Time’s Enemy

Part 4

By Chris Van Deelen

The silence in the room was deafening. The bombshell Spint dropped was so unexpected, it took everyone by surprise. Finally, after nearly a full minute, Maverick broke the silence. "Spint, what the fuck are you talkin’ about?" Try as he might, Maverick was unable to keep a slight tremor out of his voice.

"Oh, you still have several years, but if the cancer we detected goes untreated, it will surely kill you inside of five years." Spint beamed, very proud of himself for having been able to successfully silence the big survivalist.

Maverick stole a glance at his companions. The news hit them hard. Gitana looked as pale as a ghost, while Ged looked like she was about to burst into tears at any second. He was surprised, and more than a little angered to see a single tear gently flow down the side of her exotic face. Joe’s face remained impassive, but Brett could see that the news bothered his friend. Even the newest member of the party, the woman known as Feral seemed distraught at the news.

The big man stared at the floor. An emotion, one that he has rarely felt, but seems to have been getting plenty of the past few months washes over him like a cold shower. Fear. He has just been told that he has only a few years to live. He isn't sure how to handle it though. Deep down, he wonders if this is how Trader felt all those weeks back when he took that final walk into the forest in the Darks.

"Well, why do you want me to help you if I’m gonna get chilled from rad cancer? Kinda pointless isn't?" Maverick stated, letting anger creep into his deep voice.

The whitecoat chuckled in delight. "That is the beauty of it my dear Mr. Maverick." Spint threw his hands out wide, as if to encompass the entire room. "This entire facilty is one of the government’s black operations bases. All manner of research is conducted here. Everything from biological and chemical weapons, to the latest in genetic engineered mutates."

The guards looked nervous before now looked positively scared. Spint was giving out far too much information to the prisoners.

"I’ve seen the results of your weapons and black op research whitecoat." Maverick growled, not impressed. It was true. During the time he spent with Trader, inside several different redoubts they stumbled upon chemical and in some cases biological agents, meant to be used in war.

They also had been through areas of the Deathlands devastated by the soviet equivalent. He particularly remembers a stretch of farmland near the ranch fortress he grew up in that had been on the receiving end of a malfunctioning warhead. The weapon had been carrying a biological agent. This agent, once it had been released into the surrounding eco system destroyed all bacteria. Thus, the ground for several hundred miles surrounding ground zero became barren, an actual desert. Fortunately the bacteria was short lived and was eventually killed off by the fallout.

But the legacy of the weapon still stands as mute testimony to the destructive nature of man. Even nearly a century after the skydark, only a few dozen miles have been reclaimed by nature and are slowly growing back. The weapon totally stripped the land of its vital bacteria, and left behind a residual toxin that was slow to dissipated. He remembered hearing several of his fellow ranchers discussing the area, and they all figured it would be probably several hundred years before the earth healed itself in that particular area.

Spint waved his hand in dismissal. "I’m sure you have. So, it shouldn’t come as a great surprise to you then that we have a cure for cancer, and have had one for several decades."

Maverick caught Joe looking at him. Since they met, the two men spent a lot of time together talking to each other, getting to know one another. One of the subjects that came up dealt with conspiracy theories. Such as the supposed alien crash at Roswell, New Mexico, or that the government had been responsible for creating the Aid’s Virus, or that they had been into genetic engineering and created some hideous beasts. It appears that these conspiracies turned out to be fact, not fiction. At least some of them.

He had discovered that Joe was the equivalent of a modern day historian. The barrel chested man was always reading any time he could get his hands on a book, magazine or newspaper. Many an hour had been lost while the group had stopped long enough for Joe to inspect a ruin for reading material.

Originally Maverick had though it to be a monumental waste of time. But the more he thought about it, the more he came to realize just how important the knowledge the other man carried around in his head was. A particular story came to his mind. One about a series of brutal murders in what had been Manhattan in 97, then a year and a half later in 98, when a huge number of homeless disappeared. Something about a museum beast had been responsible for it. He wondered if that was simply one of the governments experiments being tested out.

"Ok Spint, so you’ve got a triple high tech redoubt here with all sorts of techno horrors. But that doesn’t answer my question. Why would you be willing to use this cure on me? Besides, how do I know that yer not lying to me just to get me to do what ever you wanted me to?"

Spint chuckled at the big man. "Oh, I can prove it easily to you, but I’m afraid that your limited intellect would have a great deal of difficulty grasping the concept." The whitecoat stopped pacing and turned to face the other man. "Like I said earlier, I need people with your knowledge and skills. Only those who are prepared will survive the uncoming holocaust. With your willing help, you can change the destiny of this country. Like a Phoenix, the united states will rise from the ashes of the nuclear war to claim it’s rightful place as the world leader."

Maverick listened with disbelief. He came to the conclusion several days previous that the whitecoat was as crazy as a Stickie doped up on Jolt. From what he heard the other man say, he knows it for sure. A man who is insane can be far more dangerous than someone who is just out for personal gain or power.

"Spint, forget that idea. The country is going to be hit so hard in 4 days time that no matter what precautions are taken, the government is going to be chilled. All the military bases are gonna cease to exist. Only a handful of redoubts like this one will survive, and they for the most part will be found and stripped within a few decades." Maverick sneered. "Sure, go ahead, try to rebuild a powerful nation with rad sick people who are starving and freezing. These people will be sure to chill you for a bite of food. You’ll be the king of a dead nation."

The whitecoat tsked. "You still don’t seem to be able to grasp it do you? The C.O.G., or continuity of government plan has taken into account such a holocaust. We have stockpiles of food, weapons, equipment, armor, vehicles, and aircraft. We even have bases set up that contain hundreds of personnel in cryogenic suspension, waiting to be awakened in the event of a war. Thanks to the discovery of the Matter Transmitter technology we have been able to set up bases and stockpiles where you couldn’t begin to imagine. We will suffer from the effects of the war, but once it’s over, we will not only rebuild but we shall control the world and the destiny of every surviving man, woman and child."

The survivalist realised that it is pointless trying to talk sense into the other man. He knows exactly what is going to happen, despite the C.O.G. plan Spint mentioned. One thing that has always bothered the big man though. What happened to all the weapons, equipment and so forth that survived the war? In numerous redoubts they found the evidence of a hasty evacuation, but never did they ever find any trace of where the soldiers went. Even if they disappeared into the country side, something would have been left behind. Be it stories passed down from generation to generation by the survivors, who may have witnessed it, or an unusually large number of predark arma wags or blasters held by a local baron. But so far, not a trace. So, just where did the soldiers and their goods disappear to? From the sounds of it, the insane scientist might be the key to that question.

"Can we at least talk about it before I give you my final answer?" Maverick asked.

Spint smiled, showing off a set of perfect, white teeth. "But of course my dear man! You, and your companions can have thirty minutes to talk about it."

The big man nodded. "One last thing."

"Yes?"

"Turn off your fireblasted sec cams and sound recorders. This talk is between me and my people, and if you want me to agree to your request, then prove to us that your willing to show a little leeway."

The whitecoat didn’t seem at all happy at Maverick’s request. But a look of resignation finally appeared. "Alright Mr. Maverick. I will grant you this one wish. Anything else?" The last sentence had been spoken with such a tone that indicated that he was not open to granting any more requests.

"Yeah, I want an hour of privacy with Gitana. Again, no sec cams, nothing."

What surprises the entire group is when Spint actually smiled. "So be it." The whitecoat turned away and walked over to the doorway, followed by the soldiers. He stopped, and turned to look back at the group. "You have exactly thirty minutes from…." He glanced at his watch, then flicked his hand. "Now." With that, the small group of soldiers and scientists left the room.

Maverick finds himself nearly bowled over when he tuned to talk to his friends. Gitana, despite the chains, hugs the big man close. "Amante, I’ve missed you so much."

"Yeah, same here Gitana. Same here." Maverick buried his face in her soft hair, breathing deeply of the scent of the woman he’s grown to love so powerfully.

"He’s got to be lying to you Brett. He just has to be. Your one of the healthiest men I have ever seen." Gitana spoke into his chest, refusing to break the physical contact between herself and her lover. She didn’t bother to hide the fear she felt, as it is carried clearly on her voice.

The big man shrugged. "You know the way it is back home. Rad cancer can get the best of us. After all, my former leader, Trader took the last train to the coast because of it. I’ve been around a lot of hot spots over the years, so…" He let the sentence trail off.

The small Spanish woman looked up at her lover, gazing into his grey eyes. "Do you think it’s a bluff? A ploy to get you to do as he asks?"

"I don’t rightly know Gitana." Maverick caressed her face with his callused hands, thinking about what was said. "From the way the sec men acted when he made his statements, I’m triple sure that he isn’t bluffing."

The other three members of his little band gathered around. Gedoena got particularly close to him.

"What makes you say that Maverick?" Joe asked. His face seemed as calm as always, with just a hint of amusement beneath the surface, but something in his voice betrays that he, like Ged, and Gitana, is very concerned about the scarred man.

"Well, he offered to cure me of this rad induced cancer, and save me from a triple bad chilling. I saw the way the guards acted. I reckon that Spint is planning to go up against his baron and try to take over this redoubt. He needs allies and since he seems to be triple hated by the sec men here, why not use us?"

Feral grabbed at Mavericks shirt sleeve and gave it a gentle tug. "He no lie. I smell lie. But that one, he no lie."

He glanced down at the woman. "You know, with that sniffer of yours, you could come in pretty damned handy time to time."

The feral woman actually smiled, her slightly elongated canine teeth poking just out from her upper lip. "And I cute, too!"

The timely humor caused the entire group to break out in laughter. "Yeah, I guess you can be. If you ever get that rat mop you call a hair job cut properly and cleaned." Joe cackled, earning himself a withering glance from the woman. But, as quickly as it came, the look disappeared.

Feral frowned indignantly. "I very clean. Don’t smell bad like you norms do." The woman looked at each person one at a time, but not at Joe.

The barrel chested man shifted his feet uncomfortably. "So, just what do we know about what’s goin’ on here?"

Maverick held up his hand and tapped the index finger. "One. We know that Spint is crazier than a mutie shit house rat, and that he has plans to take over the redoubt." He tapped the second finger. "Two, we know that the guards were surprised by his revelation. Thoughts?"

"Looks like the base is going to be divided up into two separate groups. Spint and his followers, who seem to be few in number, and the rest, lead by General Hammond. So, unless Spint gets us to help him, he’s probably gonna be seriously outnumbered." Joe stated, making his thoughts known to the group.

Gitana finally pulled away from Maverick, but she took his hands in hers. "We might have a third faction in this little game. This Montague sec man. He seems real interested in learning about us and the Deathlands. I talked to him briefly a few days back."

"Yeah, your right. We might have three factions to deal with. And if this place is about to go up in a sec revolt, it might just provide us a chance to get back to the gateway and use the time trawl code to get us home."

The feral woman stuck her chin out, not at all happy. "We no leave without friend."

"Don’t worry Feral, we’re not going to leave without you. Like it or not, your in with us all the way, sink or swim chill or chilled." Maverick answered, exasperated.

"Stupe!" Feral growled. "Cougar. We no leave without cougar."

"Fuck the fireblasted cat! We don’t even know where the hell the whitecoats have her!" Countered Maverick. He’s far more concerned about the lives of those gathered with him than that of an animal.

"Cat no go, I no go." She stated with a deadly finality, crossing her arms under her breasts to show that she was earnest.

"Fine stay here and die with the rest of these assholes." Said Maverick, waving his hand, dismissing the other woman.

Ged stared at her guardian with undisguised anger. "Brett, how can you be so cruel? That cougar obviously means a great deal to her and we should do what we can to help it escape when we do."

Maverick Whirled around. "Ged, get it through your thick skull. You, Joe, and Gitana are the people I care about. It’s up to me to get us out of this with your fireblasted lives. I will not sacrifice any of you in order to save some stupe mutie animal."

The last comment prompted Feral into action. She grabbed Maverick by his massive shoulder and actually managed to spin him around. He was too surprised by the sudden physical contact to prevent it. The woman actually wound up and punched him square in the jaw, managing to stagger the big man. "Not stupe animal!" She screamed at the other man, her fists clenched and waiting to be used again.

