won’t be any Charge of the Light Brigades coming from me Kimmie; I gave up on that kind of crap years ago; just not my style. This plan is based entirely on sound tactics, not sentiment, got it? Like those old TV spots used to say; ‘I can put my arm back on, you can’t; so play safe!’ It’s just that simple.”

Kim couldn’t help snorting and grinning over Shego’s dander being up over being accused—such as it was—of heroic tendencies.

“All right, all right, I’m sorry I impugned your villainous honor, sheesh.” Kim returned in a grousing but good-natured tone.

“Yeah well you better be.” Shego grumbled back, opening the door and heading down the stairs, while Kim followed along behind her, still grinning.

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By the time the pair reached the top of the treacherous stairs ascending to the hilltop, Kim’s mood had sobered despite her earlier good humor and the luscious scenery, infected by the somber, serious air that had slowly fallen over Shego with every step they had climbed. As they passed through the squat pagoda that housed the gateway into the compound, the pair all but mirrored one another in determined stride and grave expression.

Walking down the tightly packed dark brown earth of the broad, beaten pathway that traversed the area inside the compound, old, buried memories of humiliation, anger, pain, and fear rose up in Shego as she absently took note of the ancient stone-and-wood weapon racks flanking the lane several yards before that which held the lion’s share of her attention—Pai Mei himself.

The Ancient Master looked exactly as he did when she had come to him years ago, right down to the way he continued to sit casually on the stairs while watching their approach with his sharp, dark eyes—so much so that it was eerily unnerving to the pale woman, not that she let it show. He still wore his long, snow white hair in an elaborate topknot held in place by a single silvery chopstick, hanging free only in the back and in two thin locks in front of his ears. His impossibly long, thick eyebrows looked like a pair of snowy wings above his cold shark’s eyes, and he calmly stroked his Fu Manchu moustache and goatee with his right hand, gently curling his fingers around the waist-long strands and lifting them up, only to let them slide free and fall back to his chest in a gentle rain. He still arrayed himself in layers of long, flowing, gleaming white robes as well, accentuated by a single layer of the deepest midnight black, along with a pair of snug, rubber soled black Kung Fu shoes covering his feet.

Passing the racks, Shego slowed her pace as they closed the remaining distance to Pai Mei, and, taking her cues from the older woman, Kim quickly followed suit. A few yards before they reached the bottom of the steps upon which the Ancient Master sat like an Emperor imperiously receiving supplicants, Shego thought she noticed just the faintest of tensing on the old man’s part, but she couldn’t be certain. It might have just been her imagination.

Five feet before the foot of the stairs, Shego came to a stop by dropping into a kneeling crouch, leaning forward with her left wrist braced against her knee and her right hand resting on the ground, eyes downcast, fixed on the dirt three feet in front of her, and prepared to drop forward even further if she must. Next to her, Kim hesitated for a second, and then duplicated the pose, though with a touch more defiance in her posture than Shego held. As soon as Kim settled beside her, Shego drew a deep breath and hoped that for once, her mouth could keep her out of trouble instead of getting her into it.

“[Chinese: Great Master Pai Mei, I come before you humbly begging your forgiveness, both for the impertinence of this intrusion and for my actions several years ago. I offer my surely wretched, feeble apologies in the faint hope that somehow, they might grant me that rarest of favors, your benevolent mercy in this.]” Beside her, unconsciously, Kim’s eyes widened in surprise over the alien humility and trepidation tingeing Shego’s tone, and the redhead shifted slightly, striving and failing to catch a look at her pale companion’s expression out of the corner of her eye.

“Humph.” Pai Mei somehow managed to put the scorn of a thousand words into that single grunt. “[Chinese: I see that your Cantonese has not improved. It is still the yapping of the mongrel dog that you are!]” Pai Mei gave the strands of his mustache and goatee an irritated, dismissive flick. “[I must admit however that I am intrigued to be speaking with you again, mongrel, despite the distress it causes my ears. It is not every day that I get to speak with the wandering spirit of a dead woman after all.]”

Pai Mei cocked his head ever so slightly.

