~New~

Numbuh 86 had forgotten how much she hated the Arctic Base, but when she and her only remaining teammate stood on the balcony over-looking the sparring cadets, she remembered. Every time her breath fogged in front of her face and every time she had to wipe at her runny nose. She shuffled her feet constantly to try and keep feeling in her toes. Part of her envied the cadets, doing the hot work that was training. You're always the warmest when you're moving.

"I want a couple younger ones at least," she told Numbuh 968 who stood looking out over the training cadets with them. "Older operatives are okay, but they'll have too be replaced soon. My age and down is more ideal. The longer we can have the same team members together the better off the Decommissioning Team will be." She had spoken about that at length with both the Supreme Leader and Rachel. After what her older teammates had done to her, making another team of twelve to tens seemed foolish. Older operatives had loyalties. Younger ones she could make loyal to her.

"You'll need to choose more as well," the supreme leader had told her as they sat in his office. "I'm expanding your team to include an average of twenty-five to thirty members."

She had repeated the numbers, astonished, but when he had explained his decision it made since. The number of people defecting was growing more and more by the year and now that a well-respected Head of Decommissioning had done it the numbers would only grow. She was going to need more people to keep up with the mess, more resources. She had carefully searched for pilots, combat specialists, stealth specialists, trackers, medics. Most of the current operatives she wanted had already been selected and were waiting for approval from Numbuh 274. All that was left now was searching for talent among the cadets.

"What are you looking for specifically?" The Head Drill Sargent asked.

"Exceptional cadets," she replied, shrugging. "I'm not picky about specialties. The decommissioning team that Numbuh 274 and I are putting together needs pretty broad talent in order to be successful."

Numbuh 968 was quiet for a long time so Numbuh 86 watched the cadets in silence. There was a kid in the back that caught her attention. A little girl with a sandy braid that was standing between two operatives. As Fanny watched, one of the older boys lunged at her and the girl rolled under his arms and around his legs, sprang to her feet and leapt onto his back. The force added to his already downward momentum sent him sprawling to the floor and the cadet vaulted off his back, several feet in the air, flipped over the head of the second operative, grabbing his jacket as she went. He stumbled backwards, his body following her and the sudden misdirection forced him off his feet. Fanny smiled. "That one," she said, "In the back corner. What's her name?"

"Gretta," Numbuh 968 replied. "Her parents are acrobats or something…I don't know, but she's always doing crazy tricks like that. She's just a show off though. No technique."

"Sometimes willingness to take risks is more important than technique," Numbuh 86 replied, smiling as the girl turned and seemed to look right at her. "I want Gretta. And I want that kid on the fourth target over there," she continued gesturing to where the shooting range was set up right next to the hand-to-hand arena.

Numbuh 968 stared at her, surprised. "Garrett? He hasn't hit the target at all?"

Numbuh 86 laughed, as though he had said something very funny even though he had no idea what. "You should pay more attention to what your cadets are doing, Numbuh 968," she told him, and gestured towards the rows of targets. "He's not aiming the targets." And as though on cue, the boy pulled the trigger, and the beam flashed past the target and melted an icicle dangling from the ceiling. The Head Drill Sergeant's mouth fell open. Numbuh 86 said, "I want him."

Numbuh 968 didn't question her anymore after that. She selected six more: a boy she watched diagnose and repair a T.A.Z.E.R in a matter of seconds, a young medic who also specialized in ranged weapons and proved to be a pretty good sniper, and more like them, exceptional or diverse or both. When she had chosen who she liked, Numbuh 968 said goodbye and she and Numbuh 88 began the cold trek back to their ship.

"Are you sure having so many fresh operatives is a wise idea, Numbuh 86," Numbuh 88 asked her quietly as they walked. She knew better than to question the little Head of Decommissioning in front of other operatives, but in private, or at least the semi-private of walking alone together, she said what she liked.

"I'm confident that it is," Numbuh 86 replied, then shrugged, "but no move is a guarantee. Everything we do, especially the most successful things, comes with a little risk."

"Of course," Numbuh 88 concedes, "but theres so much other talent with a little bit more experience….Like him."

