Chapter Five: The Beginning Of A War

The shorter Manticore soldier cracked her knuckles.

"You killed Damien, didn't you?" Luxie spat and like Jondy got ready to attack the two of them. The male of the two stood still although it was obvious he wanted the job over and done with.

"Hey, you're pretty smart for a Seattle-breed," said the short female. Luxie might have seemed small to Jondy and Heresy, but this girl barely reached the male's elbow. The two of them were completely clad in black, like Jondy, except that they were wearing black nylon masks – the type assassins wore.

Before anyone could say anything else, the male gave a short nod and his female companion shot forward at the immense speed a genetically engineered human should posses. She rammed her arm into Luxie's gut who doubled over in the sudden shock of pain.

The female skidded to a halt behind Luxie and gave her a comical kick in the ass. Luxie stumbled forward and fell to the ground. Jondy dropped the files she had onto the floor making sure they did not flutter apart and got into a fighting stance. Over the years on the outside she had meshed her Manticore training into a freestyle mixed with fighting that she picked up from the street and various martial arts academies.

"Aww, did I hurt your baby sister?" the female asked with a snigger. Jondy could see the male shaking his head. Apparently she was talking too much for his liking and was making waste of his time. "I think I'm a-kill you first," the femme fatal said and rushed towards the blonde. Jondy took a step back and caught her opponent's fist. She gave it a push bringing the girl off balance and then twisted it spinning the girl though the air.

Unfortunately, she had perfected landing after a blow and before Jondy realized it she had sustained a kick to the face. She stumbled back but recovered quickly and while staggering back she turned and delivered a backwards roundhouse kick across her opponent's face. Jondy smirked as she saw the girl straighten. Her tongue moved under the nylon mask as she got rid of the itch the blood on her face had created. Jondy dared not wipe her blood away for fear of being caught out again. She had to be careful with this girl who had obviously had much more training than herself. She assumed the girl had come from the Los Angeles branch and like Luxie been there all her life.

"010," said the male and when the two of them dropped their cover to look at him, the girl got a punch in the face. She fell over backwards and Jondy looked at grinning Luxie. She was waving her hand in the air trying to shake off the pain.

"What's she made out of? Bricks?"

"Copper," the male said and took a step towards them. Luxie shuffled back and took position next to Jondy. They both knew that out of two soldiers the one that held back was usually observing the other and therefore more advanced.

"Copper? That's wussy metal," Luxie said smugly at her basic knowledge of chemistry. Rather than saying anything the male rushed towards them and punched at Jondy first. Luckily, she had foreseen the attack, blocked his arm and slammed her free arm into his ribs. He staggered at the blow. Jondy would have smirked had he been a little weaker.

"I guess you're the strong, silent type then," she concluded and cursed herself for giving off a Luxie-like comment. This was a battle not a talk show. She noticed that he was sneering and was again not surprised when he rushed forwards. This time rather than block, she moved aside causing him to turn with her and brought her leg up fiercely between his. He stopped at the pain and fell to the ground clutching himself.

"Right on!" Luxie called out to her and walked over to give the blonde a high-five. She was interrupted in the movement by her feet disappearing under legs and she fell flat on her back. A split second later 010 was sitting on her, using her legs to pin Luxie's down and a hand on Luxie's throat. She pushed and the black-haired girl's windpipe would be broken along with the bones in the back of her neck. Luxie dared not move her hands for fear of loosing her beloved windpipe.

"982, you alright?" she asked and looked at him. When he got up it was obvious he was still in a lot of pain but he nodded. Jondy made a move towards him and 010 pushed her hand down hard onto Luxie's throat which made the girl give a retching sound.

"Let her go," Jondy demanded.

"Or what?" 982 asked with a growl. He stepped towards her and Jondy immediately felt threatened not only by the strength he obviously had but by his mere presence. She gulped deeply. "'S right, I'm not a little kitten like you," he said sneering again under his nylon mask. His hand moved forward faster then Jondy had anticipated in her fear and she found herself hanging above the floor, feet dangling and gasping desperately for air.

"Kill her," 982 demanded and turned so that Jondy could see 010 gradually increasing pressure on Luxie's throat. Luxie, although prone to do stupid things at times, knew that if she moved, she would be a goner. "Hurry up," 982 growled and when 010 looked down at Luxie she grinned at the wide eyes that had appeared on her submissive opponent.

