A/N: Just a side note, this story takes place between Operation ZERO and Operation INTERVIEWS. And because of my lack of updating, I've made this chapter a bit longer. Enjoy!

It was a beautiful day. The sun was shining, fluffy clouds lazily moved through the air, and birds chased each other happily. Sector W, both Sector Vs, and Numbuh 362 were gathered in Sector V's hangar, waiting for Tommy and Hoagie to stop arguing about who got to pilot the ship.

"You always get to pilot Hoagie!" whined Tommy "I'm just as good as you!"

"No way!" cried Hoagie "If you think I'm letting you anywhere near the controls tomy newly improved S.C.A.M.P.E.R. you're crazy!"

Rachael was rubbing her temples "Please just decide which of you is going to drive." she groaned.

"Why don't you do rock paper scissors for it?" Everyone turned to look at the blonde-pigtailed girl who had made the suggestion.

"What?" said Chelsea blushing slightly "That's what my parents make us do to solve problems."

Hoagie and Tommy stared at each other.

"Fine." they said together. Closing their eyes, Tommy and Hoagie chanted, "Rock… Paper… Scissors!"

All the operatives looked at Tommy and Hoagie's hands. Tommy had rock. Hoagie had paper.

"Yes!" cheered Hoagie happily. Tommy slumped a little. "Aw man."

"Can we please leave now?" asked Nigel as he opened the door to the S.C.A.M.P.E.R.

After an uneventful flight, Hoagie gently set down the ship a mile or so from the factory. The operatives piled out.

"Everyone ready?" asked Rachael as she took out her weapon. The other operatives brought out their weapons and nodded their assent.

"Alright then." said Rachael "Kids Next Door move out!"

TEAM 1 – Nigel, Chelsea, Kuki, Wally

"Why the crud did we have to park so far away from the factory?" grumbled Wally as they marched toward their destination.

"To keep Father from detecting us." said Nigel as he walked at the head of the pack.

"Why don't you tell us about yourself Chelsea?" said Kuki chirpily. Chelsea stumbled.

"W-what?" asked Chelsea.

"Well," said Kuki happily "we don't know you well right? And if we're all going to work together, we should know about each other right?"

"Umm…" said Chelsea "Okay. What'd you want to know?"

"Do you like Rainbow Monkeys?" asked Kuki happily.

"Yeah." said Chelsea, relieved that the question wasn't more personal.

"Me too!" squealed Kuki. "Do you have a Share and Care Rainbow Monkey? Or a Fun Time Friend Rainbow Monkey? Or --"

"What're your parents like?" interrupted Wally before Kuki could go any further.

Chelsea shifted her weapon nervously. "Oh, you know." she said evasively. "They're…uh… parents."

Nigel rolled his eyes. "Yes, we know that." he said "But are they bad or good or what?"

Chelsea paused a second, then shrugged. Neither one of her parents was in her group, telling them a little about her family couldn't hurt.

"They're pretty nice." shrugged Chelsea "They're nice enough not to make me eat broccoli, but I still have to go to school and do homework and stuff."

"Were they part of the KND when they were kids?" asked Nigel.

Chelsea hesitated once again. "Uh… yeah… maybe."

"Cool!" said Wally "What were their numbuhs? Maybe we know them!"

'No duh you know them.' thought Chelsea. She coughed.

"Uh… uh… Num-Numbuh 86?" said Chelsea as she prayed that no one in the KND currently had that Numbuh.

"WHAT?" Chelsea flinched at Wally's outcry. Crud.

"Numbuh 86 is your mom?" asked Nigel "Then who's your dad? He has to have blonde hair because you and your brother both have blonde hair… Oh crud, please tell me your dad isn't Numbuh 4!"

"WHAT?!?" shouted Wally again "Why the crud would ya think that?"

"Well she did say you were cute." said Kuki grumpily.

"No! No! No! No! No." said Chelsea desperately. "Numbuh 4 is not my dad."

The other three operatives let out identical sighs of relief.

"Is Numbuh 86 really your mom?" asked Kuki

"I don't know for sure…" said Chelsea "What's her name?"

"Fanny Fulbright." said Nigel.

"Nope." said Chelsea. "It's not her then."

"Oh." said Nigel "Then who…?"

"Whoops." said Chelsea quickly. "No more questions. I think we're here."

TEAM 2 – Rachael, Becca, Sonya, and Lee

Team 2 walked quickly across the field, the silence heavy. Becca was staring at the ground as she walked, and Sonya was skipping cheerfully next to Lee, who was casually playing with his yoyo. Rachael walked a little ahead of the group.

"So…" said Rachael in a to Becca in an attempt to break the stillness. "Um… What's the future like?"

Becca glanced up at Rachael before quickly looking back down at the ground, debating mentally with herself.

"What the heck." muttered Becca. She looked up at Rachael and smiled.

"It's like the KND today." said Becca "Only our weapons are more high-tech, and our enemies are a lot tougher."

" Like the Numbuhless One." said Rachael understandingly.

"He's the leader." said Becca. "But he's got help."

"Help?" asked Sonya as she skipped forward to walk next to Becca and Rachael. Lee soon joined her.

"Yeah." said Becca. "There's Yllaw, I think you've heard of him? He's the Ex-Soopreme Leader of the DNK. There's also Big Brother and Big Sister – they make teenagers seem like angels; they love giving atomic wedgies and noogies and stuff like that. Then there's the Toy Maker- he specializes in making toys that brainwash kids, and of course the Delightful Adults From Down The Lane."

"Delightful… adults?" asked Rachael.

"Previously the Delightful Children." said Becca. "Anyway, those villains are the worst of the worst, and they make up the Numbuhless One's council. Yllaw was second in command last we heard, but those things can change. They're absolutely horrible, we've lost sixty operatives to them in the last year alone."

