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                             AN UNUSUAL REVIVAL
                   a Real Adventures of Jonny Quest fanfic
                                ©capodo-1997
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WRITER'S NOTE: This story takes place somewhere between WITHOUT A TRACE and
THOUGHTSCAPE. Probably closer to the latter. Suggestions and comments on
this story are welcomed! Send e-mail to: jsurd@hotmail.com

It had been three weeks since Hadji had first run into Carla Dobs. It was
quite by accident, but a lucky one it turned out to be, as Dobs was a
two-bit hacker who just happened to stumble upon Questworld by some freak of
nature. Since her discovery, however, she hadn't left it alone, trying day
and night to crack into the main program. It took everything the Quest team
had to keep the hacker at bay.

Recently, while inside Questworld trying to work on a blocker program that
would keep Dobs out, Jonny, Jessie, and Hadji's lives had been endangered
when the hacker had managed to infiltrate one of Iris' sub security systems.
The three teens would've been trapped forever if Surd (of all people!)
hadn't scared the woman half to death by suddenly appearing on the scene.

In a rare conference, Surd told Jonny that Dobs's hacking was also affecting
the part of Questworld the doctor had taken dominion over. The woman, who
had no idea what she was doing, managed to threaten his life once before
too. She was an amateur, although an intelligent one. After much
deliberation with his two friends, and deciding that perhaps Jeremiah could
be of some help to them, Jonny informed Surd about a Protector program
Benton Quest had been working on, one that would prevent outside sources
from tapping in. Jonny confessed that it was being designed to try and keep
the scientist from logging on. But Dr Quest was having problems with the
program. He couldn't get it to recognize that Surd wasn't a part of
Questworld!

Although he appeared offended by the news, Surd agreed that such a program
could be just what they needed. In another conference, Jonny suggested
teaming up with the scientist inside Questworld to try and fix the program.
Dr Quest vehemently protested the idea saying he should go if anyone went.
Jonny countered back by telling his dad that he'd need him on the outside to
run it once the changes had been made. Besides, unfortunately, Dr Surd knew
almost as much about Questworld now as Dr Quest did. Benton, having no
argument he could use against this, finally consented to letting him go.
Since Dobs was constantly monitoring Iris' main systems, they decided to
enter through the "back door". This would give them undetected access to
Questworld, but they'd have no Virtual Reality. Jessie created a scenario
where Jonny and Surd could meet and work. Communication with those on the
outside would be impossible, but Race assured Jonny that they would continue
to monitor his every move.

Julia, of course, assured Jeremiah of the same thing.

So, on a cool fall night, they put OPERATION: REVIVAL into action.

                            ********************

5É4É3É2É1ÉGOING HOT!

The familiar green haze filled in front of him as he felt himself being
pulled in. Not even half a second later he'd arrived at his destination, a
country hillside on a warm summer's day. The sky was perfectly blue with not
a cloud in sight. In the distance he could hear the running water of a brook
or stream. The place was beautiful, even though without VR it looked like he
was inside a cartoon.

"Great job Jess!" He said out loud.

A small ladybug caught his attention. He crouched down to inspect it more
carefully. On it's back, the familiar Quest logo.

The sound of footsteps broke the quietness of the scene. Jonny didn't look.
He already knew whom the footsteps belonged to. The sun was blocked out as a
shadow covered him. Finally, he gazed at the figure that had created it.

Jeremiah Surd.

Even though Jonny had seen this cartoon version of the man before, he was
nonetheless unnerved by it. Surd seemed towering though he was only six feet
five. His exceptionally muscular body clothed in a collared skintight suit
of black. Hands covered in gloves. Long, straight, jet-black hair fell just
past his shoulders. His skin pale, almost a purple color. Granite chiseled
features. Eyes, devoid of pupils, a light green. And a grin. An oversized,
sickening, demonic grin, which now spread over his lips.

"Hello boy." The scientist's raspy voice intoned.

Jonny nodded. "Surd."

The cartoon doctor surveyed the surroundings. "Primitive compared to what I
could do, but it'll have to work."

"We're not here to critique the landscape Surd."

The animated Surd nodded his head slowly, eyes focusing once again on the
teen. "True. Our goal is to see that our mutual enemy isÉ disposed of."

