Hey all, okay so this is another chapter that had to be sliced in two- basically because i got so interested in what Anna was doing that i forgot this was bout all of them. Those that don't like Anna won't like part A so i will post partB sometime next week. 33 reviews
Some love the Drew/ Ben thing and some hate it. I have no idea where it's going so any ideas are welcome. (My sister is sitting behind me singing "Drew and Ben, Drew and Ben" I think we know what her preference is.)
Chapter 13a Bittersweet.
The dark woods were a perfect foil for all kinds of night creatures. Here in the darkness nocturnal predators came into their own and those with a predilection towards the sunlight huddled deep in their nests and prayed for the dawn.
Anna had never prayed in her life and wouldn't know how even if she was inclined to do so. What she was good at was exactly what she was doing now and that was lying in wait. The guard shifts hadn't altered all week and Anna knew their routines as well as she knew her own. The guards would amble over, exchange cigarettes and news, banter and ridicule, ignoring all security constraints and protocol and would linger for 3 minutes before wandering to the guardhouse for mugs of steaming coffee the colour and consistency of pitch.
They would mingle for a further 2 minutes before they all wandered to the main hut for signing in.
It was during the two minute window that the fence was clear and Anna could make her way into the complex.
So she waited and, as if on cue, the guards came over, their slow gait showing their general disinterest and possibly background in hired security.
Her eyes and sense were keenly sharpened and she knew that she was at her optimum. Nothing was getting past her now.
As the guards slunk into the hut to sign, Anna slid down the tree she had rested in, the bark scraping against her tight black shirt and causing an odd sense of shivers up her spine.
The leaves on the ground were damp from the after-effects of yesterday's storm and provided perfect cover for her footsteps as she made her way through the dense foliage.
Pausing at the edge of the forest, Anna took stock of her situation and ascertained that the guards wouldn't see her. She stepped back quickly and took a running jump at the fence, flying over as easily as if she had been a bird. The air whistled past her face and she luxuriated in the rush of wind cooling her mission- excited face.
Anna tucked and landed silently on the grass far on the other side of the fence and ducked quickly behind a small bush, ensuring that she hadn't missed any of the guards or alerted any of the security cameras.
Her first point of call would be to get inside the building.
Via surveillance she had noted that there were several sensors and checkpoints in order to get into the building; handprint identification that had gone out of fashion during the Pre-Pulse wars; superior retinal imaging and, of course, a key code.
There was no way that Anna was willing to wait to find one of the codes. She was in too much of a hurry to get this White character out of her face.
Whilst she wasn't particularly known for her patience and forbearance, Anna knew, deep inside, that she was pushing all the limits on this case. The simple truth was that White scared her. No, more than that; he terrified her.
She had thought that she had done away with being vulnerable as soon as she had passed childhood and had learned how to work the system within Manticore to her benefit. She had promised herself that she would never again be the victim; never again be the one that cried in the night whilst the Trainers mocked and laughed; never again be tied down by doctors and experimented upon like she was a lab rat.
It had only taken seconds for her to realise that White was one who had the means, the opportunity and the motivation to reduce her to that panicking child again. He had taken her out and tied her up; he had reduced her to vulnerability again and that was something that she couldn't forgive, would not forget and she would move heaven and earth and all its denizens to ensure it would never happen again.
To that end Anna found herself far more eager to discharge her duties than common sense would have usually allowed and, as she let her fingers dance over the fuses in the fuse box, ignored the little voice inside screaming at her to take a step back and check for back-up systems.
She disconnected the fuse and then, before she could change her mind, reached in and yanked at the wire, pulling them violently from their positions and throwing them to the floor in a fit of childish pique.
The lights of the building flickered and went out, leaving the large imposing place in darkness.
Reaching up, Anna smashed the window above her head and peeled back the iron railings to climb inside.
So intent on her goal that she didn't see the green lights in the fuse box start to flash.
Manticore had always been the same; No matter whether she had been in Atlanta or Seattle. The buildings smelled the same and felt the same; the walls were the same off-grey colour and the tiled floor felt colder than ice, even when wearing shoes.
Anna had always felt that she could close her eyes and know whereabouts she was in Seattle's facility by the touch of the walls and the smell of the corridor.
