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Cre8ivelybankrupt87: Really? Epstein showing up like that was creepy? I got that scene from the Simpsons when Bart and Lisa were trying to find out how to stop Sideshow Bob when he rigged the election to come mayor of Springfield from trying to tear down their house. They received help from Smithers who met him in a parking lot, only for Homer to park right where he was and reveal his identity. Lol.
I think missed something because I'm not sure how the surname, Epstein made him more creep.
Well you know, Rodrigo probably did propose to Helga. I mean, his relationship was in jeopardy. Who knows? Maybe he's just as crazy as Helga is...lol.
The next day...
It was around 6am in the early morning. The sun was just rising, brightening up the city with its illustrious rays. Yet, the light only revealed a city, and especially a particular neighbourhood completely deserted. Only a few cars drove through its roads, with the occasional bus driving by. It was still too early for most people, who were still dozing off, except for one teen.
"Grr, ummm. Grrr." The teen grunted as he tried to get over the fence. His heavy body was pulling him back, but his arms nevertheless continued to pull him to the over side.
Finally, after some struggle, he finally managed to pull himself over to the other side, prompting him to fall.
"Off!" He exclaimed as he fell.
"Oh man! Arnold better have a good reason why he asked us to meet up at his place so early in the morning!" Harold softly complained to himself. "I am still sleepy! Ugh, and what's the deal with telling us to only get there through the alleyways and buildings?"
After cleaning himself off, Harold continued his way towards the boarding house. Avoiding the filled trash cans and garbage that still littered the alleyways, he tried to get there as quickly as possible, all awhile looking over his shoulders to make sure no one was following him. He had been told that if he was even suspicious that someone was following him, he would have to head back home, immediately. Fortunately for him, Harold felt he was the only one there and continued to his destination. Eventually, he made it, but he was told that he could only get inside from the back. While still avoiding the main street, Harold quickly went to the back of the boarding house, opened the gate, walked through the backyard and went inside the boarding house, which the door was intentionally left unlocked.
Harold quietly went inside and just as quickly, made his way upstairs, prompting the floor to make soft and loud cracks where he stepped. Eventually, he made it all the way upstairs and swung opened the door that led to Arnold's room. As soon as he went inside, he saw that everyone was already there.
"Finally, you made it." Sid said to him.
"Ya, I would have gotten here earlier if I could have just taken the main street." Harold grumbled. "Where's Patty?"
"She's over there, talking to the girls." Sid said as he gestured where she was.
"Oh. Do you know why we had to go through this?" Harold annoyingly asked.
"Pfft! Beats me." Sid just shrugged. "We should know pretty soon. We were only waiting for you."
Although everyone was told that the meeting was at 6am, everyone was given a specific time as to when they were supposed to show up, one by one. Under no circumstances there they allowed to arrive as a couple or group. Even Curly and Brainy weren't immune to this strange phenomenon. They had been told to get off at another bus stop and also make their way through the alleyways, much to Curly's annoyance. Apart from that, no one was told anything else, so it was anybody's guess what else what Arnold or Rodrigo had to say to them.
Just then, Helga walked toward in front of Arnold's bed and looked at everyone. Arnold, Gerald and Phoebe were by the sides.
"HEY!" She shouted, prompting everyone to instantly stop talking and look at her. "Pipe down! The General needs to say a few words to you."
Everyone looked her with confusing faces as they were not really sure who Helga was referring to. Just then, Rodrigo, who seemingly came out of nowhere, approached the front and it soon became clear who the 'General' was. The room was silent, with only the Latino kid's walking being heard. As soon as Rodrigo got there, Helga immediately stepped down and went where Phoebe was. Rodrigo took a moment to look at everyone in the eyes before he began to speak.
"Morning everyone." He began rather cheerfully. "Thank you all for coming. I am assuming everyone here is curious as to why we asked everyone to come here in the way Arnold specified you to."
A few of them nodded.
"Well, the reason for that is to avoid the possibility of being seen. We have reasons to suspect that we have been spied on by Von Scheck and just to be safe, we want to continue giving the illusion that we are no longer rendezvousing to stop him. I suspect that he is fully aware of our civil war and if his spies were here when we admitted defeat just a few days ago, we want him to continue on believing that we have thrown in the towel. Hence, that's why I asked Arnold to tell everyone of you to go through the alleyways and to come here at this time."
When no one said anything to him, he continued.
"Now, the reason why we called everyone here is for you all to make a decision, a decision that will have a long lasting impact for not only the people in this neighbourhood, but also in your own lives. Needless to say, we are still planning on stopping Von Scheck, but the method in which we have decided to pursue will be perilous and fraught with danger."
"What method exactly have you chosen that is so dangerous?" Lorenzo asked.
"We are going into the valley of the shadow of death." Rodrigo firmly but vaguely stated. "The exact details of this plan, for safety and security reasons, will only be for those who choose to go along with it."
"You're going to sneak into the FTI building, aren't you?" Sid said with a raised eyebrow.
"I uhhh, wha…" Rodrigo stumbled on his words as he tried to think of something. "Yes, we are." He sheepishly admitted.
"Way to keep it a secret, Patton." Helga sarcastically remarked.
"OK, fine. Yes, we are going to break into that building and find any evidence to finally bring that psychopathic, corrupt of a man down, forever this time." Rodrigo said.
