-Chapter Ten-

AN: Hey guys I'm reuploading this chapter, because I just came to the realization that Fanfiction doesn't recognize the diamond symbol, which I have been using as a break between sections in each chapter. Very frustrating, since I've been doing this since the first chapter, and didn't even realize it didn't work. Anyway, I replaced the diamonds with dashes so I hope it works now, and clears up confusion and distinguish between Alex's first person and Max/flock's third person.

The only way out of the room, other than the door, was through the vent we'd come in, and that was a death sentence. I looked under the door and saw no feet, but you never know. It was our only option, though, so we just had to wing it. They probably had cameras watching us right now, as a matter of fact. We had to work fast and hope to God that things worked out.

"You know the plan," I hissed to the others. "Stay with your buddy. Stay with each other. Run at every opportunity. Everyone clear?"

"Yes," they all replied at various times.

"Okay. Let's go."

Feeling as if there were a lead weight sitting in my stomach, I lurched the door open. The alarm was still blaring, red lights flashing in the hall way. It looked like a scene from an action movie, or maybe a video game.

A video game, that's all this was. Take out all the bad guys, make it to the finish. Except there would be no extra lives, no health packs, no "Game Over, Press A To Restart". One strike and you're out.

It was perhaps my toughest mission yet, because I wasn't just looking after me. I had six small children who would pay if I made a mistake. It's a little additional pressure, if you know what I mean.

"Quick, quick!" I whispered, hurrying the kids through the threshold. "Remember the plan!"

Five avian-human bird children took off to the left. One stayed and gave me a critical look.

"Make it out," Max commanded.

"I'll try," I promised, wishing she'd run off with the others. I heard footsteps coming our way, fast.

"Do," she snarled. She heard the footsteps too, and her eyes softened. "But if you don't, we'll be safe."

Before I could say anything else, she turned and bolted after her friends. Without pausing to think, I spun around and took off in the opposite direction.

—

Maximum Ride had never been so terrified in her life.

Everything was chaos—the alarms, the thudding of the footsteps, the fear that everyone in her flock was so obviously feeling. Angel, who was only a baby, burst out into tears from her spot in Fang's arms. Fang was ten years old and impassive on a good day, so his nerves were even more fried at this outburst. Nudge and Gazzy were fighting tears as well, but bit their lips with a grim determination to stick it out. Iggy's face was twisted into a tortured expression as he sprinted forward with his hand glued to Max's hospital gown. His eyes were opened wide, as if maybe by doing this he would miraculously regain his sight.

Suddenly, just as they rounded the corner, they were confronted with a wall of Erasers: four of them. Max whispered rapidly into Iggy's ear, and his blind eyes went hard. He was determined.

"Gazzy, grab Angel! Get behind us!" Four year old Gazzy, still very new to the world, took his little sister from Fang and hobbled behind the rest of them. This is it, Max thought. We need to get past these guys.

The Eraser in the front took out his little radio, probably to call for reinforcements, but Max lunged forward and smacked it out of his hands. Though not trained in any way shape or form, they at least had their reflexes going for them.

The Eraser tried to return the favor to Max, but she quickly dodged his blow. Allowing her instincts to take over, she punched him as hard as she could, right where it counts. She glanced over at the others for a brief second before smashing her left foot into the attackers face.

Beside her, Iggy had also learned to let himself move naturally. He realized that he could sense when a blow was coming. He ducked and weaved, and managed to get a few solid punches in, although they were poorly positioned and didn't do much damaged.

Fang too was holding his own. He was dangerous, and it was clear to Max, with just the small glance she snuck at him, that he would be quite the fighter when they grew up. His eyes missed nothing as the big goon went after him, his mature brain calculating and recalculated as if he'd done it all his life. At one point, he slid under the Erasers legs and came up behind him in a movement so fluid that the Eraser didn't even realize what had happened until his head was being smashed in.

Fangs Eraser crumpled to unconsciousness. He was mystified, but hardly had time to think because he was already helping Nudge, who was bearing the worst of it. Her tiny face was bruised and bloody.

