A/N: Special thanks to mars494 for beta-ing this! (Yay, I finally found a beta!)

Chapter 12: Call of Duty

Isolation Cell 2

Nic was doing some push-ups when several guards opened the door. He quickly stood at attention. He had not been in solitary long by Manticore standards, so he would be surprised if he was actually being released. His hopes of that were washed away as they led him straight back to the Director's office.

Nic saluted and waited at attention for the Director to address him.

"321, how are things? Quiet, I suppose? Had time to reflect on your behavior?"

"Yes ma'am!"

"And what have you realized?" Renfro knew 321 had not been in solitary long enough. She was planning on sending him back anyway, unless he helped her, of course.

"Not to kill rats, ma'am!"

"I was aiming for not sprinkling unwanted substances into employee beverages unless authorized to do so, but why should I waste my time on something you're not going to learn? I have a proposal for you, 321."

321 raised an eyebrow in suspicion. Proposals were not good things, at least while at Manticore.

"Tell me how Unit 9 has been working so effectively together in defeating the X6 Units, and I'll let you go. I'm sure your group misses you."

"And if I don't?"

Renfro smiled. "If you don't, you'll be given Class A treatment in solitary."

Class A treatment. Great, he thought. The worst of the three. "Ma'am, why come to me? Why not just ask 452? As our CO, she is more suitable in answering the question. There may be tactics she incorporated without my knowledge."

"Well, since you're in isolation, I don't see why I shouldn't take the opportunity to question you."

321 knew then that Renfro had tried to get the information from Max, but knowing his CO, Max probably didn't tell her what she wanted. He knew then that he could only do the same.

"Ma'am, you're asking me to betray my CO," Nic replied defiantly.

"I'm asking no such thing. I'm simply asking for the strategies you have been following that have allowed you such high success rates. If Manticore can improve its soldiers by trying a new tactic, then it would be important for Manticore to know."

"Ma'am, I have reason to believe my CO does not wish to disclose this information, so I am not at the liberty to say what that information is, even if it means Class A treatment, ma'am," he replied dutifully. He then added with a hidden smile, "I know you save it for the best."

Renfro furiously told the guards to take him away and give him Class A treatment – no food, no water, sleepless nights filled with high pitched sounds to prevent him from sleeping, random interruptions from the guards, random beatings from the guards – the works.

The Committee eventually heard about the reports, and they were anxious to find out how 452, an escaped soldier lacking years of training and experience, managed to pull together such a successful unit out of misfits. Renfro had underestimated the loyalty Unit 9 had developed for 452. She sighed uneasily as the brief fear that things might spiral out of control emerged. She didn't like how well Unit 9 was doing. She wasn't sure if she would be prepared.

Seattle Streets, Outskirts of Manticore

Lydecker drove through the checkpoints, making his way to a classified location. When The Committee finally found him, it came in the simple form of a mailing, addressed to his wife. The grief he felt as the memories flooded back overwhelmed him, and he was tempted to throw out the package, but his curiosity got the better of him. To his surprise, inside the package was all the information he ever wanted – the truth about his wife's murder. It even detailed the capture and imprisonment of the murderer – a revengeful soldier who's life was torn apart by his platoons deployment ordered by Colonel Lydecker. He had blamed it on the colonel and took revenge in the form of his wife.

At the time, the soldier had information vital to the success of one of their missions, so when his superiors found out about it, they feared Lydecker would stop at nothing to eliminate the murderer, hence the reason why information was locked away and kept secret. After the mission was successful, the murderer was sentenced to life imprisonment. Documents detailed the prisoner's transfer to what Lydecker recognized as Manticore grounds. A report followed detailing the training exercise that ended the prisoner's life. Lydecker would have preferred that he be allowed to deal with the situation himself, but justice was served in a poetic way, if he could say so himself. Of course, this was assuming he believed what they were providing him with, but he did, since it brought him a sense of closure that he had long been searching for.

