skylar0grace (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
skylar0grace) wrote2010-02-07 04:14 pm
skylar0grace) wrote2010-02-07 04:14 pm
Entry tags:
Imprisoned (DA)
Title: Imprisoned.
Author: SkylarGrace.
Status: One-Shot; Complete.
Rating: PG-13.
Summary: How can Max reach Alec when he’s no longer there?
Spoilers: Set after Freak Nation so all of them :)
Disclaimer: Dark Angel and all related elements belong to Cameron Eglee Productions and FOX. No infringement intended.
Alec walked quickly toward the building ahead, keeping an eye on the ordinaries and making sure Liam stayed with him. Liam was another X5 whom Alec had struck up a friendship with when he moved to TC. They were going to meet a contact who would help them out with some supplies and although it seemed routine, Alec had a sick feeling that something would go wrong. There were a team of X’s five minutes behind them who were under orders to hang back until the appointed time and then move in to help with supplies.
Alec and Liam moved into the building and Alec led them to the meeting place. It had been an old dance studio before the pulse and had numerous exits. As they entered, Alec saw only one person in the room.
“Hey Rocko!” Rocko gave his typical grunt in response and Alec smiled. “Did you have any trouble?” Rocko looked over at him.
“It’s getting harder Alec; I had some guys on my tail last week. I’m gonna have to up the payments if it keeps up.”
Alec laughed. “Purely for safety reasons of course!”
“Of course,” Rocko replied. “Supplies are in the usual place. I’m guessing the cash is too?”
“Yep, delivered it there myself. When do you think the next shipment will come in?” Rocko shrugged.
“Maybe two months. Depends how long they keep sending it on the same route despite it never reaching its destination,” Rocko said with a smile.
“Is that a smile I see? Come on Rocko, you have to repress that cheery side!” Alec said with mirth and Rocko glared back. “That’s more like it!” Alec hit Rocko playfully on the back.
There was the sound of a gunshot and Alec saw Rocko look down briefly at his chest where a red stain appeared to be getting larger. Rocko faltered momentarily before falling back. Alec sprung into action, dropping and rolling to an upturned desk. He looked out and saw that Liam was similarly crouched behind debris. He motioned toward Liam and Liam replied in the negative; he hadn’t seen the attackers.
Alec scanned the room and seeing it clear, expanded his scan to nearby buildings. He didn’t need to search for long as he saw White walking toward the dance studio.
“Damn! White,” he called out to Liam.
Liam’s eyes went wide but he nodded to say that he had understood. Liam looked at his watch. There was only a few minutes left before reinforcements would be arriving and he hoped they would be able to hold out until then. The back door flew open and Alec saw several Familiars enter and he regretted not bringing any weapons. Alec leapt up from his covered position and stood to fight White. There was only he and Liam and Alec knew those were bad odds.
He squared off against White and saw White smile. Before he had time to comprehend the smile, Alec felt several tasers hit him at once and he fell to the ground shaking uncontrollably. Before he blacked out, he saw a Familiar come up behind Liam, who was already engaged in battle with another, and snap his neck. A tear slipped out of his eye and the darkness engulfed him.
~
“Oh, this is not good,” Kyle said as he entered the dance studio. He heard several gasps of surprise before Zero moved over and checked on Liam. He looked up at Kyle and shook his head. “Alright, let’s pack it up and head out quickly.” He was not looking forward to telling Max.
~
Max had been sitting at her desk looking over progress reports when she heard a commotion outside. Before she could get up to inspect it, Zero came into her office.
“What is it?” Max asked concerned. She tried to look out her door but couldn’t see anything.
“Something went wrong. We don’t know exactly what but whatever it was happened fast. We were only a couple of minutes behind.”
“What? What happened?” Max had a sinking feeling in her stomach.
“When we entered the location there were two fatalities. One gunshot wound, one snapped neck.” Max sat down slowly. “There was no evidence that it had been a shoot out just a single round fired.”
“They’re both dead?”
“Yes,” Zero said, not comprehending her meaning, “We searched the surrounding area for Alec but we couldn’t find him. He must have been taken as a hostage.” At the mention of Alec’s name, Max’s head shot up and her eyes narrowed in on Zero.
“Alec’s alive?”
Zero shifted uncomfortably. “Well, we don’t know for sure. But his body wasn’t there, so it’s probable that he is.”
“Alright, thanks for the update. Send Mole in will you?” Max said dismissively. Zero was startled for a moment. In the short time he had been in the office, it seemed as though he had dealt with a number of different people. He gave a quick nod before leaving and letting Mole know that Max wanted him.
Max looked up as Mole entered and was thankful she had managed to compose herself in the short time she had been alone. Right now, TC needed a leader and that’s what she would give them.
“You know what I want Mole, so get it done. I want every person looking for him, got it? Get Dix to see if he can track where he went and enlist Logan’s help. This stinks of White. It had to have been if Liam’s neck was snapped and they were able to take down two transgenics. I don’t want anyone to stop until we either bring back Alec or his body. Keep me updated and prepare a team in case we get a location.” Mole nodded and walked out of the room thoughtfully chewing on his cigar.
~
“There is nothing more I can do,” the doctor said turning away from the man on the table and facing his boss.
“What do you mean?” White said angrily. The doctor pointed to the man on the table behind him.
“When X5’s are captured, they’re taught to forget everything so they don’t compromise everything-” the doctor began.
“Well then make him remember.”
The doctor looked surprised. “I, I can’t. Well, I mean, usually I can get…something, but he hasn’t forgotten the information, he’s forgotten himself. I’ve never seen a transgenic do that before. He, he is basically a vegetable.” White grabbed him by the front of the coat.
“What?” White ground out. The doctor raised his hands defensively.
“I’ve tried everything I can but he’s just not there anymore. There is no way to get the information now.” White looked at the blank eyes of the man on the table and released the doctor from his grasp.
“Is it something they have been taught?”
The doctor eyed him cautiously. “I doubt it. They would lose too many soldiers. I don’t know how he has done it or even if he meant to.”
White gave a half smile as his eyes narrowed. “Well, at least one piece of transgenic scum is now dead. Prep him. I want his body delivered to the Conclave and they can do what they want with him.”
The doctor nodded and White walked out the door. He gave one last look as he reached the door.
“Bye 494,” he said as he walked away.
