11th to 23rd Nov 2003
Unwelcome Ties By Western Blakehawke.
Set after LATR. 2021.
Ames meets the first human looking transgenic. Alec is reunited with a sibling and takes a road trip.
Chapter 1.
Early evening
A wooded area a few miles outside of Seattle.
Special Agent in Charge Ames White was leading a team of eight, on the trail of yet another transgenic. Three of the agents were carrying heat detectors. Though all were dressed casually, there was no mistaking the fact that they were government operatives.
"Sir!" Agent Garcia called from twenty five metres to Ames' right.
Ames swiftly joined his agent, and looked at the thermal sensor. "It's in this vicinity all right." He calmly stated, whilst he used hand signals to direct his agents to the transgenics exact hiding place. I've got you now!
The agents swiftly began to encircle their prey.
Suddenly, their quarry made a dash for freedom, she raced past an agent and dodged the taser he aimed at her, but in doing so was grabbed by another, who she promptly bit.
"YEOOOW!" The agent yelled, as he grabbed his injured arm, releasing the transgenic.
The small transgenic moved a few paces, then stopped short, as she now stared down the barrel of a gun aimed directly between her eyes.
"Freeze freak!" Ames ordered. "Michaels, cuff it!" It's tiny! Shouldn't be too much trouble, need to muzzle it though…… nah if they're to slow or dumb to move let 'em get bit!
The agent whom the transgenic had bitten, gingerly stepped forward still nursing his injured arm.
The transgenic did not move, just continued to stare at Ames, an unreadable expression upon her face.
"Don't even think of trying anything." Ames warned her. Why is it staring at me so intensely? Why doesn't it attack me, it could easily disable the human it must think me to be? "Hurry up and cuff it! You can get a Rabies shot when we get back to Seattle!" He sarcastically told his still wary agent.
"Can I get a shot too, please?" The small transgenic female asked "For Rabies." She clarified grinning. "I should be immune, but best to be on the safe side." She said as she casually allowed herself to be handcuffed.
Ames' only reply to the transgenics polite query was a quelling glare.
She shrugged her right shoulder. "Only a thought."
Ames ignored her. "Get it to the van!" He ordered, lowered his weapon, turned swiftly upon his heel, and stalked away, heading for his car. Another sarcastic one! What is it with the human looking ones? Why can't they all be like Mule? Nice accommodating idiots!
The transgenic looked at the agents. "If I break away from you, he'll explode won't he?" She asked an amused look upon her face.
The agents glanced at one another.
"Get moving! And don't try anything!" Garcia ordered. "March!"
"Sorry suga, I only marched for Lydecker." Using a southern accent she sweetly informed the man as she sauntered, rather than marched between the agents, who had her surrounded on all sides. "Don't worry boys, I won't run! I'd hate it if he got mad at you'll on account of lil old me." She assured them, still using the southern drawl, an amused glint in her blue eyes.
Stony silence from all the agents.
A short while later.
NSA H.Q.
Ames White's office.
"Yes sir, she's apparently the first human looking transgenic to survive birth." Otto Gottlieb reiterated his discovery to his superior. "According to the data that we managed to salvage from Manticore, she was the only survivor of her class, born in um 1992; she's part wolf; uh her designation is X0-378 and she does not have a barcode."
Ames said nothing so Otto continued with his report.
"Apparently she was specially trained by Colonel Lydecker and a Doctor Sandemann......."
Ames' started at the mention of his father. "Trained for what purpose?" He asked, intensely. Another 452? Senile old fool!
"Uh…..well… the files we have, they don't say sir." Otto replied startled and flustered, at being asked for more details by a man who was notorious for not caring about what the transgenics were designed for. "Um…. Ah…..All they say is that she was activated at thirteen and has a one hundred percent rating, all her missions were successful." He managed to just finish his report.
As Ames swiftly stood up, startling Otto even more by his abrupt departure from his office.
Ames quickly made his way through the building to the security monitoring area, just beyond the cells. "Turn off the surveillance devices in the newest prisoner's cell!" He ordered, then not needing to wait and see if his order would be obeyed, he retrieved the keys and hurried to the cell.
Cell.
Ames quickly unlocked the cell door and entered the room.