"What changed?" Stinky asked. "Does it have something to do with that mysterious person who called Arnold yesterday?"
"Yes." Rodrigo responded. "That person managed to give us something that is extremely critical; one that has tipped the balance. A USB device. It allows us to view the building's entire security apparatus, live. Every security guard, every camera, every sensory device, its location, their operational status, everything, can be tracked via this device." As he showed them the USB.
"But even more so," he continued, "last night we found out that Von Scheck has lowered the building's security level from high to normal. A few days ago, there would have been no chance for any of us to have been able to sneak into that building without getting caught. But as it stands today, there are less guards and less operational cameras and motion sensors in operation throughout the building. Which means that there is now a real chance that a few people can sneak into that building and retrieve any evidence. I, Helga, Phoebe, Curly, Gerald and even Arnold here finally agreed to go with this plan."
"So then, where's this 'perilous and danger' that you mentioned earlier?" Patty asked.
"You were all here when Arnold expressed serious concerns about the police's warning to not be lenient a second time if they catch us trying to break into that building a second time." Rodrigo began to explain. "Needless to say, by going down this route, even if we succeed, there is a real chance that we could get into serious trouble. There maybe a small chance where we can get through this unscathed, but I doubt it. Right now, it needs to be assumed that we will get arrested and even be sent to prison if we do this."
Everyone said nothing and just stared back at Rodrigo with wide eyes and a shocking facial expression.
"And this is only the police we are talking about." Rodrigo continued. "I have not even mentioned what Von Scheck will do to us if he catches us inside the building. But, it is safe to assumed to not expect him to give us any mercy either."
"So, you're saying that this plan lies between a cliff and the gallows." Park stated, to which Rodrigo simply nodded.
"That's why I am asking everyone here to make a choice; either come with us and help us put this plan into action and risk having a criminal record for the rest of your lives, or go home." He said. "After everything that has happened, neither myself or Arnold cannot expect, nor force any of you to simply go along with this. Too much is at stake here. That is why only you will be able to decide if you want to help us and stop Von Scheck."
Again, everyone said nothing and remained silent.
"I want everyone to know here," Rodrigo continued, "that if anyone chooses to not do this, you are free to go home with your head up high. There will be no shame if any of you choose to not do this. Everyone here will understand and I will make sure that no one criticizes anyone else, not this time. At the same time, anyone who does come along, this needs to be said; there will be no turning back. Once you are committed, that's it. You are an accomplice and you must see this all the way through."
"There are a lot of things that I cannot promise you." Rodrigo continued. "I cannot even promise you that we will come home. But, what I can promise you is this; one way or another, we will stop Von Scheck. We will save our neighbourhood and our homes. We will have victory. We may go to prison for this, but those that decide to stand up against corruption and tyranny will be following a tradition and a noble cause, one that goes back thousands of years where people from all over the world, from all walks of life, have fought and if necessary, have died to make this cruel, unjust world, but a little bit better for others to live in. Those of you who decide to stand up, will have done this neighbourhood, this city, a great service. And I will be eternally grateful for your help."
"I don't want any of you to take this lightly. This is a hard decision. You need to think about your futures. But, we have made our decision. What will yours be?" He continued, but finally ended his speech.
Rodrigo then looked around and waited patiently to see if anyone was willing to go along with this. Helga, Arnold, Gerald and Phoebe also remained still and silent and watched their friends make one of the most difficult decisions of their lives.
Everyone else stood there silently and still. None even looked at each other for any indications or confirmation. It was all on each and every one of them. Each of them silently reflected on the pros and cons of doing this. They knew what Rodrigo was asking of them; they were being asked to sacrifice themselves for others. Even if they succeeded, instead of being praised or rewarded for their brave deeds, only imprisonment and a permanent stain on their records is what will await them. It was a really hard decision to say the least. Only this time, it would bee all on them. Neither Rodrigo, nor Arnold or any form of peer pressure was forcing them to do this. It would be completely up to them if they were willing to endure this and see it through the end and thus, would have no one to blame but themselves. It was their choice.
Two teens were especially taking this matter very seriously; Rhonda and Lila. Both had stern faces and were looking on the floor whilst deep in thought. After thinking about it, both teens looked up and with a determined look on their faces, simultaneously stepped forward.
"I'm ever so sure that I am in." Lila said quite confidently.
"Me too." Rhonda also declared her commitment to the cause.
Ever since she came to Hillwood, Lila had to struggle, both financially and even emotionally. With her father having to work in order to at least have food on the table, she had to learn to fend for herself. Although things have greatly improved since the fourth grade, Lila never forgot those days; the hardship, the times when they could only eat canned food, the sometimes real risk of getting kicked out of their apartment due to unable to pay the rent, the days when she couldn't even go out to hang out with her friends due to having almost no money. To cover her pain and sorrow, she used friendliness, charm and a warm smile, posing as this 'Little Miss Perfect' façade who could do no wrong. In truth, Lila never liked that nickname because she knew it wasn't true and she especially disliked the common view that she was this sweet, delicate little flower that had to be 'protected'. While it was true that she was sweet and often didn't like aggression or violence, in either sports or movies, she was not in any way delicate. Like Helga, she was just as strong, resilient and independent.
