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Floating Scene
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The next day, shortly after 9 am:
Logan lay in the hospital style bed, watching the IV drip into his arm. Who would have thought that his life could change so much in twelve hours?
"How are you doing?" asked an unfamiliar, rough voice.
Logan looked up to see Sebastian who, although still in a wheelchair, was now able to speak on his on his own.
"Great!" Logan smiled. "Although, it is going to take some time to get used to everything. How long did it take for you to notice results?"
"I felt some strange sensations, like pins and needles, the same day. It will be quite some time before I am fully recovered, but my muscles had atrophied far more than yours have had a chance too. It wouldn't surprise me if you are able to walk by Christmas."
"I don't know how to thank you for this." Logan replied.
Sebastian laughed. "Thank her. Getting 'regenerated' myself is more than enough thanks for me. She did most of the work anyhow."
Logan smiled and leaned down to kiss the top of Max's head where she was snuggled up to his side. He couldn't believe he wasn't exhausted after last night, but he was just too excited about getting started getting his legs back. Not that it was as important as it had seemed twelve hours ago. Max made a contented "mmmm" sound and sought out Logan's lips, again.
Logan kissed his cherished lover, holding her to him with his free hand. He supposed it made sense that she was exhausted, she'd had to be on top almost all of last night. He was capable of more than he had imagined, but he still couldn't move his legs. His sweet, young Max; she'd thought she'd had some experience, but she'd very obviously never had a man make love to her. Her delighted gasps and cries were the sweetest thing that Logan had ever heard. Showing her what love could be last night was the most satisfying experience Logan had ever known, in every sense of the word. He stroked her hair as she snuggled back down into his chest and closed her eyes.
"That might be the closest she's come to sleeping in about three months," Sebastian commented with his new voice.
"She's been working on this that much?" Logan asked.
"Uh huh," mumbled a sleepy Max. "You said it meant more to you than anything."
"I was wrong," said Logan.
"What?" Max almost shouted as she moved so she could glare at Logan. "I spent all that time and now you tell me that …"
"You mean more to me than anything, Max."
"Oh, OK then." Max was satisfied with that answer and snuggled back down at Logan's side. "I'm yours too."
"I'm a very lucky man. I love you, Max." Logan embraced Max with his free arm and pressing another kiss into her hair. She purred for him, as she did every time he told her that he loved her. Then, finally, with Logan happy, she let herself drift off to sleep in his embrace.
"Oh, wow!" said a shocked Sebastian.
"That's an understatement!" Logan grinned at his old friend.
"You really are a lucky man." Sebastian replied softly, so as not to wake Max.
Logan blushed a little and nodded.
"What I meant," continued an amused Sebastian, "was that she's brilliant, in addition to her other, obvious attributes. At this point she is probably one of the world's top experts in genetic engineering."
"Not that she can come forward with any of that," Logan whispered.
"I know. She said I could have credit for everything we did, as long as you're cured."
"It's a little difficult to comprehend. Her loving a grumpy older man like me so much," Logan replied in awe.
"There is one thing I probably should have discussed with you before we started this," Sebastian began.
"What?" asked Logan.
"If anyone runs a blood test on you, and knows what to look for, it will be obvious you have pluripotents circulating in your blood stream. The DNA of which is still mostly Max's, and very obviously genetically engineered."
"Why would anyone be looking for that?" Logan asked, although he suspected he knew where Sebastian was heading with this.
"Logan, this treatment could save thousands of lives. Cure millions of people from things that are currently thought to be untreatable. You know what walking meant to you. How many other men, and women, are out there in the world in the exact same state?"
"Max couldn't possibly donate enough …"
"She doesn't have to. We have over a dozen different cultures of her cells growing in laboratory conditions. A couple of which are already growing at Universities in the European Union."
Logan took a deep breath. The secret was out, there wasn't going to be any way to cover this up. "You realize what the government will likely do when they find out about this."
"Yes. That is why I am discussing this with you before we go public. I can get you both out of the country. I have a villa in Italy. My people and I are not going to be coming back to the United States after we go to the Facilitated Living Conference in January. I think that you should come with us, both of you."
Logan just sat there, weighing his options.
"I do not think that you would have any trouble getting the papers to get both you and Max out of the country; Jondy too for that matter. But I can get them for you if you can't."
"I'm surprised you know about Jondy." Logan said, because he couldn't think of what else to say.
