2015-08-21
380
With the siege over, Max and Logan attempt to return to their normal life. But, they find that it isn't always easy to go home again. Meanwhile, a familiar face returns to Seattle...
PROLOGUE
Original Cindy and Max's Apartment, Sector 5, Seattle - November 12, 10:00 pm
Max stood at the door, her hand raised. She didn't want to startle Original Cindy, but it was her home. She was home. As she continued to mull over her options, the door swung open.
"Damn, girl, I wondered how long it was gonna take you to get your bony behind up here. Been watchin' you standin' down in the street for practically twenty minutes."
Original Cindy grabbed Max and enveloped her in a warm hug, pulling her tight. After a moment, she released Max and stood back, looking her roommate up and down.
"Looks like that dream vacation didn't leave you too much the worse for the wear."
Max snorted. "Still kickin'. So...you up for sharin' our crib again?"
"Damn straight, girlfriend. Original Cindy was not made for single livin'."
She stepped back and let Max enter the apartment. Max walked in and looked around the room.
"Home sweet home."
"You bet. Original Cindy didn't change a thing while you were gone."
Max set down her bag and sighed. "You sure? 'Bout havin' me here?" she asked. "I don't want to be in your way with Ginger."
"Original Cindy's wondering the same thing. Why you want to come back to this crib? I figured you'd be movin' on up to the East Side with Logan."
Max stared at Original Cindy for a moment, a confused look on her face. "East side? Who lives on the east side?"
Original Cindy sighed. "Man, girl, we need to teach you some lessons about basic African-American history and the story of how our people finally broke the color barrier in situation comedy. But anyway, you're not movin' right in with Logan?"
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"Not the right time," Max answered.
"My thoughts exactly," Original Cindy replied.
"Men."
"Women."
They both laughed and Original Cindy pulled Max into another long hug. When she pulled back, she took Max's hands in hers and examined Max's fingernails.
"Well, some things never change...these things are raggedy, girl."
"You thought I came back here for the view?" Max teased.
"I'll get you fixed up in no time," Original Cindy answered.
Max sat down on the couch while Original Cindy set a teakettle on the burner in the kitchen.
"So, you had enough of Chez Terminal City?" Original Cindy asked.
"Yeah...enough to last me a lifetime," Max answered, as she leaned her head back on the top edge of the couch.
"You make Mole the new mayor?"
"Somethin' like that. He seemed to want to stay, along with some of the others. Personally, I couldn't wait to get out of there...beds sucked, food sucked...a girl needs her space."
"Hurtin' your love life?"
"Major cramp in my style," Max answered.
"So what are you doing here?" her friend asked.
"Well, I don't know about you, but...well...he didn't ask. Just told me he was going home. What about Ginger?"
"Said she still had stuff to take care of there...had to look out for the ones who would still need to break bread in the commissary."
"Responsible woman," Max replied.
"Yeah," Original Cindy answered.
"Men."
"Women."
ACT I
Jam Pony XPress - November 13, 8:00 am
Max dismounted in front of Jam Pony, paused, then pushed her bike inside the building. It appeared as if nothing had changed. Messengers were pouring in and out of the building while Normal sat in his cage shouting out instructions over the din.
"Bip, bip..." Normal's last "bip" was lost as he caught sight of Max standing in front of him. "Well, if it isn't the defender of the transgenic free world."
"Normal," Max answered.
"So...well...what..."
"You got some work for a skilled professional like myself?" she asked, interrupting his stammer.
"Uh...well...what kind of...I mean...with your..."
"Damn, Normal. You chokin' on yourself?" Original Cindy asked as she rolled her bike up to his desk. "You got a run for her or not?"
"Get a locker, missy. You'll have to start back at beginning scale on account of your extended vacation," Normal replied, seeming to have recovered himself.
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"Sure thing," Max replied as she headed toward the row of lockers.
"You gonna take that from him?" Original Cindy asked as she followed Max.
"Well, I hate to give up the fifty cents per run, but I am a pretty unemployable transgenic, so I'll take what I can get," Max answered. She reached for her locker and stopped. "Who the hell is 'Trudie'?"
"Ah...yeah, forgot to mention that. She's new."
"And Normal gave her my locker?" Max replied, incredulous.
"Well, you were hanging out in Terminal City for quite a while...and we got some new blood around here. So..."
Max sighed.
"But there's an empty one, over here...by me," Original Cindy offered.
"Where'd my stuff go?"
"Right here, sugah. I kept it for you. I knew you'd be back."
Max smiled and pulled on her gloves. She closed her locker to find Alec standing there, smiling.
"So, all the chickens are coming home to roost," he teased. "Must've had the same thought I did."
"The devil you know is better than the one you don't?" Max asked.
"Exactly," Alec replied. "But is he acting weird with you?"
"I killed his third bip when I walked in."
Alec nodded. "Well, I'm out of here for a bit. Catch you at Crash later?"
"Your turn to buy," Max called as Alec headed out on his bike. He paused, looked back, and waved.
"Yep, like I never even left," Max sighed.
Logan's Apartment, Fogle Towers - 10:00 am
"...the food that these charities are supposed to get is going to the black market, where it's sold at a jacked-up price. Money goes to the people who stole the trucks at the sector checkpoints and the people who own the warehouses, and the hungry keep on being hungry. If Eyes Only is still interested in helping people other than transgenics, then maybe he could check this out," said the voice of one of Logan's informants on the answering machine.
Logan had filled three pages of his legal pad with his messages, and he wasn't even halfway through them. He replayed the message, listening again for specific details that might be of use to him when he got around to researching the problem.