~
“It’s been four days,” Max said impatiently. “Tell me you have something Dix.” Dix ignored Max as he continued to type impatiently on the computer. Max turned her attention to Mole. “Mole?”
“We’re doing all we can Max. I told you I would let you know when we had something.”
“I have something!” Dix said triumphantly.
“We’ve got something Max,” Mole deadpanned before Max could speak. She ignored his sarcasm as she walked over to Dix’s computer.
“I think he’s in Sector 12. I followed some unusual vehicles and they’ve stopped in Sector 12. It was all industrial before the Pulse hit-”
“I know I’ve been there before,” Max interrupted. “Alec and I have tracked White down there before. Mole, get the team, I think I know where he is.” Max walked back into her office and put her jacket on. “I’m coming,” she whispered to no-one in particular.
~
Max crept along beside the planks of wood toward the factory. White had been here previously with another transgenic that she and Alec had rescued but had moved to another location after that. Max honestly hadn’t thought he’d be stupid enough to return but it was a good tactical move – go where the enemy least expects. She remembered they’d had a merman last time to get inside and was relieved when she found out there were a few transhumans who could similarly complete the task. This time Max managed to get the team inside without having to alert the guards to their presence. They snuck inside and Max scanned the room quickly - they hadn’t needed to go into the factory too deeply last time and she had hoped that it would be the case this time.
As Max was about to move on from the main floor, she noticed a man in a suit talking to a guard. She couldn’t hear what they were saying but she saw him point to a truck. Max went with her gut and signalled to the team her intentions. She snuck down to the floor and cautiously made her way toward the truck. As she got within reach, a guard startled her and she quickly lashed out rendering him unconscious, but not before he had time to let out a yell.
Throwing caution to the wind, she threw open the doors and spotted Alec in the back of the truck, shackled up and completely still. His eyes were closed and Max moved forward, putting her hand to his chest to feel his heartbeat. As she felt the rhythmic sounds she let out a breath she didn’t realise she had been holding.
“Max, we gotta go,” she heard behind her. Max surveyed the shackles and knew she couldn’t break them in time.
“Alright, we take the truck with us,” Max said as climbed in the back. She heard the engine start up and felt a few transgenics move into the back with her. “Not back to TC though. We don’t know if they can track it. Just take us far enough away to lose them,” she called out.
The drive felt as though it took forever and although Max could feel several pairs of transgenic eyes on her, she couldn’t take her eyes off of her 2IC. ‘Why wasn’t he waking up?’ she wondered.
The truck came to a stop and Max heard a door slam. She reached forward and began trying to break the shackles before she felt someone’s hand on hers. She looked up and saw Zack looking at her. She nodded and sat back, allowing him to use a crowbar to break them. Zack motioned for a few of the others to help him and they carried Alec out of the truck and over to the van they had used to get to Sector 12.
Max sat in the back again with Alec and watched him as they drove back to TC. He hadn’t even moved and if it weren’t for the steady breathing she would have thought he was dead. The drive to TC seemed quicker and before she knew it, Zack had pulled the van in and Kellie was opening the van doors and pulling Alec out. Without giving it a second thought Max followed Kellie as Alec was carried to the med bay.
~
“I need a Psy-Op’s in here,” Kellie called out to the medic behind her who gave her a stunned look before rushing out of the room. Kellie looked down when she felt a hand grip her arm tightly. She looked up to see an angry Max.
“What the hell do you think you are doing?”
“Max, this is some sort of Catatonia. There is no other explanation and I don’t know how it happened or why but we need to figure it out.”
“You want someone to mess with his mind?” Max asked incredulously.
“Of course not. But they might be able to figure out what is going on or how to help him. We have to try.”
They were interrupted when a young woman walked in nervously. Alcina gave a quick glance at an angry Max before turning her attention to the Medic.
“Kellie?”
The transgenic didn’t have a lot of friends in TC; most hated her. Max had actually liked her as a person but made it clear that she would have to understand the fear of the others, why they couldn’t trust her. If Max was angry…she wondered if she had done something wrong.
“Allie, I need you to take a look here. He’s become catatonic and it shouldn’t have happened. I don’t know how else to help him and I need you to check that this isn’t a chemical thing.” Alcina looked at Max warily.
“What about taking blood samples?”
“It’ll take to long,” Kellie said simply.
Alcina just looked at Max. Max let out a deep breath and gave a small nod. Alcina walked around to the other side of the bed and took Alec’s hand in hers. She closed her eyes and felt a shift within herself like she was being pulled along.
Alcina opened her eyes and found herself in a dark, familiar corridor. There was a single door at the end and a small light coming out from under it. She walked carefully down to the end and tried the handle. When she couldn’t turn it, she frowned. She tried several times but it remained locked. Trying a different tactic, she knocked and heard a small noise.
“Alec?” she called out. “Can you let me in please?”
“Leave!”
“Alec, please! You are back in TC. Max went in and got you from White but we are all worried now. You need to come back,” she pleaded.
“Leave,” he repeated. Sighing she turned and walked back down the corridor. She opened her eyes and found herself in the med bay. She looked down at Alec and was surprised to see his eyes open though they were staring into nothing, seeing nothing.
“What did you do?” Kellie asked. Alcina looked to her.
“We need to talk,” she said, walking out the door.
Max and Kellie followed her as she led them to Max’s office. She had briefly heard Max say something to Mole but she didn’t listen. She sat down in front of Max’s desk and waited for the others. Kellie sat beside her and Max sat in her chair opposite but both women looked to her for answers.
“I can’t tell you how it happened but I can tell you what has. Alec has done this to himself,” Alcina stated. Max looked confused and Kellie frowned.
“He put himself in a catatonic state? Is that even possible?”
Alcina paused as she tried to think of the right way to explain it. “Alright, think of it this way. When I go into someone’s mind, there is a corridor. And at the end is a room that is filled with everything that makes you, you. It is filled with drawers and each one has every thought and memory. Now every room is different because every person is different. Some people are very disorganised people and they’ll have a desk or table that has paperwork all over it, every thought or memory that hasn’t been filed yet. Some need to have comfort and will have a fireplace or comfy chair but all have the same basic outline.
Now Alec is actually a very neat person. When I have been in his mind before, everything was filed, and oddly sparse. Just a table and a chair and it’s because of who he is as a person. Alec doesn’t use reflections and tries to forget his past. He always fought me when I tried to gain access to his memories by intentionally misfiling some things. Transgenics are also taught to forget.”