Yet, despite all the challenges she faced, she managed to persevere. She did well at school, was generally well liked by her peers and tried to enjoy life. But now, with Von Scheck coming back and threatening everything that Lila had essentially worked hard to achieve, she was seeing him quite literally pulling the carpet from under her. This, she could not stand. Not only will her friends and everyone else have to move, but she also would have to uproot herself and go somewhere else, find a new home, a new school and make new friends, just when she was finally establishing good roots.
With Rhonda, she especially had a lot to lose if she decided to affiliate herself with this. Not only could her family name be permanently damaged, but she would essentially become a target for negative gossips and suspicious stares from the city's social elites, framing her as a rebellious delinquent. Years before, she would have just simply walked away without giving it a second thought, unwilling to sacrifice all the glamour, popularity and status that she 'worked hard' for. But now, things were different. Something was prompting her to, at the very least, stay put. It wasn't just the fact that her friends could be forced to move. For the first time, she actually cared about the people living here and found it so wrong that everyone would have to move, all because of one man's lust for vengeance. But there was more to it than that. Now was her chance to prove to everyone that she wasn't just some rich teen known for being a gossip queen, for hosting some of the best parties and for her social connections. No. Now was her chance to show everyone that she was far more than just that.
The move surprised everyone else. Two of the most unlikeliest of people were the first to yes to this. Even Rodrigo was surprised. But, it had a positive affect. Steered on by them, everyone else then slowly stepped forward. Harold was the third person to step forward, following by Patty, then Lorenzo, Park, Peapod Kid, Curly, Sid, Stinky, Brainy, Nadine and Sheena.
Rodrigo let out a sigh of relief, happy and grateful that their friends all agreed to help.
"Okay, good." He said as he walked towards everyone. "I'm actually glad everyone agreed. I had already planned everything out, with each one of you playing your own part. It would have sucked if I had to go back and redo it all if anyone said no."
"So what's the plan?" Peapod Kid asked.
"Firstly," Rodrigo said to everyone, "all of you are to go home right now and pack."
"Pack?" Sid asked confusingly.
"Yes, pack." Rodrigo responded. "Pack your sleeping bags and extra clothes. All of us are going to be spending the night here. No one is going home. Tell your folks whatever you need to tell them in order to let you sleep over here. Apart from the fact that we will need to get ready, we also do not want to arouse suspicion from Von Scheck's spies that we are coming in and out of the boarding house, planning something. We want to give them the impression that we were never here in the first place and that we are back home, packing."
"Does that mean we have to go through the alleyways again?" Harold asked.
"Yup." Rodrigo responded.
"Uggghhh!" Harold, as well as everyone else just whined.
"Arnold will be texting everyone a list of things and supplies that you will need for this operation. If you do not have these things, you can go buy them. You don't need to go through any alleyways or building to go to the stores from your house. You can just take the street. BUT, once you get back home and when you will be coming back here, you will need to go through the alleyways and buildings in secret again. Like the first time, you must ensure no one is following you. If you even have the slightest suspicion that you are being followed, then I'm afraid you cannot participate in this operation and will have to go home. Be safe; don't get caught." Rodrigo explained.
"So, when are we doing this?" Sid asked.
"Tonight." Rodrigo. "To be more exact, tomorrow morning at 3am."
"Tonight?!" Everyone exclaimed in shock.
"What?! So soon? Don't we get to at least go to church and say our last prays?" Sid asked.
"Have you never heard of a good beauty's sleep?" Rhonda retorted.
"I haven't prepared any meals for tomorrow. I'll starve!" Harold whined.
"I need to feed my spiders tomorrow." Nadine complained.
"I can't go tomorrow. I usually feed the chickens early in the morning." Stinky said.
"You have chickens in your house?" Park asked Stinky.
"Yup. Fresh eggs every morning." Stinky said.
Pretty soon everyone started complaining about the time and date. Rodrigo said nothing and with a sigh, simply rolled his eyes.
"Everyone, just calm down!" Arnold then suddenly stepped in, prompting everyone to go quiet. "I know this is a bit last minute, but we've ran out of time. We only have this one shot to finally stop Von Scheck and we need to do it as fast as possible. Von Scheck may have lowered the building's security alert level down to normal, but there is no guarantee it will be like that in the next few days. He might decide to bring it up again. This is our only chance to stop him. That's why we have to strike now!"
Despite the lack of time to physically and mentally prepare, everyone remained silent and agreed to it, albeit after some reluctance and grumbling.
"How much time do we have before we have to be back here?" Sid asked.
"You have until noon." Rodrigo said. "Do not come back in groups. Come back on your own." He warned them. "Once everyone is back, I will brief everyone about the details of the plan and what role each of you will be playing. Cool?"
Everyone just muttered or nodded in agreement.
"Okay. Sid, you're up first." Rodrigo said to him.
Side soon walked out of the room and went back to his house to pack his things. As soon as he left, Arnold sent him a list of things to bring or buy. Everyone else began to form a line and had to wait at least 7 minutes before the next person could leave.
"Don't forget to eat a good breakfast when you get home!" Helga said to everyone, "for tomorrow we will all dine in prison." She somberly added with a smirk.
Everyone said nothing and merely looked at her with an annoyed, if not frowning look. Even Arnold wasn't really amused and also frowned at her, but like always, she didn't care.
