Well,
you've rescued another Manticore kid from Lydecker's clutches, how long are you
going to go this fucking crusade of yours anyways? Ah fuck, it's your damn fault
anyway, had you bothered to plan the way you did in Delta Force, all those kids
would be free, not just some of them, and they would have all had a fucking
choice about going back. You never are going to give up are you? You're just
going to keep this up until Manticore is destroyed, you're going to get yourself
killed before you even get close to pulling it off, why not just give it all up,
settle down, and raise a damn family already? Because it's your fucking fault
those kids are locked up in that damn hellhole, until you've got every one of
those kids out of there, no way in hell are you giving up. Robert thought to himself as he parked his
bike in Logan's garage, reminding himself of his mission.
Damn,
he was cold out there, he cut down three men with his gun without blinking, and
killed twelve more men with those napalm tricks of his, and that hit on the gas
tank. I had better tell Logan about this, the implications of all of this, I
hope he finds that friend of his who was in the Tracker program, maybe he can
help him out. God I'm glad Andrea's all right, I was afraid I'd never see any
more of my brothers and sisters. She was awfully spooked by Robert, sure he's
big, he can probably lift his motorcycle without breaking a sweat, and spooky,
but why was her reaction so extreme? I hope bringing her to Logan's was a good
idea, she is my sister, but for all I know, Lydecker planted a tracking device
in her somehow, and Robert can't detect it. I wonder what Logan is up to,
probably still foraging through Manticore files, trying to find out what else is
going on, I miss him, it's only been hours, but still, I want to be with him. Max
thought as she parked her bike, Andrea got off, and then Max followed.
"I take it the destination is secret, and I
should be blindfolded or something?" Andrea asked as they walked to the
elevator.
"No, but if you ever tell anyone, I will kill
you, the man you are about to meet has all the information I need for my
mission." Robert said, underlining the seriousness of which he treated his
job as protector of the X5 group. Andrea took a few steps back from Robert, but
Max laid a hand on Andrea�s shoulder and eased her. Nice work moron, nice
attractive girl and you freak her out by threatening to kill her. Robert
thought berating himself for uttering the threat.
"Relax Andrea, Robert is a bit� overzealous in
his defense of X5's, and he needs this guy to give him information to interdict
Manticore's operations." Max said as she patted Andrea's shoulders, which
had tensed after Robert had spoken his threat.
"Here we are, hold on, I need to check something
first." Robert said as he took a small electronic device out of his jacket,
and scanned it over Andrea.
"She's clean, no trackers, no wires."
Robert said as he replaced the device in his jacket, and walked to Logan's door,
using a small device from a small kit he withdrew from his jacket, he picked the
lock with practiced skill.
"A
man's got to practice does he not?" Robert said as he walked into Logan's
apartment, and led the way to Logan's computer room.
"You really have to stop bringing home strays
Max, it's not helping my low profile." Logan said as Max and Andrea walked
into what was Logan's obsession.
"Logan, this is Andrea, an X5, Robert apparently
helped her out escaping from Lydecker some time back, but she thought that
Robert was with Lydecker, and ran." Max responded, giving Logan the
essential details.
"I've recently set up a place in town where I
can work from, I put most of my stuff in there, Andrea can take the guest room,
I'm going to be going out tonight anyways." Robert said as he sat down, and
nodded to Andrea as he told them of his new accommodations.
"I didn�t know that Robert was similarly late of Manticore, I thought with the strength he demonstrated he was an X5 that never escaped. Lydecker's goons were chasing me, he suddenly jumps down eight stories and lands right in front of them, he then proceeds to break the lead man's gun in half, then kicks the crap out of the rest of the squad. I thought he was after me, even after beating up the rest of Lydecker's squad, I thought he would still go after me, so I ran, I had no idea�" Andrea said, as she told the tale of her brief encounter with this enigmatic soldier.
"I didn't expect warm welcomes regardless of
what I did, I was created to hunt you kids down, and haul you back to Manticore.
I was made a Tracker whilst I was among the living, I was stuck in a goddamn
wheelchair, I would have given anything to get back out of it, Lydecker pushed
forward the opportunity to walk again, I couldn�t say no. It took two entire
months while they fucked with my genetic code, rewriting my insides, I was in
the most pain I could ever feel, but I survived, I saw what happened to the
X5's, along with a friend who survived it with me. We were the two only people
to survive the Tracker program, we wanted to bust you kids out, but we screwed
up, we've made it our mission since you escaped to protect you, long story
short." Robert said, hoping he didn�t come across as completely evil. We
were made that way when we were in petri dishes, they had the audacity to change
him while he was alive, poor guy. Andrea thought as Robert threw out the
sordid story of his time at Manticore.
"It seems Lydecker wasn't just focused on us, he
knew what we were capable of, so he made you up, except you didn't play by his
games." Andrea said, taking the news of more than one type of project at
Manticore.
