Chapter 13

Marco saw the brilliant flash of light, just as it hit Max squarely in the chest, sending him sprawling roughly to the ground. Marco instantly recognized it as coming from a Disruptor--the weapon used by the skins to incapacitate hybrid powers. And unfortunately he knew firsthand that it hurt like hell in the process. It also meant that Max would be completely powerless against the skins if he couldn’t cover him very quickly.

Marco rushed forward, around the rocks, and in one fluid motion stepped between Liz and the attacker. He had to cover her before the skins fired the weapon on her, too. he extended his hand, throwing up his shield to protect her—but couldn’t position himself quickly enough to cover Max, who had been standing a small distance away before he fell.

The shimmering purple barrier of Marco’s energy formed a wall between Liz and the advancing skins. He glanced down at her quickly, and saw that Maria DeLuca was huddled beside her, mouth open in shocked disbelief.

"What’s going on?" Maria cried. "Who are you?"

Liz was doubled over on the ground, her face buried in the sandy earth. Her hands clutched her chest, and she moaned softly in pain. Had the skins already used their weapon on her? He’d only seen them fire once, and it had hit Max—but Liz seemed to be in excruciating pain.

"I’m here to help you," Marco said, trying to sound calm. "We’re all under attack."

He turned forward again, gathering his energy, concentrating to make the strongest perimeter of protection that he could. He saw Max lying motionless on the ground just beyond them. If he moved quickly, he could risk letting the barrier down long enough to step in front of Max, as well. But before he could make a move, Nicholas and the two skins materialized out of the darkness. Nicholas’s eyes met his own, and he raised an eyebrow in sardonic surprise.

"Marco, this is a surprise," he said.

Marco nodded slightly. "I’m happy to disappoint you."

Nicholas planted a foot roughly in Max’s side. "Though I am confused about the sudden shift in loyalties."

Marco looked down at where Liz lay on the ground, and saw Maria staring up at him, fear and confusion in her eyes. "What’s going on?" She demanded. "What’s wrong with Liz?"

Slowly Marco knelt down beside them both, never breaking his concentration on what lay ahead, keeping the protective shield in place. He examined Liz quickly, running his hand over her back where she lay doubled over on the ground.

And in one sickening moment he knew what was wrong with her... their connection. Liz and Max had been connected—were still bound together even now-- which meant that she had felt the blast just as if she’d taken the hit directly herself. And she was continuing to feel everything happening in Max’s body right now—the pain, the immobilization. All of it.

"Liz," he whispered hoarsely. He glanced up, seeing that Nicholas was shaking Max, trying to rouse him. Max was slowly coming back to consciousness. Liz had to break that connection now, or it could mean both their lives.

"Maria, you’ve got to help me," he whispered urgently. Her eyes flew to his in surprise, but there was no time to explain how he knew her name. "I can’t drop my hands or we’ll lose this barrier."

"What do I do?" She asked, suddenly seeming very determined and brave. He’d always admired that in Maria—her ability to rise to a situation and be strong.

"Max and Liz are connected right now," he said. "Do you understand what I mean?"

"Yes, I think so...."

Marco saw Nicholas pull Max roughly to his feet, but he was still so weak that he stumbled and fell to his knees. Marco turned back to Maria, staring at her intently. "You’ve got to get through to her... help her break the link."

"Okay." Maria nodded. "How do I do that?"

Marco hesitated a moment, as Max looked up at him weakly, and their eyes met, allowing Marco his first good look at this man he’d called enemy for many years now. What he saw was so unexpected, it caused him to shudder. This was no battled-hardened soldier, not the Max he’d come to serve in 2006, when their world had already been torn apart by constant warfare. At that time, Max had seemed so much older than a mere twenty-three years old-- somehow he’d expected this Max to look the same way. Instead, a much younger and more innocent man—a boy, really-- knelt just beyond his shield. He’d been totally unprepared for this--and now Marco felt something lurch within his heart. God, what had he done to all of them? They were just kids.

"How do I do that?" Maria repeated impatiently, pulling him back to the moment.
She rested her hand gently on Liz’s back, repeating her name.

"Liz?" she said softly. "Liz, babe...." Liz let out a soft cry of pain, but otherwise remained completely catatonic, her face buried into the dark earth.

"You’ve got to try to get through to her." Marco stared down at her a moment, but had no idea how they should proceed. "I don’t know how.... Any way you can, Maria."

All she could feel was the pain. Max’s... her own... it was all joining in some horrible dance between them. But far worse than the physical sensation was the awareness of how much Max was suffering—the thing they’d shot him with wasn’t any ordinary weapon. It had been unbelievable what she’d felt in her own body—like a massive electric shock-- and she knew she’d only absorbed a fraction of what he’d experienced. She’d felt something close to an explosion within her chest, and watched as Max fell silently to the ground. And every sensation he was feeling ricocheted through their bond. She’d heard him cry out her name... heard it in her heart, her mind. And then he’d just blacked out.

But the pain hadn’t stopped—it had intensified. She knew she should make the break, but she couldn’t leave him, not like that. Not when he needed her so much. And now he was hazily becoming conscious again, as she felt the connection become more vibrant.... Now something was happening to him. But she couldn’t seem to look up, the pain was so immobilizing. Or maybe it wasn’t just the pain that had incapacitated her? Maybe it was something more. It almost felt like a numbness was spreading through her body, her extremities. Then she heard his voice, terribly faint and distant.

"Liz, you have to break this," he said.

"Hmm...." Everything just felt hazy and unclear... and the pain was so intense.

Max’s voice, just beyond a circle of light. "Liz! Listen to me."

She felt him... he was trying to shove her out. "No. I will not leave you, Max. I will not...."

"Liz... look up. Look at me!" She tried, God she tried... what was wrong with her? Why couldn’t she get her body to respond?

"Break it now, Liz," he commanded forcefully.

"Why?" she asked softly.

"Because I can’t. They’ve done something to me and I can’t, Liz, and... I don’t want you to suffer...."

Somehow she found the strength to lift her head from the ground, and saw Max on his knees. Nicholas was standing in front of him, saying something she couldn’t hear. He was placing his hands on the sides of Max’s head.

"Liz," he pleaded. "If you love me... let go..." And his voice just faded, replaced by another familiar one.

"...Liz, you’ve got to let go," Maria’s voice rose to her from the fog. "Baby, you’ve got to. Max needs you to do it."

How long had Maria been coaxing her like that? It seemed she’d been dully aware of her voice for a while. She felt Maria’s hand on her back, stroking, rubbing... and she felt Max slip out of her grasp. The connection went stone cold between them... like a dead phone line, just left dangling there.

She gasped in horror when she lost him, and slowly raised herself from where she lay in the dirt. Her eyes searched out Max’s where he knelt in front of her, just beyond the glowing purple shield. But his head was down. She looked up to see Marco, his hand outstretched, and knew he was protecting them with his shield just like she’d seen Max do in Copper Summit. Her eyes returned to Max, and she saw that Nicholas’s hands were on both sides of his head. He was doing something terrible to Max... that mind thing. But somehow she knew this was something worse.

Liz nodded, and rose shakily to stand next to Marco. She looked up at him and asked quietly. "What are they doing to him, Marco?"

Marco hesitated a long moment, as if he was struggling for the right words. He seemed unable—or unwilling--to look at her. His response told her exactly what they were doing to him. Slowly, torturously... they were killing him.