The transgenic looked up from where she was seated cross legged upon the bed; she was securely chained at the wrists and ankles, and had a metal collar around her neck, that was secured to one of the cell walls via a five foot long chain.
"Kind of overkill isn't it" X0-378 asked rhetorically as soon as Ames entered. "It could be worse, least they didn't make me wear a minuscule gold bikini."
Ames ignored the Star Wars reference, as he glanced at all the chains that Garcia had ordered to be placed upon this particular transgenic. Sure is! "You bit one of my people, what did you expect." Was his rhetorical and sardonic response. A freak who references Star Wars, what next!
"Michaels' thinks he's gonna turn into a werewolf." X0-378 replied grinning at the memory of the conversation she had had with Garcia and the extremely worried agent after they had discovered that she was part wolf.
"What?" Ames said, startled. Of all the idiotic…….
X0-378 burst out laughing, Ames glared at her, and she quickly regained her composure, but the grin remained, as did the amused tone of voice.
"Yep! He's one suppositious human!" X0-378 replied. "Started muttering about silver bullets and full moons." Paused. "Cause if he did flip, it'd be an improvement!"
"Flip?" Ames queried. Can she turn into a wolf? Is that why she got special training? Is that why fa... Sandemann trained her himself?
"Turn into a wolf." X0-378 clarified. "I saw this cool show as a kid, about wolves that could turn into humans; they lived as humans, but would flip back to their wolf forms whenever they wanted to!" She became wistful. "I wish I could flip into a wolf, I tried, but no go….."
"You are going to answer my questions." Ames stated cutting her off. She can't morph, so why was she so important to Sandemann?
"OK, sure, no problem." X0-378 replied with a one shoulder shrug.
"I can make this inter…" Ames continued.
X0-378 interrupted him. "I said I have no problem with answering your questions. Will you pay attention!"
Ames stared at her, nonplussed by this helpful attitude from an X-series.
"What? Just because you had to use torture on other X-series you assume that we're all alike?" Was X0-378's indignant response.
Ames unthinkingly nodded, still shocked by her attitude.
"I'm the first of the X's, as I'm sure you know, and I am most certainly not like those hive minded 7's! I am perfectly capable of thinking for myself!" She glared at him. "So I choose to voluntarily answer your questions!"
Ames just looked at her still totally taken aback.
She quit glaring at him and grinned suddenly. "How's C.J?"
"C.J?" Ames swiftly moved forward and grabbed X0-378's shirt at the neck, hauling her to her feet, standing her on the bed. "Where is 452!" He yelled even though his face was mere inches from hers.
"How the hell should I know where Max is?" X0-378 responded angrily. "I'm not deaf you imbecile! You don't have to shout!"
"Where is she?" He asked again, this time quietly, but with even more deadly menace. I want my son back!
"The last time I saw Maxie was a few days before she and the others escaped!" X0-378 told him, in exasperation.
"Yet you use the name she uses." Ames softly accused. You'll tell me what I want to know freak!
X0-378 became eerily calm and answered him. "I have known each of the X-series since they were born, I am the eldest after all, I moved from facility to facility with Sandemann, spending a few weeks to a few months at each, every year. I was at the Wyoming facility when Max and the others chose their names; that was fifthteen years ago."
Ames released her, recognizing the truth in her words, he stepped away from her and unconsciously wiped his hands upon his trousers. X0-378 gracefully sat back down upon the bed retuning to her cross legged position, and just watched him, awaiting his next move.
How does she know C.J? Did he travel with father on his traitorous jaunts? Ames thought, he did not speak for two minutes. Then finally decided. "How do you know C.J.?" Damn know I've left myself open to her questions on how do I know him!
" Sandemann." She replied then paused. "Agent White, I'm part wolf remember, I knew you were his son the instant we met, I recognized the familiar scent…… no pun intended."
Ames looked at her in shock. She knows he's my father and about us! What the heck did you do, you senile old fool! "You know about us?"
"Yes, I was your fat….." X0-378 started to reply.
"Don't call him that! My father died the day he left me, the day he turned traitor!" Ames snarled ferociously, cutting her off.
