Chapter 2: MadMax (I don't want to call her Max, 'cause of Maximum, so...)

The box was labeled "Lab," so what?
"This isn't the only box," El said, "there are two more."
The tall girl, evidently the leader of the strange group, started to feel around the room below.
"I've gone through the other two," El muttered.
"So how was this one so close to the top and you haven't looked through it?" a small blonde boy asked.
"I reorganized them."
"That's not much of an explanation," the blonde boy said, but shut up when the older girl gave him a look.
"So, do you guys know El or are we going to share names?" Max snipped.
The older girl shared a look with the dark boy standing next to her.
"I'm Max," the tall girl said, "the dark one's Fang."
"Iggy," the taller, lighter boy.
"Gasman, Gazzy for short," the younger blonde boy.
"Nudge," the girl with dark skin.
"Angel," the girl with blonde hair, she looked similar to Gazzy.
"I'm Max," Max muttered, the other Max, the one with wings, looked at her strangely, "that's Eleven. El for short."

"If you don't mind me asking, how'd you get the wings?" Max asked, tugging at the loops on her jean shorts.
"Whitecoats," Angel said.
"Scientists," Max said at the same time.
El looked startled, "Where?"
"Death Valley, California," Fang muttered.
"Sounds like a really fun place," Max muttered and the other Max nodded.

Gazzy walked over to the box and flipped the top open, "There's just a bunch of papers and files."

Nudge gasped and picked up a file. On top of it was written, Monique. The other Max put her hand on Nudge's shoulder. Nudge flipped the file folder open and there was a picture. It was a younger Nudge. Another photo slipped out of the folder and landed on the ground.