The petite blonde snapped shut her cell phone, the final traces of French
protesting abruptly cut away. She turns, facing a wall of TV screens,
portraying individual areas in the Wyoming base of Manticore. Her eyes
flickered over to a briefcase, sparse with only a few discs inside. The
discs that held everything she needed to start again - if she could. For
now, they had to torch her life's work, destroying what she had dreamed of
for as long as she could remember.
It wouldn't matter to the security guards or the scientists that helped her, and it obviously didn't matter to those federal bastards. But one X could not be recreated with the information in her briefcase - the one that Sandeman had handmade and placed among all the other Xs so no one would know which it was till he wanted them to. And that was what could not be destroyed, at all costs. But she had her orders.
"Execute Operation Evacuate X Cauterize." She barked out this order to the nearest commander who in turn started a chain of orders to his lowers. "And remember - get every singe one." He nodded briskly and got back to work as Renfro grabbed the suitcase and left the base quickly.
~*~*~*~
Here she was, wondering if she had done the right thing. She stared out the window of the limousine as they sped away from the fiery remains of a VA hospital. There were no survivors, save for her and her staff. And the Xs.
Now that they were out there, some sans real world training, and liable to all sorts of dangers they'd never been prepared for. Real life - money issues, the need for a job, blending in and the lack of orders. They all had full citizenship in all the Governments records and driver's licenses. The youngest were in foster homes. But aside from that, and the close tabs Manticore kept on them till they could restart, they were alone and practically helpless.
~*~*~*~
Sketchy howled in pain. The pain of utter humiliation.
"Damn, Max, how'd ya get so good at Pool?"
"Foo! My Boo beats everyone's ass at Pool, specially yours. Don't ya know that by now?" Original Cindy accented this with a smack upside Sketch's obviously empty head.
Max chuckled at her friends antics. "You know, you guys would make a great couple," she teased. Sketchy grinned through his drunkenness and OC looked playfully revolted.
"Thanks, but even if this sister swung that way, that boy would be the last choice."
"What about him?" Sketchy mumbled, pointing an unsteady finger at Crash's TV screen. In it was a dark haired man - Alex, host of the Bachelor. He was asking for girls and guys interested in being one of the 25 women or the bachelor to call a flashing number.
"Hey, Max." Original Cindy said casually.
"Yeah?"
"You should sign up fo' that." She said, pointing at the screen.
"What!?" came the surprised and indignant reply.
"Cmon, after that disaster of a 'romance' with Logan, you need to get a good guy in your life." OC rationalized.
"But-" Max attempted to protest.
"Nuh uh. You're my Boo and I'm watchin' out fo' you. Now, c'mon, lets grab a payphone." Original Cindy declared as she dragged Max off.
"Hey, guys!" Sketchy called as he stumbled after them, "Can I be the Bachelor?"
~*~*~*~
X5-494 leaned back into the old, moldy sofa of his rat infested apartment and easily caught the beer can that Biggs had tossed to him. He reached past the woman next to him, who smiled and leaned closer to him.
"Cece.."
"Yes, Alec?" she purred.
"I can't reach the remote."
With a huff and a blush, the other X5 was out the door. Alec shrugged and grabbed the object of his desires and proceeded to change the channel. "What's her deal?" he questioned the other male.
"Dude, you're like blind."
"Huh?" came the brilliant reply.
"Cece totally digs you."
Awkward Silence.
"Maybe you should get a steady girlfriend and she'd back off. Those one night stands with other girls just encourage her, ya' know. She thinks she has more of a chance, being an X5 and you're friend. Man, one of these days she's gonna go into heat and-" Biggs rambled.
"Eew man! She's my friend! I don't think of her like that!"
"So get yourself a girl." He reasoned.
"How? All the chicks in this zip code I've either slept with or are involved. Some are both!" Alec exclaimed.
"The Bachelor!" Biggs said, looking at the TV.
"Yeah, it's on, so?" Alec said as he peered at the screen. Seems they needed a Bachelor for the next season.
"You should be the next Bachelor!"
Alec blinks and licks his lips, considering this.
"25 women at once. That'd be the best way to go out of the dating pool, all a man could want plus a personal best. Don'cha think?" Biggs persuaded his best friend.
"Who said it would be a personal best?" came Alec's cocky retort.
