Author's note : this chapter is rather pointless, still it needed to be done i guess, so that i could introduced another 09ers. It will be a sort of catalysis for Max so that she starts really wondering about her relationship with Logan thanks to her discussion with her brother...

I hope you like it.

Again, sorry for my english and review...

Chap 4 : Max and Alec to the rescue...

Getting in the compound was easy. Whether she admitted it or not, she liked what she was doing at the moment. Of course, kicking Red's butt was always pleasant, but she missed the action and the adrenaline rush while she was behind her desk, taking care of every one at TC (though she had people who backed her up).

Sometimes, she even missed the first days of the Siege. She nearly died twice by fighting with some alpha males in order to claim her leadership. If she didn't fight dirty, she would have probably died. The fact that Joshua trusted her had help, she knew it. As Joshua trusted her, Mole tolerated her and influenced the others. As for Alec, she had learned that he had many of the X series'respect and allegiance. She had been wise in chosing both of them as second in command, which they still were.

Deck's contact had been right and they retrieved without any problem the X5, not engaging hand to hand against the reds and blowing off the entire facility. The surprise was in the identity of the X5.

"Thanks", said the blond haired X5.

"Don't say thanks before knowing who sent us!" Commented Alec.

It took her few minutes to put a name on the handsome X5. He looked a bit like Zack and those eyes, his eyes. She couldn't be wrong.

"Zane? Is that you?" Asked Max.

"Oh my God, Max! Max!" Zane cried out.

They hugged each other during a few seconds before letting go neither really wanting to break the embrace.

"I suppose, you're an 09er", said Alec rolling his eyes.

"Oh my god Zane!" she exclaimed.

Alec could see the sparkle in her eye, a sparkle that had dissapeared from her eyes during this last year.

"So i saw you on tv, baby sister. I presume Lydecker sent you." Zane said.

"Yeah" she groaned.

"Better the devil you know than the one you don't, isn't that what they say?" the 09er said understanding far too well they didn't really have the choice.

"Something like that" said Max. "We can always leave you somewhere where nobody could find you. Right Alec?"

"Yep." He agreed.

"No, i won't leave you. Plus i'm getting tired of running." He grinned and she smiled back at him.

"Do i know you?" Said Zane turning to Alec.

"Alec is Ben's twin, 494", stated Max.

"Oh", muttered Zane with a hint of sadness in his voice. Zack had told him what happened to Ben. "Do you know what happened to the others?"

Max looked down.

"Tinga is dead. Brin has been reindoctrined, i don't know if she's still alive. And Zack..." she started.

"Has gone mad!" Offered Alec.

"Shut up Alec! He saved my life, he gave me his heart." She yelled at him.

"He's dead too?" inquired Zane.

"Not quite", muttered Max.

"He has become a robot. Well not quite since he still has this thing for Max but..." continued Alec.

"I said shut up Alec!" she ordered.

"Ok."

The eyes of Max were filled with sadness.

"It's not your fault baby sister." Zane told her while holding her head in his hands. "It's not your fault!"

They were now back in Seattle, in Max's TC appartment.

"No penthouse view, but it's warm and dry. You can stay here as long as you want. I'll ask Tara to find you a house, if you want to", stated Max.

"I think we have a lot of time to catch up so, i'll stay with you." He decided.

"Great!" she cheered.

"So, where do you work?" Zane asked.

Max, Alec and Zane entered a building near Terminal City.The two guards at the entry saluted Max and Alec and let them in.

Her office wasn't at all impressive, just a desk and three seats. Lydecker was already waiting.

"You were supposed to come here as soon as."he stopped dead in his tracks trying to put a name on the third X5 in the room." ...Zane?" he whispered not quite believing his eyes.

"I assume you didn't know it was Zane that they kidnapped", declared Max.

"No, i didn't." Lydecker confirmed.

"He'll stay with me", she informed.

"Of course, he will." Lydecker said.

"Where's Mole?" she asked.

"He went to TC. There is a problem with the water supply."

"Dix or Luke could have taken care of it." She said.

"We had an argument", he groaned.

"You had an argument? And what was it about this time?" she asked a little tense.

"He wouldn't put out his cigar." He simply said.

"So? If i can deal with that, you can! For christ's sake, you're not children! "she shouted then sighed and asked Alec to get Mole for her.

