Disclaimer: See Part 1

Summary: Fierce fighting, a blazing fire, and one transgenic to stop it all.

A/N: The end is in sight, you guys… This is good; I've never actually finished a multiple-chapter story before. Yay me! And the hand signals used by Max and Alec are ACTUAL hand signals. I didn't make them up. Beginning lyrics from "Toxicity" by System of a Down.

The Siege

by

Brin

Now, what do you own the world?

How do you own disorder, disorder

Now somewhere between the sacred silence

Sacred silence and sleep

Somewhere, between the sacred silence and sleep

disorder, disorder, disorder

"Let's skip the Manticore handshake and cut to the chase. You and your playmates have been naughty little transgenics, not to mention stupid. Maybe I should just bend you over my knee." –Max

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Chapter 9: Endgame

Jondy, Zack, and their unit slowly crept through Terminal City, Sector 3A. The road seemed clear ahead, but the air was deathly still. Nothing moved. Some of the transgenics were even afraid to breathe. This was like crawling right into the belly of the beast. They crept right into the heart of Sector 3A, and there they found what they were looking for—Eddie and Pick's unit.

"Oh shit," whispered Jondy, suddenly feeling a bit nauseous.

Strewn about were the bodies. Bloody, unidentifiable bodies. Some of them were displayed in contorted positions. And some of them…

"Get them down! Get them all down!" ordered Zack, his face green.

Jondy looked up at the five or so bodies hanging by their hands from the building fire escapes. She pulled off her helmet and ran her fingers through her disheveled hair, holding back the sobs of despair. After taking a moment to compose herself, she walked over to cut down a body. Before she did this, however, she followed the rope with her eyes. The rope was first tied to the fire escape, then it went all the way up and disappeared over the top of the building. That was strange…

"Wait," she said as Zack prepared to cut a body down. She paused a moment, then their situation hit her. "This is a trap! Grab your weapons and—"

"Everyone FREEZE! We've got you surrounded!" shouted another voice over Jondy's.

Jondy's face fell as the fire escapes suddenly collapsed in chosen locations, creating a cage around the transgenics. Ten figures dropped from inside the buildings and landed on top of the metal heaps, guns trained on the transgenics.

"Put down your weapons! Drop them, NOW!" yelled one of the Centurions. "No sudden movements!"

The transgenics were looking at Zack for instructions, and he nodded. "Do as he says." Their weapons dropped to the ground with a loud 'CLACK.'

"Get down on the floor! Hands on your heads!"

Slowly, carefully, the transgenics lowered to their knees and placed their hands on the backs of their heads. Two of the Centurions jumped down and gathered up their weapons. When they were sure the transgenics posed no threat, they nodded to their leader.

"Tie them up, then put them with the others," said Centurion Alpha. "Keep an eye on them. I want seven guards with automatics watching them. If they try anything funny…" He jumped down and tipped Jondy's face up so that she was looking at him. "Shoot them."

Jondy glared at him, but said nothing. He laughed and patted her on the cheek, then walked away to issue orders to three Centurions who had appeared out of nowhere.

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Max and Alec ran through a dark ally, guns ready. They then ducked behind piles of debris at the end of the ally, checking both ways for any sign of the enemy. When they were sure there were no surprises in store, Max turned and held out her arm horizontally, palm up, then motioned towards herself. Come forward.

She and Alec kept watch as their unit hurried over. As they were coming, Alec raised his arm at a 45-degree angle from his side (above the horizontal position) and then, palm down, lowered his arm back down to his side. Take cover.

The other transgenics quickly split up, hiding behind debris. One of the X5s got Max's attention and tapped the back of his head with his open palm. Max nodded and repeated the gesture. Head count.

Briefly, everyone poked their heads up, and Max quickly counted them. Once she was sure everyone was there, she told them to get down again.

They watched the street for a few more minutes before Max and Alec decided to cross it. By doing this, they would be going out of their sector and moving into enemy-taken territory.

Max held up three fingers, then put one down, then another, and when she finally put the last one down they ran out into the open street. They were right in the middle when one of the others jumped out and yelled "RPG!"

Instinctively, Max and Alec hit the dirt. The rocket-powered grenade flew right through the spot they had been standing in, hitting a building and causing a huge explosion that skimmed their backs. Fiery debris rained down on the two transgenics as their unit jumped out and began shooting in the direction the grenade had come from, but whomever had shot it had moved.

"Help them!" urged an X6, running over to Max and Alec. The transgenics quickly removed the flaming debris from their leaders, whose uniforms were scorched, but not on fire.

Max coughed as the smoke and ash from the building filled her lungs. She and Alec were dragged back into the ally, presumably out of harm's way. As soon as they had caught their breaths, they took the command once again.

"Well, I'd say we're in enemy sights now," said Alec, throwing off his helmet.

