AN: Hey guys! Double chapter this week, make sure you read both! 3

Jim's vision flickered as the simulation loaded. He looked around the plain white walls of the ship's belly. Beside him his teammates sat in their own speeders. Braxton caught his eye and gave him a thumbs up. Varian was absorbed with adjusting the controls in his pod.

"Too short to fly the craft, Varian?" Jim asked as he laughed.

"No!" Varian's defensive reply gave away the truth. If he wasn't having the issue now, he'd at least had it multiple times in the past.

"This is Cyborg One to Flightrisk 5000, please use proper radio etiquette and follow code names. Over."

"Control Panel to all units," Aladdin took over easily. "We are over the forest and approaching the target base. We're approximately twenty kilometers away. The hatch will be opening soon and we will be deploying you into the forest. Stay low and out of sight, we'll monitor your progress from above. After you've deployed we're throwing on cloaking. Stay behind the ship, do not engage until you have our go ahead."

"Cyborg One copy."

"Master of Awesome copy."

"Destroyer 20 copy!"

"Experiment 628 copy!"

"Dragon Rider One copy."

"Messier 45 copy."

"Scientist 314 copy."

"Um, Rider two copy?"

"Control panel to all units, we are engaging cloaking. We will be dropping you over the forest about four kilometers before the target." Fishlegs instructed them. "We will monitor from above. Please pay attention to the screen on the wall, it will show you both our kidnapped royal as well as our agent. Primary goal is to recover the king. Avoid killing our agent if possible, get out as soon as the king is secured. Our agent will meet back up with us if he survives and can escape."

"What?" Sy's shocked voice traveled through their headsets.

"That's what the mission brief said." Fishlegs answered.

"No, no, we aren't killing anyone. That's what the sleeper gas is for. And we are certainly not abandoning him there!"

"You do realize this guy doesn't exist, right?" Tuffnut inquired skeptically.

"That doesn't matter," Sy answered firmly. "We are treating this like a real mission. We don't leave a man behind. He could die if we don't get him out."

"I'm on it, Sy." Jim flicked switches as he adjusted a few settings on his speeder. "Leave it to me."

"Flightrisk, do I need to update your code name to Prince Charming? Over."

"It's Messier 45, Braxton."

"Prince Charming, I believe you mean Cyborg One, over."

"Tookie bah wah bah!"

"You said it, 628!"

"Control panel to mobile units," Aladdin's voice came through their headsets. "Doors are opening in ten. Nine. Eight." Everyone tensed as the countdown began. "Six. Five." Engines roared to life around their simulated room. "Two. One." The floor dropped open. Their speeders plummeted towards the treetops.

"Wheeeeee!"

"Whooo-hooo!"

"Ahhhhhhhhh!"

"Alright boys, let's do this!"

As a unit the young men dove into the trees. The branches rattled against the sides of their speeder crafts. The lighting shifted to green, the leaves silhouetted against the shiny metal.

"This is Cyborg one, all units shift to silent cruise. It'll be slower but safer."

"Copy that Cyborg one."

"Fall in behind me, V formation. Messier 45, I want you flanking me right. Behind, in order, Rider Two, Destroyer 20. 628 flank my left. Behind, in order, Rider One, Master of Awesome. Scientist 314, I want you center back."

"Copy." The answers came through one after the other. Jim guided his speeder into place behind Braxton. In his rear camera he could see two more speeders fall in behind him, spreading out into formation. Varian took the middle back as centered as he could get himself.

"We go in silent, get as close as we can. Rider One, Rider Two, you lay down the sleeper gas. Messier 45, 628, I want you to open tops, stun guns out. Stay high above the gas. Take care of anyone that interferes. I'm going top down, I'll snag the king. Scientist 314, Master of Awesome, Destroyer 20, you three cover. Tops up unless you need. Got it?"

"Copy." Again the team answered easily to their self appointed leader.

Aladdin came through the headset after about a kilometer of navigating through the dense forest. "Control panel has eyes on the enemy target. You are approaching from the west side, circle north about five degrees, you'll have a better angle of entry. There is no sign of the king yet, however it appears they are in the process of preparing to load him into a ship. Prepare to engage upon exiting the forest."

"Copy that, control panel," Braxton replied for the squad. He guided his speeder north. The other youth followed with him, trusting that he would position them accordingly. "What defenses are we looking at?"

"Five turrets mounted on buildings, all enemy units look armed. In addition, three fighter jets on standby." Fishlegs was giving the assessment this time. "There appears to be a fence surrounding the complex. You should be able to go up and over easily, but watch out in case it's electrical. It's possible a jolt will knock out your engine, or worse.

"Points of weakness appear to be lack of vision of incoming units, and the majority of the complex appears to be underground. Defense should be slow to initiate, but once they get going it'll be a tough battle. Strike fast and clear out, that's our best shot."

"Copy that, Bonebreaker."

"Bone Crusher," Snotlout corrected Braxton.

"Two kilometers until engagement."

"Cyborg one to control panel. How many enemy units can you account for?" Braxton inquired over the radio.

"Uncertain. It appears most units are below ground at the moment. Sleeper gas was a good pick, it'll sink down into their base and take out reinforcements. I'd estimate about three dozen up top at any moment, though there are occasional bursts of up to fifty at a time in sight."

"Are those turrets manned?"

"At least two from what the thermal imaging is giving us."

"Copy that."

"One kilometer. King is sighted. Enemy units are escorting him above ground now. He appears to have wrists bound, bag over his head. Our agent appears to be with him."

The boys tensed as they neared the enemy. Jim reached up to open the top of his speeder. The wind whipped through his hair and roared in his ears. He looked over to 628 and pointed up. 628 nodded. The two pulled higher into the air, just below the branches of the trees they raced through.

Ahead, bright sunlight welcomed them. The sound of machinery clattered in the air. The eight boys burst from the cover of the forest at once. An alarm sounded. 628 held a blaster in two of his hands.

"Ikata!"