Sixteen ((I don't like this chapter… but anyway))

The other end of the branch took the impact of the fully morphed Ari landing beside the trunk, and I looked up at him in a surprisingly good impression of boredom. He grinned wolfishly down at me.

"What do you want?" Wow, I was doing this well. Ari seemed taken aback.

"Where's the flock?" He asked, apparently going along with my sullen mood, and frowning at me through his hairy, morphed face.

I shrugged; Ari blinked.

"Well then," He said, all sweet, "It's just you and me."

Ehk, what a horrible thought. I looked up at him in shock, and saw him grinning evilly.

"Oh, and my new friends, let me introduce them." Crap, look what I've done now. I remained sitting, trying to look dejected while my heart pounded and fear engulfed me. All around me, Erasers swooped in out of the trees, big, evil grins on their horrible, ugly faces. I watched them boredly. I'm so proud of myself.

"We saw you're picture in the paper, little Birdie. Dad isn't happy. Fancy you flashing your wings – and more –" what was it with boys and that comment?! – "In the papers. You're all over America." He sounded disgusted now, and I watched him with hidden amusement starting to overtake my fear.

"Really? Guess they'll bust the School up soon, then." I said slowly, almost smiling.

"Yeah, well, they might, which is why every mutant is on the line of extinction." Fear was in his beady eyes, though he otherwise sounded like his normal, threatening self.

"Really? Are you going to be first?" I asked innocently, and watched as Ari snapped, his heavy body springing towards me; claws outstretched to shred me, and would have if I hadn't thrown myself off the branch, dropping fast before flinging my pale tan wings out, catching the air and putting on super speed. I needed to get back to the flock, fast, and get us going in a different direction.

Being my turbo-speeded self, it didn't take me long to get towards the flock, and spot them, a pitiful distance from where I had left them, and coasting in my direction. They were all chatting – except Fang – and didn't see me until I was in their midst. I almost plowed into Fang, slowing down too late, and he had to dodge to the side to avoid me as I squeaked out a surprised warning.

"What the - " he began, and I cut him off with a wave of my hand.

"Ari is that way," I said, again waving my hand, but in the direction from which I'd just come.

"What?"

"Air. Is. In. That. Direction." I said slowly, staring him in the face. "Which means we're now going… That way" I pointed to the west. Fang was staring at me as if I was insane. "What?"

"You are insane." See, I told you.

"Whatever, but we're not going to New York anymore. We're going to Dallas."

"What's happening?" Bree glided over, carrying Liz, and Iggy followed. The Gasman, Nudge and Angel all hung back.

"Ari and a bunch of his Erasers are coming. From that direction. I just left them. We're now going to Dallas, so if you'd all fly in that direction, right about now, I'd be rather grateful."

Bree looked confused, and Iggy looked worried. Liz was asleep.

"Are you okay, Max?" Iggy asked.

"I've already told her she's insane," Fang put in, and I kicked him in the shin.

"I'm not insane." I said, irritated by their lack of co-operation. "Please, we need to go now." Oh, God, I was begging now.

Fang took a deep breath, as if it was painful to believe me – though I think it might be because his shin was throbbing – and finally nodded. "Ok, we're off to Dallas."

Wait a minute. Since when had the leader-roll been swapped?

Seventeen

Fang's POV

I was fuming. I'll admit that freely. Max was being so … so… Immature! What was she thinking? That no one would read the papers about a mutant teenage freak in Disneyworld? Jeezum. And she had the – the- Cheek! To get upset when I told her she wasn't going into populated areas. Sigh. This was more frustrating than it should have been.

And then she took off at turbo speed, leaving nasty words hanging behind her. Real mature, Max. Pah.

Iggy glided over, more than likely having heard the whole exchange, and the look the blind mutant gave me confirmed it.

"Were the photos that bad?" He asked softly, the tips of his feathers just touching mine on the down beats.

"Yes," I ground out. None of us had had the chance to read any of the articles – Max had nicked every paper she laid her eyes on. "All of them were full page, mostly showing Max's wings and face. Anyone who knows Max would be able to name her, and anyone who sees her will be able to recognise her. It's a disaster."

Iggy grunted. "You probably shouldn't have sounded so smug."

I blinked in surprise. I'd been smug? When? My eyes narrowed at Iggy, but he didn't know, so it didn't have any effect.

"She's already totally freaked that you've all seen her in her tank-top." Gazzy must have told him that… Actually, Gazzy had told him all about the photos. Why did he need me to confirm how bad they were? Oh well. I gave a sour sort of snort in reply.

