On the good side, I got no flames. On the bad side, I only got two reviews. Thanks go to breezy-kuki and Numbuh 770mph for them. Ah well, life goes on.
Have you noticed that when you are trying to work on something really important, but totally boring, you end up doing other stuff instead? E.G IT coursework due in tomorrow, but hellooooo next few chapters of the fanfic. At least my large fan base won't be disappointed.
Also, I recently found out somewhere that people posting on this site can, technically, be sued if they don't put up disclaimers. So, here goes. I do not own KND or anything affiliated with KND. That honour goes to Mr. Warburton. I do own, however, my Sky Mercs and anything I invent for the purposes of this fanfic. Because I am lazy/forgetful: I did not own KND when the last chapter was published, and it is doubtful I will own it when further chapters are published. I will say so here if this changes.
There, now the lawyers can't throw the book at me. Turns to lawyers you hear that! Put those really heavy books DOWN!! Now on with the fic.
"Sir, we need your help on the command deck!" Came the vice of Lieutenant Faraday, disturbing Gary out of his reverie. For the benefit of the Delightfuls, the KND operatives had 'escaped' the Draconis fifteen minutes earlier, after agreeing to recommend to KND Moonbase that negotiating with the Sky Mercs was a good idea. His plan to increase the payment intake was working perfectly."Sir?" 'Was' being the operative word. Grumbling quietly, he slowly levered himself out of his chair, and away from his computer.
Appearing on the bridge like a ghost, he calmly said to the Lieutenant "Now what was so important that you had to get me away from the computer for it? You know I have a shedload of reports to review." "S-sorry sir," Came the terrified Lieutenant's reply. The Admiral had been trying to do those reviews for weeks now. They were starting to get to him. "But, the water pressure around the ship has been dropping steadily for the past half an hour, and Maintenance can't isolate the leak. Nothing we do seems to stop it, sir, and, well, you built this ship, so, I thought you might be able to tell us what to do?" Gary nodded gravely. "Good call, lieutenant, and I think I might just know what is causing this leak. Dial up the Captain on Comms, will you?" "Putting you through now, sir." Answered the not so terrified junior officer.
"Hi, Darrell!" Boomed Gary. "Yessir?" Came the prompt reply. The Comms screen was displaying the 'privacy' image of Darrell used for verbal only communications. This and the fact that they could hear water in the background, only served to confirm Gary's suspicions. "Darrell, would you mind turning off the shower for a moment, please?" Muted grumblings were heard through the Comms. "Sir!" Exclaimed Faraday excitedly. "The water loss has ceased, sir!"
"Yes, yes, on with your duties."Muttered Gary impatiently. "Now, Darrell, would you care to remind me what I said, on absolutely no condition, you were to do?" "Err, right bro. Well, err..." Said Darrell, stumbling over his words. "Just spit it out, I don't have all day!" Snapped Darrell's rather irritated elder brother. "You told me not to stay in the shower for more than fifteen minutes." He mumbled apologetically. "Correct, Darrell. We don't have time now, but after your meeting with the Delightfuls, you can expect a visit from the Security Chief. Understood?""Yes Gary" "Good. Now carry on with your preparations, we will arrive in about twenty minutes. Is there anything you need to know before-hand, or are you still good to go?" After a quick pause, the slightly embarrassed Captain replied.
"Gary, I know we have been over this before, but I still need to remind you that I am not comfortable with these dealings with the Delightfuls. They are just TOO perfect. They are even more Delightful than me when I want to get some money off of Mom and Dad. And you know what I am like then." Gary thought on this for a moment."You do have a point, as I have said before; there is something wrong with them. However, they are our biggest source of income to date. And it is a practically guaranteed contract renewal. Plus, all we do is ship them parts, ingredients, and the occasional special request. We even get told where to pick the stuff up from. In essence, we are just running a basic delivery service for them. With armed guards."
"Yes Gary," Started his brother, "But do you not get the idea that there is a reason there regular suppliers can't get it to them, and no other delivery service in the state would take it?"
"The Kids Next Door. I know." Parried the increasingly irritated elder brother. "But we can take them easily. Listen!" Yelled Gary before his sibling could interrupt. "Just a few more of these jobs, and we will have enough money to buy a ground base on every continent on Earth, as well as troops to man them, and machines to protect them. Not only that, but we will have an air armada that will rival the U.S Air force. We will be able to rule and defend the country that WE will create. Think about it. The single greatest nation on Earth, led by us! And all that for a few more distasteful encounters with the Delightfuls. Do you think you can manage that?" "Hell, yeah!" All Darrell's former reluctance was gone. Now he had his goal set firmly in his sights, and he wasn't about to let a creepy little feeling in the small of his back stop him from getting it.
Twenty-five minutes later, the Sky Merc negotiation team dropped out of the sky, landing right in front of the Delightful Manor. They were all dressed in matching black commando gear. Except for one. That one was Darrell. He was wearing his usual black combat trousers and boots, with sunglasses and sidearm. However, on his torso, instead of the normal black combat jacket, was a black shirt. After all, judging from the Delightfuls usual style, he was expected to at least attempt to dress formally. A door opened, creaking slowly. "The young masters are expecting you. Come this way." Announced an elderly looking butler. As the team walked inside, they could not help but admire the sheer size and wealth of the foyer. The fact that the house even had a foyer made it incredible. The grand staircase and crystal chandeliers merely insisted that the team were no longer in the ordinary world. In a way, they weren't. This was the world of the super rich, and it showed in every exquisitely placed plant and light fixture.
