Part 45
Liz
POV
Now that the results were given to us Maria, Isabel and Kyle were shown where they were going to stay and the rest of us were left to do as we pleased, but we were told we had to train. I decided to go and find X5 666 she seems to be a strong person who can help me and I need it. She had used several moves when we were fighting that I had never seen before.
Alec went off with Krit to the obstacle courses they were going to join a unit for the drills, which would not be so hard for them to do because most here look up to Alec even if this was not his base they had all heard of him. Tess and Michael went to go train in the room off the gym created for them. Michael said that they were going to work on blasts today and that Tess was going to show him how to concentrate his energy to be more efficient. Max went off with the others to the personal corridors. Then Max was going to come and train with me.
"So what are you doing over here?" Someone asked from behind me and I try with all my might not to jump. I did not hear her coming but then again I wouldn't.
"I was looking for you." I said turning around and facing X5 666.
"I thought as much, but how did you know to find me here?" She asked leaning against the gym wall. We are outside behind the gym.
"I am not sure." I admit.
"It is an instinct that you have that we are going to work on strengthening." She said.
"Great also I was wondering if you could teach me how to do a few of the moves you did." I said I could not help how eager I sounded it was like me and science I can not hide my passion.
"Not a problem as long as you show me that one flip you did." X5 666 said her eyes lighting up.
"Alright and I hope you don't mind, but 452 will be joining us." I said.
"452 yeah that's cool she can teach me how to fight the way she does. I get the feeling that she has an interesting edge to her fighting." X5 666 said.
"Yes and its called fighting dirty." I said and the two of us laugh.
"Also I think she like you could use some work on strengthening her instincts." X5 666 said.
"Okay." she lead me around the back of the gym and along the front of the base for a ways. We come to an area that looks like a square with a door in the center and we go in that door.
Inside was a large white room. Along the walls were weights, and an assortment of weapons like crossbows and swords. X5 666 walks to the center of the room and sits on the floor Indian style.
"Our first lesson is one that you need now more then ever and it is how to tell if someone is an enemy or a friend." X5 666 said.
"Really you can do that?" I asked sitting across from her.
"Yes, but not all can. 452 is coming let me go get her." X5 666 said opening a door, putting her arm out into the hall and yanking Max into the room.
"Hey what is your problem?" Max asked looking around.
"Oh it's you, sorry." Max said looking sheepish.
"It is fine." X5 666 said as she sits back on the floor and explains to Max what the three of us are going to do.
"Okay 666 wait I don't like calling you that you need a name." Max said.
"I do?" she asked looking confused.
"Yes and I think I have the perfect ones, which do you like better blaze or inferno?" Max asked.
"They both mean fire." I said and Max nodded her head.
"Why fire?" X5 666 asked.
"You come off as a spitfire." Max said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. X5 666 seemed to accept this.
"I like Blaze it sounds tough." X5 666 said.
"Great your name will be Blaze." Max said.
"Okay now we can get back to the lesson." Max said.
"Okay well not everyone can do this because it takes a strong mind which is a hard thing to find. You both have strong minds and I believe you can do this." Blaze said.
"First you need to clear your minds." Blaze said as she gets up. I try not to listen to her footsteps.
"Let your mind clear get rid of all-that jumble in there. Now I want you to picture an enemy you have faced. Now think about what the air felt like around that person." Blaze said from behind me.
"Feel that energy in the air the crackle of it and how it felt." She said her voice putting me in this sort of trance.
"Now let your minds go blank again." Blaze instructed. She leaves us to clear our heads for a moment. Whatever she is doing it is using a great deal of energy on our parts.
"Now I want you to concentrate on what the energy in this room feels like. What your energy feels like. Feel the softness of it as my energy washes over you as Max's energy flows over your body and Liz's reaches the depths of your soul. The sweetness of its whisper in the back of your mind." Blaze said. I concentrate and feel this tingle in the back of my mind it is like a tingle or tickle and I know the tingle is Blaze and the tickle is Max. Their energy feels safe and engaging.
"Now open your eyes." Blaze said and Max and I do.
"What did our energy feel like?" She asked Max and me.
"It felt gentle and warm." Max said smiling.
"It was like a friendly tickle in the back of my mind. I could tell your energy form Max's." I said.
"Really? Now that is impressive." Blaze said.