"You uh, have a unique way of motivating people, you know that?" Rodrigo sarcastically said to her.
"What can I say? I'm a natural." She just shrugged with a smirk.
Rodrigo said nothing and just rolled his eyes, but then let out a chuckle.
Slowly but surely, one by one, after waiting for 7 minutes, each person left the boarding house and proceeded to go home via the back alleys and through any buildings. It was a slow, if not annoying process and with 16 souls, the last few people would be waiting for a long while. At the very least, safe and comfortable in Arnold's room, everyone had the option to converse among themselves while they waited for their turn.
Arnold, obviously, was one of the few that would remain, with the full ability to be able to go outside the boarding house through the main entrance in plain sight. He would use that to buy some supplies that they would need for the night and for the next day's operation. But, he would have to be careful not to venture out too much, lest he might draw some suspicion as to why he was constantly leaving his house when he should be packing.
Nadine was the only other person that would remain in Arnold's room. Due to her injuries, she was unable to go through the alleyways and buildings. Because of that, she was the only one that had to get up much earlier than everyone else and even had to call a taxi in order to get there, all while it was still dark. Rhonda had opted to go back out for her and retrieve some of her stuff and clothes from her house. She even opted to go out and buy her some new clothes while she obtained the supplies and other things they would need, but Nadine politely declined.
Finally, after waiting for almost two hours, a few people remained. Rodrigo was one of those people that had to head home and get some of his stuff.
While Rodrigo was waiting for his turn, Arnold, who was almost right next to him, was in deep thought. Although and he and Rodrigo had laid out a very detailed plan on how to break into the FTI building the evening prior and that very morning, Arnold couldn't help but feel that something was off. Despite all of their planning, preparing, covertness and analyzation, he felt that it was still not enough. While visualizing the building in his mind, Arnold 'saw' that everything was going to be decided on what happens inside that building. He realized that the teams he had set up and make their way into the building, even with the USB, would be isolated and left to fend for themselves, with very little support from the outside. For him this presented a problem; concentrating everything you had on one single point, with no reserves to reinforce it, let alone contain any counter offensives, severely limited the chances for success. An extremely risky venture. He knew they had to do more in order to maximize their chance on ensuring the success of this mission, but not on the inside. No. He felt he needed to do something on the outside in order to provide support for those on the inside of the building, just in case if they needed it.
"Rodrigo." Arnold suddenly whispered to him.
"Yeah?" Rodrigo responded.
"Once everyone leaves, I need to talk to you about this plan we organized." He said to him.
"What's wrong?" Rodrigo asked.
"I think it has a serious limit." Arnold began to explain his concern. "We have been concentrating on organizing teams to get inside the building that we neglected to plan how we are supposed to support them from the outside."
"But, we do have people who will be supporting the teams from the outside." Rodrigo countered.
"Yes I know, but I don't think that's enough." Arnold said back. "We need some more outside support if we want to succeed in this mission and I think I know how to get it."
"What did you have in mind?" Rodrigo asked.
Meanwhile…
While the gang was heading back out to get their stuff and gather supplies, just across the street from the boarding house, well hidden in between the buildings, a little on the right side, Nick Vermicelli had just arrived and was conducting his usual surveillance of the boarding house and its surrounding buildings. He had been doing this for months now, so as far as he was concerned, it was going to be like any other day.
It was his first 'official' day back since taking a break from spying on Arnold and his friends. Ever since he witnessed the two groups completely falling apart and becoming demoralized, he grew confident that Arnold and his little activist group was done and would no longer pose a threat. Although he went by the neighbourhood one or two times during his break just to see how things were, as he predicated, he saw no activities from either Arnold's house, or Rodrigo, or Rhonda's or any of the other teens' house. But then again, his 'viewing' was more like a sneak peek. He didn't stay very long. Quite crucially, he was at the boarding house on the day when Arnold was going to head over to Rodrigo's house to apologize to him. However, seeing no activities, Nick left a few seconds prior to Arnold coming out of his house. He came back a few hours later for another sneak peek, but by that time, Arnold, Rodrigo, Gerald and Helga were already inside talking. Moreover, his subordinates didn't see any activities from Gerald, Rodrigo's or Helga's house, so Nick did not suspect anything. Like Nick, his subordinates missed them coming out of their house. Once he became comfortable, he headed back home or went to relax in his usual place and grabbed a drink.
Now as he hid himself from plain view and watched, he quickly grew restless at the same old mundane line of work. Wanting to see if there was any activity at all, Nick got up and made his way to the back of the boarding house.
While Nick was going around the building, hidden from view, Harold was just stepping out of the boarding house and quietly making his way out and into the back street. Just as he opened the gate that led to the back street, he stopped and looked around to see if there was anybody there or if he suspected anything. Once the coast appeared to be cleared, he quickly ran out and made his way to the nearest alleyway and then disappeared.
Just a few seconds after Harold left the boarding house and made it to one of the alleyways, Nick appeared from the opposite side and hiding from view, scanned the back side of the building for any activity. It was dead quiet. Nothing was moving, neither inside the house, or outside. There weren't even any birds chirping or squirrels running around. All was nice and peaceful on the back front.
Man, this is too early. He thought as he yawned. Could have used that extra cup of coffee.
