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: You all must be the best readers and reviewers in the world! Thank you so much for taking the time to tell me what you think. It really helps in developing the story!
NoAngell – You read this story at 7.33am? I am flattered! Again your questions should be answered in this chapter (lol!)! Thanks for reviewing, especially at that time in the morning!
HoneyX5-452 – Thanks for reviewing. I thought a little Max-Alec action would be appreciated after the Gab incident!
Eva (anon) – Thanks for reviewing! Aw, it's not all that bad (smile)! Read on – I hope you will feel better about this chapter.
Kelzaa – Hehe! What do you think? About your suggestion…(grin) you'll see! Thanks for your review.
X5-459 (anon) – Thanks for reviewing! Glad you liked the heat plot. As Max and 494 are going to argue a whole lot more, I hope you enjoy the rest of the story!
Mel11 – Lol! Glad that you love the story so far and the heat scene. Keep your last review in mind and read on. Then tell me what you think! Thanks for reviewing.
Kungfuchick – Thanks for your review. As for your question, Max is around 14, hence her first heat. I made 494 a year older. I have written the years subtly in the story in relation to year of her capture, but I guess it's not obvious - Sorry! (grin)
Cora (anon) – lol! I am just trying to make sure this story has its ups and downs. Glad you liked Max's unit. The characters took quite some time to develop! And thanks for reviewing.
Iridescent Twilight – Goodness, don't be so mad at me! I hope this chapter will make up for it. Your scary threats (amongst others) have prompted me to spend this entire weekend writing, happy! 3000+ words update in 3 days, and I updated 'Remember' at the same time! Hehe! Thanks for the threat…er…review.
Angel Of Darkness231 – Thanks for the review and aw, don't cry! It's not that bad, you'll see. Ah, 494's name? I have it planned…let me check…in Chapter 15 - Long time to go! Hehe! I saw your site – liked the descriptions, it matches their appearances.
Angelofdarkness78 – Hey, thanks for reviewing and for dedicating Chapter 36 to me! Okay, I am reminding you now not to have a family reunion again, lol! Sorry you felt sad about Gab, hopefully this chapter will cheer you up a bit! Let me know what you think, OK!
Nina26 – Glad you liked the chapter despite what happened to Gab; and no outrage (smile). Yeah, I am trying to pull 452 and 494 together…slowly, as you can probably see! Thanks for reviewing.
Alana84 – Thanks for the review! This chapter will bring up everything you said in your review (wink). Yup, Max had her first heat around 14.
GuestTypePerson (anon) – Phew! Good to hear from you. Beginning to worry. Hmm…I thought this ending was pretty tame compared to the last one! I guess so long as I see you reviewing (thanks btw!), I guess it's safe to assume that you are still safe from the evil carts, lol! As for nuns, it takes much more effort to post there as I have to fumble through Frontpage, hence the delay (that's saying something about my crappy website skills). Read on, and tell me what you think of this chapter (grin)
-Quickly moving on…-
RETRIEVED - Chapter 8 - Discovery
After Cammy's departure, Max tried to sneak out of her dorm quietly without waking any of her unit member. None of them were aware of her other friends in the basement. Her feet, clad with a pair of Manticore standard issue white socks, barely made any sound as she stealthily tip-toed her way across the room. As she reached the door, a soft sound made her pause.
She looked back to find Matt right behind her, his eyebrows raised in question. As he opened his mouth, she raised her finger to her lips to silence the question he had on the tip of his tongue. Silently, she signalled for him to return to bed, and that she will fill him in him later.
As he shook his head vehemently in refusal, Max repeated her signal urgently. She really wanted to go down to the basement and she did not want Matt to come along. It was not because she did not trust him, but she did not know what to expect downstairs. Cammy was not very forthcoming when Max tried to ask her.
Matt was adamant that he was coming with her. Max sighed in resignation. In the end, she just nodded.
They did not meet with any resistance on their way down to the basement. Once they rounded the last corner in the dimly lit basement and entered a room, Matt's eyes widened as he took in the sight in front of him.
Anomalies!
Matt could hardly believe what he was seeing. He tensed in alarm as the anomalies turned towards them, darting a worried glance at Max. What does Max thinks she is doing coming down here, he thought frantically. Falling back to his training, he instantly looked around for an alternative escape route.
Noticing the male X5 and his reaction, Kelpy, Cammy, Hulk and even Joshua stood up slowly from the crates they were sitting on. Their wariness was evident in the way they held themselves as they eyed the stranger. Both X5 and anomalies assessed each other carefully.
In her rush to get down here, Max had neglected to consider that this might happen. She looked back and forth between her friends. As she sensed the tension in the air, she held up her hands and said, "Whoa, guys! Chill!"