“‘By deliberately flooding your mind with disinformation, you can so confuse your memory that you can’t reveal the truth’,” Max quoted, a brief flash of a memory with Lydecker when she was a kid surfaced.
Alcina gave her a sad, knowing smile. “Yes, but you can’t actually forget. That’s why later on you may be able to remember things. All you do is sort of, pull out all of the papers and mix them up. It takes time, but eventually you can refile and you’ll remember things. Our job was to go in and effectively destroy the paperwork; how well the job was performed depended on the Psy-Op’s personnel and the patients.”
“What has this got to do with Alec?” Max interrupted. Alcina sighed.
“He’s locked the door,” she said simply. Max and Kellie sat uncomprehending. Alcina closed her eyes briefly before opening them. “It shouldn’t be possible. If a person gets sick or something goes wrong mentally, the door can get jammed but the doors don’t have keyholes. It is impossible to lock one. But somehow, and for reasons I don’t know, he has managed to lock himself in.”
“Can’t you just knock on the door and ask him to come out?” Kellie asked looking at Alcina as though she had overlooked something important.
“I’ve tried that. He told me to leave. He simply won’t come out and until he does he will stay in the state he is in.”
“Why don’t you break the door down or something?” Max said. Alcina looked at her with a look of slight horror.
“I can’t do that Max. I don’t know what kind of damage that could do. The doors are there for a reason. Everybody needs to be able to stop thinking and just be sometimes and the door provides that barrier.”
“Alright. Why did his eyes open when you went in?” Kellie asked. Alcina looked relieved at the topic change.
“A drug, a psychoactive I’d assume. My guess is he put himself in this state and they tried to reach him despite it, even though it only affected his body. It was wearing off by the time I went in there.”
“What if someone else went in there?” Kellie asked looking at Alcina.
Alcina shook her head. “No, it wouldn’t work. All of the Psy-Op’s capable of that in TC have been there before. He wasn’t very receptive with me.” Kellie shook her head.
“No, not them. Can you take someone in with you or at least get them in?” Kellie asked. Alcina gave her a confused expression before answering.
“Um, I don’t know. You want me to take you in? I’m not sure if I can. And even if I could get you in, I couldn’t stay there with you. Too many people in his head could be a big problem.” Alcina nervously moved a lock of hair out of her face.
“I don’t want to go in,” Kellie said. “He wouldn’t respond to me. But I want you to take Max in. Maybe she can get through to him.”
“But I couldn’t stay in. Even if I got her in, I couldn’t get her back out. She’d be stuck unless he came out. And if she can’t get through to him, we might lose both of them.”
“I think the risk is acceptable. I think it will work. It’s just a matter of-”
“Hold on!” Max yelled, “Now ‘she’ is sitting right in the room with you and why the hell me? If you want someone to get through to him, pick one of his friends or even someone from his old unit, someone he’ll listen to.”
Kellie sat on the edge of her chair and turned to Max. “Max, I honestly believe you are the best person to do this. I am, of course, worried about the complications but I think this will work. You have to try.” Max shook her head.
“What about a friend or someone from his unit?” Max pled.
“No, you must have noticed he works a lot. Sure he is social but it is only on a surface level. He isn’t close to many people and he isn’t close with anyone from his unit, especially not after Biggs and CeCe were killed. You need to do this.”
“I have a city to run. I can’t take the chance that TC will lose both of their leaders.”
“Max, do you wanna take the chance that you’ll lose Alec?”
Max momentarily closed her eyes before looking back at Kellie. There was a silence as they looked at each other before Max sighed loudly.
“Fine!”
“Hey!” Alcina said, gaining the attention of the women in the room. “I’m the one who has to do this, shouldn’t you ask me? I mean apart from the guilt I already have weighing me down from the things I’ve had to do to the same people I now have to see every day, if I manage to lose both of the leaders of TC, the others will definitely kill me. My life is on the line here too.”
“Look, we can ask another Psy-Op’s to help, it doesn’t have to be you. But we are asking you. I think this will work, I really do and if it doesn’t, then we can deal with it then,” Kellie said calmly. Alcina yielded and the three women walked back to the med bay.
Kellie placed a chair beside the bed for Max to sit in and Alcina placed Max’s hand in Alec’s and held onto both. Max felt a rush of wind when she closed her eyes and a loud roaring as it moved past her ears.
“Max!” Alcina called out. Max opened her eyes and found herself in a corridor. She could her Alcina’s voice but it sounded far away. “I’ve done what I can; the rest is up to you. Good luck!” Max looked to the door up ahead and moved slowly along the corridor. Despite knowing it was locked, Max tried the handle anyway. It refused to budge and Max knocked.
“Go away!” Alec commanded from inside.
“Alec, open the damn door!” Max yelled frustrated. She heard a laugh coming from inside.
“Sure, why not!”
“Alec, I’m stuck here until you do, so open the door and we can figure this bitch out!” she yelled, her fists automatically clenching into balls.
“I have to say, I’m impressed,” Alec called back. “Of all the things they tried to mess with and they try to get me using you. It was a very good strategy but I’m not coming out. You’d better get back to White and let him know that he won’t get anything from me.”
Max screamed in frustration. “You’re not there idiot! You were in the warehouse where we rescued the mermaid from but I took a team and saved your sorry ass! Now you won’t come out? Are you crazy? I should have left you there for White to send to the Conclave!
“Look, I told you to let me help you before you got yourself into a mess once before and you didn’t listen. I am stuck here now and if you drag me into this mess with you, I swear I will make the rest of your eternity a living hell!” Max heard a small click before the door opened to reveal a very disbelieving Alec.
“Wow, you even look kinda like her,” Alec said with a smirk.
“Kinda?” Max fumed. “I ‘kinda’ look like me? You jerk!” she said pushing in.
She looked around the room and was slightly surprised. There were a number of pieces of paper on the floor and instead of the single table and chair there was a long couch. A pile of papers were sitting on it in a neat pile. She walked slowly over to them and looked at the top sheet. It was a conversation between himself and Biggs and was written in a script format.
“Biggs?” Alec frowned and narrowed his eyes as though he were trying to figure out the angle of the intruder. “That’s what you’re doing? Why go through that again Alec?” Max asked. He walked over and took the papers from her hand.
“Look, why don’t you just ask me what White wants to know so that I can tell you ‘no’ and you can leave?” Alec said coldly.