The Committee wanted answers for recent developments at Manticore, recent developments the current Director could not understand. Elizabeth Renfro had a background in science. Her knowledge of military strategy and training was limited. After the DNA lab was destroyed roughly eight months ago, the finger pointing started, as Lydecker had anticipated. Renfro tried her best to get back on the Committee's good graces, but after the failure of Unit 8 a month ago, they had enough. Then they heard the reports of 452's tremendous success without clues as to how it was happening. It made them realize that Lydecker was an asset to Project Manticore and should not be disposed of like garbage. They needed him back.

When they explained the situation to Lydecker and offered him an increase in salary, Lydecker agreed, under one other condition – he would have control over the search for his kids as well as those already at Manticore. The Committee was reluctant to honor the request at first, especially after seeing how well 452 was doing. They were eager to see what other talents the other escapees would bring back from their experiences outside and feared Lydecker would not try too hard to find them. But Lydecker was ready to turn down the offer if his request could not be honored.

The Committee needed him back, however, so their answer was simple. Lydecker would have complete control over the search for the rogues, as well as 452 and 734. Lydecker smiled as he accepted the offer. He was not going to take any risks when Renfro held the other gavel. He wanted to make sure they would be safe. It was still his job to protect them.

Lydecker couldn't help but feel a sense of pride when he heard what Max had accomplished. He was surprised to hear she was alive, since he had seen her die. When they informed him Zack had given his life in order for her to live, he couldn't help but feel sorrow over the lost of a great leader. Zack cared for all of them, particularly Max. He had noticed his affections toward her when they were young. That one exercise where a party balloon had floated onto Manticore grounds – Zack fought off a TAC Leader just so she could keep the balloon a little longer. He should have known then that the unit was too close, but he had seen it as a good thing – they would watch out for each other. He never realized their closeness would lead them to escape.

Renfro was clever, coming up with such a risky plan to keep Max from escaping. But Max had exceeded expectations and now her success was making Manticore nervous. Lydecker chuckled at the thought of Renfro completely baffled. Max was one of the brighter soldiers, and more importantly, she picked things up quickly. He knew Max was only playing along though – the chances of her willingly going on a mission were small. He personally refused to believe that Manticore managed to reprogram Max, but there was that possibility...

He sighed, knowing that agreeing to this post would be seen as betrayal in Max's eyes, if she were indeed still Max. He would have to tread cautiously with her as well. Things were not going to be easy. It was fortunate that many of the transgenic soldiers were kept out of the loop about Manticore's failed attempts to assassinate him, otherwise he might have trouble instilling that discipline he had done in the past.

As he arrived at the gates of Manticore, he showed them the documents and was ushered in. He smiled briefly at the thought of walking into Renfro's office to inform her of his new position. She would be furious.

Gym Pool, Manticore

With the exception of Kev, Nic, and Max, the rest of Unit 9 had gathered at the pool during rec hour that night to play a game of water basketball, followed by Sharks and Minnows. Kev was probably gazing at stars. Nic was still in solitary. Max...was with Alec. Unit 9 could tell there was definitely some sparks between those two COs, but the two were just too stubborn to admit it. Of course, it didn't exactly help that all of Manticore thought they were together already.

"I still can't believe Nic just had to put salt in Renfro's coffee. We could have used his help today," Ammo complained.

"You'd think after that fire stunt he pulled a year ago he would have learned," Joy thought.

"Well, Max wasn't happy, and when Max isn't happy, Nic isn't going to be happy," Gai pointed out.

"That's true. Think she can teach him a lesson?" Viper muttered, her thoughts still thinking of that prank he had pulled on her.

They all laughed at the thought. "Nic? He'll never learn," Cody confirmed.

"Someone needs to teach him," Viper stated bitterly.

"Oh come on, Viper. Nic was just messing with you." Cody grinned, "I think he likes you."

Viper glared at Cody. "Not funny, Cody."

"What exactly did he do?" Fin asked.

"Don't you dare tell them," Viper warned.

Cody smiled as he told them, "It was during a training exercise between Unit 3 and Unit 8. Nic swapped out a good weapon with a rigged one. The exercise began and Viper was assigned to eliminate Nic. When she had him cornered and fired the weapon, it backfired and sprayed her with red dye. Her hair was various shades of red for the rest of the week!"

