Prophecy -- Chapter 10a

Disclaimer:  The TV shows Dark Angel and Supernatural, all of the characters that appeared on them, and everything else that has to do with the shows belong to their respective owners, not to me.  No money is being made off of this fic.  I only own the original characters (Dylan/X6-175, etc.).

“Hey, there,” Dylan said as he entered the control room the following night.  “What have we got going on here?”

“The usual,” Alec replied.  “We’ve got a group, including Max, out on a raid, and we’re keeping an eye on the crowd outside.  So far, so good on both fronts.”

Dylan nodded.  Max is out…relax, Dylan.  Number one:  he said Max as opposed to Max and Audrey.  Number two:  It’s a damn coincidence!  “That’s good.”

“What are you doing here, kid?” Mole asked before pausing to take a whiff of his cigar.  “Bored?  Couldn’t find a date?”

“I was finished putting those new rifles together from the parts that we got from last night’s raid,” Dylan informed him.  “They’re really good, by the way.  Me and the others put them through their paces and they performed beautifully.  I grabbed a quick bite to eat and then I came here.  There’s nothing else on my to-do list for the day, so what else could I have done?”  He pointed to Alec.  “He’s the one with the pirated satellite TV hookup in his apartment.”

“And what a hookup it is,” Alec commented.  “I managed to score myself the premium setup.  Roughly four hundred channels including sports, pay-per-view movies, and adult channels.  The whole nine yards.  It’s a pretty sweet deal.”

“Why don’t you just go right out and say it?  They’re porn channels.  Two or more adults fucking each other like there’s no tomorrow,” Mole said bluntly.

Alec pointed over to where two younger X6s were standing nearby, their eyes wide and their attention focused on the X5, lizard-man, and the older X6.  “They’re almost as bad as parrots.  You know that by tomorrow that one particular word, and we all know which one I’m talking about, will be in every other word of their sentences and if a certain leader of ours catches wind of it, guess who’s scaly butt is going to be hung out to dry?”

“Have you ever considered taking Max’s hand off of your you-know-what so that she stops leading you by the same you-know-what, pretty boy?” Mole growled.  Alec just laughed, which got him a puzzled look from Dylan.

“You’re not pissed at him?” he wondered.

“Nah,” Alec said.  “Besides, he watched his language in front of those guys.”

“True,” Dylan conceded.  He wandered over to a nearby table, where papers, folders, and photographs were spread out.  One picture caught his eye and he picked it up, his breath catching in his throat when he recognized the face.

“Oh, 452.  You don’t even look surprised.”

“Why should I?”

“Good point.”  The man’s laughter at Max’s efforts to pick herself up off the ground was unsettling, but the sound of the gun he fired directly at the X5’s head was down right terrifying.  “It’s about time, 452.  It’s about time.”

“I see you’ve found our favorite person’s ugly mug.”  Dylan turned his head to see Alec standing next to him, gesturing to the picture that was still in Dylan’s hand.  “Ames White, Special Agent with the NSA.  I’ve told you about him.  It’s amazing how somebody’s inner asshole can come through a photo, huh?”

Dylan nodded.  “It is.”  He bit his lip as he stared at the picture for a few more moments before setting it back down on the table.  It’s just another coincidence.  I bet I probably have seen his face somewhere before, maybe even a pic of him out of the corner of my eye.  I bet I know what it is.  I put together a mental image of the guy based on Alec and Max’s descriptions of him when they first told me about the asshole.  It makes perfect sense that I would dream an actual bad guy succeeding in killing Audrey, Max, and those others because I am honestly afraid of that happening for real!  See, Dylan?  Logical explanation.  “He does look like a big asshole.”

“So far, he’s an asshole who hasn’t been able to break us,” Alec said.  His eyes hardened.  “He’s taken plenty, whether as a direct or indirect result of his actions, but we’ve taken at least as much.”  Alec’s eyes softened and he grinned.  “And luckily for us, selective breeding doesn’t do shit against the toxins that are floating around here.  White knows he can’t stay around this place for too long at a stretch.  Sucks to be him.”

“I bet the two of them get along, huh?” Dylan remarked to Mole.

“Like ants and picnics.”

“If you think we get along, you should be there when he and Max get together,” Alec joked.

“What ever happened to your special talent for pissing people off?” Dylan teased.

“Don’t worry.  He still has it,” Mole assured him.

“I’m not sure if I should be relieved or terrified,” Dylan said.  He picked up a clipboard and looked over its information.  Tonight…location:  south of…crew on op…Max’s name…no Audrey!  Dylan mentally sighed in relief.  Whew, that’s a load off of my mind!  You see?  Audrey’s not on the heist.  That means that you win the King of the Paranoid Morons Award!  He set the clipboard down and shrugged.  “I think I’m going to head back to my apartment.  Maybe I’ll stop by Audrey’s crib and see what she’s up to.”

“Somebody wants to get busy,” Alec commented.  He laughed at the dirty look Dylan threw at him.  “I hate to burst your bubble, Dylan.  Audrey’s not in.  She went out on the run with Max.”

Dylan froze.  “What?”

