Chapter 7

"Here we are!" Numbuh 35 said, landing the S.K.I.D.O.O.D. in a relatively hidden clearing around a forested area. "By the way, Numbuh 362, can you read and speak Japanese?"

There was no reply. Numbuh 35 turned back to face Numbuh 362. Her face was noticeably pale, even more so than in her most dangerous of missions so far. Her lips were quivering, and her arms were folded. Her hands tightly grasped the velvet sleeves of her shirt.

"Numbuh 362? Are you alright?"

"I- I'll be on my way."

"Are you sure you don't need my help? Granted I can't fight well, but still-"

"It's alright, Bartie. Just keep me posted."

Numbuh 362 disembarked the vehicle, taking out her staff, her S.P.I.C.E.R., and a new communicator. After inserting an earpiece into her right ear, Numbuh 362 made a dash through the forest, as though she already knew where she was headed.


"Nurse, will I be okay?" a KND patient asked, glancing nervously toward Numbuh 86 as she wheeled him to an emergency room.

She hesitated to answer. Even Numbuh VO5 had trouble fixing problems of this magnitude. However, she had faith that he could pull off something.

"I trust our top doctor on this, Bernie. You'll be okay," Numbuh 86 said.

"Thank you, nurse," the patient replied.

An operative wearing blue scrubs and a white surgical mask walked out the doors to the emergency room.

"Is the patient ready?" the operative asked.

"Yes, he is," Numbuh 86 replied.

"Man, we can't ever catch a break these days," the operative replied, wheeling the patient past the doors.

Once the doors closed, Numbuh 86 took off her nurse cap and began trudging through the hallways. More and more operatives had been sent to the medical facilities as a result of Numbuh 206's raids across the world. Just his attack on the Deep Sea Lab last night seemed to increase the number of patients by over 20%. She wondered if she even had a chance of contributing something to catching Numbuh 206.

Numbuh 86 stopped in front of a door, with the sign "Staff Room" plastered on the front. She entered the room, greeted by a refreshing cool breeze. Inside, baskets of snacks, soda, and other treats were lined along a wall. Opposite the snacks was a set of vending machines, each containing many sweets and delicacies. Opposite of Numbuh 86 was a sink with dispensable hand soap, with numerous tables seating groups of nurses conversing with one another.

Numbuh 86 quickly walked over to the sink, washing her hands in the warm, rushing water. She then went over to the baskets and took a vanilla chip granola bar. Unwrapping it, she took a small, delicate bite. The chips melted in her mouth, giving her a much-needed boost in sugar after her first shift. She began walking back to the door, making no eye contact with the nurses. She couldn't hear what they were talking about, but she felt their gaze on her. Suddenly, one of the nurses spoke up.

"You think we didn't notice you coming in?" the nurse said. "Why don't you actually face us?"

"Huh?" Numbuh 86 replied, turning around.

"We all work twice as long as you do, why did you get chosen?"

"I-"

"Was it because you were a suck-up to Blondie?"

Numbuh 86 quickly turned the doorknob and rushed out the door.


After what seemed like an eternity, she reached what looked like a clearing in the forest. The distinct smell of smoke filled the cool night air, and a small ditch at the center of the clearing contained orange embers of a campfire long extinguished. Near the fire stood a small tent, presumably one that only fit two people. Slowly, Numbuh 362 walked toward the campfire. She squatted down, carefully examining the remains of the campfire. No clues so far, but it seems like someone had recently lit a fire. She then stood and glanced around her surroundings. Small paths shot out from the clearing in various directions, with signs planted at the start of each one.

While Numbuh 100 was still Supreme Leader, she, along with Numbuh 60 and Numbuh 86, had passed by this place after making a visit to Sector JP during their MBST training. As she was about to sleep in a tent, she heard Numbuh 86 shrieking. Dashing out to Numbuh 86's tent, Numbuh 362 had asked what was wrong, only to notice two shadowy figures darting through one of the paths. Numbuh 274 and Numbuh 60 had then come out, weapons at the ready. By then, though, the two figures were nowhere to be seen. Upon further inquiry, Sector JP had stated that this was a fairly common occurrence when they went camping at this spot, experiencing the same exact thing as the MBST did. Notably, one of them had seen the two figures holding hands as if they were siblings.

Suddenly, she heard a noise from behind her. She quickly turned around and drew her S.P.I.C.E.R., only to find a Japanese man and woman holding hands.