"Sandemann's assistant." She continued, only acknowledging Ames' outburst, by referring to Sandemann as Sandemann. "I was his pet project from birth, since I was the only one to survive. He named me at birth, though I also have a designation. The military allowed me to remain with him after they took over, though I still did assignments for them…."
She got a far away look in her eyes for a few seconds then snapped out of her memories. "I had all the training from birth, just like all the X-series; that was in place before the government got involved. Sandemann and Lydecker personally handled my training….."
"What did he tell you about us?" Ames brusquely asked. I don't want your life story!
"Apart from the boring morals lectures…. he told me about your history, taught me the language etcetera and when I turned six, he gave me the test, even though he knew I was immune he tested me anyways." X0-378 replied rolled her eyes, & pushed the sleeve up her arm to reveal the caduceus brand. "He even used a kariff, wore a robe and got me to say the words. He reproduced as much of the ceremony as he could." She sarcastically stated.
Ames just stared at her in shock. What the hell was wrong with him! He despised our religion yet he re-enacted a vital part, to test this freak! He's worse than senile! He's crazy!
"He couldn't teach me the really interesting stuff, about the ancient weaponry though." X0-378 shrugged her right shoulder.
Silence.
"He also gave me really boring lectures on genetics, I um, quit paying attention after the first couple, 'cause I realised he was not going to test me on 'em! I only paid attention to the lectures regarding my own DNA, otherwise I was off reworking famous battles in my head." She grinned with that statement.
"What do you know about 452?" Ames asked sharply, recovering from the shock of Sandemann's further betrayal. I don't care that you got the same boring lectures that I got!
"Ah…. She was another of his pet projects, um, he called her his special one and he probably told me why, but uh, you know genetics, so I zoned out, only paid enough attention, to nod at appropriate times….. sorry."
Ames glared at her. Stupid freak! I know he was boring, but you should have listened!
"I can tell you something that's kind of to do with genetics though" X0-378 informed him, fed up with being glared at. "He did not use any of his own or C.J's DNA, to make transgenics… none of us are related to you."
Ames looked utterly relieved.
She grinned at him, at the relieved expression that he could not help showing. "So how is C.J, is he still alive, I know he was caught by the Phalanx."
"Why do you care?" Ames belligerently asked.
"Agent White, I never saw Sandemann as my father, unlike Joshua and Isaac, but I did think of C.J. as my brother, so I'd appreciate knowing how he is." X0-378 bluntly told him.
"He's still crazy and he's safely locked up!" Ames replied equally blunt. Freaks called him father! That's disgusting! She better not see me as a sibling! I'm gonna hurl!
"Have you seen him recently?" She asked.
"I told you he's safe!" Ames curtly replied. "I'm the one doing the questioning not you!"
"Hey, don't blame me for doing what I was trained, genetically programmed to do!" X0-378 huffily responded.
"What, worry about that moron?" He asked incredulously. She was made to baby sit C.J?
"Yes!" X0-378 yelled.
"You can't be serious, I know he was senile, but creating a whole series of freaks to baby sit C.J. is stupid!"
"I wasn't only born to protect C.J! Why the hell do you think that I didn't disarm you in the forest! I could have, 'cause no way could you have used your true abilities in front of the ordinaries!" She sarcastically informed him.
Before Ames could reply to this startling revelation, alarms started to blare through out the building.
"We'll finish this later!" He told her as he swiftly exited the cell, slamming the door behind him, but not before he heard her sarcastic reply.
"Great!" X0-378 said, she lay back on the bed and stared at the ceiling. "I wish they'd turn those stupid alarms off!"
The alarms kept sounding for a few moments then were abruptly cut off mid wail.
"Thank you!"
A minuet or so later.
X0-378 heard the sound of fighting near her cell, she ignored it and continued to relax on her bed, she did not even open her eyes when the cell door was opened.
"Hello 494." She casually welcomed the person then slowly opened her eyes.
"Will?" Alec asked in surprise. "Hey the kids we came to rescue said that Ames had caught a ferocious wolf nomlie!" He grinned at her as he came over and started to remove her chains, using the keys he had taken from the monitoring area. "Where's the bikini? You should be wearing a gold and bronze metal bikini!"