“[Chinese: For surely that is what you are, yes? Because the last time your repulsive half-breed features offended my eyes, you were crawling off to die like some buzzing insect I had squashed, and even a great, slow-witted mongrel cow like you could not be so stupid as to return here should she have been granted the divine miracle of surviving my killing blow!]” Another irritated flick of mustache and goatee accompanied the tirade.

It took everything Shego had to keep her mouth shut and keep looking at the ground instead of glaring at Pai Mei, to resist clawing at the dirt beneath her fingers and to remain still instead of trembling from the fear and fury raging within her at the slew of barbed insults and the not-so-veiled threat. Next to her, Kim raised her head, looking directly at Shego and then up at Pai Mei—though somewhat less so. She didn’t understand a word of what he had said, but his condescending, sneering tone made it clear he was raining abuse down upon her companion, and the feisty redhead felt her blood stirring because of it.

Though he would never admit it, even to himself, Pai Mei was mildly surprised that Shego was able to maintain a collected demeanor in the face of his insults—certainly a far cry from the last time he had dealt with her. However, Kim’s glance at her and subsequent poorly concealed look up at him—along with the rising anger sharpening her big fern-green eyes—did not escape his notice either, and after the briefest of pauses to consider the possibility, Pai Mei shifted the focus of his attack.

“[Chinese: Or maybe you are that dim-witted, foolishly believing that if you returned with an ally things might turn out differently for you. Is that it, you ungainly half-seed foreign devil? You think that because this insignificant child who has barely taken her first stumbling, inept steps down the true path of The Way is by your side that the two of you can accomplish what you alone could not?]” Another flick, and Pai Mei laughed raucously.

Shego felt icy coils of dread rising inside her, dampening her ire considerably. Despite not anticipating this dilemma, she instantly recognized that from Pai Mei’s particular point of view, what he was suggesting seemed like a perfectly reasonable possibility, which meant they were now walking a much finer razor’s edge than before.

“[Chinese: No Great Master Pai Mei, I would never be so foolish as to challenge you again, no matter who was at my side or how many!]” Shego spoke in a desperate, hasty rush, fervently hoping Pai Mei would believe her. “[I have not forgotten the hard lesson that you taught me years ago; the head of the White Lotus Clan is unmatched, and brings swift death to any foolish enough to dispute that fact by challenging him.]”

Pai Mei gave a noncommittal grunt at Shego’s words.

“[Chinese: So you say. Yet here you are, with this insolent foreign devil at your side, having the audacity to insult me with your foul, unwanted presence despite your claims to the contrary. Tell me then, why else would you come knowing this? What other reason could there be for such a half-witted decision? Unless you simply are that stupid…]”

Shego breathed a quick mental sigh of relief at the momentary reprieve even as she scrambled for the words to respond.

“[Chinese: Great Master Pai Mei, I…]” Shego faltered, the words sticking in her craw, before she managed to force them out. “[I know coming here was unwise… foolish… given the disrespect I showed you when last we met, but I had no other option, however… stupid doing this was. My companion, her Sifu has vanished mysteriously, and you are the only Master of The Way that we knew of. Despite the foolish certainty of raising your ire, we had to come, for surely the great Pai Mei would know something that could help us, should he only show mercy and grant us the benevolence of his vast wisdom.]”

Pai Mei gave another grunt—this one slightly more acknowledging—but before he could speak again, Kim caused Shego’s heart to leap into her throat as the impatient, flustered teen could no longer resist a harshly whispered; “What’s happening Shego?”

Shego hissed sharply and jerked her fingers once in an equally sharp negating gesture, her eyes flashing as she shot a hasty glance at Kim while quickly snapping; “Quiet!”

“[Chinese: It seems the foolish child is just as impudent as I suspected—perhaps as much as you were.]” Pai Mei barked harshly. “[Though I must admit you seem to have improved your manner to a nearly tolerable level. Tell me who this foreign devil’s Sifu is, and perhaps I may yet let the both of you leave here alive!]”

Thank god… Shego gave another sigh of relief, this one out loud; albeit so soft it was barely noticeable. I just might be able to pull this off.

“[Chinese: We would be eternally thankful for any help you choose to grant us Great Master, should that be your wish. My companion’s Sifu was known as Corscan Mata—]”

Shego never got the chance to finish, as Pai Mei shot to his feet, whipping his right arm up to violently thrust a pair of rigidly pointing fingers at her, harshly thundering; “[Chinese: Silence! You will not speak the name of that… abomination, in my presence, or I will rip the tongue from your head and throw it to the dogs! Paugh!]”