"No it's not!" Jonny protested raising a cartoon hand. "Our goal is to try
and revive the Protector program. Understood?"

Surd's left eyebrow raised inÉamusement? Then he frowned and sighed. "You're
not going to let me have any fun are you?"

Jonny actually had to smile at this. "No. I'm not."

"Very well." The scientist muttered. "I am just your humble servant m'lord"
he stated, bowing low.

"Don't mock me." The teen responded tersely. "I don't enjoy this any more
than you do."

The evil grin returned. "Oh there you mistake me Mr. Quest. I'm having the
time of my life!"

Now it was Jonny's turn to frown. "Well I'm not. This whole thing gives me
the creeps."

Surd's green eyes flashed. "Probably because I've never been your ally. I'm
usually trying to kill you!"

The cartoon teen's eyes met those of the scientist. "That's not funny Surd."

A laugh as satanic as the grin rumbled from the doctor. In one fluid motion
he swept past Jonny and started walking towards the horizon.

"Wait for me!" The teen yelled out as he ran after him.

"What was I thinking?"

                            ********************

Jonny woke with a start. For a second, he was disoriented until he
remembered where he was. To his right, Dr Surd, still on his knees, still
working on the Protector program. The teen shook his head to clear it. He'd
never fallen asleep inside Questworld before and he felt somewhat strange.
Detached. His mind went back to the dream he'd just awoken from. More like a
nightmare. Surd had decided he'd dispose of Jonny after all. Needless to
say, the dream had done nothing to help quench the ache in his stomach that
he'd probably made the biggest mistake of his life when he agreed to team up
with the mad doctor.

"Any luck?" He finally called out.

Surd straightened, stretched, and then curled his long legs underneath him
as he sat down on the ground.

"No." Was the short reply. "I must admit the program is good. As it is, I
can't crack the password protection. Once this is accomplished, however, the
rest will be a proverbial 'piece of cake'."

Jonny rubbed the back of his neck. "How long have I been asleep?"

The cartoon doctor looked up at the sky as if he were calculating the time
based on the Questworld sun. "About two hours."

"And you didn't try to kill me. I'm impressed Surd!"

"The thought did cross my mindÉ." The doctor hissed, soft green eyes
glinting, "but, I DO have more pressing matters at the moment."

"Great. Just great." Jonny mumbled to himself, the ache in his stomach
intensifying.

Both of them were suddenly brought out of their reverie by a loud crunching
sound. It seemed to be coming from somewhere to their right.

"Dobs!" They both cried in unison.

"How'd she find us?" Jonny questioned despairingly.

Surd stood and surveyed the horizon. "I don't know. But this'll put a crimp
in our plans."

"You're telling me!"

Before the doctor could reply, however, their mutual foe appeared on the
scene. Driving what resembled a land rover, Dobs's character looked
completely outlandish. A great golden eagle, except that where the eagle's
face and beak would be the hacker's face was there instead.

Jonny froze. "Oh manÉ." He felt the doctor slink up behind him. Chills ran
down his spine. He was about to tell Surd to back off when a movement to his
left startled him.

"Aaahh!" The teen hollered when he noticed that a whirling blade had
replaced the doctor's left hand. Without warning, Surd suddenly pushed Jonny
to the ground using his left forearm, the blade only inches from the teen's
face.

Jonny went down with another yell as a blast of light flew over his head. He
rolled on the ground and stopped in time to see that the doctor had
apparently thrown the blade and it had hit its mark. It sliced right through
the engine of Dobs's Questworld vehicle. He whipped around to look at Surd
only to realize that the blast, which had flown overhead, must've come from
the hacker's vehicle and must've been meant for him. Surd had pushed the boy
out of the way to safety, but was not so lucky himself. The blast struck him
dead on in the chest.

In agonizing pain, he collapsed to the ground, falling on his knees. His
green eyes bore into Jonny's blue.

"Damn!" Surd exclaimed just before he pitched forward unconscious.

                            ********************

The countryside was quiet. Nightfall had set in. It would be blissfully
peaceful, if it weren't for the last turn of events and the fact that
Jonny's nerves were beyond frazzled. He knelt forward to check on the
doctor.

