Disclaimer: I really don't want to own Maximum Ride, I don't have dreams of being old and rich... I have dreams of being young and poor.
Chapter Eight PART 1: Wrestling with the grip of insanity and not winning
"Would you go to war for me? Would you cry for the weak and die for the peace of men?" - The Fight, The Classic Crime
AN: ( wow, first time I put one at the top) Okay just a note, this chapter is going to have switches and lots of confusion of when things are happening, therefore I installed dates before each entry.
Somewhere Else ( Completely unrelated to the Flock, the Brothers or the OC Flock) we will call it the Facility: December 12th 3:59 AM
Laboriously he grabbed another rung and hefted his weight over the ledge, feeling the delicately knit skin on his hands rip slightly. With a grunt of pain, he sprawled in a heap on the landing at the top. Get up! he ground the thoughts into his mind and forced his arms to lift himself up. Ignoring the immense slabs of pain falling on his legs he began to run as silently as he could, his bare feet padding the cold metal of the facility.
Up ahead he saw the outlines of a door, or maybe it was a window. He neared it and saw the concrete glass in the window frame and with absolutely no thought sped up and crashed into it, his weight propelling him through the window and to the other side. His legs buckled as he hit the concrete ten feet below, he felt the smack of bone on rock. Go! Go! Go! His mind reeled with determination and he pushed off the ground, bloody feet leaving residue as they slapped the white cement, glass splinters imbedding deeper and deeper into the flesh, but he was past caring, past fear, past pain. Alarms rippled across the facility with the rapidness of a bird of prey, the searchlights scoured the ground and walls, and when the target was spotted, the bullets came like hail from above.
The gate, freedom, loomed in front of him, a circle of redemption. The boy felt nothing, the tufts of his hair lit with ferocity as the searchlights found his damaged form. Keep going, Keep going, his breaths formed the words and he leapt over a hedge, stumbled and smacked the ground before wrenching himself up and continuing his race.
He felt a sharp stab of pain in his calf, but with freedom so tangible the wound became intangible. Then he was upon the gate, he vaulted himself upon the metal and clung to it before scrambling up it as fast as he could. The razor barb wire curled across the top like a poisonous weed; he trampled it with his hands and feet, gouging holes and shredding his flesh like paper. He used his momentum to push off the top, he landed on the other side with a sickening crack and an exploding pain aspiring from his ankle.
"Not Now.. Don't give up on me now," he whispered aloud to his wasted body, and then with ragged breaths he ran as fast as he could, the rattling of bullets hitting the fence rising sparks into the air at his heels.
This was where the plan ended, he regarded the stony ground around him, his eye's flicking from one side to another, barely aware of the excruciating pain that his body held. He had no scheme, nowhere to go, he was hopelessly lost in a world he hardly knew.
The whine of a motor was approaching, the flap of a helicopter echoed along the skyline, time was running out, time was on the verge of collapsing.
Plan of action alluded him, he simply ran, the pain becoming more monumental in his mind; more than he had ever felt in his entire life.
A Chasm, his feet ceased to move and he stopped. Stretched before him was his hope smashed to pieces, a cut in the earth at least fifty yards across and miles long lingered in front of him, taunting him with his freedom.
The roar of the helicopter neared, the moan of an engine came still closer.
He looked up to the sky, the blackness showing no hint of pain, no sign of suffering. It wasn't fair, but then again life wasn't, and on the cusp of reality he jumped.
The Facility December 12th 4:38 AM
" Did you know about the escape?"
" No."
" Don't lie," he spat across the table at the shackled girl and she growled in response. " You were there."
She choose to ignore him and rustled the cuffs on her hands, the skin rubbed raw from the roughly cut metal.
" What do you know about 347?" He said each word carefully, his eyes steely.
" Who the hell is that?" She boldly threw the words in his direction,; her eyes glued to his.
" You may know him as Scott Lewis," her eyes flicked away from his and to her wrists nervously, but she regained her composure in a matter of seconds.
" I know him," she replied vaguely and the man's brow creased.
" When did you see him last?"
" Couple of hours ago," she evenly matched his tone.
" What did he say to you?"
" You mean you don't have video camera's there?" She laughed before continuing. " Nothing."
" How long have you known him?"
" Awhile."
" Be more specific." She glared at him.
" Well you don't exactly make it easy to keep track of time. A week, a day, a month, it really doesn't make a difference, you're killing us either way," she snapped at him and he calmly replied.
" I'm sorry, we'll have one installed as soon as possible," he palpably checked his watch. " I'm afraid I'm nearly out of time," he quite pleasantly pulled a slim silver pistol from the interior of his coat. " How did he escape?" The girl looked at the gun and fear glazed her eyes slightly, but she didn't loose a beat in the conversation.
"You really beat around the bush didn't you?" The girl said snidely and a muscle twitched in the man's throat.