Pai Mei actually spit off to the side at the end of his furious command.

Before Shego could react, everything started falling apart as Kim half rose to her feet in alarm, demanding; “What’s happening Shego?”

Shego twisted, reaching up to pull Kim back down while pleading; “[Chinese: Please forgive our impu—]”

That was as far as Shego got before Pai Mei descended the stairs faster than either of them could follow in their distracted states, looming over the pair as he indignantly shouted; “[Chinese: You come before me again despite the offence you surely knew your presence would be! You bring this insolent…]” Pai Mei sneered, “[woman with you, such as she is, and then add further insult by naming that filth as the one revealing secrets to her that it has no right to! Tell me, why should I allow either of you to sully my air with one further breath?]”

Nerves already on edge, and faced with an irate killer ranting at her in a foreign tongue she didn’t understand a word of, Kim rose all the way to her feet before Shego could stop her and, even as the pale woman frantically tried and failed to figure out something to say and who to say it to, stepped back from Pai Mei while instinctively sliding into her combat stance.

Pai Mei’s eyes narrowed, and his harsh tone dripped with scorn as he barked; “[Chinese: And now the stumbling simpleton thinks she can stand against the Master of the White Lotus? So be it!]”

The fabric of Pai Mei’s robes whipped and cracked as he snapped his arms up into his own on-guard position, while next to him, Shego felt a mantle of cold dread settle firmly about her shoulders.

Goddamnit Kimmie, if he doesn’t kill you I’m going to! The angry thought flashed through Shego’s head even as she frantically reached for her power, twisting the lime green corona that blossomed around her clawed gloves to the strongest kinetic enhancer she was capable of creating, knowing she couldn’t risk anything more deadly while Kim was in the line of fire so to speak, however much she wanted to feel the jagged whine of her cutting planes or the itchy pins-and-needles that came with the sun-hot heat she could produce.

Pushing off the ground, Shego took a carefully controlled swipe at Pai Mei’s right flank with her left hand as she stood up, keeping her right arm cocked back and ready to defend as necessary. As Pai Mei twisted away from the blow with seeming ease, Kim took advantage of the apparent distraction, taking a step to the side in order to put the Ancient Master closer to being between her and Shego than in front of them.

As soon as she finished stepping into her new position and her feet were firmly set once more, Kim snapped a short, quick front kick at Pai Mei, while Shego took a risk and twisted into the strike he had avoided from her, spinning around to the left while praying Kim’s attack would be equally distracting, so that she wasn’t about to have her spleen handed to her again as she presented her back to Pai Mei for the instant it took to complete the move.

Shego was lucky; Pai Mei chose to avoid Kim’s attack by leaning back and observing her extended foot for the moment it flashed in front of his face, so he had neither position nor inclination to divest her of any internal organs. She was considerably less lucky when, at the last moment, she decided to lash out with a right backfist as well, for the Ancient Master defended against that blow by snapping his right forearm up and back, blocking the strike by slamming an iron-hard ridge-hand into the center of her forearm with nearly enough force to snap the bones, and more than enough to stop the attack in its tracks as surely as if he’d struck her with an actual iron bar.

As the trio recovered from their various opening movements and attacks—Shego somewhat more shakily than Pai Mei and Kim—the real fight began. Kim wasn’t entirely sure what to do, since Shego hadn’t given her the signal to run yet, but she did know that even if Shego had, until she got the opportunity to safely disengage from the old man—or created one, as the case might be—it didn’t matter either way, so that decided her; she had to attack. Across from Kim, Shego knew exactly what she had to do, unlike the redhead; she had to get Pai Mei’s attention and hold it long enough for Kim to get away. It was as simple as that.

Shego set her stance and launched into a series of rapid, alternating claw attacks, the darting strikes all quickness with little power behind them, entirely reliant upon her kinetic enhancer and the sharpness of her composite titanium alloy bonded carbon fiber claws to do damage—not that there was any damage to be done, as Pai Mei twisted and bent away from every blow before it even came close to landing.

