Disclaimer: Not mine except new characters
Many thanks
Elle6778: Sorry got keep Logan, as I said before he can be useful, the pompous sod.
Honey-X452: Hope this is quick enough for you.
A/N : My first attempt ,sorry if it seems twisted.
Who loves the teacher?
Chapter Eight : Runes, Issy, Lydecker
As Alec, Max and Logan got together to interpret the runes in Seattle, in Canada another drama was unfolding.
"Look I know you're stalling, who are you waiting for?" Issy asked the weedy bespectacled young man. "Look Bates, I know you from Manticore, I know you handled this procedure for them, so I know you can do it. The longer you stall the more I will think you're working for White and you believe his lies."
"I don't know anyone called White, but I haven't finished counting my money yet," the man replied.
At that moment someone burst in the door. "Lydecker not who I was expecting, but surely not here for my health check," Issy tried to joke.
"Actually I want information from you. If you don't co-operate then I could get nasty."
"I'll only trade once this thing has been removed," Issy countered.
"I don't think you are in a position to bargain, after all if I let him remove that I have no guarantee you will co-operate. If you do co-operate I can guarantee to have it removed," Lydecker tried.
"Then we have a stalemate, because I'm not talking until it is removed and if you try anything without removing it the bomb will probably explode," Issy replied with the calmness of an X5 in soldier mode.
Lydecker looked at the lab tech who nodded.
"Don't worry Lydecker, have it removed and she will work with us," came a voice from behind him.
"Sandeman," Issy gasped, "I thought you were dead."
"It's alright my child. I am pleased with your work, but I need the information. As a gesture of my good faith the transmitter will be removed," he nodded to the lab tech.
Issy sat in the chair and waited for the transmitter's removal, checking it was indeed the one that had been worrying her for so long.
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"So now it's gone, tell me what you've been up to since the demise of Manticore, we can talk about Manticore later," said the old man.
"452 and 494 are together in Seattle leading your creations, the freaks as they call themselves," Issy replied in Manticore tech mode. She did not feel safe allowing him to see how concerned she was about this development, she had thought him dead long ago.
"What about 493?"
"I thought Lydecker would've told you 493 was killed sometime ago."
"I haven't discussed my mission with Colonel Lydecker, I just asked for his help to track a rogue employee hoping it was you. How did you become rogue?" the old man explained, much to Issy's surprise.
"I took the training of 494 too seriously and fell for him, much to Madame Renfrew's annoyance." Lydecker seemed shocked at this revelation, but the old man laughed.
"Did he respond?" asked the old man.
"Yes, but to protect him I had psy-ops erase the memory before getting Madame Renfrew to pair him with 452 for the breeding programme," Issy replied, feeling more relaxed. This was getting too much for Lydecker, this woman had seduced one of the X5's then had psy-ops work on him.
"You mean you were messing with the kids at Manticore, how many others did you mess up?" Lydecker accused.
"Actually I managed to save several from death at Manticore," retorted Issy.
"Colonel Lydecker, Issy is one of my subjects, the first successful X5 type, although she predates the X5 series by nearly twenty years. Anything that she did was to protect the X5's especially 452, 493 and 494. The fact that 493 is dead means it was out of her hands. Now please continue Issy."
"Can we dispense with numbers then, because they all have names now. 452 is called Max and 494 is called Alec," Issy felt that the time had come to make the old man realise how human his creations had become.
"I think I can get used to that, I did name you, Josuha and Isaac. What happened to them? I've missed a lot of what happened when Manticore went down. Are Alec and Max still partners?" asked Sandeman.
"Josuha and Isaac got out, but Isaac is dead, he went rogue and had to be killed," she stated not concerned about the old man's reaction. "Josuha is with Max and Alec in Seattle, they seem to be good friends. Max and Alec were never partners, although they are good friends. She has a human boyfriend, but another of Madame Renfrew's tricks nearly killed him. They should be clear of that virus now, but I left before I knew whether it worked. I didn't realise that you were chasing me and I couldn't let White and his friends near them before they had time to sort out the runes."
"Why the delay on reading the runes?" the old man seemed very concerned.
"Alec spent a lot of time in psy-ops back at Manticore; they managed to lock that part of his memory, not my fault I hasten to add. The main reason for being in Seattle was to unlock that, as I knew I couldn't stay."
"So they are behind target. We need to get there quickly."
"Is that wise, if you have been in hiding from your son and you go to Seattle, he will find you. The transgenics have taken over Terminal City, you couldn't stay there even under their protection the bio hazard would kill you," Issy stated simply.
Sandeman decided to change tack while he thought how to pass his knowledge to the transgenics, "How far did you go with Alec?"
"We have a daughter, Alex. He met her about a week ago and I left her with him in Seattle."
"If Max stays with the human will you try again with him," Sandeman was curious.
"If he wants to and no-one prevents it."
"You still don't trust humans, do you?"
