AN: Oh look, some length. Lol. This turned out a little more graphic in the violence department (not my most graphic, though xD ) cuz I needed an emotional outlet. My grandfather passed away today and I found out just before I continued working on this, so yeah. That's why it changed. Thanks to my reviews and readers.

Henry could understand Tesla being with him in the lab while he was working, but right now, he had no idea why the guy had to tag along! A low growl rumbled in the back of his throat as he glared at the former vampire. He didn't understand why Tesla had such an interest in Ariel. It wasn't like she could turn him back into a vampire or help him achieve world domination. Okay, that wasn't entirely true. Since she had majored in Cell Biology and Genetics, she could help him get his vampirism back, which would result in a better chance of world domination.

But that didn't change the fact Henry was not pleased with Tesla acting as his vengeance partner. So Henry ignored him while they walked around the side of the warehouse district closest to the Sanctuary trying to pick up Ariel's scent.

"Well?"

"I'm looking. Y'know, I didn't ask you to come with. If you're bored, you can leave."

"No need to get snippy, Tiny Tim. And I'm not leaving. Not until we find them."

Henry stopped and glared at him. Tesla had taken a few steps before he realized Henry had stopped and he turned to look at him, hand on his waist. He raised a questioning brow, and Henry held back another growl.

"What do you want, Tesla? Why are you doing this?"

Tesla examined the nails of his free hand before answering. "I want to kill them. The princess has this ridiculous and unrealistic sense of honor and morality, and I want to protect her. Besides . . . if these men are members of the Cabal that Druitt and I missed . . . ."

"Oh, so you're doing this to save your ego."

"No, I'm not," Tesla snapped angrily. "I'm doing this for Ariel. I want to keep her safe and remove any threats to her safety."

"Why?"

Tesla opened his mouth to reply, but when he had nothing, he shut it again and looked away. "I don't know," he said quietly. "She's caused this . . . chivalric nature in me, and I don't understand any of it. Ariel came to us as a damsel in distress and it's triggered all of this protectiveness."

Henry watched him for a moment before nodding and continuing the search. It took another five minutes, but he found her scent of ice and apples, and he followed, Tesla only a few steps behind. They walked through the district, senses sharp.

Another ten minutes passed when they heard a pair of men talking.

"Think the boss is gonna want another cryo?"

"Prob'ly. He had high hopes for that one. Do y'know what went wrong?"

"Shit no. But I did hear the boss say something about wrong drug ratios."

"Too bad we dunno what that doc did for that Ashley chick."

One of them laughed. "Yeah! Then we'd have our own army of brainwashed freaks!"

Henry glanced at Tesla as the other man joined in with his own laughter. A moment later, they heard a door open and close and they poked their heads around the corner. The walkway between the two warehouses was empty and Henry pushed Tesla towards the door. When the former vampire gave him a questioning look, Henry just rolled his eyes."

"Look, Magneto, unless you wanna watch me strip, go . . . over there and make sure no one is around the other side."

Tesla didn't move for a moment and Henry suddenly got real worried the guy might actually want to see him strip, but when he said, "Stop calling me that," the werewolf mentally sighed. He waited until Tesla was on his way to make sure no one was going to ambush them from behind before he slipped off his clothes and shifted. Henry moved to the door and waited for his partner to return.

"No one. Can we do this now?"

Henry nodded, and Tesla used his relatively new ability to blast the metal door down. He sauntered in, briefly regretting his inability to turn into a vampire for maximum carnage, and the huge wolf man followed, a low rumbling growl emanating from his muzzle.

"Good day," Tesla said with a smile. "It's my understanding you gents had the opportunity to spend some time with a lovely woman this morning." He looked around, counting. Only eight men. This was going to be easy. "Beautiful blond hair, gorgeous brown eyes . . . had this lovely ability to control ice. Ringing any bells?" The men simply stared at them. Tesla gave a weary sigh. "Honestly, have all the villains turned to crap? What is with all of you? Idiots, every single one of you. It must be so difficult to find good minions nowadays." He paused a moment more. "Are you just going to stand there? I have a princess to return to." Again, he paused, and again he sighed deeply. Then, he flicked his hand and an IV stand impaled one of the men, killing him in a spray of blood. "Finally, some action," he said happily when the others came to their senses and pulled their guns.

Henry charged forward, grabbed one of them and ripped. The sounds of bone snapping, ligaments tearing, and the squish of organs as they fell to the floor acted as a catalyst for him. Henry wanted to kill faster, tear into them, and make them pay. The coppery scent of blood filled the room as ripped apart two more. The sounds of screams and gunshots filled the air, and he simply registered the sickening sound of a body crunching as Tesla pinned the man under a metal table. Henry took his time with the last one. He stalked him, forcing him towards the back wall. The man pointed his gun, hands shaking and swallowed convulsively, before pulling the trigger. He gave a chocked scream when no bullet left the barrel. His back hit the wall and he eyes, filled with fear flicked to the side, no doubt looking for an escape. Henry took in a deep breath, taking in the scent of blood, fear, and pure adrenaline. His lips pulled back from his teeth as he dug his claws into the man's stomach, ripping him open.

Tesla came to his side, wiping his hands on his handkerchief. "Wow. I didn't think you could do it."

Henry simply looked at him and turned to leave.

xxx

When the pair returned to the Sanctuary, Henry had gone to wash off the blood while Tesla went to find Magnus. He had gone to her office first, and was lucky enough to find her there. She looked up at him when he entered.

"They were Cabal," he said without preamble.

"What?"

"The men who hurt Ariel. They were Cabal."

"I thought you and John destroyed them."

"We got the majority. From what we heard, they were trying to make more super abnormals, but they didn't fully understand what needed to be done. I don't think the leader was there. Perhaps your protégé can help Ariel remember who he was so we can find him."

Magnus was silent for a moment. "You're taking this rather personally."

"Yes, I know. The pup has already brought it up." Tesla really didn't want to go through that again, and especially with Helen, so he turned and left. He walked down the hall to the room Ariel was staying in and knocked lightly on the closed door. A moment later, the door opened and Ariel looked up at him, slightly surprised.

"Nik. Hi."

Tesla grinned at the new nickname. "Hello, Ariel. I simply wanted to let you know I . . . took care of those bastards who hurt you."

"Oh." She looked away. "Um, thank you?"

He placed his hand under her chin and lifted her face, running his thumb along her bottom lip lightly. "It was my pleasure." His hand dropped and bowed slightly before walking away.

AN: Woah. Nik just kinda took over there. Probably cuz I wouldn't let him in on the last chapter. Lol. Okay, this is the last chapter, but there will be an epilogue to give a reason why Ariel stays.