Chapter XXIX: Crescendo

AN:

Hey there, Fan-fic-folks!

Two chapter update today. Make sure you read both. This is the second of the two.

Thanks for reading and, as always, please review.

I'd never been to Salem before all of this. It was a nice town. More nature than I'd been expecting, even in the middle of this apparently lush natural valley. We headed across the river and right, down towards the airport. A little before heading down the road towards the airport itself, we turned off onto a small industrial estate and parked outside.

There was a small guardpost with a single tired, older guard, and a wood and chain fence around the whole thing. The others, already masked as I'd told them to be, slipped out of the truck after me and followed over to one of the wood panels. I gestured to Brooke, who pulled open her laptop and took out the cameras. When she gave the thumbs up, I gestured to Chloe who snipped the fence open with bolt cutters and a surprising dexterity.

Slinking through, we found a pretty typical small industrial park, some larger buildings and some storage bays and garages. It was one of the larger buildings we were looking for and getting in was easy. The place was supposed to be secret, so it couldn't have too much obvious security on the outside.

Inside would be another story.

The layout was oddly like our school - even the labs seemed an almost carbon copy of our science lab. I was almost tempted to mention it, but I don't think it would be in character for The Stranger to know that.

The only difference was, once again, an ominous elevator standing locked at one end of the corridor. Nath- Prescott slunk out of one of the side-rooms. "Security is down."

I gestured to Brooke and she hurried over to the elevator, plugging her laptop into some of the circuitry. She pulled some computer wizardry and the doors slid open - without the countermeasures activating.

We all filed silently into the elevator and I pushed in the code that I'd held with me since leaving the Island. The doors closed and the elevator launched itself downward into the earth.

"If there's anyone there, let me and Caliban handle it. Blue, you stay with Oracle. Oracle, you need to get to the main servers as fast as you can and start downloading-"

"I know, Stranger." Brooke snapped. "I'll do my part, you do yours."

She still hadn't quite gotten over Jefferson. Or my apparent and inexplicable hatred of 'Caliban'. None of them had, really. Chloe had followed as normal, but couldn't hide her suspicious looks.

As the doors slid open, we all scurried out of the lift and fanned out. The room ahead was small, clearly some kind of security checkpoint with scanners and such. We headed through - without alarms - and out the next door. It opened up into a t-junction, a corridor to the left and right and another ahead. Signage put the server rooms off to the left, so I sent the rest of them that way.

I went straight ahead. I knew what I was looking for. This had been the plan since I left. I'd one thing to do before I returned, one thing I had to do.

This thing had been in my head for long enough. It had been quiet for a while, hiding in its cage, but it'd be back soon enough. I had to get it out.

The final door required that same passcode again, and if I hadn't spent the last few months systematically deconstructing every bit of infrastructure the Prescotts had on the mainland, I'm sure the entire complex would've been full of security by now.

But I had. So it wasn't.

Instead, I walked into a quiet, still room that was almost empty aside from a large machine curled in the corner like a sleeping insect. One of the earlier drafts of the SIGMA Machine that Ratigan had been so proud of. Less functional, but it would do. It would have to, it was the only one available outside of the Island itself.

I walked over to the panels alongside it and started tapping the start-up keys. It took a moment for the old giant to whirr into life, but quickly it did. Large struts and arms extended out and unfurled to reveal an MRI-machine-like bay for the lucky person to lie inside. Several tanks filled with a familiar white gas raised from one side, and a series of other panels and access containers and dog knows what else raised from the other.

Even knowing what it was, and what it had been developed into, the thing was surprisingly intimidating. I hadn't expected it to be so... unsettling, to finally reach this moment. I thought I'd be more... I don't know. More something. Less this.

Still. Once more unto the breach.

I- shit. One cycle took far longer than I thought it would, at nearly 2 hours. The modern machine took barely ten minutes. Fuck. I'd have to bring the others in beforehand. They didn't trust me enough to stay out right now. And if they stumbled in and got the wrong idea...

