Disclaimer: I do not own the KND.

They...

Peaceful patches of ground were rustled as feet hurriedly scrambled across them. The figured stopped and glanced around with a cautious gaze. Pupils squinted as they tried to hone in on anything that didn't belong in the area. It was hard to make out anything in the shadows of the looming trees, but he wouldn't let that stop him. Suddenly his look snapped to the grass a few meters in front of him. Barely noticeable to the untrained eye, but he had been doing this for a long time. Before him was a small indenture in the tiny leafy blades. A few inches long and curved. The making of a footprint; sneaker if the imprint was right. The boy frowned.

She had passed by here.

The rattling of autumns leaves to his right caused him to react. The boy quickly jumped to the side and pressed his back into a nearby oak. Trying to meld with the bark. He held fast, puckering his lips to assure no sound could escape. He stood there for what seemed an eternity and finally she appeared. Her form leapt from the bushes and landed where he was a moment ago. The girl crouched low and began her silent scope of the area.

He stood petrified, a bead of perspiration slowly trailing along his brow. Part of him was amazed though, if she hadn't been right in front of him he would have never guessed she was here. She was that quiet. But the other part of him was screaming at him to stay perfectly still. To tense up to unimaginable levels. If she spotted him, it was all over.

She was still there. Her body rose up and continued to scan the landscape. The girl was so close. All she had to do was turn around. That struck him deep. After a few seconds, she still hadn't moved on. Trying his luck, his foot slowly reeled back so he could blend in with the tree's shadow. But as it stepped down, he halted it as he heard a slight creaking noise. He craned his head and looked down to see his heel pressing into a fallen stick. Any more pressure and it would snap. The boy grit his teeth as he glanced up. If he had heard that sound, then there was no reason why she wouldn't. His fingers dug into the bark when he saw that she seemed a bit more alert. Crud. She heard him didn't she? He clenched his lids shut and awaited the inevitable.

But it never came. He looked on surprised as the girl shrugged and went along her way. Her form kept going until it was out of his vision. The boy adjusted his glasses to make sure he wasn't seeing things. Then he hefted a long sigh of relief as he stepped out from his hiding place. That was way too close for comfort.

He stepped away from the tree, a hand roaming through his wavy chocolate hair in an attempt to calm his jittering nerves. The boy looked to the left and finished with the right before he smirked. His knees bended and his muscles readied to bolt off to find home base and complete this mission. But he stumbled as a whooshing noise came from above and something dropped down behind him. He felt a hand place itself on his shoulder and he froze as the girl chuckled behind him.

"Found ya."

"N-No-"

"Yes."

"No... no fair!" Nigel grumbled as he spun and faced the smirking African-American. "We agreed no fancy Kids Next Door training!" He complained as the two began a trek back into the more open area of Gallagher Park. "So you cheated."

"Abby didn't cheat." The girl coolly replied as she viewed her friend's antics. "She's always been better at Hide'n'Seek, and you know it." She said in with a sing song tone at the end.

Nigel snorted at Abby's comment. "Whatever. Once I'm done counting, I'll find you before you can even get a running start." He uttered with a confident smirk.

"Nu-uh." The girl shot back. Her head bobbed up to show the eyes hidden behind the red cap she wore. They sparked with challenge as she gave off her own grin. "Abby be the master seeker, and hiding is her game baby. It's why she's sector V's spy."

Nigel made a noise with his lips as he waved off her claims. "Spy, shmy. It doesn't matter what your rank is, I'm going to kick your butt all the same."

"You mean like these last few rounds?" Abby offhandedly asked, her smirk deepening when she saw Nigel stutter. The dark-skinned child laughed as she tugged the Brit towards the sandbox.

It was just another sunny afternoon down in Gallagher Park. Adults sitting on the benches catching up on the latest news the paper brought them, and parents basking in the breeze whilst their kids played to their heart's delight in the massive playground near the center of the area. Laughter and thrilled screams filled the air as young ones of all ages made proper use of all the equipment around them. Everyone was having fun.

