A Newbie’s Sector Quest, Part 1

NOTE: This arc features characters from the Netflix cartoon, Glitch Techs. The characters are connected to their canon selves, but the characters and general idea of the show will be briefed in this arc.

Coruscant; Vinyl City (Play "Vs. Sayu" from No Straight Roads!)

"Hello, everyone! Thank you all for coming to my show! Seeing all my wonderful fans fills me with love, pyun! The concert will begin soon, so stay lovely! Pyun!"

Vinyl City used Symphonian technology to provide energy for its citizens. Their generators were designed to absorb Music Chi provided by the most talented musicians. Sayu (from NSR) was an especially popular icon: she appeared onstage as a giant, pink mermaid with heart-shaped pupils, and platinum-white hair with magenta streaks. The stage was decorated with seaweed, floating fish, and water graphics. The audience primarily consisted of adolescents, kids, or parents of kids.

"She's even cuter in person!" exclaimed Miko. The teenage human was distinguished from the crowds of aliens with her bluish-violet hair, a yellow T-shirt with a winking black cat, purple pants, and a blue hoodie tied around her waist. Her red socks went into large, pale-blue sneakers. "Five, how could you not be in love with her?!"

"Since when are you into concerts, anyway, Meeks?" asked High Five, a thin, half-Mexican human with puffy purple hair and a green shirt with a game controller design. Though he was a year younger than Miko, he was notably taller than his friend, but Miko's brighter hair and more energetic demeanor allowed her to stand out far more.

"Since THIS girl showed up in Guitar Queen Seven!" expressed the violet-haired gamer. "She was added as a DLC last month, and I just fell in love! Her songs are so good! And I still have the muscle memory! Up down right right, String 1 String 2 String 4 String 3…"

Five chuckled at his friend's antics. Between the two of them, he and Miko were diehard gamers. Their initial encounters took place in online fighting games, where the boy would always find himself royally beaten by the skilled girl. It wasn't until they signed up for a gaming tournament that they would meet in person, and from then, their lives couldn't have been more exciting.

The tournament entailed engaging in a virtual reality fighting game designed by Hinobi Tech, one of Coruscant's top gaming companies. While the tournament was meant to only have one victor, Miko and Five used teamwork to win together. But it was then they learned it was more than just a tournament: Hinobi had cut a special deal with the Coruscant Kids Next Door. They were willing to sell the KND new technology and weapons for dealing with rogue robots and Programs, a naturally common occurrence on the high-tech planet. As a bonus, Hinobi promised to find potential new recruits to join the KND and use these gadgets. So by then, Five and Miko became recruits of new Sector Hinobi. But as an added bonus, they were hired as part-time workers for a Hinobi store.

"Ah, I recognize that voice from anywhere!"

Five and Miko looked over as another duo approached them. One was Hiro, a boy with messy dark hair, and Go-Go, a girl with a purple streak in her black hair who was notably taller than her male partner. Both were fellow operatives of Sector Six (from Big Hero 6). "Go-Go, mah girl!" Miko cheered. "Hiro, mah man! You ready to start lovin'?!"

"Not until he's taller." Go-Go said, blowing some gum as it popped.

"Hah hah, I don't think she meant it like that." Hiro said with an awkward laugh.

"So, how's the gaming business? Is Mitch being a good boy?"

"Ah, you know Mitch." Five shrugged. "He's, uh…he's a tough one, alright."

Mitch Williams was the leader of Sector Hinobi and a famous online game streamer. But due to his remarkable arrogance, he wasn't favored too highly by his teammates. So, they were always happy to be away from him.

"So, who is this girl, anyway?" Hiro asked, looking toward the stage. "Is she from Aquaria? Why does that water look fake?"

"Well, she's actually not real." Five answered.

"ZZZT!" Miko swiped her arms. "We can't use the 'R' word around her…"

"Why not?" Hiro replied.

"Sayu is a hologram." Five explained. "I heard there's a group of animators behind the scenes."

"Like one of those solid holograms?"

"Kind of, but I don't think she has a will of her own. One of them is providing the voice, someone else designs her outfits, one plays the music, and the other is constantly guiding her motions."

