Die Hard, Live Free – Prologue.

 

Summary:  In the events following their declaration as a separate nation, the transgenics forget about White’s threat.  It was a mistake that would change their lives forever.

 

Disclaimer:  Yeah, yeah you know the drill.  Don’t own anything and even if I didn’t the money would already be spoken for.  Can’t sue me for what I don’t have…hee. Enjoy and please review.

 

 

A month ago Alec thought that they had a chance. 

 

Things were running as smoothly as can be expected with the constant influx of new Manticore refugees.  Supply stores were at uncomfortably low levels but there seemed to be enough to go around as long as no one got greedy.  Although Manticore no longer existed, it became necessary to set up a command center.

 

Max at first was their public leader, more than a figurehead but less then a true commanding officer.  Many of those duties she gladly left to him.  Eventually that began to change as well.  Through a tremendous effort on her part, Max rapidly gained the respect and confidence of Terminal City’s population to become leader in truth.  Alec was proud of her.

 

Three hundred thirty six hours ago Alec believed that they were making progress. 

 

Logan finally saw the light and realized that Eyes Only didn’t have a place in the transgenic cause.   It was simply too big and his network of contacts threatened to pull away if he didn’t cut ties.  He made the choice and Max paid for it in tears. 

 

By day she functioned well, throwing everything she had in working to solidify transgenic rights.  By night, in the privacy of her quarters she was inconsolable.  He remembered Rachel and his need for solitude so he settled for watching her from the shadows.  Every night for two weeks was the same but not this night. 

 

The air of gloom was absent as she moved about her room.  He caught his mind regarding her with slightly more than casual concern and almost missed her exiting with riding gloves in hand.  A motorcycle engine roared to life and he hurried to follow.  She led him into the city and must have spotted him.  She disappeared when he made the last right turn towards Crash.  Hours later he snuck into the bar and surreptitiously scanned the crowd.  Max was nowhere to be found.

 

A seed of fear sprouted in his chest.  He quickly radioed in to see if she had returned.  No one had seen her there either.

 

Two thousand eight hundred and eighty minutes ago White sent him a lock of Max’s hair.

 

Setting pride aside, Alec contacted Logan for help.  They worked non-stop gathering intel and finally narrowed White’s location down to an abandoned airstrip just outside the city limits.  A full assault team was mobilized and they soon overwhelmed the complex.  Alec burst into the hanger with his best soldiers, and Logan, just in time to see Max shoved into a plane. 

 

Bullets forced them to take cover and the roof opened up.  The wings rotated pointing all four engines toward the ground for vertical takeoff.  The force of the engines pinned them down as the plane climbed higher into the sky.  Once it was high enough the wings returned to normal position and the plane was gone.  Max was gone.

 

After calling in a huge favor, Logan gained full access to a top secret satellite in geosynchronous orbit over the Pacific Ocean.  There was only one plane headed in the same trajectory White’s plane had gone.  A few keystrokes focused the extreme long range cameras in on the blip until they could clearly see the plane.  It was him.

 

Alec took down coordinates and started to triangulate their intended destination.  Suddenly the plane veered causing the nose dip.  Pieces of outer hull ripped away seconds before their radio picked up a faint mayday.  Two engines burst into flame but it continued to fly.  The damn thing continued to fly!

 

Three thousand six hundred seconds ago all hope died in a huge fireball thirty thousand feet in the air. 

 

No one could have survived.