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Post by C7Angelocas12 on Aug 31, 2008 14:57:35 GMT
Ah. So there's a new Spyro game soon to be released, and Nigel and Rachel are dressed up as Spyro and Cynder? There might be other Spyro and Codename: Kids Next Door fans out there who are both Nigel/Rachel and Spyro/Cynder shippers, just as you are, Allie. I shall trust them to be enthusiastic about both couples in their own ways as you have been.
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Post by allie on Aug 31, 2008 15:27:42 GMT
Yep, yep! ;D Legend of Spyro III: Dawn of the Dragon! I can't wait! Two-player, as Spyro and Cynder. As Cynder, you'll be able to breath Wind, Poison, Fear and Shadow which is going to be awesome! Spyro has the breaths of Flame, Earth, Ice, and Electricity. They make a kick-butt team! Just like Nigel n' Rachel themselves.  |
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Post by C7Angelocas12 on Aug 31, 2008 16:13:13 GMT
That'll work... as this Courting Commander and political junkie senses that his mind is beginning to catch up to his enthusiasm for the idea of President John McCain and Vice-President Sarah Palin as an excellent way to continue defending freedom around the world. I might now have an even more interesting afternoon ahead of me to conclude August 2008, but hey, it should also be seriously fun for Nigel Uno and Rachel McKenzie.
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Post by allie on Aug 31, 2008 23:11:05 GMT
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Post by C7Angelocas12 on Aug 31, 2008 23:25:19 GMT
No need to worry too much, lead Courting Commander. I trust that Nigel and Rachel will be eager to defeat Father if he has any plan to disrupt whatever winter-based date that both Kids Next Door commanders happen to have. Of course, how much more eager might Nigel, Rachel, and their friends be... to start planning to defeat the Aztlan Movement, especially if a certain favorite villain of mine intends to disrupt Fidel Morales' plan with a very big bang?:
“The Rise and Fall of Aztlan”
Chapter 5: “The Clashing Faces of Evil”
Wally and Kuki raced down the sidewalk slightly ahead of Miguel, the words of the leader of Sector V and the Supreme Commander of the Kids Next Door still within their minds. The flashlights still mounted on Wally and Kuki’s gumball submachine guns now lit the tiles ahead of them, the stars overhead having returned to their nighttime brightness from before Miguel had first taken out the Aztlan Stone from his pocket, which effectively was their normal nighttime brightness. Whereas that park and its surroundings, nay, Gallagher itself had felt genuinely tranquil to those three kids earlier, at this moment, a current of instability flowed through the air -- and Wally, Kuki, and Miguel’s minds -- beneath whatever tranquility anyone else might have detected. If Nigel and Rachel were really as alarmed as they sounded during that clash with those villainously mysterious Aztlan Movement Youth kids, then the collective unsettlement between Wally, Kuki, and Miguel seemed silently justifiable. Neither Wally nor Kuki had heard even a peep from Nigel and Rachel as they looked around at some of their friends on the Moonbase earlier today, but neither of them particularly minded that their sector leader and their Supreme Commander had disappeared somewhere, presumably the Supreme Commander’s office... which might have meant that something was up. The last time both Nigel and Rachel had disappeared from Wally and Kuki’s view, leaving Wally and Kuki to themselves... Sectors V and MX were exploring that ice cream mine that Miguel had discovered. The three kids in the most famous triangle the Kids Next Door knew of nodded understandingly at Nigel and Rachel as soon as those two Kids Next Door commanders told their fellow operatives to split into groups of two or three while the two of them and the leader of Sector MX stayed outside, which effectively left Wally and Miguel to focus on finding the actual ice cream chamber in order to impress Kuki. When Wally, Kuki, and Miguel arrived back outside the cave entrance, Nigel and Rachel seemed a little more stern than they usually were, as if they’d just learned of some very bad news that neither commanding Kid Next Door was willing to reveal just yet. If nothing else, then as Kuki, Wally, and then Miguel found themselves darting toward a three-way intersection leading to another sidewalk on the other side of the new street, Miguel’s curiosity moved just as quickly through his mind as Wally and Kuki’s separate curiosity and resolve moved through theirs... even though all three kids were beginning to slow down as their approached the corner.
“So, where is this treehouse of yours?” Miguel asked.
Kuki and Wally skidded forward just barely to a halt at the street corner, indicated by the stop sign facing their current street, with Miguel following their course of action a second later, and Kuki was the one to start thinking of an answer, pointing at the proper direction as soon as it came to her. “I think it’s... to the left.”
“We’re gonna have to cross this street, though,” Wally said cautiously, looking back down the street they were about to leave, then left and right at the new one, fixating his head as he focused rightward. “I don’t see any cars... except that one comin’ from the right.”
Kuki and Miguel looked down the same direction down which Wally was looking and saw a single car begin to slow down to a stop at the designated line indicating the walkway across the street. Wally and Kuki nodded at the silent signal for all three kids to cross, and begin crossing the street they did, Wally and Kuki’s flashlights aimed directly ahead of them. When the three kids all found themselves on the other sidewalk, they began racing down the route Kuki had pointed out earlier, leaving the car to start turning left onto that previous street. Wally raced almost directly parallel to his best female friend -- and might-be girlfriend, if possible -- while Miguel ran a short distance behind them a few inches to Kuki’s left. Kuki happened to look down and smile at her best male friend, evidently reassured as she usually was whenever the two of them were together. Being who she was, though, Kuki could only flip her head in the opposite direction and slow down just a bit so that she could see Miguel more easily.
“Miguel?” Kuki began, smiling as innocently as she could. “I’m sorry about what happened to your pretty stone.” A cheerful gasp escaped her at her next thought. “I know!! Maybe Wally and I can get it back for you, and then we can look at that rock together. YAAAY!!!!!”
Wally rolled his eyes with bemusement. “Yeah, sure...” His eyes found a particularly large object that his mind took all of one second to successfully register. “And we might be closer to findin’ out who the crud those Aztlan Movement creeps are than we thought.”