Maverick automatically reached for the blaster usually holstered at his side. When he couldn’t find it, he prepared to leap. Before he could finish coiling his legs both Joe and Gedoena grabbed his arms. "Ease up Mav. Ease up. This isn’t the time, or the place for fighting amongst ourselves." Joe said calmly.

He pulled his arm out of Joe’s grasp, having managed to calm down enough to keep himself from killing feral. "I’m fuckin’ fine." He growls, then stabs a finger at the woman. "That was a freebee. Next time you even consider attacking me, I’ll chill you where you stand."

Feral Glared, but kept her comments to herself.

"So, what do you propose we do then?" Gitana spoke, once again standing next to Maverick.

"Find out what’s on Montague’s mind. I have a feeling that he might turn out to be an ally. We don’t have much time left to make friends, if that is possible. Only what, 4 more days until the skydark?" The big warrior said to the small gathering.

"I’ll see what I can do Amante."

Ged shyly stuck up her hand. Maverick spotted it right away. He also noticed how much her tail was twitching back and forth. A sure fire sign that she is nervous or agitated. He nods once. "Your part of our group Ged, speak your mind."

"Feral can be a great deal of help to us." She said in a quiet voice.

Maverick cocked his head to the side, then motioned with his hand for her to continue. He also noticed Feral stiffen and glower at the younger mutant. What is she going to tell us that is making Feral angry he wonders.

"Feral has a way with animals. I don’t know exactly what it is, but she seemed to communicate directly with her cougar friend. Not just talking to it, but actually answering it. I believe that Feral might be a telepath, but only towards animals."

Everyone turned to stare at the wild haired woman. She shrugged, giving in to the fact that her little secret is out. She knew very well that there was no way she could keep it secret for long around this group of people. "Is true. I talk to mind of cat. Also any animal."

"Holy shit!" Is all that Joe could say, mirroring the thoughts of Gitana and Maverick.

"I’ve seen doomies before, and heard rumor that there were mind and feeling readers in the Deathlands, but I always thought that they were just another myth that popped up over the decades." Maverick whispered, almost in awe.

"That does present some triple good possibilities." Gitana stated, looking at the newcomer in a new light. "We know that this redoubt has lab animals in it, or at least, there should be lab animals, as Spint told that they did a great deal of research here. What is the extent of your mutie abilities?"

The other woman bristled slightly at the mutie comment. "Can, well, feel. Feel other mind, even if no see. Can tell to do, or even make do if think hard."

"Are there any animals in this redoubt?" Ged asked, fascinated.

Feral nods. "Lots. Can see in mind. All mad. Some sick, some dying. All mad."

Joe grinned from ear to ear. "How about getting some of the animals to do something they normally wouldn’t do?"

A warm feeling surged through the woman’s body as she listened to the barrel chested man. "Like what?"

He shrugged. "I don’t know. I’ve never been in a place like this before! Use your imagination!"

While the others stood around and watched, Feral closed her eyes. Not so much as to use her abilities, but more to shut them out, as their scrutiny was very uncomfortable for her. She reached out with her mind, locating many animals on the same level as her and the group. She ignored them, instead choosing to touch the mind of her cougar companion. It is still deeply unconscious, but reacts none the less to the touch of her thoughts. The whitecoats looked at the cat with mild curiosity when it growled slightly, then began to purr for several seconds before slipping back into it’s drug induced coma.

She smiled at the brief touching of minds, knowing that her friend is ok. Over the past several days she had been in contact with the mutant cougar, but never was her friends mind this awake. Even though she doesn’t fully understand, the mutant cougars metabolism is growing resistant to the drug the scientists keep injecting her with. Reluctantly, she broke the contact and continued with her search.

Many of the animals were sickly, or caged up at the moment. But finally she managed to touch the mind of a monkey, in mortal terror as the whitecoat opened it’s cage and grabbed at it. Try as the monkey might, it was unable to bite through the thick yellow gloves and arm protection the scientist was wearing.

The monkey howled in fear as the male scientist took it over to a table where several others waited, prepared for invasive surgery. As gentle as a mothers caress she took control of the primates thoughts. The doctors were surprised at the sudden change in the animal as it instantly stopped it’s struggles.

As they placed the monkey on the table in order to strap it down the whitecoat relaxed his grip. Feral smiled, then caused the monkey to jump right out of the man’s grasp and using his arm like a ladder, clamored up until he reached the man’s face. There, the small primate grabbed a hold of each side of the man’s face and buried it’s sharp teeth into his nose. The scientist howled in pain, blindly grabbing the monkey and tore it away, taking part of his nose with the small, screeching animal. In his anger and pain, he flung the monkey across the room. Feral broke the mental contact before it smashed head first into the wall. The force of the impact would have more than likely killed the animal, and feral didn’t want to be in direct mental contact with it when that happened.

Despite the probable death of the primate, Feral didn’t feel any guilt or remorse. She knew that by making the monkey attack the way it did, the whitecoats would kill it. Better to put the monkey out of it’s misery and terror than to let it live like that.

She told the group what she had done with the monkey. Gitana and Ged frowned, but both Maverick and Joe burst out in laughter. "Great move girl!" Joe laughs, patting the woman on the shoulder. "Saved the animal from a painful death you did. Down right decent of you."

Feral turned away, trying to hide the deep blush she could feel flowing over her face and body. The physical contact between her and Joe also caused some very alien, albeit not unpleasant feelings to flutter in her stomach.

"Do you think that Spint is watching us?" Queried Ged in her usual quite manner.

Maverick Shrugged. "I don’t know. The guy is nuts, that’s for sure, but I’m betting on the fact that he might just be sane enough right now to honor my request. But with people like him, you never know. They’re about as honest as a baron’s tax collector."

"So what should we do then?" Joe went over to stand before the door leading out of the room. He turned to keep his back blocking the view into the room. Not that it would make any difference if the sec men wanted to monitor them they would be.

"One." Maverick holds up his hand and ticks off the forefinger. Ged, get what you can out of this Matt guy. You said the whitecoat was your friend before and even gave you the codes to get us here." The big man stopped and slapped his forehead. "Fireblast, why didn’t I think of that before? Matt gave you the codes so that you would be brought here in purpose! But why?"

The other members of the group look as perplexed as the big warrior felt.

He quickly shrugged off the surprise at the revelation. "Well, anyhow Ged, find out if I am right, and see what else he knows. Here, information will be better than a fleet of arma wags and the best blasters jack can buy."

The young mutant nodded once. "Ok, if you think it will help us."

Maverick turned to face his lover. Again he held up his hand and ticked off the second finger. "I want you to talk to this Montague sec man next time he comes around. See if you can get anything out of him about the way the soldiers and sec men feel about Spint’s revelation to take control and become king of the Deathlands."

She, too, nodded once.

"That’s about all that I can think of. I’m not sure what you and Joe can do." He stated, pointing at Feral. All anger from her attack only minutes before long forgotten. "But keep your eyes and ears skinned. Especially you Feral, as we know how sensitive your senses are."

"So, do we agree to do what Spint asked? I mean, should we become his pawns?" The barrel chested man said, coming back to join the rest. "We know the little bastard used lie detects on us, and if he wanted to be certain that he was getting the full truth, would probably use truth serums on us. How in the rad blasted hell can we defeat that?"

"I don’t know!" Maverick admitted to the others, while he ran his fingers absentminded through Gitana’s hair.

"I know a way that might just work." The small Spanish woman interjected. "We all want to live right?"

No one argued that point with her.

"So, answer any of the questions they ask you with that thought in mind! If they ask you if you pledge your allegiance to Spint and his followers, say yes, but keep in mind that yes, because I want to live."

Maverick looked skeptical. "I don’t know…"

"I know amante, it’s a long shot, but it’s the only one we’ve got."

Feral tilted her head to the side as she was apt to do. "Lie? Not truth, right? I do that. I want live. I want home. This place, smell bad, too many sound. Too much danger. We stay long, we chilled."

"Couldn’t have said it better myself." Joe agreed, clapping Feral on the back. "This place is gonna become a deathtrap soon, as we saw when we first entered the redoubt. I, for one, don’t want to be here when that happens. I’ll try what you suggested Gitana. A long shot, but a stroke of genius."

"So, it’s settled then." Maverick announced, slapping his hands against his thighs. Gather what we can about the factions that are developing here and use this knowledge to our advantage to get us home."

One by one starting with Gitana and ending with Feral the four others in the room agreed. For the next few minutes they talked together, finding out what happened to one another during their time in captivity. When exactly thirty minutes passed since the sec men left them alone the doorway to the room opened. In stepped Spint and his usual escort.

"So, have you come to a decision my good fellow?" Spint asked as excited as a child spotting a hoard of presents under a Christmas tree.

"Yeah. We have Spint. We want to live and live like kings, so we’ll join you." Maverick answered, keeping his face neutral despite the fact that it almost physically hurt him to say the words.

Spint actually clapped his hands together and jumped in delight. "Oh, that is excellent Mr. Maverick. I assure you this. You will not regret your decision at all."

Too late, Maverick thought. I already do.

"So, can you give me and Gitana an hour of privacy?"

"Of course my friend, of course!" Spint shuffled over to Maverick and took the man’s heavily muscled arm in his hand. "I will have the two of you escorted to a private meeting room. Anything you wish my new general."

General?

He looked at the other man, unable to contain the surprise. "You’ve got the wrong man for that job. I ain’t sec or military trained" That is not entirely true, of course. His father taught him everything he knew about Kempo and the various weapon skills that went along with it. Plus the time he spent shooting and learning knife combat. As for military training, riding with Trader was nearly like being in the military. The grizzled old man ran a crew tighter than a virgin’s pussy.

"I said you are a general, and that you shall be! Of course, I have to sway the others in the base to my cause, but who wouldn’t want to join my side? With my superior intellect and the survival skills you and your followers possess, as well as certain other traits I plan to exploit when the time is right, who wouldn’t want to follow me?" Boasted Spint, sauntering before the assembled group like the king he is aiming to become.

Again, Maverick noticed a look of not only nervousness pass between several of the guards, but one of disgust. He crossed his hands over his chest and sighed. Fireblast, but if the little bastard isn’t full of himself. Another egomaniac baron wannabe.

Spint skipped over to the intercom system and punched in a code. A tinny voice came over the com. "Security."

"Send up a full squad. I am taking our guests on a tour of the redoubt." Spint ordered cheerfully.

"Acknowledged." Came the reply immediately.

Several minutes passed in silence before the door opened. Montague, as well as a full squad of armed soldiers entered the chamber. Spint walked over to Maverick and clapped him on the shoulder. "Montague, I want you to take two men and escort Mr. Maverick and the woman." He pointed at Gitana, "To the V.I.P. guest quarters. There they are to be uninterrupted for a full hour. Are my orders understood?"

"Affirmative sir!" Montague snapped. He then stood to the side, making a small path for Maverick and Gitana to use. The take it and head straight for the door, followed closely by Montague and the pair of soldiers who entered with Spint.

The door closed behind Gitana, Maverick and the soldiers who take them without saying a word to the elevator. As the group stood waiting, Maverick coughed slightly in an attempt to gain the soldiers attention. When Montague looked at him, Maverick held up a hand, and placed the index finger to his lips.

"I see that you two didn’t rightly like the shit that Spint was spewing, did you?" Maverick whispered quietly so only the guards could hear. Of course, like anything else in the redoubt, if the mics are sensitive enough, they could probably hear a mouse fart. But it’s a chance he was willing to take. Besides, he figured, if the sec men did pick up his words, they might just say something to Hammond.

The gaurds kept silent, but both Maverick and Gtiana could see that he touched home in his question. Just from the way the two guards stiffened spoke louder than any word could ever.

Undaunted, Maverick continued to speak. "Best start spreading the word of what he is plannin’ to do. Think about what he want’s to do. The man is a triple fuckin’ crazy! Look, all we want to do is get home. I don’t give a flying fuck about ruling anything. I’m not baron material. So, just consider my words."

The elevator door opened and Montague motioned with his blaster for the pair to enter first. Maverick caught something in the other man’s eye, something gleaming. He knew right then and there that his words touched home. The seeds of rebellion were planted when Spint declared his intentions, and Maverick managed to add a little fertilizer to make the seeds grow.

The soldiers took the two lovers to the top most level. They are both surprised when they are given the exact same room that they shared together before taking the time jump. Luckily for them, they keep the surprise from showing on their faces. The two soldiers stood by, one holding the door open for the pair. Montague surprised them both when he pulled out a set of keys and released the hand and ankle cuffs. "You have exactly one hour."

