Disclaimer: Dark Angel and its characters obviously do not belong to me. I am writing this purely for non-profit entertainment. Yada, yada! No infringement intended, so don't sue me!
A/N: OMG! So MANY reviews! I was delirious with joy after reading your reviews. Thanks so much for making my day! Erm…my replies to your reviewsmade up a substantial part of this page, as you can see below!
Mel11 – Mel, trust me ok. I just can't say too much right now,might spoil the story! Thanks for reviewing.
Angel of Darkness231 – Gosh, that was a long review. Thanks! See, I have updated pretty quickly, so hold off the lightning strikes! Hope you like this one!
Kungfuchick – Err…Gab is not going back to interrogation. And that's all I will say:) Thanks so much for reviewing.
Tarzo – Thanks for reviewing. Keep on reading!
Cora – Nice to know its working, lol! Just making sure I keep you all on your toes. Thanks for the review.
Honeyx5-452 – Thanks for reviewing. You have to forgive me an awful lot! Because this chapter is just as long (elle smiles sheepishly!)
NoAngell – Your questions will be answered soon (wink!). Thanks for your reviews. Glad you like the long chapters, though Honeyx5-452 may kill me one day for it!
X5-459 – Thanks for reviewing. Max and Alec will eventually become friendlier, but not soon. That would be too easy!
Iridescent Twilight – Thanks for your reviews. With your psychic powers, you should know that you will find out soon about Gab! Yeah, I feel the same way towards Alec too, though it my own doing! ;p
Lin – Don't be too upset. Just trust me okay! Thanks for reviewing.
Lady marauder – (elle flinched and rubbed her ears) I can't tell you Gab is ok! Read the next two chapters? Please? And thanks for the shout…er…review.
Messymissy – Thanks for the long review. I agree with you about Max, because I am a great fan of the tough-chick character! Alec's character is still developing, so he may seem a bit odd now. As for Gab – no comment for now! I'm glad you find it entertaining – who else I am writing for, right?
Nina26 – Thanks for reviewing both chapters! Glad you liked the Max-Alec interaction. Read on and tell me what you think of this one!
Angelofdarkness78 – Gosh, thanks for the long review! And you are not rambling! Lack of imagination may possibly the reason why I did not change Max's personality! As for Gab (sigh), you better read on. I think it's better to keep Max and Alec apart for now (grin). Your fic is great as it is, and while we are at it – where's your update!
Alana84 – Yeah, I could just imagine Max saying all those things! Alec had a close shave there (no pun intended, lol). You got to read on to find out about Gab (smiles evilly!). Thanks for the review!
GuestTypePerson – Hopefully you are reading this, hence easing my worry that you have been run over by a book cart since my last update! Hehe! Thanks for your review.
Kelzaa – Thanks for your review, and suggestion (smile). I have something like that later in the pipeline, so read on!
-Right, shall we move on with the story then?-
RETRIEVED - Chapter 7 – Regaining Sanity
A worried frown marring her pale features, Max asked softly, "Matt? What's wrong? Where's Gab?" She was getting scared. What was it that Matt didn't want to tell her?
Matt turned back to her, noticing the apprehension on her face.
"Matt! Tell me!" she asked desperately, her eyes full of dread.
Taking in a lungful of air and expelling it slowly to prepare himself, Matt finally answered, "I saw him as they were bringing me out couple of days ago. He was in the lab right opposite mine. There was a huge commotion. Apparently he put up quite a fight. I heard the guards talking. He got free of his restraints and knocked out the lab tech," Matt paused, unsure if he should continue.
He could see Max's eyes widen at his words. He really did not want to tell her when she was in this state; weakened and tired.
"What happened then?" Max asked insistently. She grabbed his arm, oblivious to the fact that she was staining his top with her blood.
Swallowing, Matt went on, "I saw him. It was as if he was possessed. I mean, how the heck did he manage to rip apart the straps just using his wrists? The alarm sounded. The guards came running. He just continued fighting them, even as they tasered him. He didn't seem to feel it,"
"Then one of them shot him," Matt finished softly.
"NO!" Max cried in anguish. No! Not Gab as well! The pain in her, both physical and emotional was too much for her to bear. She shook violently, unable to stop herself. Tears started to run freely down her cheeks as she stared ahead unseeingly.