Surd's eyes remained closed, his breathing labored. From time to time he'd
cough violently and red goo would ooze out of his nose, mouth, ears and
eyes. The teen had no idea what was wrong, let alone how to take care of
him. He ran a wet cloth over Surd's face again, trying to wipe the gook
away.

"How do I manage to always get into situations like this?" Jonny mused
ruefully.

Another coughing fit from Surd ended his musing. Once more, he wiped the
doctor's face, and this time, gingerly; the doctor opened his eyes.

"How are you feeling?" Jonny questioned with true concern.

"How am I supposed to be feeling?" The doctor's voice rasped near a whisper.

"Crummy I'd suppose." The teen replied with a slight chuckle. "What
happened?"

Another coughing outburst from Surd. It took a bit for him to catch his
breath. "I'd say she used a disrupter virus, which right now is trying to
rewrite my program. Impudent wench!" He raged as he tried to sit up and
began to cough again.

"The more worked up you get, the worse that gets." Jonny warned as he pushed
on Surd's shoulder forcing him to lie down.

For a moment neither spoke. With the scientist hurt, the teen knew this left
him with only one option. "I'm going to have to work on the Protector
program. Do you feel able enough to transfer any knowledge you've learned so
far to me?" Jonny finally questioned.

The doctor, however, didn't move nor reply.

"SURD!" Jonny called out.

Growling, the man opened his eyes. "Yes. I think I can transfer the
information to you. But it will use up any strength I have left."

Jonny huffed. "I don't like that. It means you'll be defenseless. But I
can't watch you and work on the program at the same time."

"Don't worry about me boy. We're quite safe for the moment. I doubt that
Dobs will try anything more tonight. She's probably in a corner somewhere
licking her wounds."

The teen smiled slightly. "Nice shot."

"You doubted it would be?" Surd questioned his voice hardly audible.

Before Jonny could reply though, he knew the doctor had slipped into
unconsciousness again. He gazed at the chiseled cartoon face.

"No." He whispered.

                            ********************

"WHAT AM I DOING WRONG!!" Jonny's brain screamed. He'd been at the console
for over two hours. His luck, and his patience, was running thin. Hadji's
voice drifted into his mind.

"Sometimes, the best way to attack a problem is to leave it alone."

"What's that supposed to mean?" The teen grumbled. Then the meaning of the
words struck him. Letting out a long breath, he stood up and made his way
back to Surd.

The doctor was awake when he arrived. He seemed more alert.

"You're looking better." Remarked the teen.

Surd nodded gently. "I'm beginning to fight the virus. How are you doing
with the Protector?"

Jonny's shoulder's sagged. "Not very good. I mean, I understand the concepts
and all; my dad showed me the whole thing from start to finish. I just can't
figure out how to pull the concepts together!"

"When tackling a complex situation, approach only one variable at a time."
Commented the scientist.

"You sound like Hadji!" The boy exclaimed with a snicker, knowing the
statement would get a rise out of Surd. He wasn't disappointed as the doctor
responded with the familiar raising of his left eyebrow.

"So your East Indian friend isn't a stupid as I thought."

Jonny bristled, then realized that Surd had just gotten him back. "Yeah.
You're feeling better."

The sardonic grin returned. "What have you tried so far?"

"I broke the password code." Jonny said noticing the uncovered surprise in
the doctor's eyes. " It was easy, once I figured out what attachment my dad
had put together for it. I've loaded the starter sequence. I've tested the
main and sub programs. I've run the scenarios. She works just fine in test
mode, but when I try to activate her, she gives me a 'undefined variable'
error. I can't figure out what 'undefined variable' it means!"

"An 'undefined variable'É" Surd breathed just before coughing again. Less
ooze ran out this time and he managed to wipe it away himself.

His grin broadened. "Of course! Me. The 'undefined variable' is me. You said
that a problem your father had was that he couldn't get the program to
recognize I was not a part of Questworld. Correct?"

"Yeah, so?"

"Well, the program is still written with that concept in mind. You need to
rewrite the variables to taking me as a part of Questworld into
consideration."

Jonny considered this. "If I do that, then this mean that youÉ."

"Won't be affected by the program." Surd finished for him.

"So why can't I rewrite the program making you an excluded variable?" Jonny
pressed.

Surd actually managed a laugh. "And make me give up my domain in this
glorious kingdom? I think not!"