"She donated samples several times. Complained about it the entire time, but as she said 'anything to make her sister happy.' Logan, I know your fortune took a hit after the hover drone scandal, but I owe you. Money is not going to be a problem. There is plenty of room for all of you at my villa. Or, I'll buy you your own place after I win the Nobel Prize for this."
Logan chuckled softly, "That confident?"
"Yes. That, and I would like to continue to work with Max, maybe Jondy too if I can manage it. I know you're doing good work here in Seattle; and Max is helping you with that. Think about how much more good you could be doing. Which is the greater good Logan? Exposing a few corrupt sector cops? Or finding a cure for cancer?" After a few moments of silence Sebastian said, "I'm going to get something to drink; my voice isn't what it is going to be. Think about it Logan." With that, Sebastian turned his electric wheelchair around and left the room.
Logan lay there thinking about it. If he stayed in Seattle he could continue Eyes Only, but he wouldn't be able to explain how he could walk. Did he want to continue using the wheelchair in public, every time he saw a member of his family? Was it right to continue to use Max as his own personal cat burglar when she could be one of the greatest scientific minds of all time? He always did the right thing. Where was his responsibility here?
Suddenly Max awoke, gasping for air. She sat upright, one hand bracing herself as she sat up, the other over her stomach. She was breathing heavily as she looked around the room to get her bearings.
"Max, are you alright?"
"Yeah, just…weird dream."
"Want to tell me about it?" Logan coaxed.
"No." Max snuggled back into Logan's arms. Eventually she murmured, "But if you got me pregnant last night you're in big trouble."
"I couldn't have …" Logan vaguely remembered what Dr. Carr had said to him before he'd told the man to shut up.
"Medically, you shouldn't have been able to do anything that happened last night Logan. I can't believe I completely forgot any sort of birth control because I didn't think anything would work!"
Logan knew he had a huge grin on his face, but couldn't help it. "You know more about my spinal cord injury than I do, don't you?"
Max sat up and looked at him. "Duh! You were too busy trying to deny … Why are you smiling!"
"We would make beautiful babies, Max."
"Are you crazy? Seattle is a cesspool! There isn't enough food, power, gas, sunshine. Oh, god, what have I done? I couldn't be? Could I?" Max remembered last night; yeah, she most definitely could be. She looked so scared. "I'm sorry. I won't ruin your birthday. I'll deal with this later."
"Max, this is the best birthday gift that I could possibly have." Logan kissed her, firmly, slowly, trying to convey devotion that he didn't think she was really understanding. "But you're absolutely right about Seattle. What do you think of Italy?"
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Epilogue
The cure worked very well and very quickly. The pluripotents that were designed especially for Logan worked even faster than the first ones. He walked into his family's Christmas party, much to the shock of everyone, and danced with his fiancé Max, who wasn't showing yet.
Logan, Max and Jondy went with Sebastian to Europe in January for the conference, and stayed. Sebastian shocked the live audience (including millions worldwide) by standing up and walking to the podium and giving his speech with his own voice. He explained not only that there was a cure but where it came from; including naming Manticore, Donald Lydecker, Director Renfro, and several other key Manticore figures personally.
The European Union granted political asylum to all of them, including any genetically engineered individuals that asked. Sebastian was able to recruit several X-series to work with him, and created some truly remarkable advances in science. Within a few months, all of them had more money than they knew what to do with.
Logan and Max settled into a lovely villa in France where Max gave birth to a beautiful healthy son on August 11th. The fact that a transgenic and an ordinary human did have a child was often cited as proof that the transgenics were human, despite a few modifications.
Logan contented himself with writing books, cooking, and raising a family with Max in the much cleaner air of France. Eventually the conspiracy theorist of the world put together the disappearance of Eyes Only with the timing of Logan Cale's leaving the country, but nothing was ever proven for sure, although his books sold very well.
Max, Logan, and all of their children lived happily ever after (because one of the things that her pluripotents were designed to do is cure aging, but that's another story …).
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The End.
Author's Notes: This story started out as one very simple scene (the one in the pool) and one very touching conversation (that was also going to take place in the pool), and obviously, it grew. A lot.
In this Alternate Universe the Cale's lost some, but not most of their fortunes when the hover drone scandal was made public. I brought Jondy in as a partner in crime for Max. I understood the desire of the producers to bring in another X5, thereby escalating the types of situations that Max could handle. I may create another AU that also brings in Jondy. I liked her a lot; please tell me what you thought of her.
Bob () I put in the bit about edited for rating. I was getting back at Sim-r, for doing the same thing to me. There is more extensive explanation in my thread on DAR (link on my profile page if you want.) Since I have no way of actually replying to you!