Matt wrapped his arms around her, holding her tight as she sobbed into his shoulder. He too could feel tears stinging his eyes. He had felt his heart stop momentarily when Gab went down under fire. And the sadness in him had never eased since then. The entire unit knew how close Max and Gab were. He could not even begin to imagine how she must feel. He ran his hands up and down her back, trying to comfort her.
Not long afterwards, Max slumped in his arms. Carefully, he raised her up to look into her face. His heart broke as he saw the pain in her eyes. Knowing that he should let her rest, he said, "You need to concentrate on recuperating. Rest, OK. Get well. I'll see you back in the unit,"
She did not protest as he lowered her gently to the bed, pulling the covers over her. He got up, then he remembered something. He faced 494 with a warning glare.
"Stay away from her, 494."
He left with that parting shot for the frowning 494.
494 bit back a retort. This was not a good time, he thought. 494 had watched the exchange, subdued by the display. He was not close to her, but yet he still felt her anguish. He was surprised that she had the support of her unit. Ah well, Manticore was always big on the unit thing. If she was in my unit…he shook his head, not wanting to continue that thought. And who was Gab?
He rubbed his neck, his hand smeared with the bloodstains she left on him. Even with her injured hand, she has a grip like a vice, he thought. He knew that bruises in the shape of her fingers would soon be appearing around his neck.
He turned to look at her. Her eyes were shut in deep sleep, a small frown on her forehead. It seemed that everything has finally taken its toll on her body. She looks so small and helpless, he thought.
The nurse returned, and gasped when she saw the state of 452's hand. The result of their tussle. Or rather, her failed attempt to murder him.
"What happened?" she turned to ask him.
He shrugged, keeping his face expressionless.
The nurse turned to fix his arm after she tended to 452. Once she had finished, he got up to walk out of the Med Bay.
He recalled the day he and 480 went out on that mission in Seattle. He remembered the look on 452's face as he taunted her about 493 and for being traitors. That was one and a half years ago. Has it really been that long? And in all these time, it seemed that his antagonism towards 452 had not lessened.
Has it?
Now that he thought about it, he could not even remember why he always felt like treating her that way. Does she deserve the way I have been treating her, he wondered. He shook his head to clear the thought. Why did he care anyway?
Walking rapidly, he tried not to think about the incident with 452.
He did not want to think about this feeling which felt strangely like remorse.
Lydecker stabbed the pads on his phone, punching in the number stored in his memory. He was too angry to sit down behind the desk in his office. The beeping pulse emitted by the phone earpiece indicated that the number he dialled was ringing. Pick it up, dammit, he fumed impatiently.
"Hello," A woman answered.
"I hope you have a good explanation for this," Lydecker started, without any preliminaries. He could not believe the nerve of that woman. If one of the lab techs had not told him, he would have remained in ignorance of what she did.
"Hello, Deck. How nice of you to call. How may I help?" the woman asked, ignoring his rudeness.
"Cut the crap, Renfro. You know what I mean. These are my kids, and you have no right to stick your foot in," he said in a hard voice. He had never bothered to hide his dislike for the way she operated.
"I am not sure I know what you mean, Deck. Care to elaborate?" Lydecker could almost see the smirk on her overly-painted face.
"The interrogation. I have the final say in it. It was not your call," Lydecker growled at her through the mouthpiece. His hands gripping the receiver so hard that his knuckles were white.
Renfro chuckled at the other end of the line, "Just trying to lend you my assistance. Thought you would appreciate it,"
"It was not within the test parameters to subject them to the interrogation for more than 48 hours. And don't tell me you don't know that. It was approved by the committee itself," Lydecker spat out.
"As part of the committee of directors, I have the right to make these decisions. Or to change them. You know that," Renfro said. Her calm tone in direct contrast with Lydecker's irate manner.
Without pause, he retorted, "Then why the blatant segregation between the 452 and the rest? They are soldiers. Favouritism is not acceptable. You can't make one rule for them and one for her,"
"Believe me, I can. I can also make your life hell if I wanted to, Deck. So you better tread carefully," Renfro warned softly.
Renfro's words temporarily halted Lydecker's tirade. Considering the meaning of her words, he asked in a calmer tone, "Is that a threat?"