Gitana entered the room first. Maverick followed but then stopped. "Thanks Montague."

The soldier nodded once and closed the door behind the pair. Maverick heard sec locks engage. He was tempted to try the door, but realized that it would be a waste of time.

"How are you really feeling baby?" He asked, turning to face Gitana.

She smiled and answered huskily. "Other than being a little sick this morning, fine. I think the self heats they’ve been feeding me are starting to get to me. I long for a nice hunk of fresh chilled deer."

"Yeah, the self heats can get pretty damned tedious after a time." Maverick agreed as he took a few steps towards his lover. He personally loves the stuff, but he is simply agreeing with the small woman. Her true thoughts were as obvious as the scars on his face. "Ah, fuck this noise." He grunted, and started to unbuckle his pants.

The two nearly attacked each other in their need for intimacy. Cloths were scattered over the room in record time as the lovers met one another. Their sex was fast, hot and full of passion, lasting only a handful of minutes. For nearly as long the two lay together, wrapped in each others arms, just basking in the afterglow and the love they each felt for the other.

"Thanks babe. I needed that. Was getting real worried that we might never have a chance to be with each other again." Maverick ran his fingers through her mane of soft hair, feeling it’s silky smoothness between his fingers.

Gitana shuddered. "As did I Amante. I too really needed to feel you again, taste your lips and feel you fill me as only you can do. You are so good Amante, so good.

Maverick doesn’t answer her. He knows that he isn’t the worlds greatest lover. But it really doesn’t matter when you love someone. Just being with them can make even dull sex something earth moving.

"Your mine Gitana, from now and for ever. Not even our final trip across the dark river will ever diminish my love for you."

"Not even death will us part." She agreed, tears shining in her eyes as she embraced the scarred man. Unlike the times before the skydark when marriage was common, in the Deathlands anyone can exchange vows and consider themselves man and wife. Essentially, that is what the pair just did. In their eyes, they are as good as married.

Minutes passed and Maverick could feel himself growing hard once again with desire. The second time around the pair made love again, but at a much slower, more gentle manner, carefully fulfilling each others needs.

All the while, despite Maverick suspecting it, they were being watched, and their very movements and words recorded for later viewing.

The hour passed all to quickly for the pair. Little is said between them, other than the usual questions like how they had been treated by the soldiers and whitecoats. Neither feared death very much. Maverick far less than Gitana because of his time with Trader and company. The Deathlands were aptly named as so many people did and would do what is necessary to survive. What caused the lovers the most fear and discontentment was the worry that they would never be together again, that death would claim them sometime in the next few days.

Satisfied, the pair sat together, Gitana nestled in the big man’s lap. The simple pleasure of the physical contact between them overshadowed the need to speak.

Far sooner than either wanted, the hour ends. Gitana possessed an incredibly accurate inner clock, which she used to give them just enough time to dress and embrace one last time before the door opened and in stepped Montague with the other soldiers. The sec guard crinkled his nose, having smelled the distinct odor of love making. He figured that would happen as he placed the cuffs back on the big man first.

He was very relieved when Maverick offered no resistance. He still would very much like to see what the Spanish woman sees in the big man. He sure doesn’t have the face of a kind man. Few times in his past has Montague ever met a man that looked down right dangerous like the survivalist from the future.

They took the pair back down to holding and placed them in their cells. The entire time not a word is spoken between them, nor to the soldiers. Montague shook his head in wonderment as the little woman pulled from his grasp and stood on her tip toes to kiss the big man on the lips, smiling as she did.

The door shut with nary a sound behind the woman and the big man.

* * *

Spint was seated at his desk, carefully watching the every movement the lovers made. My god! He thought to himself. She could be a model if she had been born in the present, instead of in a post holocaust future. He wondered just how rare a beauty like hers would be in the time she came from.

The whitecoat felt himself becoming very aroused as he witnessed the two devour each other passionately. My oh my she is good at what she does, the thought sprang into his mind. Her love is as consuming as her personality. What a wonderful combination.

Like Montague, he wondered what she saw in her partner. But unlike Montague, he could rationalize it easily. After all, Spint was trained in the best schools in the states and held several doctorates. He figured it has to do with the very basic primal instincts that are inherit in all animals. The need for a powerful protector and a good provider. A male with good genes that would ensure strong, healthy offspring.

The scientist gently rubbed his hand against the bulge pushing against his pants. Then suddenly, he picked up his lap top computer and tossed it at the monitor, destroying both. "Oh, my dear Maverick. You will become my general, but that woman who you hold so dear will become my queen!" He raged, spittle flew from his mouth in all directions.

As quickly as the rage came, it passed and once again the man is calm. He thought of the wonderful children she would bear for him. His superior intellect and her passion for life, and the fiery spirit would make such a wonderful combination.

Spint stood and stepped over to the ruined monitor and lap top. I really must learn to control my temper one of these days he thought. The peanut counters in admin are going to start questioning the expenses I’ve incurred in computer equipment. He gathered the ruined laptop and placed it hap hazardly on the floor next to his desk. The monitor he took and hid in the closet. He would clean up the mess at a later time. After a moment of thought, he picked up the ruined computer and tossed its broken remains into the closet as well. Then he set out to clean up the mess.

An insistent beeping noise broke his train of though. Someone was at the door. He stabbed the answer button on his desk with his index finger. "Yes?" He hissed, feeling very annoyed at the disturbance.

His faithful assistant answers. "Dr. Spint, I have a Mr. Pendergast here to speak to you."

Pendergast? Why on earth would Agent Pendergast be here at this time? Spint wondered, as he hit the release button on his desk. The doorway to his private office opened and in stepped a tall, pale man with startling blue eyes and near white blond hair. He was dressed not in standard military issue BDU’s or fatigues, but in an immaculately cut dark Italian suit. In his right hand he carried an attaché case which he gently placed on the top of Spint’s desk.

"Dr. Spint." Pendergast spoke with a smooth, Louisiana accent. "Here are the latest results from the Devil’s Attic Redoubt. The gene splicing had some very unexpected results." With a deft flick of his wrist, the tall, pale man snapped open the locks on the attaché case.

Spint picked up several file folders a CD rom and three small metallic cases. "What side effects did you discover from this batch?"

"We were able to purify the serum, removing the harmful retro viruses that caused the physical mutation. We learned well from the tragic escape of the test subject last year." Pendergast answered as he took a seat across from the scientist.

"Ah, yes. The murders that took place. That was rather difficult to cover up wasn’t it?"

Pendergast ignored the man, and continued. "We have been having a great deal of difficulty in removing the psychological changes that occur. Not only did the test subjects show heightened senses, and enhanced physical strength and speed, but the drug offers amazing healing properties. Truly amazing. And, the other side effect we discovered when testing it on protein cultures is that the life span of the subject was increased by at least fifty percent. But…"

Ah, the infamous but.

"We also discovered that the subject turned homicidal, and in many cases cannibalistic." The pale, handsome man concluded.

"Very disturbing news. Very disturbing indeed. Have samples of this drug been delivered to the appropriate redoubts?"

Pendergast gently took one of the metallic cases back from Spint and replaced it inside the attache case. "I have one last location to visit. I’ll be stopping in White Sands to drop the data as well as the sample to Major Burroughs. I’m sure that the unexpected side effect, once they have purified the drug even more, will prove to be the catalyst in a major break through with the Calypso project. After that stop, back to New York."

"Wonderful!" Exclaimed Spint happily. "With these latest revelations, we should be one step closer to immortality and taking our rightful place as the true rulers of this pathetic planet. Despite the Acheron objective."

Pendergast stared at the other man, his face totally neutral.

"How long does it take for the serum to take effect?" Spint held up the metallic case and snapped open the small clasp. From the case he withdrew a single small vial filled with an amber viscous liquid. He held it up to the light and peered at it, squinting, as if to break down the molecular structure to analyze it from site alone.

Having smoothed out several unseen wrinkles in his suit, Pendergast eyed the whitecoat curiously. "Why do you ask?"

The sound of the other man’s voice broke the spell that Pendergast found himself under. "Oh, just professional curiosity, that is all. I simply want to know how long the effects take to manifest themselves, so I have an idea what to look into. I want to see if I can purify it further. On the negative side, it might end up taking longer for the effects to become apparent. But I believe from what you just told me that it would be a fair trade off to rid it of the horrific side effects you mentioned."

"The effects manifest themselves within three to five days after injecting the serum into a test subject. We believe that the age retardant effect kicks in several months down the road as it has to enter the subjects DNA and make subtle changes." The pale man leaned back into his seat, placing his hands in his lap. "I am quite disturbed about one thing though."
"Oh?"

"Why has the gateway been shut down to all but the highest ranking members? And, with Hammond’s Approval, you have cut off the redoubt from the outside world. I nearly didn’t make the jump. I had to input my agent security code to override the blockage."

Inwardly Spint swallowed hard but kept the surprise from showing on his face. "I am sorry about that, but we had some unexpected company. It appears that the soviets have managed to build a similar system to our Mat Trans and some how got at least one of our codes. They could not have expected the black outs that occur during a jump, as this heavily armed team was placed under arrest and interrogated immediately."

"I see." Pendergast commented as he glanced at the watch on his wrist.

Spint was never the man to pass up an opportunity when one presented itself. "I will gladly take you to holding so you can meet with these enemy agents yourself."

The pale man shook his head. "Alas, I just do not have the time for such. I really need to get back to New York in the next two hours." He stood up, straightening his black silk tie. "However, if you would be so kind as to forward the interrogation records to me, at your convenience, of course."

"Done Mr. Pendergast!" In a pigs eye, thought the scientist. He could easily hold off sending the agent the tapes until the end of the week. And, it would be so easy for him to negate the activation sequence. He mentally slapped himself for forgetting that little detail. But the Spanish woman Gitana has been on his mind every second of the day and night since he first laid eyes on her.

With the case in his hand Pendergast nodded farewell to Spint and turned. With confidence that only a man of great power could achieve, the pale man walked to the door and into the hallway and was gone in a matter of a few moments.

Spint stared at the vial for what seemed to be an eternity. The call of strength, of power, of increased life span called to him like a syrins song. For many minutes he contemplated his options. He picked up the folder and skimmed though it until he found the data he was looking for. That was all it took.

The final decision came to him in an instant. He opened a drawer in his desk and pulled out a small black bag, one that he carried with him every time he went into his lab or left the redoubt. After opening it, he pulled out a syringe and inserted the needle into the top of the vial. He watched with rapt interest as the serum filled the vial to the recommended dosage he found in the notes.

He didn’t bother to swab his arm. Instead he found the vein and deftly slipped the needle into it. Spint didn’t even flinch as the sharp end pierced his flesh. As he expected, he felt nothing as the serum entered his blood stream.

He placed the needle on the table and carefully hid away the vial in his desk. The other case, as well as the CD rom and the notes he would take down to the labs the next day. Spint was not afraid of the side effects that were mentioned. He knew deep down that the subjects that they tested were inferior specimens. Those of low intellect and will. Someone like himself, at the peak of the evolutionary ladder, would have no trouble controlling the animal urges that Pendergast described. After all, Spint argued with himself. I am far removed from the test subjects as they are from the lowest life forms.

He then stood up and prepared to leave his office. Suddenly a thought occurred to him. With a wicked smile permanently planted on his face he left his private office, careful to close and lock the door behind him. He ran the distance from his office to the redoubt’s main communication room in record time.

* * *

Matt calmly walked up to the guard stationed at the entrance to the holding cells. The guard, who was bored out of his tree, glanced up and managed to hide the smile that was about to form on his face. At last, something to break the boredom. "Yes sir. What can I do for you?"

Matt flashed his identification at the guard. "I’m here to pick up the mutant. I need to take her for more tests."

The guard slid a clip board through the small slot in the arma glass window of his booth. "The usual. Sign and state which subject, and for how long you will be taking her, and where."

Matt followed the instructions, writing down all the required information. "That it?" He asked.

"Yes. Where is the security detail? None of the prisoners are to be removed from the detention cells without having at least two guards along to prevent trouble."