As he laid his notes down, pausing for a stretch, there was a knock on the door. "Coming," Logan called, standing and straightening slowly.
"No need," Alec called cheerfully as he let himself in. "Just announcing my arrival. Didn't have any bugles handy, so no fanfare. Maybe next time, though."
"What a joy that'll be," Logan muttered to himself, sitting again. "So what's up?"
"Not much. Just thought I'd stop by, see how life was going up here in the Fortress of Solitude. Needed to get away from all that bipping," Alec said, jokingly, as he wandered around the living room. "Y'know, I never really realized how much space you have in here. You could house maybe four, five soldiers in this room."
Logan looked around, and nodded, a bemused expression on his face. "I hadn't thought of that. You're right. At least four, maybe six, though."
"Starts to get a little tight at six, but you could still do it." He walked over to the desk where Logan was seated, eyes falling on the legal pad. "Whatcha got there?"
"Notes for Eyes Only stuff. I'm trying to catch up, but since the siege started I've been pretty busy and this has all been neglected."
"You know," Alec drawled, pulling up a chair and sitting on it, backwards. "That looks like a lot of work you've got piled up there. I could give you a hand if you wanted...y'know, run errands, break into places. Steal stuff. I'm good with that kind of thing. You could be the brains, and I could be the brawns. Or is it just one brawn?" He shrugged. "Whatever. What do you think?"
"It's okay, Alec. It's taken care of," Logan informed him, dismissing the suggestion.
"By who? I hate to say it, buddy, but face it, you're not going to be up for many fact-finding missions in the near future. You need a leg man, and I've always been a leg man." Alec grinned at his own pun, but his look quickly turned serious. "C'mon, if there's anything I'm good for, this is it. I take direction well, and I'm mobile. I can do this. Seriously."
"Thanks, but Max has always been my leg man...person...in the past."
"Right. When you used to be in the wheelchair all the time. But now, while you're up and about, you don't really need a leg man, do you? Or at least you wouldn't if everything was hunky-dory. You start asking her to do things you should be able to do for yourself and she's going to get mighty suspicious," Alec warned him. "Think about it, Logan. It's perfect for both of us. I get an excuse to go cause a limited amount of mayhem, and you get more time to work your computer mojo to find stuff out and rest up for your displays of virility around Max."
The other man still looked unconvinced.
"C'mon, Logan. I want to help. I want to be a good guy and fight the good fight with you. And protect the downtrodden, and let the meek inherit, or whatever." Alec's eyes widened with a sincerity that reverberated through his tone of voice. "I want to help."
A long moment passed before Logan sighed and nodded. "Okay."
"Sweet!" Alec crowed triumphantly, rubbing his hands together with anticipation. "What do you want to do about this whole black-market food thing? Should I go bust some heads or something?"
"No," Logan replied, shaking his head emphatically. "I can't really do anything about it right now. Need to put together some info on the file before we make any moves."
"Ahh...And you can't put together info without your computers, can you?"
Logan nodded. "Not really. It's the best way for me to access public records - like charitable donations."
"I'm headed out to Terminal City for a poker game with Mole later tonight, so I can pick it up then," Alec said.
"Don't bother. I have to go tomorrow anyway." At Alec's questioning look, he added grimly, "Appointment with Aveta."
"You're still on those pain meds, aren't you? They can really mess you up. I've seen it before...you really shouldn't drive on that stuff. I'll go with you."
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"Thanks," Logan said, slightly surprised.
"Hey, no problem. What are friends for, right?" Alec nodded his head toward the machine, eager. "What's next? Got any more bad guys out there for us to fight? More innocents to protect?"
"I'm not sure. I haven't heard it yet," Logan told him, amused, as he leaned forward and pressed the 'play' button.
"Well, bring it on."
"Logan? This is Buddy. I'm sorry I haven't called you sooner," said a thin, quavering voice, so unlike the robust man that Logan remembered. "I'm recovering from a stroke. Talking is hard for me now...as you can probably hear. I'm calling to tell you that Adam's gone. Disappeared about two months ago. Haven't heard from him since. I'll try you again later. Be safe."
Logan sat back in his chair, surprised, as Alec gave a low whistle. "Damn. Now that's a streaming freedom bulletin."
He didn't reply, just sat there, watching his answering machine as it beeped and the next message began.
"Buddy again. Wanted to make sure you were all right. Adam's still gone. We're on the lookout. Hope you are too." The machine clicked, whined, and beeped again.
"Logan, please, call me if you get this. Are you all right? Have you seen Adam? This is Buddy, on the ranch. If you've lost my number, it's 239-555-821-27789. Call me. I hope you're okay."
"Sounds pretty worried," Alec observed.
"Yeah, well, so am I." Logan pushed back from the desk and stood.
"What for?"
"Zack's programmed to kill me, Alec. That's why we sent him out there. Sam told us that once his memory started coming back, everything could play out like it did last time he was here. He'd think he and Max were together and I was the enemy, over and over."
Alec shrugged. "Yeah, but don't you think that if the programming had kicked in again, he'd already be here looking for you?"
"I was holed up in Terminal City for months, Alec. There was no way for him to get at me."
"It was pretty obvious where you were, and any X5 worth their salt could have gotten in there and snapped your neck in under ten minutes."
Logan turned toward him, a shocked expression on his face. "Ten minutes? Really?"
"Eh, give or take." He stopped and considered for a moment. "Yeah. Ten minutes."
"You've thought about this?"
"No, no," Alec assured him. "Just a rough estimate."
"Right."
"Logan, man, trust me. You're safe. If Zack had left the ranch to come and take you out, he'd have done it by now. He's probably nowhere near Seattle. Hell, if I were him, I would have high-tailed it for Florida by now. Zack's probably livin' the good life on a sandy beach somewhere as far away from this godforsaken rainy city as he can get."