As she did at that previous street, Kuki eyed Wally for a few seconds before following his gaze to what it had in its sight, no doubt with Miguel doing the same thing. The massive object coming into Wally, Kuki, and Miguel’s view gave all three kids a decisive incentive to start speeding up, their curiosity beginning to show itself from within them. All of them were happy as they were, for standing prominently above the red-roofed house out of which it grew, apparently dwarfing the other houses by comparison, was the treehouse belonging to Kids Next Door Sector V. With each rapid step that Wally, Kuki, and Miguel took toward that treehouse, their exhilaration -- and determination -- increased, and to further prove that determination, by now, Wally and Kuki were aiming their flashlights at the treehouse, keeping their fingers just outside their respective gumball submachine gun triggers so that neither weapon accidentally went off. Suddenly, just as Wally, Kuki, and Miguel were exactly one house away from Sector V’s headquarters, lights began to appear on various levels of the treehouse, as if it was expecting visitors. Sure enough, zooming toward the Sector V treehouse out of the sky from the opposite direction was a vehicle with wings jutting out from both its sides, rockets firing from its back... and four kids that Wally and Kuki would immediately recognize sitting at each of its four seats, and following closely behind that vehicle were two other Kids Next Door vehicles often used to transport operatives to anywhere with a certain amount of distance. While those two vehicles continued toward the treehouse, the lead vehicle hurtled away from its escorts and aligned itself with the street, its wings holding steady as it glided through the air. By now, Wally and Kuki had stopped and lowered their Kids Next Door weapons, still focusing their eyes intently on the increasingly recognizable Supreme Commander’s personal ROADSTAR. Miguel simply folded his arms in front of him as he saw the ROADSTAR touch down about three or four houses away from him and his two Kids Next Door companions, then slide along the street until it glided to a halt several feet away from those three kids. This time, Wally and Miguel’s faces of solemnity contrasted with Kuki’s face of cheerfulness as they saw Rachel and Nigel open the doors on their respective sides of the ROADSTAR and step out from the front seats, followed by Lee and Sonia from the back seats.
“Hey, guys!!” Kuki called out happily to Nigel and Rachel, then happened to look behind the two Kids Next Door commanders. “You brought Lee and Sonia, too? Yay, it’s a party!!!”
Nigel tilted his head as he mentally studied that observation. “Well, in a way, Numbuh Three, maybe it is, but I don’t think it’s the type of party you had in mind.” He cleared his throat professionally. “Numbuh Four, what’s your current situation?”
Wally frowned with frustration. “Well, other than that ambush by those cruddy Aztlan Movement Youth kids, Kuki and I are just fine.” He tightened his grip around his gumball submachine gun. “I’d like to give that stupid ‘Grand Potentate Fidel’ those creeps were talkin’ about a million knuckle sandwiches for lettin’ them attack us...”
Rachel nodded gravely and commandingly. “Let’s head inside so that we can discuss this. Numbuhs Two and Five are joining us, as are Numbuhs 60 and 86.” A grim smile crossed her face. “Once we tell you what the two of us discovered about the Aztlan Movement, chances are that you’ll want to give Fidel Morales and his minions a lot more than a million knuckle sandwiches.”
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“Yes, Mr. Kashani,” Terrabrasada’s voice said with emotionless confidence through the intercom on Kashani’s desk at the headquarters of the Organization of the Islamic Conference. “Your services to the Aztlan Movement are no longer needed.”
A twitch of Kashani’s left eye hinted at the rage beginning to mount from within him, as silent as it was, even as his hands lay flat in front of him. “Oh, really!? Just what do you intend to do now?”
“Precisely what we’ve wanted to do from the beginning,” Terrabrasada’s voice continued eerily. “Don’t even attempt to deny the machinations of those Guardians of the Islamic Revolution. Our agents across Venezuela, Ecuador, and Nicaragua are having to counter their increasingly worrisome activities, so I will say this once.” A pause that could have chilled anyone else seeped slowly through the intercom. “The Guardians have three days to cancel their intrusion onto the lands of the future Aztlan Empire... or else[/b].”
Terrabrasada’s words floated almost ghoulishly into the air in Kashani’s office as the intercom beeped to deactivate, leaving the eyes of Secretary-General of the Organization of the Islamic Conference to begin to burn with mounting fury at this unconscionable turnaround, to say the very least, by none other than the practical deputy for that despicable Grand Potentate of the Aztlan Movement, Fidel Morales. As another moment of rage, Kashani looked across his office, then back at the intercom... before slapping it leftward with the back of his hand. Distant as the resulting crash on the floor next to Kashani’s desk was, just as silently distant as the rest of his office, it could only amplify the storm of anger now electrifying Kashani’s mind as he pondered how to proceed. The Aztlan Movement had powerful allies, including the Sacred Strugglers... as long as they were willing to take up such alliances for the sake of Allah. With this act, however, Dolores Terrabrasada had just left not only herself, but also her fellow Aztlan agents open to the wrath of the Islamic Community... starting with the digits now being pressed furiously on Kashani’s cell phone. Kashani slumped back down into his seat after having stood up, letting his cell phone ring until a familiar voice began speaking through it, letting Kashani know instantly precisely how permanent Allah’s vengeance would be against whatever deities Morales worshipped.
“What is it, Mr. Kashani?” the same male voice from that night on the Ayman 10KIB began. “My fellow Mexican Mujahidin stand ready to complete our transaction’s purpose at your command.”
“Very well, Mujahid Mahdi,” Kashani said as calmly as he could, his free hand still flat on the desk. “Due to the betrayal of the Jerusalem Force by that female dog for the Aztlan Movement, I have a slight change of plans for you.”
Another chilling pause seeped through Kashani’s cell phone before the man at the other end spoke again. “Yes, sir. Share with me your new battle plans, and by Allah, we shall fulfill them.”
“Well, first, do you still have the copy of that map of Morales’ headquarters? You should have circled it,” Kashani replied.