Viper clenched her fist, trying hard not to punch Cody for reminding her of that embarrassing moment.

"Oh yeah, I remember that," Ammo reminisced. "Nic could barely walk after that exercise," he remarked with a laugh.

Viper just smiled, "He had it coming."

"He was already going to solitary for that stunt," Joy reminded. "That was kind of harsh."

Viper shrugged. "Maybe it'll teach him to not mess with me," she hoped.

Ammo laughed. "Yeah right. He likes you. He'll never stop messing with you."

Viper's face reddened slightly. She hated this romance thing and could not understand it in the least. Why did someone have to come after her?

The subject changed as Tri made a shot into the basket, ending the game in favor of her team. "How do you think we'll do against the X5 Units?" Tri wondered aloud.

Everyone was silent for a moment, for they all had wondered the same thing at one point or another.

"We'll kick their asses, of course," Dart exclaimed.

Several agreed, but others were uncertain. The X5 units were definitely going to be a bit more of a challenge.

"Well, whatever happens, happens," Fin finished. "I trust that Max and Kev will do their best to make sure we win." Max had introduced Kev's name the morning after their conversation. Unit 9 was pleased that she finally had a name to go by, even though she refused to hang out with them during free hours. They understood she just preferred solitude, and they could respect that.

"Yeah, we can trust them," Gai grinned.

Rec Room, Manticore

Alec subconsciously wrapped an arm around Max as the movie began. They had taken over one of the few available couches in the Rec Room. Several other transgenics had gathered around for the night's pre-pulse viewing of Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, about four super heroes who must help save Earth from being eaten by something known as Galactus. The idea of it was comical, as were the fancy display of super powers, but having lived in Manticore all their lives, they could somewhat relate to the super heroes' unique abilities, and of course, there were some Manticore creations that mirrored some of their powers. Although super heroes, the four still had to juggle normal problems faced by people in everyday life – in particular, how to juggle work with relationships. Reed, soon to be married to Sue, just couldn't put aside work. And all Sue wanted was a normal life.

Max couldn't completely understand why, but their situation seemed vaguely reminiscent of a life Max once knew before arriving back at Manticore. The character Sue Storm was also remarkably familiar. Her husband was obsessed with work – when his country needed him, he was there, even when they had a wedding to plan. The nerve of the guy! But apparently someone has to protect the downtrodden. Blah, blah, woof, woof. Perhaps she had faced those same issues when she was out there. If only she could remember everything.

"Hey Max – that character Sue – she looks kinda like you."

Max smiled, "Yeah, she does." Max shrugged. "But I'm prettier."

"Who has the big ego now?"

Max elbowed him in the rib.

"Ow."

"Watch it," she threatened playfully.

"Oh, so you're free to mess with me, but when I try to say something, I get beat up for it."

Max just smiled innocently. "Well, it's not nice to beat up girls."

Alec rolled his eyes. "But you're not just any girl," he argued.

"Really? Then what am I?"

"Uh..." Alec decided to stop right there. He had a feeling anything he said would be twisted by Max and used against him. "Whoa, I haven't seen special effects like that in a long time," he commented, turning his attention to the screen.

Max just laughed, knowing she had cornered him and he had given up. She leaned her head against his shoulders and felt his arm close a bit more tightly around her. She smiled slightly as she felt so safe and secure, something she had not felt since coming to Manticore. It was nice...

"You know, I had a meeting with Renfro earlier," Max began.

"Hmm?" Alec mumbled, apparently focused on the super hero action scene going on at the moment.

"Even she's heard the rumors about us."

Alec turned to face Max now, his attention no longer on the movie. "She knows it's not true, right?" he asked, slightly worried. If Renfro even thought it was remotely true, they would be in trouble. Manticore frowned upon relationships.

Max shrugged. "She seems to think it's false, but she also said she didn't care if we were together," Max informed with a small laugh. "I certainly was not expecting her approval."