"Don't talk down about Sayu like that!" Miko defended. "The love that she makes us feel is real, and her soul is real! Just like Ally." She tapped her right wristband as a red ostrich appeared digitally. "Isn't that right, Ally?" She hugged her faithful companion.

"But if there's an actual singer behind the scenes, why does she hide behind a hologram?" Hiro asked. "Is she good?"

"Well, of COURSE she's GOOD!" Miko insisted, returning Ally to her band. "But you can't just go around and show people how good you are! Then too many people'll be hassling her for contracts or something! That's why people use usernames or avatars online! Right, High Five?"

"You said it, Me_K.O.. Hey, it's starting!"

"Yes! Quick, grab your air guitars!" Miko got in position, an eager grin on her face.

"Nnno." Go-Go said.

"Does Sayu even use a guitar?" Five asked.

"Undercurrents pull at your heart, Feeling so powerful, it… LEADS you on! The waves of emotion wash over me, But can you see the ocean… through the reef?"

"Hey, she is kinda good!" Hiro said, the crowds awash in dance by the joyful vocals. "How long's she been around?"

"About a year!" Five answered, his voice barely audible. "She got famous pretty quick! I think she even became a megastar of NSR, the group that runs-"

"Can it with the lecture, Five!" Miko yelled. "It's time for the glow sticks!"

"STRONGER… than hate! Anchored through the tidal waves!" The audience raised sticks of many colors and waved them excitedly. "Go on, take the bait! You can't fight the CURRENTS of lo-…zzzzkkkkttt…"

The waving ceased as gasps filled the masses: Sayu began sizzling and twitching in an erratic manner. "L-L-Lo-Lo, l-l-lo-lo… hahahaha…Hahahahaha!" Sayu's stuttering seemed to change into laughter. "HA HA ha ha ha…" An eerie grin replaced her features, her skin turning green with red eyes. "MWAH HA HA hah!" She cackled like an old mad scientist.

"HUH?!" Miko gawked, the color on her face drained in horror. "That's not Sayu's voice…"

"Behold! I, Technus, master of all things mechanical, have become one with the illusory mermaid that is idolized by these alien adolescents! With her influence, I shall dominate the newest generation of Coruscanti children and become the supreme ruler of Coruscant! And to initiate my new command, I have composed a special song that is bound to earn the loyalty of you young whippersnappers."

"Oh, nerds!" Five panicked. "Did you guys bring your equipment?!"

"Right here!" Hiro used a Compowder to swap his and Go-Go's outfits into blue and yellow hi-tech armor, respectively. "But we shouldn't just charge him. He might be expecting resistance."

"I'm calling our team." Go-Go said, her communicator ready. "You call yours."

"Good idea!" Five beamed. "Miko, you… Miko?" His bright-haired friend was absent.

Technus cleared his throat and began to sing, "Do-re-mi-fa-so-la-ti-do, I'm the best just so ya know—WAAH!" The ghost suffered laser blasts to the head.

"BOO! YOU STINK!" Miko shouted, having run up onto the aqua-themed stage, armed with a high-tech gauntlet on her right arm. "Bring back Sayu, you party-pooper! Aaah!" The holo-fish became ghost-like and began chewing against Miko's arms and face.

"Miko!" Five shot lasers from his own gauntlet to destroy the fish. "Don't just rush in, we don't know what this thing-" Technus fired digi-fish at both kids.

"Did you think I wouldn't expect Kids Next Door at this concert? My ghostly mini-ons were already in position!"

There were screams throughout the audience as everyone's glow sticks suddenly wrapped around their necks. Monstrous ghosts rose out of the sticks as they choked the aliens. Hiro and Go-Go had already dropped their sticks, but as the ghosts tried to latch onto them, the two quickly stomped and destroyed the sticks, the Possessor Ghosts escaping. "You kiddies better stay put, or my ghosts will strangle the 'love' out of these mortals!"

"I'll knock the love outta YOU, FIRST!" Miko materialized a purple hammer from her gauntlet and leapt to bash Technus in the head.

"MIKO!" Five yelled in panic.

Go-Go, whose hands and shoes were equipped with discs, began throwing said discs around to chop the Ghost Sticks in a manner that didn't hurt the citizens. "I'll take care of the ghosts!"