"I hated my time at Manticore, had I planned for
that breakout, you would all be free and clear, but you're not, call it my
mission." Robert said as he got up and stretched.
"I
would prefer it if we didn't continue, I am not one for talking about a long
description about my time at Manticore, I'm sure the two of you have stories to
swap, I'll be in here, checking out Manticore data with Logan." Robert said
as he pulled his chair up to the screens, and scanned the information spilling
out.
"I guess so, you boys don't stay up too late
now." Max said as she leaned over and kissed Logan, it held for a moment,
then the two broke it off after they realized they were in front of people. Max
and Andrea walked off to the living room, and began to talk for a while.
"Jesus fucking Christ, you've got a woman that's
the goddamn equivalent of a goddess, and you barely acknowledge what you've got,
what is wrong with you?" Robert said, making sure Max was out of earshot.
"I can�t hold her back, I am, I love her, but
I can't do this to her, I'm holding her back with me in this piece of shit hunk
of metal, I'm fucking stuck!" Logan snapped, he was as bad as Robert was
when he was in the chair, Robert thought.
"She told you, it doesn�t fucking matter, now
what is wrong with you, or did you lose everything below the damn belt?"
Robert asked, probing into Logan's thoughts, seeing what was holding him back.
"I can function like a man, I just can't be with
her completely until I get out of this damn chair, that's the problem."
Logan replied, he was obviously feeling inadequate, and damn well he should,
Robert thought, it's how he felt.
"I've been in a fucking chair, I know how you
feel useless, not being able to run, walk, kick, but my friend still continued
his relationship with woman, but he was a sex maniac as well. I didn't because I
wasn't in one, you can overcome that sort of thing for sex, but not for combat,
that's why I was willing to anything to walk again, so I could get back to my
arena." Robert said as he laid out his story of time in a chair.
"Screw not walking, you've got the most
beautiful woman in Seattle in there, is that lack of feeling all that's holding
you back?" Robert said as he smacked Logan's left leg.
"Ow!" Logan said, he covered his mouth, but
he knew it was too late.
"What, I thought you said you lost it all below
the midsection, what are you hiding Logan." Robert asked,
"I didn�t want to tell anyone this, but
according to Max's blood factors, her body produces excess nerve cells, should
any part of the body's nerves be damaged, they are repaired. Max gave me a
transfusion a while ago, it saved my life, and it seems I've received some of
Max's healing powers in the process." Logan said, telling his amazing tale,
he was smiling on the inside, finally free of this chair.
"I can tell you, if you need blood from Max, it
will take forever for you to get your legs back, but I believe I may have a
solution for you, but it could be difficult." Robert said, wondering
whether it could be pulled off.
"What, what is it, are you talking about your
genetic code, to stabilize me?" Logan asked, if what Robert's file about
his abilities were true, he'd be walking and running in days.
"No, it's more complicated than that, my blood
type is A positive, my friend Jon, has O negative, he's a universal donor, his
blood can have you walking and talking in days." Robert said, hoping he
would be able to find Jon.
"I take it you have no idea where your friend
is, and you have no way of contacting him?" Logan said, his hopes starting
to dash.
"I wish I did, we haven't seen each other for
five years, we usually meet up once a year, I think he's been out of contact
because he's being tracked, believe me, the Tracker genetic code is worth
billions, he's staying low profile." Robert said, and then Logan's hopes
were officially crushed.
"It's possible I could still find him, I'll let
you know if anything turns up, I'm going to go over to Crash, let me know if
anything important comes up." Robert said as he put his trench coat back on
and walked out the door.
**********
"So are you and Logan�" Andrea asked,
wondering what the angle was between those two.
"Yes we�re in love and a committed
relationship, but that's all for now, he's to damn proud to admit anything, but
his chair is his problem, he uses it to shield himself." Max said,
explaining her relationship.
"It could be trouble, with him being so proud
about his injury, I've seen it before, he'll never feel on your level until he
walks again." Andrea said, as Max took in the words, words similar to
Robert's.
"I'm trying to work him past that, don't mention
it, he's got problems with it even being mentioned, I've seen him watching the
police video where he gets shot in the spine. I just hope he'll fight past it or
something, I don't want to see him sheltered away his whole life." Max
said, silently hoping Logan was not listening in.
"Why don't we go to Crash, it's a nice bar, few
fights, and ever since Robert laid up a bouncer there, nothing has
happened." Max said as she got up, and pulled on her leather jacket.
"You go ahead, I've not had any sleep for 79
hours now, probably part of the breaking down method, I'll be fine." Andrea
said as she walked into the guestroom.
"Good night" Max said as she walked towards
Logan's lair of electronic marvels.
Logan continued to work at his computer, scanning through Manticore files, not
noticing as Max crept up behind him, and then massaged his shoulders. That made
him jump, and as he turned around, she leaned down and planted a kiss on his
lips that lasted for a long time.
