sorry it's been a while. my server's down and i am patiently (well, trying to be patient anyways) to upload the rest of this DA fic. enjoy! don't forget to read and review!!!
Chapter Five
Angels.
Am I dead? Logan asked himself.
An angel was staring straight into his eyes. With glasses, white blouse with some embroidery, glasses, a thin and calm face, and long hair...
Max....
"Welcome back to the real world, Mr. Cale," came out of the perfect lips of the girl. "You aren't dead...not yet, anyways. I hope the operation wasn't all bad."
Logan blinked again, then was taken in shock. He was in a hospital wardroom, on a bed, in hospital clothing, some monitor beeping beside him. And an Asian girl beside him..."M-Mugen? What the hell are you doing here? Where's Bling?"
"Went home," she responded. "And I'm here."
"What are you doing here?" he demanded.
"To make sure you don't die," she responded tersely. "The operation was a success...you made it out alive. As for the results...we'll just have to wait a bit and see what happens."
Logan sighed, blinking. "Max..." he mumbled.
Her mouth twitched. "I thought she'd be here with you."
"She had to go," he replied shortly. "Something important came up. Didn't need my concern. Figures...and I didn't even tell her of my operation. Crap. I guess I wanna surprise her..."
Mugen's eyes went hard. "Something important? Did she say?"
"Nothin'."
Before he could say another word, Mugen fumbled in her knapsack and pulled out a slim silver object. A laptop---a really expensive one, too. Some clicks and she was on. Logan couldn't see what she was doing for she was typing really fast and the back of the monitor was facing him, so he sighed and leaned back again. But she was good---and fast. That scared him; after all, that made them equal.
She looked dead serious. And grim. Back to the old face again.
"What is it?" he asked softly.
She swallowed dryly. "I have some contacts here and there," she responded tersely. "I also have access to telephone lines, cable lines, etc. Max Guevara...hmm...the last thing she did before coming to your place was picking up a phone call."
"Who was it?"
"It's...not even listed."
Logan didn't like where this was going. Questions popped up randomly in his head. Who was it? What did he or she wanted with Max? Was there any connection to Max's urgent dismissal? Is Max okay? He blinked; he had to remain calm and in control. He didn't want to bust a nerve...especially in the leg. He breathed in. "Can you trace it?"
"I can try," she said, a bit distant. She was already typing.
Minutes passed. Tension passed.
"I think I got the signal," she finally replied tersely.
"I think?" he echoed.
She darted a deadly glare at him. He sort of got the message as she calmed her gaze and said, "Okay. Well, the lines seemed to be encrypted...whoever called her was pretty damn good at what they do. I've been able to crack the forsaken code---"
"Waitaminute, what kind of code is it?" he asked.
She looked at him, perplexed. "Why, military."
He blinked at her. "Are you telling me that you can crack even the toughest military codes?"
She shrugged casually. "I don't know," she responded coolly. "I mean, I did hack into a military line on my way here...got info on what's going on here in Seattle, and I did catch on to some encryption stuff when I got some utensils for the journey in some really tight-up security military station...why?"
"Gosh! I never thought I'd run into some who does that!"
She shrugged again, colouring visually. "I do have an art for it." She turned back to her screen. "Anyways, as I was saying, I hacked into the code encrypting the entire line. The source of the message is some kind of facility...oh, shoot."
"What?"
"Damn, that's the facility I scouted about last night."
"You what?!" he shouted.
"It's part of my mission," she explained quickly to cover up for the mistake. "I always check the perimeters of what would be in my mission. Anyways, it is from that facility. I'm bringing up a full-scale map now of the area...hmm...basement sector...communications room. This isn't good. There's cells in this facility..."
"Damn! Manticore!" Logan watched her expression carefully. They sharpened intensely as her eyes narrowed, a scowl forming on her full lips. Logan was suddenly gripped with fear; what was up with that?
"Manticore..." she growled. "I should've known---damn! Why didn't I think of this before?!"
"What are you talking about?"
She sighed heavily. "I should've thought of this from the beginning," she said glumly. "Why would there be a facility at the outer districts? Guarded by armed jarheads with sheer determination that is absolutely undefined---oh, I should have never taken this mission---"
"So why did you?"
She shrugged. "I needed the files..."
"Ms. Nagosaki?" the nurse asked from behind.
"Yes?"
