Author's note:  Thanks to my sweet Alecsangel for Beta reading.  She's my new annoyance : ) Supposed to whine and pester me until I get this done.  Isn't that great? 

Chapter 9- Title: On The Run

An eerie silence reigned now in the tunnels as the aftermath of destruction finally settled.   A few bits and pieces of debris hung precariously from above.   From time to time some broke loose, their sound reverberating in the seemingly empty tunnels.   But they were not empty.  Sticking out in stark contrast amidst the dirt, rock and metal was a hand.   It's grip tight about a piece of pipe that ran up the length of the wall.  A second hand emerged to join it.  Strained muscles and enlarged veins could be seen with the effort put forth to free them from their prison.  Muffled sounds of exertion could be heard along with the increasing sounds of debris as it rose away from the body and fell to the sides.  

A barely audible yell issued forth from beneath the rubble as debris exploded in all directions away from the trapped bodies.  Mole lay on his back, arms sprawled out from his sides.   Great gulps of air echoed down the tunnels as his body's need for air reflected its desperation.   Mole's head began to clear as the much needed oxygen made it's way through the cobwebs of his mind.   A shaky laugh escaped his lips when he realized he was alive, but his joy was short lived as the reality of the situation hit.

"Shit," Mole sat up like he'd been burned.  Frantic hands began removing debris from around Alec.  Fear began to replace his initial feelings of relief when he realized that his friend was not breathing.  Grabbing a hold of the top of Alec's flack jacket he pulled for all he was worth.  Alec's body literally popped free of the rubble, the force of which slammed Mole once again on his back with Alec atop.  Scrambling quickly, Mole switched positions laying Alec on his back and quickly tilting his chin up.  Mole gazed for only a second at the slack face below him with a sigh.

"Human…they had to make you look…ugh…like a human."

With that said, Mole began to breathe for his friend.

~ ~ ~

White made his way through the tunnels precariously.  He could feel the fury of emotions pass through his veins like adrenaline, empowering him with each step.   He'd been detoured from his goal too many times by the incompetence of those around him and no longer would he leave it to others to do what needed to be done.   Thula had not checked in confirming what he suspected, that she'd failed again to get 452.  No matter, he'd find the other curse of his existence and use him as the tool he needed to find his son.   Then with slow satisfaction he'd dispose of them both.  A cruel smile of anticipation spread across his face and White increased his pace.   

~ ~ ~

Alec's body finally began to respond by coughing and with a start his eyes snapped opened. 

"What the hell…are you doing?  Are you…trying to…to…kiss me?" he rasped out, all the while trying to move away from Mole. 

"Well you are a pretty boy." Mole smirked in return.  Alec scrambled harder. "Hey, be still.  Where the hell are you trying to go?"

"Away," he spat out.  His lungs burned and felt like lead weight as his body tried to expel the dust and dirt it had inhaled.   Pain throughout his body began to awaken, but his coughing prevented him from voicing it.

Mole clasped Alec's arms to still him.  He couldn't help smiling even wider at the look of horror on Alec's face.

"Stop it, you idiot.  You weren't breathing.  I didn't have a lot of choice…I said stop."  Mole pressed down harder to stop his movements.

Alec's body slumped as his mind began to process what Mole said and their situation came back to mind full force.   His body trembled in its effort to relax and gain some kind of control.  He could feel Mole's hand move to his chest.

"That's it," Mole said, his face turning to one of concern, "Rest a second.  Get your bearings."

"Hurts," Alec replied, his voice hoarse. 

"I know.  I'll take care of that.  You know where you are?"

Alec's eyes darted around him and he nodded.  "Yeah…yeah…I'm good."

"Okay then…I'm going to let go.  You stay put."

Alec smiled, "That's…the second…time I…I woke up with…your mug too…close."

"Yeah well it wasn't a picnic for me either, but it was that or let you die."

"Th…thanks."

Alec groaned as his chest constricted and tried again to expel whatever junk had invaded it.   He closed his eyes and concentrated on gaining some kind of control over his breathing and the pain while his mind went over their situation.  They needed to get moving.  It was only a matter of time before the military reorganized and entered the tunnels.  Even more so, Alec knew that White would do anything to get his hands on Max.  He needed to get to her, no matter what the cost.  Besides he'd promised.   Opening his eyes he watched as Mole removed his pack, retrieving the first aid kit.  Alec moved to sit up grunting with the effort. 

Mole responded quickly helping him to turn and lean against the wall and then handing him a canteen.  He watched Alec raise a shaky hand to drink, while he quickly reached in the kit for a pressure bandage and morphine stick. 

"We need to get someplace stable to take care of that wound."

"Is…is the original…junction passable?" Alec asked between labored breaths.   Mole applied the bandage and it was all he could do to keep from squirming away.

"No," Mole answered, "It's completely collapsed."

