Special thanks to Carebear for her suggestions. I know I didn't exactly follow them but, believe me, they really helped me in developing this story and the characters more. You should have seen the piece of crap I almost posted.
To the Rescue
Six months later
"How many?"
"Sixty all together: eight X5, twenty-four X6 and twenty-four X8, the rest X7." Alec sighed.
"Okay, take pictures and draw up a list of the sixers and up and then give it to Logan." He said tiredly. "Tell the X5 we want to set up a meet. How's tonight at 22:00?"
"Perfect. We should all be settled down after the last raid by then."
"Thanks Syl."
"No problem." Syl finished softly after seeing that Alec had already tuned her out. It was nothing personal so she wasn't offended. She had seen him do it to just about everybody. Small talk and anything on a personal level was out of the question for 494.
At first it had unnerved her. When Zack had contacted her over five months ago, he explained about Max's recapture and that he had teamed up with 494 and Tinga to help find her. Knowing she would be taking aback by Alec's barcode number he also explained that he was Ben's twin and that he had escaped from Manticore and hooked up with Max.
Despite Zack's prefacing, when she met Alec she immediately first thought it was Ben. They looked identical even down to the cold stare in their eyes. Syl still shuddered when she remembered the last time she had seen Ben.
She had been on her way home from work when she saw a flyer offering a bounty to anyone who could give information on a woman's husband's killer. The amount was not substantial which was probably the reason why that wasn't what drew her attention to the flyer. Although the print had been small when she glanced at it from across the street as she waited for her bus, she had seen the phrase "barcode on his neck." Of course that had set off warning bells and she quickly read the rest of the flyer. It told of a woman whose husband was brutally murdered; teeth ripped out and tattooed with a barcode on the back of his neck.
Syl didn't hesitate to go home and pack her things that night knowing Lydecker would be all over something like this. She went to the train station the next morning and was shocked to see standing at the next platform a man with a barcode on the back of his neck.
It was Ben.
"Ben. I can't believe it's you." Syl said after running over to him. He turned around and suddenly Syl wasn't so sure it was Ben after all. The deadness in his eyes as he looked her over unnerved her to no end.
"Syl." He hissed out slowly. And then he smiled. A smile so radically different from the Ben she grew up with she almost took a step back.
"Ben. Wh…what are you doing here?" She stuttered.
"My mission." He answered casually. "Have you come to join me?"
"No." Syl said shaking her head immediately. "I'm done with missions." She said. And with you. She thought and then shivered at how cold his eyes became at her words. "My train's almost here. It was good seeing you Ben." Syl attempted a smile and resisted the urge to run. Part of her couldn't believe how afraid she was, a child of Manticore no less, of the boy she grew up with. But part of being a child of Manticore meant she adhered to many of her feline instincts. And if her appearance had been more cat and less human then her fur would have been standing on end and she would have been hissing at the wrongness that emanated from Ben. "Take care." She threw out before turning and practically blurring away.
"You too. Hope I see you again soon, Syl." She heard Ben say behind her.
That encounter haunted her for days after. She had told Zack when she called him with her new location and he told her not to worry about it but to definitely call him if she ever saw Ben again. It hurt to think this about her sibling but she honestly hoped she'd never see Ben again.
But that was not to be the case because here was 494. Yes they were different people. But that detachment Syl remembered from her encounter with Ben was also slightly present in Alec when she met him for the first time. Although with Ben, he seemed to be more detached from reality where as Alec just seemed cold.
After Zack introduced Krit and Syl to 494, Alec had been all business. As he told them the measures they had already taken and what they had planned to do next, his steely voice made Syl realize how lucky she was to escape Manticore or else she would have ended up a drone like Alec. It wasn't until Tinga arrived that Syl saw how wrong her assessment of Alec was.
Her initial shock was to see Tinga and the small child attached to her hand. But she was even more surprised to see that child pull out of Tinga's hand and launch himself into Alec's arms. The light in his hazel eyes when he scooped the boy up and cradled him to his chest was dazzling. The amount of warmth and emotion that flowed out for those brief seconds completely transformed his face and Syl wondered how she could have possibly thought he resembled Ben.
Seeing Tinga hug him moments later and then hearing her words of comfort put everything in place for Syl. She realized that Manticore hadn't sucked the life out of Alec, Max's capture had.
"You know 452, the time is fast approaching when you won't be exempt from the methods that have proved most successful in extracting information."
Max continued to glare at the woman who had been the bane of her existence since being moved to this facility months ago. She still had no clue where it resided.
"Let me tell you what's at stake here, 452." Renfro went on when the younger woman still refused to speak. "With your little friends gallivanting around destroying facilities in their search for you, they are not only signing their own death warrants but those of every single one of your so called brothers and sisters. The committee will never allow this project to be brought to light and a bunch of brats running around the country with mixed up DNA will most certainly not be tolerated." Renfro paused to let her words sink into the mind of the reticent X5 and also giving her another chance to respond. However when she still remained tightlipped, Renfro continued. "There's already talk of destroying the remaining facilities, including this one. And there is a clean up crew out now searching for those that have been unleashed. But unlike the search for you and the rest of your unit that escaped in 09, the orders have changed from find and return to find and destroy. They will all be killed unless you start talking."
Max shrugged and rolled her eyes in boredom. Her nonchalance throughout the interrogation had Renfro seeing red and this latest show of disrespect caused the older woman to finally snap.
Max stared at the woman that had struck her in shock only to find her hair yanked painfully back a moment later and Renfro's twisted face inches away from her own.
"Tell me where 494, 599, and Colonel Lydecker are right now or I will cut you open and rip the life inside of you out with my bare hands." Renfro hissed.
Max struggled with the steel cuffs holding her wrists and ankles to the chair for a moment before giving up.
"You're bluffing." She finally whispered.
"Am I?" Renfro gave one more vicious tug to Max's now waist long hair before letting go and stepping back to once more stare down at the transgenic. "That's where you're wrong. The breeding program's already in place thanks to you and those other renegades. Any moment I can be hearing of another successful pregnancy between two X5s."
"But you'll still have to wait months for that child to be born." Max cut in. "I'm not a fool, Director Elizabeth Renfro, if time is running short on Manticore's existence; you have just as much to lose as you claim I do. This facility, this interest in my pregnancy is your baby. I wouldn't be surprised if the committee knew nothing about it. I'm not sure yet if you're doing it for glory, money, or some warped spiritual reason, whatever the reason, I'd be willing to bet that waiting another several months would not make whoever it is you're really working for happy. You wouldn't dare do anything to jeopardize the life I'm carrying." She finished smugly.
The stare down that followed lasted a full twenty seconds before Renfro's voice split the silence.
