Songs featured:
Numbuh Aerook's attack: "Contact" by Keiki Kobayashi
GKND enters the TND Sub-bridge: "Tyrannical Attack" by Kazunori Maruyama
Eliza appears: "Today" by Kota Hoshino
Numbuh 81's last stand: "Galaxy Heavy Blow (Arrangement Cover)" by Otera Official
Crimson Light: "Release" by Keiki Kobayashi
Transmission 39: Crimson Light Falls
"R.I.N.G-M.O.T.O.R.'s were deployed successfully, Commander." a GKND operative says to GSF leader, Numbuh Exa, who nods back stoically. So far, the battle for the Moonbase has gone exactly as the GKND wanted but the ever-vigilant Exa has not been able to shake his doubts, especially since there has been no word from Numbuh Tera' team.
"Just as the Intelligence Division predicted, once their shield fell, the teenagers would separate their base of from the Moonbase. Hmph, they fell for our trap way too easily." he says as Vice-Commander Numbuh Lyrical, the purple-skinned Cyrenian operative comes to his side.
"Did we overprepare for this fight? Their defenses are falling apart by the nano-cycle."
"Even if we did, it was necessary. But don't get too complacent."
"Of course. Besides, the other half of the Nebula Crystal is still there."
"Indeed."
"Commander!" Numbuh Geo-4 turns around on his chair and gestures to Exa and Lyrical, and the GSF's commanding officers can tell something is not right.
"What is it?"
"We…we just got a message from the L.E.A.P.E.R. Center. Numbuh Tera's team returned…empty handed." a hesitant Geo-4 explains, shocking Lyrical while Exa does not even twitch.
"Empty handed?! How's that possible?" Lyrical shakes her head and looks at Numbuh Exa, who turns his emotionless gaze upon Numbuh Geo-4.
"Elaborate."
"The L.E.A.P.E.R. Center is reporting that Numbuh Tera and Numbuh A64 are unconscious and injured and so is Numbuh Dirus."
"And Numbuh S-26?" Exa asks coldly.
"He…he came back frozen in a block of ice. He's alive and they are trying to thaw him out…" Numbuh Geo-4 replies and Numbuh Lyrical notices Exa's tiger-like mouth twitch ever so slightly. Then, the GSF leader presses a button on the small control panel in-front of him.
"Numbuh Lyrical, I'm leaving command to you for a few cycles."
"Ye…yes Sir!" the Cyrenia replies as Numbuh Exa turns on the sound-proof bubble before contacting Numbuh Infinity and 74.239.
"Nu…Numbuh Exa?!" the startled former KND Science Chief exclaims as Exa folds his arms and eyes the two ex-spies.
"I think you know why I'm calling you two."
"Yes. Numbuh Tera's team failed. We are aware." the equally unflappable Infinity replies while adjusting the red bow tie around his neck.
"Then you know what this means. We need to recall Numbuh Noxious and Numbuh Chaff immediately. We've already launched the R.I.N.G.M.O.T.O.R.'s into the teen base."
"Not until they gain access to the base's systems and take all of their data!" Numbuh 74.239 interjects and folds his branch-shaped arms. "You just focus on taking care of the Moonbase and leave the teenagers to us."
"I already did once and look what happened. We relied too much on Numbuh S-26 and now he's out of the battle. Not only that, Tera, Dirus and A64 are injured, while the O.M.E.G.A. Numbers and the other targets are still loose. Your strategy is endangering my operatives."
"Our strategy was approved by Galactic Supreme Leader Numbuh Aleph Zero! And you are supposed to follow it, Numbuh Exa!" an angered 74.239 yells at Exa, but Infinity pushes him aside.
"Calm down. Numbuh Exa, with the R.I.N.G.M.O.T.O.R.'s deployed, the teenagers won't be able to interfere once we commence Phase 2 of Operation: R.E.M.O.V.A.L. Even if Sector V and the O.M.E.G.A. Numbers are free, they've bought themselves only a little extra time. They'll be captured eventually. However, we can't change our plan now, at such a crucial point, don't agree?" Infinity eyes Exa, who does not show a spec of emotion on his face and nods.
"Yes, that's true. But let me be clear, unlike Galactic Command, I don't consider my subordinates expendable."
"You arrogant…ack!" 74.239 yells, but Infinity yet again moves him aside as Numbuh Exa continues.
"I want Noxious and Chaff out of the teen base before it enters the Earth's gravity well, do you understand? The infiltration teams are under your command after. That's all I wanted to say." then, Exa hangs up, leaving 74.239 fuming.
"Grr, that Pantherian thinks he can overstep us!"
"It does not matter. The plan is still proceeding according to schedule."
"But we failed to capture the O.M.E.G.A. Numbers! Don't you realize how big of a threat they are?!" Numbuh 74.239 gestures to Numbuh Infinity, who instead turns his attention to the large screens lining their control room's left wall.
"I know that very well, Numbuh 74.239. That's why the infiltration team's failure is unexpected. The only reason how they could've been defeated was that one of the O.M.E.G.A. Numbers found a compatible partner. If that partner is a member of Sector V, we'll need to be careful from now on. We'll do as Numbuh Exa said and call back Noxious and Chaff if they don't retrieve the data in time. There is also Numbuh Shrike's situation to keep in mind."
"At least they managed to retrieve Numbuh Vermillion's son."
"How is he?" Infinity asks the Science Chief, who shows him video footage from one of the Treehouse's internal cameras.
"He's been placed in a S.A.F.E.P.O.D. for now. We'll wake him up once Phase 2 begins. But Numbuh Shrike is in the med bay and unconscious, so we don't know they got so badly injured."
"Hmm…right. We can't make any more slip-ups. Once Phase 2 begins, we'll change our focus to Omnius and the Delightful Teenagers. They must be destroyed before they can act against the GKND."
"I agree. However, getting a sample of their S.I.N. would be most useful."
"Both Noxious and Chaff were told to get their hands on a sample from the teenager's laboratory. They have stored large amounts of it there." Infinity says, prompting 74.239 to rub his branch hands together.
"Artificial Silhouette Suits…imagine what we could achieve if we could reverse-engineer S.I.N."
"Don't get in over your head, Numbuh 74.239. For now, we just need a sample, that's it." Infinity replies as the two former Earth KND operatives turn their attention back to the screens lining their control room.
Back on the Treehouse's bridge, Numbuh Exa deactivates the soundproof bubble. "Well, Commander?" Numbuh Lyrical asks him.
"We'll proceed as planned."
"What about those two?"
"I gave them a piece of my mind, that's all you need to know. CIC, is the enemy fleet still in our way?"
"Yes, Sir, but they're slowly being pushed back."
"Hmph, Numbuh Aerook's actually doing his job, for once." Lyrical remarks but Exa shakes his head.
"That's not fast enough. We'll begin our approach. Contact the support fleet and tell them to begin retrieval once the locks are opened. Numbuh Lyrical, scare them. We need to break their morale to speed things along."
"Oh? But of course." the Cyrenian smirks and lifts her golden staff, before striking the blunt end against the floor, causing the bridge to shake slightly. Then, she brings the spiked, ornamental end of the staff closer to her face and gazes upon the crystal held inside. "Nebula Crystal, heed my call. Send our foes to the pits of despair and take their will to fight." She speaks telepathically to the crystal, which begins to shine in a deep purple light.
Outside, the combined KND and TND fleet are fighting desperately to hold off the seemingly endless GKND onslaught, and with their communications down, the fleet cannot coordinate their defense well. Aboard the TND's flagship, the K.O.L.O.S.S.A.L.I.N.E.R. Young Rebel, Bartie Stork, the Commander of the TND's 2x4 Fleet, is running out of options. "Can't we contact anyone?!"
"No Sir. Only the emergency channel works but then we'd be broadcasting to everyone, even to our enemies."
"*groan* Dammit…huh?"
"What it is, Commander?" his deputy asks as Bartie notices the Teen Extension moving slowly away from the Moonbase.