“For the last time Alec, you’re at TC.”
“Sure, okay. Well, the last time I checked Max didn’t have the ability to enter my mind to extract information.”
“When have you ever checked?” Max asked raising an eyebrow. “And I can’t do that. Alcina left me here and for some stupid reason Kellie thinks you’ll listen to me. If you don’t leave here, we’ll be stuck here forever.”
“I can think of worse things,” Alec replied flippantly as he sat down on the lounge and began sifting through the papers in his hands. Max threw hers up in frustration.
“This isn’t some mind trick Alec. This is me, Max! And I’m asking you to get off your butt and get out of here!” Alec laughed softly as he shook his head. “What?” she yelled angrily.
“You screwed up. Max would never have ‘asked’ so just get out. I won’t give anything up.” Alec stopped on a sheet of paper and began reading.
“You think you know me?” Max said gritting her teeth. She couldn’t believe he didn’t trust it was her.
“I know Max better than anyone,” he said simply without looking up.
Max’s mouth opened and then closed. She was speechless. After a pregnant pause a small “What?” was all she managed to get out. Alec looked up at her stoically.
“As I said, I am surprised you stooped as low as using Max. I didn’t think you would. But it doesn’t matter anyway, you can’t possibly get me to reveal anything and you can’t trick me by using her. Next time, pick someone you can pull off better, someone I don’t know better, and I might actually believe you.” He put the paperwork beside him and stood, taking the few small steps until he was standing right in front off her. He looked her up and down.
“It was a commendable performance. You look the same and for a while there, I could have actually believed you. But no matter what you try, you can never be her.” Vehemence had spilled into his voice. “I’m going to tell you the same thing I told White and every other person he paraded around: she won’t come for me, so you won’t get her. White is stupid to think that he can use me as bait and this,” he said, motioning up and down her body, “won’t work.”
Before Max had time to comprehend everything he said, he pushed her up against a wall with his arm against her throat, restricting airflow.
“Alec, you’re hurting me,” Max managed to choke out as she struggled in his grip. His voice turned threateningly low as he spoke.
“You cannot use her to get to me and she does not make me weak. If you lay a finger on her, I will hunt down every single member and mercilessly kill you. You know I can keep that promise and there is nothing on this earth that can stop me. If you know what is good for you, you’ll leave White,” Alec said, almost as an afterthought. “Trying to get to me using the woman I love was a low blow and there will be hell to pay.” Max hadn’t realised that he had opened the door and as he shoved her through it, she remained stunned. She heard the familiar click of the lock and looked down at the handle.
Max wasn’t sure what to feel and went with her first reaction. She lifted her fist and angrily pounded on the door, not letting up until the door flew open and a very angry Alec was looking down at her.
Before he could say anything, she reached up and punched him in the face. He stumbled back and she pushed him further into the room causing him to fall. He looked up at her with an expression of surprise and anger.
“You tell me you love me and close the door in my face? You arrogant jerk!” Alec stood angrily and advanced on her. She saw his fist coming and ducked to avoid it. Max moved further into the room but kept her eye on him the whole time.
“I told you to leave!” he snarled. “You know that when I kill you here, you will die out there too. Are you so willing to sacrifice yourself for White?”
“I’m not here for White, I’m here for me. You didn’t even let me respond and if I have to kick your ass to make you listen, then I will!” Max and Alec began circling each other silently. He delivered a series of blows which she deflected but Max felt as though his moves were mechanical. He moved forward as he delivered another punch to the head and Max dodged. She grabbed him by the front of the shirt and pulled him in giving him a quick, bruising kiss before shoving him away. Alec looked at her surprised.
“What the hell was that for?” he said angrily.
“That was my response! This wasn’t the ideal situation for you to tell me that you love me Alec. And the only thing worse than not even waiting for my response, was closing the door in my face. Now if you want to kill me, go for it,” Max said, her chest heaving. Alec glared at her before roughly grabbing her arm and shoving her toward the door.
“And the only thing worse than pretending to be Max and kissing me, was telling me that she loved me. You really don’t know anything about her, do you?” Alec continued to pull her until she was standing outside the door. “Max doesn’t even like me and sometimes, it even borders on hate. I am a screw up in her eyes and a pain in her ass. If she didn’t have to see me again, she would probably breathe a sigh of relief. Now, I won’t tell you again, get out of here.” Alec slammed the door again and locked it.
“You really think I believe all that about you Alec?” Max asked softly, a sharp pain tearing at her heart. She didn’t raise her voice; she was sure he could hear her. “I have never hated you. Not once. And I didn’t dislike you, I just didn’t like the way you made me feel. You’re all cocky with that stupid smirk of yours and you traipsed through my life, not even caring what you did. I was supposed to be in love with Logan and until you walked into my cell, I thought I was. Not the mating thing, or the trying to kill me thing or any of the numerous times I’ve had to save your ass made me feel any differently. And that hurt. Because the whole playboy/jerk thing wasn’t appealing and there was absolutely no reason for me to feel that way about you. I tried everything I could to ignore it or at least be indifferent to it but then you had to actually show me what was underneath that stupid Manticore mask you are so fond of.” Max was too focused on letting him know what she was feeling that she didn’t notice the tears rolling down her face.
“I saw you as you cried over Rachel’s body and the look on your face when we found Biggs. I remember what it felt like to have your arms around me as I cried over Ben and I saw the pain I caused you when I lied to Logan about us. And then I felt worse because I realised that I was in love with you but you were completely indifferent to me.” Max stopped suddenly as the door was quickly pulled open and Alec looked at her with narrowed eyes, taking in her tear stained face.
“I want you to know something. If this whole thing was some elaborate ruse then you have successfully completed your task at utterly ruining a man.”
Without even giving her a chance to respond, he grabbed her hand and ran down the corridor. Max went with him and closed her eyes as they reached the wall at the other end. Instead of her body hitting the wall, she felt nothing and she cautiously opened her eyes to find she was in the med bay.
The first thing she saw was Kellie standing on the other side of the bed and Alcina just behind looking worried. She quickly turned her attention to the person whose hand she was still holding and was captivated by the pair of hazel eyes staring back at her. A small grin began forming on her mouth and before she even had a chance to complete it, Alec leant forward and captured her lips in a soft, passionate kiss. He let go of her hand so that both of his could cup her face and bring her in closer to him.