"Uh…let me…think…" Alec shut his eyes in his effort to bring to mind what he had put to memory of the grid map, "Two…two clicks up…and…one over…wor…work station…for utility…uh …company…" Alec gasped, as pain radiated in waves down his leg and deep in his hip.

Mole grabbed the morphine stick ready to apply it when Alec's hand reached out to stop him. 

"No…if you…do that…I'll be no good…. We both need to…be alert."

"Fine," Mole replied with disgust, at the same time applying more pressure.  "This won't hold long.  We need to get going.  Once there I can do more to take care of it."

"Kay," was Alec's only reply, as he lowered his head.

Mole stared at Alec's pale face, worried for the soldier.  He looked terrible.  Sweat ran in rivulets down his face and neck leaving dirty streaks where dust, dirt and blood marred them.  There were tears in his uniform and blotches of blood where he'd obviously taken some hits.   Mole sighed in disgust when he realized he didn't look much better from his own encounters.  Everything ached and he could feel blood trickle down his back from an early hit.

Checking the bandage one more time he noted that the bleeding had slowed, but not stopped.  That bullet needed to come out, the wound cauterized, but not yet.  They needed to find a safe place so Alec could recoup some of the strength he'd lost.  Transgenic or not, there was only so much a body could take and without rest, his own healing abilities would not kick in.   The young transgenic would die and it pissed Mole off that he found himself caring whether this one did or not.   He quickly stuffed their supplies back in his pack and swung it into place over his shoulders.  

"Ready?" Mole asked.

"Try your com first, let 'em know our status," ordered Alec.

"Command this is Two, come in."  Mole waited for a reply, but heard only static.  "Dix! Answer me."  No reply, only static. "Must be interference from all the debris.  We'll have to wait until we're topside to contact command.  In the meantime, we need to get moving."

Alec sighed as he raised his head up.  "Right." 

In one fluid motion Mole lifted Alec off the ground to a standing position, moving to support his right side.  Alec's eyes widened at the shock of movement, but to his credit no sounds escaped his lips.  Only the sound of his ragged breathing an indicator of the toll it took on him.  Swallowing hard Alec turned a determined face to Mole, "Let's go."

Stuffing what was left of his cigar in his mouth, Mole smiled, "Yes sir." 

~ ~ ~

More than 24 hours had passed since the end of the hostage situation at Jam Pony, twenty-four of the longest hours in Max's life.  She sat now, on an outcropping of boulders staring off in the distance toward Terminal City.  Small tendril's of smoke could be seen as they rose lazily from the destruction she knew Alec had  wreaked on the City.  She couldn't help the smile that broke out over her face when she thought of how much trouble he had obviously caused in a single night.  After all causing trouble seemed to be his forte.  At the same time her heart ached for him.  'I'd been so wrong about him,' her mind fairly screamed at her.  She'd allowed her own personal demons to dictate her treatment of him and now she sat here staring off toward the black smoke waiting, waiting for him to walk up to her with that damn cocky grin of his infuriating the hell out of her.  God, what she wouldn't give to have that feeling again. 

Sighing deeply, she let her mind go back to the reports they'd received.  Especially after Alec's team started trickling in. First from the two X-4s ordered by Alec to move ahead with a wounded female.   She'd been seriously wounded, but lucid and able to be debriefed.  Their information told what Alec's team was up against and even though Max knew that as transgenics they were more than a match for the Special Ops teams, she couldn't help but worry.   She also told of Alec's treatment of her, which caused her heart to swell.  Chickgirl had never been treated with such compassion and respect before by an X-5.  In the past she'd always been treated with contempt, because she was considered a nomaly.   Max reveled in the descriptions she gave, but dread returned to her as the rest of Alec's team trickled in and were debriefed.  Alec and Mole had successfully diverted the military and here she sat safe and sound.   But Alec was wounded and on the run with Mole.  That is if they were still alive.   For all she knew he lay buried under a ton of rubble.

"No!" she spoke with determination, "I refuse to believe that you're dead, Alec." Standing abruptly, she took several steps toward the City.  "You're not!" 

"Max?"

Startled from her reverie, Max turned to the voice that stopped her in her tracks.

"Max, we could get a team together.  Go back and search for him."

Stepping toward an approaching Logan Max replied, her voice low and full of emotion, "We wouldn't know where to look.  Part of the plan was that only he would know their escape route.  He didn't want to risk being compromised if some of us were caught."

"Surely we can…"

"No, Logan," Max interrupted, "we can't…at least not until we have better information.  By now the military have reorganized and stepped up their movements.  We don't even know if they're alive.  I can't endanger our people…I can't…I." Emotions welled up inside her despite brave efforts to stop them.    Max turned watery eyes away from Logan.  "I hate who I have to be right now!  I hate it."

Logan looked away for a moment, gathering his thoughts.  He wanted more than anything to reach out a comforting hand to Max, but that was something Manticore had taken away from them and God only knew if that would ever change.  What could he offer her?  His love was not an option anymore.  At least the kind of love he had for her.   However, he doubted he could ever stop loving her that way.