"The Extension! It's being pushed by something!" he shouts and points at the two rings clamped into the western side of the Extension.
"Is that part of our plan or…?"
"It's not! The GKND must've planted those engines into the Extension when it separated." Bartie stands up from his chair and stares out of the window with a grim expression. "We have to…" but then, he is interrupted by the ship's intercom.
"Bridge, this is Numbuh Phi from the hangar! We're getting overwhelmed by all the damaged ships. At this rate, we'll run out of spare parts and medical supplies!" Virginia Sims, who like Sector V had regained her KND memories, shouts over the intercom, causing Bartie to shake his head.
"Argh, we're playing right into their hands…okay, we need to change our strategy. Order all of our ships to turn around and head for the Extension."
"But without them we'll…"
"I know, Numbuh Chi-7, but if we don't do something, the Extension is going to get sucked into Earth's atmosphere. Not even it could survive re-entry at that speed. This is about saving lives!" Bartie snaps at his deputy, who stutters and then salutes him.
"We'll get to it right away!"
"Good. We'll move the Young Rebel closer to the Moonbase and join the KND fleet's formation. Get to it!"
"Yes, Sir!" the bridge crew reply as a grim Bartie stares out from the bridge window.
"We can't hold them back much longer, but we're gonna give 'em one heck of a fight."
However, due to the communication blackout, the KND are not aware of Bartie's order and from the Moonbase's Saucer Command Center, KND Supreme Leader Jacques Duval watches in disbelief as every TND ship bar the Young Rebel breaks away from the combined fleet and flies after the Extension. "Supreme Leader! The teenagers are running away!" a CIC operator yells from across the command deck but Jacques shakes his head, refusing to believe that the TND would do something like that.
"They're not running! The GKND fired something into the Extension, and it's being pushed away."
"But why is their fleet breaking formation?!" another operative asks as loud murmurs are heard all over the deck. However, Jacques gets up from his chair to try and calm everyone down, aware that everyone is already on edge over the fact GKND's I.N.V.A.D.O.B.O.T.'s had attacked the Moonbase from the inside and that all contact with the sub-bridge and the computer core was lost a while ago.
"Everyone! Listen to me! If we lose our cool now, the GKND will overrun us! Aren't you all forgetting what they said to us before?" But then, every computer screen on the command deck turns purple, and so do the screens of the KND fleet defending the Moonbase, followed by ominous humming. "Wha…what's happening?" Jacques looks around the deck when suddenly, the humming turns into a loud screech, causing immense pain on everyone who hears it.
"AAARGHHH!" operatives scream all across the Moonbase and the fleet, while being subjected to horrific hallucinations, as the ghostly voice of Numbuh Lyrical echoes through every electronic display and radio.
"You stand no chance, humans. Give up and surrender to your fate. Your planet is doomed, you can't defeat the GKND!"
Out in space, the fleeing M.O.S.Q.U.I.T.T.O.H.-W.A.S.P. is also caught by the ear-grinding screech. "It's Numbuh Lyrical's psychic attack! Turn of all monitors and radios now!" Cygnus yells to Sector V, but they cannot hear her, having already been struck by the hallucinations.
"GAAHH!"
"URGH! MAKE IT STOP! MAKE IT STOP!"
"IT HURTS!"
Acting quickly, Scorpius oscillates his pincers, generating vibrations that counter the psychic waves long enough for Libra to interface with the W.A.S.P.'s computer system, shutting down the radio receiver and the data feed, successfully blocking Lyrical's attack.
"Urgh…wha…what happened…?" a shaken Nigel asks as Wally holds his head, visibly horrified by the images he saw.
"…ghhh…what the crud was that?!"
"It felt just like when Father trapped us into those cocoons a year ago…man…*groan* Numbuh 5 really didn't wanna go through that again…" Abby mutters and makes eye contact with a pale Hoagie, who is only able to nod back.
"That was a psychic attack. The GSF's Vice-Commander, Numbuh Lyrical's specialty. She loves torturing her enemies with the Nebula Crystal." a grim Cygnus explains as Nigel straightens himself up.
"And that is?"
"The Nebula Crystal is an heirloom of the Cyrenians. They're a race that share their home planet, Vega Nova, with the Pantherians." Libra says before pointing at Leo and Virgo. "Leo was a Pantherian and Virgo was a Cyrenian. While the Pantherians are the more populous, the Cyrenians are the dominant of the two, because of the Nebula Crystal." Libra's explanation causes Leo to snarl them, while Virgo remains quiet, her eyes focused on a shivering Kuki, who has not said a word. "The Crystal grants it's user supernatural powers, like telekinesis, mind control etc. That's why Lyrical is in such an exalted position, because the GKND want to keep the Nebula Crystal close."
"Oh great, more superpowered enemies…" Hoagie mutters as Nigel folds his arms and frowns.
"Yet another thing we'll need to wary of…but we'll worry about that later. Numbuh 2, turn us around. We're going after the Extension. The GKND are no doubt trying to send it into the Earth's gravity well and burn it in the atmosphere."
"Aye, aye! I'll engage the Hyper-Accelerator and…GAH!" suddenly, the W.A.S.P. is struck by a barrage of lasers, causing the ship to shake violently. "Argh, they got us! Hold on!" Hoagie yanks the stick and barely evades another laser barrage as two spherical ships with four thruster engines mounted diagonally on their sides dive on the W.A.S.P.
"Hoagie! We lost the Hyper-Accelerator!" Tommy says to his brother, who grimaces.
"Gah, just our luck. Numbuh 4, can ya shoot them down?!" Hoagie shouts over his shoulder to Wally, who gathers himself and grabs the twin joysticks on the arcade cabinet control panel in-front of him as the W.A.S.P. switches to CQC mode.
"RAAAH! You cruddy aliens are gonna get it now!" he howls and opens fire with ventral-mounted laser cannon while Abby turns her attention on her radar screen.
"You gotta be kiddin' me, they're sending a whole fleet after us!" she yells and points at her screen, which shows over 40 GKND ships approaching them from ahead.
"They're trying to stop us from reaching the Extension…" Nigel says as the lead ship in the formation, a dart-shaped craft piloted by the GSF's Air Commander, Numbuh Aerook closes in.
"Ooh, this straggler's in way over their head! All units, leave this one to me and flank their fleet from behind!"
"Yes, Sir!" the other pilots reply and disengage as Aerook grips his spherical control units and grins gleefully.
"Come on, you hunk of Earth trash! At least try to fight back!" he shouts and opens fire using the fighter's nose-mounted quadruple laser cannons, but to his surprise, the W.A.S.P. evades easily and returns fire with its two R.O.T.O.R.G.U.N. weapons, startling Aerook. "Huh?! What the heck?" Aerook exclaims and uses his fighter's thrusters to instantly evade the barrage before diving after the W.A.S.P., which immediately rolls to the left and turns its nose straight at Aerook's fighter. "Ghh!" Biting his beak, a shocked Aerook barely manages to dodge a pointblank shot from the W.A.S.P.'s S.O.O.P.E.R.-S.C.A.M.M.P. laser cannon before the two ships pass each other at extremely close range, giving Aerook a clear view of his foe. "This…this human is actually putting up a fight!" refusing to believe that a human teenager is giving him a challenge, Aerook growls and loops behind the W.A.S.P., determined to shoot it down.
However, inside the said ship, a tired Hoagie is struggling to keep up. Already injured from the fight inside the tunnel, he is barely able to match the nimble, blue fighter. "Ghh…*pant* damn…this guy's too strong…" he mutters as he yanks the W.A.S.P.'s control stick around, with Tommy and Wally trying their best to help him.
Seeing how desperate the teenagers are becoming, Libra makes eye contact with the other O.M.E.G.A. Numbers before floating next to Nigel's seat.
"Allow us to assist you."
"Gladly, but what can you do from here?" Nigel asks, prompting Libra to turn their gaze on the other O.M.E.G.A. Numbers.
