TITLE: Kid Stuff (the first multi chapter fic in my "Lives we Lead"
trilogy)
EMAIL: cosmosjeanie@yahoo.ca
RATING: PG-13
DISCLAIMER: Everything belongs to James Cameron except for my own original plot twists and the original characters I have chosen to add.
FEEDBACK: Please R&R....it gives my muse the energy and inspires me to write more.
CHAPTER 2: A Valuable Asset (2005)
Gillette, Wyoming
"...five, four, three, two ....one. Excellent work 452. Shower then report to the mess hall. The rest of your unit is already there." "Yes sir."
When X5-452 or Max arrived at the mess hall she hesitated. "Maybe the others already finished and headed back to the barracks." She decided to check and the transgenic, who was quite small for a five year old stood on her tiptoes and peered through the window into the mess hall.
Her gaze swept over the mess hall as she searched for her unit. There, over in the far corner she could see the familiar figures of her siblings. To the untrained eye, they looked like regular kids eating dinner, but she new better. She could see the way their backs were tensed and the way they kept glancing anxiously over at the clock on the far wall.
"They're all stressing about something." She frowned slightly. "They're all worried about me. Stupid trainers took me away so freaking early this morning, they probably thought I was taken from my bed by the nomlies."
When she thought about it, the whole mess hall seemed kind of tense. Granted, it was hard to be completely relaxed when there are guards carrying AK47s watching your every move, but usually that didn't stop the trangenics from eating with relative ease.
She knew that the other trangenics occupying the facility were usually pretty perceptive. They knew that if the Alpha unit was worried about something, they should probably be worried too.
She rolled her eyes. She was thankful that she had so many people that cared about her but this was ridiculous. "Oh well it's now or never." She thought before slowly pushing the door open and entering the mess hall as quietly as possible.
Unfortunately due to the fact that about 96% of the room's occupants were transgenics with super human hearing, her attempt at a stealthy entrance sounded somewhat akin to the sound a stampede of overweight elephants must make.
Every set of eyes in the room came to rest of her and she shrunk back noticeably. The majority of the people in the mess hall relaxed slightly when they realized just who had entered. The tense atmosphere all but disappeared. Only the unit at the far table, her unit, remained tense. Max looked up and nervous brown eyes met angry blue. She looked away quickly. "Great just great, Zack's pissed."
As she began making her way over to the Alpha table, the other trangenics, mostly X4s and X3s would wave or nod amiably to her making sure that they did so when the guards weren't paying attention.
Friendships and relationships in general were frowned upon by Manticore but Max would be damned if she would allow the all powerful Colonel Lydecker to control that aspect of her life. The many friends she had made over the years and her siblings kept her grounded and sane through the hours of intense training and at times borderline torture the trainers loved to subject her to. She was the youngest, the leftovers but that didn't mean she would ever willingly become Lydecker's freaking guinea pig.
When she reached her table, the other Alphas watched her, their stares unwavering. She took her customary place between Ben and Jondy, across from Zack and sat in silence for a few minutes before she realized they were growing impatient.
"I'm sorry if I worried you guys this morning...." She began slowly only to be cut off by an irate Zack. "Of course we were worried about you! You disappear without a trace in the middle of the night without telling anyone." Max looked down guiltily and Shawn placed a calming hand on Zack's shoulder.
Ben leaned over and spoke so only Max could hear him. "I thought the nomlies had taken you Maxie. We were all really worried but Zack was going crazy. He almost beat up a trainer who wouldn't tell him were you were but Shawn and Dave stopped him." "Thanks Ben." She whispered back before summoning all her courage and looking Zack right in the eyes. "Lydecker ordered me to report to him at 0300 hours to begin my evaluation."
Realization flashed through the eyes of all her siblings. "Oh Maxie we didn't realize it was already time!" Jondy exclaimed as she and Ben rapped reassuring arms around her. "What happened baby sister?" Zack asked having calmed down considerably. He was now watching her with concern. They all took in her tired and haggard appearance. She was pale and her eyes were bloodshot.
"The more accurate question would be what didn't happen..." The other X5s frowned in confusion. "The trainers ran every test imaginable. Escape and evade, arms and munitions, communications and technology, combat both armed and unarmed, speed and agility....The Tank." A collective shudder went through the other Alphas. Everyone had been subjected to The Tank at one point or another. It was an unpleasant experience especially for those with cat DNA like the X5s.