“Tori was scheduled to go out on that heist, but she went into heat this afternoon,” Alec explained.  “She wasn’t supposed to hit cold shower time until a few days from now.  Audrey happened to be in the room and have a free schedule tonight, so she volunteered to take Tori’s place.”

“Oh.”  Dylan looked down to disguise his escalating panic.  Nightmare, Dylan.  It’s a nightmare.  So what if you’ve had it for the past two days?  People, human and transgenic, have bad dreams for multiple days at a time and it doesn’t mean a damn thing.  This doesn’t, either!  Pull yourself together.  You can do it.  It’s nothing.  He shook his head, sat down in a nearby chair, and put his head in his hands as he tried to regain control of himself.

…Audrey turned around as she attempted to fend off one of the attackers, only to gasp in pain and shock as the bullet tore through her chest.  She collapsed to the ground, the last thing she heard before closing her eyes for good was the sound of Max screaming her name…

“Dylan?  Snap out of it.”

Dylan opened his eyes and saw Alec giving him a worried look.  “Sorry about that.  You know I’ve been having trouble sleeping lately.”  Piles of papers on a nearby desk caught his attention.  “What’s that?”

“Blueprints, transcripts from the planning session, basically everything that has to do with the run that Max and Audrey, among others, are out on right now,” Alec replied.

“Cool,” Dylan said.  “Mind if I go over them?”  Mind if I prove to myself once and for all how paranoid I’m being over nothing?

“Sure, if you want,” Alec agreed.  “You can also switch on the computer at that desk and access live security camera feeds in the area.  Just ask Dix for the codes and the locations.  Have fun.  Don’t strain anything.”

“Very funny,” Dylan commented.  After approaching Dix and having a brief conversation with the transhuman, he walked back to the desk, sat down, and got to work.  Alec and Mole both watched the X6 as he worked.

“Why would he want to go over plans for an op that’s already in progress?” Mole wondered.

Alec shrugged.  “I don’t know.  Dylan has always liked to be super-prepared for anything and I guess this counts.”  He noted the intensity that Dylan was attacking the task with.  “Besides, I’m happy that he’s focusing on something.  Dylan’s been pretty distracted the past day or two.  He says that he’s been having trouble sleeping and the kid does look it.”

“Do you think he’ll find anything that the others might have missed?”

“Maybe, maybe not,” Alec said.  “That reminds me.  Did you get the latest reports on the crowds outside?”

“Got ‘em right here, Pretty Boy,” Mole assured him.  He reached into his pants pocket and pulled out a few pieces of paper, which he unfolded before handing over to Alec.  “Civilian crowd size has remained at a constant level today and the past week in general.  Our military buddies haven’t been going to or coming from anywhere, either.”

“Not the best deal in the world, but I’ll take it over the government deciding to try to raid our collective rear ends,” Alec remarked.  He scanned the papers.  “Anything about new security cameras or more hoverdrones around their side of the Terminal City perimeter?”

“Those numbers have remained steady, as well,” Mole reported.

“Excellent,” Alec said.  “I’m going to head for my office for some peace and almost quiet while I get some reports of my own done.  I’ll be back out in a few.”  He turned to face Dylan, who remained focused on his task.  “Need anything, Dylan?”

“Nah, I’m good,” Dylan replied distractedly before going back to his work.  Years of training helped him keep the thoughts of his nightmares at bay as he scanned the monitors, blueprints, and notes.  Suddenly, a brief motion on one of the security camera feeds made him frown.  He checked his papers, looked back at the computer monitor, and sucked in a breath.  “Alec!”

Alec was out of his office and at Dylan’s side in an instant.  “What is it?”

“Big problem,” Dylan told him.  He typed in a command and replayed the camera feed for his friend.  “Movement in that corner near the alley where our people will be making their approach, but it’s the wrong side for it to be our guys.  And check this out.”  He pushed one of the blueprints towards Alec and pointed to an area.  “There’s a gap right in here by this building that would enable a team to get the drop on us.  It’s just like the second mission that I went on with you and Biggs, remember?”  More movement on the monitor made Dylan frown.  “There are people there that aren’t ours, Alec.  Our guys might be walking into a trap.”

“Son-of-a-bitch,” Alec swore.  He straightened up and raised his voice.  “Okay, people, listen up!  We’ve got a potential Class A emergency in progress.  Mole, you’re in charge until I get back.  Dylan, you’re with me.  I need another eighteen X5s and X6s minimum.  We’re taking no chances here.  Dix, get on the phone and try to find any others who can join us and have them meet us by vans B and C in our vehicle garage.  Let’s move, people!”  He was out of the control room in an eyeblink with Dylan right on his heels.

“I hope we don’t need all of these people,” Dylan said.

“You and me both,” Alec agreed.  “But we’ve got no choice.  Better safe than sorry.  I’d rather go in with too many and have it all be for nothing than go in underprepared and have things go to hell.”

“Right,” Dylan said.  He felt the panic creep back, but he forced his mind into soldier mode.  You can be unnecessarily worried later.  Now is the time to get down to business.

TBC