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Galactic-Kids-Next-Door mission
Operation:
A.L.P.H.A.
A whole year has passed ever since Nigel Uno, aka Numbuh 1, was recruited by the GKND to become their very first Earth operative and Sector V is now part of the Supreme Global Command. Peaceful times come to an abrupt end when an old conflict of galactic proportions restarts once again and a secret team sector is forced to get involved in a war they've been desperately trying to avoid for thousands of years. This is the story of the beginning of a new era of KND.
Chapter 1: The era of KND Supreme Leader Numbuh 5
Space…the truly ultimate frontier, where the unknown absolutely rules over the millions of galaxies that populate the always-expanding universe. Darkness and light seem to intertwine in a sort of never-ending waltz, sometimes splashing the black veil with colorful nebulas and planets, and some other times destroying everything in its path with black holes and exploding supernovas.
You could say this waltz was more similar to a battle than to a dance, because of how much chaos and destruction it always cause…but then Big Bang-like events happen, and from their colossal clashes life always come out anew much like a Phoenix being reborn from its own ashes shinning so very brightly while proudly flying off again to perhaps start a new dancing tune.
The Milky Way, for example, our own home galaxy, was supposedly created from a powerful crash between two gigantic stars pretty similar to our Sun. That must have been a pretty scary event to witness but if it wasn't because of that catastrophic event, our home planet Earth would have never come to exist, right?
It's certainly a chain reaction that continues to repeat itself.
Something similar was what eventually lead to the creation of the renamed Kids-Next-Door thousand of years ago. Every era of KND began with a sudden spark, a clash of two forces that wanted something for themselves. There's probably not a single era that hadn't started with a conflict of global proportions.
But oddly enough, whenever a new era was about to begin, a period of peace would predict it, the calm before the storm as some people like to refer to it, and these specific rare seasons tend to be extremely dangerous for there's nothing more weakening than the constant sensation that nothing could ever go wrong. Humans especially tend to become too comfortable, too confident when their lives seem to slow down, so they rarely are prepared for when these sudden changes in their destinies occur. You must be very perceptive to sense ahead of time when these changes are about to happen.
And it was at the end of a very hot summer when unknown to the people of Earth, the 7th era of the Kids-Next-Door was about to end.
Space looked different that morning from the towering view of the new Kids-Next-Door Moonbase Zero. The skies looked darker than usual but Earth seemed to glow more brightly blue and green than ever and stars twinkled around the nearby planets in a secret synchronized tune. The colossal silhouette of Numbuh Zero's monument was washed under the morning sunlight as the dawn of a new day began normally.
"Now cadets here we're entering what's known as the main bridge of our magnificent new KND Moonbase, the heart of our entire organization and where our amazingly cool Global Command supervises all KND operations around the globe!" Numbuh 60 said proudly as he walked in front of a large group of cadets on their very first time visiting the legendary KND main headquarters.
"The Moonbase was build at the beginning of the 2nd era of KND by the few survivors of the first big 'Time Out war" with the adults. It first served as a home to all the heroes who fought valiantly for children's freedom but later became the beacon of kids unbeatable resistance and strength-" his voice suddenly pitched for an instance and had to quickly cough to make it sound normal again, "sorry about that" he blushed and continued his tour while approaching a separated area near the large windows so to not disturb the many operatives that were currently working at the moment.
"Poor lad already dealing with the early signs of puberty," said with a deep Australian accent a figure watching the group from the upper platform of the main Global Command booth. His hairstyle had changed from a clean bowl cut to a much shaggier look and was slightly more suntanned due to the many missions he had lived. The blond boy was sporting an open orange hooded jacket over a white shirt with a pair of baggy denim bermudas and black combat boots. "The squeaky voice is the worst symptom " Numbuh 4 scoffed from his spot as he looked down with melancholy at Patton Drilovsky, aka Numbuh 60.
"Yeah…although he seems to be taking it well, still doing his job like a Swiss watch," another figure said next to his command desk. It was a much chubby boy, of light complex and reddish brunet hair. He was wearing a sky blue buttoned-up shirt, ripped khaki pants, brown sandals, a brown aviator cap over his head and thick square-shaped glasses. "I don't know why he insists on working and training cadets rather than spend his last week as a KND operative in a beach or something. So many years living in that Artic Base must be maddening".
"Well, it's not like he has anything better to do, mate, and who said our jobs aren't fun anyway?" Numbuh 4 replied.
"Ah come on you're telling me you'll rather spend your last days chasing after 13-year-old fugitives all over the place than, I don't know, eating all the candy you can find? Throwing water balloons at teens proms? Having fun with your friends-"
"Hoagie my friend, you clearly underestimate the fun of terrorizing teen fugitives! Right Numbuh, 86?" Numbuh 4 smirked with pride while glancing at a freckled red-haired girl that was standing next to him with a holographic tablet on her hands.
