Missing In Action
I knocked on the door of my target's apartment. From my surroundings I had deduced that this was a rich neighborhood. I don't know why this mattered to me.
A tall, muscular man with dark skin opened the door. I labeled him as my major adversary if anything went wrong and I had to fight.
"I'm here to see Logan Cale. It's about my sister." I explained.
This man, like the woman at Jampony, seemed to instantly understand. Did everyone here have some idea about us?
"Come on in. Just please...try not to mention her name. They were very close." he explained.
I nodded although I really didn't understand. Who was this Logan Cale and what did he have to do with Max and Zack and my other family? Yet more questions I wanted answers to.
The man escorted me through the apartment to the side of a man who sat in a wheelchair. He sat before numerous screens, the main one that of a computer. His eyes were red and ringed with the purple bags caused by lack of sleep. He had a very haggard appearance. As if he didn't care about it anymore.
He didn't even look in my direction as I approached.
"Who is it now, Bling?" was his only reaction.
"A sister." the man, apparently Bling, said.
The man in the wheelchair who I assumed was Logan Cale sighed. After a long pause he turned towards me.
"You probably have lots of questions. I beg you not to ask me. I'll take you to Krit and Syl." he said.
I nodded again. Part of me sunk inside as I learned that the brother the woman had mentioned was not Zack, but Krit. I refused to let that affect me and followed Logan Cale as he wheeled out the door. Bling trailed us all the way to Logan's vehicle and helped him get in. I climbed in the passenger side.
"You look a little young to be an X-5." Logan said later as we drove.
I wasn't that much younger.
"I'm not an X-5." I admitted, then felt the need to continue for no apparent reason, "I am a special project. Created from Zack's DNA. I'm looking for my brother."
I watched Logan for his reaction. The only visible change I detected was a moment of deepened sadness and pity. I wondered why, if he was so close to Max and the X-5's, why he was not suspicious of me. I might be an agent from Manticore for all he knew. Maybe he just didn't care. Maybe he figured Krit and Syl could handle any interrogations that needed to be done.
It wasn't long before he pulled into a building and parked. I immediately spotted two people there and knew that they must be Krit and Syl. I exited the vehicle and was prepared to confront my siblings, but found that they had completely bypassed me to assist Logan in getting out of the vehicle and into his wheelchair. Only after he was situated did they turn to me. I could see in their eyes that the recognized a similarity between Zack and me although I doubted that they had guessed exactly how similar.
"Who's this?" Krit asked Logan without taking his eyes off me.
"Claims to be a sister of yours. A special project created from Zack's DNA. She said she was looking for him" Logan explained.
At the mention of my brother, tears welled up in Syl's eyes and she turned away. Krit winced and looked very sad, but still suspicious of me. Here came the interrogation. I didn't care. I wanted, needed to know what they knew about Zack.
"What's your barcode?" Krit continued.
"SP-599." I said, turning slightly and moving my hair so he could see my barcode.
"That's Zack's barcode." Syl said softly.
"How did you get out of Manticore?" Krit continued, ignoring Syl.
"Zack rescued me, of course. How did any of us get out? Zack. And the reason why you didn't know about me is because Zack is too protective of me to endanger me in any way, even disclosing my existence to family. Now, can we skip the rest of the interrogation. Zack hasn't contacted me in over two weeks. That means something bad must have happened. Now, where is he?" I demanded.
My frustrated approach never should have worked, but it did. Something must be really wrong.
"I'm sorry...Zack's MIA. We were on a mission." Krit began to explain.
"We were going to take down Manticore once and for all." Syl added.
"Yeah. Max, Zack, Logan, Lydecker, Syl and me. We had everything worked out." Krit continued.
"Wait. Lydecker? But..." I asked, latching onto the one thing that made sense to me in all that they were saying.
"I know. He was the enemy. But...it's a long story, but now he's on our side. He helped us get into Manticore. He told us how to destroy it. He said we just had to blow up the genetics lab and Manticore would be finished. We weren't ready for the X-7's." Krit said sadly.
"What happened?" I pressed, my voice sounding hollow to my ears.
"They managed to blow up the genetics lab, but..." Logan tried to continue but was unable to.
"They got Zack and they killed poor Maxy." Syl choked.
I couldn't believe what I was hearing.
"And you didn't go back for him?! You let Manticore have Zack?!" I was screaming at them now.
All three of them winced. None of them spoke.
"I've got to save him." I said and turned to go steal Logan's car and drive straight to Manticore.