"I hope you're right," Logan said, although he sounded less than convinced.
"I know I am," Alec said confidently.
Checkpoint between Sector 7 and Sector 5, Seattle - 11:45 am
The thick gray clouds over Seattle dripped rain down onto the streets, where it bounced off the cars and a pair of black motorcycles as they pulled up to a sector checkpoint. The motors purred as they idled in line.
"Passes," the guard demanded peremptorily.
"Can you tell me where Fogle Towers is?" a woman's voice asked from behind a dark helmet.
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"Follow this road for about 4 miles, turn left, and it's the high-rise on the right. Can't miss it," he informed her, handing the passes back.
The second rider pushed up his visor. "It'll be on our right?"
"Yes, sir, on the right," the guard confirmed.
The man smiled, steel-blue eyes still cold. "Thanks."
"Come on," the woman called, impatient with the delay. She revved her engine. "Let's go, Zack."
He closed his helmet, pushing off and gunning it. His taillights blinked in the mist as he headed down the road alongside his companion, toward Fogle Towers.
Logan's Apartment, Fogle Towers - 1:00 pm
"Hey there, stranger," Max called, leaning against the doorway and watching Logan as he wrote on his notepad.
Logan turned, his eyes bright with welcome. "Hi." He glanced at her backpack. "Do I have a package?"
"Not today," she told him, walking over. "You know, it's been so long since I've seen you actually write anything down that I was starting to wonder if you remembered how."
"After I learned to type, I thought it might be useful to learn to write," he said, tossing his pen down onto the table. "What's up?"
"Just came by to see you." She ran a hand through his hair, making it stand on end. "What are you doing?"
"Working on my handwriting," he said, smiling up at her.
She leaned over his shoulder to see his notes. "Doesn't look like you've made too much progress."
"It's slow going," Logan replied.
She smiled at him. "You're in a good mood."
Logan stretched his arms up over his head and smiled back. "It's good to be home. I guess I forgot how good it would feel to be in my own place again.
"Plus, it's kind of nice to not be the poster child for everything that's wrong outside of Terminal City, let alone having to face the horror of eating cafeteria food for every meal," he said, laughing. "What have you been up to?"
"Work." Max made a face. "It's kind of weird to be back."
"Weird? Weird how?"
She shrugged. "Giving orders is different from taking them."
He chuckled. "You've made a living out of ignoring Normal's orders."
Max grinned. "Yeah, well, that's true."
"So, how are the people you've been giving orders to?"
"Just your normal stuff. Most of the transgenics who can make it out here are leaving, but the others are staying. Mole and the like are probably chomping on stogies as we speak."
"What's Joshua going to do?" he asked.
"He wants to go back to Sandeman's," Max told him with a sigh, sitting down in the chair next to him.
"You don't sound too thrilled by that."
"I'm not, really. It seems too risky to me. He'd be safer in Terminal City. I don't want to keep him locked in the basement with the freaks or anything, but...I hate the idea of him being in danger. Sandeman's house isn't exactly in the most transgenic-friendly part of Seattle."
Logan's brow furrowed as he thought for a moment. "Does he want to stay there? I thought he said Sandeman's reminded him too much of Annie."
"Yeah, well, he wants out of Terminal City bad enough to go there, I guess, 'cause if he's gonna be out here, he doesn't have anywhere else to go. My crib isn't big enough and...well, I don't think Alec'd be the best roommate for Joshua, y'know?"
He chuckled. "I don't really think Alec'd be a great roommate for anyone. Would it be different if someone lived there with Joshua, though?"
She made a face. "I don't know...that's the other thing. He wants Gem and Elfie to move in with him."
"Is she going to?"
"She's being kinda evasive about the whole thing, is what I'm hearing."
"Why?"
"Nobody really knows. She and Joshua are tight, and I bet it'd be easier if she had someone around to help with the baby, but she's being weird about it." Max's beeper started going off. "Damn, it's work. Normal's on my ass again."
"Giving orders?" Logan teased.
"Yeah, well, I have to take 'em. Today, anyway." She stood and turned to leave.
"Hey, Max, before you go...there's something I should tell you," Logan called.
"What?" Max said, turning back to him. "What's going on?"
He stood. "Today while I was checking my messages, I got a couple from Buddy, at the ranch. Zack's missing."
"Missing? What do you mean, missing?"
"I mean, nobody knows where he is," Logan said mildly.
"Pack a bag," Max ordered peremptorily, going over to his phone.
"Hey, hey, what are you doing?" he asked, intercepting her.
"Calling Alec. I want him to take you somewhere safe and stay with you until we get this Zack thing cleared up." Seeing his surprised expression, she raised a brow. "You thought I was just gonna let you sit here and wait for him to swoop in like the angel of death?"
"Max, he disappeared two months ago," Logan told her gently, pulling her away from the phone.
She crossed her arms, eyeing him critically. "And that means what? You're safe or something because he's had more time to plot? Logan, I know what Zack's capable of. He's gotta helluva head for strategy and he'll bust in here when you least expect it--"
"Max. He's not Zack anymore, remember?" He shook her hand lightly. "He's Adam. Besides, don't you think that if he wanted me dead, I'd be dead already?"
She shifted her weight, unconvinced. "I don't like it."
"So what are you going to do? Get Alec to baby-sit me? What if we don't ever find Zack again? Should I just live under lock and key for the rest of my life?" Logan smiled slightly. "I'm not in any real danger, Max. It'll be okay."
