Disclaimer: The TV show Dark Angel, all of the characters that appeared on it (Max, Zack, Alec, etc.), and everything else that has to do with the show belong to their respective owners, not to me. No money is being made off of this fic. I only own the original characters (Becky/X6-405, etc.).
"Okay, it's been two weeks and not a damn thing," Rena complained as she, Zane, Jondy, Wayne, and Brin sat around the living room of Brin and Alec's apartment. "Aren't those negotiations getting anywhere?"
"Chill out," Brin said. She was holding Anthony in her lap and had an amused look on her face. "Maxie said that the negotiations were going very well." At the raised eyebrows that she got from the other four, she shrugged. "…and then she almost punched a hole in the wall but Alec stopped her so she just punched him in the arm instead."
"Maybe we should make a nametag for Alec that says 'professional punching bag,'" Jondy joked.
Brin rolled her eyes. "As immature as you're starting to get, you've actually got a point. God only knows how I would hit him when I would have a mood swing when I was pregnant when Alec was around and ask Maggie sometime about how swollen Alec's hand had gotten as a result of holding mine while I was in labor. I think I accidentally broke a bone or two."
"Yeah, and he had his hand bandaged for a week," Wayne recalled. He laughed. "I told him that I thought he did it on purpose to get out of diaper duty for awhile." They all laughed and Wayne opened his mouth to say something when a cell phone rang.
"That would be mine," Jondy said. She took it out of her pocket and looked at the caller ID. "Hey, it's Maxie." She flipped the phone open and answered the call. "Hey, Max, what's going on? Negotiations done for the day?"
"Oh, they're done for the day, all right," Max said, but she sounded happy. "Wayne with you?"
"Yeah, and so are Zane and Rena and Brin and Alec," Jondy said. "Why?"
"First level of the empty parking garage on Willow Street," Max said. "I've got some more calls to make. I'll see you there."
"See you there," Jondy agreed. She disconnected the phone and put it away. "Max said that we need to be at the first level of the Willow Street parking garage in thirty minutes. She didn't say why we needed to be there."
"Hell, it's an excuse to stretch my legs," Brin said. She winced. "Whoops, I didn't mean to say that word in front of the baby."
"What, legs?" Zane teased.
Brin glared at him. "If I wasn't holding my son, I would throttle you right now."
Twenty minutes later, they left the apartment and walked over to the parking garage that Max had told them to go to and to the first level. The area was filling up with transgenics. Most of the adult and adolescent transgenics were already there and more continued to come in from elsewhere in Terminal City.
"Wow," Zane said as he looked around the room. "There's got to be at least close to a thousand of us here. Where are…there's Krit and Syl! Hey, we're over here!" He held up a hand and waved to the two of them. They spotted Zane and walked over.
"This is insane," Krit said. "Whatever Maxie has to say, it's gotta be absolutely huge."
"Oh yeah," Syl said. "I've never seen this many of us gathered in one place."
Jace, holding Little Max in her arms, walked up to the group. "Hey. Is this all of us excluding Max and Zack?"
Brin did a quick head count. "Yep, all eight of us that are supposed to be here are present." She shifted Anthony in her arms. "I wonder where Alec is."
"I'm right here," Alec said as he walked up to the group with Biggs and Sasha. "Some party, huh?"
"You went out on the security group again," Brin said. "Can you give us a hint?"
"Nope," Alec said. "I can't tell you under penalty of severe injury inflicted upon me by Max."
"Don't expect me to tell you, either," Zack's voice said from behind them. They turned around to see him standing there looking amused.
"Why not?" Rena asked. "If anybody's had a front row seat to whatever Max has got to say, it's you."
"Hey, listen up!" Max yelled from one end of the parking garage level. Immediately, everybody turned to face her. "I'm glad that you're all here. I've got some really big news for everybody." She grinned. "The president has accepted the final terms. He'll be getting back to D.C. later this afternoon, but as of this time a week from now, we'll all be free!"
A huge roar went up from the crowd. "Oh my God! I can't believe it! We'll really be free!" Jondy squealed.
"Chill out for a moment, okay?" Max yelled, but she was still grinning. She waited for the noise to die down a little before she continued to speak. "I know that you all have first names and maybe some of you have been using last names, but we all have to pick first and last and maybe middle if you're into that thing, names by this time three days from now so that we can be given our passports, birth certificates, and any other papers that we'll need. I have the paperwork for that dealio here in Terminal City and it's in the control room so stop by and pick it up and tell everybody who isn't here to do that, okay? That's it for now and congratulations, everybody!" The cheering started again and Max practically flew across the parking garage level to her family and was immediately hugged by Zack. "Can you believe it? Can you really believe it?"
"We've come so far and it's finally here," Zack said. "We're going to be truly free."
"This is just…amazing," Wayne said. "To be out there like any other person."
"You can actually be a real doctor now, Wayne," Jondy said.
Wayne grinned. "Yeah. I can't wait."
"I am absolutely opening my own shop," Zane said. "Customize cars, restore old cars, general mechanical work on cars and motorcycles, everything. It's going to be perfect."
"Need a partner?" Krit asked.
"If it's you, then absolutely," Zane said. They both grinned and exchanged high fives.
"I don't know what I want to do," Zack confessed.
Jace grinned wickedly. "You've got a kid arriving in eight-and-a-half months, Zack. You'd better figure out something."
"I will," Zack said. He pretended to glare at Jace, but he was in too good of a mood to make it a real glare.
"I know that he will," Max said.
"What about you, Maxie?" Syl asked.
"For now, I'll focus on the baby," Max said.
"Am I hearing this correctly?" Jondy said in mock surprise. "Max, a full-time stay-at-home mother?"
"I'm going to find and get a job eventually," Max said. She stuck her tongue out at Jondy. "But for now I want to make sure that I have as smooth of a pregnancy as I can possibly have and a healthy baby. When the baby's old enough, I'll get back into the job thing." She grinned. "There's absolutely no question at all that the baby will come first, but I know I can be a wonderful mom and handle a job at the same time."
"Absolutely," Zack said. He kissed Max.
"Get it while you still can before she gets too big or too sick for it," Wayne teased.
"Jondy, make him grow up," Max said.
"Lay off of them," Sasha said. "I plan on doing the same thing as Max. Actually, after Biggs and I hopefully have a baby together and he or she is at least a few months old, I'm thinking of getting into modeling. When I have assignments, I'll be able to take the kids with me."
"Modeling? My friends back in Texas were nagging me from the time we started high school to the time that I left the state to get into modeling," Rena said. She smiled thoughtfully. "Maybe I'll do that. Either that or get into business somehow."
"Listen to us actually planning our futures," Max said.
"I know," Zack said. "We've earned them."
"I can't wait," Max said.
TBC
Notes: Thank you so much to jracklesfan77, angelofdarkness78, and HoneyX5-452 for their reviews and support! Look forward to family, Max's pregnancy, more reunions (some good and some…), and maybe a little action after all … :)