"The one that shot at us has most likely reported to his leader. This hostile territory just got a bit hotter," replied Max. She looked around at their unit. "Okay, we're gonna have to split up into groups of five. Well, you will be in groups of five—Alec and I will be by ourselves. Everyone got it?"

"Yes, ma'am," they replied.

At this point, Max went back to using hand signals—just in case. First, she cut her fingers across her neck. Danger area. Then, she held up a hand—five fingers—and pointed to the transgenics, breaking them up into groups of five. She then raised her arm vertically overhead, then brought her arm back down to a horizontal position and gave each group a direction to go. Disperse. The groups quickly exited, leaving Max and Alec by themselves.

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Eddie, Pick, Jondy, Zack, Brin, and Zane were all brought into a dimly-lit room blindfolded. They were then chained to the wall and their blindfolds were removed. They looked at each other in confusion, then their eyes turned upon the young man sitting before them. He was tall, with sandy blonde hair and sky blue eyes.

"Welcome!" he said, his voice loud and clear.

The chained transgenics, however, didn't appreciate his obvious amusement at the situation.

"The six of you were identified as the leaders since you were the ones giving orders, if you're wondering," continued the Centurion with a smile. He studied each of them closely, then stopped when he reached Eddie. She had been beaten within an inch of her life and had a nasty bullet wound in her shoulder. Her face was so bloody, bruised, and swollen that she was barely recognizable. "X6-301… how nice to see you again. How have you been?"

Eddie, unable to lift her head for the pain wracking her entire body, did nothing.

"Answer me when I speak to you!" yelled the Centurion, grabbing Eddie by the hair and lifting her head for her.

"Leave her alone!" shouted Pick, jerking against his chains.

Centurion Alpha straightened up and turned to Pick. "Always a feisty one, 901. I remember you, too." He looked at the X5s, who looked utterly confused. "Of course, they never knew I was a Centurion. My facility needed to conduct an experiment regarding Centurion reproductive systems and I was the only one not taking birth control meds. The Manticore facility would offer us no one but 301." Here he stopped and looked at Pick pointedly. "We slept together for two nights at the Seattle facility, then I was forced to return to my base for a special field operation."

Pick cast Eddie a sidelong glance, but she was staring at the Centurion with fiery eyes.

"Of course, 301 failed to conceive and spent two or three months in psy-ops because of her utter hatred for me. Isn't that right?" asked the Centurion, touching Eddie's face.

She glared at him and managed to jerk her head aside, but the action caused intense pain that nearly made her black out.

Centurion Alpha stood to his full height. "I have strict orders to keep you all in here. It's only a matter of time before 452 is captured. This situation is utterly hopeless. Chimeras are no match for Centurions."

"Is that the shit they feed you?" asked Zack irritably.

The Centurion turned to look at him, smiling. "Aaah, I read about you in mission logs. X5-599, the cream of the crop." At the surprised look on Zack's face, Centurion Alpha laughed. "I have studied all the '09 escapees. You'd be surprised how much I know."

"Why are you doing this? Can't you see what we're doing?" said Pick. "We're making a stand for our kind. You think that just because you still work for Manticore you're some kind of war hero? People hate you. They don't care you've helped capture us. You're still one of us, and they hate you for it."

"I don't care what 'the people' think, you blundering idiot," said Centurion Alpha. "I am a soldier. I serve our country."

"A country that hates you!" spat Jondy. "What do you think Manticore is going to do when you get old and wrinkled? Or if you contract some kind of unstoppable illness, like cancer? You think they're going to treat and comfort you for all the good work you've done for them? Let me tell you what they'll do." She leaned forward. "First, they put you in a small area and cut off your air supply until you die… just to see your maximum lung capabilities. Then, they cut you open and perform an autopsy. And when they're done, they toss you into the incinerator with last week's mystery meat special."

Centurion Alpha narrowed his eyes at her, disbelieving. "That'll never happen."

"You think it won't?" said Pick, narrowing his eyes. "I saw it happen to one of my sisters. She was cut open; studied. Right before my eyes."

"It doesn't matter if one soldier falls. There will always be ten more behind him," said the Centurion, building up his resolve. "And your words won't phase me."

"Really? Then why do I see fear behind your eyes?" asked Zane, pinning Centurion Alpha with a intense gaze. "Look at what you've done to your fellow transgenics—look at how many you've killed. That's not a mission, that's a war, and there's no winner in a war. Your people will die, too. How do you feel about that?"

"I told you already. It doesn't matter."

Zack laughed at the Centurion. "You really think so? Don't you feel anything for your fellow soldiers? The one's you've grown up with; your only comfort in life? Your brothers and sisters?"

"Well you're the one killing them so I don't know how you can possibly preach to me," said the young Centurion angrily, his voice nearly faltering.

"Aha! See, you do care!" exclaimed Pick triumphantly. "Think about them… out there, dying on the streets. Cold. Alone. In pain. Doesn't that hurt inside? Strike anger in you, perhaps?"

The Centurion said nothing.

