Chapter 35 – Preparation

Author Notes:

- you use word like "dat", "dis", and "der" to convey a Jamaican accent, right?

- I'm not sure if Ceberus had two German Shepherd or Doberman heads, but I'm going with the latter

- that crossover special of Kids Next Door and Billy and Mandy isn't going to be canon in this universe if you're wondering why the KND aren't hounding down Mandy or recognizing Grim

"Him has a Fusion!" Numbuh 2 exclaimed over the communication line.

Kyle was sitting on a bench outside Habitat's Infected Zone, speaking with a live hologram of Numbuh 2. Jake and Adam were also with him, curious about what was happening, especially Adam.

"I think that's the guy who kidnapped me." Adam said. "I was heading to Jake's home at the zoo to apologize about our fight when I blanked out. When I woke up, he was already tying me up and left those other two freaks to watch me."

"Must be his demonic possession powers." Kyle told him. "Jake did say he saw you go inside by yourself."

"But how the heck was Fuse able to create a Fusion of Him?" Numbuh 2 asked. "We all know what he is. Is replicating someone like him even possible?"

"Maybe you should try asking him." Jake suggested.

"And where did you think we're supposed to find him?"

". . . Him said he would be expecting me at the graveyard tomorrow night." Kyle answered.

"Eternal Meadows? Why there?"

"Oh, I forgot. Anybody in your sector go by the codename, 'Numbuh 3'?"

"Kuki? Yeah, but she supposed to be at our treehouse base at Mount Blackhead."

"Her Fusion showed up with Father's. Him got her to tell us where Fusion Him was hiding: inside the catacombs."

"He must be planning something big!" Jake exclaimed.

"I still don't like the sound of this . . ." Numbuh 2 muttered.

"I think you guys should check it out." Adam told them. "I mean, it's obvious you guys and Him are after the same thing."

"Good idea, Adam!" Jake exclaimed as he hoped onto Adam's shoulders. "We can go with them!"

"Jake, what can we do? We can't fight."

"You and Kyle saw me rescue you. That has to count for something!"

"Yeah, but Kyle was the one to finish off the Fusion. I'm sorry, Jake. It's just that I don't think we can actually do something like this."

"You're doubting yourself." Kyle stated.

"That's right." Numbuh 2 added. "Just look at the kids who've joined the Kids Next Door, some as early as the first grade. Some came in weak and cowardly and some still are, but they're still out there, fighting to protect those they love."

"See, Adam?" Jake asked. "C'mon! This could turn into the funnest thing we've ever done!"

". . . Alright." Adam hesitantly replied. "I guess we can try."

"Hooray!"

"Who knows? Maybe we can get Windsor and the others . . . but we're starting out small. I'm not taking on someone like a Fusion of Him!"

"Glad to hear that." Numbuh 2 said. "We don't have KND squads in Habitat besides SCAMPER transportation, but you can always head on over to Endsville. We're always looking for more help. And you don't necessarily have to join the Kids Next Door if you're thinking it."

"Do you want me to head back now?" Kyle asked. "Or do you still want me to do that thing for you?"

"Oh, forget about that. I can get Blossom or someone else to do it later. Head on back here. We need to figure out this whole thing with the others."

"Alright. I'm on my way."

Kyle looked at Jake and Adam. Jake was hugging Adam with excitement, happy that he said yes. Adam was laughing as he tried to push his friend off of him. Kyle couldn't help but laugh a little. He sort of envied a close friendship like that, one that was taken away from him.

"I'll see you guys later." Kyle said as he walked away.

"See you later, Kyle!" they both replied.

Kyle took a SCAMPER back to Sector V and immediately headed to the treehouse laboratory. By the time he arrived, Numbuh 2 was setting up and multi-way communication line on the monitor. Blossom and Numbuh 5 were also there with him.

"This is Numbuh 2. Is everyone online yet?"

"Ben here."

"Dexter."

"Hi there. Professor Utonium here."

"Double D. Greetings everyone!"

"Coop's ready to rock and roll!"

One by one, they all appeared on the large screen, taking equal portions like a star. Coop's visual broadcast seemed a little buggy as it lagged at occasional intervals, but his voice could still be easily heard. Professor Utonium was streaming his feed from the power plant.

"I assuming everyone read their messages?" Numbuh 2 asked.

"I got it." Ben replied. "We've got Fusion Him's location, right?"

"I still can't believe he has a Fusion." Edd remarked.

