Post by CCACorn26 on Jan 15, 2009 14:08:29 GMT -5
Talk about catapulting Lee/Sonia to a special slot alongside Nigel/Rachel. Fortunately, this time, Team Galactic from Pokémon Diamond and Pearl might inspire my thinking, rather than, say, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards in the real world.:
“Rifts of Darkness in Time and Space”
Chapter 1: “The Artifact”
“So… what do you think it is, Lee?”
“I don’t know, Sonia, but it looks pretty cool to me.”
Lee Curtis and Sonia Mason sat at a table in the cafeteria of the Kids Next Door Moonbase, their eyes focused intently on a strange object that sat silently in front of them, as undisturbed as those two kids were by the various activities around them… mostly involving eating something, whether it was chicken sandwiches or hamburgers or even potato chips. They’d found it when they retrieved some necessary equipment for the Moonbase’s weapons arrays in case of any further threats to the Kids Next Door’s most important base of operations. Then again, they weren’t too sure of any threats left now that the usual enemies of that global organization of kids had gone quiet. Thus, at the moment, Lee and Sonia, known respectively as Numbuh 84 and Numbuh 83 within the Kids Next Door, were mentally sorting through the particularly strange pattern on that object, shaped somewhat like a rock with a smooth surface. It could certainly have been a pattern no one on Earth had ever seen before: six arrows precisely the same distance from each other jutting outward a short distance from a circle at the center of the pattern. Four swirls surrounded the pattern at the object’s corners, such that they would form a square if they were connected. Their curiosity piqued by this mysterious object, Lee and Sonia could only continue sitting as they were, the Moonbase cafeteria buzzing around them as normally as it did.
“Maybe it’s a key to some long-lost treasure. It’d be really cool to found out what it really is,” Lee said with curiosity.
“I just hope it’s nothing too gross… or dangerous,” Sonia said cautiously.
“Dangerous? I’m wondering what it was doing on the sidewalk like that without anybody noticing it,” Lee replied.
A new thought crossed Sonia’s mind as she continued eyeing the strange rock. “Wow. Do you think it actually wanted us to find it?”
“Find what?” asked a distinctly familiar male voice… with an authoritatively British accent to it.
Lee and Sonia tilted their heads up quickly from the rock, startled out of whatever thoughts they had about it. Next, they turned in the direction of the familiar voice… and gasped with some pleasant shock at the two particularly prominent operatives now standing near Lee and Sonia’s table, each holding a tray of spaghetti and meatballs with soda obtained from the cafeteria’s serving area. Those two commanding kids were instantly recognizable to anyone within the KND who thought of them as an excellent -- and excellently serious -- leadership duo. One, Nigel Uno, aptly known as Numbuh One, was the leader of the Kids Next Door’s most successful sector, and the other, Rachel McKenzie, aptly known as Numbuh 362, was the Supreme Commander of the entire organization. They’d worked together to stop the Kids Next Door’s usual archenemy from spreading infected broccoli into their comrades’ treehouses all over the world, and both of them had been getting quite friendly with each other recently… while also retaining their usual demeanor and focus on the organization and its traditional purpose. However, as Nigel and Rachel smiled no-nonsensically yet warmly at Lee and Sonia, the first two kids had plans to simply take a break in this cafeteria, something the last two kids could easily understand… even if they were rather preoccupied mentally at the moment.
“Numbuhs One and 362!!” Lee and Sonia said with audible respect before Sonia continued, “How are you two doing?”.
“At ease, Lee and Sonia. Nigel and I were just on our way to get a table for ourselves, then eat our lunch,” Rachel explained calmly.
Nigel nodded explanatorily. “Rachel offered me some spaghetti and meatballs, with soda as the main drink, so I happened to accept. It should be quite a lunch for today.” Then, something in the corner of Nigel’s eyesight caught his attention. “Oh, by the way, what do you two have on your table?”
Lee and Sonia leaned down at what Nigel was facing, and Lee reached out to hold the rock. “Oh, this? It’s some kinda rock Sonia and I found while we were exploring in Gallagher. We don’t really know what it is, but I think it’d be cool to find out.”
Sonia’s next statement would really get Nigel and Rachel’s minds going. “Mm-hmm. When Lee and I first found it, we had this really weird feeling coming from it, almost like it wanted us to find it or something like that.”
“Really?” Nigel countered, fascination evident in his voice, then turned to face Rachel. “What do you think? Shall we take our seats at Lee and Sonia’s table?”
Rachel’s eyes revolved toward another direction thoughtfully for a few seconds, then turned back to face Nigel. “Why not? It’ll be something worth discussing among ourselves while the two of us eat our spaghetti and meatballs.”
“Cool. You’re gonna sit with us, Nigel and Rachel?” Lee inquired, awe audible to the four kids at that table.
“That’s awesome. Thank you for your offer,” Sonia replied eagerly and respectfully. “Please, guys, have a seat.”
With that last statement, Nigel and Rachel returned Lee and Sonia’s smiles more cheerfully than they were, and the two Kids Next Door commanders sat at that table, setting their trays on it. If their stomachs were churning as lunchtime continued to tick by, then now, so were their minds, their curiosity as piqued as Lee and Sonia’s… even though Lee and Sonia themselves weren’t particularly hungry. Then, Nigel and Rachel themselves began to calmly eat through their respective plates of spaghetti and meatballs, drinking their sodas between several bites. Lee and Sonia had focused back on examining the rock, letting the most prominently commanding Kids Next Door couple those two really young secret agents knew of proceed. Anyone watching at the moment would have been struck by the comparisons and contrasts between Lee and Sonia… and the two kids considered the Kids Next Door’s most famously lovey-dovey couple, Wally Beetles and Kuki Sanban, known respectively as Numbuhs Four and Three of Sector V. If Lee was slightly calmer than Wally, then Sonia was normally as cheerful about herself and her friends as Kuki, such that some Kids Next Door were beginning to speculate Lee and Sonia to be the next Wally and Kuki. As for Nigel and Rachel, their positions demanded strictness from them as they articulated any threats to kids’ ability to be kids and have fun in the process that they discovered. Yet, as Nigel, Rachel, Lee, and Sonia continued their respective activities, they did not quite anticipate the strange aura emanating from the rock, effectively freezing Lee and Sonia in wonderment after several seconds. Upon seeing exactly what was happening, Nigel and Rachel put their forks down and eyed Lee and Sonia inquisitively… before they too felt that strange aura from the rock. They never had a chance to fully figure out just what the rock was doing, for at that instant, a sudden flash of white engulfed the table, forcing all four kids to close their eyes… only to open them again as a mysterious robed person with some sort of hood covering the head standing in front of a dark area within what appeared to be a ruined structure materialized in their sight. If that man’s appearance was puzzling enough, even more puzzling to Nigel, Rachel, Lee, and Sonia were the words escaping his mouth barely audibly.
“Everything is almost ready, Master Dialtollus,” the man said ominously. “The key events have been set into motion, and my agents have scattered to their proper places.” A sinister growl from the dark area seemed to affirm the man’s words before he nodded steadily. “As you wish, Great Guardian of Time. I assure you that I shall proceed with eliminating those meddling kids once and for all, and then, as this crumbling chamber symbolizes your mind with each second that ticks by… so will there be no time left for this world.”