Alec almost laugh at the situation but quietly headed back for Terminal City.

In the meantime, Lydecker debriefed Max about the mission.

"Good. I have another mission for you, next week. Since, your brother is here, he can go with Alec." He demanded.

"No." Max replied.

"What? You know the rules, Max." He said matter of factly.

"I'll go. I'll go with Alec. He knows how i fight much more than Zane and i know him too. We are more efficient together." Max assured him.

"Ok. But this time, it will be a little bit longer. Oh, and your boyfriend left a message." He said.

"Donald, i guess you don't have anything else to tell me." And with that she dismissed him.

Lydecker shoke his head and headed out.

"So, you have a boyfriend?" Zane asked one eye brow raised.

"Sort of..." she uttered

"Yes, she has", said Logan from the door.

"Oh, Logan. This is Zane. Zane, this is Logan." She introduced.

"Oh, i thought that you were..." Logan said apologetically.

"Making a move on my sister?" Offered Zane.

"Sorry."

"It's ok. I would be jealous too, if i dated a girl like Max. Nice to meet you, Logan." Said Zane offering his hand.

"Yeah. Nice to meet you too." He replied shaking the transgenics'hand.

"What are you doing here? Logan?" Max inquired.

"You left without saying goodbye last time so i came in to check if you were home or not. Gem told me i'd find you here. So here i am. You're not happy to see me?" Logan answered.

"It's not that." She assured.

She put herself on tiptoe to kiss him gently. There was definitely no passion in that kiss, thought Zane.

"You know i don't like it when you come around and that i'm not there." She explained.

"But you're here. I figure that Zane was the mission."

"You're right. Listen i'll see you later. There's this problem with Donald and Mole and i need to fix it, before i go on a mission." She continued.

"Again?" His voice was tainted with annoyance.

"Yeah. It's what i do now Logan! You know it." She insisted.

Trouble in paradise thought Zane.

"Maybe i sould leave you two alone", tried Zane.

"No", she almost cried. "I mean, Logan will go. Now. Please. I'll see you later. Ok?" She lean over to kiss him again.

"Ok.Bye then." He surrendered.

"Dare to share baby sister" he asked once Logan was out of sight.

"Well when i first met Logan. It was great. I broke into his house, kicked his bodyguard's ass and escaped through the window. He figured out what i was, who i was so he tracked me. And when he found me, he asked for help in his Eyes Only thing. He accepted me for what i am. He didn't push me away." She started.

"He is Eyes Only?" he said, not quite believing it.

"Yep. I wasn't quite hot about helping him but he said he could help finding you guys so i stood by his side. At the time, we were really connected. I saved his life more than once and he did the same for me. Quoting Alec, he rocked my world." She smiled at the expression.

"But now, he doesn't rock anymore, does he?" he said still trying to get more information for her.

"It kinda sums it up." She nodded.

"I don't like him", said Zane.

"Zack didn't really like him too." She conceded.

"But he's useful."stated her brother.

"I can't believe what we have become!" she sighed. "I mean...once i felt he had troubles. I really felt it. I was supposed to leave Seattle and reach the canadian border with Zack. But i felt like something inside me was dying. And he was dying in an hospital. I saved his life by transfusing him with my blood.."

"I see, so you were connected. What are you going to do now?" Zane asked.

"What do you mean?" she replied raising a eye brow.

"I've known you since we were kids Max. You're a very passionate person when it comes to relationships. Not just that, but in life in general. You just cannot fake. Back then, in Manticore, we never faked our anger against what they did to us. Maybe that's one of the reason we left, coz the others could fake their loyalty to Manticore, but we couldn't." He explained.

"Maybe..."

"Beside the fact that once again, we were saving your butt!" He was trying to lighten the mood, her mood.

"Like i couldn't take of myself!" she said while pushing him playfully.

They were interrupted by Mole and Alec.

"Thank you Alec. How you doing Mole?" Max asked.

"Good." He answered.

"Thanks for keeping an eye on Deck." She said.

"It was my pleasure to drive him mad." Said the lizard guy, chomping on his cigar.

She reached one of her pocket and handed him ten cigars.

"Anytime, girlie!" He cheered.

"Actually i would need you to do the same thing again." She demanded.

"No problem." He replied.