A/N: An update! Finally. I've been running out of ideas for this story, but voila! Here it is. I'm already working on the next chapter, so not to worry people! So please, please, please, review. I need them. Badly.

Predators

6: Trapped

"Two more X5s -- gone," Max said burying her head in her hands. They had retreated back at the Command Center after Rian and her crew had attacked, and as the eventful occurrences that had happened several hours ago replayed repeatedly in her head, she struggled to keep herself from panicking.

Mole barely managed to escape alive, he was sporting a severe head injury and he had to be carried all the way to Med Bay, courtesy of Max, who was the only who was able to get out of the whole fight unscathed.

Inwardly, she blamed herself. She blamed herself for the transhuman that got murdered, for Devon's disappearance, and for letting Ryan get captured, and for losing Alec – again. No. She told herself, closing her eyes and trying to will the guilt away. They're not dead yet. She blinked away tears. It was amazing how one single word could affect her so much. Yet. He's not dead yet.

Max silently cursed herself for just not telling him that night – yesterday night – about how she felt. How she was so in love with him that she was reaching the point of paranoia. Paranoia over protecting him even though she knew how capable he was of protecting himself. Hell, he was capable of protecting the whole of TC.

Then why the hell did you get captured?

She shook her head, shaking herself from her reverie of memories and confusing thoughts. Now was not the time to ponder. Those X5s – including Alec, were hanging on a very fine piece of thread. Who knows how long until that thread breaks? Not too long. She thought grimly. If there was one thing she knew about Lydecker, he wasn't a patient man.

…

The second he opened his eyes, all he saw was steel. Cold hard steel.

He was in a cage.

Again.

Alec groaned and stood up slowly, sore muscles protesting. He barely had enough strength to even raise his arms. It was evident that he had been drugged. He took in his surroundings. He was in a large room. The walls were painted gray, and there was not a window in sight. Helplessly, he grasped the bars of his cage. The coolness of the steel brought chills running down his spine. The last time he was in a cage, a bomb was planted on his brainstem.

Caught up with sudden flashbacks of that one nightmare, he did not realize that he was not alone in the cage.

"Conscience, am I dead?"

An intoxicated voice slurred from behind him. Alec spun around, fists clenched. Who he saw made him want to cry and laugh at the same time. It was Ryan. His eyes were bleary, and he was moving in a very drunken manner. It was obvious that his head wasn't feeling too clear right now.

"Ryan, you bastard." He said with a half-smile, shaking his head. Ryan grinned goofily at him, as he staggered towards Alec. It seemed that the drug had affected him in a slightly different way than it did Alec. Ryan started waving his arms around.

"I see a light!" he cried out. "I see a light at the end of the tunnel!"

And Alec did the only thing he could think of.

He punched Ryan hard in the face.

…

Ten minutes…

Thirty minutes…

Fifty-five minutes…

Three hours…

Alec cast another glance at the locked door across the room almost wishing to see Lydecker walk through and face them. The silence of the empty room (well, not so empty considering the fact that Ryan was sitting at the other end of the cage, now his usual self but still blatantly angry at Alec for punching him) was too much for him to bear. And if there was one thing that Alec hated, it was not knowing.

Not knowing why he was here.

Not knowing what they would do to him.

Not knowing if Max and the others were all right.

He ground his teeth and continued his staring contest with the closed door. Where the fuck are you Lydecker? He yelled out mentally. He was getting sick of waiting, and not knowing. He wanted to get everything over with.

Because the minute Lydecker opened the door to his cage, he was going to tear him to pieces.

…

To be continued…

(Promise!)