Which was what Abigail Lincoln, Numbuh 5 and current leader of sector V, was doing with her friend, Nigel Uno. The girl had a rough go the past month or so. She was trying to handle her new responsibilities ever since she had been put in charge after the incident with her sister. In fact her job was getting harder since it seemed her sector was shrinking everyday. Cree betrayed them all, Numbuh 9 had been promoted to a special tasks force on the moon base, and everyone else was preparing to move on to other areas where their talents could be better suited. She getting fed with all this, she was only seven for Pete's Sake!

So when things started to slow today at the treehouse and her mom suggested a playdate with Nigel, she accepted wholeheartedly. Her Kids Next Door duties had limited her time with her pal and she hadn't seen him in a while. That and it was fun to barge into his room and practically drag him down to the park. The boy honestly needed to get out more.

Abby had long since dropped the boy's arm when he appeared to follow her willingly. While he went off about something she spared him a glance out of the corner of her vision. He was a character alright. There were the basics. He had a wild imagination, an apparent British accent, and from what everyone in their class had rumored, really cool hair. Her eyes traveled upwards to take in the brown locks. She admitted it was impressive, but other then that it was just hair to her. Those were the basics.

But being his friends, she knew of the not so basic. Like how he had somewhat of a confidence problem. Nigel seemed like that shy kid that you would have to make to first move on to get somewhere. The boy never stepped up to take the initiative mainly because he didn't feel that he could. But Abby knew he had potential. He could be a great operative if he wanted to. He had skill, he had shown that by escaping her for as long as he did. She wasn't a spy for nothing, and it took a lot to elude her. The Kids Next Door would be perfect for him. Sadly, he had no intention of joining. But Abby would keep trying.

She snapped out of her trance as they made it to the sandbox. The home base for their game. Abby turned and sat on the edge as they took a small break before the next session. Her fingers leaned down to comb through the grainy soil, it feeling warm to the touch thanks to the sun's heat. Abby idly played with the material as Nigel sought it best to go over the rules once more.

"Okay, same as before. You have twenty seconds to find a hiding spot. The woods are game, but if you go past the gihugic rock, you're out." He recited as he stood. His glasses slipped down his nose and he fixed them before frowning. "And you can't use your KND training. That's cheating." He mumbled as his arms folded.

"Yea, Abby'll keep it in mind." She grumbled as she rolled her eyes. He looked at her hand as she picked up a collected mound of sand and watched in fascination as it all sprinkled back down into the box. "Ya know, you could have that fancy KND training if you joined." She tried once more.

The Brit sighed as his arms fell to his sides. "I already told you Abby, I'm not really interested in all that stuff." Nigel said as his hand rubbed at his arm. "I mean, why would I want to waste my time fighting adults when I could be watching cartoons instead?" It was a valid argument in his mind, because he really loved him some Saturday morning cartoons. Apparently he lived in a time where they were worth getting up to watch.

At least that's my opinion... moving on.

"It's not just about 'fighting adults'. It's about fighting adults so you can watch cartoons." Abby defended. "There are some creeps out there. Creeps who want to take away the fun of being a kid just cause they can! They think that since their childhood was lame, everyone else's has ta be. But we fight those creeps so kids can keep their childhood and let them live it out. We don't just fight adults because we can, we fight evil adults to help kids everywhere. That's what the Kids Next Door do."

Nigel chewed on his lips as he listened to his friend speak. It sounded like a noble cause, he knew it was. He had heard the tales around school about the kids who ran into operatives. All the cool stories of how they kicked butt and how they got to spend their time at these super awesome treehouses. The exotic places, the fun. Deep down he honestly did want to join.

But,

"I... I don't think it's my thing Abby." He uttered lowly. "I mean I'm not cut out for that sort of work. If I did join then I would just be some kid who always gets in the way." What good would he be? He didn't posses any useful skills. The only thing he had to his name was his hair. He felt even more depressed just admitting that.

