My Little Angel
By Astro Purple
AstroPurpl@aol.com
PG for language and violence.
Timeline: Anytime before Max killed Ben. He hadn't gone crazy yet and Zack just found him.
Summary: Exactly how much does Lydecker care about his "kids." And how far is he willing to go to protect them?
Disclaimer: Dark Angel characters belong to the wonderful people who bring Dark Angel to us.
* * *
PROLOGUE
I knew as I watched them being born that they were different. Different than the other X series I had helped to create. These kids, designated the X5, I felt a special bond towards them. As I watched them, they weren't just any kids, they were my kids. The previous series had all failed, coming up with abnormalities or just not being strong enough to survive, but this series, they had to survive. They had to grow up to be superior and to be "the" best.
The first four years as I watched them, they made me proud. In the premier stages of their development, they had shown how superior and smart they were. The nurses assigned to watch as infants noted that the older kids, more specifically X5-599 and X5-656, had developed maternal instincts somehow. I knew how, they didn't trust the nurses to carefully handle the kids, just like I didn't trust them. I tried to be there as often as I could, pleading the need to observe their development first hand, however, I had to make sure they were being treated right.
The X5 series was the most successful, this became apparent as the years went by. I watched them grow in intelligence, accepting that as a squadron they were family, but not knowing how they knew. They couldn't know. I fed them the information little by little. I taught them what being a family means, and that they were brothers and sisters. They thought they were so smart to figure out that out in the real world, people had names, in truth, I helped them by making sure to call those near me by name instead of title.
I felt bad at the time for pushing them so hard. They helped each other, and I'm proud of that trait, but I wish that I could have been the real father I felt I was. I wish I could have been there to pick them up when they fell, to play football or basketball with them, to tend to their wounds, to eat dinner with them and listen to them talk about their day, to read them bedtime stories, to tuck them in, and to be able to tell each of them how much I loved them. But I couldn't. I had to prepare them, toughen them up for the life they were to lead outside of Manticore. Yes, I knew even before most of them that they would plan an escape from Manticore. X5-599, Zack, had been planning for a long time to get his family out. He tried to hide it, and he was successful except for me. I had watched him grow up his entire life, if anyone knew him as well as himself, it'd be me. I could see it in his eyes, the distant fantasy look they got each time something associated with the world outside was mentioned. I also knew that if they got away successfully, as I would make sure they would, I would have to hunt them down. I would be the "bad" guy sent to force them back to Manticore, or kill them trying. I could live with them hating me, but I couldn't live knowing they were locked up in a place they hated. I had to make sure that out in the real world I could protect them, be the real father I wanted to, needed to. And I knew how to do that.
X5-116. She was the youngest; the most frail out of all the X5s, but I still loved her like the others. And now, when I look back on those days, I think I might have loved her ever more. None of the doctors expected her to survive in the conditions Manticore would force upon all my kids. Their feelings were conveyed to those on the Committee, and they were expecting me to announce in one of my status reports that she had died. The other kids wouldn't be surprised, but I knew they would fight to make sure it didn't happen. I saw how they protected her. Someone strong was always paired up with her. They took the brunt of all the missions I placed upon them, and they thought I wouldn't notice. If placed under the right conditions, X5-116 would grow to be strong. Maybe even stronger than her brothers and sisters. That's why I pulled her out of Manticore. I sent her to live with my sister, to grow up in a home that would love her. My sister knew about Manticore, I told her. And she knew how much this child I placed in her care meant to me. I wasn't worried about X5-116, I was worried about the Committee finding out. I did my best to falsify all the records that she'd died. Even with one of the doctors on my side, and three of my most trustworthy soldiers, I still worried.
The Committee worried me, but telling the other X5s that their sister had died, terrified me. They wouldn't believe me if I told them that their sister died of sickness, as much as I didn't want their hate for me amplified, I had to be a soldier. So I told them another lie, a lie that I would never consider if I wasn't forced. Like I predicted, they hated me even more. But they didn't lash out, they held their emotions, like I taught them to. I watched them later that night, when they thought they were alone, that's when they cried. Silently to themselves, or openly with one another. I wanted to comfort them and tell them that she was alive, and they would see her again, but I couldn't. After that, I became the soldier I knew I was. I didn't hold back in reprimanding them, but I held back in loving them. I could love them when I visited X5-116, and my sister. I could be the father I always wanted then.