Then a powerful kick came down hard on 010's neck and everyone there heard the crack as her spine broke.

"You having a party without me?" Heresy asked smugly and kicked the limp body off Luxie. The male increased his grip on Jondy's throat but she had taken this moment to kick him in his stomach. He shuddered at the blow and loosened the grip, but she remained in the air. Luxie cracked her knuckles and rolled her shoulders around. She glared at the black-clad assassin.

"I suspect you killed Dustin's brother?" He said nothing but his eyes darted between Heresy and her. His pace of breath was slower than before and the beat of his heart had increased by a beat. "I don't really like people killing people."

"They teach you needlepoint in Seattle then?" he asked and Heresy pulled a face. He had seemed really hot and she had thought she might be able to persuade him to some hot sweaty monkey love, but if he was making Luxie-style jokes…

"I thought you were the tall, dark and mysterious guy?" Luxie asked raising an eyebrow. She glanced down at 010 just to make sure if the girl really was dead. And although his inner Manticore mind swore at him, he did the same. Jondy used that moment to use both her legs to push him off her. The two of them were thrown against opposite walls. He looked down at the girl again and then up at Jondy.

"See you on the flipside," he said and rushed down the corridor making a head dive out of the window. The three girls watched him and Jondy quickly bent down to pick up her files. Some of them had come out of the folder during the fight but it was no big deal.

"I don't think he liked us very much," Luxie said with a nod towards the window.

"Didn't seem the friendly type, Jondy. If you're looking for a boyfriend, let me help, kay?" Heresy said to her sister and grabbed the dead girl from the floor. Luxie gave her a confused look. "If we leave her lying around people are gonna get weird and find out about us. I really don't want that."

"In Seattle," Luxie began but stopped herself. She would rather the three of them got out of there and discussed their problems elsewhere. She glanced at Jondy who nodded and then the three of them rushed up the stairs to Jondy's suspension wire.

When they came back to the apartment it was almost two at the morning and Luxie gave a wide yawn to indicate her tiredness. Although she wanted to hear all about Jondy's little plan, she was hoping it could wait. Jondy, however, looked as awake as always, despite the gash on her bottom lip, the way she limped and blue marks on her neck. Luxie had similar marks around her neck, a blue (or was it purple) eye and a gash on her top lip.

All the time while they had buried 010 outside the city, she had mocked them for being lousy fighters. 010 had been an X6, they assumed with red-tinted blonde hair, dark brown eyes and a strange orangey barcode instead of the usual standard black. At first Jondy had thought it might be because of the different branch but then she suspected that it was because of the copper that she was supposed to have in her body. She had not has anything with her and the three of them performed a rather unceremonious burial in which they dumped her into the ground and 'accidentally' mixed some rocks into the sand they chucked in just as carelessly.

Luxie slumped down onto the couch and gave another wide yawn. Heresy's eye had caught the wide open mouth of the X6 and just as she tried to impose some manners upon the little fiend, she yawned as well.

Jondy watched the two of them, waiting for them to ask.

"What's with the files?" Heresy finally asked and Jondy grinned. She slumped down next to Luxie and Heresy took a seat next to her older sister.

"We got them from Infinity. Apparently there's another Manticore just outside LA," Jondy said smugly and looked up at Heresy. She had pulled a disgusted face at the new revelation. Like all transgenics Manticore had been the worst part of her life and if there was another…

"I'm gonna bring it down," she said with a growl in her voice. Having a Manticore in Seattle was bad enough but now that there was one in her city, it would have to go.

"That's real smart," Jondy said. "You can't bring it down by yourself."

"Just like you can't be a hero, Jonds," Heresy said and got up. "Look, I've got another shoot tomorrow morning, I'll talk to you then." Luxie thought she noted a hint of malice in her voice and although she was accustomed to it, she was not sure that Jondy had ever been on the receiving end of Heresy's hatred. Heresy held her head high and then walked off into her room.

Luxie glanced over to her blonde companion. Like a true soldier, Jondy had not shed a tear not given any indication that the tone in her sister's voice had hurt her. She even smiled when she turned to look at Luxie.

"Look, Jondy," Luxie said and thought about the consequences of what she was about to say. She could think of many, most of them ending in death and all of them smeared with blood as if it were chocolate spread. "Do you remember when… you told me there was another Manticore?" She could see Jondy's smile disappear and regretted having started the conversation.