"Do you want to come to Crash, or does the Logan
Cale Brigade have some lost animal to save?" Max said as she smiled at him
and he kissed her back.
"I have a mess of data to sort through, and
there is something on some move-out of Manticore personnel, I'm going to keep an
eye on it, I'll page you if anything major comes of it. I will see you later
though I presume, we kind of cut it short earlier�" Logan said as he
tapped at his keyboard, and then pulled Max into another kiss. They both smiled
at each other as the kiss broke off, and they realized this was enrapturing them
both, they slowly broke off, Max flashed him another smile than headed out door.
God
if only he would realize that the chair is not holding him back, when will he
realize I don't care what he says, screw that fucking chair! He's using it as an
excuse to keep distant. Max
thought as she mounted her bike and rode off to Crash.
************
Who is Robert? All you know is that you owe your life to
him two times now, and he doesn�t seem to have a problem killing people, the
writing was on the ground. Ease up on him though, you barely know the guy, he
could be okay. Give it a rest girl, he turned you on, that�s all, and you
turned him on, that implaceable mask of his cracked a little when he took a look
at you in the elevator. But what�s wrong with being attracted to a
great-looking guy like Robert who can protect you? You know what�s wrong,
he�s a cold-blooded killer. Quit thinking about it, just rest, and think about
it later. Andrea thought as she drifted off to
sleep on the guest bed.
************
"Well, if it isn�t the tank again, wonder what
he's up to." Original Cindy said as Robert walked into the bar. Max trailed
in a minute later, she had obviously been peeling out in her cycle to get here
this fast. Max caught up to Robert at the bar, grabbed her own beer, than
pointed towards Kendra, Original Cindy, Herbal, and Sketchy.
"As long as he isn't in a bad mood, I'm happy,
he's just here for a beer, it's not like he's going to challenge people to
cage-fight or something." Sketchy said as Robert and Max came up.
"Max, Robert, everyone, you're in for a surprise
tonight, after much deliberation, I have decided to introduce you all to Mr.
Multiples." Kendra said, and everyone turned around, making sure they heard
that right.
"Is that the guy who can go at it for twelve
hours straight? Man, he and my buddy from the army would've gotten along
famously." Robert said as he sat down, wondering who this guy was anyways.
"He's here, hey Jon! Over here!" Kendra
waved at a man, he was 6'2", was built solid, brown hair, and wore a
leather trench coat.
Robert wheeled about, and recognised the scent of the
man, he knew who that was. He got up out of his chair, and approached the man,
he knew who it was, and why he was here.
"Jesus fucking Christ man, Jon I thought you
were fucking dead! Why the hell do you just pop out of nowhere, goddamn, it's
been to long." Robert said as the two embraced in a backslapping hug.
"Those two know each other? Max why didn't you
tell me that you were gonna bring my boyfriend's buddies around here?"
Kendra said as she looked at Max.
"I had no idea they were friends, I thought you
said I knew this guy, what's going on?" Max said as Robert and Jon laughed
about something and then joined the rest of the gang at the table.
"You do know me, remember 'bout two years back,
I was the guy who took down those gang members who were shaking down the Jam
Pony kids for cash, they had guns, lots of guns, but I still shut 'em
down?" Jon said as he gave Kendra a quick peck, than continued.
"I was also working at Jam Pony at the time, I
quit after two weeks of "bip bip bip", I see you've managed to dragoon
the tank into it, Rob, what the hell are you doing in Seattle my friend?"
Jon said as he downed his beer.
"Funny, I was about to ask you the same damn
thing, I'm just hanging out here for a change of scenery, and I may have an
angle on a new job, for both of us." Robert said to Jon, as he similarly
downed his beer.
"Really, what kind of job might that be, killing
people, or blowing stuff up? You know, the usual�" Jon said, much to the
shock of everyone else.
"Relax people, Jon has a two track mind, his
military past, and his sexual drive, as Kendra has no doubt figured out by
now." Robert said, as he brought back another pitcher, and sat down, and
poured himself a drink.
"My friend, I have a job for us that can put our
skills to the test, the skills that you don't use in the bedroom, just remember
that." Robert said as Jon laughed, the two however quieted as the Jam Pony
gang started grilling them about how they know each other, and Max, after
evading 20 questions for two pitchers, the two friends managed to slip out, and
chat.
*********
"Jesus fucking Christ! I can't believe you are
hanging out with Max, she is the hottest babe I have ever seen, how do you get
so lucky, I thought you were out of the game." Jon said to Robert as the
two walked down the street, not believing his friend, the hard, grizzled soldier
was back into the game.
"If you ever bother to use that amped-up nose of
yours, you'd notice she has been with someone else, I told you, I never got back
in the game, but you seem to be banging her roommate, what started that?"