This time, about a minute passed eerily before Mexican Mujahidin leader Mahdi Escobar spoke even more eerily, his key statement doubtlessly earning the silent approval of Escobar’s practical ally at the top of the Sacred Strugglers’ version of the United Global Assembly. “I understand. We shall detonate that nuclear bomb inside the lair of the Aztlan Movement, and it will not be long before that infidel Morales and those infernal Aztlan animals pay for their crime against the Community of the Muslims... with--their--lives[/b][/u].”
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Wally and Kuki’s resolve and certainty increased alongside their anger while they and their friends sat or stood around Sector V’s briefing area, their gumball submachine guns now secured, and just as it was at that bench in Gallagher Park, Kuki sat between Wally and Miguel as the former began to speak. “So, let me get this straight, Numbuh One: you and Numbuh 362 were talkin’ with the leader of the Mexican Kids Next Door about those cruddy Aztlan Movement freaks, and you guys learned that they wanna destroy Mexico and America?!?!”
Nigel and Rachel looked between each other, then at Patton and Fanny soberly, as those two prominent leadership couples within the Kids Next Door nodded perceptibly, if only just barely so. Today had been quite a day of research and thought for those four kids as they remembered what Nigel and Rachel had described to their comrades so far. First, Wally and Kuki stated everything they managed to remember about that ambush in the main park of Gallagher, Ohio, with Kuki’s standard comment about how pretty the stars seemed to her as Miguel held out that stone... and Wally’s hesitant confirmation after that. Strangely enough, Miguel was generally silent during that first part of the discussion, preferring to just nod affirmatively and watch as Nigel and Rachel stated that they’d been tracking the Aztlan Movement all the way to Sector V’s hometown. As if that group of adult villains weren’t enough, the Sacred Strugglers, most likely the Jerusalem Force of the Guardians of the Islamic Revolution, were also involved somehow, persuading men, women, and even children in Latin America to just accept the Law of Submission, among other Sharia-friendly -- and consequently, kid-unfriendly -- activities. As Nigel and Rachel stood next to each other at the center of the briefing area for the Sector V treehouse, Patton and Fanny standing militarily off to the side, both commanding Kids Next Door operatives’ alarm showed itself on their faces after being silent in their minds for the past day.
“Yes, guys,” Nigel said with acknowledgeable confidence. “Everything Rachel and I have said so far is correct, starting with those protests in Los Angeles and across the southwestern United States about two summers ago right up to those more... violent disturbances across certain parts of Mexico in the past several years.”
His arms still folded in front of him, Miguel nodded understandingly at Nigel and Rachel, if generally so. “Well, at least now I know why you two stayed outside that ice cream mine entrance during that mission.”
“First, those meanieheads say they don’t care about Rainbow Monkeys, and now, this!?!?” Kuki yelled angrily. “How cruel can they get!?”
“I know!!!” Sonia exclaimed, innocent anger and fear intermixed within her voice. “Just think of all the kids Morales might have brainwashed. Can’t they just find a way to let everyone else be all right?”
Lee folded his arms skeptically, his yo-yo firmly gripped in his hand. “Not cool. Not cool at all.”
“Not cool, indeed, but fortunately, Sector MX managed to enlist the help of someone who wanted to leave the Aztlan Movement. He gave them a map of Morales’ headquarters, and when we downloaded it into the Moonbase computer, we got this,” Rachel replied as Nigel pressed a button to activate the holographic projector at the center of the circular briefing area, the necessary objects coming into view to match her next few statements. “There are three roads leading toward the Aztlan Movement’s main pyramid from the southwest, north-northwest, and east, and directly next to the eastern road is a landing platform for any vehicles coming from the air. Thanks to those violent disturbances that Nigel and I were researching, nobody in Mexico except the Aztlan Movement -- and now, the Kids Next Door -- knows about that pyramid, and with Mexico’s law enforcement officers reduced to making money within some blurpleberry cartels controlled by the AM, nobody wants to investigate it.”
Abby shook her head disapprovingly. “Numbuh Five smells somethin’ seriously rotten about this Aztlan Movement.”
Hoagie eyed a certain detail that stood out to him from that holographic map of the Aztlan Movement’s headquarters. “Maybe if we stay low enough, we can use that landing platform to sneak into the pyramid, confront this Fidel Morales guy, and take back the Aztlan Stone.”
Kuki’s smile was back across her face as miraculously as it usually was. “And once we finish, we can head back here, and then, all of us will be able to see how pretty the Aztlan Stone is. Right, Wally?”
“Eh... sure, Kuki,” Wally said hesitantly. “Yeah, we’ll get that dumb stone back... but I’d really like to kick that kid’s butt for runnin’ away from us.”
“We might get a chance to do that soon enough,” Nigel replied, eager determination increasingly audible that time. “While Rachel and I were preparing to head down here from the Moonbase with Numbuhs Two, Five, 83, 84, 60, and 86, Numbuhs 35 and 23 alerted the two of us to a series of Aztlan Movement transmissions that describe an event called the ‘Aztlan Awakening,’ which is supposed to take place three days from now. The two of us are assuming that that’s when Morales will use the Aztlan Stone to usher in the Sacred Aztlan Paradise.” He smiled observantly at his practical girlfriend before turning back to face his sector. “Of course, he might not have counted on the Kids Next Door to intervene with that awakening of his.”
“So... we have three days to prepare for this?” Miguel asked with mounting eagerness, as though he were about to enter the fight of his life.
“Make that two,” Rachel said correctively and authoritatively, smiling at her practical boyfriend as her plan began to develop within her mind before turning to face the team perhaps even more commandingly than she usually was. “I’ve already authorized our scientists to conduct every test they need within that period of time for our ice beam laser rifles, which they’ve been modifying in the past several weeks. Once we finish getting ready, we should be able to retrieve the Aztlan Stone without too much mayhem. Is everyone willing to do this?”
The response of every Kid Next Door present except Nigel and Rachel was as attentive as it was unified. “SIR, YES, SIR!!!!”
Miguel nodded just as attentively, pausing for a few seconds. “Eh, why not? So am I.”
Rachel and Nigel smiled warmly yet strongly at each other once more, and Rachel’s next words could only be self-evidently simple. “Ready, soldier?”
Nigel nodded decisively. “Yep.”
