Transmission 21: Strained Alliances
As Sunday goes on, deep below the Eastern Atlantic, near the West-African coast, lies a huge underwater Teen Ninja Hideout. It is one of only 3 still operational Hub Hideouts, about the same size the old Cleve Hideout that the TND demolished a year ago. The Ninjas had fled here after they retreated from Yucatán Peninsula.
"We presume all Ninjas made it out, right?"
"Of course! We just arrived at the Atlantic Submarine Hideout. Once we've patched everyone up, we're gonna spread out and hide like you ordered." Piggy speaks with the Delightful Teenagers from Down the Lane via video transmission, but the screen is only showing static. He is by himself, with only the light from the screen illuminating the soundproof, small room.
"Excellent. For now, we want you Ninjas to recuperate and gather your strength. Like we mentioned before, remain on standby until we say otherwise. Evil Adult Industries will take over from here."
"Just one question."
"Hmm?"
"What the heck were those…things the TND brought with 'em to the base? I heard from the guys that they used OUR portals to get inside! Those portals only work with objects, so what the heck?! Chad said they were aliens…but they don't exist, right?"
"What they were is not important and you shouldn't worry your little brain over them. Anyone allied with the KND is our enemy and that is the only thing that matters. We will contact you again when the time is right." the Delightfuls hang up abruptly, frustrating Piggy and the Ninja Leader angrily leaves the room, and orders the two Ninja Guards waiting in the hallway to follow him. Suddenly, he receives a call from the Hideout's control room.
"Boss, this is the control room, dude."
"What's up?"
"Uhm…there's a punch of our guys in the main hangar and they wanna speak to you."
"Tell 'em I'm busy. I ain't the complaints department."
"I did, but like they're saying they'll start a fight if you won't show up."
"Huh?! You gotta be kidding me! Argh, fine, I'll go but send more guards down there, if those dumbasses try somethin' stupid."
"Roger, Boss!" as the call ends, Piggy curses under his breath and boards an elevator with his personal guards, which takes them down to the hangar level. There, he is greeted by three Ninja Officers and their guards.
"Boss!" they salute Piggy, who grimaces and glares at the closed armored door before him.
"Grrr, let's just get this over with. I'm gonna put those punks in their place." upon his order, the door opens and Piggy leads the guards into the hangar, which to his shock is filled to the brim with injured Ninjas, but none of them are wearing their B.R.A. and making things even worse, standing at the very front is Chuckie Cavallaro, who has to lean on a crutch and his left cheek is bandaged. Slightly behind him is Stacey, who stares coldly at Piggy. "Chu…Chuckie! What's the meanin' of this? Makin' a scene and not wearin' your armor?!"
"We want answers, Piggy." Chuckie replies sternly as Piggy walks up to him and stares down at the former bass player.
"Answers? For what?! We ain't got time for this!"
"We got all the time in the world, Piggy and you know exactly what we wanna know." Chuckie's attitude angers Piggy and he is very close to grabbing his old friend by his collar but refrains from doing so.
"I got no idea what you're talkin' about." he hisses at Chuckie, who immediately points at the Ninja Leader.
"Don't play dumb! We all saw it! That sponsor, who the heck is he?!"
"Ghh…Dunno, he just gives the S.I.N., that's all."
"Bullshit! He's gotta be connected to Father somehow! Aren't you forgetting what that guy did to us?!" Chuckie yells and the teenagers behind also start voicing their displeasure. "That guy is enslaving us with S.I.N.! How's this any different from being Delightfulized?!"
"Shut your mouth! You know damn well we need S.I.N. to get revenge on the KND! Nothing else matters!" Piggy stomps his big foot and roars at the revolting Ninjas. "Don't tell me you actually believe what Chad said back there?! That guy's a traitor! He sold us all out!"
"I never said anything about that guy!" Chuckie yells back and glares back at Piggy. "Ever since we lost The Steve, we've just been used! What the heck happened to us, Piggy? I thought we Teen Ninjas ruled ourselves! First Father and now this! We're tired of being treated as a bunch of chumps who'll do anything for free!" Chuckie's words silence Piggy, who clenches his fists.
"We're fighting to bring down the KND and make 'em pay! Ain't that the reason we were formed in the first place?!"
"Being a Ninja is more than just that! Most of us joined because we needed a place to belong! I remember when it was cool being a Ninja but now everyone just treats us like a bunch of freaks, monsters! When did we start torturing kids for sport, huh?" Chuckie stands his ground but Piggy starts shaking from anger.
"Argh, beatin' up kids is what we've always done!"
"Yeah, but not like what happened last year. We didn't lock 'em in a dungeon and torture them." another Ninja shouts from the crowd.
"We can't even go home anymore, because all the kids and other teenagers think we're a bunch of psychos!"
"Graah! Quit your whinin', you losers! Why'd ya'll suddenly grow a conscience?! We're figthin' a war here!"
"None of us wanted to fight a war, Piggy! We just wanted to get those brats off our case and hang out with our friends. No more, we're done." Chuckie slams his crutch to the steel floor and turns his back on Piggy.
"Wha…what did you just say?!"
"You heard me. We're tired of getting beat up, getting used by the adults, sneaking around and scheming all the time!"
"You…you gotta be kidding me…you think you can just…walk out?" Piggy's face twists and contorts, as he reaches his limit and pulls his right-hand heat laser cannon on Chuckie. "You damn coward! You can't just abandon the Ninjas! If The Steve were here, he'd…"
"But he's not here and he woulda never let us end up like this. It's over, Piggy. We gotta move on, man."
"Move on?! Aren't you forgettin' all of our buddies who got mind-wiped?! You're gonna turn your back on them too?!"
