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Maximum Security Assisted Living Complex

"At some point, my motivation changed." the man who had once been the most feared terrorist leader in the world mused. "At first, power was just going to be a means to an end. A way to, avenge my brother for one thing."

He spoke as though he were giving an interview, though there was no one in the room with him. Perhaps he knew he was being monitored.

"It was almost satirical in a way. Using the very corruption and greed I blamed for his death and my own ills, to bring down that system."

The Commander did this sometimes. Usually he sat in his wheelchair, staring blankly at the wall, in a semi-comatose daze. But occasionally he broke out into a kind of frenzy, giving rousing speeches to imagined followers, or gloating, villainous monologues to non-existent prisoners. And then there were these times, when he could have seemed sane, if only he were actually speaking to someone.

"I wonder when power became the goal itself. It was probably around the same time that I completely abandoned my civilian identity. And Cobra Commander went from being merely my title, to being my name. I can't even remember my original name now."

Nilbog Island, Monday Night August 8th

Billy was not prepared for this. He'd thought he was. But he was wrong. It didn't help that Ana and Tommy were both inconsolable too.

Annette the Skunk was dead. As best as they could figure she had died of a heart attack that afternoon.

She'd been with Billy since college, and named after one of his best friends in Fandom. It was possible that Annette the human wouldn't have appreciated having a skunk named after her, but Billy had always been prepared to defend his choice, should he, by some miracle run into her again. Mainly it had to do with the fact that both the skunk, and the human had been adorable and sweet.

Nilbog Island had a pet cemetery, but Officer Kelton had advised against burying anything there. So instead, in a coffin made by Helen ("I have many skills"), Billy and his kids were burying the family pet in the back yard, underneath their favorite tree.

And they were crying. But you know, Ninja-like. So it was silent, and unseen crying.

The Parking Lot, Fandom Island, Saturday Afternoon

"Yes Ana I made it just fine. My memory's not that bad yet. See, I even remembered your cell phone number."

After reassuring his oldest daughter of his safe arrival, Billy leaned against the rental and gazed with fond nostalgia at the town before him. He idly wondered if while he was here he'd forget a couple decades and think he was late for class or something.

The long term side effects of being repeatedly subjected to the Brain Wave Scanner were only now becoming apparent. Eventually, unless a more succesfull treatment could be found, he might need full time care like Storm Shadow, Zartan and the Baroness. But for now he was still mentally competent enough to both drive, and travel on his own. Anastasia was just being overly cautious.

But enough worrying! He was back, and...well who knew if he'd recognize anyone here?

Nilbog Island, Monday Evening

Anastasia and Tommy were being babysat by Helen, leaving Billy and Gail to enjoy their first official date.

Which had already turned serious.

"I'm dating Helen." Gail told him matter of factly. Despite her tone, she looked worried.

"Oh...uhm. Okay." Wow Billy had seriously misinterpreted what was going on here.

"Does that weird you out?" she asked next.

"What? No!" Billy was almost offended she'd felt the need to ask. He thought she'd know him better than that by now. "I just need to adjust my uhm, expectations is all. I thought..." Well hell may as well toss embarrassment to the wind. "I thought you and I..."

"Oh!" Gail slapped herself on the forehead. "Gods I'm messing this up. No, Billy I meant I'm dating her, but I want to date you as well."

"You...I..." What? "Am I the other guy?" Was he gonna be okay with that? Not if Helen was gonna be babysitting. What did Helen think they were out doing now?

"No she knows! I mean she's okay with it."

"Oh!" Keeping track of his father's moods had been easier than this. "So, you're interested in me, and you're interested in Helen."

"Right."

"Is Helen interested in me?" Billy wasn't sure he could handle that sort of relationship.

"Oh no." Gail laughed. "I mean don't get me wrong, she likes you well enough, but she says you're a bit young for her." She took a deep breath, studying his expression. "So is that okay?"

He thought about it for a moment. And found he had no particular immediate objections.

"Well, I can't guarantee that I won't get jealous," or screw it up some other way, but that had been a concern even with a conventional relationship, "But I like Helen, and the kids love both of you. So, I'm willing to give it a shot if you two are."

Gail heaved a sight of relief. "Great. Now that that's out of the way," and with a swiftness that one would not think an archaeologist would manage, she grabbed him and kissed him.

Nilbog Island

In his own way, Billy felt he was just as ambitious as his father. He didn't want to rule the world of course. But he did want to get his Doctorate and be the best father ever.

Part of that meant that getting his Doctorate was taking a while, because he was also trying to spend as much time as he could with his kids.

"Daddy, Tommy blorked!"

Which was not always as fun as he'd like.

(no subject)

Just gotta say, I'm getting all legit nostalgic for the old days now, and sad in the same way my character are.