"We will show you. Leo, use your kinetic force control to increase our speed. Cygnus, Virgo, assist with the ship's defense."
"Grrr, just because Corvus isn't here, scale-head is acting like a big shot…ow!"
"Leo! Stop complaining and do as Libra says!" Cygnus snaps at Leo, having smacked him with her left metal wing.
"Fine, fine, I'll do it." Leo replies and presses his clawed hands against the bridge floor. "Let's speed things up!" his palms begin glowing and suddenly, the W.A.S.P. flies much faster, much to the pursuing Numbuh Aerook's disbelief.
"How's that possible?! I blasted its booster apart!" refusing to let his foe escape, Aerook gives chase, while weaving through the W.A.S.P.'s wild returning fire.
"Woah, we're really moving now!" a relieved and excited Hoagie shouts, but the increased momentum is making evading attacks much harder.
"Virgo, let us give them a hand." Cygnus nudges Virgo, who huffs and creates a green energy shield around the W.A.S.P. while Cygnus floats over to Abby's console.
"Pardon me, I'll need to interface with the ship's radar system."
"Be my guest." a skeptical Abby replies as Cygnus presses her beak against the console and closes her eyes. Using both the radar and the W.A.S.P.'s external cameras as her eyes, she targets the lone fighter behind them. However, she quickly recognizes who is pursuing them and freezes for a second.
"Nu…Numbuh Aerook…no, you have to focus…" shaking her head, Cygnus locks her sight on the Aerook's ship and sends a magnetic pulse into his fighter.
"Uagh! Wha…what's happening?! My controls!" he screams as the fighter starts spinning uncontrollably. "Argh! Don't think you've won this! I'll get you!" Aerook shakes his fist as the W.A.S.P. speeds away, with him unable to do anything about it.
"He'll come back for us…I'll have to be ready next time…" Cygnus thinks to herself and looks on as Aerook's ship disappears. However, before the group can breathe a sigh of relief, something starts dragging them back towards the Moonbase.
"Uh...what's going on?" a startled Hoagie asks as the W.A.S.P.'s controls refuse to work.
"Is it a tractor beam?" Nigel asks Libra while holding on to his seat.
"No, this is…Cygnus, what do you see?"
"I…the ship's sensors are picking up a massive gravitational anomaly!" she replies just as space behind the Moonbase starts to ripple.
…
While all this is happening, the GKND's R.I.N.G.M.O.T.O.R.'s are steadily pushing the separated Extension towards the Earth and it's occupants are unable to do anything about them. Inside the vast base, Chad, Corvus and Rachel are making their way towards the upper levels, namely the sub-bridge, having heard Patton's emergency broadcast. "Come on, Numbuh Epsilon! Hurry up!" Chad yells over his shoulder, towards a frowning Rachel.
"Yeah, yeah!"
"Look, I know you're still pissed off about what happened at the bridge, but you gotta set your priorities straight!"
"But we left Sector V behind!"
"We didn't! They're at the Moonbase, or stole a ship and are headed back here!" However, as he glances over his shoulder again, Chad notices that Rachel's expression becoming angrier by the second and he realizes why she is so frustrated. "Don't tell me this is about Numbuh Vine?!" the moment he mentions the plantiform's name, Rachel twitches, prompting Chad to stop in his tracks and turn to face her.
"Hey, why'd you stop?!"
"Because you're still holding a grudge towards Numbuh Vine!" Chad shouts at Rachel, startling her. "No wonder you've been acting so cold lately. When Numbuh 1 got his memories beck, you must've said something to him and Vine, didn't you?"
"…" Rachel refuses to say anything and walks past Chad, but he grabs her arm. "Urgh, let go! I thought we were in a hurry?!"
"Just answer my question."
"…forget it. It's none of your business. Now let's go!" Rachel forces Chad to let go and runs off, causing Chad to sigh while Corvus comes to his side.
"Just between you and me, I'm not really happy about getting separated from those guys either."
"What do you mean?" Chad asks as he starts running after Rachel.
"That bridge didn't collapse by itself. Somebody did it on purpose to split us up." Corvus replies as Chad follows Rachel into high-speed tube that takes them up to the same floor as the sub-bridge, where they encounter multiple Stupefied TND agent's littering the hallway. "…We'll talk about this later." Corvus mutters as Chad comes to a kneeling Rachel's side.
"All of them are Stupefied…do the GKND use this kind of weapon?" she asks without making eye contact while Chad shakes his head.
"They have something similar, but this is the work of a GKND spy who snuck in here with a disguise." then, Rachel stands up and runs ahead once more but soon, the trio is alerted to the sound of gunfire coming from sub-bridge. "I.N.V.A.D.O.B.O.T.'s!" Chad yells and activates his dark red and gray B.R.A. as they see a group of the GKND's robots marching ahead of them, towards the sub-bridge. Not wasting a second, Chad booster jumps across the hallway and fires a laser barrage on the robots with his gun-blade, destroying a few before Rachel, laser lance in hand, slashes through the rest.
"These things must've been backup. They were heading for the sub-bridge." Chad gestures towards the blown-up door up head and the trio make their way past the destroyed I.N.V.A.D.O.B.O.T.'s and take up positions on either side of the door. Rachel then counts to three with her fingers before they rush inside, unaware that behind them, in the hallway they had just left, a mass of blue fire is slowly approaching the sub-bridge as well.
"No…" Rachel mutters as they are greeted by a heated battle for the sub-bridge. On their right, are the remaining TND agents who have not been incapacitated while the left side of the sub-bridge is filling with I.N.V.A.D.O.B.O.T.'s.
"Come on, let's give 'em a hand!" Chad shouts and opens fire on the robots while running towards the others agents, followed by Corvus and a stunner Rachel. Their appearance is quickly noticed by the defenders, among who are Fanny, Patton and Keith.
"Ya mon, there you guys are! What the heck took you so long?" Keith gestures from behind a makeshift barricade as Rachel and Chad join the others while Corvus flies up to the ceiling and destroys three groups of I.N.V.A.D.O.B.O.T.'s with his lightning, halting their foe's advance.
"A lot happened. What's the situation?" Rachel asks, prompting Fanny to huff.
"What does it look like?! They showed up right after we took over from Mister 'Supposed to be in-charge of the sub-bridge'!" she yells while gesturing towards Chad. "We could've driven them away already if ya hadn't ran off!" she then points angrily at Rachel while Patton is equally frustrated that Chad had left his position.
"Numbuh Delta! Defending the sub-bridge was your job! Why did you leave your post?!" he yells at Chad, who looks back sternly at the Combat Force Commander.
"We had no choice. Sector V were ambushed by Numbuh S-26!" Chad's replies stuns the three agents, prompting Patton to walk up to him.
"What? That guy was here?"
"We drove his team away but got separated from Sector V, the other O.M.E.G.A. Numbers, Numbuh Vine and 9L when the bridge collapsed. Sorry…but we couldn't just…" then, Keith puts his hand on Chad's shoulder and nods at him.
"It's okay mon, ya did what ya thought was right. Besides, you're here now, so let's kick da GKND outta here instead of pointin' fingers." he says and nudges Patton, who frowns, before reluctantly nodding as well.
"…yeah." he replies and points his rifle towards the entrance opposite the barricades, which are protecting the sub-bridge's computers.
"Heads-up! We've got two unknowns coming this way, and they're not I.N.V.A.D.O.B.O.T.'s." Corvus says to the teenagers while gesturing towards smoke-filled entrance across the sub-bridge.
"Epsilon, Beta, Agent Hermit, move to the flanks. Delta and I'll hold the center. The rest of you, get the injured and stunned out of here!" Patton barks orders to the others and while the few remaining agents who can move begin pulling away with the injured, the five teenagers take their positions while Corvus moves closer to Chad, wary that the newcomers have the same paralyzing weapons S-26's team used.
"What do you think?" Chad asks Corvus, who squints while gathering electricity into his clawed hands.
"Must be the GKND spies who attacked the guards earlier. They're doing the same thing as Numbuh Tera's team did on the bridge."