"No. We're gonna do what we used to. Just hang around and have a good time with them, even if they don't remember us."
"Damn you!" But just as Piggy is about to fire, Chuckie is surrounded by the other Ninjas, and they refuse to step aside. "Ghh, outta the way!"
"If you shoot him, you're gonna have to shoot us too!" the injured Ninjas shout defiantly as Chuckie looks over his shoulder towards Piggy.
"This is where we split, Piggy. It's been real." he says coldly, and the crowd begins moving towards the parked Battle-Ready Vans and a large Ninja Air-Frigate.
"Don't just stand there! Shoot 'em! Don't let 'em get away!" Piggy shouts frantically but his guards hesitate, unwilling to fire on their comrades. Then, other Ninjas who were watching everything unfold, join the injured Ninjas, as do some of the guards Piggy brought with him. "You damn idiots! You're gonna betray everyone like this?! Damn you all!" Piggy's insults go on deaf ears as Ninjas board their ships.
"Open the hangar doors or we'll blow 'em up." Chuckie says over the Air-Frigate's speakers and despite Piggy's loud protests, the hangar's airlock opens and the ship, along with vans enter it before the door closes behind them, leaving a stunned Piggy, along with those Ninjas still loyal to him, behind.
"*pant*…*pant*…grrr….GRRR…GRAAAAAHHH! DAMN YOU TO HELL, CHUCKIE! YOU'RE GONNA PAY FOR THIS! YOU'RE ALL GONNA PAY!"
As the rebelling Ninja's ship's pierce the ocean surface and begin flying north, Chuckie leaves the bridge and heads over to an observation deck, where Stacey is standing by herself, staring at the blue sky. "…" Chuckie doesn't say anything and comes to her side but keeps his distance.
"…did we do the right thing…leaving them behind?"
"I don't know…but I just…couldn't take it anymore…Piggy and his cronies were just making us fight for no reason…"
"Chad was right…we were being used…" Stacey says wistfully as Chuckie clenches his free right fist.
"…doesn't matter…I don't wanna see that bastard ever again." Chuckie grits his teeth and glares angrily at the sky. "He tricked us too."
"Maybe…but he's not evil."
"I don't care." Chuckie snaps at her and starts walking away. "…where do you wanna be dropped off?"
"Cleve. I wanna go home."
"Gotcha." Chuckie replies and leaves Stacey behind. Then, she presses her hands against the window and starts weeping silently, as if the whole world around her had just collapsed.
…
Up in space, at the Moonbase, Rachel, Chad and Patton have gone to see Eliza. They had to wait an hour before they could talk to her, because Kieran and the other scientists needed to perform some tests on her now that she was awake. The Kid too was kicked out and had to wait with the others but he didn't say a thing while they waited, not even when Keith joined them. He had been held overnight to treat his injured leg, which is now in a cast and he has to walk around on a crutch.
Finally, the containment ward's door open and Kieran steps out, his eyes glued to the screen of his personal 2x4 handheld computer. "Numbuh Omicron!" Rachel says quickly to the Chief Scientist, who lifts his head and nods to everyone.
"Sorry that took a bit long. We had to be thorough."
"Don't apologize, mon. How is she?"
"She's fine. You can go see her now." Kieran replies stoically and leaves, but Rachel and the others can't help but notice his tense expression. However, seeing Eliza is more important now and the group enter the containment ward, where Eliza is sitting on her bedside and she's not wearing B.R.A. like she normally does. Instead, she has a light green hoodie over a white top, green sweatpants and white shoes. As she slowly lifts her head, she notices her approaching her and smiles weakly.
"Hi guys…"
"Eliza!" Rachel runs up to her and gives her a hug. "I'm so glad you're awake…"
"Eh-he, of course I am. What kind of a Supreme Commander sleeps all the time?" Eliza replies jokingly but Rachel only hugs her friend tighter.
"I'm sorry…it was my fault that you…"
"Come on don't say that. You couldn't have known the Suit would come back." Eliza looks the guilt-ridden Rachel in the eye and stands up. "So cheer up. What happened, happened and we can move on."
"*whistle* Didn't think you'd be this cheerful after all that." Patton says, causing Eliza to chuckle slightly but then, her smile fades.
"I don't want to waste time crying and feeling sorry for myself. Besides, I've already cried enough." she replies and glances at The Kid's direction, but he looks away.
"What about the Suit? Is it still…?"
"Yeah, it's inside me, Rachel. Like that sponsor said, Father somehow bonded S.I.N. directly into my DNA and Numbuh Omicron said we don't have the technology to get rid of it." she explains. "Don't look at me like that. I can't stand people pitying me." Eliza snaps at her friends upon noticing their pained expressions.
"We're not pitying you! It's just…"
"Nigel overcame his Suit, so I can do it too. And besides, it won't activate as long as I keep away from S.I.N., I'll be fine." Eliza grips Rachel's shoulder firmly and she nods back. Then, Eliza turns her attention to Chad and walks over to him. "And you."
"Huh? What?"
"How did you fight against that sponsor guy? Did you and Corvus merge?" she presses her finger against Chad's chest, and he takes a step back.
"I don't know the specifics, but yeah, we can merge because of this." he pulls back his hand right sleeve, revealing silver O.L. Ring, which is embedded into his wrist. "You're gonna have to ask Scorpius and Libra about the details." Then, Chad remembers something, and his expression turns serious. "Oh yeah, you should know about this too."
"About what?" Eliza asks as she notices that both Patton and Rachel are also looking serious.
"We need to keep this between ourselves for now, but right before that sponsor fled, Numbuh Delta saw who he was." Rachel explains as Chad nods.
"Yeah. Though I only saw it briefly."