I sighed. That also means... shit. Chloe. This was going to be awkward.

I went to find them. They were still hanging out in the server room. As I approached, Brooke called out, "I managed to switch off all outgoing signals. There's some kind of lockdown function for the electronics here. We should be alone for a long time, unless there's some sort of hardline built in that isn't covered by the lockdown."

"That's good. We're going to need to be here a couple of hours."

"What? Why?" Brooke blurted the question where the others stared, but all of them looked baffled and confused.

"I'm willing to tell you all, but it's an intense secret to hold. If you don't want to know, I respect that too. It's your choice."

The group of them stared at me, then at each other, the whirring of the servers and the beeping of the download the only sounds anything made for a while. Brooke and Chloe had a muttered conversation that Chloe was just a little too loud for, while Nathan stared at me. I politely ignored Chloe and Brooke and focused on him.

He suddenly smirked. Whatever he saw in my expression was probably not something I wanted the prick seeing.

Chloe and Brooke came to a resolution - the only one I'd expected - and turned back to me. "We want to know."

I sighed, and let my throat and vocal chords relax. "Right." Chloe started, her eyes widening as I reached up and took off my hat and unwound my bandanna and face coverings.

She swore, something low and angry and betrayed, and started forward, fists raised. I didn't resist as she punched me. I let the blow sit for a moment before I started to speak. "As you all know, I was marooned on an island five years ago. What you don't know is that the Prescott Foundation had a base there, where they genetically modified anyone they could get their hands on into weapons. They have eighteen series of genetic monsters. I was series M. Unlike the others, I was the only series M."

I didn't look at any of them. I didn't have to. But they listened. And that was what was important.

"My series was... difficult. They went through twenty versions of my genetic modifications before they got to me. All of them went insane, and killed a lot of people before ending themselves. I was the first to be stable, because they added in a control personality. But it didn't work how they hoped. Instead, the personality took over and wiped out everyone between me and the exit. I call it the Hunter. It took me months to properly come back, but after I did, I was stable and able to tap into my abilities without problems."

I told them a little more of my time on the island, in the depths. I made a few connections for Chloe, with my outbursts and nightmares. The Hunter was alert, was vigilant, all the time. That meant I was too. I finally braved a look at them all. All of them blinked back at me in owlish shock. Even Nathan, and he knew the basics already.

"When I returned to the surface, I ended up leading a revolution against the Prescotts. It didn't go well, and I was captured. Ratigan updated my genome and did something to the Hunter that took control of me, and I can't risk that again. I have to get it out."

I tried to take them through how it felt to be controlled. To feel the fog taking hold of your mind and not knowing how to fight it. I looked up at them all and there were watery eyes all round.

"The machine they used to implant the personality and modify my genetic code was the Sigma-V. This is the Sigma-II, the first stable prototype. It was left here, defunct, after Ratigan was moved to the Island by Sean Prescott. And it's going to remove the Hunter from my head and ensure that I have control of myself and that I can fight back and end them without just delivering myself right back to Ratigan."

All of them looked at each other and seemed to have a quick, wordless conversation. "Well, how the fuck can we say no to that, Max?" Chloe asked. She seemed to be genuinely asking for a way. Ouch.

"We can't." Prescott replied, "We have to let her do this, for her sake and ours."

I couldn't help the small spark of gratitude to the bastard.

"Fine." Chloe said, "Fuck it. Lets get on with it. We can deal with... all of this shit after."

I nodded, and didn't say another word. I didn't want to disturb whatever... peace wasn't the right word. Equilibrium? Understanding? Whatever. This needed to happen, and I couldn't have them interfering once I was in there.

It was harder than I thought it would be, to get into that thing. I'd had this planned since I left the damn island, I should be glad the moment is finally here. But something about it felt impactful like nothing else I'd done had. The Hunter was silent, simply sitting in its cage and listening. Waiting. It didn't feel a threat to itself yet.

I laid down and let the metal bed roll into the machine.

