Title: Secrets, Lies and Betrayals
Rating: PG, for now, may contain a few swear words
Disclaimer: I am in no way affiliated with Dark Angel, Cameron & Eglee, etc. I own nothing and I'm gaining only valuable writing experience.
Summary: Logan has a secret, which ultimately puts both Max and Alec in danger. M/A
A/N: Well I did a heap of work on my assignment today so I rewarded myself with writing another chapter. Procrastinating… gotta love it! Lol
Chapter 5: Is he dead?
Max made her way through the woods and reached her motorcycle in record time considering she had been shot and was fully supporting an unconscious Alec. Whilst running through the woods, Max had come to a difficult and heartbreaking decision. She was going to sacrifice her baby and take Alec home in Logan's car. That way he would be able to rest and she would be able to give him the transfusion he desperately needed. In her haste to leave Max had simply chucked a first aid kit onto the back seat of Logan's car but she was pretty sure it had all the equipment necessary to perform the transfusion.
Max finally caught sight of her motorcycle but where was Logan's car? Surely the familiars hadn't found it. If they had they would have taken her motorcycle as well instead of leaving her with not only transport but also faster transport. That just didn't make sense to Max, unless… Then it hit her. Logan hadn't been captured, he had left and Max has now fuming. 'How could he?' she thought. Max had spoken to him before finding Alec, which meant that he knew White was there but he had just left Max and essentially Alec to fend for themselves. Logan didn't even know what condition Alec was in and that there was no chance he could fend for himself. Max was pissed at Logan before for his selfish actions but this took the cake. Although Max was extremely pissed off at Logan she willed herself to focus, as she now had to figure out how she was going to get Alec and her home in one piece. Max realised they weren't exactly in one piece as it was, so she vowed to try and do everything in her power to keep them from getting any worse.
Max stood in front of her motorcycle simply staring at it for a few seconds, unsure exactly how this was going to work. She could tell just by the amount that was covering his body and the huge puddle she had seen on the floor below his body that Alec had lost far too much blood, even for a transgenic. He was going to need a transfusion and sooner rather than later. It would take at least an hour for Max to get back to Terminal City and that was if she broke the speed limit by about 10 times over. But Max didn't think Alec could wait that long. She needed to give him the transfusion now and fast as the familiars were rapidly closing in on her position. But now Max didn't have any equipment to do a transfusion as all the supplies had disappeared to where ever Logan and his car had decided to piss off to. 'Selfish bastard' Max muttered to herself.
She then remembered the bag that she had strapped tightly around her. Max took off the bag and immediately felt a loss, as if a piece of her had just been lost, which puzzled her. She pushed those thought from her mind and looked inside, instantly spotting the large wads of money. There was definitely something weird about this so-called mission that Logan had sent Alec on and it had just gotten even weirder. She then saw a smaller bag that looked like a first aid kit, looking inside she found all she would need for a fairly makeshift but ultimately successful transfusion. She silently blessed Alec for being so prepared, unlike her who had come into the mission with dodgy back up and no first aid kit.
Max heard voices and realised the familiars had gained on her more quickly than she had anticipated. She had to leave… now. She dragged Alec over to the motorcycle and positioned him on it before hopping on herself in front of him. Max put Alec's still tied wrists over her head and secured them around her waist. She leant forward so his large form melded to her smaller one and she supported all of his weight. It was slightly awkward at the moment but once Max got started and out onto the open road she was sure it would settle itself out, at least that's what she was hoping would happen.
Max rolled up her sleave and inserted the needle into her arm. She then inserted the other needle into Alec's arm. Max knew she needed to leave but she also needed to give Alec some desperately needed blood so she had concluded that the best thing to do was to do both at the same time, to kill two birds with one stone. Max barely gave thought to what giving away her blood when she needed it to help combat her bullet wound would do to her. She was far too concerned for Alec to think about her own safety. Besides she only had one measly little wound Alec, on the other hand, had 2 bullet wounds, countless number of burns and literally hundreds of cuts and bruises. There was no debate in Max's mind as to what she had to do.
Max checked the Alec was secure and that the blood was flowing before she gunned the engine and screamed off into the night. She left just in the nick of time as the familiars came bursting out of the woods and stood in the semi clearing that Max had occupied just seconds earlier. They saw her speed off and sent a few stray bullets flying in her direction but luckily none found their target… again.
Max rode fiercely for what seemed like hours and was now back in the city. She rounded a corner to take the road that lead to Terminal City. She needed to get there fast as she was started to feel light-headed from all the blood she had given to Alec. That didn't stop her though and continued to both give blood and speed towards the desired destination. As Terminal City came into view Max could feel herself losing consciousness. She just hoped that she could make it to inside the gates and that someone would find her and Alec as soon as possible as now they were both in dire need of some medical attention.
A couple of the X-6's that were on patrol duty recognised Max and signalled for the gate to be opened. They realised, however, that Max was not slowing down. She crashed right through the gate and headed into the heart of Terminal City. Max was trying to make it as close to the command centre or the infirmary as she could before she blacked out causing the bike to topple over and skid for several meters along the ground, dragging Max and Alec with it.
Mole and Dix, along with several other transgenics heard the noise and came racing out of the command centre to see what had caused all the commotion. What they saw both amazed and shocked them. Alec and Max were tied together and were both unconscious on the ground. They were both badly injured and there was still a needle giving Alec blood connected to Max. The transgenics simply stared at them before Mole started yelling, snapping everyone else out of the trance.
