Sleeping Series 11
494 growled as he pulled his mate closer. There were few things that he treasured in his life, and Max was the first and foremost on that list. He watched as the small group of combat-dressed transgenics formed a loose circle around them. He sniffed the air. Some of the smells were familiar but most of them he couldn't place. He growled in warning and hugged the limp body of his fallen mate. She was gone from him but he would die before he let anyone else touch her. He would find a place for her body to rest. Somewhere that she would like: a high place.
Two people took a step closer to him and his eyes narrowed. They were talking to him but he wasn't paying attention to them. His mind was wondering where would be a good place to bury her that others couldn't find her. She had to be safe. Even with White dead there were still threats and he wanted her body to be safe.
He felt a wave of the sorrow that he had been pushing down from the beginning and he fought it off. Now, surrounded by a number of his fellows was not the time to feel. That was for later when he was alone.
The male scent that he remembered took another step and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. His eyes shot up to meet those of the other.
"Mine," he hissed in warning at the thought that he wanted to take her.
"Yes, she's yours… but Alec, she's still alive. We have to get her help." The other pleaded with him as he motioned for him to give her body over.
"No," he shook his head, fighting the conflicting emotions that were pouring into his soul. "White killed her, she's dead and gone. I have to-" He was cut off as a hand slapped his cheek. 494 looked up, baring his teeth at the woman that hit him.
"ALEC!" She screamed at him, stepping out from behind her mate. "Let her go, we can help her but only if you let us!" she pleaded as she scanned him. He shook his head, lost in the memories of the night. All his fights blended together as his adrenaline rush began to subside.
"Mine," he informed them again. He took in the growing crowd. "She's safe with me." He noticed tears in some of the females' eyes but blocked them out, pushing away the thought that he might be wrong. Suddenly the couple that had approached him attacked. He let out a cry of anger as his mate was pulled away from him by the female. He roared as the male slammed into him. They hit the ground and bounced on the wet grass.
"KILL YOU!" he screamed as he watched a number of females rush toward the fallen leader to help get her up and into an approaching van. He screamed in rage as he pulled his leg up under him and pushed the male body on top of him backwards.
"ALEC, please it's for the best!" Biggs warned as he watched his best friend and brother transform into an animal before his eyes. Biggs knew firsthand what losing a mate could do to a person and at times he hated Manticore for giving them these feelings. This was something that normal people didn't have to worry about; the fear that your own genetics would tear themselves apart over a person. Knowing that there was only one thing left to do; Biggs screamed a challenge at his friend for Alpha and glared at the other man. He knew that this would lead to a possible death on one side but he needed to help Max and this was the only way to keep the others safe enough to let them do their work.
The males that were still about formed a tight circle around the two as Alec turned to face his second in command. There was no flicker of recognition behind his eyes, only an animalistic need to fight for what was his. Biggs took a deep breath and settled himself in for what could be the battle of his life.
Cece looked over at the onsite medic as she worked on Max. There were tubes and equipment moving faster than the human eye could follow, but thankfully Cece wasn't human.
"How is she doing?" she asked, nervously wringing her hands as she looked at the leader of Terminal city lying silently on the bed in front of her. The brown haired leader had been so full of life just a few days earlier that it was hard to believe that this was the same woman.
"It's hard to say. I don't have the right facilities here to treat her. She got a high dose of poison that is attacking her feline DNA. It seems that it was targeted specifically at her. Whoever did this really hated her and wanted to make sure that she wouldn't be coming back."
Cece nodded, biting her lip and worried that they hadn't gotten her from Alec fast enough. There was a difference between dying and dying because of a mate. Cece doubted that Alec could survive the news that Max had died because of him. The van hit a bump and Cece threw herself over the prone body in front of her to make sure it stayed stationary.
"ETA on TC?" She asked the driver as she pushed herself up and off of Max's cold frame.
"Ten minutes ma'am," replied the driver as he looked over his shoulder into the back of the van. "Is she going to make it?" he asked, worry clear in his voice.
"Hope and pray." The medic replied as she injected her with another vial of clear liquid.
494 knew everything there was to know about fighting and he knew that 510 wasn't his equal. He understood that this was a ploy to distract him, but if he didn't fight him he would forfeit all rights he had. This could not be allowed, so here he stood ready to fight a fellow solider.
"You should give up now," he informed his opponent as he rolled his neck. He wanted to finish this and move on to his mate. He wanted to find her and spend time with her while he could. Then the rites would begin. It was his right as mate and this man and his mate had taken this from him. For that fact alone he was angry. He growled, getting ready to attack. He snarled as he crouched lower to the ground and began to circle the challenger.