"I am too." the Professor added. "I wonder what Fuse is truly capable of at full power . . ."

"In any case," Dexter said, "we cannot let this specific Fusion to continue running around. He's more dangerous than even the Elites."

"I have a question." Coop stated. "Why am I here? You guys know Megas is trapped in Fusion Matter. We've tried everything to free him."

"You still have those schematics for that replica Megas arm weapon of yours, correct?"

"Yeah, but they fall apart if you do anything other than physically beat the crap out of someone."

"Don't worry. I can work that out easily. I'll be able to mass produce enough overnight."

"Send the blueprints over to me." Edd said. "The Cul-de-Sac has a faster data transfer network to Dexlabs."

"Alright, I'll give them to Jamie."

"What about the possibility of Fuse creating copies of this weapon?" the Professor questioned.

"Fusion Coop has already seen and felt its power." Numbuh 2 replied. "It's no doubt Fuse is already making one so we might as well finish our own."

"How exactly are we gonna take care of this?" Ben asked. "We sendin' an army?"

"We've got all our available squads of Kids Next Door together." Numbuh 5 replied.

"Do you think you can get the SACT, Plumbers, and maybe Providence?" Blossom asked.

"I can definitely get Grandpa Max to send some Plumbers to help. The SACT will be harder for me to convince considering who I am. You'll probably need someone else. Providence is a definite no. They're already busy enough dealing with EVOs and the invasion. I can try getting Rex, but who knows if they'll need him."

"What about Offworld Plaza? Don't you need to stay?"

"Kevin can cover for me while I'm gone."

"How's Townsville right now? I was thinking Bubbles could join as well."

"Can't. We'll need her to help with Townsville Park since Grandpa Max will be sending some of his Plumber forces. Unless you wanna exchange them for her?"

"No. That's okay."

"What about me?" the Professor asked. "I'm sure there was a purpose for calling me."

"We just need you to keep an eye on the power plant for now and tighten defenses. The Fusion's practically next door from where you are."

"Aren't you guys making this kinda overkill?" Coop asked. "Him is showing up, right? So it should be even between those two."

"We can't assume that." Dexter told him. "Him is unpredictable so it's possible he wants other people to do the work themselves. We'll need as many available forces we can get. There're always the graveyard monsters most likely under the Fusion's control."

"Alright, I think that's everything." Numbuh 5 said. "We'll spend the rest of our time preparing for the battle."

"We'll meet at sunset tomorrow." Blossom addressed.

The five disconnected as they began to carry out their assignments, leaving Numbuh 2, Numbuh. 5, Blossom, and Kyle together.

"Kyle, you're coming too, right?" Numbuh 2 asked.

"Yeah, but are we ready for this?"

"Don't sweat it!" Blossom exclaimed. "You've got all your friends with you. No way we'll let each other down!"

". . . Heh. I guess you're right."

Numbuh 5 laughed as she left the room.

"I'll see if I can get Sticky to join." she said. "Though it would be much better if we still had his ship."

Kyle then turned to Blossom. There was a question that bothered him.

"Blossom. What did you and the Professor talk about? Why didn't you say anything about Buttercup?"

"Wait. You didn't tell the Professor?" Numbuh 2 asked. "He's Buttercup's and your own dad!"

Blossom stood silent for a minute before speaking again.

"I . . . I wanted to see it for myself before showing the others, but . . . how I saw her . . . I just couldn't bring myself to tell them. I haven't told Bubbles either."

"What about Buttercup made you not want to-"

Kyle stopped Numbuh 2 before he could finish. The look on his face made it clear he saw that Blossom didn't want to talk about the story further.

"I'm sorry for bringing it up, Blossom." Kyle told her.

Blossom forced a smile onto her face, trying to hide her real feelings.

"It's alright!" she exclaimed. "I'm glad to get that out of my system, but please. Don't tell Bubbles or the Professor."

"I promise. Numbuh 2?"

"Me too." he added. "Do you want me to tell Ben, Dexter, and Double D not to do it as well? They know about Buttercup as well."

"Please." Blossom insisted. "I think I can trust them."

Blossom quickly left the room before the subject could have been taken further. Kyle began heading back to his room as well.

"I might as well sleep now." he said. "There's something I wanna check out before sunrise."

"See you tomorrow." Numbuh 2 responded.

It was dark outside with a starry night sky overhead as Kyle sat on a ledge of the treehouse's highest levels, looking out into the distance in the southwestern direction, towards Eternal Meadows Cemetery.