Nick stayed put for a few minutes to see if anything would happen, although he was seriously doubting it. After more than 6 minutes, he had enough and decided to head back to the front of the boarding house. He turned around and disappeared.
Just then, Patty opened the back door and slowly came out of the boarding house while scanning the area. Slowly and gently, she closed the door, made her way through the back yard and after making sure the coast was clear, she ran to the nearest alleyway and disappeared.
Nick made his way back to his usual and original spot, sat down and just scanned the area. Sighing in frustration, he wanted to get more closer, even peek inside the windows of the boarding house to view or hear anything. He knew that by just sitting on the other side of the street, he wasn't getting a good view of things. However, given that he was still a wanted man and not wanting to risk being seen, he opted to stay where he was. Besides thus far, this strategy had worked.
A few hours later, Nick was still in his spot, watching. He did see Arnold come out, but all he did was come out with a bag and then went around the building. When Nick followed him, he realized he was only taking out the trash. After another hour of waiting, Arnold again came out and was heading somewhere. Nick again followed him, but the football head teen only went to the grocery store to buy some food and then went to the local hardware store to buy, what appeared to be rope, strings and other stuff. Nick thought he was only buying them for the moving out and didn't think much of it. Unbeknownst to Nick, Arnold was buying accessories that he could use to climb, possibly a building?
In the end, Arnold headed back to the boarding house and went inside, with Nick closely following him.
"Hey, how are things with the other teens?" Nick then softly asked through his walkie-talkie.
"Nothing so far." A man responded back. "This rich, socialite girl went out to the mall to go on a shopping spree, but that's about it."
"Same here." Another person responded. "This kid with the green cap had been pretty much moping around in his room. He was packing a few things, but then left to go buy some food and other things and then headed back."
"This fat kid has been pretty much in the kitchen since he got up, cooking something." Another person responded.
"Did any of you try to get a closer look?" Nick asked them.
"Yeah I did. But I heard and saw nothing." Said one person
"Same on my end." Another person responded. "I saw nothing suspicious."
"What about that Latino kid?" Nick asked.
"He's at home." A person responded. "Looks like he is packing and listening to music."
"Nick, we've been at this for days now." One man said to him. "These kids have been doing nothing but packing. They are done. They are not going to do anything."
"Stay put and keep an eye out." Nick firmly said to them. "We can't afford to loosen up now. Within a few days this entire neighbourhood will be leveled and we would have completed our job."
"Copy that." Everyone said to him.
Nick put his walkie-talkie away and attempted to get comfortable, adjusting the garbage or any stuff that he could find to make things just a bit more comfy. He was going to be there the whole day and he didn't want to have a sour butt or cramped legs.
By the same it was noon, everyone started arriving back at the boarding house, albeit very slowly. One by one, people started arriving into Arnold's room with their sleeping bags, necessary clothes, all the supplies and equipment that Arnold had asked them to buy and most importantly, water and food. To not cause a financial burden on his grandparents, Arnold had texted everyone to pitch in by buying water and food for them to cook and eat for that day. From frozen pizza, to chicken wings to vegetables and fruits, a whole variety of food was brought to the boarding house. Rodrigo had asked everyone to only make a two-way trip – from their house and back, so as to decrease the chances of arousing suspicion. It was a bit much for a lot of them. Apart from their sleeping bags, they also had to carry their clothes, food and supplies for their upcoming mission. For some, it proved challenging to go through the alleyways, climb up any fences or barriers, or inside any buildings, quietly while carrying all of this stuff. Because of this, many members of the group was arriving late. However, despite it all, everyone managed to arrive. Whether Nick or his men saw them remained to be seen.
"Ugh! This better be worth it!" Rhonda bitterly exclaimed as soon as she arrived and dropped on the floor what appeared to be almost a full luggage of clothes that she brought, not to mention her sleeping bag and the food. "My back is killing me!" She said as she cracked her back.
"Quit your whining Rhondaloid." Helga retorted. "This is only a one day thing. No one told you to pack all of this stuff. What did you even bring anyways?"
"Well apart from my sleeping bag, I brought some food and also everything that Arnold asked me to buy." Rhonda began to explain. "As for clothes, I couldn't decide between wearing something fashionable or comfortable. You know, it is always so hard to find the right clothing that contains those two features. So, I went with the basics; I picked out a bunch of them and took with them with me. I figured I would eventually find the right one after thoroughly trying and every one of them..."
"I'm sorry I even asked." Helga just groaned.
"Oh who asked you anyways?" Rhonda snapped back and then went to talk to Nadine.
Incredibly, Rodrigo was one of the first people to arrive back, along with Helga, Gerald and Phoebe. Curly and Brainy, being the farthest, were the last people to arrive.
It was a good thing Arnold's room was big. Having to fit 17 people, everyone barely managed to find a place on the floor to put down their stuff. Once everyone arrived, they gathered all of the food they bought and put them either in the fridge down stairs or on the side in the room. As for the equipment/supplies each person was suppose to have brought, Arnold went around inspecting them to ensure they all bought exactly what he asked them to buy. Luckily for him, everyone did. Once everyone had the chance to settle down and unpack, Rodrigo stepped forward and addressed everyone.
"Okay everyone!" He called out, prompting everyone to go quiet. "From here on in, no one will be allowed to leave the boarding house unless it is an absolute emergency and you need to inform me or Arnold about it beforehand. We will remain here until tonight. Only then can we leave."