"Huh? What's that American kid doing here?" the man asked in Japanese.

"I don't know dear. Should we try finding the kid's parents?" the woman replied.

"Um, I'm looking for two shadows that come to this place often," Numbuh 362 said, to the small surprise of the two adults.

"You don't mean, the demons that come out at night?" the man asked.

"Hey! Don't spread that stupid legend! Kids these days have pretty active imaginations!" the woman said.

"Where can you find them?" Numbuh 362 asked.

"Oh, the legend says that they're located inside a long and winding cave far away. The path that leads there is that one," the man said, pointing to one of the paths. "Most people are too scared to even step on that path, though."

"What did I just say?" the woman said.

"Thank you," Numbuh 362 replied, immediately dashing into the path.

"Wait! Wait!" the woman shouted.

Ignoring the woman's pleas, Numbuh 362 ran toward her destination. She glanced around, wondering if the two shadowy figures would appear to her once again.

It has to be them.

She ignored the same uncomfortable whisper from her nightmare earlier in the morning. As she finally reached the end of the path, she noticed an opening to a cave. A sign was erected in the front, cautioning tourists to be careful of the winding paths in the cave. Grabbing tightly to her weapon, and taking a silent breath to calm her nerves, she slowly entered the opening.


You let them get to your head again, Numbuh 86 thought to herself.

In spite of Numbuh 12's exhortations, she still couldn't help feeling a lump in her throat. After carefully looking around the bathroom, she entered one of the stalls and immediately locked the door. She then closed the toilet lid and sat on it,

"Ugh, she's a total pushover," one of the nurses said from outside the bathroom.

"Careful, you don't want Numbuh 362 to hear you say that," another nurse said from outside the bathroom.

"What do you mean? She's too busy nowadays to babysit that loser. And I don't even think she likes her anyway."

The voices softened and then disappeared. She took a look at her watch. In three minutes, her next shift would start again. She couldn't stand another few hours of people talking behind her back, frustrated that she was only halfway done with the day. She buried her head in her hands and sighed deeply. Deep down, she wished that Numbuh 362 were here with her. Before Numbuh 274 started giving more and more espionage missions, Numbuh 86 had often met with Numbuh 362 for snacks in the break room. It was simpler back then: no one picked on her when Numbuh 362 was around. Now, though, Numbuh 362 was mostly absent from the medical facility, occasionally stopping by to question some of the patients. Even when they did meet, she seemed to be much more standoffish or irritated, like today.

Suddenly, Numbuh 86 heard someone turn the doorknob. Instinctually, she raised up and folded her legs, hugging them into her body. As the door opened, she heard a vaguely familiar voice humming the Rainbow Monkey theme.

Evie? Numbuh 86 thought.

Breathing a sigh of relief, she quickly unlocked the stall door, only to find one of the nurses from the break room.

"Oh… it's you," the nurse sneered. "So this is where you've been hiding?"

Without a word, Numbuh 86 ran out.


Numbuh 362 slowly walked through the maze of paths inside the cave. Even with the somewhat frequent artificial lights, the cave was still extremely dark, obscuring its true size from her. Despite its unimpressive outer appearance, the cave featured many large areas, merged together by naturally formed arches and man-made paths. It seemed like hundreds of tourists could go in at once and still traverse the cave comfortably.

She remembered traversing a dark Siberian cave by herself during the short-term, intensive MBST training. Even though KND supervisors had told her she would be constantly monitored on their tracking devices, she still shivered at the thought of entering the cave. It was cold, dark, and narrow. When it was her turn, Numbuh 86 begged not to be left alone.

Numbuh 86. Numbuh 362 felt a twinge of guilt as she remembered her outburst earlier. She wondered if Numbuh 86 still thought of that moment. Especially since she was the kind of person to remember such things after-

Suddenly, she heard the faint sound of rushing water. Slowly, she made her way toward the sound. The rushing water would make it hard to hear incoming footsteps or any other suspicious noises, so she needed to be especially alert for any suspicious activity. As she moved forward into another part of the cave, she looked around her environment. On her left, she saw the source of the noise: a small creek flowing below here. On her right was a natural stone wall, with some graffiti sprayed on it.

Then, she heard another faint sound: the sound of footsteps.

