Gameverse: Legend of the Eight Firstborn

by Gamewizard2008

Second saga of the Gameverse crossover series. The Dark Master has returned, and his armies are ready. The Kids Next Door and all their allies must work together and find the Eight Firstborn Spirits before they do. The journey begins...

2. Declaration of Intent: The 2030 Saga

This collection of stories were written by Depthcharge2030, and takes place before the start of the Gameverse. It introduces Nolan York, who will become a major character for the Firstborn Saga and the rest of the Gameverse. Almost every new character in this story was created by Depth, but you don't have to memorize them as they won't appear as frequently as Nolan. However, if you like these characters, Depthcharge has a gallery of other stories that don't connect to the Gameverse. You can find them on FanFiction Net.

Keep in mind that these stories were written in 2011, so they may not reflect Depth's current writing level. That said, I have made grammatical edits to this story, so this will be a more updated version of the story regardless.

CRUTCH

It never seemed to matter. You heard stories about it, but you never thought twice about it. It seemed so far off you completely forgot about it. You live your childhood defending all of kid kind from bullies, adults, and teenagers. Then you are suddenly brought back to the reality of life. And that reality is…

You can't stay a kid forever.

- A page from Numbuh 378's private journal.

88888

Nolan York sat in the back seat of his mother's car. He stared out the window to watch the many different cars drive by his. He and his mother were on their way to their new house in Rhode Island.

The eight-year-old turned his attention away from the window and to a box of his things. He rummaged through his things and pulled out a photo album. Nolan flipped through the pages 'til he came to a picture of himself and both of his parents.

His actions did not go unnoticed by his mother. "Nolan, put that away." she said in a sorrowful tone.

Nolan obeyed his mom's request. He set the album back into the box. He returned to looking out the window.

"Now Nolan," his mother began, "I know how hard this is, but promise me that you'll adjust to our new home okay."

"Yes, Mom." Nolan answered.

It wasn't too long before they reached their new home in Quahog. Nolan got out of the car to see a ball fly over his head and hit the car. Nolan picked up the ball and looked around to see that it came from the playground across the street.

"Hey, kid!" someone yelled.

Nolan turned around to see a small group of kids who appeared to be his age. They had baseball gloves and bats.

"Can you give us back our ball?" the same kid yelled.

"Sure." Nolan mumbled as he threw the ball to the kids.

"Thanks!" With that, the kids returned to their game of baseball. Nolan watched as they played. He took a few items out of his box and ran towards his mom.

"Hey, Mom."

Nolan's mother had just got done moving a few boxes out of the back of the car. "Yes, honey?"

"Can I go play with those kids?"

"Sure, why not."

Nolan smiled and ran off towards the group of kids. "Aaaaahhhhh!" Until screams deviated his attention. From their direction, the group of kids were being sucked into a miniature tornado from one side and flung out the other side.

The tornado began to shrink and reveal a thirteen-year-old wearing a purple hoodie with a picture of a tornado. "Ha ha! No one eggs Teen Tornado's house and gets away with it!" the teen laughed as he created a small tornado and sent it towards the disoriented kids.

Teen Tornado returned to laughing maniacally as he created more miniature tornados to strike the kids. Nolan walked up to him and tugged on his sweater. "Excuse me, sir, but I don't think you should be hurting them." Nolan said, still holding onto some of his items.

The teen looked down at him with a sneer. He simply kicked Nolan aside and said, "Get away from me, kid. You bug me."

Nolan landed face-first onto a small patch of dirt. He got up and tried his best to keep himself from crying. He picked up his baseball bat and charged towards the villain.

Teen Tornado sent another kid flying when he took notice of Nolan. "Oh, look, a hero." He sent two small tornados at Nolan.

Nolan was again thrown away by the whirlwinds, which vanished after impact, and into a tree. The villain cackled as he caused more havoc to the playground. "Well, I guess that's enough mayhem and destruction for one da-" Tornado stopped his sentence to cover his ears. A loud harmonic tone caused everyone to wince in pain.

Tornado was now frantically trying to find the source of the sound. He was about to send out a wave of miniature whirlwinds, but a wave of pre-chewed gum stuck his arms together. The sound came to a halt and the kids nearby removed their hands from their ears.

Tornado glared at where the shots came from. Nolan stuck his head out of the tree to see a trio of twelve-year-olds. "So, you three decided to show up, huh?" Tornado asked. "But in all honesty… it wouldn't be a party without you guys."

"Sector Q…kick his aft."

88888

No matter what you do…no matter what you've done…you can't stop time. For as long as I remember it was just me and my friends fighting for the greater good of all kid kind…and now I am repaid for my services by getting my memories erased…I just got to say…

Life sucks…

-A page from Numbuh 134's private journal.

88888

Two of the three kids charged at Teen Tornado, who began to spin around, sending a powerful blow of wind to crash into the operatives. The two were sent flying into various objects.

"Seriously, Numbuh 1772. every time we fight this guy, you order us to run straight ahead… I believe the tenth time won't work either." said one of the operatives, who was currently lodged in a trashcan.

"Numbuh 414, do you always have to talk when we're fighting a villain?" asked the operative still standing.

"Hey, if we go out, we go out talkin', right?"

"That doesn't make sense!"

"Uh, guys, Double-T is heading our way!" said the op who was lodged in the same tree as Nolan.

Teen Tornado leapt into the air and began to vibrate his arms. His arms eventually broke free from the gum and he produced another powerful gust of wind that flew straight towards Numbuh 1772. He was blown into the trashcan Numbuh 414 was in.

"You three never learn, do you?" Tornado said upon landing. "You guys couldn't beat me even when you had that chatterboxes' older sister on your side." He laughed as he sent the trashcan flying with 414 in it.

In the tree, Numbuh 112-Q and Nolan were watching as Teen Tornado played kick-the-can with 414. "Are you going to help them?" Nolan asked the gauntlet-wearing operative.

"I'm waiting for an opening." Numbuh 112-Q said as he pushed a few buttons on his gauntlet. Nolan looked over to the two operatives who were getting flung around like ragdolls.

"This is nuts." Numbuh 414 said as he and 1772 hid behind a tree.

"I know, man… Wait, he uses wind as a weapon, right?" 1772 asked while he reloaded his G.U.M.M.E.R..

"Yes…"

"Oh, crap!" they both yelled simultaneously as a gust of wind cut part of the tree off. Both operatives withdrew their respective side arms and started shooting. Tornado dodged the oncoming hail of mustard and pre-chewed gum and created another miniature tornado. It sucked in both of the operatives and flung them towards Nolan's house.

"You said you're waiting for an opening, right?" Nolan asked 112-Q, who nodded. "I'll give you an opening." Nolan jumped out of the tree, baseball bat in hand, and ran at the distracted Teen Tornado.

The teen sent a gust of wind at the downed duo, sending 1772 into the side of Nolan's house. Numbuh 414 got up and took out his M.U.S.K.E.T.s, shooting at Tornado, but he simply created another whirlwind that took the shots. Nolan jumped up full intentions to smack Teen Tornado on the side of his head. Nolan's actions didn't go unnoticed; Tornado side-stepped, then turned around to deliver a kick to Nolan's back. Nolan fell face-first into the grass as his baseball bat rolled away.

Numbuh 1772 pulled himself up and yelled, "Numbuh 112-Q, let's end this!"

With that, 112-Q finished calibrating his gauntlets and dropped down from the tree, letting his palms hit the ground creating a shockwave. The shockwave sent both Teen Tornado and Nolan flying high up into the sky. Tornado landed on his back while Nolan landed on 1772. Numbuh 414 ran beside Teen Tornado and put his foot on his chest, aiming his M.U.S.K.E.T at his forehead.

"If you move, I'll put one in your head." Numbuh 414 threatened.

Numbuh 112-Q ran over to 1772 and Nolan and helped them up. "You two alright?"

"We could be better." answered 1772. "Go check on the other kids. They were sent on a loop as well."

112-Q did as he was told and went to check on the other kids.

"Hey, kid." 1772 turned to Nolan.

"Yes, sir."

"You're crazier than Numbuh 414 over there." he said, pointing to the operative who currently held two M.U.S.K.E.T.s to Teen Tornado's forehead.

"Should I take that as a compliment, sir?"

"Wow, you don't get out much, do you?"

"I do, I just moved here, sir."

"Can I ask you something, kid?" Numbuh 1772 said, putting away his G.U.M.M.E.R..

"Yes, sir."

"Why do you say 'sir,' I ain't no adult."

"I was told by my dad to always say sir, sir." Nolan answered, staring at the ground.

"What, was your dad a marine?"

"…Yes." There was a small moment of silence. It lasted until Numbuh 112-Q returned.

"Hey, Numbuh 1772, none of the kids have any serious injuries, just a few scrapes and bruises. Nothing their mommies can't fix."

"Alright then, call in someone to haul Double-T out of here."

"Will do."

"You have the right to keep your mouth shut; everything you say will and won't help you at all." 414 said as he slapped some handcuffs on Teen Tornado.

"You know your sister was always more flexible with her plans, but you three…you relied on an eight-year-old to help-" Teen Tornado was cut off when 414 socked him in the face. "Ooh…I see…touchy subject."

"Numbuh 112-Q, when will the J.A.I.L.E.R. show up? I want this piece of filth out of my sight."

"They'll be here soon." 112-Q reassured.

…

After a while, a KND J.A.I.L.E.R. arrived and carted away Teen Tornado, leaving Sector Q to clean the mess that was caused. "Hey, Edward?" 414 asked Numbuh 112-Q as he picked up the trash an.

"Yes, Dillon?" 112-Q responded while picking up garbage.

"Who's the kid?" Numbuh 414, Dillon, asked pointing to Nolan, who was helping with the park clean-up.

"Oh, that's the kid who was in the tree with me." Numbuh 112-Q, Edward, said putting the trash in the can.

"So, what's he doing here then?" Dillon replied, putting the can's lid on.

"Helping, apparently… He's certainly helping us enough." Edward said with a smile.

"Okay, since when has anyone helped us?"

"Just a couple minutes ago, that kid acted as a distraction."

"Remind me to look on that video monitor later, I need to see that."

"So, you're new to Rhode Island?" Numbuh 1772 asked Nolan.

"Yes, sir." Nolan answered, picking up some debris.

"You could stop calling me sir, I ain't an old man now, am I?" the operative emphasized.

"No, you are not…um, what is your name?" Nolan questioned.

"Kids in the KND call me Numbuh 1772, but my friends over there," he pointed to Dillon and Edward who waved, "call me by my name, Mario."

"Can I call you by your name?"

"Sure, Kid… can I ask yours?"

"My name is Nolan, sir."

"What did I just say?"

88888

I still don't know why Numbuh 378 had us write these… but I know why we still write them. Out of respect for Dillon's sister, I sit here writing my decommissioning note. I have lived my wildest dreams, I have been in space, I have fought the worst of the worst, and I even got to ride a moose. I can only say one thing…

These were the best years of my life.

-A page from Numbuh 112-Q's private journal.

88888

The J.A.I.L.E.R. came crashing down to the surface of the earth. All that was left of it was smoldering slag. The pilots were knocked out cold allowing the 2x4 ship to meet its end. Teen Tornado burst out of the ruble and inhaled the cool night air.

"Oh, it's good to stretch." the villain said, exhaling. He then turned to see a hovering Rainbow Monkey parade float. "I was wondering when you'd show up."

One week later

Nolan was currently fiddling around with Edward's P.I.P.E.R. gauntlets. It was September 23; three days after Edward turned thirteen. He had given Nolan permission to see how his P.I.P.E.R. worked prior to his decommissioning. After Edward's decommissioning, Mario began treating Nolan as if he was a part of the team. Dillon was a bit more distant, but that was to be expected.

"Working on the P.I.P.E.R.?" Mario asked as he entered the meeting room of Sector Q.

"Yep." Nolan answered, taking the batteries out of the gauntlets.

"You know, Nolan, if you ever want to join the KND, you could just ask." Mario said, handing Nolan a soda.

"You mean going to that Arctic Prison you and Dillon were talking about, no thanks." Nolan opened his soda and took a sip.

Mario shook his head. He knew Nolan for only a week, but the kid was exceptional at sneaking around. "Your mother even know you're here?"

"Yes, I told her I was hanging out with some friends from school." Nolan said, pulling out a pair of tweezers.

"Well, you told her you are hanging out with friends, so she shouldn't be worried." Just then, the door of the meeting room slid open and Dillon walked in.

"Hey, guys." Dillon greeted, walking towards the mini fridge.

"Hey, Numbuh 414." Mario returned, handing Nolan a screwdriver. "Tough day at school?"

"No." Dillon took a seat on the couch. "My sister has been gone for, like, two days… I'm worried."

"That sucks." was Mario's response.

"Well, Mario, unlike your sister, mine has advanced KND training!"

"I know, Numbuh 414, but yelling at your leader won't solve anything!" Mario argued, putting his hands up defensively.

Dillon looked to the floor and took in a deep breath. "I know, man, I'm just kind of freaked out; first my sister, then Koda, and now Edward… dude, I'm next."

Nolan looked to Dillon. He didn't see a maniac with weapons, but a scared child… It reminded him of how he reacted when he heard the news.

"It'll be alright, Dillon, you still got a month." Mario reassured his friend.

Dillon took a sip of soda and sat in silence. Nolan went back to working on the P.I.P.E.R. before they all heard a loud BANG, shaking the treehouse.

"Stay here!" Mario told Nolan as he and Dillon grabbed their 2x4 weapons and raced to the source.

Nolan went back to working on the P.I.P.E.R. as more loud noises occurred. Nolan got up from where he was seated as Dillon was thrown through the meeting room's metal doors. Dillon landed in the room's T.V., breaking it. Nolan peered through hole in the door to see Teen Tornado throw Mario against a wall.

"You know… I thought you two would be more of a challenge." Tornado picked up Mario and threw him through the hole. "Especially in your own home!"

Mario landed in the T.V. as well, both operatives groaning in pain as the side of the meeting room collapsed. Teen Ninjas then flew into the room and surrounded Nolan and the operatives.

Outside, the Rainbow Monkey parade float rammed into the treehouse, breaking parts of it off. The float lowered a ramp into the room. As soon as it lowered, a girl wearing a prom dress walked down it, flanked by two heavily armed teens. "You did good, honey." she said as she blew a kiss to Teen Tornado.

"I aim to please my queen, Prom Queen." Teen Tornado smirked.

Prom Queen walked over to the downed operatives and stomped on them both. Both operatives groaned in pain. "You two are supposed to protect kids, aren't you?" Prom Queen asked the operatives as she snapped her fingers. Two Teen Ninjas walked over, dragging Nolan along. "Then protect him!"

The teens pushed Nolan to the ground and proceeded to kick him repeatedly. Mario tried to get up, but was kicked back down by Prom Queen. "The Kids Next Door have been a thorn in our side for too long… and now you have brought the unaffiliated into this." She snapped her fingers again, signaling the teens to stop. "So, now you have forced my hand… I challenge you both to a test: save this kid by midnight or he dies."

The teens all began to get on the parade float. "We'll stop you!" Dillon yelled as he tried to get up, but was punched back down by Teen Tornado.

"You can't stop me if you're dead." With that, Tornado grabbed onto Prom Queen and flew them onto the parade float. It flew to a safe distance and shot the treehouse, causing it to collapse.

88888

It wasn't like we were given a choice… we signed up to help kids…not leave them in the hands of some psycho, prom obsessed, pink wearing cretin. We gave our best and we saved Nolan…

…but at the cost of my memories.

-A page from Numbuh 1772's private journal.

Three hours later

Numbuh 1772 sat on the remains of a C.O.O.L.B.U.S. as his teammate, Numbuh 414, went rummaging through the scattered wreck that used to be their treehouse. "You know this could go faster if you helped me!" Dillon said as he threw pieces of metal and lumber around in hopes of finding a working 2x4 vehicle.

"Who knew you cared about Nolan." Mario said sarcastically.

"Hey, I signed up to help all of kid kind, Mario, and that includes Nolan." Dillon argued, throwing his finger at his teammate.

"That's what we both signed up for, Dillon… and if we're going to save Nolan, I advise we search for any working 2x4 tech we still have available." Mario said, getting up from where he was seated.

"What do you think I've been doing for the last hour?"

"Just follow me."

…

The parade float landed outside of James Woods Regional High School. The teens barged their way into the school, with Nolan in tow. They soon came to a supply closet and threw Nolan into it. He could only sit in the dark closet holding his stomach. It was going to be a long night.

…

"Seriously, Mario," Dillon said, kicking a nail that was on the floor, "there is nothing here!"

"Besides the amount of wreckage and this shed." Mario corrected.

Dillon rolled his eyes at his friend's witty remark. "So, there's still nothing usable!"

"Oh, but you are wrong, my friend." Mario said as he opened the door to the shed.

Dillon looked into the shed and immediately reacted, "Dude, we have done some crazy crap before… but this takes the cake."

"Shut up and grab a side arm!"

…

"So, my dear, the…the… What's another word for twelve p.m.?" Prom Queen slapped Teen Tornado upside the head.

"Why I keep you around, I will never know." Prom Queen face-palmed.

"It's because you like redheads." Tornado said as he gave her a peck on the cheek, prompting a blush from the queen.

"Whatever. Go and order the generic henchmen around!"

"Yes, dear."

…

"So you're telling me this M.U.S.K.E.T.R.I.F.L.E. can knock a guy out with one shot to the face?" Dillon asked while he inspected the weapon in question.

"Yes, now get on!" Mario ordered. Dillon got onto the back of the G.A.R.G.O.C.Y.C.L.E..

"By the way, if we die, I just want to say…I always pictured myself dying because of your crappy orders."

"Oh, shut up and hold on." With that, they took off into the night sky

…

The two Teen ninjas guarding the supply closet were working on their homework. "Hey Joe?" asked the teen with a mohawk.

"Yes, Steve?" replied the teen with piercings.

"What are the names of the Seven Deadly Sins?"

"Hm…well, there's Gluttony, Greed, Sloth… Lust, Pride, Envy, and…and…gee, Steve, I don't know the other one!"

Just then, the supply closet blew open and Nolan walked out with a broom. "The sin you're asking for is WRATH!" With that, Nolan leapt toward the teens.

…

Mario flew the G.A.R.G.O.C.Y.C.L.E. as fast as he could while Dillon held on for dear life.

"Like I said, this is the craziest thing we've done ever!"

As soon as they got close to the school, the teens began shooting. One stray laser hit the left thruster of the G.A.R.G.O.C.Y.C.L.E., causing it to crash. The two operatives got on their feet to see Teen Tornado leading about fifty teens.

"Surrender, pipsqueaks, and we'll hang you guys by your undies!"

Mario and Dillon gave each other a side glance and raised their weapons. "First one to take down twenty-five teens gets first crack at Teen Tornado."

"Deal."

…

Prom Queen pointed to the heavily armed teens and ordered, "You two come with me!"

The teens nodded and followed her. They eventually made their way to the supply closet where Nolan was supposed to be, but found his two guards tied up and gagged. "You! Remove the tape!" Prom Queen yelled. Her underling did so. "Tell me what happened!"

"W-Well we, we uh, were doin' our homework, then the kid burst out of the door and hit us with a broom and-"

"You mean to tell me he did this with a broom?!" Prom Queen yelled.

"Ya…yes."

"Leave them. We're going hunting."

"Yes, Your Highness."

…

The duo of operatives fought their way through the horde of teenagers and entered the school. Dillon locked the door behind them. "You know," Mario panted, "that would've gone better if you brought extra ammo."

"Hey," Dillon panted, "you were the one rushing me!"

Mario leaned on a locker and said, "We don't have time to bicker, Numbuh 414." He raised his S.C.A.M.P.P.. "We got a kid to save."

"Nice one-liner, but we're out of ammo, genius!"

"I knew that, but we could still use them like clubs."

"Great, we're hand-to-hand with these crud munchers." Dillon said with distain.

"Shut up and let's get going!" The two operatives raced down the hall, but came to a fork in the road. "If we split up, we could cover more ground."

"Watch your back then." With that, the two went their separate ways.

…

"Tornado, what's your status?" Prom Queen said into her communicator.

"Those Sector Q chumps fought past our outer defenses and are currently inside the school, babe." Tornado responded.

"Then get in here and take care of them, the little runt got away!"

"Don't worry, babe, I'll take care of them, you just worry about the rug rat." With that, Teen Tornado cut the call.

"Alright, you two, do you like me when I'm mad?" she asked her associates. They shook their heads. "Then find him or I'll have your butts on a platter!" The teenagers nodded and took off in different directions. "Ugh, it is so hard to find good help these days."

…

Nolan had been running through the halls for what seemed to be forever. He had run into about three teens and had to fight them, but had thankfully come out victorious. He just had one thing on his mind: It can't get any worse.

"Hey, you!"

Nolan turned around to see a heavily armed teen cock his laser rifle. "Crap!"

The teen began to shoot at Nolan, who was able to dodge the shots. "Hold still!"

When Nolan was close enough, he jumped high into the air and came down with his broom hitting the teen on the top of his head. The teen dropped his weapon and staggered back. Nolan delivered a few blows to the side of the teen, then finished him off with a swift blow to the nose. The teen dropped out cold. "Well…that…was…easy." Nolan said in between pants. He went back to running down the hall.

…

Mario opened the doors to the school's gymnasium to find Teen Tornado waiting for him. "So, this is it then, Numbuh 1772, the two of us locked in mortal combat, two excellent fighters standing in the way of the other's path, and I shall be the-" Teen Tornado was shot back by Mario.

"Well, there was the last of my S.C.A.M.P.P.." Mario discarded his weapon and took out his G.U.M.M.E.R..

"Ready?" Teen Tornado asked.

"Ready."

…

Dillon kicked open the doors to the cafeteria to find ten teens eating dinner. Dillon raised his M.U.S.K.E.T.R.I.F.L.E. and rushed the teens from behind. The first teen he knocked out easily. The second one threw his dinner at Dillon, who easily dodged it and smacked the teen with the butt of his gun. The rest of the teens drew their weapons and began to shoot at Dillon.

