Alrighty, finally, I;m going to start publishing this one. This is the sequel to Fractured: A Maximum Ride Parody, an the title is a WIp because i suck at them. Im currently writing part four of this one, so i should put a few more up in the next few days, but beware updates might slow down due to:

1) job, 2) writers block, 3) getting distracted by the other two things im writing.

This is an apology in advance. I hope you like. =)

They'd started moving the following morning, as soon as the sun rose between the trees. They didn't want to risk being found again so soon after getting away. Fang insisted on carrying Max for the first half of the day, despite still being shattered. He'd barely slept a wink, sleeping lightly meant every single small rustle of leaves or animal noise woke him up.

That was a damn busy forest… Fang thought to himself, swallowing a yawn as he readjusted Max in his arms. Looking down, he noted she was fast asleep again. She had been sleeping a lot lately. A lot more than normal. He guessed it made sense with all the injuries and things she'd obtained in the last few days, but it worried him still. He had no idea what the symptoms of their genetics falling apart would be, it could easily start with sleeping and voices in your head.

He didn't want to lose her.

Holding her a little tighter he rode an air current, enjoying the breeze on his face as it helped keep him awake. They were flying towards Washington DC, another huge place. They were flying towards Fang's parents. That idea itself had him on edge.

He hadn't ever really considered that he might have parents in the world. Right from the start, he assumed he was either a test tube baby or his parents were young and stupid. Probably drug addicts. They gave him up for money or something.

Now, he'd seen a picture. They looked sensible. Happy. Not like drug addicts at all. He swallowed hard, looking down when Max gripped some of his shirt, her eyes scrunched up as she had a nightmare. He wasn't sure how he would react to parents, let alone how they would react to him.

Or the idea of taking Max in as well.

Sighing, he looked back up at the expanse of sky before them. It was going to be at least six hours before they got to DC, he predicted, including a refreshment break. In a few hours, he'd drop down and wake her up. She'd probably kill him for carrying her all this way, as she protested to being carried at all, but he didn't mind. She needed the rest.

On top of all the parents and Max's injuries, something else was bugging him. He hadn't meant to, but he'd become a murderer. Ari wasn't exactly a cute little kid anymore, and he'd done enough to deserve some kind of sticky end, but Fang hadn't wanted to be the one to deliver it. The cold emptiness in his eyes still floated through his mind and, for the millionth time, he had to shake it away.

He still couldn't place why all of is anger exploded onto Ari when he was already dead. It didn't make him feel any better, just shaky from anger and adrenaline, and probably scared the hell out of an already majorly freaked out Max. He wished, deep inside, that he was still alive.

Just so he could kick his butt to next Thursday for hurting Max.

A few hours of flight later, he dropped down into the almost abandoned car park of an I-Hop and readjusted Max in his arms. She was still sound asleep, her grip now loosely on his sleeve as she slept peacefully against his chest. Fang smiled, wiping a small strand of hair out of her face.

She scrunched her nose up slightly before blinking sleepily, tilting her head up to look at Fang. She mimicked his smile, letting go of his shirt and curling her arm against him.

"Nice sleep?" he asked gently, lightly kissing her head.

"Mm…" Max yawned, covering her mouth with both hands quickly. Fang chuckled, dropping her legs so she could get to her feet.

"How about some dinner?" he asked, motioning to the I-Hop a few steps away from them. "Then we'll get going again." Max shook her head, receiving a raised eyebrow from Fang.

"Dinner yes," she replied, taking his hand and walking him towards the doors. "Then we find somewhere you can get some sleep before we fly through the night."

"I'm fine," Fang replied, giving her hand a small squeeze. It was then he nearly walked to the I-Hop's closed doors. He blinked as Max pulled him backwards, and looked at her. She was biting her lip, a smirk plastered across her face. He sighed.

"Alright, I'll get some sleep before we go, ok?" Max nodded, pulling the door open for him to step inside, trying desperately to suppress her giggles as she followed him in.

*~*~*~*

Max sat in the near darkness, the flicking of the fire Fang had started the only thing illuminating her face. Looking to the side, she could see Fang sleeping on his side, an arm under his head as a pillow. His chest rose and fell slowly, rhythmically. Max smiled slightly before looking back towards the fire.

So much had happened in the last day. They'd found out that Fang might even have parents around. It scared Max. Completely and utterly. He was the last remainder of her flock, her boyfriend, for crying out loud.

She didn't want to lose him. She couldn't lose him.

You cant stop it if that's what he wants, Max.

Maybe not, but I don't necessarily have to leave without him… Max thought back, playing with a twig. I could stay…with his family…

What if they cant keep you, Max? Or they don't want you?

Fang wouldn't choose them over me, she retorted, glaring angrily a the fire in front of her. He wouldn't leave me…

Think about it, Maximum. Be prepared, anything could happen.

