X-24: WOLVERINE REBORN
CHAPTER I
The sun shined high in the sky as the clouds began to creep across. In a forest located in North Dakota a man lied on the ground in a black tank top and jeans. He wasn't moving at all as a deer walked passed him as he remained motionless. The deer sniffed at the man lying on the ground licking his face.
BANG!
A gunshot goes off as the deer fell to the ground. Out of the bushes comes a man wearing a hat and a scarf across his face. He still had his gun raised as he approached the man on the ground. He looked around to see if there was anybody around. He noticed there was some man wearing military gear next to the other guy in the tank top. It looks like the man wearing the uniform had put some shot into the other man's shoulder before he died.
He kneeled down to check for a pulse which he found on the tank top wearing man but not the soldier.
"Father?" a young girl came out from behind a tree. "You got the deer?" she looks to see the men lying on the ground. "Are they dead?"
"He is but this one still has a pulse," her father said. "Come, help me with the deer," he tells his daughter.
"Forget the deer, we have to help him."
"He looks military Dani there must be more behind he will be fine."
"What if there isn't? We can't leave him out here to die."
He had a bad feeling about this man. It wasn't long ago he heard gunfire going off when he was hunting some days ago. Luckily his daughter wasn't with him that time.
"You're always talking about doing the right thing. Leaving someone to die doesn't sound like the right thing."
He hated when she threw his words back at him. "Fine, we'll bring the truck around. We can grab him and the deer."
There was a small house in the middle of a grassy plane where the man and his daughter carried the unconscious man into their home setting him on the couch. It was a roomy place that fit well with the rest of the land. It was a log house with an upstairs where Dani's room was. Her father went into the kitchen grabbing a towel and putting it on the stranger's head.
"Wonder how long he was out there?" Dani said looking at the man.
He must be military because he was built like a soldier. He had sideburns coming down his face and a shaved head. He was probably in his late twenties early thirties.
"Let him get rest," her father tells her.
Dani got up to head to her room but as soon as she turned around her hand was grabbed. She looked to see the man was holding her arm.
"Dad?!"
Her father rushed in to see he was awake. The man slowly let the girl go as he looked back and forth between them.
"Hey, you alright," the dad asked.
He didn't respond as he sat up on the couch confused. What is he? Where is he?
"What's your name?" Dani asked.
He didn't respond as he stood up. The father saw how tall this man was now. He was tall and muscular and was hoping he wasn't looking for trouble because there was no way he could take this guy.
"Can you even talk?" Dani asked.
"Dani!" her father warned.
"What? He's walking around like he was literally born yesterday."
"Do you have any idea of who you are?" the father asked.
The tall man turned around looking at them with a lost look in his eyes.
"I'm guessing that's a no."
3 MONTHS LATER
"Dani! I'm back," her father yelled walking into the house with his gun over his shoulder. He set his hunting gear on the table and headed upstairs. He opened the door to his daughter's room where he saw the tall man reading a children's book. Dani was standing behind following along as he read.
"I do no…not…like..gren..
"Green," she said pointing at the word in the book.
"Green," he repeated back.
"He's getting good," the father said watching.
"Thank you Mister Moonstar," the tall man said.
"It really is like raising a kid with him," Moonstar said. "I'm about to start dinner."
"Alright, call us when it's ready," Dani said. "Come on John, we'll keep reading."
They sat down around the table eating the dinner Moonstar had made. They had been helping the stranger ever since they found him. They just call him John since he is pretty much a John Doe. He had to be taught to speak, read, and just proper everyday behavior expected for someone his age. Luckily he seems to learn pretty fast and has some muscle memory of his life before. Which Mister Moonstar was worried about. He found him around dead bodies most being soldiers and other men with augmented bodies. There's no telling what kind of life this man has up till they found him.
"What are you thinking about?" Dani asked her father.
"Nothing Dani," he lied. "How's the food John?"
"Good," he said softly. "Thank you."
"You know I've thinking, "Dani started. "Maybe we should take him out more. He can't be locked up in here forever."
"Well John do you want to go out with us hunting sometime."
"I would like that," he said with a small smile.
It was after dinner and John was sleeping on the couch. While Dani and her father sat out on the porch. Dani was restringing her bow with a quiver of arrows set next to her. She was very good with and she has to thank her father for that. He was very proud of his Native American roots and passed that same pride on to his daughter.