I was injected by needles in several places, and a half-dozen gene-guns started to calibrate and align themselves with my vital organs. I'm sure a few other things were happening too, but I wasn't a geneticist. Just whatever I'd picked up from Ratigan.

As the needles pierced my skin, the Hunter began to stir. No howling, as of yet, but it sat up in its cage and began to pay very close attention.

Then whatever was in the needles went into me and everything went a little weird.

It's odd, trying to describe it. Because it was a purely mental battle in every real respect, trying to survive invasive thoughts as a part of my personality was erased by drugs and genetic therapy and whatever else this machine did. But to me, to my perception, it was like a daydream of hallucination. Colour and symbols and lights and speech and words and stories intermixed to create this litany of nonsense that I couldn't recall even moments after it happened.

This was not like the Sigma-V.

Interspaced with my internal demons, I could hear bits and pieces of the outside world around me, though I don't think I really registered them as that at the time. They got mixed in with everything else. They were just one of the few parts of it I could remember sort of clearly.

Chloe's voice.

"-liar. How could she not fucking tell me?"

Brooke's voice.

"-secret identity, Chloe."

"What- -you Cal?"

"Me what?"

"-think about this?"

"You don't know who I am either."

"-tell us too?"

"No."

"Fuck you."

Laughter.

"Why'd she- -tell us now- -could've kept the mask on in there."

That's a very good point. Why did I..?

The thought was quickly swept away in the tide. That was okay. I'd catch up with it later.

Then the machine pumped another river of drugs into me and even the vague snippets of conversation just faded away into darkness and the screams of the Hunter dying in my head.

Eventually though, the river slowed and I fell to the shore. The tubes and needles and other medical stuff stuck into me pulled out and let me free. I stepped out of the machine. Well. Rolled out and fell, anyway.

I... I was free. The cage was still there, but it was empty. The Hunter was finally, mercifully dead. I even felt lighter. Like I could... Like I really, actually could-

I broke down into some sort of manic giggle fit. I just felt so free, so light and airy. I couldn't control it.

Nathan, Chloe, and Brooke all looked violently disturbed. I supposed seeing the scary vigilante lying on the floor giggling like a kid was probably weird. Eventually, I managed to pull myself together and stood. Dog, I was free. I was actually, really free.

I shook my head. "Thanks for waiting."

They all sort of awkwardly shuffled about, until Nathan said simply "No problem. Did it... work?"

"Oh yes. It worked. I'm alone in my head again. It's almost weird."

They all let that one slide. Or possibly just felt weird enough not to ask. I don't know. I never was good at people and removing the Hunter wouldn't change that. "So. Our next goal is to return to the Island. Everything Prescott here is dead or dying and I've collected enough evidence to make sure they don't recover."

And good riddance to them all.

"I know you don't trust me much right now, and that's fine. I wouldn't in your shoes. But I need you to believe me when I tell you that the Island is so much more dangerous than anything we've done so far. And I'd understand if you don't want to join me for this."

All of them exchange looks again. "I think we're all in, Max." Chloe said. "I don't know about these two, but I know the Presc-pricks need to be taken out."

Nathan simply nodded. "Yeah. What she said."

I looked to Brooke. "Seriously. No pressure. It's your choice."

She eyed me for a long, long moment. "It always was, wasn't it?"

I shrugged.

"Fine. I'm in. Lets take the bastards down."

"I know we're all feeling pumped up and unified right now, but I am not doing any of that 'hands in and say death to Prescotts on three' shit, okay?" Chloe pointed a finger at all of us, seeming serious for barely a few seconds before her face split into a wide grin. "Death to Prescotts."

"Death to Prescotts." Nathan mimicked.

Me and Brooke started looking for the door.

"So, uh... Stra- Max. Stranger-Max? Max-ger?" Chloe ambled up to me, rubbing the back of her neck as she mulled over what to call me now.

"Max is fine."

"Okay. Right, yeah. Max. So, uh. I just wanted to say, I'm not mad. Well I am. I'm fucking pissed. But I think that's fine? I'm not sure. I'm still thinking about it."

