A/N- Dedicated to SGOU!!!
Someone emailed me to ask me about a certain character and their development and as a result the character has got more screen time and their suggestions put to good use. I would love it if you want to talk about the characters, offer suggestions or even just chat about them feel free to email me. I always reply.
Ok so I'm not a military commander so if my guns or tactics or mission specs are off- that's why. Feel free to tell me so I can correct it next time around. Again this is ANOTHER two parter. Next part should be up on Wednesday, if all goes well.
OK, HANDS UP WHO IS COUNTING DOWN UNTIL WE GET TO CHAPTER 17????
Chapter 13- Grey clouds forming.
Aside Jungle Warfare
The fire was heating up the breakfast nicely and Skye was stirring the beans and watching as the rest of the transgenics crept around getting things tidied and ready for the day. It was odd to see them all so silent. Last night's revelation seemed to have leeched all of the hostility out of everyone.
Coco and Cece were folding up the canvas that they had slept on, while Anna and Chance rolled up the sleeping bags. B.J. and Flex were helping Zan, Emma and Steve set up the mission table and unrolling the maps and blueprints to pinpoint locations and guards. Pix and Biggs had gone to fetch water from a nearby river…although Skye did wonder if they'd come back alive. Sunny and Feen had gone to scout and make sure that nothing had changed in their plans; they were due back soon though. Carrot, Dek, Mets and Tara were sitting off to one side going through their medical supplies and setting up an impromptu medical bay just in case someone was injured during the mission. Drew and Aiden were taking stock of weaponry and Techie had come over to help Skye with breakfast.
Everyone was so busy and yet the clearing was silent as no one wanted to wake up their two CO's who were still asleep curled around each other by the fire. They looked so peaceful but anyone who looked hard could see the way Alec had his hand curled around Max's waist as if he let go, she'd disappear. But in sleep, the taut line of their faces and the hard edge to their eyes was gone.
Skye smiled up at Techie as he helped her cook.
"Didn't know you liked to cook," she whispered and he blushed.
Techie and Skye had never really spoken. Her brashness and bitchiness had been a constant nightmare of his and the very idea of sitting down having a conversation with her scared him more than Feen did. But since they had recently been on the same side things were different.
"I prefer communications and mechanics," he confessed quietly and she nodded.
"I prefer cultural studies."
Their quiet conversation halted as the two figures stirred.
Alec stretched and opened his eyes, glancing down softly at Max before up at the rest of them who had all paused in their activities to watch him.
His eyes narrowed as he sought out the guilty expressions on his unit and they glanced away, knowing that he was mad and they'd be in for it later—big time.
Max yawned and sat up arching her back in a cat like stretch.
She looked down at Alec and gave him a hesitant smile.
He reached up and cradled her cheek with his soft palm.
"Breakfast?" he asked with a smile and she nodded.
"Eggs, beans and toast. The smell of bacon would travel too far and attract too many beasts," Skye informed them as she dished some out into plates.
"Good thinking," Max agreed and took the plate from her.
"We set up info specs," B.J said and gestured to the table, "When you're ready."
"Everyone was sooo busy," Alec harsh tone made them all wince.
Max looked back at him and shook her head imperceptibly as if telling him to leave it alone. But they all knew that he had no intention of leaving it.
"I need a wash," he rubbed his face.
"Biggs and Pix are at the river getting water," volunteered Techie, knowing full well that Alec was going to want to speak to him.
"Great," Alec grinned. It wasn't a nice grin and they briefly felt sorry for Biggs even as they knew that they were all in for it.
~~~
The river was a part of a larger pool that housed a beautiful luscious waterfall. The trees that swept down the sides and trailed in the water added to the peaceful ambiance but the tension between the two men was anything but peaceful as they dipped their canteens into the water.
Biggs was studiously avoiding conversation with Pix even though he knew that he couldn't keep it up. They had to speak sooner or later.
"So…um…you and Chance made up?" he started and Pix straightened.
"Yes," he said carefully, watching Biggs as if he'd be attacked any minute.
"I thought about what you said, you know before, about being too over protective."
Pix said nothing and Biggs wanted to scream. Pix was the ultimate joker, the one who always had a jest and witty comeback. Why was he being so damn quiet? It was unnerving.
"And?" Pix raised an eyebrow and Biggs sighed.
"Maybe you were right."
"Makes a change for someone to be."
They spun around in fighting stance, dropping their water bottles to see Alec leaning against the tree.
"Shit," Biggs said succinctly.
"Good call," Alec said conversationally. "Hey Pix."
"Alec, nice sleep?" Pix edged away.
"Great. Hey, I wanna talk with my friend Biggs here, you going back to camp?"
It may have sounded like a question but Pix knew an order when he heard one.
"Yes, Sir!" he gave Biggs a sympathetic glance and strode off in the direction of the camp.
Nothing was said for a few minutes and Biggs could feel the tension rise in him until he felt ready to burst.
Alec knelt down and picked up the canteen, turning it over in his hands, his face carefully blank.
Biggs began to sweat, suddenly more scared of his friend than he had ever been.
"Alec –" he began when he couldn't take it anymore.
