AUTHOR'S NOTE: Trying something different since writer's block has struck on my other stories. Let me know what you think.

DISCLAIMER:Doesn't belong to me, I just wanted to borrow the world to tell a story. Not making any profit here, scout's honor.

INTRO

Alec picked the state of the art locks on Josh's door with ease. Logan might have taken up residence but in his mind the house would always belong to Dog Boy. He slipped inside silently, avoiding creaky floor boards without conscious effort. Within seconds he was standing behind an oblivious Eyes Only. His face was devoid of emotion as he drew the gun he'd tucked into the waistband of his pants at the small of his back. A casual flick of his wrist and he's reversed the weapon before bringing it crashing down on the Ordinary's skull. He didn't let himself think about how pissed Max would be when she found out, he just stepped over Logan's prone form and accessed the computer he'd been working on. Nimble fingers flew over the keys, hazel green eyes tracked back and forth frantically as he searched for the information he needed.

Twenty Minutes Later

Gem entered Logan's place, gun drawn. She'd followed Alec's trail of destruction all the way from Terminal City right up to the human's front door and there was no way she was going to confront 494 unarmed. Moving as swiftly, if not as quietly as Alec himself had, she cursed aloud to find him gone. Tucking her gun away, she flipped open her cell phone to call it in as her eyes tried to make sense of the carnage in front of her.

"Mole, Gem." She said when her call was answered, "He went to Logan's just like she thought he would. He trashed the computers, so we're gonna need to get the tech guys on this to see if they can salvage enough to figure out where he's headed next. Send a med team too. Logan's out cold. Looks like Alec gave him a pretty hard whack on the head."

Flipping the phone closed, she cut off the cranky lizard's reply. Her eyes were sad as they took in the scattered first aid supplies that littered the floor. Packages had been torn open with teeth and bloody fingers while 494 had tried desperately to patch himself back together. He'd lost a lot of blood though, given the state of the room. Her gaze turned to Max's ordinary. His chest was rising and falling steadily even though he showed no signs of rousing anytime soon. She didn't envy whoever got stuck telling Max about this. She couldn't bring herself to blame Alec for dropping the other man though, rather than waste time answering his questions.

Letting her eyes flutter shut she offered up a brief prayer on the off chance someone up there was listening. She hoped Alec had the strength and willpower to complete his mission. Too bad Max wasn't quite as pragmatic because if Alec couldn't pull this off, then none of them would be safe.

Sector Five

Alec felt lightheaded from the blood loss and his body throbbed where he'd cauterized the worst of his wounds. He knew that even his transgenic healing wasn't going to be enough to keep him on his feet too much longer but there was no time to waste. One foot in front of the other, he forced himself forward. He was biting back a manly whimper just as he spotted an SUV up ahead. Gathering his strength he blurred towards it. Grabbing one of the men guarding it by the back of neck he slammed the man's face down onto his raised knee. Releasing him and letting him drop to the ground. The other bodyguard had a gun pointed in his face but moving faster than the human eye could follow he grabbed his wrist and with one sharp palm strike shattered his elbow. Before the man could scream in pain, Alec delivered a round house kick to his head, watching dispassionately as he crumbled to the ground. In some dim corner of his mind, he recognized them from past dealings. Mikey and Steve worked for an arms dealer that occasionally supplied TC with weapons and now he wasn't even sure if they were still breathing. It should have concerned him but it didn't as he turned his attention to their boss and the two underage hookers in the backseat.

He knew that if he'd looked in a mirror just then he would have found trace of Alec there. Nothing but and emotionless killer would have been staring back at him and luckily for Frankie, the arms dealer was smart enough to recognize it. Alec watched him roll out of the vehicle without a word. The hookers scrambled to follow him, like rats from a sinking ship.

Peeling away from the curb he allowed the last of his humanity to slip away in order to accomplish what he knew would be coming next. It was worth it, if it would keep her...them, safe.

Terminal City Command

Joshua paced back and forth restlessly. He was doing his best to stay out of the way but he was unwilling to leave Command. Max and Alec were his family, his pack, and he would stand vigil until Alec was safe. He knew them better than either guessed. He would never be articulate but he prided himself in his ability to see, to understand.

He knew Alec had never had a family. Even before the escape in '09, his unit had never been close the way Max's had. After the escape he'd been isolated even more for the sin of being a "twin". By the time he was old enough to be sent on team missions he was wary enough of attachments to form nothing deeper than casual friendships. But he and Max had gotten under Alec's skin and into his heart, they'd gotten past the tricks and treats he used as armor.

Josh knew Alec had gone out on this "mission" knowing his actions could cost him their affection and his place in their pack. It was possible that she might never forgive Alec and almost certain that he'd never forgive himself. Alec had left TC knowing that there would be no line that he wouldn't cross, no action he wouldn't take. He was doing this for all of them, even if it cost him everything, even the tattered pieces of the soul he'd begun to pull together for himself. Josh hadn't had the time to tell him that he understood, didn't have the words to tell him they'd always be brothers. He didn't know if that was a good thing or not yet, so there was nothing he could do but stay right where he was and hope for the best.

Terminal City Infirmary

Mole chomped down on his ever present cigar and growled menacingly at anyone that crossed his path. He cursed the day Manticore had cooked him up. He cursed the day Max had decided to burn that bitch to the ground. Most of all he cursed the day he'd let Max and Princess talk him into making a stand in this toxic dump. Now one of them was AWOL, having taken off on a suicide mission and the other was in the infirmary, inching closer to death with each passing minute. If Max died they were all doomed. If Alec failed, they were just as screwed. The only thing that sucked worse than having his fate rest in the hands of a couple of X5 fuck ups was the fact that he was going to have to go in and tell one of them that they'd lost the other one and he was on his own now.