--Previously in LET--

Max stepped aside with a flourish of her arm. "This is my baby," she stated proudly. Alec gaped at the black Ninja motorcycle.

Alec grinned as he discovered that this wasn't a bike that looked like Max's Ninja. It was Max's Ninja.

She closed her eyes, letting herself get lost in the memory. The way the wind blew through her hair as she sped down the street on the sleek black bike. The way Alec looked back at her and grinned when he would pull out in front of her and the way she would laugh when she gained the lead again. The way afterwards they would go back to their place and make - What the fuck? Her eyes snapped open quickly and she blushed as if she'd said out load what she'd seen in her mind's eye.

Alec and I were a couple - are a couple. I am such an idiot. It wasn't until then that she'd stopped to consider just how hard her sudden memory loss would be on him.

"Alright, I'm sure there are a lot of people who are dying to see you."

Max forced a smile even while her thoughts were morbid. Right, according to White, that's more true than you might know.

Brenam went to the window to stand beside the red-head. "Raina, do you think 494 will be a problem? He seems to never leave her alone."

"He won't be a problem with a bullet in his head," Raina stated cockily.

"Don't you think White would be pleased if we brought him both of the transgenics he loathes most?" He raised an eyebrow in question.

Brenam only shook his head and went silently to his post. A glance at his watch told him it was 9:30 am. Only 19 hours to go.

Chapter Sixteen: Familiar Faces

The noise level in the mess hall was almost deafening. Everyone was talking about the return of their leader, excited that she'd made her way back to them. The joy was slightly diminished by the feelings of worry about her state of mind - and of revenge on her captors.

As Max was led into the crowded room, her hands flew to her sensitive ears. "It's so loud!" she complained. She needn't have worried, for as soon as everyone saw her enter, a hush fell over every table. Max saw hundreds upon hundreds of eyes on her and she blushed at the attention as she shifted to hide partially behind Alec. "Why are they all staring at me?" she whispered into his ear.

Alec turned his head, a grin adorning his lips and his eyes sparkling. "They missed you. They're just glad you're home."

"But...how does everyone know me? There are so many of them!" Her frantic gaze examined every face, trying to find just one that she recognized. She found on familiar face, that of the dog-faced man - Joshua - that had came across her when she first arrived. She shuddered as she remembered the man she'd almost killed - Logan. That feeling of hatred, familiarity and fear filled her again and she vowed to ask Alec about Logan.

"Everyone knows you because you're the leader,Max," Alec answered, snapping Max out of her daze. He watched as her brown eyes widened in disbelief.

"What?" she screeched. "I can't be the leader." How could they expect her to be the leader when she couldn't remember them, or anything else for that matter?

"Of course not right now!" Alec shook his head, his smile never leaving his face. "You were the leader, and once you get better, you will be again. But for right now, just be you."

"I don't even know who I am," she muttered in frustration. Alec moved to put his arm around her waist, but she winced and he pulled back, the smile finally disappearing.

"You will, soon enough, you'll remember." He grinned again as she stared at him, her lips pursed in a way that said 'Yeah, sure.' He raised an eyebrow and leaned down, whispering conspiratorially. "Hey, you've already remembered a lot. My eyes, my bike, the late night rush of ...racing." He fought the urge to laugh as Max heaved a sigh of relief after hearing 'racing'. Oh yeah, she definitely remembered something interesting.

"MAX!"

Max turned as she heard someone yelling her name and was immediately swept up into a hug by two unknown people. She didn't move, the physical contact making her anxious and uncomfortable. Suddenly, she was released and she took the opportunity to survey the people obviously so very happy to see her.

A pretty woman with long blonde hair and next to her, a handsome man with dark olive skin and almost black hair. "Um, hello," she said awkwardly. She stole a quick glance at Alec to assure herself he was still there and then asked the question she knew she would get tired of asking. "Who are you?" In both pairs of eyes she saw a wave of hurt flow before it was masked.

"Oh God, Max, we're sorry. We were just so excited to see you," the blonde woman said quietly.