"Shut up," Alec said calmly and Biggs' mouth snapped shut even as his body responded and stood to attention.
"As CO of Unit 8, I chose my 2IC carefully. I knew that if anything happened to me I would be leaving my family, my friends and my unit in good hands," Alec said carefully. "I never had any cause for complaint. I thought that I could trust you to take care of what was mine."
Biggs felt about an inch high as Alec didn't look up from the canteen he held.
"What went wrong?" He looked up and pinned Biggs with cold hard eyes.
"Sir, I –"
Alec held up a hand and cut him off. "No, I know what went wrong. When you saw I was missing, instead of using your brain. Instead of using your initiative, instead of using loyalty and rational reasoning you fell back on tried and tested Manticore logic and blamed the '09er."
Biggs ducked his head.
"Look at me!"
Biggs' head shot up and he met Alec's furious gaze.
"Instead of protecting what's mine. And she is mine, you turned on her and the others followed your example."
Biggs had no excuses and no justification and he winced as Alec paced around him.
"Didn't you think that by hurting her you're hurting me? She's your CO, for hell's sake, doesn't that demand at least some respect?"
Biggs knew that what Alec really wanted was to yell and scream and hit at Max's old unit; failing that, he was a suitable scapegoat. He was just glad that Alec didn't even know the worst.
"You were just too damn cowardly to help her out, huh? Or did you really buy that bull about my screw up being her fault? Huh? HUH?"
Suddenly Biggs found his tongue.
"I never meant to hurt her, what I said was –"
Alec paused in his pacing and Biggs cursed his slip.
"What do you mean what you said?"
Biggs tried to think of a way out of it but Alec was suddenly in his face and growling.
"510?" he yelled and Biggs knew that he was in serious trouble. Alec hadn't called him by his designation since Max had given him his name.
"I-I called her a-a runaway like her unit and said that she was responsible for you being in Psy-Ops." Biggs shut his eyes as he waited for Alec's fury.
After a few seconds he opened his eyes and, as if he had been waiting, Alec pulled back a fist and smacked Biggs clean in the face.
The pure anger and power of Alec's punch landed Biggs on the floor staring up at his best friend who stood over him with his fists clenched. He wiped at the trickle of blood that ran from his mouth down his jaw.
"Dammit Biggs, what the hell were you thinking?" he yelled.
Biggs stayed where he was.
"I'm sorry, I never meant to let you down but I was worried, Alec. The only other time you went to Psy-Ops was when the '09ers escaped originally and it felt like déjà vu all over again. I never meant to hurt Max and you have to believe that I'm sorry. I have tried to fix it, I really have but she won't talk to me."
"With you being such a supportive friend, it's hard to see why," Alec sniped and Biggs frowned.
"Don't you get it, Biggs? You know how I feel about her; hell, I told you! Did you think I'd want you to hurt her?"
"It was an accident!"
"Like hell!" Alec stared incredulously "What, you opened your mouth and the words slipped out?"
Biggs raised an eyebrow, "Oh and you planned to call her unit a traitor last night?"
Alec opened his mouth but his accusations were gone. He snapped his mouth shut. Biggs had a point. After all of his posturing to Biggs, he had gone and done the same last night.
"Alec, I have tried to talk to Max but she's closed herself off from us. I can't apologise if she won't talk to me," Biggs tried to reason with him while Alec was pondering on his words.
Alec ran a hand over his face and his shoulders slumped, "Dammit Biggs. Trying to get close to Max was hard before, if she regresses, you know how much harder it will be."
"Is she worth it?"
Alec's look told him that she was.
"Do you love her?" Biggs swallowed wondering if he had royally screwed things up even more for his CO.
"Got nothing to do with it," It was clear that Alec didn't want to talk about that.
"Okay, Sir."
Alec could see the repentant look on Biggs' face and some of his anger faded. He raked his hand through his hair and stared down at the man at his feet. He and Biggs had been best friends for as long as he could recall, and for an X5 that was a long time. He couldn't screw that up but neither could he hide his disappointment. He held out his hand and Biggs eyed it suspiciously but staring up into his annoyed C.O's face he could see the part of him that had always been more of a brother and knew that Alec would forgive him- eventually.
"Nah I'm good," he waved it away not telling Alec that, in truth, his head was still ringing. Alec nodded.
"I don't care how you do it; I don't care what you have to do. Fix it."
He ordered and walked away.
~~
Biggs swiped at the blood on his face and sat up, his forearms resting on his knees.
He heard a noise come from the trees and wondered if Alec was coming back to hit him again, like he didn't feel bad enough already. But it wasn't Alec. It was Sunny.
"You okay?" she asked tucking her blonde hair behind her ears. "Pix told me Alec wanted a word," She knelt down and touched his split lip, "Nice word."
"Could have been worse," he laughed. "Should have been worse."
"You did suck," she admitted and helped him to his feet. He staggered as his head spun a little.
"I have to make it up to Max, any ideas?"
Her eyes narrowed thoughtfully, "Because Alec said?"
"Because I want to," he corrected and she smiled.
"In that case I have one or two ideas."