On the other side of the Ancient Master, Kim was doing her part as well, making up for Shego’s lack of pressure to Pai Mei’s lower body with a barrage of kicks aimed at his legs and feet, carefully supplemented with the occasional high arm strike when there was little chance of an accident occurring with Shego’s flashing hands.

Unfortunately, Kim’s efforts met with as little success as Shego’s, though Pai Mei did have to use his legs to block every third strike or so, as it would have been impossible for him to have purely avoided such a comprehensive assault without giving ground before the two women, which the Ancient Master adamantly refused to do, remaining between them even as he bobbed and weaved and leaned and twisted like some impossibly sinuous snake.

As the pair kept up the attack, they settled into a more steady rhythm with one another, their long familiarity with each other’s fighting styles allowing them to work in concert as if they’d been doing so for years, despite all the recent changes they’d made to their individual techniques. The techniques didn’t matter; it was all about them knowing how one another fought. Their almost instinctive sense of each other’s positioning and body language. Knowing how the other would react in a given situation. Knowing each other’s approach to fighting, irrespective of the individual moves being executed. That deeper understanding they had developed over nearly two years of being adversaries now served an entirely different, far more cooperative end.

The pace and complexity of their assault increased as they felt out this new understanding, their confidence growing in leaps and bounds as they put more and more of their trust into it, until they were not only coordinating attacks for maximum effect, but relying on each other to cover any openings presented by their individual attack patterns or the more elaborate moves they now risked employing. In a mere double handful of seconds, the trio went from a somewhat reasonable display of martial arts prowess to something entirely beyond that, becoming a blindingly fast white-and-black blur of avoiding, blocking motion flanked by furious twin green-and-black whirlwinds of striking blows.

As the relentless avalanche of strikes continued to rain down on Pai Mei without any apparent success, Shego took a split second to draw a deep breath, preparing to give the signal she’d been waiting for an opportunity to give—even something as simple as a shout could create a potentially fatal opening when fighting someone of Pai Mei’s skill. Unfortunately, Shego never got the chance, because half a second later, the pair fell victim to their own success, such as it was.

In the beginning, Pai Mei had been toying with the pair, entirely unconcerned with their attacks as he avoided the strikes with sublime ease. That changed as the level of Kim and Shego’s teamwork increased, until, much to his surprise, Pai Mei found that he was actually defending himself in earnest. Neither woman was a real danger to a thousand year old Master of [The Way] on her own—Shego’s powers and the way she was fighting with them meant he had to pay attention to her, and Kim’s speed and precision gained a certain grudging respect from him—but combining the two minor challenges into a coordinated attack by multiple opponents created a complex threat greater than the sum of its parts—a threat that he had to devote more and more of his attention to dealing with as his opponents grew more confident in their teamwork.

Even so, Pai Mei was largely unconcerned, supremely confident in his abilities and content to allow the exchange to continue as it was, with him merely defending while he analyzed and evaluated what was to him, the two women’s deplorable fighting skills. That all changed a moment later, when, after a particularly complicated flurry of blows from Shego that filled the air with a faint green haze as he avoided them, Kim immediately followed up with a high kick that came in so fast and hard that by the time he blocked it, the very tip of her shoe was able to make contact with the Ancient Master’s cheek.

It was the faintest of touches; a bare whisper that scarcely qualified as contact, but still Pai Mei felt it, and it filled him with black wrath as surely as if the young redhead had slapped him across the face. The thought that an inept amateur had managed to touch him even in such an insignificant manner was more than Pai Mei could bear. In an instant he abandoned all pretense of holding back, unleashing the full fury of the White Lotus upon the hapless duo. It was only a short moment after launching his initial attacks—and almost being hit by a blow from Kim while doing so—that his anger redoubled as he realized he couldn’t strike at his adversaries with impunity as he’d expected; he still had to maintain his defense against them.

Even so, he was Pai Mei, the White Lotus, last of the Ancient Masters, and more than up to the challenge of dealing with two slightly-more-skilled-than-he-had-anticipated-but-still-largely-ignorant little girls.

Twisting and turning between his attackers like some furious whirlwind, moving so fast he was literally blurring now, Pai Mei’s lashing, darting limbs blasted aside their feeble attacks with counterstrikes that also broke their defenses wide open. In the span of less than two seconds he used those openings to slam a half-dozen or more blows into each of his opponents, his iron-hard fists and feet striking nerve clusters with paralyzing force and driving every ounce of air from their lungs.