Matt swallowed hard. This was one part of his plan he knew that he wouldn’t be able to circumvent without some creative thinking. Luckily for him, he thought about it before hand. He didn’t want to do what he was about to, but the soldier left him no choice. He carefully reached into the pocket of his lab smock and removed a single sheet of paper. He placed it in the small tray before the arma glass window. The guard looked down at it with obvious interest. He reached out and took the paper. Only seconds passed before he smiled and nodded once. "Ok, everything seems to be in order here."

The guard released the lock on the door, allowing the man to enter unimpeded. Matt’s brow furrowed in angst. Two week passes are incredibly hard to come by, especially ones with the name blank. He certainly hoped that this meeting will be worth it. That was the easy part. The pass bought him the time to get in and pull Ged out of her cell. The guard would have enough sense to cause a feedback loop on the tape without altering the time stamp so it would appear as if nothing happened. But the timing was risky. He would have to get Gedoena back to the cell before the guard ended his shift. But, the risk was worth it in his mind. With all the rumors that had been circulating the base, and the new one that just started, he felt he just had to spend time with the mutant girl.

He stood before the door to Gedoena’s cell and waited for several seconds trying to compose himself. He then pushed the door open and stepped inside. Curled up in a fetal position, the young mutant slept soundly, the thumb of her right hand half hanging from her mouth. Her long tail was draped over her oddly shaped legs. He couldn’t help himself as he smiled down at the girl in a woman’s body. So intelligent, so friendly, and so feminine, but at the same time, such a child.

Sensing his prescience, Gedoena instantly awoke. For a second she is confused, and a light growl slipped from her lips. It appeared to Matt that she was about to leap and attack, but then she calmed down and smiled. Matt was partially right. She did leap and attack, but without the malicious intent of causing bodily harm. Instead she launched herself off the floor and slammed into him, hugging him tightly.

"Hi Geddy." How you doing today?" He squeaked out, barely able to capture a breath the young mutant was hugging him so tightly.

"I am so happy to see you Matt!" She replied, relaxing her grip on the older man. "Why are you here?"

"Well, I’ve been thinking hard about what you told me, and that you had said I was responsible for giving you the codes for the mat trans jump which was supposed to have taken you to California." The girl still didn’t let him go. But he was relieved that he was no longer in danger of having his ribs crushed by her inhuman strength.

"Silly, you gave me the codes! But one of the codes you gave to me was the code that activated the time trawl jump." She smiled, barring her long, cutting teeth. Her long tail curled in front of her and wrapped itself partially around the man’s leg.

He thought for several moments. "But where would I get the codes? I have high enough security to have access to the mat trans, but no where near the clearance I would need to access all the code books. I have the code for the redoubt where you are currently being studied, and that is it!"

"That doesn’t matter." She said as she ran her talons up and down his back, nuzzling his neck. She didn’t actually kiss him, just relished in the familiar scent and feel of the only man who was ever kind to her during her captivity with the scientists. "I will tell you the codes you gave me, and then you can tell me, back in the other redoubt. We both know you are going to do it one way or another. This way makes perfect sense!"

Matt shifted uncomfortably in her grasp. The way she held him was more like that of a lover than he was willing to admit. It made him feel somehow dirty. And to make matters even worse for the man, he just couldn’t shake the thought that she was just a little girl. The feel of her face and mouth against his neck, not to mention the way her tail was caressing his leg, combined with the softness of her form pressed up against him was quickly arousing him. To fight the feelings down, he thought of some of the worst accidents he ever witnessed. He thanked god that it did the trick.

"Ok Ged, tell me the codes and I’ll tell them to you. I have to go back to the other redoubt soon anyhow and check up on you." He swallowed hard, focusing on the horrible pictures of death and destruction he dredged up from the deepest recesses of his mind.

She told him the codes, which he did his best to memorize. He doesn’t have the same eidetic memory the mutant girl has, but at the same time his memory is better than the average persons.

He remembered her telling him how he placed her in cryo. She told him that he seemed very nervous and in a hurry. He also had kept checking his watch and looking over his shoulder, as if someone was about to attack him. From what she told him, it sounded like he was getting her into cryo just as the bombs were detonating over the planet. But worried that someone might be chasing him? Well considering that the base is totally locked down, it would mean that he would have to get back to the other redoubt without permission. The thought of the consequences of that act chilled him to the marrow.

"Ok, again Matt, why else are you here?" She asked as she finally pulled away from the man, much to his relief. He was not sure how much longer he could stand her holding him the way she was. God, he thought, I need to get laid!

"I want to show you around the labs, let you know exactly what is going on here. It is important. Most of the projects that are going on are really bad and should be stopped, but a few, just a handful should be saved. I want you to take all the data from this place once you get back to your own time. Take the important data and destroy the rest."

"What makes you so sure that I am going to make it back to my own time?" She asked, holding his hand in her talons.

"You’ll get back. I refuse to let Spint use you for any of his sick experiments." He pulled away from the mutant girl and paced back and forth in the cell. "In fact, to hell with it. I’m going to take you directly to the Mat trans and activate the Last destination code. The particular gateway you arrived in hasn’t been used since. That means the time trawling equipment will still be active." He stopped his nervous pacing and grabbed her hand. He turned to take her out the exit but found he couldn’t move the young woman an inch.

She stared at him, her face calm, but her eyes glowed powerfully. "I will not leave without Brett, or the others. Brett is like my daddy and I could never abandon him when he needs me." And, she silently added, I will not leave you either.

Her words caught him off guard and he matched her gaze. He could see it clearly in her eyes that she would not leave, not without the others. His shoulders slumped with resignation. "Alright Geddy. You win. Then again, I could never say no to you now could I?"

"And I love you for that!" She stepped forward and kissed him lightly on the cheek. Not a lovers kiss, more like that exchanged between a pair of siblings.

"Ok, lets…" He started to say when the speakers overhead burst into life. "Attention, all bio techs and support personnel are to assemble in lecture hall seven in thirty minutes time. Attendance is mandatory. Matt threw his arms up, totally disgusted. Because of the announcement the bribe he paid to the guard was wasted.

Reaching into his pocket, he fished out a small plastic card. He figured that he might as well make the best of the situation. "Here, Ged, we will have to postpone the tour until after the crisis has passed."

"What’s this?" She asked, as she held the card up to her eyes to examine it closely.

"My personal key card. It has my security clearance magnetically encoded on the strip so you can access just about any part of the base with it. You can use it to get out of the cells at any time you want. It’ll over-ride all the cell doors, as well as the main door leading out from here. Just in case. Keep the damned thing hidden from view though!"

Ged slips the card into the front of her pants, securing it in the waist band of her military issue panties. "Thanks Matt. But how are you going to explain that you lost it?"

Matt knew that he would have to come up with a good story to explain that one. But he figured that as long as he’s with some of the other doctors or techs, getting in and out of the various locations in the base wouldn’t be a problem. "I’ll come up with something when that time comes."

"Ok, Matt. I guess you better get going right now. That man, Spint, is likely to throw a fit if you don’t arrive on time for the meeting." She placed her talons against his chest and gave him a gentle push towards the door. "I’ll see you soon Matt."

"Count on it Geddy!" He replied, smiling. Despite the gentleness of the push she gave him, he knew that if she used her full strength, she would probably have sent him right through the concrete wall. He walked up to the exit and waited for the guard to open it for him.

As he walked by the guard, the man seated at the station looked up and smiled. Matt didn’t care for the smile all that much, knowing very well that he had just thrown away the pass without even getting anything out of it, like he had planned.

He was about to leave the chamber when the door suddenly opened before him, and in stepped several soldiers, their assault rifles at the ready. Matt’s heart lept to his throat and panic had threatened to overwhelm him when the soldiers stood off to the side to allow two of the redoubts prisoners to enter. The small Spanish woman and the huge scarred man. Right behind the pair stood Montague.

"What are you doing here?" Maverick growled, bearing his teeth at the smaller man.

"What concern is it of yours?" He shot back, suddenly feeling very surprised at himself. Then he thought, what the hell, it’s true. What concern is it? Who is the prisoner and who is the captor right now?

"It’s very much my concern." The heavy survivalist snarled, having taken several steps towards the man. "If you so much as hurt Gedoena’s feelings, I guarantee you won’t live to see the sunrise.

That is the last thing I’d ever do to her. Thought Matt, but before he could put them into words, Montague steps forward, his assault rifle at the ready. "Back off tough guy. Back off. We’re not allowed to kill you, but we are allowed to teach you a lesson in manners."

Very slowly, Maverick turned to stare at the soldier. "You want a piece of me boy?" He flexed his fists as much as the cuffs would allow. He was confident that he could take any of these sec men in hand to hand combat.

"Any other time? Sure. I’d wipe the base with your outlandish ass Maverick. Montague shouted back, spittle spraying from his mouth. "Fuckin’ civvies who think that they’re fuckin’ Van Damme." With a great deal of willpower, the other man manages to calm himself. "Look, now is not the time, nor is it the place."

Coward. The big man thought. The guy is afraid of me. Damned right he should be. I’d eat the pretty boy for breakfast. Unbidden, his own words come back to haunt him. Talk to the sec man, see where his allegiance lies. See if you can get his help to blow this place and get home again.

He sighed. "Your right Montague. I guess being cooped up and a prisoner and all has made me triple edgy."

The soldier lowered his rifle and nodded, accepting Maverick’s unspoken apology. "Just get back into your cell and let’s forget it happened."

The cell doors were opened for the group. Maverick caught Gitana’s eye and she smiled at him. She was very pleased that for once he decided to back down from a challenge. The man has his pride and is a typical stubborn male. He flat out refused to show weakness before, but has slowly learned over the past few months that occasionally it’s better to eat humble pie than fist or rifle butt pie.

He took one last look at Ged and her friend before the door closed before him. He noticed that she didn’t seem to be in the slightest distressed, and so he allowed himself to relax, to come down from the combat readiness he pushed himself into. He slipped to the floor and leaned back against the wall. In a matter of a few minutes he was asleep.

* * *

Matt filed into the auditorium with several dozen other scientists and support workers. Seated at the podium was Spint, looking as insane as he always did. But the strange light that burned fiercely in the older whitecoats eye literally made Matt stop for a second. Uh, oh. Was all the could think of before he took an empty seat near the back of the room. He did notice a small case located on the floor next to the older scientist. And also, as ever, Spint’s silent assistant was close at hand, computer held at the ready waiting to take down what ever Spint had to say.

Once the last man entered, Spint indicated to two soldiers who were standing at attention next to the door. They slid a heavy bar through the handles of the doorway, making it all but impossible for anyone to enter. And, Matt noted, very difficult for anyone to leave the chamber. He noticed that both men were armed. Not all that uncommon in the base, but it was uncommon to see that the soldiers were carrying assault rifles slung over their shoulders.

"Ladies and gentlemen." Spint began. He placed his hands on top of the podium, and started out over the gathered crowd. The reason I have called you together at such short notice is simple." He paused dramatically before continuing. "As some of you already know, we had some very unexpected visitors several days ago. It turns out that these visitors were time jumpers, who used this redoubt in the future to travel back in time."

Once again, Spint paused to allow his words to sink in. Well over half of the scientists and support staff looked totally shocked at the news. A few others seemed to take it all in stride. They were the ones who knew of the arrival.

"From what we have learned after extensive interrogation using all manner of P.S.E.’s as well as drugs, it seems that in a few days time the soviet’s will launch a surprise attack against the united states. These time travelers come from our future. Our future where the land is in ruins and chaos is the law of the day."

The crowd gathered in the auditorium began to murmur and talk amongst each other. The anger and outrage towards Spint’s words was almost like a physical entity that could be not only seen, but heard and felt at the same time. Spint slammed his hand on the podium. "Silence! Hear me out and then talk if you need to."

The gathered folks let their conversations drop away. Spint continued with his speech. "As you already know, General Hammod has cut off all external communication and mat-trans. He did this with the express purpose to prevent word of this leaking out to Washington. We know when, and how the war will begin and have the means to prevent it! But General Hammond wants the war to take place. He want’s our glorious country to be destroyed by the Russians."

What? Matt had been barely able to prevent himself from shouting out. That twisted little bastard! He’s twisting his own story around to make it look like Hammond is the one who want’s to set up his own little empire.