"Well, who was it?"
"…David." Chad replies bluntly, shocking Eliza and Keith.
"Huh? What's with you guys all of a sudden? Who's David?"
"He's one of the Delightful Children from Down the Lane. They're Father's…kids." Rachel says while biting her lip.
"Wow, what? That guy had kids? Yeesh."
"He Delightfulized them years ago. They were one of the KND's worst enemies before Numbuh 1 defeated them. We hadn't actually heard from them after the scavenger hunt, apart from when the Splinter Cell used their identities 4 years ago to frame Sector V." Rachel continues as Patton crosses his arms.
"We thought those guys perished back then, but I'm guessing Father kept them hidden somewhere."
"And if David's back, then the others must be around as well. Those Delightful Dorks never worked alone. Which means they control Adult Industries and the Teen Ninjas." Rachel frowns while Eliza shakes her head.
"No doubt Father gave them Silhouette Suits with the same method he used on me…or maybe I was just a test subject…" she grabs her left shoulder as a cold chill runs down her back.
"Eliza?"
"Don't worry, I'm fine. Just bewildered, that's all."
"You aren't alone there, mon. David beat the heck out of us by himself, so those guys must be super powerful together."
"Maybe even stronger than Father…" Patton says silently as Chad hits his fists together.
"Come on guys, don't start acting like quitters just because those dorks are back. We'll never beat 'em with that attitude."
"You're right, mon. No point being all sulky about this. We beat Father, so we can totally beat those Delightfuls too."
"Numbuh Iota-3 already sent a recon team to Father's Mansion, or what's left of it anyway so maybe they'll find out something that'll help us." Rachel says but then, the conversation is interrupted when Chad's O.L. Ring starts glowing and a yellow line starts running along Chad's arm up to his ear.
"Numbuh Delta?" Chad hears Libra's voice in his ear.
"Hey, you can call my communicator, you know?"
"This is an urgent matter. Can you come to the hangar at once? And if possible, bring Numbuh Alpha with you. We have already called Numbuh Omicron, Numbuh Iota-3 and Numbuh Sigma to join us."
"Uh…" Chad eyes Eliza, who tilts her head slightly. "I'll ask…"
"Understood. Please hurry." Libra hangs up and Chad looks at his friends.
"What the heck was that yellow line?" Patton asks as Chad shakes his head before repeating what Libra said.
"Well of course I'm going." Eliza says firmly as Rachel steps in.
"We're all going. Maybe they deciphered the disc."
"Sure, whatever. Let's go." Chad replies and starts heading for the door, followed by the others, but Eliza suddenly stops and she notices a faint reflection on the wall. Squinting her eyes slightly, see realizes it's an apparition of her blue-outlined Silhouette Suit, staring right back at her. Eliza freezes as the apparition grins.
"You can't get rid of me that easily…"
"Wha…?!" Eliza gasps but then, the apparition disappears, and she hears another voice.
"Hey, what's wrong?" it's The Kid and he is waving his hand over Eliza's face. "What are ya spacing out for?"
"Huh? Oh uh, nothing, it's nothing. Come on, we don't want to get left behind." she perks up and walks past The Kid, who frowns and walks alongside Eliza, who eyes him and then taps him in the shoulder. "Hey, thanks…"
"For what?"
"For earlier." she whispers and grips The Kid's arm for a few seconds before letting go but he remains stoic.
"Don't mention it."
Along the way to the hangar, Kieran also joins them and soon, the group enter the hangar, where Maurice is already waiting while Herbie has joined remotely. "Yo, took your time."
"No way we were gonna run. So what's the emergency?" Chad's blunt reply is meet with alarmingly serious expressions from the O.M.E.G.A. Numbers, Vine and 9L. "Huh? What's with you guys?" then, a thought pops into his mind and Chad's expression also becomes serious. "Is this about…them?" Libra looks at the other O.M.E.G.A. Numbers before turning to face the humans.
"Yes. It is about the Galactic Kids Next Door. They have arrived." Libra's words silence the entire room as nobody is able to fully comprehend what they have just said.
"A…are you serious?" Chad stutters while Eliza covers her mouth.
"But…but you guys said they won't be here till New Years." Patton says as Libra shakes their head.
"Yes, that is what we thought. However, we have been proven wrong." Libra then points at the shuttle behind them. "3 Mega Cycles ago, the shuttle's computer detected a large object exiting a Space Leap at the edge of this Solar System, near a dwarf planet. It identified this object as the GKND's Galactic Subjugation Force's Treehouse."
"3 hours ago? Oh you gotta be kidding me…first the Delightfuls and now this..." Chad presses his right hand against his face while Maurice crosses his arms.
"Have they made any moves since then?"
"Negative. The Treehouse has remained in place." Scorpius replies as Herbie joins in.
"You said they are near a dwarf planet? Presuming you're talking about Pluto; their location doesn't make sense at all. They are simply too far away to attack us."
"Distance is not the issue here, Numbuh Iota-3." Chad says as he looks at everyone. "Even if their Treehouse is all the way in Pluto, the GKND can attack us by 'leaping'. It lets them travel long distances quickly, even between galaxies. That's how we got here. It took us a year and the shuttle's L.E.A.P.E.R. Drive broke, but anyway, that Treehouse can do the same thing." he explains.
"So yer saying they can just 'leap' here any time they want to?" Kieran asks and Chad nods back.
"Yeah, but if it's the GSF, they're probably waiting and preparing. Their leader is a super cautious." The moment Chad mentions the leader, Leo seems to twitch slightly, and he silently clenches his clawed fists, which is only noticed by a squinting Virgo. Then, Scorpius puts up his left pincer.