"Guard!" A bulky thirty-ish man entered. "Take this thing back to the barracks."
"Here, use this." Max took the wet cloth from Jace and pressed it to her bleeding wrists. "You okay?"
"Great." Max smiled. "Bitch still couldn't break me." At Jace's downcast look, Max cursed herself for being so insensitive. "Hey Jace, I'm sorry. I didn't mean—"
"No, it's my fault."
"No its not! Manticore killed Victor. Not you."
"But only because I betrayed him. I told them—"
"Jace. They would have found out. In fact they probably already did know; they were just testing you. Manticore's sick like that."
Jace nodded but Max could tell she was still not convinced that Victor's death was not her fault.
It wasn't until several weeks after Max had been in this new facility that Jace finally warmed to her. At first Max thought it was because she was considered a traitor for having escaped years ago. Her time at the other facility had been short but one of Renfro's favorite things to do while she had been back there was to tell her not to bother with any of the X5s there because they hated her so much for her treacherous actions in 2009. Of course she hadn't believed the director, but when the few X5s she did see would avert their eyes and ignore her she started to think Renfro might have been on to something.
Jace treated her the same way when she was brought to this place and assigned her roommate. Jace had been apart of Max's original unit back in Gillette only 408 hadn't escaped with them. She stayed behind at the last minute too afraid to defy Manticore. But it sure looked like things had changed since they were nine. Max was shocked to see not only Jace but a very pregnant Jace. Suddenly the words of the guard that had brought her to this new place made more sense. He had said this was where they took all the whores of Manticore.
At first Max had thought being a traitor was what granted her the prestigious title of being a "whore of Manticore." But a week later Max found out there was more to it, at least more to the reason of why she was rooming with Jace.
"So 452, who's the father?" Renfro had asked casually when she was overseeing what Max, at the time, had thought was merely a routine physical. But Renfro's words hit her like the plunge she took through broken ice so many years ago.
She was pregnant. She was pregnant with Alec's baby. She was pregnant with Alec's baby in Manticore. Max nearly hyperventilated at the surge of changing emotions from shock to elation to horror.
When they left her back in her room, Max had lain on her cot and cried her eyes out. She didn't stop, couldn't stop, when she heard Jace come in hours later. However the presence by her side and the feel of someone stroking her back paused her tears momentarily.
"I'm pregnant, Jace." Max whispered. The first words she had said to the other woman in days.
"It'll be okay, Max." Jace whispered back. The first words she had said to the other woman in years.
Max broke again but this time Jace opened her arms to her sister and Max gratefully sought the comfort of someone from her past being with her now in this dark place.
After Max was able to stop crying the two women opened up to one another. Max didn't tell her who the father was out of fear of who else might be listening. But she did say it had been someone she loved more than anything. Jace too said that her child's father was someone she loved. Unfortunately her story was far more tragic. Jace explained that he was a lab tech at the base and they had been seeing each other secretly for almost two years. She hadn't known she was pregnant until she returned home from a mission. It had gone south when the doctor she was supposed to assassinate shot her. She made the kill but the bleeding from her wound wouldn't stop which was unusual for an X5. She patched it up as best she could and returned to Manticore. That's when they found out what strain on her body was causing her healing properties to slow. She was pregnant. For days they interrogated her about the circumstances that lead to her unauthorized status. Pregnant soldiers were a situation they had clearly not prepared for just yet.
Eventually she broke. It just wasn't in her to stand up to authority. She told them about Victor, her lab tech. He was eliminated as a lesson for all and she was transferred to this new facility.
Max would never forget the pain in the others woman's eyes as she recounted her tale and in particular the part where Victor was killed. After that Max had been the one to rock her sister back and fourth and tell her it would be okay.
As the months passed there had been many moments when either woman would break and need comforting, hormones or something. And the other was always there making the pain and longing at least bearable because sometimes, for both women, words and hugs were not nearly enough.
This time Max was saved from coming up with words to further reassure Jace when she saw 408 suddenly grimace in pain.
"You okay?" Max asked.
"I'll be fine." Jace said between gasps as she clutched at her stomach.
"The baby?"
"False labor. It's been happening since yesterday. At least that's what they told me at my exam last night." Max nodded. "It won't be long though. I can deliver any day now."
"We're gonna get out of here Jace. Alec will find us. I know it. You're not gonna have your baby in Manticore. Neither of us will."
"How goes the search?"
Logan Cale jumped in surprise. By now he was used to transgenics creeping up on him and he was well practiced in stifling his startlement. But the raspy voice that broke his concentration was not that of any transgenic he knew. Figures their teacher would be just as good at sneaking up on people as his pupils.
"Lydecker, to what do I owe this pleasure?" Logan responded with fake grace.
"I've come to see if you've made any more headway since the last raid."
"Alec will tell—"
"494's got a lot on his plate right now, what, with being so personally involved in this mission." The colonel interrupted. "I was concerned that he may overlook a detail that could prove to be very important which is why I've come to see for myself your progress in locating 452."
Logan silently considered the older man's words before turning back to his computer. "I've been tracking suspicious transport vehicles. There's a convoy that I'm particularly interested in outside of Waltonville. I have a source looking into it as we speak. And I was just about to call him but got sidetracked with the latest list of freed transgenics." Logan yawned and stretched. "It's a tedious process doctoring up info for so many at once."
"Which brings me to my next point." Logan raised an eyebrow, already suspicious of the man that was so quick to turn his back on his life's work. "You're making a huge mistake if you think you can just place genetically engineered soldiers into foster homes."
"They're kids."
"They're soldiers first. It's all they've known and you're in for a rude awakening if you think they can be treated like common school children. If they're backed into a corner, if they sense the slightest threat they will lash out and no dairy farmer or soccer mom will stand a chance in containing them."
"So what do you suggest we do," Logan grabbed up a stack of papers and photos and then slapped them down. "With the hundred or so ticking time bombs that have been let out since the raids have begun."
"Send them to me."
"What?" Logan laughed.
"I'm serious. The best thing for these kids is to provide them with the same structure they've known all their lives by continuing their training."
"Even if I did decide to go along with this, where do you plan to keep over a hundred pint sized soldiers?"
"It's covered. They will be well provided for."
"So what did Alec say when you ran this idea by him?"
"You and I both know that 494 and the others won't agree to this. They believe because they made it in this world, then the X6s and the later series will be fine too. What they don't understand is how well trained the X5s were to handle any situation. The same does not hold true for the rest. They need proper guidance or they will run wild and eventually they will end up dead. And you can rest assured that they will take a lot of innocent civilians down with them."
"You make them sound like total monsters."
