Part 10
July 9, 12, 2001.
Note: Once again, I ask for your forgiveness for the less than professional sounding action parts.
She hadn't understood before this that something within Zack had been missing. Normalcy was something Max strove for. She wanted to be a friend, a sister, a woman, _human_ with all the imperfections that entailed. Zack didn't crave normalcy--he had never held a job for more than a few months at a time, he had no friends beyond the X5s, and all of his interactions with people had been shadowed by his perception of himself as a soldier. Training, instinct and his own personality made Zack ill-suited to what was required of his outside of Manticore. The lack of structure and clear objectives had left Zack uneasy. He needed something to strive towards, some visible marker of success. Escape and evade, while recognized as a valid command decision, was not something Zack could embrace on a long-term basis.
Max suspected that Zack had been waiting for this moment since they first broke free from Manticore. There was an air of fierce excitement about him as Zack considered strategy and contacted the other X5s. Watching him, Max wondered whether Zack ever regretted escaping Manticore, where his talents would have been appreciated and put to good use. She didn't ask and never would--she wasn't sure that she would care to hear his reply.
The changes taking place in Zack were having an effect on Max. That part of her which had been bred as a soldier responded to her commanding officer. She had always trusted Zack, but Max had rebelled against his authority--she had defied his orders, had ignored him, had even mocked him--and not always good-naturedly. This was something different. What they were planning her was not something routine which, despite the danger, fleeing Manticore had become. The attack on Manticore called for duty and discipline and Max found herself relating to Zack in a manner in which she hadn't since they had escaped.
She didn't like it. She didn't like _Zack_ when he was in full C.O. mode. Their relationship had lasted because Max had seen hints of humour in Zack, of vulnerability and caring and passion. He had set all that aside and he was as focused and stripped of emotion as Manticore could have wished. Intellectualy, Max knew that Zack was simply concentrating on a goal, not allowing outside distractions to cloud his ability to plan a successful rescue. She could not help thinking that he dismissed emotional concerns too easily and too thoroughly.
He had called upon all of them. For the first time since they had escaped Manticore, they were to be fully reunited. Though Zack had not said anything, the fact that he was drawing them all together hinted that he had something broader in mind than rescuing Brin. They had set up in an old mechanic's shop in Wyoming. It made Max's skin crawl knowing that they were so close to Manticore, and judging by Krit and Tinga's faces, she wasn't the only one.
Syl and Krit had gone to restock their food supply, and Max had noted Krit's hand laying low on Syl's back. She'd arched her eyebrows and caught Jondy's eye. 'Like bunnies,' Jondy had mouthed and grinned widely. Jondy had been one of the last to arrive, and Max had been delighted to know that the connection between them was still as strong as ever. She would have liked to have talked with Jondy, but Zack had been keeping them all busy. The two old friends hadn't been able to get into the in-depth conversations they both looked forward to.
They paused long enough in their work to devour the boxes of pizza Krit and Syl had brought back. Zack's voice rose over the excited chatter of voices, a barked demand for attention gaining everyone's immediate attention. "We have been running far too long," Zack said, his voice strong and steady. "We left Manticore as children, scared of the world we were entering and knowing only that the world we left behind was one which would destroy us. We've grown up, grown accustomed to the world, but we haven't lost that child's fear of Manticore. We are tough, smart, talented, and it should be Manticore which fears _us_."
Krit snorted.
Zack shot a glare in Krit's direction and seemed to deflate a bit. He'd had the tone of a man who had practiced a speech, but his voice had returned to normal when he continued. "They taught us everything we needed to know to overthrow a government," Zack reminded them, "we can use those very skills against Manticore. It's time to stand together and hit back at Manticore--hard. We can make them bleed. We can destroy them."
Tinga's long fingers were laced, her chin resting on them. She had leaned forward during Zack's speech, her eyes intent. "And how do you propose that we do that? We may be able to inflict some damage on the labs--even take out some of the scientists--but you know as well as I that Manticore's resources are not in a single location. We would be facing other X5s--maybe ever schools higher in the X-series than us."
Zack held up a hand, and Tinga fell silent. "I'm aware of the difficulties, Tinga. I'm not claiming that this would be a quick or easy process. The DNA labs, the scientists who are behind the X-series, _us_--the survival of any of these elements could help Manticore rebuild. We're going to have to hit Manticore at the top, too. We're going to have to make Manticore so costly that the benefits will no longer be worth the risk. Manticore has had nearly free reign. No one has opposed them, no one has stood in their way. It's about time someone did."
"This is for real. . ." Syl whispered, her eyes rounding. Her face went hard a moment later, and she no longer looked anything near youthful and innocent. "Let's bring them down, big brother," she said, lips twisting into a snarl.
"You're with me?"
"How could you doubt that?" Zane responded. His lips twitched and he shrugged, a silent 'what the hell?' "What's the plan?"
"The basics are still the same. Tinga has gotten into Manticore's system and has found provided us with blueprints of the base and the schedules for the various X-schools. She'll be here, hooked in and keeping an eye out through surveillance equipment." Syl and Tal were as good with computers as was Tinga, and Max knew he was keeping Tinga out of the way for Case's sake.
"Max and I will go after Brin while the rest of you hit various targets." He grabbed hold of the blueprints rolled up on the edge of the table and spread them out. Zack unrolled them, and the others leaned forward as he jabbed at the areas they were to destroy.
"This is crazy."
"Nah, this is going to be awesome."
...~*~...
There were two vans filled with equipment--computers and other communication devices for Tinga, and various forms of weaponry for the other X5s. Zane had a definite gift, Max thought. Though the vehicles were nothing to look at--they were old and utterly normal in appearance--the engines ran smoothly. They sat in silence, tense and readied for action. It was odd working with her family again. There had been so many changes within them--physically, emotionally and mentally--and yet, they had clicked back into a smooth working relationship. The time between this instant and their childhoods seemed to have disappeared and Max felt as if it had been only days ago that she had last ventured out on a training mission with the others.