"As it stands, we can only observe and prepare for their arrival. It would be most illogical and impossible to go after them from here."
"I agree. But what about the KND? We have to tell them about this." Rachel gestures with her hands and her friends nod.
"Yeah. If the GKND already infiltrated us, then we gotta let everyone know. If we just keep quiet, it's gonna make the KND even more suspicious of us."
"Exactly, Numbuh Sigma. We can't keep the GKND and you guys a secret anymore. Numbuh Iota-3, can you contact Numbuh 81 and tell him to meet with us at once?"
"Of course, Supreme Commander." Herbie salutes Eliza while Omicron walks over to the shuttle.
"We've been so busy with that disc and the Ninjas, I totally forgot about this shuttle. Now that the GKND is here, we need to understand how their technology works. You don't mind if the Science Section does a thorough inspection on this?"
"Not at all. We shall assist in every way possible." Libra replies while Scorpius turns his attention to S-26's disc.
"I will prioritize this disc."
"Lemme help you out with that. I might not now know much about your tech, but I worked with Gamma before."
"Yes, perhaps just a supreme intellect such as mine isn't enough to decipher this. Numbuh Delta, you will assist as well."
"Huh? I don't know how that thing works!"
"That is not important. What matters is that you served in the same Sector as S-26, so you know his character."
"We'll help too!" Vine says while Numbuh 9L puffs her chest slightly.
"Meow!"
"Thank you, your assistance is most appreciated." Scorpius replies and squints his big yellow eye. "We have been approaching this problem from the wrong angle." as Chad and Maurice start helping the aliens with the disc, Patton turns to face Eliza and Rachel.
"I'm gonna meet up with Numbuh Lambda and Numbuh Rho. We've got lots of rearming to do."
"Then I'll go back to Cleve and check how things are going in their end." Keith says and leaves with Patton while Rachel looks at Eliza.
"I'll stay here and help you with the KND."
"Hmph, alright, thanks. Maybe they won't be as jumpy with you around." Eliza replies before grabbing The Kid's arm. "You're coming too."
"Wha…hey, I didn't agree to anything! Quit pulling me, you loco!" but Eliza ignored his complaints and starts dragging The Kid up the stairs while Rachel follows them.
"So what now? We just wait and do nothing?" Leo asks the other O.M.E.G.A. Numbers.
"Not much else we can do."
"Oh, don't be like that, Corvus. There's plenty to do here, such as helping the humans understand how our technology works."
"Cygnus, none of us are tech geeks like Scorpius and Libra." Corvus replies, prompting Cygnus to wave her metal wings.
"But we know more about the GKND than they do. Come now, let us assist them." Cygnus says as TND Scientists arrive to the hangar. "Right this way please! Libra and I can aid you in any way we can!"
"Pff, she's acting like a guide." Leo rolls his eyes as Virgo floats up to the hangars ceiling to be alone.
"I can't believe the other half of the Nebula Crystal was right under my nose…and they're keeping such a powerful artefact in plain view. But if the GSF are here, that means Numbuh Lyrical is with them. I must get the crystal before she does, no matter what." she thinks as the Omega symbols on her arm and neck rings blink.
Meanwhile, at Moonbase proper, the KND are holding a meeting to discuss Saturday's events. However, Supreme Leader Numbuh 81, Jacques Duval is having a hard time dealing with the discord. "Supreme Leader, did you hear me?" a black-haired, sunglasses wearing operative says to Jacques, who frowns.
"Yes, I did, Numbuh FB-1. We had lots of casualties because the TND's plan failed, you've said that twice already."
"Then why isn't my point going across?" the tuxedo-wearing Head of the Intelligence Division asks but Jacques simply sighs.
"Because what you're suggesting goes against the treaty and everything we've been working towards."
"We can't keep relying on the TND, Supreme Leader. They're just using us as their errand boys. The treaty clearly states the TND and KND are equal, yet why is it that they always force us to do their dirty work before taking all the credit from us?"
"They're teenagers, that's why! They just love bossing us kids around! That's what they've always done!"
"Kids and teenagers shouldn't be working together, that's against the…" suddenly, the room is thrown into complete silence as Jacques stands up and slams his fist against the table.
"Quiet!" he shouts furiously. "Listen to yourselves! Who was it that said that same stuff while he was controlling us? Numbuh 1000, that's who. Are you guys forgetting what happened a year ago? How the Splinter Cell used those same words to justify going to war with the adults. We owe everything to the TND. Without them, we'd still be under mind-control, for crying out loud! So why can't we work together with them? We all share the same goal, and the teenagers are ex-KND."
"But they're still teenagers!"
"Yeah, we can't trust them!" the cacophony becomes unbearable and even Jacques starts feeling like he's the only one defending the teenagers. Then, his personal P.I.P.E.R. starts ringing and Jacques answers.
"What?! Who is it?!" he shouts, startling his liaison officer.
"So…sorry, Supreme Leader, Sir, but Numbuh Alpha wants to speak to you."
"Can it wait? I'm in the middle of a meeting?" a frustrated Jacques replies.
"She said it was urgent. It was about 'them'. She told me you'd understand what she means by that."
"'Them'? She's not talking about…no way…" Jacques' looks over his shoulder at the agitated KND officers and division heads and then clear his throat. "Okay, I'll speak with her."
"Roger." the liaison officer hangs up and Jacques turns his chair around.
"We'll need to take a break. Let's continue in 1 hour." the operatives frown and mutter amongst themselves before leaving the meeting room. Then, Jacques picks up his P.I.P.E.R. once more. "Numbuh 81 here."
"Sorry if we interrupted but this couldn't wait. They're here."
"You mean the 'you know who'?"