The last eight words out of Sector V leader Nigel Uno and Kids Next Door Supreme Commander Rachel McKenzie’s mouths for that briefing would mobilize their friends to prepare to stop this possible disaster on the part of Aztlan Movement Grand Potentate Fidel Morales before it could befall Mexico and America:
“Kids Next Door, let’s take back that stone!!!!”
END OF CHAPTER 5
Somehow, I might be energized for the concluding chapter of this story... which I'll admit to being eager to start and hopefully finish typing by tomorrow morning. As ever, stay tuned for that, then my special presidential convention one-shot (most likely) later tomorrow. Talk about being on a roll for political adventures for the Kids Next Door.
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Post by allie on Sept 1, 2008 0:12:49 GMT
In the words of Numbuh One from the first of his words in BRIEF, "THAT WAS TOTALLY PHONOMONAL!!!"  Amazing! Absolutely amazing. I hope they retrieve the stone back, safely. |
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Post by C7Angelocas12 on Sept 1, 2008 0:38:34 GMT
Well, it took me long enough, but it looks like the two currents of villainy within this story are starting to converge, with one being smashed by the other. If the Kids Next Door are already aware of one current, then they might become aware of the other in this final chapter of "The Rise and Fall of Aztlan". As for those presidential conventions, Allie, I might be eager to see as a deviantART image what Nigel and Rachel would look like if they were confused -- and disturbed -- by two enormous groups of adults gathering in Denver, Colorado, and Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota. If you wish to draw such a Nigel/Rachel deviantART idea, then you have my encouragement. ;D
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Post by PlyJulia20 on Sept 1, 2008 7:10:16 GMT
Hi guys.=)
@allie,
Cool,I might consider it.XD
It’s a cute picture,he looks pretty embarassed.XD
The fury pic,the paper looks crumpled.Like you,I like the fear picture better.It looks nicer.X)
Fantastica ‘Feel The Burn’.^^
It’s blur,but good.
@angelo,
That was totally super-awesomely wicked!
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Post by C7Angelocas12 on Sept 1, 2008 12:00:14 GMT
Well. Good morning on this first day of September 2008... three days before my first post ever on the Codename: Kids Next Door Fan Forum, but also 10 days before the grim anniversary that propelled me toward my first fanfiction idea for this show, period. The assumption behind that first story idea has gone on to influence my thinking about post-Grandfather (adult) villains for Nigel Uno, Rachel McKenzie, and the rest of the Kids Next Door ever since. I've united several other couples in the Kids Next Door under that all-important assumption, from Wally/Kuki to Bartie/Virginia all the way to Lee/Sonia, and for future reference, I've seen moments of fascination within my mind about other possible couples involving these two Kids Next Door commanders. Meanwhile, I've seen various collisions between my Kids Next Door romantic interests and my real-life political interests, such as my support for John McCain and Sarah Palin for President and Vice-President of America, respectively, in early November 2008. I shall dare to conclude that I support McCain-Palin for the same basic reason[/b][/u] that I'm having Nigel and Rachel confront the likes of the Guardians of the Islamic Revolution, the House of Saud, the Universal Brotherhood, the Muslim Brothers' Society, and the Aztlan Movement. Admittedly, the third of these villainous groups is inspired by a fictional group of criminals within the world of Pokémon Diamond and Pearl, and in fact, even Pokémon has found a place within my assumption of a conflict between freedom and submission. Those two principles have clashed since the dawn of time, speaking practically, and Nigel and Rachel have had many chances to learn how powerful freedom has been and can be for them, and likewise with submission against them. As long as Nigel and Rachel stay true to themselves and loyal to freedom, they and their friends should be all right. If any other Courting Commanders out there support this basic idea, then good for them, but for now, let Nigel and Rachel's defense of freedom -- and consequently, the ability of kids everywhere to have fun simply being kids -- continue. ;D
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Post by allie on Sept 1, 2008 13:48:28 GMT
I changed my avatar again. Couldn't help it. It's so.. fury-ied-able. Even that's not a word, it still works. ;D
@220
Fury pic - It wasn't "crumpled", I just shaded it. Plus I used the 'contrast & brightness', which you can make those evil gray-spots and crumple edges go away! Good thing to have that with me.
But I still prefer the "Fear" picture because of the shading and more colors in it. Rachel's expression is pretty, and I'll be planning to draw another while she's in the grasp of "Shadow-Dragon Father". ;D
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Post by C7Angelocas12 on Sept 1, 2008 14:05:16 GMT
A Courting Commanders avatar, or a Courting Commanders signature picture alongside a Pearlshipping signature picture? (chuckling observantly) The Nigel/Rachel and Ash/Dawn pictures I selected might be rather subtle in their romantic undertones, but then again, that might fit my thinking quite well. If you decide to come up with a new Nigel/Rachel signature, Allie, then go for it.
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Post by allie on Sept 1, 2008 15:41:51 GMT
It's an avatar of Numbuh One! :3 But you know what? Maybe I could possibly throw in a Courting Commanders' avatar since I just joined a small, new Spyro forum. ;D It'll be great! There are only 5 members, but I hope it'll get big soon. Here's the forum: iamcynder.proboards56.com/index.cgi Come and join if you're a Spyro fan! If you're not, you can always look around to see information and what's new and talk about related stuff. ^_^ Say... Spyro/Cynder reminds us of 1/362? Which reminds me--I can't get this image of Nigel and Rachel out on this beautiful, night balcony that's facing into the ocean. I need to draw it, I must! |
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Post by C7Angelocas12 on Sept 1, 2008 16:27:09 GMT
(clearing throat) Right. Go ahead and do that, as well... which leaves me to conclude that this is going to be one interesting beginning day for September 2008 for me. Of course, I am left to think of something musicalhottie might have said about a Romeo and Juliet-style relationship between Nigel and Rachel. Perhaps you will enjoy such an idea even more, given what Romeo and Juliet, well, is. Talk about romantic fluff.