"I'm sorry Max.  I'm sorry for the hand that has been dealt to you…to us.  If I could change it for you, I would."

Max looked over at Logan as he walked up next to her, a sad smile on her face for the man she now knew could never be more to her than a close friend, a brother.

"I know."

"He'll make it Max; he always does."

Max raised her chin slightly, "I have to believe that's true.  I have to."

~ ~ ~

Colonel Foster examined the grid map in front of him.  Paying particular attention to the area south of Terminal City.  His team's leaders were with him awaiting their orders. 

"Cunningham, take your team and enter the tunnels just Southeast of this area.   Harrison, your team enters here.  You'll begin a grid search working toward the center.  John you and your team will accompany me here.   I want your men to secure the perimeter.  I don't want anyone or anything entering or leaving this area.  On my order John, I may require that you go high."

"Not a problem, sir."

Lt. Clemente stepped forward.  "Do you really think he's alive?"

"White thinks he is and from what Agent Gottlieb said, X5-494 has slipped through his fingers before."

"But even a transgenic has limits.  Don't they?"

"Yes they do and if he's alive we'll find him.  If he's not," Colonel Foster paused thoughtfully,  "we'll bring him home along with his subordinate."

"He's done it before you know," Gamble interjected, "slipped right through someone's fingers, made it when the odds were against him."

"What do you mean?" Clemente asked. 

"His records indicate that on three of his early missions, before he became a covert operative, he covered his teams tracks and for all intents and purposes was thought lost or dead.  But on each mission he would walk in days later, half dead, but alive.   He has an incredible tenacity for self-preservation.  Man what I wouldn't give to have him as a part of my team."  Gamble's obvious admiration for the X5 could be heard clearly in his voice.

"Why not?" Clemente interjected, "If he's the soldier you say he is, isn't it possible?"

"He was Special Ops before his status was changed to a covert operative," Gamble informed him.  "I'm not sure they wouldn't want to keep him a part of covert operations.  That is if they are integrated back into military service."

"Only a handful of the X5 series were chosen for that division of service," the Colonel continued, "They had to have shown special abilities for that.  Apparently, X5-494 possesses those abilities.  Abilities he demonstrated to our own embarrassment." 

Clemente's eyes widened in understanding and then disgust.  "Wait a minute, what exactly was he used for.  He said something to you Colonel about disobeying a direct order.  He refused to kill innocents."  Clemente paused to gather his thoughts when the full extent of what Manticore was doing hit him.  "An assassin.  That's it, isn't it.  They were training him to be some kind of assassin."

"You know as well as I do that the military have used covert operatives for a number of things including assassinations.  That's not a military secret anymore, but Manticore went beyond their contracts with the military and used the X series for their own personal missions and while I have allowed you to be privy to some of information on what this particular X-5 did, the rest is classified.  I'm sorry, Clemente, but that's as much as I'm willing to let you know.  With that said, can I count on you to support our current mission?"

Clemente didn't answer right away.  Instead turned away in contemplation of all he'd been privy too.  He knew that Foster could have completely left him out in the dark.  He could have easily ordered that none of the local law enforcement were to involve themselves.   He certainly had the authority.  'No,' Clemente thought, 'I won't be left out of the rest.'

"I'll help out Colonel," he spoke with conviction.  Turning around he continued, "I've been too close to this now to be left out.  We'll cooperate all we can."

"Then immobilize your men to this position," the Colonel commanded.

"Yes Sir," Clemente replied with a smile.

~ ~ ~

White narrowed his eyes and bent down to examine the dark patch on the floor.  Reaching down he touch the sticky substance.  Rubbing it slowly between his forefinger and thumb he raised it and sniffed.  Turning his head down the tunnel, he rose and moved cautiously forward following the blood trail, a smile donning his face. 

"I'm coming 494…I'm coming."

~ ~ ~

"No sir, I don't know where Agent White is," Brooks spoke over the phone.  "Well Senator, he's refused to keep in contact with us for quite awhile now.  Lt. Clemente is working in conjunction with Colonel Foster of Special Forces.  White is not there."  Brooks spoke matter-of-factly.

The last thing he needed was for Senator McKinnley to hear anything out of the ordinary in his voice.  He'd done more digging and found further evidence of McKinney's connections with White.  He'd copied it off and was on his way out when McKinnley called.  Apparently White had failed to check in with him as well.

"Excuse me, you're what Sir?  When should we expect you?"  Brooks paused and wiped the sweat from his brow.  The disgusted look on his face belied his voice.  "Yes Sir, I'll notify Lt. Clemente and Colonel Foster of when you will be arriving.  I'll have a car at the airport to transport you to their location." 

Brooks hung up and sagged back in his chair with a sigh.  "Shit, could this get anymore complicated?  I've got to update Ramon."  Grabbing his coat and the discs, he headed out in search of his boss and friend.

End of Chapter 9  (Short I know, but at least I'm writing.)

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