That was why the odd sense of Déjà vu took her entirely by surprise and riled her more than she thought possible.
This place wasn't Manticore, it had never been home and yet, it had the same feel. There was the same underlying smell; the smell of death, discipline and direction, of antiseptic, anguish and authority. Her heart began to pound in her chest as she crept down the hall, not wanting to stop for fear that she would hear echoes of feet pounding in formation, of drills and orders bouncing off the walls and into her head.
Anna winced and her hands shook as she wished she could go back. Just go back to her little camp fire, huddle into a ball and pull the covers over her head.
But she was a soldier and didn't get the luxury of cowardice. She had to go on, and go on she would, no matter what it cost her.
Anna moved as silently as she could down the long corridor, cursing the penny-pinching autocrats who refused to spend a few misery dollars to heat the place she was breaking into. Her breath turned to mist as she slid along the icy white walls and she felt her fingers start to tingle with the cold.
She was trying to forget her comforts and attend to her situation when she heard a noise to her left and froze in horror as a short balding man in a lab coat came out of a room his head bowed in contemplation of his clipboard.
She must have made some kind of noise because his head jerked up and he pinned her with a horrified gaze, his hand going for his waist—possibly a buzzer, possibly a gun—and he opened his mouth to sound an alarm.
Quick as a flash Anna's hand whipped out and cut off his words with her palm. Restraining his arm with her slick fingers she dragged him back into the room from which he had sprung and slammed the door with her foot.
Anna had never been one to balk at termination orders and, as such, felt not even a pang when she snapped the neck to the technician. He fell to the floor in a crumpled heap and lay silent.
Anna stared down at him without even a smudge of pity in her eyes and turned to survey the room she had shut herself in.
There was one long wooden bench up against the wall, covered in glass and equipment that wouldn't look out of place in the glass-blowers yearly convention. The walls were stark white and almost blinding in their brilliance with several posters advertising safety and security. The four metal filing cabinets took up the rest of the room and made the room seem that much smaller and colder. Anna shook her head at the inanity of it all and started to leave the room when her toe touched the clip-board that the man had dropped.
The sudden desire to tidy up after herself was a foreign one and so she was surprised when she felt herself bending down and picking it up, the black cardboard stiff in her hands.
There was a sheaf of papers beneath a manila folded clipped to the board.
She turned to place it on the desk when a slip of photographic paper slid out and showed a mildly attractive brunette with dark, haunted eyes. It was those eyes that called to Anna. They reminded her of the ones that stared back at her from the mirror; big black and full of sadness that no amount of training could fully dispel. The difference was that Anna hid hers behind a bitter façade of haughtiness whilst this woman had no such defence in place and allowed the world to see the pain and horror behind the bright orbs. Beneath the photo of the woman were inscribed the words:
Test subject Alpha b
Frowning, Anna let her eyes scan the rest of the paper and felt a corresponding thumping as she reached the bottom.
Test Subject Alpha B.
Female, D.O.B. 13/07/05. Date of initiation: 21/04/21
Gene sequence: Code A. TTT, CTA, GAT, TAA ver.
Blood Type: ABO- Blood Chimera.
Potential for breeding: Affirmative pending blood work.
Potential for host monitoring: Acceptable
Risk assessment for mortality: 56- Acceptable loss.
Comments:
26/04/21 Subject was originally both obstructive and truculent but with Phenobarbital and Prochlorperazine mixed with ECT, subject was rendered docile. Able to plant foetus.
02/05/21 Upped dosage of Prochlorperazine, subject hallucinating
13/05/21 These levels of drugs would not adversely affect genetic patterns and allow subject to be examined without need for restraints. Suggest behavioural modification.
23/05/21 Cognitive re-appraisal therapy a success. Subject compliant.
31/05/21 Injected subject with first test gene sequence, Target A.
09/06/21 Second dose of test group A. Positive signs of regrowth and thickening.
11/06/21 Test taken. Subject confirmed- progeny expected.
24/06/21 Minor complications resulting from Barbital use. Subject regained faculties, restraints in use in case of self-harm.
01/07/21 Mental ability called into question. Risk assessment for subject's foetal development. One month's examination required and requested.
Request granted.
01/08/21 Progeny accelerating growth at unexpected rate. Monitoring essential.