"Who's this, Max?" Hulk growled, his eyes assessing Matt distrustfully. Apart from Max, they had never come into contact with any other X5s; apart from the times when some of them were dragged down to the basement for punishment.
At the same time, Matt asked, "Max, what's going on?" He flicked a quick glance at the girl beside him, not wanting to take his eyes away from the anomalies any longer than necessary.
Looking back and forth between her friends, Max said, "Right. Let's get the introduction over with, shall we? Matt, meet Joshua, Hulk, Kelpy and Cammy. Guys, meet Matt, my unit's 2IC. Now that we all know each other, can you all calm down please? Have a seat," Max sat on one of the crates, patting the empty spot next to her while looking at Matt. Joshua, Hulk, Kelpy and Cammy did the same.
Matt remained standing in the same spot, unsure.
Max exhaled in exasperation, thinking that she should have known this would happen. Impatiently she said, "Matt, you wanted to come with me, and you did. So sit down already,"
Matt moved wordlessly towards her and sat down, still warily keeping his eyes on the anomalies. He had been worried about Max since he told her what happened to Gab. Most of the time Max seemed to manage to hide her feelings, but occasionally Matt could detect the raw anguish in her eyes. And it worried him that since then, she never uttered a word in relation to Gab. So he had decided to keep an eye on her. But when he insisted on following Max earlier, this was the last thing he expected to encounter.
Deciding to ignore the discomfort of the other transgenics, Max went straight to the point and asked, "Cammy, what was it you wanted me down here for?" She hoped that Cammy would tell her the purpose of this meeting before a fight broke out between Matt and the rest.
Cammy fidgeted as she threw a not so subtle glance at Matt before she raised her questioning eyes to Max.
Understanding the unspoken question, Max said reassuringly, "It is alright. He is a friend. Go on. What is it?"
At Max's assurance, Cammy said, "Remember what you told us that day, Max? About the interrogation and what they did to you and your friend?" Cammy waited for Max to nod before continuing, "Well, last night, Kelpy went up again. You know what he's like when he is bored,"
Max gave Kelpy an indulgent smile, "Yeah. Kelpy the wandering chameleon," she teased. Then facing Cammy, she asked, "So?" That was nothing new. Ever since Max taught them to how to fool the sensors and monitors, Kelpy had been wandering about Manticore at night whenever he felt bored. Being a chameleon, it was relatively easy to avoid detection. "But what were you saying about the interrogation? Was Manticore carrying out more tests, Cammy?"
Kelpy answered instead, "No, not that I can see. Anyway, I was walking about as usual. Then in one of the hallways just off the med bay, I saw the colonel. He was talking to one of the nurses,"
Max interrupted, worried now, "Kelp, you really ought to be more careful. What if the colonel saw you?"
Kelpy shook his head, "He didn't see me. Anyway, what I want to say is that I overheard them talking about some X5 who was in intensive care. Apparently they were surprised at the speed he was healing after his injuries,"
"So? What has that got to do with us?" Max interrupted again, the growing frown on her forehead indicating her confusion. X5s were expected to heal fast. And X5s in med bay or intensive care was a common occurrence. Especially after interrogations. Also, with all those training and exercises, they could hardly be expected to remain unscathed.
Kelpy shushed her. "Wait, Max. Let me finish," Kelpy said impatiently. "The X5's designation was 547,"
Max gasped, her eyes wide as she absorbed his words.
Matt shot up from his crate. Could it really be…
"Gab?" Max whispered, as a slow smile started spreading across her face.
The three transgenics crept silently along the hallway; the monitors were already temporarily disabled by Kelpy a moment ago. They knew they had to be quick so that the guards would not catch on to their activities. As they approached another hallway, Kelpy un-blended so that they could see him clearly and signalled them to stop. In reflex to her training, Max and Matt held their breath as they listened for footsteps.
Realising what Max was doing, Kelpy shook his head at her. He pointed upwards at an almost hidden grey object, which was thankfully directed away from the hallway they were in. "Monitors," he mouthed to Max and Matt. It took him couple of seconds to blend further into the wall as he moved towards the monitor, quickly disabling it. Turning back to the other two transgenics, he un-blended slightly and gestured for them to follow him into a room.
Max and Matt went into the room after Kelpy, closing the door behind them. The room was dark, but turning on the lights were out of the question.
Max could hear the regular beeps emitted by some machine not too far to her right. She blinked rapidly, forcing her eyes to adjust to the darkness. As her vision improved, she found what she was looking for. She walked over slowly towards the bed, her eyes never leaving the form tucked under the sheets.