"It is our duty to put an end to this! We have to seize the redoubt at all costs and alert Washington to the attack. If we are careful and stick to the game plan I have set up, we should be able to prevent this horrific disaster from occurring. It will mean us taking drastic steps, but the fate of not only our nation, but the rest of the free world rests upon our shoulders." Spint shouted, sounding much like a T.V. evangelist.

Matt shook his head. Spint was good. For a man who was that insane, Spint was very good.

One man in the crowd stood up to gain Spint’s attention. "Sir." He called.

Spint acknowledged the man and waved his hand at him, giving the scientist the floor.

"What you just said. I’ve heard a rumor floating around the base that it was you who placed the blockage on all outside communications as well as the fact that it’s you who want’s to see the country destroyed."

Spint tsked. "I am surprised that you would have given such rhetoric any consideration! Isn’t it obvious that I want to try and save our nation? It’s General Hammond and his staff that are the dangerous people here! He wants to rule over the blasted and radioactive ruins that our nation will become! He started these rumors that you are hearing."

The gathering of scientists muttered amongst themselves, trying to piece together what Spint just said. Like a great many research redoubts across the nation, there was an air of animosity between the soldiers and the scientists. Both side considered themselves to be better than the other, and it wasn’t all that uncommon for fights, or ‘accidents’ to break out among the personnel.

"To this end," Spint shouted, making sure that his voice got through to the gathered scientists and support staff. "I have devised a plan to ensure the total co-operation of the soldiers and General Hammond." He bent over and picked up one of the canisters next to the podium. He held it above his head like a father presenting his new born child to god.

"This shall be our salvation and the damnation of all those who would prevent us from warning the outside of what is about to happen." He raged, his voice having taken on a strange, fanatical quality to it. He gently lowered the canister and popped open the top, pulling out a vial of clear liquid. A shudder and gasp reached his ears when the gathered personnel recognized the container.

"I will distribute one vial to each of you. You will take them with you where ever you go. Later on in the day, I will assign each and everyone one of you a location. At precisely oh thirteen hundred hours tomorrow you will proceed to these locations and smash the canisters releasing the agent into the air."

"Are you fucking nuts Spint?" Screamed the man who first spoke out earlier. "By releasing that agent, you’ll kill us all!"

"Guards? If that gentleman uses profane language again, beat him into submission." Spent calmly stated, as he gestured with his free hand at the angry man in the crowd.

Cowed, the man sat down before the guards could close in on him.

"Now, of course releasing this agent is suicide! But only to those who have not received the vaccine for it! What, do you think that I would allow such a thing to happen? The virus will enter everyone in the base and the symptoms will show within thirty six hours. Hammond will have no choice but to hand over the reigns of control to us, so we can reach the outside! Once he has done this, we shall administer the antidote to the rest of the personnel.

Like before, the gathered group talk amongst themselves. Spint allows this to continue for nearly a half hour, fielding the occasional question before he held up one hand to silence the group.

In the rear, Matt sat stunned. That was the final straw for him. He knew that he had to inform Hammond on what’s going on. There was no way he could allow Spint to release a genetically engineered Ebola virus inside the base. He wisely kept his mouth shut, knowing that Spint was a master at whipping his co workers into a frenzy.

No matter what the outcome, Matt knew that he had no choice but to go along with Spint until he could contact Hammond or those loyal to the General.

"Now, each and everyone of you are to show up to lab one to receive your innoculations. I will also at this time give each of you one vial. By no later than twenty three hundred hours, I will contact each of you via runner and give you your assignments."

The crowd made to stand up and leave when Spint held up his hand. "Oh, and one last thing. I know that despite what you might say, some of you are loyal to General Hammond and his lackeys. Do not even try to contact him in any way or form. I have all internal communications monitored, and you will be watched." With that, he waved his hand. "That is all gentlemen and ladies."

Matt stood up and moved into the flow of people leaving the room. As he approached the door, one of the guards held out his assault rifle before him, preventing the man from leaving.

"Mr. Mathew Chance?" Spint queried in a sickly sweet voice.

Slowly, Matt turned around. "What is it Doctor Spint?" He replied, doing his best to keep the fear out of his voice. My god, does he know already what I plan to do?

"What were the results from the testing I requested on the two mutant females?"

Matt almost fainted from relief when he heard Spint’s question. He ran his hand through his dark blond hair, a habit he developed when he was nervous. "We found some very unusual chemicals in the female called Feral. It seems to be generated from a previously dormant section of her mind, in the hypacanthious region of her brain. The region that we have always speculated might contribute to the stories we have all heard over the centuries dealing with people who posses psionic abilities."

Spint nodded sagely. "I did wonder about that. I have a strong suspicion that the Feral subject might be just that, Psionically gifted. Don’t you find it rather unusual that they would be travelling together with such a dangerous predator like the mutant cougar?"

He had to agree with the crazed scientist. He did find it very strange that the group traveled with the animal. And he heard from some of his colleagues about the way the animals went wild, then suddenly seemed to calm down at the exact same time he was drugging the woman. "What do you want me to do Dr. Spint?"

"At oh seven hundred hours tomorrow I want you to have the woman known as Feral brought down to the cloning facility. I will have a separate room sealed off and will have the mutant cougar brought up about an hour before. We will administer the antidote to allow the cougar to recover from its drugged state. I want you to place both the woman and the cougar inside the chamber and watch them carefully. Report any activity you find out of the ordinary."

"Yes sir."

Spint motioned with his hand, and the guard pulled the weapon away from Matt, allowing him to pass. "One last thing. I sent, just before the lockdown, several samples of the genetic sequencing from both mutants as well as the cougar to several other redoubts across the continent. They will be carefully studying the samples. Do not try to cross me Mr. Chance. All data you provided to me will be cross referenced once this crisis has passed. If I found out that you have deceived me in any way, the consequences will be most dire indeed."

Matt visibly paled but kept quiet. He knew very well what Spint was capable of, and had no wish to incur his wrath. As he passed the guards and entered the now empty corridor, he began to wrack his mind to figure out a way to contact Hammond and let him know exactly what was about to happen.

* * *

Over the next eight hours the various scientists and support workers showed up at the aformentioned lab and received their immunization shots against the agent, as well as their vial. Well over half of the scientists and workers at that time also received there orders at where they were to release the agent.

Considering how little time Spint actually had to come up with the plan he had managed to cover all the main meeting locations as well as several strategic intersections and maintenance crawl ways where the virus, once released into the air, would quickly spread through the base and infect ever living soul. The Ebola virus was mainly transmitted in it’s original form via direct contact with body fluids or waste, but after genetically modifying the virus, the bio weapons scientists allowed it to survive for long periods of time in the open atmosphere. It had a relatively short lifespan, only a matter of six hours but was highly infectious. The perfect terror weapon.

Throughout the world many research laboratories were searching for a cure for this deadly disease, but to no avail. Not only had the scientists in this particular redoubt created a newer, deadlier form, but at the same time they had come up with a vaccine as well as a cure for people infected by Ebola. They could make billions selling it to countries being swept under by the disease, but why bother? If they release the cure, it could be discovered that they were responsible for the outbreaks, as they did need to perform field tests.

Spint had also known that no matter how hard he watched the people involved, if someone really had wanted to it wouldn’t be that hard to get news to General Hammond. But, time is of the essence. He wanted to take several days to get the vials planted, but it just wasn’t going to happen. So, he no choice but to take the chance and pull the plan off as soon as it’s possible.

Timing for the little venture he planned was of the utmost importance. All vials had to be opened within seconds of each other or the redoubts bio hazard containment system would kick in, and several sections of the base may not be infected. He couldn’t afford that to happen.

Another matter that he would have to attend to was Mr. Maverick and his companions. He said that he was ready to join him, but Spint knew very well that it could have just been a ploy to try and gain his life, and his freedom. He was going to have to put Maverick to the test to make sure that it isn’t a game. If Maverick agrees, then he knows that the rest will follow.

So much to do, and Spint had so little time to do it in.

When the last support worker had gotten his or her vial of death, as well as their inoculation, Spint sat back in his chair and placed his feet on the desk. He finally allowed himself to get a little sleep.

* * *

Mitch Montague had eventually made his way to the common rec room. The day had been very long and deep down he still was fuming about the challenge that the big man from the future had issued to him, and that he had been unable to answer it. The room was almost empty when he entered. A handful of support staff were seated at one booth, talking quietly amongst themselves. A half dozen other people were scattered around the room, all appearing to have been lost in thought.

He walked over to the counter and grabbed a big bottle of coke for himself. He was about to take a seat near the entrance when the sound of glass breaking caught his attention. He faced the direction and noticed one of the lab techs, a dark blond man was rather drunkenly trying to pick up the fallen glass.

Montague shook his head and walked over to the drunken man. "Ok buddy, you know the rules. You can drink on your own time and in your own quarters, but publicly, it isn’t allowed. I’m going to have to take you down to holding for the night, let you sober up." He reached down to help the other man stand.

Matt looked up at Montague, then groggily stumbled to his feet and took a swing at the other man. He missed by a mile and spun around completely once before falling to the floor.

"Ok, that’s it tough guy. Your definitely going to be spending a few days in the holding cells. Attempting to strike an officer while under the influence is a court marshallable offence." Roughly, he grabbed the techie under the arm and hauled him to his feet. It was then that he noticed that the other man was unconscious.

Wonderful, he thought as he threw the other man’s arm over his shoulder and helped him to the door, his bottle of coke forgotten for the moment.

Once they had cleared the room and walked nearly the entire length of the hallway, the other man spoke, his voice oddly clear. "We need to talk. Don’t speak out loud, just let me do the talking."

They walked together for several yards in silence. Matt shuffled and dragged his feet, adding to the illusion that he was a very unwilling participant in the walk.

"Spint has totally lost it. He’s given all of us vials of the Ebola 2 virus. At noon tomorrow we are to release it all over the base. You got to get word back to Hammond so he can stop this insanity."

Montague stopped cold in his tracks. He realized quickly what he had done and covers the shock by lifting the other man up, shifting his weight. "Why are you telling me this?" He asked, his mouth open just a crack.

"You seemed to be interested in the newcomers and they seem to be pivotal in what Spint has planned." He sighed, then stumbled slightly. "Besides, I know that Spint has the soldiers loyal to him watching me, as well as the other techs and support staff. He suspects that someone just might try to do what I am right now."

The stood together at the elevator, waiting for the doors to open. The overhead light flashes and the doors slide apart to reveal the small car. Two soldiers, as well as three techs are in the car. The techs get out, but the soldiers stay inside. They greeted Montague and Chance with a slight nod.

"Whoo boy, that guy’s been tying a few on hasn’t he?" Comments one of the two guards.

"Yeah. Taking him down to holding. The idiot techie knows better than to drink in public like this. Man, Hammond and Spint are going to be pissed when they find out about it."

The two guards exchanged glances. Uh oh, thought Montague and Chance at the same time. But the guards simply cracked up with laughter. "Yeah, sure as shit don’t want to be in that boy’s pants. Be lucky if Hammond gets to him first. Just get himself chewed out. But if that crazy fuck Spint gets his hands on him…" The soldier who spoke let the sentence trail off.

Montague breathed a silent prayer of thanks to god at hearing those words from the soldier. No soldier loyal to Spint would say such a thing. They are safe, at least for now. "Yeah, no shit."

The elevator stopped, the doors sliding smoothly open. Montague helped Chance out of the elevator and they continued to walk towards the holding cells. "So, you faked getting drunk in order to get yourself arrested then?"

"Only thing I could come up with at the time. It was incredibly risky. I had to take the chance that someone who isn’t loyal to Spint would show up, and hope that they did so soon. If you hadn’t come in when you did, I was going to start a fight."

"Lucky timing I guess." Montague muttered under his breath.

The two men arrive at the holding cells where they had met only hours before. Montague talked briefly with the guard and signed the book before they were allowed to pass. He took Chance to one of the holding cells and dragged him into the corner. He pretended to examine the man, checking his pockets and taking anything out that could be used as a weapon. All the while he listened as the other man described what Spint had in mind.

"I’ll do what I can Chance. But things are going to be real tough for the next few hours." With that comment, he stood up and walked out.

As he walked down the hallway he glanced in each cell, looking at the people within. He silently cursed each one, knowing that it was their arrival that touched off the events that were unfolding around him. Life inside the top secret redoubt was never easy. Too much paperwork, too many intrigues, and the silent battle for control that had been constantly waged between General Hammond and Doctor Spint was a headache for the people who worked, and lived there.