~~
Alec's face was set into a frown as he dished out orders for the day. He used most of Special Ops to check out the perimeter and to be on watch, the rest he sent to organize the Med Bay while he spoke to his old unit. Unit 8 looked at each other with something akin to dread as they realised that they would be the ones left in camp. Special Ops seemed to realise this too and gave commiserating looks as they went off to their assignments.
Alec waited until the last of them had gone before he called for attention.
From habit, Unit 8 stood in rows to attention, each one privately chastising themselves as they waited for Alec to start.
He eyed them as he walked the rows.
"I know for a fact that you all heard last night," he began, "what Max went through and what you all did to her. Dammit, what the hell did you think you were doing, huh? Max is your C.O as well as part of our unit!" he yelled. "Your behaviour was not only reckless and disloyal but bordered on insubordinate! Max could have had you all thrown into the brig or reindoc."
"Sir! Permission to speak, Sir?"
"Denied!" he lashed out at Feen who snapped back to attention.
"She didn't though; she let you play out your insecurities and all and said nothing."
How did he know that? Steve exchanged confused looks with Cece.
"I'm not stupid," Alec growled as he saw their looks. "I asked around. I just never thought that my own unit would have been at the forefront of it all. I was hoping that Geordie was mistaken," He laughed bitterly, "Apparently not."
"But Alec we –" Cece started and Alec rounded on her.
"Shut the hell up, it's my turn to talk now!"
Cece looked like he had slapped her.
"Don't give me that wounded crap," he said as her lower lip trembled. "You dished it out to Max. Now take it like a soldier, dammit!"
At those words they all stood up straight and looked dead ahead. No matter what his words were and no matter how much it hurt them they wouldn't disappoint him again. They'd take it like the soldiers they were, even if inside they were cringing and crying.
"What exactly were you playing at? Did you think that I wouldn't find out or that I wouldn't care?"
He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Max means more to all of us than that, or at least I thought she did."
"Permission to speak, Sir?" Feen said calmly and he turned to her.
"Granted."
"We are all deeply ashamed of our behaviour towards our commanding officer and are repentant with a view to setting matters straight. We do not dare to hope that we can regain our previous relationship but we are willing to attempt reconciliation to whatever level she is comfortable with, Sir."
Alec stared at her; her eyes were forward, her back immobile as she gave him her report. He winced at her robotic answering, which was reminiscent of the way that they spoke to the Trainers back at Manticore. He hadn't wanted it to go that far, Max had given them all names and told them that they were more than designations and military. They weren't just soldiers, but people, and here he was ordering them to revert back to the state that he had always hated.
Some of his anger at them ebbed but the bitter disappointment stayed, like a physical presence.
"Well, right now we don't have time for this crap," he continued. "We have a mission to complete, no matter how distasteful." He grimaced as he thought of Unit 6 and those who had bullied Max as a child.
"We need to be able to count on each other to watch our backs and so right now, put aside whatever feelings you may have and concentrate on the mission," He gave a short laugh. "Who knows, maybe you and Unit 6 will have something in common to talk about once we rescue them."
Chance was the first to break her soldiers mask as she winced at Alec's harsh words.
Alec noticed but tried to ignore it, they deserved this and so much more.
"That's not fair!" she blurted out and Alec rounded on her.
"Not fair? NOT FAIR? Is it fair that Max was made to feel like an outsider? Is it fair that after everything that she has done for you, for us all, that she was ignored and…and," he seemed too incensed to make sense. "Dammit Chance! She stood up for you! Every time something went wrong, she was there for you. That time you almost blew up the base in Live Ordinance training Max was the one who bribed the Trainer to let it go. When you fell in the river in the mission in Chesterfield, Max was the one who stopped you getting hypothermia."
He spun to face the rest of them.
"Who stood up against Geordie for you, Chance? Who helped you pass Manticore's field op test, Steve? Who volunteered for every med test to help you out, Tara? Who saved your life, Skye? Max -- that's who. She has put her life, her reputation and position on the line for you time and time again and you treat her like crap. You owe more than your lives to her; I owe my life and my sanity."
Alec clenched his jaw. "Do you honestly think that if Max hadn't been there telling me her fairy tale that I would be here as Alec?"
It was the first time that he had even alluded to his time in Psy-Ops and they felt that dig, so much deeper.
"Or would you prefer 494? Is that what you wanted for yourselves? She gave us more than our names, she made us people and you all seem so eager to get rid of that, to get rid of her."
"Not everyone stood against Max," Skye suddenly spoke up and Alec's head whipped around to her.
"What was that, soldier?"
Skye gulped but forced her usual bitch persona to the forefront. What Alec had said about them and Unit 6 was not just harsh but mean and she wasn't going to take it without saying something back.
"I said that not everyone stood against Max. Some of us refused to believe the rumours and we had our share of fights over this. Drew was sent to discipline, Techie and Tara refused to believe it and I, for one, will not be branded as disloyal and like her old unit," She took a deep breath scared at her own daring. "Max is not just our C.O but our friend. You will not make me feel guilty for something that I didn't do," she finished and Unit 8 collectively held their breath as Alec stared at her.
