Foreword

When Codename: Kids Next Door was ending, all the way back in 2008, I was entering into the 7th grade. By that time I was learning the importance of being an earnest student and dealing with moving to a new Middle School and the new obstacles that came with it.

Where was I when it all ended? Where were we all when The Kids Next Door ended? I was growing up. Kids Next Door and other cartoons fell by the wayside when I got my first laptop, a gift meant for my Dad, but given to me because the man couldn't figure it out.

So one of the first things I did with my laptop was write a paper for this one teacher I had named Ms. Rodsky, a nasty English teacher, who if you mentioned her name everyone looked to you as if you were trying to summon the Devil himself.

But when I got the computer I believe it was then when she wanted me to write her a short story about whatever I wanted. My twelve year old mind was buzzing with ideas. I thought of something along the lines of Halo mashed with Kids Next Door with Transformers thrown in for a good mix.

But, as I mentioned earlier, I was learning to be an earnest student. But unfortunately I was failing at it. So all I managed to turn in was two pages about Beast Wars.

But that's where it started for me. That's where Kids Next Door popped back into my life, around the time it left. Operation: I.N.T.E.R.V.I.E.W.S. aired and that was it. But those fantastic episodes about some bald boy and his four friends going around on fantastic adventures stuck with me.

Then one day I went looking for episodes on line, I wanted to relive the experience of watching the 'Aliens' spoof they did with Lice. I wanted to see Numbuh 3's sister Mushy trick Cree into that pod one more time. And I most certainly wanted to watch Numbuh 1 save the day again.

But that's where it all ended. Back with I.N.T.E.R.V.I.E.W.S and I couldn't take it. So I went looking online for more information. I wanted to know if there was a chance the show would continue. That's when I stumbled onto Fanfiction.

The first KND fic I read was a Truth or Dare story where some girl went around and kidnapped everyone off the streets and subjected them to all sorts of horrible dares. When I look back, that was one of the more disturbing things I've read on this site.

But then I found all sorts of neat stories. One where a bright author got the idea to crossover everything a cartoon fan growing up in the early 2000s would love. In 2011 Gamewizard2008 published Operation: GALSCIA a story that, in my humble opinion, changed the way I read fanfiction forever.

I got into reading his work when he had a total of 3 stories and was beginning to write Operation ANCESTOR, the sequel to his blockbuster success. I hung around the Kids Next Door community for a while then, reading some amazing work by Numbuh Phenon and Buddygirl.

And then one day, Game has the idea of a contest. Where anyone could submit in a story. And I asked him if I could write one that took place in his own series of stories. Enter Nolan York, better known as Numbuh 2030, my first real OC.

After writing 'Declaration of Intent' and 'Prelude of Intent', I did a prequel trilogy for the character, The 2030 Trilogy. It all ended leading up to 'Prelude of Intent' and then Declaration. But none of it was 'A' worthy in my opinion. The stories were short and convoluted.

Then around 2011 Game, Dynamite Girl, YouGotBurned and I decided to do this mini-event thing called 'The Season of Shadows'. Where we all wrote something dealing with Negatives. Game went on to write his masterpiece "Legend of the Eight Firstborn". I wrote a little something called 'Out of Mind'. But, unlike Game the rest of us fell to the wayside. One by one we all just stopped writing. Dynamite Girl left after that and soon so did YouGotBurned.

I didn't do much about the Kids Next Door then. I was still growing up, finding my place in the world. I had actually sworn to quit writing several time before. 'Out of Mind' was going to be my Swan Song.

But then I came back in 2012 and I published 'KND: Civil War' which kicked off my very own full length series of stories. The only problem with it all was I didn't have any clue what the hell I was doing. I had an idea and then I decided to write something about it, not know where it would end.

And then around 2013 I stopped updating as frequently. And then 2014 and just stopped completely. I was graduating High School soon and I had a lot of things on my plate. My Dad had just taken a heart attack and I was on my way to college.

But every once in a while I'd come back and read. Those odd ideas I had about the KIDS Next Door being a bunch of dictators or that one time I devoted two stories to following Numbuh 2030 in his teen years, and then killing him off during a sleepless episode of mine.

I thought about all the good times we all had, what the 'Season of Shadows' meant to me, how it was about all those authors who came together to do something we loved. When we just said 'forget it' and decided to be a part of the Kids Next Door. Because we loved it.

And then in 2014, I realized it was going to be the fourth anniversary of the day I first published 'Declaration of Intent'. I wanted to do something spectacular. But I missed the dead line.

That stuck with me, the idea though. I decided to do a retelling of 'Crutch', Numbuh 2030's origin story. But that wasn't enough. My brain just took me to all sorts of places. All the way back to 'Out of Mind' to even all the stuff I wrote in my KND: Universe series.

So then birthed the 'Legends Universe' series. My love letter to all things Kids Next Door and to my friends, the ones still around and the ones who'd gone and never looked back.

Thank You Game. Thank You Danika. Thank You Morgan. Thank You Jack. You've all inspired me to keep going.

Thank You Tom Warburton. You've created such a wonderful part of my childhood.

Thank You Reader. For being patient with me.

I'm not done yet.

- Depthcharge2030