Disclaimer: I don't own them.

Rating: PG-13 for language and violence

Time-frame: post AJBAC

A/N: I know, I know, I said the end of the week, and it wasn't there. Sorry, lots of things to do. Getting ready to go to Mexico, so I'm going to try to finish the story before I leave. My teacher said it's not a good idea to bring our laptops, so I'll be without for a month, and it's really not fair to leave you guys in suspense for that long. So I'm gonna try to finish it up within the next coupla weeks, otherwise…

Chapter 6

Operation Liberate and Obliterate

Logan and Krit headed to the Aztec to gather up all the maps and plans Logan had gathered prior to the meeting and brought them to where Syl and Lydecker stood waiting patiently, shoulders hunched in the pounding rain.

"Let's get inside!" Logan shouted to them over the rush of the precipitation. "If we stay out here any longer, I'm not gonna be able to read the maps." They all headed inside, and laid the papers and rolls on an empty table in the middle of the vast vacant room they'd stepped into. Logan took that chance to really look around and see what he'd gotten himself into. He noticed that the warehouse itself was not so big as far as warehouses go. It was in fact the emptiness of the room and the sound of harsh raindrops pelting the roof that added to its seemingly large appearance. There was a row of broken windows that lined each wall near the ceiling, and a steel rodded catwalk that ran the length of the room. Krit and Syl did a good job. Maybe I'll have them do some work for me in the future if they're interested.

Lydecker spread out a map of the facility that Logan had managed to get a copy of. "Ok," he began, "the plan to take down Manticore is like this…"

Logan cut him off before he had the chance to continue. "The plan starts with rescuing Max. She is the first priority. After she's out, if the opportunity presents itself to take them down, then we proceed. We can always go back and finish that objective, but we're only gonna get one chance to get her out."

Lydecker stared at Logan, and the two men held each other's gaze unwaveringly. A few tense moments passed, and then Lydecker finally nodded. He recognized the look in Logan's eyes. It was the look of a man desperate to save the woman he loved. Deck had held the look on his own face years ago…

Flashback

Deck rode beside his wife, on his way home. He stole a look over to catch the eye of the beautiful young woman with dark hair, and mysterious brown eyes. He thanked the Gods everyday since the moment she'd walked into his life. He considered himself to be the luckiest man on earth. Startled from his reverie, he realized that she had said something to him.

"What?" he asked distractedly.

"I said 'why don't you keep your eyes on the road'?" she responded with a hint of a smile on her face.

He smiled back at her, and turned his attention back to the road.

"What were you thinking about anyway?" she asked casually.

"Oh, nothing," he teased. "Just wondering what I did to deserve a woman like you."

"Oh?" she teased him as well. "Well have you figured it out?"

He was about to give a witty comeback when a cry startled them from the back of the car. She turned around. "Shh, shh little one, we're almost home." The young baby seemed to take comfort in her mother's words. She quieted down, and began to take an interest in the plastic keys in her car seat.

The woman turned in her seat just in time to see the out of control truck careening straight for them. All of Lydecker's military training couldn't have prevented them from being hit. He remembered a blinding light, a voice screaming "Donald! Look out!", the forced impact of the steering wheel hitting his face, the sound of crunching metal, and the feel of broken glass as he was thrown from the vehicle. Everything hurt. He didn't know how long he had been out, but when he looked up, there was a man standing over him, telling him not to move. But he had to move, he had to make sure his wife and child were okay. Where were they anyway? He didn't see them anywhere. He sat up, frantically calling their names. It was then that he saw the overturned truck, and his own car, both leaping with raging flames…the rest was darkness…

End Flashback

"Hello???" came the insistent voice breaking into his thoughts.

"What?" he started.

"Pay attention! I said which of us should be the one to bring Max out?" Syl questioned.

"I'll do it!" both Lydecker and Logan jumped at the chance.

"No," the Colonel said to him, "we need you to stay back at our temp base and maintain control over our communications and pc intel."

"That's where I was last time, and do you recall what happened, or should I spell it out for you?"