Skye didn't care if the rest of her unit thought her a tattle tail or even betraying them, as far as she was concerned they had all screwed Max over and so they had no room to throw stones. She wasn't going to just stand there and not defend herself; after all she was the bitch.
"Okay, so some of us screwed up." Feen figured that she might as well add her two cents right now since Skye had already started the ball rolling. "But can you honestly say that you have never done the same? Because I remember a story she told me about a certain nameless CO who called her a rude, runaway '09er, whose entire family were traitors."
"Before she kicked his ass," Techie added, "and sent him flying." He was trying to soften Feen's accusation as Alec's eyes narrowed in fury; honestly that girl had no sense of self preservation!
"We will make it up to her," Steve said quickly hoping to soothe Alec. "But she might want to kick our asses before she forgives us."
"And that's fine by me," Biggs spoke up as he entered the clearing. "I guess I'm due a little punishment."
"A little?" Alec's lips twitched despite himself.
Biggs threw his hands up, "Ok a lot! I'm due one enormous angst ridden butt kicking session, okay?" he smiled. "But if it will give us back our class CO then it's all worth it."
Alec stared at his unit, whose expressions screamed sorrow and promised atonement. His anger and disappointment was mixed with some kind of pride as they stood up and took responsibility for their own actions and no matter how mad he was he knew that they'd get through this and may be stronger for it. They were still is family, no matter that he hated their actions and could no more turn his back on them as he could stop breathing.
"Okay, you have your assignments for today. Go to it. Dismissed."
~~
The plan was simple.
Team A's job was to go in and collect the data that Renfro was so hot for. Aiden took the lead on that and had Feen and Emma's expert technical know-how to help him out. They'd report to the communications crew which consisted of Chance, Techie and Steve who would be back at camp monitoring comms and hacking into the compounds mainframe.
Team B was the one responsible for collection of the hostages and was headed by Alec. As CO he'd chosen his team carefully. He needed muscle in case the hostages were injured and need assisted evacuation, so Flex, Zan and Mets would be the most useful, with Sunny there as the orienteering expert. She had a great sense of direction and could help if they got lost inside the compound.
Drew presided over the second wave to assist should they get into difficulties. She, along with Pix, Carrot, Skye, and Anna, would wait just outside the perimeter fence in cover of the trees and wait for any sign that those inside were under attack.
Max was their back up, laying cover fire in the forest with Biggs, Coco and Cece. Which left Tara, Dek and B.J to set up and run the Med bay in case it was needed.
~
The first part of the assignment went well: Team A managed to get in undetected and headed for the central complex of the compound. Aiden kept close watch as Feen slung her M16 over her shoulder and started to tap away at the computer keys, Emma hooked her controller to the hard drive and started to make downloads. The only sound in the computer room was of Aiden's breathing and the clack of keys as Feen and Emma worked their magic, relaying the data back to camp, where Chance and Techie monitored all incoming data and copied the files.
Steve let them get on with that as he stared intently at the screens on his lap top making sure that the hallways were clear as Alec and Team B edged down the hall.
"Hey do think they know we're coming?" Flex whispered to Alec as the made their way quietly down the hall. "It's a little too easy."
The comp0ound was your typical evil villain hide-out done in shades of grey and green designed to meld in with the surrounding jungle and yet still managing to look militaristic with its imposing guard tower, armed guards and blocky buildings that sprawled across the landscape. Thankfully most of the building was in disrepair and ongoing maintenance, meaning that it was almost embarrassingly easy for them to get in through one of the unmanned service entrances and into the main part of the compound. They traipsed over discarded hoses and wires that littered the corridors but met no one as they edged carefully down the darkened hallway.
Alec nodded at Flex's assumption; it was too easy, and motioned for the rest of the team to spread out.
"Steve, I'm gonna need coordinates for the hostages," he spoke into his mike trusting that Steve was watching them through the hacked-into surveillance cameras.
"Half held in sector 6 and half in sector four according to what Team A is sending," was Steve's fuzzy reply.
Alec gestured for Sunny, Mets and Flex to head down to Sector 6 and he and Zan hurried down the corridor that led to Sector 4. Their footsteps echoed down the deserted corridor and gave Alec the feeling that something definitely wasn't right, he gave the order to proceed with extreme caution and they edged down to the holding cells.
"Just give me a minute, 103!" came an exasperated sigh and Alec knew that they had reached the right place. The cells were black fortified iron with no windows or holes, save for the imposing lock; it was obvious that whoever had captured them knew how to hold transgenics -- something that worried Alec to no end.
"Delta Four-Niner-Four, identify yourselves," Alec hissed and there was sudden silence.
"Mission sub, Wyoming district, codename Chimera."
Alec nodded. "It's them."
"Yip- frigging –ee," Zan muttered and Alec bit back a grin, he and Zan were on the same wavelength; if it were up to either of them Unit 6 could burn for what they did to Max, but they were soldiers first and foremost and they had to rescue them. That didn't mean that they had to be happy about it.
"Seattle district, S.O, here for S and R, back up we're coming to get you."