Robert asked as they walked down the street, they were wearing leather trench
coats, were big, wore blood red and silver mirrored sunglasses respectively, and
kept on walking, no one stopped them.
"I was checking up on Max, making sure she was
still okay, but I ran into her roommate that night, we got to talking, about our
habits, and well�" Jon said as they walked, not slowing.
"I can guess it from there, and even if I wanted
Max, it's not happening, which reminds me, I need a favor from you, it
guarantees your job though." Robert said as he walked, hoping Jon wouldn't
mind.
"What do you fucking mean that you couldn't have
a chance with her? Women fucking jumped all over your ass back home, even in
bars overseas, why the hell don't you have a chance, besides the whole dark and
disturbed thing?" Jon asked, he was still bothered that his friend carried
his time at Manticore, and his battle demons with him, never letting go.
"She's with someone else, my own employer to be
exact, he can give me information on Manticore and X5 escapee locations, your
employer I believe as well, if I can get you in." Robert replied, trying to
deflect the conversation away from him, he never liked the dating scene, even
before Manticore.
"You're just making excuses again, you're still
fucking hung up on her aren't you? Goddamn son of a bitch, SHE DIED! Fifteen
fucking years ago, let the fucking thing go, you only got it from her four times
anyway! For the love of fucking god, get on with your life, forget her and
Manticore, and get laid!" Jon yelled at Robert, but before he could move,
Robert connected with his right fist, and knocked him over, Robert spat, then
pulled him back up.
"I fucking told you to leave that alone, and if
you ever bring her up again, and make some fucking comment like that, I will
fucking kill you. I don't care how many goddamn times I have to smash your
goddamn head into the sidewalk!" Robert yelled at him, Jon spat, readjusted
his glasses and then continued.
"Hold on, I know that smell and look on your
face, you�re attracted to someone else aren�t you?" Jon said catching
Robert�s arm and stopping him.
�She�s just someone I saved earlier this night,
nothing of your concern.� Robert said quickly as they continued to walk.
�More than that I�d say.� Jon said continuing
the discussion.
�You and I know that I gave that sort of thing up a
long time ago, I had to adapt.� Robert said cutting off the discussion about
his thoughts about Andrea.
�You really have lost it since Manticore haven�t
you? I don�t know how you live with yourself, what is your problem?� Jon
asked, he had worried about Robert ever since Manticore, he had become worse,
more dark, more depressed, his only solace was combat, which bothered Jon.
"My fucking problem is I'm not goddamn human
anymore! Human's can't smell the mood changes of anyone, sense someone's scent
from fifty miles, and remember it forever. Humans can't see from half a mile in
pitch black perfectly without visual aid. Humans can actually have their fucking
bones broken and body's mangled, we just keep on going! Human's age, we don't,
human's can't do this either!" Robert runs his arm through a brick wall,
not cutting it, not pulling it back in pain, the fist wasn't mangled, he simply
pulled it out, and kept walking.
"We look human, we act human, we were born
human, that's close enough and I don�t see any of the X5's like you, why do
you act like this?" Jon said, wondering if he could pierce his friend's
shell.
"The X5's were born that way, they didn't have a
choice, we did, we thought that getting out of our chairs was more important
than anything, than we get treated like lab rats for two months! We willingly
sacrificed our genetic code, what is the true proof that we are human, so we
could walk again, we fucked up rescuing X5, you can go fuck Kendra all you like,
some of us still remember the mission." Robert replied, his friend was
sexually active, he could tell by his pheromones, but that brought a response
from Jon he did not expect.
"What! You think I've been slacking off on this
damn job ever since I met her? I see her three-four times a month tops, I roam
from here to Southern California, I check up on another kid down there. We�re
kind of running short on them if you haven't noticed, we're both fucking up on
our jobs, we can't keep these kids safe, now who is this guy you keep talking
about anyways?" Jon asked as
they rounded the street back to Crash.
"I am working for Eyes Only, he provides me with
info on Manticore and X5 kids, I do wetwork, and keep an eye on Max, who was the
original superhero for Eyes Only. He keeps me around to make sure Max stays safe
on the missions, but one thing, Max doesn�t do guns, so don�t offer her
one." Robert said, much to Jon's dismay.
"You�re going into a combat zone and you�re
the only one packing?" Jon asked, wondering what was up.
�I was told she doesn�t do guns, and I�m not
going to push her on it, end of story.� Robert said cutting Jon off from
continuing the discussion.
�Fair enough, now that we�re all together,
perhaps we can really do some damage, should I worry about any immediate threats
though?� Jon asked, wondering if Robert had made any �friends� since he
had come to Seattle.
�The Red Series took a crack at Max, and I kicked
the shit out of a team of Manticore boys that were herding home an X5, other
than that, zip.� Robert answered, giving out a quick enemies list.