Even as his last blows landed and Kim and Shego’s bodies began flying away from him, finally reacting to the force of all the strikes they’d been hit with, still Pai Mei didn’t let up. Stretching wide, he hooked his right ankle behind Kim’s neck while grabbing Shego’s left wrist, then, with a sharp jerk, the Ancient Master yanked the both of them up short, causing their bodies to shoot out from under them and hang in midair for a split-second, before dropping to the hard earth below in brutal, uncontrolled falls.

Even then the White Lotus wasn’t finished. Twisting and flipping around in a midair spin while maintaining his grip on Shego’s wrist, Pai Mei redirected all the momentum he created down into her as he fell to the ground, causing her body to flip over completely and slam down next to Kim’s.

Rolling to his feet, Pai Mei stepped over to the pair while levering Shego’s arm up and back, then reached down to do the same to Kim using his other hand before planting his foot in Shego’s flank, just behind her armpit, and standing on her in order to pin her other arm beneath her. For Kim he merely adjusted his hold to properly twist her hand and wrist around while digging his iron-hard thumb and fingers into several nerve clusters. Then, and only then, did Pai Mei pause, a mere six seconds after he had started.

At his feet, it took much, much longer than that for Kim and Shego to recover their senses, only to discover a world of numb, barely functioning limbs, violent, gasping coughing as they struggled to breathe once more, and above it all, blinding, searing pain coming from their arms where Pai Mei held them, so sharp and intense it felt like he was driving rusty railroad spikes into their bones lengthwise.

Even with her powers and experience dealing with injuries that would make most people pass out, Shego couldn’t help the pain-and-fear-fueled scream that ripped its way free from her when Pai Mei gave her arm a brutal twist as soon as he saw that she’d more or less recovered. Across from her, Kim managed the same thing through sheer, stubborn willpower alone, refusing to bawl like the helpless little girl she suddenly—and very unfamiliarly—felt like now.

After a few more seconds to let their respective positions sink in fully, Pai Mei spoke in an iron hard tone that carried his icy wrath quite clearly.

“[Chinese: Cease your pathetic, childish mewling! I should strike these limbs from your bodies for having the audacity to challenge me! Be thankful I do not, for that is only what insignificant insects like the two of you deserve for such an insult as to force me to sully my hands dealing with such inept ability, yes?]”

Pai Mei twisted the limbs in his grasp once more, and despite his earlier command, the Ancient Master allowed himself a cruel smile when both women cried out again.

God damnit I don’t wanna die like this—don’t wanna die at all! How can I die like this? Why aren’t we dead yet? The frustrated thoughts tore through Shego’s mind on a river of impotent rage and queasy dread, while the musty scent of dirt filled her nostrils as the side of her face ground into the pathway beneath her cheek. Beside her, Kim’s mind was filled with a formless shame and fury that kept the undercurrent of fear and helplessness coiling up from the pit of her stomach at bay, as well as preventing more coherent thoughts.

“[Chinese: You are as a leaf before the hurricane to me! That you continue to draw breath is only because I wish it so! Understood?]”

“[Chinese: Yes! Yes!]” Shego cried out in fear and agony as Pai Mei gave her arm another twist and she realized his question hadn’t been rhetorical.

Damnit, if only I could move my hand just a little! All I’d need is just… just a few… damnit move! Why won’t you move? Desperation drove Shego to struggle even though she knew full well that as long as Pai Mei’s fingers were digging into her forearm like they were, her hand wasn’t going to respond to her commands.

“[Chinese: Your lives are mine now, to do with as I please! Do not mistake that I choose to allow them to continue as mercy! The White Lotus has no mercy! You leave this place because it serves my ends, nothing more! Understood?]”

Another twist and another hastily screamed confirmation from Shego, along with a sudden, blossoming hope and considerable confusion.

