Fic: Least Resistance 1/1 Dark Angel
Title: Least Resistance. Author: Lopaka Tanu Disclaimer: I do not own Dark Angel. Characters: Alec, Max, Ames. Words: 1996 Prompt: Fanfic, Dark Angel, Alec, Alec gets drugged. Fandom: Dark Angel Pairing: Max/Logan mentioned. Rating: Teen Warnings: Language, Violence Sequel To: Transmitting Signal....Now! Summary: Fallout from the broadcast leads to trouble for Terminal City. Author's Note: To denyce, she is the reason for my madness. Thank you, darlin. ______________________________________
"That makes three hundred today alone." Lowering his binoculars, Alec growled to himself. With a quick slash of his pencil, he marked off another stand of five on his tally sheet. There were entirely too many for his sense of self preservation.
Max snorted with derision from the far side of the observation tower. "You act like that's a lot. We've topped that easy last week three times." With her own binoculars, she watched the crowd at the south gate. "'sides, it's not like they're all armed."
"Yeah, I suppose you're right." Alec refused to look back. It wasn't like she even knew what she was talking about. His observations were more precise than hers by a long shot. "Only half of them are packing. That's much better than three hundred people armed with deadly weapons."
"Half?" Her voice barely above a whisper, Max turned to look at him. She grew distant before licking her lips. "That's way more than usual, even for that many pathetic losers."
"Gee, you're on top it as always, Max." Spotting a new face, Alec began a new table. "Make that one more. This one even has body armor. He moves like...yep, he's military." Sighing, Alec searched the edges of the crowd for more new arrivals. "Have I thanked you and Wheels lately for painting an even bigger bullseye on our backs lately?"
"Great. I always love it when the guys with the spiffy uniforms decide to crash the party." She was about to resume her recon when a flash of light made her wince and turn away. "Oh, ow! What was that?"
"What are you talking about?" Not that he really cared. He was busy tracking down five more fresh faced soldiers.
Max blinked to clear her vision. "You can't tell me you didn't see that." With an unsteady hand, she pointed in the general direction of their right. "About two degrees off center from the Needle."
Just to humor her, Alec turned his fieldglasses towards there. He scanned left and right of it but found nothing interesting. "You must be seeing things. Best get it looked at when we return to base." With that, he resumed his scans. It wasn't hard to locate his targets, they weren't really trying to hide their presence. "We've got bigger things to worry about, I think there's going to be another raid tonight."
Blinking wide-eyed, Max shook her head and sighed. "That's too bad. I'm not giving up my plans with Logan." After another blink, she picked up her binoculars and stared through them. "Bald and uglies are just going to have to wait."
He sputtered his lips with annoyance. "I'm glad to see you've got your priorities straight."
That only served to make her smirk and she took a step towards him. "Hey, the world may have ended, but a girl's still got to get her freak on."
"Of course." Her bravado was for nothing as he didn't even see it. "I should know by now that the security of your unit and defense of the base are both secondary to riding Logan like..." he trailed off at the feel of a blade against his throat.
"You should be more careful. Flappin' your gums without thinking makes you vulnerable." She pressed the point home by shoving her knee in to his back.
Alec had no choice but to bend in to her to avoid having his neck sliced open. "Are you through?" He didn't get a chance to sigh with relief when the blade was removed because the next second he was face down on the wooden tower.
Standing over him, Max resheathed her blade. "Oh please, you're just jealous because it's not you that's getting some." She dismissed him with a quick look up and down. "Don't take it out on me that the only people stupid enough to touch your skanky ass are outside the barricade."
He stared at her wide-eyed and slack jawed. "You know, ever since you discovered Dog Boy's blood made Wheels safe to screw, you've become such a bitch!" Though he would never admit it, he was even a little turned on by it.
As if she could read his thoughts, she smirked at him. "Get off the floor, we've still got twenty minutes of recon duty before Kissah and Rallo relieve us."
Alec rolled his eyes at the names. X-6s were some of the biggest idiots when it came to choosing their names.
~~~~~~~~~
Sweeping his gaze over the inner lair of the command post, Alec almost wanted to weep. All he saw were the debris and trash of a hundred individuals who cared little for order or hygiene. It didn't matter that this was the place they lived. No one seemed to care about that fact anymore.
The fact that he was now numbered among them was so depressing.
Oh, he still cared about how his personal hovel looked. He cared very much indeed. One didn't roll around in their own filth like animals. That fact was ingrained in his very being. Yet, he was lumped in together with those vermin, the rejects of his creator's mad science projects.
His earpiece clicked twice and he reached up to activate the link. "Command. What's your status?"
"All assets have been moved to secondary positions." Max's voice cracked over the headset. "Status of Command?"
"All clear." Turning around, he searched the control terminal. All the sensitive equipment had been cleared out over an hour ago. Only the plugs and wires remained. Even the dish on the roof had been disassembled and carted off to a Trannie bunker under the city. If there was one thing they could be called, it was efficient.