"We weren't breeding kittens. They're trained to be ruthless. They are trained to be hunters and killers. And above all they are trained to like it."
"I gotta tell you, Deck, when I first heard that you switched sides I couldn't help wondering about your motives. After hearing from Alec how your pull in Manticore had been steadily decreasing since 2009 and outright plummeted with Renfro's arrival, I'm beginning to understand your true reason for wanting to do this. And it's not out of concern for the welfare of your "kids," or the world they've been unleashed on. You want to start your own Manticore and what better way then by destroying the established facilities and moving the goods to your own."
"Is that so bad?" Logan's eyebrows skyrocketed at Lydecker's easy admission. "I trained those kids and made them the success they are today. Manticore would be nothing without me. What ever Renfro is up to is a perversion of what Manticore was trying to accomplish. I can see it clearly that whatever she is doing will ultimately lead to the end of the project. All those kids, those potential soldiers, will be destroyed. Us stepping in is ensuring their survival but releasing them out into the world would be just as catastrophic as what Renfro plans to do with them. My motives are ensuring these kids live with their original purpose so that they can protect this country and bring it back to the glory it once held."
Logan held up his hands and began a slow clap. Lydecker clenched his fist and stepped closer to the seated man.
"Think about it, Cale." He spat. "You helping me would mean you would be apart of the development of the most loyal and superior army this world has ever seen."
Logan leaned back in his chair and did think about it.
Eyes Only work could sometimes be very dangerous. How much more he could accomplish if he had an army of genetically engineered soldiers at his disposal. Plus, if what Lydecker said was true about the nature of these kids he really couldn't, in good conscience, set them up in normal people's homes.
Logan picked up the stack of documents again and straightened them before handing them to Lydecker.
"Here's a list of all the ones that have been freed. I can have the few that have already been placed in homes removed and sent to you by the end of the next week."
A curt nod was the only show of gratitude Lydecker allowed. "We'll be in touch."
He didn't understand why he felt closest to her up here. After all, this place was the setting of her most recent nightmares. But Alec hadn't been there with her when Ben died. So he still remembered the late night motorcycle races here followed by the chase up the several hundred steps to the top where they'd calm down while watching the city below. Sometimes when the winds were extra fierce they'd huddle together, his arms surrounding her smaller frame while her hair tickled his neck. Other times they'd still be so charged after the race that they only knew one way to diffuse that pent up energy. It was daring and dangerous. It was them.
The afternoon after the raid on Manticore he woke up in Logan's penthouse achy, most of which was stemming from his head. Tinga, Lydecker, and Logan were talking quietly in the kitchen. It was Zack in the corner stonily patching up his wounds that caught Alec's attention, however. The man looked seconds away from exploding. Alec knew the only thing keeping him together was the methodical movement of how he applied the antiseptics to his wounds and then bandaged them. Alec searched the room with his eyes to try and see what had Zack so sprung and that's when his senses kicked in that she was absent. His first thought was that maybe she was in the bathroom or in the back lying down or even that she had gone out and would be back. But there was nothing. No scent of her in the room or that she had been in the last few hours.
He was on his feet an instant later. Ignoring the pain of the sudden movement he stormed into the kitchen.
"Where's Max?"
That's when they told him. The words had made him dizzy. She was at Manticore. He hadn't understood. They went back there to blow up the DNA lab in order to cripple Manticore. Now Manticore had Max. What happened? He told Max to get out while he went back for Zack. Zack? They all had been out when he had heard the explosions go off. He was with Zack. Max had been… alone. Max had been alone. He left her by herself and now Manticore had her.
Lydecker explained that because Alec was unconscious and Zack was close to passing out from blood loss that he had gone back to try and find Max. He searched the empty woods for any sign of her until Tinga had called him back.
They still had video inside Manticore and they watched as they wheeled a wounded Max inside the infirmary. She was unconscious. But at least she was alive. When they saw more soldiers were mobilizing presumably to search the surrounding area they had left. They were in no shape to try and rescue Max.
After hearing all this, Alec had wanted to return to the base as soon as they finished talking. Zack was with him, even though he could hardly stand. Lydecker and Logan wisely kept their mouths shut and let it be Tinga that was the voice of reason. She made them realize that they would most likely be captured or killed going in there for Max now.
At first, Alec hadn't cared if he would have been captured, at least he would be with Max. How serious he was in considering going back to Manticore and turning himself in was what sobered him into realizing he wasn't thinking clearly. Turning off his emotions he instead listened while Tinga convinced Zack to call in the other escapees for help. With more help and a couple days to heal they'd be in better shape to stage a rescue mission.
It actually wasn't until a week later that they had everything in place. Zack, Tinga, and Alec were all in top form. Plus they had the help of Cass and Zane. The other X5s were too far away to be there in time.
Lydecker directed them to the haunt of one of Manticore's personnel. They kidnapped him and stole his clearance information giving them the final piece they needed to breech Manticore yet again. All X5s went in this time while Logan and Lydecker ran the op from outside.
Since the last raid, Manticore was in the process of stepping up their security but with the fall out from the destroyed DNA lab and a majority of the series still deployed on missions they were no match for the attack by the rogue X5s.
Getting in and out was not the plan this time around. They were going to make sure there would not be a building left to repair and start again. This was a full scare war on Manticore. The rogues had control of the entire facility in under two hours. The non military personnel were gathered in one area while the conventional soldiers were gathered and disarmed in another area. Not surprisingly when the X series on premises saw their oppressors brought down by their escaped brethren they had no qualms about removing their allegiance from Manticore and handing it over to the rogues that said they were there to free them. Lydecker was proud of his kids although not surprised. This was what they were trained to do.
They had subdued a Manticore facility but the mission was not a success. No where near a success in Alec's eyes. They searched the entire premises both inside and out. But Max was no where to be found.
To his credit, Alec didn't let his dismay show. He simply ordered the charges be set. The freed X series were loaded on buses. Manticore's personnel was left behind. Charges were set no where near them but if a piece of shrapnel hit them while they fled, Alec couldn't care less.
The first downed facility had been almost six months ago. Since that time they managed to take out three more facilities. That was their mission now. It hadn't all gone as smoothly as the first but they got the job done. And now they had a network of the X5 series all over the country. All with the same goal. They wouldn't stop until Manticore was no more.
And Alec wouldn't stop until he found Max.
"Huh." Logan said out loud even though there was no one in the room with him. He leaned closer to his computer screen and adjusted his glasses to make sure he was seeing the hover drone footage correctly. "Why are the Sams-R-Us Depot trucks unloading crates full of syringes?" He mumbled.
Without turning away from the screen, Logan grabbed up his phone.