Her vision blurred as she knelt beside the bed, her hand reaching out for the larger one resting on the crisp white sheets. She could feel her eyes stinging with tears of relief.
"Gab," she whispered softly, holding his hands. She could hardly believe that he was right here beside her. Alive!
At her voice, he stirred. Max's eyes lit up.
Blinking his eyes open, he croaked, "Max?"
All choked up with so many different feelings, Max just nodded. She did not trust herself to speak; she could already feel the tears sliding down her cheeks.
As weak as he was, Gab still managed to read her. "Hey, what's all that for?" He said softly as he reached out a hand, gently wiping her tears away. It surprised him that Max allowed him to see her tears. She was always so strong, nothing could faze her. The fact that she actually cried over him made him feel warm all over.
"Nothing," she sniffed, brushing the rest of her tears away with the back of her hand. She squeezed the larger hand she held in her own smaller ones, "Just glad to find you alive, I guess,"
"What? You think it was so easy to get rid of me?" he snorted. He winced as the effort caused a stab of pain in his side and his shoulder. He squeezed his eyes shut and gritted his teeth.
Max eyed him with concern. Her eyes sought permission from his before she lifted the sheets to assess the damage. As he nodded, she pulled the sheets down to reveal the bandages crisscrossing his torso.
"Five shots," he said quietly, looking down at his chest, "Two in the shoulders, one in my side and another two in my legs," he explained as Max studied his wounds.
Feeling uncomfortable under her perusal, he changed the subject. His eyes returned to hers as he said, "So, how did everyone else do? Come to think of it, how long have I been in here?"
Matt, who had remained just inside the door to give Max some privacy, now decided to make his presence known.
"The rest of us were not as lucky as you are," Matt teased, "What a way to get out of ten days of training!"
Gab grinned as he saw his 2IC. He did not notice him standing there earlier, "Wow, TWO of you risking punishment to come see me! I am really flattered. Now, I am not too surprised to see Max. But you? Our 2IC? Aren't you afraid that you may get demoted or something?"
Matt shook his head as he wryly returned Gab's grin, "I see that your mouth is unfortunately still intact,"
Suddenly remembering who was responsible for this reunion, Max gestured to Kelpy, "Gab, meet Kelpy. He was the one who helped us get to you,"
Gab frowned as he thought he saw Kelpy solidify from a shadow. Gab shook his head in an attempt to clear it.
"Shit, I am hallucinating now. Must be all the drugs they kept pumping into me," he grumbled. He hoped that the injury and the drugs would not have any permanent side effects.
The other three transgenics laughed softly.
"It's not the drugs. Kelpy is part chameleon, so he blends into his surroundings," Max explained.
Gab took a second look at the grinning Keply and decided, chameleon or not, he liked look of the guy. When he was visible, of course. Suddenly feeling sleepy, Gab tried to stifle his yawn before his friends could see it. He did not want them to go. He missed them.
Matt noticed Gab's unsuccessful attempt to conceal his tiredness and immediately realised that they were keeping Gab away from his sleep. Matt said to him, "I think we better go now. You need your rest, and we need to get back before dawn,"
"Okay, I'll see you back in the unit. Soon, I hope," Gab said. This time he could not hide his yawn.
"You stay out of trouble okay. Get well," Max said. She wanted to hug him, but it was impossible with his numerous wounds. So she planted a kiss on his forehead instead.
Gab grinned and said mischievously, "If getting shot five times was all it took for me to get a kiss from you, I would have done it earlier. Would you go for the lips if I get shot a few more times?"
Max rolled her eyes in exasperation, "I would smack you for that if you were not injured,"
Matt and Kelpy laughed.
Almost oneyear later...
494 walked towards the door leading to the gym. He had come here hoping to relieve some of the restlessness that has been building up inside him, since he wasn't sleepy at all tonight. He just returned from an away mission, which he found mind-numbingly boring. Two months of baby-sitting a 15 year old high-school nerd was enough to drive him to suicide. The son of the senator never did anything more energetic than typing on the keyboard. And 494 had to stay by his side all that time, supposedly protecting him. And now he have enough pent-up energy to last him years.
His mind wandered to 452, as it always has done since that fateful day almost a year ago in the woods. He could not understand why he could not get her out of his mind. It was not as if they were close, their relationship was far from that. It must be my deprived hormones subconsciously craving hers, he mocked himself as he tried to justify his odd preoccupation with the '09-er.
It has been four months since he last saw 452 in the mess hall. Since then he knew that unit 4 was sent out for the two-months Survival training in the woods surrounding the facility; part of their extended training ground. Unit 4 and Unit 6's schedules never coincided. He wondered why their units were never paired up for exercises as his unit and Unit 5 sometimes did. He mentally shook his head, Not that he actually want to be training with unit 4 anyway.