When they did escape, and I was ordered to hunt them down. I had hoped that if X5-116 wasn't successful in keeping them away from me, I could bring them back to Manticore without hurting them. But when I continued to fail, the Committee ordered me to kill them if I had to. That almost killed me. The girl named Eva had been the only one to die by my hand, and that was forced. The director was behind me, if I hadn't done what I did, I would probably have been replaced. I didn't want that. I didn't want to be taken away from my kids, and I didn't want them to be taken away from me. The next person placed in charge might too gentle with them and not prepare them for the life they would lead outside, or he could be too tough and kill them off one by one. I was careful in training them that I didn't put them through anything that they could die from. And even then I was careful in watching them and making sure they were okay. I wish I could say I was always that careful, but I only began after one incident, an incident in which X5-116 almost died from. I'm sorry to say that I got there too late and that she had to be scared for such a while. I didn't feel like a dad then, and I was determined to make it up to her once she came out of Manticore.
* * *
He was in the same city, and a new tattoo parlor. He didn't know why he preferred to waste his money getting the same tattoo removed every two weeks than to spend it on necessities. But he knew was just like that. He needed to erase Manticore from his body, and everything else, the Blue Lady would provide for.
Ben laid down on his stomach, pointing to the barcode on the back of his neck. "Remove it."
The burly tattoo guy gave a low whistle. "Your gang breaking up?" He asked. Ben didn't reply, a lot of people assumed it was a gang symbol. It didn't surprise him at all. "We had a guy in here just yesterday getting his removed. Same symbol, only the lines were different width and everything. Actually, if I remember corrected, it was in the exact same place." This had perked Ben's interested and he lay there listening as the guy bustled around describing the guy while getting the stuff he needed. He wanted to find his brothers and sisters. They had been separated for too long.
"Thanks." Ben said half an hour later when the guy finished and his neck felt like a fire had been set on it.
The guy nodded his thanks as he was handed cash.
Ben strolled back towards the apartment he had rented two months prior. He would have to leave soon. He'd been to four tattoo parlors in St. Louis since he got here. If word got around that the same guy was getting the same tattoo removed over and over again, it would bring Lydecker. But hearing the guy say that someone else had a similar tattoo removed only a day before fired up his curiosity. Another X5, was in town. One of his brothers. Ben had to find him before he left.
He trudged up four flights of stairs deep in thought and stopped in front of his apartment. He reached into his pocket to pull out his keys and it was only then that he noticed the door open a hair's width. Noticeable only to an X5. Instead of pulling out his keys, he pulled out his .22 millimeter. Transferring it to his right hand, he shoved the door opened before stepping inside training the gun ahead of him. He wasn't afraid of Lydecker; no way he could have traced Ben's whereabouts to this apartment. "Zack." Ben said quietly seeing the solitary figure facing the window and looking out. He kicked the door shut with his foot, pocketed the gun, and moved closer to his brother. "Or Zane, whoever you are."
"Ben." Zack said finally turning from the window. "Lydecker's tracked you to this city. You've been compromised. Time to move out."
Ben nodded silently reverting back to old Manticore training. He moved into his bedroom and grabbed a duffel bag already packed with clothes. He was always ready to move. However unexpectedly or at whatever the hell time of day it was. He returned to the living room and began to take apart the coffee table to collect the money he'd been hiding in there. Off came one of the legs and out came a couple of twenties unstuffed from the hollow inside.
Zack moved to sit down on the couch. "I've been setting up a system." He said watching Ben work carefully. "You X5s get to live wherever you want to and live the life you want to as long as you're safe. And when you're compromised, I'll help you move to another secure location. I have a contact number you can call when you're in trouble and you have to call to check in once a week to let me know you're all right. Sound good to you?"