"What did you want to say to me?." Riyos asked.

"You can read my mind." Kyle answered.

"Yes, but I have chosen not to this time. I assume it is the situation of this replica of Him, is it not? This is probably the third time you have thought about it."

"Just what is Fuse really capable of?"

"There is still the question of whether this replica has Him's powers. If he did, then he would have probably wreaked havoc on your friends' armies by now."

"I guess you're right. Now the other question is what the real Him is planning . . ."

"It was obvious he wanted his Fusion eliminated, but I could not tell if he wanted to do it himself. It seemed like he was expecting you in his place instead."

"How can I kill-"

"Did you not hear your red-headed friend? You have support from others as well."

"Kind of odd for someone like you to say that."

". . . Just observe the situation for now. You always have immortality and my power at your disposal. And that blade will make the struggle easier."

"Alright."

Kyle looked up at the stars to trace the current major constellation. The eight different sets of stars were all divided evenly amongst the year. The stars all formed figures whose symbolism and association supposedly foretold what would happen during their reign. This night had Shadow, the figure of darkness.

"It's Shadow's constellation right now." Kyle stated. "Fitting, don't you think?"

"Shadow is not always associated with evil, but I will admit that there are many sinister cases connected to him."

"I know that, but still . . . Hm?"

Kyle's Nanocom began vibrating. It was Edd.

"Double D?" Kyle answered.

"Oh, good." he said relieved. "I thought you would be asleep."

"Likewise. Anyway, what is it?"

"I just couldn't sleep so I started working on those Crazy Brain locations."

"You found another one?"

"Yes, but . . . it's in Eternal Meadows Cemetery. I fear that's what Fusion Him is after. Is Numbuh 5 there too?"

"She left to see Stickybeard after that meeting we had and she hasn't come back yet."

"I'll try to get a hold of her in a few hours then."

"What should we do though? We've got a lot of people showing up that night. Someone's bound to find out about the chests."

"We just have to hope Fusion Him hasn't found it by then. We can always come back for the chest later."

"Send me the location. I could at least keep an eye on it while we're there."

"Good idea. I'm obviously not going since I'm unfit for combat, but I'll be rooting for you."

"Thanks. I'll see you later."

It was coming closer to sunset as KND forces began mobilizing. Small fleets consisting of jet-like aircraft and fighter-equipped SCAMPERs departed from the Sector V treehouse. Land units and foot soldiers had already left earlier due to the distance needed to travel to the cemetery. Plumber forces were already on standby in Endsville, waiting for Ben's orders to charge in. Aside from the ones in the area, the SACT didn't participate since they saw the current number of forces more than enough. The Candy Pirates didn't show up either for their own personal reasons.

Kyle and Numbuh 5 were waiting in the parking lot across the cemetery's entrance. They were handing out the replica Megas arms that Dexter had his Dexbots bring over. Blossom was flying overhead and scouting the area around them, keeping watch for any surprise attacks and Fusion Him's location.

The rest of the forces arrived with Numbuh 2 among them an hour later and were put on standby. Numbuh 5 was leader for all the units, but she gave Blossom and Numbuh 2 control over the aerial forces due to their abilities. Kyle was given independence to do whatever he wanted due to his other objective. He watched as the other three were giving a pep talk to their fellow agents.

"Hey! Over here, mon!" a voice exclaimed loud enough for only Kyle to hear.

Grim was hiding behind a building, waving towards. He was trying to not be seen by the others. Without alerting the other, Kyle quickly ran over to the reaper.

"What is it?"

"Fusion Him." Grim replied. "I've managed to find his exact location."

"That's great! I can tell them to send-"

"One problem." he interrupted. "The passageway leading to him only has enough room for one person. There's also another thing. It seems de Fusion learned about de secret and supernatural areas of de catacombs. Him thinks his copy doesn't truly have his powers, but Him also thinks dat's why de Fusion is there. Der's a powerful magic down there and if dat Fusion gets it, you can say dat my job will become extremely busy!"

"But should I still tell the others?"

"Do what you want. Him only ordered me to tell you dis info."

Grim was about to slam his scythe to disappear in a cloud of smoke before Kyle quickly and suddenly stopped him by grabbing his robe. The boy had an idea.

"Wait! Why don't you fight too? You're immortal aren't you?"

"And risk getting hurt? I don't have to take orders from you!"

"But you do for me." a voice coldly said behind him.