"I don't want to lose you," Max told him fiercely. "I don't like you being in danger."
"I don't like you being in danger either," he retorted. "But I learned a long time ago that I can't keep you in a glass box."
"I'm not trying to keep you in a glass anything, Logan. I'm trying to keep you safe."
"I'm as safe as you are," he chuckled dryly. "Probably safer, because I'm not the poster child for transgenics. I'll look for him. See if I can find out what happened." Logan smiled. "It'll be okay, Max."
She pursed her lips and nodded, finally. "Hope you're right. I'm going to head out...I'll catch you later?"
"Of course," he reassured her, kissing her lips briefly. He tipped her head up to face him with a finger below her chin. "Don't worry about me, okay?"
"Hard not to," Max told him. "I care about you too much."
Logan laughed. "Maybe not too much? Maybe just enough?" It earned him a smile. He ran a hand through her hair, eyes warm. "Give me a call when you get off work. I might be able to scrounge up something edible and some wine to go with it. I was thinking you could help me consume it?"
"You've got it." Max kissed him again. "Gotta blaze."
Outside Fogle Towers - Several Hours Later
The tall, glass-walled building loomed over the heads of the two riders who had pulled up their motorcycles at its foot. The neighboring buildings reflected off the glass. Zack raised the visor of his helmet and craned his neck to look at the top of the building. His gaze traced down the walls, coming to rest on the sign next to the entrance.
"Here we are," said Jondy, following his gaze. She took off her helmet and tucked it under her arm. "Fogle Towers. And it looks like that doorman just left for his break. Good idea to wait until he was gone."
Zack was silent. She turned to look at him, and saw that his lips were pressed tensely together.
"Zack?"
He turned to look at her.
"Are you going to be okay up there?"
"I've had Lydecker's PSYOPs people messin' around inside my head for the last two months. Guess it's time to see if it was any use." But he continued to sit on his bike, and made no move to turn its engine off, or to remove his helmet.
Jondy killed her own engine, got off her bike, and fastened her helmet to the handlebars. Stepping over to Zack, she placed her hand on his shoulder.
Zack seemed to shudder. Shrugging her hand off his shoulder, he ducked his head out of his helmet, and slung it on his handlebars as she had done with hers. Shutting off his engine and pocketing the key, he stood, squaring his shoulders. Turning to Jondy, he saw her staring at him through narrowed eyes.
"So, you want to try the door or the window this time?"
Her face softened after a moment, and slowly she smiled. "Which one is more likely to convince Logan that we don't want to kill him?"
He grinned. "Let's go," he said, and started for the doors of the building.
Logan's Apartment, Fogle Towers
The space just inside Logan's front door was littered with various items of computer and broadcasting equipment. Alec bent to pick up a computer tower case, effortlessly raising it to waist level. He turned to bring it into the computer room.
"Logan! Where do you want this?"
Logan peered out from behind the sliding door to see what Alec was holding. He was also dressed in jeans and a tee shirt, but unlike Alec's, his shirt was stained with perspiration. Beads of sweat also glistened on his forehead and his arms.
"That goes on the third shelf on the left."
He absently pushed his glasses up his nose as they began to slide down, almost putting out his own eye with the screwdriver he held.
"Man, don't you ever sweat?" he said incredulously as Alec walked past him to put the equipment on the designated shelf.
"Sweat?" Alec grinned smugly as he came out of the room and went again to the hallway. "Didn't you ever study English? Horses sweat. Men perspire. X5s...have better homeostatic mechanisms than you base models." He ducked, and although his back was to Logan, he caught the screwdriver as it sailed over his head, and, grinning, held it out with a flourish.
Logan shook his head. "Just put it somewhere. I need a break," he said, stepping into the bathroom.
As Alec bent to pick up a computer monitor, there was a soft click from the front door. He looked up sharply. His eyes narrowed as the door swung slowly inward. He lowered the monitor back onto the floor and assumed a fighting stance.
A tall woman stepped through the doorway, her blue eyes widening as they fell upon his face. She started to speak, but didn't have the chance to as Alec pounced, twisting her arm behind her and trapping her quickly with a wrestle hold.
"Who are you?" he demanded, struggling to hold her as she attempted to break free of his grasp.
"I'm looking for Max," she managed to choke out, his arm still tight around her neck. "I'm Jondy."
Alec loosed his grip slightly, letting her fall forward as he swept her hair aside with his other hand.
"You don't have a barcode."
"We got them removed yesterday. Just before we came into town."
"We?"
Zack stepped around the open door, his blue eyes meeting Alec's hazel ones calmly.
"We," he said, expressionlessly. Then his eyes narrowed, and he looked as if he were trying to recall something. "Ben?"
"Oh great, not again!" Alec grumbled. "Am I going to be getting this for the rest of my life?"
"He's not Ben," Jondy said.
"Who are you, then?" Zack said.
"Like clockwork, every time." Alec muttered. "Next we'll have to go over the whole twinned vs. cloned thing...My name is Alec. We've met."
"He's 494," Jondy said to Zack. "Ben's twin. Max told me about him...when we were here before." She twisted back toward Alec. "Let go of me, please."
"Ri-ight," he said slowly, but he didn't loosen his grip on her. "Is it just me or are polite introductions a little out of place at an assassination?" he quipped, taking stock of the situation and wondering if releasing Jondy and attacking Zack instead would be a wiser move tactically, or a stupider one. Zack certainly seemed to pose the greater danger; he was as tall, but more heavily built than Alec was.
"No one's going to get killed here, Alec," Jondy placated.
"Then what is Zack doing here, of all places?" Alec demanded. "Don't you know--?"
"Yeah, she knows," Zack told him, glaring. "It's under control."