"Donovan, it's me Cale. You get the info."
"Just got it. I'll fax it over as soon as I get home. Bout twenty minutes." The voice on the other end of the phone responded.
As promised, twenty minutes later Logan heard noise coming from his fax mission. He rushed over and grabbed up the first document as soon as it was spewed out.
It was a supply list for the Sams-R-Us warehouse in Trenton. Logan scanned it as the next document, the supply list for the warehouse in Ogden, printed out. As the third document was printing, Logan compared the first two and found the lists of products and suppliers to be identical. He snatched the supply list for the Waltonville warehouse out of the tray.
"Well I'll be damned." Logan whispered as he read the name of a supplier to the Waltonville warehouse that was absent from the other two: Mercedyne
He immediately recognized the name as the company the late Robert Berrisford formally presided over. Logan knew that name well. Berrisford had contacted Eyes Only possibly to expose Manticore only he was murdered before Logan could talk to him.
Logan then compared the list of supplies for each of the different warehouses. The goods were identical on all sheets; food, diapers, clocks, picture frames, attic doors, stuffed animals, etc. The only difference was those same items on the Waltonville sheet cost about a hundred times as much as the items on the other supply sheets. Like the first base in Gillette, Wyoming had been listed as something else in the department of defense books, the Sam's R Us warehouse was a front too.
Logan went to grab up his phone and nearly jumped out of his skin when it rang before he picked it up.
"We're on our way over."
"Wait, who's we?"
"Me, Syl, Zack and Lydecker. Deck says he has some info that might help figure out where Max is."
"I've just uncovered something too."
"We'll be there in ten."
"I may have found Max."
"Where?"
"How far?"
"Easy." Logan held up his hands to ward off the instant eagerness in the X5s eyes. "Like I said may. It might not be Max. It might be another facility that turns out to be a dead end but I've got a good feeling about this. The other facilities were all still military related. Either bases or VA hospitals. But the one I'm looking at now is a warehouse. A Sams R Us Depot warehouse to be exact." Off of Alec's confused look, Logan further explained. "The Sam's R Us Depot is a conglomerate that joined in 2015 from the multi merchandise stores Sam's Club, Toys R Us and Home Depot. After the Pulse these big stores couldn't stand on their own. There are only a few Sam's R Us Depot chains across the U.S. Mostly foreign owned. The warehouses that supply the big stores with their goods are even fewer in number.
A source told me about a new warehouse in Waltonville about one hundred miles east of here. He said Sam's R Us took it over several months ago but no jobs have been offered in the neighboring towns. He became suspicious when he noticed the different military vehicles and helicopters trafficking in and out every now and then.
My uncle's company manufactures the chip for hover drones so I have access to all the little buggers across the nation. I was able to reroute one of them to cover the area around the warehouse and I've been running through the footage."
"Have you seen anything strange?"
"Actually, yeah. For one, supplies tend to go in but not too many come out. Also the types of supplies are not what you'd typically find at the Sam's R Us Depot." Logan walked over to his desk and picked up a stack of papers. "Just recently I got a hold of the supply records for the stores across the nation and big surprise things don't add up." He said after handing the records to Alec.
"I know what you're getting at." Syl said as she read over Alec's shoulder. "But I don't understand why. Why would Manticore use a well known chain as a front? How could they even do that?"
"Because it might be part of a project that's even bigger than Manticore." Logan and the X5s turned as one to look at Lydecker. "A project that's purpose is less military and more commercial." The Colonel continued. "I was perusing the Committee's archived files and in them contain several of the goals and ideas it has for each of its projects. The goal of Manticore was to create the ultimate soldier well they did when they created the X5. At least they thought they did until it turns out you had minds of your own."
"Sorry to muck up the works by thinking for ourselves." Syl quipped. Lydecker chose to ignore her and continued.
"Since the 09 escape they've been trying to find ways to use what we already have with the X5 but root out the pesky independence. The different infractions of the X5s, most notably the second escape by 494 showed we couldn't train it out of you."
"Yes." Alec broke in impatiently. "All this you told us before with the why they created the later series."
"This is different son. Let me finish." Lydecker lightly commanded. "An idea was proposed to create a serum that essentially made the subject autistic savants. Emotionless but with the mental traits they wanted to keep such as solving complex sequences instantaneously and memory retention. These gifts would remain but without the other distractions of independent thought and empathy, they would be even more remarkable. The program was coded Project X5 Optimum. An old associate who owes me several favors came through for me recently. He told me that the new director had found away to implement Project X5 Optimum.
Up until I was still apart of Manticore, the project hadn't been talked about in years because for all intents of purposes it was impossible to do. But if Renfro has found a way, the committee will back her with whatever resources she needs. My associate sent me copies of some of Renfro's most recent findings on the X5s she's been experimenting on.
"Brin and Max." Syl gasped. "That's why she took them and the other X5s…to experiment on."
"Yes."
"Did the files say if they've hurt Max? If she's
still alive?" Zack asked. Alec held his breath and his eyes bore
into Lydecker's as he waited for an answer.
"Sorry. The files I saw only talked about the serum Renfro and her lab techs created and the theories behind it and they only went into detail about 734."
"Brin." Zack stated. "Did it say why she was killed?"
"I told you Brin was kept in an extracting chamber. According to the records they were taking her eggs to later use in an effort to apply the serum in the pre-fetal stage. They were also taking the nanocytes from her brain. If not, according to the notes, the serum couldn't be affectively incorporated once injected. An X5 can essentially be shot point blank in the head and still survive if they're found in time thanks to your healing capabilities." Lydecker explained. "Renfro said the serum wouldn't stand a chance. Her notes also say she only wants to use females because not only can they be used as surrogates but females seem to take to the experimental serum better."
"But Brin died." Syl pointed out.
"Not according to Renfro's notes."
"What?" Alec exclaimed. "I was there right after Max found her. She had already been dead. They had to know she wasn't alive when she was still in that chamber."
"I agree which only leaves one explanation since the notes are dated well after we buried Brin." Lydecker said.
"Renfro lied to the committee." Logan purported.
"So they'd keep backing her." Alec added.
"Damn it." Zack yelled. "They would too; making all this shit in vain. Blowing up the DNA lab and all those other facilities still won't stop manticore because they've got their eyes set on a higher prize."
"Perhaps." Lydecker cut off Zack's rant. "If Renfro was on the level."
"What do you mean?" Alec asked.
"She lied about Brin and I would bet she has been lying about everything. She's not working on the serum or on anything related to Project X5 Optimum."
"What makes you think that?" Logan asked.