Then what seemed like an eternity which in reality was only four days ago this group of two men and three women from the future arrived in the gateway. They were the catalyst to the internal struggle. Factions broke out over hearing what was supposed to happen in three days, Hammond, with, for once, Spints full agreement placed a lock down on the redoubt. And now, Spint making his final bid for control.

He was so tempted to pull out his sidearm and enter the cells one at a time. It would have made him feel so much better to place a single bullet in each person’s head. But that would not change the situation, so he forced the thoughts back into the dark recesses of his mind.

Montague wanted to head directly to Hammonds office and inform the commanding officer about what the whitecoat had planned to do. He started to head to the elevator when the thought occurred to him. It might be in the bases best interest to wait until morning. If what Chance had said was true, it is possible that he was at that very moment being watched. If Hammond finds out about it in the morning there will still be enough time to take Spint down and stop the release of the virus. Will it work? He wondered. There just was no way to tell.

So, instead of heading directly to see General Hammond, he returned to the recreational lounge to finish his coke.

* * *

The night had been very long and uneventful for the small group of companions. At precisely oh six thirty hours in the morning Spint’s assistant arrived with the usual escort of guards and rousted everyone from their slumber. As he was about to lead them out, Montague arrived.

"What are you doing here? Spint’s assistant asked."

"One of your boys had a little too much to drink last night and made an ass of himself in the rec center. Had to toss him in the cooler for the night and let him sleep it off. With that, he unlocked the cell and out stepped Chance.

Everyone was a little surprised to see the scientist, but most of all Gedoena. "Matt, why were you drinking?"

Matt didn’t bother to answer the young mutant. He simply nodded his thanks and tried his best to straighten out his rumpled clothing. He stepped up to Feral and took her by the arm. "Your to come with me." He said, his voice sounding like he gargled with sandpaper.

The woman jerked her arm out of Chance’s hand. "No. I no go with you. Stay with friends." She stuck out her chin defiantly, daring the man to try and force her.

Chance feigned a headache, pressed both of his palms against his eyes. "Look. I am hung over, I don’t want to argue with you. You don’t have any choice in the matter. You are to come with me, and now!" He practically screamed the word. To his credit, the other woman backed away a step. She was rather surprised.

Spints assistant stepped between the two. "You are to bring her directly to Spints office once the experiment is completed."

Feral opened her mouth to argue, then closed it. She had been around enough people drunk people in the past to detect the stench. But something was very off with the scientist called Chance. Despite her disgust at the way the norms smelled, she stepped closer to the man and slowly breathed in, allowing the odors to assail her senses. Sure enough, the man had alcohol on his clothing, and his breath was bad, but she didn’t detect any of the tell tale odors of inbreviation. She found it very odd, but decided not to mention it to the others.

Sullenly, she stepped in front of Chance and walked towards the door. He followed, and one guard automatically split away from the others to act as an escort.

Joe and Maverick watched the exchange, both wondering what sort of sick experiment Spint had planned for the latest addition to their group. Joe looked at Gitana, then nudged Maverick. "Gitana doesn’t look too well."

Maverick turned to study his lover. She did look a little green in the gills to him. He took her by the shoulders. "You feeling ok babe?"

She patted his hand and smiled at him. "I’m fine Amante. I think we were a little too eager last night and with the meal I ate, it didn’t settle all that well with me. I will be fine in a little while.

Joe couldn’t resist. "Hey Brett, she’s got morning sickness! You gonna be a poppa buddy!" He grinned ear to ear, then slugged Maverick in the arm.

"Fireblast Joe, that ain’t funny." Maverick snapped as he pulled away from the small woman. "We’ve all been under a shitload of stress the past week, and it’s just catching up to her."

"Whoa Maverick, chill. I’m just joshin’ you man. You really gotta learn to work on that sense of humor." Joe commented, the smile vanishing like frost off a sun warmed window.

Gitana’s head snapped up. "Maverick? Why are you acting like that?" She asked, her voice sounding hesitant.

"This wouldn’t be a good time to have a kid Gitana, not a good time at all." He threw his hands up in exasperation.

Gitana opened her mouth to speak, and reached out to take Maverick by the arm when Spint’s assistant loudly announced. "Enough. You can settle your differences later on this afternoon once you have received your inoculations and have been prepped." He took Gitana by the arm and pulled her away. Maverick growled and tried to stop him, but the guards wouldn’t allow it.

The trip to the lab was short and quiet. Not once did Gitana turn to look at her lover. She didn’t want to see the tears of shame, which flowed silently down her cheeks, burning like acid. She had suspected for several weeks that she might be pregnant, even if the whitecoats didn’t say a thing to her. She was positive that if she asked, they would confirm it for her.

The first sign that she might be pregnant occurred when she missed her second period in a row. She had missed them in the past, which was not all that uncommon with women in the Deathlands. But she started to get some unusual cravings, which she ignored. Figured that it was something that her body was lacking and that she needed.

Finally, just over a week before she was sick just after waking up. It has been a stead pattern nearly every day for the past week. She was very certain that she was indeed pregnant. But who’s child will it be? The men who raped her time and again? Or could it be, and she prays to god that it is, Mavericks child?

Brett’s harsh words hurt her deeply, far more than the big man could possibly imagine. He obviously doesn’t want a child, at least not now. She could hear it in his voice that a child would be far more trouble that it’s worth. How could he be so cruel? She angrily swiped the tears out of her eyes, forcing the thoughts down. They can talk about this at a later time, when they don't have a huge audience.

Her thoughts are interrupted as they step into the laboratory. The new facility is not unlike the ones that they have been in over the past four days. However, the big difference is that there are several guards, all seemingly unarmed. That is definitely a switch. Spint was in the room, standing over a chair, a hypodermic needle in his hand.

"Welcome my friends, to the first day of your new life." He greeted the group pleasantly. Maverick, bold as anyone could be, steeped right up to Spint. "Ok, lets do this."

The whitecoat laughed. "Ah, so eager my friend. That is good to see!" He motioned with his hand. Have a seat Mr. Maverick"

He sat down and tried his best to relax. Then without a hint of warning, steel bands shot out at the speed of thought from the arms and legs of the chairs, clamping around his arms and legs. "What the fuck?" He shouted in surprise. Natural instinct took over and he struggled mightily against the bands.

"Do not struggle so hard my friend, I don't want to see you harm yourself now, do I?"

How the hell would I know you triple stupe? Maverick thought, but kept his mouth closed. He new that all that would do would be to anger the whitecoat, and possibly bring about the deaths of his friends. "No, I reckon you don't."

Spint placed his hand on Maverick's shoulder and leaned in close, in order to whisper in the big man's ear. "But, you realize that I must first test your loyalty, correct? After all, you may have said what you did just to gain a few more hours of life."

"Lets get it over with Spint." Gritted Maverick, tensing up, knowing that he is probably about to die.

Spint nodded once, and his ever present assistant hit a single button on the comp terminal.

With his hands behind his back, Spint stepped in front of Maverick. "It's quite simple really, do you promise to serve me, no matter what I ask or demand of you?"

Maverick gritted his teeth. Like a broken record, the single phrase kept repeating over and over in his mind. I want to live, I want to live, I want to live. "Yes." He blurted.

Several tense seconds passed as Spint watched his assistant. The man studied the readout on the comp terminal, his face as impassive as it always was. He didn't speak, only nodded his head once.

"Excellent! I hate to admit that I had my doubts about you Mr. Maverick but you seem to be honest with me. I assure you that you have not made a mistake. With you at my side, we will rule the United States of America after the holocaust is over."

Maverick couldn't resist himself. "You mean the Deathlands, don't you?"

Spint looked very curious. "The Deathlands? What a quaint title! Is that what you call the nation in your era?"

Maverick nodded. He nearly fainted from relief when Spint's assistant nodded. It was a million to one odds but, he has always been able to beat the odds in the past. He's at least bought his friends a few more hours of life. A few more hours to throw together a few plans to get them all home.

Spint whirled around and without warning, jabbed the hypodermic needle into his arm. Maverick hissed in surprised. "Wha…"

"Oh, have no fear my friend. I have simply given you an inoculation. You see, in a few hours time, I will infect the entire base with the Ebola 2 virus. Those who do not submit to my rules will die. Those who do? I shall give them the cure, and integrate them into my army." He slipped the needle out of Maverick's arm and placed the plastic cap over the tip.

"What about the rest of my friends?" Maverick asked. The spot on his arm where he got the injection itched like crazy and he desperately wanted to scratch it, but was unable to due to the metallic clamps holding him in place. He had to do something to ignore the discomfort.

"They will receive their own injections in due time. But now there is the matter of the cancer that is slowly growing in your body." He held out his hand and waited. Only a handful of seconds passed when his assistant placed a small metal band in it. The contraption had a small screen, as well as a tiny key pad.

"This," he held the device up to show Maverick, "Is a nanite factory. I will inject a colony into your system."

Ged blurted out. "Nanites! I had heard talk about them the first time I was here with you. Tiny computer controlled machines that can multiply and perform any task they are programmed to, right?"

Spint beamed. "Very good Gedoena. You always were very intelligent. Yes, that is exactly what it is. I will have the nanites hunt through Mr. Mavericks system and target any abnormal tissue growth. Effectively, as long as a single nanite is in his body, he will never have to worry about cancer again."

Gitana attempted to approach her lover. One of the guards stopped her, but Spint shook his hand. "Let her pass."

"Amante, you have no idea how relieved I am." She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him on the lips.

"You and me both babe." He looked at his other friends. Joe, as always, was smiling. Ged looked so happy he thought she was going to burst.

"What about my friends? If you want me to work with you, better give them the same treatment. We are a team, and work best as a team."

Spint clamped the small computer like device around Maverick's bicep. "But they are fine! Neither Gedoena, nor your smiling friend show any signs of developing cancer. In fact, I don't think that Ged could develop cancer. She has a remarkable metabolism, and regenerative abilities." He punched several keys on the band then stepped away.

"What about Gitana? You have to use it on her." Maverick insisted.

Spint sighed heavily. "I am very afraid that I can't do that Brett."

"Why?" Maverick asked, then froze. It felt like someone had just tore a fist full of flesh off his bicep where the band was placed. He screamed out in pain, his body going rigid. The muscles in his neck stood out like steel bands as his scream of agony raised in pitch.

Gitana jumped away as if she had been shocked. Her face a mask of fright as she watched the sudden change take place over her lover. Both Ged and Joe turned and made to advance on the scientist. If he was going to kill their leader, surrogate father, friend and lover, they were damned sure that he would escort the big survivalist on his trip to the other side.

"Stay back my friends. It's an unfortunate side effect of the nanite treatment. The nanites have to go into the very cells of his body and dissect them in order to get at this genetic code. Once they have done that, they automatically hunt down and eliminate any genetic defects, as well correct any mistakes in his code which could lead to cancer, and other defects. The robots have to dissect several hundred thousand cells to determine the correct code, as everyone has some slight genetic damage, even today.

The guards had to step in and physically restrain the three people, which was all but impossible to do with Ged, as her strength far surpassed that of four of the men combined. But she didn't struggle. In fact, to the surprise of the others, she remained calm.

"I believe you Spint." She had to shout over Maverick's screams. Then, as suddenly as the screams started, they abruptly ended.

Maverick mercifully became unconscious. His mind, nor his body could tolerate the pain any longer. He was far tougher than most men and able to withstand near inhuman amounts of pain. If he reacted that way to the nanites, how would the others, handle it?

"You can see my dear, that is the reason I could not give you the treatment. It would hurt far more than you can imagine, and to top it off, it would destroy your fetus."

"I had a feeling." Mumbled the woman. Her hands automatically went to her still flat belly and caressed it, knowing that life is growing inside.

"It will take several minutes for the nanites to do their work, and then over the period of about three days the damaged cells will be hunted down and either repaired or destroyed. The added benefit of the treatment is he, and all of you will be immune to all disease, all viral and bacterial infections for the rest of your lives."

"Why don't you simply give the rest of us the treatment instead of the vaccine then against this Ebola 2 that you are going to let loose?" Asked Joe, his arms crossed. He was leaning against one of the numerous tables in the room.

