THE SAD MAN
CHAPTER TEN
Wolverine merely stood as he watched the X-jet launch from the underground hangar and scream off into the mid-day sky. He didn't like the situation. Charles wouldn't go into details, but all he said was that it had something to do with Wolverine's son Logan. He hated it when Charles held back details, and hated how secretive he was trying to act. He also didn't like the fact that the only two people he was taking with him for this trip was Ororo and McCoy. He owed a lot to the Professor and always felt like everything he did wasn't enough to repay the kindness the man had shown him. Those feelings of inadequacy only increased when he would think back to their recent dealings with Apocalypse. Charles had become enslaved to that thing and had been forced to attack the students he was trying to hard to help. Thank God they were able to step up and take that bastard down.
Logan moved from his perch beside the window and began making his way down the hall. He was debating on if he should head down to the Danger Room fro one of his personalized programs to burn off some of the frustration he was feeling. As he was walking, he could hear several noises coming from the gym. Several grunts as well as what sounded like something being hit repeatedly. Curiosity got the better of the old mutant as he made his way to the gym's door and opened it. Inside was Rogue wearing a pair of dark green sweat pants, a blank tank top, and a loose dark purple shirt over it. She had a par of boxing gloves covering her hands as she took several jabs at a punching bag that was hanging from the ceiling as well as a few kicks. If the bag had been a person, the kicks would have struck in either the gut or in the chest area. He could see the look of frustration and anger as she kept striking the bag as hard as she could. It was a look he was familiar with every time he looked in the mirror.
"Something on your mind?" he asked, gaining her attention.
"Nothing much." Rogue said as she used the back of her arm to wipe away sweat from her forehead. After taking a few deep breaths, she returned her attention to the punching bag.
"Let me hold that for you. If you hit it hard enough, it'll return the favor." Logan said as he walked up behind the bag and placed a firm grip on it.
"Thanks." Rogue said as she began to make several precise hits in one specific area.
"How are the hands treating you?"
"They hurt like hell since your healing factor stopped working. Dr. McCoy gave me some pills, but they aren't doing that much." Rogue said.
"Is that all that's bothering you?"
"What do you think?" Rogue asked.
"I think you're pissed at something." Wolverine commented.
"You're damn right I'm pissed off!" Rogue said as she preformed a roundhouse kick onto the bag. "I'm pissed off because that bitch got the drop on me! I've gone up against Magneto, the Professor's walking tank of a brother, and I even went up against a psycho mutant from the days of ancient bum fucking Egypt. That woman with the world's worse pedicure snuck up on me from behind and tried to gut me like I was a stuck pig." Rogue shouted as she threw another punch with her left hand at the bag.
Halfway through the punch, three bone claws jutted forward and ripped through the boxing glove. Rogue shouted in pain as the punch diverted and clawed into the bag's thick exterior cover as Rogue fell to her knees.
"Damn it to blood gutting hell!" she shouted as she tried to cradle her hand while doing her best to not claw or stab herself. Wolverine quickly made his way by her side as he held her arm straight and did his best to remove the glove. It took some work and several minutes, but he was able to slide the glove off of her hand and off of her new set of claws. There was already a generous amount of blood dripping in between her fingers as Logan tried to take a good look at them. "These things are such a pain."
"You're preaching to the choir, kid." Wolverine said. "That's going to leave a scar. So you're probably going to need this."
Before Rogue could ask any questions, Wolverine gave her a quick tap to the cheek with his hand. There was a brief feeling of light headedness that quickly passed. When both looked down, the claws slowly retracted and made Rogue hiss in pain. Once they were gone, the skin healed itself and stopped the bleeding. Like Wolverine said, there were now three fresh scars in between her fingers. Rogue slowly began to flex her fingers until the pain began to subside. With her hand feeling normal, she slumped onto the floor before yanking off the other glove and throwing it to its now damaged partner.
"Is that all that's on your mind?" Logan asked her.
"No. It's several other things. I hate being weak and I hated looking weak. It was like I was some stupid damsel that always needs some strong arrogant jerk to come along and save her all the time. I hate that. It makes me feel like I'm useless." The teenager said.
"Then don't be the damsel." Logan said.
"You think it's that simple?" Rogue asked.
"You've already said it. You've gone up against people that would make anyone else shit their pants. So you've had a few set backs. No one's perfect. But you don't let the set backs keep you down. You just have to make yourself stand up again and give them hell."
"Thanks for the speech. No offence, I already knew all that. But it all still pisses me off."
"Then use it." Logan said as he stood to his feet. "By the way, you owe me a new punching bag." He said as he left the gym.
Now that she was by herself, she looked down at her hands and the new scars that were on them. She flexed her fingers one more time before thinking about her boyfriend. He was still in the infirmary beneath the institute and probably going nuts at that moment. Rogue began to think about every time his claws would extend and retract and the look of pain that was evident every time they would do so.
"I wonder if this is how he feels." Rogue wondered out loud.
New York City has often been called the city that never sleeps. Even from the eyes of the most recent arrival of any tourist it is obvious to why the large metropolitan city of life had earned such a name. From the congested roads of various cars and public transit vehicles to the sidewalks and alleyways that had people in a constant rush to get from point A to point B. From an overhead point of view, the only comparison this city would have in terms of activity is a disturbed ant bed. One could easily become lost or even overwhelmed in the crowds alone if you didn't know where to go. However, that wasn't the case with one lone figure as she made her way easily through the various crowds and cross walks. At first glance, there wasn't anything spectacular about this blonde woman. She was rather tall with a slim body, but it was obvious she wasn't anything resembling a malnourished model. Despite wearing a large overcoat, flowing blouse, and a pair of slacks, her movements alone showed that she kept herself in very fit shape. Despite the fast pace she was moving, she wasn't breaking out any faint sign of sweat while still breathing at a calm pace. In fact, no one really noticed her as she walked through the crowds. Nothing about her stood out or called attention to herself. Her walk finally came to an end as she entered a recently renovated building that had been converted into several nice apartments.
