Nevermore
AK: First things first-I totally stole this title from the Maximum Ride Series. Next, I love this show, especially Numbah 5. This is Sector V's TND days. Enjoy.
XXXXXX
Abigail looked down at the black KND flag on which the pearl white acronym 'KND' were emblazoned. "Man, fighting the cadets is like a walk in the park, Numbah 57b."
Chatting on the phone as she helped the KND train the new Moon Base Elite cadets- a fairly new sector that was briefed on TND's existence for the express purpose of working together with them- she whipped off her signature red cap to wipe a brim of sweat away. She had several of the KND operatives tied up.
RED ALERT! RED ALERT! UNFROZIFIED OPERATIVE FROM THE TWENTIETH CENTURY HAS ESCAPED. BE AWARE THAT HE IS HIGHLY DANGEROUS AND UNSTABLE IN THE HEAD- HE ALSO HATES TEENS. OPERATIVE NUMBAH: 4EVA.
Abby rolled her eyes and began untying the KNDs. "Alright, lets get you newbie kids out of direct line before this gets messy. Numbah 5's gotta catch that kid before he works himself sick. Twenty-first century tech ain't for the faint of mind, babies."
She loosened Numbah 5.5- aka James Pierre, her old babysitting gig from when she was thirteen- first. He blushed slightly. "Thank you," he said in French.
"Anytime, kid, that's what the TND does." Abby ruffled his blonde hair. "Untie your team and let's get out of-"
Something moved in the D-Kom room. Crouching, Abby did a 360 area scan with her TND: WATCHED (Wireless Area Transceiver and Communication H2O-resistant Electromagnet Device).
One lone dot blinked in the D-Kom area. Whispering low, Abby said to the KND, "Listen, Numbah 5's gonna check out who's in there. Numbah 5.5 untie your team and be backup if needed. Alright?"
At his understanding nod, she left to take on the phantom in the D-Kom room. Where was Numbah 63? She wondered this as she peered into the D-Kom observatory. "Hello, talk to me baby!" she called in.
A dark shadow moved across the back, and Numbah 5 stepped in and pressed the side button on her phone transforming it into the TND: CELL (Cybernetic Energy Laser Longbow). She pulled back the crackling bow string made of kinetic energy and peered around by the light it generated.
The shadow crossed again and Abby released, narrowly missing her target, and illuminating the room. She briefly saw Numbah 63 lying beside the controls. Flipping the light switch beside her, Abby rushed to the KND agent's side. "Talk to me, 63."
The carrot topped kid groaned and opened his eyes slowly. Then, he sat up straight when he saw it was her. "Numbah 5- The escapee is here! He said-"
"Hush up for a minute, 63. Numbah 5 heard somethin'…"
Sure enough, someone was in the lab. And that someone jumped through the glass, shattering it, and landing in the D-Kom draining room. The kid in question was black, had a high top fade, jeans jacket over a red t-shirt, jeans with the pants' cuffs rolled and red Converse.
"Man, that's so Rockefeller! That's gotta be Numbah 4eva. Numbah 5's gonna kick some old school butt." She jumped through the gaping hole Numbah 4eva had left, landing a few steps away.
"Listen, Numbah 4eva-"
"The man's trying to get me, babe. I ain't got no time for chit-chat." Numbah 4eva waved her off, eyes darting around.
Abby stood straight and raised a brow at the out-of-date operative. "Babe? Babe?! Listen, you Elvis throwback!"
4eva took a closer look at her. "You're a teenager! You shouldn't even be here! Wait, that guy in the hospital said something' about this bein' the future. In the future we work with teens? Well, I wouldn't mind working closer with you, if you catch my drift." The physically thirteen year old wiggled his eyebrows at her.
Abby nearly gagged. "Are you hitting on Numbah 5?! Oh, no, I know this juvenile throwback is not hitting on Numbah 5!"
4eva started looking around. "Is Numbah 5 as smoking as you, baby cakes? 'Cause I wouldn't mind working in a trio."
"I'm fourteen, you moron. Numbah doesn't have time for brats who should be D-Komishioned. Flip the switch, 63!" she shouted.
Moments later, a whirring sound began. Abby powered up her bow. "I've got half a minute to stun you, and all I need is ten seconds."
"Five if we do it together, Numbah 5." James appeared beside her. She frowned. "Get out, kid."
"I wanna help!" protested James.
"We all do." His whole squad stood in the doorway [KND: GLU-GUN (Gum Launching Ultra Gummy Unibagillion Nuggets)], weapons ready.
