A/N: Shout-out to Tziput13 and Sagittarius12 for leaving reviews on the last chapter! The support is appreciated!
Chapter 5
Nobody paid any attention to a lone teen girl with brown hair walking down the sidewalk, dressed in ripped jeans, old sneakers, an over-sized blue hoodie, and red headphones over her ears. Anyone taking a glance at her would only see her as a classic gamer-girl, complete with the handheld GameBoy she had her full attention on. Even though she was obviously distracted, she still managed to maneuver the sidewalk, avoiding various obstacles like a chili-dog stand, a balloon salesman, a guitar-playing street performer, and a guy wearing a sandwich board proclaiming The End is Nigh! Save the Toilet Paper!
The sun began to set behind the trees in a nearby park as she went on, and then, the inevitable happened. The gamer-girl failed to notice the deep crack in the sidewalk, and her foot tripped right over it. She fell with a cry, and her gaming device fell out of her grasp, hitting the sidewalk and sliding all the way underneath a vending machine. The girl got up with a groan, then dropped down beside the vending machine, trying to see where her beloved GameBoy had slid to. Finally, her hand reached beneath it, and after a few minutes, it triumphantly emerged with the device. Satisfied at having recovered her source of distracted enjoyment, the girl stood up after checking the GameBoy over, and went on her way, continuing with her game. All was right in the world again.
At least, it was for about eight and a half minutes. Then her phone rang. First, she ignored it in lieu of her game as she walked, and the ringing eventually stopped. Only to start up again...and again...and again, seeming to ring more insistently for every time she ignored its noise. Finally, with a resigned sigh, the gamer-girl paused her game, stowed it in her hoodie pocket, and flipped her silver phone open as she pulled her headphones down.
"What?" She listened to the caller as she turned down an empty alleyway, the shadows working to conceal her as the sun completely set, and night began to fall. "You mean to tell me that you got the report already? I just dropped it off under the vending machine! How did you-"
She paused as a thought struck her. "You don't mean to say that you were already there, waiting? Seriously?" She shook her head. She knew someone had to be hiding around there. She just never thought it'd be him, of all people. "Huh. I figured you'd just send someone else in your stead."
She listened as the caller spoke, and she pressed her lips into a thin line. "No, I'm not going. There's no point in it for me." She stopped on top of a sewer cover as she listened. "I'm going to say this once, so I hope you're listening. I'm. Not. Going. Got it?"
She rolled her eyes as the caller blathered on, finally just interrupting him. "Look, I'm going to lose connection, so I'll have to hang up now. You got your report, and I'll be giving you regular updates. That's all you should care about. Goodbye."
She clicked her phone shut, checking to make sure nobody else was around. The alleyway was dark and empty, just the way she liked it. Quickly, she strained to lift the sewer cover, then went down into the tunnel, taking care to quietly shut the opening after her. She climbed down the ladder, and it was only once she reached the bottom that she felt comfortable enough to remove her brown wig. She shook out her natural dark hair, and continued on down the sewer tunnel, back to her house where a disc was waiting to be cracked.
Yes, nobody paid any attention to the gamer-girl. And that was just how Sera liked it.
"Shouldn't you be done by now?"
Cree peered over Sera's shoulder, her eyes narrowing at the glowing computer screen. The younger teen's fingers flew across the keys, completely focused on her task, not even pausing from Cree's derisive tone.
"It'll get done when it gets done." She said flatly. "These encryptions are some of the KND's best. They don't crack easy. Even you'd have trouble with it."
Cree rolled her eyes impatiently, reaching her hand out. "Oh, please, I could get through their firewalls five times faster than you ever will, so why don't I just-"
SMACK!
"OW! Hey!" Cree cried out in pain, cradling the hand that Sera suddenly slapped away from her computer.
"I'd rather you keep your hands to yourself, please." Sera said, her voice tense. "Just let me do my job."
Cree crossed her arms over her chest with a huff. "Well, what are we supposed to do then?" She jerked her head towards Maurice behind them. "Do you really expect us to hang out in your basement-"
"Bunker."
"-all day until you manage to figure this out?"
"It's not like I asked you to be here, or anything." Sera said, the sunglasses on top of her head glinting from the glowing screen. "You're the one who decided to come knocking."
"And I'm regretting it every second I spend here, bored out of my skull." Cree flipped a black lock of hair out of her eyes as she thought, and a smirk formed on her lips. "Well, if that's how you want to be, then I guess Maurice and I could always just go upstairs and-"
"No, you are not going to try getting frisky in my house, no matter how bored you get." Sera interrupted without missing a beat. "You can save that for your dates, thank you very much."
"Hmmph." Cree knew better than to let Sera know that that was actually a pretty failed part of all their dates. No matter how many signals she gave, or how close she got, something always happened to interrupt that pivotal moment every teen girl dreamed of. "I don't suppose you have any ideas for us, then?"
"Well, you could try reading a book." Sera pointed to the right. "But if I find so much as a dog-eared page from you, I'll make sure you pay for it. I won't tolerate book abuse."