Pai Mei leaned down towards Shego; his voice taking on an even harder, more threatening tone if that was possible. “[Chinese: And understand this as well… that the Celestial Bureaucracy chose to grant you a reprieve from the death I sent you to when last we met was your first chance. That my needs require I allow this insolent fire-haired foreign devil to live—and that I must therefore spare your life as well, for surely she would force my hand were I to do otherwise—is your second. There will not be a third.]” Pai Mei clearly and carefully enunciated every word of that decree to drive it home. “[You will leave this place as soon as I release you… you will take this pathetic child with you… and you will never return. Should your vile half-seed features ever again offend my eyes, I will make an end of you. Is that understood?]”

This time Shego’s quick cries of acknowledgement failed to bring an end to the excruciating pain Pai Mei punctuated his long declaration with, as the Ancient Master cruelly continued his twisting and digging his fingers into nerve bundles until tears were streaming down both women’s faces, mercilessly driving home his point and their helpless positions with utter finality. After a seemingly inhuman amount of time—though in actuality is was only a double handful of seconds—Pai Mei grunted and, taking his foot off Shego’s flank to deliver a final, pitiless kick to Kim’s side, released the pair from his grasp.

As Pai Mei casually ascended the stairs, reassuming his previous seated position, both Kim and Shego curled up around their throbbing arms as best they could, given they still couldn’t move very well thanks to Pai Mei’s earlier attacks. Before they were near to recovering, Pai Mei’s harsh voice barked out once more.

“[Chinese: I do not see you moving. Are you so stupid as to believe I will not dispose of the trash littering my land should it continue to remain before me?]”

Shego groaned and rolled over, her face pressing into the dirt as she clumsily tried to push herself upright. She barely made it to one knee before her legs gave out from under her and she tumbled to the hard pathway once more.

“[Chinese: I… I cannot… stand yet Master Pai Mei…]” Shego’s voice was pleading; dieing for this, after the reprieve she was honestly amazed and baffled to have gotten, would have been more than she could bear.

“[Chinese: Then crawl you stupid cow!]” Pei Mei shot back, his self-evident (to him) statement dripping with disgusted scorn.

Shego nodded more to herself than to Pai Mei, then struggled to start moving. A moment later she gracelessly reached out with her good arm and fumbled at Kim, fearfully urging; “C’mon Kimmie, we’ve gotta go—now.”

After struggling to move, in a pain-tinged voice Kim responded; “I don’t think I can stand up yet.”

“Then crawl Princess; just as long as you’re moving…”

The traces of humiliation in Shego’s desperate tone were unmistakable as she was forced to repeat Pai Mei’s cruel command. Next to her, Kim rebelled for a moment, then rolled over awkwardly with a deep, shameful resignation and began fumbling her way down the path alongside Shego.

Neither woman spoke or tried to meet the other’s gaze as they clumsily crawled along in the dirt, forced to cover nearly fifty yards in lurching, convulsive jerks before recovering enough mobility to limp along in a stumbling, crippled fashion. It wasn’t until they reached the top of the long stone stairway leading down the hill that their limbs began functioning in a mostly reliable fashion.

The duo continued in silence as they descended the uneven stairway, but as soon as they reached the bottom and Shego felt they were far enough away from Pai Mei, the green-hued super villain could no longer hold her tongue.

“What the hell was that?” Shego shouted with a scathing glare at the redhead walking next to her. “Were you trying to get us killed?”

Kim kept silent, despite the hot, instinctive anger that boiled up in her, urging her to give an irate retort. As much as she hated to admit it, she knew that Shego had every right to be angry with her.

“I mean seriously, I ask you to do one thing—just one thing! Keep your head down and don’t do anything to antagonize him! But could little Miss ‘I can do anything’ handle that? Ohhhh no, not her… Do you know how hard it was for me to humiliate myself for that racist, misogynistic bastard? And then you go an’ flush it all down the toilet! Jesus fucking Christ, out of the two of us I’m the one that’s supposed to have self-control issues, not you! Fuck!”

“Look, I know I screwed up, ok?” Kim shouted angrily, her flashing fern-green eyes finally meeting Shego’s. “You don’t have to tell me. And I’m sorry too; I should have kept it under control and I didn’t.”

Shego came to a stop, and after a few more steps, so did Kim, looking back as the pale woman took a deep breath while closing her eyes and tilting her head all the way back. A moment later Shego raised her arms and raked her fingers back through her thick mane, pressing her palms tight to the sides of her head while releasing a long, lusty sigh. After a few seconds, Shego lowered both her head and her arms, shaking her head gently as she did. Opening her dark green eyes once more, she sought out Kim’s gaze and spoke in a much calmer, resigned, rueful tone.

