So last chapter was a pretty fun one, right? Well you can forget about that because this chapter is going straight back into dark stuff. Anyways, let's get going!

"So…that's what happened?" Lenny asked. Once he had woken up, Alessandra had taken the chance to fill him in on what exactly was going on. And somehow, between everything that had happened in the past eight years, he wasn't all that shocked. "I wish I could say I was surprised but getting brainwashed again by evil genocidal aliens and turned into their attack drones is somehow insane enough to make sense." He then looked down at his hands, which were still coated in metal and wires. "Just wish we could fully return to normal…"

"Hey, I'm trying!" Numbuh 666 snapped from the other side of the room, where he had been cleaning off his tools. "But I need more time and, considering that Aleph Zero and his nutcases are breathing down our necks, I don't exactly have all the time to spare!" He then took a deep breath. "Sorry, just a little stressed right now."

"We understand," Lenny assured him. Bruce was sometimes prone to snapping whenever he was stressed out.

Numbuh 666 smiled. It was a weak one, but it was still a smile. "Thanks. Whenever you're ready to head out, there's some clothing on the counter. Nothing fancy, though,"

"After the past eight years, I never want to wear anything an adult would consider fancy ever again," Lenny declared, causing Numbuh 666 and Alessandra to chuckle as the former left the room.

"How are they doing?" Numbuh 417 asked from her spot against the wall. Numbuh 666 jumped when he heard his friend's voice. She wasn't exactly known for being quiet.

"Fine, outside of being a little shaken up over everything," Numbuh 666 said before sighing. "I know people call me insane or whatever but whoever brainwashes five kids into being his perfect little minions permanently is the one who really deserves that label."

"I never got why you always seemed to get called out on it," Numbuh 417 admitted as she stood up. "I mean, yes, you've done some pretty messed up stuff, but at least you're trying to do good. What people like that Father guy or Aleph Zero are doing…they just want to hurt people." Almost unconsciously, the duo's eyes went to specific spots on the other person's body-Numbuh 666's cybernetic eye and the white spots on Numbuh 417's wings and back, as well as her gun tail.

"Maybe that's why I have so many issues! Everyone keeps lumping me into the same group as them!" Numbuh 666 joked even though both of them knew that not only was it true, it really wasn't something worth joking about. Yet that didn't stop them both from laughing about it as they headed into the meeting room.

"So where's the annoying clown headed?" Numbuh 417 asked as she sat down.

"Numbuh 2's right here!" Numbuh 4 declared as he pointed to his friend.

"HEY!" Said friend snapped over the laughter of several others.

"Numbuh 55555 is headed to a place I'm sure that several of us know fairly well," Numbuh 4.3 Light Years revealed. "Craggleaction Park!"

"That place is still open!?" Numbuh 6 Shot exclaimed in shock.

"That's awesome!" Numbuh Hang 10 declared at pretty much the same time. Out of the older operatives, only Numbuh 6 Shot didn't seem at least a little nostalgic or excited to go there.

"I think I've heard of that," Numbuh 9L piped up. "Wasn't it a really dangerous amusement park that got shut down due to a fire?"

"That's…not the whole story," Numbuh 6 Shot began. "It was a very dangerous park, but it was kept open since a lot of people enjoyed the danger due to it being a fun way to prove yourself, like pretty much every adult you see in this room."

"You say that like it's a bad thing!" Numbuh 417 proudly declared. "That's where my first scar came from! My cart on the Hill Slide got loose and I went flying into a thorn bush!"

"Can we see it?" Numbuh 4 asked eagerly. With a smile, Numbuh 417 removed her mask and ran her finger along a thin scar going over her left eye. All the kids began to ooo and ahh in response.

"Wait, I thought that Dragconious were supposed to leave scars exposed due to thinking they were "marks of a warrior" or something like that," Numbuh Infinity noted.

"Yeah I know…but the mask is also my glasses," Numbuh 417 sheepishly admitted as she placed her mask back on. "Besides, if you know what you're looking for, you can still kinda see it."

"Huh, I can actually see it," Maurice noted. A few others nodded.

"But why don't you just wear normal glasses?" Numbuh 5 had to ask.

"Because the mask is cooler," Numbuh 417 bluntly declared as she crossed her arms.

"Going back to the story," Numbuh 6 Shot piped up, causing everyone to turn back to him. "But, due to how popular it was, the Galactic Kids Next Door attacked it. It was actually one of the first places they blew up."

"Thankfully, no one died or was hurt too badly," Numbuh 8 Infinity noted with a smile. "Some local operatives were able to get everyone out."

"So all we need to do is find out what Numbuh 55555 is doing?" Numbuh 362 asked. She then grinned. "Finally, something easy!"

"Well, capturing him would also be a plus," Numbuh 4.3 Light Years pointed out. "But stopping whatever operation he's up to is our main priority. Numbuh 666, bring us in for a landing!"

