Author's Note:
Author's Note:
I am so sincerely sorry for the long wait, I took a break from this one for awhile, since I got caught up in my story Animal Crackers. But, here I am again. I took down chapter four and combined it with this one, because chapter four was embarrassingly short.
You guessed it… or, maybe you didn't. Mind reading is really Angel's specialty.
Anyway, Roland Ter freakin' Borcht stepped through the door. In case you haven't gotten your pin yet for the Haters club, I'm sorry, but our orders have been backlogged. See us in a few years.
"What's up, Doc?"
"Max, ve need you in da experimentation voom."
"Over your dead body." I replied casually.
Max, don't go. Angel thought to me.
Sweetheart, I don't have a choice. At least they're not taking you again.
I'd rather they take me.
My heart closed up. I'd rather they take me. I repeated her statement, and I could see her sad eyes on me.
I met Fang's eyes. He was in charge, until I got back. In charge of what, I didn't know. In charge of five cages. Yea.
"Okay, take me away, oh evil being…" I said, melodramatically, putting on a show for the younger ones, holding my hand against my forehead as if pretending to faint.
And, for once in my disastrously, oddly long life for an experiment, I was actually forming a plan.
I scooched the back of my cage, still in the pretending to faint mode, leaning against the back, but the cage was small enough so that my legs had to be braced, scrunched against the bars of the door.
And then he put the key in the door.
Wrong move, buddy. You mess with Max, you're gonna get the… wings.
Or feet, rather.
I kicked out, hard, catching him in the stomach. It was enough to break a rib, knock the wind out of him, and he clattered against a table as his weak, decrepit body fell to the ground, still conscious.
I burst out of the cage, grabbing a metal tray that lay on one of the creepy steel tables into the room, and smashed it against his head, hard.
He crumpled, being the weak, non mutated human that he is. He thinks he's so cool 'cause he's got a 'degree' in medicine? Well, I have freaking wings. Get over it.
"Is he dead?" The Gasman called out in amazement.
"No, Gazzy, I just incapacitated him." I said with a roll of my eyes.
"Max, keys." Fang reminded me.
"Oh, yeah, right." I said, grabbing the keys from his limp form.
"You decapitated him?" Gazzy asked, eyes wide.
"Max decapitated Ter Borcht?" Iggy said, his sightless eyes gone just as wide as Gazzy.
Nudge was laughing despite herself. "No, incapacitate. It means she hindered him. He can't move to come get us like the big bad wolf."
"But the Erasers… or whatever they are these days… still can." I reminded them, running over with the keys. "So, everyone hush, and lets move, move, move."
I jammed the key into the Gasman's cage door, and wrenched it open. He threw himself to the ground, landing more like a cat than a bird kid.
"Up in the air, now!" I commanded, and he shot directly up without a running start. Ouch. He hovered somewhere near the ceiling, out of site of the windows… but there was no doubt in my mind that they had servalance cameras everywhere. There were no sirens going off. Was there seriously nobody watching? What time of day was it? With only artificial light, I couldn't tell.
I opened Nudge's cage door next, and she ran as fast as she talked, she was next to the Gasman in a flash.
I went for Angel then, I opened her cage faster than any of the others. On the floor, Ter Borcht moaned, but didn't wake.
She wasn't like Nudge or Gazzy. Angel didn't move, just stared at me with wide, scared eyes.
"Come on, Ange." I coaxed gently. "We've got to move, fast."
"N-no!"
"Angel, please."
"No!"
"Is it your arm? We'll – we'll fix that! Just come on!" This day was like rubbing sandpaper on raw skin.
"I-cant." Her lower lip quivered, and my heart nearly burst.
"Fang!" He understood, he pulled the same move I did, only he actually kicked out his cage door. He could've done that before, but the younger ones, probably not, and we hadn't had the keys then, anyway.
Still no alarms – could they really be that stupid to be understaffed with the Invincible Flock here?
Yes, apparently.
Fang was next to me, where I stood trying to coax Angel out.
"What's wrong, Angel?" He said, peering in.
"Yo, Max, blind bird kid still locked up!" Iggy called, and I tossed the keys to Nudge, who worked quickly to unlock him.
"Come on, Angel!" He called as soon as he was out, hovering next to Nudge and the Gasman. Only this time, along with his way too loud shout, I swore that I could hear a clatter somewhere down the hall.
"You know what?" I asked Angel, my jaw set. I had never lost my patience before with her, but there was always a first time for everything, right? I mean, I never ever thought I would fly, being stuck in the School all day.
And here I was, free as a jailed bird. Which would never change, if we didn't get Angel out. There was no way that I was leaving her behind. I felt bad after all she had gone through, but if I didn't get her out, the white coats would not be nice.
"Get out of the cage, this minute. I'll carry you if I have to, just get out of the cage."
She clambered to the front, and jumped down into my arms, sobbing hysterically. Her wings were tucked to her back.
"Fang, window." It was blacked out, hence the no light of day thing, but it was there, all the same.
Let me repeat. White coats dumber than an Eraser.
And trust me, I've met some ones who are more than a few fries short of a Happy Meal.
"Got it." He said, soaring up to the window, looking for weak points.
"Iggy, trail Nudge." I said quickly, again, hearing the sound of what could be a clatter somewhere in the hallway.
Angel was still sobbing, and I kissed her forehead as I thrust out my wings, jumping up into the air.
Crash.
Fang broke through the window, soared through, I winced as I saw the droplets of red blood streaking the linoleum. He poked his head back through, motioning for us to follow. I could see the light of… night, now. Pitch black outside.
Perfect. I had no problem seeing in the dark.
But white coats would.
Nudge shot out of the window, then Iggy, his finger on the hem of her tattered jeans. The Gasman shot out next, I could see them all hovering on the other side of the window, silent as the smallest hummingbirds.
"Max?" Angel asked me in a small, quiet voice as I shot up to the window, ready to exit.
"What is it, sweetheart?" I said, smoothing her hair, curled up like a baby in my arms.
Tears streaked her dirty, bruised face.
"Shh, honey. You're okay." I left the room behind, careful not to let Angel hit any of the shards of glass that were left.
"No," she whispered, and my heart dropped.
And then soared, momentarily. For the moment, we were free as birds, not jailed in the least, soaring through the chilly night air for the first time in over a month. We flew in our v, flying through the night faster then we had. Muscles would be aching tomorrow, but that wouldn't be an issue.
"Max," she said again, and I turned my attention back on my little baby.
"I – I cant."
"You can't what, doll?" We were soaring over Death Valley now, what an appropriate name, huh? We were leaving it behind fast, too.
I had the sinking feeling, as she spoke, that I knew what she was going to say. Fear gripped every shard of my being.
"I can't fly." Her blue eyes looked up at me, contrasting sharply with the backdrop we were speeding over. "I'm incapacitated."
Author's Note:
Dun. Dun. Duuuun.
Wheee.
It's TWO IN THE MORNING.
Let me know what you think! Virtual cookies for all of my reviewers!