"And I'm supposed to believe that because...?"
"I've been working with PSYOPs to get rid of that programming."
"Right. Good. Hi, I'm Alec," he said, still not releasing his hold on Jondy. "Pleased to meet you," he continued. "I was born yesterday, by the way."
"Alec, give him a chance!"
"The only chance I'm giving you both is to walk out of here now, before I have to carry you out."
"What, so you're the bodyguard now?" Zack bristled.
"Better than being the assassin." Alec laid the sarcasm on thickly, but for a brief moment, his eyes took on a faraway look, as if he were remembering something. He blinked, his eyes hardening again, and cocked his head at Zack. "Don't you think so?"
"Look here, I'm okay, all right? I've been de-programmed."
At that moment, Logan stepped out of the bathroom, squinting at the newcomers as he wiped his glasses on a face towel...
...And all hell broke loose...
Zack launched himself at Logan, bringing the other man to the floor with a thud. He wrapped his legs around Logan in a stranglehold as he tore the towel out of Logan's hands, wrapping it around his neck and literally starting to strangle him with it. The exoskeleton whirred loudly as Logan kicked out, trying to free himself from Zack's grip.
"Logan!" Alec called out, releasing Jondy and diving for the pair on the floor.
"Zack, no!" Jondy cried, moving toward them as well.
Alec and Jondy each grabbed one of Zack's arms, and together managed to do what neither of them would have been able to do alone, pulling him off Logan and keeping him from going after him again.
Logan crawled quickly across the floor. He retrieved his glasses from under the table, putting them on as he leaned against the wall to catch his breath.
"Zack? Jondy?" he choked out. "What are you doing here?"
Zack continued to struggle violently as Jondy and Alec held him down on the floor.
"You're a traitor," Zack said, in a voice that sounded harsh and inhuman, not like his own voice at all. "Traitors must die."
"Zack?" Jondy inquired. He didn't seem to hear her.
"You got him?" she asked Alec.
"Yeah," Alec answered, readjusting his grip and making sure it was firm. "I got him."
Jondy released her hold and stepped around to kneel in front of Zack. She took his face between her hands and gazed into his eyes.
"Zack? X5-599! Look at me," she said firmly.
His gaze broke from Logan and turned to her face. As he looked at her, something in his eyes softened.
"Zack," Jondy said, softly. "Do you know who I am?"
"I..." He looked distressed for a moment, then blinked, and the confusion cleared.
"Jondy," he said. "What happened?"
Jondy released the breath she had been holding, and got to her feet as Zack looked around, realizing what he had just done.
"I'm sorry," Jondy said. "I guess it was a mistake coming here after all."
"What brought you here, anyway?" Logan asked.
"Lydecker found Zack, at that ranch you sent him to. He had his PSYOPs people working on Zack, trying to get rid of whatever they put into his head back at Manticore. Zack didn't trust them."
"Obviously, I was right," Zack snorted.
"We figured with the concentration of transgenics in Terminal City that Max had some PSYOPs people here, but we didn't know where to find her after the siege. The only thing Zack could remember was the name of your building. I'm sorry, Logan. He was sure he'd gotten over the assassin programming."
"Alec," Logan said, watching Zack carefully. "Maybe you should find someplace for these two to stay."
"Sure thing. I'll take them back to my place, and tell Max what went down." Alec slowly released Zack, and got to his feet. Logan nodded his thanks. Alec collected his jacket and keys from the sofa and followed Jondy and Zack out of the room.
Logan waited until the door was closed behind them before he slumped against the wall, gasping in pain.
ACT II
Sector 4, Seattle - 4:00 pm
Max pedaled hard as she raced along the familiar streets of Seattle. She pulled up in front of the appointed address, propped her bike against the building, and headed for the door.
"Jam Pony!" Max called, knocking on the thick wooden door.
"Yeah?" A heavy-set man with pasty-white skin opened the door.
"Package," Max said, handing him her clipboard to sign.
The man leaned down to write his name, and then took a closer look at Max as he stood up again.
"Hey, aren't you that chick?"
"What chick, sir?" Max asked as she reached into her bag for the man's package.
"The one off the news...the freak chick. Figures that you'd be running the streets again now that they let you out."
"I'm not sure what you're talking about, but have a nice day!" Max spat out, as she turned to go back to her bike. As she turned the man reached up and grabbed her hair, lifting it so he could see her barcode.
"Yep, I thought so...so what the hell do you think you're doing out here?"
Max turned back to face the man. "I'm doing my job, sir."
"Well, we don't need your kind around here."
"My kind?" Max replied.
"Yeah, your kind...your mutated, transgenic, freak kind."
Max stood silent for a moment, and then turned again. As she hit the bottom step, she stopped and turned back. "Well, I'm not real fond of your kind, either." She raised her hand, waved her middle finger in a salute and replied, "Have a great day and remember to call Jam Pony if you need something delivered."
The man stepped back into his house and slammed the door as Max got on her bike and rode away.
Undetermined Location - 8:00 pm
The cherry wood of the conference table gleamed red in the fluorescent light that spattered down on the waxed surface. Fingers shuffled paper as a voice called the meeting to order.
"Agent Martin, we'd like to hear how things are continuing on the transgenic front," said Rex Selkirk from the head of the table. His face was smooth, bland.
"Smoothly," Martin responded succinctly. "The plan to pull them off the street is in place. Our muggers have been armed with Manticore-issue weapons in order to assure the safe capture of the transgenics. We'd like to take them in with a minimum of physical harm to the specimens. In order to do that, we'll probably be using some kind of drugs to sedate them. In the tussle, our men will inject them. It should only take about thirty seconds before the transgenics succumb and are available for transport."