"Do we hafta?" Zan mock moaned and Alec chuckled.
He reached into his back pocket and pulled out his lock-picking kit and knelt on the floor by the cells.
As soon as his knife touched the door a piercing alarm rang out and red lights began to flash.
"Shit, they tripped it!" Zan called and Alec glared.
"No shit, Sherlock!" He staggered to his feet. "Stand back!"
He heard a scramble and aimed his gun at the lock. A brief round of fire and the lock was just a hissing mound of metal at his feet. The door swung open and several transgenics stumbled out coughing, smoke swirled around his feet and Alec knew that as soon as the alarm had been tripped, they had pumped gas into the room to knock out the hostages so they couldn't escape or aid with rescue. Alec's panic etched up a few notches as he realised that they had walked into an ambush.
"We need to get outta here," Alec grabbed his mike, somewhat reassured by the cool metal in his fingers. "Steve, report!"
"Facility just went into lockdown and, dammit, Alec where the hell did these guys come from?"
Alec started to run back the way they came with the rest following him. "Where is the rest of Team B?"
"In Sector 4, enemy is approaching their position, repeat they are about to engage!"
"Crap, 2nd wave, get your asses in here already! I'm going for our men."
Zan nodded, "Let's get 'em."
"Take hostages to the perimeter," Alec ordered backing down the hall even as he spoke. Zan's face grew hard, but in the middle of battle, he didn't want to question the CO. Insubordination like that would get him in deeper trouble than he had ever been, and even if he just wanted to let Unit 6 make their own way out, he had to obey Alec.
"Yessir! C'mon with me!" he called and raced down the hall.
The whole place seemed to have come alive with the alarm and the bright lights stung at Alec's eyes as he winced at every blast of the siren. His enhanced hearing made sure that the piercing alarm rang through to his brain and he shuddered.
In front of him he heard Sunny scream and he forgot his head and delicate ears and rounded the corner, blurring faster than ever.
He skidded to a halt, his feet almost tripping him, when he was confronted with the scene. There were eight or so of Unit 6 backed against the wall with Sunny, Mets and Flex in a protective stance pointing guns at six men standing in front of them. Unit 6 were choking and coughing with the after effects of the gas and they looked up horrified at their assailants. Each of them looked about six foot tall with close shaven heads and severe military clothing outlining their hard muscles. Their outstretched hands reminded Alec of Zombies that he had seen in a movie on the outside and it sent a shudder of revulsion down his spine. What had Sunny screaming was the blood dripping from their eyes and ears, forming a macabre mask that made them look even more frightening. The bullet holes that riddled their chests and pumped out more blood, black and thick, would have stopped any ordinary men, but these were truly monsters and they kept coming, no matter what Sunny and Flex threw at them.
"Where the hell is my back up?" Alec screamed into the mikes and then without waiting for a response he waded into the fight, throwing punches to the nearest Reds. But it was like slamming his fist into a wall of iron as the man he had hit turned his head like Alec was a bug. He swept his hand back into Alec's face and Alec saw stars as he was knocked to the floor, his jaw aching already with the impact of the man's fist.
His eyes widened as he realised that these Reds were as strong as transgenics and he felt a stab of fear like ice. He swept his leg around in a scissor move and caught the man who tumbled to the ground with a grunt. Alec rolled onto his back and pulled his short dagger from his jacket and plunged it into the man's back, ripping down his spine with the blade. Warm blood ran down his hand and made his grip slippery but Alec didn't notice as Sunny screamed again. His head jerked up and he saw one of the Reds with his arm in a vice around Sunny's head trying to tear it off. Her eyes were wide open and showed the whites, emphasizing that, she too, had realised just how strong they were.
Alec pushed himself to his feet with sticky hands and raced for Sunny but ran into a problem as he felt a vice-like grip around his ankle, he stared down in abject horror and disbelief as the man that he had just stabbed held onto his foot with a maniacal gleam in his eye.
~~
Mets slammed his rifle butt into the Red's eye letting loose his full strength behind the blow and the man loosened his choke hold on Sunny, who fell to the floor gasping and rubbing at her bruised throat. She ducked under his arm as he reached for her again and dodged out of the way. She rolled across the floor to get out of the way even as the man grabbed Mets around the throat and threw him into the cell that had been abandoned by the hostages. Mets hit the wall with a sick thud and crumpled to the floor with bits of plaster raining down on his prone form.
"Mets!" called Flex in a panic even as he battled a mountain of a man who was trying to pull off his arm. Two of the other unit jumped onto the man's back and twisted at his head, attempting to snap his neck. They managed to get a hold and together they wrenched at the thick tissue and with an audible snap the man dropped to the floor.
"Better late than never," Flex choked and handed them the fallen man's guns. They armed themselves and waded into the fray. Flex wanted to see how Mets was but before he could take that step he felt his senses tingle and spun, his arms in fighting stance but it did nothing to stop the iron bar that was aimed at his stomach. Flex crumpled as all of the wind was knocked out of him and he could do nothing to stop the crunch as the bar snapped over his back.