She glared back at him briefly but then smirked too, " it's certainly way much fun than developing new 2x4 weaponry for sure" she agreed on her usual Scottish accent to everyone' surprise and Numbuh 4 ended up high fiving her for once.
"Sheesh! You guys are twisted! Definitely made for the Decommission Squad!" Hoagie rolled his eyes while shaking his head, "I´ve already planned what I´ll be doing the last 4 weeks before my decommission!" he said proudly, " Oh yes sir, when my time comes, I'll spend my final days in KND flying every single one of our coolest aircrafts throughout the skies! I´ll break every speed limit and set so many new records probably not even my grandchildren will be able to break them in the future!" He chuckled at the mental image "I'll also re-watch all the seasons of Doctor Time Space and the Continuums one last time, donate my entire Yipper Cards collection to the KND Nerd Society, give all my rarest inventions and dismissed project blueprints to the Kids Next Door Seriously Cool Museum of Artifacts and Stuff and… probably eat all the chili-dogs I can before I get that acne virus we invented" he chuckled with fun.
"Well" Numbuh 4 mused for a second, "I suppose I would love to have one final showdown with Uncle Toiletnator to set the final score straight once and for all, before I forget all my KND days" he shrugged, "Oi! Kuki!" he turned around and shouted behind Numbuh 86's, "what do ya think?"
Right next to the Head of the Decommissioning Squad was a tall Japanese girl, with shoulder length straight black hair, wearing an over-sized green shirt, black leggings, and black flat shoes, sitting on a desk with a pair of rainbow monkeys at each side of her keyboard. The always cheerfully Numbuh 3 might have gained a few pounds over the last year but to him, she looked even prettier than ever. "what about what, Wally?" she obviously hadn't been listening to them as she set down a rainbow monkey with a stethoscope around its neck on top of her table.
Numbuh 4 facepalmed, "have you thought about what would you like to do on your final days as a KND operative?" he questioned her exasperated.
"Oh no silly, that's still pretty far away!" she giggled and waved one of her long oversized sleeves in a dismissive manner.
"Kuki…you realize we're all turning 13 in like" he counted with his fingers"…a year and a half, right?" he turned towards Numbuh 2 for confirmation and he nodded in response.
"Exactly! It's really, really, REALLY, very far away Wally! If you start planning things for when that day comes you might end up jinxing it and my mom always tells me to not count your chickens before they hatch!" she imitated her mom's in her usual strict stance.
Wally Beetles rolled his eyes at her, "and what about you, Numbuh 86?" he suddenly asked for everybody' shock, "surely the head of decommissioning has already everything planned ahead of time, including my shiny and inevitable promotion?" he sang along the last part while wiggling his eyebrows at her playfully.
"In your dreams, short stack". Fanny Fulbright, the fiery 12 years old Head of Decommissioning and Global Tactical Officer, slapped Numbuh 4's head back with her tablet, "Just because the Supreme Leader promoted you to Decommissioning Lieutenant, doesn't mean I'M handing over to you the reigns of my team! I´m actually recommending Numbuh 91 for my position" she admitted with a large smirk to his astonished face.
"OH, YOU´RE ONLY SAYING THAT TO PISS ME OFF, DON´T CHA?!"
"No, I'm not, Beetles! Numbuh 91 is not only more capable than you or any other boy in the matter, but is actually much younger and would be able to keep the good work for at least 3 more years"
"YOU´RE ONLY CHOOSING HER BECAUSE YOU HATE BOYS!"
"NO IM NOT YOU IDIOT!"
Numbuh 2 and 3 giggled at the usual banter exchange they nowadays had to deal with ever since they were all promoted as the new Global Command team.
"Abby probably has the coolest pre-decommissioning plan ever, right boss?" Hoagie looked above to the top of the tallest platform that rose behind the 4 of them.
There, on top of an upside-down airplane tale was the most important operative of the entire organization. She was dark skinned and slender with her hair neatly combed on a long dark braid, sporting a white striped dark blue sleeved turtle neck shirt, with a pair of white shorts and red cowboy boots with the number 5 labeled at each side of them, and a matching red Gatsby cap that now she had to wear under a very heavy samurai-like helmet with the number "5" engraved in a copper plate.
Numbuh five sighed deeply, her eyes rising towards the curve of the Earth that was right behind Numbuh 60 and his group of young cadets.
"It´s been a year already?" her thoughts drifted away, "Time sure flies when you're Supreme Leader..." she absently adjusted her helmet, "this is the toughest job there is and still…"
"I can't stop thinking about that day…"
(1 year ago)
"You are resigning?" A recently turned 11-year-old Numbuh 5's whispered with her eyes big as plates as she looked down at the KND Supreme Leader's helmet that was now in her hands.
Numbuh 86 and the rest of the Global Command were loudly crying behind her.
"I know it sounds repetitive coming from me but…this time is for real I'm afraid" Abby heard and her eyes went up to meet with Numbuh 362's warm smile. When had the Supreme Leader grown so tall? She wondered.