"I've explained to you before about the different foreign nations interested in the work Manticore's doing. I've got people all over the world with the specific purpose of making sure no one gets close to Manticore's secrets. My days at Manticore may have ended but these people work for me. Always have.
A few hours ago I was sent a series of correspondents between a company in Southeast Asia and someone here in the U.S. Goes by the name of Madam X. I also have copies of emails between this Madam X and a scientist based in South Africa.
A recent prototype was undoubtedly part of the deal with the South African scientist. They use to contact me once a month begging for an exchange in technology. I always turned them down. The new director apparently did not. But Renfro was at least smart enough to know the mistake of sending over a fully functional X5. Even dead you X5s are still worth millions. Renfro was planning on handing over 734 but she wanted to drain her of all her most groundbreaking properties first; the nanocytes, pluroponents, stem cells, hormones, reproductive capabilities."
Alec, Syl, and Zack each clenched their fists at hearing the reasoning behind Brin's fate.
"As for why she's been taking female X5s and telling the committee she's using them for X5 Optimum, the info I got on the company in Southeast Asia explains that.
With your healing capabilities there's no telling how long you can live or if you'll even age. Not only that, you can help regular humans to live as well. The regenerative properties in your blood have already been proven to work in norms. At first the effects were temporary but Manticore scientists were able to perfect it to make them last for several years rather than only a few weeks. Renfro's taking female X5s because it seems as though the estrogen hormones found in the females combined with other ingredients make, what Renfro's calling, a very potent youth elixir."
"Stops aging?" Logan asked with both eyebrows raised.
"Not only stops it. She's claming it reverses the affects of aging as well. It's worth billions."
"Manticore and the Committee would have to be kept out of the loop. It makes sense that Renfro wouldn't be hiding in any of the military facilities." Logan reasoned. "Plus anyone with several million dollars can buy and use the name Sam's R Us. It's a franchise."
"Syl, who do we have by Waltonville?" Alec asked.
"Let's see, hundred miles east of here." Syl pondered. "Craig's headquarters is the closest." She said a moment later.
"Call him. Tell his team to get over there and do some recon." Alec said as he dashed towards the door.
"Where are you going?" Zack asked.
"To Waltonville where else. I want to be there the moment they have the set up on the place cause I'm going in."
"Well wait for me." Zack said as he followed Alec out the door.
"Once again, I'm stuck with the grunt work. Damn it." Syl grumbled. "See you gents." She threw out to Lydecker and Logan as she too headed out of Logan's penthouse.
"On your feet whores!" Sgt. Fexler shouted as he stormed into Max and Jace's small room. Both women restrained from rolling their eyes and instead used that energy to stand. Both advanced in their pregnancy, standing wasn't as easy a task as it used to be. "Director Renfro's on deck." He continued.
"Hello ladies." Renfro addressed the X5s as she glided into their room. "I've got good news. Both Max and Jace's faces remained passive as they continued to stare ahead in an almost comical imitation of a soldier's attention stance courtesy of their protruding bellies. "The day of you returning to your duties as soldiers is sooner than originally scheduled."
"Any why's that?" Max couldn't help asking in her usual brusque tone.
"Quiet scum!" The sergeant shouted enthusiastically.
"It's okay Brian. I'm used to 452's constant insubordination." Renfro smirked as she looked at Max. "In fact I may have misspoke when it comes to you. I should say your day of beginning reindoctrination is almost here. I'd say by next week in fact.
You're both far enough along for the babies to have a sixty-five percent survival rate outside of the womb and I've just been given the green light to remove them."
Max started forward at the director's words and Sgt Fexler mirrored her except he had a rifle in his hand. Max came back to her senses. She had no doubt that despite being pregnant she could still do some damage but she also recognized with how far away Fexler was and the extra time it would take her pregnant body to get there the odds weren't in her favor for the battle to be now.
She relaxed and stepped back in line with Jace. Again Renfro smirked and Max had to bite her tongue to keep from at least trying to snap the evil woman's neck.
"The procedure's tomorrow so I suggest you two call it a night. Brian, I want you and another guard posted outside this door at all times. No interaction. I know how cunning X5s can be when they feel threatened."
"Yes ma'am."
Renfro left no parting words when she left the X5s' room. 452's initial expression when she told her they were going to induce tomorrow was plenty of payback for the trouble that bitch had caused. As she made her way to the lab, Renfro couldn't help the slight smile on her lips as went over the details of her personal plans. Losing 734's body had been a near disaster. The South Africans had some how found out about her plans with the company in Southeast Asia and were blackmailing her. Instead of money they wanted inside information on Manticore. Renfro promised them a prototype, albeit a defunct prototype but they didn't have to know that. But when 734 went missing, Renfro knew she'd be screwed if she didn't come up with a replacement. She'd already been allowed three X5s by the committee for Project X5 Optimum which had been a cover for what she really needed them for. But all X5s (Manticore's prize experiments), even these, were still monitored closely. The committee expected written and videotaped reports regularly. And they had made it clear that they were not donating any more until they saw results.
The DNA lab blowing up actually worked a bit in her favor because 452 was dropped in her lap as a result and the chaotic situation of the DNA lab being destroyed allowed her to keep her capture off the records and smuggle 452 to her personal headquarters. She was debating on whether or not to send 452 to South Africa alive and without extraction. Something she was reluctant to do knowing a fully functional X5s in the hands of a foreign country would be thoroughly investigated. But then the tests came in that 452 was pregnant. This worked out perfectly because now Renfro didn't have to send 452 plus she could buy more time with the South Africans by promising offspring from an X5. She even raised the price because now the South Africans were given a chance to watch the developmental stage instead of just receiving a final product.
But the downing of four facilities all together had the committee in a tailspin. They were considering shutting down Manticore and all other projects including X5 Optimum. She was far too close with the elixir for the Southeast Asian company to let that happen. She needed to move. The money she got from her deal with South Africa would finance her work towards the youth elixir if the committee decided to withdraw all funds for X5 Optimum. But that meant she needed the goods. 452's offspring might not survive the induction process which was why she was also taking 408's. The South African's said they wouldn't be upset if they received damaged goods if the opportunity to study the human and X5 DNA mix 408's offspring provided was also added to the deal.
"Have the incubators arrived?" Renfro asked the moment she stepped into the crisp, sterile room that served as their surgical lab.
Dr. Nader looked up from the chart he had been studying. "Not yet."
"Why not?" Renfro snapped.
"Sorry." Nader shrugged. "Don't know. Maybe check supplies." He said already returning to the chart.
"It's okay." Renfro said after taking a deep breath. "Probably just traffic." She muttered in an effort to reassure herself that it was only a minor setback. Everything was still going according to plan.