"You wanted the information," she said curtly, handing Mugen a acetate slip of paper. "Dr. Carr will come in shortly to check up on Mr. Cale. If you'd excuse me..."
"Thank you, ma'am."
Logan gestured to the acetate. "What's that?"
She lifted the acetate slip up. "Wha---this? Nothin out of the ordinary...just checking if you're gonna survive beyond the hospital doors," she responded crisply.
He rolled his eyes, agitated. "Gee, thanks for your concern."
Dr. Carr entered the room before Mugen could win back a quip. He gracefully went to Logan's side, without any hesitation or hello. "Mr. Cale," he said curtly, professionally. "How do you feel?"
"Fine. I feel...great."
"That's good," Dr. Carr responded, obviously pleased.
Mugen rolled her eyes at the patient sweet talk. "Okay, okay," she said impatiently. "If he's all fine and dandy...which you can't prove until you can test if it really works."
"How's that?" Dr. Carr asked patiently.
"Easy." She lifted her hand and suddenly whipped it down to where Logan's legs were. It was a hard whip, but she ignored the throb of pain running up her fingers.
"Ouch!" Logan shouted in pain.
She smiled slyly. "Okay, mission accomplished, Doc. He's fine."
Dr. Carr turned pale while Logan massaged his leg. Felt real. Crazy kid, Logan thought to himself. She's got to be absolutely nuts to actually hit me like that at a time like this...though it did feel real. And it certainly hurt like hell! He frowned. "Next time, Mugen, give me a warning, alright?"
"No praw" was her response.
Dr. Carr looked positively anguished. "Um, well," he stammered. "I'd like to have Mr. Cale stay here overnight, to make sure he is...er, fit to go on his feet and do whatever he feels like. In the meantime, I suggest you run along home...er...kid."
A flash of annoyance flickered across her face as she tried hard not to say anything as she stood to her feet. "My name is Mugen Nagosaki, Dr. Carr," she said curtly, no annoyance in her voice at all. "I go to the Guardian Angel Private High School downtown and have known Mr. Cale for some quite time." She handed Dr. Carr a flimsy note. "There is my phone number if you need to contact me, Doc. Arigatou..." She pivoted on her heel and left swiftly.
Dr. Carr faced Logan.
Logan raised his hands. "She's a weird one...that kid."
Indeed.
Was she dead?
No, she could still feel her heartbeat.
But she doesn't require sleep…
Max opened her eyes slowly to find herself in a dark cell. She fought to stay awake as she tried to get off the bunker where she was thrown. She was surprised to find herself unable to move. She twitched, jerked her muscles, only to see that she was immobilized.
"Like my trick, huh?"
Max's head snapped about to see Lydecker standing by the bars.
"You son of a---" She tried to get up.
Lydecker shook his head. "Uh-uh, don't try that," he warned in a teasing voice, his eyes dead serious. Max let out a cry of frustration and remained still. "You see, Max, I have injected you with something new called a muscle stimulant that slows down blood flow to your muscles till they're stiff. Nifty little dandy thing created by our scientists here, in Manticore."
"You're sick," she spat from her position.
Lydecker didn't look moved as he scoffed and turned to the guards, then back at Max. "Oh well, I have you back now," he said curtly. "You, Brin and Zack---heh, funny. You got Brin out of here a few months ago, and what happens? She's back here again. As for Zack---however did you persuade him to come back?"
"It's none of your business."
He raised his brow. "Oh, really?" He shook his head again, like the arrogant bastard he was. He then looked at Max carefully, his face a mask of earnestly. Max ignored the mask. "Max---you still don't understand, do you?"
"What is there to understand? You're a filthy, self-serving bastard who uses us as pawns in a game. You're sick." Max tried hard not to groan as she rested back, trying to feel a weak spot on the restraints. Damn, she thought in her mind, they're getting better everyday. "So---who were those goons you sent after us?" she said as casually as she could. "Enhanced genetic soldiers? Or extremely trained ordinary people?" The last words came out as a hiss.
"Not as dramatic," he responded thinly, his military training definitely familiarized there. "They're a new series of soldiers, genetically created to do the duties, no independence, just orders. Known as the X10." When he saw Max's puzzled face, he explained, "We chose 10 because their twice as strong from you."
This isn't good...she thought.
"Enough chit chat," Lydecker snapped. "I must go now and talk to your "siblings". You'll be called in the morning to run some tests to see how screwed up your metabolism has gone since you left Manticore. I'll see you later..."