Alec ran a hand through his hair again, wondering the best way to explain who they were. "Max, they're from the unit you were in when you were a kid. They're kinda like family to you. Well, one is actually your sibling, same genetic mother or some such..." Gesturing to first the woman, then the man, he said, "This is Syl and Krit. Krit is the one that's actually related to you." Syl and Krit had come in from L.A. when they'd heard about Max's disappearance, and had come to be a real help in keeping TC running. Alec only wished they'd waited a little longer before making their appearance.

"Oh, um...nice to meet you. Again?" Damn this is weird. Supposedly these people are family, but I don't remember... Looking at their faces more closely she realized she did remember something. A mission - the DNA lab sabotage that Alec told me about. They were there. And a blonde guy. Zack! And a miniature me. Oh shit!

Turning away from her two siblings she smacked Alec hard on the shoulder. "What the hell was that for?"

"I died! You never told me that I died!" Syl and Krit tried to hide their laughter, after all, the DNA lab incident wasn't a laughing matter. But somehow, seeing Max slipping into her old ways with Alec was funny and they had to struggle to keep themselves composed.

"Well, yeah, but you came back," Alec offered, unsure how to placate her. He smiled at realizing that she'd remembered something, and knew that his smiling would only make her more mad. Max growled in response, turning back to Syl and Krit.

Even though she now knew that they were her family, she still wasn't sure how to act with them. "Um, sorry."

"It's alright, we're used to it," Krit grinned, looking back and forth between Alec and Max. At least something is still normal around here.

"Let's get some breakfast, alright?" Alec suggested, already leading Max to the counter at the front of the room. Delicious smells assaulted her nose; bacon, eggs, sausage, and sweet maple syrup for pancakes. All this served to produce a grumble from her stomach and she realized that she was starving. She hadn't had solid food in, well, as long as she could remember.

She asked a cheery feline looking female what was on the menu. Once she was told what was available, she proceeded to order one of everything, leaving Krit and Syl astonished. Alec was just happy she was eating.

After everyone got their food, they settled down at a table near the front that was usually left empty for Alec and company. Max didn't even hesitate before starting to shovel food into her hungry mouth. The three others at the table simply watched in amusement as she cleared away half of everything in under five minutes, her hands almost blurring. It was at that moment, with a large quantity of scrambled eggs in her mouth, that Max realized everyone was watching her. Quickly swallowing the eggs, she blushed and muttered a sheepish apology.

"It's alright," Syl grinned. "You need to eat, get all your strength back." Syl surveyed her sister's appearance, taking in all the still visible signs of her capture. God sis, you look so thin and weak. Hatred boiled in her veins for those that would dare do the things to which her Maxie had been subjected.

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean that I have to act like a pig." Max made a show of picking up a piece of bacon and chewing it daintily.

"A pig? Men get away with it, why can't we?" Syl jibed, shooting a glance at Krit. She and Max shared a look with a meaning only the female gender could understand.

"Well, we wouldn't want you to sink to our level, now would we?" Krit said sarcastically, rolling his eyes.

Alec leaned back in his chair, the scene before him lightening his heart. Just like old times. Soon Alec joined in the taunting and teasing and the four transgenics were laughing like the old friends they were. Just when it was obvious Max was beginning to feel like she really did fit in, Joshua came bounding over to the table, Sandeman behind him.

Alec groaned almost inaudibly. Shit, here we go now. Just when Max was feelin' comfortable. Whatever Alec had expected Max to do, he wasn't prepared for what actually happened. As soon as Max saw the old man, she jumped up from her seat and backed away. She focused on the lion-headed cane which she immediately recognized from her dream.

The transgenics stand in a wide circle around something she cannot see. She pushes through the din and finds herself face to face with...herself. She sees her body on the ground, blood pooling from her stomach. The older white-haired gentleman who is balanced on a cane stands with the hazel-eyed man. He collapses next to her, sobs wracking his body.

--

Max? Max, are you alright?" Alec asked frantically, holding a limp Max upright by her shoulders. She was grasping her stomach tight and her eyes had glazed over. Alec turned and glared at Sandeman accusingly. "What the hell is going on?"

"I don't know, boy. Has anything like this happened since she's been back?" Sandeman leaned on his cane, returning Alec's gaze, but instead of accusatory, the old man's eyes showed concern.

"Well, it seems like it happens every time she remembers something intense." What did you remember, Maxie?