"If I'm Leia, I guess that makes you Jabba!" Will replied grinning at the younger transgenic.
"Jabba!" Alec said in a very hurt tone, he pouted. "I'm Han Solo!"
The restraints now removed, Will stood up and casually stretched. "Mmm. Yep Han is definitely more in keeping with your personality." She responded still grinning as she patted him on the shoulder. "C'mon kid quit pouting and lead us outta here!"
"Hey! I'm not a kid! I'm all man! Well almost all!" Alec replied grinning at the small transgenic.
Will just shrugged her right shoulder and continued to grin at him.
Alec reached into the back of his jeans and removed a gun. "Here!" He said and handed it to her. "Let's go!"
"I've got your six little brother!" Will replied as she swiftly and automatically checked the weapon's sliding movement, ejected the clip and made a note of how much ammunition she had before she followed him into the corridor, past downed agents, up to the first floor of the building and into the main area, where the other transgenics were awaiting them.
NSA Command room.
"Hey guys I thought I'd be springing Hannibal Lector and instead I get Will!" Alec joked as soon as they entered the very large room.
Will reacted instantly.
"Ow! Why'd you hit me?" Alec asked as he turned to face Will.
"I don't like being likened to Hannibal Lector!" Will told him, with a glare. "Female, not psychotic and vegetarian!" She informed him, as she stalked past him to greet Max and the others.
"So you didn't bite one of Ames' agents?" Alec sarcastically called after her.
Will continued to walk towards Max, dodging the fallen agents and ignoring those who were conscious, but chained up, including an incredibly pissed off Ames White and a very apologetic Otto Gottlieb. "Bit yes, ate no!" She replied over her shoulder. "I hate liver!"
"Ah who's Hannibal Lector?" An X8 male asked he looked at his X8 and X6 companions who responded with puzzled looks and shrugs.
"He was a fictional serial killer, who ate his victim's livers." Will calmly clarified for them as she came to a stop beside Max. She glanced down at Ames who was chained up and gagged a few feet away, then turned her attention back to Max.
"Will….." Max paused looking nervous not knowing what to say to her oldest sibling, not used to being at a loss for words.
Alec reached them and gave Max an odd look. "C'mon Max she doesn't bi…." He paused and started laughing. "Well okay she does bite, but only enemies right?" He looked to Will for confirmation.
"You went A.W.O.L. Max….. you are rogue, we all have orders to kill you and the other rogues!" Will coldly informed her.
"Hey wait a minute Will!" Alec stepped in between Will and Max. "Without Max we'd be dead! She freed us!"
Will looked coldly at him, even though she had to step back a couple of paces to look directly into the six footers eyes, she radiated power. "Move now!" She ordered then not bothering to wait for him to obey her command she shoved him aside and grabbed Max, who had quickly assumed a fighting stance.
The part wolf transgenic easily overpowered the part cat transgenic, engulfing her in a hug.
"It's great to see you Maxie!" Will stated, grinning as she released her kid sister.
"Will, you might want to rethink the not psychotic part!" Alec sarcastically told her. This time he was ready and dodged the left hand that came up to whack him, but in doing so he missed the swift movement of her right leg and she kicked him lightly on the butt. "Quit doing that! You're as bad as Max!" He complained as he rubbed his rear.
The other transgenics were having fits at this, especially the X8's, the three other X5's were grinning.
"Family trait!" Max and Will said together grinning.
"You're still the same loud mouthed pain you were at Manticore." Will informed Alec. "So what are you called?"
"Alec." He replied a hurt expression upon his face, from her accurate description of him.
Will walked over to him and hugged him.
"Wha…" Alec was now embarrassed and blushing slightly.
"Alec's blushing!" An X6 female said surprised.
"Wow, I never thought I'd see you blush!" One of the two X5 males stated shocked.
"Lay off him okay!" Will ordered her kin.
The other transgenics immediately complied; those who had their mouths open to make a comment swiftly closed them, even Max followed Will's directive.
Having accurately guessed the nature of some of the suppressed comments, Will rolled her eyes. "I have normal sibling relationships with you all, in that I think that all of you can be pains and have been mightily tempted to seriously hurt, if not kill, a few of you!" She paused and glared at each of the kids in turn then she grinned at them. "But, I've also protected all of you down the years and that's not going to change just because we're free!"