"Roger that!" Numbuh 666 declared. Everyone else was so busy getting themselves ready that they didn't notice Numbuh 417 and Numbuh 666 share a nervous look as the latter brought the ship towards the amusement park.

"Uh, I don't really think this place is open," Lenny couldn't help but note. Indeed, the park seemed to still be very much a ruin, with burnt remains of various rides and other attractions littering the place.

"I guess that really isn't all that surprising," Numbuh 60 grumbled as he kicked a small piece of debris aside.

"Then what is he doing here?" Numbuh 8 Infinity couldn't help but note. Everyone remained on edge.

"How are some of these tents still standing….?" Cree mumbled to herself as she walked towards one of said tents. Upon pulling back the opening flap, she let out a scream and rapidly began to back away.

"Cree? What's wrong?" Chad asked as he raced over. Keeping his blaster aimed at the flap, Chad opened it up and felt the urge to vomit.

Inside the tent were dozens of tubes with a bunch of withered husks of what appeared to be various aliens of different ages inside.

"W-what's wrong with them?" Numbuh 3 nervously asked. Everyone else arrived quickly and found themselves either horrified or disgusted.

"They had their youth stolen from 'em!" A voice came from nearby before breaking down into cackles. Everyone looked to see Numbuh 55555 on top of the remains of a roller coaster track.

"That is sick!" Numbuh 4 snapped. "I don't know how Numbuh 1 supports you freaks!"

"What he doesn't know won't hurt him!" Numbuh 55555 laughed again. "Besides, his devotion to the Kids Next Door makes him an extremely useful pawn! But the rest of you are becoming real nuisances! So…I decided that it's finally time to end you!" With that, he pulled out a remote and pressed a button on it. The ground suddenly began to rumble as what appeared to be a giant animatronic rose out of the ground.

"That's Craggle! He was the mascot!" Numbuh Hang 10 called out.

"He's huge!" Numbuh 5 exclaimed, already beginning to back up while keeping her weapon aimed at the giant animatronic. Still, laughing, Numbuh 55555 scaled the robot and claimed into the head.

"Let's get this party started!" Numbuh 55555 declared as he took his seat next to Numbuh 1, who was seated in the cockpit with him.

"Can we try not to hurt my friends?" Numbuh 1 asked, still unsure about everything. Admittedly, he wasn't sure why Numbuh 74.239 wasn't on this mission, but he wasn't missing a chance to finally get a leg up on these traitors who manipulated his friends.

"I'll do my best, but no promises!" Numbuh 55555 replied as he began activating the robot's various weapons. With a sigh, Numbuh 1 began to do the same, doing his best to only aim for the older operatives. But then something caught his eye.

"Is that…is that Numbuhs 0.3 and Numbuh 0.4?" He internally questioned. He blinked a few times, trying to make sure his eyes weren't playing tricks with him. But it seemed that two members of Sector Z were free from their delightfulization. He then took notice of how they seemed to be somewhat…robotic. "What happened to them? Why are they cyborgs? Actually, what are they doing in space in the first place?" As Numbuh 1 attempted to attack Numbuh Hang 10, he continued to think about what Sector Z could be doing out this far from home and how they even got there in the first place. Then he had a dark thought. Project Z and Sector Z sounded eerily similar and there were five robots that the higher ups seemingly couldn't replace whenever they lost one.

Numbuh 1 shook his head and snarled, now refocused on his assault. He wasn't a villain. He wasn't like Father and he wasn't working with any. The Kids Next Door would never do what Father did.

"We aren't doing anything to this guy!" Numbuh 5 called out as she dodged a blast from a flamethrower. The robot was doing enough damage to the place by itself, but the large amounts of fire based attacks it seemed to have only made things worse. Soon, everyone was dodging both flaming wreckage as well as the robot. Numbuh 5 had ducked behind a piece of cover that was still standing and not on fire yet, only to spot Numbuhs 417 and 666, both pretty much hyperventilating. "Uh, you guys okay?"

"Oh, hey Numbuh 5!" Numbuh 417 said way too quickly, her voice cracking. "So…things aren't going too well?"

"You don't say," Numbuh 5 couldn't help but deadpan. It was then she realized something. "But…how come you two haven't been helping try to fight that thing?"

"Of course we have been!" Numbuh 666 pretty much snapped. "We're just…taking cover is all."

"Right, then how come Numbuh 5 doesn't remember seeing you at all since the fight began?" She questioned. Both adults tried to come up with an excuse, but a sudden laugh from Numbuh 55555 caused both to close in on each other. "Uh…you two good?"

"Not really," Numbuh 417 sadly admitted. "Look, you know how Leo said no one got hurt when this place got attacked the first time?"

"Yeah?" Numbuh 5 replied, already figuring she knew where this was going.

"There were two…us," Numbuh 666 revealed. Numbuh 5 gasped, as did several others. The three operatives who had already been hiding took notice of who else had joined them-Cree, Chad, Alessandra, Numbuh Hang 10 and Numbuh 8 Infinity.