"Give Max space!" Joshua commanded in a near growl to those transgenics that had gathered around to see what had happened to their leader. The transgenics nearly scrambled over one another in their haste to back away.

As Max's eyes gradually focused on the scene above her, she nearly jumped again. The gray-haired man and Hazel-Eyes - Alec - were standing above her. "Just like the dream," she muttered. She felt extremely dazed, like she'd gone a year without sleep and it was catching up with her all at once. "They're all gonna die. My fault."

"No, Maxie, it'll be alright," Alec whispered, running a hand through her hair. She jerked at the contact and Alec pulled his hand back. Looking up with unshed tears, Alec ordered Joshua to take her to the Med Bay. Then, leading Sandeman outside roughly, he didn't hesitate with his questions.

"Sandeman, what the hell is she talking about? 'They're all gonna die'? It's her fault? What dream? What - "

"Alec, calm down," Sandeman stated, unnerved. "I can only answer one question at a time...well...they're all very much tied together in this instance and - "

"Listen, just get on with it. We don't have a lot of time here. Tomorrow's the Coming and we already have teams assembled and ready to hit the Amarillo base first thing in the morning. So whatever is going on with Max right now needs to be figured out...right now." All of Sandeman's flowery talk was really beginning to get on his nerves and he just wanted answers.

"Alright, fine. You remember me telling you about the prophecy?" Sandeman said as he began to walk down the hall.

"How could I forget? That would be the one where you said my girlfriend had to die to save the world, right?" Alec spat bitterly.

Sandeman sighed heavily. "To put it in crude Layman's Terms, yes. The prophecies imply that the One will be gifted with prophetic dreams - dreams that show her what is to come."

Alec snorted. "Right, all of a sudden Max is a psychic?"

"Foolish boy! You need to understand the gravity of your situation. Ask her if you don't believe me. Ask her about her dreams." Having had enough, Sandeman turned and stormed off. Without even looking back, he said, "If she needs some real explanations for what she is seeing, you send for me."

As Alec rounded the corner to the medical wing, he was met by Mira. "Alec, she's more alert now. She's been asking for you."

"Thanks Mira. Could you do me a favor and get everyone out of her room?" Max in her normal state hated everyone nosing around in her business. There was no way in hell she'd want people she didn't know to hear it.

"Sure, Alec." Mira rushed ahead and cleared the room for him. She followed everyone out only after checking Max's vitals. Soon the medical room was silent except for the steady, reassuring beep of Max's heart monitor.

"Alec?" Max called out weakly from the bed.

"Yeah, it's me. They said you wanted to see me?" Alec's eyes took in the site before him. Max was still so frail and the wires that Mira had hooked up to her were adding to the morbid image. Too soon to see her in one of these damn beds again.

"Come on over here. I promise I won't bite." Max managed a small smile as she motioned Alec over to the bed. "It looks bad, I know. But I'm not any worse off than I was yesterday when they let me outta here."

Maybe Sandeman was right and she is psychic, Alec thought, amused that she had just reassured his unspoken worries. Alec walked over, hands in his pockets and took a seat on the edge of the bed. "Yeah, well...you weren't in the best shape then. You've been through a helluva lot."

Max's eyes grew cold and her grin slipped away, letting Alec know that he'd said the wrong thing. "You have no idea what I've been through. None of the people here could possibly know."

"Shit, Max. We don't know because you won't tell us! But it doesn't take a friggin' genius to figure out that something really bad happened to you. The fact that you lost your memory kinda helps that theory."

Alec and Max stared each other down, both defiant. Then Max let out a deep breath. "Fine. I'm too impatient to deal with a damned staring contest. What do you want to know?"

"Well, um..." Alec paused, trying to think of something to ask. Now that he had the chance to find out what happened to his girl, he wasn't sure if he wanted to know. The dream will wait, he decided. "What's the first thing you remember from Amarillo?"

Max closed her eyes and Alec felt her fists clench on the bed. After several minutes, Alec was sure she wasn't going to say anything. He nearly jumped when she spoke. "Bright red lights. It seemed like there was more before that, but the clearest first thing is bright red lights shining right in my eyes. It felt like they were going right through my head."