"That's what I thought," concluded the X6. He glanced over at his girlfriend. "You see that? Do you see what they did to her? That tears my soul apart, right there. And you… you slept with her. God forbid, don't you feel anything for her? I've never slept with her and damn… I would die for her in a heartbeat."

"I was ordered to do so. I have no emotional attachment to the anomaly," said Centurion Alpha, lacing his hand behind his back.

"I believe you do," said Pick. "I believe you have emotional attachments to all the Centurions in your unit, and Eddie. In fact, I bet you imagine a father-son relationship with your commander. Isn't that right?"

"Shut up."

"Why aren't you answering me?"

"I said SHUT UP."

"It's true, isn't it?"

"SHUT UP!" Centurion Alpha ran forward and kicked Pick across the face, busting his lip. "You are in no position to be so bold!"

Pick coughed as blood filled his mouth and smiled. "See? I'm driving you mad, aren't I?"

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Max and Alec found the remnants of the attack on Eddie and Pick's unit of X6s, but they couldn't find Eddie or Pick anywhere. They had the distinct idea that they were being watched, and more than once they had heard far-off explosions that made their stomachs churn with fear for their comrades. They first removed the bodies from underneath the collapsed fire escapes and placed them in safe places. Then, they moved all the other bodies into similar hiding spots. When they were done, Max's face was tearstained and she felt her last meal quickly rising north.

Alec put his arm around her and kissed the top of her head. "It's okay, Maxie," he whispered.

"We should get going," said Max, moving out of his embrace. She studied their choice of directions and decided the best way to go was… up. "This attack came from above. You can tell by the angle the bullets hit. Also, the RPG came from above. So I'm guessing they've established a base on the rooftops."

Alec nodded in agreement. "Let's go."

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Pick worriedly stared at his girlfriend as she was overcome by an intense coughing fit. She had been coughing lightly a few minutes earlier, but it got very bad very quickly. Sometimes she even spluttered blood. The deep red liquid was dripping down her chin.

"Can't you see she's dying?" yelled Pick frantically. "Do something!"

"I don't have clearance to do anything," replied Centurion Alpha.

"Well then get clearance!" barked the X6 angrily. "She's probably worth more to you alive than dead!"

The Centurion was about to say something snide in return, but instead picked up a walkie-talkie and said, "Sir, I have a dying transgenic leader and I am requesting permission to administer medical help."

"Clearance granted, Centurion Alpha," was the response.

"See? That wasn't too hard," growled Pick.

Centurion Alpha said nothing as he pulled a first-aid kit and a canister from a pack sitting on the ground. He then unchained Eddie and gingerly lay her on the table next to the electric lamp.

Jondy and Zack exchanged looks as they watched the Centurion do this. As soon as he had touched Eddie his entire demeanor had changed; from wild and cold to gentle and calm. There was definitely more to the story of the anomaly and Centurion than was being told.

"X6-301 has a broken femur, broken ribs, a shattered clavicle, and she may have a concussion. Other than that, it's a whole lot of bumps and bruises," the Centurion said quietly as he poked and prodded Eddie. "And if you want to know how I can tell, her femur has broken through the skin, her ribs are misshapen, the bullet went right through her shoulder, shattering the bone, and there are some head wounds that need surveillance. There's a chance she could have a concussion."

"Brin needs some help, too," piped in Zane, jerking his head towards a pale Brin.

Centurion Alpha turned to the X5 with a savage look on his face, his blue eyes dark with barely-controlled anger. "Just a second!" he barked, his voice becoming deep and imposing.

"Whoa, chill out," replied Zane, leaning back.

"It would be more productive if you let us help you," suggested Jondy, disregarding their captor's show of rage.

"And escape in the process? I don't think so."

"Look, we all know you've got two guys out there with loaded guns just waiting for us to try something funny. And if we leave, you'll only kill the others. We're not going anywhere," reasoned Jondy.

"You know this scenario all too well," said the Centurion with a wry grin. "I will unchain you from the walls but you will remain in your cuffs. Understood? Anything funny and all the others die."

"Agreed," said Zack. "By the way, do you have a name? I don't think calling you 'crazy-ass hormonal teenager' will be popular very long."

"My alias is Brock," said the Centurion quietly as he unchained them.

Pick was about to say something when Eddie began coughing again. He and 'Brock' hurried over, worry written all over their faces.

"The bullet must've punctured a lung," said Pick with a gulp. "She'll die if we don't get her to a hospital." He looked at the Centurion pointedly. "Please, let us go."

"It's not my choice."

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"RPG!"

Max and Alec dropped to the ground as two grenades flew towards them. The RPGs hit each other mid-flight and exploded right above the two X5's heads. If Max and Alec hadn't been wearing their uniforms, they surely would've been burnt to a crisp. As it was, the only exposed skin—the backs of their necks—were red and blistering from the heat. Their barcodes had been burnt off.