~~
Sunny had lost sight of the others as she was dragged halfway down the hall as they tried to distance her from the others. Being unable to see her brothers in arms was scaring her as she was unable to see which way the tide was going. She was fighting a losing battle against two Reds and felt her hair being grabbed by one even as the other held up his machete and aimed for her heart.
Sunny's panic was overwhelming but she cut the piercing scream from her own lips and reverted to her training, letting that calm sweep over her. She pulled back her feet in a manoeuvre that Max had shown her and slammed them into the man's oesophagus, the brawny Red choked, dropping her feet so hard that her heels stung on the concrete floor, and he staggered back reeling with her boot prints on his throat. Sunny pulled her weight forwards, dropping to her knees and flipped the other Red over her shoulder and into his friend. With another well aimed kick to his mid-section they both staggered back down the hall, reeling with her transgenic power and Sunny pulled out a grenade from her back pouch, yanking out the pin with her teeth. It was cold and hard in her fist and she felt some satisfaction as she saw their eyes widen. She grinned wickedly and rammed it down the first one's trousers and then block kicked them both in the face. The impact knocked them further back down the hall and she had time to turn and duck before the ensuring explosion rocked the hallway, sending debris flying and as she huddled on the floor she could feel the stark heat of the fire sear her back.
As she tucked into the floor she could see spots of the intense heat on the back of her eyelids and she covered her face with her hands praying that she wasn't about to be toasted alive like the two men she had just torched.
As the heat receded she peered over her shoulder, satisfied that these were two Reds who wouldn't be getting back up again. Their bodies lay merrily blazing like some strange bonfire dummies; the smell of burning human flesh creeping up to the back of her throat, coating it until she wanted to be sick. Sunny got to her feet wearily trying to erase the scene from her mind and rushed back down the hallway hoping that her unit was okay.
~~
Meanwhile, Alec was wrestling with his Red on the floor, the man had decided to pull out Alec's intestines without permission and Alec was fighting him away from his chest.
Alec pulled back his knees and shoved the Red off him, slamming him back into the wall. In a brief moment of respite Alec turned to see what the rest of the fight was like.
Mets had recovered and was going one on one with a transgenic that looked about seven feet of hard muscle, his bruises had bruises and Alec could see blood coming from a cut on his head. Flex was standing on the body of one Red and punching the hell out of another, his fists a blur, and the rest of the rescued unit had apparently come alive and were helping to fight the Reds, and Sunny was…no where to be seen.
Alec felt a spurt of panic, where the hell was Sunny?
As if in answer a loud explosion rocked the hallway and Alec shielded himself from the heat as his panic escalated.
He crouched into a ball as the lick of flame soared over his head, dancing over the ceiling like sheets of molten lava.
From the corner of his eye he saw Flex, Mets and Unit 6 do the same as the flames edged down towards the waiting men. The Reds froze and stared at the fire as if mesmerised.
The short blast of heat was over and the two opposing sides exchanged glances in silence.
Alec stared around frantically for a few seconds.
"Sunny?" He yelled and his heart thudded as there was no answer. "SUNNY?"
His words seemed to spur them all into action and The Reds reared back.
Alec turned towards footsteps as they sounded aloud and a blackened Sunny came running towards him. His breath left in a swoop of relief.
"Damn girl!" he breathed. "You scared me."
Sunny grinned, her face streaked with dirt and she bent to pick up a gun by her feet, but froze staring with an expression of horror over Alec's shoulder.
Alec's heart-rate picked up and he turned slowly to see six more Reds walking slowly down the corridor with evil grins and streaks of blood running in rivulets down their cheeks.
"Oh God," Sunny whimpered and Alec grabbed her pushing her behind his back and they backed up to where Flex, Mets and the others stood, switching their glances between the Reds at their front and those at their backs.
"What do we do now?" Flex asked as the Reds began closing in.
"Steve?" Alec hissed down his mike even as he edged back.
"Nah, he's busy. Will we do?"
Alec spun to see Drew, Pix and reinforcements standing behind the Reds.
"What took you so freaking long?" Alec beamed at the cheeky transgenic even as he spun out to kick a Red who thought he was distracted.
"Aw did ya miss me darling?" Pix drawled, "We had a few of these guys at the perimeter to deal with." He reached over and snapped the neck of the one that Alec had thrown at him.
The Reds started to growl and looked between the two lots of transgenics.
"Uh can we get outta here?" Sunny spoke up. "Between the fire, these damn Reds and the state of this place, my hair is in need of washing!"
"That's right, Sunny, prioritise," Skye rolled her eyes and Sunny stuck out her tongue.
"That's enough!" Roared a dark haired Red and drew out his gun.
The witty banter shut off as he aimed at the transgenics and the rest of the Reds followed suit.
There was no where to hide as they were trapped between the two groups and Flex audibly gulped as they raised their sights and took aim.
Pix was the first to let rip with his semi automatic, spraying bullets into the bodies of the Reds as they advanced on his friends, Alec and those in the centre ducked and rolled, making sure that Pix was spraying above them.
The loud sounds of fire as the gun fight took place drowned out even the loudest of heartbeats.