Alec shuddered and Max felt the vibration on the bed. "What, you know what I'm talkin' about?"

"Sounds a hell of a lot like the lasers used in psy-ops back at Manticore. Hard to tell, though it could explain the memory loss. Anything else?" Alec knew if they'd used Manticore techniques that there was a very good chance Max wouldn't recover all of her memories for a long time.

Another pause before Max spoke again, shorter this time than the last. "Yeah. All these images flashin' in my head. Like a really messed up movie where all the frames are out of whack. Words. Voices."

"What were the words?" Alec was pretty sure he already knew. Sounds like White got his hands on some psy-ops equipment.

Max focused on the images in her head, trying to remember. "Mission, duty, - "

"Discipline," Alec finished. Max looked up at him surprised and he rushed to explain. "White definitely used Manticore technology on you. I guess he thought you'd be easier to handle. Probably how he got you to believe you were at a military base and he was your CO. That bastard," Alec seethed through gritted teeth.

"You seem more pissed about how he did it than that he did it," Max observed, noticing that he was getting very angry.

"No, well kind of. Manticore, you know, the place we were made and grew up?" Max nodded, not needing the refresher course. "Well, they used that technology to make us forget when we couldn't deal with something we'd done. And to teach us lessons when we did something wrong. There aren't too many people here who could say that psy-ops doesn't still give 'em nightmares every now and then."

From the look on his face, seems like he's not a stranger to the lasers either. "There's so much pain in your eyes," she said quietly. "And I feel like I should know why. It drives me crazy that I don't." Max raised her hand as if to cup his face in her palm, but then suddenly let it fall back down.

"You're probably better off forgetting all that you knew about my pain. You might not think too much of me if you knew..."

"I was with you before and I knew, right?" The bluntness of her statement took Alec by surprise and he simply nodded. "See? Not so bad then." She smiled again weakly and he returned it. Alec placed his hand over hers on her stomach and gave it a gentle squeeze, but she pulled away as if his touch was red hot. Then, as if practiced, both became serious once again, the masks of soldiers taking over.

Alec remembered something Mira had told him, practically forced him to hear.

"Alec, you should try to avoid as much...physical contact as you can. At least for now."

"Why? She's not glass. Maybe it'll help her adjust. We all need comfort sometimes," Alec argued.

Mira closed her eyes, seemingly bracing herself for what she was about to say.

"You really aren't going to like what I'm going to tell you. Max was...abused -"

"Yeah, everyone can see that," Alec said, referring to the scars and bruises all over her body.

"No, Alec. Only Max and I know about this. Alec, she was - " Mira stopped mid-sentence as Alec began to walk away. She grabbed his arm and turned him around. "Alec, I know you don't want to hear this, but listen to me, okay?"

Alec ground his teeth, his jaw flexing with anger, but he didn't say a word as Mira continued. "I found evidence that Max was...sexually abused." Alec closed his eyes, tears of rage and sadness on the verge of falling. "More than once."

"Okay, so I won't touch her. Happy?" Alec's voice quivered as he spoke.

"Just remember that as good as transgenic recuperative powers are, some scars never heal."

Alec looked down at Max, afraid to ask what some masochistic part of him needed to know. It seemed like Max could sense that he was about to ask a very difficult question; she tensed up as if bracing for it.

"Why is it that you jump every time I touch you?" Alec couldn't quite cover all of the hurt in that one sentence and Max for some reason felt that she owed it to him to answer.

"It's not...it isn't you specifically. It's just...while I was in Amarillo, they did things to me. Things that disgust me so much now to even think about..."

"If White even once touched you like that - " Alec growled, his fingers clenching into fists at his side. Max shook her head.

"It wasn't him. Well, I guess it may as well have been. I mean, he knew what was going on. Allowed it, encouraged it even. But no, he didn't directly do it. Two from the cleaning staff, a few of the guards, a doctor once, but never the man himself." She spoke so normally, as if she was completely detached from what she was saying, but the pain was evident.

"Oh Max, God, I'm sorry. I mean, I had an idea, Mira said - but I didn't know." He wanted to find each and every one of the men that had touched her and rip them to pieces with his bare hands. And he felt that even doing that wasn't enough. Sensing his abrupt change in mood, and feeling emotional herself, Max did what her instinct told her to. She sat up and threw her arms around his neck.

