Chapter 7: "We Shall Rise Like the Phoenix"
All of the battleships and fighters stopped firing. The KND, and, it seemed, the teenagers, were stunned. Numbuh 1 had stopped his fighter, and remained completely still, shocked. The display screen had turned to static, and now Crow's face appeared instead. He broke the silence that had swept the battlefield
"Attention all teenagers! Today is the day we earn our freedom! No more shall we be under the rule of Father! We shall rule ourselves, as we should have from the start. We will not be ordered around by foolish adults any longer!" His voice was strong and charismatic. Numbuh 1 saw potential in him. This is how a leader commands his men, thought Numbuh 1.
"Today is a day for change!" shouted Cree. "Today we discover what freedom and liberty really are!" So, she's in on this too, observed Numbuh 1.
"I destroyed the Mantra out of necessity, to destroy the tyrant Father. Out of the ashes of the Mantra, we shall rise like the phoenix, and be reborn!"
Silence. How would the teenagers respond? For a moment, and then another, nothing happened. And then, cheers. Thunderous, jubilant cheers erupted throughout the battlezone. Heartened, Crow spoke again.
"My people, now is the time for a strong leader. Those who do not have the strength to lead should make way for those who do! My people, who do you want as your leader!"
"Crow!" shouted Cree.
"Long live the mighty Reaper!" shouted another teen. Other teens began chanting his name as well, until the name boomed through every radio in the battlefield.
"I accept," Crow said softly. "My people, now is the time to call off this pointless attack!" Numbuh 1 was shocked. Apparently, so were the teenagers, as many began to voice, angry, dissenting opinions.
"Why should we carry out the orders of a man who no longer rules us? To do so would mean we were still under his command. We waste precious resources by attacking children, when our true foes are adults!" cried Crow.
"He's right!" shouted a teen. "Adults are our first priority!" The teens eventually agreed, and their battleships pulled back from the moon base, and headed towards Mars. Crow reactivated his fighter and moved to join his troops, flying towards Cree. As he did, Numbuh 1 stared at him through him cockpit, craning his neck. Crow glanced at him and leered. Numbuh 1 remained motionless for a full minute, and then turned around and headed toward the moon base.
Cree opened up a private channel with Crow. "Well, I'll be damned," she laughed, "we pulled it off."
"It wasn't terribly hard. Nobody liked Father, so it's not like their sad about his death. The destruction of the Mantra was the only thing we had to worry about, and that went off without a hitch. Although that Number 4 kid almost messed things up."
"That short, annoying, Australian kid?"
"He's quite the martial artist. Even better than your sister. A few more years and he might pose a decent challenge. "
"Maybe. So, what's the plan now?"
"We'll hold formal elections to confirm my leadership, and then we'll decide where to go from there. I have a few plans stored up, but I'm not sure if we can use them just yet."
"Why'd you decide to stop the battle, anyway? We had them right where we wanted," Cree pointed out.
"Come on, Cree, surely you realize it by now? We can't afford to destroy the KND unless we absolutely have to. We need them to divide the attention of the adults. Don't worry, we'll still launch attacks against them; we need to keep them in line. But total destruction will only hurt us in the long run. And admit it, you did want to kill your sister."
Cree gave a small sigh. "I just can't bring myself to kill someone, Crow, especially my own sister."
"Guess that's the difference between you and me."
"Hey, Crow, when we get back, after you've been elected leader and all...let's celebrate, just you and me, all right?"
Crow smiled. "Sure."