When the last word escaped from the mouth of the man, apparently some kind of lead servant for whoever -- or whatever -- was in that dark area, silence once again fell upon the structure. There were enough cracks to confirm what he’d been saying almost instantaneously, but they wouldn’t be present for too long as another flash of white engulfed the entire structure, momentarily blinding Nigel, Rachel, Lee, and Sonia… before they gradually felt themselves sitting down somewhere. They slowly opened their eyes and blinked a few times to make certain they were seeing clearly. Sure enough, all of them were back at their table in the Moonbase cafeteria, operatives walking steadily yet idly around them as though nothing had happened at all. Directly in front of the Kids Next Door’s “main” really young couple was the strange rock, now forebodingly silent even as they, the leader of Sector V, and the Supreme Commander of the Kids Next Door really began eyeing it suspiciously… if only for a few moments.
“Rachel, are you all right?” Nigel asked rapidly, concern immediately audible within his voice as his hand almost instinctively reached for Rachel’s shoulder.
Rachel nodded just as rapidly, a little too confused for now to mind Nigel’s hand on her shoulder. “Yeah, I’m fine, but what happened with that rock?”
“I know… and what did that man mean when he said there wouldn’t be any time left?” Sonia asked, alarm immediately audible within her voice as she also clasped her hands together and turned to Lee with worry.
Lee shook his head negatively, his eyes trying to project reassurance to Sonia. “I don’t know, but it definitely did not sound cool to me.”
Nigel and Rachel themselves simply looked directly at each other’s eyes before focusing back to Lee and Sonia, and it would be Nigel who spoke first… as grim as his thinking now was. “Us, either. There might be much more to that rock than the two of you first thought.”
The stoniness in Rachel’s eyes hinted at just how serious -- and seriously disturbed -- she was as she explained, “We’ve been hearing rumors that a virtually total lack of movement has occurred within a few thankfully small areas of the world. Birds have stopped flying, butterflies have stopped fluttering, and blades of grass have stopped drifting in whatever breezes there used to be. Some of the rumors even describe how dewdrops are floating in midair after dropping from leaves. It’s as though time itself has simply frozen within those areas.”
Before Nigel and Rachel could explain any further, a quick and familiar beeping from Rachel’s wrist interrupted her thoughts. “Uh, Numbuh 362, ma’am, come in.”
“What is it, Numbuh 35?” Rachel asked, her voice now much stricter than it was.
A different voice answered over the wrist communicator, beginning with a clearing throat… and ending with a few statements that left Nigel Uno, Rachel McKenzie, Lee Curtis, and Sonia Mason much more chilled than they were when they first encountered each other at that table in the cafeteria of the Kids Next Door Moonbase. “This is Numbuh 23. You and Numbuh One might be interested to know that there’s a distress call coming in from the British Kids Next Door. From what we could pick up, time is beginning to freeze in the area they’re exploring.”
END OF CHAPTER 1
===========================================================================
“Rifts of Darkness in Time and Space”
Chapter 2: “A Sector Found, a Time Gear Lost”
“Aw, man. This is bad.”
“Tell me about it, Bartie. Here I was thinking we’d have another ‘business as usual’ day without any of those time distortions to worry about.”
“That might be, Virginia, but right now, we’ve gotta figure out what’s happening to Sector E!!”
“Hopefully, Numbuhs One and 362 get up here soon…”
Bartie Stork and Virginia Sims exchanged intense looks with each other while they eyed the large viewscreen at the Moonbase bridge, which now showed a peacefully revolving blue-green planet that all Kids Next Door easily recognized. However, what was displayed moments ago was anything but peaceful: agents with distraught and worried faces as a menacingly silent sight stood prominently before their eyes -- and crackled rapidly across their location, freezing everything in its path. The lead agent called into the lunar headquarters of the Kids Next Door almost desperately, reporting what he and his team had been uncovering about any time anomalies there… but he did not quite anticipate just how rapidly the time freeze would begin to occur. He managed to begin sending the information up to the Moonbase mainframe… but unfortunately, the transmission cut off abruptly, leaving a chillingly silent viewscreen displaying the Earth visible to Bartie and Virginia. Much more fortunately for them, they didn’t have too long to more concretely figure out just what to do next, for while they continued pressing the necessary buttons to reestablish contact, Rachel appeared at the open doorway and ran onto the bridge, followed closely and loyally behind by Nigel, Sonia, and Lee.
“Status report,” Rachel barked commandingly.
Bartie began rubbing his temple with reluctant confusion. “Uh… we lost contact with Sector E about six minutes ago, and we’ve been trying to get back to them ever since. So far, we haven’t had any luck, even with the backup emergency frequencies.”
“No communication whatsoever?” Nigel asked… with conclusive frustration.
Virginia shook her head. “That’s right, Sector E’s leader told us they were investigating something called a ‘Time Gear’, which I guess is related to the time disturbance in the area they were exploring before the transmission ended.” She then walked to her console and began typing several commands to access the information, now scrolling down on the viewscreen, if briefly. “They sent all the information they could… but as you guys can see, it’s not too much.”
His trademark yo-yo now spinning up and down intently, Lee exhaled with awe. “Cool. This Time Gear’s supposed to keep time moving within a certain area, but if it’s removed, then time starts slowing down until it eventually stops.”
Sonia clasped her hands together, her eyes turned toward the viewscreen with concern. “I just hope we’re able to get Sector E back soon. I mean, what if they got frozen in time, too?”
A snort of further frustration from Nigel indicated his grim expression. “If that last part of the information Sector E sent is accurate, then their time freeze might prove to be the least of our worries.”
“Why is that?” Lee and Sonia asked together, concern as audible in their voices as it was in the cafeteria.
“It would seem that there are several of these Time Gears scattered across the planet,” Rachel explained, narrowing her eyes with each line of information she read. “Anyone who manages to snatch all of them will eventually be able to freeze time all over Earth -- and thus, everything on it.”
“America… Britain… France… Israel… Japan… and Australia,” Nigel stated slowly, mentally deliberating on just why those parts of the world were related to this deepening nightmare. “Come to think of it, most of the rumors of frozen time that we’ve heard originated from those six countries. Then again, due to Sector E’s report, I don’t think those rumors are rumors anymore.”
Rachel shook her head from side to side, now looking at the Earth… behind the transparent information file, her words indicating a slight shift in her thinking. “No, they’re not. In fact, some of those reports indicated that time is freezing in areas that don’t even have any Time Gears, such as Greece, the Bolivian Andes Mountains, northwestern Pakistan, and even the Pacific Ocean just north of Hawaii. I will order a full investigation into this emerging crisis befo--”
It was as though the bridge of the Kids Next Door Moonbase began to stop moving entirely. Before Rachel could finish her thoughts, the strange rock -- now in Lee’s pocket -- began to pulse, even stranger than it already was in the cafeteria. Lee picked it up with his free hand almost instinctively, and then he and Sonia started looking at it with familiar awe. All of about three seconds passed before another blinding flash of white, not particularly different from the one earlier, engulfed the bridge, sending Nigel, Rachel, Lee, and Sonia’s minds into a mental freeze… for an instant.
“A malfunction in the Temporal Chamber that never should have happened… has happened, and now the unbridled wrath of the Guardian of Time has been revealed,” an unknown voice called out to the four Kids Next Door operatives, a trace of desperation evident within it. “The Spatial Chamber is next… Find the Time Gears… and protect them. They must not succeed. Stop them… before it’s too laaaaaaate…!!!!”
The ghostly voice disappeared as abruptly as it appeared, and Nigel, Rachel, Lee, and Sonia opened their eyes… to once again find themselves looking around at their surroundings. This time, Bartie and Virginia stood confused at their Supreme Commander and her three companions, who simply darted their heads back and forth once or twice before facing each other.
