Phoenix stood in a copse of trees, staring back at Alkali Lake. If her mind hadn't been clouded by adrenaline, she may have fallen to the dirt floor in shock of what she just encountered. With the breath huffing into steam clouds around her head, she turned and disappeared into the night...

He unleashed his claws and charged toward her with an enraged shout, swiping the air as she propelled herself backward. That seemed to make him angrier, and he watched her like a predator does his prey. This was someone feral, who lived like an animal, and therefore deadly. Clearly Stryker hadn't let Jean's escape hinder his "progress" in experimentation. He blocked her escape with his broad shoulders and wide stance, looking out from under his brows as he streamed sweat. She could take him, she just had to be smart about it, and from the looks of him it better be genius level.

Pulling herself up, she lowered her chin and gave him a level stare in a defiant gesture, walking calmly toward him. This seemed to catch him off guard, and he glanced around for some sort of trap he missed. Lifting her hand, she shoved him with all the force she could muster into the wall, his body crumpling like a puppet with cut strings. She ran from the room, making her way steadily to the exit. She had the
information, now all she needed was to get the hell out and back to the car.

Too busy to bother gathering all of the information on the Mutant she slammed against solid concrete was her first mistake. The second, was not closing the damned door behind her. She nearly shrieked when he spun her around, looking in perfect health as he forced her back against the wall, ripping the mask from her head.

Something like curiosity changed his features, but he still held her against the wall by the throat.
"What are you," he struggled to ask.
"Same as you," she gasped, looking deep into his eyes.

He leaned in and sniffed, liking the smell of her. Interested by the turn of events, he took his hand from her slender throat and trailed his nose along her neck, intent on marking her his territory. She quieted a whimper by pressing her lips hard together, afraid that his intention to kill had become something equally violent, should she show any submission to his inspection of her. She kneed him in the groin, making him double over to buy her time. Only a dozen steps into her escape, he had recovered and caught up, that sharp sound of his claws extending caused a sensation that she had never felt before, utter terror. Tears came to her eyes as the cold air hit them, all the while she focused on moving fast and in the straightest line she could manage. If she tried to lose him by weaving through the trees, she'd surely die. In this place, he had all the adavantage, and she was the inept intruder, no matter the topographical maps she had memorized. Charles hadn't counted on a Mutant like that, or else he would have told her ahead of time.

Wouldn't he?

Sensing him break from the chase, she kept on, constructing a shield around her as she loped along in the dark. He stepped out from behind a tree, the scant moonlight making him seem like a monster from her nightmares, and she was unsure if it was by luck or inbred skill, she slipped on a pile of dead foliage and slid right between his widely-stanced legs. Turning in confusion, they stared at each other a long moment. The redhead stood slowly, the wildman's nostrils open and smelling her. She backed away, feeling for the trees behind her. Twenty feet apart now, she knew this was it, and she ran. Chancing a look over her shoulder, he remained where he was, a dark shadow among the trees.