James Cameron and Charles Eglee own Dark Angel. My use is in no way meant to challenge their copyrights. This piece is not intended for any profit on the part of the writer, nor is it meant to detract from the commercial viability of the aforementioned (or any other) copyright. Any similarity to any events or persons (either real or fictional) is unintended.
Author's Note:
Several months ago I decided to do a Zack fic. Then AJBAC came along, and my storyline fell into question. However, I was also provided a golden opportunity to write the fic that I had wanted to write (as it was the concept, and not the story, that was truly crucial to me). Now, I'm sure someone has written an 'AJBAC through Zack's eyes' fic. I can honestly say I haven't read any, though. So if there's similarity between this fic and any other, I apologize to readers I may bore with the repetition, and to authors that may feel I ripped off their work (I didn't). Oh, and to anyone that's been following my story The Code of Honor, sorry I've put off the next installment to write this instead. So, without further ado or apology, here it is...A Friendly Game of Russian Roulette
by
Nevermore
I am X5-599. My siblings and the few civilians I know refer to me as Zack. I'm one of a dozen X-5's that escaped from Manticore's main facility a decade ago. To the others, I'm a commanding officer, a big brother, and a guardian angel. They're my soldiers. My responsibility. I'll do whatever it takes to keep them safe. It may be difficult to keep my siblings out of danger, both from the world and themselves, but it's the one and only duty I have in life. That's how I got here, outside a Manticore facility where my sister, Tinga, is being held...
"Max, Zack," I hear Logan say over the com. Bad timing as usual. I'm about to enter the structure – Logan can wait. I burst through the door and open fire. Good news – two sentries are neutralized. Bad news – I'm hit. Bad. Pain shoots through my leg as I take a bullet in my left kneecap. Well, I guess I'll need to take a few seconds to force down the pain. I might as well give Logan my attention now that I'm crouched up in a ball, pretty much useless for a few moments.
"Max, Zack. Full military convoy," I hear Logan say over the com system. Those are just about the last words I want to hear. The chances of achieving our mission objective have just dropped significantly. Do we pull out, or not? I only have seconds to decide.
"Max. Max, pull out!" Logan yells over the com. Looks like my decision was just made for me. I hope the son of a bitch has good reason for exceeding his authority. When I evaluate his decision later, he'd damned well better be able to say the situation was really serious, like maybe if Lydecker himself is showing up with dozens of Manticore special ops.
"Max, you gotta go," Logan repeats over the line. It's then that I catch a whiff of an all too familiar scent – Lydecker. Looks like pretty boy has the right idea. I get my ass in motion, knowing Max should be right behind me. I know I should probably wait around for her, but unless I start moving now, she'll end up having to either slow down so I can keep up, or else wait for me down by the bike in the tunnels. Neither option is tactically feasible, so I'm going right now.
"Max, are you okay?" Logan asks. His voice has a tinge of desperation – he's too involved emotionally. He should never have been allowed to partake in this action. His attachment to Max could jeopardize the mission. Goddamned civilians. I continue my retreat, knowing that by now I should have run into Max. Something might be wrong.
"Talk to me. Max?" Logan asks. The only reply is silence. Yep, something is definitely wrong. I've taken myself too far from a strategic position, and with the shape I'm in, going back to cover her retreat is out of the question. Evaluate the situation – I've been wounded badly, reducing my mobility roughly 83%; Max is offline, presumably captured; and Logan has apparently lost any semblance of concentration.
"Max, are you okay? Can you hear me?" Logan asks feebly, punctuating my point. I know Lydecker is here, and he would never be stupid enough to try to take us on without heavy backup. This is a Manticore installation, which means he'll know the territory. He simply has too many advantages right now, especially if he has his hands on Max. I have to continue to withdraw. I can still get to Lydecker before he gets Max back to Wyoming. There're others I can go to for help, too. I just have to make sure I get my sorry, wounded ass back to Logan's. I can use his apartment as a fallback position. Then, once I'm operational again, I'll give Lydecker a demonstration of X-5 capabilities.
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"What the hell happened?" I ask Logan. "We got in no problem, next thing I know Lydecker's guys are all over the place." If he had been a Manticore support soldier, he'd likely be strung up in solitary confinement by now.
"I gave you the heads up as soon as I saw them coming," Logan replies feebly. Just like a civilian, always trying to fix the blame when it's the problem that should be addressed. "Why didn't you get her out of there?"
"I tried. I couldn't get to her." As if I would have ever left her behind willingly... Logan's ignorance amazes me sometimes.
"We shouldn't have gone in."