Neither noticed the smile on both Alcina and Kellie’s faces, nor did they see them silently exit the room.
~Fin.
Author: SkylarGrace.
Status: One-Shot; Complete.
Rating: PG-13.
Summary: How can Max reach Alec when he’s no longer there?
Spoilers: Set after Freak Nation so all of them :)
Disclaimer: Dark Angel and all related elements belong to Cameron Eglee Productions and FOX. No infringement intended.
Alec walked quickly toward the building ahead, keeping an eye on the ordinaries and making sure Liam stayed with him. Liam was another X5 whom Alec had struck up a friendship with when he moved to TC. They were going to meet a contact who would help them out with some supplies and although it seemed routine, Alec had a sick feeling that something would go wrong. There were a team of X’s five minutes behind them who were under orders to hang back until the appointed time and then move in to help with supplies.
Alec and Liam moved into the building and Alec led them to the meeting place. It had been an old dance studio before the pulse and had numerous exits. As they entered, Alec saw only one person in the room.
“Hey Rocko!” Rocko gave his typical grunt in response and Alec smiled. “Did you have any trouble?” Rocko looked over at him.
“It’s getting harder Alec; I had some guys on my tail last week. I’m gonna have to up the payments if it keeps up.”
Alec laughed. “Purely for safety reasons of course!”
“Of course,” Rocko replied. “Supplies are in the usual place. I’m guessing the cash is too?”
“Yep, delivered it there myself. When do you think the next shipment will come in?” Rocko shrugged.
“Maybe two months. Depends how long they keep sending it on the same route despite it never reaching its destination,” Rocko said with a smile.
“Is that a smile I see? Come on Rocko, you have to repress that cheery side!” Alec said with mirth and Rocko glared back. “That’s more like it!” Alec hit Rocko playfully on the back.
There was the sound of a gunshot and Alec saw Rocko look down briefly at his chest where a red stain appeared to be getting larger. Rocko faltered momentarily before falling back. Alec sprung into action, dropping and rolling to an upturned desk. He looked out and saw that Liam was similarly crouched behind debris. He motioned toward Liam and Liam replied in the negative; he hadn’t seen the attackers.
Alec scanned the room and seeing it clear, expanded his scan to nearby buildings. He didn’t need to search for long as he saw White walking toward the dance studio.
“Damn! White,” he called out to Liam.
Liam’s eyes went wide but he nodded to say that he had understood. Liam looked at his watch. There was only a few minutes left before reinforcements would be arriving and he hoped they would be able to hold out until then. The back door flew open and Alec saw several Familiars enter and he regretted not bringing any weapons. Alec leapt up from his covered position and stood to fight White. There was only he and Liam and Alec knew those were bad odds.
He squared off against White and saw White smile. Before he had time to comprehend the smile, Alec felt several tasers hit him at once and he fell to the ground shaking uncontrollably. Before he blacked out, he saw a Familiar come up behind Liam, who was already engaged in battle with another, and snap his neck. A tear slipped out of his eye and the darkness engulfed him.
~
“Oh, this is not good,” Kyle said as he entered the dance studio. He heard several gasps of surprise before Zero moved over and checked on Liam. He looked up at Kyle and shook his head. “Alright, let’s pack it up and head out quickly.” He was not looking forward to telling Max.
~
Max had been sitting at her desk looking over progress reports when she heard a commotion outside. Before she could get up to inspect it, Zero came into her office.
“What is it?” Max asked concerned. She tried to look out her door but couldn’t see anything.
“Something went wrong. We don’t know exactly what but whatever it was happened fast. We were only a couple of minutes behind.”
“What? What happened?” Max had a sinking feeling in her stomach.
“When we entered the location there were two fatalities. One gunshot wound, one snapped neck.” Max sat down slowly. “There was no evidence that it had been a shoot out just a single round fired.”
“They’re both dead?”
“Yes,” Zero said, not comprehending her meaning, “We searched the surrounding area for Alec but we couldn’t find him. He must have been taken as a hostage.” At the mention of Alec’s name, Max’s head shot up and her eyes narrowed in on Zero.
“Alec’s alive?”
Zero shifted uncomfortably. “Well, we don’t know for sure. But his body wasn’t there, so it’s probable that he is.”
“Alright, thanks for the update. Send Mole in will you?” Max said dismissively. Zero was startled for a moment. In the short time he had been in the office, it seemed as though he had dealt with a number of different people. He gave a quick nod before leaving and letting Mole know that Max wanted him.
Max looked up as Mole entered and was thankful she had managed to compose herself in the short time she had been alone. Right now, TC needed a leader and that’s what she would give them.
“You know what I want Mole, so get it done. I want every person looking for him, got it? Get Dix to see if he can track where he went and enlist Logan’s help. This stinks of White. It had to have been if Liam’s neck was snapped and they were able to take down two transgenics. I don’t want anyone to stop until we either bring back Alec or his body. Keep me updated and prepare a team in case we get a location.” Mole nodded and walked out of the room thoughtfully chewing on his cigar.
~
“There is nothing more I can do,” the doctor said turning away from the man on the table and facing his boss.
“What do you mean?” White said angrily. The doctor pointed to the man on the table behind him.
“When X5’s are captured, they’re taught to forget everything so they don’t compromise everything-” the doctor began.
“Well then make him remember.”
The doctor looked surprised. “I, I can’t. Well, I mean, usually I can get…something, but he hasn’t forgotten the information, he’s forgotten himself. I’ve never seen a transgenic do that before. He, he is basically a vegetable.” White grabbed him by the front of the coat.
“What?” White ground out. The doctor raised his hands defensively.
“I’ve tried everything I can but he’s just not there anymore. There is no way to get the information now.” White looked at the blank eyes of the man on the table and released the doctor from his grasp.
“Is it something they have been taught?”
The doctor eyed him cautiously. “I doubt it. They would lose too many soldiers. I don’t know how he has done it or even if he meant to.”
White gave a half smile as his eyes narrowed. “Well, at least one piece of transgenic scum is now dead. Prep him. I want his body delivered to the Conclave and they can do what they want with him.”
The doctor nodded and White walked out the door. He gave one last look as he reached the door.
“Bye 494,” he said as he walked away.
~
“It’s been four days,” Max said impatiently. “Tell me you have something Dix.” Dix ignored Max as he continued to type impatiently on the computer. Max turned her attention to Mole. “Mole?”
