Aj: Sorry for not updating the past few days. A lot was going on.

Anika: It was only four days. A lot of people are worse.

Aj: Well excuse me if I enjoy torturing my readers as fast as possible.

The illusions instantly disappeared as if they had never been there the second Fang heard a thunk. His head swiveled around to see Max having a coughing fit that mimicked Angel and Nudge's on the floor. He immediately knelt down and shook her gently to try and help, but it didn't work one bit. Her coughing eventually subsided leaving only a thin trail of blood winding down her lip like a river before a storm. Angel looked at Iggy and Fang with anger in her eyes.

"This is all my fault. First we lost Nudge because of me and then Max. We wouldn't even be in here if it wasn't for me!" She ranted.

"It isn't Ange. It's Grey's." Fang reprimanded.

"Has the leader fallen? Who wants to take her place or are you going to leave her like Nudge, slowly dying?" Grey mocked. Fang really wanted to, but Max wouldn't want him to. Then again, when has he ever listened to Max? Fang stood up, about to say that he would, when Iggy clasped his hand over Fang's mouth.

"Let me, I'm not as important as you guys." He told him. Fang glared at Iggy and fiercely shook his head.

"You're just as important as any of us." Fang argued.

"Max is supposed to beat this guy. Angel has all of the powers. You're a better fighter then me…"

"No one is going to." Angel interrupted. The boys gawked at her, wondering if she was still the tiny tyrant.

"Grey is going to pull us apart at the seams. And none of us can carry you two. To help Max we just need to beat Grey at his own game. If we do, then we get them back." Angel explained solemnly.

"Oh is that it." Iggy muttered. Fang glared at him, but it was wasted.

"Let's go. The sooner we find Grey, the better." Fang suggested. He picked Max up and Iggy picked Nudge up and the trio began to run as fast as they could. Fang couldn't help looking down at Max's frail body and remembering how beat up she was after Grey had tortured her.

Fang looked down at Max's body on the couch. She had been unconscious for hours yet Fang hadn't left his spot once. Fang wondered why he left when she was still getting hurt, but now even worse then before. The only time she had been hurt worse was when they were at the school. Fang couldn't help but notice that she looked beautiful even with specks of blood dotted on her pale face. He remembered her reaction to seeing him again. Even though she was beating him up senselessly and it definitely scored in the top ten worst fights in his life, he could plainly see that he had really hurt her.

Fang drew himself out of the memory to find him being sucked into a brand new one.

Fang was sitting cross legged in a dog crate, trying to ignore the screams of other human beings as his new friend Max liked to think of them as. Fang had been taught by the men dressed in white all the time that they were all just replaceable experiments all his five years of life and then Max told him otherwise. Did she not get told the truth, Fang wondered. Or was this new girl with the attitude actually right? There was suddenly a squeaky sound that Fang could hear five times louder then any of the men. One came in, wheeling Max in on a gurney, unconscious and looking as if she was going to die any second. The man tossed her fragile body as if she was a pile of dog poop into the crate. Anger filled Fang's veins and he realized that she was right. And he promised her at that second that he would get her out of there alive.

Iggy sensed that Fang wasn't concentrating and it felt like forever since they had rested so he stopped running, along with Angel, who was just drawn out from Fang's mind. We're going to rest for a few minutes, Angel told Fang telepathically. He nodded and sat down with Max's head in his lap. Why did she have to close her eyes? Fang had just gotten her back and now he was losing her all over again. He remembered how he felt at the hawk cave when he wondered if he would ever see her again. Not knowing if she was even alive. It was like seeing something you've always known disappear right in front of your eyes and not knowing how to survive without it. Or in this case, her.

After an hour in Grey's time, the trio got up and began to run again towards the staircase that seemed nonexistent. It was almost like the hallways were getting longer and longer each level. They finally reached the stairs and began to climb up them to the eighth floor. Fang almost groaned at the thought that they were just past halfway done with this tower. When they reached the eighth floor they were honored by Grey's voice greeting them once again.

"You know that if Maximum was never a success and had died you all would have gotten normal lives." He informed them. Iggy paused at knowing he never would have been blind. Suddenly, a vision of light filled all three of their eyes and they all saw a school hallway. It was the school they had gone to in Virginia. Fang saw Lissa, or as Angel had told him that Max used to call her, The Red Haired Wonder. She was holding Fang's holographic hand and Fang seemed to be enjoying it. He wasn't dressed all in black, but still had the silent aura around him.

There was visibly a weight lifted off of his shoulders and he looked more carefree and happy. Iggy passed by him with sunglasses perched on his nose and his arm around Tessa. He was about five inches smaller then he was with bird DNA and it looked as if he was never bitter. Fang looked over at the real Iggy and he could tell that Grey was allowing Iggy to see this. Was this going to turn Iggy against Max? Fang also looked over at Angel. She seemed to be seeing something totally different from them and by the look of her face she seemed really happy. Fang had to snap them out of it.

He could see Grey was getting to them and if that happened it wouldn't be long before he broke them. He ran over to Iggy once his feet could move and placed Max on the ground gently. Then he began to shake and slap Iggy until he began to become aware of his surroundings. He gave Fang a look of gratitude and the two boys went over to wake Angel up once Iggy put Nudge down as well.

Angel was brought back to reality almost immediately. She was dizzy at first, but regained her footing.

"Where's Max and Nudge?" She asked. Fang and Iggy looked confused but realized what was going on when they turned around. The floor in the entire hallway was bare. There was no sign visible of Max and Nudge having ever been there.

"Shit!" Iggy yelled. Fang hit him, but Angel giggled. Now Nudge and Max were MIA and Gazzy was AWOL. If that wasn't bad enough, the thing that happened next was even worse. That can wait though.

Aj: QUESTIONS

What do you think would break each of the flock?

What tragic thing do you think I'll do next?

How many times have you wanted to kill me in this story?

What was the most surprising/suspenseful/tragic thing I have done in this story and why?

Are you mad at me for giving you so many questions to answer.

Anika: My answer for question number 3 is a billion.

Aj: Who asked you?

Anika: You did.

Aj: Just review. –Aj.