"Wear us down with I.N.V.A.D.O.B.O.T.'s and then strike when we're weak." Chad nods as two silhouettes appear from the smoke, followed by the telltale energy surge of the GKND paralyzing weapon, which Corvus intercepts before it can hit him.
"Nice try! But I'm not falling for that!" he taunts the newcomers who step out of the smoke, revealing themselves as the three-headed, snake-like Numbuh Noxious and Numbuh Chaff, who looks like a sentient, gray toy robot.
"Hah, it's Numbuh 274! Looks like we hit the jackpot, Numbuh Chaff." Noxious says while displaying his sharp claws.
"There are 2 priority targets and 4 low-priority targets. Focus on 274 and the O.M.E.G.A. Number. I'll call in more I.N.V.A.D.O.B.O.T.'s." Chaff replies and transforms their hands into a pair of laser guns while Noxious huffs.
"I was gonna do that anyway. 274 owes me!" Noxious hisses and dashes forward, his claws ready while Numbuh Chaff opens fire, giving the Venonagan cover.
"It's that vise-warden reject from the Void Prison! We can't use Overlay now, so don't get taken out."
"You don't need tell me twice!" Chad says to Corvus, jumps from behind the barricade and attacks Noxious head-on, much to Patton's dismay.
"Hey! Don't go out on your own! Ack, dammit!" he exclaims as laser blasts whizz past his head, forcing him to return fire with his rifle while the others do the same.
"You ruined my career, 274!" Numbuh Noxious middle head shouts furiously at Chad as his sword and the Venonagan's claws clash, creating a shower of sparks.
"Not my fault you only know how to stretch your limbs, scaly! You were a scummy opportunist anyway!" not intimidated by Noxious' fearsome claw strikes, Chad side-steps and performs a vertical slash with his gun-blade, forcing the incensed Venonagan to dodge to the left before reeling his left arm back and then stretching it at Chad, claws aimed at his head.
"RAAAH!" he tries to strike Chad with both arms but he dodges them with little effort before ducking, dashing forward and kneeing Numbuh Noxious in the chest, knocking him to the floor. "UAGH! *cough*…ghhh…*cough* damn you 274!"
"You still suck at fighting too." Chad gives the Venonagan a cold side-eye before turning his attention to Numbuh Chaff, who creates a blue energy shield around themselves right as Chad is about to hit them. "You must be that GKND spy. There's no way that scaly idiot would've gotten this far alone."
"My mission details are not your business, teenager." Chaff replies and shoots through their shield, forcing Chad to jump away before Corvus punches it, creating a bright flash on impact. However, Numbuh Chaff's shield holds, and the small antenna connected to the alien's headphones starts blinking, causing four large booger clouds to manifest above them, out of which 10 I.N.V.A.D.O.B.O.T.'s enter, shocking the teenagers defending the sub-bridge.
"Oh you've gotta be kidding me! More of these stupid rust buckets!" Fanny throws her arms in the air while Rachel grits her teeth and jumps over the barricade.
"They're just cannon fodder, cover me!" she yells and runs to meet the robots as Fanny fires a swarm of 2x4 micro-missiles from her B.R.A.'s backpack, which rain down on the I.N.V.A.D.O.B.O.T.'s, only for the robots to immediately destroy the missiles with their arm-mounted lasers before two of them suddenly jump and generate laser blades from their gun barrels.
"What?!" Rachel exclaims and dodges the sword strikes, before the robots land and charge at her, forcing Rachel to split her laser lance and block their follow-through attacks. "Ghh, why are they moving like this?" she yells as Corvus realizes what is happening.
"Damn, they called in remote-controlled I.N.V.A.D.O.B.O.T.'s. Be careful, these things are controlled directly by GKND operatives! They're not mindless drones!" he says to the teenagers as Numbuh Noxious gets up and attacks Chad again from behind.
"You're mine!" however, alerted by his yelling, Chad backs away from Numbuh Chaff and blasts the Venonagan with a EMP burst from his left palm, stunning him yet again. "AARRGHH!"
"Thanks for warning me." he replies and turns his attention back to Numbuh Chaff, who is now surrounded by the remaining 8 remote-controlled I.N.V.A.D.O.B.O.T.'s. "What's wrong, little Mechacon too scared to fight me by yourself?!" Chad taunts the GKND spy and immediately slices one of the robots apart before it can dodge but the rest quickly swarm him, forcing Patton join the fray, revealing a L.A.N.C.E.R. from behind his B.R.A.'s back armor, having replaced one of his laser-gatling guns with the said weapon.
"No you don't!" pointing the drill-tipped jackhammer weapon at the I.N.V.A.D.O.B.O.T.'s, Patton instantly runs through one of them, giving Chad the chance to jump out of the encirclement.
"Looks like you're getting the hang of that thing."
"Focus! We haven't won yet!" Patton shouts and attacks another I.N.V.A.D.O.B.O.T., which ducks out of the L.A.N.C.E.R.'s spinning drill tip's way, before pressing both hands against Patton's chest plate, blasting the teenager into the air with a concentrated shockwave. "Urgh!" Patton grimaces but manages to land safely in time before the robot can attack him again.
"Hey, are ya okay?!" Fanny says to Patton as she jumps to his side, having activated her B.R.A. electric maces.
"Hmph, it's gonna take more than that to bring me down." Patton replies as the robots regroup and start jumping around the teenagers in an effort to confuse them, but Corvus is quick to respond with a lighting blast from both of his hands, which strikes some of the robots.
However, while everyone's attention is drawn to the robots, none of them notice the blue fire ball hurtling towards the sub-bridge until it blasts through the entrance Rachel, Corvus and Chad used before. The fire ball creates a shockwave upon arrival that knocks everyone off their feet and as it begins to change shape, Rachel realizes what is happening. "No…E…Eliza?!" she shouts in disbelief as the fire ball reforms into the tell-tale shape of Eliza's pitch black and blue-outlined Silhouette Suit.
"Heh-heh-heh…" with an eerie cackle, Eliza looks around the room while surrounded by blue flames and her friends cannot believe their eyes.
"Numbuh Alpha?! Her Suit…how did it…?!" Patton stutters while a fearful Fanny runs over to a stunned Rachel.
"Wha…what's going on here? Is that Numbuh Alpha?!"
"Ye…yes…Father infused her with S.I.N. when she was Delightfulized a year ago and now she can use a Silhouette Suit…but…she shouldn't be able to activate it…"
"Ya, she'd need to drink S.I.N.!" Keith remarks as Numbuh Chaff and Noxious go behind the I.N.V.A.D.O.B.O.T.'s.
"Wa-wa-wa-wa-WHAT IS THAT THING?!" a panicking Noxious yells at Chaff, who is equally shocked by the sight.
"It's…the teenager's leader…with a Silhouette Suit…this means the others failed to capture her…"
"The…then we'll do it instead! I.N.V.A.D.O.B.O.T.'s, get her!"
"No, wait!" Numbuh Chaff tries to protest but the robot's operators follow obey Noxious' order and attack Eliza, who, despite being consumed by the Suit, is able to recognize her foes.
"G…GKND…you'll pay…" she mutters and vaporizes four I.N.V.A.D.O.B.O.T.'s with heat-ray fired from her eyes, much to the GKND agent's disbelief.
"No way!"
"We need to return back to the Treehouse now! This is too dangerous!"
"Shut up! I am NOT leaving here empty-handed!" Noxious yells back at Numbuh Chaff and reveals a small L.O.G.P.O.I.N.T.E.R. from his utility belt and makes a beeline for Chad, who like everyone else is too distracted by Eliza's sudden appearance. Changing the color of his scales and armor to match his surroundings, the Venonagan manages to get right behind Chad but then, Patton sees Noxious revert his camouflage. "You're coming with me!" Noxious shouts victoriously and activates the L.O.G.P.O.I.N.T.E.R.'s 5 second counter.
