Max's Perspective

I'm sitting in a truck going back to Manticore, back to the evilness of my childhood. This time it's different though. This time I'm going back to destroy that which took away my childhood, and my love. I was being the good little soldier right now. The soldier that everyone always wanted me to be, but this time I'm doing it for myself, because I want to, I have to in order to destroy Manticore. We'll beat them at their own game. This time, we'll all get out of there; we won't get caught.

I had been the good little soldier since I followed Zack through the forest, and towards the lab. We got ahead of the group and scouted out the area. When we got back, we told the others of our plan and we took over a truck that was coming our direction. We used the truck to get us through the gate. I took out my guy easily, but I still couldn't understand why Zack would trust Kladu to take the job of driving the truck. Kladu could have turned us in at the gate easily. Usually Zack won't take a chance like that. Maybe it was a test, maybe it wasn't, but with Zack there was always a reason. I just wish I could understand the way he thinks sometimes. Just when I think I know how he's going to act, he goes and changes on me. I guess it's not a bad thing, it's just not the Zack I used to know.

Once we got inside the gate, and we parked the truck, we divided into our groups. Zack handed out the charges and the attack began. The first two groups took off, as we waited for them to get there three minute head start. When it was time for us to go, I followed Zack towards the roof. My body began surge with excitement as I climbed the ladder. When Zack told me to stay put, I could have died. I wanted to get moving and get my revenge. I could barely wait on the ladder until Zack gave me the all clear. I knew he was counting on me to stay put. If he would have waited any longer, I would have been joining the fight. Once he took out the guards and gave me the signal, I climbed up on the roof. There were only two guards laying on the ground; that left us one more to find.

I decided it was time for me to take the lead. I was already tired of following Zack around. It would be a hell of a lot easier if he let us all split up. It would be a hell of a lot faster too.

When we got to the office where we were supposed to set the charges, I started digging through files. Most of the ones I found were just on standard cloning experiments. I closed the filing cabinet and opened another one. I pulled out a file this looked like it was on the latest project. I quickly skimmed the details. Manticore will never stop trying to make the perfect soldier. I turn the page and my heart skips a beat. I look away, as I start to get light headed. The room starts to spin and I feel like I'm going to faint. I try to pull myself back together and look at the picture again. In front of me I see a picture of a child, a child whose resemblance is similar to Logan's. This can't be right. Logan is dead; he's gone. How could Manticore have ... my thought trail off to the night of Logan's death. When I woke up, Logan was gone. I never asked what happened to his body and Zack never told me. Manticore might have been able to save him. What if he wasn't really dead. I feel an overwhelming of energy come over me as I frantically begin searching through the file cabinet where I found this picture.

I run across a file with "Eye's Only" written on it. I pull it out not sure whether I want to read what it has to say. If I open this file, I'll know the truth about what happened to Logan. I won't have to continue to guess. My mind would be at ease. I can't put the idea out of my thoughts that Logan was still alive and he was taken back here to be tortured. Somehow, I felt it would be easier to just put the file down and walk away then to re-live Logan's death, or to know he had been living in the same hell as my childhood. I manage to work up the courage to open the file. My eyes stare at the first lien of the page.
"Time of death: 24:17:59."
That's not long after I he paged me. He must have died right there in front of me. If only I had been a few minutes earlier. If I wouldn't have stopped to yell at the person who splashed mud on me, then I would have been there in time to save him. But at least I know he didn't die at Manticore, I can rest easier knowing he didn't have to go through the hell I did.

I read farther down the page. I come across a line where it says Logan's body was taken back to Manticore and DNA was successfully extracted. My heart begins to beat wildly again as I flip back to the page with the picture of the boy. Logan was cloned and turned into an X9. He is Renfro's super soldier, and he is at this base.

I look up at Zack. I can tell he concerned about me; right now my face probably shows how afraid I am, but at the same time, I have excitement running through me. I may have another chance to be with Logan. I know it won't be the same person, but it will still be Logan. I can look into his eyes and tell him that I love him.