Cree sighed, but stomped over anyway, immediately scowling at the books she saw. Scooby-Doo, Encyclopedia Brown, The Boxcar Children...all just a bunch of stupid baby books. Blech. She couldn't believe Sera didn't even have so much as one gossip or fashion magazine. She reluctantly pulled out one of the Nancy Drew books, but immediately wrinkled her nose. Nope, her teen pride would never let her read something so...old. This wasn't going to work.
"Say, Cree?" Maurice drifted up behind her, and she immediately smiled at him. "I was just thinking...you guys seem to know each other pretty well. How did that happen?"
"How do you think?" Cree said, a smirk twitching her lips, and Maurice scratched his head.
"Uh...you go to the same high school, or something?"
"Uh-uh. She's been home-schooled online for ages." Cree shook her head, and the sound of clicking computer keys paused for a second. "Think further back than that. Much further."
Cree saw the moment it clicked in Maurice's head. "You don't mean...the Kids Next Door?"
Bingo. "Mm-hm." Cree nodded, looking up at the ceiling. "Well...sort of. We saw each other a few times up on the Moonbase when we were operatives, but we didn't really know each other. Not until we both realized what the KND was really about and left it, actually. And, well, we couldn't help but connect over how we were both wronged by those little cretins."
"Wronged, huh?" Maurice said, tilting his head. "What happened to her, then?"
"Oh, the usual," Cree said dismissively. "We were both brainwashed by them, fed all kinds of drivel about everything we did being 'justice for kids,' but it was all just one big lie to keep us in line. I can't even tell you how I felt when I figured out the KND didn't deserve to have me, and don't get me started on Sera-"
"So, that's what you've been telling yourself, Cree." Sera's voice rang out, interrupting the other girl. "That the Kids Next Door have always been the villains, and you're just another poor victim of their cruel tyranny. A very black-and-white view."
Cree raised her eyebrow as she looked to the other girl, and a smirk curled her lips. "Now, you're not saying that the KND have never done anything wrong, have you? I mean, the second we turn thirteen, it's off to the decommissioning chamber, where they wipe out all our memories, then throw us to the curb like we never existed. And from then on, we're seen as nothing more than their despicable teen enemies, with no thought or care for the kids we used to be. Surely, you can't say that's not one of the cruelest things the KND still have to answer for?"
"...I never said that." Sera said after a moment of delay. "I understand not wanting to be decommissioned. No one knows that fear better than me. But don't act like that's why you had to leave, Numbuh 11."
"Oh?" Cree said, feigning a casual tone as she checked her nails. "Well, whatever happened, only happened because I had to do it, Numbuh 221B. They treated me like dirt, tossed me aside, left me no choice, and, well, justice had to be served-"
"You tried to take out the new Supreme Leader after Numbuh 100 himself left, and the only reason for doing so was because you were jealous that you didn't get the job instead." Sera interrupted. "Based off of that, I guarantee that justice, whatever that actually looks like to someone like you, was the furthest thing from your mind."
Cree turned her full attention to the younger teen, her eyes narrowing. "You might want to think about you're saying, Sera." She said warningly. "We might have been a part of the KND once, but we don't owe them anything for what they do to us now. They're the enemy."
"Of course they are." Sera said, still typing away. "Every Ninja like you has made sure of that."
"What do you mean like me?"
"I mean the operatives who do everything they can to prove themselves to the Ninjas before being decommissioned. The ones who decide that, rather than just run, it's better to betray their own teammates, operatives, and friends they've served with for years, just to make themselves look better to your Ninjas."
Cree waved her hand dismissively. "Oh, please. Like we have any other choice when it comes to this sort of thing. What are we supposed to do, just...accept the KND fate, and get our memories wiped? At least this way, we can ensure we have a good place with the Teen Ninjas."
"And you also end up just proving the Kids Next Door right about everything they think about teens, even before they turn thirteen, creating an endless cycle of pointless conflict. But, by all means, carry on thinking what you want, even when you lose everything you cared about because you just can't admit when you're wrong."
Cree pressed her lips together into a thin line, her gaze flicking over to Maurice, who was watching wide-eyed. "And what about you, then? You betrayed the KND just as much as I did! Don't forget, I was on Moonbase when you were locked up. I know what you did to get there."
"No. You don't." Sera said shortly, finally turning from her computer to pierce Cree with her sharp gaze. "You don't know anything about what I went through, and you wouldn't understand even if you did. You had a choice. And you chose to betray the KND, all your old friends, even your own sister because you thought you deserved to be Supreme Leader, and couldn't handle it when you weren't. So don't go throwing around your victim act with me, Cree. I'm sick of it, and it just makes you look pathetic and childish."
Cree's face grew hot, and she clenched her jaw. "...Maurice, sweetie?" She spoke with a sweet tone that she definitely didn't feel as she leveled her nastiest glare at the other girl. "Why don't you go upstairs for a bit? Sera and I need to have a little girl talk."
"Oh! Uh...all right." Maurice reluctantly agreed. "I guess I can check out those cookies her mom made..."
