Hello! I am SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO sorry for the two month wait! I had writer's block. Serious writer's block. But I've gotten past it, and the story just gets more exciting from here!

Sniffle...I feel so guilty...

Additionally, I have edited chapter...8? due to its use of song lyrics.

almostinsane: Isn't that what you posted last time?

Ginny-Hates-Them: Wowzers! It really crawled away?

Ranma Higurashi: Hey, cool!

Numbuh 373: Ooh...I posted that before I knew that. I bet that the DCFDTL's names have even been revealed now. I've been very behind in the world of KND...I even missed the new episode. That's just sad.

dark staranime: Okay!

Velvet Panther: Interesting...very interesting. Well, KND ops are brainwashed the day they turn 13...maybe the adult obedience is a side effect or something.
And, on a totally unrelated note, I just checked your user lookup. You're a ZIM fan! Right on, dude(ette)!

Purple Ghost Sausage: Okay!

neosun7: Like I said...so guilty...

Chapter 12: Revelation

Delightful Mansion

3 pm

"Hello, my Delightful Child-" Father began to say, but the Delightfuls rushed by too fast to really hear it.

"HelloFathergoodbyeFather!" Five seconds later, they were in their room. Amber seemed to be on sugar hype.

"Isn't this great? We're getting out! No more Father! No more Father! WEEEEE!" She bounced around.

"Am, not so loud!" Michael said. "Father might hear you!"

"See?" Amber said. "This is just what we want to escape from! Well, what's everybody waiting for? Let's go!"

"No," Lenny said. "If we all go, there'll be nobody to make excuses. Besides, we're not due for another hour, and we have homework to do."

"Oh, darn it!" She reluctantly opened her spelling book and got started.

Half an hour later

"Haha! You're mincemeat, Numbuh 3!"

"Not if I have anything to say about it!"

The KND were seated in the main room, doing nothing in particular. Numbuh 4 was playing Doom in Short Pants IV with Numbuh 3, and for some reason always lost. How could he, anyway? Numbuh 3 was just banging on the buttons! He was the master.

Numbuh 1 was checking through the current mission's files to make sure everything was there. Numbuh 2 was hammering something deep in the heart of the treehouse. Numbuh 5 was listening to some kind of rock music full blast, letting the pure noise from the headphones blow her braided ponytail into the wind.

Knowing rock music, Numbuh 5 was cut off from all other noise. But the loud 'somebody is at the door' alarm cut straight through it. She immediately switched the music off and ran to the main computer. She pressed some buttons. "DoorCam initiated," a voice said. A picture appeared on the screen. It was Amber, with a large briefcase, ringing the doorbell to Numbuh 1's house like there was no tomorrow.

"It's her," Numbuh 5 said. Nobody had to guess who she was talking about. They knew.

Meanwhile, as Amber rang the doorbell continuously, the door swung open. "Come in," Numbuh 1 said through a speaker. "Treehouse entrance is third door to the right."

She followed instructions, and came across a long, narrow, upward spiraling boardwalk thingy. Guessing this was the entrance, she walked up. And up. And up. When she FINALLY got to the treehouse's actual door, she was surprised to find it open. She ran in (or ran as fast as she could with her briefcase), and came face to face with all five operatives. "Eh…hi," she said nervously.

"Hello, Amber," Numbuh 1 said, his regular serious tone still present. "We hope that things aren't going too bad."

"I still had to sneak out."

"Well, we guessed that." He lifted his sunglasses. "What's with the briefcase?"

"Oh, this?" She set the case down on a table, crushing Numbuh 4's defenseless game controller ("Hey!"). She opened it, revealing a large button, which she pressed.

At that instant, a large projectory-thingy sprang up from inside the case. It projected something onto the wall-it looked like a computer, connected to a bazillion wires, with what looked like a movie making program opened. Sector V looked upon it with awe.

"Oooh, shimmery," Numbuh 3 said. "What is it?"

"I'm not sure what it's called," Amber said, "But I do know what it does."

"Which is?"

"It sends out hypersonic waves to a designated person in the subcounsious, controlling what they see at the time."

"Okay..." Numbuh 4 said, "And in English that means...?"

"I'm not sure," she siad. "That's what was in the manual.But I tried it, and I know what it does. It designates what a certain person or animal dreams. I'm not too sure what Father was-or is- going to do with it, but it was in the basement with all his other...oh, how do you say it...cool things. A few days ago, I found it and sent a dream of my first Delightfulization to a random person, hoping they could help. They never came."

Numbuh 1 began sweating, and knocked his knuckles together. "I-it was me," he stammered. "I had it the night before the first resistance."

Everyone's eyes snapped over to him. "You mean you KNEW!" Numbuh 2 shouted angrily.

Numbuh 1 scratched his bald head. "Well, not really. And I don't even remember it that well. But from what I can remember...it was barbaric. Criminal. And as we now know-true."

Hearing this, Amber seemed to go into a time-stop. Everything just froze. Her hand fell on the briefcase, closing it. Hope swarmed in her eyes. "What?" she mouthed.

"We were able to dig up files on the mission you mentioned. It was sketchy, but the message was clear: it's real. You're not lying. We can help you. We'll do whatever we can to make sure Father never puts a hand on you or your siblings again." He pounded his fists together.

Amber didn't move. Her heart pounded loudly. Every nerve in her was on tensity overload. She stood trembling for a moment, and then the words escaped.

"Thank...you."

"Anytime," Numbuh 5 said.

With that, Amber couldn't hold it in anymore. "YESSSS!" She jumped up, hit the roof, came back down, and began babbling.

"Oh yes yes YES! Thank you! Oh, this will be great-no Father, no worries-"

"Woah, slow down there!" Numbuh 5 said. "You're not free yet."

"Well, yes," she said, "But still THERE'S HOPE!" She jumped again-and something odd happened.

Bright orange beams shot out of her palms, making holes in two sides of the tree house. Sector V's mouths immediately hit the floor.

It took Amber a second to realize what she had done. When it hit her, it was awful. She looked at Sector V, at the walls, at her own two hands.

"What the...did...I do that?"

I've got news for ya-she did.

Wow, a cliffhanger. Last thing you want right now, eh?

Bye! -SP