"Rachel whyyyyy?! You still have time!" Numbuh 86 protested with tears and buggers running down her freckled face.
Rachel T. Mackenzie was a few weeks away from turning 13 years old and yet you could already notice that something in her had changed. It wasn't only her physical appearance, as she had grown taller and leaner, but something in her eyes and in her tired smile seemed wiser and more mature. It was the exact same expression Maurice Willems had the days before his decommission.
"Rachel-" Numbuh 5 began but Rachel cut her with a slight raise of her hand.
"It´s alright everyone, I checked all the KND regulations and it's allowed for the Supreme Leader to choose a trustworthy fellow operative to succeed him/ her instead of summoning a game of tag. Supreme Leader Numbuh 100 chose Numbuh 274 and me as his successors years before his decommission so I'm not exactly doing anything "new" here" she smiled.
"But Sir! Your 13th birthday is still a month away! What are you going to-?"
"Oh for the love of Numbuh Zero guys, this is actually good news! I´m doing this right now since things seem to have quiet down a bit after the last Cake mission with the Delightful Children from Down the Lane! We don´t know when will we ever have another moment of peace like this one!" She insisted in her usual stern commanding tone.
"But Rachel!" Abby geared up in determination again, "I can't leave Sector V right now! I just can't! Not after…not after Numbuh 1 sudden departure…" her hand went to the pocket of her shirt that contained Nigel's sunglasses, her fingers grasping them tightly. "I promised him I would lead the team in his place!"
Rachel eyes softened at her confession, "I understand Abby and that´s why I´m promoting your whole sector to be the new Global Command's team-"
"WHAT?!" Numbuh 86 stopped crying and gapped at her in shock.
"It would be perfect! You guys along with Numbuh 86 and Numbuh 60 will keep KND working without a problem, I´m confident of it" everyone was looking at her like she had certainly gone mad.
"But sir!"
"It's alright! There's none else more qualified for this job than you, Numbuh 5. I trust you, we all do…don't worry about me…I actually need to solve a lot of pending paperwork before my 13 birthday anyway, and I will make sure you're adequately briefed in everything you need to know about the position…" the blonde pre-teen tried to reassure her.
"Rachel please-"
"Abby listen to me…" Rachel suddenly grabbed her by her shoulders and looked at her straight in the eye. Numbuh 5 gulped slowly and did as ordered. "from this day on I'm going to have to ask you to trust me no matter what…" Abby arched an eyebrow confusedly, "Trust me on this, alright?" she then let go of her and began to turn around to leave the room
"don't worry about me…because as a legendary KND operative once said…once a kids-next-door operative, you'll always be a kid next door operative". Her voice echoed and faded away in her memories.
(End of the flashback)
A few months later after that, the ex-KND Supreme Leader Numbuh 362, Rachel T. Mckenzie, was honorably decommissioned on her 13th birthday without a fight nor complain. It felt just as close and personal as the day Numbuh 9 too was decommissioned and Sector V mourned the day for weeks.
Numbuh 5' ascended to Supreme Leader of Global Kids-Next-Door without objection, and Sector V was effectively promoted as her new Global Command team. Their old base at the Uno's residency got later re-assigned to Sector W and the veteran team was fully relocated on the KND Moonbase Treehouse.
It took some time to get used to their new lives at the Moonbase treehouse, but compared to how it felt to the day Nigel left this new change had been overcome much faster. Each one of them accepted and adapted to their new individual global position roles really fast: Numbuh 4 was now the Decommissioning Lieutenant of the Decommission Squad and had embraced his new job joyfully. The rate of traitors had decreased to 0% ever since, much to Numbuh 86's surprise. The red-haired girl had loudly voiced her concerns to Numbuh 5 from Wally's very first day but he seemed to have proven her wrong and nowadays you could actually see them both agree whenever they had to come up with preventing tactical maneuvers and less traumatic capture methods.
Numbuh 3 was now the Global Supervisor of the KND Hospital and the Global Medical Staff, and although Abby had had her own concerns about assigning Kuki to such a delicate position, the girl had proven to be very focused and dedicated to her job, making sure that all medical candy supplies were always stocked and that every medical operative knew how to stitch a torn stuffed toy. She also made sure the Moonbase Hamsters were also properly fed and taken care, improving greatly the hamster's force's work conditions. But what surprised Abby the most was when Kuki started campaigning to change the use of hamsters as an energy source for a much cleaner option like solar energy. "We have the sun right there! Why can't we just use it instead of making our hamsters work extra hours? My dad says the sun is the most powerful source of energy there is!" she had snapped at the dumbfounded faces of the scientists of the KND Deep Sea Science lab.