"You two got hurt? Why didn't you say anything?" Numbuh 8 Infinity questioned, utterly ashamed of herself for not noticing anything.

"We thought you guys didn't need to know. It wasn't a big deal" Numbuh 417 grumbled as she looked away. "But what really happened was that we were at the park when the Galactic Kids Next Door attacked us. We did our best to help get everyone out, but then Numbuh 666 got hit point blank by a firework."

"It's why I can't replace my eye anymore," He admitted. "The firework destroyed any nerve endings that I could have used to connect organic eyes. I had to make this myself after everything."

"And for me, well…" Numbuh 417 didn't say anything further, just moving her tail forward. "A bunch of flaming wires and other stuff fell on me. It destroyed the end of my tail and burned up my wings and back."

"So those white marks…" Cree was the first to connect the dots. Numbuh 417 just nodded.

"And you just told everyone it was an experiment from Witherton," Numbuh 8 Infinity realized. Both operatives nodded. "But…you never showed any problems!"

"Because, like we said, it wasn't a big deal," Numbuh 666 snapped. "Besides, we had other stuff to worry about."

"But…we're your friends. It's a big deal to us!" Numbuh Hang 10 protested.

"Hook's right," Numbuh 8 Infinity assured both of her scarred friends. "Even with the war we were fighting, you two getting hurt that bad is something we should have known about." Both Numbuh 417 and Numbuh 666 couldn't stop themselves from smiling.

"Uh, hate to break this up, but we still have the giant rampaging robot to deal with," Alessandra pointed out.

"Well, luckily, I have a plan," Numbuh 666 declared proudly as he dug through his coat before pulling out a wither bomb. "I need the rest of you to focus on keeping the robot busy. If I can just rot away one of the legs, it should topple over with ease!"

"And considering how destroyed this place is, we should be able to catch Numbuh 55555 with ease!" Numbuh 417 finished her friend's thoughts. Everyone else nodded and rushed out and made sure the robot's focus was solely on them. "Hey! Clown boy! Are you only here because you're trying to remember the only time you were ever loved by anyone?"

"Shut up! Or I'll cover you in more scars! What do ya think about that!?" Numbuh 55555 snapped as he slammed an arm at Numbuh 417, who easily dodged out of the way.

"What does he mean by more scars?" Numbuh 4.3 Light Years asked his girlfriend, who had joined him behind a post.

"I'll tell you later. Right now, just focus on keeping the robot distracted so that Numbuh 666 can blow it up," Numbuh 8 Infinity responded. Numbuh 4.3 Light Years just nodded. Everyone quickly got the idea that they now just had to keep Numbuh 55555 (and, unbeknownst to them, Numbuh 1) distracted so that Numbuh 666 could plant a wither bomb on the foot of the robot. Thankfully, the doctor was able to move quickly, quickly attaching a few bombs (better safe than sorry) before activating them. The operatives who hadn't seen it before were in awe of how quickly the bomb rotted everything away, from the metal to the wiring.

"How did you make that?" Numbuh 2 asked in utter awe as the robot toppled over.

"Hardwork and determination," Numbuh 666 smugly declared before pulling out another bomb, this one glowing an eerie purple color. "And now…let's make sure they can't get away with this."

Numbuh 55555 groaned. His everything hurt, but most of all, his pride. Causing distractions and being annoying was literally how he fought and yet everyone had used that same trick against him in order to stop him. Damn Numbuh 666! He thought for sure that bringing back memories of crippling him and Numbuh 417 would have stopped them both in their tracks, but clearly, they were tougher than he thought.

"Numbuh 55555! Are you okay?!" Numbuh 1 asked as he helped his fellow operative to his feet.

"Yeesh, keep it down! My head is killing me!" Numbuh 55555 snapped. "But we need to get going. Now."

"I figured as much," Numbuh 1 said sadly. Numbuh 55555 could tell he wanted to try and talk to his teammates again, but he had a feeling that if they had an extended conversation, Numbuh 1 would be the one who changed sides. So he needed to make sure Numbuh 1 didn't have a chance to even think about the idea. But how? Then, out of the corner of his eye, he saw Numbuh 666 getting ready to throw something else into the cockpit.

"Hang on one second," Numbuh 55555 declared with a grin. Before Numbuh 1 could react, Numbuh 55555 moved right into the object's path, causing him to be knocked out. With another cackle, Numbuh 55555 sprinted off, his fallen "ally" in his arms.

"This is beginning to get annoyin'," Numbuh 6 Shot grumbled. Numbuh 55555 had managed to slip away again.

"So…what was that thing you threw out?" Numbuh 60 had to ask.

"It's a knockout bomb I've been working on with some plants from a moon close to our planet." Numbuh 666 explained. "Basically, if you get hit with the gas, you'll not only fall unconscious, but you'll have some pretty wicked nightmares until you wake up!...so I feel bad for whoever I actually managed to hit,"

"Maybe it'll make them rethink some things," Numbuh 86 grumbled.

Oh Numbuh 86, you have no idea how right you are…