“No, this is my fault. I never should have let you come. I know what you’re like and I know what that piece of shit on top of the hill is like; I might as well have just tossed a match into a keg of gunpowder as brought you here.” Shego shook her head again.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Kim demanded, and Shego gave a warm, if wry, smile.

“You don’t back down from conflict Princess, you confront it head on. In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you pass up a challenge, no matter how big or small. Not the worst trait to have in the hero business, but definitely not the best one to have when you’re in a no-win situation. On top of that you’re young and hot-blooded, which makes you interesting, but again, noooot the best things to be bringing to the table if you’re negotiating your surrender.” Shego’s tone shifted to optimistically cheerful as she gave a quirky little smile and continued; “Still, we didn’t crash and burn nearly as bad as I did last time I was here, so that’s something at least. I mean hey, we’re still breathing, right?”

“Yeah I guess.” Kim’s dark red hair swayed back and forth gently as she gave her head a little shake.

“Exactly. So, let’s just forget about this whole shitty little experience and agree to never speak of it again, ok?” Shego began walking toward the plane once more, only to stop when she passed Kim and the redhead didn’t fall in alongside her, but rather continued looking back at the hilltop behind them. After a few seconds Kim gave her head another, sharper shake and turned back to look at Shego with equally sharp, hard eyes.

“All right… but I swear to god Shego, when we find Corscan or she finds us or however it ends up, and if I can keep learning [The Way] from her after we find out what’s going on with her, the minute—the minute—I know enough to do it, I am so coming back here to kick the living shit out of that asshole!”

Shego gave an amused snort and grinned. “Well then I’d say it’s a date then. I’ll have to get myself a little cheerleader outfit or something.”

Kim snorted sharply and smiled in earnest now, starting out for the plane as she responded; “You do that.”

Shego turned and fell in alongside Kim as the girl passed her, and it wasn’t until the pair had almost reached the aircraft that Kim broke the gentle quiet surrounding them.

“So, before we forget this ever happened, what was it that set him off anyway? I heard you say Corscan’s name and then he went all ranty—well, extra ranty anyway. Did we find out anything before the shit hit the fan, or did I mess it up too soon for that?”

“Oh yeah.” Shego’s mood sobered—or soured—slightly. “Well, it was tall, dark, and stripy that set him off all right. He pitched a major fit before I could even get her whole name out. And it went waaaay beyond his usual crap. Flipped out completely; threatened to rip out my tongue if I said her name again. Called her an ‘abomination’, ‘filth’, and ‘it’. And most interestingly, he seemed to be saying that she’s been breaking union rules or something like that, handing out trade secrets she shouldn’t be…”

“Ahhh… ok.” Kim’s brow furrowed as she gave Shego a puzzled look while the other woman opened the hover jet’s hatch. “But… shoooouldn’t that mean I should be dead right now instead of down here breathing with you? And why didn’t he kill us anyway? Not that I’m complaining, but he did go on for a while there after…” Kim paused for a second or two, “at the end there.”

Shego looked back at Kim for a second, then returned to opening the hatch.

“No idea Pumpkin. Well, no real idea anyway. The end was just a load of threats and him talking smack on us. If I remember right, he said he was letting you live because he had to for some purpose of his. I got to keep breathing because he figured if he killed me, he’d have to kill you too—y’know, afterward, when you went apeshit on his ass.”

“You got that straight.” Kim immediately affirmed. A moment later she continued in a more thoughtful tone; “So, what? He’s got some kind of scheme he needs me for?”

“Again, no idea.” Shego responded as she entered the plane. “All I know is he wanted to make it real clear that the only reason we got to live was because it served some purpose of his, not because he took pity on us or anything like that.”

Kim pondered the question in silence throughout the time it took the pair to get cleaned up in the small bathroom, and then for Shego to get them airborne and well underway, ending up no better than when she had started. Like most things involving Corscan as of late, every clue gained seemed to lead to another mystery. It wasn’t until Shego sighed and slid her chair back from piloting position that Kim came out of her little reverie.

“So, what are we going to do now?” Kim asked.