Max's Eraser was out, and she came to Iggy's aid. Though Iggy was certainly doing what he could, being small and blind was bound to catch up with him at some point. His nose was obviously broken, blood streaming out of the swollen blue thing rapidly.

Max and Fang eventually finished them off. With four Erasers down, the flock continued their sprint down the hallways.

Max felt her eye swelling—the jerk had managed to get a lucky punch—and Fang was missing a tooth. Gazzy was crying at this point, overwhelmed with the thought of being helpless as his family got the daylights beat out of them. Fang took Angel back mid-run and they rounded another corner. Nobody was seen down this stretch, and they made the most of it, speeding up even more.

Another corner. Another. It was eerie how deserted it seemed, and Max began to feel suspicious. Where was Alex?

And then, out of nowhere, another group of Erasers appeared. Only now there were six, by Max's count.

They stopped, and the Erasers stopped too, eyeing them up. They grinned. Easy prey. Max was trembling, staring at the Erasers.

Options, she thought to herself. What are our options?

They could try to run through, sliding under the Erasers and maneuvering their way out, but it was too risky with the little ones. Suppose they seized Angel or the Gasman? Then what?

They could throw a few bombs, but then they wouldn't have them later. Plus, it would draw attention.

Or…they could fight. They weren't in great shape after four Erasers…how would they fare after six? What would happen to Angel and Gazzy?

"This is it," Max whispered to Fang, feeling very young and vulnerable and bitterly let down. "It was worth a shot."

"We're not going down without a fight," Fang replied. "We still have a chance."

Max stared into the cold eyes of their attackers, and had the heart not to tell Fang how naïve he sounded.

—

I wasn't stronger than them, but I was sure as hell smarter. I didn't think I could run away from them, and I definitely couldn't fight them. All I could do was think fast and hope I was keeping them distracted and away from the kids.

I spotted the first group of Erasers a few seconds after I departed from the kids. I tossed the claw of my ninja shoes up to the ceiling, where it attached to the metal edge of a light. I then gripped my shoe tightly and swung over their heads, thrashing and kicking as I went so as not to allow them to grab me. I think I even injured a few.

I left the shoe, knowing there would be no time to free the little claw, and it swung back and clonked one of them in the face. I had the edge on them, and ran as fast as I could away.

It was then that I realized that the tail wasn't the only alteration I had.

My legs started jerking my body forward at a pace I'd never achieved before. I could hardly see as the world blurred by. I gained significant distance on the Erasers, who were known to be wicked fast. Faster than any man.

And I was faster than them.

I ran on the balls of my feet, and it came as second nature. I took long leaps forward and it didn't break my step, as my tail seemed to keep me balanced. And then, I came to the second group of Erasers. I took one quick glance up. We were in an area where the ceiling was at least twenty feet up.

Here goes nothing, I thought as I sprung forward. For a moment, the entire world froze. I was suspended in the air, my hair grazing the ceiling panels. Below me, the Erasers watched in awe. I felt my shirt flowing behind me, my legs flailing, my tail keeping me sturdy.

And then it was like somebody pressed 'play'. I began descending rapidly, and moving more and more forward as I did so. I was a good thirty feet ahead of the Erasers by the time I hit the floor, and I was already running again at that point.

My heart was beating so hard it was all I could hear. It seemed to be everywhere, everything.

I'm not human anymore, I thought, mystified.

"Catch me if you can!" I wailed as I ran forward, letting out a maniacal laugh that I could no longer hold in.

I came upon a group of Erasers, but their back was turned to me. Beyond them, I saw the kids, bruised and beat up, quivering at the sight of them. Max saw me, but I put a finger to my lips and she looked away, and then whispered something to Fang.

"Hey," I said loudly, taking the six Erasers by surprise. They wheeled around to see me, and I grinned evilly.

Max was smart. As soon as the Erasers turned around, she and the others took off. I was relieved beyond belief that she remembered the plan, which was vague and ever-changing, built on a few basic principles.