Slowly making her way to the source, Numbuh 362 pointed her weapon forward, prepared to fire at any moment. As she got closer, she noticed some kind of arch ahead of her. It was made out of stones, cut into near-perfect geometric shapes. Slowly moving to it, she hugged the wall supporting the wall and carefully peered in.

Two shadowy figures stood in front of what seemed like a dead end. At first, Numbuh 362 was confused. Why were they here? Did they get lost? As she continued looking, she noticed that one of them had two pigtails while the other sported a bowl cut. The one with two pigtails began speaking.

"Password: sun and moon."

Suddenly, the stone retracted, making way for a dim light inside. The two shadowy figures were now somewhat illuminated. Both were wearing some kind of fancy blue uniform, as though they attended a private school.

"Let us rest, brother. We must be ready to attack the Kids Next Door once again," the pigtailed one said.

"Indeed, sister. Numbuh 206 will surely take us seriously now," the brother said.

The wall closed once both had entered. Walking carefully to the foot of the door, she waited until she heard the faint sound of the bedroom doors opening and closing.

"Password: sun and moon," Numbuh 362 whispered.

The wall opened, making way for Numbuh 362. She quickly hurried in, turning right into the living room. From what she could hear through the thin walls, the twins seemed to be brushing their teeth or washing their faces in the bathrooms. Numbuh 362 began fully taking in her surroundings.

In front of her was a couch and a large plasma-screen television. Supporting the television was a sturdy metal stand with small drawers organized in front. Next to the stand were two mini-tables. One held books, the TV remote, and two flags representing the United States and Japan. The other held many picture frames, presumably of the inhabitants of the house. Slowly tiptoeing to the other side of the hallway, Numbuh 362 entered the kitchen. It was small, a rounded table with chairs surrounded by a kitchen stove, drawers, and a sink. She tried looking for any form of intel in every drawer she could find, using the sleeve of her shirt to cover her fingerprints. Unfortunately for her, there was nothing.

Sneaking back into the living room, Numbuh 362 carefully opened and examined the books. She paid special attention to the order they were placed so that the siblings wouldn't notice when she put them back. She skimmed through each book, trying to find anything valuable. Despite her efforts, she found nothing, until she came across the last book. The book itself was unremarkable, and its contents equally so. However, a piece of paper slipped out of the book as soon as she turned to the last page. Picking it up, she saw that it was some kind of map detailing the defenses of Sector JP. She had her suspicions, but it was now confirmed that these siblings were the ones Numbuh 206 had intended to meet. It was now a matter of capturing them.

"Numbuh 35, I found the twins. Transmit my location to Sector JP. Bring them her so that we can detain them. Tell them to say, 'password: moon and sun.' Over," Numbuh 362 whispered to her communicator.

"Understood, Numbuh 362, over," Numbuh 35 replied.

It was now only a matter of time before Sector JP would arrive and apprehend the twins. She didn't know what kind of fighting skills they had, so it would be safer to call for backup than to fight them head on and capture them. After all, maybe they had some kind of escape route, or maybe apprehending one of them would've allowed the other to escape. Numbuh 362 turned to the pictures one more time, wondering as to what they actually looked like. Each picture was simply a variation on the same two people: a girl with pigtails and a boy with a bowl cut. From what she saw with the two flags, she guessed that the two were Japanese-American fraternal twins. After spending some time examining the pictures, she quietly sighed in relief.

Hiding once again behind the couch, she spent a long time pondering. First off, why were they living alone? Did they not have parents, or anyone else to look after them? Despite their collusion with Numbuh 206, she felt a little guilty apprehending them in their own house. Actually, as a matter of fact, how did they even make a house in the cave? And away from any tourist venturing into the cave? Were they outcasts? The Japanese man earlier spoke of them as legends, so maybe the tourists thought they were monsters or something.

They have to be the ones that fell into the vat, the voice in her head whispered.

Just because they're twins doesn't mean they're the ones who fell into the Delightfulization vat.

It can't be coincidental. You know now that they sound like the goody-two shoes the Delightful Children are. Don't you remember? The twins who fell into that vat were Japanese-American, and they're brother and sister. Their house is in a cave, and they have no parents as far as you know.

There you go again, trying to ignore me like last time. Why don't you get over yourself and read the rest of that historical archive? You're not doing yourself any favors by refusing to face the truth.

Shut up.

Fine.

After a long wait, the door would part once again.

"Password, moon and sun," a voice said from outside the door.

