No more tears now; I will think about revenge.
Mary Queen of Scots
In a flash of dizziness, Kuki's legs began to wobble, so she sat down on the wooden floor. She saw Mushi's face in her head, pitiful and gut-wrenching, crying out to her, pleading for her help. In the swarm of misery, the others' voices faded to white noise.
"What're we gonna do, Numbuh One?" Hoagie asked.
"We're going to get them back, that's what!"
"But how?" he responded. "If we try anything, he'll…well, you know what he'll do!"
"We don't have a choice!" Nigel shouted. "I won't let them stay locked up like that!"
"I wanna save Tommy just as much as you want to save Lizzie!"
"Then why are you thinking twice about it?"
Tears sprang up, falling swiftly down her face. She brought her knees up and hugged them, sobbing quietly. Feeling a hand on her shoulder, she looked up. Abby stood there, gazing down on the naive little girl, radiating maternity.
"'S gonna be alright," she said softly.
Kuki jumped up and clasped Abby around the neck, burying her head into her shoulder, renewed sobs springing forth. Abby held her tightly, hoping to offer some semblance of comfort.
Wally walked between Nigel and Hoagie, pushing the two away from each other.
"Guys! We're not getting anywh–" His breath caught in his throat; invoking an rush of violent coughs. "Any…anywh–where…"
Nigel furrowed his brow, arms akimbo. "You're right. We're a team. But…well, this is above and beyond every other threat we've had to deal with. I…I don't know what to do."
Wally held his fist in the air, grinning. His voice was coarse and stretched, but his message lost none of its spirit.
"We kick Father's BUTT, that's what!"
Hoagie gave a thumbs up. "Exactly! But we can't just blast into Father's house!"
"We've done it before!" Wally rasped.
"No, Numbuh Two's right," Nigel said. "We can't risk their lives."
Hoagie crossed his arms. "Can't believe he kidnapped Joey." Wally just growled.
Kuki sniffled loudly and brought her head back, wiping her eyes.
"Thanks, Numbuh Five."
"No problem, girl." The two joined the boys. "Numbuh Five thinks we should take the rest o'the day t'think of a plan."
"I agree!" Hoagie said.
"Okay," Nigel said. "It's decided. We'll meet back in the living room before we go to bed. I'm going to my room." He walked out briskly, not waiting for a response.
"'S gonna be a long night," Abby muttered.
In times of stress, Hoagie liked to make things. He was the Sector V Two-by-Four Technology aficionado, after all. Planning and strategizing was beyond him—too many things to think of; too many people to place.
But he could make things. Weapons, armor, suits, vehicles, communicators, whatever. Give him a few tools, some wood, a toothbrush, a trashcan lid, a surfboard, suction-tipped arrows, a pop can, and seventeen pounds of hamster feed…well, what couldn't you make from that?
He was working in his room, where he could get the most peace. Lying on his stomach on the floor, paper laid out before him, he penciled the blueprints for his newest invention.
"Oh yeah! And then it'll come around like that! And then down…and then guns'll come out! Yeah!"
"Um, Numbuh Two?"
He hadn't heard the door open. Turning his head, he saw Kuki standing there, a thoughtful, somber look on her face.
"Hey Numbuh Three," he said, standing up.
"Remember when Numbuh One turned into an adult?" she asked.
"Uh, yeah, it was only like the worst thing ever!"
"And remember when we were all decommissioned?"
"Yeah…"
"And remember when everyone was turned into animals but Tommy?"
Tommy.
"How could I forget?" he said.
She looked down at the floor and squished an imaginary bug with her yellow slippers.
He walked over. "Numbuh Three?"
She sniffled. "This is so much worse than any of those."
"Yeah," he said. "But it'll work out. It always does."
"Maybe." She ran her oversized purple sleeve across her eyes.
He walked over and placed a hand on her shoulder, smiling. "Come on, Numbuh Three. Be happy. You're always happy!"
She glanced at his hand dejectedly. "But Father said he would…he would…"
"Yeah." His grip on her tightened. "I know. That's why I gotta keep building and you gotta keep laughing. We're gonna beat him, Numbuh Three, okay?"