"I've heard that many of them look just like any other civilian. How are you identifying them?" asked Kathryn Birman.
"We have a contact among their ranks, an informant who has been helping us to locate exited transgenics using their own records."
"Is your informant a transgenic?" Birman's exquisitely arched brow rose with interest.
"Yes. She is. X-series. X5-284."
"And you're certain that your informant is totally loyal to us and not her own kind?"
"Yes, ma'am, I am entirely sure of Ginger's loyalty," Martin told her, somewhat smugly. "She's with us."
Alec's apartment - 9:00 pm
"Big TV," Zack noted, inspecting Alec's entertainment center.
Alec merely shrugged, still watching Zack warily.
"He's not going to attack you," Jondy told him quietly.
"No, just my friends," Alec replied flippantly, as there was a knock on the door. "Hey, Max," he said, inviting her in.
"Hey," she said distractedly, eyes on Zack.
"Hi, Max," he said, walking across the room toward her, face softening as his eyes drank her in.
"Hi, Zack, Jondy."
"Hey," the other woman responded with a small wave.
"How's Logan?" Max asked, turning toward Alec.
"Eh, he's fine. Just kinda shook up," he reassured her. "Seriously, Max. Logan's just as...Logany as ever. Probably cooking something and sipping wine as we speak."
She nodded, turning back to Zack. "Why did you come here?" Max asked.
"And that's my cue to do the making-myself-scarce thing," Alec said, grabbing his jacket. "I'll be back later." He left, largely unnoticed by the three tense occupants of his living room.
"Max, I...I had to."
Jondy stood, looking at Max appealingly. "We need help."
"I can't help you," Max replied, arms crossed. "Not if it means you staying in Seattle."
"You haven't even heard what we're here for," Jondy protested, incredulously.
"I need to see someone from PSYOPs," Zack told Max, holding her gaze until she looked away. "Please."
"Why?" Max pursed her lips.
"Why?" Zack asked, confused. "To get rid of this programming that Manticore put into my head, to help get back my memories...to make sure that Lydecker hasn't been giving me some new kind of programming. Pick a reason."
"You're with Lydecker now?"
Jondy nodded. "Yeah, and the Colonel's been using some of his reprogramming techniques on Zack to try and undo whatever Renfro did."
"But you don't think he's on the level?" Max asked, raising an eyebrow.
"C'mon, Maxie. It's Lydecker. Of course he's not on the level," Zack said. "This is the same guy who had me buried alive so that I'd lead him to you. He's dirty."
"If he's so dirty, then why the hell are you working for him, huh?"
"Because I needed him. Besides, the gang's all there," Zack said with a slight nod toward Jondy. "They know who I am. They're helping me figure it out, too."
"So, will you help us?" Jondy asked, golden eyebrows arching with impatience.
Max shook her head, regretfully. "I can't."
"Can't or won't?" Jondy challenged.
"How long until the next time Zack decides to take out Logan?" Max shot back. "I can't lose him. I won't. Zack's already tried to kill him twice now."
"Twice?" Zack asked, blankly. "I don't remember that."
"Yeah, well you did. Said you thought he was a traitor or something." Max waved the detail away as unimportant. "Doesn't matter. What matters is that next time Alec or Jondy or I might not be there to stop you." She sighed heavily into the silence. "I think you should leave Seattle."
"Or what? Or you'll send me away like last time?" Zack challenged, angrily. "Send me out into the middle of nowhere with a new name?"
"If it comes right down to it, then, yeah, I will," Max retorted, glaring. "Logan means too much to me to sit back and watch you kill him."
"What are you saying, Max?" Zack asked her.
"I'm saying that if it's between helping you and saving Logan, I choose Logan." Max repeated the words, saying them clearly but softly. "I choose Logan."
Zack's eyes widened briefly, before he turned on his heel, and stalked angrily across the room. "That's just great, Maxie. You've known this guy for what, two years and you're willing to throw away family for him? He's that important to you?"
"Yeah, he is," she said, voice hard. "And I think you should leave Seattle tonight."
"Hey, now, wait just a minute. I know you love Logan and all, but what about Zack?" Jondy's eyes blazed as she advanced on Max. "How many times has he saved your life? I know he went back to Manticore for you and he shot himself for you...but there must have been more times than that. Don't you think you owe him a little bit? If not your life, then maybe your freedom."
"So I'm supposed to offer up the man I love on a sacrificial altar?" Max shook her head vehemently. "Not gonna happen. I can't take the risk that he'll snap and kill Logan 'cause of whatever's rattling around in his head. I'm sorry, but I can't."
"Yeah, well, if your PSYOPs people do their job right, that won't be a problem, will it?" Jondy retorted.
Max bit her lower lip, considering. "What if it doesn't work?"
"Logan will still be safe," Jondy said, firmly. "If it doesn't work, we leave, for good. Until we know what's what, I'll be his shadow. I won't let him touch Logan, okay?"
"I won't go anywhere near Miracle Boy," Zack growled. "Not like I really want to, anyway."
"And if he does, I'll be there. Max. Please. You owe him this, at least."
"I owe him a lot," Max admitted."Everything, practically. Except for Logan's life."
"I promise that you won't have to pay that price," Jondy swore, solemnly. "All right?"
She nodded, eyes meeting Zack's. "Okay. I'll take you to PSYOPs first thing in the morning."
"Thank you," Zack replied after a pause. He attempted a small smile, walking toward her. "Good to see you, Max."
Max replied simply, "I missed you, Zack."