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Post by allie on Sept 1, 2008 21:16:33 GMT
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Post by C7Angelocas12 on Sept 2, 2008 1:00:58 GMT
Very well, Allie, and I suppose this worked out well for Nigel and Rachel. Hopefully, they'll still stand strong as they are in the name of freedom. Serious? The contrast with my special presidential convention one-shot later this week should be striking, indeed, especially given Nigel and Rachel's final lines.:
“The Rise and Fall of Aztlan”
Chapter 6: “A Nuclear Nightmare”
The next two days saw both the Kids Next Door Moonbase and the Sector V treehouse light up with activity in response to Nigel and Rachel’s order in Sector V’s briefing area. While Hoagie and Abby volunteered to field-test those new ice/electric beam laser rifles in the Moonbase research room, Wally and Kuki were dispatched to Sector MX to gather any more critical information they could find about either the AM or its prepubescent unit. Upon further immediate inspection, Wally and Kuki uncovered a web of Aztlan Movement transmissions extending from that main pyramid, located southwest of Mexico City, northward into Los Angeles and the areas surrounding it, San Francisco, Phoenix, certain parts of Texas along the Rio Grande, and even Colorado, mostly anywhere around Denver. It wasn’t too long before Wally and Kuki realized and Miguel confirmed -- very much to the shock and dread of not just those three kids, but also Nigel and Rachel -- that that pyramid was less than two miles east-southeast of that ice cream mine they’d explored. Remarkably, given the short distance between that ice cream mine and that pyramid, nobody among the Aztlan Movement Youth had even mentioned the Kids Next Door, as that defector confirmed upon meeting up with Sector MX, which gave the Kids Next Door another element of surprise that Nigel and Rachel wanted to use to their biggest possible advantage before their secret assault on Morales’ lair. As for Nigel and Rachel themselves, they were most often on the bridge to coordinate the preparations as they saw appropriate. Lee and Sonia settled for simply watching the preparations for Sector V’s mission alongside the two Kids Next Door commanders, and all four kids were amazed to see it unfold before their eyes, from the confirmation of the standard patrol patterns within that pyramid to the standby alerts for Sectors CA, AZ, CO, and T to the new vehicle masking system for the Supreme Commander’s personal ROADSTAR and Sector V’s SCAMPER. It would be just as well for Nigel and Rachel as they zoomed through the almost-night sky toward the main pyramid of the Aztlan Movement in the ROADSTAR, Lee and Sonia sitting directly behind them, four brand-new ice/electric beam laser rifles leaning silently between the speculative younger version of Wally and Kuki, a flashlight mounted on each laser rifle, and all four prepubescent spies wearing expressions of no-nonsensical resolve.
“We’re getting close,” Nigel said, then pointed to a certain spot on the GPS screen in front of him to his left, which displayed a map based on that former Aztlan Movement Youth agent’s map, tracing his finger along the screen as he found what he was looking for. “The mountains between here and Mexico City are a few miles north of us, and the landing platform should be... here.”
Rachel glanced at the GPS screen, then pressed the activation button for the intercom directly below it. “ROADSTAR to Sector V SCAMPER. Come in. How’s your vehicle masking device?”
“Workin’ like a charm, ma’am,” Hoagie’s voice sounded confident. “Rockets are green across the board. As far as we can tell, nobody’s detected us.”
Abby’s voice was a bit more wry, perhaps understandably so. “As for Numbuhs Three and Four, well...” She chuckled for a few seconds. “Numbuh Five thinks they and Miguel are A-okay, too.”
“So, when’s the party? Are we gonna eat a lotta cake once we get there?” Kuki asked.
“Erm... I don’t think there’s gonna be any cake,” Wally countered hesitantly.
Rachel cleared her throat with one hand and kept the wheel steady with the other, something particularly invaluable to their mission now within her line of sight. “If you two have some thoughts you’d like to share with each other, then you might not need to wait for too much longer...”
It was up to Nigel to finish. “Because we’re approaching the landing platform.” He turned to face his Supreme Commander. “So, will you do the honors?”
Rachel smiled at her top sector leader for that question while keeping her eyes focused directly in front of her and pressing the necessary buttons and controls to slow the ROADSTAR down, no doubt with the Sector V SCAMPER following suit. As the two Kids Next Door vehicles approached the clearing with the Aztlan Movement’s main pyramid in it, flying safely low above the forest, Rachel and Nigel’s focus grew and grew, if it didn’t already, and Lee and Sonia looked at their respective sides and saw a sea of trees that stopped at several mountains in the distance, the rays of the setting sun still illuminating the area around them. Lee and Sonia nodded happily at each other, as if to silently indicate that there was nothing out there that thought of the two strange vehicles streaking above the trees as particularly suspicious to investigate... which Nigel and Rachel essentially picked up as the ROADSTAR began to glide down toward the road leading to that landing platform, toward which the SCAMPER now proceeded. After several seconds, Rachel, Nigel, Sonia, and Lee barely jumped upward as they felt the ROADSTAR touch down as smoothly as it could along the road, then continue steadily toward the Aztlan Movement landing platform, retracting its wings in the process. Finally, it slowed down a bit more smoothly to a stop about nine yards away from the now-landed SCAMPER as Nigel and Rachel saw that vehicle’s door open, followed by Miguel, Kuki, and Wally, of whom the last two were carrying similarly-designed ice/electric beam laser rifles with flashlights. Miguel had settled for using his fists and feet in case there was any trouble, judging from the actions of those AMY kids during that Gallagher Park ambush. Lee and Sonia each passed Nigel and Rachel a single laser rifle, taking the other two for themselves and copying those two commanding Kids Next Door operatives as Nigel and Rachel opened the door on their separate sides, stepped out of the ROADSTAR onto the landing platform, and eyed as authoritatively as they usually did the five kids now standing outside the SCAMPER.
Before Nigel and Rachel could say anything, they heard a high-pitched yelp behind them... only to see Sonia grabbing onto Lee’s arm while he placed a hand on her shoulder as calmly as he could. “Don’t worry about the night sky, Sonia. As long as we stick together, it’s cool.”