She didn't even bother thinking a response. She didn't want to think about that. It was the on think niggling at her conscious more than anything in the world. She couldn't go on without him. If he left her for his parents, she had no idea what she would do.

Max shook the thoughts away, focusing on the other issue. Ari.

She was distracted from her thoughts by a very soft whimper. Turning her head, she saw Fang shaking slightly in his sleep, his fists clenching and unclenching around a couple of lumps of grass. The Voice had said Ari was her brother. That Fang had killed her only brother. He said he hadn't meant to, and Max couldn't deny he deserved it, but some stupid minuscule part of her didn't believe him.

The idea Fang would kill someone made her shudder. Yes, he was strong. Like a friggen' brick wall. But he'd never intentionally end someone's life, would he? She still felt a small amount of sorrow for the poor boy, who just wanted to please the father too wrapped up in something else.

Her flock. A pang of guilt hit her stomach as Fang jerked once more before waking. He was sat upright and doing a three-sixty in seconds, his eyes finally falling on Max's own.

"How long was I out?" he asked, looking around at the darkness. It had still been light when he fell asleep, now it pitch black minus the fire Max had managed to keep going.

"Barely two hours," she replied, keeping his eye contact. "You better get some more sleep." His response was a head shake before shuffling closer to the fire.

"I'm fine," he said, looking back to her eyes from gazing at the flames. "Lets put this fire out and get moving. We'll be in DC soon after dawn at this rate." Max smiled softly, getting a small smile back.

She'd make sure he got lots of sleep before they found his parents. He was beginning to look like a zombie. Max got to her feet and started kicking dirt on the measly excuse for a fire. It went out in a couple of seconds, suffocated by the dirt. Then the pair spread their wings leapt into the night air.

*~*~*~*

Max closed her eyes as she rode an air current, enjoying the calmness that came with flying so high in the air. No people, no erasers. Nothing up here was an immediate threat to her or Fang. Just them and the vast expanse of sky greeting their wings.

It was heaven.

She took a glance at Fang. He was flying next to her, his long, dark wing overlapping hers as he matched her stroke for stroke. It felt good to feel his wing brush against hers every now again, comforting.

Letting her eyes wander to his face, she noticed the dark lines forming under his eyes. He was seriously behind on his sleep, and the overnight haul seemed to be taking its toll. Not that he'd admit it, he'd pretend he was fine until he fell out of the sky from exhaustion.

He could be an idiot sometimes. But he was her squishy, iron-willed idiot.

"How close are we?" she asked curiously, noting the sun was beginning to make an appearance again. He turned his head towards the sun, then looked straight forwards, his jaw fixed in concentration when he realised he'd undershot their flight time.

"Maybe an hour," he said, turning his attention back to Max. She looked well and rested, minus the cuts and bruises on her beautiful face already beginning to heal. She was looking out towards the city they were heading into, making an estimate of the time herself, her powerful wings gently brushing against his on the upstroke.

"Possibly and hour and a half," she added to the end of his statement. "We probably need the far side of the city or something…"

"Dunno, haven't figured out where we should be looking yet." Fang mused aloud. The papers in his back pocket were the ones that led them to DC in the first place. But it had no home address, even a street name. Just DC, followed by a sequence of numbers, probably encrypted coding. "We can give that another crack over breakfast…"

"…I hear something…" Max whispered, glancing at him sideways. He raised an eyebrow, now listening intently to the quiet morning.

Swooosh

"I hear it too," he murmured, adrenaline already leaking into his veins. "Sounds like…a flock of birds..? Behind us, maybe…"

Max looked over her shoulder and instantly wished she hadn't. On the horizon, getting closer and closer, was a dark mass of what looked like enormous birds, their wings making a large swoosh as they work in unison as best they could. Max turned on the spot and zoned in with her raptor vision, flapping her wings just enough to keep her airborne.

Large, gangly, awkward birds. With wolf faces.

Crap.

"Flying erasers, Fang!" she shouted as she started beating her wings faster to catch up with him. "About twenty, at least. Gaining on us fast."

"Then running…well, flying…is pointless," he mused, his dark eyes reflecting what he was thinking.

"Hope you're up for it," she muttered to herself. Fang furrowed his brows at her, confirming she had indeed said that loud enough for him to hear. That's why she didn't want him to be knackered. He may be able to fly, but could he still fight?

She didn't have time to consider anything before the new erasers were upon then, scratching and slashing at the couple from every angle imaginable. They were coming in waves, five at a time at least. by the time the first five were beginning to fall, the next wave had made it too them.

All too soon they were severely outnumbered by the winged demons, ranging from erasers ready to fall into the water below and fresh ones still full of fire. Max was holding her own, just dodging cuffs and slashes as she kicked an eraser in the chest. Its repulsive air left its chest in a whoosh before it fell. She was too wrapped up in a spat with five other erasers to hear the satisfying splash as it hit the water.

Fang.