Still distracted with his thoughts, he pushed open the door open and entered the dark room. Once inside, he realised belatedly that someone has beaten him to the gym.
His attention occupied as he tried to lower himself from the ropes, the other transgenic did not turn around as he said over his shoulders, "It's about time you got here, Max! I've been waiting for an hour,"
494 stiffened. He remembered that it was what 452's 2IC called her back in the med bay. 494 knew that it was a breach of protocol to use anything apart from their designation as a form of identification, but he did not see the harm in it.
494 decided to correct the other transgenics error. He cleared his throat and said, "I am sure that it's not me that you were waiting for. I am not Max, obviously,"
The dark haired transgenic turned around abruptly at 494's voice, and slid rapidly down the rope. Turning to face 494, he said cautiously, "Uh, did you hear me say Max? I said no such thing. You are hearing things,"
Brushing aside the obvious attempt at cover up, 494 waved his hands dismissively, "Whatever. I am 494. CO of Unit 6," he said as an introduction.
"547. Unit 4. Not a CO," Gab inclined his head as he returned 494's introduction.
494 raised his eyebrows, "So, you were waiting for 452, huh? Midnight tryst?" he said as he tried to keep his expression blank. So this was 452's type? He studied 547's mildly Mediterranean appearance. Like any other X-series, 547 was good-looking. For some reason, he suddenly felt an immediate dislike towards the other transgenic.
Unaware of the thoughts running through 494's head, Gab frowned as he asked suspiciously, "What makes you think I am waiting for 452?" He felt a surge of panic as he realised 494 knew who Max were. He could not believe that of all people, it had to be Max's arch-enemy who caught him using her name. Max would be so pissed at him.
"Oh, cut the crap. I overheard your 2IC calling her that when we were in med bay after Interrogations," 494 said impatiently. He was not too bothered about politeness at this point. He did not see the reason for it; he did not like the other transgenic.
Gab suddenly remembered what Matt told him about that day in med bay, about what 494 said to Max. Gab couldn't stop himself from retorting, "You mean the day you took advantage of her weakness to taunt her," Although Gab recalled the other thing Matt told him, he decided not to mention Max's heat incident. He did not want to even want to think of Max being touched by someone she hated so much.
494 felt his irritation rise as the other transgenic reminded him of that day. He had tried very hard to forget what an ass he had been to 452. The last thing he wanted was for someone to bring it up. His irritation made his words sound harsher than he intended, "I don't have to justify my actions to you; I happen to hold a higher ranking than you. What is it to you anyway?"
Gab was incensed at the tone of 494's retort and the rank-pulling, not to mention the heat incident. He had no intention of letting 494 get away with that remark. Gab gritted his teeth as he said, "She is right, then. You are really a jerk,"
Annoyed now, 494 snorted. Before he really thought through what he was about to say, the words escaped his mouth, "You sound exactly like her. Been rubbing off you, has she? Spend more time with her and she might even turn you into a traitor," he mocked.
"You are really asking for it,"
That was all the warning 494 got before the other transgenic attacked him.
Max was on her way to the gym after her visit to her friends in the basement. Gab had said that he will wait for her there. Max smiled as her thoughts went back to those weeks almost twelve months ago.
It seemed like it was just yesterday when she was crying her eyes out because she thought he was dead. She remembered how happy she was when Gab finally returned to their dorm. That night, she was lying down on her bunk, sleepless as usual. Since her return from Interrogations, she had slept facing away from Gab's bunk, not wanting to see the unoccupied space there. She did not want to go to the gym either as it reminded her of her friend as well.
Sudden footsteps from the hallway had caught her attention. She had tensed when the door to their dorm swung open. She remembered thinking that it was odd for the guards to check in on them so late at night. Max could also remember the pounding of her heart as a shadow appeared in the pool of light front of the door. When Gab entered the dorm, Max recalled herself blurring and flinging herself onto him. The noisy reunion had woken the rest of the unit, which joined in. Miraculously, the guards were not alerted.
Max hesitated as she approached the door to the gym. There were noises which sounded suspiciously like sparring to her. She frowned. She knew Gab was waiting for her inside, but who else was in there with him? No way it could be Matt or Val; they needed their sleep.
Cautiously, she pushed the door open.
Her jaw dropped as she took in the sight that greeted her entrance.
t.b.c. (…soon?)
A/N: So? How did you all find it? Hehe, I would not have killed him off; he actually has fans out there! Please review, you know the feeling – you look forward to updates, I look forward to your reviews (grins)!