"I'll help!" Hiro began throwing EMP Bombs around to disable the sticks and thwart the ghosts' hold over the electrical items.

High Five used jetshoes to fly around Technus and shoot the ghost. Technus willed digi-fish to attack him, and he also conjured a trident from Sayu's code to clash with Miko's hammer. Technus suddenly spun and whacked Miko away with his tailfin. Miko dispelled the hammer and summoned Ally from her gauntlet. "Let's go, Ally!" She leapt on the solid hologram as Ally dashed at Technus. The villain jabbed his trident, but Ally jumped and ran up the handle. Technus smacked Ally off, but Miko had already flipped into the air to punch the villain's face. Ally ran behind to bite Technus's tailfin, the ghost yelling as he tried to shake her off.

"Don't think we aren't used to rogue A.I.!" Five declared as he and Miko fired a beam that caused Technus to glitch up. He was flickering between his and Sayu's colors, but the ghost released a burst that pushed the kids away.

"Your technology is quite 'dope,' but it 'ain't' got 'jack' on me!"

"His slang sounds so wrong!" Miko yelled as Ally flipped her back on her back. Both kids dodged digi-fish and lasers, and the Ghost Sticks were forcing the citizens to attack Hiro and Go-Go. Technus grabbed Five and tried to squeeze the boy, but Ally carried Miko up as she rose and smashed her hammer over Technus's arm. Technus spun to whack Five and Ally away, but Miko grabbed onto his tail and fired the Derez Beam at his back. Technus slammed his tail down to stop her, followed by a stab from his trident to force her off. The digital weapon didn't puncture Miko, but the impact left her dizzy. Technus pinned the trident against Miko to keep her bound to the stage.

"Now, as the gamers say, I am going to 'own' you like a personal possession! Zzzzzttt!" The villain began glitching once more. "Aaaaahh! No! The Flashdrive! Someone is wrongfully Ejecting the Flashdrive! You're supposed to click the Eject button before pulling it out of the—ZYAAAAAAHHH!" The giant mermonster poofed into pixels and disappeared off the stage with all the other graphics. (End song.)

As Five ran to help Miko up, Hiro and Go-Go were nearly finished destroying all the Ghost Sticks, with local officers arriving to assist them. "Can't you newbs figure anything out for yourselves?" Five and Miko turned to face a blonde, dark-skinned boy as he marched out from backstage. He wore white and gray tech armor with a pink visor and "H" on the chest. "When dealing with rogue Programs, always go for the source." He tossed the Flashdrive up in his hands. "Luckily, while you guys were distracting it, I managed to rescue the animators and derez this glitch. This flashy mermaid should be back to normal… in about a day."

"Don't worry! We have a backup Sayu ready!" one of the animators said from the doorway, a short human with rectangle glasses. There were three others: a blue alien with a darker-blue uniform and sword on his back, a larger chubby humanoid with swirly glasses and umbrella hat, and a cyan-skinned girl with glasses and red hoodie.

"Holy cow! That's Mitch Williams!" the chubby boy perked up. "I watch his Let's Play videos! Hwow, I can't believe we were saved by him!"

"Hey, we helped, too!" Five argued. "And what're you doing here anyway, Mitch? You got a thing for Sayu?"

"As if I would ever fall in love with a digital fish-puppet."

"Pbblth." Miko blew a raspberry. …She glanced at the animators and particularly noticed the hooded girl. "Wait, are you the singer?"

"!" The girl flinched and retreated into the building.

"Wait! I want your auto-"

"Not so fast, Miko." Mitch grabbed her shirt before she could run off. "The reason I'm here is to bring you exciting news." He released Miko as the girl compliantly turned to face him. The Sector Leader bore a proud smile as he announced, "Hinobi Tech is officially branching out to other galaxies!"

"You came here just to tell us that?" Five questioned.

"As I speak, new stores have already been established on Planet Earth in the Milky Way Galaxy. Employees are signing up to be transferred to Earth and manage the stores. But, considering the vast distance between this world and Earth, you can imagine why they would want to move their whole families. And guess who I signed up~?"

Kubota Household

"WE'RE MOVING?!" Miko screamed at her parents with utter exasperation.