"Okay," she said, trying to force a smile. "Okay! And then we'll lock him up so he can't ever hurt anyone ever again!" In half a second she'd returned to her normal self, astounding Hoagie to no end.
"Yeah! But first," he said, pointing to the paper on the ground, "we gotta figure out how to beat him."
"Ooo! I bet Numbuh One and Numbuh Five'll come up with the best ones!" She turned and skipped out of the room, shouting back, "Thanks, Numbuh Two!"
"Yeah…" he muttered, turning back to his paper. He lay back down on his stomach and began penciling.
"This'll get Father for sure. But we've seen him do that…so if I just do…this…yeah…" He stopped for a moment, then got up and ran to the end of his room with the wall removed. The sun was shining gallantly in the sky, dropping slowly but surely into the horizon. A sweet-tasting breeze flowed in. Hoagie held his arms out and closed his eyes, rising above all his worries for several precious moments.
"Father, we're going to win," he swore softly to the sky. "And you'll never hurt anyone ever again."
Abby grabbed a hold of the remote and switched the television on. She flipped through the channels casually: junk, junk, junk, soap opera, telemarketer, sit com, junk. Her stomach growled, and images of the lost popcorn swam enticingly through her head.
"What are you DOING?" Wally cried out, having just come in the room.
"I'm thinkin'," she muttered, not bothering to look at him. "Your throat's never gonna get better unless you stop talking."
He walked around the couch and stepped between her and the massive screen. "I don't even feel it anymore! But you're supposed to be thinking of a plan!"
"Numbuh Five told you," she said, glaring at him. "She's thinkin'."
"How can ya be thinking when you're watching TV?"
"How can you be thinking when you're yellin' at Numbuh Five?"
He pointed accusingly at her. "Just because you don't care about Cree doesn't mean–" Abby jumped and plowed into his stomach, pinning him to the ground.
"Take that BACK!" she growled, holding his arms down.
"No!" he wheezed, almost completely winded. "You saw him…" He inhaled sharply. "You saw him…do that to…Cree. And you didn't even flinch! I know she's a teenager, but…"
"How do you know what I'm thinkin'!" she cried, gripping his arms more tightly, digging her fingers in. "For all we know, it still could be a trick! Now take it back!"
"But…Joey…" he rasped, turning his head away, sniffling. "He stunk, and he always drooled on me when Mom made me hold him, and he cried all night…but I'm his big brother, and I didn't do anything, and now he's gone, and it's all my fault. And now," he said, "we're supposed t'be thinkin' of ways t'get them back, and you're watching TELEVISION!"
They stayed silent for a few seconds, each eyeing the other skeptically. Abby's glare softened. She let him go and climbed back onto the couch, switching the television off.
"Sit down, Numbuh Four."
He did so, rubbing his stomach and moaning. "Ya gotta stop doin' that t'me, Numbuh Five."
"Look," she said, "Numbuh Five thinks better when she has some noise. That's jus' the way she is."
"Foine," he muttered. "And I…ah…ya know."
"Apology accepted."
"Numbuh Five?" he asked, staring down at his legs.
"Mmm?"
"What's it like, ya know, living with Cree?"
She dropped the remote to the floor, accepting her television-less fate with a sigh.
"Just like you'd expect it to be. Awkward, dangerous."
"Oh," he said. "Think of any good plans yet?"
"No. Why don't you go bother Numbuh Three or somethin'? She's probably all hung up on Mushi still."
"So? We all got our troubles! And…and why me, huh?"
Abby reached down, grabbed the television guide off the floor, and began skimming its pages. Wally stared at her, partially in fear, partially in anger.
"Huh? C'mon, Numbuh Five! Answer!"
"No reason," she said, flipping the page.
"No!" He grabbed the top of the book and pulled it down, exposing her face. "No no no no! Everyone's always makin' fun of me, but they're WRONG! Numbuh Three's just a girly girl with a bunch of cruddy, girly dolls!"
"Whatevah."
He pulled at his hair and screwed up his eyes, grunting in deep exasperation. Abby watched him with grim satisfaction. He stood up on the couch, pointing down at her, gritting his teeth. His hair stuck out at odd angles.