No, her mind screamed.
Chapter Five
Angels.
Am I dead? Logan asked himself.
An angel was staring straight into his eyes. With glasses, white blouse with some embroidery, glasses, a thin and calm face, and long hair...
Max....
"Welcome back to the real world, Mr. Cale," came out of the perfect lips of the girl. "You aren't dead...not yet, anyways. I hope the operation wasn't all bad."
Logan blinked again, then was taken in shock. He was in a hospital wardroom, on a bed, in hospital clothing, some monitor beeping beside him. And an Asian girl beside him..."M-Mugen? What the hell are you doing here? Where's Bling?"
"Went home," she responded. "And I'm here."
"What are you doing here?" he demanded.
"To make sure you don't die," she responded tersely. "The operation was a success...you made it out alive. As for the results...we'll just have to wait a bit and see what happens."
Logan sighed, blinking. "Max..." he mumbled.
Her mouth twitched. "I thought she'd be here with you."
"She had to go," he replied shortly. "Something important came up. Didn't need my concern. Figures...and I didn't even tell her of my operation. Crap. I guess I wanna surprise her..."
Mugen's eyes went hard. "Something important? Did she say?"
"Nothin'."
Before he could say another word, Mugen fumbled in her knapsack and pulled out a slim silver object. A laptop---a really expensive one, too. Some clicks and she was on. Logan couldn't see what she was doing for she was typing really fast and the back of the monitor was facing him, so he sighed and leaned back again. But she was good---and fast. That scared him; after all, that made them equal.
She looked dead serious. And grim. Back to the old face again.
"What is it?" he asked softly.
She swallowed dryly. "I have some contacts here and there," she responded tersely. "I also have access to telephone lines, cable lines, etc. Max Guevara...hmm...the last thing she did before coming to your place was picking up a phone call."
"Who was it?"
"It's...not even listed."
Logan didn't like where this was going. Questions popped up randomly in his head. Who was it? What did he or she wanted with Max? Was there any connection to Max's urgent dismissal? Is Max okay? He blinked; he had to remain calm and in control. He didn't want to bust a nerve...especially in the leg. He breathed in. "Can you trace it?"
"I can try," she said, a bit distant. She was already typing.
Minutes passed. Tension passed.
"I think I got the signal," she finally replied tersely.
"I think?" he echoed.
She darted a deadly glare at him. He sort of got the message as she calmed her gaze and said, "Okay. Well, the lines seemed to be encrypted...whoever called her was pretty damn good at what they do. I've been able to crack the forsaken code---"
"Waitaminute, what kind of code is it?" he asked.
She looked at him, perplexed. "Why, military."
He blinked at her. "Are you telling me that you can crack even the toughest military codes?"
She shrugged casually. "I don't know," she responded coolly. "I mean, I did hack into a military line on my way here...got info on what's going on here in Seattle, and I did catch on to some encryption stuff when I got some utensils for the journey in some really tight-up security military station...why?"
"Gosh! I never thought I'd run into some who does that!"
She shrugged again, colouring visually. "I do have an art for it." She turned back to her screen. "Anyways, as I was saying, I hacked into the code encrypting the entire line. The source of the message is some kind of facility...oh, shoot."
"What?"
"Damn, that's the facility I scouted about last night."
"You what?!" he shouted.
"It's part of my mission," she explained quickly to cover up for the mistake. "I always check the perimeters of what would be in my mission. Anyways, it is from that facility. I'm bringing up a full-scale map now of the area...hmm...basement sector...communications room. This isn't good. There's cells in this facility..."
"Damn! Manticore!" Logan watched her expression carefully. They sharpened intensely as her eyes narrowed, a scowl forming on her full lips. Logan was suddenly gripped with fear; what was up with that?
"Manticore..." she growled. "I should've known---damn! Why didn't I think of this before?!"
"What are you talking about?"
She sighed heavily. "I should've thought of this from the beginning," she said glumly. "Why would there be a facility at the outer districts? Guarded by armed jarheads with sheer determination that is absolutely undefined---oh, I should have never taken this mission---"
"So why did you?"
She shrugged. "I needed the files..."
"Ms. Nagosaki?" the nurse asked from behind.
"Yes?"
"You wanted the information," she said curtly, handing Mugen a acetate slip of paper. "Dr. Carr will come in shortly to check up on Mr. Cale. If you'd excuse me..."