"Exactly. We'll need to reveal the truth to everyone. Can we hold a joint emergency meeting tomorrow? If we delay, their spies might try to interfere somehow." the mere mentioning of spies alarms Jacques and he covers the P.I.P.E.R.'s mouthpiece.
"So then it's true? They've infiltrated the KND?"
"100%. I can't say anything else until we hold the meeting. We have to broadcast it to the world."
"Right, I agree. Let's do it."
"Great. I'm sorry you've had to keep this to yourself for a whole year."
"It's okay. Supreme Leaders got to have some secrets at least, right?"
"*chuckle* Well said. I'll handle the preparations from my end. Numbuh Alpha out." Eliza hangs up and Jacques slumps back to his chair before sighing heavily.
"Just what we needed…but maybe now the others will listen to me…"
…
Back on Earth, where it's inhabitants are completely unaware of the oncoming threat, Nigel and his friends have kept away from each other. While none of them want to say it, Hoagie's nightmare has left them bewildered and they are dealing with it each in their own way: Abby has buried her face into school work, Kuki spent the whole day staring at the photo album, Wally picked up his electric guitar and has been strumming it the whole day while Nigel has locked himself into his room and done nothing but write notes about their amnesia. Then as evening falls on Cleve, Hoagie is lounging on a sofa in the living room of his house. The events of Saturday night are still fresh in his mind, and he can't wrap his head around it. Then, he notices his mother, Betty Gilligan coming down the stairs. "Oh, there you are Hoagie. Have you seen Tommy anywhere?"
"I thought he was staying over with friends this weekend?"
"Yes, he was but I figured he'd be back by now. It's nine in the evening."
"He's probably off playing vigilante somewhere…"
"Is something wrong, Hoagie? You've been down ever since you came back. Don't tell me something bad happened."
"No, no…I'm just…confused…"
"Confused? Well, that's a first. You usually have all the answers in your head." Betty replies and sits down on an armchair opposite to the sofa.
"Not this time…nothing I come up with makes sense…no matter how hard I think…"
"Then maybe I can help? You'll give yourself a headache if you rack you brain about by yourself." Hoagie rolls onto his left side and looks at his mother.
"Mom, did I ever say anything about a person dying?" his question surprises Betty, who glances at an old family photo hanging on the wall.
"Oh…well not really…I mean, your father did…"
"No, it's not about Dad! It's about…someone else…" Hoagie sits up and leans on his knees. "I…I've had these dreams lately…at first I thought they were just you know…dreams that's all…but at the hotel…I had a…night terror or something…"
"A night terror? I don't think you've had those, not even as a baby…"
"Exactly! I've never had them before, but it was different on Friday. I clearly saw someone die in it…someone I knew and when I woke up, my friends told me I'd screamed and waved my arms around for 10 minutes…"
"Oh dear…that is quite something…" Betty covers her mouth in suprise as Hoagie twitches
"And yet, I don't have any memory of that happening…It just…scares me…"
"Now Hoagie, you shouldn't worry about it too much…"
"But it's the only thing I can think about! Mom, be honest with me…what happened to me on at the end 8th grade last year? I think it has something to do with my dream…"
"8th grade? That's an awfully specific time…hmm…I don't remember you acting any differently back then…you did spend a long time away from home back then…but that ended when you came to your senses and stopped being a delinquent."
"A delinquent?! Me?!" Hoagie stands up in shock as Betty gives him a confused look.
"Don't you remember? You kept getting detention because you stole other students' lunches and their…cheese for some reason…but then it just stopped…it was like you were back to your old self."
"Whe…when did that happen?!"
"You really can't remember? I think it was…at the end of March that spring. You started attending school and you graduated, just barely though…"
"March…"
"But I don't remember anything specific from the last week before you graduated. Oh, that's right, you did have that accident with your shoulder right before you graduated from middle school. I guess that's why you were so down but then you just, pulled yourself together I think." Hoagie is stunned what his mother is telling him but before he can respond, he feels stinging pain in his head.
"Agh…what the…"
"Hoagie?"
"Ugh…my head hurts…"
"I told you not to overexert yourself over this. You should go to bed and relax. You've got an early wake-up tomorrow."
"Yeah…I think I'll do that…"
…
The boy has a dream: He sees an unknown person before him, chained to the wall of a stone prison. Somehow, the person looks familiar but when he tries to touch them, his hand goes through them. He then hears the sound of the cell door opening and two strangers, covered in a dark silhouette, enter. The taller one takes a step back while the shorter one draws out a knife. "Prove yourself, so that you may take the next step, Nephew." The taller person speaks, his voice causing a chill to run down his spine while the shorter one doesn't reply and grabs the steel cuff wrapped around the prisoner's neck and pulls him closer. Somehow, the boy can sense that something bad is about to happen, but he is unable to do anything. The short stranger draws the knife close to the prisoner's face and drives its tip into the prisoner's forehead above the left eye and begins to slowly pull it down. "AAAAAAAAAAARRRGGHHHH!" A painful scream is heard but it's not coming from the prisoner but from the boy. Then, as a stream of blood runs down the prisoner's face, the boy sees the same blood running down his face and when he looks at the prisoner, he sees himself in place of the prisoner. Then, everything begins to fade as sinister laughter echoes in the boy's ears."
"AAAAAHHH…huh?" Wally wakes up, hanging on the side of his bed, his head and shoulders stuck between the wall and the bed.
"Son?! Everything alright up there?!"
