Hey guys, welcome back. So, I've toyed with you enough with Max's fate, so this chapter will cover the aftermath of that particular confrontation.
Chapter Twenty-One: Blast from the Past
2127, Eight Years Ago
Max's birthday was coming up very soon, only a week away. She'd finally be eighteen. For a time, it seemed unlikely she would even make it past her early teens, not after her parents disappeared. She owed her survival entirely to Verge. Without them, she would be dead. No doubt about that. There was only so long a thirteen-year-old girl could have lived on the streets in Neo-Seattle. She had spent most of her life in that city and didn't really understand its darker side until she was forced to live it. For some unlucky kids and adults, that was their day-to-day reality.
She sighed, lounging around on the couch. Their temporary HQ was pretty cozy. Since they moved around a lot, it wasn't worth getting too comfortable in any one place. For them, home wasn't a place, it was their group. So long as they were together, that was enough. Speaking of her adoptive family, she was sure they were planning something big to celebrate her birthday. Anything for a party, especially were Wraith was concerned. While Max loved her dearly, thought of her as a parent, she was an obnoxious drunk. Wren too could get surprisingly rowdy, weird since he was normally so reserved. Maybe it ran in their family, since they were actually half-siblings. Blood relation didn't matter all that much, though.
It was then that Max noticed a shadow leave the building, disappearing into the night. Curious, she followed it. If someone was sneaking around their base, the others should know. They had a few enemies. Still, it wasn't worth worrying the others yet. Unless she knew it was actually something, or someone, dangerous. Decisively, she tailed the figure keeping her distance. After some time, the shadow stopped and Max hid out of sight. Squinting, she could just about make out another person, well several. They were all armed, ready to fire.
"Ah, Alecto, glad you could join us." Max's eyes went wide hearing the name, also recognizing the person speaking. What was Alecto doing here? Why was she meeting with the leader of Vortex, Electra? They were from rival mercenary gangs. It made no sense.
Alecto remained silent, making it impossible for Max to deduce what was going on. When she did finally start talking, it was much too quiet to hear from where the young mercenary was hiding. She needed to get closer. Slowly and silently, she crept forward not daring to breathe.
Suddenly, a loud explosion echoed through the air, a white blinding flash and ringing sound accompanying it. Pain shot through Max's arm and the right side of her face, a scream escaping from her lips. It was excruciating, like nothing she had ever experienced before. Everything was muffled and distant. Too much to bear she passed out, plunged into darkness.
When she regained consciousness once more, she tried opening her eyes. Her right one didn't respond to her request, leaving her in the dark. A sudden sharp pain jabbed at her head, making her face crumple up.
"Ugh, my head…" She went to grab her head with her right arm, confused when she felt nothing. When she looked down, she got a shock. Where her arm had once been, now there was only a bandaged stump. Cold fear ran through her veins, nothing making sense.
"Max, calm down," a soothing voice commanded, taking control before the young girl hyperventilated.
"What happened?" Max asked croakily, turning to see Ash sat beside, the mercenary leader looking so much older all of a sudden.
"Alecto happened," Ash replied, her expression filling with murderous intent. Max wracked her brain, trying to remember. The last thing she could recall was… "She betrayed us, Max. Got you hurt, caught in a fucking explosion of all things. I'll never forgive her, not for as long as I live and even after that. Don't worry, though. We'll get you patched up."
Looking down at her missing arm again, feeling really weird, the extent of her injuries became clear. "How?"
"Simple, get you a new arm…" Ash gently moved her fringe, exposing the bandaged side of her face, "and eye. Whatever the cost. Think of it as a birthday present."
"Isn't that going to be crazy expensive?" Max asked hesitantly. Replacing limbs and eyes was not cheap, far from it. Sure, Verge made a decent profit but… even they had their limits.
"It will, but you're worth every chip, little one," Ash pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead, taking the remaining hand in hers. "No question."
For the first time in years, the fearless mercenary leader cried. Max was her daughter, and she had been hurt by someone she should have been able to trust. A family member. Of course, Ash felt responsible. She should have been there to protect Max, taken the bullet for her.
As the tears dried she made a vow, to herself, to her family, to Max most of all: Alecto would not get away with this betrayal.
With a soft groan, Max's eyes opened. Her vision was blurry, body aching. She felt like she had been hit by a truck and left on the side of the road in burning heat. All she could do was move her eyes, take in her surroundings. The room was small, almost claustrophobic. Every inch of space was covered with various lotions and potions, some of which looked lethal. They bubbled and hissed menacingly, sometimes shifting from a toxic green or blue to deathly black. Definitely not fit for human consumption. Others seemed to be of the healing variety, a light golden elixir or warm colored tonic that smelled faintly of citrus.
"Finally awake, are you? About time," an unfamiliar voice suddenly spoke, catching her attention. It sounded distorted, electronic.
Turning her head slightly, Max noticed someone standing over by the door. They were covered head to toe in loose, dark clothing, the only visible part being their eyes and the dark skin around them. One of the brown eyes was tinged with red, faintly glowing, suggesting cybernetic enhancement. There was a long scar running down the eye, partially covered by a face mask and hood.
"Wh…?" Max's voice was raspy, throat dry. The words refused to leave her throat, making her cough instead. She felt so pathetic and vulnerable right now.