"And then there will be Jeb." Wow where did that come from? He must of guessed at my confusion, 'cause he continued in a quite tone, "Max is Jeb's little angel, Max is the worlds savior, and Max is the one that just had her photo published flashing her wings all over America. We're going to have Erasers after us now. Jeb will want her back at school, where no one can find her, where she can't speak, or give away more."

I thought about this in silence and Iggy gave a small smile, and glided off to join Angel, Gazzy and Nudge. Liz and Bree were off to the other side, the girl asleep from the look of it. She'd startled when Max took off under her, but must have gotten over it.

Speaking of Max… I swallowed a yelp of surprise as I suddenly found her hurling towards me at turbo speed, and twisted off to one side, turning to look after her as she came to a skidded halt in mid air, looking winded and worried.

"What the –" I began, startled, but she waved me off, breathing hard.

"Ari is in that direction," she said, again waving her hand vaguely.

"What?" I repeated, staring at her in shock. Talk about 'speak of the devil'

"Ari. Is. In. That. Direction." She repeated slowly, as if I were the one that was insane. "Which means we're now going that way." And she waved off to the west.

"You are insane." I said, staring back at her.

"Whatever," Ok, that's a worry. "But we're not going to New York anymore. We're going to Dallas." We're what?

That is when Bree brought Liz over. I was right, she was asleep. Iggy followed them while the kids kept their distance.

"Ari and a bunch of his Erasers are coming. From that direction." She said, but I zoned out, thinking. I came back to reply to Iggy's question:

"I've already told her she's insane," and got a thankful kick in the shin. And it hurt like H-E-double hockey sticks.

Max changed tactics to begging, and I smirked – inwardly – and took a deep breath (my shin hurt) before replying with a nod, "Ok, we're off to Dallas."

Max looked at me in shock.

OK, I officially do not understand Max. But then, that could be a good thing, you know. After all, didn't she want to go to Dallas?

Eighteen

After about three hours steady flight – some 300 miles – we landed outside Columbus, hidden away in a rundown house, which we stole into and locked once we were all in. Bree and Iggy went into the city ((it's a city, right?)) and got us some food for us, which we ate with gusto, before splitting up the rooms: Nudge and Angel, Gazzy and Iggy, Bree and Liz, and I got stuck with Fang, who was still looking slightly confused (What did I do to get that look?) and we got the lounge. Yay for us.

"How did Ari find you?" Fang asked after a long, lengthy, huge, boring silence. Did I put awkward in there, because it was that, too.

I frowned, but then shrugged. "I don't know. I was just sitting in a tree, and he landed beside me. I reckon he was heading our way anyway, and maybe he saw me?" I looked up questioningly. Being his helpful self, Fang simply shrugged.

"Anyway, he said the whitecoats were on a rampage, and every mutant is on a 'line for extinction'." I sighed and rubbed my temples, feeling a headache coming on.

"Jeezum, Max," Fang sounded frustrated.

"Said the paper was all over the place, too." I added, just for good measure. Fang frowned at my head, since I had my face buried in my hands. I was watching him out of the corner of my eye.

"What do the papers say?" He asked tersely, and I shrugged.

"I haven't read them."

"Give them here."

I stared at him in horror. "No!"

"Max, hand them over." He extended one hand expectantly. I continued to stare at him in shock. "I've already seen the photos, Max. I want to read the articles." When I didn't make a move to get the papers, he glared at me.

"Fine." I said, almost sulky, and dug in my backpack to find the now twelve papers all displaying my image with various articles under and around them.

Fang took the top one off the pile, and frowned at the article, reading it so fast his eyes looked blurry as they moved.

"Nothing in this one. They don't even know what they're talking about." He snorted, throwing the paper to one side, and picked up another. "Nothing." Again he threw it to the side.

He got to the seventh one, and then whistled slightly. "This lot know what their on about." He said softly, and handed me the paper.

"ANGEL OR FREAK?"

The new security camera's, recently installed in the living rooms of all their hotels, are watched by a scarce staff that usually play cards. One guard, however, got more than he was hoping for when he glanced up to see a teenage girl standing in the door way of one of the rooms – with wings extending from her shoulders.