Sonya summed up the other operatives feeling in one word.

"Scaaaary."

TEAM 3 –Ben, Hoagie, and Lily

Hoagie, Ben, and Lily were walking side by side, chatting happily about Yipper cards.

"You seriously have Yipper Card number 77?" asked Hoagie excitedly to Lily "That's like, one of the rarest cards ever!"

"It used to be my dad's." grinned Lily "He gave all his cards to me when I was six."

"She's also got Number 73." said Ben "Lily is the best Yipper card player in our KND."

"That's so –" Hoagie's words died when he noticed four teenager boys standing in front of them. They were huge. They were scary. And they looked like they meant business.

"Look what we got here." said the tallest boy. "Seems like you little kiddies got lost. After all, I'm sure you didn't come onto our territory on purpose did you?"

"Your territory?" asked Ben

"That's right punk." said the smallest and meanest looking boy. "Now we're gonna give you a choice. Turn around and head back the way you came, or we'll make you go back."

"Dude. Relax will ya?" Lily had walked forward, shoving Ben and Hoagie behind her.

"You wanna get hit?" asked the smallest boy "I usually don't hit girls, but I bet I can make an exception for you."

Lily rolled her eyes. "Yeah right. I doubt you could hit something to save your life."

"You wanna say that to my face?" said the small teenager angrily.

"I just did." said Lily smugly.

The teenager growled and lunged for Lily, but was held back by the tallest teen who was evidently the leader.

"You know, I like you kid." said the leader. "You've got spunk. So I'll give you one last chance. Leave. Now." Lily and the leader engaged in a battle of stares, but after a short period Lily broke the eye contact and smiled lightly.

"Can we talk privately?" asked Lily, a calm look on her face.

The leader rolled his eyes, but he did lead Lily away from her team and his gang. The two talked quietly, and eventually Lily handed over something to the leader. Both were smiling when they returned.

"You know," said the teen to Lily "You're a cool little brat." Turning to his team, the leader informed them that Lily and her friends were allowed to cross.

"See ya around." said the leader to Lily as she led Hoagie and Ben away.

"How," asked Hoagie once they were out of earshot "in the name of all things edible did you manage to get us out of that?"

"Kid-Teen Relations Officer." said Lily "That's my job. Why do people keep forgetting that?"

"What'd you give him?" asked Ben curiously.

"Death March 3 Return of the Zombies." said Lily carelessly. "It's an old movie to us, but for them it's not out for another month. Easiest bribe I've ever done."

Team 4 – Tommy, Harvey, and Paddy

The three operatives of Sector W walked quickly across the field. Harvey was moving the fastest, a frustrated look on his face. Tommy and Paddy were struggling to keep up.

"H-hey Numbuh 363!" panted Tommy "Wanna slow down a little?"

Harvey sped up.

"I guess not." mumbled Tommy as he and Paddy put on a burst of speed and caught up to Harvey.

"What's wrong Numbuh 363?" asked Paddy "Are you still mad that you have to work with Numbuh 1?"

"No." growled Harvey. Tommy and Paddy shared a disbelieving glance.

"Well, yeah, but that's not the only reason!" said Harvey defensively.

"Well then what's wrong?" asked Paddy.

"I just don't get how my sister can trust the new operatives!" burst out Harvey. "The only proof they have is some stupid story they could've easily made up. Why did she trust them so quickly?"

"Dunno." said Paddy.

"Doesn't really matter I guess." said Tommy. "She's the leader. What she says goes."

"Well…" Harvey's voice died as he stopped abruptly, sending Tommy and Paddy crashing into him.

"What the heck Harvey?" asked Paddy. Harvey simply pointed in front of him, his eyes wide. Tommy and Paddy turned to look.

"Whoa."

Before them was the biggest factory they had ever seen. It was easily three stories high, made of black steel, and was spouting smoke. It looked like a much bigger version of the tapioca factories Grandfather had created.

"Uhhh…" said Harvey timidly. "I guess we're uh… here?"

S.C.A.M.P.E.R. – Abby and Ross

"So how long've you been a spy for?" Ross and Abby had their feet propped on a table as they both relaxed in cushy armchairs. Every once and a while they'd glance at the numerous flashing screens, but until the operatives reached the factory, there wasn't much for them to do.

"Numbuh 5's been a spy since the day she joined the KND." said Abby. "How about you?"

"Only for the past year or so." admitted Ross. "We lost our best spy two years ago, and they decided to train me to take his place."

"What happened?" asked Abby.

"I don't know." shrugged Ross. "One day the kid disappeared on a top-secret-uber-important-urgent secret mission. He didn't report back like he was supposed too, and it caused this huge panic. Eventually he did come back, but there was something wrong with him. He wasn't acting like himself. Our top scientists couldn't figure out what was wrong, so they decommissioned him and sent him home."

"What…" Before Abby could ask her question, her communicator lit up and began to beep.

"Numbuh 5. Come in Numbuh 5. This is Numbuh 1."

"Copy Numbuh 1. What's up?"

"We've reached the factory and have began our mission."

"Got it Numbuh 1." said Abby.

"Numbuh 15? Numbuh 5? This is Numbuh 17."

"Gotcha boss." said Ross. "What's up?"

"We've reached the factory."

"Got it." said Ross.

"Team 4 had reached the factory." said Harvey through the communicator. "And… uh… it's a lot bigger then I thought it would be…"

"Numbuh 362 reporting in. We've reached the target."

"Affirmative sir." said Ross. He put down his headset and turned to Abby.

"And now we wait?" asked Ross.

"And now we wait."