"So, are you going to tell us what the exact details are now?" Peapod kid asked.
"Yup." Rodrigo responded. "Everyone, please make a circle around me."
Everyone then walked towards Rodrigo and started to form a circle around him. At the same time, Arnold and Gerald and Helga were up on the roof, covering the glass ceiling with a big plastic cover, constricting some of the light, but not enough for the room to become dark.
"What's with the plastic cover?" Stinky asked.
"To make sure that if anyone attempts to climb on top, they wouldn't be able to see anything." Rodrigo said.
The Latino kid waited until everyone formed a circle around him and Arnold and his team finished covering the entire glass ceiling. Once they were done, all three of them descended back into the room and joined the group.
"Okay, so while everyone left, I made some changes to the plan." Rodrigo began to address everyone. "I was initially going to have the majority of us sneak into the building, but after speaking with Arnold, it was decided that we will only allow a team of 4 to get inside. I will explain later why we made this change, but for now, I'm just going to explain about this team of 4 and whose on it."
"Each team will comprise of two people, so that's 8 people in total." Rodrigo continued. "Each team will sneak into the building via different avenues. Each two teams will have the same objectives from the other two teams, divided into three phases. Phase 1) Get inside the building, obviously. Phase 2) Team 1 & 3 will make their way into the building's security head office room where the whole security system is being controlled and upload Curly's virus program. Meanwhile, Team 2 & 4 will make their way to Von Scheck's office, secure it and insert a receiver beacon on the CPU and wait until the Team 1 or 3 successfully uploads the virus. If they are unable to reach the office due to tight security, they will have to wait somewhere until Team 1 or 3 gives them the all clear. Phase 3) Once the virus is successfully uploaded, it will take over the entire building's security system. From there, the virus will then hop onto all of the company's computers. That receiver device will serve as a beacon that will allow the virus to quickly make its way to Von Scheck's computer, gain control of it, and download all information on that hardware, including emails, financial transactions, internet search topics, including anything he may have deleted etc. But that's not all. It will also find and infect Von Scheck's own personal and business phone, laptop and/or any other device he might have previously plugged with his office computer. This is all without getting caught."
"Who will be on Curly's team?" Lorenzo then asked.
"Exactly!" Curly interjected with a frown. "What makes you think I'll need help?"
"Curly, this is a big enterprise." Rodrigo said to him. "As brilliant as you are, you will not be able to do this on your own. That's why Phoebe, Lorenzo and Park will be there to help you."
"Pfft, fine" Curly grumbled, not pleased with the arrangement.
"Uh, question." Sid then said as he raised his hand.
"Yes, Sid?" Rodrigo asked.
"How exactly is this virus supposed to find and download all of Von Scheck's emails, phone calls, transaction records from his office computer, laptop and cell at the same time? Wouldn't his own cell and laptop need to be also connected to his office computer in order to do that?"
"Curly, I think you can answer that question better than I can." Rodrigo said.
"Oh you bet I can." Curly said with a mischievous smirk. "This is the beauty of this little creature. The virus doesn't just break through any digital firewalls. It can also look at the history and find out if that computer has ever been connected to other devices such as laptops or iPhones. It's as if the virus is looking for any 'footprint's that connection left. Once it finds that 'footprint' it analyzes it and scans it in order to know who made that print, where and even how long that connection was there. Once it makes that detection, it will then use the internet from that same office computer in order to find those other devices on the Web via WiFi and once it does, it will break through their firewalls and connect it, and thereby us to it, allowing us to download all of his records. And whats' more, even if there are some other devices that have never been connected to that office computer, such as an ancient cell, because the internet and telephone line communications are so strongly intertwined, I can easily hop onto between the two lines of communication, connect us to that old device and download all of his call records. Nothing would be left untouched, hehehehehe."
"Whoa..." Gerald said, completely amazed if not a bit scared. Indeed, everyone felt the same way. "That's really..."
"Amazing? Yeah, I know." Curly finished his sentence..
"No I mean, that's really scary." Gerald then clarified.
"Oh you bet it is." Curly said with a wide grin, undeterred. "Which is why only a professional like me should handle it and it should be treated delicately and with respect. One wrong move and the virus can quickly start to break into any random computer, iPhone or laptop and just randomly start to download or even destroy all historical records, transactions, programs or other work done on that device."
"I take it that's your saying that only you will handle the virus?" Gerald asked.
"Yup." Curly replied.
"Another question." Peapod Kid then said as he raised his hand.
"Yes?" Rodrigo acknowledged him.
"Do we know if the security guards are armed?" Peapod kid asked.
"We don't." Phoebe then suddenly responded. "The USB device that we were given can only allow us to know where they are in the building. It doesn't tell us what weapons they have."
"So for all that we know, they could have guns and we wouldn't have anything to defend ourselves." Peapod kid insinuated.
"Yeah, pretty much." Rodrigo admitted a bit pessimistically.
"What weapons did they have when you guys sneaked in the first time?" Peapod kid asked Gerald and Arnold.
"They had batons and handcuffs." Arnold responded. "That was about it. So, we can assume that they only still have those as weapons.
"And if they do have guns?" Patty asked.