Grim was frozen in disbelief the moment he heard that. He slowly turned just his head around and saw Mandy standing there along with Billy holding Runty in his hands. The skeleton's body began trembling and his voice sounded like it was in a little hysterics due to fear.

"M-M-Mandy. Long time no see."

"I've finally found you, Grim." Mandy stated. "What's with you leaving all the sudden? You know our rules."

"W-W-Well. I just thought-"

"I guess I can let this slide, but on one condition . . . No, make that two conditions. You fight and let me meet with Him."

"Girl. Why in the world would you want to meet Him?"

"Did I say you could ask me questions?"

"Y-You still can't make me!"

"Can I?"

Mandy pulled out a dark red whistle. It was decorated with a large skull on each side and other skeletal figures on the rest of the surface. Mandy took a deep breath and blew into it causing Grim to go into a panic.

"M-Mandy! Please! Anything but Cerberus! Alright, Alright! I'll fight! Just call him off! D'oh! I never should've bet de whistle in dat poker game!"

"It's too late now, Grim." Mandy casually said as she looked up into the sky.

"Hooray! Runty will have a playmate!" Billy exclaimed.

Kyle followed what everyone else did and looked up at the sky as well. An extremely large object was falling towards them. It looked like a flaming comet though Kyle could make out furry tail sticking out from it. Numbuh 5 and others quickly scrambled to get out of its range when they noticed it.

"Um, shouldn't we get out of here?" Kyle asked worriedly.

"Relax." Mandy calmly replied. "It won't hit you as long as you stay still."

Within a few seconds, the large object made contact with the ground, destroying the abandoned general store it landed on and setting the area around it ablaze. Once the smoke cleared, the "comet" revealed itself to be the large three-headed dog and guardian of the Underworld, Ceberus, himself. He had the body of a large Doberman. His center and right heads were of the same breed though the center head had a different shade of fur compared to the body. The left head was of a poodle, completely setting itself apart.

Cerberus growled at Grim the moment he spotted his former owner, threatening to bite and chew on his body. Flames occasionally emanated from his nostrils when he breathed. Mandy was quick to roll up a nearby newspaper to hold the creature back for a moment. Kyle was surprised a creature that ferocious looking could be controlled by a normal girl. He thought the whistle played a factor in his obedience.

"Promise, Grim?" Mandy asked.

"Yes, yes." he quickly replied as he backed away. "Just keep Cerberus away from me!"

Numbuh 5 suddenly came around the corner, looking for Kyle. Blossom and Numbuh 2 were also with her.

"Kyle! Are you alri- Holy camole! What the heck is that!"

"Cerberus." Kyle answered. ". . . Mandy's dog."

"Billy?" Numbuh 2 asked. "What are you doing here?"

"Mandy brought me along!" he replied laughing.

"So this is the Cerberus Him mentioned before." Blossom said to herself aloud. "I never expected him to be part poodle."

"Yeah. A lot of people get that impression." Mandy told her.

"You two shouldn't be here." Numbuh 5 said. "It's dangerous here. Fusion Him is somewhere around this area."

"Exactly why I came here in the first place." Mandy replied. "If Fusion Him is here, then there's the chance the real one will show. But I happened upon Grim here, so I've pretty much guaranteed seeing Him."

"Grim?"

"Hello der." the skeleton awkwardly greeted them.

Numbuh 5 and Numbuh 2 were taken aback upon noticing his presence. They seemed to be in a little disbelief of seeing Death standing right in front of them. Blossom remained relatively calm since the supernatural wasn't new to her.

"Y-You mean the Grim Reaper himself?" Numbuh 2 asked.

"Dat's me." Grim answered. "Him's gonna be furious when he finds out I'm helping you."

"He's not coming?" Blossom asked.

"Eh, I don't know. He only sent me to tell Kyle something."

"And that is . . .?"

"Grim!" Mandy exclaimed in an annoyed tone. "Spit it out before I make Cerberus eat you again!"

"Alright." he said. "Fusion Him's-"

Grim was cut off by a sudden tremor. It calmed down slightly, but it showed no signs of stopping. The nearby KND agents readied their weapons and got in formation assuming there was something coming their way. Ben was attempting to contact Numbuh 5, but the tremor made her not noticed her Nanocom's vibration. Whatever was causing the tremor was making even Cerberus cower in fear.

"Grim, what's happening!" Billy exclaimed as he tried to get Runty under control.

"He found it!" Grim exclaimed. "I hope you're ready for the fight of your life, kids!"