Disclaimer: Codename: Kids Next Door and its characters do not belong to me. They belong to Mr. Warburton and co. I'm only the brain behind this plot, and some made-up characters.

A/N: And a busy week it has been. But here it is!

When love's not enough

Chapter 9

Father was rather displeased with himself and his Delightful Children after the previous day's events. He'd lost Numbuh 1 along with the rest of those snot-nosed Kids Next Door operatives. His plan had failed. He knew that he had something of what he wanted on secret Kids Next Door information through what they drained out of Numbuh 4's brain, but it wasn't enough for him. He needed a lot more codes, and since a fighter usually isn't involved in the secret information, he knew he wouldn't have gotten enough out of that loud-mouthed, brain dead, little pipsqueak.

He smoked his pipe with an angry look on his face, staring into the flames of his fireplace. He was thinking of a plan, a plan that would cause the entire organization's doom. He needed Numbuh 1 to get what he wanted. And he knew that Sector V was weak now. An attack on that tree house of theirs would probably be the smartest thing to do now. If he kidnapped Numbuh 1, now that he was weak, he could finally get things the way he wanted. The battle the day before was not at all wasted. He had weakened the team's defense. So basically, he could say that things were going according to plan.

A few minutes earlier, he'd ordered a hacker that worked for him to go downstairs and see what he could do, and see if he could hack the Kids Next Door mainframe. Father had some rather delightfully vicious plans on what to do to their precious organization, and they would regret even knowing who Father was! Ha! Ha! Ha!

Meanwhile, in the Treehouse:

Numbuh 2 made his way to the kitchen as soon as he got out of bed. It was a cloudy day, and it had been raining during the night. He started to think of how the weather strangely changed after how the team was feeling. But he just shrugged it off and checked the fridge for anything to eat. He settled with something as simple as butter toast and a big glass of milk. He really wasn't hungry this morning.

Numbuh 5 entered the kitchen a little later. "Hey, Numbuh 2," she said with a worried tone in her voice. "How are you?"

The mechanic shrugged lightly, glaring at the African-American girl. "I'm really not feeling too well. How about you?"

"Not so good," she replied, shaking her head. She sat down next to him by the table. "Numbuh 5 barely caught any shut-eye last night…"

"Me neither, really," he muttered, tilting his now empty glass slightly.

"Did you… uhm, hear anything from Numbuh 3's room last night?" Numbuh 5 asked suddenly, changing the subject.

""Well, no… I'm not sure, really," Numbuh 2 replied. "She's always doing something in her room, so I really don't notice anymore. Why, is something wrong?"

"It might just be Numbuh 5, but it sounded as if Numbuh 4 went up there and argued with her, even if he knew she had to rest," Numbuh 5 said, looking at the mechanic with two worried eyes. "Why would he do that? Is he really that stupid?"

"I-I don't know," he stammered. "Look, I don't want to get involved in that stuff. If he's got issues with her, then that's their problem. Not mine."

"You are best friends, aren't you?" she asked suspiciously, raising an eyebrow.

"Of course, all of us guys are," Numbuh 2 replied. "But that doesn't mean I necessarily need to know everything that goes on in Numbuh 4's life. He hasn't told me about anything lately anyways. He seems kinda pissed off. I've noticed that it has something to do with Numbuh 3, but what it is, is none of my business."

"And you call yourself best friends?" she asked, narrowing her eyes.

"Get off my back, would ya!" he snapped, starting to get angry. "We've had some hard times! If Numbuh 4 doesn't want to tell me about his problems, then he doesn't! I'm not gonna make him say it. It's up to him. I don't go around telling him everything about my life either."

"Man, you barely have a life!" she shot back. "There's nothing to tell about it, it's all obvious."

"What ever!" Numbuh 2 whispered angrily. He was trying to keep himself from losing his temper. He got up and carried his empty plate and glass to the counter.

Numbuh 5 felt a little bad about getting angry. She was just freaked out. She knew what kind of danger they all were in right now, and that Father could strike at any time. "Listen, Hoagie. I'm sorry."

"Oh, so Numbuh 5's not sorry this time?" he asked ironically as he turned around to face her. "It's all the sudden you?"

"Relax, man!" she said. "I'm sorry, ok? I'm just…"

"You're just what?"

Numbuh 5 suddenly changed her mind. She was about to tell him that she was a little scared, but she knew that by telling him that, he'd probably get a little freaked out himself. They all saw her as a strong person with a clear mind. Telling him how she felt right about now would change the way he thought about her forever. Or so she feared. She really didn't want to scare him, too. And now that Numbuh 1 was down, she was in command. She could handle an attack if it just so happened to occur, but she wasn't sure if she'd be able to win the battle. Her biggest fear was probably her prediction about Father and how she just knew he'd strike now that he knew they were weak.

She looked her team mate in the eye. "Never mind."

"Yeah… I'll be in my room." The chubby pilot left the room, leaving her alone by the table.

She rested her head in her hands while thinking. She wanted to check on Numbuh 1 again. Maybe he'd woken up?