"Max, I don't want you to think that because we were together before all this, you have to let me touch you. If you aren't comfortable..."

Max saw the uncertainty in his eyes and could feel that he needed reassurance as much as she needed comfort.

"Shut up and hold me."

Alec didn't need to be told twice. After several minutes of letting themselves get lost in the safety of each others' arms, Max pulled away slowly. "So I figure you're not done askin' questions yet. Let's get on with it." I don't know how much more of this emotional shit I can deal with.

"Alright then. How about this: What was it that freaked you out so much about Sandeman?"

"Who?"

"My bad. The old man at breakfast?" Alec inquired, raising an eyebrow.

Max leaned back against the wall behind her and shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know what you're talkin' about." Everybody already thinks I'm crazy. There ain't no way I'm tellin' anyone 'bout a dream I had where voices talked to me.

Alec snorted. "Right. You jumped up from the table and damn near fainted when you saw the guy." He stared her directly in the eyes, staring her down once more.

Hell, maybe he'll be able to tell me what the hell's goin' on with my brain. "It wasn't exactly him that triggered it, it was that cane." Max's voice was quiet and Alec had to strain to hear what she was saying.

"Go on. You can tell me."

"Nah, never mind. You'll just think I'm crazier than you thought." Max turned her eyes away, refusing to look at him. Maybe I am crazy.

Alec just laughed and grinned. "Hey, I already know you're crazy. That's why we hooked up in the first place," he said, only half joking. Max couldn't help but smile.

"Promise not to laugh at me?" When Alec nodded sincerely she continued. "Alright. So, a while before I left that place I had this reoccurring dream. I was walkin' through the streets of a city and there were all these dead people lining the streets. A lot of 'em were people that I was sure I knew. Not just people either, ones that looked like the soldiers here. Transgenics. I saw the dog-guy, Joshua. Nearly scared the shit outta me when I saw him here."

She looked up to gauge Alec's reaction before she continued. "Anyway, so then I see all these guys from the Amarillo base walkin' down the streets and somehow I know that they are real powerful. Like diplomats or whatever. White was with 'em." Her body shuddered involuntarily at the thought of the way his eyes had sought her out in the dream. "And then I saw you. You were layin' with all the dead people right next to the guy with the cane. Both of you were dead. I just remember fallin' to my knees beside you, but before I can touch you, I see all these symbols show up on my arm. And I could read the damned things." She struggled trying to remember exactly what the runes had said. "'You are the key. Your sacrifice will bring forth life from death.'" Max didn't look up at Alec or she would've seen the shock on his face upon hearing Sandeman's words repeated.

"Was there anything else? Anything else that you can remember about the dream?" he asked softly. Dammit, now I'll have to get Sandeman in here.

"Yeah...wow this is gonna sound crazy. After I read what the things said, this voice told me, 'let this not come to pass,' right? So then the whole damned scene changes. All of White's people are on the ground and dead and all the other people are alive. Well, mostly anyways. You and the old guy are standing over my dead body. Then the creepy voice went all déja vû and repeats itself. Then bam, dream over." Max looked up and saw that Alec's face had gone pale. "What? Hey, you alright?"

"Oh, yeah. I'm fine. So what do you think it means?" Alec didn't want to believe what he'd just heard. She can't die. I lost her once, it's not happening again.

"Well, I guess I got the impression that I gotta die in order for everyone else to live and bring down the bad guys." She said it so nonchalantly that she could've been talking about shopping - not her own death. Alec was utterly silent, so Max spoke again. "You ever heard anything so crazy before in your whole life?"

"Once. I'm gonna get Sandeman, alright? He seems to know a lot about this kind of thing. Prophesies and all that mumbo jumbo bullshit." Max grabbed his arm as he went to stand up, a scared look in her eyes. "Look, don't worry. Sandeman's alright. He's actually the one responsible for all of us. He's the one that mixed our wonderful DNA cocktails." Max loosened her grip enough for him to slip away. Before he left the room, however, he shot a grin in her direction. "I'll be right back."

"Brenam! Get over here, now!" Raina called out across the room. She raised her binoculars to her eyes and focused in on the figure lying in the hospital bed.

