(A/N: Listen to Hit and Run by Breathe Carolina. YES. SO. MUCH. YES. Headphones. Turn it up.)

"Hello, Maximum." his voice grated on my ears. Jeb. I spun around.

"Why aren't you helping them?" I yelled. Dylan ripped his shirt off –concentrate, girl – and began expertly wrapping Iggy's leg. A quick glance around revealed that Fang had rescued Nudge and was keeping the other assailants….busy. He would finish with them soon.

"Oh, I am." Jeb answered. My eyes widened. Iggy's leg…was…..growing back. Sweat was rolling down the blind teen's pale face, his fingers curled into the dirt, which was muddy with blood and debris. His teeth grit together.

"You monster!" I shouted, "you're hurting him!"

Jeb laughed bitterly. "If only you understood how stupid you're being. You're the future of the world, Max. The leader. It's what you were created for."

"I decide what I was created for." I retorted. Fang was carrying Nudge over now. He was wearing a shredded black t-shirt, which showed me he'd been fighting a lot, and well. He was cut, in the hottest way possible. His long black hair was emo-cut now, no doubt for disguise. The long part in front just made me remember Africa, and running away together, and –

Focus. The Voice prompted.

"Whatever, Max. Keep telling yourself that." Jeb finished, darting away into a dark, crumbling building. I didn't have time to chase him. Iggy's leg was half-regrown now.

"Max," Iggy rasped, looking up at me, "it's okay. I'll be able to fight with my leg back."

"No, it's not okay!" I snapped. I didn't want Jeb screwing around with us again.

From his usual silence, Fang spoke. "Calm down, Max. It's okay."

The odd thing: I did calm down at his voice. Shaking it off, I stretched my wings out. I was dressed for battle – loose cargo pants in camo, tight army green tank top, my layered brown hair in a spiky ponytail with my bangs out. The Flock, however, was in regular clothes. All in varied states of disarray. I switched into leader mode.

"Let's go loot a clothing store." I said. The Flock nodded. Iggy leaned on Gazzy and Nudge, his new leg fully formed.

So we did.

Properly prepared for fighting, we anxiously abandoned the store and hid in an underground bunker – some crazy's bomb shelter, no doubt. We had found it right behind a house….or a burnt shell of one.

Iggy spoke. "Maya's not on our side."

I saw Fang look down. "We were wrong to trust her. She said she knew where Angel was. We followed her…..they attacked us, ran us into today. There were so many."

Nudge, now conscious, nodded. "We're sorry. Right, Fang?"

Fang simply grunted.

Well, I could work with this.

The Flock was back.