"Only if you have reasons to take it that way," Renfro answered.
She hung up.
Lydecker remained standing in the same spot with the phone still in his hands. The meaning of her words could not be clearer. Renfro will do whatever it takes to remove him if it suited her. That bitch! He needed to find a better way to stop her.
Only 2 days out of med bay and we are back in the field, Max grumbled. She was not in the best of moods. She was agitated, hot and sweaty and she had been trying to stay away from those blasted transgenics from unit 6 all night. Bad enough that they have to do this damn exercise when I have barely recovered from that torture they call an exercise; it has to be with that creep's unit, she thought. Her mind flashing back to the incident with 494 in the med bay. Should have just snapped his neck, she thought viciously.
They were having a night stealth exercise. The objective was simple; seek and capture as many enemy forces as possible and bring them back to base before dawn. Unfortunately, she was slightly disadvantaged ever since her buddy, 612, was captured. They were ambushed earlier and 612 were not able to extract himself. As the two transgenics from Unit 6 had their hands full with 612, Max had managed to creep away undetected.
This would not have happened if Gab was with her, she thought. She and Gab trained so often together that they knew each other's thoughts before either of them voiced it. Which would really help in this sort of stealth exercises. She swallowed a lump in her throat and told herself not to cry. She cried enough in the Med Bay. Even the nurses started to worry.
Now she was crouched behind a tree, willing the two transgenics to leave without spotting her.
She let out the breath she was holding when they finally decided to move away. Her legs were beginning to cramp. She lowered herself down to the ground and started sliding herself forward quietly on her knees and elbows. She needed to find and pair up with someone from her unit. She knew she will eventually be captured if she kept moving by herself. Damn! Why can't we do this when its cooler! She grouched in her head, wiping the sweat away out of her eyes. Her growing agitation was not helping.
A small rustle of leaves brought her movement to a halt.
Shit! What now? Holding the rest of her body immobile, she slowly turned her head towards the direction of the sound. Not noticing anything out of place, she relaxed slightly, but remained where she was. Just in case. She waited.
A few seconds later, she saw a figure protruding from the side of a bush. Without her transgenic eyesight, she would not have spotted it, as it blended so well into the bushes. She also noticed another thing – the figure has a blue patch on his collar, denoting unit 6. And the figure was alone, Max noted. Her eyes lit up with glee and anticipation. Earlier she had captured one of them, a girl younger than herself, who was separated from her partner. Her designation was 432, she believed. Now she has a chance to get another one.
Max inched closer stealthily, thanking the fact that the breeze was blowing from the direction of the figure toward her, meaning that her approach was less likely to be detected. As she got closer, she realised that the figure was a male. She was surprised that she knew that, as she was still not able to see him clearly enough to make that deduction. She moved closer, her heart pounding in anticipation of the capture.
Her feet touched the ground soundlessly. A few more steps. She was close enough now.
She pounced, leaping towards him.
Obviously hearing her approach, he turned.
She landed right in his arms. Her eyes snapped up.
Shocked brown eyes met hazel eyes.
No! No! NO!
494! Argh! Why must it be him? Max almost screamed in frustration. She had this uncontrollable urge to stamp her foot childishly. She started to struggle against him, trying to escape from his hold. She yanked her arms from him and tried to knee him in the groin. 494 noticed the direction her knees was headed and tried to move away, loosening his hold. Seizing her chance, she swung and smashed her elbow hard into his jaw. She heard him hiss in pain as he released her. Max jumped away, glaring into his furious face.
"It's just an exercise 452! No need to cause me permanent injury," he spat at her, rubbing his sore jaw. He could almost see the dark spots swimming in his eyes from the blow. He shook his head to clear it.
Max stood in front of him in a fighting stance, trying to calm her breathing. That's odd, she was not doing anything much. So why the breathlessness, she wondered, feeling strangely unsettled. She stared at 494, Why she never noticed how good looking he was? Her eyes travelled from the top of his tousled head, down to his glittering hazel eyes and further down to his sexy lips. Max wondered how those lips would feel against her. A ripple of excitement surged through her.
Licking her lips, she decided that this moment was as good time as any to find out.
494 saw the change of expression in her eyes. In the matter of seconds, the glare in her eyes had turned into confusion, then into something softer but more predatory. He shuddered at the look she gave him. It was as if she wanted to devour him whole. Despite knowing that it would look silly, he backed away from her. She advanced on him, hips swaying.
