A/N: I'd like to thank everyone who requested a song. (Or maybe Mole would) Anyhoo... Thanks goes to White Kittie AKA Jessie, Manny, and Bent137. However I would like to stress that FF.net now deletes accounts or freezes them if a person uses the review section to ask questions so please e-mail me your requests. If I have not used your request yet it is for two reasons either I need to still find a song or I am not yet sure if WTGX can be heard outside of TC or not. Do not fret I will get to everything. As a side note know I know that taking too many stories on at once and too much time off from them is not at all good for the reviewing process, it kind of upsets me that people have forgotten, but anyhoo I hope you enjoy tonight's broadcast.
A white cat like transgenic stood at a payphone.
"Mole this is Kat."
"Hello Kat. What would you like to hear tonight?"
"I want to hear Name by the Goo-Goo dolls. It always reminds me of what Manticore tried to keep from us and the freedom that Max offered us."
"Okay here's Name by the Goo-Goo dolls on WTGX going out in a roundabout way from Kat to Max sealed with a great big Fuck You to one Cornel Lydecker."
"And even thought the moment passed me by
I still can't turn away
I saw the dreams you never thought you'd lose
Get tossed among the way
And letters that you never men't to send
Get lost or flown away
And now we're grown up orphans that never knew their names
That don't belong to no one
That's a shame
But you could Hide besides me
Maybe for a while
And I won't tell no one your name
I won't tell em your name
Scars are souvenirs you never lose
The past is never far
But did you lose yourself somewhere out there
Did you get to be a star?
And don't it make you sad to know that life
Is more than who we are?
You grew up way to fast
Now there's nothing to believe
The re-runs all become our history
A tired song keeps playing on a tired radio
And I won't tell no one you name
I won't tell em your name
(And I won't tell em your name)
Oh
I think about you all the time
But I don't need to sing
It's lonely where you are
Come back down
And I won't tell em your name"
Max sighed. The Lyrics reminded her of the time shortly after they had named each other. Zack and all twenty-nine others had stood at the Blue Lady's alter, this was the first and only time that they had all been in this place together without leaving lookouts down below in the barracks. Zack stood before all of them with his back to the altar.
"Blue Lady watch over all of X5 squadron one. Allow us to grow and become strong soldiers and guide us at our ends to the good place." Zack's proud gaze drifted over all of them. "With our dear Lady and all of you as my witnesses I pledge to watch over and protect you always with her as my guide. All of you." Twenty-nine names were proudly spoken as each snapped to attention when their name was spoken. "I'm proud of all of you." Zack nodded.
A knife from the mess hall was produced next and seemed to magically appear in Zack's hand. The moonlight glinted off the sharp blade as Zack spun it slowly. The glint reflected in his hard blue gary eyes. Slowly he spoke the words. "We are soldiers. We are numbers. We are also a family. Today we have finally chosen names for ourselves. Today we became people and individuals. Tonight we make a solemn oath to protect our unit and our identities. These names are ours. Therefore these names are to be kept secret. Never to be spoken outside of the barracks. Never to be spoken in front of any of our superiors. I want each of you to come up with a hand signal for you name as well to insure this. This oath we now make is for our own security. Except for within this group these names do not exist. We take this blood oath to seal this agreement."
Zack used the knife to cut the palm of his hand and the others followed suit. Their blood mixed on the knife and then the blood mixed with their contact as they all shook hand with each other whispering the promises Zack had already made.
****
Syl winched when she heard the song. She remembered the night on the barracks roof where they had made their oath to each other and The Blue Lady to keep their names to themselves. Syl had been the first to break that oath when she had shot and killed Raven (Bird boy). She had broken down infront of the Cornel and again in Psy. Ops. She had yelled out that there was a bird and that she hadn't ment to kill Raven. She had failed her squad twice in that one day. She sighed and hung her head in shame of the memory in the solitude of her own isolated room.
****
Krit winched and thought of the night on the roof and the night that Syl had terminated Raven. He got up and shut off his radio and went over to her place, soon he'd have to bring up the fact that it was silly for them to have separate places, but now was not the time.
****
Curled up on the couch next to Zane Jondy looked up at him. Softly she said what had been playing through both their minds.
"The oath."
Zane nodded softly. "It's the same thing with the promise that Zack made to Penny."
"Penny?" Jondy asked.
"Tinga." Zane spoke their fallen sisters name softly. "There were some simple things she just couldn't tell Charlie."
Jondy nodded softly."
****
Alec twitched again when the song was almost over he had been fighting it all through the song and he just couldn't fight it anymore. The middle of HQ was not the best place to be caught in a flashback but he had little choice in the matter. With a final twitch he was finally gone.
Alec was strapped down to a chair in Psy. Ops. It was a normal conditioning session with electrodes on his shaved head and tubes down his throat as well as the red laser beam boring into his left eye. It was 2012 and he was again being conditioned against his sympathies for the '09 escapees. He had sympathies because he knew of his source duplicate and brother (Ben's) involvement. There was the quick repetition of slides of all of the twelve escapees. In-between each picture word slides were inserted. Zack. TRAITOR. Max. DESERTER. Tinga. ENEMY. Brin. AWOL. Ben. DEFECTIVE. Syl. DISHONOR. Krit. DANGEROUS. Jondy. TERMINATE ON SIGHT. Zane. CONCEIT. Braden. RECAPTURE. Anaya. DEFECTOR. Locke. DISLOYAL.