"What did the colonel say?" Max shrugged. "I dunno, he disappeared about half way through. The trainer just said to head over here." "Don't worry about it Maxie, were sure you did great." "I hope so. If I didn't "perform" to Lydecker's standards, they're gonna send me away to some other facility across the country." Tears welled up in Max's dark eyes and her heart constricted painfully at the thought.
Supper was eaten in relative silence until it was once again interrupted. Every transgenic in the room froze when Colonel Lydecker entered before hurriedly standing at attention. They all hated him and feared him. He was the only thing they feared because of who he was and what he could do.
"X5-452 report to my office immediately! The rest of you as you were." Max looked like a deer caught in the headlights. Zack pushed her towards the door and her soldier's mask slipped into place. She was afraid of Lydecker but she'd never let him know it. She followed him out of the mess hall and through the corridors to his office.
When they entered, the colonel took his seat behind his desk and Max stood stiffly facing him, her expression unreadable. "452, you know why you are here. Five years ago, I was given responsibility for you against my wishes and forced to place you in Alpha unit under direct orders from my superiors." Max suppressed the urge to roll her eyes. "Doesn't that make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside...."
Lydecker stood and began pacing. "I created Alpha unit to be the best, composed of only the elite soldiers I had personally selected, not to be some halfway house for Manticore's leftovers." "Ouch..." Max winced slightly. "I believed that your addition to the Alpha unit would cause problems and have a damaging effect on their performance both as a team and as individuals." Max braced herself. "Here it comes..." Lydecker stopped pacing and faced her. "I was wrong."
Max's eyes widened to the size of saucers. "Did he just say what I thought he said? Who would have thought that good old Deck would admit he was wrong especially in the presence of "Manticore's leftover?" She then thought about the deeper implication of his words and looked at him expectantly.
"You have proved yourself to be a valuable asset, not only to Alpha unit but to Manticore as a whole. If your performance over the last 5 years and your results on today's little tests are any indication, we can expect great things from you. I have decided that you will remain a member of Alpha unit permanently. Dismissed."
Max's heart leapt for joy. She had been horrified with the prospect of being separated from the only family she had ever known. She was so happy she'd hug Lydecker if she didn't hate him as much as she did and wasn't sure he would shoot her on the spot despite her being a "valuable asset".
She moved to leave but Lydecker's voice stopped her. "Oh and 452 don't think that means I won't be keeping an eye on you.." She began walking towards the barracks to tell the others the good news and it was only thanks to her enhanced hearing that she heard the words he muttered under his breath moments later. "....and your....siblings...."
When she entered the Alpha unit's barracks, everyone looked up from what they had been doing. Zack who had been tucking Jace and Sky in spoke first. "What did the colonel want?"
Max smiled brightly as she moved to sit on her bed that was located in the corner closest to the door next to Jondy's and across from Jack's. "He said I can stay!" Huge smiles broke out on all the Alpha's faces. "Awww.this calls for a group hug!" Syl exclaimed from across the room and the others nodded eagerly in agreement. Everyone except for Zack and Shawn launched themselves onto Max's bed and enveloped her in a massive group hug. The bed creaked and groaned in protest. The CO and SIC rolled their eyes at the antics of their younger siblings.
"All right everyone, as happy as we are that baby sister is staying, I want you all in bed now. We have training first thing in the morning and I want everyone at their peak." The Alphas glared at Zack before climbing off of Max and returning to their own beds. "When do we not have training first thing in the morning?" Eva asked pointedly before closing her eyes and covering her head with a pillow.
Max watched as the others drifted off to sleep one by one. Soon, her, Jondy and Ash were the only ones still awake. The three of them rarely slept and the often joked about having shark DNA. Many nights they stayed awake talking and as a result Max often felt closer to them then the others.
The 3 X5s sat for a while just listening to the steady breathing of their siblings. "I'm glad you're staying Maxie." Jondy spoke softly. "Me too." Ash intoned from his place in the bed next to Jack's. "Me three." Max thought to herself.
AUTHOR'S NOTES:
As some of you have already deduced, Alec is not a member of Alpha unit. This is not because he is not good enough. It is because, Ben was already an Alpha and they (Manticore officials/scientists) thought it would be best if clones were kept separated from birth.
Alec is not the CO of his unit because I don't want him to be...yet
In the list of X5s in the previous chapter, the names are not listed in order of age even though it was a weird coincidence that Zack and Shawn happened to be at the beginning and Max happened to be at the end. If you want to know the ages of the X5s just ask and I can post them at the end of the next chapter
Thanks so much for reading and reviewing!!!