19/08/21 Progeny self-terminated. Insufficient data to ascertain rationale.
23/08/21 Subject intolerant to drug, upped dosage. Progeny extracted. Two months before re-implantation to occur. Feed on hormone regeneration and muscles relaxant.
03/09/21 Subject introduced to new course of stimulants. Aware and cognizant.
Current location- Held in Cell C, Block 4a.
Anna felt a sick lump come to her throat as she realised what was going on. This woman had been effectively captured and tortured. She had been impregnated and drugged against her will and was currently being held here in some sort of cell.
Pity like she had never felt towards a stranger welled up insides her as she recognised the feelings of helplessness that this woman must be going through and the reason for the pain in her eyes. But she had no time to go off saving others when all she wanted to do was to kill Ames White.
In sheer frustration, she slammed her hands against the nearest filing cabinet and gave a smirk of satisfaction as the impact popped the lock and the top draw slid open. She would have barely given the cabinet a second glance except that it was full of folders and files like the one she held in her hand.
Full.
Anna plucked out a folder at random and her face fell white as she scanned the contents; Lobotomy… hydration exposure… implantation.
She dragged out another and another and her hands shook as she took in the other three metal cabinets, each six drawers high. The files dropped to the floor.
All these people, used and abused by Ames White and his compatriots. Maybe she should…
No. No, she couldn't do this.
She didn't care about other people. They were a commodity to be used and thrown aside. Manticore didn't allow for weakness. It didn't allow for sentimentality or softness. Feelings were a weakness that could be used against you and often were. She had learned that lesson and learned it well.
Look what had happened to B.J., he had been taken away and almost destroyed because of her and his feelings, and she had been ostracised by her peers for what had happened. A back-log of bitterness that she thought she had eradicated welled up inside her and she bit down on the emotion before it could develop.
She was Anna—X5-291, she didn't have feelings. Just ask anyone.
She crossed her arms over her stomach, hating herself for drowning in self-pity when she should be all about the mission.
She glanced down and on top of the pile of discarded files was the photo of Test Subject Alpha B with her haunted eyes looking accursedly at Anna.
"I don't care," she whispered. "They didn't make me to care."
They didn't make us to have names and identities, Max's voice came to her suddenly. They didn't make us to be people, we made ourselves. I named you Anna- it means gracious.
Gracious- It meant polite, merciful, kind-hearted and compassionate. Well, that was a misnomer if ever she'd heard one. She had never been kind hearted or compassionate.
We make ourselves.
"Shit!" Anna slapped herself against her temple and cursed Max in seven languages as she scooped up the file.
Cell C. Block 4a.
Anna shook her head and reached for the clipboard dropped by the scientist on the floor which had held the file. The papers that she had absently noted were suddenly important and as she scanned the pages her eyes gleamed in furious delight at the bounty of information that they held; information that would be essential to Pix and the resistance back at Terminal City. She had a moment of doubt that this was genuine information: after all, it was foolish for them to have this top secret stuff out in the open. But maybe they were so arrogant that they didn't believe anyone could ever break in. It was possible, especially when you factored in that Ames White seemed to spear-head the operation. He was the epitome of arrogance.
Mind you, if they had this written down for everyone to see, maybe they had other useful means to help her.
She flipped the clipboard over and, sure enough, there was a map on the back.
Anna quickly memorised it and headed for the stairs, all the while cursing her erstwhile commander.
The lower levels of this facility reminded her of the walkway to Psy Ops and, despite having only been there once for testing, it was indelibly imprinted on her memory. The walls were so squeaky clean and yet there was a hint of something greasy that not even bleach could eradicate. It felt like you were filthy with an irremovable sin and it weighed you down as soon as you hit the lower levels.
Anna felt her feet start to drag and she wished that she hadn't bothered to come down.
The cool air enclosed her and she felt shivers which she attributed to her love of warmer climates and she spared a thought for where her fellow soldiers could be right now.
B.J. was probably with Aiden and Steve, living it up someplace warm with women and alcohol.
Left at the staircase.
Max was probably holed up with Alec and Zan fighting furiously over her whilst she sat back unaware. Pix and Chance would have made it to Terminal City by now and would be with Feen and Techie ruling the pile of rubbish that was Terminal dump-heap. Biggs would never have left Sunny and they were so close to Emma that all three would perhaps be searching for Chance.