Numbuh 86 knew who she was talking about immediately. He was walking right towards them and when he saw Fanny a determined look crossed his face. The Head of Decommissioning tried to direct her teammate down a side hall to escape, but it was no use. He called, "Hey!" And raced down the hall in time to catch her shoulder and turn her to face him. "What's up? I haven't seen you in weeks?"

"Yeah, I've been busy with my new position and all," Numbuh 86 replied dismissively, trying to back away, but he had a hold on her arm. Not hard enough to hurt her, but firm enough that she couldn't escape him without causing a scene, which she didn't want.

A dark look crossed his face. "Well, maybe you wouldn't have as much work to do if you hadn't fired most of your team."

It wasn't the first time this argument had come up. She remembered the first time vividly, standing in that room in the spy unit. Standing in it she had remembered the train fort where Numbuh 88 and their ex-leader had spent their time. Where they had bonded and shared their secrets and their pain. The place where Numbuh 88 had betrayed him. She had never felt like this room was the same thing so much as the moment when Numbuh 60 had taken her ex-teammates sides.

"How can you defend them?" She had demanded, her voice doing the high-pitched, cracking thing it did when she got really angry. She hated when it did that. It made her sound girly and weak. "They betrayed me!"

Patton had shrugged his shoulder, hesitating, searching for the right words to explain his obscure opinion. "They were losing the leader they had been working with for years. Someone they respected, loved even. Of course they had doubts and instead of trying to understand why they did it you just decommissioned one and threw the other two out into the streets!"

"You think I was wrong to want to have a team that will stand behind the KND no matter what the circumstances are?" Fanny had accused coldly. "If I were a boy would you think I was wrong?"

"What?" The objection had come out as a squeak. "Of course not! You know I'm not one of those guys!"

"That's sure what it sounds like," she insisted, and her mind was made up then. That was his problem. That was everyone's problem. That was why the only person who stood with her was Numbuh 88, the only other girl on the team, despite how close she had been to her ex-leader.

She had nearly formed an entire team of girls because of that, but Rachel had rolled her eyes when she shared the thoughts. "You're overreacting. Patton's defending Lucas because he's an idiot not because they're both boys, and eliminating half of the KND population from your team because of some stupid prejudice just isn't the smart thing to do." So Numbuh 86 had chosen boys who had shown talent as surely as she had chosen girls, but she would keep a careful eye on the boys. And she was not going to just forgive Patton for what he had said.

She yanked her arm hard and it slipped from his grasp. he blinked, surprised by her anger and even more so when she spoke, her words vehement, "My team is my business, Numbuh 60, not yours. Now I suggest you get back to your duties before I inform your superior."

And she marched away without another word, her teammate following close behind. Numbuh 88 didn't say anything this time and they were silent until they loaded onto the ship, then, seated in her chair in the center of the vehicle, Fanny said, "He took Lucas's side. He would betray me in a heartbeat, just like the others. That's why I didn't take him on the team."

Numbuh 88 didn't respond. Fanny wondered if the older girl thought she was being paranoid. Rachel did. Maybe Fanny even did a little bit, somewhere in the back of her mind. But if Numbuh 88 did think that she didn't say so. She just started the engine and took the ship to the air.

~New~

The new operatives fell silent when Numbuh 86 entered. There were seventeen in total, which would become twenty-four when the six cadets she had chosen graduated and when one added Numbuh 88. Pilots, trackers, prison guards or moon base guards, a couple medics, she had spread her net far and when she looked out among the faces she felt more then ever that she had made the right decision in that. Lucas's team had been strictly battle-trained operatives and they had not been prepared for what would happen if battle went awry. But herrs would be.

It also felt very nice to no longer be the youngest person on the team. There were a few older, but more than half were her age or younger and all had heard what she had done to the last operatives who had betrayed her trust. No one would question her or contradict her. They would do what she said out of fear.

And maybe that was the best she was going to get. Fear wasn't a bad way to lead and the other effective ways wouldn't work for her. Her own mother didn't love her so how could she expect anyone else to? And respect? Her ex teammates had proven that wasn't an option for her.

But she could make people afraid of her, and she would. She would be the scariest operative in the KND. And she would get what she wanted that way.

"Welcome," she said, to the room full of other operatives. "To the Decommissioning team."