"Well, then we have to try not to provoke them to use them." Arnold then cautiously said.
Everyone then went silent as they allowed that piece of information to sink in. It was clear to everyone that this operation was proving to be much more dangerous than previously thought. What if the security guards do have guns and what if they do use it?
"Alright, let's back it up here for a sec." Helga then said, trying to change the topic. "Whose on these 4 teams and why do we need 2 teams to accomplish one goal?" She asked.
"To ensure maximize success." Rodrigo responded. "We need to make sure that at the very least, two teams manages to get to the office AND to the building's head security office room. Both rooms need to be secured in order for this to work. That's also why each team is composed of two people; to support each other. If all 4 teams manage to reach the rooms, great!"
Rodrigo then glanced at Harold and noticed that he looked a little bit...frozen.
"Harold?" Rodrigo then addressed him. "You are looking a little pale there. Are you okay?"
"Oh ya, definitely." Harold nervously responded with a nervous chuckle. "I kind of blacked out when we mentioned the guards might have guns, but I get the plan; get to both rooms, upload the virus and don't get shot, hehehehe." He said as he gulped.
"You don't need worry about that," Rodrigo said to him, "because you're not one of the people that will be going into that building. Those that will be going are – I have the names right here. Team 1 will be Sid and Stinky."
Both Sid and Stinky said nothing and looked on with a surprised and growing worried look on their faces.
Oh crub. Sid thought worryingly. I'd better not tell Carmen about this.
"Team 2 will be myself and Brainy." Rodrigo continued. "Team 4 will be Arnold and Peapod Kid." Rodrigo continued.
Both Brainy and Peapod Kid said nothing and made no other reaction when they heard their names.
"And lastly," Rodrigo continued, this time showing a smirk on his face, "Team 3 will be Helga and Gerald."
"What?!" Both Helga and Gerald exclaimed in utter shock when they heard their names.
"You want to pair me up with with her?!""tall-hair boy here?!" Both shockingly shouted at him at the same time, but Rodrigo was unfazed.
"Yup." Rodrigo said with a smile.
"Are you crazy?!" Gerald annoyingly protested. "Do you want this mission to fail before it even begins?"
"Exactly! You know we don't get along." Helga then interjected, "Haven't you already forgotten our little misadventure on Elk Island? Why would you pair us up?"
"Precisely for that very reason is why I paired you both up." Rodrigo calmly responded. "I have been watching you both for months now and despite you both finally deciding to let go of any past animosities and grudges, you two still seem hell-bent on maintaining the status quo. Granted, there had been some improvements, but you both are still awkwardly at odds with one another. Now, I was willing to stay out of it and let you two settle things on your own. But, seeing as how you both are still struggling with this, it became clear to me that what you guys may need is just a little...push."
"Push?" Helga irritatingly said. "You think pairing us up in order to save an entire neighbourhood is a little push?!"
"Yup." Rodrigo said. "It'll be a reminding factor that you two now have no choice but to put your differences aside and work together. Despite your disagreements, you both can learn a lot from each other and together, can become a powerful force."
"Rodrigo, this isn't the time for one of your dumb left-wing social experiments!" Gerald frustratingly continued to protest.
"This isn't a social experiment." Rodrigo firmly responded back. "Arnold and I were able to put our differences aside in order to fight for a common cause and thus far, it has been working. It's not a theory; it's a fact. We did it, so why can't you both?"
"And besides, both Arnold and Phoebe agree with me on this." Rodrigo then added with another smirk on his face.
"What?!" Both exclaimed in utter shock and anger as they looked at their best friends.
"Um well, Rodrigo did make some good points." Arnold nervously said to them. "It would be nice if you both finally manage to work together."
"I concur with his idea." Phoebe merely said. "It'll be good for you both."
"You both may not have liked each other and may even disagree on a lot of things." Rodrigo continued to talk to them. "But, you both do have something in common."
"What? Us wanting to kill you right now?" Gerald angrily said.
"Well that, and you both agree with each other that me pairing you both up is a bad idea." Rodrigo said unfazingly. "So, I say you both are off to a good start." He continued with a smirk. "Good luck. The neighbourhood depends on you."
Both Gerald and Helga said nothing and merely continued to give Rodrigo a serious scowling face while furiously sizzling.
"When this is all over," Gerald then said to Helga. "Can I please kill him?"
"I'll hold him down for you." Helga said to him with a snarl in her voice.
Rodrigo was then about to continue with explaining the plan to everyone when he heard someone clear her throat.
"Ahem." Rhonda then said. "And where will I be in all of this?"
"Well, I haven't gotten there yet," Rodrigo responded, "but for you mademoiselle, we will be needing your superior and intricate social..."
"No." Rhonda said with a stern voice and face, interrupting him.
"What?" Rodrigo asked.
"I said, no." She again firmly responded.
"But, you don't know what I was going to say…" Rodrigo began to say again.
"The answer is still no." Before Rhonda again interrupted him. "I am not just some invisible, middle ground platform that you can use to rally a bunch of people at your will."
"I wasn't suggesting that you are…" Rodrigo began to say.
"I want to contribute more in this operation than just be a source to entice the common folk and as a source to finance your little operation." Before Rhonda interrupted him. "Put me on one of the 4 teams."
"What?!" Rodrigo gasped in shock.