“Are… you guys all right?” Bartie asked with reluctance and concern.
“Yeah. You four look like you’ve just heard a ghost,” Virginia commented more calmly.
Nigel, Rachel, Lee, and Sonia looked at each other intently, hesitance more evident on Lee and Sonia’s faces than on Nigel and Rachel’s. However, before they could reply, a crackling noise that would have alerted all of them to something began to reveal itself… from the viewscreen. A voice with a distinct(ly) British accent filled their ears with what sounded like a call for help, leading Bartie and Virginia to gasp with pleasant astonishment -- and immediately dash for their respective consoles to begin pressing the appropriate buttons in order to attempt to retrieve whatever transmission was obviously trying to penetrate the static. Tension brewed across the bridge as the two main Moonbase bridge officers typed almost feverishly before, at long last, the viewscreen cleared just enough to reveal a boy and a girl who looked thoroughly worn out. Bartie and Virginia could only sigh in relief as the boy stared intently at the bridge of the Kids Next Door Moonbase.
“Sector E to Moonbase. Come in,” the girl said wearily, her British accent as clear as it was despite whatever static that remained. “We managed to get some more information about what happened here, if you guys wanna learn more.”
“Good, but are you guys all right?” Rachel asked urgently. “If you need any backup where you currently are, then I’ll dispatch a medical team immediately.”
“That’s all right, ma’am,” the boy said just as wearily. “We managed to escape the expanding time freeze with our information intact, but we might have run into some trouble before we got here.”
Nigel narrowed his eyes with suspicion. “Did any villains attack you before you could set up your transmission, Sector E?”
Both the boy and the girl shook their heads negatively before the girl responded, “Not even Father, thankfully. However, these fashion freaks appeared out of nowhere and simply stared at us before muttering something about ‘change on a universal scale.’ I tried asking them to explain what they meant, but the blokes simply vanished before I could say anything they could even understand. Then again, I think they just ignored us.”
Nigel nodded slowly, thinking through what the two members of Sector E were saying, and then, a thought he originally had surfaced in his mind. “What about the Time Gear you were investigating?”
“Oh, yes, that,” the boy said a bit more grimly… then paused before continuing, “When we arrived at the spot where the Time Gear should have been, the bloody thing wasn’t even there. I thought I saw someone racing into the forest surrounding the clearing, which would be quite odd since it was the forest that started freezing first.”
“Unless that someone had some kind of shield protecting himself from the time freeze,” Nigel thought openly, then turned to Rachel. “I have a feeling that Sector E was seeing the culprit behind the removal of the Time Gear, and if that rock Lee and Sonia have proves accurate, then it might also be connected to whatever -- or whoever -- is causing these time distortions.”
Meanwhile, Sonia had turned to Lee, her eyes displaying substantial alarm. “Oh, Lee, what do you think’s going on? First, somebody’s talking about the destruction of time, and now, somebody else just stole a Time Gear from where Sector E’s exploring.”
Lee simply shook his head as negatively as the two British Kids Next Door did theirs, his yo-yo now held solidly in one hand and that increasingly mysterious rock in the other. “This is sounding less and less cool by the second, but don’t worry, Sonia. I’m here.”
Rachel and Nigel smiled a bit warmly at Lee and Sonia’s exchange before clearing their faces soberly once again to face said British Kids Next Door, and Rachel’s command for Sector E was clear for all to hear. “Very well, Sector E. I will be eager to read your report once you submit it to me. In the meantime, Numbuhs One, 83, and 84 will help me conduct further research into these Time Gears and any potential weak spots in their locations so that we may strengthen them as necessary. Once we’re done, I will authorize Kids Next Door defense grids around each Time Gear so that whoever’s trying to steal them will have a much more difficult time getting to them than that person thought.” Nigel’s silence was as grave as Rachel’s command for Lee and Sonia as both Kids Next Door commanders turned to face those two kids. “As for that rock, Numbuhs 83 and 84, whatever you do, NEVER let it go beyond your reach[/b][/u].” Finally, after Lee and Sonia’s sharply attentive affirmation, the Supreme Commander of the Kids Next Door faced her commanding boyfriend. “Well, it looks like it’s time to start protecting those Time Gears.”
The leader of Sector V nodded soberly at his (even more) commanding girlfriend once more before both of them started gazing at the Moonbase viewscreen. “Time, indeed.”
END OF CHAPTER 2
===========================================================================
“Rifts of Darkness in Time and Space”
Chapter 3: “Dusknet and Vinegrowas”
The next day saw the Kids Next Door Moonbase supercharged with activity as though some new supernatural evil was now on the horizon, understandable from the British Kids Next Door’s report. As expected, Nigel, Rachel, Lee, and Sonia got to work reading through any and all information they could find about the Time Gears, loyally assisted by any of their fellow operatives who wanted to help them figure out the mysteries surrounding those time-controlling, well, gears. Particular efforts toward this end were seen from Kids Next Door sectors in the remaining five countries mentioned to possess Time Gears, extrapolating and cross-referencing whatever they could learn here and there for some kind of connection between each location. While Sector JP, the Japanese Kids Next Door, searched through the mountainous forests within their home country -- assisted cheerfully by Kuki Sanban, a.k.a. Numbuh Three of Sector V -- Sector AU, the Australian Kids Next Door, searched through the remote groves and deserts of the Australian Outback -- assisted dutifully, if reluctantly at first, by Wally Beetles, a.k.a. Numbuh Four of Sector V. For good measure, Kuki brought her Super Sleuth Rainbow Monkey along for the ride, which left Wally to mentally groan as they happened to check each other’s progress along the way. Yet, if Kuki’s voice tone was slightly more than cheerful than usual, then Wally was left to blush and stare blankly, earning curious eyebrows from Sector JP and snickers and chuckles from Sector AU. Wally and Kuki’s romantic friendship was simply a side note for the Kids Next Door’s most prominently commanding couple as they mentally digested several documents laid out before them on Rachel’s desk at the Moonbase… along with several other more personal pieces of information that had revealed themselves along the way.
“All right, then. This appears to be all the information we managed to gather about those Time Gears,” Rachel began. “Fortunately, Sector E’s report proved to be more of a starting point than we thought.”
Nigel chuckled soberly. “The locations of the remaining Time Gears have been confirmed, and now, it’ll be up to the Kids Next Door of each country still left to protect them with every resource they can muster. Who knew the locations would seem so… open if they were closed before?”
“Maybe, unless something was keeping those locations hidden until the ‘right’ people could find them, but then, how would whoever stole the Time Gear in Sector E’s area have been able to come across that forest clearing in the first place?” Rachel wondered aloud.
“The thief must be even smarter than we thought at first to anticipate what would happen if the Time Gear was removed… which should make him that much more dangerous,” Nigel said with salient admonition.
Rachel began rubbing her temple slightly. “Unfortunately, we still have nothing on that strange rock Lee and Sonia have, something I hate having to acknowledge at a time like this.”
“Or maybe not. Call me crazy, but if I remember correctly, that rock activated only when all four of us were together in a single area,” Nigel said steadily… before two commanding pairs of eyes locked thoughtfully yet grimly. “The first time it activated, you and I were just finishing our lunches at Lee and Sonia’s table two days ago.”