I lift my eyes again and I see Zack still standing there. I know he won't stand there waiting for me to long, so I quickly tell him he needs to look at what I found on Logan. Now he's the one with the look of shock on his face. As he starts to walk towards me, the look turns to pain. I show him what I've found. He seemed relieved somehow, I didn't quite understand it. I tell Zack that we need to find the clone, that we need to find Logan. Zack turns away and tells me we need to download the files on the computer then get out of here. He coldly tells me that we don't have time. My heart breaks and I turn from him. I take off running down the hall. I'm not sure where I'm going, but I'm not going to look back. I have to find Logan. I hear footsteps behind me; I assume they are Zack's as I continue running. The foot steps gaining on me. I run faster than Zack, there is no way he'd be able to catch up with me. I quickly do a flip and turn around landing in a fighting position. I look over my opponent, Zack wasn't the one who was following me.

Tinga's Perspective

I run down the hall; my heart is beating faster and faster. I can hear Johndy's foot steps right behind me. We should be almost there if the floor plan was right. I turn the corner and run into a room full of guards. I had no idea they would be here. This was supposed to be a low security area. I scan the room and I see 23 guards. It's almost like all of them had been assembled right here so they could wait for us. It's almost like this is a trap. I try to move before they can see me, but I'm to late. Johndy and I have been spotted. The only one who could have set up this trap was Kladu; he was the only other one who knew we were coming here. I guess I was wrong about trusting him; I guess we all were, and now we're going to have to pay for it. The guards turn and point their guns at us. There is no way I'm going down without a fight. I look over at Johndy and I can tell she's thinking the same thing. For the first time today, I start to feel afraid, but the fear isn't for me, it's for my siblings. If we ran into this, then there is a good chance they did to. Johndy and I have to find a way out of this, and we've got to warn the others. I guess it's time for us to start kickin some @ss; the sooner we deal with this the better.

I throw down the bag of charges as I take off running towards the nearest wall. I jump up on it as I do a flip. Bullets skim each side of me and embed themselves in the wall as I try desperately to avoid them. As soon as I get into reach of the guard closest to me, I kick the gun out of his hand; it goes sprawling to the floor and slides to the other side of the room where Johndy is in the heat of her own battle. Everywhere I look there are guards attacking one of us or standing by waiting for a clear shot, and a clear shot is exactly what I'm not going to give them.

A guard comes up from behind me and kicks me in the back. I fall to the floor as another guard tries to punch me. I pull out the dagger I have in my boot. As I stand back up, I lunge towards the closest guard. I slit open his stomach as I move by him. He clenches the wound with his hands as he collapses in pain. I move on to another target. As one of the other guards tries to punch me, I catch his arm and throw him into an attacker coming from behind. I kick another guard in the head sending him crashing into a few others. I turn around to see a figure jumping in my direction. I duck out of his way and slice his throat staining my blade with his warm blood.

My attention is diverted to a phone ringing in the background. I see a guard making his way to the office. That must be where the phone is; I'm going to check it out after the fight is over. I watch him as he unlocks the door; then, before he has a chance to open it, I throw my dagger at him landing it in the back of his neck. He falls to the floor lifelessly with his blood streaking the ground around him.

I look down at my watch, we've got 11 minutes to set the charges and get out of here. We don't have time to deal with all of this. If we don't get this fight over with soon, then we aren't going to make it back.

I crouch down on the floor and pull the other dagger from my boot. It's time to clean up this mess. I jump up in the air kicking one guard in the chest. As I land, I slice the back of another ones neck. I continue my attack as guard after guard falls lifeless to the floor. Their bodies keep piling up; their blood keeps spilling, but they keep coming after me; they keep coming out of no where. No matter how many I kill, it seems like I'm not making a difference. At this rate, I'm not going to make it out of here; I'm not going to be able to save myself, or any of my siblings.

Just when I think it can't get any worse, it does. In the middle of an attack, a bullet hits me in the thigh. I fall to the floor and cry out in pain as I begin to feel the trickle of blood going down my leg.