Speaking of scientists, Numbuh 2 was another of the team who eagerly took his new role as Global Chief of 2x4 Engineer very seriously. He would constantly travel back and forth from the Moonbase to the Deep Sea Science Lab to personally supervise and even work on every new 2x4-developing project there was. He would even go as far as to actually visit every single one of the KND Orbital Shipyards to give conferences about his current new conceptual projects to the many rookie tech officers that were training and studying there. Hoagie would always return to the Moonbase very late at nights, babbling non-stop about all the new tech findings he had accomplished, much to everyone's joy. With Nigel gone, he was now the new official workaholic member of Sector V.
And Numbuh 5? Well, let's just say that now she understood perfectly well why Rachel had tried to quit her job as Supreme Leader the first time. You definitely need to be some kind of special operative to have the guts and patience to actually manage such a gigantic organization as KND. She missed the old days terribly.
"Hello! Moonbase to Abby! Hello!"
Abby came back from her trance and looked down at Numbuh 2 with an arched eyebrow, "oh sorry Hoagie, Numbuh 5 was again remembering stuff" she smiled and quickly jumped down from her command booth to join her team.
"You've been doing that a lot lately," Numbuh 2's said with worry, "better watch out or you'll end having one of those crazy break downs that Numbuh 362 used to have while being the Supreme Leader" he tried to humor her with his usual jokes.
"Ya know Numbuh 5 is always cool and therefore can't have mental breakdowns, baby," she said with a hand on her hip and her teeth shining brightly. "And to answer your previous question, yes I do have the coolest retirement plan that any Supreme Leader has ever come up with in all Kids-Next-Door history…I´ll put Numbuh 100's party to shame, you´ll see…"
She made a dramatic pause as Numbuh 2, 3, 4 and 86 expectantly waited for her to finish her sentence.
"But I guess telling ya would be too much of a spoiler as Numbuh 3 just said, and you all know Numbuh 5 has a strict no-spoiler policy!" she chuckled at everybody´s moans of disappointment.
"I'm calling ya no-fun-Supreme-Leader from now on," Numbuh 4 said mockingly.
Numbuh 5 then looked ahead and noticed Numbuh 60 now approaching their station with his group of cadets-next-door. "Shhh, straighten up Wally!" she heard Kuki whisper hurriedly and Numbuh 4 who quickly recomposed himself to look taller.
Abby looked at Numbuh 60 and couldn't help herself notice how the almost-13-year-old chief of the KND Artic Training Base was now towering them in height. His black hair had grown longer, his facial features hardened, his chin has gotten angular, and his usual artic attire seemed now uncomfortably too tight fit for him. She fondly remembered the day of Rachel's decommission and how hard the veteran operative had taken it. He had later lashed out all his sadness on the training simulator to prevent scaring his young pupils. Numbuh 5 was really shocked when Numbuh 2 informed her angrily of all the equipment that needed to be entirely replaced in the almost destroyed simulator.
She was definitely going to miss the tough guy and silently hoped for her sister to not be interested in recruiting him for the Teen Ninjas.
"Supreme Leader Numbuh 5, fellow Global Command Sector V, sirs!" Patton Drilovsky, aka Numbuh 60, gave them a military greeting. The young cadets behind him followed suit and also saluted them.
"Hehehe at ease soldiers, Numbuh 5 welcomes you all to the Moonbase" Abby approached them with her hands crossed behind her back and a big smile on her features. "I thought I signed your full-covered vacation leave last week, Patton. You should be relaxing on Sector J's beach instead of doing scholar tours in the Moonbase" Abby whispered to him with a sad smile.
Numbuh 60 relaxed his military stance and chuckled at his Supreme Leader, "Nah, that's too relaxing for me, Abby. I rather keep doing my job than getting sunburnt or drown in mango smoothies with Sector J" he shrugged with an eyebrow playfully arched.
She shook her head, "Good old Numbuh 60. Well then Numbuh 5 will leave you be as you wish" she cleared her throat and refocused her attention to the large group of cadets that were quietly expecting her to once again address them. "Well I bet ya'll have a bunch of questions about our headquarters and lucky for ya, Numbuh 5 has a bit of free time to answer a few-"
"How big is the new Moonbase, Supreme Leader?"
"How many kids live in the Moonbase?!"
"Is it true that Father is Numbuh Zero's brother?!"
"What happens if Grandfather returns once again?"
"Is it true you have tasted the 4th flavor?!"
"Did broccoli turned ex-Supreme Leader Numbuh 362? crazy?!"
"Is it true that Nurse Claiborne uses snot for her famous apple crumble pie?!"
"Is it true that commander Numbuh 4 has a crush on commander Numbuh 3?"
"HEY!-"
"Are the rumors about the Rainbow Monkey Island true?"
"Supreme leader Numbuh 5!"
"Supreme leader please-!"
"Alright, alright! Calm down kids, one at a time!" Abby didn't expect so many questions fired at once.
"Sorry Numbuh 5, they're working on a KND Historical report so that's why they're firing up as many questions as they can…so very sorry" he whispered into her ear as kids quiet down around them.