Alec ordered Mets to get the hostages to safety and Mets pushed them back into the corridor, trusting that Alec and the others would lay down cover fire for him to escape. Alec's gun shuddered on empty and he was kicked by a Red before he could rearm. The gun skittered down the hall and Alec dodged the fury of fists even as he came up swinging.
Anna and Carrot stood side by side and shot furiously at the Reds using the cover of the abandoned cells managing to cut down at least three Reds as they tried to follow the hostages.
The leader of the Reds turned his back on the back up and aimed at the fleeing hostages.
"METS!" screamed Anna as she saw his body spasm in mid air as he was hit.
Drew's eyes narrowed and she leaped forward with her M-16 and drew a knife out of her boot, slashing through the neck of a Red who was stupid enough to get in her path. With one arm firing her gun and the other slicing the air she cleared a path to Alec and handed him her spare gun.
Alec took it gratefully and shot at the Reds in his way, hurrying over to a fallen Mets.
"Why the hell won't you die?" Screamed Skye as she emptied her entire clip in one Red, he smiled, blood coating his entire body and pulled at her hair.
Skye screamed in pain as strands were ripped from her skull and Flex saw red. He broke formation and used Alec's fallen rifle to smack into the man's head. He didn't let go of Skye, instead swinging her around to smack into the wall and pulling a knife down Flex's arm. Flex pulled back, his arm dripping blood from the long cut, and aimed a low kick, snapping the Reds spine. He slumped to the floor, his hands still twitching as he reached for them, even in death.
Alec knelt by the slumped form of Mets who was lying in a pool of blood. He searched for a pulse, his finger probing the bullet holes, his fingers slipping in the red substance oozing from the man.
"Hang in there pal," Alec said as he found a weak pulse. "Flex!" he yelled and Flex raced over to where they sat.
Alec swallowed as he saw Flex favouring his left arm.
"We need to get Mets to med bay or he won't make it."
"PIX!" Flex called, but the man was in battle with two Reds, his form a blur as he spun and kicked with all of his martial arts training. The Reds were superior in strength and were impervious to pain. Even a straight gun shot to the chest only slowed them down.
"HEADS UP!"
They spun to see Zan standing there with a huge grin on his face and a hose in his hands.
"What the hell?" Alec frowned and followed the hose back to the large barrels of petrol. His eyes widened and he yelled.
"DELTA DOWN!"
Flex crouched over Mets' blood soaked body and Drew, Sunny and Skye hit the floor covering their heads. Anna and Carrot dodged out of the line of fire back into the cell and huddled against the wall as Zan turned the head of the hose. A spray of fuel spurted out onto the Reds covering them all over. They chocked and swiped at their faces smearing blood and petrol, the acrid smell of petrol fumes filling the air.
Pix reached into his pocket and pulled out a silver Zippo lighter, throwing it to Zan with a grin.
Zan snatched it out of mid air, "Sweet!" he enthused and flipped it open, the tiny flickering flame so non-descript for the mayhem that it was about to cause.
Zan flipped the lighter into the air and they all watched it soar through the air onto the nearest Red as if in slow motion. The tiny flame caught and the man went up in a whoosh of flame, a sear of heat and the screaming began.
"Fall back!" Alec commanded and Zan dropped the hose and ran to help Alec pick up Mets.
Alec slung his rifle over his shoulder and draped Mets' arm over his back. Zan followed suit and the two men started to drag Mets down the hall letting the others cover them while Flex darted ahead to clear their path.
One of the Reds wanted to take as many transgenics down with him as he twitched in the fiery furnace and his shots rang loud and clear. It was only Carrot's yell that made Alec spin, which is why the bullet caught his shoulder instead of his back.
Alec looked down at the growing patch of red on his uniform and his face paled.
"Shit," he managed before he dropped Mets arm and clutched at the wound.
"Alec?!" Gasped Drew and she raced over and placed her hand over the gash watching blood seep through her fingers.
"I'm all right," he bit out, "Just a flesh wound." He hoisted Mets higher on his shoulder and he and Zan raced for the fence.
"Watch out!" called Anna as the remaining Reds waiting on the fence began to shoot at them. Alec ducked and dropped Mets bringing up his rifle and returning fire with enthusiasm.
A grunt by his side let him know that someone else had been hit and he turned to see Zan go down heavily, clutching at his knee and biting down hard on his lower lip.
Alec grabbed Zan and hauled him back under cover of a large overturned truck.
"Carrot, Skye!" Alec gestured for the redheaded transgenic and the Queen bitch to pick up Mets and carry him to safety.
Alec grabbed Zan's arm.
"My knee's gone," Zan grimaced, "I think it's shattered."
"If we don't get out of here now, we are all in for it."
Zan gave him a look. "No, when Max finds out we both got shot, we are in for it."
Alec's eyes widened, "Wanna stay here?"
Zan looked as if he was considering it and then shook his head, his blonde hair falling free of its pony tail and he shrugged his face pale.
"Either way she'll get mad."
"Let's face the music," Alec grinned and they both picked up their guns and with a deep breath headed for the fence.
Tbc…..