"We know that ain't true." Abby spoke up seeing her companion was putting himself down. "Abby knows that ya can do it. Why else would she be tryin' so dang hard ta get you in da club?" She addressed with a smirk. "The only one saying you can't do it is yo'self, and here I am trying ta tell you that you can be the best. Heck, you could be the best operative on the planet if ya wanted to." She chuckled after using the little exaggeration.

Nigel slowly joined in after a moment. "Wishful thinking." He said as his laughter quelled. The boy rubbed the back of his neck as turned his gaze to the birds flocking overhead. "I still not so sure."

"Don't sweat it. Abby don't wanna force ya to make a decision right now." The girl shrugged off as she stood. Her digits gripped the rim of her cap and set her gaze forward. "Personally, Abby's heard enough about the KND right now. So let's chill while Abby shows you how a real hide and seeker plays." She cockily stated as she wiped her hands together getting rid of the excess grit from the sandbox.

Nigel smiled and was about to reply, but the wind had decided on a whim to alter its course. Air carried the tiny specs of sand from Abby's hand to his curly brown locks atop his head. The boy gasped as they made content and lightly moved his hands to pick out the grains while not disturbing his cut.

Abby's brow arched at a agonizing pace as she stood by and watched her friend's silly behavior. "Boy, what are you doin'?"

"My mom just got my hair cut today!" He proclaimed as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Picture day is tomorrow. Remember?" He asked in hopes of jogging her memory.

"Oh." Abby simply uttered as Nigel kept messing with his hair. Picture day was a big event for their grade. For every seasonal picture day, the lower grades would have a competition. In order to make sure the kids wouldn't deliberately muck up their outfits before the photo shoot, they would grant the best presentable child a giant jar with a gazillion pieces of candy inside. Every year and every season, Nigel always came out on top. Again, people said it was his hair. It was just that dashing.

So it was no surprise to her that he would freak out over his hair. He did it so he could win. Not that anyone was complaining. Nigel always shared his candy at launch.

But that was tomorrow. Abby wanted to play Hide'n'Seek sometime today. She tapped her sneaker impatiently against the ground, her arms folded and her dark eyes constantly flicking downwards to check her watch. Finally she huffed and tried to jar the boy back to reality. "Okay Nigel! Abby thinks its good 'nuff! Now can we please get back to the game?" She rattled.

Nigel jumped at the sudden shout, but curtly nodded. "Alright." The boy then got on his knees in front of the sandbox and covered his pupils so Abby could conceal herself. "One Mississippi. Two Mississippi," The countdown continued as so and Abby grinned as she prepared to take off.

"Excuse us," Too bad playtime was over.

The voices interrupted Nigel's countdown and Abby's great escape. The two friends then centered their looks on the new people who had arrived. Ten feet moved simultaneously over the opposite edge of the sandbox and didn't stop until they were dead in the center. There were five of them. Five children that looked to be no older then them. Three boys, all outfitted in a blue dress suit and red ties. A short blond, a tall brunette, and a medium size boy with a helmet obstructing his face. Two girls, both wearing an identical light blue and white dresses. One was a platinum blonde with a pink bow, and the other was a rather pudgy girl with brown pigtails sticking upwards.

The five just stood there, taking in Nigel and Abby. Their lips were tucked in small tight smirks, their brows arched downwards slightly and their cold sky-blue eyes shining with hidden intent. It was a moment before they spoke again, all in unison. "We happened to be taking a stroll in the area when we decided we wanted to partake in the activities of the grounds." Their brows narrowed, but just kept smirking. "But then we couldn't help but wonder what you two were doing in our sandbox."

"Uh, playing Hide'n'Seek?" Nigel offered a tad nervously. These kids were giving him the willies. And that was before they started talking in perfect synchronization. He could feel tension building up in the air and tried to disarm it best he could. He coughed into his hand as he searched for the words. "Soo... um, what do you want?"