"Morning," she suddenly heard someone say. She looked up to see Numbuh 4 walk across the room. He glanced at her as he made his way over to the counter. He opened the cabinet and picked out the box of pop tarts. He took one out and placed the box back.

"So… slept any?" Numbuh 5 asked as he turned towards her.

He shrugged, avoiding eye contact.

"Numbuh 5's worried about Numbuh 1," she said, lowering her eyes.

Numbuh 4 looked at her as he took a seat right across her by the table. "Yeah, how is he?"

"He's still not awake, or at least he wasn't the last time Numbuh 5 checked on him," she replied, sighing. "As long as nothing will happen to us now that we're down by two operatives."

"I've been worried about that, too," he muttered. "You think Father will do something to us now?"

She shrugged while shaking her head. "Have no idea, Numbuh 4."

"Well, if he does, I'm gonna give him a real woopin'!" he exclaimed. "I'm gonna punch him, and kick him, and bite him!"

Numbuh 5 looked up at him with a disturbed expression. "It's always the violent way with you, ain't it? It's a lot more complicated than that. If Father comes to attack us now, he'll know that we're 2 men short. He'll be prepared to meet us. You can't just go woopin' his butt this time."

Numbuh 4 snickered at her, leaving his pop tart on the table. He actually didn't want it, he just thought it was better if he ate something.

Numbuh 5 sighed. The silence fell between them for a few seconds before she broke it again. "Numbuh 4, were you arguing with Numbuh 3 last night?"

Numbuh 4 looked up slightly, a certain indescribable feeling washing over him. Was it guilt? His eyes met hers. "I-it's not important," he muttered.

She frowned. "Not important? Listen, I know everything. I didn't want to get involved, but the way you were yelling at her last night, I just couldn't help it."

The Australian turned angry. "It's none of your cruddy business!" he snapped. He got up from the chair so fast that it made a sharp sound that pierced through their ears. "I don't see why you care!"

"Whoa, sorry!" she said shocked, yet annoyed by his reaction. "Jeez, didn't know you'd react like that! It was just a question. I care about my friends, you know! I want to know what goes on in your lives, and when I heard about you two-"

He cut her off. "You were not supposed to know anything about this! What did you do, force Kuki to tell you what I said to her the other day?"

"Would you relax?" she asked, irritated. "I always knew you liked her. I just happened to be the one she feels like she can trust. You know, she's really sorry about not taking you seriously here the other day."

Numbuh 4 growled with anger, clenching his fists. "I didn't want you to know!" he shouted. "I want to put it behind me! I want to forget that this ever happened!"

"You can't run away from your feelings, Wally," Numbuh 5 said, giving him a serious look.

"What are you talking about?" he yelled. "I don't have any feelings for her!"

"Yes, you do! You did two days ago. Numbuh 5 seriously doubts that you're over her already." Numbuh 5 rolled her eyes. "So, if you don't have any feelings for her, why are you overreacting like this? And why did you yell at her last night?"

"Stay out of it! I'm warning you, Abby!" He stormed out of the room. He was about to run down to his room, but he suddenly flinched as he noticed someone standing by the door in the hall right outside the kitchen. It was Numbuh 3. She was fumbling with her hands, her eyes filled with tears.

"N-Numbuh 3?" Numbuh 4 stuttered. He glanced back into the kitchen. Numbuh 5 wasn't watching, thankfully.

"You're such a meanie," Numbuh 3 said with a disappointed voice.

Numbuh 4 wasn't sure of what to do. He just stared at her.

Numbuh 3 walked right passed him and into the kitchen. He just stood there for another moment, feeling how his emotions were twisting inside him. What did he actually feel? He noticed how that heartbroken feeling was back inside his chest now. It really hurt. So this meant he still really liked her. Loved her, actually. He suddenly felt slightly guilty about yelling at her the night before.

"You're nuts!" he whispered under his breath to himself. He pushed the thoughts away and made his way back to his room downstairs.

Meanwhile, Numbuh 3 sat down next to Numbuh 5 by the table. "I can't believe him!"

"You heard what he said?" Numbuh 5 asked, frowning at her.

"Yes!" Numbuh 3 started to cry. "I told him about my feelings for him yesterday, and he just got angry with me! He told me he didn't care! And he said that he didn't know what he ever saw in me!" She sobbed and buried her face in her green sleeve-covered hands.

Numbuh 5 patted her back softly. "I'm sorry, gurl… But I'm sure he didn't really mean it. He's just a little cranky because of your reaction to his feelings. This is his way of getting back at you. But he'll come around, I'm sure of it. He really loves you."

In Father's lounge:

"Sir? I need you to come take a look at this." The skinny guy in his late 20's pushed his glasses back up on his nose as he looked up at the big armchair with a concerned expression.

"What is it?" Father's voice replied from the other side of the chair.

"Well, it's about the kid whose brain you drained," the man replied. "I actually think we don't need more than the information we already have. I've got an idea."

Father's chair slowly turned around. His eyes burned with enthusiasm in his dark face. "We don't need more, you say, Dennis?"