Alec scratched his head, confused. Then he frowned. "What did she call you in for?"

Max grinned smugly. "She wanted to know how Unit 9 was doing so well."

"And you didn't tell her."

"Of course not."

"Would you tell me?"

"And ruin our advantage of surprise? No way!"

Alec pretended to look hurt.

"Oh please. Grow up."

Alec grinned as he replied, "It wouldn't matter. We'll still beat you regardless."

"We'll see."

Around them, all the transgenics occasionally glanced over to see what Max and Alec were up to, wondering if the rumors were true. Many of them were under the impression they were. Many of them also wondered why 494, the well-respected CO of the best Unit in Manticore was with a traitor. They too had heard the rumors of Unit 9's success, however, so they left their thoughts unspoken. 452 was not someone to mess with, and the same was true for 494.

Mess Hall, Manticore

Max was eating with her unit in the mess hall when she saw her sister eating by herself. She excused herself before heading over to where Brin was seated.

"Hey," Max greeted.

Brin looked up, happy to see Max. "Max."

"We've got extra room at our table if you'd like to join us," Max informed.

Brin looked uneasily at where Unit 9 was seated. "I'm OK Max, but thanks."

Max frowned. "Come on, Brin. They don't bite," she tried again.

Brin eyed the table once more. "I don't exactly get along well with 321 and company," she finally admitted. "We'll eat together some other time," she suggested.

Max took a seat in front of Brin. "Don't worry about Joy and Ammo. Nic's not around so I think you'll be fine. Besides, I'll keep them in line," Max assured. "He won't mess with you."

"Joy and Ammo?" Brin asked, confused.

"They all have names," Max informed with a smile. "Just like we do. 321 is Nic." She then whispered why she had named him that, eliciting a chuckle from Brin. "261 is Joy, and 409 is Ammo. I promise they won't bite Brin. Come on, I'll introduce you to everyone."

Brin sighed but reluctantly decided to trust Max. She picked up her tray and followed Max back to her table.

Everyone stopped talking when Max arrived with her sister. Max quickly filled the silence by introducing Brin. "Everyone, this is my sister Brin. Be nice," Max ordered.

Brin took a seat besides Max, still a bit nervous. Before a minute had passed, however, everyone in Unit 9 cheerfully welcomed her and introduced themselves. Ammo and Joy even apologized for their past behavior, asserting that Nic was also sorry for the way he treated her when she first joined Unit 8. The apology was quick and short, but it was an apology nevertheless.

Brin relaxed a bit, seeing the effort everyone was making to lighten the atmosphere. For once since her return to Manticore, she found people who treated her just like one of them instead of a traitor. She smiled and whispered a thank you to Max as the rest of Unit 9 continued telling stories of past adventures in Manticore. Max smiled in return, squeezing her sister's hand reassuringly. Maybe Brin could become the older sister Max once knew her to be.

Training Grounds, Manticore

After roll call, Unit 9 joined Class Charlie to train. Their victories the previous week secured their spot among other X5s. As of now, Class Charlie was made up of Unit 9, Unit 2, Unit 3, and Unit 8 (although Unit 8 still has not been readmitted back into training yet due to an analysis regarding their efficiency after the failed mission). Unit 2 was not really an active unit – the soldiers in this unit excelled in everything but military combat, including technology, first aid, engineering, and demolitions. As a result, Unit 2's training schedule was structured more around what they could do well, rather than military training. Unit 2 was also where soldiers were temporarily placed in if they fell behind for any reason. Unit 3 was currently out on a mission, so they would be absent from class for a while, but they were much worthier opponents than Unit 2.

Although officially part of Class Charlie, Unit 9's morning training schedule changed little. They still started off with hand-to-hand combat and ended with a field exercise before lunch, which would now be held with Unit 2 or 3 when possible. Their gym time had been replaced with weapons training and drills. On some days, Unit 2 trained with them, but on other days, Unit 2 would separate to allow their soldiers to advance in their specialty. Manticore didn't want to waste military training on soldiers who couldn't use them. It also meant that Unit 2 would be available for a field exercise only once a week. Unit 9 would not face off with their first X5 unit until the last day of the week.