Rachel began rubbing her chin as she leaned slightly forward in her chair, now looking slightly downward at the files. “Yep. I remember correctly, and the second time it activated, all four of us were on the bridge awaiting Sector E’s report. That said…” A steady sigh escaped her mouth, just loud enough for Nigel to hear. “I didn’t imagine just how powerful the third vision from that rock would be yesterday.”
Nigel blinked once and simply stared at the files of newfound information about the Time Gears, immediately grasping Rachel’s point. The third vision that happened when the rock pulsed showed all four kids what could safely be described as an unforgettably dark sight: rocks and dewdrops floating in midair just above the ground; a sunless yet clear sky; and trees completely frozen in a gray world completely devoid of any life. Whatever movement occurred in that nightmarish vision was simply furtive and instinctive… with traces of fear in the expressions of the people and animals still present if one dared to look closely enough. Voices even ghostlier than that in the second vision accompanied this one, as though they appeared only in Nigel, Rachel, Lee, and Sonia’s minds. As it was, Sonia was close to screaming her lungs out in terror, leading Lee to try to wrap his arm around her with as much consistent reassurance as he could muster… before they all found themselves back on the Moonbase. Bartie and Virginia were left to volunteer to take charge of the bridge as Nigel and Rachel proceeded to start printing those files. However, this time, Lee and Sonia asked Nigel and Rachel for a favor that still had Nigel deep in thought as his hand immediately reached into his pocket.
“Powerful?” Nigel repeated curiously as he took out the now-silent rock and turned his head toward it. “It was enough to persuade Lee and Sonia to ask us to watch over that rock while they thought about all this between themselves and each other. There is no way they could have ever imagined something of this magnitude.”
An exhalation of resolve escaped silently through Rachel’s nostrils. “I’ll be quite eager to let Numbuhs 60 and 86 have a little talk with this temporal troublemaker… that is, once we manage to catch him.”
A smile of determination crossed Nigel’s face, which turned toward the doorway… as it opened before his last six words. “Oh, yes, the capture. No doubt Numbuhs 84 and 83 will be as eager as we are about such a prospect, and speaking of Lee and Sonia…”
“Um, hey there, Numbuhs One and 362, sirs. Are you guys still trying to figure out where the thief’s gonna strike next?” Sonia asked reluctantly, mentally relieved as Lee gripped her hand to her side.
“I’m afraid so. We still don’t have any clues about which Time Gear will be targeted next, but fortunately, Nigel ordered his teammates to alert us if the sectors each of them have been assisting finds something else to that end,” Rachel answered gently yet commandingly. “How are the two of you?”
“Don’t worry about us, guys. We’re cool,” Lee countered simply yet smoothly. “We got some ice cream to cheer both of us up… but I think giving that thief the butt-kicking of his life is gonna be even cooler.”
A dry chuckle of bemusement escaped Nigel’s mouth. “That is a sentiment all of us are going to agree with once we actually figure out where that new villain ha--” The steady pulse traveling into Nigel’s hand stopped his last thought dead in its tracks. “Oh, great. Here we go again.”
The instant that Rachel reached for the now-pulsing rock, another flash of white engulfed the entire office before clearing to reveal a new forest clearing that thankfully still resembled an area in which time was still flowing, a far more tranquil sight for the four Kids Next Door operatives, given what they’d seen in the last three visions. So far, everything seemed normal… until sounds of weapons bursts began to burst through some trees somewhere in the nearby forest. A lone figure raced somewhat solemnly out of the trees toward the center of the clearing, which held an object immediately recognizable to Nigel, Rachel, Lee, and Sonia, but before the figure could reach the object, a bright sphere expanded outward directly in his path before shrinking to reveal yet another person who projected determination intermixed with a certain aura of fury about something.
“Well, well, well. We meet once again in this time, Vinegrowas,” the second figure said firmly. “You tried to intervene once before, but I promise you, that will not happen again.”
“Stand aside, you fool, unless you’d like to see your master’s mind erased for all eternity, leaving only a creature interested solely in preserving itself,” “Vinegrowas” countered abruptly.
The ball of energy materializing within the second figure’s hand would indicate that he wasn’t kidding at all about just what he was about to do. “What?! How dare you insult the Guardian of Time…!?!? TAKE THIS[/b][/u]!!!”
With that, the second figure hurled his ball of energy directly at Vinegrowas, and then, it expanded to encompass both of them before disappearing once again, leaving the forest clearing silent… until Nigel, Rachel, Lee, and Sonia saw for a mere fraction of a second four shorter figures that proved startlingly recognizable to all four of them, especially the distinct colors about themselves. If one had an unmistakable set of black sunglasses, then another had a brown winter cap that managed to reveal his eyes while still covering his ears. The other two figures, most likely girls, both had distinctly blonde hair with slightly different styles of arrangements: one let her hair flow downward to her shoulders, but the other kept her hair in unmistakable pigtails. Yet, as usual, it wasn’t particularly long for Nigel, Rachel, Lee, and Sonia to be able to make sense of this vision, because just as they saw themselves run into the forest clearing, a new flash of white appeared, signaling the end of that vision. A few moments passed before all four of them opened their eyes to find themselves back in the Supreme Commander’s office, precisely as they were before.
“Nigel!! Are you all right?!” Rachel asked rapidly… in a raised voice.
“No need to worry. I’m fine… and I think Lee and Sonia are all right, too,” Nigel remarked, sounding somewhat out of breath.
“Isn’t there anything we can do to get those guys to just talk about this?” Sonia asked with desperate fear, her body shivering for a second as a terrible -- and recent -- memory surfaced in her mind. “I mean, a world frozen in time is just too scary for me to think about, Lee.”
“That would definitely not be cool,” Lee said sharply… almost with a growl below his voice, before it softened slightly. “No need to worry, though, Sonia, ‘cause I’m right here.”
A quick but steady beep from the intercom on Rachel’s desk interrupted Lee and Sonia’s thoughts before either of them could say anything further, and their heads turned just as quickly toward it, as did Nigel and Rachel’s heads, before a distinctly familiar female voice with a strict Irish accent to it filled the office. “Numbuh 362, ma’am, come in. This is Numbuh 86 reporting from the Kids Next Door Central Bike Hub. Numbuh 60 just spotted several pockets of fluctuatin’ time several miles east of our area, and they look like they’re growing. Fortunately, both of us are still safe.”
“Excellent news, but have you two heard anything about the Time Gear at that location?” Rachel asked as sharply as ever.
A distinctly familiar male with an accent just as strict yet somewhat hesitant, at least for now, answered that last question… adding some information that could prove instrumental to the current phase of the Kids Next Door’s Time Gear investigation. “Well, that’s the thing. Almost all of those pockets are surroundin’ the thing, with time still goin’ on in the forest clearing, and if that wasn’t enough, this weird guy named Dusknet just showed up and said he can tell us precisely how to catch the thief before he can steal the next Time Gear.”
“Wow, that’s awesome!!! Maybe now we can start stopping time from freezing all around the world, and then everybody’ll be happy, right, Lee?” Sonia said, regaining her typical optimism.
Lee chuckled coolly yet happily. “That’ll be really cool, Sonia. I wonder when we’re gonna meet this Dusknet…”
Meanwhile, a new thought had crossed Nigel’s mind based on what he’d just heard through the intercom. “Hold it. Patton and Fanny are saying that time is fluctuating around that Time Gear, but time is still flowing smoothly where it is…”
Rachel’s eyes widened with realization, as did Lee and Sonia’s, before the Supreme Commander of the Kids Next Door exclaimed seriously, “Just as we saw in that vision!!! But if those two are as correct as that vision was…”
The leader of Sector V nodded just as seriously, his eyes locked intently on that intercom. “Then we just found the thief’s next target.”
