Welcome to Our Life -- Chapter 30: Brin (X5-734)

Disclaimer:  The TV show Dark Angel, all of the characters that appeared on it (Max, Zack, Jondy, etc.), and everything else that has to do with the show belong to their respective owners, not to me.  No money is being made off of this fic.  I only own the original characters (Elle/X5-164, etc.).

About a year later...

I yawned and then groaned as those stupid bugle kids woke me up. I might not be as hard to wake up in the mornings as Krit usually is, but that does not mean that I occasionally have the urge to go up to one of the bugle boys or girls, take their trumpets, and ram them down their throats. Call me bitchy if you want, but I think that it’s not a completely unreasonable thought to have sometimes first thing in the morning.

“Rise and shine,” Zane said wickedly. He practically bounced out of his bunk and shoved the still sleeping Krit out of his and laughed when Krit hit the ground. “Good morning, baby bro.” Krit stood up, brushed himself off, glared at Zane, and then swore at him in about twelve languages including English, which only made Zane laugh even harder. “Yeah, I love you too, Krit.”

“Wow, somebody sure is bouncy first thing in the morning,” Kenny remarked as he got out of his bunk.

“Lighten up, bro,” Parker said. “Seriously. You’ve been moping for almost a year now. You still miss Sasha?”

“Hey, I miss her too,” Rena said defensively.

“I know,” Parker said quickly. “I didn’t mean to say that it’s wrong of you to still miss her even after this long.”

Zack raised an eyebrow. “Try getting yourself out of this one, Parker.”

“Um…I’m sorry I opened my big mouth and I think that I’m going to shut up now?” Parker said.

“There’s hope for you yet,” Max teased.

“Yeah,” Tinga said, though she also looked a little sad. I felt bad for her, too. She and Biggs had been flirting with each other a lot before Biggs had to go back to Seattle. She shrugged. “At any rate, we should get ready quickly today. Lydecker’s having that assembly this morning immediately after breakfast.”

“Yeah, and it’s of the ‘miss-it-and-you’re-toast’ variety,” Wayne added. He grabbed his shower things and headed towards the guys bathroom. “And he’s going to be observing us when we have martial arts with the kids later today so we all know that that means, boys and girls.”

“Other than Becky and Jeff wiping us from one end of the gym to the other?” Syl said dryly.

“Don’t forget two-on-ones,” Max reminded her. “The last time that Lydecker was watching us in that class, he made me go against Kenny and Brin at the same time.” She made a face. “That was an experience I’d don’t exactly want to repeat.”

“What are you complaining about, Max?” Kenny said. “You beat us!”

“And sent me to the infirmary for a concussion,” I added.

“And I had to go with you because I had to get those gashes on my lower lip and just under my left eye stitched up, remember?” Max said.

“Looks like it’s going to be one of those mornings,” Jack remarked.

“And how,” Jondy agreed. “I think we all seriously need our coffee at breakfast.”

“Oh, shut the fuck up,” Kenny snapped. “Just because you and Jack have been making puppy dog eyes at each other for months now doesn’t mean that you have any right whatsoever to tell us how we should be acting or what we should be doing. Get fucking bent.” Whoa. Kenny does have his moments, but he was never like that before. We were all dead silent for a few moments before Kenny realized what he had just said to Jondy. His eyes went wide and he paled a little bit. “Oh, damn, Jondy. I didn’t mean that. I honestly didn’t mean to go off on you like that. I’m sorry. I’m really sorry.”

Jondy nodded. “It’s okay, Kenny. I understand. I guess you miss Sasha more than we all thought, huh?”

“It’ll be okay, Kenny,” Zack said. He patted Kenny on the shoulder. “Unfortunately, we do need to get ready for line up and roll call right now.”

We all showered and dressed and made our bunks, but we were quieter than usual. Kenny’s outburst had pretty much drained something out of us. I really did feel bad for him. He had met a girl that he had fallen head-over-heels for and only days after they had met, she had to leave and the chances of them seeing each other again were slim to none. I don’t know how Tinga has been holding herself together since Biggs left. Ben and Rena seemed to be coping with being separated again from their twins better. Not that they don’t miss them like mad, though, but they seemed to find strength in each other.