"I know, but there's no one else to do it. Look, I've had an old friend of mine working through some of the systems of Manticore's mainframe computer. I told him that I needed a way of getting rid of Manticore. No one can know that it existed, anytime, anyplace…ever. That's why the last mission was such a failure. Yes, we hit them where it hurt, but they had enough back-up information on disk that they could just settle down and start somewhere else if need be. So he came up with some virus that he claims can wipe the entire hard drive. The only problem is it has to be uploaded into the main computer in Manticore's control center. We're going to need Krit and Syl to do that. It's major security in there, and I don't have clearance to get through anymore. That's why I need you back here, keeping an eye on everything; making sure they get in, and making sure the virus does its job."

Logan sighed. It seemed that no matter what, even though he was now out of the wheelchair, he was doomed to be the fellow who sat back and watched while everyone else went out and kicked some ass.

"And you're sure you can trust this guy?" he asked uncertainly.

"I've known him my whole life, and I'd trust him with it."

"Good, because it looks like it's gonna be our asses on the line here. Okay, so if I'm watching communication and intel, Krit and Syl are uploading the virus, and you're rescuing Max, we need to figure out get-away."

"Get away?" Krit finally spoke up. "What do you mean? Can't we just drive away?"

"No, I mean like a back-up person. Someone we trust, who can be our driver in the case that any of us gets hurt. We're going to need two vehicles. It'll look less suspicious if three people each leave in two cars than if six people leave in one car."

"Well, who do we got?" Syl asked.

"I think I know just the person," Logan replied.

They spent the next few hours there, planning actual logistics, making sure they knew where everything was, how long it would take them to reach destination, and timing everything perfectly. They closed up shop sometime after midnight, and Deck headed off back toward the Manticore site, while Krit, Syl and Logan headed back to Fogle Towers.

"You think we can pull this off?" Syl asked while they rode the elevator up toward the penthouse.

"I think we don't have a choice," Krit said, resting an arm around her shoulders. "If we fail, Manticore isn't going to give us another chance."

"We have to try to remain positive," Logan interjected. "For Max's sake."

They all thought over what he had said as the ding of the elevator sounded its arrival to the penthouse floor. They stepped off silently, and headed into Logan's apartment. They headed into the living room only to find Original Cindy conked out on the couch. Logan smiled and brought out a blanket to cover her with. Syl bid him good night and left for the guest room. Logan noticed that the two X5s looked just as fatigued as he did. He wasn't sure exactly how much sleep an X5 needed, Max was hardly an ideal example, but he knew that it wasn't as much as a normal human. For them to be this exhausted meant that they'd probably been up for a while, and this whole situation was taking quite the toll. He suggested all this to Krit, and told him to make sure he got a good night's sleep, for the next day they would need to be at 110%.

Krit nodded and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Sleep well Logan, it may be your last night as a free man."

Logan just gave him a weary smile. "What Krit? Already forgotten the statement I just made about keeping hope alive?"

"Oh yeah," he replied. He turned and headed towards Syl and the guest room, rubbing a tense muscle in his neck the whole way.

Logan smiled to himself as he pulled the blankets up over his chest. He had more hope in his heart right then than he'd ever had in his life. We'll get you out Max…I promise. If it's the last thing I ever do, I'm going to get you out of that hellhole. Glancing over at his alarm clock, he took note that there was less than 23 hours until they would put Operation Liberate and Obliterate into effect. He drifted into a restless sleep.

Logan looked out the window of his Aztec. All he could see was darkness. He had been watching and monitoring everyone's progress using comms, and the programs on his laptop. Krit and Syl had already checked in, the virus had begun to eat away at the system. It took some time, but the officials inside had noticed it, but by then, it was too late to do anything about it. In their haste to try to save the foundation of their program, they hardly noticed Lydecker slipping in. He had contacted Logan over the comms, and let him know that he had reached Max, and they were on the way. That had been five minutes prior, and he hadn't had contact with anyone since.

Suddenly, he saw them, two figures moving towards him in the shelter of the trees that surrounded them. Lydecker emerged silently first, a look of grim determination on his face. Shortly following him was the one person Logan had dreamed of seeing again every moment of the past three months.

"Max," he whispered. She looked a little different he remembered her. Her hair was longer, and she was thinner, not that she hadn't been thin before, but she seemed to be more toned now. But her face was the same, a face that he couldn't forget. He was supposed to wait in the car until the two of them showed up, but he couldn't help it. He jumped out of the car, and ran towards her.