"Shit! Shit, shit, shit! That was too close!" yelled Max angrily as they got to their feet again.

Alec looked up towards where the grenades had come from and his eyes widened. "Here they come again! Jump!"

The two jumped high into the air like only X5s could as the RPGs exploded into the ground they had just been standing in. The blast knocked them higher into the air and a little bit to the side, causing them to crash into the wall of a nearby building.

"Hey, you said you wanted to go up, right?" joked Alec despite their situation. "Look at is as a convenient shortcut!"

"Alec, you better shut up and climb before they decide to blow us up into a million little pieces," urged Max as she began to climb towards the roof, which was only ten or so feet above them.

"Good idea," he replied, hurrying to catch up with her.

They were about two feet below the roof when they were aware of two things: 1) there were two Centurions/Familiars standing at the top of the roof and 2) an RPG was headed right for them.

Max looked at Alec, who nodded. As if able to read each other's mind, they simultaneously pulled themselves upward with all their might, causing their bodies to fly up in the air as the grenade crashed into the building and set it aflame. The Centurions/Familiars started shooting at them while they were in the air, but somehow the two X5s evaded getting shot even as they came crashing down on top of their enemies.

"Howdya like that one?" asked Alec, thumping his foot on the face of the unconscious Centurion/Familiar he had landed on.

"Take their clothes," instructed Max, rolling her eyes at Alec's amusement.

Alec did as he was told. "Now what?"

"Put it on!"

"Right. I knew that."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"You're just going to let her die?" yelled Pick, gesturing to Eddie.

Brock frowned. "Look, I can't let any of you leave. Colonel's orders."

"Fuck the colonel's orders!"

Jondy put a hand on Pick's shoulder. "Calm down. You're more worth to Eddie with a clear mind."

Pick shrugged off her hand and stepped away from the Centurion. "If she dies, I swear I'll kill you all. You know I'll do it, or die trying."

"That can be arranged," Brock replied shortly, moving forward.

Zack stepped in-between the two and kept them separated. "Stop it."

"I'm your captor. I don't have to do anything you say," said the Centurion, shoving Zack. "I never should've unchained you."

"You won't kill us. We're worth too much. Isn't that right?" reasoned Zack. "Each one of us is worth millions, and you know it."

"Dead or alive!" responded Brock.

"Look, can we just get over this?" yelled Jondy. "She's getting worse."

Indeed she was getting worse. She was laying on her side and blood was beginning to pool next to her mouth as she was overcome with violent coughs.

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Max and Alec tied the two Centurions/Familiars up and gagged them before jumping to the next building. They had gone about two blocks when White and three others suddenly jumped up from between two of the buildings, cutting them off.

"Well, well, well… imagine seeing you here, 452," said Ames White, making a show of the large gun in his hands. "I'm afraid I can't allow you to go any farther."

"And I'm afraid I'm gonna have to kick your tight ass and be on my merry way," snapped Max.

"I don't think so," said White, snapping his fingers.

His three companions sped forward and knocked the guns from Alec and Max's hands. Alec quickly jumped into the air and did a roundhouse kick, momentarily knocking their assailants backwards.

"I'll take care of these guys. You get White," he said.

"Got it," replied Max, running past the three and knocking their guns away as she did so.

"Looks like it's just you and me," declared White.

"Bite me." She fell to her knees as he shot at her, the bullets flying over her head as she thrust herself forward, still low to the ground, and knocked Ames off his feet.

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"Blood pressure dropping," said Jondy. "No wait… it's going back up again."

Centurion Alpha gulped and took a step away from the table as Zack and Jondy tried to figure out how they could save Eddie from drowning to death on her own blood.

"We've got to get her to a hospital," announced Zack, his face grave. "Fast."

"Look, and I know what I'm asking here, just let us take her to the hospital? She's gonna die and… and you just can't let her die," begged Pick desperately. "She's all I got."

Brock stared at Eddie's pale face and didn't respond.

"Just think of one of your own being like this. Wouldn't you want to save them? Or did Manticore force you to not care about each other? Think about a sister of yours in this situation. Would you go against orders to save her?"

"One soldier is no big sacrifice."

"That's a nice motto. What if you are that one soldier? You do know that Manticore won't give a fuck if you die, right? They'll just cook up a clone or something like that to replace you. Don't you see how pointless this is? Your entire life you've been told to follow orders because you were created to serve the country—save lives. Well this is one life you can save by not following orders. Please?" Pick licked his lips nervously. "I love her."

Centurion Alpha backed against the wall of the small room and started panting, sweat beads developing on his forehead as he debated with himself. "N-no!"

Pick glared at the Centurion. He was done negotiating.

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"You really think you can beat me without your big dog friend?" taunted White. "You should've let him kill me."

"Yeah, I should've," she replied as they circled each other. "But now I get the honor."