"How so?" I asked.
"Well not even I can tell people apart only if they are a friend." Blaze said.
"Go Liz." Max said.
"Now tell me the difference you felt between our energy and that of your enemy." Blaze said.
"It felt harsh, hot and it made the air crackle." I said looking down at my black boots.
"Yes it felt stifling and foul." Max said.
"Good now how do you feel?" Blaze asked us with a smirk.
"Exhausted." Max and I said at the same time.
"Good then it worked. Now every time you come across a person concentrate on them until it becomes natural to you then you will no longer have to concentrate so much. I will warn you though at first it will take a great deal of energy." Blaze said.
"Well lets go to the obstacle courses my unit will be there and you can join us." Blaze said as we get up and head out into the hall. As we walk down the hall a group of kids no more then three passes by.
"They just arrived today from Michigan. They had an extra unit so they sent them here. They
will begin training tomorrow." Blaze said as we come out into the main part of the base that is used for the obstacle courses.
"That is my unit over there." Blaze said pointing to a group that looked a little older then Zack and Zane.
"Are you the youngest?" Max asked.
"Yes." Blaze said.
"How old are you?" I asked.
"Fifteen." She said as we come up to the unit waiting for the other unit to finish up.
"Guys this is 452 and 513 they are going to run the course with us today." Blaze said as her unit turned to face us. Most of them look to be in their mid twenties early thirties.
"Guys this is 277 my CO." Blaze said pointing to the first guy. He was tall and muscular with broad shoulders, piercing blue eyes, and platinum blonde hair. He looked to be the oldest.
"This is 293." Blaze said pointing to a girl stretching. She was about twenty-three with, long chestnut brown hair, brown eyes, and ivy skin. A good word to describe her was knockout.
"That is 294." Blaze said pointing to a guy next to 277. He was clearly 294's twin with his hawk like features.
"This is 326." Blaze said pointing to a girl next to her. This girl was slightly older then 294 and 293 she is about twenty-five. She had long blonde hair, brown eyes, olive skin, and is tiny compared to the others she is about my height.
"This is 299." Blaze said. This guy is closer to our age he is about twenty-two. His hair is black, and his eyes deep brown, he looks to be oriental.
"Next is
332." She was around twenty-five and looked to be Indian. She was
gorgeous like the others but her eyes set her apart like Blaze, and
277 her eyes were almost black giving them this purple shimmer that
was awesome.
"And you already know my twin brother 665." Blaze
said as he nodded at us.
"Ah 666 why does your unit only have eight people and who is 2IC?" I asked.
"We are an elite group here and are only supposed to have eight or ten people and I am 2IC." Blaze said.
"Okay guys lets do this." 277 said and we are off.
For the first few clicks it is just running on the pavement until about the fifth click we run on the
sand for another five clicks when we get a click of tires. When we are finished with the tires there is a large cement wall about the size of a twelve-story building and we had to find a way over it. Most chose to climb it while Max, Blaze, 277 and I chose to jump half way then climb the rest getting us over the wall first. Next was more running through the desert for another three clicks until we came to a large lake that I know was not there before. There was no going around it we had to swim across. All of us jumped in and started the breath stroke many of them were better swimmers then Max and I because we hate the water. After the lake was two clicks of barbed wire that we had to crawl under and I got nicked in the back once and boy did it sting. After that I noticed that we turned around somewhere in the barbed wire and were now heading back to the base. We came upon the lake again and swam across then the rest of the way was running. We got back to base half an hour later to see Alec, Krit, Zack, and Biggs with some group getting ready to run the course. They took one look at us and gulped at our state; we were beat.
"What are Liz and Max doing with unit three?" Biggs asked looking shocked.
"They were doing the course with us." 277 said as we all walk towards the other unit.
"That is unit seven." Blaze said.
"What is the big deal?" Krit asked Biggs.
"Dude unit three here is like the best unit in all of Manticore." A girl said next to Biggs.
"Well 452 and 513 did great they kept up with our pace and really toughed it out. I am impressed that you two could jump with 666 and I no one else can." 277 said as the rest of unit three nodded in agreement.
"Thanks, but dang you all are fast." Max said the two of us were hunched over trying to catch our breath, we had not worked like that in a long time.
"Biggs you okay?" I asked seeing his eyes were still wide.