When Max looked up, she saw the one person she had dreamed of seeing again every moment of the past three months. "Logan," she whispered. He looked a little different than she remembered him. His hair was longer, and he was walking. She knew he had the aide of the exoskeleton when she got captured, but he didn't seem to be wearing it now. But his face was still the same, a face that she couldn't forget. When Lydecker had come to get her out, he reminded her of all her training. She was supposed to keep her distance, and proceed with caution until there was a significant gap between them and Manticore, but she just couldn't help herself. The moment she saw him coming towards her, she took off running at a speed that no human could maintain.

Then suddenly, they were in each other's arms, and though neither of them knew who started it, his lips were on hers, briefly, softly, before he pulled away.

"Are you okay? Did they hurt you?" he asked frantically, holding her at arms length and looking her over to make sure there was really nothing wrong with her.

"I'm fine, I'm fine," she insisted, before burying her head into his shoulder, and finally allowing the tears to come.

"Come on, we gotta get out of here," he said, holding her closely.

"Wait a minute," she said quickly. "Where's Lydecker?"

"Right here," came a voice as the unmistakable sound of a gun cocked in their ears. "Turn around slowly," he said.

Logan squeezed his eyes shut, and let go of Max, who still clung to him, before turning around gradually. He pulled Max behind him to shield her from any hurt, even though she was clearly able to take care of herself.

"Ok," Logan stated in a voice that sounded clear to the ears, but betrayed the turmoil that spread through his insides. "You got me. That's what you want right? You don't need her anymore. Just let her go."

Lydecker just shook his head. "Sorry son," he whispered. Suddenly, his finger was on the trigger, and the gun went off. Logan felt a burning sensation when the bullet pierced his chest. He felt Max's arms around his chest when the wave of dizziness caused the ground to rush up at him, heard her cries, saw her tears, and nothing else…

Her voice echoed in his ears. "Logan…Logan…Logan…"

"Logan!"

Logan's eyes flew open, and he sat straight up in bed. He took a moment to catch his breath before looking over at the girl standing at the side of his bed.

"You aight Boo?" Original Cindy looked him over with concern.

"Yeah," he lied, a little shakily. "Yeah, just a bad dream."

"Oh ok," she replied skeptically. "Well get up, I gotta go to work, and I want some grub."

He rubbed his eyes sleepily, and yawning, reached for his glasses. "Ok, give me a minute."

Cindy left, and he collapsed back against the pillow, thinking hard about what had just happened.

Miles away in Gilette, Max's own eyes wearily opened as she lay in bed, and whispered just one word.

"Logan."

Logan told Cindy of their plans over breakfast. Once she left for work, he went to check on Krit and Syl. The guest room was empty and the bed was made up. So he figured they must've had their own errands to run. He settled down at his computer to check on his contacts and to see if any Eyes Only news had come through the informant net. Nothing new had happened. He began taking precautionary measures. He set his informant net to self destruct at 8 am the next day. He figured that if they weren't back by then, they wouldn't be coming back. So the computer would spread a virus, that not unlike the one they were releasing into Manticore's computer, would erase all memory, and also contact his contacts to let them know that they may have been compromised.

Once he had finished that, he called his old friend Bling. After Logan had gotten back on his feet, his need for Bling had diminished to the point where his friend only came around once in a while for a friendly chat. Logan had also called on him if he needed assistance with any Eyes Only missions, and Bling was always ready to lend a helping hand. For once, it almost seemed as if things were back to the way they had been before he had even met Max. But of course, things were very different.

Leaving a message on his answering machine, Logan made sure to let him know that if anything did happen, he was to make sure that his will was carried out and look after things for him. They had discussed this plan of action way back when Bling had first been hired, and let in on the Eyes Only secret. He almost told him to contact his family, but Logan figured the last thing the Cales wanted was to hear that the black sheep of the family had mysteriously disappeared and probably wasn't coming back. Or maybe it was the first thing they wanted to hear…in any case, Logan didn't think they needed to know.

He shut down his computer wondering if it would be the last time he would see it, and checked his watch. It was well after noon, and Krit and Syl still hadn't returned yet. Logan busied himself around the apartment, making sure everything was in place, and gathering any folders, discs, and equipment he might need for the mission that evening.

Soon afterwards, Krit and Syl returned, not mentioning where they had been, and Logan didn't bother to ask. He fixed them a quick dinner, which they ate heartily, and as they had the night before, packed their equipment into the back of Logan's old Aztec. The three of them looked around the apartment, making sure everything was in order.

"You ready to go?" Syl asked him.

