Wow! I have 130 reviews! *is astonished at number of reviews* you guys rock! My reviewers, I mean…Most of you pester me to update, and tell me I sound like James Patterson himself! That's an honor! And the characters are all a little OOC for this chapter. Ok?

Anyways, here is the last chapter for this story…or is it?

*cries* I love all of you guys so much! But there may or may not be a sequel. Alas, here is the last chapter. *sniff*

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I woke up in a completely white room. It smelled like a lab, and I immediately tried to find a way out.

Then I remembered where I was, what I was doing.

I relaxed a little, then relaxed more when I saw that my whole flock was okay, scattered about the white room.

Even Total was here. And Jeb. And Ella. And my mom.

I saw Fang sit up silently, instantly awake.

He caught my eye, giving me a look that said 'We have to get out of here'.

I just closed my eyes and looked the other way.

When I looked back at him, he was staring at me, disbelief on his face.

I knew what he was thinking. Why wasn't I fighting? Why was I so calm about this?

As soon as everyone woke up, they would be told the truth. And then I would say my final goodbyes.

Soon, Total, Nudge, and Angel woke up, instantly alert like Fang had been. They looked for me, and then Angel crawled silently towards me.

I wrapped an arm around her.

"Hey, sweetie." I whispered.

"Where are we?" she asked, turning her big blue eyes to me.

"I don't know, sweetie." That was the truth. I knew why we were here. But that was pretty much it. I didn't know where we were, how we'd gotten here, or how long we'd been there.

"Why are we here? Who wants us here? Is it Mr. Chu?" she asked.

"Yeah, it's Mr. Chu." That's all I said. I didn't even think about what was going to happen soon. I just waited somewhat patiently for everybody else to wake up. Then I would tell them what was going to happen.

When everyone else was awake, which was about an hour later, Fang got up and went to the farthest corner of the room and sat there. Just sat there. Like he knew what was going to happen, like he knew what I was about to say. He'd probably figured it all out.

My mom and Ella were surprised to find us all there. Jeb looked a little…not surprised.

Yeah, that wasn't suspicious at all.

"Max, what's going on?" Gazzy asked quietly.

My heart thudded in response to his question. I didn't want to leave them, but I had no choice. I was promised that they'd be unharmed. But that's only if I sacrificed myself.

But I had to tell them.

"I, uh, kinda made a deal with Mr. Chu." I saw the thoughts flicker across their faces. Betrayal, hurt, disbelief.

"What kind of deal?" My mom asked in a tight voice.

"Not that kind. I'm just as much a victim as you guys are, maybe even more of a victim." I swallowed and took a deep breath, trying to build up the strength to tell them.

Fang wouldn't even look at me. I was pretty sure now that he knew where this was going.

"More of a victim?" Iggy asked. "How so?"

"I—I—I'm here to say goodbye." I whispered, looking down at my hands.

That got them all stirred up.

"Goodbye? Where are you going, Max?" Angel asked. I stroked her blonde curls.

"I'm—I'm—" I'm going to save you guys. I thought towards her.

"Going where?" she pressed.

"I—" I just couldn't tell her.

"She's dying. Can't you see that? They're killing her. She thinks they're gonna save us. Keep us from dying." Everyone turned to Fang, shocked that he'd spoken up. And at his words.

"Is this true, Max?" Jeb asked.

I blinked back tears and looked him in the eyes.

"Yes." I whispered, just as three white coats with tasers walked in.

"We are here to escort you the waiting room. All of you." One of them said.

I stood and walked over to them without a word.

My flock just stared.

"Don't just sit there, move!" I snapped, and they all scrambled to follow.

I felt bad doing this to them. My final moments, and I wasn't saying goodbye.

Especially Fang. I knew he felt betrayed by me. But I had to do this.

The white coats seemed surprised that we'd gone along willingly. I heard two of them whispering and moved a little closer.

"Chu said that if we had the leader, they would all come. But he said we were only experimenting on the leader, Maximum. That the rest could go free." One was saying. I rolled my eyes and stared at my feet.

White coats were idiots till the end.

We reached a white 'waiting room' with a white couch and several white chairs. The room was divided in half by a big pane of glass. It looked about ten inches thick. There was a white room on the other side, almost exactly the same, except there was a door in the middle of the farthest wall.

The white coats put me in the room with the door, and said that I had twenty minutes. At least the glass projected sound.

My mom was crying as she put her hand to the glass.

"You don't have to do this, Max." she said, a sob breaking her voice.

"Yes, I do. I love you Mom. I'm glad you're my mom." I said, a single tear rolling down my cheek.

Ella was next. "I'm so glad I have a sister like you. Even if…even if it was only for a little while." She said, her brown eyes sad.

Then it was Jeb, and Total.