"Shit, Red Series are in town, what's the angle
of the South Africans on this one, what do they want?" Jon asked, wondering
what they were doing, the two had run afoul of Red's some time ago, they were
not anxious to repeat the encounter.
"They want Max's genetic code, they want it to
stabilize their men so they can tolerate the implant for years instead of
months, using gene splicing techniques. I've killed three Red's, but there are
at least four left, if they haven't recruited any more of them." Robert
said as they walked back to Crash.
"It seems we have some heads to crack, but what
was this favor you wanted of me before I joined up, do I have to kill or expose
someone for initiation?" Jon said, knowing that at least with combat, he
and Robert were on the same track.
"I need a blood donation from you, our genetic
code can heal us, and I presume, anyone who received a blood transfusion, except
the Manticore X series. My employer is paralyzed below the waist, he experienced
some sensation after a blood transfusion from Max, I believe with a transfusion
from you, he could walk in days. It cannot be carried out right away, if
elements of your blood and Max's blood were to mix, the results would be fatal.
We have to wait for her blood to flush out of him, or we kill him with your
blood. Right now, we also have other measures to take, Lydecker may be coming to
Seattle, and he may just bring X5's, we can take them, but with enough men, we
could be in deep shit." Robert said as they came back to the front of Crash
and stopped.
"I'm sure, we've had one to many problems with
Lydecker in the past, he may think we're dead, but his men are always crawling
for X5 kids. I believe you reek of two different X5's my friend, who's the
other?" Jon asked, wondering what other X5 was around here.
"Her name is Andrea, we just picked her up
today, that's the one I told you about, she's at my bosses, resting, I've got a
small place with a garage set up for weapon working. It's good to see you again
my friend, but we should get to business, my boss gave me an access code to
remotely access the Eyes Only network, we can work from there, but our boss
always gives missions in person. It would probably be best if we retired for the
evening, sector police have been rather suspicious lately of street violence,
and men wearing trench coats and mirrored sunglasses are not exactly
conspicuous. We can talk to my boss tomorrow, Max is probably going to be
spending the rest of the evening with him, and we shouldn't interrupt. My bike
is over there, where's your ride?" Robert said as the two walked to a small
parking lot.
�Hold on, I can tell who your little object of
desire is, it�s this Andrea chick isn�t it?� Jon said smirking, you are
attracted to her my friend.
�I feel nothing towards her but a simple physical attraction, it doesn�t matter anyways, we both know that Tracker and X5 do not mix.� Robert shot back trying to deflect the discussion.
�Yea, but Alex told me he was getting pretty damn
close to a solution to fix us up, once that happens, you are free and clear to
pursue this opportunity.� Jon said reminding Robert of the ongoing project
into the enigma of Tracker DNA.
�Just let it alone for now, and where is your
ride?� Robert said urging Jon off the subject.
"Over there, the BMW X5, I reinforced it for
impact, bullet resistant panels and glass, and I loaded up the back with the
finest things." Jon said as he walked to an SUV.
"Upgrades make sense, it's not exactly designed
like a Hummer, I'll grab my bike, you can follow, or do you have an engagement
with Kendra tonight?" Robert asked as he mounted his bike.
"I've been wearing her out lately she says, and
I haven't seen you in five years, 12-hour sex can wait for once." Jon said
as he got in his SUV.
"My, you really aren't that sex-crazed after
all, wisdom with age? Or are you wearing out to?" Robert said as he revved
his bike up.
"I'd guess wisdom, at 39, you learn a few
things, even if your body says your 26, your mind picks up on things more
important than sex." Jon said as he closed the door, but rolled the window
down.
"I knew you had a sense of duty not just to your
dick, lets ride, and try and keep up my friend." Robert said as he rode
off, Jon revved his engine up, and followed.
"Bastard, thinks this is some slow-ass SUV, I'll
show him." Jon thought as he accelerated.
The two arrived at Rob's new home, what used to be a
car garage, but now was converted into his home. Jon parked his SUV in, and
Robert set his bike down as Jon got out. Jon popped his trunk, which was loaded
with cases, most likely weapons.
"I have brought enough firepower with me to
equip ten men, submachine guns, assault rifles, sniper rifles, machine guns,
shotguns and pistols. I managed to get my hands on some of those Para-Ordnance
P14-45's, they're in here." Jon said as he opened a smaller case, revealing
two pistols, and four clips for each. "I have two of my own on me, and I
dug up that Barrett M82 sniper rifle you were looking for, it's in that
case." Jon said as he pointed a long case at the top of the stack of
equipment.
Robert eagerly changed out his current pistols for
the superior sidearms, he noticed a bit of work done on the barrel, and pointed
at that to Jon.
"Oh yeah, I did a barrel job on these things so
they could accept a silencer, it will work with the one on your USP Tactical,
and the ammo you use." Jon said as he unloaded two more cases.