Logan looked around. They had planned on picking up Cindy from her place on the way. So unless there was nothing else…"Actually, I do have to get one more thing." He went back to his computer, and picked up the frame holding the picture of Max next to it. Opening the back of the glass, he pulled out the photo, and carefully folded it in half before placing it in his back pocket. "Ok," he said entering the living room and heading for the door once again. "Let's go." Krit and Syl walked out the door, waiting in the hallway for him. Logan took one last look around, and then left also, pulling the door closed behind him. He couldn't help but notice how the soft click of the handle was very much like a coffin closing over his head.

Lydecker sat waiting, watching the door to the warehouse for any sign of Logan and the two X5s. It had been somewhat of a test to get out of Manticore at this late hour of night. Security detail at the front gate had been a little suspicious of his midnight outing, but he assured them it was a classified mission, given to him by the Committee, which required his late attendance, and that was all that needed to be said. It had taken him a while to come up with the story. He usually considered himself one with a pretty good imagination, but he needed an airtight story in order to get himself out without sending up any warning signals to the director inside. He figured the one he came up with was as good as any. It would give him time to leave, and come back to get inside if need be. So now all he had to do was wait.

His watch beeped 24:00, and the door to the warehouse promptly opened. Logan, Cindy, Krit and Syl all strolled in.

"Right on time," Lydecker commented.

"As if you expected anything less," Krit said to him, his voice filled with disdain.

"As a matter of fact I didn't," Lydecker said right back, feeling the need to establish his superiority in this calamitous time.

"We're ready. Are you?" Syl asked without hesitation.

Lydecker looked at each of them dead on. "Let's move out."

Krit and Syl rode with Lydecker. Having grown up with him, they were used to his ranting diatribes, and tuned him out the whole way to Gilette. Logan refused to ride with him, his dream still strong in the front of his mind, and Original Cindy declared that she couldn't spend more than one minute in a small confined space with the man who she said 'jacked up my boo's life'. So she and Logan climbed into his old blue but faithful vehicle, and Krit, Syl and the Colonel climbed into an unmarked white van, much like the one they'd used on the previous trip.

Everyone took the two hour trip in silence, each lost in his own thoughts. They reached Gilette, sooner than they expected, and parked their vehicles in the woods nearby, so as not to alert anyone of their presence.

They met in the back of the white van. All of the equipment was set up there, and Logan handed each of them a comm. to keep in contact with him at all times.

"Ok, everybody know what they're doing?" Lydecker asked. Everyone around him nodded. He held up his watch. "Ok, synchronize your watches. Half an hour, and whoever's here moves out." He turned to Logan and Cindy. "You two, do not leave your posts for any reason until it is time to move out."

"Hey, you can't treat them like your good little soldiers Deck," Syl spat at him. "They were lucky enough not to grow up with you."

Lydecker gave her a malicious look. "Don't you mean the privilege, soldier?"

"Look, we really don't have the time for this. Max is waiting for us. Every second she's in there is another one closer to her death. Let's do this and get it over with," Logan said to them in a calm voice. In response, everyone silently placed the comm. units in their ears.

"Ok, move out now!" Lydecker gave the order. The van door opened, and he, Krit and Syl gathered their weapons, and left. Logan stayed in the van, and Cindy went back to the Aztec, under strict orders that if Logan so requested, she was to drive off without bothering to look back.

Logan tapped into the security cameras at Manticore, and led Krit and Syl towards the control center at the heart of Manticore. He wanted to help lead Lydecker to Max, but he none of the cameras that he had tapped into showed where she was being held. It didn't matter, Deck insisted that he knew where she was. So for what he hoped would be the only time in his life, Logan let him walk with Max's life in his hands. He followed the progress of the two X5s as they made their way through. They seemed to be doing okay. So he contacted Cindy.

"OC, you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm here Boo," her voice crackled in his ear. "Can't see nothin' though. What's going on?"

"I'm not sure. But as soon as I know, I'll let you know."

"Good lookin'," she replied, and then was silent.

"I've got her!" came a voice in his ear suddenly.

"Lydecker is that you?" he asked carefully. "Repeat that last transmission."

"It's me. I said I've got Max, and I'm heading back to base."