Everyone else also gasped and were stunned and silently glanced at her with wide eyes.
"Hey, great! You can take my spot!" Helga happily called out.
"No!" Rodrigo firmly interjected. "The teams have already been paired up. And besides, we really need you to go online and use your connections…"
"No." Rhonda again firmly interrupted him. "I will not do it. Find someone else."
"Rhonda, come on!" Rodrigo frustratingly exclaimed. "This isn't the time to have an epiphany moment!"
"Need I remind you Rodrigo, that you owe me." Rhonda then reminded him. "You said that you are sorry for misusing our friendship and for treating me as if I was a chess piece. If you are truly sorry, you will put me on one of the teams."
"Ugh! Really?!" Rodrigo groaned in frustration. "Can't I just take you on a nice 'I'm sorry' dinner instead?"
"No." Rhonda responded.
"A nice bottle of champagne?" He then suggested.
"We are both under-aged and I don't drink." Rhonda responded.
"How about a new Louis Vuitton purse?" Rodrigo then suggested again.
Rhonda was about to exclaim another 'no', but then stopped herself and thought about it for a moment.
"No." She then said.
Just then Rodrigo felt a tap on his shoulder.
"The answer is no, Helga." Rodrigo groaned. "You're stuck with Gerald."
"Thanks for the reminder, General Patton." Helga said sarcastically. "But I'm over here."
when Rodrigo realized where Helga was, he turned around to see who tapped him on the shoulder. It was Brainy.
"Uh, it's okay Rodrigo." Brainy wheezed. "Rhonda can take my place."
"What?" Rodrigo said in surprise.
"I don't do well under seriously stressful situations." Brainy explained. "Plus, I have a breathing problem, as you can tell. Rhonda would be much better suited for this mission."
"Thank you, Brainy." Rhonda said with a smile.
"I can't do that, Brainy." Rodrigo still insisted. "We need Rhonda to utilize her connections and social media influence."
"Uh, I can do that." Brainy suggested. "If Rhonda is okay, I can pose as her online and let me log onto her social media accounts."
"I'm fine with that." Rhonda said.
"Really?" Rodrigo said to her in surprise. "After you got all upset when Nadine—you know what? Never mind. I'm not going there. Okay, fine." Rodrigo said with a bit of a frown. "You can take Brainy's place and pair up with me."
"Yes!" Rhonda softly happily exclaimed.
Helga said nothing and just groaned in disappointment.
"But that's it! No more changes!" Rodrigo firmly said to everyone.
Just then, Stinky raised his hand.
"Yes, Stinky?" Rodrigo acknowledged him with a bit of annoyance in his voice.
"So what happens after the mission is complete? How do the teams get out?" Stinky asked.
"Once the teams complete their mission," Rodrigo began to explain the mission again, "and assuming no one has triggered the alarm, Curly will then use the virus to disable some of the building's security system to allow everyone inside to get out. We're hoping to do all of this without Von Scheck ever knowing we were there. If for whatever reason the alarm is triggered, Curly can still use the virus to quickly help guide everyone out of there."
"Will it be hard to upload the virus?" Sid asked. "Some of us are not really tech savvy."
"Not at all." Curly said. "Team 1 & 3 will just need to insert this USB on the main CPU drive and I will do the rest."
"And um, what happens if anyone of us gets caught by the guards?" Stinky then asked. "What does the captured person do and what will the others do?"
Rodrigo said nothing and merely glanced at Arnold, waiting to see if he was going to say something about this. Arnold in turn said nothing back and simply frowned and looked away.
"Nothing." Rodrigo then said to Stinky as he turned back to face him. "Anyone who gets captured is essentially on their own. The rest will continue with the mission, regardless."
Everyone went completely silent and just stared at Rodrigo with wide-eyes, absolutely stunned and going numb at this revelation.
"This is a hard decision." Rodrigo continued, unfazed by their stares. "But, the first priority is the mission. The whole point why we are risking ourselves by going inside that building is to save the neighbourhood. We cannot use our time and resources to save someone if the mission has not yet been completed. If we do that, we put our mission and our neighbourhood at risk. As for the captured person, their only tasks is to stay alive and to NOT reveal anything to them about our plan. I need everyone to understand this."
Everyone still said and did nothing and just stared at Rodrigo with great distraught and worry in their eyes. But eventually, they all nodded in agreement.
"Um, Rodrigo?" Lila then softly called out. "I'm ever so sure you forgot the rest of us."
"Yeah. What are we to do?" Sheena asked.
"I haven't forgotten the rest of you." Rodrigo said. "Which reminds me; I know I initially said we are to start this operation at 3am. But, given that there has been a change in plans, which I will reveal to everyone soon, the time has been pushed to 5am instead. More sleeping time; we're going to need it."
"Just how are we getting there?" Rhonda asked.
"We've arranged for someone to take us there." Gerald responded.
"Who is it?" Lorenzo asked.
"He's another person who reached out to us and offered his help if we ever needed it." Gerald vaguely responded.
"Do you trust him?" Rhonda asked.
"Well, you know, we're not friends or anything. But, he's helped us in the past." Gerald responded. "So ya, we trust him."
"There you go. Now, as for you Sheena, Lila, Harold, Patty and Nadine. We have a very special, but equally important job for all of you." Rodrigo said.