Jeannie
EMAIL: cosmosjeanie@yahoo.ca
RATING: PG-13
DISCLAIMER: Everything belongs to James Cameron except for my own original plot twists and the original characters I have chosen to add.
FEEDBACK: Please R&R....it gives my muse the energy and inspires me to write more.
CHAPTER 2: A Valuable Asset (2005)
Gillette, Wyoming
"...five, four, three, two ....one. Excellent work 452. Shower then report to the mess hall. The rest of your unit is already there." "Yes sir."
When X5-452 or Max arrived at the mess hall she hesitated. "Maybe the others already finished and headed back to the barracks." She decided to check and the transgenic, who was quite small for a five year old stood on her tiptoes and peered through the window into the mess hall.
Her gaze swept over the mess hall as she searched for her unit. There, over in the far corner she could see the familiar figures of her siblings. To the untrained eye, they looked like regular kids eating dinner, but she new better. She could see the way their backs were tensed and the way they kept glancing anxiously over at the clock on the far wall.
"They're all stressing about something." She frowned slightly. "They're all worried about me. Stupid trainers took me away so freaking early this morning, they probably thought I was taken from my bed by the nomlies."
When she thought about it, the whole mess hall seemed kind of tense. Granted, it was hard to be completely relaxed when there are guards carrying AK47s watching your every move, but usually that didn't stop the trangenics from eating with relative ease.
She knew that the other trangenics occupying the facility were usually pretty perceptive. They knew that if the Alpha unit was worried about something, they should probably be worried too.
She rolled her eyes. She was thankful that she had so many people that cared about her but this was ridiculous. "Oh well it's now or never." She thought before slowly pushing the door open and entering the mess hall as quietly as possible.
Unfortunately due to the fact that about 96% of the room's occupants were transgenics with super human hearing, her attempt at a stealthy entrance sounded somewhat akin to the sound a stampede of overweight elephants must make.
Every set of eyes in the room came to rest of her and she shrunk back noticeably. The majority of the people in the mess hall relaxed slightly when they realized just who had entered. The tense atmosphere all but disappeared. Only the unit at the far table, her unit, remained tense. Max looked up and nervous brown eyes met angry blue. She looked away quickly. "Great just great, Zack's pissed."
As she began making her way over to the Alpha table, the other trangenics, mostly X4s and X3s would wave or nod amiably to her making sure that they did so when the guards weren't paying attention.
Friendships and relationships in general were frowned upon by Manticore but Max would be damned if she would allow the all powerful Colonel Lydecker to control that aspect of her life. The many friends she had made over the years and her siblings kept her grounded and sane through the hours of intense training and at times borderline torture the trainers loved to subject her to. She was the youngest, the leftovers but that didn't mean she would ever willingly become Lydecker's freaking guinea pig.
When she reached her table, the other Alphas watched her, their stares unwavering. She took her customary place between Ben and Jondy, across from Zack and sat in silence for a few minutes before she realized they were growing impatient.
"I'm sorry if I worried you guys this morning...." She began slowly only to be cut off by an irate Zack. "Of course we were worried about you! You disappear without a trace in the middle of the night without telling anyone." Max looked down guiltily and Shawn placed a calming hand on Zack's shoulder.
Ben leaned over and spoke so only Max could hear him. "I thought the nomlies had taken you Maxie. We were all really worried but Zack was going crazy. He almost beat up a trainer who wouldn't tell him were you were but Shawn and Dave stopped him." "Thanks Ben." She whispered back before summoning all her courage and looking Zack right in the eyes. "Lydecker ordered me to report to him at 0300 hours to begin my evaluation."
Realization flashed through the eyes of all her siblings. "Oh Maxie we didn't realize it was already time!" Jondy exclaimed as she and Ben rapped reassuring arms around her. "What happened baby sister?" Zack asked having calmed down considerably. He was now watching her with concern. They all took in her tired and haggard appearance. She was pale and her eyes were bloodshot.
"The more accurate question would be what didn't happen..." The other X5s frowned in confusion. "The trainers ran every test imaginable. Escape and evade, arms and munitions, communications and technology, combat both armed and unarmed, speed and agility....The Tank." A collective shudder went through the other Alphas. Everyone had been subjected to The Tank at one point or another. It was an unpleasant experience especially for those with cat DNA like the X5s.