END OF CHAPTER 3
“Rifts of Darkness in Time and Space”
Chapter 1: “The Artifact”
“So… what do you think it is, Lee?”
“I don’t know, Sonia, but it looks pretty cool to me.”
Lee Curtis and Sonia Mason sat at a table in the cafeteria of the Kids Next Door Moonbase, their eyes focused intently on a strange object that sat silently in front of them, as undisturbed as those two kids were by the various activities around them… mostly involving eating something, whether it was chicken sandwiches or hamburgers or even potato chips. They’d found it when they retrieved some necessary equipment for the Moonbase’s weapons arrays in case of any further threats to the Kids Next Door’s most important base of operations. Then again, they weren’t too sure of any threats left now that the usual enemies of that global organization of kids had gone quiet. Thus, at the moment, Lee and Sonia, known respectively as Numbuh 84 and Numbuh 83 within the Kids Next Door, were mentally sorting through the particularly strange pattern on that object, shaped somewhat like a rock with a smooth surface. It could certainly have been a pattern no one on Earth had ever seen before: six arrows precisely the same distance from each other jutting outward a short distance from a circle at the center of the pattern. Four swirls surrounded the pattern at the object’s corners, such that they would form a square if they were connected. Their curiosity piqued by this mysterious object, Lee and Sonia could only continue sitting as they were, the Moonbase cafeteria buzzing around them as normally as it did.
“Maybe it’s a key to some long-lost treasure. It’d be really cool to found out what it really is,” Lee said with curiosity.
“I just hope it’s nothing too gross… or dangerous,” Sonia said cautiously.
“Dangerous? I’m wondering what it was doing on the sidewalk like that without anybody noticing it,” Lee replied.
A new thought crossed Sonia’s mind as she continued eyeing the strange rock. “Wow. Do you think it actually wanted us to find it?”
“Find what?” asked a distinctly familiar male voice… with an authoritatively British accent to it.
Lee and Sonia tilted their heads up quickly from the rock, startled out of whatever thoughts they had about it. Next, they turned in the direction of the familiar voice… and gasped with some pleasant shock at the two particularly prominent operatives now standing near Lee and Sonia’s table, each holding a tray of spaghetti and meatballs with soda obtained from the cafeteria’s serving area. Those two commanding kids were instantly recognizable to anyone within the KND who thought of them as an excellent -- and excellently serious -- leadership duo. One, Nigel Uno, aptly known as Numbuh One, was the leader of the Kids Next Door’s most successful sector, and the other, Rachel McKenzie, aptly known as Numbuh 362, was the Supreme Commander of the entire organization. They’d worked together to stop the Kids Next Door’s usual archenemy from spreading infected broccoli into their comrades’ treehouses all over the world, and both of them had been getting quite friendly with each other recently… while also retaining their usual demeanor and focus on the organization and its traditional purpose. However, as Nigel and Rachel smiled no-nonsensically yet warmly at Lee and Sonia, the first two kids had plans to simply take a break in this cafeteria, something the last two kids could easily understand… even if they were rather preoccupied mentally at the moment.
“Numbuhs One and 362!!” Lee and Sonia said with audible respect before Sonia continued, “How are you two doing?”.
“At ease, Lee and Sonia. Nigel and I were just on our way to get a table for ourselves, then eat our lunch,” Rachel explained calmly.
Nigel nodded explanatorily. “Rachel offered me some spaghetti and meatballs, with soda as the main drink, so I happened to accept. It should be quite a lunch for today.” Then, something in the corner of Nigel’s eyesight caught his attention. “Oh, by the way, what do you two have on your table?”
Lee and Sonia leaned down at what Nigel was facing, and Lee reached out to hold the rock. “Oh, this? It’s some kinda rock Sonia and I found while we were exploring in Gallagher. We don’t really know what it is, but I think it’d be cool to find out.”
Sonia’s next statement would really get Nigel and Rachel’s minds going. “Mm-hmm. When Lee and I first found it, we had this really weird feeling coming from it, almost like it wanted us to find it or something like that.”
“Really?” Nigel countered, fascination evident in his voice, then turned to face Rachel. “What do you think? Shall we take our seats at Lee and Sonia’s table?”
Rachel’s eyes revolved toward another direction thoughtfully for a few seconds, then turned back to face Nigel. “Why not? It’ll be something worth discussing among ourselves while the two of us eat our spaghetti and meatballs.”
“Cool. You’re gonna sit with us, Nigel and Rachel?” Lee inquired, awe audible to the four kids at that table.
“That’s awesome. Thank you for your offer,” Sonia replied eagerly and respectfully. “Please, guys, have a seat.”
With that last statement, Nigel and Rachel returned Lee and Sonia’s smiles more cheerfully than they were, and the two Kids Next Door commanders sat at that table, setting their trays on it. If their stomachs were churning as lunchtime continued to tick by, then now, so were their minds, their curiosity as piqued as Lee and Sonia’s… even though Lee and Sonia themselves weren’t particularly hungry. Then, Nigel and Rachel themselves began to calmly eat through their respective plates of spaghetti and meatballs, drinking their sodas between several bites. Lee and Sonia had focused back on examining the rock, letting the most prominently commanding Kids Next Door couple those two really young secret agents knew of proceed. Anyone watching at the moment would have been struck by the comparisons and contrasts between Lee and Sonia… and the two kids considered the Kids Next Door’s most famously lovey-dovey couple, Wally Beetles and Kuki Sanban, known respectively as Numbuhs Four and Three of Sector V. If Lee was slightly calmer than Wally, then Sonia was normally as cheerful about herself and her friends as Kuki, such that some Kids Next Door were beginning to speculate Lee and Sonia to be the next Wally and Kuki. As for Nigel and Rachel, their positions demanded strictness from them as they articulated any threats to kids’ ability to be kids and have fun in the process that they discovered. Yet, as Nigel, Rachel, Lee, and Sonia continued their respective activities, they did not quite anticipate the strange aura emanating from the rock, effectively freezing Lee and Sonia in wonderment after several seconds. Upon seeing exactly what was happening, Nigel and Rachel put their forks down and eyed Lee and Sonia inquisitively… before they too felt that strange aura from the rock. They never had a chance to fully figure out just what the rock was doing, for at that instant, a sudden flash of white engulfed the table, forcing all four kids to close their eyes… only to open them again as a mysterious robed person with some sort of hood covering the head standing in front of a dark area within what appeared to be a ruined structure materialized in their sight. If that man’s appearance was puzzling enough, even more puzzling to Nigel, Rachel, Lee, and Sonia were the words escaping his mouth barely audibly.
“Everything is almost ready, Master Dialtollus,” the man said ominously. “The key events have been set into motion, and my agents have scattered to their proper places.” A sinister growl from the dark area seemed to affirm the man’s words before he nodded steadily. “As you wish, Great Guardian of Time. I assure you that I shall proceed with eliminating those meddling kids once and for all, and then, as this crumbling chamber symbolizes your mind with each second that ticks by… so will there be no time left for this world.”