Sonia smiled timidly yet also innocently at Lee. “Okay, Lee. I’ll do that, and thank you.” She turned to face Nigel and Rachel a bit more confidently but still rather timidly. “So... can we just retrieve this Aztlan Stone now?”
Nigel and Rachel smiled at each other with energy and resolve. “With pleasure.”
Readying their laser rifles, Nigel and Rachel began marching toward the pyramid, followed by Lee and Sonia to the left and Hoagie and Abby to the right. Wally, Kuki, and Miguel were slightly farther back behind their six companions, focused as they were on retrieving the Aztlan Stone. Nigel and Rachel could remember the patrol patterns around several key corridors leading toward the main chamber, in which Morales almost always spent his time pondering the arrival of the Sacred Aztlan Paradise and the coming vengeance of the deities of Aztlan on not just Mexico’s leaders, but even more importantly, America itself. As determined by now as the Kids Next Door were to stop Morales’ plan, with Nigel and Rachel leading the way, proceeding closer and closer to a secret entrance revealed by that AMY defector, none of them ever paid attention to the covered truck now approaching the pyramid out of the forest from the southwest. It shook a few times as its wheels began to carry it off the road onto the rocks to the side, and then, the truck stopped. Its left and right doors opened to reveal two, then four mysterious figures who immediately dashed over to the back and gazed without a single word as one of them pulled the cover back as far as he could and got out of the way to allow another two, including the driver, to gradually release the truck’s loading ramp. Those two figures dashed quietly up the ramp toward a rather large object with a panel of buttons at one of its sides... and a rectangle of three left-to-right stripes, the top white, the middle blue, and the bottom red, directly next to it, indicating the object’s place of origin. Yet, the origin of this object was the last thing on the mind of the driver as he pressed a few buttons before the object beeped, with the figure directly across him folding his arms.
“Good,” the driver whispered with malicious eagerness. “Sheikh Escobar, the bomb is ready to be activated.”
A cruel smile crossed the driver’s immediate companion’s face. “Excellent. Let’s take it inside and arm it, and once I detonate it, this pyramid -- and the Aztlan Movement -- will burn in the mushroom cloud of the rage of Allah.”
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Morales stood stone-faced in front of the Aztlan painting, his concentration even higher than it was when the Aztlan Stone glowed across that small, fenced area of grass in the northeastern United States -- and the painting pulsed along with it. After all these years of waiting, the time of revenge was finally at hand, and to amplify that area of concentration, the Aztlan Stone was now attached to a string that had absorbed itself into the stone and was now tucked firmly around Morales’ neck, a symbol of the coming supremacy of the Sacred Aztlan Paradise. The Aztlan Movement Youth performed their duty quite well, as per Morales’ estimation, and he could certainly expect no less of them as the Aztlan Awakening approached. Of course, neither could the Aztlan Movement’s Grand Potentate expect any less of his agents across Mexico as they slowly but steadily turned the country around this pyramid into a land of turbulence, right on schedule for the appearance of the Sacred Aztlan Paradise... and consequently, the Aztlan Empire. As Morales himself though, he knew that he would have a glorious day ahead of him, and he would need all the concentration that he could muster. However, the nine kids glaring at Morales as soon as he turned around from the Aztlan painting did nothing to improve that concentration for him. Each of those kids carried some sort of weapon that Morales thought quite odd, but he refused to allow anything to deter him. He glared silently at the two kids who seemed to be the leaders of this group, one a strange boy without any hair, the other a strange girl with golden hair that flowed to her shoulders and some sort of command helmet atop her head, before closing his eyes reflectively for a few seconds and opening them again.
“Well, well. I see that I have visitors,” Morales began as calmly as he could, a sinister undercurrent audible as his words floated across the Aztlan Movement’s main chamber. “As you all can see, I am the only one around here for now, but the Aztlan Movement Youth will be here soon enough. Are you here to witness the Aztlan Awakening?”
“No, we’re not,” Nigel replied sternly. “In fact, we’re here to stop it, and we’d like to start by taking back that stone around your neck.”
Rachel’s voice was just as stern. “We already researched your master plan, and to tell you the truth, the more we learned about it, the less we liked it.”
Morales snorted impatiently. “Typical Americans, even if you are kids. Everywhere that sick idea of yours goes, the people of this world seem more eager to enjoy life rather than endure it, trusting each other more in the process... even, no, especially by buying those insufferable Rainbow Monkeys and Yipper Cards.” As he mumbled those last twelve words under his breath, imperceptible to the ears of the nine kids, including the eight Kids Next Door among them, he caught sight of Wally, Kuki, and Miguel, who hadn’t changed their glares at him even once. “Oh, it is you, the three kids whom my children confronted in your Gallagher Park.”
“Yeah, ya big, slimy Aztlan piece of crud,” Wally said with confirmative exasperation. “I thought you and your creepy kids were bad enough when they told Kuki to shut up, but now, I just wanna teach ya the Australian word for ‘ouch’.”
“Yeah!!! What about all those adorable Rainbow Monkeys?!?!” Kuki yelled with just as much exasperation. “Wally may not care about them, but he’s willing to stand by me no matter what. Once we’re done here, Miguel’s gonna show us that pretty stone, so there.”
Morales’ stare had a bit more irritation to it behind its lack of emotion. “Wally, Kuki, and Miguel, is it? It is precisely as I sensed before I dispatched the AMY to take the Aztlan Stone from you. You three may have a conflict with each other, but it did not prevent any of you from coming here to stop... my destiny. I will promi--”
A strange yet urgent beeping on Rachel’s communicator forced Morales’ thought back into his mind, perhaps just as well for everyone present as the KND Supreme Commander pressed the button to accept whatever transmission, but the resulting voice had a hint of disturbance to it. “Uh... Moonbase to Supreme Commander, Sector V, and Numbuhs 83 and 84.”
“Numbuh 35? What’s going on up there?” Rachel asked quizzically, then strictly.
A silent pause ensued before Bartie Stork’s voice could be heard once again through the communicator. “Uh... I don’t know how to put this, but you guys might wanna hurry it up a bit, ‘cause we’re picking up a transmission to the United States Northern Command indicating a probable nuclear bomb signature inside the pyramid.”