“Well, we just got our asses kicked by someone who could have easily killed us, but, we’re alive and not dead—though only through sheer dumb luck. I don’t know about you Kimmie, but all I wanna do is spend the rest of the day unwinding from that little encounter.” Shego pondered for a few moments. “We could run the things you picked out of my clothes yesterday that need to be altered up to my seamstress in Milan, then spend a few hours in one of the local spas, have dinner at a nice restaurant, maybe catch a show after that…”

“A day trip. To Milan. Well, I guess if you’re going to twist my arm and all, why not?” Kim gave Shego a goofy grin. A moment later she added; “But, I’m going to need something to eat before we leave.”

“I think I can handle that. Although,” Shego raised her right hand, index finger extended, “given we’ll pretty much be tanking our meal plans for the day, we’re going to have to make up for it by giving up Friday night and Saturday in return.”

“Fine by me.”

“Well all right then, we have a plan.”

A few moments passed in silence as Shego thought about options for a quick lunch once they got home, before her pondering was interrupted as Kim slyly intoned; “You know, there is one thing we could do on the trip back that would really help you relax Shego. Trust me, I speak from experience…”

Shego looked up to find an equally sly, suggestive smile gracing Kim’s lips. The pale beauty licked her black-painted lips once, in a far dryer manner, then raised a sable eyebrow as she wryly queried; “Tell me you are not trying to convince me to join the Mile High club after we just had our asses handed to us on a silver platter.”

“Well why not? It really takes the edge off y’know. And if I set my mind to it, I could probably take your edge off four or five times before we got back to your place.” Kim grinned wickedly, and Shego rolled her eyes and shook her head in mock appalled disbelief.

“I don’t think so.” she responded dryly.

“Well, if you’re worried about your little… problem, we could always leave the suits on. They’re pretty snug, and I’m sure I could work through them.” This time Kim’s grin and raised eyebrow were full-blown sin as opposed to merely wicked.

Shego laughed outright for a few moments, then sobered slightly as she rhetorically but still somewhat incredulously asked; “Wait, you’re serious?” A short pause. “Oh-ho no. No, no, no. The first time we fuck is so not going to be while wearing full-body condoms, so you can just put that right out of your head, got it?”

Kim snorted and laughed openly at the quip. However, it was only a short while later that Shego saw a gleam in the girl’s bright fern-green eyes, and, as the redhead drew breath to give voice to whatever lascivious fancy had struck her now, the dark-haired woman raised her index finger once more, this time in a preemptive gesture of authority.

“I can see I’m going to have come up with something to keep you occupied if I don’t want to be buried in endless propositions all the way home, aren’t I? Well fine, since you’ve finished going over the flight and technical manuals I gave you, we can get started on seeing what you’ve learned from them.”

“Awww…” Kim pouted playfully. “That’s no fun. At least let’s make it interesting.”

“How so?” Shego inquired dryly, wondering what Kim was up to.

“For every question I get right, you have to touch your toes.”

Shego made a perplexed face, one eyebrow arching high as she said; “Ahhh… the hell? How does that make things interesting?”

“You’ve got to do it with your back to me.” Kim grinned slyly.

It took Shego a second to figure it out, and then she gave an appalled little mutter while once more rolling her eyes and shaking her head gently. “That’s bad. I mean that’s really bad. What are you, a twelve-year-old with his first Playboy?” another shake of the head. “All right, fine, I’ll give you your little thrill, but, if you get a question wrong, you’ve gotta give me fifty pelvic lifts in return.”

“Ooooh-kay.” Kim imitated Shego’s earlier dry lip-lick. “And I’d be doing that why? Given there really won’t be that much to see unless you’re planning on getting down on the floor with me…”

“Well, one, it lets me work your ass off if you only half-assed your way through the material—I’m a big fan of using pain as a motivator, which I’m sure you knew. And two,” Shego grinned wickedly, raising an eyebrow slightly before slowly, sensuously running her soft pink tongue over her lips in a way that was anything but dry, “I get to see just how long you can keep pumping that tight little ass of yours before it gives out on you.”

Kim’s eyes widened slightly in unexpected surprise, then her lips slowly twisted into an equally wicked smirk as she matched Shego look for look.

“All right, you’re on…”
- 57
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Revelations of Destiny