When the last word escaped from the mouth of the man, apparently some kind of lead servant for whoever -- or whatever -- was in that dark area, silence once again fell upon the structure. There were enough cracks to confirm what he’d been saying almost instantaneously, but they wouldn’t be present for too long as another flash of white engulfed the entire structure, momentarily blinding Nigel, Rachel, Lee, and Sonia… before they gradually felt themselves sitting down somewhere. They slowly opened their eyes and blinked a few times to make certain they were seeing clearly. Sure enough, all of them were back at their table in the Moonbase cafeteria, operatives walking steadily yet idly around them as though nothing had happened at all. Directly in front of the Kids Next Door’s “main” really young couple was the strange rock, now forebodingly silent even as they, the leader of Sector V, and the Supreme Commander of the Kids Next Door really began eyeing it suspiciously… if only for a few moments.
“Rachel, are you all right?” Nigel asked rapidly, concern immediately audible within his voice as his hand almost instinctively reached for Rachel’s shoulder.
Rachel nodded just as rapidly, a little too confused for now to mind Nigel’s hand on her shoulder. “Yeah, I’m fine, but what happened with that rock?”
“I know… and what did that man mean when he said there wouldn’t be any time left?” Sonia asked, alarm immediately audible within her voice as she also clasped her hands together and turned to Lee with worry.
Lee shook his head negatively, his eyes trying to project reassurance to Sonia. “I don’t know, but it definitely did not sound cool to me.”
Nigel and Rachel themselves simply looked directly at each other’s eyes before focusing back to Lee and Sonia, and it would be Nigel who spoke first… as grim as his thinking now was. “Us, either. There might be much more to that rock than the two of you first thought.”
The stoniness in Rachel’s eyes hinted at just how serious -- and seriously disturbed -- she was as she explained, “We’ve been hearing rumors that a virtually total lack of movement has occurred within a few thankfully small areas of the world. Birds have stopped flying, butterflies have stopped fluttering, and blades of grass have stopped drifting in whatever breezes there used to be. Some of the rumors even describe how dewdrops are floating in midair after dropping from leaves. It’s as though time itself has simply frozen within those areas.”
Before Nigel and Rachel could explain any further, a quick and familiar beeping from Rachel’s wrist interrupted her thoughts. “Uh, Numbuh 362, ma’am, come in.”
“What is it, Numbuh 35?” Rachel asked, her voice now much stricter than it was.
A different voice answered over the wrist communicator, beginning with a clearing throat… and ending with a few statements that left Nigel Uno, Rachel McKenzie, Lee Curtis, and Sonia Mason much more chilled than they were when they first encountered each other at that table in the cafeteria of the Kids Next Door Moonbase. “This is Numbuh 23. You and Numbuh One might be interested to know that there’s a distress call coming in from the British Kids Next Door. From what we could pick up, time is beginning to freeze in the area they’re exploring.”
END OF CHAPTER 1
===========================================================================
“Rifts of Darkness in Time and Space”
Chapter 2: “A Sector Found, a Time Gear Lost”
“Aw, man. This is bad.”
“Tell me about it, Bartie. Here I was thinking we’d have another ‘business as usual’ day without any of those time distortions to worry about.”
“That might be, Virginia, but right now, we’ve gotta figure out what’s happening to Sector E!!”
“Hopefully, Numbuhs One and 362 get up here soon…”
Bartie Stork and Virginia Sims exchanged intense looks with each other while they eyed the large viewscreen at the Moonbase bridge, which now showed a peacefully revolving blue-green planet that all Kids Next Door easily recognized. However, what was displayed moments ago was anything but peaceful: agents with distraught and worried faces as a menacingly silent sight stood prominently before their eyes -- and crackled rapidly across their location, freezing everything in its path. The lead agent called into the lunar headquarters of the Kids Next Door almost desperately, reporting what he and his team had been uncovering about any time anomalies there… but he did not quite anticipate just how rapidly the time freeze would begin to occur. He managed to begin sending the information up to the Moonbase mainframe… but unfortunately, the transmission cut off abruptly, leaving a chillingly silent viewscreen displaying the Earth visible to Bartie and Virginia. Much more fortunately for them, they didn’t have too long to more concretely figure out just what to do next, for while they continued pressing the necessary buttons to reestablish contact, Rachel appeared at the open doorway and ran onto the bridge, followed closely and loyally behind by Nigel, Sonia, and Lee.
“Status report,” Rachel barked commandingly.
Bartie began rubbing his temple with reluctant confusion. “Uh… we lost contact with Sector E about six minutes ago, and we’ve been trying to get back to them ever since. So far, we haven’t had any luck, even with the backup emergency frequencies.”
“No communication whatsoever?” Nigel asked… with conclusive frustration.
Virginia shook her head. “That’s right, Sector E’s leader told us they were investigating something called a ‘Time Gear’, which I guess is related to the time disturbance in the area they were exploring before the transmission ended.” She then walked to her console and began typing several commands to access the information, now scrolling down on the viewscreen, if briefly. “They sent all the information they could… but as you guys can see, it’s not too much.”
His trademark yo-yo now spinning up and down intently, Lee exhaled with awe. “Cool. This Time Gear’s supposed to keep time moving within a certain area, but if it’s removed, then time starts slowing down until it eventually stops.”
Sonia clasped her hands together, her eyes turned toward the viewscreen with concern. “I just hope we’re able to get Sector E back soon. I mean, what if they got frozen in time, too?”
A snort of further frustration from Nigel indicated his grim expression. “If that last part of the information Sector E sent is accurate, then their time freeze might prove to be the least of our worries.”
“Why is that?” Lee and Sonia asked together, concern as audible in their voices as it was in the cafeteria.
“It would seem that there are several of these Time Gears scattered across the planet,” Rachel explained, narrowing her eyes with each line of information she read. “Anyone who manages to snatch all of them will eventually be able to freeze time all over Earth -- and thus, everything on it.”
“America… Britain… France… Israel… Japan… and Australia,” Nigel stated slowly, mentally deliberating on just why those parts of the world were related to this deepening nightmare. “Come to think of it, most of the rumors of frozen time that we’ve heard originated from those six countries. Then again, due to Sector E’s report, I don’t think those rumors are rumors anymore.”
Rachel shook her head from side to side, now looking at the Earth… behind the transparent information file, her words indicating a slight shift in her thinking. “No, they’re not. In fact, some of those reports indicated that time is freezing in areas that don’t even have any Time Gears, such as Greece, the Bolivian Andes Mountains, northwestern Pakistan, and even the Pacific Ocean just north of Hawaii. I will order a full investigation into this emerging crisis befo--”
It was as though the bridge of the Kids Next Door Moonbase began to stop moving entirely. Before Rachel could finish her thoughts, the strange rock -- now in Lee’s pocket -- began to pulse, even stranger than it already was in the cafeteria. Lee picked it up with his free hand almost instinctively, and then he and Sonia started looking at it with familiar awe. All of about three seconds passed before another blinding flash of white, not particularly different from the one earlier, engulfed the bridge, sending Nigel, Rachel, Lee, and Sonia’s minds into a mental freeze… for an instant.
“A malfunction in the Temporal Chamber that never should have happened… has happened, and now the unbridled wrath of the Guardian of Time has been revealed,” an unknown voice called out to the four Kids Next Door operatives, a trace of desperation evident within it. “The Spatial Chamber is next… Find the Time Gears… and protect them. They must not succeed. Stop them… before it’s too laaaaaaate…!!!!”
The ghostly voice disappeared as abruptly as it appeared, and Nigel, Rachel, Lee, and Sonia opened their eyes… to once again find themselves looking around at their surroundings. This time, Bartie and Virginia stood confused at their Supreme Commander and her three companions, who simply darted their heads back and forth once or twice before facing each other.
“Are… you guys all right?” Bartie asked with reluctance and concern.