"Yeah." Abby replied she stood up. A frown made its way to her face as she took in the five before her. Tingles traveled up her spine and bad vibes were flying. "Who are you and what do ya want wit us?"

Their arms moved in sync to their chest as they bowed slightly. "Allow us to introduce ourselves. We are the Delightful Children From Down The Lane." They spoke, still in perfect unison. "We and our Father just moved into the mansion right down the lane." They finished with a slight giggle. "As for what we are doing here, what else would a child our age come here for? We seek... entertainment."

"Entertainment?" They way they said it made him shiver. He wasn't blind to the sinister intent. He hopped to his feet and backed up beside Abby away from the sandbox. He frowned despite the fear looming in the air. "What sort of entertainment?"

"And what was that before?" Abby butted in. "What did you mean by 'our sandbox'? This is everyone's sandbox, it's everyone's playground!"

The Delightfuls just shook their heads. "Poor deluded girl." They tsked as they waved their hands about. "This playground belongs to us. You see, we are the most well-behaved children of the world. Much better than you brats. So it is only logical that we deserve the best, and Father agrees." They grinned as they chuckled. "He bought the right to the whole playground and rebuilt it from ground up for our pleasure, as you can see by the mark." They stated as they pointed to the corner of the box.

Abby and Nigel followed and saw the 'mark' they were speaking about. In the corner was a small emblem. It showed a ebony figure of a flaming man standing behind three letter. E.A.I. Abby's eyes bulged as she recalled the mark from one of her lessons at the training camp. "Evil Adult Industries!" Her expression morphed to a snarl as she snapped at the grinning Delightfuls. "You creeps work for the Adults!"

Nigel gave the playground a once over as he analyzed it with a new eye. "So that's why all those men in suits were here last week." The park had been closed due to construction. A horde of snobby business type folk had came down and were tearing the playground apart. He had thought they were going to replace with something stupid like a strip-mall, but to his and the other kids' relief it only appeared as if they had just renovated. Everything looking fresh and new. The Brit turned to give his own glare at the quintet. "Why would your father tear down a whole playground and change nothing?"

The five children laughed at that. "Oh, there have been a few changes. Ones you will have the honor of seeing first!" They exclaimed as they all sat down in the sand with a collective plop.

Feeling things about to get serious, Abby took a step in front of her untrained friend and lowered her hat. "Numbuh 5 don't care what changes you dorks made. This ain't your park! Everyone can play here!"

Nigel felt himself tense. Abby used her codenumbuh. Which meant he was about to get involved in Kids Next Door business. He knew he should've stayed in bed!

The Delightfuls didn't falter once Abby revealed her alliance. In fact, their expressions grew more devious. "So you two are Kids Next Door? That makes this even more fun!" They chuckled. The short blond reached to his left and his hand gripped a tiny shovel stuck into the sand. "But we believe you've misunderstood us. You see, you won't be playing with our playground," The blond pulled the shovel back and it clicked like a lever.

Abby and Nigel stumbled as the ground started to rumble. Metal whirs flew into their hearing and they peered up to see the two red merry-go-rounds adjacent to both sides of the sandbox spinning out of control. To their shock, the platforms started to rise up from the earth and so did metal wiring that connected somewhere underneath the sandbox. The Delightfuls slowly started to giggle as the walls of the sand pit rose up to conceal their forms.

The children of the playground stepped away in horror as the sandbox continued to rise from its place. When it finally stopped, it was shown to be something of a tank like machine. Heavy-wooded armor protected the children inside while the wheels, links, and drive sprocket gave it its mobility, and the weaponry was the two long metal tentacles with the spinning merry-go-rounds at the ends. It was then Abby and Nigel saw the changes that had been made. The playground had gone from a family fun plaza to a rolling metal death trap, piloted by the Delightful Children.