"Good, I'll hook up into Eyes Only, and see what
I can find on Manticore's resources, agents, and so on, unload your stuff,
there's a spare room to the right over there. There's a black case on the table
in there, take it, it's ten of my napalm devices, finally got the damn things to
work. It was fucking annoying getting those things going though, I had a few
problems with the device. When I screwed up two years back in Detroit putting it
all together, getting the mixture right, my garage was on fire for two days, and
no one noticed, that's a depression for you. Get some rest after you get your
shit out, I have a feeling tomorrow will be busy." Robert said as he went
into a room at the left and began tapping at his laptop.
"Yes mom, anything else, or is that the
tour?" Jon said as he opened one of his cases and inspected the contents.
"Fuck you, this place used to be a car garage,
there are some rooms, you can do work on your SUV here, that's it, now let me
work." Robert said as he accessed the Manticore files as he entered Logan's
network.
"Fine, you really have to relax, when did you
last have some fun, real fun anyways?" Jon asked, wondering what Robert's
problem was.
"A long time ago, in a bar far, far away, now if
you've finished grilling me, let me work already." Robert replied as he
read the files on the X5 project.
Jon took that as Roberts way of saying fuck off, so
he continued to unpack his stuff, then decided to grab some sleep.
The two did not catch much rest, as their acute
senses came to life before they went to bed, and realised that Max and Andrea
were in severe danger.
***********
"I told you I'd be back, now where were
we?" Max said as she creeped up behind Logan and planted a kiss on him. He
pushed away from his computer and turned to face her, smiling that grin he knew
she melted with.
"I believe we were right about here." Logan
said as he kissed her back as she was still bent down.
The two exchanged kisses for a moment, then went into
the living room, and got onto the couch, and immediately embraced again. Logan
reached an arm out and pulled her close to him, he stroked her dark hair as she
let her head rest on the curve of his shoulder, as if that was the most natural
place in the world for it. The two embraced each other for a long time, as they
kissed and caressed each other's bodies. Much later Logan was sort of sitting
and Max had her head in his lap, as they talked.
"I can't tell you how long I've waited for this,
I've wanted to be with you ever since I laid that first line of flattery on you
in this apartment." Logan said as he stroked her dark curly hair, and she
ran her hand across his chest.
"I seem to recall some cheap line about my face
being the most singularly beautiful face you'd ever seen, what was it, all the
good pickup lines were taken?" Max said as she smiled, and stroked his
spiked hair.
"A cheap line perhaps, but accurate, or are you
into self-deprecating remarks now, that doesn't seem to fit a pretty face like
yours." Logan said as his right hand ran a line touching all the soft
curves of Max�s body.
"I've wanted to just stare into those
mesmerizing blue eyes of yours for a while now, I can't believe I waited this
long. It's just that after everything, they don't teach us much about romance at
Manticore, and you don't hear a lot about during this depression, I didn't know
what I was feeling for you." Max said as she reached up and ran a hand
through Logan�s spiked hair.
"Are you sure now? I'd hate for Eyes Only to be
known as a exploiter of young woman." Logan said as he smiled.
"As touching as all of this is, I'd suggest you
get up very slowly, raise your arms above your heads, turn around, and don't
move after that." Said an unknown voice.
Max had no idea who that was, so she slowly came
about, following the orders.
"I said both of you, what's your boyfriend's
problem, he crippled or deaf or something?" Said the unknown voice again.
"I just happen to be paralyzed below the waist,
or is that chair next to the couch not visible?" Logan said as he winked at
Max, and flicked his eyes towards the bottom of the couch, indicating he had a
gun there.
"I see, hands above your head anyways, and don't
try anything, I'd hate to have to shoot a cripple." The unknown voice said,
but it was clearer now, as the speaker stepped into the open.
"Who are you, what do you want from us, do you
have a grudge with Logan, or do you want my DNA or something?" Max asked,
wondering what this man knew as he stepped into the open.
"We want you Max, it's time you came home, or do
we have to force the issue?" The speaker said, he was 5'10", red hair,
and was dead serious, his face betrayed nothing.
"I'm not going back to Manticore, not ever, so
try as you might, but guns are known to miss me, or have you forgotten your own
limits?" Max said, wondering what he was going to do with that pistol, then
she realized.
"You may, but he can't, start complying our your
boyfriend has a hole in his head, your choice." He said, he was obviously
under orders to bring her back no matter what.
"I have one of my sister's in the back, how do
you propose stopping her from attacking you, or has that not occurred to you
yet?" Max said, hoping to buy a moment for Logan to grab the gun.
"I'm not alone, Jack! Bring that bitch out here,
then grab this one, Lydecker will reward us well for these two." The man
said, as he eyed Max, but kept his gun pointing at Logan.
A brown haired man dragged Andrea out, she was
handcuffed, and duct tape was stuck to her mouth. He moved towards Max, getting
out another set of handcuffs.