Numbuh 362 snapped back to reality. The door immediately opened as a group of operatives shuffled into the living room.

"Where's Numbuh 362?" Numbuh 35 whispered.

"Over here," Numbuh 362 whispered, raising her hands and slowly getting up from behind the couch. Her legs staggered as she rose up, most likely due to the fact that she had crouched behind the couch for so long.

"Where are they?" Numbuh 35 asked.

"In the bedrooms."

The Japanese KND operatives, along with Numbuh 35, split into two groups. Each group positioned itself at each door, ready to bust it down and apprehend the enemy twins. Numbuh 362 raised three fingers, signaling a countdown.

Three.

Two.

One.

Both groups slammed open their respective doors, to the sudden shock of the twins.

"Freeze!" the operative shouted.

The twins shrieked as they held their hands up.

"What?" the twins blurted out.

"You're being taken into custody for colluding against the Kids Next Door."

The twins tried escaping, but to no avail. Both were cuffed by the Japanese Kids Next Door as they began taking them out of the house. They resisted in vain against their durable restraints, violently protesting.

"Let me go!" the sister screamed.

"Let her go, let her go!" the brother cried.

As the two were pushed out of the house, the brother turned and made brief eye contact with Numbuh 362. For a moment, he stared, as though he might know her. Then, one of the Japanese KND operatives pushed him forward, and he turned back forward.

Numbuh 35, having helped in restraining the twins, turned to Numbuh 362, about to comment on her amazing work in capturing the twins. However, he noticed that her face had gone pale once again. She had begun taking shorter breaths, and her pupils had severely contracted. Notably, her right hand tightly grasped her left wrist, almost as though a restraint was placed on it.

"Are you okay, Numbuh 362?" Numbuh 35 asked.

"I- I was just nervous during the mission, Numbuh 35. That's all. I'm glad it's over," Numbuh 362 said as she took deeper breaths.

"I'll take you to the Lime Ricky's Bar later tonight if you want."

"That's okay, Numbuh 35, but thanks for asking. Besides, I'll have to head to Interrogation Headquarters."

"Okay. Let me know if you need anything."

Numbuh 35 and Sector JP began exiting the house, with the twins in tow.


"Well done, by the way," Numbuh 274 said, turning to Numbuh 362.

"Thank you, sir," Numbuh 362 replied.

The two, along with teams of KND operatives and reporters, looked through a one-way mirror. Inside, the twins were sitting in metal chairs at a metal table with livid expressions on their faces. Their interrogator had just left the room.

"We'll get out of here, Kids Next Door! Mark my words!" the sister shouted from inside.

"They're a handful," Numbuh 362 said.

"Well, if they're not gonna listen to the dozens of investigators, maybe I should give it a go," Numbuh 274 said.

"Are you sure, sir?" Numbuh 362 asked.

"Beats doing paperwork all day," Numbuh 274 said, walking toward the entrance.

Two guards were posted at the entrance to the interrogation room. Upon approaching it, though, Numbuh 274 simply let himself inside, with the guards immediately making way for him. He seated himself opposite of the twins while Numbuh 362 looked on, curious as to how Numbuh 274 would extract information from them. Actually, every operative and reporter looked on with bated breath, with notepads and computers at the ready.

"You don't scare us, Numbuh 274," the sister piped up.

"Supreme Leader Numbuh 274," Numbuh 274 replied, smirking. "So, you're the Interesting Twins from Beneath the Mountain. I have to say, you don't look half as intimidating as you do on paper."

Immediately, the sister growled in disgust.

"I'll remind you that we've compromised several sectors within the KND organization!" the sister replied.

"Really? You call breaking the roofs of a couple of treehouses 'compromising' them? If anything, you just gave us an excuse to install new roofing. Which brings me to my first question."

"If you think you can goad us into talking about Numbuh 206, we won't-"

"What's your name?"

"...Huh?"

"What's your name? And your brother's name? I want to know the names of the people who were responsible for giving us new roofing."

The twins glanced at each other, looking incredibly lost.

"It's just- no one's ever asked us that question, ever since… then," the brother said.

"Then?" Numbuh 274 asked, dropping his smug act and now intently listening to them.

"We always called each other 'Brother' and 'Sister.' We never questioned it, it was always like this," the sister said.

"Have you ever tried finding out what your names were?"

"We did, but… it led us nowhere."

"...Then what about your parents? Do you have a mom or a dad?"