The van shuddered to a halt and they poured out. Zack had already fallen back into the silent language they had employed while children. With a quick flick of his hand he broke them into smaller groups. They silently slid into the woods. Branches shook overhead, and Max drew in the heavy scent of the woods after rain. She fought back a rise of memories. Zack had pressed a gun onto her, and it felt dreadfully familiar in Max's hands. She had nearly tossed the weapon aside, stopped only by Zack's unspoken warning.
Zack was silently, coldly efficient. He hadn't wanted to leave guards at their back, and he hadn't wanted to risk the sound of gunfire being heard. Those guards they encountered died quickly with a twist of Zack's hands against their necks. He didn't go out of his way to kill the guards--just as unwilling for them to be detected because too many of them failed to report their status. Max had the feeling that Zack would not be anywhere near so cautious during their exit. She suspected that he was being literal when he had said he wanted to make Manticore bleed.
Time and distance had not served to dull Max's memory. Every hallway they passed through on their way towards the infirmary brought up images of their hellish past. It was awful that her strongest memories of some of the people she most loved were tied to such a place. Eva was clearer in the place where she died than she had been anywhere outside Manticore. Max hadn't been able to stop from wincing when Zack's booted foot landed along the edges of what Max remembered to be the spreading pool of Eva's blood.
There was a doctor with Brin when they finally reached the room in which she was being held. Max moved before Zack. She drew back her fist and smashed it into the doctor's stunned face. The man let out a wet grunt and toppled unconscious to the floor. Zack didn't say anything, for which Max was glad. Bad enough killing guards, she couldn't have stood by and watched him murder an unarmed man. Max walked around the doctor, Zack stepped over him.
Brin had been strapped down to the bed. The skin was raw and red around her wrists and ankles, showing that she had not taken to being trapped without a struggle. Her dark hair was loose around her, limp and a bit oily from being kept in bed and not being allowed to wash her hair often enough. Her lips were parted, her eyes open and glazed. There was tubbing running along the exposed inside of her arm, a needle sunken into blue veins. Zack growled softly, fingers flying across the restraints. Brin's head lolled towards Max, her eyelids fluttering slightly.
"God, Brin," Max whispered. Brin had always drawn comfort from physical contact with her family. Max reached out, resting a gentle hand against Brin's cheek. "You'll be okay," she promised.
She could hear the distant clatter of gunfire.
So, too, could Zack. "Time to move," he said, lifting Brin's unresisting body into his arms. He jerked his head in the direction of the door and Max followed.
They stayed close to the walls, moving as quickly as possible. The two X5s slowed as they rounded each new corner, scanning for guards or the few Xs who had not been assigned to duties elsewhere. Max heard Zack hiss. "Behind us," he said, and Max nodded. Max's hand was shaking slightly--so little than a normal human wouldn't have noticed. "Take Brin," Zack ordered, shifting the woman in his arms.
Though Max was strong, their similar height and body weight wouldn't allow her to carry Brin as had Zack. She ended up supporting most of Brin's weight against her side, her sister's arm draped over her shoulder. Brin's drug haze was beginning to clear. Her eyes were somewhat sharper and she was managing to hold herself upright better. Her mind was still fuzzy, but Brin stiffened against Max as bullets whizzed past them.
"We aren't too far from our exit point. Help Brin. I'll cover you," Zack said. His punctuated his orders with a return volley of fire in the direction of their pursuers. "Move!" Zack snapped before firing again.
"C'mon sis," Max said urgently, half-pulling and half-carrying Brin along with her. The entire hall shook, sending Max stumbling forward several steps. The lab had blown. One down. . . another blast sounded. "We're really going to do this," Max said. She could see the door ahead. Bodies were already littering the floor--one or more of the others had already passed this way. The floor was slick and Brin's weight threw off Max's balance. She managed not to fall.
Zane was at the door. He swooped Brin into his arms. "Run!" he shouted.
"Zack!" Max shrieked.
Zack had come into sight. Max could see the blood spreading out from the wound at his shoulder. His arm was dangling uselessly, and he had been forced to move his weapon to his other hand. He caught sight of them. "Go!" he screamed and fell as the next bullet caught him in the thigh. "Now!" he screamed again, rolling over onto his back, weapon in hand. He scooted against the wall, aiming his weapon down the hall.
"Max," Zane said. "Max!"
They ran.
...~*~...
"Max. . ."
"He's not dead," Max said. She rolled over on the bed, lifting herself on her elbows to look at Jondy. "He's not."
"Maybe not. I hope you're right," Jondy said softly, her eyes wet. Jondy had never been a graceful crier--she looked like hell. She moved slowly into the room, as if worried what Max would do if she acted too quickly. The mattress dipped slightly as she sat on the bed next to Max. "If he is, we'll get him back. And if he isn't--" she looked away when Max started, "--we'll keep on going. He was right, we can't live like this."
"I never told him," Max admitted.
"That he was right? Zack had a pretty solid sense of his own--"
Max waved her off. "Not that. I do. . . love him, you know?"
"Oh," Jondy said slowly. "He must have known. I saw the two of you together, you didn't have to tell me something was there."
"Since when have any of us been observant about our emotions?" Max said. "He told me, you know. I didn't answer. And I was so angry at him. . . He's not dead."
"No," Jondy said, "no, he isn't."
"We'll get him back."
"Of course."
Max curled around Jondy and cried.
~end~
(yes, there is possibly a sequel. In case I don't get around to it soon enough--no, he isn't dead).