Down a level towards the total basement.
Metz, Drew and Dek would have their own little ménage a troi and be staying at a place with enough mirrors to satisfy the vanity of the annoying Italian.
Odd that she hadn't seen any guards.
Flex would stay with Skye and maybe even Cece and Tara—he always enjoyed having a harem. That would leave Coco, who had always been friendly with Anna… well as much as anyone was.
Anna stopped dead as she heard footsteps ahead and she tucked herself against the far wall and tried to fade into the shadows.
A trio of guard heavily armed stormed inches past her hiding place and Anna slid backwards silently.
The weapons that they had held were top of the range fighting machines and way out of most governmental budgets. Anna fingered the pages that she had lifted from the clipboard and tucked into her pocket. She would have time to study them later and maybe they would shed light on who was funding this operation.
As she peered around the edge she saw the almost uniform construction that let her know that she had come up to the cell block.
The sign above let know that the block she wanted was two over and she had to creep silently through the enclosure where the cells were housed.
Thankfully these cells were empty of everything but the smallest bacteria and she was glad that she wasn't about to orchestrate a mass outbreak.
One of those in a life time is enough for anybody.
As she approached Block 4a she could tell it was the place that housed the prisoners as it was the only block with security teams, a laser print ID and cameras.
Oh, and several armed guards.
"Shi—" she bit off the curse and smacked her head back against the wall, wishing to Manticore and back that she hadn't just grown a conscience.
It was dammed inconvenient.
The only way in was through those glass doors and through security.
What she needed was a distraction.
As she rubbed her hands together she tried to recall every distraction technique that Manticore had ever taught her, but all she could come up with was one that Pix had used during a mission. It was gross and undignified… but it'd get the job done.
The security guards on the other side of the glass partition were wondering why on earth they had pulled off perimeter watch to keep an eye on two prisoners. Although it wasn't their place to question Agent White they couldn't see the necessity of two guards of their talents watching two such lacklustre prisoners—let alone six of them!
The woman was so far gone that she'd need several canisters of coffee fed intravenously before she even managed to open her eyes and as for the other…
Well, they'd rather not be around the freaky skinny-looking man with odd eyes and a grudge on his shoulder. Still, he didn't look dangerous.
They were so bored that they took several seconds before they registered the faint "plop" of something landing on the glass partition.
The nearest guard frowned and peered at the pink smudge on the glass and cocked his head.
"What the hell is that?" he asked, looking up at the ceiling.
"Whole goddamn place is falling to pieces," another grunted. "Figures."
"I dunno, this looks odd," he said.
As he went to step back, another pink smudge landed on the glass.
"What the hell?" he glanced down and saw a pink blob on the ground. "Hey guys, look at this."
All six guards, who were obviously chosen more for strength than brains, moved to see what he was looking at. In the cell the skinny man quickly looked up, his eyes suddenly alive.
"What do you think it is?" they asked each other, trying to work out what was pink, blob-like and falling from the sky.
"Yo, Joe," a guard called to the security man in the security box. "Open the doors, I wanna see what it is."
Joe, who was watching the ball-game, just shrugged and popped the doors to the enclosure.
As they slid open two of the guards stepped forward and knelt down by the pink blob.
"Smells fruity," the taller one said.
"Like cotton-candy," the other remarked.
"Oh, so it's raining candy-floss," another said wryly, betraying his British origins.
"Let me see." Another stepped out into the corridor and was so intent on the only piece of action all day that he failed to see a dark haired virago step into the hallway and hold up her gun. "Idiots! That's gum!"
"Men!" she sighed and pulled the trigger before they even had chance to look up.
Unlike Ralph, Anna knew not only how to assemble but how to fire her gun and her aim, worthy of Special Ops, had her enemies on the floor before they could draw a last breath.
The security guard had ducked down in his booth as the gunfire echoed and his hand went for the security alarm.
"Bad idea," a rough voice said gruffly and Joe stared up into the dangerous glinting eyes of the skinny man in Cell C-A. The man who had been in Cell C-A.
"How did you—" Joe started to say but the man just grinned maliciously.
"Oh please! Like you could hold me if I didn't want to be held."