Speaking of the five, a section of the front slid up to reveal the five laughing deviants behind protective glass. They looked down at their prey. Ready to begin the entertainment. "Our playground, will be playing with YOU!" They laughed as the metal tentacles lifted into the air.

The two kids stood frozen as the mech advanced on them. Nigel just stood staring while Abby fumbled with her communicator. "Guys, this is Numbuh 5, and she could really- AAH!" She screamed as he jumped back with Nigel as the swirling merry-go-round buzzed where she had been.

"Don't leave Kids Next Door. We were about to show you our favorite piece of equipment." The Delightfuls sneered as the second merry-go-round reared into the air for a grand slam. "We call it the Merry-Go-POUND!" They roared as the twirling implement of doom surged forth.

Nigel and Abby saw the thing coming. The girl grabbed the boy's arm and dragged him along with her to the side as the merry-go-round came cascading down. Once they landed at a safe distance, the girl looked back to measure the destruction. The merry-go-round had left a massive crater in its wake; it digging into the ground even after contact. After a moment, the tentacle reversed direction and ripped its weapon out of the ground. The ride spun a few times to shake off excess dirt, then continued on to cause torment.

The dark-skinned girl shielded her face as soil rained down on them. As she glanced at the rampaging Delightfuls, her lips crinkled into an annoyed growl, her teeth nicking at her bottom lip occasionally to stop her annoyance from becoming vocal. Kids like those made her sick to her stomach. She had to stop them. Her expression transformed into one of surprise as she heard a groan coming from behind her. Abby looked over her shoulder to see Nigel getting up, wiping any remaining dirt from his hair.

"Stupid little..." He grumbled to himself as he got up. He then nearly spasmed as he felt himself being pushed back down. He snapped in shock to see it was Abby pressing him to the ground. "What are you-"

"Calm down." She said airily as she propped herself. Her frown returned as she looked Nigel square in the eyes. "Stay low and outta sight, while Numbuh 5 deals wit these creeps."

"WHAT?" Nigel sputtered completely bewildered. He did a double take from Abby to the crazy Delightfuls before he tried to force some reason upon her. "Are you out of your mind? You can't face them alone!"

"I hafta." She uttered with conviction. "It's ma job."

"Your job is going to get you killed!" He argued as he took another look at the machine. It tore across the remain of the playground. They were determined to turned it into nothing but ruin, torturing all who stood in their way with a smile. He felt his insides wriggle in discomfort, slight fear of going up against them. But even so, he wouldn't let Abby go alone. "There has to be something I can-"

"No!" Abby snapped sternly. "You're untrained and Abby's not gonna risk ya getting' hurt." A rather callous bang echoed throughout the area and they looked back in time to see the tattered remains of the swing-set land a few feet away. Abby grimaced a bit herself, but forced it down. She was the sector leader now. She could hold off until backup got here. She turned to Nigel once more and nodded. "Numbuh 5 can handle herself."

Nigel gave her a suspicious glare, untrusting. Just then a group of kids ran by, calling for their parents with tear-stained faces. That was the last straw for Abby and she took off the face the new threat of the Delightful Children. The brunette Brit watched his friend go, and defiantly rose up to help her. But as he stepped closer, he slowly came to a stop as he saw Abby dodge and weave blows. He then stayed back as he hid. She was right. He was untrained and couldn't do much to start with. He would just get in the way.

"How boring." The Delightfuls taunted as they watched the dark-skinned girl barely manage to avoid their strikes. They laughed as one got close. "We expected more from the leader of the illustrious Sector V!"

"You want more?" Abby asked as she rolled under an incoming merry-go-round. She reached in her backpack and pulled out a loaded G.U.M.Z.O.O.K.A and aimed right where the five were sitting. "Well then chew on this, suckas!"

Volleys of raging gumballs flew at high velocity at the Delightfuls' machine. The gum left sticky splatters all over, but could not penetrate the wooden plating. "Bubblegum? You think some bubblegum will stop us?"