Ben let the silence stretch as he continued to collect his money and then arrange them neatly to stuff into his wallet. He considered Zack's option. It sounded good, but he knew Zack, there was a catch. And the catch was that he wouldn't get to see any of his other siblings. "Are the others hooked up?"
"Yeah."
"Who haven't you found?" Ben asked, curious as to whether the 'others' included all ten other X5s or just the ones found.
"Max. She's staying pretty well hidden." Zack said. That was a lie. And he knew it. He'd found Max, settled in Seattle and unwilling to leave. Out of all the other X5s, she left the biggest trail, but only in Seattle. As long as he kept the others away from Seattle, they wouldn't discover her and attempt to meet her.
Ben nodded. "Sure, I guess it'll work… for now." He added the last part making sure Zack knew what he meant. "Where to?"
"Houston." Zack replied.
* * *
"Jerk!" The girl muttered beneath her breath as she left the bar and the rowdy crowd it held. A sigh escaped her mouth as she wandered off into the night. She wasn't suppose to be out tonight, it was Sunday and she had school tomorrow, but the night was just calling for her to get out and about, then there'd been that phone call from her dad. That was the whole reason she'd snuck out anyway. She only hoped her 'mom' wouldn't check her room and discovered her bed empty.
Her wanderings took her near the manufacturing district and a gunshot startled her. The hell?! Her mind said as her curiosity got the better of her and she had to check it out. She climbed a chain link fence and dropped down to the other side before tiptoeing her way towards the building. There was a broken window with light shining through just her height and she peeked through. Before her eyes there were three very nice SUVs parked with a bunch of men standing around. The two who really caught her eye were the two young men, dressed in regular jeans and t-shirts being held. They weren't that bad looking, in fact, they weren't bad looking at all.
* * *
Ben looked over at his brother, trying to make eye contact so they could figure out a plan. There was still plenty of chances left to get away; they just had to coordinate their movements like they were taught as kids. That way they could throw these untrained norm soldiers off and get away.
Zack struggled against the bonds that held him. He didn't have only himself to think of, but his brother also. Even though he knew Ben could take care of himself, he wasn't going to take any chances. Ten years out in this mess could have softened anyone up. He glanced around, surveying the situation. If he made any move, than the guns trained on Ben would be used, he couldn't risk that. There wasn't many options left. If the two of them could coordinate an attack, then they might get away, but he couldn't trust Ben that much. The soldiers handling him roughly shoved him into the backseat of one of the SUVs. He saw they did the same to Ben and his heart sank. He could let Lydecker and his men take them back to Manticore.
Ben groaned inwardly with disappointment. Zack had never once looked his way to plan an escape. This told Ben a lot, Zack wasn't as coordinate as he was when they were younger, and most of all, he didn't trust anyone, not even his own family. The SUV he was in began moving and than rapidly gained speed. He would have to get himself out of this jam. He took note of the speed they were moving at, it would be tough to land correctly if he jumped. Even as the trained soldier he was suppose to be, he began to despair. He twisted to get a look at Zack behind him and felt a small tremor before the vehicle he was in careened wildly. He heard two shots being fired before becoming aware of the soldiers with him scrambling for their automatics. He wondered if Zack had acted upon some half-thought plan.
Zack's eyes narrowed as the SUV that held Ben slammed into a tree. The driver of their vehicle hesitated; wondering what to do and wasn't given a chance to think anymore as a shot fired hit him right between the eyes. He heard another shots fired and the soldier in the passenger seat slumped over, dead. The two men sitting beside him began to panic as they groped for their guns.
Three soldiers had descended to survey the situation they were in and to call for the first car which by now must be wondering what had happened. Three more shots were fired and the soldiers dropped in their tracks. Ben felt the two soldiers left around him fidget uncomfortably before they alighted and took off, running for their lives followed closely by the driver. They were joined by five others from Zack's SUV. Annoyed, he inched his way towards the door, hoping to get out and find something to cut his bonds when the door was yanked open, almost off its hinges. A girl stood there, holding a set of keys and clicked her tongue disappointedly at him. She had his chains off in less than a minute before dragging him out of the backseat and pushed him towards the woods.