“Yeah. You four look like you’ve just heard a ghost,” Virginia commented more calmly.
Nigel, Rachel, Lee, and Sonia looked at each other intently, hesitance more evident on Lee and Sonia’s faces than on Nigel and Rachel’s. However, before they could reply, a crackling noise that would have alerted all of them to something began to reveal itself… from the viewscreen. A voice with a distinct(ly) British accent filled their ears with what sounded like a call for help, leading Bartie and Virginia to gasp with pleasant astonishment -- and immediately dash for their respective consoles to begin pressing the appropriate buttons in order to attempt to retrieve whatever transmission was obviously trying to penetrate the static. Tension brewed across the bridge as the two main Moonbase bridge officers typed almost feverishly before, at long last, the viewscreen cleared just enough to reveal a boy and a girl who looked thoroughly worn out. Bartie and Virginia could only sigh in relief as the boy stared intently at the bridge of the Kids Next Door Moonbase.
“Sector E to Moonbase. Come in,” the girl said wearily, her British accent as clear as it was despite whatever static that remained. “We managed to get some more information about what happened here, if you guys wanna learn more.”
“Good, but are you guys all right?” Rachel asked urgently. “If you need any backup where you currently are, then I’ll dispatch a medical team immediately.”
“That’s all right, ma’am,” the boy said just as wearily. “We managed to escape the expanding time freeze with our information intact, but we might have run into some trouble before we got here.”
Nigel narrowed his eyes with suspicion. “Did any villains attack you before you could set up your transmission, Sector E?”
Both the boy and the girl shook their heads negatively before the girl responded, “Not even Father, thankfully. However, these fashion freaks appeared out of nowhere and simply stared at us before muttering something about ‘change on a universal scale.’ I tried asking them to explain what they meant, but the blokes simply vanished before I could say anything they could even understand. Then again, I think they just ignored us.”
Nigel nodded slowly, thinking through what the two members of Sector E were saying, and then, a thought he originally had surfaced in his mind. “What about the Time Gear you were investigating?”
“Oh, yes, that,” the boy said a bit more grimly… then paused before continuing, “When we arrived at the spot where the Time Gear should have been, the bloody thing wasn’t even there. I thought I saw someone racing into the forest surrounding the clearing, which would be quite odd since it was the forest that started freezing first.”
“Unless that someone had some kind of shield protecting himself from the time freeze,” Nigel thought openly, then turned to Rachel. “I have a feeling that Sector E was seeing the culprit behind the removal of the Time Gear, and if that rock Lee and Sonia have proves accurate, then it might also be connected to whatever -- or whoever -- is causing these time distortions.”
Meanwhile, Sonia had turned to Lee, her eyes displaying substantial alarm. “Oh, Lee, what do you think’s going on? First, somebody’s talking about the destruction of time, and now, somebody else just stole a Time Gear from where Sector E’s exploring.”
Lee simply shook his head as negatively as the two British Kids Next Door did theirs, his yo-yo now held solidly in one hand and that increasingly mysterious rock in the other. “This is sounding less and less cool by the second, but don’t worry, Sonia. I’m here.”
Rachel and Nigel smiled a bit warmly at Lee and Sonia’s exchange before clearing their faces soberly once again to face said British Kids Next Door, and Rachel’s command for Sector E was clear for all to hear. “Very well, Sector E. I will be eager to read your report once you submit it to me. In the meantime, Numbuhs One, 83, and 84 will help me conduct further research into these Time Gears and any potential weak spots in their locations so that we may strengthen them as necessary. Once we’re done, I will authorize Kids Next Door defense grids around each Time Gear so that whoever’s trying to steal them will have a much more difficult time getting to them than that person thought.” Nigel’s silence was as grave as Rachel’s command for Lee and Sonia as both Kids Next Door commanders turned to face those two kids. “As for that rock, Numbuhs 83 and 84, whatever you do, NEVER let it go beyond your reach[/b][/u].” Finally, after Lee and Sonia’s sharply attentive affirmation, the Supreme Commander of the Kids Next Door faced her commanding boyfriend. “Well, it looks like it’s time to start protecting those Time Gears.”
The leader of Sector V nodded soberly at his (even more) commanding girlfriend once more before both of them started gazing at the Moonbase viewscreen. “Time, indeed.”
END OF CHAPTER 2
===========================================================================
“Rifts of Darkness in Time and Space”
Chapter 3: “Dusknet and Vinegrowas”
The next day saw the Kids Next Door Moonbase supercharged with activity as though some new supernatural evil was now on the horizon, understandable from the British Kids Next Door’s report. As expected, Nigel, Rachel, Lee, and Sonia got to work reading through any and all information they could find about the Time Gears, loyally assisted by any of their fellow operatives who wanted to help them figure out the mysteries surrounding those time-controlling, well, gears. Particular efforts toward this end were seen from Kids Next Door sectors in the remaining five countries mentioned to possess Time Gears, extrapolating and cross-referencing whatever they could learn here and there for some kind of connection between each location. While Sector JP, the Japanese Kids Next Door, searched through the mountainous forests within their home country -- assisted cheerfully by Kuki Sanban, a.k.a. Numbuh Three of Sector V -- Sector AU, the Australian Kids Next Door, searched through the remote groves and deserts of the Australian Outback -- assisted dutifully, if reluctantly at first, by Wally Beetles, a.k.a. Numbuh Four of Sector V. For good measure, Kuki brought her Super Sleuth Rainbow Monkey along for the ride, which left Wally to mentally groan as they happened to check each other’s progress along the way. Yet, if Kuki’s voice tone was slightly more than cheerful than usual, then Wally was left to blush and stare blankly, earning curious eyebrows from Sector JP and snickers and chuckles from Sector AU. Wally and Kuki’s romantic friendship was simply a side note for the Kids Next Door’s most prominently commanding couple as they mentally digested several documents laid out before them on Rachel’s desk at the Moonbase… along with several other more personal pieces of information that had revealed themselves along the way.
“All right, then. This appears to be all the information we managed to gather about those Time Gears,” Rachel began. “Fortunately, Sector E’s report proved to be more of a starting point than we thought.”
Nigel chuckled soberly. “The locations of the remaining Time Gears have been confirmed, and now, it’ll be up to the Kids Next Door of each country still left to protect them with every resource they can muster. Who knew the locations would seem so… open if they were closed before?”
“Maybe, unless something was keeping those locations hidden until the ‘right’ people could find them, but then, how would whoever stole the Time Gear in Sector E’s area have been able to come across that forest clearing in the first place?” Rachel wondered aloud.
“The thief must be even smarter than we thought at first to anticipate what would happen if the Time Gear was removed… which should make him that much more dangerous,” Nigel said with salient admonition.
Rachel began rubbing her temple slightly. “Unfortunately, we still have nothing on that strange rock Lee and Sonia have, something I hate having to acknowledge at a time like this.”
“Or maybe not. Call me crazy, but if I remember correctly, that rock activated only when all four of us were together in a single area,” Nigel said steadily… before two commanding pairs of eyes locked thoughtfully yet grimly. “The first time it activated, you and I were just finishing our lunches at Lee and Sonia’s table two days ago.”
Rachel began rubbing her chin as she leaned slightly forward in her chair, now looking slightly downward at the files. “Yep. I remember correctly, and the second time it activated, all four of us were on the bridge awaiting Sector E’s report. That said…” A steady sigh escaped her mouth, just loud enough for Nigel to hear. “I didn’t imagine just how powerful the third vision from that rock would be yesterday.”