Dillon took cover underneath a table. He took out his M.U.S.K.E.T. sidearm and started shooting at the teens from under the table. The third and fourth teens fell easily, while the other six jumped under tables. Dillon made short work out of them after they tried to take pot shots at him.

Dillon stuck his head out of the table to see if anyone was still twitching. Dillon then got out from beneath the table and ran out of the cafeteria.

Nolan delivered a swift kick to the teen's jaw, knocking him out on the spot. He then ran down the hall and opened the door to have Dillon run into him.

"Dang it, Nolan, watch where you're—holy crap, Nolan, it's you, how'd you escape?!" Dillon asked.

"No time, we got to get out of here! Any ideas?"

"Yeah, my sister goes to this school, we can cut through the gym." With that Dillon took off followed closely behind by Nolan.

…

Mario was thrown against the wall by another powerful blast of wind. He groaned when he hit the floor. "You know, I thought you alone could have caused me problems." Tornado laughed as he sent two whirlwinds at Mario. Mario evaded them and grabbed his weapon. He raised it to eye level and fired a few shots at Teen Tornado, who merely blew the wads of gum aside. "Like seriously, you're a sector leader and yet you fight like that Numbuh 414 character."

Mario took the opportunity to shoot Tornado in the face. Tornado was pushed back by the blow and sent the wind to the ceiling causing it to crack exponentially. "You talk too much."

"I'm sure I hit a nerve there."

The gym doors opened and Nolan and Dillon rushed in. The same thing happened on the other side with Prom Queen and the teens.

At that moment the ceiling gave way causing it to fall on the two combatants below. "MARIO!"

Kids Next Door Medical Facility: two hours later

Dillon and Nolan sat outside the operation room waiting for their friend. It had been an entire hour since they arrived. Both of them sat in silence until the operating room opened and Numbuh 5CC came out. "Numbuh 414, if you'd come here, I need to talk to you in private." the doctor said in a sorrow tone.

"Yes, Doctor."

"I'm sorry, but his injuries are too extensive. We…we're left with no alternative but to decommission him."

Those words struck Dillon like a sack of nails. "What do you mean you have to decommission him?"

"Like I said, Numbuh 414, his injuries are too extensive. He'll heal eventually… but that won't be until he's turned at least fourteen."

No one said anything. A squad of Decommissioning Operatives soon arrived and carted the unconscious form of Mario away. Both Nolan and Dillon said nothing for a while. Numbuh 5CC then returned to the operating room to work on the next patient.

"Hey, Nolan?" Dillon turned to face him.

"Yes, Dillon?"

"Do you want to get back at the scum suckers who did that to Mario?"

"More than you know."

"How would you like to join the Kids Next Door?"

…

As much as I'd like to skip out on this thing…it wouldn't be fair to them, would it? I know what's going to happen…and I'm not looking forward to it. But you know that saying 'act your age'?

That saying can go to hell.

-A page from Numbuh 414's private journal.

One month later

It had been over a month since Nolan had moved to Quahog, Rhode Island. Ever since Dillon offered him the chance to join the Kids Next Door, he has been at the Arctic Training Facility as a member of the Cadets Next Door. Nolan and the rest of the cadets have passed with flying colors, and are now going to attend their graduation ceremony.

Nolan looked out the window of the C.O.O.L.B.U.S. and into the darkness of space. He had to admit there was something appealing about space. "Hey, Nolan?" The kid sitting next to him caught his attention.

"Yes, Doug?"

"Do you see the Moonbase out there?"

Nolan smirked at his friend's question and said, "Just look in front of you."

Doug did as he was told; he went wide-eyed when he saw the Moonbase as did some of the other cadets.

"Dude, can you believe it!" Doug practically screamed.

"Yes, Doug, I can believe it, but will you be quiet, you're going to shatter my eardrums."

"I thought in space, no one could hear you scream?"

"I'd beg to differ."

The C.O.O.L.B.U.S. soon arrived in Landing Bay 23. The Cadets were led by their drill instructor off the 2x4 ship and into a hallway. Nolan was at the back of the line taking in the sight of the Moonbase until he saw someone familiar. It was Numbuh 414, who was flanked by two S.C.A.M.P.P.-wielding operatives. Nolan snuck away from the other cadets and ran over to Dillon.

"Dillon, you son of a pretzel rod!" Nolan beamed.

"Oh…hey, Nolan, what are you doing here?" Dillon was genially surprised to see him.

"I'm here for Cadets Next Door graduation… Did you come to see me graduate?"

"Well, actually, I'm here for some mandatory hullabaloo; but hey, my friend's graduating, so yeah, I'll go and see you graduate, okay?" Dillon said, noticing the duo behind him motion for him to walk. "Hey, Nolan, if it's alright with you, can we continue this conversation back at Sector Q?"

"Sure!" With that, Nolan ran off to rejoin the rest of the cadets.

"You shouldn't have lied to him." the guard on the left said.

"Hey, are you here to decommission me or are you here to give me an eight page lecture?" Dillon asked sarcastically.

"Just get walking, birthday boy!"

…

"My fellow Kids Next Door, it gives me great pleasure to welcome you all to Cadets Next Door Graduation!" Numbuh 100 announced, causing the crowd to cheer and applaud.

After a small speech, courtesy of the Supreme Leader, the cadets went one by one to enter their genetic material (by which we mean boogers) into the C.O.D.E.M.O.D.U.L.E.. "Will Doug Murphy please step forward?" Doug practically ran to Numbuh 100. "Doug, do you swear to fight adult tyranny without pause, without fail, and without rest except for cookie breaks?"

"I do, sir!" Doug saluted.

"Very well, you may now insert your genetic material into the C.O.D.E.M.O.D.U.L.E. and register with the Super Incredibly Big Computermabob!"

Nolan smiled as his friend stuck his booger into the C.O.D.E.M.O.D.U.L.E. and became Numbuh 59.

…

Dillon walked into the decommissioning room fully prepared for what was about to happen. The guard to his right motioned for him to sit in the first seat. Dillon sat down and the guards buckled him in.

"Hello, I am Numbuh 501 and I will be your decommissioner today." A girl with a British accent said over the intercom "As you can see, there are no exits and you are about to have your memories erased, please hold your questions 'til after your decommissioning and have a nice day."

With that, a television screen lowered in front of Dillon. The T.V. turned on, a plunger came out, and stuck itself upon Dillon's face to suck out his memories.

…

"Without further ado, I give you Nolan York." The crowd cheered once more. "Nolan, do you swear to battle adult tyranny without pause, without fail, and without rest except for cookie breaks?"

"Cross my heart and hope to be decommissioned, sir." Nolan said with joy.

"Very well, you may now insert your genetic material into the C.O.D.E.M.O.D.U.L.E. and register with the Super Incredibly Big Computermabob!"

Nolan plucked a booger out of his nose and stuck it in the C.O.D.E.M.O.D.U.L.E.. "Now what Numbuh would you like to be?" Numbuh 100 asked.

"Numbuh 2030, sir!"

"Then Numbuh 2030 you are." The crowd of active operatives cheered and applauded.

Nolan smiled at the crowd and proclaimed, "This is the happiest day of my life!"

This next portion was written by myself, taking place in-between chapters.

Another Friend Lost

It was a peaceful summer's day in Quahog, Rhode Island. Just recently, Nolan York had joined the KND, and was Numbuh 2030. He should be excited… but he wasn't. He recently had to watch several of his friends' decommissionings, the most important one being Dillon's.

Of all the friends he had, Nolan felt the closest to him. Nolan felt that he and Dillon had that kind of friendship that would last forever, and even "transcend lifetimes" if what that crud on TV says is true. But as any operative would know, such a thing was impossible in the KND. They were all doomed to become crazy, disgusting teenagers, forced to live the rest of their lives without the memories of those who were closest to them.

Now, Dillon was a teenager, and they were forced to be enemies. Nolan then shot a look of disgust as he noticed the teen himself loitering by a stop sign, nodding his head up and down to some music in his headphones.

"Stupid teenagers…" Nolan mumbled, walking by his former friend, then stopping. "WHY DOES IT HAVE TO BE THIS WAY?!"

Dillon stopped nodding to his music and shot a glance to him.

Nolan sighed and said, "Oh, what's the point? We're all gonna turn into them someday. You can't be young forever. What's the point of fighting adult tyranny when we're only going to turn into them, anyway? I should just give up now."

"Come on, Nolan. That's not how an operative talks."

Nolan immediately shot his head up and turned at the teenager. "Y…You-"

Dillon took off his headphones and faced the child. "Now, where's that kid that was all excited to be an operative?"

"But… that's impossible! You were decommissioned! I saw you!"

"I was PRETENDED to be decommissioned! I'm not supposed to tell you this, but certain operatives who are trustworthy and good enough are chosen to join the higher ranks, called the Teens Next Door, where we infiltrate and spy on teen and adult facilities to retrieve information for KND Global Command."

"So… you remembered me all along?"

"Mm-hm. I couldn't say anything without risking blowing my cover. But after that, well, I had to speak. Listen, Nolan, I know decommissioning's a sad thing, but the truth is, it's just like death. You can't avoid death, and you can't avoid growing up. That's why people enjoy their lives, and kids enjoy their childhoods while they last. But just because people die or grow up, it doesn't always mean their friendships die, too. If a friendship is strong enough, it can survive. And that's why our friendship will live on, even if we're both decommissioned."

"It will?"

Dillon smiled. "Count on it."

Nolan smiled as well, feeling a sudden sense of relief. He jumped and high-fived with his friend.

"Well, I better get home. Teen or not, I still have chores." He said, walking across the street.

"Hey! Let's hang out sometime!"

"I'll make time for that!"

"…?!" Nolan's joy became dread. A bus was swerving uncontrollably. "DUDE, WATCH OUT!"

"Huh?" Dillon turned… and froze at the oncoming bus. He had no time to react.

The bus plowed right over him and crashed into an unsuspecting house. Cleveland Brown slid down the tilting floor in his bathtub. "What the hell?! No no no no NO NO!" He crashed. "The author's gotta get tired of this gag eventually!"

Nolan raced to his friend after the impact, tears in his eyes. "Dillon! Are you okay?!"

"Er…Nolan?" Dillon spoke feebly.

"Yeah?"

"Uh…buses…suck." His eyes closed. Nolan felt around for a heartbeat or a pulse.

"D-Dillon?" He desperately searched for any signs of life still in him. Nothing. "No!"

The bus driver ran over with a horrified expression. "Oh no! I-I'm sorry! The bus went out of control, I-I couldn't drive-"

Nolan couldn't have been more enraged. "GO AWAY! I DON'T EVER WANNA SEE YOUR FACE AGAIN!"

"I don't blame you. The fault is all mine. I'll go now." With that, the bus driver walked away, leaving Nolan to cry over his friend.

After going behind a house, the driver smirked and rubbed his face: his body transformed into that of a slim woman with black hair, rose red lips, and a red jumpsuit. The woman took out a communicator and said in a French accent, "Madame Rouge to Brain: mission accomplished."

"Excellent work, my top operative. With his closest friend gone, he will slowly be destroyed on the inside. He is one step closer to his destiny."

"I am still not used to having children in our group. But understood. I look forward to seeing how this vorks." With that, she hung up and turned to look at the crying child. "So, as it is promised: you vill never see my bus-driver face again!"

This next chapter takes place two years after "Crutch" and about one year before the beginning of the KND show.

AGENDA

"I still don't know why you want me for this mission, sir?" the blonde said, skeptic of her superior's orders.

Numbuh 274 shuffled in his seat and said, "Because you're the logical choice."

"Can you at least tell me what these specialists are like?"

"Trust me, my opinion won't matter." Numbuh 274 handed her a file with the letter "Q" on it.

Numbuh 362 opened the folder and read its contents. "Well…I can't say they aren't pencil pushers."

"Yeah, they aren't." Numbuh 274 deadpanned. "You're dismissed."

Numbuh 362 walked out of the office while reading the contents of the file. Definitely not pencil pushers. she thought as she looked at a picture with five kids standing on a pile of unconscious teenagers.

Quahog

A flying Rainbow Monkey parade float raced through Quahog's night sky followed by a helicopter-styled 2x4 tech ship.

"Do those kids even sleep?" Teen Tornado asked.

Prom Queen ignored her boyfriend's remark. "Steve, bring the gun around!"

Steve and Joe moved a giant laser cannon behind the parade float and aimed it at the oncoming helicopter.

"FIRE!" Prom Queen screamed at the top of her lungs.

The two grunts pulled the trigger, causing a volley of laser blasts to erupt from the cannon and soar towards the helicopter. The 2x4 vehicle turned to its side, dodging the shots. The duo of not-so-generic teens repositioned the laser cannon and fired again. The helicopter dodged the wave of laser fire and deployed its own weapon systems and a hail of mustard was shot toward the parade float.

The hail of mustard clogged the parade float's rear engines, causing the float to descend to the ground below. The float crashed in a park, destroying the playground in the process. The teens pulled themselves out of the wreckage and looked up into the night sky to see the helicopter hover above them.

"Tornado, take them down!" Prom Queen commanded.

Teen Tornado sent a powerful gust of wind towards the helicopter, making it spin and fall to the ground. The helicopter crashed into a nearby tree. The five occupants jumped out of their vessel and onto the ground in front of the teens.

"Was this part of the plan?" asked a kid with the number 58 drawn on her helmet.

"We show up, shoot, and leave, the less coherent the better." The kid with a 59 written on duct tape said, raising his S.C.A.M.P.P..

The five kids ran off into separate directions, leaving the teens confused. Numbuh 99 jumped out of a bush and knocked out a teen by hitting him on the back of the head. Another teen charged at Numbuh 99, who side-stepped causing the teen to run in front of Numbuh 91, who had a S.P.L.A.N.K.E.R.. The teen was sent backwards by the force of the 2x4 weapon. Both operatives high-fived one another before running off towards some other teens.

Numbuh 59 shot three teens with his S.C.A.M.P.P. before being forced to go to hand-to-hand combat. Numbuh 58 jumped on the back of the teen 59 was fighting and shot him in the face with her S.P.I.C.E.R.. The teen then proceeded to run around screaming, "AAAAHH! IT BURNS! IT BURNS!"

"Thanks Gwen, Ah owe you one." Numbuh 59 said with a smile.

"Don't get used to me bailing you out, Doug." she said, returning the smile.

On the other side of the park, Prom Queen, Teen Tornado, Joe and Steve were watching their comrades' get their butts handed to them. "You'd think they'd be tired of chasing us around?" Steve said, keeping his eyes on the fighting.

"Yeah… what'd we do to these kids to make them hate us so much?" Joe asked before getting slapped on the back of his head. "Ouch! What was that for?"

"For being an incompetent doofus, that's what!" Prom Queen said as she retracted her arm. "I swear if I knew this kid would be this persistent, we would have made good with our word those years… ago." The four teens turned around as soon as they noticed the kid with the number 2030 standing behind them.

"Yeah, should've, could've, would've, but you didn't." Numbuh 2030 said as he took out two modified M.U.S.S.K.E.T.s and blasted Joe and Steve in the face, knocking them out.

Teen Tornado sent a powerful gust of wind towards Numbuh 2030, who easily dodged by leaping into the air and shot downwards. The concussive mustard blasts made contact, making Teen Tornado drop to the ground. Prom Queen reached for her laser gun and aimed at the operative. She let out four shots, missing the first three times, but the fourth made contact sending 2030 to the ground. The sector leader tried to get on his feet, but was kicked in the jaw by Prom Queen.

"For some reason, this seems awfully familiar." Prom Queen said as she delivered another kick to the operative. "Maybe it's the same situation those two other runts were in when we captured you?" she inquired, stomping on him. "I do believe one of them is a cripple now, isn't he?"

Prom Queen took out her staff-like weapon and smacked Numbuh 2030 with it. "I heard the other one isn't any better… you know, the whole being roadkill thing, huh?"

That did it.

Prom Queen brought her staff down, but stopped when it made contact. She tried to bring it back up, but saw Numbuh 2030 holding onto the other end. He took out another one of his modified M.U.S.K.E.T.s and shot Prom Queen point-blank in the face. Prom Queen fell back unconscious as Teen Tornado got back up. "You little brat, I'll make you regret ever being-!"

"You talk too much." Numbuh 2030 cut Tornado off. The kid pulled out another 2x4 weapon, pulling the trigger. The weapon fired a M.A.R.B.L.E. at Tornado, exploding on impact. Teen Tornado flew across the park and landed in the sandbox. He then began to babble like a baby.

The fighting stopped after a few minutes, after the non-unconscious teens fled. The operatives gathered the teens and tied them up before a KND J.A.I.L.E.R. arrived and hauled them away. The five operatives gathered by the tree where they had crashed into a bit earlier.

"Should we get the M.A.T.O.R.O. down now or should we wait for tomorrow?" Numbuh 59 asked, scratching his head.

"Nah, we can wait for tomorrow." Numbuh 99 said, rubbing his drowsy eyes. The five operatives then walked out of the park to the house across the street. Numbuh 2030 opened the door and they all entered, heading to his backyard. There, they all entered the treehouse and went to their rooms.

…

Numbuh 362 stood hidden in the shadows. After watching what had occurred, she had no objections having this sector work with her. She left whistling a tune with her hands behind her back as she headed to her S.P.R.A.Y.S.H.I.P.. Now if only Sector V was assigned to me… then it would be a party.

"This is Numbuh 58 of Sector Q asking permission to land, over." Gwen said into the radio.

"I'd say it's good to hear from you guys, but me and Numbuh 20/20 here had a bet on how long it would take you guys to get here, and guess who won?" Numbuh 35 replied.

"So, we good for landing?"

"Oh, yeah sure, head to Landing Bay 12."

"Well, thanks… What kind of fool bets against us?" Gwen asked Doug.

"I heard that Numbuh 58." Numbuh 35 said, sounding irritated.

"Yep, that's because I transmitted it." Gwen deadpanned.

The M.A.T.O.R.O. flew into the landing bay. The occupants then left their 2x4 helicopter and proceeded to Numbuh 274's office. Sector Q entered the Supreme Commander's office, where they found said leader tapping his foot on the floor.

"You're late." The Supreme Leader said, clearly annoyed.

"Sorry, Chad, but have you ever flown a helicopter in space?" Numbuh 2030 replied defensively.

"Then why didn't you use your S.C.A.M.P.E.R. or C.O.O.L.B.U.S.?" Chad rolled his eyes.

"What do you think we used to make the M.A.T.O.R.O.?"

"Mind your lateness. I'd like to introduce you all to Numbuh 362." Chad motioned to the operative standing in the corner.

"Did you notice her when we walked in?" Doug asked Numbuh 99.

"No, and I'm a stealth specialist." Numbuh 99 replied, clearly surprised.

"You all are to assist Numbuh 362 in her investigation… I expect you all to act appropriate. We don't want another fiasco, right, Numbuh 59?" Chad motioned to him in particular.

"Hey, how was I supposed to know she was a princess?" Doug exclaimed.

"Gee, the tiara wasn't a giveaway at all?" Gwen said sarcastically.

"Hey, it was Halloween!" Doug pointed his finger at her.

"Enough!" Chad yelled, startling the duo. "Now Rachel, if you would so kindly inform them of the mission."

"Yes, Numbuh 274, sir." Rachel saluted her superior. "As you all know, the annual science fair is coming up in two days. We have reason to believe a group of KND operatives calling themselves the Splinter Cell are going to steal some of the latest and new 2x4 tech. It is our job to prevent this from happening before the science fair. Any questions?" Rachel turned to Sector Q, whom all had their hands raised. "Yes you, Numbuh 91."

"Why exactly were we chosen for this mission?" the blonde operative asked.

"Mainly for the fact you are all notorious for never going to a single science fair." Rachel pointed out. "Any more questions?"

"No, ma'am!" the operatives chorused simultaneously.

"Alrighty then," Chad said, taking everyone's attention back to him, "everything said here is to remain secret… Understood?"

"Yes, Supreme Leader Numbuh 274, sir!" the operatives all said aloud.

"You're all dismissed." With that, Sector Q left the room.

"How come everyone says your title along with your Numbuh?" Rachel asked.

"Because I'm awesome that way." Chad said with a sly smile. "Didn't I say you were dismissed?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm leaving." Rachel exited the office, closing the door behind her.

Chad then sat down in his chair and lifted his feet atop his desk. He then took out a videogame and started playing.

Kids Next Door: M.A.T.O.R.O.

Mimicked Air Transport Originally Required Ordinance

"Are the teens with us or not?" a hooded figure asked a scientist.

"Um, yes, seeing that our causes are nearly the same, the teens agreed to help us in our endeavor." Numbuh 3.14 said to the hooded figure.

"The listening devices I had Numbuh 80A install in Numbuh 274's office have revealed a thorn in our side."

"No worries, ma'am, this particular group is looking for the 'Splinter Cell,' not us." 3.14 reassured the figure.

"I don't want mere assumptions you clod, have all teens be on alert for Numbuh 362!" The figure screamed into Numbuh 3.14's ear.

"But what of Sector Q, ma'am, surely they shall tip the scales in Numbuh 362's favor?" 3.14 said, rubbing his ear.

"Don't worry, the teens won't need to be told what to do when it comes to that particular sector." the hooded girl replied, walking away.

…

"So, what's our first course of action?" Nolan asked Rachel as the M.A.T.O.R.O. flew through space.

"Well, we have little to no intel on the Splinter Cell, but we do have reason to believe this particular group has had dealings with the teens. We find a teen, we capture him, and then we interrogate." Rachel replied.

"Well, it's a good thing we know a teen who won't be shooting at us any time soon." Nolan said, walking to the front of the M.A.T.O.R.O.

"I assume we're paying a visit to our informant then?" Gwen asked Nolan.

"That is if he isn't busy." Nolan answered, pulling out his H.E.A.D.S.E.T..

"Do we really have to call ahead?" Doug asked.