"Yeah still in shock." He said.
"Well we have to go do our run. 452 and 513 want to join us?" 277 asked.
"Yes. Later guys and god luck." I said as we leave our friends and go with unit three.
"Okay this next part is all running in the desert it is eight clicks one way eight the other." 277 said as we all start running at a steady pace. Blaze, Max, 277, and I in the front the others farther behind.
"So 513, word is that you have entered the breeding program." 277 said with a smirk.
"Yes with 494." I said causing Blaze to laugh.
"I knew it." She said as 277 groaned.
"What?" I asked.
"We all had a bet going as to who you were going to be paired up with. It was either 494, 698, or 566." 277 said as we upped the pace slightly.
"Well they put me with 566 and 698 is with Isabel." Max said.
"Oh right the alien." Blaze said.
"Yeah." Max said with a smile.
"Are either of you in the breeding program?" I asked.
"Honey we are the best of course we are." Blaze said.
"Who are your breeding partners?" Max asked.
"Oh now I thought that was a dead give away." 277 said laughing.
"Who?" I asked.
"We are paired together." Blaze said as the wind picked up and catches her strawberry hair making it trail behind her as her hair fell out of its holder.
"You two have no problem with this?" Max asked her eyes wide with shock.
"No why would we?" 277 asked.
"Well I think it's you being so much older then me that has them shocked." Blaze said with a snicker.
"Oh that well yeah I guess it is a bit out there, but they needed to pair people together according to genes that work best together and ability and we got paired together." 277 said.
"So why did you enter into this? I mean you did not have to." Blaze asked.
"Well I wanted to do this because I wanted a family of my own. I have Krit, and Max for the blood part, but I have never had blood parents and I was only ever close to my dad and he was even weird around me. I guess mainly to have someone around that will not be closed off from me in anyway and to just have something that is a part of me. Then there is my liking Alec a great deal almost to the point of love here people and he has never had a good blood family that he has not hated. Also, because I feel bad about blowing up the DNA lab." I said really quickly.
"I get that and that is why I am thinking about it." Max said.
"Were you two forced into it?" I asked Blaze and 277.
"Well in some ways yes they made it pretty clear that they wanted the two of us and well I guess I did it because I wanted a family." Blaze said and Max and I nodded our heads because we were doing it for similar reasons.
"The same goes for me. Besides I was glad that they put me with 666 and not 362 like they had originally wanted to. Don't get me wrong I like her just not the way I like 666." 277 said as we start to turn back. I like being able to run with others it keeps my mind on other things and not the strain my muscles are feeling.
"So before this did you two like you know?" Max asked causing Blaze to full out belly laugh.
"Are you kidding they would have shipped us off to different bases. I was lucky when I was put with these guys they are a more stable unit then what I was used to and I did not want to go back to that." Blaze said.
"Yeah and then there was the age thing." 277 said laughing.
"Before that did you two have any feelings for each other?" Max asked.
"I wanted him." Blaze said causing 277 to stumble.
"You okay?" I asked him and he nodded yes.
"So that explains it." He said as the three of us shot him a confused look.
"Remember when we were in Monaco on a mission and you went into heat? You went right for me." 277 said pulling off his black top.
"Oh yeah well that was mostly genetics I was only interested in getting with the strongest most capable guy and well you being the alpha male at the time I went straight for you." Blaze said as we come back to the base. The run went by quickly, but that is probably because we were running at a brisk pace.
"So we have a break now you guys can do what you want or just come with me." Blaze said but she has this look on her face letting us know she wants us to go with her.
"We are going to stick with you if that is alright." I said.
"Yeah that is great. I will see you later." Blaze said to 277. After we are a good ways away from the others I decide to find out why she wants us with her.
"So what's up?" I asked her she looks at me funny then shakes her head.
"Sorry I had to think about that one. Common verbal usage is great but they miss a few things once in a while. Did you mean to ask me why I wanted you guys to come with me?" Blaze asked and I nodded my head yes.
"Well you see I have been feeling weird as of late and earlier today I went to get some tests done and they should be done by now I was wondering if you two would come with me." Blaze said looking for the first time like a normal scared kid.
"Why do I get the feeling this has to do with the breeding program?" Max asked.
"Well because it was a pregnancy test." Blaze said.