"Both of you stop right there, and drop the
gun." Bling said, he was returning, he had forgotten his keys, and was
coming back, until he saw what was unfolding. He had his gun out, a Glock 18,
and was covering the unidentified man, but a quick movement of his wrist would
allow him to cover Jack.
"Jesus Christ, what is this? You drop the gun,
or we cap your ass!" Jack said as he dropped the cuffs and with a fluid
motion, drew his own gun and pointed it at Bling. It was to late, the other man
had turned, giving Logan the time to snatch up a Vector CP1 from under the
couch, and point it at him.
Max wasted no time, with the gunman distracted, she
moved with extreme speed, she kicked the gun out of his hand and landed a kick
that smashed him into a corner. He didn't stay there for long, he raced back and
arced a fist that connected and knocked her down, but she scissor-locked her
legs around his and yanked him down, Logan cursed Manticore, if they weren't
moving so fast, he could get a shot off, so he decided to cover Jack instead.
A gunshot erupted, not from Jack, nor from Bling, or
Logan, a woman now walked into the apartment, holding a gun of her own, and
looked around.
"If you two clowns are finished fooling around,
let's grab these two and report back, Lydecker is waiting for us." She
said, pointing her gun at Logan, and motioned for him to drop it. He and Bling
dropped their guns, realizing it was futile. "Tie Max up, tape her, and
let's move, I'll deal with these two." She said as she aimed her pistol at
Bling.
Jack quickly cuffed Max and slapped duct tape over
her mouth, the other man grabbed Andrea, picked them up, tossed them over their
shoulders, and started walking.
"If you three do not have a death wish, I'd
suggest you all drop your guns, or we show you what pain is." It was Robert
and Jon, they were standing there, holding out twin sidearms, silenced, and
moved into the apartment.
"You've got three seconds to put those two
ladies down, and leave, or you find out what pain is in our version of the
dictionary of warfare." Jon said, he was not in a good mood, he had just
found that Max and Andrea's own siblings were sent to hunt them down.
The girl and Jack didn't waste any time, they raised
their pistols, but with cool and accurate aim, Robert shot the guns out of their
hands.
"Like he said, or do I have to aim elsewhere
this time?" Robert said, he was about to walk towards them, when the girl
launched at him, he holstered his pistols, and prepared for a fight.
She moved with great speed, landing two hits to his
chest, kicked his head, and attempted to break his right arm with a single hit.
"Now if you could actually hurt me, I'd be
unconscious with cracked ribs and a broken arm." Robert said as he grabbed
her, and threw her into Jack, sending the two rolling.
The other man raised his pistol, but Jon demonstrated
the same phenomenal skill with his guns, and shot it right out of his hand, and
shot him in the shoulder, knocking him down.
"Dammit, evac, we'll return with Tac support
later!" Yelled Jack as he pulled the girl up, grabbed the other man, and
the three burst out of Logan's apartment at amazing speed.
"You'd better not come back, or I'll shoot more
than your fucking shoulder next time!" Jon yelled down the corridor.
Robert wasted no time, taking long strides, he ripped
the handcuffs of Max and Andrea, and pulled the tape off, with simultaneous
"ouch!" as they were pulled off. Logan wheeled over, and Bling
replaced his gun, Jon holstered his own weapons, and shut the door.
"I'd say that we should move out of here, and
the sooner the better, I smell at least three bugs, and a camera." Jon said
as he sniffed.
"Those fucks have been busy little bees, Max,
did you recognize any of them, we need to know, did any of them escape?"
Robert asked, he wanted to know the depths of what Lydecker's reconditioning
program was.
"None of them escaped, I know that, but I find
it hard to recognize their faces, maybe they got face surgery or something, so
we escapees wouldn�t be able to recognize and try to turn them to help us. I
can't believe Lydecker sent our own brothers and sisters after us, he's more of
a fucking bastard than I ever thought." Max said, as she rubbed her hands,
itchy from the restraints.
"Figures, Lydecker knows that anyone who escaped
would let you go, so he uses his lapdogs, but let's continue this at my base.
Pack up your vital computer info and equipment, and scour for anything that
connects you to you-know-what, then let's go." Robert said as he eyed the
buildings near the apartment, searching for snipers, satisfied, he saw none.
"Fine, but let's get this done fast, we have no
idea what Deck has with him in town, and the Red's are still a threat, so let's
move." Jon said as he moved to cover and watch the door.
After fifteen minutes of packing up the Eyes Only
network, not mentioning anything of importance, they moved to the garage, Max
and Robert took their motorcycles, while Logan and Bling took his Aztec, Jon and
Andrea hopped into the BMW X5, after Robert and Jon had checked for bugs,
tracking devices, and cameras of course.