Sera's eyes glinted as her gaze followed the boy's exit, but Cree waited until the sound of his footsteps had disappeared. Then, she opened her mouth, but the other teen beat her to it.
"Afraid he'll overhear something that'll make him start to question things, aren't you?"
"No!" Cree said defensively, practically hissing. "There's nothing to hide! He's part of the Ninjas, he's one of us now, not part of that stupid babies' club!"
"But there's always a risk with the decommissioned teens, isn't there?" Sera tilted her head, raising an eyebrow. "The ones who were so completely loyal to the KND that they received their decommissionings willingly and honorably. True, they don't have their memories of that time anymore, which sure makes it a lot easier to convince them to join the Ninjas. But...I wonder just how many lies you've had to tell them to make sure they stay. How many you've told him to make yourself look better. You'd think it'd get tiring after a while."
"We do what we have to in order to win," Cree said haughtily, crossing her arms. "Take every opportunity we can to stay one step ahead of those brats. And if the KND doesn't like it, well...then they shouldn't have made erasing memories a regular part of the decommission process. They keep digging their own graves with that one, and us teens will always take full advantage of it."
"Yes, I can see that." Sera said, her expression unreadable. "You sure didn't waste any time recruiting Maurice after his decommissioning. You're even going steady with him now. You must be very proud of that particular accomplishment."
Cree looked at the other girl suspiciously, knowing better than to take what she was saying as a compliment. She was proven right a second later when Sera went on.
"Of course, that doesn't change the fact that, if he had his memories, he'd only see you as the very scum of the earth. And the only reason he doesn't now is because...he's not really him anymore. That must sting, knowing that losing his memories was the only way you'd ever get him to so much as give you the time of day again, after all you've done."
"Don't...don't try blaming me for all this!" Cree snapped, her hands clenching into fists. "It's always been the Kids Next Door! It's their fault, not mine! After all I did for them, all the hard work, sweat, tears, and sacrifice I gave them, I deserved to be the next Supreme Leader! And when Numbuh 274 got it, the least he could have done was give me the Global Tactical Officer's position instead. But nooo, he just had to give it to Numbuh 362! That's when I knew that nothing I did for them would ever be good enough...and they didn't deserve me anymore."
"Seems more like it was you that didn't deserve them, if you ask me-" Sera started, but Cree wasn't having it. Not this time.
"Well, nobody did, so you can just shut up! And really, I don't see how they could have expected anything different. I only had two months left before turning thirteen! And Numbuh 274 didn't do anything to change how things were. But if I'd been in charge, I could have changed everything! I would have been able to make peace with the teens, and gotten rid of those stupid decommissioning rules! Then no kid would have had any reason to betray us and defect to the other side! I would have gone down in history as the best Supreme Leader the KND had ever had! So don't you dare say that I wasn't a true operative. The Kids Next Door was everything to me!"
Sera calmly held Cree's glare, barely looking intimidated in the least. "Well, none of that changes what did happen. You still betrayed them. And here you are now, a bitter enemy of the KND, with the only thing you didn't lose being your overblown ego. Because that's what you chose. I wonder if you still even miss what you used to have."
"I...I don't! I don't miss being in that little cretins' club at all!"
"Of course not," Sera said coolly. "That'd be the same thing as admitting you were wrong, and we all know Cree Lincoln never is."
"You little-" Cree sputtered angrily. "W-well, at least I have something now! I have a place with the Teen Ninjas as one of their best members! I belong with them now! That's a whole lot more than I can say for you, hiding out in your parents' basement-"
"Bunker!"
"-only daring to come out in a disguise or the darkest of dark nights. You don't have any friends, not with the teens, and definitely not with the KND! In fact, if you were to disappear off the face of the earth one day, I guarantee that there'd be no one who would know or even care. How does knowing that make you feel?"
At that, Sera's face instantly smoothed out into an expressionless mask, and it was like a light had gone out of her eyes. She just stared at Cree with that dead expression, and the older teen couldn't help but feel creepily unsettled. Finally, Sera turned back to her computer as it pinged, fingers flying back over the keys, and it was like it never even happened.
"Looks like all the codes have been cracked," Sera said calmly. "Now, we just need to find the route that supplied the MARBLEs. Once we find that, then we can figure out the plan."
"Ex-cuse me!" Cree placed her hands on her hips. "Do you seriously have the gall to expect me to keep working with you just like that, after everything you just said? I've thrashed those KND brats for less!"
"We've been over this time and again, Cree. You've always known exactly what I think of you." Sera said tiredly. "Did you really expect that to change? But, whatever our differences about certain things are, you agreed to do this, and I'll hold you to your promise. Unless, of course, you're still petty enough to let other teens get hurt for your crimes just because you can't get over yourself."
Cree narrowed her eyes into slits. She wanted nothing more than to stomp out of there, get Maurice, and turn the Moonbase so inside-out the KND would never recover. But (and she absolutely hated to admit it), she couldn't help but remember that stupid sliver of guilt she'd carried ever since she turned against the KND. She...would rather not have anything else on her dumb conscience when it came to the teens. Like it or not, they were all she had left now.