Unit 2's absence gave the trainers more time to bring Unit 9 up to speed. They worked them harder and harder as they realized all of them were quite capable of doing the techniques they were teaching them. They assumed 452 had taught them several things during their first week together since she had been learning with Class Alpha, but they also realized that a lot of the members of Unit 9 had more potential than any of them ever realized.

645, for example, was going through the exercises with ease. It was no surprise why 452 had chosen her as second in command. She was an excellent soldier. They couldn't understand why she never stood out before. Her record was spotless from infractions, and her performance reports indicated she had a lot of potential in a lot of fields. If anyone would look at her record, they would think she was a perfect Manticore soldier. It was odd that she was never selected to undergo solo mission training, which after additional training, would grant her clearance for solo missions. Selections were made by COs who knew their soldiers best and chose only the most exceptional soldiers. Unless 645's former CO had something against her, she should not have been overlooked. Perhaps it was worth looking into.

During hand-to-hand combat, Sergeant Henders had them pair up to work on some counters.

Max had purposely paired herself up with Nic. She wanted to make a point about how unhappy she was with the stunt he pulled on Renfro that had cause him to miss out on their last exercise with the X6s. Nic tried hard to suppress a yawn as he blocked an incoming punch. He was just released this morning and as Renfro promised, he received Class A treatment. Training was going to be a pain until he could get some rest.

Max watched as he barely blocked the punch. She then noticed the bruises along his arm. She thought he had been sent to solitary. Why was he beaten? "What happened?" she asked Nic as she threw another punch, but slower.

"Hmm?" he asked sleepily.

"Nic, what's wrong with you? You were just in solitary!"

Nic yawned again before replying, "Oh, I couldn't get much sleep," he replied lamely.

"What do you mean you couldn't get any sleep?! That's all solitary is good for."

"Uhh...there were mice."

Max rolled her eyes at his obvious lie. "Nic, what happened?"

"Nothing. I told you, there were mice. They were being noisy so I couldn't sleep."

"Nic, there are no mice in solitary. They can't survive in those cells. There's no way for them to get any food. Not only that, but mice don't cause bruises that big," she noted, looking at the large bruise on his arm. "Are you going to tell me, or do I have to break your arm so you can get sent to the infirmary to get treated?" she asked threateningly.

"Alright, alright! Renfro just gave me Class A treatment, ok?"

"For putting salt in her coffee?" Max asked in surprise and suspicion. She didn't even recall being given Class A Treatment when they were trying to break her during her first week out of med bay, but it may have also been because she was still recovering from surgery. Of course, it did come later in her reindoctrination, but not immediately.

"Yes! Just leave it," Nic said dismissively.

"Nic, what aren't you telling me?" Max asked, annoyed he was trying to keep a secret from her and get away with it. Naturally, she would have thought Nic to be the type to brag about what he did and how he survived the horrible conditions. Something wasn't right.

"It's nothing."

"It's something if you're not able to function during training, Nic. Tell me what happened," she said, a bit softer now.

"Renfro just wanted answers. It's no big deal."

"Nic?"

"If I didn't tell her, what makes you think I'm going to tell you?!" he retorted.

"I'm your CO. I deserve to know. We're supposed to trust each other as a unit," she argued.

"You're going to make a big deal out of it," Nic replied, irritated.

"What makes you think that?!" Max snapped, but not denying it.

"Because she wanted to know why we were doing so well!" Nic finally exclaimed, having had enough of Max's pestering.

Max froze. He was right – she was going to a make a big deal out of it. She suddenly felt guilty for being so mean to Nic, and for not having kept him out of Renfro's wrath for something she didn't tell the Director. Of course Renfro would go after Nic since she already had him conveniently locked up. She could just write it off as his punishment for the infraction he had committed earlier.

Her voice grew cold as she ordered, "Get yourself checked into the infirmary. You need rest. I'll tell the sergeant you had an accident."