"I just didn't have the time. At this time you are still vulnerable to disease, and the Ebola 2 strain would kill you before the nanites had a chance to eliminate the virus from your body. So, until I have a chance to administer the treatment to all of you, you'll just have to take the inoculations." Spint answered the barrel chested man. He reached into his pocket and removed a vial. He held it up to the light for everyone to see. "This is the inoculation, as well as the cure for Ebola 2."

His assistant handed him a small gun like device. He placed the vial atop of it, sliding it smoothly into place. "Line up my friends!" Spint called, holding the hypo spray next to his heart.

One at a time the three people walked up to him. First was Gedoena. He placed the barrel of the spray gun against her arm and squeezed the trigger. A slight hiss of air is heard, and the level of fluid in the vial dropped. The exotic woman took it all in stride.

Joe was next. He looked skeptical, but after realizing that Ged accepted the shot without complaint, he figured that it couldn't hurt him. Spint placed the nozzle against his flesh and pulled the injector. "Aggh!" The big man yelped. "Dark night, but that hurt!" He growled, while rubbing his arm vigorously.

"Didn't hurt me." Ged smiled smugly.

Gitana ignored the two. "What will it do to my baby?" She asked, keeping her distance from the scientist.

"It will not harm your child. Quite the opposite. Your child will gain the immunity to the virus." Spint answered, alleviating her fears.

She took the injection. It didn't hurt her at all. She felt the slightly warm tip of the nozzle touch her arm, then a quick jolt of pressure as the spray forced the drug through her arm into her blood stream. "Big baby." She teased Joe.

He frowned. "It hurt!"

Maverick Groaned loudly and opened his slate gray eyes. "Fireblast. Someone get the name of the stupe driving the war wag? I'll chill him myself." He stated groggily, not certain where he was right at that moment.

Gitana was at his side, holding his face in her hands immediately. "Amante, snap out of it. Your triple fucked up right now."

He tried to focus on her. "Hunaker?"

"It's me, Amante."

"What crew you with Amante?" He slurred.

Gitana sighed. She was starting to get a little frustrated. Hearing Joe snicker behind her didn't help matters. She took a deep breath and tried to calm herself. "It's me. Gitana. You are Amante. It means lover in Spanish."

His gray eyes tried to focus, but he wasn't successful. "Why the fuck would my parents name me Amante?" He hesitated for a moment. "Geeze Dix, you look funny. What happened to your fedora and glasses?"

That was too much for Joe. He burst out laughing. The laughter brought funny looks from the soldiers and scientists, but was highly contagious to Ged. She, despite a supreme effort of will, couldn't contain it any longer and burst out laughing.

Ignoring her companions as best she could, Gitana gripped Maverick's face firmly. "You are Brett Maverick. I am Gitana. We are in a redoubt. You have just been injected with a hoard of tiny robots. They fucked your system, and are right now curing you of your cancer."

"Oh. Right. I'm Brett Maverick." He closed his eyes. "I feel awful."

She kissed him lightly on the lips. "You are fine amante."

"Abe? Why did you just kiss me?"

Joe laughed so hard he fell to the floor, tears flowing freely. It was one of the funniest things he had ever seen or heard since he started travelling with the big man.

Spint spoke up. "That is enough!" His voice was laced with anger. Ged and Joe both stopped laughing, as they both heard the insanity behind the words. For the most part Spint was a congenial host. But it seems that is about to change.

"I have had enough of this foolishness. Mr. Maverick will be fine. Just give him a few minutes to gain his bearings."

"Fuck off Trader, I need some sleep. I just pulled a double shift, and you promised to let me rest." Maverick swore, putting as much venom and hate as he could in the words. His pain addled mind still trapped back in his days of travelling with the Trader and the crew of the war wags.

Spint closed the space between himself and Maverick and slammed the hypo spray directly into his neck and injected him with the Ebola 2 inoculation. "I have told you many times Mr. Maverick, I will not tolerate foul language in my presence."

The new source of pain seemed to help clear Mavericks mind slightly. "Spint. What the hell? What'd you do to me?"

"I just saved your life. You should show me far more respect than that my friend." Spint coldly answered, pulling the hypo spray away from the other man and placing it in his jacket pocket.

"Now that this is over, I want you to take them back to their cells until after I have completed the next phase of my operation to take over the redoubt. Once the virus has been released, I want all of them brought back to me, and arm them with their old weapons and clothing. I expect to see them no later than fourteen hundred hours." Spint ordered, his eyes were still shining with the intensity of the insane, and his voice was high pitched, almost on the edge of hysterics.

The guards helped Maverick to his feet and led the small group out of the room and back to holding.

For several long minutes, Spint stood and stared at the door. His mind raced. Why did he fly off the handle like that? He thought. I am usually far more in control of my emotions than that. It has to be due to the fact that I didn't get enough sleep last night, he concluded. Well, I had better gain better control, ask I will be getting very little sleep over the next several days.

He clasped his hands behind his back and sniffed at the air. Unlike in the past he was able to detect several strong odors. Sweat, as well as several more he couldn't identify. He figured it must be due to the air conditioning malfunctioning in the room. He made a mental note to have maintenance look into it when the coup was over.

He left the room and headed down to the cloning laboratory to check in on the fourth member of this group. He has to make sure that she gets her inoculation and see how the experiments are proceeding. Both with the mutant cougar and the back up plan he had instigated on the off chance that Maverick refused to go along with his plans.

The door closed as silently as a tomb behind him as he waited for the elevator to take him down.

* * *

Feral walked the entire way from the cells to the laboratory in silence. She seemed sullen to Chance and the guards.

That could not have been father from the truth. For several minutes the link between her and the mutant cougar told her a great deal. For the first time since they arrived she was in complete contact with the cat. The cougar's terror cut her deeply, but she was able to calm her down, mentally caressing and coaxing the big animal.

The small group arrived at a pair of sliding doors. They opened into another chamber, much like an airlock. Chance didn't bother with anything fancy, just typed in his personal code and walked right on in.

Along the far wall sat a row of eight coffin like machines. Each one was hooked up to the redoubts internal power system, but it was obvious that each had it's own independent power source, in case of a catastrophic power failure. Feral looked at the chambers briefly, something inside having caught her attention, but when she saw her large feline companion, the though of the chambers disappeared from her mind like food before a starving man.

The mutant cougar was sluggishly pacing the tiny metal cage she had been placed in. Despite the counter agents flowing in her veins, it would still take several hours before the cougar would have been back up to full speed.

Feral shoved her way passed a surprised Chance and the guards. She rushed over to the small cage and flung her arms inside, wrapping them around the animal. The big cougar leaned in as close as the bars would allow and purred loudly, licking Feral once on the face.

"I see you two have met." Chance said, staying several feet away from the woman and her cougar.

She glanced over her shoulder, but didn't reply. She caressed her companion's mind, sensing hunger. Despite the intravenous, the cougar had lost a little weight and was famished. And it was very angry at the captivity. She could read the animals desire to main and kill those who treated her. Feral could easily relate.

"Need food." Feral said quietly, rubbing her hand across the back of the tawny animal.

Chance walked over to a table and grabbed a large box that had been placed there. He carefully opened it and inspected the contents. Even from half way across the room Feral could smell it. To her, it didn't smell all that appealing, but she knew that the cougar would devour it without hesitation.

Chance carried the box near the cage. "And how do you know that?" He asked, placing it on the floor before the young woman.

"Can see. Seems leaner. Can hear belly growl." She said in her usual manner. She then pulled away from the cat and reached out for the food.

Matt snatched the food away. "I somehow don't believe you."

The young woman felt a wave of rage swarm over her mind. "Don’t fuckin' care, if you believe or not. Give food, or you food." She hissed, baring her teeth in a dangerous smile. She could actually smell the fear from the other man. Coward. She thought. He wouldn't last an hour in the Deathlands.

Chance did feel fear, but he did his best to fight it down. The cage was designed to hold animals with the strength of an elephant. Despite the mutant nature of the cougar, it couldn't hope to escape on it's own. The mutant woman before him was another story. To him, she has had a serious hate on for him ever since they met.

"I would care if I was you. If you don't answer my questions, I will not give the food to the cougar. Do you agree, or should I drug you again?" He said, picking up the box and stepping back.

The guards, seeing the hostility between the woman and the scientist, held their assault rifles at the ready, but kept the barrels pointed away.

Ferals hands automatically slipped to her sides where she normally carried her knives. Of course, the blades were not there. She growled in frustration. "Give her food!"

Matt Chance ignored the outburst. "A few days ago I discovered some very unusual activity in your mind. Something that we would not normally detect in normal humans." He spoke to Feral as if she was a child, figuring that due to the way she talked, she couldn't understand complex sentences.

Feral Shrugged, allowing her body to relax slightly. She hoped that it would lull the scientist and his guards into a false sense of security. She wanted to sit down and hold her companion, but held back, waiting for a chance to spring. "So? Me not norm. Mutie. Know that already."

He continued, sensing that the woman was still hostile and just waiting for a chance to attack. "Yes, we realized that when you first arrived in the gateway. You and the girl Gedoena are both mutants, but your mutation is no where as obvious as hers." He backed up until his rump was resting against one of the coffin like chambers. "But we're getting off the topic here. What I want to know is why, during several times since your arrival, have the animals started to act very odd."

Cold fear crept up her spine. It took all her considerable willpower to suppress the shudder she felt beginning. She didn't feel the fear when she confided in her new friends her ability to mentally communicate, but in their case it was a matter of survival, and the fact that they are stuck together for the time being. "Not know what you talk about." She managed to say finally, somehow managing to keep her voice steady.

Chance then quoted several different time references, as well as dates. He then described to her the actions of the animals. He then correlated the occurrences with the arrival of the group, when he put her under sedation, and finally the last event when the monkey attacked the worker.

"Odd, how upon your arrival that nothing like that has ever occurred before. I believe that you are responsible for these events. The fact that you posses highly evolved brain activity in a portion of the mind that is typically dormant in normal humans." He concluded.

During his speech, she slid to the floor and slid her arms through the bars, holding her friends head close to her own.

"Well? He asked, holding the box of food in his hands.

"Not me. No understand why happened. One of you norms do it. Don't blame me." She said again, keeping her voice calm. Fucking norms she screamed silently. No wonder I always stayed away from them. Animals were always so much easier to deal with. She wished with all her heart that she had never seen Brett or Gitana together all those weeks ago. She cursed Joe for her being here, in the past, with the group. If it hadn't been for the man being such an enigma to her, she would still be back home where she belonged.

Chance sighed and rolled his eyes. He placed the box on the chamber and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Then explain to me how you could have such a close relationship with your mutant friend."

Oh no you don't she though. "Simple, you stupe. Me found her. She new birthed. Momma die. Me care, raised, love her. So she my friend, like child to me."

He didn't buy that for a second. "Yeah, right. I know that humans can form strong bonds between animals, but cougars are notorious for being very reclusive, and they are certainly not that easy to tame." It was a lie of course, he knew quite well of the bond that could form between an animal and it's human trainer or master. But it was worth a shot.

He could tell from the look on her face that she didn't buy it for a second. He stood up and grabbed the box. He walked over to the woman and kneeled down. "Here, feed your friend."

She was ready to leap at the man but something in his eyes caused her to pause. Her cougar friend was not at all pleased to see the man. She growled deeply and flattened her ears against her sleek skull. The four-foot long tail twitched back and forth. She mentally asked the feline to calm down but keep up the angry act.

Chance handed the box to her and ever so slightly angled his head towards the guards standing at the ready. He knew how sensitive her hearing was so he barely breathed a word. "I can't talk. Something is going to happen later, and I might be able to help you."

Feral took the food and could understand the words. She poured some of the pellets into her hand and slid it into the cage so the cougar could eat. And eat it did.

He backed away, winking slightly. "Ok, we can do this two ways. You can answer my questions now, or later, under the influence of the drugs. Your choice."

"No," She bared her teeth, "You won't. I chill you if try." She scooped out another handful of the kibble and gave it to her friend.

"Just answer the god damned question!" He roared, allowing the anger he was beginning to feel creep into his voice.

"That won't be necessary Dr. Chance." A new voice came from the doorway.

Chance, the guards, as well as Feral all faced the door. A tired looking Spint stood there, his clothing appeared slightly disheveled. He was carrying a small cage in one hand. Feral recoiled in fear. Before the whitecoat simply disgusted her. He smelled in many ways worse than other norms, due to the chemicals he constantly worked with. But this time, when her hyper sensitive olfactory senses picked up his spoor, it triggered a near instinctive fight or flight reaction in the woman.