"Confirmed. Retreat to primary position and standby for further orders. Over."
Growling, Alec tried to glare at his radio. The earpiece wasn't visible, so he had to settle for clicking violently. "I know my own plans!"
"Then you won't have any problem following them. Over and out."
If she was at hand, he would have throttled her. The girl could seriously get on his last good nerve. Like he didn't know every last detail of this plan. He had practically written the evac contingencies himself. Besides, this was his show tonight anyways. Checking in with her was just a formality.
Rolling his eyes to the ceiling, Alec tugged off his earpiece. Why did he automatically fall in to line when it came to the command structure? He had every right to be in charge, more than little miss priss. Unlike Max and the others, he had actual combat command experience on a large scale. His talents lay in overseeing troop movements on the battlefield.
Instead, he was held back in reserve to plan and execute the civilian relocation. He finished the thought with a clenched fist around his earpiece. This was beneath him!
For a second, he considered disobeying his own plans, and subsequently, Max. It would mean staying and awaiting the arrival of the invasion force. Alec smiled. He could use a little action.
He spun to face the main floor again. The first blow was unexpected. It caught him across the temple and staggered him. A second hit to the cheek was anticipated, but he didn't have time to block it. The third punch he ducked by dropping to the grate.
Rolling, he came to a stop a few feet away. He tried to time it so that he could get to his feet, but pain suddenly exploded in his shoulder and he overshot. His body impacted against the arm rail, stopping him. At first, he thought he had been kicked. Then his vision blurred. His body instantly became too heavy and he lay where he landed.
He lazily blinked, trying to clear his sight. It was to no avail. His pupils refused to focus on anything long enough for him to make it out clearly. Everything was a fuzzy maze of colors.
Alec noticed that his breathing started to even out. He was laying on his side, so he could see everything on one side and nothing from behind. It was enough.
In the hazy distance, a black mass started towards him. The closer it got, the more he could make out. Then it bent in half and knelt in front of him.
He was vaguely aware of fingers touching his cheek. They slid down from the bruising skin to stop over his pulse point.
"Fifteen beats per minute. Your formula seems to be working, doctor." It was Ames and he sounded disappointed by the results. "How fortunate for you." His fingers slid up, almost caressing as they curled under Alec's chin.
Forced to look up, Alec stared unblinking at the dark mass in front of him. His eyes once again failed to achieve a lock on the man's features. "Wuh..." Tongue thick, he swallowed for what felt like hours.
"How cute, it thinks it can talk." The fingers constricted and became painful. "Four-Five-Two is obviously not here and they knew we were coming." With the pleased tone, Ames disguised his anger. "Inform the others. Begin moving out. I want us clear before that null, General Halftrack begins the bombardment."
"What about him, sir?" Alec couldn't tell who said, it but the young woman was obviously none too bright.
"What him?" With that, Ames dug his fingers in to Alec's throat and tightened until they cut off all blood and air flow.
The tenuous thread Alec had been hanging on to consciousness by snapped and he drifted off.
~~~~~~~~~~~
A general buzzing dragged Alec back from his pleasant dreams. Whatever it was this time had his ears aching from the constant noise. He tried to open his jaw so he could pop his ears, but found they wouldn't move. It wasn't that they were restrained, he just couldn't control the muscles.
Alarmed, he opened his eyes to see. All he found was darkness. He blinked several times and the image remained the same.
Suddenly, dazzling brilliance burned in to his retinas. Searing pain caused him to clench them shut and he tried to cry out. No sound came, though.
Rough, familiar fingers slid over his cheek. Alec opened his eyes automatically and looked towards the direction of the hand. Despite the pain, he found the strength to focus on a face.
Ames smiled down upon Alec. The wrinkles around his eyes stood out in sharp relief. "Good morning." He patted the transgenic's cheek. "Don't worry, the paralysis is only temporary. Then you can answer a few questions for me."
'Like hell I will,' Alec wanted to scream at him. His vocal cords remained silent, though. Some how his body continued to breathe, but he wasn't aware of this.
His smile remained genial, but it didn't reach the rest of Ames' face. "That little stunt you people pulled last month was a real laugh riot." He patted the stubble covered cheek again. "The committee's been so busy covering their asses for the past month that people like you and me 've slipped through the cracks. I suppose that was the general idea."
All Alec could do was grin. The strength to do anything else fled him and he started to drift off. A sharp tap to the chin brought him back.
"You really shouldn't have done that. A lot of important people are looking for someone to blame." Ames was so close this time that the different colors in his eye were clearly visible to Alec. "Now, you're going to pay, pretty boy."
Some how, Alec summoned enough energy to snort. It was breathy, and if the other man had been any further away, he might not have heard it.
"You have such soft looking lips." Voice a husky whisper, Ames leaned in the last bit of distance between them. "I wonder if you taste like the others?"
Hot, moist breath ghosted across Alec's face. Closing his eyes, he fought off a shudder.