Or so she hoped.
"Yep, you definitely can't get these at the local Sam's R Us Depot." Krit said as he tinkered with the incubators.
"Stop messing with them. We might need those later." Dial chastised.
"You're not trying to tell me something, are you Dial, baby doll." Krit smiled and fluttered his eyelashes dramatically.
The chestnut haired X5 rolled her eyes. "Well as a matter a fact." Dial began and then paused and nearly burst out laughing as Krit went from joking to wide eyed shock. "I'm not trying to tell you anything." She finished and gave up holding in her giggling as Krit let out the burst of air he had been holding in. He then joined her laughter.
"Can we focus people?" Alec said from the front seat. The cold tone of his voice brokered no argument and the other X5s straightened immediately and slammed their game face firmly back on.
Craig's team was ready when Alec and Zack arrived the night before. Craig a.k.a. 252 had not been apart of Alec's unit back at Manticore but they had grown up in the same facility. When Alec and the others had taken that facility down, Craig was one of the many X5 that had joined him in the mission to overthrow Manticore all over.
As more facilities were destroyed, the X5s collectively agreed to station headquarters across the country so they had eyes and ears just about everywhere. They understood that the government would be gunning for them hard. They also knew that the people already on the outside probably wouldn't be too keen on helping them considering they were basically escaped science experiments.
Alec and Max's crime spree of robbing and selling art and other valuables amounted to a substantial fortune, and Alec used those funds to first get supplies needed in the search for Max and the weapons needed once a facility was uncovered. He then used it to organize the X5s into an underground community of sorts. The property that served as headquarters to the X5s across the country, including Craig's, was bought with Alec and Max's money.
Krit had left Seattle to join Craig's headquarters about two months ago. Although four people already lived with Craig he still had the room. However the extra room was not what drew Krit to Craig's headquarters, no, that would be the abrasive X5 now known as Dial. The two had hit off while preparing to take down the second Manticore facility they had found, and they had been inseparable ever since.
Boom named for his loud voice and tall, muscular frame was another member of Craig's HQ as was Torch, named partly for her flaming red hair but mostly because her favorite phrase was let's just torch it, him, or her whenever it, him, or her became a problem. Dial was named for her ability to use a phone connection to infiltrate just about any system based on telecommunications known to man. Rake, the tall, brown haired green eyed X5 named himself. He liked both the names Rick and Jake and couldn't decide. His specialty in Manticore had been linguistics. Of the several languages he knew he could also speak them in the exact dialect of whatever region he was sent to. The skill was not much needed on the outside so he mostly got props from his team members for holding Manticore's record for longest time underwater.
Then there was Craig. He was one of Manticore's most promising soldiers. He was the same age as Zack and therefore one of the first to be sent on missions or to do anything really. He had a perfect record as far as successful missions, a lot of which consisted of him leading a team in various circumstances. But what made him really stand out to Manticore was how his record was unparallel as far as following orders. Manticore would have been shocked to find out that 252's unwavering devotion to them was all an act. He had been buying his time for the day they sent him unsupervised to a place far enough away that it would take them too long to get to him once he disappeared. But Alec's invasion happened first and 252 was more than happy to turn his devotion towards the cause of bringing Manticore down.
Back at Manticore Craig had always thought 494 was foolish. It was obvious that the guy didn't care about Manticore's ideals. Craig just couldn't believe how easily he flaunted that fact with his scams and witty rejoinders to the guards' faces that even he sometimes had trouble not laughing at. 494 was no stranger to isolation. And Craig wanted to shake his head at 494's antics every time he got sent there because, in truth, he liked the kid. Most of them did. It was hard not to. When 494 went missing, 252 wasn't exactly surprised that the kid had the balls to escape but he was also expecting the kid to be recaptured within a month. It amazed him that he lasted as long as he did but he was even more amazed and grateful that he had come back for them.
He owed the younger man a lot for not only freeing him but for started something on the outside that they could all be apart of. Had he stuck to his original plan he would have been in for a life of running and isolation which wasn't very appealing to a soldier used to having a unit around him. But now he had purpose and his team still with him along with his new found freedom. He'd do anything to protect that. And he'd do anything to get 494 back to the upbeat guy he knew and that meant helping him find and rescue 452.
He and his team had gone out to do recon on the warehouse the moment after he hung up with Alec. They knew the layout and the schedule of the guards by the time Alec and Zack had arrived. Later that night, Logan had called and told them he was able to find out about a shipment coming in the next afternoon.
The plan had become simple: hijack the truck and use it to infiltrate the facility. Which was exactly what they did. Craig looked at Alec staring stonily ahead and hoped that this was definitely the place where they would find 452 alive and well.
"Okay Krit, looks like you win." Alec said when they approached the gate and saw the lone guard standing there. Alec then climbed to the back and the rest of the X5s ducked down just in case the guard got too close.
"You're late." The guard barked after Zack pulled up to his station.
"Traffic." Zack barked back.
"Humph." The guard snorted. "Open up the back." Zack nodded and got out. The guard followed him to the back and stood over him while he unlocked it.
"Incubators, just like you ordered." Zack said as he pushed up the door. He then stepped out of the way so the guard could see.
"What the f--" The guard's statement was cut off when Zack cuffed him in the back of his head knocking him out instantly. He then shoved him in the truck. Krit, who had been completely naked except for his briefs when the guard opened the door quickly removed the guard's uniform and put it on. He then pulled the hat further down on his head before taking position at the guard's station. With a smile he opened the gate and let the truck pass through.
Alec had wanted to move right away and tapping into the facilities surveillance system would have taken another few days to get the right equipment and crack the codes. Luckily the warehouse's exterior security only consisted of a few cameras surrounding the building. No sharp shooters in towers or X7s patrolling the area. There were a few guards posted around and they already knew their schedule and positions and more importantly that they were only norms. The two former precautions would no doubt clue any passer-byers in that this was not just a run of the mill warehouse. There was the high fence topped with barb wire but there switch the guards plan foiled that easily enough and allowed them to simply drive through the front.
Now that they were inside, Torch would run around the exterior of the building, avoiding the cameras, as she laid charges. Krit would help her once Craig and Dial were inside and found the control room and gave the signal that they were free to move around without being monitored. Then Boom and Rake would lay the charges on the interior of the building while Zack and Alec searched for Max.
Craig and Torch quickly disposed of the men that came to meet them to unload the truck. After tying them up with the first guard, Torch grabbed her bag filled with charges and took off around the corner while the other six transgenics cautiously entered the door by the loading dock.
Boom and Rake went forward to check to see if the coast was clear and to make it clear if it wasn't. Dial scanned the walls of the small empty corridor until she found what she was looking for. Next to the fire alarm a safety map was taped to the wall.