White took a swing at her, but she ducked and kicked him in the stomach. He caught her foot and twisted her leg, forcing her to jump in the air and twist along with it to prevent him from pulling it from its socket. He pushed her to the ground and kicked her in the side. "How do you like that, 452?"

"Shut up and fight," replied Max, pushing herself upward with her arms and kicking White in the face with both feet.

As White stumbled back, Max jumped to her feet and elbowed him across the face a few times, but it barely fazed him. After the third hit, his hand shot out and caught her arm.

"First lesson," he said. "Is to never, ever let your enemy get a hold of one of your limbs." Then, without flinching, he snapped her arm backwards so that it broke her humerus and slipped it out of its socket.

Max screamed in pain and her leg shot out, catching him in the knee. In the midst of her pain, however, she hadn't been able to muster the force to break his leg. He merely stumbled back with a curse, then raised his head and smiled.

"You're getting soft, 452. Is there something wrong? Can't handle a little pain?" He pulled a handgun from somewhere on his person and aimed it at her. "Here… this will take your mind off your arm…"

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Pick punched Brock across the face and ducked a high-kick. The other X5s were unsure of what to do—either of these Manticorians could beat an X5 to nothing more than a bloody pulp if they really wanted to, but X6s were significantly weaker than Centurions…

Zack was the first to step up. Brock had thrown Pick into the wall and was intent on bashing his face in when Zack calmly walked over and tapped the Centurion on the shoulder. Just as Brock was turning around—WHAM!

The other X5s cringed as Brock fell against the wall next to Pick, his mouth filling with blood from his busted lip. Centurion or not, a full-blown punch from Zack was anything but pleasant. The beating didn't stop there, however, since Zack grabbed Brock's collar and threw him against the ceiling, stepping out of the way as he came crashing back down.

"Go," said Zack as he watched the Centurion get up on hands and knees. "One or two of the helicopters are still here. Take one. Be careful."

"Zack…" Jondy began.

"That's an order!" Zack shouted, kicking Brock in the side. "Now!"

"Zane, you carry Brin. Pick, you carry Eddie. I'll watch your backs," instructed Jondy. She gave Zack a kiss on the cheek. "Don't you dare die on me again."

Zack nodded and kicked the Centurion again as he tried to rise. "Just go."

"Alright, people, you heard him. We're moving out," said Jondy, arming herself with Brock's automatic. "He insinuated that there are soldiers outside just waiting for us, so watch yourselves." She kicked open the door and sure enough, there were two Centurions standing guard outside. They tried to jump into action as soon as the door opened, but unfortunately the door had smashed one of them into the wall and knocked him unconscious, and the other found himself in a very, very uncomfortable situation as Jondy's foot slammed between his legs. She then proceeded to knock him out by hitting him on the head with the butt of her gun.

"Good job," commented Zane, admiring her handiwork. "Remind me never to piss you off."

"Shut up," said Jondy, studying the floor intently. It was covered in nasty-looking glass. "You think Lydecker's reliable? 'Cause if not, we're gonna be in a lot of pain…" She motioned to their bootless feet.

"Only one way to find out," said Zane, stepping on the glass lightly. He took a few steps and was amazed to feel nothing. "Well I'll be damned. The old man was right."

Jondy grinned to herself as she led them down the hall. "I think our luck's run out. From what Lydecker said, these guys shouldn't be so easy. Are they playing around with us or something?"

"It's probably just that we surprised them… and we're gonna lose that advantage if we don't move fast," said Zane seriously. He adjusted Brin in his arms. "How are we supposed to get to the helicopters?"

Jondy looked outside the shattered window, gasping when she saw the buildings of Terminal City up in flames that jumped to the sky. "Holy shit! They're blowing the place to bits!"

"RPG!" yelled Pick, falling backwards to the ground.

Jondy looked up and had barely enough time to throw herself out of the way as a grenade propelled itself through the window to explode at the end of the hallway. A fireball swept from the explosion across the tile floor towards the five transgenics, ready to incinerate them.

With lightning-fast reflexes, Jondy shoved Pick and Zane out the window. She knew that if she jumped after them she would surely land on them, so she stepped back, ran forward, ducked, and hurled herself out the window. Sure enough, just as Lydecker had said, she practically flew across the street to the next building. She caught onto the fire escape and then dropped herself down with a sigh of relief.

Zane and Jondy landed on the ground just fine, but Pick had a rather rough landing. The younger transgenic hit the ground and immediately started flailing around, teetering on the edge of his balance. Zane had to hand Brin to Jondy and throw himself forward, catching Eddie before she hit the ground while Pick smashed face-first into the concrete.

"Stupid X6," growled Zane under his breath as he checked Eddie over to make sure she was alright. "Is Brin okay?"

Jondy nodded, shifting her little sister in her arms. Brin looked like a little rag doll. She was just a little over five feet tall, maybe 5' 2", whereas Jondy was a good 5 feet 8 inches.

"Alright, we've got bogies on the roof one o'clock," said Zane, relieving Jondy of her burden.