Micaela reached the other SUV and opened its backdoor, making sure not to rip it off. Cold blue eyes met her and regarded her suspiciously. She jangled the set of keys in her hand and grinned. She could hear the first SUV approaching. Finally the blue eyes lowered and the guy held out first his hands and then feet. She removed his bonds and then stepped back to let him alight. She heard and felt the other guy approach behind her, but she ignored him. She pointed towards the woods. "There's a lake about fifteen miles out with a bunch of cabins sitting around it. Far side, cabin number 23. You'll be safe there for the night." She said. "And now, don't thank me cause God knows you want to. Just do me the favor and forget you ever met me or that I was ever here to help. I don't exist." She added for emphasis.
Ben nodded as he studied the girl closely standing between him and his brother. She was shorter than they were, and a bit younger with long golden blonde hair in a French braid that seemed to shine in the night. She had pale skin, which was only magnified by the dark clothing she wore. She turned around to smile at him again, startling him with bright blue eyes that seemed vaguely familiar, before pulling some sort of mask over her head.
Zack was about to say something but was interrupted by the arrival of the first SUV and then Lydecker shouting orders as around seven soldiers poured forth. From behind they heard the previous couple of soldiers, the ones who ran, approaching, cocking their automatics.
"I would say this is my exit call." Micaela murmured. "Even X5s can't tangled against several automatics and hope to win." She said to their surprise. "Remember my directions."
Zack shook his head slightly meeting Ben's gaze. "We won't have to. You're going to be coming with us." He said grabbing her as Ben took off for the woods right before the shooting started.
Micaela was about to protest that she was headed in the opposite direction when she felt a steel ball hit her in her side. She gasped as Zack hoisted her over his shoulder, obviously oblivious to her circumstance. "Careful…" She yelped digging her nails into his back. "You've got an injured female." She said through clenched teeth as they moved out of range of the guns. She sucked in her breath when Zack shifted her.
Ben looked over his shoulder only once when she had first uttered a sound. She was correct in saying that X5s couldn't outrun firing from an automatic, at least not forever. He had looked back once to check on her and had noticed a dark spot spreading along her side. There was a sick feeling in his stomach and he quickened his pace to put more distance between them and the soldiers.
Zack's fingers found the wound in her side and he pressed his fingers against it, hoping to slow the blood flow. The pressure of her nails digging into his back had been released and she had since stopped complaining. He hoped she would be okay. The cabin she had talked about was still over a good ten miles away.
* * *
"X5-116!" Lydecker yelled out.
She stepped forward not showing any of the fear that was present in the rest of their minds. "X5-116, sir!" She yelled out her designation, saluting.
"Come with me X5." Lydecker said before leading the way out of the room. "The rest of you remain here." He said turning slightly to address the other X5s.
That was the last time any of them ever saw her again. The next day Lydecker came and told them she had died during a routine training test, but they knew better. She had been perfectly healthy, always had been, there was no way she could have just keeled over and died. She was the youngest of them, but that didn't make her weaker. Everyone had always looked at her and handled her like she was glass, but she wasn't. If she had to, she could carry just as much, do everything that the rest of them could do. Plus they heard some of the soldiers talking, rumoring that the Committee had become tired of wasting money putting up with a weakness, and had ordered her to be exterminated. Whatever the reason, she was gone from their lives.
"We didn't try hard enough. If we had tried harder, they wouldn't have taken her." Ben said defiantly. "The Blue Lady would have protected her, she says so. 116 was weak, too weak, and we didn't do enough to make up for it so we all had to pay." He was such a believer that at times the other wondered if he maybe took the Blue Lady too seriously.
But, that was the answer Ben gave the first time, and it wouldn't be the last. It was the same story he gave when Jack became sick and they took him away. That he wasn't strong enough, and the Blue Lady wouldn't put up with him. And it was the same one they heard when Eva was shot.
Max shook her head. "No, that's not true! We tried out best. We're only kids. There wasn't anything we could have done, right Zack?" Her eyes begged their CO to agree with her, and he did.