"Historical report uh? Well ok listen up, you're like 200 kids so I can't actually answer all your questions so…uhm…" she desperately thought, "Numbuh 5 is going to choose one of you at random and answer that lucky cadet his or her question, alright? You can later go to Numbuh 2 and ask him for a copy of his WikiKNDpedia-"
"Abby, that's still not completed-" Hoagie tried to protest but Numbuh 5 ignored him.
The cadets-next-door cheered in victory and anxiously waited for their Supreme Leader to choose.
"Let's see…" Abby looked around her, so many still-very-young future KND operatives looking back at her with their eyes shining with expectation and curiosity. They reminded her so much of the first time she met Numbuh 1 and invited him to join the KND. He was so different back then, with full hair and a much joyful spirit. Unintentionally, her eyes looked for someone remotely close to what he looked like that day.
She then noticed a small dark-skinned girl, with her curly hair tied up in two pigtails wearing a white and red stripped overall over a white shirt and matching white shoes. She was the only one not really paying attention at Numbuh 5, as she seemed more interested in a book she was currently reading.
"Yo! You over there with the stripped white and red overall!" Numbuh 5 shouted and all the cadets turned around to gasp in surprise at who she was referring to.
The girl had to be snap out of her book by another fellow cadet. "Trix! The Supreme Leader is talking to you!" a brunette girl whispered sharply to her and the girl rose her eyes in surprise.
"Me?!" the little girl panic while the other giggled around her in mockery.
"Uhm Supreme Leader-" Numbuh 60 now sounded unsure, "about that girl-"
"Yes, you! Come over to the front and ask Numbuh 5 anything you want to know about!" Abby ignored how Patton readjusted his sweater's collar.
The little girl walked hurriedly to the front as the rest of the cadets whispered around her. She stopped a few inches away from Numbuh 5 and shyly made a military greeting.
"What's your name, cadet?"
"I-I'm Trixy Jhonson, Supreme Leader, sir- I mean ma'am!" the little girl stammered nervously.
Numbuh 5 smiled largely at her, "Nice to meet ya, Trixie. Your commander Numbuh 60 has informed me that all of you are doing a very important KND Historical report that must be completed very soon, correct?" she asked her.
"Yes ma'am, that is correct" she averted her eyes in what Numbuh 5 read as shame.
"Well, it's your lucky day girl! Ask me anything you would like to know about the subject you chose!" She tried to encourage her but Trixie just looked even more flustered than before.
"Oh, I don't know ma'am…nobody thinks my subject is even worth to be considered a 'historical subject' of study" she kicked the floor disappointedly.
"Supreme Leader may I have a word-?" Patton once again tried to cut in.
"Nonsense! All KND historical events are super worth of study! Now what don't you tell good-old-Numbuh 5 what is it about?" she was starting to get annoyed by the cadets who were still snickering in mockery at the little girl.
Trixy sighed and rubbed her shoulder, "if Supreme Leader insists…" she grabbed the old book that she had been reading before being called and turned a few pages over until she finally stopped right in the middle. "I…I chose as my KND Historical report subject…this…" she turned the book over and showed it to Numbuh 5.
Sector V peaked from behind Abby and curiously looked at what seemed to be an old picture of a wooden carved pictographic that had five figures seemingly fighting against a sixth strange looking foe at the top of a giant tree. Numbuh 5's eyes went wide as she distinguished the symbol on the chest of one of the figures.
"Oh…you're doing a report about the legendary Sector Alpha?" the little girl nodded timidly at her and Sector V collectively raised an eyebrow in confusion.
Patton once again came closer to whisper in her ear, "I'm really sorry about this Abby but the kid seems to have some obsession over fairytales in general…I've tried multiple times on making her change her research subject but she's stubborn…" Abby glanced at Numbuh 60 with a frown and then noticed how the mocking whispers were now getting louder behind the girl.
"Well now that's one juicy subject you have here my girl" Abby straightened herself up and squared her shoulders as much as possible to look more imposing to the rest of the cadets. "What would you like to ask Numbuh 5 about Sector Alpha?" the young cadets gasped in surprise.
"You mean it?" Trixy wondered with sparks in her eyes.
"Of course girl, fire away!"
Numbuh 60 looked back and forward between the confident Supreme Leader and his very naïve cadet.
"Ok…well…uhm…" the girl took a minute to come up with the right question as she sensed she only had a shot in this, "does…does Sector Alpha really exist?" she mentally slapped her mind as that wasn't exactly a factual question but she imagined that having the Supreme Leader's opinion properly quoted for her project could at least give her not such a bad grade with commander Numbuh 60.
But what she didn't expect was the answer the Supreme Leader was about to give her, "well of course they exist, for Numbuh Zero' sake!" Numbuh 5 rolled her eyes largely and crossed her arms outraged, "After all Numbuh 5 actually saw them with her very own two eyes 5 years ago!" she exclaimed and this time even the moon base operatives who were casually lurking around the bridge turned around to look at her with gaping mouths.