The twins remained silent, their faces showing a feeling of loss and confusion.

"...Well then, who do you work for? Do you work for Father? Or the Delightful Chil-"

Before Numbuh 274 could finish, the twins jumped at him with sudden ferocity. Having had much experience in both fighting adults and training cadets, however, Numbuh 274 quickly reacted, knocking them both back to the wall. The two guards rushed in to assist Numbuh 274, but he motioned for them to stay put and close the door. The reporters and stenographers were furiously typing or writing down their notes and shouting to each other while Numbuh 362 looked on, shocked by this sudden development.

"Don't you dare mention the Delightful Children again!" the sister screeched.

"Why?"

"They're the reason we don't know our names, and we never will!"

"What do you mean?"

"They dropped us into their Delightfulization liquid!"

The sister broke down crying, and the brother moved to comfort her.

"Liquid? Wait, how do you even remember?"

"We found an entry in the historical archives one night while raiding the KND: the Destruction of the Delightfulization Factory. According to the archive, it was the end of September when the Delightful Children finished their project: their Delightfulization Liquid, which would Delightfulize any person that was submerged in it. We woke up in that factory around the end of September, and we put the dots together: we fell into their accursed vat. And the worst part is, some blond girl saw us in our greatest hour of need, but she turned her back on us," the brother said.

Numbuh 362 stopped hearing the arguing and cross-referencing going on around her. All she could focus on was the faces of the twins. Her eyes began welling with tears. Every memory swirled in her mind like a violent hurricane.

The cold chains.

The vats.

The horrid smell.

The Delightful Children.

The breakdown of the factory.

The twins. And the vat. And the countdown.

Your cowardice.

Immediately, Numbuh 362 made a dash for the nearest exit. She pushed aside any operative that got in her way. Never once did she acknowledge the screams or protests of the operatives around her. She slammed open the door to a set of stone staircases. Ascending them in what only felt like seconds, she reached the roof of the KND interrogation base. Through her watery eyes, she slammed shut the door behind her, haphazardly dragging a barrel and toward the door in an effort to block it. Once the door was sufficiently blocked, she let herself fall to the ground. The tears now began pouring out of her eyes.


"And the one who destroyed the factory was… of all people…," Numbuh 274 trailed off.

"And now you want to decommission him," the brother said in between faint tears. "At least he understands the pain of losing one's memories."


"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Numbuh 362 wept as she slammed the ground beneath her.

Every single repressed thought screamed back at her, a hundred times stronger than it did in even her worst nightmares:

You let them fall.

Coward.

How could you?

It's your fault!

It's too late!

Weak!

Just give up already!

It's pointless!

You let them fall.

Coward.

How could you?

It's your fault!

It's too late!

Weak!

Just give up already!

It's pointless!

You let them fall.

Coward.

How could you?

It's your fault!

It's too late!

Weak!

You don't deserve to be here!

Just give up already!

It's pointless!

You're the reason they don't remember their names!

Numbuh 362 then heard the same voice from her nightmare, the same one that always whispered uncomfortably close behind her.

What, are you just gonna pretend it all never happened? After seeing them in the room? The least you could do is apologize to them. Then again, why should they forgive you for letting them fall?


Numbuh 274 left the interrogation room. He could see that the people were murmuring amongst each other, cross-referencing historical archives with current events in the KND organization. However, he noticed that Numbuh 362 wasn't among the crowd, so he turned to one of the operatives.

"Where's Numbuh 362?" he asked.

"She seemed to be in a hurry somewhere. She went faster than lightning. Maybe she had to go to the bathroom?" the operative replied.

"No, no, I think she went upstairs to the roof," another operative said.

"Thanks," Numbuh 274 said, quickly finding the staircase and briskly ascending each step. Each step created a metal clang, causing an echo to ring throughout the staircase.


Someone's coming.

Numbuh 362 looked to the door, her heartbeat beating much faster. She quickly wiped away her tears with her sleeve. Her breaths became shorter and shorter, her stomach beginning to quiver again. She heard the footsteps getting closer. The footsteps stopped. Whoever it was, the person was now on the opposite side of the door.

"Numbuh 362? Are you there?" Numbuh 274 called from opposite the door.

Numbuh 362 looked to her side. There was a fire escape ladder that safely led to the ground level of the building.

After all this, you're just gonna run away again?

Pathetic.

END TRANSMISSION

A/N: I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and thank you for reading!