~*~*~*~
A/N - So, that's the prologue, just to set up stuff and establish minor changes since Max must be free to go on the Bachelor. Next is the First Episode - 25 Women. ^_^
It wouldn't matter to the security guards or the scientists that helped her, and it obviously didn't matter to those federal bastards. But one X could not be recreated with the information in her briefcase - the one that Sandeman had handmade and placed among all the other Xs so no one would know which it was till he wanted them to. And that was what could not be destroyed, at all costs. But she had her orders.
"Execute Operation Evacuate X Cauterize." She barked out this order to the nearest commander who in turn started a chain of orders to his lowers. "And remember - get every singe one." He nodded briskly and got back to work as Renfro grabbed the suitcase and left the base quickly.
~*~*~*~
Here she was, wondering if she had done the right thing. She stared out the window of the limousine as they sped away from the fiery remains of a VA hospital. There were no survivors, save for her and her staff. And the Xs.
Now that they were out there, some sans real world training, and liable to all sorts of dangers they'd never been prepared for. Real life - money issues, the need for a job, blending in and the lack of orders. They all had full citizenship in all the Governments records and driver's licenses. The youngest were in foster homes. But aside from that, and the close tabs Manticore kept on them till they could restart, they were alone and practically helpless.
~*~*~*~
Sketchy howled in pain. The pain of utter humiliation.
"Damn, Max, how'd ya get so good at Pool?"
"Foo! My Boo beats everyone's ass at Pool, specially yours. Don't ya know that by now?" Original Cindy accented this with a smack upside Sketch's obviously empty head.
Max chuckled at her friends antics. "You know, you guys would make a great couple," she teased. Sketchy grinned through his drunkenness and OC looked playfully revolted.
"Thanks, but even if this sister swung that way, that boy would be the last choice."
"What about him?" Sketchy mumbled, pointing an unsteady finger at Crash's TV screen. In it was a dark haired man - Alex, host of the Bachelor. He was asking for girls and guys interested in being one of the 25 women or the bachelor to call a flashing number.
"Hey, Max." Original Cindy said casually.
"Yeah?"
"You should sign up fo' that." She said, pointing at the screen.
"What!?" came the surprised and indignant reply.
"Cmon, after that disaster of a 'romance' with Logan, you need to get a good guy in your life." OC rationalized.
"But-" Max attempted to protest.
"Nuh uh. You're my Boo and I'm watchin' out fo' you. Now, c'mon, lets grab a payphone." Original Cindy declared as she dragged Max off.
"Hey, guys!" Sketchy called as he stumbled after them, "Can I be the Bachelor?"
~*~*~*~
X5-494 leaned back into the old, moldy sofa of his rat infested apartment and easily caught the beer can that Biggs had tossed to him. He reached past the woman next to him, who smiled and leaned closer to him.
"Cece.."
"Yes, Alec?" she purred.
"I can't reach the remote."
With a huff and a blush, the other X5 was out the door. Alec shrugged and grabbed the object of his desires and proceeded to change the channel. "What's her deal?" he questioned the other male.
"Dude, you're like blind."
"Huh?" came the brilliant reply.
"Cece totally digs you."
Awkward Silence.
"Maybe you should get a steady girlfriend and she'd back off. Those one night stands with other girls just encourage her, ya' know. She thinks she has more of a chance, being an X5 and you're friend. Man, one of these days she's gonna go into heat and-" Biggs rambled.
"Eew man! She's my friend! I don't think of her like that!"
"So get yourself a girl." He reasoned.
"How? All the chicks in this zip code I've either slept with or are involved. Some are both!" Alec exclaimed.
"The Bachelor!" Biggs said, looking at the TV.
"Yeah, it's on, so?" Alec said as he peered at the screen. Seems they needed a Bachelor for the next season.
"You should be the next Bachelor!"
Alec blinks and licks his lips, considering this.
"25 women at once. That'd be the best way to go out of the dating pool, all a man could want plus a personal best. Don'cha think?" Biggs persuaded his best friend.
"Who said it would be a personal best?" came Alec's cocky retort.
~*~*~*~
A/N - So, that's the prologue, just to set up stuff and establish minor changes since Max must be free to go on the Bachelor. Next is the First Episode - 25 Women. ^_^