Gagging sounds come from Ames White's direction. The transgenics all focused upon him.
Ames seeing that he now had their attention, tried to talk through the gag. I'm gonna hurl! Let me outta these chains so I can kill you! Damn it! I'll make it quick, painless well relatively! 452 I want my son! Give him back to me! Unchain me! Now!
"Ames, we can't understand you and we don't give a damn!" Max told the seething agent, before turning her back on him, ignoring him in a very cat like gesture. "Time to leave people! Gizmo have you downloaded the data?"
The X6 female at one of the computers looked up. "Almost done Max……got it!" She grabbed a couple of disks and stood up.
The other male X5 walked over to Ames, and looked down at him. "Max what are we gonna do about chained up ugly here?" He asked
Alec joined him. "You should have seen how he had Will chained! She had a metal collar, with a long chain attached to the cell wall, thinks he's Jabba the Hutt!" Alec sarcastically informed the others.
Ames started trying to speak again. Jabba the Hutt! I'll give you Jabba the Hutt! I'll make your death slow and incredibly painful!
"Actually Boba Fett is more apt, his director would be Jabba since he pays Ames to hunt us. Ames is just a bounty hunter." Will stated shrugging then grinned. "Working for the evil Empire, hunting down us rebels! Yep he's Boba Fett and we all know what happened to him!"
"Yeah, but we don't have a Great Pit of Carkoon to shove him in, so that he can be slowly digested over one thousand years by the Sarlacc!" Alec dolefully complained.
"What are you talking about?" A female X6 queried.
The adult X series all looked at the youngsters and saw that all were equally puzzled.
"They wouldn't have had classes on pop culture yet." The female X5 stated, lightly hitting her forehead with her right palm. "Duh."
"We'll show you the movie when we get home okay." Max stated, scanning the area, making sure that the unchained agents were still unconscious.
"Max, they can't just watch Return of the Jedi, they need to watch all of the films to know what's going on!" Alec reminded her.
Max glared at him.
"What, you know I'm right." Alec responded in a hurt tone.
Ames began speaking again, cursing and threatening through the gag. When I get my hands on you you'll wish you'd been captured by Fett!
Alec returned his attention to the agent. "So Max, what do we do with Boba Fett here?"
"Better the devil you know." Will calmly commented, not bothering to look at the Familiar.
"Yeah… leave him!" Max ordered and led the transgenics out of the building.
Will waited till last, taking up her preferred position of rear guard. "Nice meeting you." She genuinely and sincerely said, as she looked at Ames for a moment then was swiftly gone, as she caught up to the others.
A short time later.
Terminal City.
Will had been updated on the latest goings on and on the names of those she was travelling with, including how each of them chose or were given their names, Alec skilfully wove the tale of how he became Alec and had Will, Max and the others laughing.
Max, Will and Alec walked into the command centre at TC.
"I couldn't have chosen a better name for you Alec!" Will stated still grinning. "It fit's you like a glove!"
"Will!" Joshua yelled, and raced over engulfing her in a huge hug, that lifted her off the ground.
"Breath! Can't breath Josh!" Will choked, from amid his steel tight grip, whacking him on the back.
Joshua quickly released her, and looked at her with his puppy dog eyes, hang dog and apologetic. "Joshua sorry Will." He said dolefully. "Joshua hurt Will?"
"No Josh, I'm fine!" Will grinned and hugged him. "Just be a bit more careful of your strength huh!"
"Okay!" Joshua grinned at her. "Will, you know where father is?"
"Sandemann? Josh I haven't seen him in about sixteen years! Not since he left Manticore!" Will replied.
"Oh." Joshua was downcast. "But you were father's assistant….."
"Josh, if I had any idea where he was I'd tell you." She told him patting his arm as they walked over to some armchairs and sofas and sat down.
Joshua looked mournful.
"All I know is that he had to run, because the Conclave had sent the Phalanx after him." Will added.
"Wait a minute! You know about the Familiars?" Max asked incredulous.
"Yes, Sandemann taught me all about them, he even gave me their test, when I was six…."