"Okay. I'm glad. I didn't want to keep it from you, but I couldn't risk the secret getting out."

"Well, that's a little fucked, because I'm here to tell you that you gotta tell Rach."

"What."

"What do you mean, what? Of fucking course you gotta tell her."

"You didn't tell her you were working with me."

"Because The Stranger, I mean you told me to."

"I didn't."

"What?"

"I never told you to keep it to yourself. That was your choice."

"Well, yeah. I gotta protect her from this- Oh. Right."

"Yeah."

"That's not the fucking point though. Look, I've known Rach longer than you and I know you two are getting all buddy buddy and that's fine. Really, honestly, fine, and I'll be best buddy for both of you at your wedding someday. But if you wanna keep buddy-buddy then you gotta tell her, Max. Trust me on this." She stressed.

I sighed. "I was thinking about it. When she said she was alone when the two of us were-"

Suddenly that clicked in Chloe's head and she blurted out, "Oh shit yeah. I thought I didn't remember any uncle."

I shrugged. "Sorry."

She just looked at me. "Look, lets just- okay?"

"Okay. Thanks Chloe."

"So, you'll think about telling Rach?" She poked again.

I nodded. "I will think about telling Rach."

And if I was gonna tell her, I should probably tell Stan too, right? He didn't like the secrets or the fact that I was hiding my war from him. Maybe I should bring him in? Fuck. Tell a few people due to necessity and you're already bringing in more?

Damnit. She was right, too.

"And you're gonna have to tell her about me, too." Chloe added.

"No. If I'm telling her this, you're telling her your stuff too. Yourself. I'll get mine done first - tomorrow night, probably. Then you do yours."

"Damnit. Fuck. Fine."

"Good."

"Fuck you, Max."

"Thanks, Chloe."

Rachel leaned back against the bike as she laughed. "Maxie, that is fantastic. You'll have to send me those pictures - my blackmail folder for Chloe is looking a little light these days."

"Blackmail folder?"

She shrugged. "You can call in Best Friend Favours, I have to get more creative." She gave me a cheesy eyebrow waggle - even I picked up on the insinuation.

Emphasis on the sin.

"That impish look scares me."

She grinned. "I am truly glad you're back, Max. I needed someone with all the juicy deets of childhood Chloe. Joyce doesn't share much these days."

The conversation died down a little as we chatted lightly about the day. Small talk. I was making small talk. Who'd've thunk it? Even before the Island, I struggled with that stuff. Eventually, even that trailed off into a comfortable quiet, side by side, staring at the ocean lapping lightly against the sandy beach ahead of us.

I stared at her for a long moment. I couldn't help think of all the time we'd spent together, her kindness and her interest. All the words that she and Chloe and my team had said to me over the last few weeks. I broke inside of a minute.

I told her everything.

And I mean everything. Dog, it just kept coming and coming. All the misery and fear and hope and confusion. Every nightmare, every bright spot.

Everything.

After the torrent faded to a trickle, we both just sat in silence, digesting. I actually felt lighter, even through the regret of sharing it. I knew I had to, but that didn't mean I had to like it.

"So," Rachel began slowly, shaping the words with calm deliberation, "all those times you were off on your own, you weren't just hiking in the woods, you were fighting to take down a tyrannical monster? Helping people?" She paused, serious face, for a long moment that felt like an eternity. I just stared back, my heart pounding in my ears, until she looked up and met my eye. And smiled. "Damn, Maxie. You're a regular girl scout, aren't you?" Her smile turned teasing. "Maybe we should start calling you Super-Max."

I groaned.

Then her smile turned reflective. "Is this what you were talking about, on the beach? Those things you had to do?"

Of course she picked up on that. I nodded. "It's too important. The Prescott Foundation needs to be stopped, or they're just going to keep on hurting people. And eventually they're going to get far enough they can start selling mutants like me to the world as weapons."

"Mutants like you?" She asked.