As she came closer, he began to notice a smell in the air. It was warm, sultry and intoxicating. It was a heady smell. He took a deeper breath and felt himself harden.
He looked into the pair of eyes which were boring into his intently. He noticed 452 wetting her lips with the tip of her tongue. It looked soft. Would it taste good? He wondered.
He froze as the realisation struck him in a sudden moment of clarity.
452 was in heat! Shit! We are in trouble.
494 could not move. He felt 452 coming up to him, pressing her body against his. He knew in his mind that he should run as far as he could away from her, but he still could not make his limbs obey his mind. He never had been close to a female in heat before, despite hearing all sorts of stories about it. They were usually subdued by the guards before anything happened. In all these time, he had never heard an incident happening during field training.
Where there were no guards about.
She backed him into a tree. He strained as he clenched his fists beside him, forcing himself not to reach out to touch her.
"452! Snap out of it!" 494 said harshly. His eyes searched her molten brown ones. He felt as if he was drowning in them. As if he was in a trance, he reached out a hand and gently stroke her face. Then softer, he begged weakly, "Please! 452, you got to stop this,"
452 didn't answer. She just looked into his eyes and offered her parted lips up to him.
494 could not help himself; he lowered his head, capturing her lips in his. He moaned at the sensation as he grasped her head to keep her there. He moved his lips over hers, hungrily devouring her soft flesh. She moaned as he slid his tongue within the recesses of the mouth to taste her. Her flavour exploded in his mouth the second her tongue curled around his.
Suddenly he felt himself abruptly yanked off her. He heard 452 mewl in protest. What? He looked around in confusion. And extreme irritation at the interruption.
735, 422 and 332 was standing glaring at him.
"This is a highly irregular behaviour. What do you think you are doing, 494?" 735 hissed at him angrily. Her hand was clamped tightly around 494's arm.
452's CO, his muddled mind registered.
"Back of 735, its none of your business," 494 growled at her. He knew in his head that he was being unreasonable, but he can't seem to stop the irrational feeling. He wanted their absence so that he and 452 could continue what they were doing prior to the rude interruption.
422 decided to intercept 452 who was trying to throw herself back at 494. He growled again at the obstruction. 735 grabbed him and tackled him to the ground. She ended up sitting on the ground with her arms wrapped around him. 332 held his legs immobile.
"735, I am warning you. Take our hands off me or you'll regret it!" 494 struggled. It was useless. They got him pinned. He glared at 735.
Noticing that other girls were touching 494, 452 snarled, "Don't touch him! He's mine!" she shrieked in anger and frustration. She tried to push 422 away but blinded by lust, she couldn't focus her energy in the right direction.
The other female transgenics paused as 452's words sank in. Finally realising the reason behind the uncharacteristic behaviour of the two transgenics, 422 said, "735, I think 452 is in heat,"
As understanding dawned in 735's eyes too, she said, "We need to get her to Isolation. Give the signal,"
422 lifted the whistle and blew two short and two long burst, the emergency signal to terminate the exercise and retreat back to the facility.
After deciding that they should not wait for the rest of their unit, as they were mainly males, they half dragged, half carried the struggling 494 and 452 back to the facility.
Three days later, Max finally emerged from Isolation. She rubbed her sore wrist. The guards had decided to strap her down after she tried to attack once of them. She flushed in embarrassment. They have learnt about Heat in their Sex-Ed classes but this was her first. And it was not pleasant. She did not like the lost of self control that heat brought with it. Next time, I'll know what to do; Isolation. Pronto! She told herself, walking towards the mess hall.
She was starving. She had barely eaten in the last three days. Pushing the swing door open, she walked into the mess hall and after grabbing her tray of food, headed towards her unit.
"Hi guys," she said, sitting down.
"Hey 452! Welcome back! How are you feeling?" Matt asked, twinkle in his eyes. Their CO had told them what happened.
"Not too bad considering I had practically no food and no sleep for the last few days. So how's everything?" Max asked, and proceeded to spoon the mash into her mouth hungrily.
"Not much. The place was pretty peaceful without you… But sadly, as you can see, peace no more," Matt eyes rolled dramatically.