"I got it," said Jondy, looking through the scope of her gun. She was about to shoot the young man standing on the roof of a building holding a grenade launcher when suddenly Zane let out a rumbling roar that made her skin crawl. She turned and saw three Centurions standing behind her, a bit confused about the lion's roar they just heard. "Hello," she said before jamming the butt of her gun into one of their faces.

The other two immediately jumped into action, but Pick, who had laid Eddy against the side of a building, intervened. He punched one across the face, but it barely fazed him. The two smirked at the X6 and one picked him up by the seat of his pants and tossed him aside like a rag doll.

While they were distracted, Jondy and Zane thoroughly beat the third Centurion until they were sure he was gonna stay down—they didn't kill him, just knocked the shit out of him. The two Centurions that were left faced them with confident smirks.

"Hey!" shouted a voice from above.

Showing their intelligence, only one of the Centurions looked up while the other kept an eye on Jondy and Zane. Zack jumped from the window of the building and landed on top of her, cracking the cement underneath her body.

"You run and we won't tell if you don't," said Pick to the last Centurion, poking a gun into his back. "Come on. Give us your gun."

"Go to hell," was the response.

"So be it." Pick shook his head as the Centurion whipped around and took the gun from him, only to be shot several times in the back by Jondy as soon as he turned. The X6 took a step back to allow the Centurion's body to fall at his feet. "For some reason, they seem easier to kill nowadays."

"It's because they usually work under the protection of surprise," said Jondy. "You can always tell. They probably spent most of their time practicing stealth drills instead of hand-to-hand combat." She turned to Zack. "What happened with Alpha Ass?"

"He had six pairs of handcuffs in his pack. I don't think he's going anywhere anytime soon," said the older X5 with a grin. "Get Eddie and Brin. We're going after Max."

"But we don't know where she is," protested Zane. "She could be anywhere."

"Trust me," replied Zack sternly. "She won't mind."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Max wasn't sure what hurt more… her arm (hanging loosely about half an inch from where it was supposed to hang) or her head, which was currently getting smashed against the ground continuously.

"Ames White!" Max yelled between bashes. Her eyes went crossed.

He was sitting on her stomach, knees pinning down her arms, while another Familiar that had shown up in the middle of the battle held her legs down. She didn't know why he didn't just shoot her. Were bad guys intentionally this stupid?

WHACK!

Ooh, that was a hard one. Max started planning how she was gonna get herself out of his. She estimated that her brain could take this kind of beating for five more minutes before it went dead. In that time, stupid good-for-nothing-Alec should get done with his job. Wait… where was Alec? She hadn't heard him scuffling with the other Familiars for awhile now… Under pressure and growing alarmed over the safety of her lover, Max quickly came up with an idea, but it was risky.

"You know… maybe I should just shoot you," said White, suddenly halting his assault on her head as if he had read her thoughts. He grabbed his gun and pointed it in between her eyes. "Any last words, four fifty-two?"

"Hey, White… Remember lesson number one? Here's lesson number two… always remember lesson one." At the risk of snapping her elbow, Max twisted her arm around to grab Ames' ankle and push his leg back, breaking it. "And don't call me 'four fifty-two!'"

"FUCKING SHIT!" Ames shouted at the top of his lungs as pain racked through his body. He shot one bullet.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"You know, that RPG launcher never tried to hit us again," commented Jondy as she and Zack made a quick stop at the supply room in hopes they would find something useful.

"Probably ran off to tell his bozo boss we mashed his thoroughbreds' faces in," Zack deadpanned, pulling open the supply room door.

"Oooh, I like!" Jondy squealed as she spotted the pile of grenades at the back of the room. "Now this is my kind of warfare." She picked up one of the grenades and then started stuffing them in her pack like a child in a candy store.

Zack leaned against the doorframe, using his long arms to grab some rounds and a fully-loaded automatic. "I didn't know we had excess weapons."

Jondy ignored him as she inspected a rocket-launcher sitting in a dusty corner. "Can I take it Zack? Please? Please, please, please, please, please?"

"Why are you asking me? Take it if you want, but I'm not carrying it," said Zack, rolling his eyes.

With another squeal of delight, Jondy slung the launcher over her shoulder and walked out, grenades dropping out of her overstuffed back as she did so. Zack sighed and picked up the little gray spheres as they fell.

"She should be somewhere around where we found Eddie and Pick's unit," declared Jondy, referring to Max.

"That's my guess," Zack replied. He put Jondy's dropped grenades in his pack. "But it'll take us awhile to find her… What if we're…"

"Too late? Not possible," called a voice.

Jondy and Zack looked up. "Alec?!" exclaimed Jondy. "How come you aren't with Max?"