Abby groaned. "Fine, but be careful. This guy's already escaped Moon Base Alpha. Grunt maneuvers won't work all that well." While she informed them briefly, she monitored their time. Fifteen seconds…
4eva tried to evade the line of fire, but only succeeded in setting himself up exactly where he needed to be. "Fire now!" Abby ordered.
All weapons fired and 4eva was glued to the D-Kom lab. He struggled but nothing could break ABC gum from the mouth of teenage ninjas. She grinned and said, "Kids Next Door, let's scram before we join him!"
"Nah-uh!" 4eva yelled. "I ain't goin' down alone." He threw an unidentified 2-by-4 tech that looked like floss. It caught hold of James' torso, and began reeling him back.
"James!" Abby though fast. She grabbed James' outstretched hand and threw a TND grappling hook back to Sector V. "Pull!"
"Numbah 5 you've got five seconds!" 63 said over the loud speaker.
"I don't wanna be D-Komm-ed, Abby!" James cried. He looked too much like the eleven year old she knew he was. Too precious to her to be erased from KND logs so soon…
She let go of the grabbling line and pressed his face into her coat, just in time for the light to flash. "Shield your eyes!" she called at the last minute.
But it was too late for her…
XXXXXX
Hoagie stormed through the KND-TND hospital. "Where is she?!" he demanded, uncaring if he was scaring operatives.
"Numbah 2- Hoagie…" Kookie, Numbah 3 and his fellow teen agent of the TND, took his hand. She led him to the room with the most people crowded around.
He spotted Numbah 1, Nigel Uno, fresh back from the GTND, where he'd been stationed for a month. Kookie released his hand to go cry on her boyfriend, Numbah 4- Wallaby Beetles'- shoulder.
The new kids of Sector V sat silently in the chairs, all eyes facing the door to the room. All eyes, except the blonde's. He held Abby's hat in his hands like his life depended on it. His eyes bore regret, guilt and sadness.
"She saved us…" the blonde murmured. "We would have been D-Komm-ed if she hadn't warned us…"
Hoagie shook his head. "She can't be- Numbah's given her life to the Next Door organization! Her whole life…" Would she even remember that she and Hoagie were an item now? They'd only been together a week…
Finally, Numbah 12CCs came out, holding a clipboard. "This doesn't look good…"
"What doesn't look good?!" Hoagie demanded.
"Will Abby be alright?!" demanded the blonde.
12CCs shook his head solemnly. "I'm afraid I don't know. Something's fighting it; the D-Kom isn't going through as it normally does. She's the strongest soldier the ND have. But the Re-Komm device isn't working all that well, either."
"So, Abby's- No, I won't accept it!" Hoagie brushed past the KND medical expert and into the room.
Abby lay on a thin bed, ebony hair fanning around her face. Her lips were slightly parted, and her deep mocha eyes were wide, staring straight up but seeing nothing.
"Numbah 5... Abby…" he reached out to brush a tendril from her face, his fingers shaking.
The blonde shakily placed her cap above her unmoving head. "Please wake up, Abby- be okay. I promise I won't argue anymore when you tell me its bedtime. I won't even mind when you beat me in Sugar Tomb Raider. Just please, don't leave me…" he sobbed.
Hoagie vaguely remembered Abby telling him she had a babysitting gig. Was this the kid?
"Please, we'll have results in a second so-"
"Oooo… Abby's head hurts like crazy…" Abby blinked and frowned. "What happened?" She looked over at the two boy standing by her bed.
"Abby!" the blonde grinned through tears.
"Oh, James, there you go with the tears and the snot and, oh you know what I'm talking about…" She frowned at Hoagie. "What happened?"
"You don't remember?" Hoagie paled.
"I remember a bright light…" she paused and frowned at him. "Did I get hit by a bike with headlights?"
12CCs stepped in. "Excuse us…" He ushered the out the room.
"What? Why? She-"
"She's been D-Komm-ed… That story, it's programmed for them to think the bright light they see is a flashlight on the bicycle that hit them. That means that Re-Kom Isn't an option anymore. She's a civilian."
Hoagie felt funny inside. "Does she remember us? Me?"
"It's hard to say. I'll ask her. But you all have to go. She'll need rest."
Hoagie reluctantly followed his friends as they left. Sector V still had papers to fill out, and that James kid had burns on his torso from some rope or another… He wished he could stay. But he'd know in the morning.
XXXXXX
AK: Sue me! I love a good tragedy! And I love a good pair off.