They left so silently that the Erasers didn't notice. They came at me, and I jumped. The ceiling was much shorter here—probably about ten feet high. I clung to it as soon as I got high enough. Somehow, even though the cracks between the tiles were tiny, I managed to stay on the ceiling. The Erasers jumped for me, but couldn't quite reach me. I quickly scuttled in the direction that Max went, and when I had confused them enough, sprung forward and took off.

I reached the kids in no time. "This way," I said, herding them into a room. They looked dubious, but followed anyway. I'd seen this room a few times in my stay here, and I knew that there was a door on the opposite side of it—though I had no clue where it led.

The room, luckily, was empty, and we lost no time hurrying across it and yanking the door open.

We were faced with a long corridor. And at the end, two steel doors.

"I'm betting on those being locked," I said as I ripped the last button off my shirt, cracked it, and whipped it at the door.

A few seconds later, it exploded.

Moonlight streamed into the building.

"Go!" I commanded, and the others ran forward again. They seemed dazed, and I realized that, aside from experimentation, they'd never been outside before. I wished I could slow this down for them, let them take it all in, but there was simply no time.

We broke out into the cool night air, and I took a deep breath. Somewhere behind us, I knew, Erasers were hot on our tail.

"Do you know how to fly?" I asked while we ran forward.

"No," Max heaved. "Not really."

"Well, today you're getting a crash course. Fang, give me Angel."

The baby was placed into my arms, and I gripped her tightly. We were in a parking lot scattered with cars of various makes and models.

"Lake Mead," I reminded them, pointing in the general direction. "I'll meet you there. Try your hardest to fly, but if you can't, just run like the wind."

"How hard can it be?" Iggy wondered as he stumbled forward.

—

How hard can it be? Max asked herself. It's flying. We're made for this.

"Go with the flow," she told the others. "Do what feels natural. This is what we were made to do."

She jumped forward and onto the car, and then leaped off and unfurled her wings.

There was a second of panic in which she felt sure that she would crash to the ground. But then, miraculously, her nine-foot wings began to carry her up and forward. She began laughing as she rose into the sky, feeling weightless and limitless and unstoppable. She glanced behind her, and to her great relief, the others were rising as well. Gazzy was right behind her, then Nudge, then Iggy and Fang. They all kept rising—albeit clumsily—but rising nonetheless.

And then, to Max's horror, shots began ringing out.

"To the forest!" She cried, using her new found strength to turn left. The others followed, making wide turns and heading into the forest. It was hard to fly in the forest, though. There were trees everywhere that both protected them and hurt them. Their wings got snagged several times, twigs drawing blood in a number of places. It was easiest for Gazzy and Nudge, who were still so tiny, but the others had seven, eight, and nine-foot wings that didn't fit too well between the trees.

Shots were still fired, but they were nowhere near the flock, slamming into trees many yards away.

"Okay, let's go up," Max said as she realized that the forest was doing more damage than good. "Stay right above the treetops."

They awkwardly began to maneuver their way up, which was a short distance but a tough climb. At one point, Fang thought he was losing altitude and panicked, pumping his wings hard and fast. This scared Iggy, who fell about five feet before regaining control, and pushed Nudge into a pine tree.

"Jeez, guys!" Max hissed. "Calm down!"

Eventually they made it out, and soared as fast as they could over the tree tops. Soon, it became apparent that the Erasers had lost them. They dropped a little, keeping an eye and ear out, but saw nothing. The forest fell away, and they were faced with a long, empty stretch of road.

They were all on the point of exhaustion, never having so much adrenaline coursing through their tiny bodies. Max was about to call it quits for the night when Nudge pointed to a sign.

In the School, Max, Fang, Iggy and Nudge had learned how to read. It was an experiment, to test their comprehensive abilities. Now, Max was immensely grateful that they'd learned, because the sign facing them said 'Lake Mead, 2 miles.'

"Two miles," she mused. "We can do two miles. Come on guys, Alex is waiting!"