"What is she talking about now?" Hoagie whispered to Wally confusedly.
"YOU DID?!" Trixy just couldn't believe the Supreme Leader's words.
"You know Numbuh 5 is no liar so yeah girl, 100% true. It was during Numbuh 11 last mission as Sector V's leader…" Abby began to tell fondly, "a mission at the Delightful Children from Down the Lane mansion had gone…terribly wrong…" the image of an unconscious Numbuh 1 with his hair falling off his head flashed in her mind, making her heart ache with nostalgic pain, "we were hurt and surrounded, with no weapons nor good escape plans…my sis-I mean- Numbuh 11 was doing her best to keep the spirits up but it was really a desperate situation…"
"Everyone was crying and shouting and we had really ran out of plans, so I did what probably was our only option: call for support…" she admitted with one hand in her hip and the other curled in a fist, "you should never feel ashamed of calling for support by the way, take notes on that…" she ordered and funny enough everybody did as she told.
"Anyway, so I called for support and the only person who managed to catch our signal was our ex-Supreme Leader Numbuh 100!" she pretty much had the attention of the whole moonbase staff right now, "he answered back and told us he was sending the team that was nearest to our location and to hold on our positions…" she made a dramatic pause as all cadets hold their breaths in anticipation.
"I was so sure we were not gonna make it…but then…" Numbuh 5 opened her arms over her head excitedly and continued "we heard them! The thunderous sound of a ship! And not ANY ship, ya know?" she winked at Trixy.
"You mean-?! THE SHIP?!" she jumped excitedly.
"The most glorious KND aircraft there is: THE ALPHA FALCON! We only saw its silhouette against the moon of course but we all KNEW it was THAT SHIP! And you know who came out of it?" Abby then kneeled down tp Trixy's eye level.
"no way…don't lie to me! You can't lie if you're the Supreme Leader!"
She crossed her heart at her, "never Trixy I swear. My memory is a bit blurry after 5 years but I recall they moved so fast that by the time we had realize who they were, they had already managed to beat every teen ninja loser in a mere blink of an eye…oh man and the just to see them tore down a giant robot as it was made out of butter was epic enough to have it forever engraved in my brain hahaha!" she snickered with an arm warped around the excited young cadet who just couldn't believe the story.
"What about…the leader…? Did you see…did you actually see Numbuh Alpha?" she whispered timidly to which Abby just smirked.
The legendary Numbuh Alpha, leader of Sector Alpha, a mysterious operative who was believed to be the very best operative of the entire organization, even greater than Numbuh Zero himself.
"All clad in his shinning pure white armor, white samurai helmet and silver mask, yes…right at the top of the remains of the robot actually…Alpha and the others disappeared just as fast as they arrived and none of us could believe the luck we had, not only because we were all sound and safe after one of the most frightening missions of our lives, but because we had been lucky enough to witness the greatness of the most top-ranked Sector of all KND!" she boisterous declared with a hand raised to the starry space in front of them making all the young cadets clap and shout with excitement and with a new founded hope.
A few tears appeared in the corner of Trixy's eyes, "I-I can't believe it…everyone always made fun of me for believing Sector Alpha existed…I'm so happy" she sniffed, a bugger already running down her nose, "thank you madam Supreme Leader!"
Abby winked at her reassuringly, "don't mention it girl, and never ever doubt in your own beliefs, ok? You can ask Numbuh 101 for more of Sector Alpha's sightings if you need more proves, knowing the fanboy he is I'm pretty sure he must have a huge collection about them" she patted her back good heartily.
"Yes Supreme Leader! Thank you! Thank you!" she ran back to meet again with the rest of the cadets-next-door who in no time started to treat her with more respect than before.
Abby rose up again to her feet and gave a reproaching side-glance at Numbuh 60, "fairy tales uh?" she said with her arms crossed and Patton Drilovsky scratched the back of his head apologetically.
"I appreciate what you did Abby but…I don't think we should keep using made up stories to inspire-"
"Are you implying my story is made up, Patton?" She frowned at him.
"No-no ma'am, of course not but-"
"Then don't undermine the kid's believes and grade her research accordingly…as far as I recall Sector Alpha being mentioned in the Book of KND is enough proof of its existence veracity, right?" Abby patted his shoulder as she walked back to her team.
"Ye-yes Supreme Leader of course…my apologies" he bowed respectfully and made a mental note to keep his skepticism in check in the future.
Meanwhile back on Earth, morning had come and a new year was just starting at McClintock High School. The school walls had been all decorated with colorful posters and fliers with welcoming messages for all freshmen students. The hallways were particularly crowded, with members of the cheerleader squad giving out fliers and inviting all new students to enroll in the upcoming try-outs, while also friendly-reminding them to vote for the re-election of their fabulous captain as the Prom Queen.