"What the hell is going on?" Mole asked angrily to no one in particular as everyone was as baffled, as he was to the state of the two X-5's, "and what the hell happened to Alec?" Mole looked sadly at his friend who had definitely seen better days. Someone had called for the two medical staff, and they now appeared on the scene. They looked at Max and Alec and then looked at each other, fear evident in their eyes. It wasn't looking good for either Max or Alec and the medical team knew they had their work cut out for them.
"Let's get them to the infirmary as quick as possible and assess the damage" Pepper, the first of the medical staff said. He looked over at Salt, the other member of the medical team and said
"Get them both prepped for surgery"
Salt simply nodded and ran away to infirmary to make the necessary arrangements for the surgeries taking place in several minutes.
Salt and Pepper had a difficult decision to make. Should they work on Alec first or Max? They were the only ones qualified to handle the procedure it required to remove bullets so it was up to them and both Max and Alec had bullet wounds. Alec had lost a lot of blood but then so had Max when she gave Alec the transfusion he needed. Alec was obviously the worst of the two and he had been unconscious for who knows how long. Salt and Pepper decided that they would work on Alec while Max got a blood transfusion of her own. Then they would be able to remove the bullet in her shoulder and the new blood in her system would be able to heal her more effectively and quickly. Now all the needed to do was find a willing donor.
Joshua appeared at the door of the surgery and Salt and Pepper simply stared at him.
"Little fella need blood," he said as he stuck out his arm. That was all the prompting Salt and Pepper needed as they ushered the large transgenic into where Max lay in a bed and began the blood transfusion.
Salt and Pepper worked on Alec for several hours. They successfully removed the bullet from his upper thigh and were now working on the bullet in his leg. Joshua had given Max what they considered to be enough blood for the time being. Joshua had insisted on giving her a top up after her surgery. The cuts and bruises were already beginning to heal on Alec. It was just the burns and bullet wounds that would take some time. He still remained unconscious though and that was the main concern of Salt and Pepper. Alec was out of surgery and it was now Max's turn. They removed the bullet from her shoulder without any hassles and then returned her to her bed in the infirmary to rest and recuperate.
Max awoke with a headache and opened her eyes. She blinked several times and tried to figure out where she was. Then it all came flooding back to her. The complex, Alec, the escape, being shot, Logan betraying them and she could feel herself getting angry once again. Glancing around the room she saw a small transgenic with bright white hair, white skin and totally white eyes. She was slightly taken aback, in much the same way as her first encounter with Joshua in the basement at Manticore but she quickly got over the initial shock. Salt walked up to Max when she realised she was awake.
"Hi," she said, "I'm Salt, how are you feeling?"
Max thought about the question for a few second before asking in a croaky voice,
"Alec…" she wanted to say more, she wanted to ask if he was okay, she wanted to ask if he was dead, she needed to know but she just couldn't find the words. Just saying his name exhausted her. Salt could see the fear and pain in her eyes and knew what she was trying to ask. She placed a reassuring hand on her good shoulder and said,
"Alec is doing well, the blood you gave him really helped." Max gave an audible sigh of relied. "Why don't you try and get some sleep?" Salt added happy to see that Max was concerned about Alec but knowing that she still needed her rest as well.
Max gave Salt a weak smile before sleep took over her once more. The events of the mission played out in her mind as she slept. She was reliving it all and it was just as horrible and frightening the second time round. The image that stuck with Max the most was that of Alec hanging from the ceiling looking like he was dead. Max awoke with a start and bolted up in the bed she breathed heavily and the tears fell freely from her eyes. She glanced around the room and realised she was in the infirmary at Terminal City, she realised that she was safe and alive. But could the same be said for Alec. She needed to know, she needed to find him…now.
Max pulled back the covers and gently started to slip out of her bed. A gentle hand clamped down on her shoulder and she looked up into the eyes of a Large transgenic. He was black from head to toe, with black hair and eyes. He was completely different to the small female transgenic Max had seen earlier, and she was unsure now whether she dreamed her or not.
"The name's pepper" he said in a booming voice. Salt then came up and stood next to pepper giving Max a warm smile. Then it hit Max, they were both real, they were salt and pepper, one white one black, one small one large and one female one male. They were in stark contrast to one another and yet they appeared to complement each other perfectly. The looked like the ultimate duo, as if they could take on anything. Her thoughts were interrupted.
"Where do you think you're going?" the booming voice of Pepper asked
"Alec" was all Max could get out. Salt and Pepper moved aside and for the first time Max laid eyes on Alec who was lying in a similar bed to the one she was in. She seemed to forget that Salt and Pepper were standing right in front of her and slid out of the bed, crossing the cold floor to stand right next to Alec. His face had more colour in it then when she had last seen him. That was a major improvement as when she had last seen him he was practically dead. There was a large bandage strapped around Alec's chest and shoulder and the blood seeped through the bandage where the wound was. Max assumed there was a similar bandage wrapped around his leg. His body was still covered in bruise, cuts and burn marks but overall they were all starting to heal.
Max stared at Alec and her tears fell, hitting him on his chest and face. Salt ushered a bewildered Pepper out the door. She knew that Max needed time alone with Alec, as this could be the last time she saw him alive. Although she and Pepper had done their best, Salt knew that Alec was still a far way from being fully recovered. She just hoped that he had enough strength to pull through this, for Max's sake, as well as his own.
TBC