"No!" Krit and Syl both cried, leaping to restrain me.
"Let go of me!" I yelled, struggling viciously.
"You can't go back there!" Syl protested.
"It's suicide!" Krit agreed.
I stopped struggling.
"If neither of you soldiers has the guts to go back in, then someone else has to. I have to. Now release me." I said in a dangerous voice.
Maybe it was because they were used to following Zack's orders and my tone of voice struck that cord, but they did as I said and stepped back.
"No one could make it in there now. Not even your brother, Zack." a new voice said.
I whipped around and spotted a new man. He must have listened in on the conversation from a secure location because I hadn't seen him.
"Who are you?" I asked coldly.
"Colonel Lydecker. Who..." he began.
I think my lunging at him and knocking him to the floor cut off his speaking.
"Did you set my brother up?" I growled.
"No." he coughed, "Your brother was too much of a soldier to get set up."
"My brother is. Not was. He's not dead." I said sharply.
"Maybe. But if he's alive he's being reprogrammed by that bitch Remfrough." Lydecker said, "When you get in there you might find yourself facing Zack."
I hadn't realized that.
"They can do that?" I asked quietly, hoping and praying that it was some kind of sick joke and they really didn't have that kind of power.
"You mean he didn't tell you about Brin?" Lydecker asked, a disbelieving tone in his voice.
I shook my head. Slowly I retreated and allowed Lydecker to sit up.
"The reprogramming is extremely affective. Your sister Brin is now completely devoted to Manticore and her master, Remfrough." Lydecker said.
No. Not Brin. Why hadn't Zack told me?
"Brin recaptured. What else has happened that Zack didn't tell me?" I asked.
"Ben's dead." Lydecker said without any preamble.
It felt like a blow.
"And Tinga." Krit added.
Another blow. I couldn't fight this kind of battle.
"And now Max." I said slowly as I felt the world around me falling to pieces, "And maybe my brother. He would rather die than let Manticore have him."
I closed my eyes to keep the tears from showing.
"What's your name, soldier?" Lydecker asked.
Bastard. Couldn't he see the pain I was in? He wasn't my C.O., damn it! This wasn't Manticore. And yet I couldn't find the willpower to do anything but obey orders and answer the question. Nor could I find the strength to open my eyes and face the world.
"Ty." I said.
"Who created you?" Lydecker pressed.
"Remfrough."
"So you're one of hers. I see. The rumors were true. She did make a patch of her own little lackeys." Lydecker said.
My eyes flew open filled with hatred. Suddenly my hands were clenching Lydecker's jacket and I was throwing him up against Logan's car.
"I am NOT one of hers! I am NOT her lackey!" I growled, then added more quietly, "I'm more than a barcode."
Lydecker said nothing. I released him and turned to walk aimlessly across the room. How could this have happened? If only I had gone with Zack this time. Maybe I could have saved him. Maybe I could have even saved Max.
No! I didn't know for sure that Zack was dead. There was still hope. There was still a chance to save him from Manticore. Like he saved me.
"I have to go in." I repeated, "One of you will take me to Manticore."
"But..." Syl began to argue.
"There's still a chance that he's alive!" I cried, whirling on her, "I have to know! I can get in. I will go alone. There is less chance on one person being detected. And one of you will take me. I don't care who. Decide now."
I scanned each of their faces. Logan turned away from me. I caught the look on his face. He was thinking about going back there and it had caused him too much pain. He wouldn't take me. Syl still had tears in her eyes. She cared too much. She was too emotional. She was too weak. She wouldn't take me. Krit wouldn't meet my eyes. He looked ashamed. His guilty feelings could cause him to do something dangerous like try to follow me in or try to stop me at the last minute. So that left Lydecker. I looked straight at him and we both knew that he would be the one to take me to Manticore.
"Get in the car." I ordered him.
He obeyed. It felt good to give an order to the almighty Lydecker and have it obeyed. Zack was twice the man he was. And after what he had done to the X-5's, to my brother, I hoped he would suffer horribly.
Logan did not protest when we took his car and left. It was time to put my training back into action.
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This section was a bit longer than the other ones, but I hope you liked it. Also, the building where Krit, Syl, and Lydecker were was the building that they used as their HQ in AJBAC. I figured that they would have nowhere else to go and Krit and Syl would be too emotionally torn apart to move on and leave Seattle. Also, I am unsure on what Lydecker's actual rank is so if it's not colonel could someone please tell me. Thanks.