Said captain and current ruling prom queen was not only known for her unquestionable beauty and sharp mind, but also for her machiavellian power as the second in command of the infamous Teen Ninja forces. Branded as a traitor by the KND, Cree Lincoln had managed to grow in strength over the years, with many new recruits joining her cause against the infamous only-kids-organization of the planet every year. Sometimes kids-next-door deserters will come willingly to her and declare their new loyalty before even turning 13 years old. She would always welcome these lost poor souls to their ranks, dotting them with proper pre-teenhood schooling to make sure they get well informed on not only where their places are in her very well-organized and stratified kingdom, as she liked to refer to it, but to also make sure their loyalties were completely aligned with her ultimate goal: the complete elimination of the Kids-Next-Door.
But some other times, in very rare occasions, she would actually set her eyes on certain specific decommissioned KND operatives, those who had nobly but naively accepted their fates with their childhood memories completely erased from their minds. She would especially hunt for those who she knew had a different kind of potential or even better, had been extra loyal to the Kids-Next-Door. Cree would always consider these specific recruitments as her most precious small victories in her cause, for there is nothing more ironically hilarious and hurtful than to see as an ex-hero become the villain for those he or she sworn to protect.
And today was one of those rare hunting days for her, as she leaned against the cold metal of the lockers fully dressed in her cheerleader uniform.
"I have to admit, I had my doubts when I heard about your enrolment in our school last year. Freshmen are always such easy prey for social pressure, you don't know how many times I have had to rescue poor kids from having mental break downs in the middle of hallways after merely surviving their first week and you were such an early bloomer. But my oh my, you actually defended yourself pretty well, girl" she snickered with a knowing smile.
"I mean, you have to be some special kind of girl if you manage to become the volleyball team's captain right by the end of your first freshman year!" she crossed her arms and looked smugly at the figure next to her, who seemed more focused on getting the right books for the next class.
"I guess my lil' sister was right about you all this time, she said you had some serious leadership skills. Can't wait to see you officially lead the team on your first game tomorrow night!" she squealed excitedly as the other girl finally turned to look at her.
It was a girl of few inches shorter than her, of golden blond straight shoulder length hair, wearing a long sleeve knitted orange dress with a brown leather belt wrapped around her small waist, dark blue denim jeans and matching brown leather cowboy boots. As she turned towards Cree, the girl moved a few strands of her fringe and looked at her with curious hazelnut eyes.
"Thank you…Cree was it, right? I guess it was just some sort of 'new-comers luck' or something" Rachel T. Mackenzie shrugged at her nonchalantly. "The way you speak about your sister makes me feel I should know her but for some reason, I just can't picture her face" she closed her locker and adjusted her heavy messenger back on her shoulder.
"Of course you can't remember her, dear ex-Supreme Leader," she thought to herself as Cree's lopsided smile almost reached her ears. "Oh well I mean, you were probably very popular among her group of friends, I don't necessarily mean it as you knew each other" she snickered lowly. "But anyway, what was I going with my chit-chat is that I think you might be more ready than I expected it for the major leagues of high school, my dear Rachel," she said while warping an arm around the blond girl.
Rachel arched an eyebrow in confusion, "what does that mean?"
"Well you see, I'm not only your fabulous cheerleader captain and beautiful ruling Prom Queen, but I also happen to be the leader of a very important group of-"
"Cree! Man, there you are! Stacy has gone crazy looking all over the school for ya and oh-"
Cree and Rachel turned around to see the source of a masculine voice and found a tall dark skinned boy, with black haired dreadlocks reaching down until his chin, wearing an oversized green jacket over a pastel blue shirt, baggy navy jeans, and brown boots. His facial features were soft and handsome but there was still a very juvenile glim in his brown eyes.
"Maurice, sweet love of my life, you know you can't just shout my name in the middle of the school's hallway like that! People would make the wrong assumptions and since Steve and I became prom king and queen last year, well, I'm sorry but people can't really see us being 'together' like before, ya know?" she scolded him although she didn't sound mad at him at all.
Maurice arched an eyebrow at her in complete confusion, "…right…I forgot…my bad?" he apologized, scratching the back of his head awkwardly.
"Oh sweetie you know I could never get angry at ya! Oh, by the way, have you already met my new volleyball captain Rachel T. Mackenzie? She started studying with us last year and look at her, already a sports captain at such a young age!" her arm painfully squeezed Rachel' shoulder.
Maurice locked eyes with Rachel, both blinking silently for a few seconds before the taller guy reached out one of his hands to her. "No I don't believe we have been formally introduced: I'm Maurice Williems, Basketball team captain" he smiled sweetly at her.
Cree's iron grasp around her shoulder loosened and Rachel too raised a hand to shake it with the boy, "Oh another fellow sports captain! Nice to meet you, I'm Rachel as Cree just said. Still getting used to being freshman" she smiled back at him with a bit of uncertainty.
"Oh I think you have it already figured it out if you managed to become a sports captain so fast, so don't try to act humble with us" he joked and he earned a good laugh from the girl.
