Chapter 8

The beat of the rain began to soften. The lights in Logan's apartment were warm and dim.
Two shadows melted into one another.

"Sky never went into detail about Nathaniel's death. She just said the mission killed him.
I never really asked for anything else...it seemed...callous to try to make her relive it just
to satisfy my need for an explanation. Besides I'm not sure it would have made anything
easier to accept."

Max nodded. Logan was not the type to just let something go without justification.
Obviously, when it came to family, things were different. She wouldn't know, or maybe
she would.

Her eyes had not left Logan. He was so...alone, like her. Perhaps they had more of a
bond than either cared to admit. Logan looked up at her, tension thick in his face. This
was hard for him. She remembered when she had told him he didn't need to hide from
her. Tonight he wasn't, and Max had to admit it felt good to be confided in, to have
someone trust in you as you did them. She only wished it didn't have to happen in this
way.

Logan rarely let anyone see him in a vulnerable state. It started with his eyes. Somehow
they managed to dim. Then his composure shrunk slightly, as though he felt exposed.
And there was something about the way his hands gripped his chair a little harder than
usual. Max had started noticing little things like that when she first met him. Call it a
curse of being a superhuman...but then maybe it was just the curse of being human, and
having emotions...and caring about someone else.

"I could see the pain in her eyes when she told me he was gone...whatever happened...it
was bad."

"Do you have any idea what they kind of mission they were on?" Max's voice was
soothing, far from her usual sarcastic tone.

"Sky and Nathaniel were part of an elite group. The members were taken out of various
branches of the military. They could have been doing anything."

"An elite group?" Max paused, "Were genetics involved?" her throat tightened.

"No. From what I understand, they were ordinary men and women with extraordinary
tolerance and will. The organization was centered on the philosophy that outcomes
depended on the strength of human will. It went into full operation about the same time
as Manticore. War was in the air at the time, and different establishments were
flourishing off of the "need" for greater protection." Logan paused. "Nathaniel once
described to me one of the tests they had to endure...reminded me of the concentration
camps long ago. I don't exactly know the specifics of the tests but, I do know that few
survived them."

Then phone rang causing both figures to jump. Logan looked away from Max. She
followed him with her eyes as he picked it up.

"Hello...yes this Cale...who?" Logan's eyes widened. "Is she alright?...I'll be right
there."

"What is it?" Max asked, her voice full of concern.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Flash---
Gasps filled the air. The combined aching of air-deprived lungs and a constricted throat
was overbearing. Sky was running. Her eyes were dry from crying. Branches and thorns
tore and cut her legs...Her mind was running away, the last moments clouded her head
in a cloak of chaos. It was over...everything was over and all she knew to do was run into
the night. Where she was to go now, she didn't know...all she had known was wiped
out...there was nothing left...Sky was alone.

Flash---
Streams of yellow light flooded into the hut creating a foggy haze. It was humid and the
air was so thick you could cut through it. The smell of sweat and fruit intermingled,
causing Sky's stomach to turn over and over. The smell was sickening. They had been
waiting silently for hours. And then...a sound pierced through the morning. Anticipation
crossed the faces of the men and women in the hut as the sound grew stronger in volume.

Flash---
It was supposed to be easy, just a simple rescue mission. Sky had had a bad feeling about
it. Nothing could have prepared her for this. The men, they just kept coming, swarming
around the small village. Visions of death and murder were everywhere. Houses burned,
people screamed, bodies slumped to the ground. It was a slaughter. Moments ago
Nathaniel had kissed her, now he lay in her arms...the chaos swirled around them. She
was losing him...tightly she grasped his body to her own...trying to cling to the life still
flickering inside his body. Blood ran from his mouth...his eyes were so distant now,
staring through her. She had tried to bring them back to her, to somehow ignite the light
in them again, but now he didn't recognize her anymore. He was dying to the world, but
he was already dead to her. All at once everything had been ripped from her...all that was
familiar and safe was gone.

Sky clung to him gently, laying her face next to his. She could feel the stubble on his
face. Nathaniel hadn't had a chance to shave. He always had a clean-shaven face...he
couldn't stand the itching feeling of hair on his skin. In that moment memories flooded
back to her. She could feel the softness of his kiss, the warmth of his face, the strength of
his arms, the feel of his cheek as he danced with her, music, laughter, everything she had
ever known...and then it was gone, and she was left...cheek on his. Reality crashed upon
her as she wept. Her cries filled the air as she refused to let him go. Frantically she went
into hysterics... "No..." she yelled and touched his face. "Don't leave me...please."
Her cry melted into a soft plea. "Please...I need you...my love."

At this Sky felt him move slightly. She moved her head back and looked at him through
her wet eyes. "Don't cry Bogie 2 " Sky smiled at the nickname he affectionately called
her. Nathaniel tried to move his hand, then gave up from the pain.

"I'm not crying." Nathaniel nodded, always trying to be strong. He thought.

"Get out of here." He pleaded

"No, I'm not leaving you."

"I know...but I might be...I need to see you leave Sky...I need to know you're alright."
Sky shook her head. "Sky...there's nothing you can do...please."

She couldn't move. If she left, she would desert him. She couldn't do that...it went
against everything she believed, every instinct that was born from her love. She couldn't
leave him, not alone...her fears welled in her, and then Nathaniel slumped in her arms.
She went blank at first, not believing what her eyes saw, then carefully laid him down in
the dirt, but thought better of it. This was not the place for his body...it was dirty, it
wasn't good enough. She took the shirt wrapped around her waist and placed it under his
head. Then softly she wiped the blood from his lips. The pain was overwhelming.

She heard a sound in the distance...they would find her soon...then, she couldn't take it
anymore...her fear took over. She began to run...from the village, from the massacre,
from her love's lifeless body...dead on the ground.