Jonny sighed as he realized that at this point, anything was worth a try.
"And you're sure this'll work if I rewrite it?"

The doctor nodded. "Yes. It will work."

The teen frowned deeply. He felt fatigue sweeping over him. "Like I have a
choice."

The cartoon Surd closed his eyes momentarily. "I never did, Jonny."

"You had a choice. You just made the wrong one Surd." The teen retorted.

The doctor's eyes bore once again into the teen. Jonny felt like they were
burning into his very soul.

"I have a first name." The doctor suddenly said.

"What?!" The teen questioned incredulous.

"I have a first name." Surd repeated.

Jonny shook his head. "You're joking right?" When the doctor's expression
didn't change; he looked away, into the river, seeing his reflection. Yellow
blonde hair. Shocking blue eyes. Boyish good looks. "I'm a cartoon." He
thought to himself suddenly amused. "But this isn't some kind of a show."

He looked up and met the doctor's eyes. "Jeremiah."

                            ********************

"THAT'S not the correct one!" Jonny almost screamed.

With a snort of disgust, Surd threw up his hands and leaned back on his long
legs. "Boy, you are beginning to grate on the only nerve I have left." He
warned.

"That goes DOUBLE for me Surd!" The teen immediately shot back.

Taking a deep breath, the doctor cocked his head and glanced at Jonny.
"We're almost done."

Jonny rubbed the back of his neck. "Ok. What sequence were you doing?"

"Six, eight, five, Alpha Omega Two."

The boy thought for a moment. "Just one more. Ok. Now we need to run the
shield. Enter in Five. One. One. Four. Two. Eight. Six. One. Three. One.
Eight. Six. Three. Ten. One. Four. Nine. Five. One. One. One. One.

Surd keyed the numbers into the console.

"That's it. That's the last sequence. Everything should work now." Jonny
remarked.

Surd leaned back once again. "It's not going to. You're missing a key
element"

The teen's head dropped forward, his chin resting on his chest. "Now what?!"

The doctor's soft green eyes examined the program. "We're missing the
conduit. We need a vehicle for this program to run in."

"I'm sure my dad's already thought of that. Just run the program." Jonny
muttered.

A crunching sound broke the silence.

"Not yet..." The teen breathed.

"Go and check on it." Surd commanded.

Jonny got to his feet and stealthily made his way around the hill they'd
been hiding behind. Sure enough, there was Dobs's land rover again. But this
time, it was covered in heavy armor. And, she'd apparently added some new
weapons to her arsenal. The golden eagle was standing up, a pair of
binoculars to her face, trying to locate the hidden twosome. Jonny crept
back to Surd.

As he approached him, however, he realized something was different. The
cartoon doctor stood a look of victory upon his face. In an instant, Jonny
knew what he'd done.

"You merged with the Protector didn't you?" He accused.

Surd's eyes gleamed with power. "Yes. It needed a vehicle and I supplied it
with one. Namely, ME."

Jonny shook his head in disbelief. "So now what?!" Is all he could think to
ask.

"It's time to end this. I grow weary of it." Without another word, Surd
stormed past the teen around the hill. Jonny, not knowing what else to do,
followed him.

Dobs didn't have a problem spotting the target as the doctor walked out
right in front of her. The golden eagle swiftly sat down and leveled one of
the many guns on the land rover directly at her enemy.

Surd laughed. "That won't stop me!" He hollered. Pointing a single finger at
the hacker, a flash of light so bright that Jonny had to cover his eyes
emitted from it. In nanoseconds, the land rover was reduced to a pile of
ash.

The teen raised his head. "What have you done?" He breathed alarmed.

"Oh don't worry," Surd replied dryly. "She's fine. But, I doubt she'll ever
try prying in Questworld again as I just destroyed her computer."

"Then it's over." Jonny said.

Again, the pupil-less eyes gleamed. "Oh, but a new game's just begun!"

The teen blinked not liking the look on the doctor's face.

"Julia, log me out of Questworld." Surd commanded and instantly began to
fade. "Until next timeÉJonny Quest!"

                            ********************

DISCLAIMER:
This story is neither endorsed nor authorized by Hanna Barbara. All
character names remain their property. I just took a HUGE liberty in using
them for this fanfic!!
AN ADDITIONAL NOTE: HB...don't sue me...please?! Thank you!