" How did he escape?" The man repeated and the girl rolled her eyes.
" I told you I didn't know about it," without warning a shot echoed throughout the soundproof room, and a dull thud of a bullet in flesh followed the aftershock. The girl didn't cry out in pain, but began gasping in it shortly after she spotted the red splotch spreading steadily throughout the cloth covering her arm.
" Now I'll ask you again," the man stood up and walked over to the moaning girl, the fear widely distributed in her corneas. " How did he escape?"
" Gonna shoot me again?" She croaked and, infuriated, the man leaned closer to her, examining her face.
" Don't make the mistake of believing that you are the only one being questioned." She laughed weakly.
" Are you implying that I'm expendable?"
" Maybe," he chuckled dryly and backed up slightly so his sweaty sour breath wasn't covering her face. " But that doesn't mean that your not useful for the time being." He looked over at her and a smile started to creep on his face, " you know you look like someone…." He leaned closer again, but this time took precision in measuring her features. " What's your n-" He never finished his sentence.
The girl rammed her head into his knocking him off balance and then knocked the gun out of his hands.
" Ella," she savagely smashed his head into the wall and ran her knee into his back. " Ella Martinez." She whispered darkly and before he could regain any amount of equilibrium she was out the door, her manacles dangling on the chair she had been chained to, a bent paperclip wrangled into the lock.
OC Flock: Nebraska December 12th 3:37 AM
Sweat lingered on skin, it choked over the span of flesh, it trickled down in short spurts, wetting the fabric, lacing the material with salt. A hand came up and brushed a fresh stream from a forehead; they were two parts of the same body and moved with the trunk to crouch behind a slab of fresh concrete, a chest rose in rapid succession, fear tracing itself in the air around a mouth. A grim satisfaction settled over a face, a hand curved with malice reached over to a belt and pulled out a metal implement, the metal shown in a light; an inhuman light, reflecting on the ice whittled ground, glowing blue from the alteration of it's form. They moved, a singular they; their parts moving together, stiffness echoing in the walking form.
She didn't feel anymore; she wasn't even human anymore, she felt as if she had traded feelings and emotions for actions and violence. She was detached. Her body just responded out of respect, her limbs moved because they had been programmed to. She weighed the bar in her hand numbly; feeling the smoothness of the metal but not the cold that surrounded her like an aura.
Her head arced to the sky; she observed the moon with no reaction of its pearly phantasm beauty, just indifference scooped itself from her heart. She turned to look ahead of her, turning a battery operated microphone on from behind her ear. " Ready and in position," her voice didn't sound alive, it withered on her lips and tasted like ash in her mouth.
" Keria?" Raids voice crackled over the microphone. " But where are-"
" Ready and in position," she said in the same tone and then clicked the phone off. For a moment she thought that she felt a stirring of pain deep in her gut, but she dismissed it; walking purposefully towards the end.
OC Flock: Nebraska December 11th 11:49 PM
" Good luck Keria," Keria turned to sound of the familiar voice, knowing who it would be before he came from below the rock buttress she was perched precariously on top of.
" Raid, what are you doing here?" She asked as he swooped up casually, his broad wingspan casting a shadow down on her face as he landed next to her.
" I already told you, wish you good luck." He said in a rather cheerful tone and she looked him over with raised eyebrows before returning her gaze to the encampment sprawled between the two rock faces.
" Raid?"
" Mmmmm?"
" Do you think that it will work?"
" What the attack?" He looked mildly surprised and she turned to him with concern written on her face.
" Yeah, I just don't like splitting us up," she clamped her teeth together and sucked on the inner part of her cheek nervously. " We've always done everything important together, the kids have always been with us, you've always been with us. I don't like doing things alone."
" You're not going to be alone!" He claimed incredulously, " Flights our leader, and then theirs Pink, God, I'd hate to be on her enemy list-"
" It's not the same Raid," she said blatantly shaking her head, but otherwise remaining silent.
Raid let a loud breath escape his lips before placing a hand on Keria's shoulder. " Don't worry, everything will be fine," he traced his hand down her shoulder and to the center where her wings converged and stroked it lightly. " You'll be back before you know it."
They sat like that for a few moments, before Raid gently pulled himself into a standing position and Keria turned her face to watch him unfurl his wings. " See you afterwards!" He gave her a reassuring grin before jumping out off of the ledge and letting his feathers merge with the wind.
Keria watched him go, painting every stroke he took with her minds eye. She pushed the fear and foreboding encroaching upon her mind away, she felt the insecurity that normally integrated with her brain well upon her once again.
She pulled her knees to her chest, her wings fanning from the enormous slits cut into her jacket, watching his figure move gracefully in the distance. Were going to be alright. She told herself, " were going to be alright."
OC Flock ( Night group; Flight, Keria and Pink) : Nebraska December 12th 1:03 AM
The airs were cold and not in the least inviting, but regardless of it Flight plunged headlong into the drifts, her wings cutting the path; leading them onto their goal.