"I thought I was imagining it," He told our reporters, looking dazed. "She looked about 18 or so, and five foot something. She was standing before a mirror on the side of the room, and suddenly this wing extended from her shoulder! I thought I'd lost it. I called my mate over, you know, to make sure I wasn't going insane. We watched as this chick – does that count as a pun? – Started smoothing her feathers – Feathers! This other girl came over. She was heaps younger, red spiky hair. She helped her, and then the winged one spread her wing, and they'd be some thirteen or so feet from tip to tip, couldn't see them all from the camera. They are a light tan colour, very pretty. It was amazing." He said, sounding wistful, "then the red-head spotted the camera, and they started running around. I'd sent my mate to get the security guards up to the room, and then someone took out the cameras. When my work-mates got there, everyone was gone, and the girl jumped out the window. We assume she flew off, but we couldn't see her."

The girl and her companions – four males and three other females – are yet unnamed. Images of the other six are unable to be shown, unfortunately. They are aged from about 10 to 20.

Although reports are not yet confirmed, it is rumored that at the least, the young winged woman is the same as the girl that showed up in New York last year, at a restaurant. Photos of the six flying children were taken then, though none are clear or able to be linked back to this same case. It does, however, seem likely.

The young winged woman also fits in with the report from an anonymous person in (Area) that says they are 98 human, 2 bird hybrids. He refused to show himself to the media, saying he wouldn't put himself in that kind of trouble. There were six children when he saw them, apparently, and these two new ones are just that – new. He goes on to say that the bird-hybrids can indeed fly using their wings, which were sized up to 14 feet from tip to tip, and that they have many differences to normal humans. "Lighter bones," he says, "With air sacs and a larger heart and lungs. Utterly fascinating," he added, seeming awed.

We will continue with our reports as we learn more.

"Well, that's not good." I said slowly. "Interesting title, and that's the doctor from the hospital, the one that sewed you up." I put the paper down, rubbing my temples almost absently. "'Young winged woman'" I quoted quietly, sounding tired even to myself.

You're growing up.

Oh, goody, you're back. Well then, what should we do? I waited for a moment, but no response came, and I rubbed my temples and looked up to see Fang watching me worriedly.

"I'm fine," I lied, and he smirked at me.

"Sure. You should sleep."

"Yeah, right." I grumbled, but curled up obediently in the far corner of the couch, and, oh my gosh, fell asleep.

Fang's POV

I watched Max read the article after passing it to her, watching her expression. I smiled slightly, knowing when she read the bit about them thinking her 18, then her frown of worry as she continued. I wanted to reassure her, but that wouldn't have been me. Besides, I couldn't think of anything to say. I continued to watch her instead, but I don't think she noticed as she finished the article, and rubbed her head after putting it down.

I watched her worriedly as she told me what I had already figured out – the doctor and all – and then as she quoted part of the article. I almost smiled, but then she went hazy, like she does when the Voice speaks to her, and it was replaced by a worried frown. What now?

"I'm fine." Sure. A lie and we both knew it.

"Sure. You should sleep," I said instead, and smirked at her response even as she collapsed at the other side of the couch, falling asleep almost straight away.

I ran a hand through my lengthening hair, pulled my feet up onto the couch, and watched Max sleep, trying to figure out where it was we were supposed to go now.

Leave America was the only thing I could come up with.

Nineteen

I woke early, way early, probably about 5am, and yawned as I opened my eyes, turning my head to look down at the other end of the couch. Fang was asleep. Hah. I slipped off the couch quietly, stretching to remove the kinks, and wandered over to the window, staring out into the darkness. Movement caught my eye, and I focused on it, watching it zoom into focus, - and swore loudly, causing Fang's dark eyes to flash open and stare at me.

"What?" He asked, stepping up beside me, immediately alert.

"There." I hissed, and pointed out the group I'd spotted, watching them slip through the darkness. He frowned at them, apparently not getting what he was looking at, and I rolled my eyes, about to tell him when:

"Shit." Oh, so now he gets it. "Let's go."

We turned and raced into the rooms that the others were sleeping in, me starting with Nudge since she was the hardest to wake, while Fang set about awakening Gazzy, the other slow waker. Angel woke quickly, and I shoved her cloths at her as I half dressed Nudge, who looked woozy.

"What's going on, Max?" Angel asked, putting her shoes on.

I was saved answering by the loud crash that echoed through the building, and I heard Liz scream.

"Erasers." I said flatly, and Nudge seemed to wake up suddenly, looking frightened, eyes wide. The two girls charged after me as I ran out of their room, down the hall towards where Liz and Bree had been sharing a room, and found it full of hairy, ugly Erasers.

"Hello little Birdie."