"Hey, you got the snake blood dealio too?" Original Cindy interrupted as she came over.
Max quickly introduced them.
"Hi." Will said grinning. She appeared to be exactly what she was completely comfortable and not in the least fazed or surprised that an ordinary was among the transgenics, that Max had close ordinary friends whom she had entrusted with her, their secret.
"Nice to meet you Will! So how many kin does my boo have?" Original Cindy asked as she sat on a sofa.
"Actual numbers, I have no idea, I kind of got out of the loop after Sandemann left and Deck became preoccupied with hunting the 09ers." Will replied. "Hmmm, well at a guess, I'd say a few thousand."
"What!" Alec almost fell off the arm of the armchair he was perched on. "I thought maybe a thousand at the very most!"
Everyone else in the command room was equally incredulous at Will's blunt statement.
"Yep a few thousand, maybe as many as ten thousand." Will reiterated, looking at those around her.
Everyone in the room had a shocked or incredulous expression upon their face.
"Sandemann, started gene splicing in the 1970's because his children kept either outright failing the test and dying or they became vegetables, severely mentally and or physically disabled or crazy. The government caught wind of his activities in the late 1980s and commandeered his research." She informed them.
"He started in the 70's?" Max echoed, surprised at this new piece of information, she looked at Joshua and Will. "How old are you guys?"
Joshua shrugged. "I don't know father never say." He also looked to Will.
"34, Josh you're 34. You were born on the 24th of July 1988." Will informed him with a grin.
"24th of July 1988!" Joshua carefully repeated smiling.
"Yep. Isaac was born about sixteen months later, the government were involved by then hence his barcode and I was born on the 4th of July 1992, I'm 29. Sandemann didn't risk inserting a barcode sequence into mine or the others of the X-0 series DNA, because we were the first of the X series, he was worried that we wouldn't survive and he was almost right." She shrugged her right shoulder.
All but Alec were listening fascinated by these interesting details.
"After the government got involved, Manticore as the labs became known began churning out new transgenic types each year, often a few types would be born every year, some of the X series overlapped because of breakthroughs whilst they were in utero. So you have some X's that are different series, but are the same age." Will continued.
Alec was slightly impatient although he was interested in this new data. "Will, how do you get the ten thousand mark?"
"Information and then some deductive reasoning." She informed him grinning. "C'mon Alec, think about all the X5's you've worked with, then double them for the clone factor, then add in all the other later X series and their clones, plus other series and nomlies, and the natural twins and triplets. Then add in the total for each facility ……."
"Yeah, I did start to see a lot of new faces at the Washington facility after the Wyoming one was destroyed……They quickly built a hell of a lot of new accommodation areas….. each new block was completely self contained." Alec paused remembering conversations with others from that facility that he had never met until he came to Seattle.
Everyone's attention was now focused upon him.
"Each new block, was for a facility that had been closed when they decided to move 'em all to Washington….. We were not allowed to mix with those from other facilities even in training. The guards got quite cranky if you acknowledged someone from another block!" Alec had a far away look on his face as he spoke recalling the last few months at Manticore.
"Everyone was crammed into those buildings and the original ones, the new ones went down five six stories underground they were connected by a myriad of tunnels….." Will recalled.
"What more can you tell us about Manticore?" Max asked sharply.
"Why don't I write up everything I remember?" Will suggested. "Then you can use the files whenever you want."
"Good idea, we'll loan you a laptop to use after we sort out your quarters." Max informed her.
"Thanks. Any of the other 09er's here?" Will queried.
Max looked at her eldest sibling. "Tinga and Ben are dead….."
Will swiftly got up and went to Max's side, enveloping her in a hug. "I know Maxie, I know." She quietly stated grief evident in her voice.
Max tearing up returned the loving embrace. "Ben… I had to…."
"Shhhhh." Will murmured as she gently rocked her little sister. "You had no choice, they would have put him through hell. You did the right thing, you freed him!" Will told her easing back from the hug, she looked Max in the eyes. "You did the only thing you could have, given the circumstances!"
"How?" Max queried.
"Deck! He figured out what happened and told me, he was pissed…. Drunk." Will shook her head. "He came home after he found Ben, took care of stuff and went for his stash of alcohol, the stuff he kept for guests and he drank the lot! When I got home, he was a jabbering wreck."