Using his enhanced sense of smell, Robert was sure
they were not being followed, and police drones were nowhere to be seen. Robert
set an abandoned building on fire on the way to Logan's after he had smelt the
other X5 kids while on the roof, pondering his thoughts. He was sure that had
drawn off the police drones with the blaze, for he knew that there were only
three other X5 kids active, and they would never stay together like that and
give Lydecker the chance for a hat trick should he find them. He had alerted Jon
and the two had arrived on the scene, and just interdicted Lydecker's group in
time. Once they arrived at his base of operations, they would plan the next
move, and decide what to do.
************
"What do you mean you lost them, there were
three of you, armed, and you didn't get them?" Lydecker snapped, wondering
how two of his kids had evaded three.
"They had help, two regular people were with
them and armed, then two other guys showed up, they were big, and armed."
Said Emily, as she faced her CO.
"You are the most advanced human beings on the
planet and you couldn't take four men down, what is wrong with you?"
Lydecker said, not satisfied with the report.
"You never said that we would face armed men,
these two guys were scary, they were carrying twin Para-Ordnance P14-45's
adapted to carry a silencer. One man was two meters tall, and was extremely
strong, he threw Emily into me with not much effort, he also shot the guns out
of our hands with little effort. He said something about Delta Force, the other
man was 6'2", and I would imagine very strong as well, and just as good a
shot, they must be retired Delta Force operatives." Jack said, as he filled
in the blanks on the saviors of Max and Andrea.
"It seems that they have made some friends, you
were not able to disable these men for good reason. Delta Force operatives are
trained to absorb pain with ease, he was quite big as well, and your blows were
either off-angle, or failed to do enough damage to break anything. I will call
in more people, but you will capture on the next attempt, or you will face
disciplinary action soldiers, now go get yourselves checked up, and see how
Anthony is doing." Lydecker said as he put on his glasses and read some
files.
The two left, and he was left to ponder, is it
possible that those two were the Trackers? Were their deaths faked? He abolished
that possibility from his mind, the two had been hit by four magazines each from
M4A1 rifles and their insides would have been torn to shreds. They could never
have healed from that, and his men had checked heart rate and pulses and then
burned the two corpses. He would bring in the rest of his kids, he had five more
to bring in as reinforcements, which in his mind would guarantee capture.
If he had to, he would bring in some of the X4 kids,
they were older, not as strong, fast, or in any way better than X5, but they
could still help with it.
************
Zack cursed as he read the reports, two street
violence incidents, one warehouse raid, an office building murder and robbery. A
dark haired, dark skinned woman had been identified in two of the incidents,
each time she was reported as having impossible speed and strength, Max was
either losing it, or someone violent was helping her. He had just escaped from
Manticore, a power failure had allowed him to get to the power station and
destroy the secondary power source. He had then ridden off on a stolen
motorcycle, making his way to where the pulse had done the most damage. The
escape had been tough, he had killed six guards in the escape, he had tried to
get to Brin and the others, but to much security, even for him to get through.
He had taken a job at a computer company that stored files for the police, and
he had been browsing, seeing if any of his brothers and sisters had risked their
identities. Max was likely to get Lydecker on her again, damn that fuckhead
Logan for keeping her there in Seattle. Zack was going there this time, and
she was going with him to Canada this time. Whether she liked it or not, and
wheels was not stopping me this time, not if I have anything to say about it,
Max is coming with me, she needs to be with someone like him, a soldier,
someone who could guide her Zack thought. He went outside to his motorcycle,
and rode off, not caring about his job, he would get Max, get her to Canada,
where she would be safe. She's a soldier,
she needs to be with a soldier, I'll get her out before Lydecker gets her. I'll
show her what wheels really is, a self-righteous cripple who is using her, and
she'll realize she needs someone like me. Zack thought as he rode for
Seattle, intent on his mission.
************
"It's time we faced reality my fellow refugees
from Lydecker�s death patrol, Lydecker is in town, with his kids, the Reds are
still here, and god knows who else. If we are going to survive all this, we are
doing it the right way, Bling, go help Logan set up his stuff, information is
key to this operation, Jon, check your equipment, I need a full count of what
you have. I'll start working on some of my explosives, Max and Andrea, see if
you can go find some food, I have supplies for one, not six, take Jon's SUV,
you'll need the space, also find some medical equipment, we need basic first
aid, here's five hundred, get what you can." Robert said as he gave Max a
wad of money, and then went over to a worktable and started tampering with some
stuff, obviously working on some new devices to use.
"Relax, if we are going into an emergency, there
is no one better than Robert to guide us, he is the best at this kind of thing.
Survival has always been his game on the battlefield, he didn't survive eight
years in combat without any of his parts missing due to his good looks."
Jon said as he reassured the group that Robert knew what he was doing.
As the group dispersed and went into their work, no
one guessed what the next few days would hold for them, or what would be the
result by the end.