“We’re doing all we can Max. I told you I would let you know when we had something.”
“I have something!” Dix said triumphantly.
“We’ve got something Max,” Mole deadpanned before Max could speak. She ignored his sarcasm as she walked over to Dix’s computer.
“I think he’s in Sector 12. I followed some unusual vehicles and they’ve stopped in Sector 12. It was all industrial before the Pulse hit-”
“I know I’ve been there before,” Max interrupted. “Alec and I have tracked White down there before. Mole, get the team, I think I know where he is.” Max walked back into her office and put her jacket on. “I’m coming,” she whispered to no-one in particular.
~
Max crept along beside the planks of wood toward the factory. White had been here previously with another transgenic that she and Alec had rescued but had moved to another location after that. Max honestly hadn’t thought he’d be stupid enough to return but it was a good tactical move – go where the enemy least expects. She remembered they’d had a merman last time to get inside and was relieved when she found out there were a few transhumans who could similarly complete the task. This time Max managed to get the team inside without having to alert the guards to their presence. They snuck inside and Max scanned the room quickly - they hadn’t needed to go into the factory too deeply last time and she had hoped that it would be the case this time.
As Max was about to move on from the main floor, she noticed a man in a suit talking to a guard. She couldn’t hear what they were saying but she saw him point to a truck. Max went with her gut and signalled to the team her intentions. She snuck down to the floor and cautiously made her way toward the truck. As she got within reach, a guard startled her and she quickly lashed out rendering him unconscious, but not before he had time to let out a yell.
Throwing caution to the wind, she threw open the doors and spotted Alec in the back of the truck, shackled up and completely still. His eyes were closed and Max moved forward, putting her hand to his chest to feel his heartbeat. As she felt the rhythmic sounds she let out a breath she didn’t realise she had been holding.
“Max, we gotta go,” she heard behind her. Max surveyed the shackles and knew she couldn’t break them in time.
“Alright, we take the truck with us,” Max said as climbed in the back. She heard the engine start up and felt a few transgenics move into the back with her. “Not back to TC though. We don’t know if they can track it. Just take us far enough away to lose them,” she called out.
The drive felt as though it took forever and although Max could feel several pairs of transgenic eyes on her, she couldn’t take her eyes off of her 2IC. ‘Why wasn’t he waking up?’ she wondered.
The truck came to a stop and Max heard a door slam. She reached forward and began trying to break the shackles before she felt someone’s hand on hers. She looked up and saw Zack looking at her. She nodded and sat back, allowing him to use a crowbar to break them. Zack motioned for a few of the others to help him and they carried Alec out of the truck and over to the van they had used to get to Sector 12.
Max sat in the back again with Alec and watched him as they drove back to TC. He hadn’t even moved and if it weren’t for the steady breathing she would have thought he was dead. The drive to TC seemed quicker and before she knew it, Zack had pulled the van in and Kellie was opening the van doors and pulling Alec out. Without giving it a second thought Max followed Kellie as Alec was carried to the med bay.
~
“I need a Psy-Op’s in here,” Kellie called out to the medic behind her who gave her a stunned look before rushing out of the room. Kellie looked down when she felt a hand grip her arm tightly. She looked up to see an angry Max.
“What the hell do you think you are doing?”
“Max, this is some sort of Catatonia. There is no other explanation and I don’t know how it happened or why but we need to figure it out.”
“You want someone to mess with his mind?” Max asked incredulously.
“Of course not. But they might be able to figure out what is going on or how to help him. We have to try.”
They were interrupted when a young woman walked in nervously. Alcina gave a quick glance at an angry Max before turning her attention to the Medic.
“Kellie?”
The transgenic didn’t have a lot of friends in TC; most hated her. Max had actually liked her as a person but made it clear that she would have to understand the fear of the others, why they couldn’t trust her. If Max was angry…she wondered if she had done something wrong.
“Allie, I need you to take a look here. He’s become catatonic and it shouldn’t have happened. I don’t know how else to help him and I need you to check that this isn’t a chemical thing.” Alcina looked at Max warily.
“What about taking blood samples?”
“It’ll take to long,” Kellie said simply.
Alcina just looked at Max. Max let out a deep breath and gave a small nod. Alcina walked around to the other side of the bed and took Alec’s hand in hers. She closed her eyes and felt a shift within herself like she was being pulled along.
Alcina opened her eyes and found herself in a dark, familiar corridor. There was a single door at the end and a small light coming out from under it. She walked carefully down to the end and tried the handle. When she couldn’t turn it, she frowned. She tried several times but it remained locked. Trying a different tactic, she knocked and heard a small noise.
“Alec?” she called out. “Can you let me in please?”
“Leave!”
“Alec, please! You are back in TC. Max went in and got you from White but we are all worried now. You need to come back,” she pleaded.
“Leave,” he repeated. Sighing she turned and walked back down the corridor. She opened her eyes and found herself in the med bay. She looked down at Alec and was surprised to see his eyes open though they were staring into nothing, seeing nothing.
“What did you do?” Kellie asked. Alcina looked to her.
“We need to talk,” she said, walking out the door.
Max and Kellie followed her as she led them to Max’s office. She had briefly heard Max say something to Mole but she didn’t listen. She sat down in front of Max’s desk and waited for the others. Kellie sat beside her and Max sat in her chair opposite but both women looked to her for answers.
“I can’t tell you how it happened but I can tell you what has. Alec has done this to himself,” Alcina stated. Max looked confused and Kellie frowned.
“He put himself in a catatonic state? Is that even possible?”
Alcina paused as she tried to think of the right way to explain it. “Alright, think of it this way. When I go into someone’s mind, there is a corridor. And at the end is a room that is filled with everything that makes you, you. It is filled with drawers and each one has every thought and memory. Now every room is different because every person is different. Some people are very disorganised people and they’ll have a desk or table that has paperwork all over it, every thought or memory that hasn’t been filed yet. Some need to have comfort and will have a fireplace or comfy chair but all have the same basic outline.
Now Alec is actually a very neat person. When I have been in his mind before, everything was filed, and oddly sparse. Just a table and a chair and it’s because of who he is as a person. Alec doesn’t use reflections and tries to forget his past. He always fought me when I tried to gain access to his memories by intentionally misfiling some things. Transgenics are also taught to forget.”