"CHAD! Move!" Patton yells and pushes Chad out of the way just as Noxious is about to clamp the beeping teleportation device around Chad's left wrist, only to put it on Patton's left wrist instead and receiving a swift punch in the face from Patton in return that knocks the Venonagan operative on to the floor, breaking one of his prominent fangs. "Urgh, what the…?!" Then, the L.O.G.P.O.I.N.T.E.R. beeps louder as Patton is enveloped in a bright, blue light.
"Numbuh Zeta!" Chad yells and tries to grab the L.O.G.P.O.I.N.T.E.R., but Corvus grabs him from behind.
"It's too late!" he says to the desperate teenager as Fanny too realizes what is happening and runs at Patton as his body starts to vanish.
"Patton!"
"Stay back!" Patton shouts at her before giving her a final, weak smile as he vanishes in a bright flash, leaving behind his L.A.N.C.E.R., which he detached right before pushing Chad aside.
"No…no…" Fanny collapses to her knees and shakes her head before the realization finally sinks. "PATTON!" she screams as Chad frees himself from Corvus' hold.
"Why'd you stop me?! I could've…"
"You would've been caught by the GKND too!" Corvus yells at Chad while Rachel runs to the distraught Fanny's side.
"What happened to him?!" Fanny asks Rachel, who in-turn looks at Chad.
"He got warped to the GKND's Treehouse…instead of me…" Chad replies while clenching his fists, causing Fanny to break down.
"That can't be! He couldn't…NO! WHY'D IT HAVE TO BE HIM?! WE JUST GOT EVERYONE BACK TOGETHER!"
"Fanny…" Rachel puts her hand on Fanny's shoulder but then, the Irish girl notices the L.A.N.C.E.R. Patton left behind and lying on the floor not too far from her, a reeling Numbuh Noxious as her despair turns to rage.
"YOU!" she roars, grabs the L.A.N.C.E.R. and lunges at Numbuh Noxious, who sees the weapon's drill-tip coming straight at his three heads, barely evades as Fanny strikes the floor. "YOU ALIEN BASTARD!" enraged, Fanny tries to stab Noxious again, only for Rachel and Chad to restrain her.
"No, don't!"
"That thing's not worths!"
"Let go! I'm gonna make that freak pay! Patton's gona becuase of 'em!" Fanny screams as Noxious runs back towards Numbuh Chaff.
"Get us outta here, now! I got a prisoner!" he yells at Numbuh Chaff starts frantically typing on the keyboard on their right arm, but in their haste, the two GKND operatives have completely forgotten Eliza, who also saw what happened and has now set her sights on them.
"PERISH!" in an instant, she destroys the remaining I.N.V.A.D.O.B.O.T.'s with a palm-fired heat-ray before dashing towards the alien operatives. Then, her left arm turns into a swarm of razor-shape tentacles and to the horror of everyone in the sub-bridge, she rips Numbuh Chaff's right arm off from the elbow down.
"UARGH!*ZZZZZZTTTTTT*!" the Mechacon's scream cuts off and turns into a mechanical screech before the tentacles wrap around the operative and Eliza slams Numbuh Chaff into the nearby wall.
"AAAHHHH! STAY WAY FROM ME!" a beyond scared Noxious screams, trying to escape but Eliza is too fast and with a single, swift vertical strike, slices the Venonagan's left arm off as well. "ARRRGHHH!" Noxious falls to the floor, screaming in pain as Eliza slowly walks towards him, her right arm is enveloped in blue flames.
"…disappear…" she raises the arm and prepares to finish Numbuh Noxious off but then, Rachel and Chad jump her.
"STOP! DON'T DO IT!"
"ELIZA!" they scream at Eliza as Chad holds her from behind and Rachel grapples Eliza from the front, using every ounce of strength they have left to hold the out-of-control teenager at bay. "You can't kill them! That's not how we do things!"
"…the GKND…must…pay…"
"Not like this! Listen to me! This isn't who you are, Eliza!" Rachel pleads, her face only few centimeters from Eliza's. But while the teenagers are distracted, Numbuh Noxious pokes his right index finger into his middle head's right nostril just as his left arm begins to regenerate.
"…damn…you…" he mutters before giving a last glance at the spasming Numbuh Chaff. "So long…"
"That snake's escaping!" Fanny points at Noxious just as the Venonagan disappears into a cloud of boogers.
"Forget that guy and give us a hand!" Chad shouts as Eliza starts struggling.
"…let…go…"
"Not a chance! You're getting consumed by the Suit, Numbuh Alpha!" Chad grits his teeth as the battle fatigue starts getting to him while Keith and Fanny come to their friend's aid and also grab Eliza.
"Eliza! You can't let it control you!" Rachel yells but Eliza does not react and instead, pushes everyone away with a telekinetic blast.
"Urgh!"
"*cough*…ghh…she's way too strong mon…" Keith groans as Rachel gets up and runs at Eliza again.
"ELIZA!" she screams from the bottom of her lungs as Corvus tries to stun the TND Supreme Commander, only to be knocked down as well.
"Damn, if this keeps up, she'll destroy this place!"
"Not while I'm here!" Rachel reaches Eliza and then, hugs her, much to her friends shock.
"Hey, what are you doing?! She's gonna burn you!" Chad yells after Rachel but she refuses to listen and tightens her grip on Eliza, feeling the immense heat coming from her Suit.
"I don't care! Eliza! That's enough!"
"…the…GKND…will pay…can't…forgive…" Eliza mutters as her Suit ignites and despite wearing her B.R.A., Rachel is subjected to the full brunt of the blue flames.
"KYAAAHHH!"
"RACHEL!" Chad yells and tries to pull her away, but Corvus gets in his way. "What are you doing?! She's gonna burn to death!"
"Wait!" Corvus shouts back at Chad and looks sternly at the teenager, who continues to hug Eliza despite the flames slowly burning through her armor.
"Eliza…*groan*…please…stop…you…urgh…can't give in to the…Suit…"
"…" Eliza blue eyes suddenly move towards Rachel, who presses her left cheek against Eliza's right cheek.
"Come back…we need you…not…the Suit…"
"…I…"
"I don't…know why you have it…but…you have to…fight it…just…like Nigel did…"
"Ni…Nigel…" then, Rachel, fighting through the pain, looks Eliza in the eye and smiles weakly.
"You're…our leader…we need you…"
"…Rachel…" then, Eliza's flames begin to fade away and her vision clears as the cloud of rage that consumed her lifts. "…I…I…wha…what have I…" then, Eliza sees the injured Rachel looking back at her and hugs her back. "Rachel! I…didn't…"
"It's okay…welcome back…"
"Rachel!" Eliza yells as her friend loses consciousness and goes limp. "What have I…?" Eliza looks around the sub-bridge while holding Rachel in her arms. "No…" then, she gently lowers her friend to the floor before violently tearing the Silhouette Suit off, disgust filling every part of her being. "NO! GET OFF! GO AWAY!" Eliza screams as the suit is ripped apart like paper, but this also causes immense pain to her. "ARGH!" blue sparks spew out of the suit as Eliza struggles to remove it. "I DON'T NEED YOU! GET…OFF OF ME!" then, Eliza is subjected to a painful shock before the Silhouette Suit disappears and her body turns limp, but Chad manages to catch her before she hits the floor. "Urgh…I…I'm so…sorry…" with no strength left, Eliza can only whisper to Chad, who shakes his head.
"Save it. How did that thing show up again?" Chad asks her, prompting Eliza to weakly point at her utility belt.
"…I…couldn't…stop them…" she mutters as Chad notices a small object jutting out of a pocket in the belt and upon grabbing it, he's shocked to his core.
"You…you drank S.I.N.?" Chad asks while gripping the vial. "Where did you get this?!" but Eliza is unable to give him a clear answer and instead, she is reminded of what happened at the Science's Tower's loading bay, causing Eliza's eyes tear up as Chad pulls her closer.
"…they…took…"
"Took? Took what? Stay with me!" Chad tries to keep Eliza awake, but her eyes are barely staying open. Then, she looks up at Chad and with her remaining strength, Eliza grabs Chad's right shoulder.