"Of course we do." Nolan glared at Doug. He put his H.E.A.D.S.E.T. on and tapped the side of it, activating its call settings. "H.E.A.D.S.E.T., call Joker."

"Who's Joker?" Rachel asked Numbuh 99.

"He's our informant… well, Nolan's informant anyway. None of us have ever met the guy, let alone seen what he looks like." Numbuh 99 answered honestly.

"That could be a liability…" Rachel said to herself.

"Joker, it's me." Nolan said into the H.E.A.D.S.E.T.'s mic. The rest of the team heard talking on the other end. "Yeah, do you have any new intel involving the teens?" More talking. "In person then?" Some more. "Don't worry, I'll come alone." Nolan hung up.

"You're going alone to get info from a teen in person?" Rachel asked, disbelieving.

"Don't worry, I'd trust this guy with my life." Nolan assured, pointing to his heart.

Rachel crossed her arms and said, "Fine, but I come with."

"Sorry, I already set up the meet-"

"Then you set it up again." Rachel shot Nolan an 'I won't take no for an answer' look.

"You know only Gwen usually gives me that look." Nolan said, giving his girlfriend a side glance. "But even you freak me out with it."

"So, are you going to rearrange the meeting or not?" Rachel asked, putting her weight on her other leg.

"Yeah, sure." With that Nolan pushed a button on his H.E.A.D.S.E.T.. "Hey, Joker… Yeah I know I just called, but I'm going to have to bring someone along… no, it isn't Gwen… I'll explain when we meet…okay sure, we'll see you man."

"Is it set?" Rachel asked, unfolding her arms.

"Yeah… By the way, we have to stop by a taco stand." Nolan mentioned, walking to the front of the M.A.T.O.R.O..

"Why?" Gwen asked.

Nolan turned to Gwen and said, "Joker wants tacos."

Two hours later

Nolan and Rachel walked to a yellow and blue two-story house, tacos in hand. Nolan rang the doorbell and they both waited for someone to answer. "So, who is this guy exactly?" Rachel asked.

"Joker is an old friend of mine… You could say he's the main reason I joined the KND." Nolan said dryly.

"But he's a teen, how could he-?" Rachel stopped as the door opened. Before them was a fourteen-year-old in a wheelchair.

"You bring the tacos?" the teen asked.

"You know I did." Nolan handed him the bag.

The teen inspected the bag's contents and smiled. "Alright, come in." The two operatives did as told and entered. "Well, welcome to my house. Make yourselves at home."

"It's good to see you, Joker." Nolan said.

"Good to see you, too, Locksmith." the teen said, eating a taco.

Rachel stared at him in familiarity. Where have I seen him before?

"You said something about the teens earlier, what do you know?" Nolan asked.

"Oh yeah, the teens have been going about as they normally do during the day, but their radio chatter has gone up over ten percent. I hacked into one of their chats yesterday and they were talkin' about the annual science fair. They also mentioned something about a few kids, but besides that, that's all I know." he explained in-between taking bites of his current taco.

"Thanks Joker, keep me posted if you get anymore intel." Nolan was about to leave when Rachel stopped him.

"Do you know who that is?!" she practically screamed.

"Yes, and your point is?" Nolan asked dryly.

"He used to be Numbuh 1772." Rachel pointed to Joker, eating his third taco.

"Yeah I know." Nolan replied dismissively, opening the door.

"But how and why?" Rachel was now babbling uncontrollably.

"Well, I would tell you, but you'd probably wind up having to decommission me, so I won't." Nolan walked out the door, followed by Rachel.

Joker then resumed eating his tacos and said, "Decommission… now, why does that word sound familiar?"

M.U.M.B.L.E.R.

M.A.R.B.L.E. Using Machine Busts Lively Enemy Rump

"Ma'am." Numbuh 3.14 called, entering the room.

"Yes, Felix?" the girl said coldly.

Numbuh 3.14 stiffened at her using his first name. No one ever addressed him by his name. "Well…ma'am, one of our spies spotted Numbuhs 362 and 2030 exiting the former Numbuh 1772's house. We have reason to believe Mario's a mole." He shook with fear as he recounted. The hooded girl remained silent as she thought. 3.14 didn't know whether to take it as a miracle or a bad omen.

"Well, it seems we should handle this mole, shouldn't we?" the girl tossed him a 2x4 weapon.

"What am I supposed to do with this?" Numbuh 3.14 looked down at the 2x4 weapon; it wasn't one he was familiar with.

"Use your imagination." she said, waving 3.14 away. As he left, the girl removed her voice synthesizer. "God that thing hurts afterwards." she said in a British accent as she rubbed her neck.

…

"Okay, this is what we know so far." Rachel said, taking a black marker and writing things on a whiteboard. "We only know that the Splinter Cell aims to steal all of the new 2x4 weaponry that will be present at the annual science fair."

"We also know, thanks to Joker, that the local teens and not-so-local teens have joined forces with the Splinter Cell." Nolan said while cleaning his M.U.M.B.L.E.R..

"We also have confirmation that the teens are meeting a group of kids tomorrow at 8:30. We go in and take them out, any questions?" At this, everyone in the room besides Rachel raised their hands. "Yes you, Numbuh 58."

"If there are going to be a ton of teens… aren't we going to need backup or something?" Gwen asked.

"We tried getting backup from the Decommissioning Squad, but Numbuh 501 said she couldn't spare any resources." Nolan winced at the mention of decommissioning, but continued to clean his M.U.M.B.L.E.R.. "Any other questions?" No one responded. "Good, then prepare. We have a long day ahead of us."

"Yes ma'am!" the operatives all yelled.

"Oh, and Numbuh 2030?" Rachel said to Nolan.

"Yes, Numbuh 362?" Nolan replied uncertain.

"It's your job to get lunch."

Nolan left the treehouse after the meeting and headed down the street to the closest fast food restaurant. "Okay, let's see, Gwen wants a burger and a medium soda, Doug wants a double-double with everything on it, Garret wants the chili cheese fries, Catherine just wants two orders of fries and Numbuh 362 wants a cheeseburger and cheesecake…great." Nolan reviewed their respective orders aloud.

After arriving at the restaurant and waiting in a thirty minute line, Nolan left the restaurant, food in hand. He was halfway back to the treehouse when he noticed Mario's house was in ruin. He dropped the food and ran toward the rubble that used to be known as a house.

Nolan threw several pieces of the house aside in hopes of finding Mario. He threw a chunk of wall aside and gasped at what was underneath. Mario's wheelchair was in pieces and no sign of him. Nolan fumbled at taking his H.E.A.D.S.E.T. out of his back pocket and put it on.

"Gwen, we got a situation…it's Joker, someone leveled his house! He's gone…get here now…yes, tell Doug I have his food…what, no, just get here!" Nolan yelled into the H.E.A.D.S.E.T.'s mic. He then resumed digging in hopes of finding Mario.

…

It was nighttime. The stars were out, a random dog barking at the moon. Nolan silently grieved as he sat on the sidewalk. Gwen walked behind Nolan and sat down next to him.

"You know… he's probably still out there." Gwen tried to reassure.

"I just can't help but feel responsible, Gwen; it's just like last time."

The rest of Sector Q would join and sit on the curb. No one said a word. Rachel soon approached the five operatives with a M.U.S.K.E.T. in hand. "You holding up alright?"

Nolan didn't respond. He merely took out his modified M.U.S.S.K.E.T. and started switching the safety on and off.

"Look Nolan… he was a teen. What he was before isn't what he is now."

Nolan brought his head up to glare at Rachel. He sprang up from his seat and held Rachel by her shirt's collar, pointing his M.U.S.S.K.E.T. at her forehead. "Take it back!" he practically screamed.

The members of Sector Q reacted by pulling their sector leader away from their current leader. Garret shot Nolan a dirty look for his actions as Doug and Gwen restrained Nolan. "If you're angry, then great." Rachel said in a calm tone. "Save it for the Splinter Cell tomorrow. Without any doubt, they're the ones who took Joker." She dusted herself off and walked back to the treehouse.

Gwen and Doug released Nolan and accompanied Rachel, followed by Catherine and Garret. Nolan turned and stared at the remains of the house. He took in the sight before tucking his M.U.S.S.K.E.T. in his back pocket along with his H.E.A.D.S.E.T. and began to walk back to the treehouse.

…

"Did you do it?" the girl asked.

"Yes ma'am, Mario is now in custody and currently in interrogation" Numbuh 3.14 said with a smile.

"You have a poor imagination." The girl turned to face him.

"Well, you gave me a destructive weapon and I used it to capture a traitor." 3.14 said while shaking.

"Well, I'm glad you captured this traitor." she smiled.

The boy was somewhat scared now. "You are?"

"Why of course I am. Thanks to you, we can use this traitor in a public example to the teens." The girl returned to her work.

"What kind of public example?"

"Use your imagination."

M.U.S.S.K.E.T.

Mustard Using Sidearm Silently Kicks Enemy Tail

"Numbuh 99, are you in position?" Rachel asked Garret through her P.I.P.E.R..

"I'm good up here." Garret said into his own P.I.P.E.R. as he loaded his M.U.S.K.E.T.R.I.F.L.E..

"Alright," Rachel turned to face Catherine, Doug, and Nolan, "we are a-go for infiltration." With that, Rachel ran to the side of the building, followed by Catherine, while Doug and Nolan ran to the other side.

Rachel and Catherine scaled the wall and entered through a window. Doug and Nolan scaled the other side of the building and entered through a ventilation shaft. Inside, teens from all around Rhode Island were present. Before the huge crowd was a stage with seven teens and Numbuh 3.14. The latter took out a microphone.

"Attention, attention, may I have your attention." 3.14 said into the mic, quickly gaining their eyes. "Hello, as you all know, we are here for the annual science fair. There, we will be stealing Numbuh 74.239's latest invention, the teen locater. As we all know, this machine is only a prototype, but with the teen locater, we will be able to recruit all of the teens across the world!"

"Crud, I didn't think Numbuh 3.14 was with the Splinter Cell." Rachel said to herself from her hiding spot.

The teens all cheered. One teen amongst those on the stage, however, remained silent as he lay on the floor. "I can see Joker." Nolan whispered to Doug as they looked down from their vantage point.

"Which one is he?" Doug asked looking through the crowd.

"He's the one not standing." Nolan deadpanned as he clicked the safety off one of his M.U.S.S.K.E.T.s.

"We shall infiltrate the science fair using the B.R.A.s' chameleon mode and when the time is right, we shall reveal ourselves and lay waste to the Kids Next Door!" Numbuh 3.14 declared, causing the crowd to erupt in a roar of cheers.

"So, I take it you're the mastermind behind this plot?" Mario said, trying his best to move.

"Why, aren't you the super sleuth." 3.14 said sarcastically. "But if you must know, I am not the big cheese here."

"Then who is?" Mario said while glaring at the four armed teens behind him.

"Well, that's for me to know and for you to never know." Numbuh 3.14 gave Mario a smug grin and turned to the audience. "Now without further business, who here wants to see what the Mayhem Squad can do to a traitor!" The crowd practically screamed. "Merc, if you would do the honors." he said to the only female member of the Mayhem Squad.

Merc walked towards Mario, taking out two pipes and activated her armor's special ability. Her armor caused the pipes to glow a magnificent blue. She placed the edge of the glowing pipe close to Mario's face and, with the flick of her wrist, cut part of his cheek as if it were butter.

Mario didn't show any signs of fear nor pain. "Do your worst, you scumbag." he spat at Merc.

She smiled at his remark. She punched Mario in the jaw and kicked him in the crotch. Mario yelled in pain as he was thrown by Merc at the other three teens. One teen leapt into the air and kicked Mario into the ground. Another teen walked over and picked Mario up by his left arm, dislocating his arm in the process.

"We have to act now." Nolan said into his H.E.A.D.S.E.T..

The teen then punched Mario in the stomach, causing him to silently yell in pain. She tossed Mario into the air, and a teen with a helmet with a circular visor ran to the opposite side of the stage. As Mario fell back down to the ground, the teen's visor began to glow a magnificent blue: it shot a laser at Mario, sending the informant to crash into a wall.

"That…the best you got…girly?" Mario let out a humorless laugh. Merc walked over to Mario and punched him in the face.

"You are green for retrieval, Numbuh 2030, we got all the information we need, try not to get shot." Rachel said through her P.I.P.E.R..

"That'll be the day." Nolan took out his other M.U.S.S.K.E.T. and Doug his S.C.A.M.P.P.. They both jumped out of the ventilation shaft down to the stage below.

The two operatives quickly gained the teens' attention as they shot at them while they fell. Nolan and Doug landed on two teens, knocking them out, and proceeded towards the stage. "Well," Merc was genuinely surprised, "you don't see this every day."

"Wel…come to…Sector…Q." Mario rasped in pain.

Doug smacked a teen with the end of his S.C.A.M.P.P. before jumping onto the stage. "Well, well," Doug said, aiming his S.C.A.M.P.P. at Merc, "looks like we got ourselves a no good varmint."

"I suppose that was an insult." Merc snapped her fingers, causing the teen with the helmet to stand at attention. "Shot, be a good boy and handle the runt."

Shot shot out several lasers that Doug barely dodged. Shot then ran up to Doug and kicked him in the stomach, causing the operative to fall on his back. Shot picked Doug up and held him in front of his visor. Shot's visor began to glow, causing Doug to close his eyes in fear. Before he could shoot, Nolan ran up and smacked him in the back with his M.U.M.B.L.E.R., causing Shot to fall to the ground and release Doug.

"Thanks man, I thought I was done there." Doug sighed in relief.

"Any time." Nolan pulled his M.U.M.B.L.E.R. in Merc's direction. "Step away from the guy you just beat up and I just might not blow the ground up from under you!"

"Oh, you mean this guy right here?" Merc asked innocently.

"Yes, him." Nolan affirmed, failing to realize Shot getting back on his feet.

"Yeah, I don't know…I actually enjoy tormenting this one." Merc knelt down beside Mario, "I can't break him… well, not yet, at least.

"You are one sick freak, you know that, lady-?!" Nolan was caught in a headlock by Shot.

"Piece of advice," Merc smirked, "you can knock Shot down all you want, but getting him to stay down is the trick."

Doug raised his S.C.A.M.P.P. at the back of Shot's head. Then another teen came up from behind Doug and kicked him to the ground. The teen took out his weapon of choice, a double-bladed staff, and held it to Doug's neck.

"What did you two hope to accomplish?" Numbuh 3.14 said, walking towards the two operatives. "You two barely stand a chance against five teens, let alone a whole army of them." He gestured to the crowd of teens around the stage. "What do you hope to gain from rushing in to save that piece of garbage traitorous filth?"

"The only traitor here is you, Numbuh 3.14!" Nolan struggled to get free from the headlock.

"In some ways, I am the traitor, but in others I am not. It's all a matter of perspective." He took out a S.P.L.A.N.K.E.R. and held it to Nolan's face. "Any last words before we put you in a wheelchair like your friend there?"

"Yeah, one: clear." Nolan said the last part into his H.E.A.D.S.E.T.'s mic. Numbuh 3.14 raised an eyebrow, but was then knocked down by a wad of mustard. The teens looked up to see Rachel and Catherine jump from a nearby catwalk. The two operatives landed on Merc, knocking her out instantly.

"Hold it," the teen holding Doug in place ordered, "if you two don't surrender, we'll gut your pals here."

"I don't think so." Nolan said, tossing his M.U.M.B.L.E.R. to Rachel. Rachel shot the floor, causing the two teens and two operatives to go flying into the air.

Shot and his comrade landed in the mass of teens, while Doug and Nolan flew into the wall behind them. The two operatives then slid down next to Mario. "What…took you?" Mario panted.

"Shut up, we're here now." Nolan said, getting up.

"So, this is Joker?" Doug asked as Nolan pulled him off the floor.

"Yeah…now shut up and help me carry him."

Rachel shot at the oncoming waves of teens with the M.U.M.B.L.E.R.. Catherine ran over to Mario and popped his arm back in, getting a scream of pain in return. The operatives failed to notice the teen that Numbuh 3.14 was hiding behind.

"What are you waiting for, stop them!" 3.14 ordered.

"I don't take orders from you." the teen said as Merc regained consciousness.

Mario's eyes widened in fear as she took out one of her pipes and charged at the group. Merc kicked Doug into Catherine, causing them to drop Mario. Nolan raised his M.U.S.S.K.E.T. and fired. Merc dodged the hail of mustard and smacked the weapon out of Nolan's hand. Nolan then punched Merc in the face, causing her to drop her pipe. The two of them proceeded to fight in hand-to-hand.

Rachel unloaded the last of the M.A.R.B.L.E. ammo into the crowd of teens. She then noticed Nolan and Merc fighting; she tossed the M.U.M.B.L.E.R. to Nolan, who then used it as a club against Merc. Doug and Catherine threw Mario's arms around their shoulders and gave Rachel a thumbs-up. "Alright, let's get out of here!" Rachel screamed as she took out two S.C.A.M.P.P.s and charged at the crowd, followed by Catherine, Doug, and Mario.

Nolan dodged a punch and reloaded his M.U.M.B.L.E.R.; he shot the ground beneath him and was sent flying towards the exit. Nolan shot downward at the teens in the way of the group following Rachel, taking out a good number of teens before landing in front of the exit. Nolan opened the door as soon as the others were close.

"Numbuh 58, we need immediate evacuation ASAP!" Rachel yelled into her P.I.P.E.R.

"Don't worry I'm close." Gwen reassured.

Nolan and Doug shot into the doorway as the Mayhem Squad followed. "Garret, lay down covering fire!" Nolan yelled into his H.E.A.D.S.E.T.'s mic. On the roof of another building, said operative raised his M.U.S.K.E.T.R.I.F.L.E. and aimed at the teens behind the Mayhem Squad, picking them off. The teens then fled back into the building.

The M.A.T.O.R.O. soon arrived, forcing the Mayhem Squad to retreat. Gwen opened the door, allowing the ground team to enter the safety of the M.A.T.O.R.O.. Gwen piloted the ship to the rooftop Garret was perched and opened the door once more. Garret entered the M.A.T.O.R.O. with a smug grin on his face.

"What are you smiling at?" Gwen asked.

"I shot a guy in the eye and then he began to go crazy." Garret said with hand gestures.

"Helicopter us the hell out of here." Nolan said from the back of the M.A.T.O.R.O.. Gwen did what her boyfriend said and piloted the M.A.T.O.R.O. away from the building and away from the teens.

Moonbase

The members of Sector Q and Rachel, dragging Mario, raced down a corridor leading to Numbuh 274's office. "Can you guys believe what we did?!" Rachel exclaimed.

"Yes, mainly because Joker got the snot beaten out of him." Doug said, getting a dirty look from Mario, Nolan, and Gwen.

Rachel stopped in her tracks, causing the others to as well. "Guys, we just got a solid lead on the Splinter Cell, something no operative has done before." she boasted with pride. Everyone gave light smiles at the thought of doing something important.

"So, what do you say we tell the Supreme Leader about Numbuh 3.14's plan?" Catherine said to the group.

"You bet."

The group opened the door to the office, only to have tranquilizers shot at them by whoever was inside. One by one, they fell to the ground until only Rachel was left.

Rachel held her S.C.A.M.P.P. to her chest as she peered inside the room. Her eyes widened when she saw who was in the room: Numbuh 501, the Head of Decommissioning, one of the most trusted people within the KND, had just shot down Sector Q and Mario.

Rachel aimed her S.C.A.M.P.P. at the culprit. She was about to pull the trigger when she felt a tranquilizer hit her shoulder. The room began to spin. Rachel dropped her weapon. And just like that, everything went black.

M.U.S.K.E.T.R.I.F.L.E.

Mustard Using Sidearm Kicks Enemy Tail Repeatedly Impacts Failed Lemming Enemies

Numbuh 501 walked into the room where the members of Sector Q, Rachel, and Mario remained unconscious. Beside her were Numbuhs 80A and 80B. She walked to Rachel and slapped her. Rachel woke up instantly. She looked around the room, taking notice of her comrades and then looking up to see 501 smiling down at her.

"It's good to have you awake, Rachel." Numbuh 501 said before punching Rachel in the face.

"What is your deal, Mary?" Rachel yelled.

"What can I say; the KND's top spy, the KND's most anonymous sector, and a guy who won't be able to walk for about three more months almost ruined my master plan. Tell me what's my deal!" she snapped in a fury.

Rachel flinched at the outburst. She took in a deep breath and said, "I take it you're in charge of the Splinter Cell then, huh?"

Numbuh 501's reaction was something Rachel didn't expect: "Hahahahahahahahaha! Oh Rachel, blinded by myth, you fail to grasp what has been in front of you all along… Why would I, the Head of Decommissioning, go ahead and make a truce with the teens of all people?" Mary then walked over to the 80's and told them to leave, which they obliged.

"The answer to my own question is simple… decommissioning is something I myself fear… I have seen to it that countless operatives be decommissioned, willingly and unwillingly. Sure, by now, some people would probably say that I would embrace decommissioning as if it were a part of life." Mary walked over to Mario, "But like everyone else… I too have those memories that I am fond of… the memories of seeing the faces of all those poor saps that had their memories erased."

Rachel's eyes widened in horror and said, "You're mad!"

"No…I just love my job, and because of Numbuh 74.239's invention, it will be nearly impossible for anyone to escape the KND. Of course, it's the small things that matter." She walked over to Gwen. "This one invention can lead to the destruction of the entire teen organization in one swift strike…now that would put a damper on my rise to power, now would it?"

"You won't get away with this; the Kids Next Door will stop you!" Rachel glared at the traitor.

"The Kids Next Door or a certain sector with a certain bald Brit?" Mary gave Rachel a smug grin.

"W-What do you mean?"

"Oh, come on, Rachel, half the people in this room know; heck, the guy who's been decommissioned already and probably doesn't know Numbuh 1 even knows." she spoke matter-of-factly.

Rachel blushed at the thought of everyone knowing her secret.

"Well, I have to go now you know; 'cause let's face it, who's going to lead those morons. Give my regards to the dead weight when they wake up." And so, she left the room, locking the door behind her.