The mystery person grabbed a bottle from a nearby counter, pouring a quarter-glass of translucent purple liquid before mixing it with a dash of golden tonic. "Wouldn't bother trying to talk or move yet. That stuff they injected you with was supposed to bring you to the brink of death, make whatever time you had left overwhelmingly painful. Would've killed you eventually. Fortunate enough for you, I know a few things about antidotes and medicines."
This was all still very confusing for the young mercenary. The last thing she remembered… a sharp pain in her neck, Electra pointing a gun at her face, a gunshot… She had been convinced she was dead, yet here she was. Alive, as far as she could tell.
"Here, drink," the other person in the room demanded, thrusting the concoction towards her. "Tastes like shit, but it'll help."
Max stared at the glass, watching the golden tendrils swirl amongst the lilac. While the shimmering liquid looked pretty, she had no idea what it even was. Maybe she shouldn't drink this, not until she knew what was in it. For all she knew, this person was trying to kill her. While this liquid wasn't as ominous as the bubbling green potions of death, that didn't mean a single thing.
Noticing the hesitance, her companion let out a short, sharp laugh. "What, worried its poison? Oh, please. If I wanted to kill you, I would have left you to your fate. You would be dead without me. Doesn't make sense to help if I wanted you dead. A total waste of time, energy and resources."
That was a fair point. Swallowing her apprehension, Max took a huge gulp almost coughing again at the bitter taste. Everything in her screamed to spit it out, but she didn't. Instead, she drank it all. Already, she was starting to feel better, her throat not quite as sore and body less achy. Maybe it was all in her head, and maybe the tonic had genuinely worked.
"What was that?" Max asked, finally finding her words again.
"My own blend of medicinal herbs and extracts," the stranger replied simply, putting the now empty glass on the side. "Some people pay decent money for it, so consider yourself lucky."
Now that Max could think clearly, or clearer at least, she wondered why they were helping. "Why are you doing this, helping me? You don't know me."
"Let's just say, I have personal reasons and leave it at that," the stranger replied, evading the question. "All you need to know is whoever tried to shoot you, they took a bullet to the shoulder instead of firing one into your head. You're welcome, by the way."
Even more confused, the young mercenary pressed for further detail. "Who are you? Why were you even there?"
"Does it matter?" Again, the mysterious stranger avoided giving a proper answer.
Realizing it was pointless asking for personal information, she settled on a more general topic. "Okay, well can you tell me where we are at least?"
"District Nine, under the radar," they responded simply, checking a few of the bottles and vials scattered around the room.
Max sighed, frustrated at the vague responses. "How long have I been out for?"
The hooded stranger glanced over their shoulder. "Maybe a month or so."
"A month?!" Max all but shouted. A whole month. That was crazy. What had happened in that time? Did Wraith and Ash make it back? Where was Rachel? Was Chloe…? Not knowing was torture.
"That's what I said, yes." Rolling their eyes, the stranger began mixing a new potion together. "Do you always ask this many questions?"
"When I don't know what's going on, yeah." Max had to know what had happened while she was out for the count, and fast.
Swirling the now orange liquid, her companion put the vial down and leaned against one of the crammed counters. "You want to know what's going on, fine. PresCorp have Neo-Seattle on lock down. Increased security and patrols, which I assume has something to do with you. Whatever you did, you spooked 'em good, kid… and everyone else is suffering for it." They let out a deep sigh, sounding wistful. "Hasn't been this bad for thirteen years."
If that was true, all the more reason for Max to get up and search. "I have to find my family and friends."
"I wouldn't bother," the stranger stated matter-of-factly. "If they have any sense, they will have moved on or gone into hiding by now. If they are still alive, that is. Either way, you won't find them without putting yourself at risk."
Even considering death as an option… Max couldn't think like that. Not now. "Look, I need to find them. This isn't a choice for me."
"Isn't it?" they asked, crossing their arms and letting an uncomfortable silence fill the room. "Well, I can't stop you. It's your life."
If Max was going to do this, she would need help. "I know this is asking a lot after everything you've done for me, but… I need help."
"You want my help on a suicide mission," the stranger summarised, looking at her like she was truly crazy. "Well, why didn't you say so in the first place. Sign me up."
Sensing she was fighting a losing battle, Max pressed harder. "I have no idea where to even begin. Surely, you must know more than me."
The masked stranger narrowed their eyes at her insistence. "If you have any sense, you'll give up on this. If not, well, I might know some places for you to start. There are some underground settlements I trade with. Medicine is in high demand."
"Can you take me to them?" she asked, not all that confident she could swing it her way.
"Shit, girl, it's all take with you," they muttered under their breath just loud enough for Max to hear.
"Please. I'll do whatever you want, just… help me one more time." Max was practically begging now. She needed to know everyone was okay, Chloe especially.
"I think I liked you better when you couldn't speak." Shaking their head, the hooded stranger sighed in resignation. "If it gets you to stop whining, fine. I don't need another headache. We move at dawn." With that, the figure left a tray with a bowl of steaming stew and cup on the side table and returned to mixing up tonics.
Sitting up, Max began to eat. Surprisingly, it didn't taste all that bad. All she could do for the time being was rest up. From the sounds of it, she would need to keep her strength up.
Of course Max ain't dead. Would I really do that? Maybe, but not this time at least. Have a great day and see you next time.