Max took a break from her plate to land a smack up his head, causing him to choke on his juice. She patted his back roughly.
"Sorry," she said insincerely, going back to her food.
"Glad to have you back with us anyway. You gave us quite a scare that day," 735 said, looking at her. She was relieved to see that the newest member of her unit survived her first heat unscatched.
"Sorry…" she swallowed he foodand continued, "I really didn't know it was coming. And also sorry for wrecking the exercise," Max apologised, looking around at her unit sheepishly.
A chuckle went around the table, and Matt said, "No…we should be thanking you for that. At least we managed to catch a few hours sleep thanks to you! I hate these night exercises. It's alright for those of you with shark DNA, but not for the rest of us,"
Max laughed. Then she sobered as she remembered. Gab…Gab was the only other one with shark DNA in her unit. She swallowed the lump in her throat, looking down at her place. The food was no longer appealing.
Noticing Max's subdued expression and guessing the reason behind it, Val tried to distract Max. She looked at Max with a mischievous glint in her eyes, "So… before we got to you… You seemed to be having quite a bit of fun."
Snapping out of her misery, Max groaned in embarrassment as she recalled the incident. She buried her head in her hands, "Please don't remind me of that…" She dreaded having to face 494 after this.
The rest of Unit 4 started laughing at the dejected look on her face. Max glared at them.
As they filed out of the mess hall, Max felt someone's gaze on her back. She turned and started right into a pair of hazel eyes. She flinched involuntarily in mortification.
494 noticed her the minute she walked into the mess hall. That was no surprise. He had not been able to keep his mind off 452 since that incident three days ago. After her unit found her and separated them, he had been wanting to see if she was alright.
As the bell which signalled the end of the meal rang, 494 got up and walked towards 452. He saw her stiffen visibly as she somehow felt his presence. She turned to face him.
"Hello, 452. Recuperated yet?" 494 asked, smirking. He noticed her discomfort the minute her eyes met his.
452 frowned. "Do you make it a point to spoil my day every time you see me? And why is it that you always have to come up with these sort of smart-aleck comments?" she retorted, irritation evident in her voice.
"No. Just concerned about your well-being, that's all," 494 said, laughter in his eyes.
"It has nothing to do with you, so don't worry your pretty head," Max said snidely.
"Really? If you remember correctly, I was there when you…uh… were temporarily disabled. I seemed to remember a certain 452 saying that I am hers, after warning her unit not to touch me. Now that definitely sounded very much like it has something to do with me," 494 prodded. Heenjoyed seeing her squirm.
Not wanting to give him the satisfaction of making her uncomfortable, she decided to change her tactics. Giving him a sickly sweet smile, Max said, "Aww, I'm so sorry. I didn't know it meant so much to you. But I changed my mind since then. Did so pretty quickly once my heat had dissipated enough for me to regain my sanity," She smirked.
As she walked away, she felt a surge of satisfaction as her back burned with the intensity of 494's glare.
That night was one of those rare ones which Max found herself needing sleep. She yawned as she pulled the covers over herself, snuggling cat-like into her bunk. Not that the bunk was particularly comfortable. Manticore did not believe in providing comfort for their million dollar R&D prototypes. But right now, she could be huddled under a stack of cardboard boxes and would still find it as comfortable.
Max was drifting in the no-mans-lands between sleep and wake when she felt a tap on her shoulder. Instantly awake, she sat up.
"Shh…" a very soft voice whispered, "It's me, Max,"
Max squinted as she tried to see the form in front of her. Why could she not focus on the person? She wondered. Finally, she managed to make out an outline of a female body.
Realising who it was, she asked softly, "Cammy?"
The blurry form nodded and said, "Come downstairs. We have something to tell you,"
All thoughts of sleep suddenly evaporated from Max's mind as she noted the urgency in Cammy's soft voice.
t.b.c.
A/N: Okay, I know that this chapter has probably caused a full-blown outrage, if not mutiny out there amongst Gab's fans (-elle6778 ducks quickly as readers throw virtual rotten eggs - Ouch, that hurts! And EWW! -). Promise not to kill me if I update within the week? Please? And hey, I DID put in some Max-Alec action this time, so am I forgiven? If you are not too mad at me, please review, or should I say rant? (-tentative smile-)