The shock and horror on Nigel and Rachel’s faces was instantly recognizable to anyone who might have noticed, even though Rachel tried desperately to inject some calmness into her voice. “Uh... say again, Moonbase?”
“Make that confirmed,” Virginia Sims’ voice penetrated through the communicator all of three seconds later, filled less with hesitation and more with dread. “We’ve just detected another transmission, this one to Mexican President Arturo Castillo, about a confirmed nuclear bomb signature southwest of Mexico City. The coordinates in that transmission are exactly the same as the coordinates for that pyramid.”
Nigel exhaled conclusively, the unfathomable meaning of that information from the Moonbase flashing in his mind’s eye. “We read you loud and clear, Numbuh 23. We’ll evacuate as soon as we can.”
The communicator beeped to indicate an end to the Moonbase transmission, and a haunting -- and deafening -- silence fell upon the main chamber of the headquarters of the Aztlan Movement as Nigel and Rachel looked at each other even more gravely than they ever had when they first learned about both the AM and the Mexican Mujahidin. They remembered researching what Bartie and Virginia just mentioned when they had some free time, and what they learned alarmed them all the way to their separate cores. If a nuclear bomb really was somewhere inside this pyramid, then the Kids Next Door were about to suffer a fate they wouldn’t even dare to imagine, but as Nigel and Rachel looked around at their friends, who all frowned with understandable confusion and dread, the two Kids Next Door commanders could only ponder to themselves just how powerful such a weapon would be.
Miguel was first to speak, a hint of hesitation evident. “Uh... what’s a nuclear bomb?”
Rachel paused, if only for a few seconds, before realizing that time might have running out far more quickly than she and her practical boyfriend would’ve liked. “A weapon powerful enough to destroy an entire city in a matter of seconds.”
Nodding with extremely grim recognition at the gasps of absolute terror from the other six Kids Next Door present at his practical girlfriend’s words, Nigel continued, “If there’s a nuclear bomb signature right here and now, then chances are that it’s already been activated, and once it explodes, this pyramid is history... and so are we.”
“Unless we get out of here... A-S-A-now[/b][/u],” Rachel finished decisively, emphasizing the last part as thoroughly gravely as she could.
“No,” Morales interrupted, pulling the Aztlan Stone until the string snapped and then dissolved into the air, tossing the stone toward Miguel, who managed to catch it, and closing his eyes in concentration... until the eight Aztlan Movement Youth kids appeared around the Kids Next Door, just as they did around Wally, Kuki, and Miguel at Gallagher Park the other day. “You strange kids have a chance to submit to the glory of the Sacred Aztlan Paradise, but if you must fight it, then I’ve no choice left.”
“Really? In that case, neither do we,” Nigel said energetically but grimly. “Ready?”
Rachel nodded just as energetically but grimly. “You know it, Nigel.”
At Nigel Uno and Rachel McKenzie’s next five words, the other four operatives of Sector V, the speculatively popular younger version of Wally and Kuki, and the Kids Next Door's non-KND companion would launch their separate attacks in order to escape this pyramid before it exploded, taking them with it to oblivion:
“Kids Next Door, BATTLE STATIONS!!!!!”
Beams of interchanging blue and yellow light immediately lit up that main chamber as the eight Kids Next Door present aimed their ice/electric beam laser rifles and opened fire, each targeting one Aztlan Movement Youth boy or girl before they could reach Nigel, Rachel, Wally, Kuki, Hoagie, Abby, Lee, or even Sonia. Almost immediately, the eight AMY kids fell to the floor, now kid-sized ice blocks up to their necks, grunting desperately as they tried to move... only to scream moments later as massive surges of electricity were let loose for about five seconds, powerful enough to knock them unconscious. Meanwhile, Miguel had jumped up to avoid their attacks and was now charging toward Morales to finish him off, only to screech to an abrupt halt as he saw solid ice growing from a spot on Morales where Wally and Kuki had aimed their laser rifles. Miguel took out the Aztlan Stone from his pocket and looked at it solemnly before turning toward Wally and Kuki, then looking around at the rest of their comrades, ignoring Morales’ long scream by that moment.
“All right, I’ve got the Aztlan Stone,” Miguel said unflappably. “Shall we get out of here?”
Nigel and Rachel’s singular response was as simple as it was serious. “Gladly.”
With that, Nigel and Rachel began hurtling in the opposite direction from the Aztlan painting, followed swiftly behind by Lee, Sonia, Wally, Kuki, Miguel, Abby, and Hoagie, Aztlan Movement Grand Potentate Fidel Morales and his Aztlan Movement Youth minions unconscious behind them, but soon to be forever silent. While Miguel settled for racing directly behind Wally and Kuki, those two romantically popular Kids Next Door fired quick blasts of blue and yellow light at whatever new AMY operatives tried to ambush the team as they barreled toward the way they entered that chamber. Then, Nigel and Rachel saw it: the corridor leading back toward that secret entrance into the pyramid. Guided by their momentum, the Sector V leader and the Kids Next Door Supreme Commander raced into that corridor, then screeched to a halt to turn around, aim their laser rifles, and fire at any Aztlan Movement or Aztlan Movement Youth members still chasing them and their friends throughout that pyramid. When the last Kid Next Door in that group was clearly inside the corridor -- since Miguel was staying as close to Kuki and Wally as he could -- Nigel and Rachel darted into it themselves and slammed two switches at both sides to bring two stone slabs sliding together, thus closing the corridor. In a blur, the two of them knocked the backs of their fists against two more switches a bit further down that same corridor, which caused the steps along the stairway the Kids Next Door had climbed to retract, thus transforming the stairway into a sort of slide.
“There’s our way out!!! Let’s go!!!!” Nigel called out as he raced toward the slide, then jumped forward as soon as he saw the edge, still holding his laser rifle as steadily as he could while he visibly careened down it.
“I’m right behind you!!” Rachel yelled behind her top sector leader as she started careening down the pyramid’s slide herself, still holding her laser rifle just as steadily as she could.