"The…GKND…they…they…took him…and I couldn't do anything."
"Who?!"
"…Ki…Kid…he was captured…" but then, as the words escape her lips, Eliza falls unconscious while Chad lowers his head and bites his lip.
"…him too…dammit!" he shouts in despair and hits the floor with his right fist. "Damn them…damn them all…" however, his attention is quickly turned to Keith and Fanny, who are tending to Rachel.
"This is bad mon, she got scorched. We gotta get her treated right now!" Keith says to Fanny and Chad, who both nod while Corvus goes to inspect the knocked out Numbuh Chaff, who's right arm is leaking fluids.
"Is that…thing still alive?" Fanny asks, her voice dripping with disgust.
"Barely." Corvus replies and puts his hand on the Mechacon's flat forehead. "But if this guy's not treated, they'll die."
"We're not letting anyone die here. Take him to the Science Tower, Corvus."
"But that's a GKND spy!" Fanny protests, but Chad silences her with a furious glare.
"Then do you wanna be the one to tell Numbuh Alpha that she took a life while possessed by her Suit?"
"…No…I…"
"…he's right, Numbuh Beta. There's no way she could handle that." Keith says to Fanny, who is still fuming over what happened to Patton.
"But…"
"No buts! We're not murderers, Numbuh Beta! Now get Rachel outta here already! Agent Hermit, take care of Eliza. I'll stay here with the others and try to get the sub-bridge working again!"
"You got it mon! Come on, Numbuh Beta, let's go already!" Keith gestures to Fanny and picks up Eliza while Fanny carries Rachel on her back. Then, as the teenagers leave, Corvus uses his electric powers to lift Numbuh Chaff off the floor but before he leaves, he eyes Chad one more time.
"Are you sure about this? Even if this spy makes it, there's no guarantee that they won't attack us again."
"Enemy or not, a life's a life." Chad replies coldly, prompting Corvus to give him a faint smirk.
"Hmph, alright then."
As Corvus leaves the sub-bridge, Chad takes command and has the remaining agents restart the computer system as well as the coded intercom system, which was knocked out when the virus infected the Moonbase. However, what Eliza told him and being well aware that Patton saved him, Chad is beyond furious. "First mom and dad…then my friends…how much more are you gonna take from me until you're satisfied, GKND?!" however, Chad cannot dwell in his rage for long, as the sub-bridge's computer screens light up, signaling to him and the agents that the intercom is back online. But at that very moment, alarms go off across the Extension, as everyone finally become aware of what has happened outside.
…
Pushed forward by the two massive R.I.N.G.M.O.T.O.R.'s, the TND's Extension, which only moments ago was connected to the Moonbase, is moving towards the Earth at a steady speed. In hot pursuit is the TND's 2x4 fleet, which broke off from the battle and are trying to destroy the R.I.N.G.M.O.T.O.R.'s from the outside with little success. Up on the Extension's Central Operations room, Herbie looks on with a grim scowl as the TND's options are running out. "Chief! We'll enter Earth's gravitational pull in 10 minutes!"
"And there's no way can stop it…get me Numbuh Omicron, now!" Herbie yells to his deputy in the Communications Section, who contacts Kieran vie the repaired intercom. "Numbuh Omicron, we're running out of time here! Haven't you come up with anything?!"
"We're still trying! You're asking us to stop a 5000 bazillion ton structure going at 100000 meters per second!" Kieran replies with his Scottish accent.
"Think of something! Or we'll need to evacuate. We only have 10 minutes before Earth's gravity catches us!" Herbie throws his arms in the air and yells at an equally frustrated Kieran.
"I'm aware of that, Iota-3! But yelling about it isn't gonna speed things up at all!"
"Hey, have you guys figured out anything?!" Chad joins the call from the sub-bridge, but the agitated Communications Chief and Science Chief shoot him down instantly.
"NO!"
"Hey, cool it, you nerds!" Chad yells back and points at Herbie and Kieran from his screen. "We're dealing with GKND tech here, so listen up! Those R.I.N.G.M.O.T.O.R.'s can't be taken out from the outside! But they're not connected to the GKND's computer network! If we hack their systems, we can take control of them!" he explains, startling both Chiefs.
"Of course! Why didn't ya tell us sooner?!"
"Because the coms just got back online, genius!" Chad rolls his eyes as Kieran turns his back on the computer screen and orders every able TND scientist to break into the R.I.N.G.M.O.T.O.R.'s computers systems. However, Herbie remains grim.
"And what do we once we gain control? We can't exactly turn around anymore."
"Leave that to me! I've got an idea just now! But first, we need to move everyone to the Extension's inner areas and activate the B.O.L.L.I.D.E.R. shield."
"But that shield is only meant to repel small asteroids and space debris. It's not the same as the Moonbase's barrier!"
"Trust me, Numbuh Iota-3! We need every bit of added protection! I'll leave that to you while we handle those R.I.N.G.M.O.T.O.R.'s! Numbuh Delta, you need to come to the Science Tower right now!"
"Okay, I'll be right there!" Chad replies before giving Herbie a stern glare. "The GKND hasn't beaten us yet, don't forget that!" he says before hanging up, leaving Herbie clenching his fists.
"…this better work…otherwise the TND is history…" then, he takes a deep breath and claps his hands. "Alright, you heard Numbuh Omicron! Issue a base-wide relocation order and get the B.O.L.L.I.D.E.R. online!"
"Yes, Sir!" the bridge crew reply to Herbie as the TND's Extension enters the Earth gravitational pull, while back on the Moon, the battle has taken a drastic turn.
…
"Urgh…what…what was that…" Jacques groans, who along with the rest of the KND operatives on the Moonbase were struck by Numbuh Lyrical's psychic attack and its effects have been severe to many. Some have fallen unconscious from the shock while others are lying curled up on the floor, muttering to themselves.
"…I wanna go home…"
"Don't hurt me…"
As their murmurs echo on the Moonbase's Command Deck, Jacques pulls himself up by leaning on the Supreme Leader's chair and with a quick glance, realizes that there are only a few operatives who are able to stand up, the rest are catatonic or blanked out. "E…everyone! We have to get the defenses back up!" he shouts and while many of the older operatives nod and return to their positions, it is not nearly enough.
"It's no use…they're gonna destroy us…"
"We can't beat them…" some bewildered operatives mutter amongst themselves, but Jacques overhears them and stomps the floor furiously.
"NO, THEY WON'T!" Jacques roars and tries get everyone's attention. "Listen to me! We haven't lost yet!"
"But they're too strong! Even those teenagers fled from them!"
"Yeah! Those guys didn't stand a chance so how do you think we'll do any better?!" As the choir of nihilistic kids grows, so does the sense that the battle is already lost, even though some operatives try to backup Jacques's words. Then, the Moonbase shutters violently as a barrage of GKND's 2x4 missiles slam into its superstructure, tearing off parts of the high-speed tubes and destroying many of the Moonbase's external 2x4 turrets.
"Look!" an operative shouts while pointing at the Command Deck's massive window and everyone's attention is drawn to the GSF's Treehouse, which along with its fleet of ships and fighters has begun to move away from the Moonbase, as if ignoring the KND completely.
"They…they're leaving!" some operatives begin to cheer, but Jacques is not convinced as his liaison officer, the green-eyed, long haired brunette Numbuh 353 comes to his side.
"I don't like this, Supreme Leader…why did they break off?" she asks while adjusting her gray colander helmet.
"Don't ask me…at this point…I'm not sure about anything…" he replies with a shaky voice while clenching his left fist, which has a hockey goalkeeper's blocker wrapped around the wrist. Then, the Command Deck's main doors, which were sealed from the inside when the Computermabob was brought down, slide open and three strangers enter, followed by a large group of I.N.V.A.D.O.B.O.T.'s. "It's the GKND!" Jacques shouts and quickly presses a button on his chair's armrest, activating the Command Deck's ceiling-mounted S.P.O.T.F.I.T.E.S. turrets but all of them are quickly destroyed by the I.N.V.A.D.O.B.O.T.'s.