Nigel blinked once and simply stared at the files of newfound information about the Time Gears, immediately grasping Rachel’s point. The third vision that happened when the rock pulsed showed all four kids what could safely be described as an unforgettably dark sight: rocks and dewdrops floating in midair just above the ground; a sunless yet clear sky; and trees completely frozen in a gray world completely devoid of any life. Whatever movement occurred in that nightmarish vision was simply furtive and instinctive… with traces of fear in the expressions of the people and animals still present if one dared to look closely enough. Voices even ghostlier than that in the second vision accompanied this one, as though they appeared only in Nigel, Rachel, Lee, and Sonia’s minds. As it was, Sonia was close to screaming her lungs out in terror, leading Lee to try to wrap his arm around her with as much consistent reassurance as he could muster… before they all found themselves back on the Moonbase. Bartie and Virginia were left to volunteer to take charge of the bridge as Nigel and Rachel proceeded to start printing those files. However, this time, Lee and Sonia asked Nigel and Rachel for a favor that still had Nigel deep in thought as his hand immediately reached into his pocket.
“Powerful?” Nigel repeated curiously as he took out the now-silent rock and turned his head toward it. “It was enough to persuade Lee and Sonia to ask us to watch over that rock while they thought about all this between themselves and each other. There is no way they could have ever imagined something of this magnitude.”
An exhalation of resolve escaped silently through Rachel’s nostrils. “I’ll be quite eager to let Numbuhs 60 and 86 have a little talk with this temporal troublemaker… that is, once we manage to catch him.”
A smile of determination crossed Nigel’s face, which turned toward the doorway… as it opened before his last six words. “Oh, yes, the capture. No doubt Numbuhs 84 and 83 will be as eager as we are about such a prospect, and speaking of Lee and Sonia…”
“Um, hey there, Numbuhs One and 362, sirs. Are you guys still trying to figure out where the thief’s gonna strike next?” Sonia asked reluctantly, mentally relieved as Lee gripped her hand to her side.
“I’m afraid so. We still don’t have any clues about which Time Gear will be targeted next, but fortunately, Nigel ordered his teammates to alert us if the sectors each of them have been assisting finds something else to that end,” Rachel answered gently yet commandingly. “How are the two of you?”
“Don’t worry about us, guys. We’re cool,” Lee countered simply yet smoothly. “We got some ice cream to cheer both of us up… but I think giving that thief the butt-kicking of his life is gonna be even cooler.”
A dry chuckle of bemusement escaped Nigel’s mouth. “That is a sentiment all of us are going to agree with once we actually figure out where that new villain ha--” The steady pulse traveling into Nigel’s hand stopped his last thought dead in its tracks. “Oh, great. Here we go again.”
The instant that Rachel reached for the now-pulsing rock, another flash of white engulfed the entire office before clearing to reveal a new forest clearing that thankfully still resembled an area in which time was still flowing, a far more tranquil sight for the four Kids Next Door operatives, given what they’d seen in the last three visions. So far, everything seemed normal… until sounds of weapons bursts began to burst through some trees somewhere in the nearby forest. A lone figure raced somewhat solemnly out of the trees toward the center of the clearing, which held an object immediately recognizable to Nigel, Rachel, Lee, and Sonia, but before the figure could reach the object, a bright sphere expanded outward directly in his path before shrinking to reveal yet another person who projected determination intermixed with a certain aura of fury about something.
“Well, well, well. We meet once again in this time, Vinegrowas,” the second figure said firmly. “You tried to intervene once before, but I promise you, that will not happen again.”
“Stand aside, you fool, unless you’d like to see your master’s mind erased for all eternity, leaving only a creature interested solely in preserving itself,” “Vinegrowas” countered abruptly.
The ball of energy materializing within the second figure’s hand would indicate that he wasn’t kidding at all about just what he was about to do. “What?! How dare you insult the Guardian of Time…!?!? TAKE THIS[/b][/u]!!!”
With that, the second figure hurled his ball of energy directly at Vinegrowas, and then, it expanded to encompass both of them before disappearing once again, leaving the forest clearing silent… until Nigel, Rachel, Lee, and Sonia saw for a mere fraction of a second four shorter figures that proved startlingly recognizable to all four of them, especially the distinct colors about themselves. If one had an unmistakable set of black sunglasses, then another had a brown winter cap that managed to reveal his eyes while still covering his ears. The other two figures, most likely girls, both had distinctly blonde hair with slightly different styles of arrangements: one let her hair flow downward to her shoulders, but the other kept her hair in unmistakable pigtails. Yet, as usual, it wasn’t particularly long for Nigel, Rachel, Lee, and Sonia to be able to make sense of this vision, because just as they saw themselves run into the forest clearing, a new flash of white appeared, signaling the end of that vision. A few moments passed before all four of them opened their eyes to find themselves back in the Supreme Commander’s office, precisely as they were before.
“Nigel!! Are you all right?!” Rachel asked rapidly… in a raised voice.
“No need to worry. I’m fine… and I think Lee and Sonia are all right, too,” Nigel remarked, sounding somewhat out of breath.
“Isn’t there anything we can do to get those guys to just talk about this?” Sonia asked with desperate fear, her body shivering for a second as a terrible -- and recent -- memory surfaced in her mind. “I mean, a world frozen in time is just too scary for me to think about, Lee.”
“That would definitely not be cool,” Lee said sharply… almost with a growl below his voice, before it softened slightly. “No need to worry, though, Sonia, ‘cause I’m right here.”
A quick but steady beep from the intercom on Rachel’s desk interrupted Lee and Sonia’s thoughts before either of them could say anything further, and their heads turned just as quickly toward it, as did Nigel and Rachel’s heads, before a distinctly familiar female voice with a strict Irish accent to it filled the office. “Numbuh 362, ma’am, come in. This is Numbuh 86 reporting from the Kids Next Door Central Bike Hub. Numbuh 60 just spotted several pockets of fluctuatin’ time several miles east of our area, and they look like they’re growing. Fortunately, both of us are still safe.”
“Excellent news, but have you two heard anything about the Time Gear at that location?” Rachel asked as sharply as ever.
A distinctly familiar male with an accent just as strict yet somewhat hesitant, at least for now, answered that last question… adding some information that could prove instrumental to the current phase of the Kids Next Door’s Time Gear investigation. “Well, that’s the thing. Almost all of those pockets are surroundin’ the thing, with time still goin’ on in the forest clearing, and if that wasn’t enough, this weird guy named Dusknet just showed up and said he can tell us precisely how to catch the thief before he can steal the next Time Gear.”
“Wow, that’s awesome!!! Maybe now we can start stopping time from freezing all around the world, and then everybody’ll be happy, right, Lee?” Sonia said, regaining her typical optimism.
Lee chuckled coolly yet happily. “That’ll be really cool, Sonia. I wonder when we’re gonna meet this Dusknet…”
Meanwhile, a new thought had crossed Nigel’s mind based on what he’d just heard through the intercom. “Hold it. Patton and Fanny are saying that time is fluctuating around that Time Gear, but time is still flowing smoothly where it is…”
Rachel’s eyes widened with realization, as did Lee and Sonia’s, before the Supreme Commander of the Kids Next Door exclaimed seriously, “Just as we saw in that vision!!! But if those two are as correct as that vision was…”
The leader of Sector V nodded just as seriously, his eyes locked intently on that intercom. “Then we just found the thief’s next target.”
END OF CHAPTER 3