ACT III
Infirmary, Terminal City - November 14, early morning
"So," Max said, rubbing her arms, as Zack lay on the cot, ready for treatment. "Is this going to work, Trey?"
The PSYOPs specialist shrugged and ran a hand through his short black hair. "Truth is, I'm not sure. Lydecker's been mucking around in there, and God knows what else Manticore did with him before he got out. I've never dealt with a case like this before. I'll do my best."
"What are the odds?" Jondy asked from the doorway, concern creasing her features. "Give us a ballpark figure."
Trey's kind, dark eyes reflected his uncertainty. "I'd say fifty-fifty, but I really don't know."
"So the upshot is that you don't think you can help me either," Zack said grimly.
"I didn't say that," the other man corrected. "What I did say is that I can't promise anything. I think I can help, at least a little. Otherwise, I wouldn't be doing this at all. I don't like to unnecessarily sift through people's minds. Sometimes it shakes stuff loose that's better left buried."
"So encouraging," Jondy muttered.
"Hey, you asked," Trey said. "It's going to take us a few hours to get anything done, whether it works or not--and afterwards, we're both going to be pretty exhausted."
"Okay," Max nodded. "Anything we can do to help?"
He shook his head. "Cross your fingers."
"Let's just get this over with." Zack gritted his teeth and closed his eyes.
"Good luck," Jondy offered, as they left the room.
"Amen to that," Max seconded, closing the door as Trey gently laid a hand on either side of her brother's head.
Atrium, Terminal City
Max watched as Jondy paced the perimeter of the courtyard for the third time. "Worried?" she asked.
The other woman shrugged. "A little."
"Really? 'Cause you seem like you're a lot worried." When Jondy didn't respond, Max tried again. "You're giving me whiplash with all the pacing. Wanna pull up some asphalt and sit with me?"
"Gotta keep moving. If I sit down, I'll crawl out of my skin," she admitted ruefully. "Wish there was something I could do. You know, to help."
"Me too," Max said with a sigh. "Hope it works."
Jondy nodded, pulling her blonde curls back into a ponytail as she walked. "Yeah. So do I. Zack hates being out of control like this, y'know? Drives him nuts. Wouldn't ever say it, though. He's always gotta be all stoic about things. But you can tell. Every time it comes up, he gets uncomfortable and snarky. Took him a while to even tell Lydecker about it."
"How did he hook up with Lydecker?" Max asked, curious.
"Deck went out to the farm and found him about a couple of months ago. Got some intel about a man matching Zack's description from a local sheriff or something. Anyway, once he was there, seeing him jogged Zack's memory pretty harshly--Krit says that Zack tried to run him through with a pitchfork."
"Was he happy on the farm?"
Jondy paused in her pacing, glancing over at Max. "He seemed like it. Wasn't too happy when he found out his life was a lie, though."
Max shrugged, feigning indifference. "Seems to have gotten over it."
"Yeah. He acts like he's gotten over a lot of things. Like you choosing Logan over him." Max opened her mouth to speak, but Jondy shook her head. "I understand--you love Logan. I get it. Zack, though..." Jondy sighed. "Let's just put it this way, Max. He's always been so busy choosing you that he...he never stopped to consider what your choice would be."
"What do you mean?" Max cut in sharply.
"You remember the night we broke out of Manticore?" Jondy asked, her dark blue eyes far away, lost in memory.
"Yeah," Max replied, uncomfortable. "What about it?"
Jondy offered her a one-shouldered shrug as she began pacing again. "It was your seizure that set it off, remember? Zack got us out of there to save you."
"He got us out of there to save all of us, Jondy," Max said firmly.
"Yeah," Jondy responded automatically. "Whatever. All I know is that Zack didn't get it when you chose Logan." Max watched the tense set of Jondy's shoulders as she continued softly, "I understand, though."
There was an awkward silence, and Max looked down, pulling weeds out of the concrete. "I'm surprised he didn't actually kill old leather face when he tried to run him through," she observed, trying to lighten things.
"Yeah, well, Zane and Krit were there. They ran interference, but it took both of them to pull him off." Jondy glanced at her watch. "It's been about an hour."
"Trey said it would take a couple of hours at least," Max reminded the other woman. "How have you been?"
"Okay, I guess. Working for Lydecker's been...interesting, I guess. He's the same old Colonel. In charge and all, but he knows what he's doing at least. Anyway, Zane and Syl and Krit are there. And Zack. So it's not that bad, really. The company more than makes up for the commander. You really think it's going to be another hour?"
"You are jittery, aren't you?"
"Kind of. I'm not good with the whole waiting thing. What do you think Trey meant by 'things get shaken loose that shouldn't be'?"
Max shrugged. "Hell if I know. Jondy, it'll be okay."
"I know. It's his fight. Just wish I could be there for him, you know? He's always been there for us, no matter what. I hate feeling like he's all alone in there." She sighed, kicking a pebble across the courtyard. "I hate that he might feel like he's all alone in this."
"Jondy, I'm sure he knows that you've got his back, no matter what." Max raised an eyebrow as she watched Jondy continue pacing. "You two seem very close."
"As close as Zack lets anyone get," the tall blonde replied sardonically. "But yeah, I guess we are."
"Are you in love with him?" Max asked point-blank.
Jondy chuckled bitterly, pausing for a moment to throw Max a glance over her shoulder. "Now, wouldn't that be stupid of me?"
"Are you?" Max pressed.
Jondy didn't say anything, looking at her watch instead. "I don't know if I can stand another hour without knowing if he's going to be okay."
"You do love him."
"Max," Jondy said, turning to face her, blue eyes dark with some indefinable emotion. "Any woman who fell in love with Zack would have to be ready for a helluva long wait."