"You were angry."

"Pissed off more likely," Luxie corrected her and stared at her fingernails. Maybe she should paint them; a cotton-candy pink maybe. "Anyway, do you remember at all what I said?"

"I was built to remember," Jondy said and hung her head. She was, however, not thinking of the same words as Luxie. In her mind hung the words 'freak', 'not a hero' and 'It's your fault!' The last echoed in her mind and hurt Jondy more than any words had ever hurt her.

"That's why I'm here," Luxie said slowly. She thought Jondy was thinking about Manticore, the burnt down home in hell. Jondy looked up, confused and Luxie realized Jondy might not have caught the most important part. She breathed in deeply. "I know I'm only a kid to you and much of what I say comes out gibberish, but I really want you to listen to me." Jondy nodded slowly. "I don't want you to run away or… or call anyone, Jondy. You have to stay here and…"

"What are you talking about, Luxie?" Jondy interrupted and turned her whole body. The way Luxie sounded so concerned made her worried too.

"And you can't tell her." The two of them gave a short glance in Heresy's room's direction from which loud music was penetrating the walls. Jondy thought about it for a while. If Luxie was this concerned, it must be important. Over the few days she had know the girl, she had noticed that the raven-haired X6 barely talked much or spoke anything with such a seriousness. At first she thought it might be some defect in the girl but eventually she supposed Luxie was just a really happy girl. She nodded. Luxie breathed in deeply again. It was really hard telling Jondy this.

"Manticore burnt down." She stopped letting Jondy's mind process the information and noticed Jondy was waiting for more. "A few days ago, a fire broke out and at first the doors were locked and we couldn't get out. When I escaped to the underground, I heard rumours of the '09ers having a hand in it and…" she stopped and waited again for Jondy's reaction.

"Max," the blonde muttered slowly her eyes still focused on those of Luxie. "Ben. Zack… all the others. My brothers and sisters are still alive," she said and Luxie saw a smile forming. "I have to…" she stopped and saw Luxie shake her head. "Why don't you want me to call them? I haven't seen most of them for twelve years and I need to know if they're safe."

"452, Max, she would be in big trouble if you were to bust her. I don't know much but Manticore really has it in for her. She was back at Manticore at one point," Jondy gasped. "So were some of the others," Luxie explained and felt a lump rise in her throat. If she had ever felt a bond to any of the kids in her unit, she would want to see them again. However, the only attachment to Manticore she had was in memories and dreams and the frame of a soldier that appeared in them. Although she desperately wanted to know who that soldier was, she wanted to be as far from Manticore as she could even more.

"Manticore in Seattle is down and the only people who know of the LA branch are us."

"And Infinity."

"We're the only ones who can do anything," Luxie persisted. She had never felt so strongly about destruction in her life. Even in Manticore her fighting abilities were hindered by the fact that she did not really want to hurt anyone with the exception of doctors and guards. Jondy considered this and nodded.

"You're right, Luxie," she said slowly. "Max did the first step by bringing down our old home and now it's our turn to free the human beings that are being kept in this place." Luxie smiled. She had someone on her side now and she felt like she would never be alone ever again.

Luxie pulled a face as she stomped her feet in front of the bouncer like a child throwing a tantrum.

"But I want to!" she yelled at him. "I want to, I want to, I want to."

"Sorry, kid, no cash, no club," he said and let someone else pass.

"She didn't have any cash," Luxie exclaimed. "She just waggled her… oh," she noticed and gave a big sigh. She was wearing baggy dark red jersey over baggy black pants.

'Real smart, Catwoman,' she thought. Her mind had recently acquired itself another nickname and Luxie was hoping this one would last for a while. Her last one, Ronda, had not been particularly appealing, but Catwoman, now there was a catchy name for a superhero. She took a few steps back while grinning widely and then rushed out of his sight.

When she had slipped into a side alley, from which she had first had to chase a bum away, she pulled the jersey off and quickly fixed up her hair.

Tommy almost swallowed his tongue when the new, much more improved Luxie came back. She was wearing a dark purple corset with red lace tying up either side over her pants. Her pale skin gave the impression of British royalty and her wild messy hair style showed she was the perfect party girl.