And with that he reached down and snapped his neck like it was a pretzel.
Anna stared at the barcode on the back of his neck as he straightened. "Is there a reason you didn't do that a while ago?"
"Yes," he left it at that and went to leave.
"What about her?" Anna gestured to the woman lying comatose in the room.
"Med-junkie." He shrugged. "Should I care?"
Anna bit her lip. "She comes with us."
He rolled his eyes. "Great, I get rescued by a bleeding heart."
Anna almost laughed at the description of herself. "Hardly. I'm all for mixing their plans."
The man smiled dangerously. "Then I'll grab an arm and you take a leg."
The woman was far heavier that she had a right to be and yet far lighter than Anna would have said was healthy for a woman her size.
Between Anna and the male transgenic hauled the woman to her feet and were shocked when she started to regain awareness, grunting and fluttering her eyes. By the time they were almost at the exit the woman was able to walk herself, stumbling and holding on to Anna.
The male had dropped her as soon as he could and took point, blurring ahead to check that the coast was clear.
"What the hell were you doing here?" Anna demanded as they rounded a corner and he had to blur to snap the neck of a waiting guard.
"Got caught," he said.
"Doing what?"
"Taking a piss… what's it to you?" he snapped.
"Gee someone obviously lucked out on attitude DNA!" she snapped back. "Don't bite the hand that opened the door, pal."
"Yeah, yeah, hail the saviour," he rolled his eyes. "Damn you're Manticore, you should know that we weren't raised to be chumps, why the hell are we dragging this dead meat along with us?"
"The dead meat is currently staring at you, kid," Anna snarled. "And we are taking her along with us because… it's the right thing to do. I think," she added under her breath, not entirely sure that it was the smart thing to do.
"The right thing?" he frowned. "Why?"
"Don't start! Hell, if I know, I've just started getting that conscience-y thing. I haven't had time to analyse it yet, but I'm sure it boils down to the fault of my esteemed pal 452. Bitch." Anna was finding it surprisingly comforting to snarl about Max. It almost felt comforting, like old times and she spared a pang of nostalgia for her bitch-fights with the raven haired transgenic. She breathed a sigh of relief as she realised that she was coming up to the exit.
"You know 452?" he asked suddenly interested.
"That's what I'd like to know."
Anna and the male looked up and their hearts sank as they saw Ames White standing as bold as brass in the middle of the corridor surrounded by big burly men in suits.
"Well, hello there," White grinned nastily. "Sorry our accommodations weren't to your liking. We hope you'd stay."
"The beds were crap and frankly the service lacked something," the male transgenic said icily.
"I thought scum like you were used to taking the floor. After all, we don't usually allow animals on the furniture."
"You're not exactly 100 tie-dyed homo-sapiens yourself," Anna said as she slipped the papers into the man's back pocket.
He glanced over his shoulder and she nodded to him to take up the left side. He reached down to tick the papers into his pocket more securely and flanked her.
"Now you look familiar," White looked at her. "Have we met?"
"Briefly," Anna smirked. "I stole your van—my bad! How is Cyril?"
White's eyes narrowed. "So you're the bitch that escaped from me…and now you've come back, like the proverbial lamb to the slaughter. How delicious."
"You really need to work on your repartee," Anna said disdainfully. "You're like every bad B-movie villain from the twentieth century. If you weren't handicapped by your lack of height, I might even laugh."
"Tell me where to find 452 and I might let you go free. I also want our test subject back. It takes a lot to get them in her condition and she is due another… session."
"No," the woman whimpered and tried to shuffle backwards.
"What do you want with her?" Anna shook her head. "Trust me she is far more trouble than she's worth and 452—huge pain in the ass!"
"As are you. Tell me where to find 452 or you die."
"Bite me!"
"As you wish." One of the men leaned forward and whispered in White's ear and as his grin grew Anna's heart fell.
"Perhaps we can persuade you another way. Give her and 452 up—" he yanked a familiar blonde head out from behind him "—or the little girl gets it."
Anna's heart pounded as she stared at the scared face of Ralph.
Ralph shook her head in despair. "I didn't move. I swear."
"No, apparently one of my more enterprising guards saw the secondary alarm flare and decided to check out the perimeter. He found this little miss out in the woods."