Logan's heart leapt to his throat. "Krit, Syl, how's it goin?" He could then hear gun shots and shouts. "Krit, Syl come in…" He quickly checked the cameras. He saw them rounding a corner, heading straight into an entrapment. "Krit, Syl, it's an ambush! Get outta there!" They heard him too late. Logan watched in horror as guns went off, and smoke, fire and dust engulfed his camera, reducing the picture to static. "Damn it!" He pulled the small radio from his ear, threw the van door open, and took off towards his Aztec. He opened the back door, and climbed in.

"What happened?" Cindy asked nervously.

"I'm not sure. Krit and Syl walked into a trap." He shook his head, not sure if he completely understood how it had happened.

"Are they okay?" the young girl asked immediately.

Logan just looked at her for a few moments, before turning his attention out the window. Original Cindy heaved a sigh. "This kind of stuff is dangerous. Next time, leave Original Cindy out of it."

Logan didn't say anything; his eyes were on the figure emerging from the nearby grove of trees. He hopped out of the Aztec, and was greeted by a familiar voice.

"I thought I told you not to leave your post," Lydecker scolded him as he approached. In his arms was a bundle, wrapped in a sheet. But it couldn't be Max. Before Logan could question him about it, the older man dumped it into his arms.

"Wait, what about Krit and Syl?" Logan asked absent-mindedly.

"If they get out, they get out," Lydecker replied. "If they don't…" he trailed off. "I'll be in touch." And with that, he turned and headed off into the trees.

Logan glanced briefly down at the bundle in his arms, so light; he had forgotten she was there. He moved as quickly as his legs would allow before climbing into the back of his truck. "Go!" was all he got out before Cindy floored the pedal.

Logan looked down at the parcel in his arms. It seemed to be breathing. He slowly pulled the sheet away, and what he saw knocked all breath from his lungs. At once he felt so sick, he nearly turned away.

"Max," he whispered. Her skin was pale and sallow, and she was covered in so many bruises, he was almost afraid to hold her. There were random burn marks up and down her arms, and the grey t-shirt and shorts that she wore were torn and dirty. Congealed blood led a trail down the side of her head, matting her hair to her face. One of her hands was held at an odd angle, as though her wrist were broken or dislocated, and Logan held her hand in his. He could see that some of her fingernails had been ripped off, and a couple of her fingers had been broken. The insides of her arms were colored with bruises and small holes where large needles had been forced into her veins time and time again. So that some of them had collapsed. Her breathing was rattled, and he suspected that some of her ribs were broken or at least cracked. He looked at her face. There were various cuts in addition to the bruises that lined the side of her head. "Jesus Max," he found his voice to whisper, "What did they do to you?" For once, he thanked God that Max was genetically altered. No human could have survived what she had.

Max's eyelids fluttered, and opened halfway. Her mouth felt parched, and everything ached or stung or burned or just hurt. But the sight she saw made her heart leap with joy. She gave a small smile. "Logan," she whispered.

He started at her voice. He hadn't expected her to wake up, not in the state she was in. "Max, it's okay. It's just me."

"I didn't tell them…I didn't tell them."

"I know you didn't," his eyes filled with tears. He wasn't used to seeing her so vulnerable. "It's okay, save your voice; we'll have plenty of time to talk later. I'm taking you home."

"Home?" she whispered, her eyes fluttered before nearly closing.

"Yes home," he whispered back. Then leaned down, and softly placed a kiss on her forehead. She winced and drew back, and Logan saw the large purplish black mark that signified the early stages of a really bad bruise. "Sorry," he said in a low, choked voice as the tears fell from his eyes.

Max laid her head on his shoulder, and clung to his shirt, just as she had in the dream, but now whimpering like a small child. Logan's arms enveloped her as close as he dared near. He pulled the sheet around her shivering body. It wasn't until the shivering grew to a trembling, and then a downright shaking that he realized she was having a seizure.

"Max," he whispered to her. He tipped her chin to look up towards him. Her eyes rolled back into her head. Great, just great…this is not how I pictured our reunion…"Cindy, how much farther?" he shouted up to the front seat.

"We're almost there, Boo. What's goin on? Is my Boo okay?" she checked the rearview mirror.

He tried to be calm, but he knew he had to be straightforward. "She's going into epileptic shock. She needs her medicine right away. Or she's not going to make it."

Post: ok, that's it for now people. Made the chapter extra long since it took so long to get up. Next chapter up within a week. Thanks for all the awesome upon awesome reviews! You guys rock!