As they laughed, Abby grit her teeth as she twisted a knob on her weapon. "Switching from boo-boo to, OUCH!" She grounded out as the gumballs flew at the speeds of bullets carrying even more power.

The Delightfuls' eyes widened as the gum wads actually started clipping their armor. Some making it through. They flinched slightly as one shot made it to their glass plating. It didn't break through, but it was left indented, cracking spider-webs spreading out. Not to mention it was right over the short blond's forehead.

The five looked down at Abby blankly. "Okay." Their faces snarled as they pressed combos of buttons. "Now we're ANNOYED!" One of the merry-go-rounds moved in front of the Delightfuls' screen, shielding them from anymore rather dubious blows.

Abby kept firing, but found herself backpedaling as the machine kept rolling closer. Gumballs were flying everywhere; being deflected by the spinning weapon. This was just great. The G.U.M.Z.O.O.K.A was the most powerful thing she had on her person and it wasn't doing any good. She needed some type of plan. She then noticed something. It seemed that with every blow to the spinning wheel, the gum would build up and slow its rotation. The girl then focused her attention on that. She would disarm them, then figure out how to bring them down.

The five children nestled in the cockpit couldn't help but wonder why Abby kept firing at them when she knew it was futile. Finally she stopped and they grinned as they pulled on the shovel lever. But it was stuck and only then did they begin to catch on. "Huh?" They looked on the see one of their merry-go-rounds slathered in gum. Too sticky to move. They growled as Abby took the moment to taunt.

"What's the matta losers? I gunk up yo' fancy twirl?" She grinned as she took in their disgruntled looks. "Numbuh 5 is one for one and makin' her way up!" She commented on her odds.

The Delightfuls frowned, then smirked as the second merry-go-round slammed beside her, stunning her. "But we're five for three," The gummed up spinner crashed into the ground, the righteous impact tossing Abby in the air. "And still on top!"

The girl tumbled through the air, the surprise quake causing her to drop her weapon. Her arms waved wildly and reached to for something. Anything! Suddenly her right hand snapped onto something, and her body jerked up in response. She groaned as movement slowed and realized she had latched onto to something... gooey? Abby opened her eyes and found to her utter shock that she had grabbed onto the merry-go-round she had just jammed.

The six just sat there stunned. Wondering how the heck that happened. The Delightfuls opened and closed their mouths before shaking their heads. They moved the other limb towards Abby in hopes of finishing her there, but the girl just shielded herself with the bars of the merry-go-round. If they wanted to take her out, they would have to take the metal limb out as well. The game continued on as such for a while, Abby moving across the merry-go-round every time the other got close. The five within the mech snarled and boiled until they became increasingly frustrated. "Oh, COME ON!" They roared as all their hands jerked at the lever. They were stark raving mad.

Abby shook her head at their behavior and plotted on a way to end this. But the footing under her started to shake. The girl fearfully glanced down to see the merry-go-round trying to spin despite its bindings. Her eyes frantically snapped back to the Delightfuls and lever and assumed that if enough power built up, then-

SWWWWWWEEEEEEEE!

"AAAAAAAAAAAAH!" Abby screamed as the pressure broke loose and the merry-go-round spun uncontrollably, flinging off any offending gum. It twirled at insane speeds that made her want to lose her lunch. Try as she might, the girl couldn't last much longer. So she steeled her body for impact and let go, her form shooting into the distance.

Abby flew over the wreckage and what was left of the playground. She tensed and prepared for the worst, but it still didn't help that much. Her back collided with the steel of the slide. Air rushed out of her lungs and a small dent was left behind. The girl slumped as she skidded down the rest of the way. Too worn out so gravity had to work overtime. Once she reached the button, she stayed there. Her arms and legs draping over the sides while she groaned.

From his position, Nigel looked on horrified. Abby had been taken down by those dorks. The five of them just laughed in victory while they advanced on her, intending to finish her off. There was no one else here. It was just him, a knocked out Abby, and five evil little brats.

