Disclaimer: You know I don't own this!

A/N: Erm…hehe…Yeah…I haven't updated in forever…sorry guys *dodges flying objects* I send out a BIG THANK YOU to all who have reviewed: Jojo, Sea Siren, Black Rose9, and an anonymous reviewer. I also send out a BIG THANK YOU to those that review now. Thanks for sticking with me while I write this fanfic. I'm not sure when I'll be updating again as school has gotten me warped up in heaps of work but wish me luck!

Chapter 12: The Infamous Ames White

The following Monday, while Asha went out, there was a knock at the door. Someone very impatient was at the door for whomever it was, knocked as if the world was going to end the following day. I went to answer the door. There, standing proud and tall, stood the one and only Ames White.

"Special Agent in charge Ames White," he said as he flashed his FBI (?) badge. It wasn't quite clear. He did it so fast it was hard to tell if it was authentic. "I'm looking for someone by the name of Kim Amberlyn," he continued. I tried to hide my suspicion, but it showed through. "She didn't do anything wrong. It's just a little government business that needs to be cleared up."

My answer was simple. "Oh."

But my mind knew better. White had cold heartedly killed the transgenic he ran across in the street as if it were an animal with no intelligence. He would do anything to destroy evidence of Manticore's existence…and the government would allow it. Kim may not make it back…

"Is she here?" White said, after clearing his throat, alerting my attention once again.

"Umm…no. You just missed her."

"What's the matter? This man giving you trouble, Kat?" Kim came up beside me.

"No, no trouble here—"

"I'm looking for a Kim Amberlyn." White interrupted.

"I told you, she's not here, sir." I quickly said, before Kim would respond.

"That was not directed to you…Ms." he said coldly.

"It's Nolan, Madeleine Nolan," I lied, trying to hint to Kim that this wasn't someone she would want to mess with. She took the hint.

"You just missed her," Kim said, trying to persuade them into leaving.

"So you're saying this isn't you…" White further inquired, holding up a portrait of Kim.

"No, that isn't."

He smirked. "We'll see about that." He gestured to his men. They approached. What else could she do?

"Where are you taking me?!" Kim yelled in protest.

"For questioning."

"But I didn't do anything wrong! This is against my rights!"

"In this world, you HAVE no rights…"

They dragged her away. I stood there, frozen, not knowing what to do. What can I do? I'm not like those super soldiers…I can't go and rescue them…

I decided to call Asha. She responded immediately when I told her what happen. (Of course, I didn't tell her that I was a scientist from a covert military operation that created super soldiers, but simply that Kim got taken away by some ruthless "special-in-charge" agent. She decided that some guy named Logan would be able to help. He has very many resources…

How can some rich guy know where some heartless agent took Kim?! Ok, maybe I'm overreacting…I should give this guy a chance…

Moments later, there was another knock. This time, a middle-aged man stood at the door. His hair was slightly messy. He stepped in with a laptop and several other cords….

***

Kim struggled to free herself, but White's men would not give in. After a while, they arrived at another building. Kim remained here, blindfolded and bound by restraints…

***

We briefly introduced ourselves and before long, Logan had hooked up all the necessary cables, he did a search. A search in the police radios!

"So, who was this agent you met?"

"I'm quoting when I say 'Special-Agent-in-Charge Ames White.'"

A look of surprise filled his face when I spoke those words.

"White?! What would he want with your friend?"

I was speechless, left debating whether to tell him about Manticore or not. I decided it'd be safer to keep our secret.

"She was involved with some top-secret government programs the government doesn't want anyone knowing about…"

Logan remained silent, apparently deep in thought. The silence was broken when his cell phone rang.

"Excuse me for a minute." Logan stood up and walked to the next room.

"Whoa…wait slow down, Max."

There was a pause.

"Zack? Are you sure it's him?"

Another pause.

"Alright. I'll be there as soon as I can. Be careful Max."

"An emergency's come up. It won't take long," Logan said to me as he started packing up his things.

For some reason, I felt uneasy. Could Max be the very soldier I created 21 years ago? I recognized Zack as the name their CO held. This emergency situation of Logan's couldn't have involved the two transgenics…could it have?

"Why don't you come over to my place and we'll finish the search there. I doubt it'll be safe for you to stay here after what happened…were you also involved in this government program Kim was?"

I told him I was. He gave me directions to his house when we both reached the ground floor of Asha's apartment. "Alec will let you in. Just tell him I was helping you out when Max called. We parted after saying our goodbyes.

It wasn't too hard to get to Logan's penthouse as it wasn't too far from Asha's place—merely a two-block walk. Half an hour later, I arrived and knocked on the door.

Moments later, a tall, young blond-haired, man opened the door. I gaped when I recognized him to be 494, Max's breeding partner. I was wondering what she named him—must have been due to his smart-alecky behavior.

