Disclaimer: Don't own them; don't profit from them, just like to play with them.
The roads were deserted as they drove through the forest and the darkness around them seemed complete. After a few moments Logan reached over and inserted a CD into the player. Quickly the car filled with strains of familiar music. Max looked at Logan and softly said,
"Valse Trieste." He nodded and no further words were needed. They drove for an hour, Max catnapping, gathering her resources for whatever was to come. As they drew closer to Seattle, Logan slowed the car and looked for an unused side road. Finding what he wanted he pulled off and drove far enough to be out of sight of the main road. Max sat up and looked around.
"Close enough to set up our final arrangements." Logan explained. She nodded and sat quietly as Logan pulled a cel phone from the glove compartment and began to dial. At her questioning look he explained.
"This phone works on a secure, encrypted frequency. It should allow us to stay in communication with Sebastian without being overheard by any Manticore listening posts."
"How sure are you of that?' she questioned knowing the technology Manticore had at their disposal.
"99% sure. I set this up with Sebastian a while ago just in the event it was ever needed. I would challenge anyone anywhere, including Manticore to beat any of his programming." He broke off as he heard Sebastian on the other end. After listening for a few minutes he turned to Max.
"Manticore has their posts set up and has begun to run the trace program. Sebastian was able to hack into their system and he has their search program results displaying on his system. He'll be able to tell us exactly when they pick us up and what the progress is on their locking in to our location. We have to hope we can make it to the rail yard and set up before they grab our signal."
"What if we don't?" Max asked warmed by his use of we and our when speaking of the signal. She felt almost as she did when setting out on a mission with her sibs. She and Logan were soldiers together, preparing to fight the enemy.
"If we don't I run the override from the car but I prefer to be in a covered position in case something goes wrong. At least that way you have a chance to get away. Sebastian thinks the rail yard is far enough from the trace position to give us time to set up there but we need to go now." He handed her the phone. "Stay on the line with Sebastian. He'll let us know the minute they pick up the signal."
Max took the phone "Hey Sebastian it's Max." She smiled at his response as Logan started the car and headed back to the main road. They continued to drive in silence as Seattle drew closer. Finally Logan found the road he was looking for and headed down it towards the old rail yards. The city skyline could be seen ahead, the lighted buildings overshadowed by the Space Needle.
"Still okay?" Logan asked Max. She spoke briefly to Sebastian and nodded.
"It's all good." Soon the rail yards came into view. The rusting hulks of abandoned freight cars and old engines were scattered on the maze of tracks, interspersed with small sheds used for maintenance and operation and warehouses once used to store the many goods that came through here. All were abandoned now and surrounded by weeds and rusted junk. Max smiled grimly at what she saw. If things went bad and Manticore began to close in there was plenty of cover and places to hide. She pushed aside the thought that if they had her signal hiding would do no good.
Logan stopped the car and she checked again with Sebastian. "So far still no pick up." Looking around she pointed to a small shed surrounded by half a dozen abandoned freight cars.
"Logan, let's set you up in there. Should provide good cover. If I have to run you should be okay."
He hated the thought of hiding in the shed while she was out there running from Manticore but recognized the need for at least one of them to stay free. To himself he vowed that if things went wrong and she was captured he would never stop until he got her back out. The thought of Max in the hands of Donald Lydecker sickened him and softly said to her.
"Max, if things go sideways out there and they get you I promise that I'll never stop until I get you out. Promise me you'll remember that and hold on if the worst happens." Max looked at him and smiled.
"Hey Logan, remember I'm the best at Escape and Evade and now I've got you and Sebastian on my side. I'm more worried about you." He shook his head.
"In this Zack was right. You can't afford to worry about me. They don't really want me; I'll be fine. Just forget about me and do your thing. If anything happens to me I know you'll get me out. Just promise me that you won't try to do it alone. Get G.I Joe and the others to help before you do anything stupid. Sebastian will be there for you too. Promise?"
"Promise, Logan. Now let's get setup in the shed before they pick us up." Quickly they gathered the equipment and headed for the shed. They were almost finished when Logan heard Sebastian on the cel phone which he had transferred to his ear once they were out of the car.
"They've picked up the signal."
"Damn, I'm booting up the laptop but it takes a minute. How much time do we have?" Logan swore as he waited for the laptop screen to come up. Max waited tensely knowing they had only minutes before the signal was locked in.
"Bingo."
"What Sebastian?" Logan exclaimed.
"I was able to disrupt the signal for a minute. That should buy you a minute or two since they'll have to start the trace program again once they reacquire."
"Okay, I'm up and running trying to capture their signal." Logan stared intensely at the screen of his laptop. Max stood there feeling useless and wanting to do something. "Got it!" Logan quickly punched in commands to lock in on the signal and started the program to break the encryption. At almost the same time he heard Sebastian,
"They've reacquired the signal. Okay they're initiating communication and starting the trace. Five minutes and counting down."
Max and Logan tensely watched the program running on Logan's laptop. Numbers were flashing across the screen as Sebastian's program tried to override the encryption code. Time elapsed displayed on the upper right hand corner of the screen. Soon two minutes had passed and the program continued running.
"Two and half minutes left to lock in." Sebastian's voice warned.
"Max, if I don't break this by one minute you get out of here. Take my car and go." Logan commanded tensely. She hated to leave him but, knowing he would be safer away from her and the signal, nodded in agreement.