“‘By deliberately flooding your mind with disinformation, you can so confuse your memory that you can’t reveal the truth’,” Max quoted, a brief flash of a memory with Lydecker when she was a kid surfaced.
Alcina gave her a sad, knowing smile. “Yes, but you can’t actually forget. That’s why later on you may be able to remember things. All you do is sort of, pull out all of the papers and mix them up. It takes time, but eventually you can refile and you’ll remember things. Our job was to go in and effectively destroy the paperwork; how well the job was performed depended on the Psy-Op’s personnel and the patients.”
“What has this got to do with Alec?” Max interrupted. Alcina sighed.
“He’s locked the door,” she said simply. Max and Kellie sat uncomprehending. Alcina closed her eyes briefly before opening them. “It shouldn’t be possible. If a person gets sick or something goes wrong mentally, the door can get jammed but the doors don’t have keyholes. It is impossible to lock one. But somehow, and for reasons I don’t know, he has managed to lock himself in.”
“Can’t you just knock on the door and ask him to come out?” Kellie asked looking at Alcina as though she had overlooked something important.
“I’ve tried that. He told me to leave. He simply won’t come out and until he does he will stay in the state he is in.”
“Why don’t you break the door down or something?” Max said. Alcina looked at her with a look of slight horror.
“I can’t do that Max. I don’t know what kind of damage that could do. The doors are there for a reason. Everybody needs to be able to stop thinking and just be sometimes and the door provides that barrier.”
“Alright. Why did his eyes open when you went in?” Kellie asked. Alcina looked relieved at the topic change.
“A drug, a psychoactive I’d assume. My guess is he put himself in this state and they tried to reach him despite it, even though it only affected his body. It was wearing off by the time I went in there.”
“What if someone else went in there?” Kellie asked looking at Alcina.
Alcina shook her head. “No, it wouldn’t work. All of the Psy-Op’s capable of that in TC have been there before. He wasn’t very receptive with me.” Kellie shook her head.
“No, not them. Can you take someone in with you or at least get them in?” Kellie asked. Alcina gave her a confused expression before answering.
“Um, I don’t know. You want me to take you in? I’m not sure if I can. And even if I could get you in, I couldn’t stay there with you. Too many people in his head could be a big problem.” Alcina nervously moved a lock of hair out of her face.
“I don’t want to go in,” Kellie said. “He wouldn’t respond to me. But I want you to take Max in. Maybe she can get through to him.”
“But I couldn’t stay in. Even if I got her in, I couldn’t get her back out. She’d be stuck unless he came out. And if she can’t get through to him, we might lose both of them.”
“I think the risk is acceptable. I think it will work. It’s just a matter of-”
“Hold on!” Max yelled, “Now ‘she’ is sitting right in the room with you and why the hell me? If you want someone to get through to him, pick one of his friends or even someone from his old unit, someone he’ll listen to.”
Kellie sat on the edge of her chair and turned to Max. “Max, I honestly believe you are the best person to do this. I am, of course, worried about the complications but I think this will work. You have to try.” Max shook her head.
“What about a friend or someone from his unit?” Max pled.
“No, you must have noticed he works a lot. Sure he is social but it is only on a surface level. He isn’t close to many people and he isn’t close with anyone from his unit, especially not after Biggs and CeCe were killed. You need to do this.”
“I have a city to run. I can’t take the chance that TC will lose both of their leaders.”
“Max, do you wanna take the chance that you’ll lose Alec?”
Max momentarily closed her eyes before looking back at Kellie. There was a silence as they looked at each other before Max sighed loudly.
“Fine!”
“Hey!” Alcina said, gaining the attention of the women in the room. “I’m the one who has to do this, shouldn’t you ask me? I mean apart from the guilt I already have weighing me down from the things I’ve had to do to the same people I now have to see every day, if I manage to lose both of the leaders of TC, the others will definitely kill me. My life is on the line here too.”
“Look, we can ask another Psy-Op’s to help, it doesn’t have to be you. But we are asking you. I think this will work, I really do and if it doesn’t, then we can deal with it then,” Kellie said calmly. Alcina yielded and the three women walked back to the med bay.
Kellie placed a chair beside the bed for Max to sit in and Alcina placed Max’s hand in Alec’s and held onto both. Max felt a rush of wind when she closed her eyes and a loud roaring as it moved past her ears.
“Max!” Alcina called out. Max opened her eyes and found herself in a corridor. She could her Alcina’s voice but it sounded far away. “I’ve done what I can; the rest is up to you. Good luck!” Max looked to the door up ahead and moved slowly along the corridor. Despite knowing it was locked, Max tried the handle anyway. It refused to budge and Max knocked.
“Go away!” Alec commanded from inside.
“Alec, open the damn door!” Max yelled frustrated. She heard a laugh coming from inside.
“Sure, why not!”
“Alec, I’m stuck here until you do, so open the door and we can figure this bitch out!” she yelled, her fists automatically clenching into balls.
“I have to say, I’m impressed,” Alec called back. “Of all the things they tried to mess with and they try to get me using you. It was a very good strategy but I’m not coming out. You’d better get back to White and let him know that he won’t get anything from me.”
Max screamed in frustration. “You’re not there idiot! You were in the warehouse where we rescued the mermaid from but I took a team and saved your sorry ass! Now you won’t come out? Are you crazy? I should have left you there for White to send to the Conclave!
“Look, I told you to let me help you before you got yourself into a mess once before and you didn’t listen. I am stuck here now and if you drag me into this mess with you, I swear I will make the rest of your eternity a living hell!” Max heard a small click before the door opened to reveal a very disbelieving Alec.
“Wow, you even look kinda like her,” Alec said with a smirk.
“Kinda?” Max fumed. “I ‘kinda’ look like me? You jerk!” she said pushing in.
She looked around the room and was slightly surprised. There were a number of pieces of paper on the floor and instead of the single table and chair there was a long couch. A pile of papers were sitting on it in a neat pile. She walked slowly over to them and looked at the top sheet. It was a conversation between himself and Biggs and was written in a script format.
“Biggs?” Alec frowned and narrowed his eyes as though he were trying to figure out the angle of the intruder. “That’s what you’re doing? Why go through that again Alec?” Max asked. He walked over and took the papers from her hand.
“Look, why don’t you just ask me what White wants to know so that I can tell you ‘no’ and you can leave?” Alec said coldly.
“For the last time Alec, you’re at TC.”