"Oh, Numbuh 501, ma'am!" Numbuh 86 ran down the hall to catch her superior.

Mary turned to see her second-in-command, Fanny Fulbright, running with a stack of paperwork in her hands. "What is this?"

"Paperwork, ma'am, those stupid boys playing around with the D.O.H.D.O.H. yesterday wrecked more 2x4 tech than we at first realized. These forms are to request immediate repairs to the eight S.C.A.M.P.E.R.s that were blown up and this form is-"

"I get it, Fanny… Do me a favor and take the day off, go and enjoy those Rainbow Monkeys you talk about." Mary gave Fanny an innocent smile. Fanny smiled and skipped back down the hallway. Mary then went to the nearest landing bay within the Moonbase and took a S.P.R.A.Y.S.H.I.P. down to Earth.

Fanny stopped her skipping when she noticed Numbuhs 80A and 80B guarding a door. She walked over to the twins and asked, "What are you two doin'? There's a science fair going on, you two usually jump for a chance to even see it."

"Sorry Fanny, I'm going to have to ask you to leave." Numbuh 80A began push her away.

"Do I have to pull rank on you two or what?!" Fanny yelled into 80A's ear, causing him to fall on the floor.

"Seeing as you won't be leaving any time soon…" Numbuh 80B opened the door and motioned for Fanny to enter.

Fanny walked into the room and gasped at the sight: six operatives and a teen littered the floor. She was about to exit the room when Numbuh 80B closed the door on her.

"Hey, what's the big idea?!"

"Sorry, but you wanted to see what was in the room." 80A said before laughing with his brother.

"When I get out, I'll have you both cleaning the restrooms for three whole months!" Following her threat, Fanny walked over to the only operative she recognized. "Rachel, is that you, lass?"

"It's me, Fanny…can you untie us?"

"Of course I can." As Fanny untied her best friend, Rachel informed her of everything that had led up to this moment. "I can't believe she'd do this!"

"You and me both." Rachel said, getting up from her place on the ground. She then turned to look at the rest of her team. "Come on, we got to wake and untie them."

"Even the teen?" Fanny dreaded the answer.

"Yes, especially the teen."

Science Fair

Numbuh 3.14 walked over to Numbuh 74.239's booth and eyed his latest 2x4 advancements. He finally came to the teen locater, which was in a glass box. He tapped the glass with his finger and nodded to a small group of kids to come over.

"This is it." 3.14 said to the only girl in the group.

"Seriously… that's the teen locator?" she asked, pointing at the wheel-like 2x4 tech. "I thought it was some super computer or something."

"Oh, it is." 74.239 affirmed, walking over to 3.14 and his group "I just updated the software for easy travel… If you want, I could show you how I made it over a root beer."

The girl's eyes shot wide open at Gabe's actions. "Yeah I'll pass, I kinda want to…get with someone else." At this, Gabe's smile faltered.

"Oh…I'll just walk over there then."

"You better."

As soon as Gabe left, Numbuh 3.14 took out a megaphone and walked over to the tallest machine in the fair with the group of kids close behind. He raised the megaphone to his mouth. "Attention! May I please have your attention?"

Everyone in the fair turned to him, half of them giving off confused looks while the other half smiled evilly. "Yes, thank you. Now I would like to say…Teenagers Mobilize!" Half of the kids revealed themselves to be teenagers in disguise with Battle Ready Armor. The fair soon erupted into a chaotic warzone with the KND quickly becoming overwhelmed.

"Well," 3.14 said to Merc as they climbed down, "that was easy."

Moonbase

"Come on, rise and shine." Rachel shook Doug awake.

"Wuh-huh…where are we?" Doug asked, looking around the room.

"Moonbase, Numbuh 501 shot us with tranquilizers and left us in this room." Nolan said while holding Mario up.

"Why would she do that?" Doug scratched his head.

"Simple, she's the mastermind behind all this." Rachel answered.

"Well, how are we getting out of this here room?" Doug flailed his arms around incoherently.

"Easy. Numbuh 86, you can get us out, right?" Rachel asked Fanny.

"Sorry lass, but those idiots outside locked me in and my M.U.S.K.E.T. can't bust through metal." Fanny said, a bit ashamed.

"Those jerks didn't take all our tech." Nolan said, taking his shoe off.

"Numbuh 2030, what are you doing?" Rachel raised her eyebrow.

"Something I'll regret later." Nolan lowered Mario to the floor and removed the sole from his shoe, revealing a M.A.R.B.L.E..

"You got any other tricks in your shoes?" Doug laughed at his joke.

"Stow it." Nolan said before tossing the M.A.R.B.L.E. at the door. The M.A.R.B.L.E. exploded on impact, blowing the door open and throwing Numbuhs 80A and 80B down the corridor. Nolan and Doug exited the room first, followed by Rachel, Fanny, Gwen, and finally Garret and Catherine who were carrying.

"Please tell me they have it." Nolan mumbled to himself as he searched through the rogue operatives' pockets. Nolan smiled as he pulled his H.E.A.D.S.E.T. out of Numbuh 80A's back pocket. He then picked up 80A's S.C.A.M.P.P. and tossed it to Doug. "Try not to shoot one of us by accident."

"Hey, I haven't shot you on accident in like five weeks, okay?!" Doug retorted.

"Will you two idiots stop bickering, we need to get to the science fair now!" Fanny yelled.

"The M.A.T.O.R.O. can get us there in ten minutes, so come on!" Nolan said, taking his M.U.M.B.L.E.R. back from an unconscious 80B. The group ran down to Landing Bay 4 and took off to the planet below.

Science Fair

"Hold the line!" Numbuh 60 yelled to the 44 Twins.

"Sir, yes, sir!" they exclaimed, shooting a teen on the left.

"Whoa, that was a close one!" an operative wearing a KND commando helmet yelped as a laser bolt grazed the helmet. "Thank Zero I wear a helmet!"

"Yeah, yeah lucky you Numbuh 723." Numbuh 398 remarked, picking up his laser-scorched sand bucket helmet.

"The name's B. Carmine and I expect to be referred to as such!" Numbuh 723 yelled.

"There are too many of them!" Numbuh 116 said, shooting a teen on the right.

"Just keep shooting and pray for a miracle!" Patton ordered, upper-cutting a teen.

On the other side of the fair, the Mayhem Squad easily fought their way back to the teen locater. "You know what's fun?" Garrison asked, punching a kid into a wall.

"What?" Brawl asked, swatting three kids away like it was nothing.

"This!" Garrison trapped a kid in a headlock and gave him a noogie. "I swear it's good practice for your knuckles."

"I swear, Garrison, if only you can be like Shot here, who knows when to talk and when to shut up." Merc gestured to Shot, who was busy blowing stuff up.

"Oh, you mean never talk at all? Seriously, what's up with that, the guy doesn't even snore!" Garrison jumped out of the way to avoid a punch from Numbuh 4.

"Hold still so Ah can punch ya!" Numbuh 4 yelled as he charged at Garrison. Garrison simply side-stepped, letting the Aussie pass him, before grabbing his hood and flinging him into Brawl. Brawl caught the blonde and tossed him into the sky to land on Numbuh 2's latest invention.

"Hey!" Numbuh 1 yelled, catching the Mayhem Squad's attention. "No one does that to my friend and gets away with it!" The Sector V leader took out a S.P.L.A.N.K.E.R. and charged at the Mayhem Squad, avoiding Shot's visor blasts.

"I got him!" Garrison yelled as he took out his staff and ran towards Numbuh 1. Garrison swung his staff at Nigel, who countered by using his S.P.L.A.N.K.E.R. to block the hit. Garrison spun his staff in the air and brought it down on Nigel, who barrel-rolled away, successfully dodging the attack. Nigel brought the S.P.L.A.N.K.E.R. to Garrison's face. Garrison's eyes widened when he noticed Nigel pull the trigger. Garrison was hit in the face repeatedly by the S.P.L.A.N.K.E.R. until he fell to the floor.

"One down, three to go." Nigel said coolly as he turned to the other members of the Mayhem Squad.

"Need some help, Numbuh 1?"said a voice.

Nigel turned to see Numbuh 501 walk towards him, S.C.A.M.P.P. in hand. "An extra hand would be nice, ma'am." Nigel turned back to the three teens standing before him. "Try to keep up, ma'am. These three are tougher than the other teens; they have special armor abilities."

"I know." was all Numbuh 501 said before shooting Nigel in the back, causing the boy to fall. Mary walked over to Garrison and slapped him.

"Hey, what was that for?!" Garrison yelled.

"For letting him get the better of you. Seriously, it's not he's some demon, he's just an average kid!" She yelled into Garrison's ear, causing the teen to wince in pain. "Now Merc, if you'd be so kind as to point me to the direction of the teen locater so I can get on with my life."

Merc pointed to a booth where Numbuhs 2, 3, and 5 were taking cover and taking potshots at the teens. "So, what are you waiting for, destroy them!" she commanded once more, prompting the teens to run toward the booth. "Now can anything go right for a change?" Mary said to herself just as a 2x4 helicopter crashed through the stadium's roof and onto the Mayhem Squad.

"How in the world did we crash?!" Fanny yelled into Doug's ear as they exited the M.A.T.O.R.O..

"How should I know, I'm the copilot!" Doug defended himself.

"Guys?" Gwen said, pointing to Numbuh 501.

"Oh, blame the girl for your stupid mistakes, you stupid boy!" Fanny screamed.

"Couldn't we have left her on the Moonbase?" Garret whispered to Catherine, who nodded in reply.

"GUYS!" Gwen yelled at the top of her lungs causing everyone to stop talking.

"What?" everyone asked her.

"Bad guy standing in front of us probably going to escape!"

Numbuh 501's eyes opened as the operatives raised their weapons at her. Mary shot at the members of Sector Q, hitting Nolan as he fell to the floor. Mary then ran backwards out of sight. "Dang it!" Rachel yelled, jumping off the crashed ship. She ran over to Numbuh 1, who was slowly getting back up. "Nigel, are you alright?"

"Yes I am, Rachel." he assured, rubbing the spot where Mary shot him. "I take it Numbuh 501 is a traitor?"

"More than you know."

"Let's go get her then." Nigel smiled at his friend.

"Alright then." Rachel turned to the operatives around her. "Numbuh 86, 2, 3, 5, 58, and 59, go and help the other operatives. Numbuhs 91 and 99, set Mario behind the booth and then go and find Numbuh 4. Numbuh 1 you're with me, we're going after that traitorous crud muncher."

Everyone left to do their assigned duties just as Nolan got back on his feet. He looked around to see everyone but Mario had left. "Oh…looks like I'm stuck to man the fort." He then turned his head to the wreck that used to be the M.A.T.O.R.O.. "That'll take us a week to fix."

The M.A.T.O.R.O. then began to move, causing an alarmed Nolan to raise his M.U.M.B.L.E.R.. His eyes widened in shock as the M.A.T.O.R.O. was flung in his direction. He dodged the helicopter-like 2x4 ship and then turned his head to the direction where it came. To his surprise, the Mayhem Squad got back to their feet and charged his way.

"Oh, crap." Nolan said before shooting M.A.R.B.L.E.s at the teens.

H.E.A.D.S.E.T.

The H.E.A.D.S.E.T. Has No Acronym

Rachel and Nigel chased Mary through the chaotic battleground that used to be the annual science fair. Nigel picked up a discarded S.P.I.C.E.R. and started shooting at the traitor who in turn shot back with her S.C.A.M.P.P.. "You two don't know when to quit, do you?" Mary said, jumping over a wreck that used to be Sector M's invention.

"You aren't getting away, Mary!" Rachel let out two shots from her M.U.S.K.E.T..

"And you two are going to stop me?" Mary said sarcastically. "Please, I'm the Head of Decommissioning, it's practically required for me to be the best." Mary turned and aimed her S.C.A.M.P.P. at her pursuers. She pulled back the trigger, sending a volley of laser blasts at the operatives. Nigel and Rachel ducked to opposite sides of Sector M's booth, dodging the blasts.

"You can't win, Mary, it'll only be a matter of time before you run out of power for that S.C.A.M.P.P.!" Nigel yelled, shooting over the booth.

"Who said I'm trying to win!" Mary took out a second S.C.A.M.P.P. and started shooting at the booth. "Think about it, you two are here, your teams are out fighting off my forces and that leaves who to look after the teen locater?"

"We left Joker to watch after it, and he may be a teen, but I trust him!" Rachel sprang up from behind the booth and let out a few mustard blasts before returning to her crouched position behind the booth.

"Yes, you left the guy who can't walk to guard the whole reason we're even here while the Mayhem Squad has probably already taken it from him." Mary whistled to Numbuh 3.14, who was behind Sector M's invention. 3.14 came out from his hiding spot and started shooting at the two operatives from behind.

Nigel shot the booth in half and put one half behind Rachel, giving her cover from Numbuh 3.14's onslaught. "You take Numbuh 501, I got the nerd!" Nigel said to Rachel before charging at 3.14.

…

"Crap, crap, crap!" Nolan yelled, dodging one of Shot's blasts. Nolan aimed his M.U.M.B.L.E.R. at Shot, only to have his weapon kicked out of his hand by Merc. Merc then kicked Nolan to the floor and held her dagger like pipes to his throat.

"Game over." she stomped on his chest.

"…Hit her…dang it!" Merc raised an eyebrow before getting hit on the head with a vase. Merc fell to the ground beside Nolan. Nolan got back on his feet to see Mario waving to him. "Took you long enough."

Nolan turned his head to see Brawl punch the ground. His eyes widened when the floor broke into pieces that flew at him from the force of Brawl's punch. Nolan dodged the various pieces of wood and cement. "Come on," Nolan dodged a blast from Shot, "you guys are having this much trouble from one lousy kid!"

"Ah-hem." Mario fake-coughed.

"And a guy who can't even walk, seriously this is just pathetic!" Nolan taunted his adversaries. He was suddenly put into a headlock and punched in the face.

"Like I said earlier," Merc said while punching Nolan further, "you can knock us down all you want…but getting us to stay down is the trick."

"Mario, I thought you knocked her out?" Nolan said calmly as Merc noticed the teen informant holding a M.U.S.K.E.T. to her head.

"I thought you couldn't walk?" Merc said, surprised.

"I can't…but I sure as hell can stand." Mario said coolly.

"You are just full of surprises." Merc smiled. She leapt to her side, letting Nolan out of the headlock. Shot took the opportunity to blast Nolan into Mario, sending the duo crashing into Numbuh 74.239's booth.

"Crap, that hurt." Nolan grunted, dusting himself off.

"Hey…you aren't the one who got himself beat to an almost bloody pulp last night." Mario reminded.

"Garrison, Brawl, Shot, take care of the annoyance but leave the other one alone… I have a bone to pick with him." Merc commanded her team.

"Yes, ma'am." Brawl and Garrison chorused while Shot nodded. The three teens charged toward Nolan.

Nolan picked up Mario's M.U.S.K.E.T. and said, "Not the variant I'd recommend but…beggars can't be choosers." Nolan raised the M.U.S.K.E.T. to eye level and let out a few bursts.

The teens dodged the mustard blasts and continued towards Nolan. Brawl leapt forward and tried to punch Nolan, who dodged each punch. Nolan then shoved the M.U.S.K.E.T. in Brawl's face and pulled the trigger. The point blank mustard blast knocked the teen on his back. He groaned in pain as Nolan put the M.U.S.K.E.T. to his forehead and pulled the trigger once more. Brawl groaned once more before falling out of consciousness.

"Well, Merc, looks like he found a way to keep us down." Garrison said with a laugh.

"Oh, shut up, Garrison!" Merc face-palmed at the bad attempt at humor. "Keep him occupied, I'm going for the teen locater." Nolan picked up a piece of wood and flung it at Merc, who dodged before impact. Merc turned to see Nolan glaring at her.

"I could care less about helping decommissioning…but if you teens think you're leaving here with that thing without missing a limb, you need a reality check."

…

Nigel dodged another pre-chewed gumball round from Numbuh 3.14's G.U.M.M.E.R.. Nigel leapt behind a support pillar and started shooting wildly at Numbuh 3.14, who took cover behind a support pillar across from Nigel's.

"You know what's messed up, Nigel?" 3.14 asked.

"What, you siding with teens or the fact I have to listen to you talk?"

"No, the gun I'm using was made to stop teens…and now it is used to help the teens…irony at its best."

Both traitor and Sector Leader leapt out of their cover and shot wildly at the other. Numbuh 3.14's G.U.M.M.E.R. ran out of ammo the same time as Nigel's S.P.I.C.E.R.. Nigel dropped his 2x4 weapon and punched Numbuh 3.14 in the chin, knocking him out instantly. Nigel looked down at his foe with furrowed brows. "Serves you right, traitor."

…

Nolan charged at Shot, dodging his visor blasts to the best of his ability. He slid beneath his legs and jumped on his back and ripped his helmet off. Shot quickly turned around to punch Nolan, but instead punched his helmet. Shot recoiled in pain as Nolan smacked him in the back of his head with his helmet, knocking him out.

"Okay, that's two…so, any of you consider…surrendering, yet?" Nolan panted between words.

"Garrison, take his left, I have the right." Merc ordered, taking her pipes out and charging at Nolan.

"Frag it." Nolan decided, putting Shot's helmet on. He aimed the helmet at Garrison and pushed a button on the side, sending a laser blast at Garrison. The laser made contact, throwing Garrison into a wall and knocking him out.

Merc's eyes shot wide open when Nolan turned to her direction. "You wouldn't dare."

"Oh, I dare." Nolan pushed the button.

The laser sent Merc into a vast array of inventions. "I hate that kid…" Merc groaned before drifting to unconsciousness.

Nolan took Shot's helmet off and let it drop to the floor. He picked up his discarded M.U.M.B.L.E.R. and walked towards Mario. "You alright, man?"

"Never better." Mario said sarcastically.

"Stay put, I gotta do something." Nolan walked off to the teen locater.

"I can't walk, you idiot." Mario rolled his eyes.

"Yet you can stand?" Nolan said over his shoulder as he reached the locater. He set his M.U.M.B.L.E.R. on the floor and took the device into his hands. He stared at it for a couple of minutes before letting it drop to the floor.

"Never again." With that, Nolan began to stomp on the invention.

…

Rachel leapt over the booth and ran towards Mary. Laser and mustard fire was exchanged before both combatants ran out of ammo and power. Mary threw her weapons at Rachel, who easily blocked the objects by punching them out of her way. Mary backed herself up as Rachel drew closer. Rachel pulled her right arm back, then pushed it forward, punching Mary square in the face. Mary fell to the floor, still conscious.

"You know Mary…you aren't the best…you're the worst of us all. You betrayed your own for what?!" Rachel screamed. "So you could rule the teens when you turned thirteen, so you wouldn't lose your messed up memories…you know what, Mary, I used to look up to you…but now I see you to be less than the worms in the dirt we stand on."

Nigel approached Rachel. "Well, looks like you got her." He smiled.

"Yeah…I take it you got that nerd then?" Rachel whispered.

"Yeah, I did…"

…

The members of Sector V, Q, Rachel and Fanny stood in a straight line as Numbuh 274 approached them.

"I can't thank you all enough for helping take down Mary and Felix." Chad said with a smile. "They will be taken for immediate decommissioning…which Numbuh 86, our new Head of Decommissioning, will oversee." At this, Numbuh 86 beamed. "And if any of you would like…we have a couple of positions opened in the Decommissioning Squad, if any of you want them."

"I speak for my team sir, and we like it down here in Sector V." Nigel said with pride.

"How about you guys?" Chad asked Sector Q.

"I'm in." Doug said proudly.

"Me, too." Catherine said with a bright smile.

"Do they still have sloppy joes in the cafeteria?" Garret asked.

"Yes."

"I'm in!" Garret lit up.

"Count me out." Nolan decided, walking away.

"Numbuh 2030, where are you going?" Chad asked Nolan.

"To see if I can salvage anything from the M.A.T.O.R.O.."

"I'll talk to him." Gwen shook her head as she walked after Nolan.

"How about you, Rachel?" Chad asked.

"Sorry, but I like my job as a spy."

Just then, Gwen came stomping back. "Numbuh 274, sir?"

"Yes, Numbuh 58?" Chad cautiously asked.

"I'm in." (Play "Hurt" by Johnny Cash.)

G.U.M.M.E.R.

Gum Ultimately Makes Most Enemies Run

Rachel frowned as she stared out of one of the Moonbase's windows and down at the planet. So much has happened in the last week…so much has happened in the last three days.

"You alright, Rachel?" She turned to see Nigel behind her.

"Oh hey, Nigel…I didn't hear you." Rachel greeted, switching her frown into a smile.

"Are you alright?" Nigel asked in concern.

"Oh yeah…I'm still wondering how the teen locator got smashed." she answered honestly.

"Yeah…Numbuh 43 said it was stomped on and the teens wouldn't destroy a piece of tech like that." Nigel rubbed his chin.

"So, it was an inside job then?"

"I doubt that...I think it was one of our own."

The two of them turned to stare at the planet they call home. The idea of a possible traitor on both of their minds.

Cemetery

Nolan sat down on the patch of grass. He stared intently at the stone slab. He hadn't visited him in more than five months, and so much has happened in five months…so much has happened in three days.

"No matter what I do, Dillon, everyone I know goes away in the end. Heck, look at you now…I always wonder…would it have played out differently if you weren't decommissioned…would you have jumped out of the way of that bus or…" Nolan let out a shaky breath and quickly regained his composure.

"My dad's dead…Edward got decommissioned and joined the teens…Mario got almost killed twice because of me… the rest of the team have left me…Gwen broke up with me…" Nolan wiped away a tear with his sleeve and took out his M.U.M.B.L.E.R.. "Sometimes, I wonder whether I'm doing things right…like every choice I make leads to another screwup…" Nolan looked down at his M.U.M.B.L.E.R. and switched the safety off.

"No." He switched the safety back on. "That won't solve anything…that never solves anything."