"And you're no good at the whole waiting thing?" Max asked skeptically, quoting her earlier words.
"Something like that," Jondy muttered, eyes on the door. She sighed, a long, slow exhalation, before she turned and offered Max a tight-lipped smile. "I hate waiting."
Logan's Apartment, Fogle Towers - Late Morning
"All right, is it working...now?" Alec asked, voice muffled by the desk he was lying under as he tried to hook up Logan's computer.
Logan checked, pushing some buttons. "Yeah, looks like it. Thanks, Alec."
"No problem. It only took me the better part of two days to put together your informant net."
"Doing good deeds isn't always about saving the damsel in distress or beating up bad guys," Logan told him, grinning slightly.
"Yeah, well, I got to save up my really heroic moments anyway. Otherwise I'll use 'em all up at once and not be any good to anyone. So, anyway, what are you working on?" he asked, standing and squinting at the computer screen.
"Stem cells," Logan replied shortly.
"That's not Eyes Only stuff."
"No, it's not," he said, eyes still glued on the computer screen. "I think I may have found a cure."
"In stem cells? Logan, man, haven't those failed you twice now?"
"It's the best shot I've got at the moment, Alec," Logan said shortly. "It's the only way I can think of to stay walking."
"But it's not permanent...is it?"
"That's what I'm working on...a way to make this stick."
"What if you can't?" Alec asked him softly.
"I refuse to accept that as an option."
"What if you have no choice, Logan?" he pressed.
"I'll deal with that when I come to it. Until then, I'll keep looking."
The Streets near Terminal City - early afternoon
"So, how do you feel?" Jondy asked Zack as the trio headed away from Terminal City on foot.
Zack shrugged, thinking for a moment. "Sluggish. Like my head is filled with mush."
"Sounds like a bad hangover," Max noted, studying him for a moment. "You kinda look like hell."
"Trey said it worked, so it's worth it. If it really did," Zack added darkly.
"Hey, Trey knows what he's talking about," Max protested.
"Well, so did Lydecker's men, and my hands still ended up wrapped around Miracle Boy's throat, didn't they?"
"I trust Trey more than I trust Lydecker. Besides--"
"Shhh," Jondy said, her brow furrowing. "You guys hear that?"
"Sounds like a fight," Zack noted disinterestedly after listening to the sound of feet scuffling and the muffled impact of flesh meeting flesh.
They listened for a moment longer, until a slight whimper prompted Max into action. "Sounds like someone getting beat up, that's what it sounds like," she said, heading in the direction of the noise. Jondy and Zack followed, exchanging glances.
In the nearby alley, a slender young man was fighting with three muggers twice his size. Max recognized him as an X6 who'd worked in the mess hall in Terminal City.
"Takes three of you to take out a kid?" she drawled, walking into the fight, and pulling one of the men away by the collar. "Pretty pathetic," she said, tossing him negligently aside.
He jumped up again, swinging out toward her, but she ducked easily.
"You're boring me," Max taunted, kicking him in the ribs. The man doubled over, grunting, but still rushed her again. Again, she quickly evaded him, putting him into a headlock. "But if you keep it up, I might start to get offended." The man elbowed her in the stomach, hard, trying to get Max to loosen her grasp on him.
Max hissed in a breath from between her teeth. "Now that wasn't very nice. It hurt my feelings. Guess chivalry really is dead." She pushed him to the ground, planting a kick firmly on his butt that sent him flying into a puddle. Putting her hands on her hips, she shielded the X6 with her body. "You might want to get out of here before you really piss me off."
Zack blocked a blow that one of the other muggers leveled at Max while Jondy tossed the third out of the alley. "You like beating up kids, huh? Why don't you try this on for size?" he growled, slamming him against the alley wall before heaving him onto the ground beside his cohorts.
"Get out of here," Jondy ordered contemptuously as they scrabbled to their feet and ran.
"Don't come back until you learn something about throwing a punch," Max called after them, before turning toward the younger transgenic. "You all right?"
"Yeah," he replied, shaking his head as if to clear it. "Just kinda feel...weird." He looked up, and recognized her. Immediately the boy straightened into an "at attention" pose. His hand twitched toward his head, as though he wanted to salute. Wisely, he refrained.
"Weird? How? Did you take a head blow?" she demanded.
"No, ma'am, I didn't. It should have been an easy fight but I feel somehow...tired. I don't understand it."
"You were outnumbered, soldier," Zack said, exuding military authority.
"I know, sir, but they were ordinaries." The X6 thought for a moment. "I don't think they really got any good hits on me. I felt something poke me once, like a pinprick. Other than that...nothing."
"Go back to Terminal City and get a physical," Max ordered. "Make sure you're healthy."
"Yes, ma'am."
She had to suppress an exasperated sigh at his formality.
"You always get involved in one-sided fights for fun, Max?" Jondy teased as they walked out of the alley.
She shrugged absently, responding, "Yeah, well, gotta keep myself busy somehow." Something lying on the concrete caught her eye. Max knelt to pick it up, examining it for a moment.
"What's that?" Zack asked, watching her.
"Looks like an official ID of some kind," Max said, standing.
"That's strange," Jondy said, coming up behind her. "How many government officials go around mugging people?"
"Yeah, they do most of their stealing on paper," Max quipped, tucking the ID in her pocket.
Zack raised an eyebrow. "You're going to keep it?"
"I'm gonna to see if Logan can do some digging and find out who this guy is and who he works for."
"Why? So you can go give the guy a stern talking-to about playing well with others?" Jondy asked, clearly baffled.
Max shrugged. "I'm not sure. Something seems off about this whole thing. Three men try to