Where the heck had parents gone?

Nigel nervously racked his fingers through his hair, hoping for some kind of miracle. Then out of the corner of his vision, he caught sight of that gum shooter thingy Abby had been using until she dropped it. His hand slowly reached out, afraid like it was going to bite him. He growled off that stupid fear and picked the weapon up and stared at it. He was the only one here.

But he didn't know how to work this thing! He didn't know how do all those jumps and rolls like Abby did. The Delightfuls' cruel laugh brought his attention back to the scene. They were right on top of her. Abby. His friend. An innocent kid who didn't do anything wrong. He didn't know exactly what happened that moment. He didn't know why his eyes were narrowing, or why his fist was gripping the weapon harder or why he was making a starting sprint. He didn't know why any of it was happening.

All he knew is that when he saw one of his friends in danger, something snapped.

"You gave us quite a bit of trouble Numbuh 5." The Delightfuls spoke to the girl's barely conscious form. Grinning at their first victory over the Kids Next Door. Not bad for a debut. "Father will be most... unsatisfied with the state of our device." They muttered in response to the nicks and gum all over their mech. But they just took it all in stride as they prepared to scoop up the girl's body. "But he will be most proud of us bringing back a sector leader and all the juicy little secrets she knows Heh heh heh." They giggled in that creepy little way of theirs. But right about when they were going to scrape Abby up, a gumball flew right past them and clipped yet another piece of their armor. "What now?"

"Hey!" Nigel yelled out from his position a few feet behind them. Both hands held up a smoking G.U.M.Z.O.O.K.A, shaking from the weapon's recoil. His stance was sloppy, and he had no honest idea to what he was doing, but the fire burning in his gaze made up for it. "Leave my friend alone delightful freaks! Or you'll regret it!"

"Ah, we wondered where you had crawled off to." The five uttered as the mech turned fully on him. Despite his sudden rush of bravery, he could help but shake a bit. And they picked up on it. "Ha! We didn't know they let chickens in the Kids Next Door. And what kind of stance is that supposed to be?" Once they saw Nigel lower his gaze slightly, they guffawed even louder. "Oh, you're not even an operative! Oh, that's rich!"

Their taunts got to him and his bravado dimmed. But the kid bucked up and stepped back up to the five and glared them down. "I don't need to be an operative to beat you lamebrains!"

The Delightfuls' facial expression slowly blanked as they bore through the Brit. "You think you're a match for us? Taking you down will be child's play!" They roared as a merry-go-round bolted for him.

Nigel's eyes widened as he leapt to the side. He tumbled to the ground and quickly got back up. But he wouldn't have time to fully recover as another wheel barreled right next to him. He avoided most of the damage, but still stumbled around. He could see another coming out of his peripheral, so he bolted to get away in time. The wheel dug into the ground, but chased him all the same. It gained, and the Delightfuls jerked it up causing him to fall flat on his face. He shakingly got to his knees, his head down and the five over him.

"Sorry brat, but you're way out of your league." The Delightfuls cruelly announced as they reared up a merry-go-round. Intent on ending it once and for all. "You're just like your pathetic friend. It's one of you against five of us!" They snipped as they brought the weapon down.

But to their shock, Nigel expertly rolled out of the way. As he rolled, his hand picked up the weapon he dropped and stood in a crouching position. Without glancing upwards he fired off one shot, it traveled through the air and struck the protective glass where Abby had earlier. The damage was too much and the glass shattered away leaving stunned looks on the Delightfuls' faces.

Nigel finally looked up, a cocky smirk present. He didn't know what got into him, but he felt hyped up. Ready to take down the creeps who were charging forth, realizing this wasn't over. The Brit took it all in and laughed. "Let me show you what one kid can do!"

I could not for the love of me find a good story explaining how Nigel got bald so I made up one myself. If anyone knows of one, tell me please!

Two chapters of this short story left. And the next chapter of Cold Reception will be up later today. Until then, R&R!

Later!