Kid Danger slowly started coming to. Sitting up, he rubbed his eyes.

Why is my uniform so sticky? He poked at the adhesive that the duct tape had left on his clothes, not to mention his face. Where am I…?

Looking around wasn't much use. The room was totally dark, and although his vision was starting to adjust, there wasn't anything to see. Kid Danger ran his hand along the wall, trying to find a light switch.

Except the walls weren't walls at all; they were giant screens. Kid Danger felt around the whole room- he was in a room, he was sure if that much, and a small one at that- but couldn't find a light switch, a door, or even a window.

And all of a sudden, the screens glowed with a bright image. Squinting, he looked at it.

Why does this look so familiar?

Kid Danger jumped back. Oh my God. It was the same image that he had looked at when Derek and Maddy brainwashed him, all that time ago. Is it…?

Then a sound blared through speakers that had to be in invisible or very well hidden. It was a voice, rapping to a beat. Kid Danger was sure he recognized the voice, but couldn't place it.

Something about the music triggered his memory. It sounds like… could it be?

Kid Danger started breathing heavy. He was panicking, but at the same time, felt like he was… letting go. It had, he realized, something to do with the screens, the music, and the lyrics.

Yo! Listen up, Kid.

Yes, you, Kid Danger.

I've got a job for you,

It a real game-changer!

When you're out of here,

This is what you do.

Open up your ears.

And do what Minyak tells ya to.

Don't try to resist,

You're efforts are fruitless!

You're going to lose,

Because you're such a Rufus- I mean, doofus.

We need you here, you're going to help us

Whether or not cha want to

Because we're in control

You do what you're told

Goodbye for now, but just remember

If you obey, it will be okay

But if you don't,

You'll be dismembered.

Holler!

Henry lost his mind at this point. Meaning, he wasn't in control of himself any more. He stood there, breathing normally.

And fully under Dr. Minyak's control.

"Not bad, Spray Z." Maddy glanced at him from her chair. "It seems to have worked."

Spray Z smiled. "Yeah, but who typed this thing? For some reason doofus seems to have autocorrected to Rufus."

"And it's full proof." Dr. Minyak smiled, ignoring Spray Z's question (bet you no one can guess who wrote the lyrics). "Between my technology and yours, there is no possible way for anyone but us to release him!"

"Should we test it out or something?" Derek asked. "Like, can I make him slap himself?"

"Sure."

"Kid Danger," said Derek in his microphone. "Slap yourself."

Inside the room, which was now dark again (they were using infrared cameras), Kid Danger immediately raised his right palm and slapped himself across the face. His face showed no signs of pain; nor did his eyes, which were glowing red.

"Nice," said Derek. "Now what?"

Dr. Minyak smiled. "Whatever we want."

Captain Man coughed. The trash can he knocked over sent up a cloud of dirt and dust that found his eyes within seconds.

Great, he thought. An hour of searching and I get dust to the face for my efforts.

Captain Man sank down on the nearby curb. If he wasn't worried about his sidekick before, he certainly was now.

Something about the whole situation seemed familiar to him, but he couldn't place it. He thought as hard as he could, but just couldn't remember. Finally, after whatseemes like forever, it was on the top of his tongue- It was-

CRASH.

Captain Man jumped up and turned around. He could see that, a few yards away, a dumpster had gotten knocked over. A bunch of junk and stuff tumbled out of it, flying over the streets.

Naturally, being Captain Man meant dealing with criminals, litterbugs included. Truthfully, he really, really, didn't want to, especially considering that his sidekick was missing.

At least, I hope he's not.

Not that there was really any reason to get his hopes up. Between Kid Danger disappearing and the signal cutting off, Captain Man was pretty certain that the word missing was appropriate.

Slowly, Captain Man dragged himself toward where the dumpster had been knocked over. There was no one there.

Great. Now I probably just let someone get away. Grumbling, Captain Man heaved the dumpster back to it's normal standing position. He considered crawling into it just so he could shut out the world for a few minutes.

No. Find Henry first, then wallow in self-pity.

Although, Kid Danger missing was the sole reason that Captain Man was so unhappy in the first place, so….

Captain Man figured that he may as well- and really should- keep looking. Without realizing it, he wandered in the same direction the person who knocked over the dumpster had ran.

Captain Man was walking for a few minutes- by now, he had enlisted the help of a flashlight for areas the street lamps siding reach- looking for clues.

The flashlight didn't help him see the figure that had circled around and gotten behind him

Not immediately behind- a few yards. Far enough that the figure was almost nothing more than a shadow, with a few hints of color here and there. Captain Man waved his flashlight around in front of him, but it didn't occur to him to peek over his shoulder.

The figure slowly began inching closer. In the light, a boot was visible, a boot clearly intended for running around. There was a flash of a hand, a hand that was covered by a glove, mostly red, with a little black.

The figure stopped. It ducked behind a nearby street sign. Because someone told it too.

"Should we let him know it's him?" Maddy asked Dr. Minyak. They were in her and Derek's van, along with Derek himself and a couple of the Wall Dogs. Everyone else was spread out, except for Jeff, who was left in charge of "guarding the base" so he wouldn't mess up the mission. (Currently, he was walking around in a suit of armor made from foil and a stained that he found somewhere.)

Dr. Minyak shook his head. "Not yet. Remember, we want the element of surprise. If they start fighting before Captain Man realizes it's him, then he's bound to notice during the fight, which will catch him off guard."

Derek nodded. "Yeah, that makes sense, and all, but shouldn't we have put him in something a little less… flashy?"

"Or sprayed him again," offered PaintAbby.

Dr. Minyak considered this. "Yes, I suppose you're right. We'll remember next time. How close is he?"

Maddy checked. "Far enough away he can get a running start."

Dr. Minyak nodded. "Good. Go ahead."

"Right." Maddy brought down her little microphone that was how she instructed Kid Danger on what to do. "Kid Danger."

Don't ask how Kid Danger is able to communicate with them. It's a lot of science, possibly a bit of magic, and that's all the explanation necessary.

Kid Danger grunted in response. Not near loud enough for Captain Man to hear, but Maddy could still identify it.

"On my count," she said, he mouth forming into an evil smile, "run, go and jump onto Captain Man's back, and attack." Kid Danger grunted again. "One." Kid Danger sank down into a runner's lunge. "Two." He took a deep breath in, then out. "Three."

I accidentally hid an Easter Egg.

Ciao, and Happy Reading!