His upper lip pulled back as he growled. Without warning he pounced. His upper body slammed into the other man. They tumbled to the ground, rolling end over end and fighting to gain the upper hand. 494 slammed his body down on top of the larger man as they came to a stop, pinning his lower body with his legs. He levered over his friend, his hands gripping the other man's neck.
"She's mine! This title is mine. Do you still challenge me?" He asked. His grip was so tight that 510's face was already turning blue. His opponent's eyes opened. He lowered his head as much as 494's hand would allow in submission.
"Good," he growled as he let go. He pushed the heavily breathing man away from him. "Does anyone else challenge me?" he screamed into the crowd of gathered men. They all bowed to him. 494 grinned then let his animal side show itself again. He sniffed the air, smelling Max. He growled in pleasure and took off after the scent. Soon he would be with his mate and everything would be back on track.
The medical centre was the center of attention as the on-call medics worked on Max. Cece and another female were hooked up to tubes feeding fresh blood into her system as the others worked around her. A sense of urgency flooded the area.
"I need help here!" called a petite female that was working on Max's side. She was applying pressure to her side where the snake had attacked her. "Her blood is thinning!" she cried as she pulled a swath of cloth off the table and placed it over the wound. It slowly but surely became saturated with blood as they worked on her frantically.
"She's hooked up!" Someone called. Cece looked around before her eyes fluttered closed. The amount of blood she had been giving was finally getting to her. She listened as Max's temperature and blood pressure was listed and the sound of her weakened heart beat filled the room.
"We're losing her!" A male voice called out. Cece groaned as the first sign of her incoming headache washed over her. She pulled the needle from her arm, motioning for someone else to take her seat. She then stumbled over to the bed and grabbed on to the side.
"What can I do?" she demanded.
"You can get out of the way," snorted a nurse. Grabbing her by the arm she was pulled out of the way and placed on a cot. "Just rest. Right now you can't help anyone."
Cece nodded in agreement. Her eyes closed as she felt the world around her drift in and out of focus. The only sound that was warming was the constant beeping of the machine attached to Max's heart, then without warning it was gone also.
494 crouched down as he came to the corner. He was nearing Terminal city and his mate's scent was only getting stronger. He growled at the smell of other females mixed among hers but it was nothing he could fix now. Jumping down off the three story building he was on, he landed on his hands and feet. He simply stood up as he brushed himself off and moved forward blending into the crowd around him. Walking closer and closer to the gates that surrounded TC he sniffed the air again.
Her scent had changed. It was hard to describe but there was something else underlying her natural scent. It was unpleasant and he hissed at the mixture. This was a smell that he disliked, it reminded him of the hospital at Manticore, and it was death.
Licking his lips, he looked around as he started to run towards the high standing gates. Having gathered the momentum he needed, he let his legs take over as they tightened then he felt himself flying through the air. He grunted as he landed, still at a dead run. He could hear people on the other side of the gates talking but he blocked them out. He ran faster than he ever thought possible to the medical center where he knew Max was.
He looked up at the only freestanding building left in all of terminal city. For this fact alone it had become the medical centre. Stopping for only a moment he closed his eyes, as he took another breath. He ran up the stairs, taking two at a time. He could hear them working on his mate, before anything else.
Pushing through the door, he took in the scene in front of him. There was mass chaos; people were running around the room, garbage littered the floor, people screamed over top of one another. 494 growled. He felt someone's hand grabbing his shoulder and turned around to face Joshua.
"Medium fella, have to stay back," the taller man told him.
"Mine,"494 tried to break free. The need to touch his mate, to get these other people away from him was overpowering. He twisted, snarling at Joshua. But the larger and stronger man held fast, wrapping him in a bear hug. This caught the attention of a few of the medicos and they began to search for something to do to help.
"Please Medium Fella, Joshua doesn't want to hurt you," the big man pleaded as he resorted to picking him entirely off of the floor. The only reply he received was a deep growl from the man he held. Joshua was still holding him still as a nurse walked over with a needle in his hand.
"Sorry Alec, but it's for your own good," 494 watched in anger as the needle sank into his arm, the liquid inside seeping into his skin. He felt it instantly. He sagged in the dog-man's arms, his limbs useless while his brain still raced a mile a minute.
He listened to the beating of his Mate's heart. He wanted to fight his way to her but could do nothing as the medicine worked through his system. Joshua placed him on a cot leaning against the wall where he could still see everything that was happening in the room.
At that moment silence filled the room, Max's heart stopped. Through it, 494 grasped the side of the bed, his throat muscles working over time as he screamed one simple word.
"MAX!" He screamed until his throat was raw. Then there was only darkness.
To be Concluded...