The Fandom Docks, Saturday Morning

It'd only been a few years since Billy had been back here, but it felt like a lifetime. Ana had only been five, and Tommy a mere infant.

But here they were, returning, not as "refugees" like last time, but tourists. Though did he count as a tourist if he used to live here? Whatever.

Ana gasped as the island came in sight. "Daddy! A castle!! Look!"

"That's Fandom High." Billy told her. "That's where I went to school."

"You went to school in a castle?!"

She excitedly helped secure the boat to it's moorings then almost dragged her little brother up onto the dock.

"C'mon Tommy! I wanna see the castle! Daddy can we go see the castle?"

"Well let's get checked in at the hotel first."

Nilbog Island, Wednesday

Billy's Sister Jeanie was visiting for a few weeks before starting High School. She'd been looking very pensive the entire visit, and Billy thought it might be due to fearing being a freshman.

Then tonight, she finally said what was bothering her.

"Billy, I...maybe it's too early to tell, I mean, I'm only 14. But...I think I might be gay."

Billy sat silently for a moment, then frowned. "Well that's not fair. Now how am I supposed to be an over-protective brother without coming across as a misogynist?"

Jeanie laughed. "I was hoping that'd be the only problem you had." Then she sobered. "How do you think Mom and Dad will react?"

Billy thought a bit. "Well, you've known dad longer than I have. But I suspect he'd say something similar to me. Do you want me there when you tell them?"

She took a deep breath, then shook her head. "No, but I may have you on skype if that's okay."

"Hey, what are overprotective brothers for?"

Off the Coast of Nilbog Island, Saturday Night

Captain's Log:

First Mate Anastasia stood her first watch tonight and managed to stay up the whole time. She's now zonked out in her bunk along with Tommy. I haven't thought of a clever title for him yet. Ana suggested Ship's Cat.

Meditation aside, I'm not one for introspection. But tonight, secretly keeping watch over my watchful daughter, I found myself wondering;

How the hell did I get here?

I'm the son of an international terrorist, and a house wife. I was adopted into a clan of Ninjas, not pirates, so how did I wind up as a Marine Archeologist?

Back in High School all I knew was, I didn't want to follow in my father's footsteps. I'd been surrounded by military types all my life it seemed, be they legit or mercenary. And I just wanted to run as far from that sort of life as I could. That surprised the hell out of my student adviser. She was MI6 I think, and she'd figured I'd go into some variation of the family business.

If I recall correctly, I already had developed an interest in Archeology, or at least history by then. Evie (what was her last name?) had started an Archeology club, and we actually found the wreck of a ship in a cave on Fandom Island. Was that where my interest in Marine History started too?

Except it was still, at that time, just a way of not being a soldier. Something academic. Now that I'm writing all this down, I think it really started when I met my step-father. He's a sailor. The son of a son of a sailor, like Jimmy Buffet sang. He's the one who taught me how to sail, got me into it.

When it came time to look at colleges, I discovered there was a way to combine the two interests.

And here I am. Pursuing a doctorate for God's sake. Doctor William Kessler. That's gonna sound weird.

Nilbog Island, Wednesday Night

"Okay, what do you hear?" Billy asked.

"I hear the refrigerator." Ana said immediately. "And the ceiling fan."

"Good, what else?"

Her face scrunched in concentration, brows furrowing under the blindfold. "The creak of your chair when you shift...the...wind?"

"Very good. What's on the table?"

From memory, Ana listed the items on the table, but Billy interrupted her.

"What color is my shirt?"

"Uh..." She frowned. "I don't remember."

Billy smiled. "Don't worry, you're already better than you were last week."

Nilbog Island, Sunday Night

Billy didn't drink. He wasn't fond of the loss of self control intoxicants tended to bring on. But he did usually have some alcohol around the house in case of company. And he had company more often than he'd expected.

Fairly often Billy, Gail, and Dr. Keillor gathered to compare notes and make plans. And also fairly often, Gail would stick around for a while after the head of the Marine Division headed home.

Tonight she noticed something very odd in Billy's hand. "That's a pre-mixed margarita."

"Yes. Yes it is."

"I don't drink those."

"I know."

"Are you expecting more company?"

"Actually yes, but this is for me. Believe it or not."

"What's the occasion?" Helen asked, climbing the steps to the porch. She'd caught the tail end of the conversation.

Billy took a deep breath, and then a sip of the drink. "Neither of you have asked me any questions regarding what happened here in April. And I appreciate that. But you both got caught in the middle of it, and then you went above and beyond, getting Ana and Tommy's mother out. So..." he took another sip. "I figure I owe you some answers."

Nilbog Island, Father's Day

Gail was clearly trying not to laugh. Billy appreciated the effort. "That's uhm...a new eye patch isn't it."