"Why should I, he spent his time bullying, hurting and killing my kind," she nodded to Lydecker, "Madame Renfrew tried to blow them up and now White is trying to kill them all. Stirring up public hatred for a race bred to kill, who would rather just get on with living."
"They were bred as soldiers, if they're not doing that they have no use in the world," argued Lydecker.
"I don't think you quite believe that or you wouldn't be here. Sandeman wouldn't let you destroy them or me," she countered.
"Colonel Lydecker is here at my request because of his concerns about Max. He found some information which was classified. I found out and suggested that we could work together for a mutual benefit," the old man cut in.
"I think we should find somewhere else to talk, if you found me White is probably not far behind. He nearly caught me in Portland a few weeks ago; I just got out the back in time."
"We can talk on the journey," stated Sandeman.
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It was fairly comfortable in the mpv, Issy wasn't sure who owned it but at least there was room to stretch out.
"Ok so are we headed straight back to Seattle, or is there another detour on the way," Lydecker asked Sandeman.
"I think we should take it slowly, I want to be sure about the danger you present, before we get there," Issy replied.
Both men were surprised by her reply, "What have we done to make you think we would be a danger," asked Sandeman.
"Apart from the training at Manticore he always treated the kids like they were expendable," she replied nodding to Lydecker, "and you walked out leaving me to look out for them with no word and no contact until now, their wonderful creator with an alternative agenda to the Committee. Does that sound like people who care what happens to them?"
"So we need to gain your trust before you will help us?" Sandeman replied.
"In a word, yes. We are so much more than Manticore envisioned, we have human emotions and react as humans when threatened and cornered, but left to or own devices the training and abilities have enabled us to become a family and a nation. Why would I let you destroy that?"
"You speak very highly of them, even include yourself, but what else have you been doing, I've heard some rumours?" asked Sandeman. Lydecker was driving south listening intently not quite believing what was being said, despite his last encounters with 452.
"Using the knowledge I gained at Manticore, I have revived some of the X5's that the humans thought were dead." Seeing the shocked faces, she added with a laugh, "If you want something to act like a machine, it can usually be repaired by a good mechanic."
"What! How did you manage that?" exclaimed Lydecker, almost veering off the road in shock.
"Hey, watch it, I'd like to get to my destination in one piece. Anyway I don't think you need to know how its done, just that it can be done in certain circumstances. I also discovered how to remove those unnecessary Manticore flaws, the bar code and serotonin deficiency, which are my reasons for going back."
"I'm impressed, I created you to monitor, record and report your findings. I never expected you to take on independent research and develop theories of your own."
"What you created were individuals that were better than the best humans, to defeat a foe that you knew about, but you forgot that with human abilities come human emotions, a price to pay. Their handlers became frightened of them and instead of working with them, the handlers tried to subjugate and control them. That never works, your history books would tell you that. Some of the transgenics knew it instinctively, others by absorbing information whenever possible. Treat them as an elite force with full information and equal rights, and they will fight with you, treat them with contempt and eventually you will destroy them," Issy saw no point in wasting any more time, "So what do you want to do, ask them to help you with full disclosure or carry on messing them around?"
"We need their help to defeat my brethren the familiars, but other than explaining why, I can't make any promises," replied Sandeman.
"And what about you?" she directed to Lydecker.
"I want my kids safe, but they're soldiers and need be treated as such. Every army has its command structure, they need to know who their CO is and follow orders," he replied.
"They know who their CO is and will follow orders, but that CO isn't you. They will need someone to link to the human command, but they must be treated as a unit that will establish the best way of meeting the objective. If you work with them, they will respond. Your choice."
They were nearing the outskirts of Seattle and Issy wanted to get away. There was no way she would take them to Terminal City until she knew firsthand what was happening there and they had time to think about everything she had said.
"I could do with the bathroom, can you find somewhere to stop?" she asked innocently.
They pulled into a diner and while Sandeman and Lydecker went to order, she slipped out the back.
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Half an hour later Lydecker and Sandeman were still waiting for her in the diner. "I don't care how long you think a woman takes in the bathroom, I say we see when she's coming out," groaned Lydecker.
"If you must," replied the old man, secretly thinking that she must be long gone by now.
Lydecker saw a young woman approaching the ladies, "Our friend seems to be taking a long time, could you see if she's alright," he asked.
A few minutes later she returned, "I'm sorry there's no-one in there, just this note." She handed Sandeman a small envelope.
"Thank you," he replied opening the note.
"Dam, I should have realised," stormed Lydecker.
Sandeman read the note.
Sorry for the subterfuge, but I don't think you're ready for TC yet.
I will be in touch when I've checked back with Max, Alec and everyone else.
You need to sort out your side, in light of what I have told you. If you don't change, you won't get in, I'll see to that.
Issy
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N/A If it we're for my regular reviewers I would have stopped posting at chapter 4. I'm currently writing chapter 14, so some encouragement please. I try to review for others it would be nice if they could do it for me sometimes.
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