"Don't try anything stupid, Numbuh 81." a familiar voice speaks to Jacques as the strangers step out into the light and he immediately recognizes them.
"Nu…Numbuh FB-1! Numbuh 909! Numbuh 20 Gallon! Wha…what are you doing with those…No…you're…"
"Always have been, Numbuh 81. I guess not even a great Supreme Leader like yourself couldn't tell that your own Intelligence Chief, Science Chief and Junk Transport Captain were GKND spies." the sunglasses wearing Numbuh FB-1 says mockingly, before he, the cowboy hat wearing boy and the bespectacled, hoodie wearing girl turn off their disguises, with FB-1 turning into a purple skinned alien kid wearing black armor, a gladiator-like helmet with a black, T-shaped visor the covers his entire face while a small ray gun hangs over his left shoulder.
"You…you traitors!" Numbuh 353 shouts and pulls out her S.P.I.C.E.R.- II while other operatives do the same and train their weapons on the two spies.
"The only traitors here are those loyal to Numbuh 81. Your Supreme Leader was in the teenager's leash this whole time and you let him have his way. Look around you! This what happens when you ally yourselves with teenagers!" the girl spy yells back with a jeering tone as she takes on a humanoid form made entirely of sharp, thorny vines, causing the KND operatives to turn their attention to Jacques, who is glaring murderously at his former Intelligence Chief.
"…you're the reason our teamwork with the TND kept failing…ever since last spring…" he hisses at FB-1, who scoffs.
"Hmph, look at you, you finally connected the dots, human. The GKND couldn't let things get worse here so me and my team were planted into the KND. Too bad it meant Erasing the previous chiefs."
"You humans are way too easy to trick. You couldn't even tell we replaced our real counterparts like it was nothing. Hah, you should've hear thier screams when we wiped their minds." the cowboy hat wearing alien made of straws and reeds mocks Jacques further, as the spies words send chills down Jacques' spine, reminding him of the Splinter Cell.
"So, you had no loyalties to us in the first place…Numbuh FB-1…"
"I am Numbuh Vile! And I've always been loyal to the Kids Next Door, unlike a weak teenager's lapdog like you, Numbuh 81. But let's get down to business. Your fleet is defeated, the teenagers fled like the cowards they are and the Moonbase's defenses are destroyed. So why don't you make a good decision for once in your life and surrender right here, right now. That way, you'll only get punished with Decommissioning." Numbuh Vile lays his demands on Jacques, who lowers his head. Clenching his gloved hands, he can feel the eyes of the world staring at his back, knowing that the Moonbase is on the brink of defeat now.
"…"
"What, little baby too scared to even speak? Hah-hah!"
"Hmph, you were right, Numbuh Ivy. He really can't do anything without the teenagers telling him what to do." the alien spies mock Jacques as Numbuh 353 looks at the Supreme Leader.
"Sir…?"
"…FB-1…you heard what my answer was when your leaders threatened us?"
"Hmm?"
"I'm not going back on my words. If you want the Earth and this Moonbase, you'll have to get through me! I won't be the Supreme Leader who sold out the Earth!" the 11-year old shouts and activates his personal battle armor, very similar to the one Rachel wore when she was leader, but his armor is red and light gray and comes with two hockey sticks holstered in the belt in a similar fashion to two swords along with the Supreme Leader's signature weapon, the 'Yield-Staff.' "I'll keep fighting, even if I have to do it by myself!" Jacques declares and before the spies nor their robots can react, Jacques speeds up to the traitors using his J.E.T.A.B.O.O.T.'s and slams his staff into Numbuh Vile's helmet, sending him flying into the wall behind him before he hits Numbuh Ivy in the stomach with the large boxing glove connected to the other end of the staff and then sweeps Numbuh Swath off his feet with a wide swing of the staff.
"GUARG!" the aliens groan as they're all taken by surprise, before Jacques hoists the staff high in the air.
"Those who can't fight, head to the escape pods or to the hangar! I'll buy you time!" he shouts and begins fighting ferociously with the I.N.V.A.D.O.B.O.T.'s, who did not receive any commands from the spies before they were attacked. Seeing their Supreme Leader fighting the odds, many operatives join the fray, led by Jacques' liaison, Numbuh 353.
"KIDS NEXT DOOR, BATTLESTATIONS!" she screams the KND's battle cry as the operatives rush the I.N.V.A.D.O.B.O.T.s., who cannot react quickly enough without commands, resulting in over half of them getting destroyed before three spies recover.
"A pest to the end! Secure the Command Deck!" Vile shouts, springing the I.N.V.A.D.O.B.O.T.s into action and they quickly begin overpowering the operatives who are still able to fight after the psychic attack, while Vile himself goes after Jacques, firing his shoulder-mounted ray gun. "I'll personally drag you to the Galactic Justice Division, so you'll be tried for your crimes aginst kiddom, 81!"
"The criminals here are you!" Jacques replies and rapidly spins his staff, blocking Vile's laser shots and attacks the spy with a wide horizontal swing, forcing Numbuh Vile to dodge. "We defeated the Splinter Cell and we'll beat you as well!"
"You don't have the teenagers holding your hand this time! Face it, you can't do anything without them!"
"Says you!" angered, Jacques booster jumps towards Numbuh Vile, who smirks under his helmet and fires a yellow, ring-shaped laser from his left gauntlet, scoring a direct hit.
"GAAAAHH!" subjected to a powerful electric shock, Jacques plummets back down and lands next to his armchair but in the process, injures his left wrist. "Urgh…ow…" he groans and rolls on to his side as Numbuh Vile slowly walks towards him.
"End of the line, Numbuh 81. Or are you going to keep sacrificing more operatives?"
"No. it's not!" Numbuh 353 shouts and blasts Numbuh Vile in the face with her S.P.I.C.E.R-II, stunning him.
"Gah! Ghh…" blinded by the hot sauce covering his helmet, Vile is unable to dodge Numbuh 353's follow through, as she grabs Jacques' fallen staff and punts Vile in the stomach with the boxing glove, knocking him down.
"…Ghh…I have to…" Jacques mutters and crawls to his chair before grabbing a corded microphone and starts speaking to it. Then, he presses a button which ejects a small c-cassette from the armrest and speaks to the microphone one more time as Numbuh 353 holds back Numbuh Vile.
"All hands, abandon the Moonbase, I repeat, abandon…"*KZZZZTTT*
His message however is stopped by Numbuh Ivy, who uses her extendable vine fingers to destroy the microphone. "Uh-uh-uh, we can't have that. The GKND has plans for all of you." she says and tries to ensnare Jacques, who quickly pulls a concealed B.L.A.Z.E.R. pistol from under the chair's seat cushion and shoots Ivy squarely in the face, setting it on fire. "KYAAAAAH!" she screams in agony and starts rolling on the floor, alarming Numbuh Vile and Numbuh Swath.
"Ivy! You'll pay for this, 81!" he yells and attempts to shoot Jacques, only for Numbuh 353 to take advantage of the distraction and slam the "Yield" sign on Vile's face yet again, but then, she in turn is shot by Numbuh Swath, knocking her to the floor.
"Guah!" she groans, holding her side, but then, two members of the Supreme Leader's personal guards, along with Global Tactical Officer Numbuh 150 come to her aid.
"We need to retreat, now!" he yells and orders the guards to pick up 353 while he runs over to Jacques and helps him up. "Supreme Leader, we have to get out the Command Deck. If the GKND capture you, all of this will be for nothing."
"No…leave me! I…"
"We've already sacrificed enough! No more! The only thing we can do is keep fighting! But not without you, Supreme Leader!" Numbuh 150 says sternly to Jacques, who is close to tearing up, but then, nods and hits a button the Supreme Leader's chair, causing alarm bells to go off while a massive steel wall begins descending from the Command Deck's ceiling.