“Sure, okay. Well, the last time I checked Max didn’t have the ability to enter my mind to extract information.”
“When have you ever checked?” Max asked raising an eyebrow. “And I can’t do that. Alcina left me here and for some stupid reason Kellie thinks you’ll listen to me. If you don’t leave here, we’ll be stuck here forever.”
“I can think of worse things,” Alec replied flippantly as he sat down on the lounge and began sifting through the papers in his hands. Max threw hers up in frustration.
“This isn’t some mind trick Alec. This is me, Max! And I’m asking you to get off your butt and get out of here!” Alec laughed softly as he shook his head. “What?” she yelled angrily.
“You screwed up. Max would never have ‘asked’ so just get out. I won’t give anything up.” Alec stopped on a sheet of paper and began reading.
“You think you know me?” Max said gritting her teeth. She couldn’t believe he didn’t trust it was her.
“I know Max better than anyone,” he said simply without looking up.
Max’s mouth opened and then closed. She was speechless. After a pregnant pause a small “What?” was all she managed to get out. Alec looked up at her stoically.
“As I said, I am surprised you stooped as low as using Max. I didn’t think you would. But it doesn’t matter anyway, you can’t possibly get me to reveal anything and you can’t trick me by using her. Next time, pick someone you can pull off better, someone I don’t know better, and I might actually believe you.” He put the paperwork beside him and stood, taking the few small steps until he was standing right in front off her. He looked her up and down.
“It was a commendable performance. You look the same and for a while there, I could have actually believed you. But no matter what you try, you can never be her.” Vehemence had spilled into his voice. “I’m going to tell you the same thing I told White and every other person he paraded around: she won’t come for me, so you won’t get her. White is stupid to think that he can use me as bait and this,” he said, motioning up and down her body, “won’t work.”
Before Max had time to comprehend everything he said, he pushed her up against a wall with his arm against her throat, restricting airflow.
“Alec, you’re hurting me,” Max managed to choke out as she struggled in his grip. His voice turned threateningly low as he spoke.
“You cannot use her to get to me and she does not make me weak. If you lay a finger on her, I will hunt down every single member and mercilessly kill you. You know I can keep that promise and there is nothing on this earth that can stop me. If you know what is good for you, you’ll leave White,” Alec said, almost as an afterthought. “Trying to get to me using the woman I love was a low blow and there will be hell to pay.” Max hadn’t realised that he had opened the door and as he shoved her through it, she remained stunned. She heard the familiar click of the lock and looked down at the handle.
Max wasn’t sure what to feel and went with her first reaction. She lifted her fist and angrily pounded on the door, not letting up until the door flew open and a very angry Alec was looking down at her.
Before he could say anything, she reached up and punched him in the face. He stumbled back and she pushed him further into the room causing him to fall. He looked up at her with an expression of surprise and anger.
“You tell me you love me and close the door in my face? You arrogant jerk!” Alec stood angrily and advanced on her. She saw his fist coming and ducked to avoid it. Max moved further into the room but kept her eye on him the whole time.
“I told you to leave!” he snarled. “You know that when I kill you here, you will die out there too. Are you so willing to sacrifice yourself for White?”
“I’m not here for White, I’m here for me. You didn’t even let me respond and if I have to kick your ass to make you listen, then I will!” Max and Alec began circling each other silently. He delivered a series of blows which she deflected but Max felt as though his moves were mechanical. He moved forward as he delivered another punch to the head and Max dodged. She grabbed him by the front of the shirt and pulled him in giving him a quick, bruising kiss before shoving him away. Alec looked at her surprised.
“What the hell was that for?” he said angrily.
“That was my response! This wasn’t the ideal situation for you to tell me that you love me Alec. And the only thing worse than not even waiting for my response, was closing the door in my face. Now if you want to kill me, go for it,” Max said, her chest heaving. Alec glared at her before roughly grabbing her arm and shoving her toward the door.
“And the only thing worse than pretending to be Max and kissing me, was telling me that she loved me. You really don’t know anything about her, do you?” Alec continued to pull her until she was standing outside the door. “Max doesn’t even like me and sometimes, it even borders on hate. I am a screw up in her eyes and a pain in her ass. If she didn’t have to see me again, she would probably breathe a sigh of relief. Now, I won’t tell you again, get out of here.” Alec slammed the door again and locked it.
“You really think I believe all that about you Alec?” Max asked softly, a sharp pain tearing at her heart. She didn’t raise her voice; she was sure he could hear her. “I have never hated you. Not once. And I didn’t dislike you, I just didn’t like the way you made me feel. You’re all cocky with that stupid smirk of yours and you traipsed through my life, not even caring what you did. I was supposed to be in love with Logan and until you walked into my cell, I thought I was. Not the mating thing, or the trying to kill me thing or any of the numerous times I’ve had to save your ass made me feel any differently. And that hurt. Because the whole playboy/jerk thing wasn’t appealing and there was absolutely no reason for me to feel that way about you. I tried everything I could to ignore it or at least be indifferent to it but then you had to actually show me what was underneath that stupid Manticore mask you are so fond of.” Max was too focused on letting him know what she was feeling that she didn’t notice the tears rolling down her face.
“I saw you as you cried over Rachel’s body and the look on your face when we found Biggs. I remember what it felt like to have your arms around me as I cried over Ben and I saw the pain I caused you when I lied to Logan about us. And then I felt worse because I realised that I was in love with you but you were completely indifferent to me.” Max stopped suddenly as the door was quickly pulled open and Alec looked at her with narrowed eyes, taking in her tear stained face.
“I want you to know something. If this whole thing was some elaborate ruse then you have successfully completed your task at utterly ruining a man.”
Without even giving her a chance to respond, he grabbed her hand and ran down the corridor. Max went with him and closed her eyes as they reached the wall at the other end. Instead of her body hitting the wall, she felt nothing and she cautiously opened her eyes to find she was in the med bay.
The first thing she saw was Kellie standing on the other side of the bed and Alcina just behind looking worried. She quickly turned her attention to the person whose hand she was still holding and was captivated by the pair of hazel eyes staring back at her. A small grin began forming on her mouth and before she even had a chance to complete it, Alec leant forward and captured her lips in a soft, passionate kiss. He let go of her hand so that both of his could cup her face and bring her in closer to him.
Neither noticed the smile on both Alcina and Kellie’s faces, nor did they see them silently exit the room.
~Fin.