Something was very out of place with the scientist. She did not understand what could have triggered the change in him, but even at such an early stage, she could detect it. He was changing, and he was becoming predatory.

"What is that Dr.?" Chance asked, moving in front of the woman and her caged friend.

"What?" Spint asked, feigning ignorance. "Oh, this! One of our little experiments." He held up the box and shook it. A squeal of anger tore through the metal walls of the cage. "Here is the end result of several generations of genetic engineering."

Automatically, Feral mentally reached out and touched the mind of the creature inside the cage. She gasped in fright when she made the mental contact, pulling away as quickly as she could. Her mind had been filled with rage and pain, and such desolate hopelessness that she had to sever contact, or she might very well take on the same state as the poor animal.

Spint stood still and surveyed the scene. He lifted his free hand and motioned with it. "Guards, strap her to that table." He then pointed at one of the tables in the chamber.

"Dr. what the hell are you doing? You told me to do this!" Matt yelled, then grabbed Spint by the arm.

Spint struck with the speed of a lighting bolt. In the matter of a split second, he wrenched his arm out of Matt's grasp and in one fluid motion backhanded the other scientist across the mouth, knocking him to the floor.

Spint stood over the fallen scientist. "If you ever, EVER, lay a finger on me again, I will tear your heart out and have it mounted as a personal momentum to your incredible stupidity." He jabbed a finger at the scientist. "Do I make myself clear?"

Chance wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. He ignored the blood that dripped off his split lip onto his white lab coat. "Yeah Dr. I understand."

Spint turned to face the guards. "What are you waiting for?"

The guards closed in on the mutant woman. She jumped to her feet, and tried to feint to the left, and saw that the two guards had fallen for the tactic. She then twisted herself in mid leap, and headed to the right. She never expected that Spint would be there to stop her.

Fingers, like steel bands, wrapped around her throat. She could actually feel her windpipe closed off, grating against her spine. Flashes popped in her vision almost immediately.

"I don't think so my dear." Spint said in a calm voice.

The light in his eye scared her even worse than the hand cutting off the oxygen.

Spint dragged her over to the table, the two guards were following right on his heels. He held her steady, not once letting up the pressure on her neck. The guards grabbed her arms and lifted her onto the table and strapped her securely.

Feral shook from head to toe. She had wanted so desperately to rub her bruised and battered throat, but was unable to. The shaking was not from the slight injury, but due to the fear that she couldn't shake.

Spint walked up to her and placed the cage on the table beside her. With surprising gentleness, he undid her blouse and exposed her belly, but left her breasts covered. "Now my dear, it is quite simple. I'm going to place the cage on your stomach. I'll then proceed to open the bottom. The creature will then burrow it's way into your flesh, consuming as it claws. The pain will be exquisite."

The cougar let out a ear splitting roar, sensing that her human companion was in distress. She slammed herself against the bars of the cage. They held firm, but the guards raised their weapons just in case.

Feral looked over at her friend, pleading for the large cougar to do something. But the cat couldn't. The cage was just too strong for it. The cougar howled again.

He lifted the box and placed it on her bare stomach. She whimpered, feeling the overwhelming anticipation coming from the mutated beast.

"You can easily save yourself, all you have to do is take control of the creature." Spint slowly reached out and took hold of a small lever attached to the bottom of the box. He gave it a slight pull. The bottom of the box began to slide open. Feral screamed as the razor sharp claws of the beast dug nearly a half-inch into the soft flesh of her belly.

"Come on girl, save yourself. Prove to me that I was right." Spint said gently. He pulled the lever another half inch. Feral again screamed, as the beast inside was able to actually touch her flesh with it's mutated mouth. It ran it's raspy tongue over her stomach. The saliva burned like a mild acid.

Feral screamed again, and then reached out with her mind. To her, Touching the twisted mind of the animal was like touching a piece of hell it's self. Never had she ever encountered such vileness. But in order to save her life, she had no choice but to wrench control of the creature. She forced it's consciousness deep down and took over control of it's body. She screamed again, but this time it was matched by the hideous howling of the genegeneered mutant inside the box.

As it transpired, the cougar went into a terrifying frenzy. It slammed into the bars of the cage, causing them to groan in protest, but they held fast. She roared and lashed out at the guards and scientists, even if she couldn't connect.

Spint watched, fascinated. "So, it is true. Just as we suspected, you are a Psi. You can control animals." He pulled the lever all the way, and opened the bottom of the box.

Feral winced as the small creature's form came to rest wholly on her stomach, but didn't reply. She had to use all her concentration to keep the creature under her control. If she slipped up, even for a second, it would mean her very life.

The guards watched silent but fascinated at the same time. Without realizing, their weapons had raised, almost on their own accord. Chance had to look away. He couldn't stand to see Spint treat the woman in the manner he was.

Spint took the box off her and placed it off to the side. Several deep scratches were visible on her stomach, each welling up with hot blood. A disgusting film of slime covered nearly a square foot of flesh from where the creature had touched her. "That is so incredible!" He said in awe. "We've known for years that psi abilities existed, but I personally have never been privy to the data gathered." He wandered back and forth, muttering to himself.

"Ok, Dr. you've made your point. The mutant's possesses psionic abilities." Chance said, clearing his throat to get Spint's attention. "What do you want me to do with her now?"

Spint paused. He placed his hand on his chin and thought for several moments. "Clean her up and take her back to her cell. See to it that you treat those wounds. We know that our little 'pet', " he patted the box almost affectionately, "can be toxic. We don't want our prize to get sick and die on us do we?"

Without waiting, the older whitecoat picked up the box and walked towards the exit. "I want to know the minute the backups become viable. Make sure that at least one extra of this remarkable young woman is ready. We cannot afford to allow anything to happen to her."

Chance grabbed swabs and bandages and proceeded to clean the slime off Feral's flat belly. The wounds caused by the creature were not as severe as they seemed to be at first, and didn't require him to stitch them.

The mutant woman watched as he worked. She felt nothing but a deep rooted sense of loathing towards the man, and silently vowed that she would do everything in her power to chill him, despite the fact that it seemed he was on their side. She has never, not once in her life, been treated like she was by the scientists. Silently she swore to herself that if she ever made it home again, she would never have another thing to do with norms again.

When Matt was finished, he buttoned up her blouse again and started to undo the ties that bound her to the table. He looked into her eyes and stopped, as he was about to release her right arm. Something he saw scared him.

"Guards, better undo her restraints and take her back to the cell." He stepped away and picked phone off the wall. Before he punched the code in he continued to speak. "I'll get some people up here to take care of the cougar. We're going to have to tranq it again.

Feral mentally told the female cougar that she was fine, and that not to worry. Only be a few more days before they would be together again. She desperately wanted to hold her friend again, but the guards wouldn't allow it.

They too had seen the look in her eyes, that murderous glare that spoke louder than words. They made sure that they had a firm grip on her arms and dragged her out of the chamber.

Chance made the call and hung up the phone. He slammed his fist into the metal table, wincing at the pain that shot up his arm. "God damn!" He whispered. Things could have gone so much better if that asshole Spint hadn't have shown up. The way things are going, they are going to have no choice but to terminate the visitors and use the clones that they were growing ever since day two of their arrival.

He walked down the row of coffin like metal chambers. In each chamber rested a clone of each member of the group that had arrived. Since they had suspected early on that Feral might be a psi, they took the liberty of producing two clones of her. That was what Spint was talking about.

The clones would reach full adult maturity in only a matter of fourteen days, but they would emerge from the chambers without memories or any sort of education. They would be in a sense, fully grown babies that would require full time attention and would have to be taught everything.

Spint figured that it would be a small price to pay, only a few years of work and training. He figured that he would be able to mold them in what ever image he wished. Chance knew that if Maverick didn't give in to Spint, the whitecoat would have simply have had him put to death. He was far more interested in the mutant women anyhow.

He popped the hatch covering the chamber holding the clone of Gedoena. Inside he could see the young woman's clone growing nicely. It was biologically the same age as a seven year old child. The way she looked when the scientists of operation cerberus trawled her from the future. Or, at least the way he figured she would look.

Though the clone looked normal and fully functional, he knew that it would not survive outside the chamber for even a matter of a few minutes. It's organs were still forming as well as it's mind. It was wholly dependent on the machine to keep it alive.

He was very tempted to pull the plug on all chambers, killing the clones in a matter of minutes. But that is something he couldn't afford to do until he saw how the upcoming rebellion went. If Spint's plans failed, then he would terminate the clones on the spot. But if Spint somehow managed to succeed in his bid to take over, he wasn't all that sure what he would do in that case.

He waited until the workers arrived to take care of the cougar.

* * *

Montague managed to find the time to slip away from his duties. Time was running short and he knew that he had to get word somehow to General Hammond about Spint's plans. What the fuck. He figured. He boldly walked to the elevator and got inside. He took the elevator to the administration level, knowing that Hammond would be inside his office, going over the morning reports.

He was about to turn down the corridor where Hammond's office was located when he noticed several soldiers approaching him. He knew that one of the soldiers was most definitely a supporter of Spint's. This knowledge made his blood run cold.

What was he supposed to do now? His mind raced through all the options he could come up with. He considered pulling his side arm and attacking the soldiers, but all that would accomplish is either getting himself killed or thrown in the brig without having a chance to explain his actions.

He considered turning tail and running, but where would he go? Despite the redoubts size, there were only so many places he could hide. And he didn’t know who he could trust. He had no idea how many men sided with Spint and his group of nut cases. At best, it would only prolong the inevitable.

A third option came to his mind. He could walk right past the small group. If they ask him what he was doing on the level, he could simply tell them that his CO called him. That might work.

In the end, Montague decided to stick with his third option. He walked past the small group of soldiers, keeping his eyes straight ahead. He nearly passed out from relief when they walked by without blinking an eye. Ah, they don't suspect a thing. He thought mentally.

Then it hit him.

What were they doing in this section?

He paused for just a moment. Then from behind him, he heard one of the guards call his name.

"Hey, Montague."

He turned. "Yeah?"

He had a split second to react, which sadly just wasn't enough time for him. The fist of the soldier slammed into his stomach, knocking the wind out of him. Montague felt the air whoosh out of his lungs. He doubled over, his arms going around his battered midsection. A second fist landed like a hammer on the back of his neck, sending him into the warm embrace of oblivion.

The big guard that struck him shook his fist. "Mother fucker, that bastard's got a hard skull."

The soldier loyal to Spint smiled. If you didn't kill him, he's sure as shit is going to wish that you did. He won't be making any reports to Hammond, not now, not ever."

They picked up Montague's limp form between them and headed down the corridor towards the elevator. As they passed the guard station, the guard on duty merely looked up, then went back to reading his magazine.

They took Montague down to the cellblock.

* * *

Despite Montague's valiant attempt to contact General Hammond, the take over bid didn't go quite as smoothly as Spint had hoped. No matter what safe guards he though of, nothing ever goes quite as planned.

At around eleven thirty in the morning, those people loyal to him began to head to their assigned locations, each one armed with their vial of Ebola 2.

They all made it without any trouble.

At exactly eleven fifty nine, the soldiers loyal to Hammond struck. All over the base small firefights broke out. Nearly fifty percent of the whitecoats and support workers were killed. Of that group, nearly seventy percent set off their vials of Ebola 2 prematurely in the hopes that it would still take effect.

That is where the law of averages came into play. As soon as the first vial broke and released it's contents into air, bio hazard alerts broke out all over the redoubt. The built in safeguards automatically kicked in and began to seal off all the contaminated sections, but it just wasn't enough.

Of course, as soon as the alerts sounded, the others smashed their vials, releasing the virus. That is where the laws of averages came into play. Sections of the base where sealed off in time, trapping the virus, but in other sections the workers had managed to sabotage the safeguards, and enough of the virus made it into not only the air circulation, but many soldiers and workers were infected. The way the virus was transmitted, it only took one man, contaminated by it, to infect dozen of others.

Days before, when the travelers from the future arrived, the seeds of rebellion and the death of the redoubt were planted. It took days to for the seeds to grow, but they finally reached maturation and the final battle for the redoubt had begun.

End of Part 4.

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