Billy was wearing a handmade eye patch decorated with what looked like a furry snake wearing a shower cap. It was in fact, an otter with an army helmet. Billy hoped he only had to wear it on the day his daughter actually gave it to him.

"Ana made it for me for father's day." he explained.

Nilbog Island, Saturday

Well. So much for Billy's vague plans to go out today. Mostly because he...well, she at the moment, didn't feel like trying to explain to people about Billy's twin sister.

Actually that might work out just fine. Just so long as his kids didn't freak out.

*****

She was still limping later from the blows to her leg she'd gotten from both Ana, and Tommy. Thank God I've got the day off. Billy thought. And that Jeanie was visiting and knew enough about Fandom to back him up.

As painful as it had been, Billy was rather proud of the kids' swift reaction.

A selfie went out to the Fandom listserv with the message: Oh Fandom, and here I thought you'd forgotten me.

[Open]

Nilbog Island Memorial Day Celebration

Ana had her good days and her bad days. Billy just hoped he wasn't missing any warning signs. But she'd been bonding a lot with Helen, Gail's friend.

"What are you a child psychologist too?" Billy had joked.

"I have many skills." she'd shrugged.

She also stuck close by Tommy, and he to her. It was like they were both checking up on the other. And despite the sea-borne nature of the creatures that had attacked, neither seemed to have lost their taste for the beach, and sailing.

But it wasn't until Billy's mother, step-father, sister, and Storm-Shadow had shown up for the weekend that Billy realized just how much he, and his kids had missed everyone.

"Uncle Me!" Tommy shouted to Storm Shadow. "Uncle Me look!"

"That nick-name's not going away any time soon is it." Storm-Shadow sighed to Billy as he directed his attention to his namesake, who was attempting to balance on one foot.

"I hope not."

[Open for Calls, texts, etc.]

Astoria Oregon, Mothers Day

The Baroness was, as they say, 'in the wind'. Someone had freed her while Billy and the others were gone. This someone, as it turned out, had been Gail and Helen, though only Billy knew that. When he'd asked how they'd accomplished it, Helen had only said enigmatically; "I have many skills."

Cobra Commander was in a care facility, Marsh was in federal custody, and all was right with the world.

"It's too bad Anastasia couldn't be here today." Billy's step-father said, as they loaded up the car. They were headed out for a picnic with the family. "But I guess with all the folks watchin' us at the moment, it'd be hard for even her to sneak around here."

"Yeah." Billy sighed. "Mothers day when your mom is in hiding...even my non-life threatening life is complicated."

Sam St. Croix chuckled. "Yeah well your kids seem to be holding up well. How's the job by the way?"

"Still there oddly enough. Marsh might have conned his way into a high level position with the foundation, but he wasn't the top guy."

San Francisco, United States of Cobra-La

"I'll be honest, I didn't think you'd catch him." Billy said. "I'm pretty sure he can breathe underwater, so I figured he'd head west. He worshiped kind of a Great Old One so he might have done well if he joined up with Destro's people."

Pythona smirked. "And instead he headed East. He reckoned without the massive amount of surveillance in our territory. But I suppose he was trying to keep us guessing."

"Or he was trying to get to my father." Billy mused. "If he'd figured out where you were holding him. Revenge maybe."

"Your father?"

By now they had reached the Keldish, relocated from Seattle to San Francisco. The alignment of worlds that had resulted in their accidental arrival here was over, and they'd managed to cut a deal with portalocity to get them all home.

There'd been some debate amongst Serpentor's council about keeping the ship. But it was decided that the research vessel, with it's short range subs would not actually do much good.

"Oh, didn't I mention? Our Cobra Commander is my father."

Pythona gaped. "Your father? And yet you are his enemy?" She shook her head. "Your world is very complicated isn't it."

"You have no idea."

Watergate Building, USC-La

Pythona looked curiously at the young man who entered with Mindbender and Serpentor. My but that was a look of a thousand deaths he was sending her way wasn't it.

"Is there a problem gentlemen?" she asked.

"We have a fugitive to recover." Serpentor told her. "Mr. Kessler can fill you..." he too noticed Billy's scowl.

"What's wrong?"

"Sorry." Billy said, without sounding very sorry. "A version of her was working with Marsh."

"Marsh?" she asked.

"Barnabas Marsh." Mindbender told her, already at work on the surveillance computer. "A criminal being transported across interdimensional boundaries by our new friend here."

"What did he do?"

"He had the other you abduct my daughter so they could use her as a ritual sacrifice to resurrect a demonic God."

Pythona looked mildly impressed. "Well well, nice to know that other Pythonas don't scheme small."

"Pythona is our liaison with the forces of Cobra-La." Serpentor told Billy. "She is also my national security advisor and head of homeland security."

"If your Mr. Marsh is still anywhere in territory controlled by us," she told Billy, "We'll find him."