Nolan brought his head back up to look at the tombstone, smiling. "Even when I'm the only one talking…you point me in the right direction."

His smile was soon replaced with a frown when he noticed a Rainbow Monkey parade float flying towards a kid's baseball game in the distance. "Time to stop feeling sorry for myself." Nolan got up from where he was seated and walked down the road of the cemetery, M.U.M.B.L.E.R. held over his shoulder. (End song.)

No spoilers!

"All it takes is one bad day!" A figure wearing full black body armor and a helmet with a tinted visor said, walking down a flight of stairs towards a couple of teenagers and kids who were tied up.

"All it takes is just one bad day, huh?" the figure said as he came to a halt in front of the teens and kids. "But none of you ever thought about that, huh?"

"We don't know you, man!" one of the teens exclaimed.

"Oh, but you do… All of you do." The figure punched the teen in the face, causing one of his teeth to pop out. "You all have played a part in my rebirth!"

The group of kids and teens remained quiet as the figure continued. "You see over the years, my life seemed to always go wrong one way or another. Bullies, fake friends, and even a moose." At the last part, everyone turned to see a dead moose in the corner. "In the end, no matter what I did, you all found a way to get on my bad side and drive me to insanity!"

The figure took out a gun and pointed it at the teen's face. "I dislike you the most, Darrel, you spread a nasty rumor about me that turned everyone I knew against me!"

The teen in question widened her eyes in shock. "Please don't kill me, I never meant it to go that far, K-" Before she could finish, the teen pulled the trigger and executed Darrel. Everyone's eyes shot wide open as they gaped in horror.

"Sorry, no spoilers!" the figure laughed.

He turned to everyone else and took out a knife. "Don't worry, no one else is dying today…today, at least." The figure cut the rope off of the teens and kids and opened a door. "You're all free to go…and please tell everyone what you saw here."

The group ran out of the warehouse and into the streets, away from their captor. The figure proceeded to laugh manically as he shot wildly into the air. "Run, better run faster than my bullet, it's good to be back!"

The figure skipped off away from the warehouse before the police arrived, leaving the words I'm home spray-painted on the side of the warehouse.

Prospector

Nolan walked down the stairs of the Sector Q treehouse and peered out one of the windows. Outside, his new teammates are playing a game of tag…well almost all of them. Numbuh 35.2, Numbuh 49.5, and Numbuh 56.8, are running around in Nolan's backyard playing, while Numbuhs 1/4 and 2/4 sat up against Nolan's fence. Nolan frowned at seeing their expressions.

Nolan shook his head. It wasn't their fault after all. They were Siamese twins, connected at their shoulder. Nolan had read their medical file on his H.E.A.D.S.E.T., they can't be separated without killing Numbuh 1/4. They shared a heart…Numbuh 2/4's heart. No one talked to the duo, not even their three rookie teammates.

Nolan walked down another flight of stairs to the bottom of the treehouse. He put on a false smile and exited the treehouse. He whistled, quickly catching the rookies' attention. They all saluted their leader. "At ease." he said calmly. "Linda, Dustin, Brett, you're dismissed. I'd like to talk to Rack and Ruin in private."

"But Numbuh 2030 sir, you can say whatever you want in front of us." Dustin said, crossing his arms. "We're a team…and we should trust each other with everything." The rest of the rookies nodded.

"This isn't open to discussion, Numbuh 56.8." Nolan said, turning away from the operatives. The three rookies glared at their leader and stomped off towards the treehouse.

As soon as they were gone, the Siamese operatives turned to Nolan with feared looks on their faces. "You wanted to talk to us, sir?" Rack asked.

"Yes." Nolan replied, reverting to his frown. "How are people treating you guys?"

"Well, nothing that hasn't happened before, sir." Ruin said before his brother.

"No one is troubling you two?"

"Well…during Arctic Training…we were called names." Rack and Ruin said at the same time.

"How are you two enjoying it in Sector Q?"

"Well…" Rack began, "it's good to have some common ground with some people."

Nolan raised a brow to his statement. "What do you think of your teammates?"

"Well…" Ruin began, "Linda's…nice, Dustin and Brett do act mean every once in a while."

"That's all I needed to know." Nolan gave them a small smile. The Siamese operatives smiled back and headed back inside the treehouse. Nolan's frown soon returned. The twins just answered his unsaid question.

Nolan tapped a button on his H.E.A.D.S.E.T.. "H.E.A.D.S.E.T. call Numbuh 832." Nolan waited patiently for said op to pick up. "Hey Josh, it's me…no I don't want to rejoin…no I have a couple of guys here who might feel more at home with you and the rest of the Prospectors…can you come by later…thanks, see you later man." Nolan pushed a button on the side of his H.E.A.D.S.E.T. and ended the call.

…

A S.K.A.T.H.A.C. landed next to the M.A.T.O.R.O. in Sector Q's landing bay. The door to the 2x4 ship slid open, revealing a kid with a can with a sharpened spork sticking out where his right hand should be. Nolan walked up to the kid and extended his left hand. The kid shook it and smiled.

"It's good to see you again Josh, how long has it been?" Nolan said to his friend.

"Three months since you left." Josh's smile slightly faltered.

"Well, I see you took the grappling hook out and replaced it with a spork." Nolan pointed.

"What can I say." Josh said, gesturing to the can. "It's twice more effective than the thing you made for me." Nolan's eyes narrowed at Josh's remark. "You are okay with me recruiting them right?"

"Their skills are often overlooked by our superiors…and they'll both feel more comfortable with people who understand them." Nolan looked down at the floor and then brought his eyes back up to meet Josh's. "But either way, it's their choice, not mine."

Nolan walked off, followed by Josh to the conference room where the rookies were waiting. "So, what do you think our fair leader wants to talk to us about?" Dustin asked his teammates.

"Probably some mission report or something." Brett said while checking his S.P.L.A.N.K.E.R..

Rack and Ruin sat silently at the edge of the sofa, none of them saying a word. "Hey Siamese freaks, you got an idea why we're here?" Brett snorted.

"No, we" Rack started, "haven't a clue." Ruin finished.

The doors to the conference room opened as Nolan and Josh walked in. "Great, another freak." Dustin whispered to Brett when he saw Josh's arm.

"Would you like to say that to my face?" Josh said coldly as he pointed his spork arm at Dustin.

"No, sir." he hastily said.

"Huh." Josh scoffed as he circled around the sofa. "You three leave!"

"That's becoming more and more frequent." Linda said as she and her two teammates left the room.

As soon as they left, Nolan spoke, "Rack, Ruin, any idea why you both are still in this room?"

"No, sir." they said simultaneously.

"You're here because I've noticed how you two have been treated by your peers." Nolan said the last part with distain.

Rack and Ruin remained silent on the outside but internally a flood of memories swept through their minds.

"You two deserve better…a place where people understand you both with your…condition." Josh said, bringing the twins out from their thoughts. "I'm here today to ask you if you want to be a part of my team, but unlike Nolan here, I am giving you a choice: do you two want to join the Prospectors or do you want to remain here in Quahog with only Nolan to be your friend?"

The twins lowered their heads at Josh's sentence. It was true…very few people treated them with respect. But now…now they have a chance to be with people just like them…just like them.

Rack and Ruin brought their heads up and smiled. "We're in."

Moonbase

The S.K.A.T.H.A.C. came to a halt as it landed in the base's landing bay. Josh and his new recruits disembarked and headed down a hall.

"Now remember, if you guys get hurt, don't tell Nolan…he'd kill me if his friend's brothers got hurt under my watch." Josh said, sparking a smile from the twins.

The three operatives came to a door with the word Prospectors written in bold black. Josh typed in his personal keycode and unlocked the door. "Welcome to the Prospectors." Josh opened the door and the three operatives entered.

Inside the room were three other operatives. "I'd like you all to meet our new recruits, Rack and Ruin, Numbuhs 1/2 and 2/4."

The three operatives' expressions lit up. They walked over to the twins and introduced themselves.

ETHICS

Teens from all over Virginia had gathered at a local stadium. They all engaged in their own separate conversations, waiting for the meeting to begin.

"Order, order!" Cree yelled, signaling every teen in the stadium to quiet down. "As you all know, there have been reports of weapon shipments going missing and the local kids stopped paying us for protection from their bullies." Many teens nodded and voiced their concerns. "Before a few days ago, we have blamed those pests, the Kids Next Door," Cree balled her hand into a fist and smacked her podium, "but that was a few days ago… Until recently, we have been concerned with kids getting in the way of our plans." She let out a sigh of remorse. "But now, after a shocking turn of events…my lieutenant Darrel was killed…by one of our own."

There were gasps all around. Teens' jaws hung loose; no one dared to speak.

"But thanks to eyewitness reports, we have a positive I.D. on him." Cree snapped her fingers and the lights went out. A science geek turned on a projector and aimed it at the wall behind Cree. A picture of a teen wearing black body armor, a brown biker jacket, brown combat boots, and a black helmet with a tinted visor. "This guy right here is the cause of our recent problems." Cree hit her podium once more. "I advise all of you to shoot on sight…and treat him like he was a kid."

Moonbase

"As you can see, Numbuh 362," Numbuh 0.333 motioned to the slideshow, "this teen presents a danger to all kid kind in Virginia."

"Wait," Rachel rose a brow, "if this guy killed a teen…how does it affect all kid kind?"

Numbuh 0.333 remained silent for a few moments before answering, "He held kids at gun point, ma'am… I believe that's more than enough reason to send a team after this teen."

"But who do we send?"

"We could send Sector V ma'am, they are the closest sector." Rachel's attention span spiked at the mention of them.

"You want me to send Numbuh 1 to fight a guy who has no problems killing a fellow teen?" Rachel asked in alarm.

"Well…if you put it that way…" 0.333 drawled, choosing to not beat around the bush.

"Can't we send someone else?" Rachel practically begged.

"Well…" Her assistant looked through his papers, "there are a few teams we could send-"

"Good," Rachel took a piece of paper from him and spoke hastily, "send these guys, they sound like they could get the job done."

"The Prospectors are a good choice for this guy; they are famous for the Buster Affair and Operation: V.O.L.C.A.N.O.."

"Good, just send them and leave me alone, I got paperwork to do." Rachel motioned for the boy to leave as she took a piece of paper off a stack.

As Numbuh 0.333 exited the office, he smirked at the thought of sending the Prospectors after that murderer. "Either way…both the nutjob and the freaks will meet their maker."

…

"This isn't right." Numbuh 134 said to himself.

"What isn't right, Koda?" Numbuh 1772 asked his teammate.

"Bringing this guy in." He pointed to the teenager they had tied up.

"I don't like it either, but we have to do this." Numbuh 414 said while fiddling around with the controls of the S.C.A.M.P.E.R..

"Just don't think about it, Koda…it'll be alright." Numbuh 112-Q comforted his friend.

"Yeah, yeah, like we haven't heard that before." Koda shook his head.

"This is Sector Q asking permission to land, over." Numbuh 414 said into his mic.

A school in Virginia

"Give us your lunch money." Ernest pushed the kid backwards.

"No!" the kid refused.

"That's it!" Ernest raised the kid by his collar.

"Put the kid down, Ernie!" a voice called over from down the hall.

"That's Ernest!" he yelled to the speaker.

"Ernest, Ernie, Urkel, it doesn't matter, just put the kid down or I'll put a bullet in your leg." The teen's threat caught the attention of Ernest and his friends.

"Hey, this kid didn't pay his protection money, therefore we reserve the right to bully him. That's the law. So, get lost, punk!" Ernest raised his fist and prepared to strike. He brought his fist down, but came to a halt before he could make contact. Ernest and his gang were in shock as the teen held his arm at bay.

"H-Hey, you can't stop us, that goes in violation of our contract!" Ernest protested.

"Sorry, but I don't like bullying." The teen twisted Ernest's arm behind his back, causing Ernest to yelp in pain. "Now drop the kid or I dislocate your shoulder."

Ernest let the kid go. He fell onto his feet. "Uh…thanks, Mister." The youth found it awkward that a teen rescued him instead of the KND.

"Don't thank me…I just hate bullies. Now leave, kid, before I mug you myself." The kid did so and fled.

"What's wrong with you, man, protecting a kid isn't something Cree pays us to do." Ernest argued as the larger teen let him go.

"Last time I checked, Cree pays you about only ten percent of what you bring her?" His enquiry caught the bullies off guard.

"So?!" Ernest crossed his arms.

"So, I'm gonna cut you a deal: you guys go on with your business as usual and kick up forty percent to me… Doesn't that sound like a much sweeter deal than the scraps Cree is giving you?" Processing the information, the bullies nodded, smirking. "And to sweeten the deal, you'll have protection from the Kids Next Door and Cree's teens."

"Wait…you said you hate bullying…yet you're going to protect us from guys who want to stop it?" the smartest of the bullies questioned. In response, the teen took out a gun and shot the bully in the leg. "AAAAHH!" He fell over in agony.

"Any more questions?" the teen asked those remaining.

"I do." a bully with a mohawk said.

"Oh, and what would it be?" the teen aimed his gun at the bullies' knee caps.

"W-What do we call you?"

The teen smirked behind his helmet and walked away.

"Hey, you didn't answer my question!"

"Didn't a kid with lunch money just run away?" the teen said over his shoulder.

"O-Oh yeah!" The bullies ran after the kid that had just gotten away, while the other bully rolled around in pain.

…

Sector V walked down a corridor in the Moonbase and entered Numbuh 362's office. "Numbuh 1." Rachel acknowledged, not bringing eyes up from her paperwork.

"Yes, Numbuh 362, you said you wanted to see us?" Nigel asked his Supreme Leader.

"Yes…take a seat all of you…we have much to discuss."

…

The teen jumped off a rooftop and landed on another. Three kids jumped off the same rooftop after the teen. The teen spun and sent a volley of shots at his pursuers.

…

"You see, N—Sector V, this teen is dangerous… and I couldn't stand losing you guys." Rachel explained in sorrow.

"Ah, we could take this guy easy." Numbuh 4 proclaimed with pride.

…

The operatives dodged the shots and drew their own weapons. The teen ran from the lasers and soda cans, threw a net that tangled two of the operatives, and jumped off the roof and onto a construction site.

…

"You don't understand, Numbuh 4…" Rachel paused before continuing, "the state he left one of our operatives in was…unreal."

…

The operative left standing jumped over to the construction site and continued his pursuit of the teen. The teen came to a halt as he came to the end of the building. He turned to see the operative shoot a spork attached by a line of thread.

The teen caught the spork in midair, causing the operative's eyes to widen. He put the spork under his boot and took out a knife and taser. He cut the spork off and electrocuted the part that was still connected to the kid. The operative was electrocuted in mere seconds.

The operative fell on his back and twitched uncontrollably. The teen walked over to the kid and picked him up by his shirt collar.

"Do me a favor kid," the teen walked back to the edge of the building, "tell your little club…Figure says 'Hi.'" Without another word, the teen let go, letting the operative fall to the earth.

…

"So the guy must've been a pushover, we aren't." Wally cracked his knuckles.

"You don't get it, Numbuh 4...our operative had to be prematurely decommissioned." At this, Wally paled.

"But Numbuh 362 sir, we can handle it." Nigel reasoned, getting up from his chair.

"Don't worry, Numbuh 1…this mission is in good hands."

Quahog

Rack and Ruin rang the doorbell of a house they were too familiar with. The Siamese twins whistled while waiting for someone to answer. The door slowly opened as a kid in his pajamas rubbed his eyes.

"Rack, Ruin, do you guys know how late it is?" the kid asked drowsily.

"We're sorry, Nolan," Rack began, "but something has happened to Josh." Ruin finished.

"What happened?" Nolan went wide-eyed.

"He's been prematurely decommissioned, and since you were the leader of the Prospectors before Josh," Rack began, "we thought you could be our leader for this mission." Ruin finished.

Nolan was silent for a while before answering the duo. "Only for one mission, got it?" The twins nodded in response to the Sector Q leader. "Now…tell me everything."

"Okay, so it went something like this…"

Numbuh: 832

Name: Josh Puncture

Sector: Prospectors

Backstory: After a mission gone wrong, Josh lost his right hand to a crocodile. After returning to action, he was shunned and mocked by his peers for the loss of his hand.

"I still don't think this was such a good idea." Numbuh 134 said to his teammates.

"Will you stop it with your paranoia?" Numbuh 112-Q said as he and 414 dragged the teen.

"Well, here we are." Numbuh 1772 said as they stopped in front of the Decommissioning Squad.

"I take it this is Numbuh 63.88 here?" the Head of Decommissioning motioned to the tied-up teen.

"Yes ma'am, Numbuh 63.88 aka Kevin Colt." 1772 motioned for his teammates to drag the teen to Numbuhs 80A and 80B. "If there is nothing else…me and my team will be leaving now."

"Wait." Numbuh 501 prompted the sector to stop in their tracks. "I insist that you come and watch."

…

"Where are you going?" Numbuh 35.2 asked his leader.

"Something's come up…I'm needed on a mission." Nolan responded to Sector Q's resident danger guard.

"What do we do if there's a mission while you're gone?" Numbuh 56.8 asked.

"You do your job." Nolan finished putting his things in his backpack. "Until I return, Numbuh 49.5 is in charge." Said operative smirked at her teammates as Nolan walked out the entrance of the treehouse.

Outside, Rack and Ruin waited beside their S.C.A.M.P.E.R.. "Good to be working with you again, sir." the twins said to Nolan as they entered the S.C.A.M.P.E.R..

"So, who's flying this thing?"

"I am." Nolan turned to see a kid in the pilot's chair.

"I take it you're a Prospector?"

"And I take it you're our new boss?" the kid retorted.

"Technically I'm the old boss, but yeah, I'm in charge now." Nolan sat in the captain's chair while Rack and Ruin sat in a custom sofa. "So, what's your name, kid?"

"Numbuh UH-60." the kid answered while turning on the S.C.A.M.P.E.R.'s engines.

"I didn't ask for your Numbuh, I asked for your name."

"William sir, William Knight." the kid answered as the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. lifted off the ground.

"Well, William… Josh may be used to the way Josh ran things, but I'm not Josh." Nolan was dead serious. "Now, this piece of filth practically killed Josh and we're going to bring him in… Understood?"

"Yes sir." William nodded as the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. rocketed towards Virginia.

Teens hideout

"Any of you guys have a clue as to who called us here?" a teen wearing a gold necklace asked the others sitting around the table.

"I thought Gary asked us here for Cree." a teen wearing a baseball cap motioned to the one sitting beside him.

"Naw man, Cree's been taking cuts out of my weapon sales, and by cuts I mean three quarters of my profits." Gary frowned. "I actually thought Kelly over there called this meet."

"My invitation was a kid with a bloody nose!" Kelly argued, raising her hands in defense. "I wasn't too keen on coming here."

"So, no one called this meeting?" the teen with the baseball cap questioned.

"Ah, forget this." The gold necklace teen stood up from his chair. "You brain donors can sit around and figure it out, but I'm-"

"Sit down Freddie, this is my meeting." a voice called from the shadows.

"Oh crap, it's the KND!" Gary yelled.

A teen walked out of the shadows, an AK-47 in hand. "Sorry…I'm not a part of that club, anymore."

"Who the heck are you?" a teen with a cowboy hat pulled out a laser gun.

"Smoke 'em." Gold Necklace commanded.

The teen pulled the trigger of his gun and shot the table, causing the teens to drop to the ground. "I said sit down…but seeing none of you are sitting…so, listen up. From now on, you give me forty percent of your business income… Now, isn't that better than what Cree gives you?"

The teens nodded as they got back on their feet. "Now you must be asking 'what's in it for us?' Well for starters, none of you are the most prosperous of the teen crime families; I will protect you from both Cree's teens and the KND…and you get to go on with your business as usual."

"What if we don't want to?" a teen wearing a business suit asked. Figure pulled the trigger and shot the table once more, causing it to break in half.

"Does that answer your question?" The teens nodded. "Good; oh, and before I forget…no selling that special 'candy' to kids…if you do, you're dead."

Sector Q fallowed Numbuh 501 into the Decommissioning Chamber. The twins 80A and 80B strapped the fugitive into a seat. "As you can see, Numbuh 68.88, there are no exits, please refrain from struggling…we wouldn't want an accident, now would we?" Numbuh 501 smiled evilly.

"This is messed up." Koda whispered to Numbuh 414.

"I know, man… If you want, you could close your eyes…no one will blame you." Dillon said to his friend.

"Now Numbuh 80B, if you'd please." At her command, the twin flipped a switch, causing a TV screen to descend in front of Numbuh 63.88.

"I swear, I will get my revenge on you and everyone else, Numbuh 501!" Numbuh 63.88 threatened.

"They all say that." Mary said just as a plunger shot out of the screen and started to suck out the former operative's memories. "Ah…I love my job."

Prospectors' hideout

The S.C.A.M.P.E.R. descended from the night sky. It landed in front of a broken down S.C.A.M.P.E.R.S.O.O.P.R.E.M.E.. Nolan, Rack and Ruin, and William disembarked from their transportation and entered the modified S.C.A.M.P.E.R..

"The rest of the team's in here, right?" Nolan asked William.

"Yes." William affirmed, kicking the door open.

The two operatives inside raised their respective weapons and aimed them at the door. "Stand down… It's us." William assured. The operatives did so.

"'bout time you guys showed up." an operative with a green baseball cap and a bullet belt said.

"Sorry…but I needed to pack." Nolan motioned to his backpack.

"Oh, Nolan," the other operative ran over to Nolan and shook his hand, "it's good to see you again."

"It's good to see you, too, Corey." Nolan smiled at his old friend. "Haven't seen you since I left."

"Well, just because Bob goes ahead and aces Stevie and Vana, doesn't mean I have to leave." Nolan's smile faded away and was replaced with a sorrowful frown.

"Yeah…Bob really screwed the team up." Nolan shook the memory off and returned his attention to his current team. "Well, Numbuh 10.01, I believe you should introduce me to our weapons specialist."

