Warrior Wills
Will One: To Resist
by Prettywitchiusaka
Bright, warm, bustling, welcoming; all of these are only a few that could describe the usual radiance of the Kids Next Door's Global Command high atop Earth's moon. The key words here though are "usual radiance", for the base seemed to continue loosing all its luster as Grandfather's citizombies continued to invade the base, further implementing his world domination desires. Nothing could be used to describe this seeming genocide spreading across the base's Main Bridge as operatives both fought, and screamed in remorse. They begged for their humanity to be spared, but the citizombies paid no mind to this as they continued to transform these children, causing their loyalties to slip away. If there was one that could be used to describe this mess though, it was chaotic. But even amongst the commodity of chaos incuing, some operatives such as Supreme Leader Rachel McKenzie, or Numbuh 362 chose to ignore the onslaught of screams as her mind continued to focus on one priority; getting her her now zombified and unconscious Drill Sergeant friend Patton Drilovsky, or Numbuh 60 to safety. Unfortunately though, this proved no small task for the young female leader.
True, she felt more comfortable knowing that he would be safe, but it didn't help that dragging him by the arms was an exhausting task for someone as small as her. Regardless though, Rachel continued to drag him across the floor until she reached one of the sides of the staircase. As soon as she reached her destination, the young blonde proceeded to gently place her friend down on the floor as she felt a small smile encompass her smile, relief beginning to overcome her as she felt that now he was in a safe zone for now. Despite this however, the young girl could not help but feel sorrow overtake her the more she stared at her beloved friend; it pained her to see him as this horrid monster, to see him abandon his values in favour of what he had been brainwashed to believe. It made her almost feel as though his current state was in some way her fault, even though she played no fault in his demise or the utter chaos of this incident.
"I'm so sorry Patton", the young girl softly said as she tearfully caressed his old cheek with her gloved hand.
"I wish that none of this was real...because I can only imagine the kind of suffering you're going right now...", she continued in a whispered, almost tearful tone as she bent down and gently kissed his old, wrinkly cheek, sorrow continuing to dominate her as her gaze continued to stay focused on her friend.
"Get away from me ye' zombie rejects", shreiched a familiar Irish sounding voice, one that was enough to startle Rachel out of her solitary state to turn and realize where the voice had come from; it had come from none other than the Kids Next Door's new Global Tactical Officer Fanny Fulbright, or Numbuh 86, who was now fending off a pack of Citizombies.
True, she was doing well as she used her standard martial arts training and advanced gunmanship to fend off the zombies attacking her, but she still found herself outnumbered. A fact which frightened the young Supreme Leader as she grabbed a hold of her Yield staff and ran towards her friend.
"Fanny", Rachel shouted in panic, her voice being loud enough for the Irish redhead to notice her dear friend's presence.
"Rachel, get outta here", Fanny shrieked to her on-coming friend as she blasted a Citizombie with her trusty MUSKET. Despite knowing her friends words rang true, the young blonde refused to give into defeat as she opened her mouth to speak.
"Forget it! I'm not leaving you, or Numbuh 2 behind", the young girl replied in a tone of determination and nobility, one which could only annoy the freckled banshee.
"Look lass; when it comes down to it, I'd rather be the one te' sacrifice me' principles and spare you", Irish redhead replied in a genuinely stern yet somewhat annoyed tone, one which brought a look of surprise to her dear blonde friend's face. "Now do us all a favour and run for it ye' selfless dolt-"
Was all the angered redhead could muster before she felt herself being socked hard in the stomach, a sight which not only terrified, but sent shivers down Rachel's spine as she watched her friend collapse helplessly to the ground. The urge to stay and fight back was now as strong as it could possibly be for the young Supreme Leader, and yet somehow, she managed to discover a way of resistance and sprint out of the once magnificent room in heart-wrenching regret. She never looked back, she never even spoke, all she could do was run as that bright light engulfed her dear friend.
...
A deafening silence seemed to curse the room as the demonic figure known as Grandfather paced (floated really) the stage. A large bowl of creamy tapioca was ever so present in his old hand as he paced in impatient silence; he was awaiting the mild triumph of knowing that the Kids next Door would belong to him, and yet wondering if it would ever come. His period of waiting however, came to a halt upon hearing the Convention Centre monitor screen turn on automatically. Feeling evil delight overtake him, the old man felt his signature creepy smile adorn his face as he turned to face a horrid sight; an old, evil looking Fanny.