By Astro Purple
AstroPurpl@aol.com
PG for language and violence.
Timeline: Anytime before Max killed Ben. He hadn't gone crazy yet and Zack just found him.
Summary: Exactly how much does Lydecker care about his "kids." And how far is he willing to go to protect them?
Disclaimer: Dark Angel characters belong to the wonderful people who bring Dark Angel to us.
* * *
PROLOGUE
I knew as I watched them being born that they were different. Different than the other X series I had helped to create. These kids, designated the X5, I felt a special bond towards them. As I watched them, they weren't just any kids, they were my kids. The previous series had all failed, coming up with abnormalities or just not being strong enough to survive, but this series, they had to survive. They had to grow up to be superior and to be "the" best.
The first four years as I watched them, they made me proud. In the premier stages of their development, they had shown how superior and smart they were. The nurses assigned to watch as infants noted that the older kids, more specifically X5-599 and X5-656, had developed maternal instincts somehow. I knew how, they didn't trust the nurses to carefully handle the kids, just like I didn't trust them. I tried to be there as often as I could, pleading the need to observe their development first hand, however, I had to make sure they were being treated right.
The X5 series was the most successful, this became apparent as the years went by. I watched them grow in intelligence, accepting that as a squadron they were family, but not knowing how they knew. They couldn't know. I fed them the information little by little. I taught them what being a family means, and that they were brothers and sisters. They thought they were so smart to figure out that out in the real world, people had names, in truth, I helped them by making sure to call those near me by name instead of title.
I felt bad at the time for pushing them so hard. They helped each other, and I'm proud of that trait, but I wish that I could have been the real father I felt I was. I wish I could have been there to pick them up when they fell, to play football or basketball with them, to tend to their wounds, to eat dinner with them and listen to them talk about their day, to read them bedtime stories, to tuck them in, and to be able to tell each of them how much I loved them. But I couldn't. I had to prepare them, toughen them up for the life they were to lead outside of Manticore. Yes, I knew even before most of them that they would plan an escape from Manticore. X5-599, Zack, had been planning for a long time to get his family out. He tried to hide it, and he was successful except for me. I had watched him grow up his entire life, if anyone knew him as well as himself, it'd be me. I could see it in his eyes, the distant fantasy look they got each time something associated with the world outside was mentioned. I also knew that if they got away successfully, as I would make sure they would, I would have to hunt them down. I would be the "bad" guy sent to force them back to Manticore, or kill them trying. I could live with them hating me, but I couldn't live knowing they were locked up in a place they hated. I had to make sure that out in the real world I could protect them, be the real father I wanted to, needed to. And I knew how to do that.
X5-116. She was the youngest; the most frail out of all the X5s, but I still loved her like the others. And now, when I look back on those days, I think I might have loved her ever more. None of the doctors expected her to survive in the conditions Manticore would force upon all my kids. Their feelings were conveyed to those on the Committee, and they were expecting me to announce in one of my status reports that she had died. The other kids wouldn't be surprised, but I knew they would fight to make sure it didn't happen. I saw how they protected her. Someone strong was always paired up with her. They took the brunt of all the missions I placed upon them, and they thought I wouldn't notice. If placed under the right conditions, X5-116 would grow to be strong. Maybe even stronger than her brothers and sisters. That's why I pulled her out of Manticore. I sent her to live with my sister, to grow up in a home that would love her. My sister knew about Manticore, I told her. And she knew how much this child I placed in her care meant to me. I wasn't worried about X5-116, I was worried about the Committee finding out. I did my best to falsify all the records that she'd died. Even with one of the doctors on my side, and three of my most trustworthy soldiers, I still worried.
The Committee worried me, but telling the other X5s that their sister had died, terrified me. They wouldn't believe me if I told them that their sister died of sickness, as much as I didn't want their hate for me amplified, I had to be a soldier. So I told them another lie, a lie that I would never consider if I wasn't forced. Like I predicted, they hated me even more. But they didn't lash out, they held their emotions, like I taught them to. I watched them later that night, when they thought they were alone, that's when they cried. Silently to themselves, or openly with one another. I wanted to comfort them and tell them that she was alive, and they would see her again, but I couldn't. After that, I became the soldier I knew I was. I didn't hold back in reprimanding them, but I held back in loving them. I could love them when I visited X5-116, and my sister. I could be the father I always wanted then.