Dial smiled and then pulled Alec to come read it with her. Just as she found what she was looking for, Rake popped back around the corner and signed that all was clear. Dial pointed for Alec and Zack to follow Rake and then signed for Craig to follow her to the control room at least to where the safety map that essential gave the layout of the entire facility's insides when it highlighted all possible exits had designated was the control room.
Boom and Rake broke off from Alec and Zack when they reached the staircase to the third floor. They took off down the corridor while Alec and Zack ascended the steps quietly. When they reached the door that opened up to the hallway, Alec pressed his ear against it to discern where people were. He signed that there were four bodies at the end of the hallway and five next to the door.
The two X5s waited to see if they would move away. The four at the end of the hall moved but the five next to them stayed. Alec signed that he was going for it and Zack nodded in agreement.
Easing open the door, Alec saw that the hallway was completely empty. He quickly moved to the left having realized that there was a room on the right of the door he'd just come out of and that's where the five people were located.
Zack came out and followed Alec's lead. The room with all the people was at the very end of the hall and since Alec hadn't sense Max in it they discarded it and silently hurried down the opposite way. A quick glance in each room as they sped by confirmed that Max wasn't in any of them so the duo advanced to the next floor. This pattern continued for three more floors.
As soon as Alec peered down the hall of the seventh and final floor, Alec felt a jolt. The previous floors except for the one that contained the lab and the kitchen were similar in that they had rooms but the doors had always been open and some didn't even have doors. But this floor which was more like an attic in that it was a lot smaller than the other hallways and had only one room at the far end. The room was closed and presumably locked with two guards standing in front of it.
Without hesitation, Alec took aim at one guard and dropped him and then the other a second later. He and Zack then sprinted down the hall towards what Alec's pounded heart told him was Max.
Max and Jace looked at one another when they heard a gasp followed by the sound of first one and then another body falling to the ground. They stood as one when they heard the humming of someone scanning a card through to unlock the door. When it swung open and Max saw Alec standing there she knew she must be dreaming. It was a dream she had many, many times before. And even though she didn't remember falling asleep, the door opening and Alec being the one behind it was too similar to the script of her dreams. However the way his eyes were bulging out of his head as he stared down at her stomach was never an element in her dream. In them, for some reason, her being pregnant was something he already knew. Max swallowed hard as the indication hit her that this might not be a dream after all. And then a moment later, the definitive sign came that this was indeed real.
Gunshots were never part of her fantasies of Alec coming for her.
Everyone looked down the hall to where the gunshots sounding like they were coming from and froze. It was Zack who broke his paralysis first.
"We gotta move now!" Zack shouted and then sprinted towards the stairwell. Alec shook off his emotions at seeing Max again and instead grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the room with Jace following behind.
Zack held up his fist and the three stopped and remained silent as they let Zack take the lead down the steps. They made it down two floors before the door burst open below them and a soldier rushed in. When he saw them he didn't hesitate to open fire.
"I got this! Go!" Zack shouted as he returned fire. Alec faltered when he saw three more guards rush into the stairwell. He stood protectively in front of the women as he began firing to help Zack.
"Get Max out now! I've got you covered." Zack ordered again. Alec watched Zack take out two soldiers and Alec shot down one more before pushing Max and Jace back up the stairs and through the doors that led to the lab.
"This way." He pointed towards the lab knowing there was another stairwell on the other side.
Renfro was stuffing papers and disks into a brief case when she heard someone yelling just outside the laboratory door. She quickly ducked down and clutched to her bosom the gun she had taken off of a fallen guard on her way over here. When she heard the door burst open and then a moment later feet running towards the door on the other side she snuck a peek behind the desk she was cowering behind.
"Damn it!" Alec screamed. "It's locked." He said while mentally cursing himself for not keeping the guard's key. "Stand back." He then said as he took aim with his machine gun.
No way. No way is that little bitch going to get away after she nearly cost me everything!
Renfro thought as she watched 452 waiting for 494 to shoot the door open. When he took aim she figured this would be her perfect opportunity. The noise from his machine gun would drown out her shot and she could get away through the other door before the bitch's body hit the ground.
Renfro cocked her gun and took aim the moment she heard 494's gun go off.
"Max! No!" Zack screamed when he came into the lab and saw a woman spring up from behind the desk and point her gun at Max.
With a flying leap, Zack jumped in front of the bullet's path. The impact knocked him backwards into Max and the two went down.
Alec had heard Zack's shout and then saw out the corner of his eye a gun being aimed at them. Instantly he turned and opened fire on the enemy.
Renfro's body jerked like a marionette as the bullets tore through her chest. When her body dropped, Alec felt a frisson of satisfaction at being the one to have downed the bitch that made his life hell even before taking Max away from him. But it was short lived when he heard Jace's voice begging Max to answer her.
Spinning around Alec was horrified to see both Zack and Max on the ground and a puddle of blood between them.
"Max!" Alec yelled nearly pushing Jace out of the way when he sprinted to her side. He gathered her in his arms and gently tapped her face. "Max." He whispered.
"Oh my head." Max moaned as her eyes fluttered open.
"You okay?"
"I've been better. What the hell happened?" Max said as she started to get up. "Zack!" She then cried when she saw him lying next to her not moving. She wrenched out of Alec's arms and moved towards her brother. "Oh God Zack." She whispered as she turned his body over and saw his shirt covered in blood.
"I think Renfro was aiming for you." Jace nervously explained. "He jumped in front of the bullet."
"Zack, no please." Max began to cry. "Don't do this to me. Please don't do this. I can't lose you too." She pleaded as she moved her shaking hands over his body checking for a heartbeat or a pulse.
"Max." Zack croaked.
"I'm here Zack. I'm here. Please open your eyes." Zack's eyes slowly opened. He looked down at himself and then slowly started to sit up.
"Are you okay?" He asked when he focused on Max.
"Am I okay!" Max shouted as more tears leaked out even though she was smiling. "Don't you dare ever scare me like that again."
"Well that's the last time I take a bullet for you then." Zack rasped. He tried to get to his feet but stumbled. Max tried to grab him but her swollen stomach hindered her. Alec was on it, however. He helped Zack to his feet and Jace grabbed up some rags and pressed them to the wound still leaking mere centimeters from his heart. When she saw that the bullet had passed through, Jace pressed another rag to Zack's back.
The four made slow progress down the steps not meeting any opposition until they got to the parking garage. Alec felt a bullet whiz by his ear and immediately turned and fired at the guards that came up behind them.