"Yeah, just a bad dream…" Wally struggles up and takes a deep breath, trying to calm himself. "What the crud was that dream…?" he shakes his head and stands up, grabs his clothes and goes to take a shower but when he sees himself in the mirror, Wally sees the scar on his face and stares at his reflection while running his index finger along its length. "This ain't right...no way…" A scary thought Wally's his mind but he quickly brushes it off. "Pull yourself together mate! You gotta go back to school today…"
After eating his breakfast, Wally puts on his orange winter jacket and blue beanie before walking out into the cold November morning to wait for his lift. "I hate Mondays...Stupid cruddy cold…" Wally mutters when his cellphone starts ringing. "What's up?"
"Wally? Sorry, I can't come and pick you! I have to take mom to work cause her car's gearbox broke."
"Then how the heck am I gonna get to school?"
"Don't worry man, I got someone else to cover for me. They'll be there any minute. I gotta go now, bye!" Hoagie hangs up while Wally sighs and adjust his beanie. Soon enough, a car appears but it's not Hoagie's van but a silver sedan and sitting in the back seat is none other than a cheerfully waving Kuki, wearing a green winter jacket, a muffler around her neck and pink earmuffs on her head.
"Huh? Kuki?"
The sedan pulls over and Kuki opens the right-side window. "Hi Wally! Hoagie told me what happened."
"What the crud are you doin' here? I thought ya went with Abby?"
"Yeah but mom said she'd take me to school on her way to work. Come on, you don't wanna be late?" Wally nods and walks around the car before sitting down on the left-side backseat.
As he puts on his seatbelt, Genki greets him from the driver's seat. "Good morning."
"Uhm…yeah…good morning…" Wally replies, feeling slightly intimidated by her voice.
"We haven't been introduced yet, have we? I am Kuki's mother, Genki."
"Wa…Wallabee Beetles…" Wally says hesitantly, causing Kuki to giggle.
"Mom, don't look at him like that, you're scaring him."
"Oh, forgive me, I have a bad habit of glaring at people. Now, shall I take you two to school?"
"Of course, silly!" Genki chuckles and starts driving towards McClintock High School. However, Wally remains silent, his mind focused on the dream he saw.
"Are you okay Wally? You don't look so good?"
"I'm fine…didn't sleep well, that's all…" Wally mutters as he stares out of the window.
"Oh…Uhm, your suspension is over now, so we can all be together at school again!"
"Sure…"
Kuki's attempts with small talk fail to entice Wally, who can't stop thinking about the nightmare as Genki silently observes the two teens from the rearview mirror and smiles slightly. Eventually, the sedan reaches the school and Genki drops off Kuki and Wally into the parking lot. "Thanks mom!"
"Uhm…yeah, thanks for the ride…Mrs. Sanban."
"My pleasure. It's always fun to watch my daughter talk so eagerly with someone, even if you were a bit stiff."
"Mom!" Kuki's face turns red while Wally looks away. Genki chuckles slightly and then rolls up the window, before driving away with a satisfied smile on her face.
"Mornin'!" Kuki and Wally turn around and see Abby approaching them.
"Morning Abby!"
"Yo."
"Looks like you two had an intense ride." Abby points at Kuki's reddened face and she immediately starts shaking her head.
"Nonononono, mom just had the heater on max!"
"Heh, right. So, how does it feel bein' back in school after a month?"
"Still cruddy."
"Thought so. Well anyway, just a heads-up for ya: Things have changed since September, let me tell ya. If I were you, I'd keep my head down for a while. Not everyone here is happy about what happened at the festival."
"If they have a problem, they can say it to my face." Wally replies bluntly.
"Heh, it's good to have ya back." Abby chuckles and pats Wally on the shoulder while he nods silently. Then, they walk to the main entrance but immediately, Wally's presence invites looks from the other students while some whisper among themselves.
"Wow, he really came back…"
"I thought they expelled him…"
"Shh, he'll hear."
The constant murmur makes Kuki feel uncomfortable but when she looks at Wally, he remains completely ignorant of the other students.
As the clock hits 11, the students of Class 2-C prepare to go to eat lunch. Hoagie was late 10 minutes and was yelled at by Mr. Burton, despite the fact he is one of the best students in Burton's class. As the classroom empties, Hoagie taps Wally on the shoulder, as he's putting his history book into his backpack. "Man, it's great to have you in that seat again. Now I can actually talk with someone during class."
"No problem…"
"Huh? Something wrong? You've looked kinda out of it today."
"I just had a…bad dream…" Hoagie's expression becomes serious.
"…A nightmare?"
"Yeah, a really freakin' scary nightmare…" Wally looks visibly horrified at the mere mentioning of it, surprising Hoagie.
"Wow…I've never seen you like that before…"
"It was cruddy mad…It felt so real…like I'd seen it before." Wally says while covering his scar with his left hand.
"Like what happened to me?"
"Yeah…"
"What was it like?"
"I don't wanna talk about it now…maybe later…"
"Yeah, okay, take your time."
"Thanks…" Hoagie nods and the two boys stand up and head out into the hallway to get lunch. As they walk down the stairs, some members of the football team approach them but they immediately go around Wally, glaring at him as they go by. "The heck was their problem?"
"Well, you did a number on their captain…"
"He started it."
"I know man, but after Ernest got expelled and his dad was thrown behind bars, the football team lost its main backer, not to mention that since most of them were in cahoots with him, they got suspensions and detention and the like. 40% of the football team quit or were kicked out. Though I think it's mainly because they can't do what they want anymore."
"Heh, serves them right."
"You said it. I'm glad I don't have to look over my shoulder anymore. Those guys are the bottom of the pecking order now."
The boys arrive to the cafeteria where again, people's gazes are drawn towards Wally, but he ignores them. This time however, he joins Hoagie in the line.
"Huh? Aren't you going to get that subway from the quick line?"
"I want something else."