"I'm going to my ROOM!" he shouted.
"Have fun."
"Oh, I will!" he said, jumping off the couch and walking out. "I'm gonna play DestructoDeath 5000 and I'm gonna unlock the super special secret Ultra Laser Bomb robot AND I'm gonna come up with the best plan to save everyone!" He was out of the room now, but Abby could still hear him as he walked farther away, going on about some code for infinite health.
"Numbuh Four, Numbuh Four," she said, grabbing the remote off the floor. "Why you always gotta lie t'yourself?"
She flipped the television back on.
"Ooo. Only an hour until Attack of the Giant Ninja Robots."
Several miles from the Sector V treehouse, several things were happening at once.
In a tree on the side of the road, a mother robin flew hurriedly back to her nest. She rode the thermals effortlessly, letting the wind do the work for her. Her proud, stunning red breast intermingled magnificently with the setting sun. Clutch in sight, she swooped down and grappled the edge with her claws. Three chicks, just out of their eggs, chirped madly for food. The mother obliged, sticking her beak down each of their outstretched ones, depositing precious sustenance.
A rabbit, grey and old, wise through long life, crept cautiously around the mother robin's tree. The best grass grew under it.
An army of black ants on the other side of the street walked single file through the grass. Upon each one of their backs was a piece of food of some kind, be it leaf or berry or insect corpse.
In the middle of the road, a manhole cover moved slightly. A few seconds passed, and it stirred again, popping up just enough to bring one side slightly out of the cavity. Fingers sprung up from the small opening, grabbing the edge of the cover. Trace amounts of blood were visible on them. After several exasperated groans, the owner of the fingers managed to pull the cover back an adequate distance. She climbed out, soiled and wracked with injury, dirt and all manners of foul substances covering her body.
She'd made it. She'd survived.
The robin watched her intently for a few moments. Then, uninterested, flew off to gather more food.
The rabbit raised its nose in the air, smelling this new creature. The unmistakable scent of sewage hit it full force, but, nearly undetectable, a very important—a very dangerous—scent reached its acute sense of smell. The rabbit wasted no time in dashing at full speed to the nearest thicket.
The ants didn't care.
Abby turned off the television. Attack of the Giant Ninja Robots had just ended, and, though she'd enjoyed it, the ending was predictable. If it wasn't obvious the young adult giant ninja robot would avenge his family by defeating his arch nemesis, the super computer giant pirate, then winning the fair motherboard of the robot he loved, who, incidentally, had been used as a pawn the entire time, then what was?
Nigel walked in and sat down on the couch.
"Are you doing okay?" he said.
"Yeah. You?"
"No."
"Why's that?"
He sighed. "I thought and thought and thought, and I came up with some alright plans, but none which guaranteed their safety."
"Same here," she said. "Looks like Father's really got us this time."
"But we can't give up hope. There's always a way, right?"
"Numbuh Five likes to think so."
He shook his head. "I was really hoping you'd have something."
"Yeah…"
They both jumped in shock as the alarm began wailing. They looked at each other, then ran to the computer room.
"Unidentified intruder," the computer's voice rang out.
The others rushed in. All five were thinking the same thought. A wave of relief covered each of them when the computer screen depicted a creature that was not Father. It lay, seemingly unconscious, in Nigel's house's driveway.
"Commencing attack," the computer said.
"Wait!" Abby cried, staring intently at the figure on the screen. "I…I think…yeah, I'm not sure, but…pretty…" She dashed out of the room.
"Numbuh Five?" Nigel shouted. She ignored him and kept running.
She made it outside and began descending the long wooden ramps encircling the trunk of the treehouse, which extended through the roof of Nigel's house. She made it to the attic, then ran down the stairs, through the living room, completely ignoring Mr. and Mrs. Uno, and dashed out the front door. She stopped right in front of the unconscious person, then recoiled at the lurid stench.
The person's hand was extended toward the front door, as if she'd spent her last conscious moments crawling.
Among the sewage stains were large splotches of red.
"First toilet water, now this," she muttered as she picked up the girl, determined not to breathe until she could wash herself off.
"You owe me big time, Valerie."