"I don't think so, sir," Dennis replied, unable to hide his smirk.

Father seemed pleased as he walked over to the hacker. They walked down the stairs through the passage in the wall. The bookcase that used to be there was now blown to smithereens, so it wasn't really that secret anymore.

Dennis sat down by the computer in the room where the MindReader 3000 was. He pointed at the screen. "See that?"

"What does it mean?" Father asked.

"I just figured out how to shut the power down," Dennis explained. He turned around and grinned at his boss. "At the Kids Next Door Moon Base."

Father's eyes widened. "Shut down the power?"

"Yeah!" the hacker replied happily. "And I just got a great idea! What if we synchronize an attack on the base after shutting the power down? Without power, those kids are defenseless! Their backup-generator won't work for long, so that's nothing to worry about. We'll have our army ready outside the base as we shut the power down. They'll attack right away. There'll be one heck of a battle, but I supposed you were aware of that. We'll take over the base and chase those bratty kids out of there."

"Hmmm, I like the way you think, Dennis," Father said, rubbing his chin. "I really like it! It's a great plot!"

"Thank you, sir."

"We'll attack right away," Father said. "I'll go inform my teenagers and tell them to get ready for the biggest battle ever!" He started to walk towards the door. "It's finally time for the Kids Next Door's utter destruction!"

Back in the Treehouse:

Numbuh 1 was still in his bed, resting his body and mind. He'd still not shown any signs of waking up soon. Numbuh 2 and Numbuh 5 came in to check on him once in a while, concerned about him. Numbuh 3 was too hurt to think about her leader for the moment, and Numbuh 4 was angrily acting out his rage on the boxing bag and with the robot in the wrestling ring.

Numbuh 1's room was quiet now. Numbuh 5 had just left him a few minutes ago.

By looking at Numbuh 1's peaceful face, you'd think that he was pleasantly dreaming about something. But all the sudden, Numbuh 1's eyes opened widely and he quickly sat up.

"Father!" he shouted frantically. His voice was soar after the long sleep. His breath was heaving, and he felt sharp pains in his body. He tried to get a grip and calm down. Then he got out of bed as fast as possible. He ran all the way to the kitchen to see if anyone was in there. Nope, it was empty, but he heard the TV from the big lounge. He entered the room to see Numbuh 2 and Numbuh 5 in each their own couch, him watching TV, her reading.

"Guys!" Numbuh 1 called out to them.

They both looked up with surprise. "Numbuh 1!"

"Where are the others?" the leader asked impatiently.

"They're in their rooms," Numbuh 5 replied. "How are you feeling, boss?"

"It's not important!" he said stressfully. "Have you been in contact with the Moon Base today?"

"Well, no," she muttered. "Numbuh 5 was going to, she was just checking if you'd get up first."

"We have to contact them right away!" Numbuh 1 quickly went to the mission room. He walked up to the big screen and pressed a few buttons on the control table. He expected to see a familiar face from the Moon Base pop up on the screen as he contacted Global Command, but there was no answer. It was as if the entire base was cut off the network. "That's odd," Numbuh 1 muttered to himself.

"What's odd?" Numbuh 5 had just entered the room, now glaring at the big black screen as she walked over to her leader.

"There's no response," Numbuh 1 replied, glancing at her. "What do you think might have happened?"

"A busy network, perhaps?" Numbuh 5 suggested. "Or maybe they've lost power or something. Look, stuff like this happen. We can't expect the worst all the time."

"Yes, we can!" Numbuh 1 rushed out of the room, got out of his pajamas to get some clothes on and sounded the alarm to collect his team. They all gathered in the meeting room.

"What's going on?" they shouted.

"Team, I've just tried to contact Global Command. As there was no response, I fear that Father might behind some sort of attack on the Moon Base. He already has some information." He shot a look at Numbuh 4. The blond fighter lowered his head in shame.

"Enough to move out and try to take down the base," Numbuh 1 continued. "I'm not sure about this, but we're going to check it out anyway, and stand by to contact more bases around the world if needed. Now, Kids Next Door – to the ship!"

A few minutes before Numbuh 1 had woken up, at Moon Base:

"Alright, you slowpokes!" Numbuh 86 shouted to her decommissioning team. "Let's get going! We have another teenager to catch!" She was about to lead her team to the space docks to move out, as the power suddenly went out.

"What was that?"

The entire base erupted in chaos as every single room in it went black. The backup-generator went on, but only in some rooms.

"Kids Next Door – I'm afraid something happened to our power!" Numbuh 362's voice said over the speakers throughout the base. "Get yourselves ready, we might be facing an attack here! We're not sure for how long the backup-generator will hold, so be ready for anything!"

Just as the leader of Global Command ended her message to her operatives, the Moon Base got attacked by and army of about 100 teenagers. They blasted their way through walls as they went on in to take down their enemies.

"Don't just stand there, team!" Numbuh 86 shouted to her team. "Attack them!"

The biggest battle in the history of Kids Next Door had started.