A/N: Took me a while to come up with a title… I was debating over 'Layer by Layer' and some other ones. 'Layer by Layer' sounded too suggestive, though. I'm such a hypocrite… I dislike stories with OC's, and here I am, writing a story with OC's. Grr, whatever. Bear with me and my funny OC names. Pronounce them any way you like, because I'm probably pronouncing them wrong too. I've noticed I've made a habit out of making painfully short first chapters. Oh well. Here is a painfully short first chapter. Oh, and I apologize for all the profanities. This character has a vulgar mind… Sorry. Character development, you understand. And another character has an accent, so when it says 'uh' that's synonymous for 'of.'

Post Max, Iggy/OC and Max/OC or Fax, not sure.

Claiming the dissing: I do not own Maximum Ride, nor does this story have anything to do with the TV series Lie To Me.

Lie To Me

I pulled my hand away from my abdomen, refusing to look at the crimson liquid staining my fingers. I rolled over on my back in an attempt to ease some of the pain from the gashes on my stomach. Gritting my teeth, I stopped myself from crying out. 'Cause that's just the stubborn mule I am.

I laughed grimly at myself. The action made my wounds throb painfully. Stupid dog things. What the hell were they, anyway? At first they looked like hot guys, then they grew claws and snouts and got a hell of a lot hairier. Why didn't they just kill us? Now I get to die slowly. Wonderful. Like, FML.

That's what I've been saying my entire life. FML. And I've had a good freaking reason for it, too. I've had a shit life. I would have rather lived in hell then live my fucked-up life. Guess that's how I ended up lying on the ground, bleeding to death, in some forest in the middle of freaking nowhere.

Arran wheezed slightly, snapping me out of my depressing thoughts. The brawny, blond boy was probably lying a few feet away from me. We had collapsed after the fight, still yelling cuss words after the bastards. I think they broke his arm and messed his leg up pretty bad.

"You still alive, Calypso?" His normally strong, confident voice was barely audible. It was kind of sweet that he cared enough to ask. I mean, we had just met.

"Maybe. I don't think heaven would hurt this much," I grunted, motioning to our ragged cuts. Damn it, ouch. That hurt.

He let out a strangled chuckle, ending with a rasp. "Heaven's the last place we'd be. We're all going to hell."

"Not if I can help it!"

We both twisted our heads to look at Corentin. He had a jagged slash from his left eyebrow to his chin, curving around his eye. His side was bleed excessively. A small pool of red was leaking onto the grass. We probably looked just as bad as he did.

"Come here, one uh you. I'mna give you yer last rights or wha'ever. Let th' big man in th' sky know I'mma good kid," he said weakly, probably dead serious.

"Cory, I think you screwed all your chances of getting to heaven at seven years old," I coughed, trying not to choke on air and die. "When you spray painted 'dumbass' on your teacher's car and stole her wallet."

"I was a zesty kid. Lots uh spirit, my parents always tol' me." His voice slurred as his mind shut down. I hoped to God he wasn't dead. There'd be no one to tell pointless stories or rant about nothing.

Arran gasped in a breath, and his breathing slowed down sluggishly. This is it, I thought. We're gonna die here.

S'not so bad, my more positive side put in. It's a forest with lots of pretty trees, and it's not even cold!

Except that I'm bleeding to death. Some people have arguments with their inner demons. I have to put up with my internal saints.

Hushed voices drifting through the trees interrupted my mental debate. Leaves crunched under feet that paced quietly towards us. The tones raised in pitch as we came into view. I tried to push myself up to fight this new threat. It wasn't the dog-breaths. They had gruffer voices than these new people. I managed to get to my feet, swaying. My vision was blacking out at the edges. Three figures emerged from the trees, one dark and two lighter ones. I couldn't tell what was what anymore.

Damn. If only I could see. The world started tilting from side to side. Stop roller coasting, goddammit! I raised my fists in front of me, averting my eyes from the blood on them. The lightest of the figures took a slow step towards me. I shifted my weight forward, ready to take a swing. Suddenly, the dirt rushed up to my face. I slammed to the earth on my shoulder, wincing at the pain that shot through my entire body.

Gentle hands pushed me onto my back. They ghosted over my cuts, assessing the damage. Who the hell ...? I cracked my eyes open. I could see more clearly now, but there was a midget inside my head, repeatedly battering the inside of my skull with a club.

"What hurts?" a kind, male voice asked me. I think I groaned, but I was too far gone to care about it.

A pair of stunning blue eyes set in an ivory-skinned face appeared above me. The gaze was locked on my left cheek, and full of concern I'd never seen directed at me before.

The last thing I remembered was mumbling a stupid pick-up line, then passing out.

"Hey there, gorgeous," I murmured languidly. "Where've you been all my life?"

I was gonna regret that when I woke up.