"Well… yes." said her father, Hugh, an average man with blonde hair and a green shirt. "We… thought you already knew?"

"Your friend, Mitch told us weeks ago." her mother, Mayumi followed. She was a half-Japanese woman with a pink shirt. "Well, it actually went like…"

"Wait, Miko hasn't told you, yet?" Mitch asked innocently. "Oh, darn! She must be planning to surprise you, I think I ruined it!"

"Ha ha, it's okay!" Mayumi smiled. "We'll pretend we didn't hear anything."

"NO! NO NO NO, push that Reset button!" Miko yelled, mashing an invisible controller. "I didn't sign up for ANYTHING! Mitch did it behind my back, that cocky little dick!"

"Miko! Language!"

"I just said 'dick'! At least I didn't call him the 'B' word; you know, the one that rhymes with 'Mitch'!"

"Wait, is that why you boxed up all my karate trophies?" asked Lexi, Miko's 11-year-old sister. She wore a standard karate robe and black hair in a ponytail. "Not so they wouldn't get dusty?"

"No, it's 'cause they were all bronze trophies and lame!" remarked Lee, the 5-year-old brother.

"Lee!" Hugh scolded. "Sigh, but we wanted to surprise you, too. And we've kind of already started packing. We're supposed to leave in a week, right?"

"No!" Miko yelled. "We can't leave! What about Kids Next Door? You expect me to just fly back-and-forth between galaxies all the time?"

"Doesn't Earth have a KND?" Mayumi asked.

"But all our friends and family are here! And our jobs!"

"Well, actually, I already talked with my boss about it." Hugh said. "They have toothpaste factories down on Earth, so he promised to put in the good word for me. We'll settle in in no time!"

"But…but why?" Miko grew more downtrodden with each rebuttle. "Don't you like it here?"

"It's not that we don't," Mayumi answered, "but when we looked into it, Earth's homes seem much more affordable than Coruscant's. Plus, there's prettier skies, prettier grass, prettier oceans… it's like all of Galaxia's planets mixed into one!"

"We've been under a lot of stress lately, to be honest." Hugh said. "Not just your mother and I, but your siblings, too. Maybe we just need to escape from the big city and settle down in the small city."

"Still bigger than Kateenia, so it's fine with me." Lexi shrugged. "Ugh, can't believe I lost a match to a dumb Kateenian…" she mumbled under her breath.

"Thiiirrrd plaaaace…" teased Lee, his sister growling in spite.

"But, I…I don't wanna move." Miko moaned, bowing her head and facing away from her parents.

"Sweetheart, I'm sorry that you didn't know." Mayumi placed a hand on her shoulder in sympathy. "But I think this will be a fun new experience for you. See some new things, make some new friends… and you can always play with your old friends online. Besides, if Earth's KND has their own spaceships, you can visit them once in a while."

"Yeah, but it's so far awaaaayyy…" Miko slumped against the wall as she brushed her way to the door.

"Well, you probably have some good-byes to make." Hugh said. "Be home soon, kiddo."

"Yeah…" She lazily shoved open the door and left.

Five and Mitch awaited her outside, the latter sporting his cocky smile. "Well, it was nice knowing you, newb." Mitch said. "I could have signed Five away, but I decided, I tolerate him slightly more than you."

Miko shot him a deathly glare. "Get out of here, you little… B-word."

"Pfft. Don't even know what that is…" Mitch walked away on that remark.

Five glared as well, but turned to Miko with sympathy. "I'm sorry this happened, Miko. I'm gonna miss you."

"I'll miss you, too. …Wait, why don't you sign up to move, too? Then we can both still work together!" The shorter gamer perked back up.

"Yeah, but… to be honest, I don't really wanna leave either. I wanna stay and look after my dad's store… plus, it'd be harder to schedule visits for him in prison if I'm… in another galaxy."

"Yeah… that's true." Miko's hope faded like her smile. "I… guess this is it for us. Except online."

"I'll visit you, too. Come on, Meeks, it won't be so bad." Five smiled hopefully. "I heard a lot of cool stories about Earth. It has some of the best operatives. They conquered New Galaxia and everything!"

"I know, but… I feel like you were the only friend that's ever understood me. You're the only one that likes to spend time with me, despite my… problems."