"Alec watch out!" Max yelled when a guard appeared before them. But suddenly he crumbled to the floor in front of them and Max saw a tall brown haired guy about their age lower the weapon he had just fired.
"You about done." He called to them. Max looked at Alec and saw him smile so she relaxed. "Everyone's waiting on you." He said and nodded towards the truck pulling up behind him.
Max then saw another man and a red headed woman jump out of the truck and begin firing at the guards running towards them.
"Let's move." Alec yelled as Rake moved in front of them and then also began firing at the guards still coming. Max, Jace, Zack, and Alec moved as quickly as they could to the back of the truck while Rake covered them.
The five people in the back quickly scrambled forward to help the injured Zack and the pregnant women into the truck. Alec followed. Rake ran around to the front and jumped into the driver's seat. He took off mowing down the guards in his path before stopping to let Torch and Craig catch up. As soon as they dove in the back of the truck, Rake took off again.
Once they crashed through the gate, the red headed woman spoke.
"Let's torch this mother-fucker."
Seconds later the building erupted in flames.
Boom had also been injured during the mission and both he and Zack were patched up on the way back to Craig's headquarters. Max was thrilled to see Krit but more than anything she wanted to be in Alec's arms. However with tending to Boom and Zack as well as checking over Max, Jace, and the other two female X5s they rescued all in an overcrowded truck no less, it just wasn't the right time and place for a proper reunion.
It took them two hours to get back to Craig's headquarters and the cramped ride had pretty much killed all left over adrenaline from the mission. They were all exhausted.
"Thanks for coming through for me, man." Alec said as he shook hands with Craig.
"You kidding, I was happy to do it. We all were." Craig gestured behind him to his roommates walking in and out of the house. "You're welcome to stay, you know."
"Yeah but we really want to head back. I'm sure Max is anxious to get back to her life in Seattle."
"I don't know man, things are bound to be different. Did you know?"
"Know what?"
"That she was pregnant." Alec turned and looked fondly at Max talking quietly to Jace and Krit by the truck.
"Not consciously. But there was something in me that was telling me I needed to be with Max to protect her. It was a feeling I never had before. Of course I always wanted her safe but I know Max can take of herself. Hell, she takes care of me most of the time. But when she went missing, that feeling just got stronger and stronger each day. It's crazy."
"Not really man. I know what you mean." Craig said and then turned and locked eyes with Torch. He gave a small smile which she returned before turning back to the conversation with Alec. "Are you all set?"
"Ugh yeah." Alec answered looking around again to make sure everything was in place. "Krit just put new plates on the truck. You know 439 and 890 are staying with you, right."
"Yeah they're great girls, a real asset to my unit back at Manticore." Alec nodded and kept himself from rolling his eyes. Craig was great but sometimes his mindset was pure Manticore.
"Jace, 408, is coming with us. Krit and Dial said they'd drive Zack's bike down when they come for supplies later this month since only mine fits with the rest of the stuff already in the truck."
Just then Rake bounded out of the house and down the steps. He stopped next to Alec and clapped him hard on the back.
"Well you're all set man. Got you enough gas to get back and then some so have a good trip and hey congrats on finding Max and knocking her up."
"Thanks Rake." Alec smiled and clapped Rake on the back equally hard.
After ten minutes of more goodbyes from the other residents in the house, Alec finally found himself standing in front of the truck. Jace and Zack were already settled inside and Max was making her way over after a trip to the bathroom which then turned into another round of goodbyes.
"Your hair got so long." Alec said softly when she came to stand in front of him.
"Yours too." Max replied as she fingered the strands on the back of his head and remembered the last haircut she had given him.
"So we're having a baby." He said lamely a moment later. He couldn't understand why he couldn't get his mind and tongue to work. For months he had searched for her and now she was in front of him again. He supposed he was still stunned. Or maybe he was afraid that if he made the wrong move she would disappear again.
"Looks that way." Max said glancing down at her stomach and then back at him and smiling.
"I missed you." Alec breathed and took a step closer making their bodies touch.
"Me too." Slowly Alec leaned down and Max tilted her head up. Kissing him was the thing she wanted to do the moment she saw him but it had been too hectic before.
"Hey Max!" Their lips less than an inch apart the couple stopped and turned towards the truck to see Jace leaning out of the window. "Zack wants to know when we're leaving."
"Right now." Alec yelled back.
"Maybe its best we wait." Max said stepping back. "I don't think I'd be able to stop."
"I know what you mean." Alec said. He then took her hand and led her to the passenger side of the truck. Max's first attempt to climb inside proved problematic and Alec couldn't help commenting.
"I can't believe you're only six months pregnant, honestly Maxie, if I hadn't seen Jace I wouldn't know that a woman could get as big as you in such a short time."
"Hey." Max squealed and turned around and slapped Alec on the shoulder. "I'm not that big."
"Okay maybe not. Maybe its just because the last time I saw you, I could balance your entire body in one hand and now you're…I'm sorry Max, I can't lie, you're huge."
"Alec!"
"What! You're still sexy as hell. Maybe sexier now that there's more of you to love." Alec said silkily before once again trying to push the door open further. "Are you gonna get any bigger?" He said as Max still continued to struggle to get onto the high seat.
"Yes." Max joked but pouted so that Alec would believe her. "I'm going to get twice as big." She finished petulantly and Alec's eyes bulged.
"Oh man in a couple months, I can just see you and Jace trying to fit through—
"Actually Jace is nine months pregnant." She sighed when she
finally got settled.
"What! But you're as big as she is. I
knew it. I knew you were more gigantic that usual."
"Alec, I swear, if you say one more thing about my size you're going to get two gigantic fists in your most tender places."
"Got it. Sorry dear." Alec said quickly before shutting the door and then running around to the driver's seat and jumping in gracefully. He gave Max a wink before starting the engine.
From the house, Craig watched the exchange with delight. 494 was definitely back.
TBC
Please Review
Author's Note:
I hope I didn't confuse anyone with Craig's line about 494 being back. I know there's a fanon that regards 494 and "Alec" as almost separate personalities. 494 being the Manticore serious super soldier and Alec being the man 494 became when he was freed by Max. I, on the other hand, view Alec and 494 as one in the same. The way he was on the outside is the way he was in Manticore. If there was confusion, I hope that cleared it up. If not, drop me a line and I'd be happy to further explicate. Fine! You caught me. This whole author's note was just so I could use the word "explicate."
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Check out my new m/a video: "Take My Hand." By Dido. It's an alternative universe story line. Max never escaped. She and Alec grew up in the same unit.
In the video, Max and Alec decide they've had enough of watching each other be tortured by Manticore so they try to escape. Alec sacrifices himself so that Max makes it out. What will Max do now that she's