"Look at you both! I can sense a great captain duo chemistry already developing, yes, yes, yes!" Cree once again wrapped her arm around Rachel' shoulder and pulled Maurice also into an iron semigroup hug. "Just don't ever think on falling in love with him, ok Rachel, or else I would have to kill you" she quickly whispered darkly.
Her sudden treat made them both sweat uncomfortable.
"What-Cree-!"
"Listen, baby, I know we're not dating anymore because of Steve and you know, prom rules and stuff, but Steve will eventually go to college and trust me on this, you will be the next in line." She softly patted his cheek good naturally.
"But you and Steve are the same age, wouldn't you also be going to college by then?" he questioned.
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Cree's loud hysterical laugh startled everyone in the hallway, "oh Maurice you're so funny some times…I would never stop being prom queen dear, Steve might lose the crown one day but me? I'm never, ever, letting anyone take mine!" she said sinisterly to both teenagers dumbfounded faces.
Her phone suddenly vibrated, surprising the three teens at the same time and she swiftly took it out of her skirt to read at the recently received message. "Speaking of the devil, Steve wants to see me…argh! I better go and see what he's up to now" she rapidly tapped her answer and put her phone back into her pocket.
"I'll see you tomorrow night at your big game, captain Mackenzie" she grabbed her purse and made military greet to Rachel. "Keep being a good boy, Maurice" she winked at him and turned around slowly, swinging her hips wide in a very obvious seducing manner.
The school's hallway promptly returned to its usual noisy state as many other students resumed their doings, walking pass Maurice and Rachel without really noticing them.
"You know, I don't really need to turn around to see your mocking smile, Rachel" Maurice brows lowered as his expression changed to a much-annoyed one. He glanced over his shoulder and found Rachel covering her mouth in a futile way to hide her mirth.
"I don't know what his future highness is talking about" she opened her locker once again and searched among her belongings. "Man you really deserve a medal for putting up with THAT for so long" she chuckled as she pulled out a light blue iPhone from deep within.
"I know, right! Argh! Man you don't know how lucky you're for having avoided a bullet like that, you know?" he crossed his arms and leaned against the locker next to hers.
"Well, I guess I could have been assigned to date The Steve…ew! Can you imagine that?" she trembled disgusted as she kept reading through her phone.
She side glanced at him upon noticing he had grown suddenly quiet. "What?" she asked him a bit confused at his sweet dreamy smile.
"Nothing… I just can't believe you are here now" he said with a full white toothy grin, earning a crimson blush out of her.
"Me neither to be honest…I still feel I should have said something that day thought" she whispered.
Maurice shrugged dismissively, "Yeah I remember I felt the same too…something around 'hey guys, I think the decommissioning machine is broken' or something but then…"
"But then we wouldn't be here, right?" Rachel finished for him with a small understanding smile.
"Hey at least we didn't have to do a huge show and almost blow the Moon Base to the sun" he joked with a large roll of his eyes earning a knowing snort from Rachel.
"Thank god for that!" she exclaimed and the frowned at her iPhone with worry.
"I got nothing too…let's try to reach out again after school, ok? You know how he is so don't worry" Maurice squeezed her shoulder reassuringly.
Rachel sighed and put her iPhone inside one of her dress' pockets. "I just hope the lack of messages doesn't mean bad news".
"Nah, he's fine. Now let's go grab a pizza at the cafeteria to shoo your worries away!" he joked and once again gained another laugh from her.
"You really haven't changed one bit, Mo," she said with fun as she grabbed him by the arm and walked alongside each other through the hallway.
(Meanwhile, …deep in space. )
"I really want to help you old friend, but you must stop fighting the inevitable…" a red hooded figure was in front of neon green laser bars. He was in a very dark jail cell, the only source of light coming thru a small round window inside the very cell.
"Go away Nigel, I don't have anything to talk with you" another figure spoke from within the cell. His deep voiced indicated he was much older than the other but at the same time seemed more tired and weak.
Nigel Uno removed his red hood to look better at the figure inside the cell. It was an old friend of his, who had happened to have gotten himself straddled in a very complicated situation. The blond teenager had once been his role model, his teacher, one of the best kids- next-door operatives of his time. But today he had been chained and beaten to a pulp without mercy, his navy blue sweater completely tattered and his brown pants stained with dirt and perhaps his own blood even.
And yet, the boy looked even stronger and more determined than Nigel had ever seen him.
"Look it doesn't matter anyway, I spoke with Numbuh 74.239 and I agreed to do it…it's going to happen Chad, just…just accept it already…at least you should be thankful they're not sending you back to Earth" Nigel shouted at him angrily and turned around to leave, his long red hooded jacket waved slowly with the faint gravity of the ship.
Chad reminded silent as Nigel's footsteps became a faint echo in the darkness. He looked up at the surveillance camera above the laser bars and then glanced at the cell's window. "Alright…maybe it's time to call for support…"
To be continued…