"You didn't by-pass the secondary alarm?" the transgenic, which Anna was starting to call Annoy, looked at her with disbelief.
"I was a little strapped for time," she defended herself.
Annoy shook his head. "And you seemed so sensible as well."
"Asshole," she muttered and turned her attention back to the megalomaniac who was holding her lackey in his filthy arms.
"You remember I said about people who were more trouble than they were worth? She's the worst of the bunch. Trust me on this."
"I don't have time for all this ridiculous banter," White sneered. "There is no choice. Hand over the girl and the whereabouts of 452 or I kill the little munchkin."
Anna looked at Ralph whose face was turning paler as they spoke.
I would not be nice to you and I wouldn't care if you got hurt…or worse. If you get captured I will not save you
I will not save you.
Anna shrugged, her eyes hard. "Go ahead, means nothing to me."
Ralph's gasp and White split second hesitation was all that Anna and Annoy needed to spring into action. Dropping the woman against the wall Anna lunged at White and hit him around the head with the end of the rifle she had managed to keep hold of.
Annoy headed straight for the guards and managed to shock them all by vanishing into thin air.
"What the—" the man he had started to attack froze in uncertainty and then his eyes widened and blood dripped from his mouth.
He fell to the floor and Annoy appeared behind him, holding a blood-soaked knife. The other three men stared at him in horrified intrigue and Anna managed to pull Ralph out of White's grasp and shoved her toward the woman.
"Get her out!" she snarled and shot another guard point blank in the head. He fell to the ground and Anna and Annoy were left with White and two other guards.
"Cool trick, can you do it again?" Anna hissed as they backed up.
"Nope, one per turn," Annoy said.
"That's not so cool."
"Excuse me and my DNA analysis," he snapped. "It's painful enough as is."
"Cry me a river," Anna spat.
White was about to give the order to attack again when they all heard the crunch of feet coming towards them from behind.
"Shit!" Anna cursed again as she glanced behind her. "Sounds like six."
"Nine vs. two is not my idea of playing fair," Annoy sang.
Anna dropped her head and whispered. "No matter what happens to me, get those papers to Seattle- Terminal City. I'm Anna."
Annoy looked at her and took in the seriousness in her eyes. "Gotcha."
Anna took a deep breath. "I knew this whole conscience thing would get me killed. I blame Max."
"Well, I'm sure he's real sorry, whoever he is," Annoy answered and Anna grinned.
"Here we go, five—four—three—two—"
Ralph dropped to the floor trying not to gasp as she lay the woman down.
"Ma'am, ma'am?" she poked the woman whose eyes fluttered open and shut. "Dammit!"
Tears of frustration lit in her eyes as she thought about the scene she had just left. She should have stayed behind and helped. But she knew that without a weapon she would only have been in the way and Anna had specifically told her to leave.
She had done as she was told and stayed in the copse with the camping gear and had even gone as far as to pack it all up knowing full well that they might have to leave in a hurry. She had been so engrossed in clearing up the last remnants of their presence when a crack of a twig alerted her to someone behind her.
Before she could move she had been grabbed by two men and dragged into the compound. Then they had dragged her to where White stood arguing with Anna and she had said… she had said…
"Wake up," Ralph rocked the woman, biting her lip hard to stop tears. "Wake up, Anna didn't rescue you so you could die already!" she swiped her hand against her nose and searched for the water bag.
"Drink!" she ordered, happy to be able to take some of her frustrations out. The woman lifted up her head and a gasp rattled through her body.
The only sounds in the clearing were of Ralph's sobbing breaths and the ominous rattle of the woman's breathing.
The night had never seemed to frightening to Ralph and she grabbed the box that held the secondary gun. She swiped the tears away with the back of her hand as she opened the case and looked at the separated fragments and tried to remember how to fix it.
Why hadn't she listened properly? Why was she such an idiot when it came to things like this?
"The bolt goes to the… the cam pin attaches to the…" she stumbled and let the tears flow thick and fast over her face. "I don't know! I don't know!" She slammed the lid shut and searched for the hunting knife instead.
She knew how to use a knife.
The crunch of footsteps through the undergrowth had her on her feet and shaking, aiming herself at the source.
"C-come on out, I -I'm armed!"