"What did the colonel say?" Max shrugged. "I dunno, he disappeared about half way through. The trainer just said to head over here." "Don't worry about it Maxie, were sure you did great." "I hope so. If I didn't "perform" to Lydecker's standards, they're gonna send me away to some other facility across the country." Tears welled up in Max's dark eyes and her heart constricted painfully at the thought.
Supper was eaten in relative silence until it was once again interrupted. Every transgenic in the room froze when Colonel Lydecker entered before hurriedly standing at attention. They all hated him and feared him. He was the only thing they feared because of who he was and what he could do.
"X5-452 report to my office immediately! The rest of you as you were." Max looked like a deer caught in the headlights. Zack pushed her towards the door and her soldier's mask slipped into place. She was afraid of Lydecker but she'd never let him know it. She followed him out of the mess hall and through the corridors to his office.
When they entered, the colonel took his seat behind his desk and Max stood stiffly facing him, her expression unreadable. "452, you know why you are here. Five years ago, I was given responsibility for you against my wishes and forced to place you in Alpha unit under direct orders from my superiors." Max suppressed the urge to roll her eyes. "Doesn't that make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside...."
Lydecker stood and began pacing. "I created Alpha unit to be the best, composed of only the elite soldiers I had personally selected, not to be some halfway house for Manticore's leftovers." "Ouch..." Max winced slightly. "I believed that your addition to the Alpha unit would cause problems and have a damaging effect on their performance both as a team and as individuals." Max braced herself. "Here it comes..." Lydecker stopped pacing and faced her. "I was wrong."
Max's eyes widened to the size of saucers. "Did he just say what I thought he said? Who would have thought that good old Deck would admit he was wrong especially in the presence of "Manticore's leftover?" She then thought about the deeper implication of his words and looked at him expectantly.
"You have proved yourself to be a valuable asset, not only to Alpha unit but to Manticore as a whole. If your performance over the last 5 years and your results on today's little tests are any indication, we can expect great things from you. I have decided that you will remain a member of Alpha unit permanently. Dismissed."
Max's heart leapt for joy. She had been horrified with the prospect of being separated from the only family she had ever known. She was so happy she'd hug Lydecker if she didn't hate him as much as she did and wasn't sure he would shoot her on the spot despite her being a "valuable asset".
She moved to leave but Lydecker's voice stopped her. "Oh and 452 don't think that means I won't be keeping an eye on you.." She began walking towards the barracks to tell the others the good news and it was only thanks to her enhanced hearing that she heard the words he muttered under his breath moments later. "....and your....siblings...."
When she entered the Alpha unit's barracks, everyone looked up from what they had been doing. Zack who had been tucking Jace and Sky in spoke first. "What did the colonel want?"
Max smiled brightly as she moved to sit on her bed that was located in the corner closest to the door next to Jondy's and across from Jack's. "He said I can stay!" Huge smiles broke out on all the Alpha's faces. "Awww.this calls for a group hug!" Syl exclaimed from across the room and the others nodded eagerly in agreement. Everyone except for Zack and Shawn launched themselves onto Max's bed and enveloped her in a massive group hug. The bed creaked and groaned in protest. The CO and SIC rolled their eyes at the antics of their younger siblings.
"All right everyone, as happy as we are that baby sister is staying, I want you all in bed now. We have training first thing in the morning and I want everyone at their peak." The Alphas glared at Zack before climbing off of Max and returning to their own beds. "When do we not have training first thing in the morning?" Eva asked pointedly before closing her eyes and covering her head with a pillow.
Max watched as the others drifted off to sleep one by one. Soon, her, Jondy and Ash were the only ones still awake. The three of them rarely slept and the often joked about having shark DNA. Many nights they stayed awake talking and as a result Max often felt closer to them then the others.
The 3 X5s sat for a while just listening to the steady breathing of their siblings. "I'm glad you're staying Maxie." Jondy spoke softly. "Me too." Ash intoned from his place in the bed next to Jack's. "Me three." Max thought to herself.
AUTHOR'S NOTES:
As some of you have already deduced, Alec is not a member of Alpha unit. This is not because he is not good enough. It is because, Ben was already an Alpha and they (Manticore officials/scientists) thought it would be best if clones were kept separated from birth.
Alec is not the CO of his unit because I don't want him to be...yet
In the list of X5s in the previous chapter, the names are not listed in order of age even though it was a weird coincidence that Zack and Shawn happened to be at the beginning and Max happened to be at the end. If you want to know the ages of the X5s just ask and I can post them at the end of the next chapter
Thanks so much for reading and reviewing!!!
Jeannie