Line up and roll call and all of that jazz was the same. In other words, mind-numbingly boring. Thank goodness that it all finally ended and we marched towards the cafeteria for breakfast. I really was starting to get hungry, even for the tasteless scrambled eggs and potatoes that I’d decided to go with this morning. All I could say when I finally sat down at our pushed-together tables with the X6s was thank goodness for my coffee. The coffee that’s available to the older transgenics for breakfast is actually pretty decent, but I think that’s only because it’s the same coffee that the trainers and other staff drinks and Lydecker forbid they drink horrible coffee. We were quiet for a good stretch while we concentrated on our breakfasts. I guess I wasn’t the only person that was starving.

“I am actually looking forward to my Advanced Infiltration class today,” Becky said. “Some of the things that they’re talking about are pretty cool.”

“Either that or you just want to speed-learn the crap so that you can take the tests to clear you for solo missions within the next few months,” Kevin teased. Becky rolled her eyes while several of us laughed. Kevin does have a point. Becky is a born overachiever, just like Zack.

“Yeah,” Ralph chimed in. “Didn’t you tell me yesterday before lights out that Colonel Lydecker had told you that if you keep your scores and everything up in their current ranges that he might schedule you to take those tests as early as June?”

“Backed into a corner,” Krit said.

“So what?” Becky said. “I really am finding the current topics in Advanced Infiltration interesting and I do want to keep things going at my current rate so that I can take my tests in a couple of months. I won’t deny it.”

“And you’ll be gunning for Zack’s cumulative score, won’t you?” Ben said, grinning.

“Of course,” Becky said. “I tied his score on the group missions test. I want to hold this record solo.”

“That might be so, but that is also presuming that Jeff won’t out do your score when he eventually takes his solo tests,” Wes said. He laughed and Becky just rolled her eyes again.

“Wes, cool it,” Jeff said, though he sounded amused.

“Speaking of solo missions,” Krit said. “Does anybody have anything in particular that they want me to pick up when I leave in a couple of days to go relieve some foreign generals of brain matter and possibly other organs?”

“For crying out loud, Krit, at breakfast?” Max said, disgusted.

“As sad as it sounds, shredded brains and entrails sound a hell of a lot more appetizing that what we’re eating,” Krit said.

“He’s got a point,” I said. “I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s what they put into the meatloaf that they give us for lunch on Tuesdays.”

“Neither would I,” Krit agreed. “So, anybody? Any requests?”

“Yeah, if you could pick up some more of that music from that group, that would be awesome,” Wayne said. “The CD that I got for myself on my last mission rocked.”

“I’m good,” Gale said. “I can’t think of anything that I want right now.”

“Neither can I,” Elle said. She smiled sweetly. “Or at least nothing that a manly-man like yourself is willing to get.”

“Hey, there is nothing wrong with Krit being a tough kind of guy sometimes,” Syl said. “I think it’s cute.”

“You mean you think that it’s a big turn on,” Rena said. She exchanged a look with Max and Jondy before all three of them started to laugh hysterically.

“Shut up. We’re not involved with each other quite like that,” Syl said. I quickly shoved a forkful of my eggs into my mouth to keep from also laughing. Syl obviously forgot our Psych Warfare lessons because she left herself completely open for a major comeback from Rena and Rena was never one to miss a chance to verbally pounce on Syl.

“Syl? Does that mean—“ Max started to say, but then Syl quickly cut her off.

“None of your business, Max,” Syl said. “If you want to go there, how about you and you-know-who finally get your acts together and get something going?” There were a few snickers from around the group and I couldn’t help a smile myself. I guess Syl must have recovered some sense of self-preservation because she purposefully left out Zack’s name, though Syl really is right. Jondy and Jack make no secret of the fact that they like each other, at least they haven’t for the past few months though I know they’ve been giving each other looks for close to a year and they keep the specifics of their relationship to themselves. But as much as Syl and Krit dance around each other and deny sparks are between them and believe me there are, Max and Zack are about a million times worse.

Max started to reply and was cut off once more, though this time it was because of the warning bell. We all stood up and put our trays away and marched over to the lecture hall where they were having the assembly. We found seats and sat down and watched everybody else come in. I’m not kidding when I said everybody else. It seemed like every transgenic who didn’t absolutely have to be on duty or wasn’t still in baby training made their way into the lecture hall. Finally, a few minutes later, Lydecker entered the room and stood behind the podium and everybody shut up.

“I’ve got some news that will have a tremendous impact on each and every one of you,” he said. “The committee that is in charge of overseeing Manticore has decided to make a few changes. The first change is that it has been decided that I am to move up to fill a recently vacated spot on the committee and thus must leave my post here in charge of this facility as well as head director of all three Manticore sites.”