"Oh yes, Nolan this is Numbuh 72, Numbuh 72 this is Nolan…our new leader."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, sir." Numbuh 72 extended his hand, which Nolan shook.

"Likewise… So, Numbuh 72, do you have a name?"

"Yes, but Numbuh 832-"

"Last time I checked, I was temporary leader of this team, and I do believe I should know your name."

"Roady, sir…Roady Buster." Numbuh 72 answered awkwardly.

"Well then, now that we're all acquainted with one another…I think it's time we go after this 'Figure.'" Nolan pulled out his M.U.M.B.L.E.R..

"We don't exactly know where he is, Nolan." Corey said, leaning against the hull of the S.C.A.M.P.E.R..

"Don't worry…I know who might."

Quahog; Mario's house

The former Numbuh 1772 was getting ready for a party. He heard his house phone ring and went to answer it. "Hello, Mario speaking."

"Hey Joker, it's me, Nolan. Do you have a sec?" Nolan said into his H.E.A.D.S.E.T.'s mic.

"Uh, I actually have to go and pick up…a friend in five minutes."

"Don't sweat it, man, I just need some info on the teens of Virginia's latest weapon shipments."

"Oh." Mario ran over to his laptop and pulled up the latest weapon shipment records. "Yeah, there's one arriving today at eleven…why?"

"Oh, you know, going after a wanted teen, possible revenge and death included, you know the usual." Nolan explained casually.

"er…okay, have fun with that, I have to go."

"Oh yeah sure, tell Merc I said hi; and if you get a chance, can you get me some info on a guy called 'Figure'?"

"Yeah sure, and she's a bit mad that you shot her that one time."

"She lived, didn't she?"

"Either way, I have to go."

"Say hi to the rest of the maniac squad for me."

"Whatever, Nolan." Mario hung up and walked out his front door.

…

"Alright boys, we have the location of a possible target." Nolan announced to the rest of his team.

"When?" Corey asked.

Nolan looked down to his watch and declared, "Now."

Another neighborhood

"Drive, drive!" a teen yelled to his friend as they drove away, chased by a helmeted teen on a motorcycle.

"You can run, you can hide, and you can drive, but you won't escape!" The teen sped up beside the truck. He pulled out his AK-47 and shot at the tires of the truck. It swerved out of control and flipped over, hitting a random house.

"What the hell?!" yelled the man inside the house, exposed in his bathtub. The driver of the truck limped his way out, just to see the tub land in front of him. "Ah seriously, even in this guy's stories?!" Cleveland Brown yelled.

The teen on the motorcycle stopped in front of the leveled house and aimed his gun at Cleveland and the teen. "Everyone on the ground or I shoot the crap out of you all!" They both laid themselves flat on the ground as Figure walked over and opened the back of the truck. "Ah, Battle Ready Armor upgrades, rocket launchers, bikes, and laser guns, just what Cree needed."

Figure took out a grenade from his jacket and pulled the pin, tossing it into the truck. Figure ran away, making it to his motorcycle just as the truck blew up. The explosion sent Cleveland and the teen hurdling through the air, catching Cleveland's house on fire.

"Man, I love senseless mayhem." Figure said as he walked over to the teen. He picked him up by his collar and shook him to make sure he was still conscious. The teen groaned as Figure dropped him. "Alright," Figure took a pistol out and aimed it at the teen's head, "what's your name?"

"D-Devon." He was scared out of his mind.

"Well Devon, can you give Cree a message for me?"

"Y-yes."

"Good. Tell her she'll have to decommission me again to stop me." With that, Figure knocked the teen out by throwing him face-first into a tree. Figure turned to see Cleveland Brown call the fire department; he took out his pistol and shot the cellphone out of his hand.

"Hey, what was that for?!"

"I just felt like it." Figure returned to his motorcycle and looked up at the night sky. "Where are they…?" he pondered aloud.

"Right behind you." Figure turned his head slightly to see Nolan pointing his M.U.M.B.L.E.R. at the back of his head.

"You know, I actually thought you guys weren't going to show." Figure let out a humorless laugh. "Man…from what I can tell, you aren't a local…especially with the whole sneak tactic."

"So, you're the guy who got Josh decommissioned." Nolan said coldly. "I don't know why…but I expected a bloodthirsty killer…not a clown wearing biker's clothing."

"Well, I would have decided to call myself Joker…but I hear Mario took that." The statement drew Nolan's attention.

"How do you know Mario?"

"Oh, you could say we have a history…but you know me." Figure spun, kicking Nolan to the pavement. "I hate spoilers." Figure started his motorcycle and sped away.

Nolan groaned as he got back on his feet. Nolan tapped a button on his H.E.A.D.S.E.T. and spoke into the mic as he gave chase. "William, Corey, he's heading your way… Kick his aft."

…

"Copy that, Nolan." Corey replied into his P.I.P.E.R.. He pulled out his C.O.R.D.E.R. while William readied his B.L.A.Z.E.R.. "You ready, rookie?"

"You know I am." William said as he peered through the window.

Further down the street, Figure laughed manically on his motorcycle. When he came near the building the two Prospectors were hiding in, Corey shot his C.O.R.D.E.R., successfully attaching to Figure's motorcycle. Corey took the end of the wire and tied it to a pillar inside the building.

Figure kept driving, oblivious to the wire attached to his vehicle. He came to a red light, but didn't stop, until the wire caused him to be flung off his motorcycle. Figure landed on the pavement and continued to roll until he hit a telephone pole. Figure staggered back to his feet and pulled out his broken AK-47. "Thanks for breaking the fall, you cheap piece of crap." Figure tossed the gun aside as Rack and Ruin ran down the street towards him. "Seriously?" he asked disbelievingly as he noticed their condition. "Siamese twins? I thought you Sector V guys were supposed to be the be-" He was shot by Rack's S.C.A.M.P.P.. Figure got back on his feet and pulled out his two pistols. "Okay then…you guys are good."

Figure began shooting at Rack and Ruin, who deflected the shots with their mallets. He kept shooting until he ran out of ammo, so he holstered his guns and pulled out his knife. He ran towards the Siamese duo, his intent to kill. His desire was crushed when Figure was shot back by a barrage of gumball fire. Figure turned to see Roady with his modified G.U.M.Z.O.O.K.A.. "You guys just love popping out of everywhere, huh? No matter, all this is is a work out." Figure raised his knife and charged at Roady.

"Time to intervene?" William asked Corey.

"Yes." Corey took out two S.C.A.M.P.P.'s and jumped out the window.

Figure brought his knife downward on Roady's G.U.M.Z.O.O.K.A., cutting it in half. Roady jumped backwards, dodging Figure's knife and taking out his M.U.S.K.E.T. to shoot at Figure. "I'm starting to think you guys aren't Sector V." Figure said as he dodged a mallet.

"What was your first clue, the fact none of us are bald?" Corey said as he shot at Figure.

"And I have a smart-mouth." Figure remarked before throwing his knife at Corey. Corey's eyes widened as the knife pierced his skin. "AAAH!" Corey screamed and fell to his knees, dropping his S.C.A.M.P.P.'s. "Now I know you guys aren't Sector V." Figure said as he walked behind Corey. "You would have put up a better fight."

Figure knelt down behind Corey and drew out a second knife. "If any of you move an inch, I will slit his throat!" Roady, William, Rack and Ruin remained still, fearing the safety of their friend. "Now drop your weapons!"

The Prospectors did as he said. "I swear if you hurt him, we'll break you in two!" Roady yelled.

"Yeah, I'd like to see you try; the last guy who tried got thrown off a ten story building." Figure said calmly as he pressed the knife closer to Corey's neck. "You know what…what the heck?" With no hesitation, Figure slit Corey's throat. The Prospectors were silent with dread as their teammate bled out and died. "Now that is tragic!"

Figure reloaded his pistols and started shooting at the operatives, who quickly dove for cover. Figure ran over to his fallen motorcycle and shot the wire clean off. He picked his bike back up so it was on its wheels and drove off.

The four operatives stepped away from their hiding spots and walked to Corey's body. "Damn…" William said as low as a whisper just as Nolan arrived. Nolan looked down to the pavement, pale at the sight of Corey's blood.

"No…"

…

KND paramedics loaded Corey up in the back of a S.C.A.M.P.E.R. and flew off. Operatives and other medical personnel littered the street. Nolan got up from where he was seated and approached a sobbing William. Nolan knelt beside the crying ten-year-old and put his hand on his shoulder.

"That was on me…not you." Nolan said in a comforting tone. William stopped his weeping and shook his head. "Look at me, William. You may have been his partner on this, but you did your job. I'm the one who failed Corey…not you."

William could make no response. The tears wouldn't subside.

Nolan shook his head and walked over to Rack and Ruin. "How are you two holding up?"

The Siamese twins nodded to one another and said, "We're alright…nothing else needs to be said."

"You guys sure?"

"We're sure."

"Fine…but if you need to talk, I'll listen." Without another word, Nolan walked over to Roady, who was trying to put his G.U.M.Z.O.O.K.A. back together. Nolan gave a sympathetic look to Roady's vein attempts at doing so.

"Selfish jerk," an operative sneered at the sight of Roady's actions, "cares more about that junk than his friend." The operative walked over to Roady and kicked the G.U.M.Z.O.O.K.A. pieces out of his hands. "Try actually having feelings." he said before walking away. Roady silently crawled over to the pieces and cradled them in his arms.

Nolan watched Roady in silence. He took out one of his M.U.S.S.K.E.T.'s and shot the spiteful operative in the back of the leg. The operative jumped high into the air and landed flat on his face.

"Don't be a hypocrite." Nolan said to the operative as he knelt beside Roady. "You alright, man?"

"It won't be the same." Roady whispered as he tried to put his sidearm back together.

"The weapon?" Nolan raised an eyebrow.

"No." Roady dropped the pieces of the G.U.M.Z.O.O.K.A. and turned to face Nolan. "Life."

…

"Play back." Nolan said into his H.E.A.D.S.E.T.'s mic. He paid attention to the video currently playing on its eyepiece, a video taken thirty minutes ago, a few minutes before Corey's death. The video was from Nolan's perspective. Nolan held his M.U.M.B.L.E.R. behind Figure's head and then Figure spun around, kicking Nolan to the side and landing perfectly on his motorcycle. "Where have I seen that before?" Nolan mumbled.

"Seen what?" Rack asked as he and Ruin walked up behind their leader.

"Video footage." Nolan said as the video cut to static. "Play back." The video replayed, showing the same footage as before.

"So…what do we do now?" Ruin asked.

Nolan paused the video and turned to the twins. "Well…I do believe we have a lead." Nolan got up from where he was seated and motioned for the twins to follow.

"What kind of lead, boss?" Rack asked.

Nolan waved to William, causing the pilot to get up and follow the trio. "The kind where I pray and have to buy tacos." Nolan said as he nodded to Roady, signaling the weapons expert to get up from where he was seated and walk beside William.

"So, just us now?" William asked as he rubbed his face.

"Yep, just us… This is a personal Prospector affair." The operatives boarded their S.C.A.M.P.E.R. and blasted off to Quahog.

Teens hideout

"What do you mean he 'blew it up'?" Cree asked.

The teen looked down at the ground, ashamed. "You see, Cree…the guy kinda…threw a grenade into the truck…I'm lucky enough to be alive." He shook his head.

"Well, at least you made it…" Cree droned on, "but I want to know…what message exactly?"

"Oh! He said you'll have to decommission him again to stop him." The teen said to the best of his memory.

Cree scratched her hair in thought. She never decommissioned anyone...what did he mean? "Tell me how old this…Figure is?"

"About sixteen, Cree."

"Hm…" Cree began to think of the past Heads of Decommissioning. "It can't be Numbuh 86…"

"What can't be Numbuh 86?"

"The one responsible for his decommissioning… Get Chad here now. I need him to break our favorite demented Brit out of jail."

"Yes, ma'am." The teen walked out of the room, leaving Cree to her thoughts. However, unbeknownst to Cree, a miniature listening device hidden on the teen had recorded and transmitted the entire conversation.

Quahog

"Were the tacos necessary?" Roady asked Nolan as he cleaned his modified S.C.A.M.P.P..

Nolan held the bag of tacos in his left hand and a square wooden box in his right. "Of course it was."

"But why did we have to stop by that museum, Numbuh 101 is more of a nerd than Numbuh 332 is." William said over his shoulder as he flew through Quahog's morning skies.

"I've got my reasons."

The S.C.A.M.P.E.R. landed in front of a blue and yellow house. Nolan disembarked from the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. with the tacos and rang the doorbell. But to his surprise, a redheaded teenage girl answered the door instead of the former cripple. "Oh…it's you." Merc said disdainfully.

"Yeah, I know; is Mario here, I need to ask him a few things." Nolan rambled, peering into the house.

"Yes he is." Merc began to glare at Nolan and vice versa.

Nolan broke the awkward silence and asked, "Are you going to let me in?"

"Most likely not."

"Hm…so, how are the rest of the maniacs?"

"Good…Brawl's Brawl and Garrison still can't shut up."

"Hm…"

"Well, this is awkward."

"Yes, yes it is." At that moment, Mario walked up behind Merc and put his hand on her shoulder.

"You promised me you wouldn't get into fights with Nolan when you weren't on duty." he scolded.

"Sorry, it's really hard not to when he shot me with Shot's helmet." she reminded as she glared at Nolan.

"When are you going to let that go…" Nolan rolled his eyes.

"Besides the usual, I am compelled to ask why you're here." Mario said to his friend as he motioned for him to come in.

"Oh you know, Prospectors, teen with guns, Corey got killed, you know the usual." Nolan narrowed his eyes as he mentioned Corey.

"Oh…God, what happened?" Mario's eyes widened as he sat next to Merc on his couch.

"You know that guy I asked you to look up?" Nolan asked, avoiding the question.

"Oh, yeah." Mario got up from his seat and took out a piece of paper. "Recent reports suggest he just showed up out of the blue, eyewitness reports suggest he spent countless hours planning his moves."

"So you're telling me he's planned everything right from the get-go?" Nolan said while placing the tacos on the table in front of him.

"Possibly yes."

"Great." Nolan muttered to himself as he took out the square box.

"What's that?" Merc asked.

"A Recommissioning Device; Numbuh 86 had to have one lying around somewhere if she was able to give Sector V their memories back." Nolan explained while winding the crank.

"So, what are you going to do with that?" Mario asked as he sat back down beside Merc.

"Bring back Numbuh 1772." Right on cue, the device shot out a green beam of energy at Mario, causing the information broker to rise into the air. In a flash of white light, Mario fell back onto his spot on the couch. "Feel better?"

"Did you just seriously shoot me?" Mario asked as he stood up from the couch.

"Yes."

"Then I'm great! I got my memories back and everything!" Mario jumped into the air joyfully.

"Then you must know I brought you back for a reason." Nolan reaffirmed, bringing Mario out of his hype.

"You know, you're a lot more of a downer than when I first met you." Mario deadpanned as he sat back down beside Merc.

"Yeah, life sucks, but beside the usual, I have a few questions that only you can answer." Nolan replied while taking a seat across from Mario and Merc.

"What kind of questions?" Mario asked, a bit interested.

"This guy 'Figure' said he knew you." At this, both Mario and Merc's eyes shot wide open in surprise. "I need to know… do you know who he is?"

Mario scratched his head in thought. "Sorry, Nolan…but I can't say I know anyone who'd downright kill a person in cold blood."

Nolan got up from his seat and walked over to the piece of paper that Mario had earlier. He read through the eyewitness statements and smirked. "Do you know anyone with a name that starts with 'K'?"

"Only about two? Though, it does remind me of this story I heard; something about reptile aliens-"

"Okay, not important. And you?" Nolan asked Merc.

"Sorry, but the guys I know with a name that start with 'K' are science nerds." Merc said, opening the taco bag.

"Fine…give me their names." Nolan said to Mario.

Mario shuffled in his seat. "Well…the first guy's name is Kevin Colt…but I highly doubt it's him seeing he's the star football player here in Quahog."

"Who's the other guy then?" Nolan grew dead serious.

Mario hesitated for a moment before talking. "His name is Koda…Koda Shrieves… He was a member of Sector Q…Numbuh 134."

"Thanks…that's all I needed for confirmation." Nolan said, getting up from his seat.

"Confirmation? Wait…you knew?" Mario asked, surprised.

"Edward had a video camera on at all times when he went on missions… You could say it was the basis for the H.E.A.D.S.E.T.'s video feature." Nolan said, tapping his H.E.A.D.S.E.T.. "I studied the videos to use as a training manual; Figure did something that completely caught me off guard…something I saw in one of the videos. Well, I'm sure you both need to be alone…I'll be off now."

"Take care of yourself, man." Mario said to Nolan as he walked out of the front door, closing it behind him.

Arctic Base

"Hey, guys!" a prison guard called out to his friend.

"Oh hey, Numbuh 38.0." the two guards smiled.

"I thought you had the afternoon shift?" one of the operatives asked.

"Oh well, Numbuh 525 called in sick, something about poison ivy or whatnot." Numbuh 38.0 said while pretending to scratch himself.

"Hey, why don't you go and get us some hot chocolate, it's kinda dangerous guarding Mary here." One of the operatives motioned to the prisoner in the cell.

"Nah man, I can handle it." Numbuh 38.0 reassured his friends. Before the operatives could protest, Numbuh 38.0 dropped to the ground, a tranquilizer in the side of his neck.

"You guys are late." one of the operatives said to Chad and the five teens accompanying him.

"Hey, shut it, we're here now, aren't we?" Chad walked up to the operatives and looked into the cell. "Is she ready to go?"

"Yes…she is." Mary replied from within her cell.

…

A boy…no, a teen sat alone at his desk. He could hear their comments, their lies. He turned his attention to the worksheet in front of him. It was a regular assignment, not too hard, not too easy. He was about to write the answer when a paper ball landed on his desk.

The teen unfolded the crumbled up ball and read it. The teen crumbled it up and tossed it aside. He shook his head. He hated them…he hated them all. He turned his attention back to the worksheet. He read the problem over again. Then he remembered…he remembered the pain from the torture, he remembered the pain from the interrogation, and he remembered her evil laugh.

It echoed through his head, that sickening, blood curdling, wicked laugh. It haunted him in his dreams…it haunted him everywhere. She didn't wipe his memory…she didn't wipe it at all. He flinched at the sound of the bell. The teen quickly placed his items into his backpack and raced out of the classroom.

It echoed over and over again. He wanted it to go away. He could remember his screams, the pain he endured, and then more laughter. The teen ran to his locker and quickly opened it. He gathered his things and ran. The teen ran, he was almost at the exit…almost.

A girl extended her leg, causing the teen to trip and fall onto the floor. Everyone began to laugh. The laughs…the laughs, they began to echo through the teen's head. His memories began to flood his mind. Every word he heard triggered a memory.

The laugh. It would never go away.

The teen got back on his feet. He brushed himself off and charged towards the exit. He crashed through the exit and raced away from his school.

The laughter would never stop. Even if he got away from school…he will always hear her laughing at him.

Moonbase

"Please someone pick up…please with sugar on top!" a prison guard spoke into the radio.

"I read you loud and clear, Numbuh 204; sorry, but you'll have to handle your situation by yourselves, we're currently dealing with our own problem." Numbuh 35 responded.

"What kind of problem would be more important than a prison break?"

"Trust me," Bartie said, looking at a monitor, "if this wasn't something big…we'd already be there."

In Landing Bay 13, KND operatives desperately tried to repel a heavily armored teen.

"Come on guys, there's only two of them left!" Numbuh 86 yelled to the rest of the rapid response team.

The teen wore a black motorcycle helmet with a red visor and white triangles resembling teeth on it, a red chest piece with a picture of a fist on fire, a huge backpack with a cord leading to his weapon, and black and red body armor. The teen slowly stalked towards his opposition and raised his weapon.

"What in the name of Zero is with this guy!" an operative exclaimed at the sight of teen.

The teen pulled the trigger and set the closest transport on fire. As the various 2x4 ships caught on fire, another teen walked behind his heavily armed comrade. The teen wore a simple white shirt with a white hood that covered his face, cargo jeans and a high tech monocle. The teen rose his concussion rifle and pulled the trigger, quickly knocking out four operatives.

"Anyone tell you you're good with that rifle?" The teen with the flamethrower said to his comrade.

"Shut up and keep setting crap on fire." the sniper said as he took out two more operatives.

Arctic Prison

Chad walked calmly through the chaotic firefight that engulfed the prison. A little earlier, they had released all of the prisoners from their cells. The KND prison guards were fighting back at the best of their ability, but the prisoners' sheer numbers were slowly overwhelming the operatives.

Chad took out two ray guns and made quick work of the guards in the landing bay. "Get in." he said, motioning towards the nearest S.C.A.M.P.E.R..

"Why are we taking these KND dorks' ship when we got ours?" one of the teens asked.

"The KND have surely called in for reinforcements, we'll be a red dot amongst the white snow when they arrive." Chad said while opening the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. door. "Why not blend in with the snow."

The teens complied and entered the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. bound for Virginia.

Moonbase

Numbuh 86 and the rest of the operatives have been pushed back to the corridors of the base. "Numbuh 86 sir, our lasers and mustard blasts can't cut through that guy's fire blasts!" Numbuh 99 said while firing his M.U.S.K.E.T..

"I can tell that for myself, you idiot!" Numbuh 86 yelled into Garret's ear, causing him to wince in pain.

"Hey, can we stop yelling at one another and focus on the two scary guys with a flamethrower walking towards us?" Numbuh 91 reminded her teammates of the situation at hand.

"This is easy!" the flamethrower wielder exclaimed. "It's like burning fish in a barrel!"

"That's easy for you to say." the teen with the monocle said, shooting another operative and knocking him out. "I actually possess enough skill to shoot these guys."

"Oh yeah, and that's the reason why you hide behind the guy with the flamethrower."

"Ghost, Clarence, Chad was successful in his mission, return to the shuttle, leave the dead weight." a voice said in the teens' communicators.

"Guess this means we have to leave the rest of the fire team." Clarence remarked with emphasis on the word.