"We didn't have a choice," I point out. "They had Tinga." I know that means little to Logan, especially now that he's lost Max, but he has to be reminded that while Tinga meant little to him, she meant the world to me and Max. Perhaps rescuing our sister was not the strategically sound decision, but we had already lost two of our siblings this year. No way was I gonna let our losses rise to three.
"And now Lydecker has Max," Logan spits. There's not much I can say about that. Jackass probably thinks he's being the man, standing there all James Deanish, seeming to deliberately look confused as he's eerily calm, cool, and collected. I would have thought he'd be climbing the walls by now, what with the way he and Max were kissing not too long ago. Hell, for that matter, I don't know how I'm holding it together. Somewhere along the line I think I shorted out a fuse in my brain or something. I never should have let myself start to care. I never used to be like this. I was virtually dead inside, and I liked it – it was how a soldier should be. I must be going soft. Come on, Zack, get your head in the game, I tell myself. Seems I've been saying that too often lately.
I force the confusion and pain from my head, focusing on the job at hand. Our first rescue mission has obviously led to another, and this time I can't afford to make mental errors.
"We've got to find her," Logan mutters, as if I hadn't already figured that out. I hold back my anger and restrain myself from breaking both of his useless, crippled legs. The important thing is to get Max back – work first, play later.
"I contacted Krit and Syl," I tell Logan, letting him know I'm way ahead of him. It pisses me off that he even needs to be reminded that I'm far smarter than he'll ever be. He should just assume that I've already addressed anything he can think of. "They're on their way," I add, letting my unwanted ally in on the status of our new team. I keep to myself the thought that I can't wait to work with people that are worthy of my time. Such sentiments wouldn't gain me anything if I ever bothered to speak them.
"So if Lydecker's in the wind and he's got Max with him, what's his plan?" Logan asks. I guess this is where I'm supposed to pull out my crystal ball and speak cryptically as I miracle an answer to that question right out of my ass.
"I would assume he's gonna bring her back to Manticore," I answer needlessly, as if there was any other possibility.
"So what do we do while we're waiting for the others?" I notice he's dropped his calm demeanor, revealing that he's actually on the edge of panic
"Okay, that's it," I growl. "You ask me another fucking question, and I'm gonna rip your goddamn head off," I promise him. It feels good to finally put Logan in his place and vent some of the frustration I've been feeling since I realized I had to leave Maxie behind. "In case you haven't noticed, I'm a bloody fucking mess over here. I need time to heal before we can do much of anything, unless you're planning on marching into a Manticore safehouse on your own." I glare at Logan and see no such absurd suggestion burst forth from his lips. Excellent, he's starting to settle down and see reason.
"Nice to see you're calming down again, Mr. Cale. Now I need you to make yourself useful while I work on putting myself back together."
"What do you need?" Logan asks, his voice pleasantly even and controlled. I think he's actually gotten a grip this time.
"I need groceries," I tell him. "I want about four, maybe five gallons of spring water. Throw in about five pounds of fresh beef, a couple of pounds of pasta, and a few dozen eggs." He gives me a questioning stare, and before I can explain myself I think of something important that I missed. "I also need a five-pound bag of sugar. And a toothbrush."
"Is that all?" Logan asks sarcastically. God I wish I was allowed to hit him... but I doubt Max would approve when we get her back.
"Look, Logan, you've seen the marvels of Manticore engineering in Max's heightened recuperative abilities, right?" He nods. "Good. So, like you've seen, we heal really fast. But the body needs energy and food in order to create new cells. The protein in the meat and eggs, along with the simple and complex carbohydrates in the sugar and pasta, will give my body all the fuel it needs to do its work. Then it'll just take time."
"How long?"
"Twenty-four hours, give or take," I reply, noticing how his eyes go wide. Yep, we X-5 types can heal a gunshot wound in twenty-four hours if we take the time to help our bodies along. I can see the look of jealousy in his eyes, and I do my best to hide my satisfaction. He's out of his league here, and I think he's beginning to understand that. Max didn't rub her superiority in his face, so he never really had to deal with his pathetic normalcy. I think it's good for him to see the way things are. He has to be made to understand that he has no business being with Max. Family is not an option. Not for us. If she's not strong enough to leave him, then I'll have to ensure that he leaves her. She's my soldier. My responsibility. I'll do whatever it takes to keep her safe... even if that means sabotaging her love life behind her back. She'll never thank me – in fact, she'll probably never speak to me again if she finds out – but I have to take care of her, no matter what. Even if she ends up hating me for what I do.
To be continued.............................