If you're reading this, thank you. I've been a reader on fanfiction for about ten years but have never been the one to write the stories. Don't get me wrong, I daydream about them all the time but have never tested my ability to put thought to words like this.
I ask only one thing. After you read this, please leave me a review. Not so I can feel good about myself for having x amount of reviews but because I want to grow and learn in this process. If I leave something too vague, if I waste too many words on a topic, if it's just kind of sucky (or not), please share that with me. I want to make this something I can be proud of and something that you want to read.
I am not James Patterson; I do not own Maximum Ride. I am just a dreamer.
PROLOGUE
MAX P.O.V.
My flock, my family,
We've spent too much time running. This was never how any of our lives were meant to be. I wake up each morning and try to make each and every one of you as happy as I possibly can, but I know that it is a wasted effort when at the end of the day we still have no home and fresh injuries. I will not allow this to continue.
Last night while everyone was sleeping and I was on watch, I heard a van driving toward us in the distance. We all know who the van belonged to. I flew toward them and, before they could attack, I offered them a deal. Now, before you overreact, I want you to consider this from my perspective.
I made a promise to you guys long ago that I would always do everything in my power to protect you. That's no longer enough for me. I don't want you to just be protected. I want you to be happy, to be healthy. I want you to live your lives without constantly looking over your shoulder, without fear.
The deal is this. I'm going with them in exchange for a promise of your safety. They will leave you be on the condition that you don't come after me. I know that won't be easy for you; that's why I didn't wait until you were awake to say goodbye. They have assured me that we are going to a branch of the School that we have never been to before, so there really is no point in trying to find me.
Find Dr. Martinez, she'll help you.
Do not blame yourselves for this; it was my choice and mine alone. Go live your lives. Be happy. Remember me in our good times. Remember me happy. Live for me. I love you all.
Fly on,
Maximum Ride
CHAPTER 1
MAX P.O.V.
Some say Hell is filled with fire. I say they are wrong. Hell is unbearably white. White floors, white walls, white coats. How do I know? Well, Hell is my new permanent residence. I walked right up to the School's doors, looked the devil in the eyes and marched myself inside.
It's impossible to tell how much time has passed. There are no windows. It could be day or night and I wouldn't know. Not that it matters.
The way it usually goes is like this. I wait it my cage until a white coat comes to get me. They run tests, draw blood, inject me with God knows what, make me do various courses, and send me back to my cage. I don't fight them. I knew what I was getting myself into.
It feels like it's probably been a few weeks. Could be more, could be less. When I first got here, they had guards around me at all times. I was in a crate in an otherwise empty room. There were guards next to my cell and outside of the door of the room. Recently, they have decreased my security, probably because I'm not running or fighting. If I'm being totally honest, I feel like my life no longer has meaning. No more sarcastic remarks, no more fire in my spirit, no more purpose. I used to spend all of my time protecting the flock but now...now I just exist.
"Maximum, it's time to go to the lab. Someone wants to talk to you." A white coat. I hadn't even noticed her come inside.
A guard unlocked my crate, yanked me out, and said to the white coat "I'll bring it to the lab."
"That's not necessary. I've got it from here."
Reluctantly, the guard released me and I rubbed my arm where his hold had been so tight. Once we were out of the guard's earshot I said "I'm not sure why you did it, but thanks, I guess."
She stopped walking and turned to look at me. "Are you a threat to me?" she asked.
"No point," I replied. To this she just smiled and continued walking.
Upon arriving to the lab I noticed an older man in a suit and tie. I recognized him as being the director of this particular branch of the School, but what could he want?
As I got closer, he looked up from the file he was reading and motioned me toward a chair. "Maximum Ride... I have been reviewing your file. You used to have so much spunk and that seems to have pushed you during your previous years of tests here. Lately, your tests are much less impressive. It seems you have given up. I can not allow that." He paused and I noticed his temper starting to rise. "I need results!" he shouted. "You are my prized possession here at the School and I'd like to keep it that way. We're going to make a few changes to see if we can liven you up a little. We can do this the easy way or the hard way, your choice." With that, he left. I wonder what they plan on changing. It's not like it will do any good. I can't leave because of our deal and they can't force me to be excited to be here. What more could they want from me?
DIRECTOR P.O.V.
"Do you really think that this will work, sir? Do you really think that this will force her to perform at an optimal level during her tests?" Incompetent lab technicians. Always asking questions. I know what I'm doing.
"I do. She needs to want to leave here. She needs to try. I've talked with Jeb, he said that she needs a purpose and then she will give us better results. If we do as Jeb suggested, she will eventually try to escape, we'll catch her on the way out and then I will have what I want. Jeb knows her better than any of us. I'm trusting him to not let me down."
"What if it doesn't work, sir?"
"IF it doesn't work... well, then I'll be forced to take matters into my own hands."
"You mean Plan B, sir? But Jeb said your Plan B was strictly forbidden. He said it could kill her."
"We'll do it Jeb's way for now but Plan B is going to happen sooner or later," I replied. "It's just a matter of when."