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Nora- I'm gonna hafta put a tissue warning at the start of my stories aren't I? Yeah Dek and Drew are good friends but some have said that they should be more than that.
Geminangel- Max isn't too soft but just enough so that Alec gets to feel like the big bad protector. Aww aint love grand
Stormvind- LOL, see you shouldn't do happy dances at work! I knew this, pple always look at me funny too! Damn them!! Sunny and Biggs, hmm our resident ladies man and the mommy of the group? Feel free to nag- means you care!
Chaosti- Yeah I wanted them to suffer but my beta said that I was overdoing the angst, so I had to tone it down. However Alec gets told off by his unit too in this for what he said. Kicked asses in the next instalment!
Sigma1- Would I leave you hanging??????
Melinda- hey pet, is it too tearful? Max's past comes out and they'll all be feeling bad in a while but hey its all good drama.
Kim- Yell at them, smack Biggs but beat 'em up…nah! Max rocks- I've said it before and I'll say it again! 3 updates a week? Hmm, okay you pay my rent so I don't have to go to work and I'll reel out a new story for you every week, let alone a new update- hows that?
Moonlite star- Yeah I did, and again- hope you like it!
Moonlight19- Aww here I was waiting for moony's review- still if you don't have acomp..buy I expect a wicked long one soon okay? J Feen is clueless isn't she? Poor Techie. Here's hoping you get your comp fixed soonas.
Dokushoka79 – Sunny seems to have thing for her hair- not sure how that happened! LOL, Feen hasn't got a clue that she still scares Techie- bless her! Yeah Alec is going to let Max in on Berrisford soon- have you hacked into my hard drive- I swear you are a mind reader! Good points on the whole Mets/Drew/Dek thing. I was talking to my beta and he said that I should have a threesome. Let me say now that that is NOT going to happen. Ew. Not sure that Drew sees Dek that way just yet- but hey! Yeah Pix's black book made another appearance, I think I should do an origin of the black book story? bows as always thank you!
Anna Kristina- Future interaction on a more personal level? J I think Techie would die of a heart attack! There is more about the protectiveness in the next few parts as well- as requested- see what power you have? They all have feline D.N.A to give them grace and athleticism but they also have different DNA depending on the person, like Max, Dek and Chance have shark DNA so they sleep rarely and Emma and BJ have a unique mixture which mean they only sleep one night in four. My interpretation was that Manticore experimented even within the Xseries to give different X's different roles- Like C.O's would get dominant DNA and maybe those like Sunny get bat D.N.A to give them better direction whereas Flex would have Ant DNA to enable him to be stronger for more active roles.
Jade-K- someone said its like a reality show with different camera angles- I like that! Its called "I'm a genetically engineered killing machine, get me out of here!"
SGOU- Adorable snuggle buddies aren't they? Mets and Drew issues will take more than one chapter to resolve!! Max and Alec snuggled! I don't know about you but that gave ME happy feelings! Aww. Someone else who recognises Feen is clueless!! That's true about Alec still dealing with Psy-Ops and his own issues without having his own unit screw things up- shame on them! Zan and Emma? Well that's different. LOL, feel free to write fanfic based on my fanfic, it's a buzz!
Eden- Hehe I gave goosebumps, how cool is that? I know that some of it is going over old ground but seeing it from another persons perspective lets me add details that I didn't put first time around.
Barcode-babe-210- Girly? Haven't been called that in a while! LOL, thanks pet, glad you like it!
Nat452- The end? As if, we have like soo many more chapters to go!
Ishtari- I'm catching up with myself so hopefully I get to update quicker now!
Ru- Thank you, I'm pleased that they had the desired impact. Max had just had enough by that point, after everything she needed to finally let someone in and Alec was there. Yeah the fact that they needed comfort and warmth shows that all is getting better for them. More Pix/Biggs and Chance stuff on its way.
Stormvind- Not lame!
Elfie- yeah too long to be one update- again! I love it when someone mentions the small details, it makes me so glad that people are paying attention!
Lyndsay- Thanks, its just that they are getting so damn huge! Pix and Biggs have more coming in the future- Biggs isn't exactly the type to let it lie! There are most Wyoming Flashbacks on the way, seems that I haven't finished 'Left Behind' totally after all. Unit 8 can't hide! Alec is their CO , he'll find them! I used to write Buffy stuff, but gave it up when the bad thing happened- I can't even think of it without shuddering!
Poo- Furious Alec, is anyone else thinking run away??
Kat461- Hey! Yay me, protective big brothers are fun to write! Yeah they are so so in for it, kind of a "just you wait till we get home" deal. Mwah ha ha. You wouldn't bore me at all!
Talichernin- actually I have little ego at all- just ask my sister every review is like- Wow, these people actually like my writing, wow! But seriously don't spontaneously combust, it might hinder reading of future chapters!
Elizabeth Annette- Feel furious, they might be sorry but still deserve to have their asses kicked. You and acquaintances? How many people do you know who read this story? And what is normal? We'll see how they go.
Pure insanity- Yeah the sequel is really hen I got into the story- I should probably go back and re-jig and resubmit Left Behind, and might do once I finish this. I still love that story though! Glad you do too!