After successfully navigating a labyrinth of corridors, the team finally arrived at their destination. The room they were stood in was not quite as impressive as Father's study, but considering the team's idea of grandeur was having an ensuite, they were suitably impressed by the Delightful Children's office. Darrell and the Delightfuls were sat at a desk, the Delightfuls being sat on the far side from the door. This sense of familiarity was offput slight, however, by the two armed commando's stood either side of Darrell, the two stood either side of the door, and the one who had come, checked the room, and was now stood outside the door.
"Really, Darrell. Is this kind of security necessary? We are allies, after all." Came the five monotonous voices of the Children. It took all of Darrell's self control to not let the chill running down his spine turn into a visible shudder. He trusted his instincts normally, and all of them were telling him to run, screaming if necessary, away from the five Children sat in front of him, and blow his way out of their Mansion. He didn't. Instead, he sat there, and replied in a carefully controlled monotonous voice of his own. "There was an assault upon our ships earlier. The people responsible then managed to escape custody. We believe this assault resulted directly from our transporting your goods. I fear that these people, these Kids Next Door, may attempt to sabotage these negotiations. If they were to render pickup impossible, I would prefer to have some of my own Security here. I hope you don't mind."
"Not at all, Darrell. We understand perfectly. In your position we would travel with security as well. We trust, however, that our goods were not destroyed or taken by your opponents? We would be most displeased if they had. We might have to take punitive action." The answer from the Children was both disturbing and reassuring in the extreme. Darrell wasn't sure what the Delightfuls considered 'punitive action' but that definition probably included Delightfulisation. Darrell had to fight another shiver at the thought.
"You need not be concerned. Even with the slight lapse in our security, the enemy operatives never got near your stuff. However, we are concerned as to your proximity to an enemy stronghold. Should they decide to launch an assault on our vessels, we would not know until it was too late. Also, we might mistake an innocent vessel for an enemy, and mistakenly induce combat. However, we will not act against the Kids Next Door without your confirmation.'
"Very well Darrell. You have our permission to assault and destroy the KND treehouse in the area. In fact, that is a vital clause in your new contract. Without its fulfilment, you shall not be paid. With regards to your payment...?" "The usual will suffice. Although, since you are requesting direct militant action against an enemy, we will require damages. We will inform you of these charges after the operation, however." Darrell replied, suddenly shocked at the realisation that he had accidently led the Delightfuls to this decision. 'What the hell was I thinking?' he mentally groaned. As much as he liked combat, he realised that more combat cost more money, and more costs meant more time before he could declare himself joint overlord of his very own country. Plus Gary would eat him alive if he found out. He made a mental note to find out just how much these guards were paying attention to the meeting. Standing up, he said "If that is all, Delightfuls, my men and I would like to plan our assault on the treehouse. Any data you could transmit to the ship would be greatly appreciated." With a nod from the five siblings opposite him, he turned round and left the room, promptly followed by his troops.
Back on board the H.M.S Draconis, the Lord Admiral asked if there were any unexpected developments in the negotiations. Secure in his knowledge that the guards were happy with their new promotions, Captain Darrell replied "Yes, one thing that was totally unexpected came up in the negotiations. They want us to take out the KND presence in the area. As such, I told them that our payment would have to include damages. However, when faced with this request, they made the destruction of the KND treehouse a requirement of our contract. They say we won't get paid if that clause isn't fulfilled. Are we going to do the regular insurance scam on them?"
This caused Gary to stop. The Delightfuls had ordered them to move against the KND a lot sooner than he had anticipated. Numbuh 1 still hadn't had time to convince the Moonbase that the Sky Mercs could be valuable allies instead of dangerous enemies. This could be worked to their advantage, though. It was a risky plan, with plenty of potential to backfire. Then again, it could also be worked to their advantage both ways. Not to mention it was the only plan they had. He decided to proceed with it, but not let anyone know. If this didn't work one way, he could now still say that he had planned for that to happen. If both acceptable avenues of escape failed, then he would have failed as their leader.
"Erm...Gary? What are we going to do? Gary!!" Darrell's final yell pierced through Gary's reverie, and caused his revered leader to respond. "Darrell, we are going to attack the tree house. Prepare the troops. I want the captured operatives to be held in their briefing room. I will inspect them before they are transported to the Mansion. Understood?" "Yessir." "Go to it, soldier." Darrell saluted smartly, about turned, and marched off towards the briefing rooms. He could just barely suppress a smile. Gary didn't bother to suppress his. He knew more than anyone how evil his brother was when it came to combat. Not quite as good an offensive tactician as Gary, perhaps, but he more than made up for it with his skill in battle. And the fact that he enjoyed a good fight just made him even more evil. Those KND people did not stand a chance.
please review. In case you didn't notice, I have very few reviews.