"I'm proud of you, Max." he said, and I cried harder.

Total had big, fat tears rolling down his furry face. "I'll miss you, Max. Even though you were a bit of a dictator." I rolled my eyes and gave a short laugh.

"Love you too, Total."

Iggy was crying silently, and the three younger kids were sobbing openly. Fang was emotionless.

I spoke to my flock.

"I love you guys so much. Don't do anything stupid, okay? Fang and Iggy'll take care of you guys. I'll miss you guys." I said softly.

I laughed abruptly.

They all looked at me funny. "I wish I could hug you guys." I said with a soft chuckle.

Angel and Nudge smiled, and Iggy rolled his eyes.

When Fang walked up behind them, they all moved away.

"Max, please don't do this." Fang said, completely out of character for him. He didn't beg. He never begged. Ever.

"I have to." I said softly.

"No, you don't, Max! You can fight! We can fight!" he said, banging his fist against the glass.

"Not if we all want to live. I'm dying so you guys can live." I said, still not looking into his eyes. If I did, I might give in and fight.

This is how you save the world, Max, said the Voice.

"And you believe them?!" Fang shouted. I winced.

"I have to. This is how I save the world." I said, finally looking up into Fang's eyes. I saw a pain I'd never seen before from any person. And he was feeling it. Expressing it.

"I love you, Max. Don't do this." He said, leaning on the glass, his hands holding him up.

A tear rolled down his cheek.

I placed my hands on the other side of his, wishing that the glass wasn't there to separate us.

"I love you. Please." Fang said, a sob ripping through his chest. I was crying now. Sobs were ripping through me now.

"I can't. I—I have to do this." I said placing my forehead on the glass. I heard the door to my side open.

"Maximum Ride. We are here to take you to the operating room." A white coat said.

"I love you, Fang." I said, and walked over to the white coat.

Fang started yelling and banging on the glass. The pain in his face was unbearable.

Jeb, my mom, Iggy, and Nudge struggled to hold him back.

I hung my head and followed the white coats down the last hallway I'd ever see.

As they closed the door, I could still hear Fang screaming my name. I gave a final sob, wiped my face, and shut my mouth, walking behind the white coats with my chin up.

I was ready to save the world.

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Fang watched in horror as Max went with them without hurting someone. Or trying to get out and save everyone.

He started bashing his fists against the glass, trying to break it, trying to save her, trying to change her mind.

But then his own family held him back. He struggled, crying, shouting her name, fighting against them, trying to get away, trying to get to her.

When the door closed behind her, he sagged towards the floor, and the many sets of hands holding him caught him.

They all cried together.

When they fell asleep hours later, they woke up in the house again, in the basement.

Fang was up first. He looked silently at his family, and then went up the stairs just as quietly. He flew out into the night.

He landed a ways down the beach, and then he fell to his knees.

Grabbing fistfuls of sand, he turned his head toward the sky, yelling to the gods, cursing everything, everyone, for his loss.

And then he cried. Cried for the beautiful brown eyes he would never see again. Cried for the sunny brown-blonde hair he'd never see again. He cried for the death of his soul mate.

His heart was ripped in two pieces. He was missing half of himself now.

And he would never see Max again.

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I never knew death would be so painful.

As they operated on me, and slowly killed me, I thought of everything and everyone I'd miss.

I'd miss my mom, and her chocolate chip cookies. I'd miss her motherly smell. I'd miss the way she smiled whenever I got impatient, or protective of my flock.

I'd miss Ella. I'd miss the way she talked about useless, normal teenage things. I loved the way she was so hyper. And I'd miss my normal sister.

I'd miss Jeb. Even though I hadn't trusted him since Angel was taken, I'd miss him. I'd miss my mentor. He saved me from the school. I would miss my….father.

I don't know if it really happened in my real body, but in my mind, while I was slowly being killed, I started crying while remembering my family.

I would always miss flying. I would miss my flock.

I would miss Angel's sweet innocence that masked the mastermind underneath. She would always have a special place in my heart as my baby.

Gazzy and his messy hair that never seemed to obey, just like Nudge's. I would miss the way he could make anything and everything blow up.

Nudge's talkativeness; her fashion sense and mocha skin.

Iggy's way to make everything seem better, even if he was the worst off, being blind. I'd miss his cooking.

And Fang. I'd miss him. His rare smile. The way he always wore black. How he looked so vulnerable in his sleep. The way he handled the little kids when they were hurt, or when they'd had a nightmare. How he'd said he would never do anything I didn't want to do.

I loved him. I loved everything about him. He was the only one for me, and I'd only known it for a short little time.

After hours on end of pain, both physical and emotional, I finally slipped under into the black.

And I knew I was dead.

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The end—Or is it?