"Glad to hear it," Anna said as she leaned heavily on the tree trunk.
"Oh!" Ralph launched herself at Anna and threw her arms around her before bursting into noisy sobs. "I thought you… I was alone... and you were… you're not… I'm sorry… I—"
"Yeah," Anna breathed deeply and she hugged Ralph hard. "Me too."
Ralph took a step back. "How did you get out?"
Anna just smiled tiredly and moved forwards into the small slivers of light, letting Ralph see the long bloody tear down one arm and the blood that covered her almost from head to toe.
"It was easy," she said as she fell face down on to the ground.
"Oh, hell!" Ralph panicked. "What do I do?"
"Pack up, we have to go," Anna moaned.
"I'm packed, we can go now."
"Good girl," Anna breathed and rolled over. "I need you to do me a favour."
"Anything!"
"My leg is broken but the real problem is my arm." Ralph glanced down at the limb and paled, it was—
"That bastard, White, pulled it from its socket as I leaped over him." Anna took another breath as she remembered the pain that had come as he used to torn limb to slam her against the wall. "I need you to pop it back in so we can go."
"Okay," Ralph replied shakily, her admiration for this woman growing in leaps and bounds.
"Distract me, this is gonna hurt like a Renfro-bitch!"
"D-did the other guy get out?" Ralph let Anna brace herself against a tree and she grabbed the elbow.
"Yeah, he took papers and headed to Seattle, they should be glad of them at Terminal- Ahhhhhhhh!" Anna screamed in pain as Ralph popped the limb back into its socket.
"Sorry!" Ralph squeaked and went white. "I'm gonna be sick."
"Why did I get the one who flunked field med?" Anna gasped and rested her head against the bark.
"That was payback for saying you didn't care if he killed me."
"Good, at least you're learning." Anna lay on her back and rolled over to where the woman lay. "She alive?"
"Just," Ralph said bitterly. "But she doesn't sound too good."
"Neither would you if you'd been through what she has," Anna intoned and rested her palm against her aching collarbone. "We have to move out, get some shelter and regroup." She looked at Ralph. "Can you handle that?"
Ralph nodded, grim determination showing in her face. "I will."
Anna smiled. "Good girl, you did well."
A rare compliment was all Ralph needed and she stood up, ready to grab their belongings. She hesitated briefly. "Anna, can you show me how to assemble the gun again? I want to get better at it. All of it."
Anna watched her as she went over to grab their things. She may never be a people person but she could do gracious. At least for a while.
Tbc...
Meri24- its great that you were excited, I know I get that way when I have posted! More Anna/ Ralph interaction here.
Blackrose9- the spec ops reunion starts with the very next instalment, hope you like it. Anna is a fave now, even though I did hate her at the start.
Sigma1- someone said that you catch more flies with honey… although why you'd want to catch flies is beyond me. I adore Pix and love the way his character is unfolding for me. I swear will sort the Drew/Ben thing out… probably. Flamethrower on standby.
Toniboo- sorry but there's this nasty thing called RL. I would spend all day writing if I didn't have to work and, ya know, eat. Enjoy all the same.
Ronda TIW- LOL in fact ROFLMAO. I actually agree, I never saw Ben as looking like Alec for some reason. As for their meeting up with Dek- oh wont that be delicious.
Bluejean452- cheers pet, I can't wait for that either, it'll be a blast to put Dek/Ben and Alec in a room. Sigh.
Mely- cheers pet, glad you like. Cece and Josh have bonded, don't they rock! Although chap 13 was too long to catch Krit action, I managed to slip BJ into the next part for ya. Check it out.
Fadingphantom- I think it'll be good for Pix to keep the leadership and it'll make him much better. Galen rocks… as always. I think Drew was probably not thinking. She's had so much to deal with recently and with this on top of it all, she's going for a carpe diem feel to it all.
Angel of Drakness231- Whoo hoo, Ben covered in hot chocolate! Cec and her hormones will be making more than one comeback; I have THE classic line for her soon, one that even I am proud of. The 09ers? Oh there they are!
Pookie vampires- Bless ya, I'm sure I loff you too, cute review and all. This had less of everyone but way more action. Enjoy.