"One and one half minutes." The program was still running.
"70 seconds." Max prepared to leave as Logan helplessly watched the program running. He wanted to kick the laptop to make it work faster but could only sit there and pray that it worked in time.
"65 seconds"
The laptop display stopped running and started flashing "OVERRIDE COMPLETE" Max stopped, as she was about to leave and watched tensely as Logan's fingers began to fly over the keys.
"45 seconds" Logan stopped typing and sat back to wait. Max stood behind him unconsciously squeezing his shoulder as they waited.
"30 seconds to location lock." Sebastian's metallic voice displayed no emotion.
"Max, you better get out of here. I don't know if the override is working."
"20 seconds…15…10…" Max turned to flee. "Signal ceased. They've lost the signal."
Logan took a deep breath. "The override worked. We're in Sebastian and we've blocked the signal." Max turned back from the door. "Now all we have to do is send the command to shut the damn thing down for good." Logan listened as Sebastian instructed him and he quickly began to type in commands. Finally he sat back. "That should do it. No more implant or at least a very dead one." He felt like he had just run a marathon. Looking down he realized his shirt was soaked with sweat despite the cool temperature in the shed. "Okay Max, be ready one last time to run. Now we release the signal and see if they can pick you up again."
Max and Logan waited tensely as he typed in the command to release the override.
"Override shut down, let us know what you see Sebastian."
"They're initiating their trace program again. Searching, searching…. No Signal! They can't find the signal. We're free and clear Logan."
"Thanks Sebastian. We're going to pack up and head out of here now. Can you continue to monitor for the next few hours just to be sure they don't pick Max up again?" Sebastian agreed and the two quickly packed up the gear. Logan was about to head out the door when Max stopped him, alerted by a sense of wrongness.
"Wait Logan let me do a quick check. I think someone may be close." Trusting her enhanced senses he nodded and waited as she quietly slipped out of the door. The yards were ghostly in the dim light of approaching dawn. Fog had come in and swirled waist high, muffling the sounds around her. Max thought briefly of her old boyfriend, the one who had compared her to a female fogbank but then concentrated all of her senses trying to pick up what had put her on edge. Making her way from the cover of railcar to railcar she suddenly heard the soft sound of loose gravel shifting, behind her. Whirling she crouched in ready position as a figure dressed all in black dropped down in front of her.
"Brin!" she exclaimed not moving. Something was wrong with her sister, she could sense it. Suddenly in a whirl of motion Brin attacked. Max leaped vertically to land on top of an old railcar followed closely by Brin. As Brin landed Max launched herself into a tumbling run ending up with her feet landing square on Brin's chest, propelling her off the roof of the car. As Brin landed below, rolling to take the fall, Max followed up her advantage and leapt on top of her landing on her back. She quickly disabled her, rendering her unconscious by use of the pressure points on her neck. She knelt and slung Brin over her shoulders in a fireman's carry and after checking to see they were alone returned to the shed where Logan was waiting.
"Max, who?" he asked recognizing an X5 but not knowing which one this was.
"It's Brin. Lydecker obviously reprogrammed her. Probably had her out on general recon. Good thing we didn't just walk out but we need to get out of here. I don't know if she called us in before she attacked me." At that moment they heard the hum of approaching helicopters.
"Guess that's our answer. Let's go." Logan replied. At a run Max brought Brin to the car where she placed her in the back seat. As Logan climbed in behind the wheel she stowed his wheelchair and then ran back to the shed.
"Max, what, we've got to go" Logan called. She returned at a flat out run and dove into the car as he quickly accelerated away, keeping his lights off and staying in the shadows of the rail cars. As he drove Max quickly took the lengths of chain she had retrieved from the shed and fastened them around Brin's ankles and wrists. Satisfied she climbed into the front seat and settled in next to Logan.
The rail yard turned out to have been a good choice as the fog and the abandoned cars provided cover for them as they fled the Manticore helicopters. Weaving in and out Logan soon had them far from the pursuit and turned the car heading towards the center of the city.
"Now where Logan?"
"We need to stash her in a safe house and get far away. Given Lydecker's fondness for transmitters I don't want to stay around her until we know she's clean." Max was saddened by the thought of leaving her sister but couldn't argue with Logan's logic. Soon they were at the safe house and she carried Brin in leaving her chained and locked up in one of the rooms. Logan insisted on leaving immediately unwilling to risk exposure. In a short time they arrived at Sebastian's place and were warmly welcomed by his friend.
Logan quickly explained about Brin and Sebastian agreed to run a trace to see if she had a transmitter. If he determined she was clean he would let them know, if not they would decide what to do. Knowing the trace would take a few hours Logan looked at Max.
"What say we head to my place? I'd like to clean up and get a change of clothes. And, I do have lots of hot water to offer." His blue eyes sparkled with a wicked gleam as he said the last. In front of Sebastian's interested gaze Max felt herself blushing and quickly turned to hide her face. Logan chuckled and Sebastian smiled as he watched the two leave, Max turning briefly to drop a kiss on his head.
"I don't know how to thank you, Sebastian." Startled by her action he had no time to respond before they were gone. Still smiling he turned back to his equipment and began to work on the problem of Brin.
A/N: This chapter took on a life of its own. I was completely surprised by Brin turning up but we'll see what's up with her as this goes on.