When they did escape, and I was ordered to hunt them down. I had hoped that if X5-116 wasn't successful in keeping them away from me, I could bring them back to Manticore without hurting them. But when I continued to fail, the Committee ordered me to kill them if I had to. That almost killed me. The girl named Eva had been the only one to die by my hand, and that was forced. The director was behind me, if I hadn't done what I did, I would probably have been replaced. I didn't want that. I didn't want to be taken away from my kids, and I didn't want them to be taken away from me. The next person placed in charge might too gentle with them and not prepare them for the life they would lead outside, or he could be too tough and kill them off one by one. I was careful in training them that I didn't put them through anything that they could die from. And even then I was careful in watching them and making sure they were okay. I wish I could say I was always that careful, but I only began after one incident, an incident in which X5-116 almost died from. I'm sorry to say that I got there too late and that she had to be scared for such a while. I didn't feel like a dad then, and I was determined to make it up to her once she came out of Manticore.
* * *
He was in the same city, and a new tattoo parlor. He didn't know why he preferred to waste his money getting the same tattoo removed every two weeks than to spend it on necessities. But he knew was just like that. He needed to erase Manticore from his body, and everything else, the Blue Lady would provide for.
Ben laid down on his stomach, pointing to the barcode on the back of his neck. "Remove it."
The burly tattoo guy gave a low whistle. "Your gang breaking up?" He asked. Ben didn't reply, a lot of people assumed it was a gang symbol. It didn't surprise him at all. "We had a guy in here just yesterday getting his removed. Same symbol, only the lines were different width and everything. Actually, if I remember corrected, it was in the exact same place." This had perked Ben's interested and he lay there listening as the guy bustled around describing the guy while getting the stuff he needed. He wanted to find his brothers and sisters. They had been separated for too long.
"Thanks." Ben said half an hour later when the guy finished and his neck felt like a fire had been set on it.
The guy nodded his thanks as he was handed cash.
Ben strolled back towards the apartment he had rented two months prior. He would have to leave soon. He'd been to four tattoo parlors in St. Louis since he got here. If word got around that the same guy was getting the same tattoo removed over and over again, it would bring Lydecker. But hearing the guy say that someone else had a similar tattoo removed only a day before fired up his curiosity. Another X5, was in town. One of his brothers. Ben had to find him before he left.
He trudged up four flights of stairs deep in thought and stopped in front of his apartment. He reached into his pocket to pull out his keys and it was only then that he noticed the door open a hair's width. Noticeable only to an X5. Instead of pulling out his keys, he pulled out his .22 millimeter. Transferring it to his right hand, he shoved the door opened before stepping inside training the gun ahead of him. He wasn't afraid of Lydecker; no way he could have traced Ben's whereabouts to this apartment. "Zack." Ben said quietly seeing the solitary figure facing the window and looking out. He kicked the door shut with his foot, pocketed the gun, and moved closer to his brother. "Or Zane, whoever you are."
"Ben." Zack said finally turning from the window. "Lydecker's tracked you to this city. You've been compromised. Time to move out."
Ben nodded silently reverting back to old Manticore training. He moved into his bedroom and grabbed a duffel bag already packed with clothes. He was always ready to move. However unexpectedly or at whatever the hell time of day it was. He returned to the living room and began to take apart the coffee table to collect the money he'd been hiding in there. Off came one of the legs and out came a couple of twenties unstuffed from the hollow inside.
Zack moved to sit down on the couch. "I've been setting up a system." He said watching Ben work carefully. "You X5s get to live wherever you want to and live the life you want to as long as you're safe. And when you're compromised, I'll help you move to another secure location. I have a contact number you can call when you're in trouble and you have to call to check in once a week to let me know you're all right. Sound good to you?"