I ducked to the left as Ari's huge paw swiped out at me, just missing my face and swinging over my shoulder. I responded by spinning, kicking him in the knee, and watched him stagger back. I did a quick look-see while he recovered himself, crouching into a fighting stance.

Fang had two in the hall behind me, Iggy and Gazzy were holding off their own, looking irritated that they couldn't blow anyone up. Angel and Nudge were laughing in a corner, watching two Erasers bash each other up, controlled by Angel. Bree was standing in front of the corner farthest from me, with Liz crouched behind him, inching under the bed, watching us with wide eyes. He wasn't that good at fighting – lack of experience – and looking like he was struggling.

"Gazzy! There!" I got the boy's attention as I dodged out of Ari's way once more; avoiding the punch he'd thrown at me (Jeeze had he taken his time or did it just seem like it was in slow motion?) "Help Bree." The little boy nodded and zipped through the crowded room, leaving Iggy on his own to take out the single Eraser.

"Hey, little Birdie." Huh? I gathered my wits just to have them knocked out of me as Ari landed a solid punch in the side of my head, sending me flying against the hall wall behind me. My breath left me in an 'oof' and I tried to stagger upright as Ari's foot found my stomach.

So not fair.

I dropped onto my knees, avoiding a punch aimed at my face, and flung myself forward, and wrapping my arm's around Ari's knees, I tackles his feet out from under him, causing him to fall back into the room, and I scrambled off him, breathing hard, as Fang laid the boot into the Eraser's back.

Where'd he come from?

"Behind you!" I choked out as another Eraser appeared, swinging something that looked like a chair leg at the back of Fang's head. Said mutant didn't respond quick enough, 'cause he got whopped real good round the back of the head, and dropped like dead weight right in front of me. I stared in horror as the Eraser hefted his chair leg and gave a wild cackle of successful laughter and stepped towards me.

Then he blew up with a boom!

Everyone in the immediate area was thrown out in a wide circle with bloody gore, and I wiped my eyes clear, standing up. The Erasers looked shocked, and after a moment of staring, fled. Ari, snarling his usual threats, followed after.

What the hell just happened?

Twenty

"Report!" I called out; standing up wonky, dazed from the bomb Iggy - or maybe it had been Gazzy? – had set off.

"Here," Angel and Nudge said in unison, Angel rubbing her forehead and looking slightly pained, and Nudge looking wide eyed. They both stepped up beside me, eyes looking around the gooey room.

"Injuries?" I asked, frowning at Angel, who was still rubbing her head.

"Surprisingly fine," Nudge said, looking herself over with wide eyes, and then looking up at me with a small smile.

"Fine." Angel said softly. "But that hurt!" I assume she was thrown against the wall.

"Guys?" I called, frowning, and was answered almost at once by Iggy.

"Here," Iggy scrambled out of a pile of dust, brushing it off him, even though he couldn't see it. Gazzy followed after him, now grinning.

"Here – and that was brilliant! Mind, it looks nasty." Gazzy added quietly, grimacing at the room.

"Warn me next time, boys," I said, smiling slightly, and looking around. Gazzy and Iggy both nodded, at me, though Iggy looked confused.

"Where are Fang, Liz and Bree?" Nudge asked looking around, and I felt my breath catch.

"Fang's unconscious…" I said slowly, searching the room swiftly. "He was at the Eraser's feet…"

"Crap." Iggy swore, and I spun to look at him. His head was tilted slightly; I think he was listening for the missing three, but he didn't say anything or give any indications that he was.

A cough erupted from under the dusty, gory bed at that moment, and we all froze, before Liz's deep red, black tipped hair appeared from under it, and she pulled herself out, bright green eyes wide with shock. "What happened?" She whispered, staring, and then eyed the group off. "Where's Bree?"

"Bomb." Iggy stated simply, and Liz stared at him.

"So you blew him up?" Nudge asked, looking up at Iggy.

"Nope. Gazzy did." Iggy said, turning his blind eyes towards where Nudge was standing.

"No I didn't." The Gasman said slowly, his face paling.

I ignored them, and spun around, feeling panicky. "Fang? Bree?"

"I'm here." Came Bree's deep voice from somewhere off to one side. "Fang's here to, though I don't think he knows it." The hint laughter touched his voice, enough to reassure us that Fang was alive.

We found the two boys hidden behind something that looked like it was part of the door, and Bree was kneeling over Fang, his right pointer finger and middle finger pressed to the pulse on Fang's neck, his left hand holding his ribs. "He's totally out of it. He hit the wall."

"Iggy, can you tell us how damaged he is?"