"I was shoved off the roof of a five-story building and pulled three Familiars down with me. There was a minor scuffle afterwards, but Familiars don't have enough feline in them and their horrible landings made it an easy fight… it was then I noticed an explosion from a building a few blocks away and saw Jondy diving from the window…"

"Okay, okay, we get it," mumbled Zack. "You know where Max is. Let's go."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Max shoved White off of her and jerked her leg, striking the Familiar sitting on her legs in the crotch. He gasped and fell to the side. She then timidly sat up and looked at the bullet hole in the cement. Reaching up, she touched her ear and felt warm, coppery blood there.

"Holy shit," she whispered in shock, realizing how close she had come to dieing.

"I'm not gonna miss next time," White said as he struggled to stand on his good leg.

Max jumped to her feet and blurred, shoving him with all her might. He fell back a bit, but somehow managed to right himself before he went toppling over.

"This fight is as good as won, White," barked Max, moving forward to shove him again.

"I don't think so," replied White cockily.

"Don't move! Don't move, or you're dead!" shouted a voice

Max froze in her tracks as she spotted the little red light trained on the middle of her chest. She looked up to see four new Familiars glaring at her. Alec… where are you?! her mind screamed.

"You see, four fifty-two? This is a lose-lose situation. Give up," said Ames. "Tell me where my son is."

"Your son is happy. He's living with a normal family, having a normal life. His dad isn't a fucked up asshole with a stick halfway up his butt anymore," spat Max.

Ames cocked the trigger of his gun, his hand shaking uncontrollably. "You fucking bitch. How dare you!"

"You gonna shoot me, Ames?" Max narrowed her eyes at him. "It doesn't really matter. I'll never tell you where Ray is… and on top of that, you're gonna die. One of us that you didn't knock off is gonna come after you. And you're gonna die alone… without your precious son."

"Don't push me, four fifty-two," growled White.

"Shoot her!" urged one of the Familiars. "Just shoot her! She'll get away!"

"Stay out of this," Ames barked.

Max's heard was racing in her chest. Adrenaline was pumping through her veins. Sweat beads rolled down her face from the heat of the fires of Terminal City. Where was Alec?

Voicing her thoughts, White asked, "Where is 494? We need to watch out for him, because he'll get help."

"494 wasn't here when we arrived, Sir," said one of the Familiars.

"He was fighting three Sons… did you see them?"

"No, Sir."

Ames cursed under his breath and suddenly didn't look so sure of himself. "Find 494."

"That won't be necessary."

The Familiars whirled around to see Alec standing behind them, along with Jondy, Zane, Zack, Brin, Pick, and Eddie.

"I found a few friends to get the party started," said Alec with a smirk.

"Take care of them," ordered White. "I've got four fifty-two."

"I don't think so," said Alec, running forward with speed exceeding a normal X5's. He took the gun from White and shoved him over.

Meanwhile, Zack and Jondy jumped the other four Familiars. Guns went off, but none of the bullets hit their marks. Zane and Pick put down Brin and Eddie to jump into the disarray. Zack pulled a gun from his pack as he wrestled with one of the Familiars. He pulled the trigger four times, striking her in the chest, and she went down. She wasn't dead, however, and as Zack stood up to help Jondy she kicked him in the back of the knees, causing him to topple over once again.

Alec and Max faced down White, who was now barely bothered by his broken leg. He seemed to be getting energy from the sheer hatred he felt. Alec emptied the clip of the gun and tossed it aside pointedly.

"You fool," growled Ames.

"Don't be so sure," Alec replied. He jumped forward and kicked Ames across the face with both feet, but Ames caught his foot and threw him into the ground with staggering force.

"This is endgame," announced White, looking up at Max.

"Bite me." She punched him across the face and jumped onto his back, slamming her fists into his face with all her might.

Ames thrust his upper body downward, sending Max flying over his head. As soon as he stood, however, he found himself face-to-face with a very, very angry Alec.

"This is for me." He kicked him in the temple. "This is for Max." He punched him across the face. "This is for Logan." He punched him again. "And this is for Joshua." He grabbed the back of White's neck, ready to snap it.

"I don't think so."

Alec froze as he felt cold steel pressing into his neck. He peeked through the corner of his eyes to see a Centurion standing there with an automatic.

"You shoot Agent White and I'll be forced to terminate," declared the Centurion.

"Let's play dominos," interrupted Max, grabbing the Centurion's neck in a hold identical to Alec's. They found themselves in a very, very complicated situation. Alec was set to kill White, the Centurion was set to kill Alec, and Max was set to kill the Centurion.

Meanwhile, Jondy managed to get on top of her Familiar adversary. "Submit and I'll let you live," she said, placing a gun to his forehead.

"Go to hell."

Jondy closed her eyes and pulled the trigger, wincing as blood splattered all over her. Another shot rang out and she whirled around to see Zack's opponent crumple to the ground, blood spurting from the hole in her neck. Zane had ripped off his shirt and had wrapped it around his enemy's face. It was soaked with sweat and it would soon suffocate the Familiar to death. Pick had already taken care of his Familiar, who was lying lifeless on the ground.