Kim- Kisses to computer reportedly works better. But mine does work better with threats. (just joking Gerschwin! Pats computer quickly) I know what you mean, Anna's a bitch, a pure-bitch nasty witch and yet there is something that makes me like her. Ben is twisted and I think that that works right now.
Geminangel- the Greek family are adorable and they have more closeness than you'd think. Check out the next chapter for Greek-goodness.
Abandon Structure- Hey there, nice name btw. Glad that you enjoy the series, how long did it take you to read? It takes me forever and a day!
Gamegirl452- Cheers pet. Yup Sunny and Biggs are on their way to TC as we speak.
Aku-neko- LOL. You rebel you! So glad that you liked Anna and Ralph because- hey more here. The one liners of Anna's tend to have my sister in hysterics. Glad the whole Drew/ Ben scene jibed for you, some are having trouble with it. I think Pix and Max have far more in common that Pix and Chance when it comes to this leadership thing and I am sure that they will confide in each other. Yes we have a few more clues about Nyx and Icarus' past in the next chapter.
Nevanroy- LOL, I managed to dodge the rapid fans and go into hiding with just a pencil, old till receipt and a can of spam. It's been hell. Back now and being forced to write at gun-point. Send chocolate.
Sarah- Cece and Joshua are a great couple, so funny together and I love the Greeks too. Everyone comes together more soon.
Lynn-50670- I do leave you hanging- just so that you'll come back for more!
Erak- Spinning in a good way or a bad way? Drew/ Ben yay or nay? Yes this chapter is just before the SF of the same number. So at this point in the story Max has made the transmission and on her way back to TC.
Moonlite star- Ralph- for once, did as she was told and look what happened. Painful though it is. Pix as an idol! How adorable was that! I will do my own version of Coco meets the parents. Hehehe.
Manema- Surging forward happens before Pressing Onwards. So this story should run slightly before, but I post awkwardly. Think of it as time travel.
Lyndsay- I'm not sure, to be perfectly honest. I have no idea how the Dew/ Ben/ Dek thing will play out. I know what I want to happen, but whether it actually does is anybodies guess. I was going to kill Anna in chapter 2 and we see how well that has worked out.
Blueangel137- cheers pet, more about the Greeks in the next chapter and please trust me on the Drew thing. I won't let you guys down… I hope.
Elfie- Ralph is a liability of sorts and she should have been trained better. I have no idea what Manticore were thinking when they let her out in the field! I wasn't actually basing Anna on Riddick- having avoided the film purposely (my brother loves it- therefore sibling irrationality means I refuse to watch it. Me and my brother have a somewhat- Anna/ BJ relationship—without sexual tension, obviously. Ew.) Nope Drew was as pure as the driven slush. THANK YOU someone who likes Drew/ Ben. Of course it's going to all come crashing down. Who do you think I am?
Feenian- Ben as a cat- playing and killing- you must have odd cats in your neighbourhood. What will Drew do? What would you do? a nice three—way… ahem! The Manticore stud and the bitch- gotta love it!
Angelkougari- Aw pet, go eat dinner. Flex is sexy but nothing beats food!
L80bug- you nagged me into an update- no nagging this time, which is why it took so damn long!
Lotamoxie- Well she didn't kill her, but it was a close thing. Poor Ralph! Coco and Jason do make a cute couple, don't they?
Elle6778- That's true, Anna isn't as cute as Ben but then Anna would just snap your neck and not pull out your teeth and offer them as a sacrifice. Drew and Ben make sense but don't. I understand that. Yeah the two stories run parallel so we have to backtrack a bit each time.
GuesTypePerson- Yeah Coco is off being happy and so doesn't get much airtime. You have to love her though and be glad that she is going about happily… for now anyway. Jason does know that she is Manticore.
Ganko- Pix is adorable ain't he, I know I love him! Ben back in Terminal City- can't wait to write that one. I just hope that I meet peoples expectations of the scene.
Amelya- Cheers pet, I must admit to loving Drew and Dek somewhat ferociously but we'll have to see how it plays out. So glad you like Anna because she had a lot to do this time around!
Moonlight19- where have you been girl? I missed you like a mad woman and wondered where you had gone! Congrats on teaching sweets, I just got a new job and started driving lessons. My driving instructor is part time driving instructor- part time children's clown. Only I could get that.