" In position!" She heard Pink chirp into her mike and on the other end Raid sighed nervously, all of them were connected to each other by a thin wire mike stringing from their ear to a small padded mike in front of their mouth. The connection of course being a radio wave.
" Okay you guys ready for orders?" Flight spoke heavily into the mike and was answered with two quick yes's. " Keria, you here me?"
" Yeah Flight," they hadn't bothered with codenames, who would name themselves Flight anyway?
" Keria, you're Pink's backup, you're to fly directly behind Pink and cover her when she goes down to the facility, you copy?"
" I copy," she said after a hesitant moment and Flight nodded.
" Good, Pink you there?"
" Yep!"
" I'm flying directly in front of you and am going to be your first guard, whatever costs do what I say, you copy." Pink didn't answer and Flight bit her lip before yelling 'you copy' louder into the mike.
" Yeah, Yeah, I got you Flight, don't worry."
" Pink, don't do anything rash, were counting on you."
" I know Flight, don't worry, I got this."
" Ladies!" Raids voice burst onto the wave length.
" Were not ladies Raid," Flight could just picture Pink rolling her eye's as she said this. " Were Human-Avain Hybrids, there's a huge difference."
" Human-Avian Hybrids then," Raid replied. " You're approaching your destination in 0023 minutes, you cannot be seen until I give you the go ahead, the Brothers aren't starting their attack for another hour or so."
" Got it," Flight said calmly, and increased the speed of her wings in agitation. In less than two hours it would begin, she hoped to God that nothing would go wrong.
OC Flock ( Communication side; Raid, Rain, Dew, Render and Nicky ): Nebraska 12th 2:11 AM
Raid checked the radio dial once making sure the channel was the right one, and moments later checked it again, his hand shaking nervously.
" Raid you okay?" Rain had her feet propped up on the desk that the radio transmitter was positioned on. "You're really antsy all of a sudden."
" It's going to begin in a few minutes," for the umpteenth time he reached over to check the dial and Rain snatched at his hand.
" It doesn't matter how many times you check it, it's going to be the same either way," she tried to give him a smile. " They'll be fine, you weren't so worried a few moments ago."
He wrung his hands together, " It's not very exact, it all depends on how the enemy reacts. I don't want to loose anybody."
" Your normally not this nervous when we get in a tussle," Rain raised her eyebrows and Raid rolled his shoulders uncomfortably.
" I have this feeling in the back of my head and it just won't go away," he sighed, something he'd done a lot that day. " I've learned to trust my feelings."
" Don't worry!" Dew chirped from the floor, " Flight promised she wouldn't let anybody get hurt."
" When she'd do that?" Raid looked curiously at the eleven year old and she shrugged her skimpy shoulders.
" She told me and Render earlier," at the mention of Renders name she looked over at the small form wedged under the desk asleep, and her lips faintly turned upwards. " Flight will take care of them, she always has Raid. She's handled more than this." In fact, she had handled a lot more. She had nearly succumbed to death twice, but fought her way from its grasp. She didn't speak of those times though, those things were locked deep inside her memory, never to be revisited, by her or anybody else.
Raid nodded slightly and then his face looked stricken when he glanced at the watch, balanced precariously next to Rain. "Shit!" He seized the radio and without a second glance at the channel frequency pressed the side button. " Pete, hear me?"
" Loud and clear."
" The time is 1:25."
" First wave out."
" May God be with you." That was it, nothing but the most terse replies were allowed.
With a trembling hand, Raid hung the radio communicator up, his eyes misty as he looked distantly at a spot on the wall; not really seeing it at all. "So," he said softly with a sigh. " It begins." And then nothing more.
Rain, Dew, and Nicky ( Render was of course, asleep under the desk) remained silent, none of them meeting each others gaze, the same feeling of bewilderment descended on all.
AN: Good God, one part done one or two to go, depending on how far the next part gets. I will post the next part in an hour or so. And thank you to all that reviewed, not nearly as many as I wanted, but hey, I'll get used to it and as long as someone's reading it, then I should be fine.
So another note on reviews, I do allow people who aren't part of Fanfic to review ( and those to lazy to login )… and really what's going to happen if you review, if your afraid that I'm going to stalk you, don't think that highly of yourself. I don't track ordinary teens around, how much fun would that be? I don't do the hiding in bushes kind of thing.
Last note before I proceed to write Part 2. My tri just ended, meaning that it will take school awhile to load me up until I'm breaking and I have nothing to do over the weekend. I will TRY to update, but this depends on my will power and self esteem ( reviews will make me happy… happy flie update ) So with further ado, lets me start writing the next section.
And sorry if you don't like the other flock… but had to be, last section will be mainly Max infested ( which I will try to post tonight… or tomorrow morning)
Flamingflie