Simultaneously, they turned to look at Max and Alec's predicament.

"Don't move or they're dead!" shouted the Centurion at the other X5s. Another Centurion pulled himself up the side of the building and ran over behind Max, putting a gun to her back as well.

"Well isn't this just dandy," mumbled Jondy, holding out a hand. "Calm down, guys. Just let Max and Alec go and we won't kill you."

"Tactical move," replied one of the Centurions. "But we won't fall for it. We're not moving until they let go of Agent White."

Zack and the others slowly came up behind Jondy, who was inching forward. "Come on, just put the guns down."

"Our orders are to take out all transgenics," barked one of the Centurions. "Our mission is to kill 452."

"Whoa, whoa… Let's not get too caught up in Manticore games," said Jondy.

"Stop moving!" shouted a Centurion. "Not another step. Take the bullets out of your gun."

Jondy immediately did as she was told but, unseen by the Centurion, left one bullet. She licked her lips and sighed. "We're gonna be stuck here for a long, long time."

"That's right," said Alec. "So let's end it." He looked at Jondy and suddenly she heard his voice… not inside her head, no… she heard his voice. His neck was moving as if he were talking, but his mouth remained still.

[The Centurions can't hear this, but you can. I have the same extra vocal chords that you do, so we can communicate through ultrasound] he said solemnly. [I know you can hear me. I want you to get Max out of the way as soon as I move. Got it? Touch your ear if you can understand.]

Jondy reached up and touched her ear.

Alec smiled. [Good. On three… one… two… three!] He hit the Centurion behind him with his elbow, knocking the Centurion back into Max. They both toppled to the floor. The second Centurion fired, but instead of striking Alec or Max he hit White in the shoulder. Alec grabbed the gun from the Centurion, whipped White around so that he had him in a death grip with one arm, and placed the gun to his head. While he was doing this, Jondy had swooped in and pulled Max away from the dog pile. Zack shot and killed the two Centurions, leaving just Alec and White. The end was in sight.

"Alright, White, give up and I won't kill you," said Alec slowly.

"Haven't you learned anything?" White slammed his head against Alec, grabbed his gun, and shot him.

"NO!" screamed Max as Alec fell to the ground, blood pooling underneath him. She took the gun from her sister and pointed it at White.

"Here we are again… this cycle is getting boring," barked Ames. "And you don't have any bullets left."

Max cocked the trigger.

"She has one," said Jondy. "The hand is quicker than the eye."

White's eyes widened and he ducked.

A single shot rang out.

White yelled in surprise and everyone froze, but Ames remained unhurt. Max still had the gun trained on him.

"You missed," said White with a smirk. "Now it's my turn." He raised his gun and then—

BANG!

Blood splattered everywhere as the bullet hit White in the side of the head. He fell over, dead… at long last.

Max dropped the gun and ran over to Alec, who was sheet white and had his eyes closed. She gingerly touched his face and his eyes shot open. "Alec!"

"Damn… damn, damn, damn," grumbled the male X5, looking at the hole in the shoulder. "I won't be able to have sex for like a month with this."

"Alec… where did he hit you?" asked Max, tears running down her face.

"Safe place. I'm not gonna die, Maxie… Remember what Lydecker told us? About the safe spot to get shot?" He wiped a tear from her face with his thumb. "I'm okay."

Max suddenly narrowed her eyes at him. "You ASS! I thought you were dead!"

Alec laughed.

"Phew. That was close," said Jondy. She looked at Brin, who was grinning through her pain. "You are a brilliant, brilliant sista."

"What are you talking about?" asked Pick.

"Do you think Max had two bullets? That first 'bullet' was Brin. She made that sound and threw Ames off enough to let Max kill him."

"Oh …"

"Hey, can we stop talking and get Alec out of here? He may have gotten hit in the safe spot, but he's gonna bleed to death or catch hypothermia if we don't get him medical care now," said Max.

"Alright. One of the choppers isn't too far. We'll head over there… but I think Zane and I will stay behind to collect bodies," announced Zack.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

And so the war for Terminal City ended. Max, Alec, Brin, Jondy, Pick, and Eddie all looked out the window as they flew away, Jondy piloting the thing. The war had been won, but the home front was lost. Flames engulfed nearly every building in the city, sending waves of heat against the helicopter.

Just outside the perimeter, Ordinaries had gathered in the thousands, lining all sides of the city. They were dead silent. It was as if they were in some kind of trance. Nothing moved except the flames. No one knew what to do. Even the police and National Guard seemed at a loss for what was happening.

Zane and Zack had been left behind to gather up what bodies they could find and take off in the last helicopter. It was risky since there could still be Centurions left in the city, but they weren't going to leave their comrades to die in a fiery hellhole.

"Where are we going?" asked Max after a long silence.

"Washington," replied Jondy.

TBC…

One more chapter to go… then I'm finished… I'm all teary, you guys… : - )