"Good day to you, my dear", the satanic demon politely remarked. "I trust that you are the Kids Next Door's Supreme Leader?"
"Fraid te' say that I'm not, master. I am merely the newly appointed Global Tactical Officer, Numbuh 86", Fanny replied in her thick Irish accent, an answer which seemed to slightly anger the black bearded man.
"I see...would you by any chance know if your darling Supreme Leader has fallen to my influence", he asked rather politely, attempting to keep his annoyance at bay.
" I doubt it, me' former self let her escape before she could become one of us", she replied.
"Yeah, you could even say that Fanny lent a "hand" in her escape", the now zombified Hoagie stated with great glee as he laugh at his own joke. A joke which which not only annoyed Fanny, but also Grandfather as well.
"Shut-up", the Irish redhead screeched as she whacked him hard on the head.
"Thank-you", the masterful demon calmly replied. " Now, in regards to your little friend. Obviously, you joining our ranks happened only recently, so she couldn't have gotten very far. That being said, I suggest that you begin searching for her, so that she does not feel "left out" in any way."
"I humbly accept, Master", the Irish redhead respectfully replied as she bowed towards the demonic man, causing a smile to run across his old face once more.
"No way, I should go and capture Numbuh 362. Her guts'll be bursting so hard from my jokes that she'll be completely defenceless", the older Hoagie replied rather triumphantly.
"You couldn't joke yer' way out of a fight, even if ye' tried. Besides, I was her friend, so I should go after her", the old banshee replied as other transformed operatives began to chime in, arguing over who should get to transform their once beloved leader.
The arguing continued for almost seemed like an eternity as operatives continued to talk, debating who had the best skill level meant to capture Rachel. As much as they enjoyed arguing with each other however, it continued to anger their so called master ever more so as he finally opened his mouth to speak.
"Enough", the satanic demon yelled at the monitor screen, frightening his minions just enough for them to stop their endless bickering.
"Now despite your squawking, you all seem rather eager to fulfil this task, so I have decided to make this task much easier on you; the first to find your little leader transformed or otherwise will receive part of my will money as payment", he explained to his minions, their giant, yellow eyes lighting up with great delight as he said those words.
"Thank you Master", the Citizombies upon the Main Bridge simultaneously said with great glee.
"Yes, yes, now all of you, go to your task before I loose my patience", he said in a slightly annoyed tone as the Citizombies ran off ready to show that each of them was worthy of that money in some way or another. What they failed to see however, was their very leader herself hiding in the hallway rafters, a look of stern anger clear on her face as she recalled the feeling of disgust she felt towards the old man's words.
"Not on my watch", she whispered in stern determination as she quietly leaped to the floor and snuck her way into the Main Bridge.
Back at the Convention Centre itself, Grandfather continued to smile evilly as he watched the monitor screen automatically turn off. An evil chuckle escaping his lips as he turned to face the front of the stage.
"What a bunch of suckers", the satanic demon evilly retorted as he went to eat a spoonful of Tapioca.
"Hey", replied numerous voices, ones that surprised Grandfather as looked up to see a sea of visibly angry looking Citizombies.
"Oh come now, as if I would share my hard-earned will money with the likes of you", the old man replied in his usually arrogant, yet oddly annoyed sounding tone.
That evil smile of his however, returned to his face upon hearing the monitor screen automatically turn itself on once more. Feeling somewhat triumphant at this point, the satanic demon turned to face the monitor screen in great delight. What he saw however, came as a great shock to his old eyes; what adorned the monitor screen was a youthful, beautiful little girl with golden blonde hair, a stern look upon her young face as she stared down upon the slightly bewildered, yet calm looking man who lay in her vision.
"Hello Grandfather", the young girl said in a stern, yet rather soft and polite spoken tone.
"Well, what a pleasure it is to make your acquaintance, my dear", the demonic man replied in a rather polite yet soft spoken tone. "I presume that you are the moon's true "Queen"?"
"You'd be correct in that presumption", she calmly replied. "My name is Rachel McKenzie, or Numbuh 362, the current Supreme Leader of the Kids Next Door."
"Rachel...What a pretty name for such a pretty little brat", he replied in a low tone of arrogance, one which angered Rachel slightly.
"It's a lot better than using an alias like Grandfather", the young blonde replied in a stern yet cold sounding tone, her words angering the old man ever so.