I made sure I had my best poker face on then, because really did come out of left field. As much as all of us hated Lydecker, he had been a constant in our lives and as they say, better the devil you know than the one that you don’t. If and when we get a new director, would he or she be better or worse than Lydecker? What was going to happen?

“You will not be getting a new director, at least not in the manner than many of you presume,” Lydecker continued. “As Director Warren of the Syracuse facility will likewise be moving up to fill a second vacant spot on the committee, it has also been decided that all three facilities will be consolidated into one. Because the complex in Seattle is more than large enough to accommodate all transgenics and requisite staff and still have plenty of room for expansion of the series’ in the years to come, you will all be moved there. This move will be taking place starting tomorrow. At precisely 0630, all X-series transgenics series’ three through seven as well as all Psy Ops-series transgenics will be transferred with the rest of the transgenics being transferred to Seattle the following day at the same time. This facility as well as the one located in Syracuse will be kept as training grounds and bases of operation when needed, but not as they currently stand. All X3, X4, X5, and X6 squad commanding officers and second-in-commands will report to me immediately following this assembly so that they may receive their series’ living arrangements as well as instructions for deployment to Seattle and they can distribute it to the other unit C.O.s within their respective generations. Your first classes of the day have been canceled so that you may go over the information as you see fit. That is all. Dismissed.”

We all saluted Lydecker. My head was spinning. We were all going to pack up and move to Seattle first thing in the morning? This was unreal. I turned my head as Zack, Max, Becky, and Jeff got up and made their way to the front to Lydecker. I saw the grins on the faces of Ben, Rena, Tinga, and Kenny. I guess that slim to none chance turned out to work after all. We waited for Zack, Max, Becky, and Jeff to get their information and then distribute it among the other X5 and X6 units before they returned to us.

“Let’s all meet in the kids’ barracks,” Max suggested. “It’s a little bit closer than ours are.” We nodded in agreement and followed her and Zack out of the lecture hall and through the hallways until we reached the X6’s barracks and went inside. We sat down on the floor as Max opened up the folder that Zack had handed to her and set it down so that more of us could get a look at it. “We all know that we’ve got our own cells in Seattle.”

“Yay! After more than twenty-three years I finally get my own room,” Zane said sarcastically.

“Not a moment too soon,” Krit said.

“Anyway,” Max said pointedly. “Us big kids are going to be living in C Wing, third floor, block six.” She looked up and saw that Jeff, Wes, Ralph, Christian, and Layla were all looking slightly uncomfortable and grew concerned. “Is something wrong?”

Jeff shook his head. “No, technically nothing’s wrong. That’s just where we used to live before last year.” He bravely put on a smile. “Whoever’s in cell number one, and I’m guessing that’s going to be Zack, check the second block dead center underneath the bunk. That’s where I had stashed my contraband and I’m pretty sure that last year when I was packing my stuff to be transferred over here, I forgot a pistol and an mp3 player that I’d swiped on the last mission that I’d gone on before the Poland disaster.”

“Yeah, I did get that cell,” Zack said. “I’ll let you know if I find any of your things.”

“Thanks,” Jeff said.

“You younger guys are going to be nearby. You’re on the same floor in the same wing but in block eight,” Max said.

“Does anybody have any questions?” Zack asked.

Jeff held up a hand, though it was more of a ‘hold on, I can answer this’ gesture that an ‘I’ve got a question one.’ “Alec, Biggs, and Sasha’s unit are on the same wing as us, but they’re on the fourth floor and in block number one.” He and most of the rest of us, myself included, grinned at the sheepish expressions on the faces of Kenny and Tinga.

“I think the kid’s developing psychic powers,” Kenny said.

“I don’t think I’m going to be getting any sleep tonight,” Rena said. “I can’t believe it! I didn’t think I was ever going to see my twin again and now I will! This is a dream come true.”

“Somebody help us all because him and Alec will be together again,” I said, pointing towards Ben. “Remember how bad they were when they teamed up last year before Alec had to go back to Seattle?”

“We were not bad,” Ben insisted. “Besides, that is a relative term to begin with. I prefer to think of it as us livening things up a bit.”

“Those two plus our guys plus Biggs…” Jondy shuddered. “I don’t think Manticore quite knows what it’s getting into.”

“Hell, let the games begin!” Reese said with a grin. “I think this is going to turn out to be a blast.”

“Maybe it will be,” I agreed.