The others were looking at her in shock.
Will had a far away look in her eyes as she recalled the scene. "Took me almost the whole night to get what had happened out of him… then I had to finish sobering him up fast 'cause Renfro wanted to see him later that afternoon."
"You lived with Lydecker!" Max was completely shocked. "How could you! He killed Eva! How could you… ugh… with him!"
Will stared at her then realised the misassumption that her friends family had made.
"That's gross! He's old enough to be your father!" Alec put in, disgusted.
"I did not have that kind of a relationship with Deck!" Will replied aggravated. "And even if I did, it would be none of your damn business!"
"What do you mean none of our damn business! You're our sister! We have a right to criticise your choice of mate!" Alec yelled back at her.
Both transgenics were now on their feet, in fighting stances.
"The day I take relationship advice from a tom cat, is the day I kill myself!" Will yelled at him totally pissed off, she was growling, and baring her teeth.
"Will, Alec, stop, you're family, don't fight!" Joshua pleaded, but to no avail.
Alec and Will were circling each other, a crowd had gathered to watch the fight, Max was still in shock and just sat on her seat.
Original Cindy, stood up and got in between the two furious transgenics, who were glaring at each other as they circled.
"Sit down the pair of you!" She ordered, ignoring the glares that they now turned upon her, she whacked the both of them. "Sit! I aint gonna tell you again!"
Will and Alec looked at the angry ordinary, Will shrugged her right shoulder and sat back down, Alec followed suit, and sat as far away from Will as he could. The other transgenics drifted away, disappointed that there would be no fight.
Original Cindy returned to her seat. "Thank you! Now you are going to discuss this like adults, not like three year olds!"
"I lived with Lydecker, it was a platonic relationship." Will, eerily calm, and now totally collected, paused to stare meaningfully at Alec. "Joshua had the parental bond with Sandemann, I had it with Deck. Though I did not call him father or any of the paternal names, he allowed me to call him Deck in private. When I wasn't travelling with Sandemann, to the other facilities, I lived with Deck. Neither of them would explain why I did not live in the barracks, like the rest of you." Will leant back in her armchair and relaxed, not caring what the others thought.
"Oh well okay then." Alec replied shrugging. "I'm hungry, how about you?"
Will burst out laughing. "That's why I've always had such a soft spot for you Alec, one minute I want to kill you the next you make me laugh!" She told him, grinning. "Come to think of it I could use some food." She stopped grinning and looked at Max. "He wasn't all bad you know Max…. Did you know that they caught Zack, that he allowed himself to be captured, so that others could escape?"
The others stared at her in shock for the third time that night.
"But, he was free, he found me....?" Max said bewildered.
"She's telling the truth Max, Zack was captured, but he escaped, scuttlebutt I heard reckoned he had help, but psi-ops couldn't find the traitor, so the brass figured he must have escaped on his own." Alec told them then looked questionly at Will.
Will shrugged her right shoulder.
"It was you! But how?" Alec asked in confused astonishment. "Psi-ops tested everyone who was on the base! They must have scanned you!"
Those in the command centre again starred at the new arrival.
Will rolled her eyes and sighed, then stretched and altered her position in her chair; she pushed off her cowboy boots and brought up her legs, so that she was now sitting cross legged.
"Did you free Zack?!" Max asked impatiently.
"Yes." Will quietly confirmed.
"But psi-ops…." Alec queried again.
"Apparently Sandemann never bothered to inform anyone that I was, am immune, to psychic probing and tricks." Will stated impassively, shrugging again.
"But…." Alec started.
"I played along whenever I was tested, pretended to have the correct reactions. Deck suspected, I think he knew that I was the one who freed Zack, because I didn't like what they were doing to him. But apart from glaring at me and giving me a lecture on loyalty to Manticore blah, blah, blah, he let the subject drop and never told anyone of his suspicions."
Max nodded, not liking the fact that Will did not have a problem with Lydecker, in fact saw him as a father figure, but respecting her still and the fact that Lydecker knew of Will's involvement in Zack's second escape and did not report it….