Seeing the expression on Max's face, Nic couldn't argue and headed to the infirmary.

Director's Office, Manticore

Lydecker was escorted to the Director's office. He entered after being admitted.

"Deck, what a surprise," Renfro greeted, clearly attempting to hide her contempt for the man. "To what do I owe this...pleasure?"

Lydecker handed her a folder with the orders given to him from the Committee. "I heard you were having some problems handling things here..."

Renfro did her best to keep her anger under control. The Committee had granted Lydeceker near equal status, except he had overriding jurisdiction over their military training and missions. He also had complete control over the search for escapees as well as 452 and 734. They might as well give him back Manticore, Renfro thought bitterly. She was left with the miscellaneous tasks of Manticore's management and funding, as well as its research development.

"They weren't too pleased with the way things have been since the DNA lab incident," Lydecker explained. "Then came the failure of Unit 8, and the success of 452. They thought I could help shape things up around here, keep things under control."

Renfro closed the folder, clearly trying hard not to respond to the bait Lydecker was dangling. She handed the folder back to Lydecker. "I guess this is a welcome back then, Deck," she said, trying to look pleased.

Lydecker smiled politely in return. "It's good to be back."

"I suppose you know your way around here, so you won't be needing any orientations."

Lydecker nodded. "I expect that you will inform the rest of the Manticore? Or should I?"

"I'll send out a memo," Renfro replied, not willing to risk allowing Lydecker the opportunity to gloat about his return to Manticore.

"Good. I will be in my office if anything should arise. Why don't you forward all you have on Unit 9 to me?"

"Of course," Renfro said, clearly not pleased with the request. She wanted to hold on to any successes 452 would bring. It had been her idea. Shouldn't she receive the credit?

Just then, a commotion at the door diverted their attention as 452 barged right past the guards posted outside the Director's office. She was clearly upset. Before she had a chance to say anything; however, she saw Lydecker, and everything she was going to say was suddenly forgotten.


A/N: Well, I've finally settled down in Hong Kong. They literally had to move the previous occupant out of my room because he wouldn't move out. Hah. Thanks for all the wishes for a good trip – I'm definitely planning on enjoying my semester abroad! It's been pretty awesome so far. Here's the new chapter everyone's been waiting for - the key word was before September 3rd, hehe. Not after.

You can see that a lot happens in this chapter, and it only leads to even more to come. It'd be awesome if you could comment on all three of the following things in this chapter: Nic, Lydecker, and the MA scene. But just one would be great too...

I hope everyone got the Fantastic Four reference I used...if you haven't watched it yet, you should! Jessica Alba's role as Sue Storm reminded me so much more of Max than any other character she's been in other movies...

Also, for all you Nic lovers out there - I'd like to throw in a thanks to one of my friends who uses the online alias Bartlet. She provided the inspiration for Nic's character, as well as some of the ideas for his...troubles.

Finally, I regret to remind you all that since school is starting now (for me, although I suppose that may be true for some readers as well...), updates will most likely be two-three weeks apart, as opposed to the usual one week apart. I won't be saying this again, since this will become normal now, but I wanted to throw in a reminder this time just in case people may have forgotten and wonder where the update is next week. This story won't disappear, and those of you who are signed up for story alerts will definitely know when it updates! But the rate of updates will decline. I hope that won't discourage reviews/reading, etc...

Thanks again to my beta, and I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! At the very least, thanks for reading, but please, please, please review! Last chapter's review count set a new record...imagine how pleasantly surprised I was when I finally got off that long flight and managed to get Internet access! It'd be awesome if it could be repeated...

For my anonymous reviewers:

jondy09: As you can see, more Lydecker in this chapter...and some Logan will be coming up soon... Thanks for reviewing both chapters. I hope you enjoyed this update!

opalshine: Don't fret! I'll still update while in Hong Kong! Thanks for reviewing; I hope you enjoyed this update!

rebecca: Heh, glad you liked Nic's prank and the teamwork. More MA coming up! Thanks for reviewing; I hope you enjoyed this update!