“So are weeeeee!!!!!...” yelled Hoagie and Abby distantly at the same time, just as they could also be heard heading straight down the slide behind their Supreme Commander.
Lee and Sonia held hands as though their lives depended on it, and in this case, that really was the case as those two younger Kids Next Door started sliding down that former stairway within the Aztlan Movement’s main pyramid, followed at last by Wally and Kuki, and finally, Miguel. Whereas those six Kids Next Door operatives as well as Miguel couldn’t help screaming as they felt themselves hurtle down that slide, Nigel and Rachel maintained, or at least tried to maintain, their usual authoritative calmness as they saw the corridor/slide continue straight down for all of about a minute before it flattened for several inches, then veered left and right again. Those slide switches at the top of that slide/corridor must have linked those nine kids’ current corridor with another one that continued for about eighteen seconds before reaching a small square that loomed increasingly larger to Nigel and Rachel’s sight, eventually revealing itself to be... a view of the trees in the distance. Nigel flew out of the slide/corridor first, followed by Rachel moments later. Nigel simply ignored the pain from that impact as he rushed over to Rachel.
“Rachel!! Are you all right?” Nigel yelled with instant concern, extending one hand toward Rachel while steadily holding his laser rifle in the other.
Rachel managed to shake her head back to focus, and she took Nigel’s hand in hers, if a bit unsteadily, to get up off the ground. As Nigel and Rachel immediately looked back to that slide, they saw Hoagie Gilligan and Abby Lincoln, then Lee Curtis and Sonia Mason, and lastly, Wally Beetles, Kuki Sanban, and Miguel Mendoza fly out and land relatively safely, each Kid Next Door present still holding one intact ice/electric beam laser rifle. As soon as the two KND leaders finished mentally counting themselves and their friends, all nine kids raced toward the still-silent ROADSTAR and SCAMPER, just as they’d come when they first arrived at this pyramid. It didn’t take long for both Kids Next Door vehicles to activate their engines and start blasting off, the ROADSTAR’s wings extending outward from its two sides in the meantime. The Kids Next Door and their single non-KND companion could not have been more relieved to escape such a looming disaster... unlike the four figures from that strange truck who’d successfully hauled the massive object they were carrying with them into a hidden compartment within the Aztlan Movement’s pyramid and now simply waited with ominous certainty. The leader among these figures aimed his pointer finger directly at the button that would unleash this object’s power -- and seal their destiny for the sake of Allah.
“At last, my fellow Mexican Mujahidin, after a year of preparation and training, our destiny awaits us,” the leader intoned... then began reciting the one chant that aptly symbolized the victory of the Islamic Community over the Aztlan Movement, or so he perceived. “Allah is great. Allah is great. Allah is great!! Allah is great!!!...”
When he repeated that chant for the seventh time, Mexican Mujahidin leader Mahdi Escobar hurled his finger forward and pressed the detonation button for the Russian nuclear bomb he’d successfully purchased from Colonel General Andrei Gorichekov.
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^^^The next morning^^^
“Horror and destruction of epic proportions in the wake of a nuclear explosion in an unknown area southwest of Mexico City last night. The fatalities are projected to reach into the thousands as Fox News and Investor’s Business Daily sources within Mexico confirm that the area vaporized in the blast belonged to the Aztlan Movement. There is no official word yet from either the White House or the United States Northern Command, but documents secured during a raid in Nicaragua and obtained exclusively by Fox News reveal plans for a suicide mission by a previously unknown group of Sacred Strugglers operating within Mexico. Russian officials are being contacted for discussions of a possible link to a nuclear bomb that was reported missing...”
Nigel and Rachel sat with grim sternness as they watched the newscast in front of them in the rec room of Sector V’s treehouse, their memories of their escape from that pyramid last night still clear in their minds. The Supreme Commander’s ROADSTAR and Sector V’s SCAMPER had managed to escape the shockwave as the entire area around the pyramid simply disappeared underneath the resulting mushroom cloud, and as soon as both Kids Next Door vehicles reached the top boundary of Earth’s atmosphere, Rachel pressed the intercom button to contact the Kids Next Door Moonbase, letting her two main Global Command deputies know that they were safe. Nigel offered to let Rachel, his team, and Miguel stay at the treehouse for the night so that they could rest. Most noticeably to Nigel and Rachel before they headed here to start watching, Wally and Kuki could be seen sleeping together, and yet, as the newscast continued, the two Kids Next Door commanders could only shake her heads negatively at precisely what had just transpired.
Rachel exhaled wearily. “I can’t believe it. We never even saw that nuclear bomb until we were practically on top of it, and as a result... we almost...”
Nigel reassuringly placed a hand on Rachel’s shoulder, offering as warm a smile as he could muster, perhaps miraculously so, given the catastrophically dire circumstances before them, before frowning grimly once again. “I know. We were dealing with adults, teens, and even kids so full of hate toward those who simply want to be free that they’d rather destroy themselves and as many others as they possibly can than live alongside people who like freedom." He paused for a few seconds. "Nobody can live under such a way of thinking for long.”
Rachel McKenzie smiled thankfully at her practical boyfriend and top sector leader. “Thanks, Nigel. You have no idea how much I needed that.”
Nigel Uno reached for the remote to turn the newscast's volume down, then nodded warmly at his practical girlfriend and Supreme Commander. “You know, Rachel, I think both of us needed it.”
THE END
If the Guardians of the Islamic Revolution were prominent in the background this time, then perhaps the House of Saud and the Muslim Brothers' Society will have another chance to be prominent villains in the background within my special Kids Next Door presidential convention one-shot later this week. Methinks that the last two major groups of Sacred Strugglers generally prefer to stay under the radar, so to speak, letting the first major group declare open war against America. Of course, the Organization of the Islamic Conference and the Islamic Liberation Party might make special guest appearances in the future. Talk about a two-pronged menace for Nigel Uno and Rachel McKenzie to confront. If John McCain and Sarah Palin continue supporting freedom as a basic idea, then good for them.
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Amazing! Absolutely amazing. I hope they retrieve the stone back, safely.