Ben let the silence stretch as he continued to collect his money and then arrange them neatly to stuff into his wallet. He considered Zack's option. It sounded good, but he knew Zack, there was a catch. And the catch was that he wouldn't get to see any of his other siblings. "Are the others hooked up?"
"Yeah."
"Who haven't you found?" Ben asked, curious as to whether the 'others' included all ten other X5s or just the ones found.
"Max. She's staying pretty well hidden." Zack said. That was a lie. And he knew it. He'd found Max, settled in Seattle and unwilling to leave. Out of all the other X5s, she left the biggest trail, but only in Seattle. As long as he kept the others away from Seattle, they wouldn't discover her and attempt to meet her.
Ben nodded. "Sure, I guess it'll work… for now." He added the last part making sure Zack knew what he meant. "Where to?"
"Houston." Zack replied.
* * *
"Jerk!" The girl muttered beneath her breath as she left the bar and the rowdy crowd it held. A sigh escaped her mouth as she wandered off into the night. She wasn't suppose to be out tonight, it was Sunday and she had school tomorrow, but the night was just calling for her to get out and about, then there'd been that phone call from her dad. That was the whole reason she'd snuck out anyway. She only hoped her 'mom' wouldn't check her room and discovered her bed empty.
Her wanderings took her near the manufacturing district and a gunshot startled her. The hell?! Her mind said as her curiosity got the better of her and she had to check it out. She climbed a chain link fence and dropped down to the other side before tiptoeing her way towards the building. There was a broken window with light shining through just her height and she peeked through. Before her eyes there were three very nice SUVs parked with a bunch of men standing around. The two who really caught her eye were the two young men, dressed in regular jeans and t-shirts being held. They weren't that bad looking, in fact, they weren't bad looking at all.
* * *
Ben looked over at his brother, trying to make eye contact so they could figure out a plan. There was still plenty of chances left to get away; they just had to coordinate their movements like they were taught as kids. That way they could throw these untrained norm soldiers off and get away.
Zack struggled against the bonds that held him. He didn't have only himself to think of, but his brother also. Even though he knew Ben could take care of himself, he wasn't going to take any chances. Ten years out in this mess could have softened anyone up. He glanced around, surveying the situation. If he made any move, than the guns trained on Ben would be used, he couldn't risk that. There wasn't many options left. If the two of them could coordinate an attack, then they might get away, but he couldn't trust Ben that much. The soldiers handling him roughly shoved him into the backseat of one of the SUVs. He saw they did the same to Ben and his heart sank. He could let Lydecker and his men take them back to Manticore.
Ben groaned inwardly with disappointment. Zack had never once looked his way to plan an escape. This told Ben a lot, Zack wasn't as coordinate as he was when they were younger, and most of all, he didn't trust anyone, not even his own family. The SUV he was in began moving and than rapidly gained speed. He would have to get himself out of this jam. He took note of the speed they were moving at, it would be tough to land correctly if he jumped. Even as the trained soldier he was suppose to be, he began to despair. He twisted to get a look at Zack behind him and felt a small tremor before the vehicle he was in careened wildly. He heard two shots being fired before becoming aware of the soldiers with him scrambling for their automatics. He wondered if Zack had acted upon some half-thought plan.
Zack's eyes narrowed as the SUV that held Ben slammed into a tree. The driver of their vehicle hesitated; wondering what to do and wasn't given a chance to think anymore as a shot fired hit him right between the eyes. He heard another shots fired and the soldier in the passenger seat slumped over, dead. The two men sitting beside him began to panic as they groped for their guns.
Three soldiers had descended to survey the situation they were in and to call for the first car which by now must be wondering what had happened. Three more shots were fired and the soldiers dropped in their tracks. Ben felt the two soldiers left around him fidget uncomfortably before they alighted and took off, running for their lives followed closely by the driver. They were joined by five others from Zack's SUV. Annoyed, he inched his way towards the door, hoping to get out and find something to cut his bonds when the door was yanked open, almost off its hinges. A girl stood there, holding a set of keys and clicked her tongue disappointedly at him. She had his chains off in less than a minute before dragging him out of the backseat and pushed him towards the woods.