"You just had to crack a joke, didn't you?" Ghost said as he ran back down the hall to the landing bay, followed close behind by Clarence.

"Come on man, it's me, you know I just had to!" Clarence let out a burst of fire. The destructive duo raced back to their shuttle, leaving their unconscious comrades behind.

Teens hideout, 2 hours after prison break

Mary sat, handcuffed, across from Cree. "Alright 501, I got a few questions and you have the answers." Cree motioned to one of the guards in the room to give her a stack of pictures. Cree tossed the stack in front of Mary. "This guy has been causing the Virginia Teen Cell trouble for the last month, more trouble than the Kids Next Dorks can do in a year…and you are apparently the only person here who can tell me who he is…and stop him."

Mary inspected the pictures of Figure, taking note of his age and actions. "Well, he certainly is a weird one…the whole biker getup is weird and don't get me started on the whole gun thing."

"That's kind of why you're here, you were spared decommissioning because of your 'virus' that made it so you are unable to be decommissioned." Cree leaned forward a bit and resumed, "You obviously know how to create your own Decommissioning Device…and you can bring Figure in…and if you do, I will see to it that the head honcho makes you leader of the torture and interrogation division in England."

Mary tapped her chin at the thought. She thought for a moment more before talking. "I'm going to need a truck full of weapons and a few guys." Mary looked out a window to see a bunch of science nerds unloading some equipment. "And I'm going to need your top scientists to make a portable Decommissioning Device."

"Anything else?"

"I'm going to need a few hostages."

Minutes later

"No, no!" Mary yelled at a scientist, "you connect the red cable to the blue, not the other way around!"

"Sorry ma'am!" the scientist frantically adjusted the wires.

"Gah! It is so hard to find good help these days." Mary face-palmed and walked over to a teen standing at attention. "Tell me, has Cree acquired the appropriate hostages, yet?"

"I can't say for sure."

"Well, notify me if something happens." Mary walked back over to the scientists and inspected the portable decommissioning blaster. "Now we wait."

Prospectors' S.C.A.M.P.E.R.

"Come on Josh, tell us how the tomato can is!" Stevie laughed at his attempt at a joke.

"Uh…it's…interesting." Josh inspected his new grappling hook hand. 'Interesting' was certainly an understatement.

"Hey," Nolan said defensively, "I did the best with what I have; heck, Death's Head would approve of my ingenuity."

"That walking arsenal can go suck on a salt lick for all I care." Vana said jokingly. "Seriously, the guy always ends his sentences with 'yes' or 'no,' what's up with that?"

"I don't know Warhawk," Bob said, entering the conversation, "but you got to wonder what he probably did to that Icarus fellow."

"Hey!" Josh pointed his finger a Bob. "That guy was going to ageify every kid on the planet, I couldn't care less if DH mounts him on his wall."

"Amen to that." Carmine said, smirking behind his helmet.

"So," Nolan said to Corey, "what did you think of your first mission with the Prospectors?"

"It was both exciting and dangerous beyond belief." Corey deadpanned. "But…I think I'm going to like it here…being a part of this team."

"That's why the Prospectors exist." Nolan smiled, looking at every individual in the room. "We search for the best out of the worst traits in people, be it a missing hand, paranoia, blindness, or any other disability, it can be an advantage that can be used for the betterment of all kid kind."

His words touched their hearts. After the way the world treated them… for once, they felt special.

Nolan smiled. It had been about eight months since then…and two days before Bob went rogue. Nolan frowned… what Bob did could never be forgiven.

"Earth to Numbuh Twenty-Thirty?" William snapped Nolan back into reality. "Hey Nolan, you with us man?"

"Hm, oh yeah." Nolan droned.

"You alright, you kinda zoned out on us?" William asked concerned, quickly catching Roady, Rack, and Ruin's attention.

"Oh yeah…just thinking, that's all."

"You sure you're alright, sir?" Rack and Ruin asked simultaneously.

"Yes I am. William, when do we depart for Virginia?" Nolan asked, diverting the topic.

"Right now if you want, sir." William answered, walking back to the pilot chair in the S.C.A.M.P.E.R..

"Then get us in the air, please."

"What's with the formal speech?" Roady asked.

"I'll tell you when you buckle your seatbelt." Nolan said with a dry laugh.

"Fine, fine." Roady buckled his seatbelt and turned his seat around. "Okay, now tell us why you're so formal."

"I do believe in showing my team respect, so can we please move on?" Nolan practically demanded.

"Sure thing, sir."

Nolan took out the Recommissioning Device and stared at it. He weighed the pros and cons of its existence. "For another time." Nolan muttered to himself. "William, we need to make a stop!" he hollered.

"Where to?" William asked as the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. lifted off the ground.

"We got a parcel to return and I don't feel like paying the late fee." Nolan lightly joked.

"Fine, but if that Numbuh 101 guy decides to ask for pictures of us without Corey, I'm gonna throw him off the roof." Roady said while twirling his modified S.C.A.M.P.P..

The S.C.A.M.P.E.R. rocketed through Quahog's sky, flying towards the KND Museum, where Roady would later throw Numbuh 101 off a roof.

Figure's hideout

"Well done." Figure complimented the two teens. "I'd downright say you two are a formidable foe…"

"I guess we are." Clarence said, uncertain.

"Well then," Figure grabbed Clarence and threw him face first into a wall. He then proceeded to pick him back up. "If you try to double cross me, I will kill you, got it?"

"Y-yes s-sir." Clarence stuttered.

"Good…now time to prepare… Ghost!" Figure called out the sniper.

"Yes." Ghost replied.

"Be ready to set up a sniping position for later." Ghost responded by nodding and walking out of the room. "Oh, and Ghost…do use bullets this time, I now permit you to kill this time around."

Virginia

"Nice night for a drive, eh Warren?" the officer asked the deputy as they drove over a bridge.

"Yeah…you know what would suck though?" Warren asked, taking a sip from his coffee.

"What?"

"If Godzilla just… fell down from the sky or something." Warren set his coffee down as soon as he noticed the veteran officer's stare. "What?"

"You need to lay off the caffeine, man." the officer said, taking a sip out of his own coffee.

"Uh…yeah, I need to." Warren tossed his coffee out the window of the police car right before a giant truck hit the car, sending it flying into the river below.

"Hey, you know what, Fred?" Warren asked as the car began to fill with water.

"What, Warren?" the veteran asked while calmly exiting the car.

"I can't swim."

Back on the bridge, the truck began to swerve into oncoming cars, knocking them off the bridge and into the river. "Let this be a lesson in getting someone's attention." Mary said to the teen sitting beside her in the passenger seat.

"Are you even old enough to drive?" the teen asked Mary, who kicked him out of the truck in response.

"Like I said earlier…it's hard to find good help these days." Mary then swerved the truck into the bridge's support beam, totaling the front of the truck in the process.

Mary exited the truck and climbed to the top of it. She took out a megaphone and began to speak. "Now then…will this so-called 'Figure' please show himself…'cause if not," Mary motioned to another teen to toss her a gas can, "I'm going to light your gang on fire!"

Within the truck, a vast array of teens and children alike, from both the bully trade and the candy black market, were tied up and gagged. One teen in particular spat out the sock in her mouth. "Get me out of here you sick Brit!" Cree yelled at the top of her lungs.

"Yeah, come on, I helped break you out of the Arctic Prison!" Chad yelled, trying to break out of the rope.

Soon enough, local law enforcement began to create a perimeter on the bridge. "Oh…great, a welcome wagon." Mary said before motioning a teen with an ordinance pack to walk over to her. "Now be a good expendable henchman and blow something up."

The teen nodded and took out a grenade from his ordinance pack. He threw the grenade into the air towards the police. The police gaped in shock as the grenade blew up right in their faces. Mary gave off a confused expression before turning around to see Figure standing atop the arch on the bridge.

"Ah, Mister Figure… Can you hold up a second, I think I still have to kill everyone in this truck." Mary opened a hatch at the top of the truck and began to pour the gasoline from the can into the truck.

"Hey, quit it!" Ernest yelled as the gas can landed on his forehead.

"Now hold on, I need to get a match."

"Go ahead… Do you think I care if that scum dies?" Figure said while holstering his pistol.

"Don't know, all I wanted was your attention." Mary said, pulling out a pack of matches from her jacket.

"You've always had my attention, but what I really wanted was an audience with you."

Figure's statement caught Mary's attention. She rose a brow and said, "I'm sorry, but that seems to imply that you orchestrated this shindig."

"I did." Figure began. "Sure, I had lots of plans, but in the endgame was getting Cree here so desperate that she would cut a deal. She was the only one with the know-how to get into the Arctic Prison and get you out."

"You can't trust anyone." Cree muttered as she continued to try and escape.

"So, I've been bamboozled." Mary said, lighting a match that quickly extinguished.

"I wouldn't undersell it, it took a lot of work to bring about our little reunion."

"Reunion?" Mary asked, surprised. "Have we met before?" Mary took out another match and lit it.

Figure's eyes began to narrow behind his visor. "Yes, we have."

"Well then," Mary held the match over the hatch, "here's to warm fuzzy memories." Mary dropped the match into the truck, landing on the teen with the baseball cap. The teens began to yell in terror as a S.C.A.M.P.E.R. flew overhead.

"William, drop the bomb!" Nolan called out to the Prospector pilot.

"Roger that boss, dropping the water balloon-filled metal casing onto a truck where people are on fire." William said dryly as he pushed a button, sending said casing shooting out of the S.C.A.M.P.E.R.'s cannon.

Mary began to laugh maniacally until the water balloons erupted from the metal casing and rained down on the truck, dowsing the flames. "Poop." muttered Mary as a claw flew down from the S.C.A.M.P.E.R., grabbing her by her jacket's collar. The teens around the truck raised their weapons in hopes to shoot down the 2x4 ship, but one by one they fell to the ground, a bullet in their heads.

"Nice one." Clarence complimented Ghost for his sniping.

"Just doing what I'm paid for." Ghost said as he continued to shoot the teens from miles away.

As the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. lifted Mary further into the air, Mary took out the portable decommissioning device and aimed at Figure. "Should have planned ahead." Mary said as she squeezed the trigger.

"I did." muttered Figure as he took out a rocket launcher. "Mine's bigger than yours." Figure aimed at the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. and pulled the trigger, sending the rocket hurdling at the S.C.A.M.P.E.R.'s engines. The rocket made contact, causing the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. to spin out of control and fall towards the river.

"Good night for a swim." Figure said before jumping off the arch and into the river.

The S.C.A.M.P.E.R. separated in two as it free fell, the Prospectors in one half, and Mary dangling on the other. "Jump for it!" Nolan commanded as he jumped out of the flaming half of the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. that he and the Prospectors resided in.

"Don't have to tell us twice!"

"This is fricking awesome!"

"Look out below!"

The operatives landed in the ice cold water as the flaming part of the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. landed behind them. "Well…that could've gone better." Rack and Ruin said simultaneously.

"Yeah…what can go right?" Nolan said sarcastically.

"Hey!" a voice called out to the operatives, "If you Sector V flunkies want Mrs. Decommission-a-lot, then meet me at the highest building in Virginia in one hour!"

The operatives swam back to land and regained their composure. "Well," Nolan broke the ice, "any of you know where the tallest building in Virginia is?"

…

The five operatives walked down a darkened street towards the tallest building in question. "Any words of wisdom, boss?" Ruin asked.

Nolan took out two of his M.U.S.S.K.E.T.s and said, "We show up, shoot, and leave, the less coherent the better."

As if on cue, the rest of the Prospectors took out their own weapons. Roady took out his modified three barrel S.C.A.M.P.P., Rack and Ruin took out their mallet and anvil melee weapons, and William took out two propeller-like weapons. "Let's crack some skulls." Roady said as they walked side-by-side towards the building.

…

At the top of the building, the stairwell door to the roof flew open and Mary was thrown through it. Figure strolled up to Mary and kneeled beside her. "You won't believe how long this plan took to formulate." he said as he took out the portable decommissioning device. "Seriously, the whole motorcycle, guns, explosives, it is both pricey and a waste of time to acquire."

He inspected the P.D.D.. "Nice piece of hardware…and I see you didn't upload that little virus of yours into it."

"You said we knew each other…and I must admit you do seem familiar." Mary asked in an attempt to get information.

"I'm something you helped make." Figure said, aiming the P.D.D. in Mary's face.

"Now, now I'm sure we can work this out." she said in vain as Figure punched her with the butt of the P.D.D..

"Shut up." Figure stood up and walked towards the edge of the roof. "I hear your voice enough as it is."

"Figure, we got movement near the entrance." Clarence said over his radio.

"Take care of them." Figure responded as he walked back towards Mary. "This better be Sector V…I'm starting to get the impression I'm not big in the eyes of the KND."

…

"You got that Ghost?" Clarence asked over the radio.

"Of course." Ghost said as he walked out of the building. He raised two silenced pistols and aimed at the approaching KND operatives. "Night, night." He pulled the trigger.

William leapt ahead of the group; he raised the propellers and flipped the switches on the handles, causing the propellers to spin at high speeds. The bullets met the propellers and bounced off in separate directions. "Why did Figure assign me to this position?" Ghost muttered to himself as he pulled out his concussion rifle. "DANCE!" He pulled the trigger, sending a blast of rubber bullets at the operatives.

William blocked the rubber bullets with his propellers. He turned to face his teammates and said, "Go, I've got the creep with the eyepiece!"

They nodded and continued towards the entrance, leaving William to fight Ghost outside.

…

"Three of them got past me, take them out, Clarence!" Ghost said over the radio.

"Right." Clarence said as he lifted his flamethrower up and set it in position.

The four operatives rounded the corner of the stairs just as a burst of fire cut in front of them. "Good news, we know who torched the elevators." Nolan said as he jumped backwards to avoid a burst from Clarence's flamethrower.

"Come on, make my day!" Clarence yelled as he let out another burst.

"You guys can handle this jerk, right?" Nolan asked the others.

"You know we can." Roady said, letting off a few shots from his S.C.A.M.P.P..

Nolan took out his M.U.M.B.L.E.R. and ran towards Clarence. He shot the staircase above Clarence and then shot the stairs beneath his feet, sending him flying through the hole above.

"Oi!" Clarence yelled, "Get back here and fry!"

Roady lifted his S.C.A.M.P.P. and shot Clarence. "You've got your own problems, Pyro." Roady said as he, Rack, and Ruin raised their weapons and unleashed a wave of laser fire.

…

Nolan kicked open the door to the roof and ducked behind an air conditioner. "You don't have to hide!" Figure yelled as he walked around the roof. "I read your file, Numbuh 1… Not really one to sneak around."

"I'm not Numbuh 1." Nolan said, stepping out from behind the AC.

"Seriously," Figure slumped his shoulders and stood in place, "I thought my killing people and encouraging bullying in Virginia would be enough to attract the infamous Sector V…man, was I wrong."

"Well then…forgive me for disappointing you, Koda." Figure flinched before erupting in laughter.

"Oh…oh Lord…man…you're good…I give you that" Figure said, removing his helmet, revealing his dirty blonde hair and scarred features. "Man…here I thought no one would figure it out! Hahahahahaha!"

Mary sat upright and took in the sight of Figure being unmasked. "Numbuh 134, if I remember…wow…I'm surprised you actually remember anything after that beating we gave you a few years back."

Figure responded by shooting Mary in the foot. "Wait your turn, you vile witch. No, seriously, how did you figure out it was me?"

"I'm from Sector Q… You fill in the rest." Nolan answered, raising his M.U.M.B.L.E.R..

"Oh…I take it you met the group before Dillon's passing then, huh?" Figure asked while holstering his gun.

"I was there."

Figure let out a humorless chuckle, walked over, and took a seat on a nearby AC unit. "Let's have a chat, shall we."

…

William raised one of his propellers over his head, causing him to lift up into the air. He kicked his legs forward, causing him to fly forward towards Ghost. "Wow." Ghost muttered to himself as he continued to shoot at William. The rubber bullets continued to bounce off the propeller that William held in front of himself.

The operative flew higher into the air until he was right above Ghost. "You wanna know why I joined the Prospectors?" William yelled as he positioned his two propellers beneath his legs. He dropped down towards Ghost, crashing into him. Ghost coughed as he tried to get back to his feet, only to be kicked back down by William. "I add a whole new meaning to the word flying."

…

"Burn you little suckers, BURN!" Clarence yelled as he sent out another burst from his flamethrower. The three operatives jumped back down another set of stairs, avoiding the blast. Rack lifted up his S.C.A.M.P.P. and shot at Clarence, making contact. The teen stumbled, but refused to let up. He let out another blast, setting the stairs behind the three operatives on fire. "Nowhere to run now, kiddies!" Clarence cackled as he raised his flamethrower.

"SUCK LASER!" Roady yelled as he, Rack, and Ruin shot at the armored teen. Roady continued to shoot at Clarence before turning and completely missing the fire-using teen.

"Ouch." Clarence said as he readjusted his flamethrower; "I hope that wasn't your best, 'cause this is just sad." Clarence cackled evilly just as the stairwell sunk a bit.

"I wasn't aiming at you." Roady said as he pointed to the stairs behind Clarence. The stairs had completely broken off from the rest and were currently held in place by the stairs the three operatives were on. The three kids lowered their weapons and aimed at the stairs in front of Clarence.

"You wouldn't dare!" Clarence yelled.

"Oh…we dare." the three said simultaneously before shooting the stairs, causing Clarence to fall downward, breaking through the stairwell below until he reached the bottom. The trio looked over the edge and pulled back at the sight of Clarence.

"He ain't gonna be walking any time soon." Ruin said as the operatives pondered on how they'd get down. (Play "Hurt" by Johnny Cash)

…

"So…Sector Q…that brings back a lot of memories." Figure let out a humorless laugh. "That place is cursed."

"How so?" Nolan asked as he leaned on an AC unit.

"Take it from me…we never get an easy ride. Edward and Jay are off with their teen business, Mario got crushed by a damn ceiling, and Dillon…well, what can I say, he painted the town red…literally." Figure chuckled at his own joke, while Nolan pointed his M.U.M.B.L.E.R. at him. "What? Not in the joking mood?"

"No…I'm not." Nolan said, switching the safety off his weapon. "You killed one of my friends and you put another in a hospital bed."

"Huh?"

"What?"

"You're awfully damn serious." Figure said while inspecting his helmet. "Not into dark humor, are we?"

Nolan remained silent as Figure continued. "I got a joke for you…what was twelve and tortured a week before his decommissioning?" No response. "Me." Figure's eyes narrowed. "Decommissioning is just like dying."

…

Nolan walked out of his room to the sound of his mother's crying. He walked over to the front door to see his mother sobbing and a man in uniform holding a folded-up flag. Nolan's mother noticed her son and put up a fake smile.

"Oh, honey, did I wake you?" she said in her vain attempts to hide the news.

"Mom…what's wrong?" an eight-year-old Nolan asked. His mother and the man in uniform stayed silent. "Did something bad happen? Who's that?"

"General Vergo." The man answered. "I… came to tell you…"

"Nolan, honey…your father isn't coming back."

…

"Well, I better get home. Teen or not, I still have chores." Dillon said, walking across the street.

"Hey! Let's hang out sometime!"

"I'll make time for that!"

"…?!" Nolan's joy became dread. A bus was swerving uncontrollably. "DUDE, WATCH OUT!"

"Huh?" Dillon turned… and froze at the oncoming bus. He had no time to react.

Nolan raced to his friend after the impact, tears in his eyes. "Dillon! Are you okay?!"

"Er…Nolan?"

"Yeah?"

"Uh…buses…suck."

…

Nolan kicked open the door and rushed inside the room. Outside, Death's Head and the rest of the Prospectors were fighting Jonah Icarus, an adult with ambitions to turn the entire kid population into adults with the power of an alleged messiah.

Nolan silently dispatched two guards outside a room labeled 'Megan.' He opened the door, fully prepared to fight this supposed messiah. To his surprise, instead of an adult, he found a five-year-old girl staring blankly at the white wall. "Greetings, Nolan." the girl greeted, catching him off guard.

"How did y-"

"I read your mind." she said as if it was nothing. "Death really is a terrible thing." Her eyes narrowed as she said this.

"If you read my mind…then you know why I'm here?" Nolan asked.

"Yes…and you've found this supposed messiah." she said without looking at Nolan.

"Y-you?" he asked, dumbfounded.

"Yes…surprised?"

"I never thought a kid would help an adult turn all of kid kind into adults."

"You never bother to ask questions, do you?" she asked.

"You're the mind-reader." Nolan retorted.

"Not just a mind-reader…" she said, turning to a nearby chair. The chair lifted off the ground and separated into individual parts. The parts then turned to dust in an instant, causing Nolan's eyes to widen in shock. "I can do almost anything." the girl said sadly.

"You've got quite the gift." Nolan said, lowering his weapon.

"Yes…I do…but it's also a burden." A tear rolled down her cheek.

"What's wrong?" Nolan asked in alarm.

"Do you want to know why a child with powers over almost everything would want to help an adult transcend all of kid kind into adulthood?"

"Yes."

"Because that very child won't grow up herself." Her stray tears turned to streams as she sobbed.

Nolan walked over to the crying girl and kneeled beside her. He patted her on the back in an attempt to calm her. "These powers aren't a gift…they're a curse." she said as she slowly regained her composure.

"So…you joined Icarus because…unlike you…others will be given a chance to be an adult?" Nolan asked. The girl nodded in response. "How much time before you pass?"

"Not much."

They both sat there in silence. Waiting out her time.

…

Nolan ran as fast as he could. He could hear gunfire from the direction he was running to. He silently prayed as he ran faster. For a while, he heard nothing, and then gasps, more gunfire and then finally, a motorcycle driving off.

Nolan picked up his pace and arrived, finding the others standing over Corey, blood seeping out of the cut in his neck.

"No…"

…

Nolan's eyes narrowed. "You aren't much of a talker, are you?" Figure asked before letting out a chuckle. "You wanna know what this was all about?" Figure paused, waiting for Nolan to answer; but he didn't. "This was all about revenge. My revenge, your revenge, it's all about getting what you feel is owed to you."