"Everyone, get to the other side of the wall, NOW!" Jacques shouts as the KND operatives perform a fighting retreat.
"Stop them! We need to capture Numbuh 81!" Numbuh Vile yells as to Numbuh Swath tends to the injured Numbuh Ivy. Then, just as the wall splits the Command Deck in half, the Moonbase begins to shake violently, and its artificial gravity falters.
…
"Dammit, nothing's working!" Hoagie yells as he struggles to regain control of the unresponsive M.O.S.Q.U.I.T.T.O.H.-W.A.S.P. while Cygnus notices a small rift appearing behind the Moonbase.
"The gravitational anomaly is growing!" Cygnus says to the others as Libra realizes what is happening.
"The GKND have initiated a Space Leap right behind the Moonbase. They must be trying to capture it."
"Well they're not going to capture us! Numbuh 2, I don't care if the engines break, get us out!"
"We're trying! But it's not working!" Hoagie replies as he and Tommy try in-vain to stop the ship from being dragged into the anomaly.
"Leo, increase our forward momentum to counter the Space Leap's pull." Libra tells to Leo, who nods and presses his hands against the bridge's floor.
"On it!" but despite him doing so, the growing rift keeps pulling the W.A.S.P. towards the Moonbase. However, Cygnus notices a large GKND cruiser which has stayed behind with other GKND fighters to keep the KND Space Fleet from escaping.
"Let me try something!" she sends a magnetic pulse from her wings into the cruiser, in an attempt to pull the W.A.S.P. towards the cruiser, which is unaffected by the Space Leap's gravity. "Hngg! Come on you blasted piece of junk! Pull us away!" Cygnus curses and then, the W.A.S.P. stops moving backwards and instead, starts heading towards the fleet, as if fired from a cannon.
"Waaahh! We're going too fast now!" Hoagie shrieks, barely able to control W.A.S.P., but Nigel points at the approaching GKND fleet.
"Keep going! We'll break through!" he shouts as the fleet opens fire on the W.A.S.P., but ship is too fast for their weapons and breezes past their blockade, only to be struck by one of the Moonbase's destroyed O.B.S.E.R.S.T.A.T.I.O.N.'s, damaging it.
"Gah! *groan*…oh no, we've lost the right wing!"
"Hoagie, the front left heliojet's not gonna hold much longer!"
"Shut it off, Tommy!"
"But if we do that, we can't steer with the engines!" Tommy protests but Hoagie is having none of it.
"Then do you want us to blow up along with that engine? I said shut it off!"
"*gulp*…o…Okay!" Tommy stutters and flicks the engine shut off switch, but this causes the W.A.S.P. to become uncontrollable, sending it into a wide left turn. However, this gives everyone a clear view of the Moonbase.
"Guys, look!" Abby shouts as the rift grows to double the size of the Moonbase and then, 6 long mechanical, spaceship-tipped tendrils appear from it.
"What the crud is that?!"
"Your guess is as good as mine, Numbuh 4…" Nigel replies to Wally as their jaws drop, but the O.M.E.G.A. Numbers know exactly what is happening.
"They had a support Treehouse with them…as expected of Numbuh Exa." Cygnus says grimly, while Leo growls silently at the mention of the GSF Commander.
"The GSF are trying to take the Moonbase with them." Libra says, alarming Sector V.
"Ta…take the Moonbase?! How's that even possible?!" Abby remarks, prompting Libra to fold their telescopic arms.
"See for yourself." they reply, forcing the teenagers to watch in horror as the massive tendrils wrap around the Moonbase, followed by the locks that keep it on the Moon's surface opening and the massive Treehouse is lifted up, before the tendrils begin pulling it into the rift.
"The…Moonbase…"
"Those cruddy GKND are actually stealing it!" Hoagie and Wally remark as Abby notices something equally horrifying.
"No…you gotta be kidding me! The fleet!" she points at the GKND fleet they just passed, which opens fire on the KND Space Fleet trying desperately to escape the Space Leap's pull and while some ships and fighters manage to break through, most are hit and dragged helplessly into the rift, among them Bartie's K.O.L.O.S.S.A.L.I.N.E.R. that had stayed behind to help them.
"So…Sonia, Lee, Paddy!" Tommy shouts, pressing his hands against the bridge window as he remembers that he was separated from his teammates when the I.N.V.A.D.O.B.O.T.'s attacked the Moonbase from the inside. "NOOO!" he screams teary eyed as his brother looks on, equally devastated by what happening before their eyes.
"…this…is horrible…how could they…?" Kuki asks with a shaky voice and looks at her friends, who are unable to give her an answer.
"So this is the GKND…" Nigel mutters to himself, reminded of the fact he was a potential member at one point. "…"
"YOU CRUDDY ALIEN FREAKS ARE GONNA PAY!" Wally shouts and shakes his fists furiously while a galvanized Abby nods coldly.
"Damn straight they are…"
Then, as the Moonbase is dragged into the rift, it generates a horizontal shockwave that strikes the W.A.S.P., the debris from the battle and any KND ship that escaped, sending them all flying away from the Moon. "Hang on!" Hoagie shouts and tries to stabilize the W.A.S.P. but with only three functioning engines, it is hopeless, leaving Sector V, the O.M.E.G.A. Numbers, Numbuh Vine and Numbuh 9L drifting helplessly in space between the Earth and the Moon.
Meanwhile, the GSF's Treehouse reaches the Earth and moves over the planet's magnetic north pole. "We're above the pole, Commander."
"Initiate Phase 2 of Operation R.E.M.O.V.A.L. Activate the P.L.A.N.E.T.B.L.I.T.E.R.A.T.O.R. in Sealing Mode." Numbuh Exa orders the bridge crew, who salute and do as they are told. Then, the massive asteroid beneath the Treehouse breaks apart, revealing a wide, platform-like structure with red emitters running along its circumference, inside it. One by one, the emitters begin to glow, followed a red gaseous plume envelopes the plate before a massive field of crimson energy is unleashed and it begins to cover the whole planet.
…
Back on Earth, at that very moment, in downtown Cleve, a police car parks on the sidewalk next to the same alley where Chad had confronted Stacey and Chuckie. Its doors open and out steps Maurice, who left the Moonbase before the battle began the portals were shut down. "Thanks for the lift, Numbuh BD."
"Don't mention it, Agent Raven." the laidback, glass-eyed police inspector MacArthur says as three other people step out of the police car.
"We'll take care of things here. You should head back and help with the evacuation." Maurice tells MacArthur, who nods.
"No need to tell me twice, kid. Just keep your head down in there. Those Ninjas are still ." the inspector winks with only working eye and drives away as Maurice turns towards the three people who came with him.
"Okay, let's do this. We gotta win them to our side."
"Then why am I here?" a grumpy voice asks Maurice and it's owner turns out to be the recently Recommissioned Numbuh 20 000, who was allowed to keep his memories after giving away Splinter Cell secrets to the TND in November.
"Because you're one of us, whether you like it or not. Now let's move." Maurice replies to 20 000 and points at the alley, before the four teenagers step out of the street and disappear into the alley as the sky turns crimson above Cleve.
Then, a message is heard all across the Earth, by all KND and TND operatives.
"This is Numbuh 81, the Supreme Leader of the Kids Next Door. The Moonbase has fallen, and we have most likely been captured. However, this doesn't mean they've won. This is my final message to you, kids and teenagers of Earth.
Stop the GKND.
Keep fighting and don't let them destroy our planet, no matter what."
…
…
…
Transmission Interrupted…
End of Part 2
Afterword: And with this, the second arc of Operation: Beyond is now complete. Originally, this chapter was supposed to be released in autumn 2023 if not for my neck injury but we're here now.
I had been planning Part 2's finale for a few years now and knew that it would have end with the GKND taking down the Moonbase. I'm very pleased with how this finale turned out and I hope you, the readers also enjoyed it. Next up will be Part 3, where the battlefield moves from the Moon to Earth, so stay tuned.