She lifted her bow aiming at a tree and firing it. It nailed the tree perfectly with a hard THUNK sound.
"You should be in bed," Mister Moonstar said stepping out the house in his brown winter coat.
"Can't sleep," she said sitting down.
"What's on your mind?" he asked sitting next to her.
"John…how long do you think he'll be here?"
"Who knows?" he father wasn't sure either. "My hope is to get him on his feet so he can live a decent life. Won't be easy since he's pretty much learning everything from scratch. Maybe in time we can go into town and find him some decent work. He's pretty strong and with you teaching him he'll have a good head on his shoulders."
"I do want to be a teacher," Dani said. "I'll have to go to college soon."
"You're still only fifteen I got some time before you take off," he said putting his arm around his daughter.
"I won't go far dad, I swear. I know you would die of boredom without me."
The next morning the three set out into the woods for a hunt. Mister Moonstar had the rifle propped over his shoulder as Dani who had her bow and John followed behind him. John has been borrowing Dani's father's clothes since he got here. Most were too small so he ended up stretching them out. Right now he was wearing a long sleeve plaque shirt with blue jeans and worker boots. Moonstar lifted his hand stopping them. He kneeled down looking at the ground where he lifted some leaves off the ground.
"Think a deer went this way," he said continuing with Dani following. John however stopped where Moonstar looked lifting up the leaves he just had and smelled them. He couldn't explain it but it was like he knew where to go next.
On instinct he took the lead in front of Dani and her father.
"John? Where are you going?" Dani asked following him.
John didn't pay attention as he kept walking and came to an abrupt stop. He peeked behind a bush and saw a deer by a river. It was drinking from the river unaware from there presents.
"Well look at that," Dani said.
"Maybe you got a bit of a hunter in you John," Moonstar said. "Dani, go to the other side we'll block off his escape route."
"On it," she said taking off quietly.
Dani made her way around to where the deer was and was about to take the shot to signal for her father to fire as well. She pulled back her arrow ready to take the shot when she suddenly heard heavy footsteps behind her. She slowly turned to see a bear behind her. It was growling at her flashing its rows of teeth at her. She knew any wrong move could cause the beast to charge. She tried to stay calm but her breathing was getting heavier. She may be able to get up the tree-
She didn't have time to finish her thought as the bear came charging. She whipped around quickly ready to fire her arrow. Right when the bear leaped at her John came flying at the animal pushing it to the ground. They rolled over each other falling down a hill. John got up meeting the bear in the eyes.
The bear swiped at John landing a blow across his shoulder. He yelled in pain as the bear landed another hit across his chest. He fell on his back looking up as the bear stood on his back legs. John stood up as the pain took over and screaming loader than any animal could emerging from his clenched fist three blades came out covered in blood. He yelled charging the beast with both hands driving his claws into the beast. It didn't go down as it clawed John's back. He took his claws out the bear and plunged them back in as he began to repeatedly stab the bear. The bit down on John's shoulder causing him to scream louder in agony. He pushed the bear off stabbing it in the neck and then sent a slice across his its chest. The bear backed off falling on all fours as John drove his claws down on the bears head straight through its skull.
Dani watched in shock as her eyes were glued to the bloodied claws coming from John's knuckles. She only knew of one man who had claws like that and she read about him in comic books
"Wolverine," she said in awe. The Wolverine has been living with her for 3 months and she never noticed.
John suddenly turned towards Dani with a savage look on his face. His body covered in blood he slowly approached Dani as he didn't recognize her. All he was seeing was red and all he could feel was plain. Moonstar came running from the woods to see John approaching his daughter. He instantly noticed the claws that were coming out his fist.
"John!" Moonstar yelled.
He turned with the same vicious look in his eyes as he charged at Dani's father. She knew she had to act as she pulled back her bow firing it right into John's leg. He fell to one knee as he growled in pain looking up at Moonstar who had his gun aimed firing it into John's shoulder.
John was on the ground in pain as he slowly passed out from the blood lost.
"Jesus Christ we had the Wolverine in are home this whole time," Moonstar said running up to his daughter.
"Dad?" Dani said still shaken by what just happened.
"Yeah."
"If he's the Wolverine…why isn't he healing?"