"Can I come in?" she asked in a soft voice and immediately Tommy opened the door for her, watching her behind as she waggled it while walking in. When she was inside, she turned, stuck out her tongue and then walked over to the dance floor.

Dustin watched the short, curvy black-haired girl swaying her hips and arms to the music. Although she was not as surrounded as the regular he now knew as Heresy, she still had a fair share of men around her. She smiled seductively at one of them and he stumbled in the move he was just making.

"Damn," he muttered beneath his breath. "So fine."

Although he was sure no one had heard him due to the volume of both the music and his voice, Jondy smirked. She knew the guy was talking about Luxie because when he had come into the room, it was obvious that the two of them had know each other. And now that Luxie was going to become a regular at Savage, she expected to see more of Mister Infinite there to. All she hoped for was that he would not start coming out of her room in the mornings demanding coffee.

"Bartender, I'd like whatever the lady is having," she heard a male voice and turned to look at the guy who was trying to get her drunk. Of course, what he did not know was that the three glasses already standing in front of her were filled with an equal mixture of tequila, vodka and rum. She put down the glass she had just finished and grabbed another downing it immediately.

"A good drinker, I like that about a woman," he said smugly.

"Wouldn't have guessed," she said rolling her eyes. Although Luxie now had her multi-billionaire and all Heresy was interesting in was sex, Jondy still felt she had a long way to go when it came to finding someone who was appealing enough to her. So far all the men she had met were either jerks or assassins. Her love life was not shaping up really well.

"What are you having?" he asked and took the glass. Jondy smirked and watched him raise it to his lips. She grabbed another glass and took a sip just as he had and saw him choke and cough on his mixture. "What the hell is this?"

"More alcohol than you can handle, buddy," Jondy said with a smirk. "When you can down bottle of '09 vodka, come again." She smirked at him and he staggered off, the alcohol already taking effect.

"You're the strangest drinker I have ever met," the bartender said and took the empty glasses.

"What about Heresy?"

"She's even worse."

"By the way, Mark, we have another drinking buddy, so keep your alcohol storages up," she said with a smirk and put her glass down. Now was the time to celebrate for their future victory over Manticore.

'And so, I conclude that having been kicked out of the place I had known as home for almost eighteen years of my life, was not one of the worst things that could have happened. I could still be there.

'It seems that Heresy isn't really that a bad person. I mean, she let me stay here and she even offered to help me get a job when she wasn't shooting (a photo shoot, duh) and possibly hire a builder to split Jondy's room so that we could each have our own.

'I wonder how long that'll take, but I can't wait… I'm actually getting a place to call my own and I'm having friends to go with the bargain.

'I really enjoy Jondy and despite my Manticore paranoia, she never told her demon sister about Seattle's branch burning down. I supposed her desire to be a hero must have rubbed off on me because I desperately want to get Manticore. Not only because they were in fact the company that ruinws most of… my whole life and made me the freak I am (I must admit, there are advantages, but being normal…), but also for some odd reason to avenge Damien (Dustin's brother).

'It's strange. Although I do remember telling Jondy I was going to do it so he wouldn't get himself killed, I kind of want to help in some way too. Maybe I should call him…

'Yeah, I'll do that!'

"Hey!" Luxie yelled as Heresy ripped the piece of paper she was writing on out of her hand.

"And so, I conclude," Heresy managed to read before Luxie jumped her and the two girls crashed to the ground. The two of them tangled into each other, pulled hair and used their claws in a match that would have made any sane man explode with sexual tension.

"Waf goink on?" Jondy asked coming out of the bathroom with toothbrush in her mouth. She gave a deep sigh when she realized what she had put up to with allowing Luxie to stay with them. There were going to be constant and literal catfights between the two youngsters and she would just have to live with it.

Then after gathering her strength for several seconds, Heresy threw Luxie across the room and onto the couch. She grabbed a lighter and set the paper alight.

"Didn't Manticore teach you, Lux," she said with a wide smirk. "Never leave important information lying around." She had not read it but what her commanding officer had told her many times stuck in her mind. "And Zack is always right when it comes to being inconspicuous."

"My name is Luxie!" the small girl yelled and immediately thrust herself forward knocking Heresy and the flaming piece of paper to the floor. Jondy stepped on the paper, picked it up and threw it in the trash. Then under the crashing and yelling of her two roommates, she returned to the bathroom to get ready for work.