"I see...Well, getting past that, I must admit that I am quite impressed with you my dear; I was certain that you would have already fallen alongside your comrades, which would give me complete control of your organization. But as I understand it, you were...assisted in your escape", he said in a rather polite, yet sinister sounding tone.
Despite his words though, the young girl kept her ground, her face never once twitching from that stern expression.
" Indeed, it helps to have friends in high places", she replied in a calm yet cold sounding tone.
"Indeed", he agreed in a rather blunt tone, all the while clearing his throat.
"You know, it's quite funny how things turn out sometimes; one minute you are a beloved figure worth rescuing, the next you become the hunted escapist of the flock", the satanic demon replied in a rather sinister yet evil sounding tone, one that did nothing to make the young girl flinch once more.
"Perhaps...but considering my excellent spy skills, I wouldn't consider being hunted down a major priority for myself at this point. What I would consider a major priority for myself right now is to find a way of defeating you", the young girl replied in a calm, yet stern sounding tone.
And yet as she said her piece, all Grandfather could do was smile arrogantly at her, amused by her words as she continued to spout them.
"I would spare yourself the time time you would waste devising such a thought my dear. By now, most if not all of your dear subordinates have pledged their allegiance to me, and would now gladly sacrifice your freedom to appease my desires. Do you honestly think that you could stand a chance against a being as powerful as myself", he asked her in delighted, yet sinister tone.
Despite this however, Rachel continued to do nothing more as she continued to stare rather sternly at the old man before her. She knew that he was trying all he could to overpower her mind, an outcome she refused to let come to pass.
" I may not be a powerful warrior like some of my friends and acquaintances, but if there is one thing that I'm good at, it's obtaining information without anyone knowing I was ever there. Besides, there's one small fact that you seem to be overlooking; I know my operatives very well, more than you would ever care to know. As a result, it will be much easier to avoid becoming your minion at all costs", the young girl replied in a stern, yet calm sounding tone.
The deep look of stern determination in her eyes however, was enough for Grandfather to feel himself building up anger towards the little girl. "Why will she not admit defeat and surrender", he wondered as he continued to smile evilly towards her, acting almost as if her words had not fazed him.
"You seem rather confident in that statement, it's just too bad that you are wasting all of that energy for such a lost cause", the satanic man replied in his rather sinister tone, one which did not faze Rachel in the slightest.
"You know, it's funny; I actually felt that you tell me your previous statement sooner or later. And in hindsight, I was right", she calmly yet sternly replied. "My relentlessness may seem humorous to you Grandfather, but it's the strength of my passion and the love of my friends that keeps me going."
"Therefore, as long as the passion of the Kids Next Door burns inside of me, I will find a way to end your reign of tyranny, even if it leads to nothing but failure", the young girl replied as the sternness in her voice continued to grow, alerting the old man to her fiery determination as his anger continued to rise in silence.
"What noble intention you have. It's just too bad that once you surrender that your stubbornness and resistance will have lead to your downfall", the evil man sinisterly replied, his comment only deepening the stern look of determinacy on Rachel's face. "Eventually, you will have no choice but to bow down to my every whim like the little puppet you will become, surrendering your childish organization to me without a second thought."
And as he said his well constructed words, that devilish smile of his adorned his face once more, almost as if he was mocking her in some way. Regardless of his intent, the only thing that changed upon Rachel's face was her expression; it become one less filled with stern authority, and more so one of combined stern yet angered authority.
"Then let me make this statement clear to you;...the Kids Next Door will never be yours to own, not as long as I have my own will", the young girl replied in a stern yet angry tone, one which brought an expression of pure shock to overcome Grandfather's face before her face vanished from the screen above him.
Rachel's presence may no longer be with the crowd present in the room, but it was certainly still felt as the Citizombie's began to chatter, surprised what they'd just witnessed. But if anyone was feeling both shock and surprise, it was the satanic demon himself as he continued to stare at the screen in shock, only for his expression to change as he felt his repressed anger beginning to bud, anger so consuming that it caused him to literally crush the bowl of Tapioca once present in his right hand.
"If there is one thing I despise more than snot nosed brats, it's a woman with a mind of her own", the old man said in deep anger to himself as he continued to replay her last words to himself over and over in his mind, allowing for the ever present Tapioca to slowly drip down his old black hand.
End Will One