Micaela reached the other SUV and opened its backdoor, making sure not to rip it off. Cold blue eyes met her and regarded her suspiciously. She jangled the set of keys in her hand and grinned. She could hear the first SUV approaching. Finally the blue eyes lowered and the guy held out first his hands and then feet. She removed his bonds and then stepped back to let him alight. She heard and felt the other guy approach behind her, but she ignored him. She pointed towards the woods. "There's a lake about fifteen miles out with a bunch of cabins sitting around it. Far side, cabin number 23. You'll be safe there for the night." She said. "And now, don't thank me cause God knows you want to. Just do me the favor and forget you ever met me or that I was ever here to help. I don't exist." She added for emphasis.
Ben nodded as he studied the girl closely standing between him and his brother. She was shorter than they were, and a bit younger with long golden blonde hair in a French braid that seemed to shine in the night. She had pale skin, which was only magnified by the dark clothing she wore. She turned around to smile at him again, startling him with bright blue eyes that seemed vaguely familiar, before pulling some sort of mask over her head.
Zack was about to say something but was interrupted by the arrival of the first SUV and then Lydecker shouting orders as around seven soldiers poured forth. From behind they heard the previous couple of soldiers, the ones who ran, approaching, cocking their automatics.
"I would say this is my exit call." Micaela murmured. "Even X5s can't tangled against several automatics and hope to win." She said to their surprise. "Remember my directions."
Zack shook his head slightly meeting Ben's gaze. "We won't have to. You're going to be coming with us." He said grabbing her as Ben took off for the woods right before the shooting started.
Micaela was about to protest that she was headed in the opposite direction when she felt a steel ball hit her in her side. She gasped as Zack hoisted her over his shoulder, obviously oblivious to her circumstance. "Careful…" She yelped digging her nails into his back. "You've got an injured female." She said through clenched teeth as they moved out of range of the guns. She sucked in her breath when Zack shifted her.
Ben looked over his shoulder only once when she had first uttered a sound. She was correct in saying that X5s couldn't outrun firing from an automatic, at least not forever. He had looked back once to check on her and had noticed a dark spot spreading along her side. There was a sick feeling in his stomach and he quickened his pace to put more distance between them and the soldiers.
Zack's fingers found the wound in her side and he pressed his fingers against it, hoping to slow the blood flow. The pressure of her nails digging into his back had been released and she had since stopped complaining. He hoped she would be okay. The cabin she had talked about was still over a good ten miles away.
* * *
"X5-116!" Lydecker yelled out.
She stepped forward not showing any of the fear that was present in the rest of their minds. "X5-116, sir!" She yelled out her designation, saluting.
"Come with me X5." Lydecker said before leading the way out of the room. "The rest of you remain here." He said turning slightly to address the other X5s.
That was the last time any of them ever saw her again. The next day Lydecker came and told them she had died during a routine training test, but they knew better. She had been perfectly healthy, always had been, there was no way she could have just keeled over and died. She was the youngest of them, but that didn't make her weaker. Everyone had always looked at her and handled her like she was glass, but she wasn't. If she had to, she could carry just as much, do everything that the rest of them could do. Plus they heard some of the soldiers talking, rumoring that the Committee had become tired of wasting money putting up with a weakness, and had ordered her to be exterminated. Whatever the reason, she was gone from their lives.
"We didn't try hard enough. If we had tried harder, they wouldn't have taken her." Ben said defiantly. "The Blue Lady would have protected her, she says so. 116 was weak, too weak, and we didn't do enough to make up for it so we all had to pay." He was such a believer that at times the other wondered if he maybe took the Blue Lady too seriously.
But, that was the answer Ben gave the first time, and it wouldn't be the last. It was the same story he gave when Jack became sick and they took him away. That he wasn't strong enough, and the Blue Lady wouldn't put up with him. And it was the same one they heard when Eva was shot.
Max shook her head. "No, that's not true! We tried out best. We're only kids. There wasn't anything we could have done, right Zack?" Her eyes begged their CO to agree with her, and he did.