"Heh, I guess even you get tired of eating the same thing." After filling their trays, they find a free table and not long after they sit down, Nigel enters the cafeteria and sees his friends, joining them at the table.
"Hi Nigel, what's up?"
"Nothing much, I had to do some paperwork at the council room before I came here. Where are the girls?"
"They went to the bathroom, told us to go ahead." Hoagie replies as Nigel turns his attention to Wally.
"I see. What about you, Wally? Have you settled back to school?"
"Eh, fine, I guess. Just cruddy tired right now."
"Well, make sure you're prepped up for the afternoon. You need to start doing your make-up studies."
"Aw crud…"
"Cheer up, it's just two hours per day. We're gonna make sure you get them all done before the end of the month, so we can all enjoy the Christmas party without any worries."
"Well, aren't you excited…" Wally rolls his eyes and is not impressed by Hoagie's enthusiasm.
"Of course! This is my big chance to ask…"
"Ask who?" A familiar voice is heard behind Hoagie, who looks over his shoulder and sees Abby staring down on him.
"Oh, hi Abby."
"You were sayin' somethin' about asking someone, who were ya talkin' about?"
"Huh? Well…that's a secret, heh-heh."
"Okay then…" Hoagie's nervous reaction makes Abby smile cheekily as she sits down next to Hoagie while Kuki sits between Nigel and Wally. "Abby heard Patton and Rachel got sick."
"Yes, sadly. But they said it's just a minor cold so they should be coming back to school in 2 to 3 days." Nigel replies and crosses his arms. "Fanny kept raving about Patton skipping on his duties again though..."
"Nothin' new there."
Then, Hoagie remembers what his mother told him on Sunday and claps his hand together. "That's right! You guys aren't gonna believe what mom told me yesterday!"
"Well, do tell." Abby leans on her elbows and turns her gaze towards Hoagie while the others also look at him.
"So, I asked her about middle school, and she said flat out that I was a delinquent!" Wally nearly chokes on his water while Nigel twitches slightly.
"You?! No way!" Kuki shouts while Abby stares at him in disbelief.
"You're kiddin'! Abby knows what delinquents are and you ain't one."
"It's true! You can ask her if you want. She said I kept getting detention all the time." Hoagie explains but his friends are not convinced.
"For what exactly? I doubt it was for violence." Nigel says as Hoagie becomes embarrassed.
"No…uhm…I dunno why but it was because I stole lunches from other students, specifically their cheese…"
"HAHAHAHAHAHAA!" The others burst out in laughter while Hoagie feels slightly insulted.
"Hey, I'm being serious here!"
"We know, Hoagie…hahaha…it's just…Abby can totally imagine you getting detention for THAT!" Abby wipes the tears in her eyes while the others try to calm down.
"*cough* So…uh-hum…anyway, did she mention anything else?" Nigel regains his composure and looks sharply at Hoagie who scratches the back of his head.
"Yeah, she said I stopped doing those things at the end of March." Nigel's eyes widen as he stands up is if struck by lightning.
"END OF MARCH?!" His shout echoes through the cafeteria, startling the other students.
"Hey, will ya sit yer ass down! You want the whole school to know about this?!" Abby hisses at Nigel.
"Oh, right, sorry." Nigel replies, feeling slightly embarrassed while Kuki covers her mouth.
"*giggle* you always over-react."
"Well, it was a legitimate reason anyway…" Nigel mutters and sits back down. "Now, what I mean is that it was the same time when you got your scars, right Wally?"
"Huh? Oh, yeah, I think…"
"But what does that have to do with Hoagie quittin' bein' a bad boy?" Abby remarks as Nigel crosses his arms yet again and stares intensely at the table, is if every single gear in his head was working overtime.
"Absolutely nothing, yet somehow, I feel they are connected…Could you ask your parents about last years March as well?"
"But we lost our memory on the last week of May, why do you we need to do that?"
"Because, Hoagie, my uncle's kidnapping scheme became public at the end of January. That's also the same time I stopped visiting him, according to my dad…"
"Boy, what's that got do with March? You still ain't makin' any sense."
"*sigh*…okay, let me put it this way, my dad said that I had mentioned something about a scar on a Saturday, at the end of March."
A cold chill runs down Wally's spine and he clenches his fists while Kuki notices the pained expression on his face. "Wally? Is everything okay?"
"I'm fine..." Wally looks away but Kuki is not convinced.
"Liar…" She can see that everything isn't right with him but doesn't push him for an answer.
Abby meanwhile leans back on her chair and looks up at the roof. "So, what you're sayin' is, somethin' also happened to us in March?"
"Exactly! Doesn't it seem strange that Hoagie stops being a delinquent, Wally gets the scar on his face and I mention a scar to my dad, all at the end of March. There must be some form of a connection."
Abby sighs and stands up, having finished her lunch. "Okay, Abby's gonna ask around but don't get yer hopes up."
"Where are you going?"
"Back to class. All this conspiracy talk is gonna make me lose focus on the important things." Abby replies over her shoulder as she walks away while Nigel looks at the others.
"Yes, I think that's enough for today. Kuki, can you tell Fanny about this as well?"
"Okidoki!" Kuki replies while saluting with her left hand.
"And Wally, once the last period is over, come to the Student Council Room, okay?"
"Yeah, sure…"
As the last period ends, Wally sluggishly gets up from his seat and wanders out of literature class. While he is walking towards the lockers, he passes by two ex-members of the football team and Wally recognizes them as the two bullies who tried to grab Kuki in the cafeteria. They appear afraid but glare at Wally, who ignores them and opens his locker, only to find out that it's been kicked in again. "Hah, I shoulda known…" he mutters and takes his backpack and winter clothes from it as Hoagie arrives from chemistry class.
