A/N: I own nothing! Enjoy!
Two big, dark figures leaned over me, trying to gather me up, but I struggled against them with all my might. I managed to knee one in the stomach, but it didn't do much. Then, the other one simply sat on me, knocking every bit of breath out of my body. Wild-eyed, I sucked in air through my nose, already feeling like I was suffocating.
It had been a long time since I'd been so completely helpless, and it made me crazy. All thought fled my brain-I went into frenzied animal instinct, struggling for my life, willing to kill my captors, to do anything to stay alive.
I was hyperventilating, screaming silently, gouging ridges in my ankles and wrists where they were bound with plastic ties. And still I was helpless.
Still unable to stop the black hood from coming over my head, unable to not breathe the sickly sweet smell, unable to stop myself from letting go, releasing into a deep, cold blackness were there was no pain, no fear, only nothingness.
Oh yeah, and one other bad thing. Really bad, I think. I saw the other Max in the room when they kidnapped me.
And I think she stayed there with the flock.
Maximum Ride: School's Out-Forever by James Patterson pp. 353-354
After I had been cruelly dragged out of the isolation tank and had had my sweet little talk with Jeb, I couldn't help but feel relief when those harsh hands plunged me back into the isolation tank…for about two milliseconds. After that, things just got worse.
I felt myself panicking again, and tried to listen to the Voice and what it was telling me to do. After all, since I had so much to do here, I might as well listen this time and mull over what the Voice was saying.
Think Max.
Not the most imaginative advice in the world, but I might as well give it a try. However, my efforts were slightly thwarted since I kept spacing out and hallucinating. Did I mention how difficult it is to focus on anything when you're sequestered in an isolation tank? Your thoughts are constantly floating off to la-la land, and it's not a pleasant realization.
However, I wasn't the incredible, indescribable Maximum Ride for nothing, right? So, I fired a couple of neurons into action and began processing the Voice's annoying, riddle-like advice.
It was in that moment when the neurons actually connected that I realized that no speed, no strength, no cunning, etc. would help me. Nothing. Nada. Zip. They'd stuck me in a place that literally stripped me of everything I had, every defense I could possibly throw up against them. Because this is moi we're talking about.
Think about it, the Voice urged, sounding almost eager. It must be the isolation getting to me.
The whitecoats wanted me to jump through their hoops. They wanted me to be their little lab rat. So what if I took that away from them? They'd be furious, and then they'd take me out. Then, and only then, would I have a sliver of a chance.
So against every single cell in my warped system, I laid back against the buoyant fluid, evening my breathing and trying to give my best dead impression. I breathed in, and then breathed out slowly, willing my heart to slow down, willing my organs to take a siesta and work with me for the moment.
There was no time, no thought, and no motion. As every stat they could possibly be monitoring slowed to drastic proportions, I disappeared inside myself, and I found some of the answers I'd been looking for.
The first mental image that popped into my mind was Fang. Fang, with his tall frame, hard muscle, and obsidian eyes. Fang, who let Angel keep that blasted dog. Fang, who sometimes looked at me with looks that I couldn't explain. Fang.
My whole nervous system seemed to sigh. A vision flashed in front of my eyes and I saw Fang clearly. We were flying with the flock on the day that the headaches had become unbearable and he had caught me. At the time, all I wanted to do was go splat so that the pain would stop, but now, as almost a third party viewer, I got to watch every action without feeling the actual pain. The look on Fang's face as he caught me, the blatant fear etched on it, unnerved me, and for a moment, my heart jumped.
Calm down, Max, I told myself, sinking back into even nothingness.
"Man, you weigh a ton! What have you been eating, rocks?" Fang asked, masking his fear as I opened my eyes in the vision and looked up at him.
"Why?" I heard myself croak. "Is your head missing some?" Vision Me missed the relieved looked on Fang's face, but I caught it this time around.
Another vision, this one at the beach where Ari had beaten Fang badly. I saw the whole Kiss, the one that I'd had trouble getting out of my head since then. I saw the fear and the vulnerability that broke forth from my calm, cool, and collected façade as I gazed down at Fang. The Kiss had been a decision made without thought. But it was dang good!
Then I saw Fang in a flash of montages, watching me, smiling at me, touching me very gently, bandaging me when I was stupid enough to try and remove the chip in my arm, and sneaking glances when he thought I wasn't looking. None of this had connected before. Perhaps it was because I hadn't had the time to analyze these things before. Now, however, I had all the time in the world.
I saw Fang kissing the Red-Haired Wonder, and in that moment in the isolation tank, I knew that I loved him. I hated the thought of him kissing her because I wanted him to be mine. To do that, I had to get back.
I braced myself as they ripped open the top of the tank, letting in retina-searing, blinding light. Staying limp was the hardest thing I've ever done.
"What happened? Who was monitoring her? They're gonna have our butts!" the whitecoats yelled. Gosh, could they keep it down? Some of us were trying to die here!
Once again hands grabbed me and hauled me out of there. Once again it was the most horrible, painful thing I could imagine. But this time I forced my eyes opened, put my feet down, and roared.
Okay, so maybe the roar sounded like something dying, but you try spending who-knows-how-long in a tank and you won't be too picky either. It didn't matter if I sounded weak at the moment. I was out of there.
My wings were wet and heavy, I was achy and probably looked like a drowned rat (nothing compared to the prep school Barbie I had been a few weeks ago) but I was free as soon as I made it out that window, which was chicken wire-less, thank God.
For a moment after I busted out, I feared that my wings wouldn't work, but I finally got them going, lurching upwards as I reminded myself how to fly. I was so preoccupied that I almost missed Jeb's call of, "See you soon, sweetheart!" Almost.
And then I was soaring upward, the wind blowing my wet hair back.
There was no way, now that I was out of the tank, that I could even admit to myself that I loved Fang, but I was sure that the knowledge would always been there. In a way, it was like my chip. Ever-present and completely inaccessible, buried too deep to reach and creating far too many problems in the process. However, I had a feeling that sooner or later, I would have to deal with it, and it would take all my Max greatness to deal with it.
Ah, the joys of being a mutant adolescent!
A/N: I hope you enjoyed this! So much credit goes to the AMAZING James Patterson. Most of Max's quotes are snippets from his books, NOT my own ideas. Please review and tell me what you think! :D Thanks for reading!