"Umm…may I help you miss?" he asked, as I stood paralyzed at the door. Maybe this Max and Zack I had heard about earlier were the ones I once knew…

"Yes, a guy named Logan told me to meet him here. He was…helping me on something when Max called."

"Oh, come on in." I felt the X5 eying me suspiciously as I entered the penthouse.

"So…what's your name?" he asked me.

"Kathleen, Kat for short."

"Name's Alec. It feels like I know you from somewhere…" he commented, after he introduced himself.

"Seattle's a small city."

Alec turned on the TV to pass time. About an hour after I arrived, Logan returned with Max, Max, the soldier I created…

"How'd things go with Zack?"

"He's safe now. He's forgotten nearly everything and believes the story we told him."

Alec smirked. "Well, guess he's no longer a CO anymore," Alec joked.

Max threw him a poisonous glance.

"I was just joking, god." Alec rolled his eyes.

It was then that they noticed me.

"I see you found your way here without trouble," Logan said, interrupting the silence that filled the room.

"Yeah, wasn't too difficult." I gave a slight grin.

"This is Kat. Her friend was taken into White's custody. My guess, White wanted to silence her due to her participation in a government program."

I noticed Max's eyes staring apprehensively at me. Then she spoke.

"You look a little familiar to me…"

Alec's eyes widened at her words. "You thought so too?"

I remained silent, unsure whether or not to expose the truth.

Now Logan stood with his arms crossed and eyed me warily. "Is there something you're not letting us in on? Possibly pertaining to why White would be after you and your friend?"

Ah, what the heck. Time to let he cat out of the bag.

"Well, the reason you two," I started, gestured to the X5s. "recognize me would most likely be a result of your…history."

Their faces finally reflected a sudden understanding.

"You're a Manticore scientist aren't you?" Max concluded.

"I was. When you [pointing at Max] burned Manticore to the ground, transgenics weren't the only ones they wanted to get rid of. They also wanted to get rid of anyone involved with the matter, in particular, the scientists."

"The technology…genetic advances…" Logan noted.

"We knew too much about the whole project. They didn't want us letting anyone else know how to build superior soldiers. Death was their solution. I've been running pretty much since Unfortunately, Agent White caught up with Kim…must be my luck he didn't realized I was also involved with Manticore…"

"So what field did you work in?" Max inquired, a bit rudely.

"Well, if you're wondering whether I contributed to your tortured experience there, I didn't, unless you consider your abilities torture."

Max scoffed. "Manticore-was-torture. All of it."

"Max…there are some things I know you may not know about yourself…"

"Such as?"

"I'll tell you when the time's right…now lets get back to the situation at hand."

"Right…" Alec slowly breathed out. Suddenly, I was uncomfortable in their presence. Neither seemed to appreciate my existence…I wouldn't be surprised if they wanted me dead…

"Anyway, if White has your friend, he would most likely take her someplace…isolate, possibly a warehouse. I'll gather up some satellite images and see if I can track down what happened."

"Thanks…"

Logan left and the room suddenly was silent. Alec turned back to watching the show on the TV. Max broke the silence with a series of questions. "So…how long have you worked in Manticore."

"I've been there since you were born."

"How did you know when I was born…?"

"Well, Sandeman gave me a special assignment when I first arrived—you."

"Sandeman?"

"Yes…you've head of him?"

"Renfro told me to find him during her last moments…"

"That b**** finally died?"

Max was taken aback.

"Just because I worked for that b**** doesn't mean I liked her."

"Understandable. Well, she did die—courtesy of her own soldier. Oddly, she jumped in front of me to save me from the bullet the soldier fired…she told me I was special—the one they have been looking for. Then she told me to find Sandeman. Do you have any idea what any of that means?"

Logan suddenly interrupted the conversation when he came up with news on the location of Kim.

"I've managed to pull up some images from the past hour. It shows two vehicles moving out of out of the apartment. Following those vehicles, you get to an abandoned building about an hour from here."

"Great. Another mission." Alec replied, halfheartedly.

"It's all for the better good of the world." Max joked.

"Guess we better move out," Logan finally said.

I followed them as we all exited the penthouse. "I really appreciate you guys doing this…"

"Just proves to show how very different we are from Manticore personnel," Alec muttered.

I resigned in trying to persuade them into thinking otherwise. Manticore was hell for the soldiers there. And though I personally sympathize with them, they obviously hold no forgiveness for us. What can be done? Maybe they're just doing this to annoy White, rather than out of the goodness of their heart. No, they really aren't monsters…I know Max…she can't be…it's not her purpose….

A/N: Wow, I'm updating this 364 days later, as the last update was on December 23, 2002. Now it's December 22, 2003. I'm VERY sorry for the LONG delay…hope you still find this interesting…Next chapter will have a bit more action. =P