Max shot up, letting the five erasers collide and shriek as claws meant for her met eraser flesh. Above her, Fang was wrapped up in a fight with three erasers, but he wasn't as fast as he should be. Where he should have been nimbly dodging kicks and punches, he was taking over half of them at full throttle. He was breathing heavily, holding his arm as another eraser joined the fight, taking a slash at him unrepentantly, catching his side.

Fang flinched, pressing his arm tight against the graze as he fell a few feet, out of the eraser hoard. Flapping awkwardly, he gave Max a silent stare. Just for a second. She saw the pain in his eyes, hidden behind his silent front.

"Ashneh," she shouted, telling him to get lost in their secret language way back from the school. Reluctantly, he nodded a yes and made a hasty retreat as Max soared up to whack the newcomer under the chin. It dodged, catching her wrist and pulling her tight to him, almost nose to nose.

"Hello, Max." Oh God. She recognised him straight away. So much for being flippin' dead.

"Get lost Ari!" She shouted, kicking him with both feet right in the chest. He looked winded, enough to let go of her wrist. Max shot upwards, away from the other erasers trying to box her in and did a quick downturn. Grabbing Ari's wings on the way down the eraser yelped in surprise, not having time to react as she dragged him at full speed to the water below.

With all the force she could muster, she launched him towards the ocean, her shoes just catching he waters surface as she angled back up again. She rose up to meet what remained of the erasers, claws poised and teeth baring.

"Who wants to be next?" she growled, ready to soar forwards at any second. Glancing down, she saw a winded and soaking Ari manage to get out of the water and start flying away, droplets flying off his wings as he flapped awkwardly away from the fight. Max looked back up. The other erasers were looking edgy.

Max cracked her knuckles before getting into a battle pose, waiting for one of them to make the first move. No body changed position for a good few minutes, until one eraser made a move to withdraw. The others didn't need to be told twice, flapping awkwardly after him. Max smiled to herself. It was awesome to feel powerful.

Suddenly, she remembered Fang. His flying had been off when he left. Suddenly, panic set in as she searched the sky for his familiar figure. Then she saw him, off into the distance, nearing the beach. His flaps were still uneven and rapid, his body at a slightly funny angle. Max poured on the speed, flapping as fast as she could to catch up with him.

"Fang!" She yelled when she got close enough for him to hear. He didn't look round as she got closer, she noted he was very slowly loosing altitude, his flaps become more irregular and ragged. She flew over him, wrapping her arms around his middle.

"Close your wings, Fang." She instructed. He squirmed in her arms, trying to get away.

"S'fine…you cant carry me…" It certainly was not fine. His voice was strained, slurred. Max shifted her arm down a little further, swallowing bile as she felt her arm press against warm liquid. Her other arm wrapped itself around his shoulders.

"Wings in now, Fang." She instructed, her motherly voice coming out as panic set into her brain. "I can keep us in a slow descent. We'll hit the beach." When he didn't pull his wings in, Max was about to go off on one at him.

Then, they went limp instead.

Suddenly, Fang became a dead weight in her arms. Max flapped rapidly to keep them from picking up too much speed. The beach was already coming up to meet then at a fast pace. At the last second, Max pulled her wings in an twisted him around, aiming her back at the sand. She suppressed a yelp as her back collided with the sand. Grains dispersed everywhere from the impact, leaving a small dip where she and Fang now lay.

Pushing him off of her, Max crawled onto her hands and knees, pressing two fingers against his neck to check for a heart beat. It was slower than it should be, thready. Max's attention quickly jumped to is side, the blood spewing out of him turning the sand a deep red. Yanking up his shirt, Max swallowed bile. Ari had left three deep gashed not just in his jumper and shirt, but in his side. Gaping wounds spewing blood met her and she sat here, her eyes wide, staring.

Stop the bleed. The Voice pulled her back into consciousness. Fang was still pouring blood, the stain in the sand getting ever darker and wider. Pulling off her own jacket, she pushed it hard against the wounds, tears pricking the corners of her eyes as she watched the material begin staining red.

"You cant die, Fang!" She half shouted, half whispered, shaking in desperation as more of her jacket turned a sickly red colour. He tried to gurgle something, tried to move, but Max held him firmly still as she pressed on the wounds. The blood wasn't stopping. Max was on the verge of being hysterical, not noticing the jogger staring at her in shock.

When she did, he was already calling an ambulance.

Max was torn. Hospitals were too much like the school. Syringes and bleach and tests. Places people went into and never came out of. Every part of her wanted to grab Fang and run, hide from the approaching sirens. But looking at her sodden jacket, she knew it was hopeless. Without outside help, he was going to die. She looked back at him. He was no longer tyrying to move.

An ambulance driver pushed her away, another one checking his pulse as the first pressed down on the wounds on his side. Max was livid, the fear turning her into a shell of fear and despair. There was no going back. She'd have to face her fears and get into the ambulance, and trust these people knew what they were doing.

Fang's life depended on it.