"Thank you, ma'am."
Logan gestured to the acetate. "What's that?"
She lifted the acetate slip up. "Wha---this? Nothin out of the ordinary...just checking if you're gonna survive beyond the hospital doors," she responded crisply.
He rolled his eyes, agitated. "Gee, thanks for your concern."
Dr. Carr entered the room before Mugen could win back a quip. He gracefully went to Logan's side, without any hesitation or hello. "Mr. Cale," he said curtly, professionally. "How do you feel?"
"Fine. I feel...great."
"That's good," Dr. Carr responded, obviously pleased.
Mugen rolled her eyes at the patient sweet talk. "Okay, okay," she said impatiently. "If he's all fine and dandy...which you can't prove until you can test if it really works."
"How's that?" Dr. Carr asked patiently.
"Easy." She lifted her hand and suddenly whipped it down to where Logan's legs were. It was a hard whip, but she ignored the throb of pain running up her fingers.
"Ouch!" Logan shouted in pain.
She smiled slyly. "Okay, mission accomplished, Doc. He's fine."
Dr. Carr turned pale while Logan massaged his leg. Felt real. Crazy kid, Logan thought to himself. She's got to be absolutely nuts to actually hit me like that at a time like this...though it did feel real. And it certainly hurt like hell! He frowned. "Next time, Mugen, give me a warning, alright?"
"No praw" was her response.
Dr. Carr looked positively anguished. "Um, well," he stammered. "I'd like to have Mr. Cale stay here overnight, to make sure he is...er, fit to go on his feet and do whatever he feels like. In the meantime, I suggest you run along home...er...kid."
A flash of annoyance flickered across her face as she tried hard not to say anything as she stood to her feet. "My name is Mugen Nagosaki, Dr. Carr," she said curtly, no annoyance in her voice at all. "I go to the Guardian Angel Private High School downtown and have known Mr. Cale for some quite time." She handed Dr. Carr a flimsy note. "There is my phone number if you need to contact me, Doc. Arigatou..." She pivoted on her heel and left swiftly.
Dr. Carr faced Logan.
Logan raised his hands. "She's a weird one...that kid."
Indeed.
Was she dead?
No, she could still feel her heartbeat.
But she doesn't require sleep…
Max opened her eyes slowly to find herself in a dark cell. She fought to stay awake as she tried to get off the bunker where she was thrown. She was surprised to find herself unable to move. She twitched, jerked her muscles, only to see that she was immobilized.
"Like my trick, huh?"
Max's head snapped about to see Lydecker standing by the bars.
"You son of a---" She tried to get up.
Lydecker shook his head. "Uh-uh, don't try that," he warned in a teasing voice, his eyes dead serious. Max let out a cry of frustration and remained still. "You see, Max, I have injected you with something new called a muscle stimulant that slows down blood flow to your muscles till they're stiff. Nifty little dandy thing created by our scientists here, in Manticore."
"You're sick," she spat from her position.
Lydecker didn't look moved as he scoffed and turned to the guards, then back at Max. "Oh well, I have you back now," he said curtly. "You, Brin and Zack---heh, funny. You got Brin out of here a few months ago, and what happens? She's back here again. As for Zack---however did you persuade him to come back?"
"It's none of your business."
He raised his brow. "Oh, really?" He shook his head again, like the arrogant bastard he was. He then looked at Max carefully, his face a mask of earnestly. Max ignored the mask. "Max---you still don't understand, do you?"
"What is there to understand? You're a filthy, self-serving bastard who uses us as pawns in a game. You're sick." Max tried hard not to groan as she rested back, trying to feel a weak spot on the restraints. Damn, she thought in her mind, they're getting better everyday. "So---who were those goons you sent after us?" she said as casually as she could. "Enhanced genetic soldiers? Or extremely trained ordinary people?" The last words came out as a hiss.
"Not as dramatic," he responded thinly, his military training definitely familiarized there. "They're a new series of soldiers, genetically created to do the duties, no independence, just orders. Known as the X10." When he saw Max's puzzled face, he explained, "We chose 10 because their twice as strong from you."
This isn't good...she thought.
"Enough chit chat," Lydecker snapped. "I must go now and talk to your "siblings". You'll be called in the morning to run some tests to see how screwed up your metabolism has gone since you left Manticore. I'll see you later..."
No, her mind screamed.