Then all thirty of the X5 squadron one were shown in are and ranking order. A picture of Zack. THERE IS NO ZACK. Another picture of Zack. THIS IS X5-599. Another picture of Zack. 330417291599. Another picture this time of Max. THERE IS NO MAX. Another picture of Max. THIS IS X5-452. Another picture. 332960073452. It cycled through all twenty eight of the others in that nature and then it repeated with more words. THERE ARE NO NAMES. YOU ARE A NUMBER. DUTY. DISCIPLINE. STRENGTH. HONOR. SOLDIER. This was followed by: STATE YOUR DESIGNATION.
" 331845739494. X5-454." Alec's mouth was dry.
The session had gone on for hours luckily Alec was able to break free from the flashback in considerably less time, a few minuets or so. He was out of sorts and angry when he picked up the ringing phone but left it off the hook, and he had not noticed that the song was over and dead air was all that was playing now.
"Next caller." Mole's voice came on the air. "Following this song I'd like to know what your name is?"
There was silence. Dead silence. "Caller? Alec?"
No answer. "Alec?" Mole got up and banged on the glass that seperated them. "Alec!" Mole snapped his fingers.
"WHAT?" Alec snapped.
"Who's the next caller?" Mole stressed.
"The next request is mine." Alec growled. It was bad enough that Max had found him and beaten him up for not telling her about the show in the first place, but now this too. "I'm playing Freak by Silverchair and then Regular People (Conceit) by Pantera."
"Good to know I have a say in this." Mole laughed.
"You don't." Alec snapped, banged his fist on the board in front of him and then started the song.
"No more maybes
your baby's got rabies
sittin on a ball
in the middle of the Andes
Yeah i'm a freak (of nature)
Yeah I'm a freak
If only I could be as cool as you
as cool as you
Body and soul I'm a freak I'm a freak
Body and soul I'm a freak
Try to be different
Well get a differnt disease
seems it's a fashion
To need the cold sore cream
I don't really know
how to put on a 'cool' show
as boring as they come
just tell me where to go
If only I could be as cool as you
Freak"
A group of transgenic animalistic teenagers and X7's moshed and jokingly pushed each other around a dead end alley to the finally upbeat song. The were well beyond the realms of sparing they were actually fighting but having a great time with it as the music blared.
"I've trampled on that road
That you think you own
You have that "smart ass" attitude
It's time to stop the fiction
I live it every day
While you're mind's far away
I'm out here putting pride on the line
And you case on me with pure respect
One chance at one thing
Hard time is coming
My time, your pain
I reign on you
You think you own
I take away
Take it with me
You think you own
I took away
Made it my own
Most regular people would say it's hard
And any streetwise son of a bitch knows
Don't fuck with this
The so many times
You practice in your mirror
To be just like me
But you just can't see
You ain't got the balls, son
I fight for love of brother
Your friends fight one another
You can't see because your head's up your ass
And just in cast you think you're bad
I crush your rush
I rule YOU fool
I'm immovable stone in your world of weak --- I speak"
Max was shook from he daze by Alec's voice and the song that he was playing. She looked out into the alley below her window riled up transgenics were not necessarily a good thing. Something was wrong. Something had gotten under Alec's skin to make him momentarily commandeer the show. From the sound of his voice she could hear the tension. Alec was very close to snapping. She needed to figure out hoe to calm him down. Music soothes the savage beast. Max picked up the phone and got Mole right away. She didn't want Alec to end up like Ben.
"Mole it's Max. Play Sweet Child 'O Mine by Sherly Crow for mw. I want to send it out to Alec cause he reminds me of a close brother of mine, Ben." Max's voice came on the air.
Mole perked up. "Actually Max that song was originally done by Guns 'N Roses but I'll play her version for you. Here's Sweet Child 'O Mine Sherly Crow's version."
"He's got a smile that it seems to me
Reminds me of childhood memories
Where everything
Was as fresh as the bright blue sky
Now and then when I see her face
He takes me away to that special place
And if I stared too long
I'd probably break down and cry
Oh…
Sweet child o' mine
Oh…
Sweet love of mine
He's got eyes of the bluest skies
As if they thought of rain
I hate to look into those eyes
And see an ounce of pain
He\is hair reminds me
Of a warm safe place
Where as a child I'd hide
And pray for the thunder
And the rain
To quietly pass me by
Oh…
Sweet child o' mine
Oh…
Sweet love of mine
Oh…
Sweet love of mine
Oh…
Sweet love of mine
Where do we go
Where do we go now
Where do we go
Where do we go
Where do we go
Where do we go
Sweet child o' mine
Where do we go now
Ah…where
Where…sweet
Where…where
Where…..
Sweet….."
Alec flipped out. Max thought he was going to end up like Ben. He'd never losses it completely no mater what his screwed up genetics dictated. He whirled and brought his fist down again to calm down. There was a cracking sound and a fizzle and then the broadcast went all staticy. "Damn."
Mole jumped at the sound and spoke for the benefit of anyone still able to hear him. "Well I guess that's our show for the night. Thanks Alec." But one look over into the other room silenced Mole.