"Hey, you ready?"
"Ready for what?"
"Tutoring of course! We need to go through your schedule and all that."
"Oh yeah…sorry, I forgot…" Wally replies as he closes his locker and follows Hoagie up the stairs but as they climb them, two more ex-football team members glare at them from another corridor.
Hoagie leads Wally into the Student Council room, where Abby, Nigel, Kuki and Fanny are waiting.
"Ah, there you are. Okay, take a seat and we can begin." Nigel says as everyone sits down around the large table.
"So, you ready for this? Cuz this ain't gonna be a cakewalk."
"I don't wanna be held back so let's get this over with…"
"Alright, I'll explain how we'll do this…" Nigel describes to Wally how they'll help him pass the missed courses: 2 hours a day, different subjects each day, until the exams arrive on the second to last week of November.
"Each of us will cover one subject but others can fill in also."
"Don't worry buddy, I've got math covered." Hoagie says confidently as Kuki puts her hand up excitedly.
"I'll help with literature!"
"Abby's got history." Abby nods while a clearly annoyed Fanny crosses her arms.
"I have to do biology I guess…"
"And I'll help you with anything else. Of course, Abby can also cover multiple subjects so that will make this a lot easier." Nigel says as Abby nudges Wally.
"You gettin' all this?"
"Yeah…" Wally mutters.
"Hey, you better be grateful that we're giving up our precious time to help you!"
"Of course, I am!" Wally looks away from Fanny, who huffs while Kuki frowns, knowing that the make-up studies aren't the thing bothering him.
"Then it's all settled. We can start with…"
"I wanna go first! Mom said she'd pick me up today so we can take Wally home too!" Kuki quickly interrupts Nigel and points at her books.
"Fine by me." Abby says while picking up her shoulder bag.
"Alright, you can start tutoring today. Hoagie, can you do tomorrow?"
"Yup."
"Excellent. Okay, we'll leave you two to it." Nigel stands up while Fanny has already left the room, followed by Hoagie, who waves at Wally and Kuki.
Abby is the last one to leave, but as she passes Kuki, she whispers in her ear. "So, you're takin' the offensive? Pretty bold of ya."
"Huh?!" Kuki's face turns red while Abby chuckles, leaving her with Wally. "Uhm…why don't we start then?"
"Yeah, sure…" Wally starts making notes as Kuki occasionally gives him advice. Though Wally goes through the topics quite easily, his silence bothers Kuki.
"Wally, you lied when you said you were just tired…"
"Huh? Was I that obvious…?"
"Of course, you were, silly. If there's something troubling you, I can help. Just tell me what's wrong." Kuki smiles warmly at Wally, who looks away and squeezes the pen in his hand. Then, he drops it and puts his left hand over the scar on his face.
"I…had a nightmare…" Kuki's smile fades and she puts her hand on Wally's right shoulder.
"A nightmare? Was it a bad one?"
"It was cruddy horrifying…kinda like what Hoagie had…"
"Oh no…"
"I saw someone chained in a dungeon and then…two people entered and…started torturing that guy…" A chill runs down Wally's spine as he tries to explain it to Kuki. "All I could hear was screaming…but it wasn't the guy getting tortured, it was me!"
"Then…was it you who was…uhm…"
"Ha…how the crud did you know?!"
"EH?! Uhm…it was just a…the first thing that popped in my mind…Since Hoagie also "saw" himself I just…thought it was the same with you…sorry."
"Don't apologize, you were spot on…"
"Did anything else happen in it?"
Wally's expression changes again, his eyes staring into the distance, as if something was haunting him. "I…think that dream…was about how I got these…" Wally covers the scar with his left hand again. "And you know what the scariest thing about whole cruddy dream was? Nigel said on Sunday morning that he's had nightmares…of him torturing someone in a dungeon…" Kuki lets out a loud gasp and covers her mouth with her hands as Wally's head tilts forward.
"But…that's just…"
"It can't be a cruddy coincidence…"
"But Nigel would never do such a thing!"
"I know! That's why it's so scary! You remember how Hoagie said he was a delinquent earlier? Who's not to say that Nigel was…even worse…" Kuki wraps her arms around her shoulders and covers her eyes with her bangs.
"I…it just can't be true…"
"And, his uncle did kidnap kids and stuff…" Both teens start to realize that if they continue the conversation any further, it might do more damage than good. "Kuki, don't tell anyone about this, okay? At least, not until we know more…"
"Okay! Just thinking about how the others would react to this is…scaring me…" Kuki shakes her head as Wally grabs his pen.
"Let's just get this cruddy homework done and go home…"
"Yeah…" For the remainder of the tutoring session, neither teen mentions the word "nightmare" and work diligently on Wally's homework before they reach the two-hour mark.
Then, as they walk out of the school's entrance, Wally sees the same two ex-members lurking nearby, but he pays no heed to them. He does, however, take hold of Kuki's hand, startling her. "Wha…Wally what are you?"
"Shh, those cruddy football team creeps are tailing us…let's get outta here." Wally says, continuously looking over his shoulder.
"Oh…okay…" Kuki is surprised but also relieved that Wally's with her, making her squeeze his hand slightly more. They walk over to the nearly empty parking lot, but the ex-members don't follow them. Soon enough, Kuki's mother arrives and stops in-front them. She immediately notes the hand holding. "Hi mom!"
"You're making good progress, Kuki." Genki winks at her daughter, who realizes that she is still holding onto Wally's hand.
"Wha…EH! It's not what you think, mom!"
"Oh crud!" They let go of each other's hands and Wally steps to the side while Genki laughs.
"Hehe…young love."
"Mom!"
End of Transmission 21