"No it isn't."

"What was that?"

"It isn't… This was about you killing innocent people in order to get back at Mary…so, don't make this seem as if your actions are just… In the end, you're just some mindless killer and I'm…I'm avenging a fallen comrade, so don't you dare compare me to you. I'm not a killer."

"You aren't, yet." Figure replied, getting up from the AC unit and taking out the P.D.D..

"What are you doing with that?!" Mary asked, alarmed.

"Finishing what you started." Figure pulled the trigger. Mary began to shake as her memories began to be suppressed by the P.D.D.. She stopped shaking, now unconscious. "Nighty-night, you sick slag." Figure dropped his helmet on the ground and kicked it to Nolan.

"This ends tonight." Nolan stated, raising his M.U.M.B.L.E.R..

"I of all people should know." Figure took out a remote and pushed it.

The helmet began to beep, alerting Nolan. He leapt away just as it exploded, sending Nolan near the edge of the roof. Nolan staggered to his feet as Figure took out his two knives and charged toward him. Figure slashed at Nolan with both knives, cutting Nolan's wrist. "AAAHHHH" Nolan screamed. Figure kicked Nolan back, away from the edge.

Nolan got back on his feet and drew out his M.U.M.B.L.E.R.. He shot at Figure, who dodged the oncoming M.A.R.B.L.E.s. "My turn." Figure said, dropping his knives and taking his pistols. He began shooting at Nolan, who shot the ground beneath him, sending him forward into the air. "You're too damn crazy, you know that?"

Nolan landed next to Figure and hit him with the butt of the M.U.M.B.L.E.R.. "Look who's talking."

"Oh," Figure wiped away some blood on his cheek, "you wanna do it that way." Figure holstered his guns and picked up one of his knifes. He slashed at Nolan, who leapt backwards, avoiding a fatal blow. Nolan wiped the blood from his forehead and raised his M.U.M.B.L.E.R.. "Shoot me!" Figure taunted. "Come on, shoot me!"

Nolan hesitated for a moment; a moment that Figure exploited. He brought his knife down on Nolan's M.U.M.B.L.E.R., cutting it in two. Nolan jumped backwards, taking a M.A.R.B.L.E. out of the secret compartment in his boot "Back off, now!" Nolan yelled as he held the M.A.R.B.L.E. above his head.

"Come on, kid… prove me right!" Figure drew a gun, shooting at Nolan. Nolan jumped forward, dodging the bullets but dropping the M.A.R.B.L.E.. Figure's eyes widened as the M.A.R.B.L.E. flew towards him. Making no effort to move, the M.A.R.B.L.E. exploded on impact, sending Figure flying off the building.

"Consider me proven right." Figure muttered as he took the fall.

Nolan walked slowly towards the edge of the roof. "H.E.A.D.S.E.T., call William."

"What is it, boss?" William responded.

"Figure fell off the roof near the entrance… Find him."

"Geez…there's a ton of blood, sir… No body… The blood seems to lead off somewhere, like he crawled away or someone dragged his body away. Permission to pursue."

"Negative." Nolan answered, walking back towards the stairwell. "Pull back… We won't be seeing him again."

…

"Numbuh 2030, I can explain." Rachel hastily said just as Nolan slammed his bandaged arm on her desk.

"Be my guest, explain to me why the Prospectors were assigned to a Sector V op?" Nolan practically screamed.

"Numbuh 2030, your former team made the most sense to send-" Rachel lied.

"Don't give me that crap; we both know Sector V has the higher success rate."

"Look, Nolan, when we discussed on whom to send, Numbuh 0.333 suggested the Prospectors and I guess I supported his decision." Rachel said calmly.

Nolan raised his finger up to Rachel, but said nothing. He lowered his hand and quickly regained his composure. He shook his head and walked to the door of the office. "You're not the one who has to tell Corey's parents that their little boy isn't coming home." he muttered before slamming the door behind him.

Rachel slumped in her chair. She then turned to see the stack of paperwork. "It won't go away on its own" she said sadly as she took the top paper from the stack and began working.

…

"From this day forward," Numbuh 0.333 said over the Moonbase intercom, "the sector known as 'The Prospectors' is officially disbanded."

A loud round of cheers swept the corridors of the Moonbase. "Keep those jerks and freaks in their place!" an operative said aloud in the cafeteria, gaining applause from many of the operatives.

…

"You should have seen us, bro!" Rack said, somewhat prideful. "You would have been proud." The two Siamese brothers smiled at the grave before departing down the gravel road.

…

"The operative failed." a hoarse old voice said.

"No." a robotic monotone voice chimed in. "He succeeded."

…

"Ah!" Wesley Dodds screamed as he awoke on his arm chair. He stared intently at the blank T.V. screen in front of him as he contemplated the meaning of his dream. He soon frowned as he figured it out. He walked to the nearest window and stared at the Sector Q Treehouse. "There is more to the puzzle than you realize." he said softly before returning to his arm chair.

Somewhere in the Negaverse

(This part was written by Gamewizard.)

The sky was foreboding over a dark mountain with a strange purple aura emitting from the top, straight up to the sky. A large armored ape dragged the panting form of Figure through a fortress in the mountain, reaching a room with a brain in a dome on a canister and a shadowed silhouette of a being with an arrow floating in the dark purple.

The ape dropped Figure in front of him as he panted some more. "You've done well, Koda." The Brain spoke. "Now that our young operative is tested, his anger and rage will give him the strength to serve in our Brotherhood. I would assume our great Lord here is quite impressed, is he not?"

The shadowed figure just looked away. "Yes… as it pains me to say it, Nolan has the heart of true evil. And with just a few more adjustments, he may truly be turned."

"I have already sought to that." Brain said. "Now we must wait until the right time. Patience is key."

"Oh yeah! Sounds like my job is done! So… now I spot in this, right?" Koda asked hopefully.

"You did well… however… while your heart is pure darkness… only true power like ours can rule the universe. It pains me to have to destroy you." Figure looked in pure horror as a bunch of vicious, bloodthirsty apes crawled into the room, stalking up to him.

"Wh-Whuh? B-But-"

"While we have much in common… seeing what you did to that Corey boy… disgusted me. Humans like you only deserve justice. Your time has come." He waved his arm and the apes charged forward.

"NO, WAIT—AAAHHHH…" Figure's screaming fell to silence when the dozen apes tore off and devoured his flesh. The villains could only watch as they feasted upon him.

"It is sad seeing good villains fall. I can only pray Nolan does not share his fate." The Brain said.

"For your sake, he better be pure evil. Otherwise, YOU will share the same fate as your father."

"I won't be grabbed and thrown over so easily. True evil comes in the mind. If Nolan values what's closest to him… he will think thrice before betraying me."

Ending off the 2030 Saga, this one-shot was co-written by myself and Depthcharge2030.

Declaration of Intent

Unknown location

"Do you ever wonder why we're here?"

No reply.

"I take it you two aren't going to talk then?"

Same response.

"Well… I won't lie… I have questions… and you two are going to answer them… one way… or another." The speaker revealed a modified M.U.S.K.E.T..

KND Moonbase; one month ago

It was one of those days. A day when you got on your knees and begged for something interesting to happen. And just like that: your whole world gets turned upside-down.

"Excuse me. Coming through. Hey William, how you been?" said one Numbuh 2030 as he raced down the corridors of the Moonbase.

Most kids today would be running to the cafeteria to get their hands on some delectable pizza beagles. But no, not this kid. Numbuh 2030 was running to, what he considered, the upside of his day.

Not so long ago, Numbuh 2030 was contacted by the M.I.A. diplomat himself, Numbuh Infinity, for a special assignment. Said assignment was to deactivate the Moonbase's defenses for a tune up. But in all honesty, he wasn't asking for anything that'd get him shot at today.

If only he knew.

He entered the Moonbase's command HUB. It was about lunch time, so everyone was at the cafeteria. Numbuh 2030 walked over to the nearest computer console. He accessed the automotive defensives main frame. It wasn't long for him to deactivate the weapons systems.

Numbuh 2030 smiled with pride at his work… until he spotted an armada of starships. Numbuh 2030 went back onto the computer to bring the weapons system online. He was one key away from bringing the defensive systems onboard, until the unthinkable happened.

"Numbuh 99, GET THE-" Numbuh 86 stopped herself as she and Numbuh 99 took notice of Numbuh 2030. "You STOOPID boy, what have ye done?!"

"I know this doesn't look good Numbuh 86, but I can explain it!" Numbuh 2030 said, waving his arms defensively.

"Tell it to the judge, I bet it was YOU who disabled the weapons systems." the officer yelled.

"Uh, well… actually, yes." Numbuh 2030 said just before the two operatives began to shoot at him. The boy leapt out of the way, allowing the M.U.S.K.E.T. rounds to hit the computer console, destroying it. "Will you two stop shooting at me?!" Numbuh 2030 pled, drawing out his modified M.U.S.K.E.T..

"No way, traitor!" Numbuh 99 said in-between M.U.S.K.E.T. rounds.

That's it, I'm out! thought Numbuh 2030. The boy jumped out of his cover and ran towards the nearby escape pods.

"STOP HIM!" Fanny bellowed into Numbuh 99's ear, causing the operative to wince in pain.

Numbuh 2030 jumped into the closest escape pod, closing the hatch behind him. The pod launched the moment the hatch closed. "You STOOPID IDIOT, you let him get away!" Fanny yelled into 99's ear once again.

Numbuh 2030 sat in silence, drifting into deep thought. How could this happen? He tapped the device on his head. "Please answer…"

"Hello? Who is this and why are you interrupting our conquest of the Earth?"

"Wait, you're not Numbuh Infinity!" 2030 yelled into his H.E.A.D.S.E.T..

"Hey, Red, isn't Numbuh Infinity the name of that kid Ava impersonated for us?" asked the same voice from last time.

"Yes indeed, Purple… Why?" replied a new voice.

"That kid Ava duped was asking."

"Oh… well, tell him he's the most stupidest person ever for falling for that trick." Red said, laughing.

Numbuh 2030 cut the transmission. He heard enough. He was now in a state of anger and shock. And he was clearly peeved off.

The pod landed a few minutes later. The pod just so happened to land near Gallagher Elementary. Numbuh 2030 kicked open the hatch of the pod. He exited the pod, M.U.S.K.E.T. in hand. This is the plan, we go to the nearest, get ourselves a ride, and then we bring those gunk-munchers down to the Arctic Prison, get their confessions, and then go to Lime Rickey's for a nice cold root beer. Numbuh 2030 thought as he ran through the school's yard.

He looked at the world around him and stood bewildered at the sight: spaceships in the sky, shooting at the very earth he stood on.

Numbuh 2030 was so caught up in the sight that he failed to notice the L.O.C.K.A.H.-S.O.C.K.A.H. that just jumped out of the school. The L.O.C.K.A.H.-S.O.C.K.A.H. landed on Numbuh 2030.

The driver of said device heard a small crack sound. She looked around, but saw nothing. She drove off, leaving a broken Numbuh 2030 behind.

The operative began to twitch. He opened his eyes to see his broken legs. He was in immense pain. And he was a fugitive from the very organization he dedicated himself to since he was eight. He couldn't even walk. Things can't get any worse. he thought to himself.

And just as if it was planned: a delta class Prisoner Transport ship came soaring out of the sky, landing ten feet away from him. The pilots exited their ship and ran towards Numbuh 2030's broken form. And to add insult to injury, he recognized the pilots. "You know, it was one thing to break up with me… but now you're here to haul me off to get decommissioned… Fantastic."

"You brought the latter upon yourself, Nolan." Said the pilot with the number '58' on her helmet.

The pilots bandaged up Nolan's legs, then threw him into one of the cells of their transport ship. Nolan stared at the floor of the cell. It was going to be a long flight.

"This is Numbuh 58, calling Kids Next Door Moonbase. Do you read me, Moonbase?"

"This is Numbuh 35, we read you. You surely chose the worst time to show up." replied the communications officer.

Gwen tried to keep her mind off the other situation and focus on bringing in the guy in the back of her prison transport. "Well, I can't just drop everything I was doing before these snack-crazed freaks showed up."

"True." The sound of M.U.S.K.E.T. fire began. "Hey, Docking Port 13 is the only one close enough to the Decommissioning Chambers that isn't completely overrun, I suggest you land there."

Before Gwen could reply, the sound of an intense firefight broke out. Gwen slightly frowned, then looked to her copilot, Numbuh 59, and shook her head. "You know you could be somewhat helpful if you would go and check on the prisoner." She didn't want a repeat of the Numbuh 206 incident.

Numbuh 59 grunted in acknowledgement and left his seat. He drifted to the prisoner's cell door. He peered in through the small barred window. "Hey traitor, we're almost at the Moonbase."

The "traitor" glared at the floor, because in his opinion, he wasn't a traitor. "If you're going to talk to me, you could at least address me by my numbuh or name, Doug."

"Don't you dare say my name, you lost that privilege when you sold us out." snapped Doug.

The traitor shook his head. "I didn't sell anyone out… I was following orders."

"Who? Who in the whole KND would order you to disable the Moonbase's automotive defense systems?"

Nolan was at a loss of words. What was he to say? He was ordered by an M.I.A. operative to perform a list of tasks that he didn't even know of until he got them in the mail? He was just following orders.

It was a whole minute before someone broke the silence. "Numbuh 59, what's the status on our robot fanboy?" yelled Numbuh 58.

"He's just sitting there." Numbuh 59 answered, not taking his eyes off the fugitive.

"Alright, get back in your seat and prepare to dock."

Numbuh 59 grunted, then drifted back over to his seat. "So, Gwen, any idea why our so-called colleague did what he did?"

Gwen's frown deepened at the thought. After they all graduated from training, they were assigned to Sector Q for some time. It was only after the whole sector was offered chances to join the Decommissioning Squad after most of the old members were caught conspiring to skip out on their decommissioning dates. While everyone else accepted their offer, Numbuh 2030 declined.

I still don't know why he declined, thought Numbuh 58. Both pilots turned their attention to the ship's controls to begin the landing procedures.

In the cell, Numbuh 2030 was in mid-thought. If I find the girl who did this to me, I'm gonna… He fell to the floor as the ship landed. He let out a growl. He'd have to put his plans of revenge on hold for a while.

Numbuh 59 was the first one to leave their transport. He looked around to see a destroyed S.P.R.A.Y.S.H.I.P., a J.A.I.L.E.R., and a few intact S.C.A.M.P.E.R.s. Numbuh 58 walked out as soon as Doug gave her the all-clear signal. They both drew their side arms and carefully opened Numbuh 2030's cell. He was crippled, but he wasn't one to take lightly.

Nolan crawled his way out of the confines of the prisoner ship. He made a mental note on whom to exact his revenge on. Let's see, that girl who masqueraded as Numbuh Infinity and the girl who was driving the L.O.C.K.A.H.-S.O.C.K.A.H., who also landed on my legs.

Numbuh 59 grabbed his former leader's shirt collar and began to drag him away. Numbuh 58 walked behind them, M.U.S.K.E.T. in hand. When they reached the service elevator, Nolan grabbed Doug's arm and dragged him down to the floor. With a loud yelp, Doug was now on the ground, in a headlock, with his own M.U.S.K.E.T. pointed towards his head.

"Drop it now, Twenty-thirty!" shouted Gwen, holding her own M.U.S.K.E.T. aimed at the fugitive.

"I know you won't shoot me Gwen, especially when I got a bargaining chip in play."

Gwen knew he was right, she couldn't shoot him. It was a combination of her being a lousy shot, Doug was too close, and she still cared about him.

"Shoot him!" yelled Doug, who was desperately trying to get out of the headlock.

"We both know she was the worst shot out of our sector, Doug, she doesn't want to risk hitting you." Nolan informed him.

Doug glared at his former friend/leader. It was over a year ago when he accepted the offer Global Command presented to him. He was also more than glad he was paired up with his best friend, but sad to know their team leader declined his offer. Maybe it was his best friend's doing. He didn't know and he no longer cared. He just wanted to beat the snot out of him.

"I swear, Nolan, I will shoot." threatened Gwen.

"And I swear I will shoot." Nolan retorted.

She didn't know him, anymore. All she knew was he was the one who disabled the Moonbase's main defensives. She was caught between her best friend and her ex. Take the shot and possibly hit Doug or let Nolan get away.

"Fine." Gwen said, lowering her weapon. "Let Doug go and I'll let you go."

It was silent for a few minutes. Doug was bewildered at his partner's words. Gwen simply hoped Nolan would do it, and Nolan was beating himself up inside.

"Deal." Nolan released Doug from his hold, but kept his M.U.S.K.E.T. trained on him. Doug got up and walked towards Gwen as calmly as he could. "Here." Nolan tossed his 2x4 weapon to Doug. "I believe that's yours."

Doug made no effort to catch the weapon and let it fall to the ground. He kept his eyes trained on Nolan. Gwen did the same, but kept her M.U.S.K.E.T. at her side. Nolan rolled himself to the nearest S.C.A.M.P.E.R.. When he got inside, he crawled into the pilot seat. The two decommission pilots watched as Nolan took off.

Nolan kept the S.C.A.M.P.E.R. steady as he flew back down to Earth, his rage boiling at the thought of the girl that crushed his legs, and that girl called 'Ava,' who apparently was masquerading as Numbuh Infinity, tricking him into lowering the defenses. He's never felt so much rage before in his life.

First my legs get broken and I'm accused of being a criminal. Nolan thought to himself. Things can't get much worse than this. But he was too early to think as his ship was suddenly attacked by other 2x4 aircraft on his way through the atmosphere. "NO! Not now!" he begged. But before he could do anything, his ship crash-landed into some neighborhood.

Nolan struggled as he tried to haul himself out of the wrecked S.C.A.M.P.E.R. with his broken legs. But when he finally made it out, he was suddenly surrounded by decommissioning troops. "Alright: HANDS UP IN THE AIR!" the female leader of the squad yelled.

"You don't understand! It wasn't me! It was Ava!" Nolan exclaimed.

"Ava? Who the heck is that?"

"Uh…"

"That's what I thought. You're coming with us!"

"Oh…" Nolan groaned.

"Huh-Hey!" the squad leader was suddenly lifted into the air by some unknown force by her neck, as she gasped for air. The troops looked behind to see some brain inside a dome on a canister. The kids aimed their weapons and fired at The Brain, but he simply defended with a barrier. He then forced the squad leader to take her weapon and shoot off all the troops. When they were all gone, The Brain tossed the leader several feet away.

Nolan panted and watched as The Brain moved over to him. "Seems you can't always trust the ones that are closest to you." He spoke in a robotic monotone voice.

"You…" Nolan panted. "Who are you?"

"I am Darth Genious. Better known as 'The Brain.' I am here because I wanted to ask you to join my group."

"Group?" he panted again.

"The Brotherhood of Evil. An organization built for criminals and evil masterminds everywhere. And after witnessing what events you just went through, I have decided to make you our new member."

"I'm with the Kids Next Door. Why should I join you?"

"Because the Kids Next Door do not want you. Would you honestly want to stay with them after they arrested you without hearing your story? Especially after what treatment they give your OTHER friends…"

"W-What?"

"The Prospectors. A group of dubbed 'freaks.' Those who only want a place in the world, but get the worst disrespect. Those who cannot find their place because of everyone's hatred toward them. My organization is made of those people. Our goal is to find our place… by banning together. Join me, and you can take your revenge on all of the ones who shunned them. And you can take your revenge on the ones that caused you these problems. Such as Ava and Lizzie."

Another pant. "I don't know… is it right?"

"It is fact. While good may appear strong, evil always prevails in the end. Right now, I am serving under a much higher power. A power that will soon be the greatest in the universe. When that happens, all good will be lost and evil shall rule all. But despite this, your friends who were deemed 'freaks' shall have their place, as rulers. You're welcome to join me… and claim your victory over those fools."

Nolan was lost in thought. If he didn't go with Brain, he wouldn't be against his friends… his former friends. And he would also get decommissioned and lose all memories of his childhood. But if he did go with him, he could keep his memories and have his revenge on the ones that did this to him. And he could make a better world for all his Prospector friends. But he would be hurting all the other people he cared about. But if they don't care about him now, why should he care? Why should he still give a crap about them? It was then that he made his decision.

"I'm in."

"Good. Monsieur Mallah, bring him his new weapon." Nolan watched as a big brown gorilla with a bullet sash approached him, pushing a wheelchair. Mallah lifted him up and placed him on the chair. "This wheelchair serves as an all-purpose battle mech. It can fire missiles, lasers, nets, boost rockets, etc.. The perfect device for the fiercest handicap. Do you like it?"

Nolan decided to push a button, firing two missiles over to an already-destroyed house. "Hey! This is cool! Wait until Ava and Lizzie get a piece of this! Where would I find Ava though…"

"You will find them in time. But for now, I'd like you to meet your new partner. Oh, Danika?" With that, Nolan watched as a goth girl in a black jacket emerged from a shadow.

"Hey, I remember you! You were that goth chick with the weird powers!" Nolan exclaimed, remembering her from Arctic Training.

"Hmmm. Nice to know someone remembers me." Danika said in a dull tone.

"You can catch up later. Danika, take him to the base." Brain ordered. "After what he's been through, he must rest. Then he'll awaken to perform his first acts of evil."

"Whatever you say." Danika said glumly as she walked over and wrapped her arms around Nolan. "Better hold on." Nolan closed his eyes as he and Danika became a shadow, flying off to the sky.

Brain watched them leave and spoke to himself. "After years of planning, he is ready to become my apprentice. I shall use his rage to turn him into the ultimate Sith. Soon…" his dome glowed green, and his canister's eyes red, "our kind will rise again, and all heroes of the universe will be ours."

Unknown location, present time

Numbuhs 41 and 43 both lay on the ground in pain. "Now, I'm going to ask you again." Nolan rolled out of the shadows. "Do you know anything about 'Firstborn Guardians'?"