"I'm not human anymore, Rachel." I said, "Not really. My genetic structure is bits and pieces of humanity, but only to hide all the other shit they've put into me."

"What kind of stuff can you do?" She leaned in curiously, eyes running up and down me in a way that wasn't unpleasant.

And a question I honestly couldn't believe nobody else had asked yet.

"My series was designed as an infiltrator, so I'm faster and more controlled. I can flood my system with different chemicals, adrenaline and other stuff. Change my voice," I demonstrated, and Rachel gave a weird little shiver. Huh. "And, uh, more things too. It's, um..." I rubbed the back of my neck, quickly realising exactly what I was doing and in front of whom I was doing it and stopped. Rachel definitely caught it though, and smirked at me. "It's a bit awkward to talk about. How would you like it if I asked about your physiology?"

"You can ask about my physiology anytime, Supermax."

She winked.

I blushed.

Damnit.

"I guess that's as good a lead-in as any. I have to go back to the Island, Rachel. I have to finish it. But I don't know what happens... after. It's all I've thought about for so long, there's not been room for anything else. Anything... more. But I, I feel comfortable around you. I like being out in the world with you." I sighed. "But I'm a monster. I've hurt people, I'm going to hurt more people. I'm not even human. I don't know if this-"

Rachel reached up and put a finger over my lips. Her face was the most serious I'd ever seen it. "Come back safe, Max." She smiled. "Whatever happens next, we'll find out together, I promise. And on the human thing... well, I'm hella curious, I'll tell you that much."

She reached in and hugged me. I could feel the strength in her arms and the vitality of her. Rachel was so alive. It gave me some weird iota of hope. Maybe there would be an after. Maybe I could be... happy?

What an adventure that ending would be. "The corners of the world our mere prologue, huh?"

Rachel blushed. She actually blushed. "Oh. Chloe... told you about that?"

"I saw the video."

"Oh no."

I laughed.

Stan stared at me in horror. "You fucking what?"

"Yep." I shrugged at him. "You in?"

He stared some more. "Fine. I have no idea what help I'll be, but I'm in."

"Cool. We're going to India."

"What?!"

The dock was slightly isolated, tucked off away from the main port. My boat - rented, obviously - was already moored up, swaying gently on the waves. I trotted over and swung over the side, landing easily on the deck and moving to start readying the boat. My equipment and animals were already on board, everything from my mineshaft base was already secured.

I heard them coming long before they reached me, but I just kept on with the process until my Team arrived. Brooke seemed violently uncomfortable with the water, to an almost hilarious (and understandable) degree, but Chloe and Nathan both moved with the natural ease of someone who grew up in a fishing town. Stan just seemed overwhelmed. He hadn't been outside of Oregon in a while.

"Welcome aboard."

They trotted over the gangplank and settled around the main deck. The boat was relatively small, but the cabin could house us all quite comfortably - and it was enclosed and rain-proofed. "We're really doing this, then?"

"Assuming you're all still willing, yes."

All of them made grumbly noises as to the affirmative, and I offered them the briefest tour to go and put their stuff down under the bunks. We'd be travelling a while, so food and a change of clothes would be vital to our sanity. There was also a very good shower below.

"So, it all got sent out, then?" Nathan asked.

"Yep." Brooke responded - she'd been the one to spread the package, knowing how to make something 'viral' and 'interesting to the media', which were not my fields. "Every major and minor news company in the country, and some internationally, now knows every single sordid thing the Prescott Foundation has ever done. Between plummeting stock and federal investigation, I think we got them."

"Well done, Brooke. I couldn't have done it without you."

She muttered an insult as to my technical prowess - or, she meant it as an insult. Honestly, it was just accurate.

"Alright," I clapped my hands together. "We'll do a quick refresher on how to drive this boat and then we'll cast off."

The refresher went easy - Nathan and Chloe both were familiar enough with boats to catch on and Brooke and Stan were both smart people. And then we were off.

Sailing to the Finale. Lets finish this shit.