New Cobra-La (NC-La)(Formerly Washington DC)

( Worlds Without End )

United States of Cobra-La

In 1983, Cobra conquered the world using a teleportation device. Though G.I. Joe and the conventional military fought bravely, in the end they were reduced to an underground resistance that was eventually stamped out.

Until a handful of Joes came out of hiding and with the Baroness help sowed the seeds of discord between Cobra Commander and Destro. They had hoped that the Cobra Civil War would leave both sides too weak to stop a true revolution from freeing the world from their control.

What they hadn't counted on was that neither Cobra Commander or Destro were their own masters. While their conflict began with conventional weapons, Cobra Commander's true allegiance to the nation of Cobra-La was revealed when he summoned reinforcements. Destro retaliated by calling upon the Great Old Ones, to whom his family owed fealty, for aid.

In the face of this new hellish threat Cobra-La, having lost Cobra Commander to madness and then death, saw no choice but to ally with the human race they had sent the man to conquer in the first place.

Golobulus commissioned the scientist Dr. Mindbender to use cloning and genetic engineering to create a new leader for their forces. One who could inspire as well as conquer. Using the combined DNA's of Sun Tzu, William Wallace, Geronimo, Pancho Villa, George Washington, Patton, Churchill Vlad Tepes and others, he created Serpentor.

Under Serpentor's leadership, a new team of Joes was recruited, and together they wrested the entire American continent from Destro and the Old Ones' control. But Europe, Africa and much of Asia still remained lost.

"It is not...a perfect world." the Baroness sighed. "The US is not truly a republic, but neither is it the fascist dictatorship we feared would result."

"The closest comparison I can make," Steeler said, "Is Imperial Rome. There's one guy in charge, but there's still a senate, and citizens have a lot of freedom."

"The reason we're willing to give you the benefit of the doubt," his wife continued, "Is because the handful of Joes that emerged from hiding were in fact from an alternate world themselves."

At that moment, Shipwreck, Scarlet, and Zartan were led into the room. There were some awkward stares.

"And there's some more proof." Steeler said softly. "Three faces I never thought I'd see again."

"You two were never confirmed dead." Baroness said, pointing to Scarlet and Shipwreck. "But you, I killed you myself."

Zartan smirked.

"Are you a good guy in their world?" Steeler demanded.

"It's a bit more complicated than that where we're from." Billy told him.

Seattle Washington, USC-L

Their, captors for lack of a better word, at least appeared willing to reserve judgement. Though Billy's claim that they were from an alternate timeline had been met with skepticism, they hadn't been outright incredulous.

The Keldish had been brought to port in Seattle, and while the crew had been confined to the ship, Billy and his friends were put up under guard in a rather nice hotel. The soldiers and sailors they'd encountered so far had worn the typical uniforms of Cobra Vipers and Eels. But the guards at the hotel were something entirely different.

"I've seen them before." Billy said to Scarlet when they had a moment alone. "Years ago I spent a weekend in a world where Cobra was allied with a nation called Cobra-La. They were...bizarre is the only way I can think to put it. And their foot soldiers looked like these guys."

A few days later he was summoned to the penthouse. "Bring the child."

"Why?" Billy asked suspiciously. They'd not been mistreated, but he couldn't quite bring himself to relax.

"The Baroness wishes to meet her."

If pressed, Billy would have to admit that he'd deliberately not restrained Ana from rushing at the Baroness upon seeing her. Quite honestly he'd wanted to shake the opposition up a bit.

"Mommy!"

The Baroness gaped incredulously at the little girl who'd suddenly attached herself to her. "What?"

A man Billy recognized but couldn't place chuckled at the Baroness' discomfort. "Mommy? Something you want to tell me honey?"

"Ana," Billy said gently. "I don't think that's, technically, your mother."

Ana recovered herself quickly and backed away, blushing. "I'm sorry Ma'am." she said, curtsying. "I um, thought you were someone else." She sniffled and grabbed her father's hand.

"That's...quite alright." the Baroness said. "I understand completely. Am I to understand that in your world, I'm a mother?" Her voice was tightly controlled, but Billy could swear there was a slight tremor there.

"Yes," he confirmed. "So you believe us?"

"I think you'll find I and my husband are rather open to the possibility yes." she asnwered. She'd regained her composure.

"Call me Steeler." the man said, extending a hand.

"William Kessler." Billy shook his hand. "And this is my daughter, Anastasia. Steeler huh? Does the name G.I. Joe mean anything to you?"

Steeler's face grew hard. "You got one of those in your world too? How're they doing?"

"Weeeellll, we won."

That brought a sad smile to the man's face. "Good for you."

The Baroness sighed, and turned to the guard. "Please bring the others. I think we all have a great deal to talk about."