"What is it Raina?" Brenam walked up next to Raina at the window and took the binoculars she handed to him. "She's alone?"

"That she is. He finally left her all by herself. I think it's time to make an early move while the coast is clear."

"But we wanted both of them. And we can't go in now - it's still daylight!" Brenam shook his head and shoved the binoculars back at his second. "Even if we could get to her, there's no way we could get her out alive. And we need her alive!"

"Brenam, listen to me. How about we just send in one person for recon? Just to follow them both around for the rest of the day. How about Blaine? He's just itching for a little action." Raina was becoming impatient with Brenam's overly cautious manner.

"And you listen to me, Raina," Brenam said, his voice full of venom. "Blaine, you, and everyone else can just wait to get 'a little action' for another seventeen hours give or take. Got it?" Raina narrowed her eyes at him in anger, but held her tongue. "Is that clear, Raina?"

"Crystal, Sir." Raina watched as Brenam left the room and returned to his post. When she was sure that he was gone, she switched her comm unit over to a private channel directly to Blaine. "Blaine. I have an assignment for you." As she filled him in on what she wanted him to do, a cruel smile shaped her lips. "I don't care what Brenam said. He doesn't have his head in the game. Just do it."

Blaine would be keeping his eye on the prize. No way we're losing the bitch this time.

Blaine made it into the city with nearly no trouble. No one had seen him, though he'd had a close call when he'd been on his way to the medical wing. A group of guards had almost ran right into him, but he'd managed to crawl into the basement floor of the transgenics' makeshift hospital. Now he had situated himself right over the hospital bed that contained his target. The ventilation shaft had been a lucky guess. He could follow her pretty much anywhere and keep an eye on her.

Max threw the covers off of herself, carefully but quickly extricating herself from the various wires attaching her to the medical equipment. After doing a quick sweep with her eyes and closing the blinds she pulled the blue hospital gown over her head and changed into her clothes. I wish Alec would hurry his ass up with this Sandeman guy. I'm getting bored.

Above her head, she thought she heard a voice. What the hell? Are the walls in this place that thin? she thought as she cocked her head and listened.

Repeat. Blaine, is everything alright? I lost visual.>>

Max tried to remember everything she'd seen from outside the building. There isn't a second floor to this wing. "Shit." She casually let her eyes turn upwards and caught the faint glint of something metal in the grate above her bed. Adrenaline surged through her body as she walked over to the closet. Her gaze fell on a broom and she smiled. That'll do. Keeping the broom out of view and making sure not to look at the vent, she walked until she was nearly under it. Then with a flourish almost too quick to see, she thrust the broom handle up at the ceiling tiles around the vent. She heard a strangled cry, but kept hitting the ceiling tiles. Suddenly, the tiles gave way and a man came tumbling down to the floor.

He was quickly to his feet and spat in Max's direction. "You're comin' home 452," he snarled.

"I am home, Blaine." Max swung the broom at his head and he dodged it effortlessly. Faking a blow to her left, she kicked out her foot to the right and caught him in the ribs. Without waiting for her foot to even hit the floor, she brought the broom handle down hard against the back of his head, splitting the wood. But still he stood up. "Haven't you had enough yet?"

"We haven't even started 452." Several quick punches landed on her stomach, chest and head and she was tossed back into the wall. "That all you got?"

When Max righted herself, her eyes held a feral gleam. The look she gave him caused even the Familiar to take an involuntary step back. She brushed herself off and then launched at Blaine, bringing them both to the ground. Sniffing the air, she could smell his fear and she reveled in it. Ceaselessly she threw blow after blow at anywhere she could reach until he stopped moving. Thinking he was unconscious, she moved her hands to each side of his head, ready to snap his neck.

"Max, what the hell is going on?"

She turned to look in the direction of the intrusion and saw Alec and Sandeman. Before she knew what was happening, Blaine's eyes snapped open. He lifted his feet and kicked her like a rag doll all the way across the room. She didn't even have a chance to cry out as she landed hard against the glass and metal medicine cabinet. The glass shattered all around her and she saw Alec going after Blaine before she passed out.

To be Continued

Hope you all enjoyed the latest installment :) Please R&R