"Pfft, problems, what problems?"

"Uh, my focus issues, my hastiness issues, my rudeness issues… all of which people commonly point out. Including you."

"You're forgetting Ridley. She understands you, too."

"She's also a rogue hacker who's always on the run. Not exactly easy to hang out with."

"Okay, but putting the problems aside, you're also a fun person to be around, and a dependable teammate. Whichever team you wind up in, they'll be glad to have you."

"You think so?"

"Yeah! But if that ain't enough, maybe you can think of it like… a quest."

"A quest?"

"A quest to join the best of the best! To represent Coruscant in the top Kids Next Door!"

"A quest to join the best? That sounds like the best quest!"

"You ready to take on brand new challenges with brand new friends in this brand new quest??"

"More like a newb quest!" Mitch called.

Miko shot him a glare. "Sign me up! We'll see how Mitch feels when I'm hangin' with the best!"

"Yeah!" High Five dealt her a double high-five!

KND Moonbase; three days later

Miko was brought to Earth's Moonbase personally by the Coruscant KND's Supreme Leader, Sasha Phyronix. Sasha was a Cazar (a brown-furred feline alien) with a lilac and dark-purple suit with golden highlights.

Both operatives met with Earth's leader, Cheren Uno, in his office. As they discussed the circumstances, Cheren was handed a file describing Miko's history. "Hehe, this is a wild one, isn't she?"

"According to Mitch's reports," Sasha said, "Miko has trouble with following orders and tends to act recklessly." The girl in question grinned sheepishly. "But Numbuh High Five and their other sectormates have spoken favorably about her… with slight agreement to the contrary."

"Ah, that's no biggie. We have tons of operatives like that. We'd be happy to have her!"

"GREAT!" Miko jumped, startling Sasha and her sensitive ears. "Put me in the best sector ya got!"

"Uhh, Sector V has enough members."

"Then the second best!"

"Sector W7 also has their max."

"The third!"

"Well, Sector W technically has a spot open, but adding a 16-year-old would ruin their 'youngest members' theme. Heh…"

"Uuuugh! Just drop me in whatever sector's good! Ya know, as long as it's a good one!"

"As Supreme Leader, I think all my sectors are good."

"You know what I mean! Just… I dunno, put me in a sector that would like someone like me."

"I mean, that's all a matter of opinion at that point. Hmmm…" Cheren looked at the file. "But considering where your shop is gonna be stationed, I have an idea where to place you."

"Okay! Who ya got for me?"

August 12…

Miko's family had gathered all their things and began to unpack in their new home on Earth. During this time, Miko set foot in the treehouse that would be her new sector. A new home and new friends were about to be made here at Quahog, Rhode Island.

Confetti was fired around the living room, a banner welcoming Miko unraveled, and four of her five new teammates popped open soda bottles and flung them upward as the fizz erupted. "HAPPY NEW TEAMMATE DAAAAAY!" The kids of Sector Q raved! Drake Puncture, the handsome leader with sunglasses and a hook hand; Quill Ramsey, a short boy with a black sweater, white shorts, and brown shoes; E. Carmine, the only girl with no soda to drink as she wore a brown gas mask and brown contamination suit; Eddy Flores, a scrawny nerd with hi-tech glasses and brown hair; and Jenny Strongarm, a girl with a dark-yellow shirt, pink biker helmet over her messy brown hair, and dark-yellow roller-blades.

"We finally hit our sixth member!" Drake cheered.

"And an alien to boot!" Carmine cheered.

"I expected her to look less human." Eddy said.

"Who cares? An alien's still an alien!" Jenny declared.

"Welcome to Sector Q, Numbuh K.O.!" Quill greeted.

Miko let out a chuckle. She had never gotten such an ecstatic reception before, not even when she won the highest scores in Sock 'Em Rockers. She almost felt like their enthusiasm was a little forced; either that, or they were just that crazy. If that were the case, Miko thought she could really warm up to them. "And actually, it's Me_K.O.!" And she socked Quill in the gut.

"OOF! My mistake…cough."

"Nice, another tough girl!" Jenny said. "Now we're perfect!"

"Perfection is my middle name!" Miko boasted. Thus, the beginning of her new Sector Quest commenced!