"Great! Mystery solved! Now can we go eat!" Alec whined as he stood up and not waiting for a reply headed to the mess hall.
Will slipped on her boots and stood, Max, Original Cindy and Joshua also stood up and they followed him, pausing only to get a laptop for Will's report, they hurried after Alec.
Mess Hall
Will had been introduced to everyone that they met. They sat together at a small table in a corner. After their meal as they sat drinking coffee or milk and relaxing Joshua recalled something.
"Max, Will also probably help you 09ers, then you escape." He firmly stated
"What?" Max asked puzzled.
"Will can talk to dogs in here." Joshua said pointing to his forehead. "Talk to Joshua and Isaac too."
"You can?" Alec was astonished then he eased slightly away from Will, enlarging the gap between their seats. "Only canines or mostly canines right?"
"Yeah so relax Alec, I'm only telepathic with those who have a huge amount of canine DNA." Will confirmed grinning at him. As usual Will did not show her teeth, since being part wolf she considered showing teeth to be a threat.
"Will was in Wyoming when 09ers escaped, Will help them?" Joshua asked.
Will shrugged her right shoulder. "I did ask the dogs to only pretend to be hunting properly, they agreed."
"I always wondered way a dog took his handler straight past me." Max said in astonishment. "And when I escaped the Washington facility?"
Will nodded.
"Will not allowed to see Joshua and Isaac after father left, but she still talked to us." Joshua told his friends then looked sad at the thought of his little brother.
Will stood and moved round the table to Joshua and hugged him from behind, whilst O.C., and Max hugged him from either side and Alec patted his hand.
"He's in a better place big fella." Max gently told the gentle giant.
"Yeah he's in Elysium." Will added knowing that Joshua would get the reference.
"Where only the good and most noble go." Joshua smiled happily at the thought.
"Yes." Will confirmed then sat down again.
Max and O.C. also broke the hug and they returned to questioning Will.
"So how come no one tried to stop you from telling the dogs to let the kids escape?" Original Cindy queried.
"We no tell what Will can do we promised not tell even father." Joshua explained.
"All they knew was that I had an affinity with canines, nothing more." Will explained. "I first talked, well communicated in pictures with a dog when I was a few weeks old, she was an alpha female and warned me through pictures not to tell the other two legs that I could talk to her kind." Will paused recalling her beloved canine kin.
"The dogs were quite happy to chat to me, but also worried about me, particularly the alpha male and female, they adopted me as their pup, I got the same reaction from all the dogs on all the bases." Will shrugged again she was not used to discussing her canine family.
"Okay now Will don't take this the wrong way, but how come you aren't and never have been considered a nomlie?" Alec cautiously asked her.
"You mean because all the X's after me before you 5's were considered to be nomlies?" Will queried.
"Yeah." Alec confirmed.
"I have no idea why I turned out okay and none of the others before they got to the X 5's did, why it worked perfectly with me and not the others, why none of my siblings survived birth." Will shrugged. "I'm a fluke."
Alec opened his mouth to speak and guessing he wanted more information Will added.
"That's the only reason that Sandemann and all the Manticore scientists could come up with, with all the tests they performed on me, all they came up with was, I'm a fluke."
"Will did Sandemann hire Lydecker or was it the military?" Max queried.
"Sandemann tracked down Deck a couple of years after the military cashiered him." Will replied. "After the government took over they reinstated him at his old rank of colonel etcetera, he was already directing much of the labs overall work, leaving Sandemann free to play with genes."
She shrugged anticipating the next question she added.
"The government just made the title of director official, they preferred to have one of their own, even someone that they had had to cashier, in charge to a civilian, Sandemann did not seem bothered by this."
"Renfro let you stay in Lydecker's place after he left?" Alec asked this had been puzzling him.
"She had to it was part of my cover for assignments." Will told them bluntly. "Oh I behaved like a good little soldier towards her, but I'm pretty sure she knew that I didn't like her."
"Did anyone." Max quipped sarcastically.
Will grinned in response. "You know, she always had five or six X5's with her whenever she had to speak to me." Will casually informed them.
This set them all to laughing, knowing how scared Renfro must have been of Will and the fact that she had to have bodyguards when she dealt with her, must have really annoyed the Manticore director.