Only two apartments were occupied on the ground floor, but they didn't concern her. She used the elevator to ascend to the top floor where she came to a stainless steel door. She used a small key ring that only had a few keys on it to open the locks and stepped inside. One the door was closed and the locks secured, she removed her coat and placed it on a near by hook. The apartment she was in had been two, but were converted into a massive studio corner apartment that had all the modern day convinces that anyone could ask for. She made her way to the small staircase that led to an upper floor that had a soft bed and a row of various computer and communications systems that only she could operate. As she climbed the stairs, the hue of her skin began to change as the blonde in her hair faded to red. As soon as she stepped onto the upper apartment floor, her pale peach colored skin had now become a deep shade of blue while the pupils of both of her eyes shifted to a shade of an almost gold yellow. Once she reached the computers, she immediately stopped. The various monitors all indicated that the systems were currently in sleep mode. There was just one slight problem. She knew for a fact that she had shut down all of these systems before she had left.
"I have to admit that I'm rather surprised how well you've done for yourself." A very familiar voice said behind her. She slowly turned and saw, standing in the corner of her loft, were three very familiar figures. "I thought that you and Erinc had a falling out, Raven. How has the leadership of the Brotherhood fallen to you?"
"If you hadn't noticed, his priorities vary. It hasn't been the first time we've had a falling out, and I doubt it will be the last." She said as she acknowledged the woman with the platinum white hair and the rather large man that was covered in blue fur. "I see you decided to ignore manners this time. What are you doing here, Charles?" she asked the bald man that was sitting in a wheelchair.
"I've come here concerning a delicate matter." The Professor said.
"Just about every matter is delicate to you, Charles. It's a wonder we didn't drive each other crazy when we were growing up." The blue woman said.
"I'm sorry I failed you as a friend, Raven. I had hoped that when my mother took you in that it would change your outlook on the world. I was wrong."
"No matter how much you try to paint it, Charles; the world is a very bleak place." Mystique said as she turned to the computer monitors and began to make sure that her three uninvited guests hadn't damaged or interfered with something important.
"Raven, I need you to ask you something. How many children do you have?" Charles asked. Mystique paused and slowly turned to face Xavier again.
"Why are you asking me that?"
Charles then removed a photograph from his pocket as he wheeled to her. He handed her the photograph and watched as she turned it over. She did her best to stifle a gasp as she looked at it. The only time he had seen such a reaction to her was when she informed him of Kurt becoming a student at his school.
"I-is he safe?" she asked.
"He's been through quite a bit, Raven."
"What happened?" Mystique asked.
"Now you're interested? You abandoned not one, but two children and now you decide to act like a concerned mother?" Ororo asked, trying anf failing to control her venom at the shape shifting mutant.
"Don't you dare judge me, Storm. You're not a mother, so don't you even begin to think that you know how I feel. I didn't have a choice! But I made damn sure that they were safe." She said as she glared at the person she often referred to as the white haired weather witch. She broke their eye contact as she looked at Xavier one more time. "What happened to him?"
"The Weapon X program." Charles said.
The hate that filled Mystique's eyes looked as though it could have rivaled the anger of the Hulk itself. Her fists clenched, crumpling the worn photograph, as her teeth clenched shut like a rusted bear trap. Her breathing began to deepen as well as quicken while every part of her began to shake. With a primal scream, she spun around and knocked off several monitors, papers, and keyboards from her desk. With another scream, she slammed her fists onto the now bare tabletop and almost cracked the fake wood surface.
"I should have killed every single one of them and burned that place to the ground!" Mystique shouted. She seethed in place for several more moments before she tried to control her anger. "Did they do it to him too? The same thing they did to his father?"
"Physically, yes. However, his mind is still intact." Charles answered.
"Thank God for that." Mystique whispered to herself.
"There's more." Hank said as he stepped forward. "I've been studying his abilities, and it would appear that his genetic structure has been augmented."
"What?" Mystique asked as she spun and faced them. "Augmented how?"
Jean was happy to be out of the infirmary and back outside. She was sitting not too far from the Mansion, but also clear of the areas that was used for Wolverine's training exercises. For now, she was trying to enjoy watching the sunset and the cool air. She was also trying to grapple with what had happened earlier. She thought she had managed to calm herself down, but still felt that knot of fear inside of her. It was like a balloon of terror that kept inflating every time she tried to not think about what was potentially inside of her own mind. However, that wasn't the only thing that was bothering her.
"Jean?"
She quickly looked up and relaxed a little when she saw Scott take a set beside her. She smiled a little as he sat down, but didn't look forward to the questions she knew were going to be coming.
"I haven't seen you for most of the day."
"I'm just trying to get my head together. I'm fine, though." She said and noticed the look he was giving her, despite the ruby quartz sunglasses that covered his eye. "Really, Scott. I'm fine."
"You do know you're not a good liar, right?"
"Scott, please." She begged him. "I really don't feel up to this right now."
"Okay, I'll leave it alone. But you're going to have to talk about it eventually."
Jean let out a somewhat frustrated sigh at hearing this. Scott was a good person and she knew he cared. But all the weight of the world that took on his shoulders could get so very annoying sometimes. Scott often took on the role of leader whenever they were out, but it seemed like it never stopped with him. He was always trying to be the doting parent and the responsible leader that had to set a good example. More than once she just wanted him to stop being the responsible one and just relax. Especially right now.
"Scott, I know you're trying to be helpful. But don't push it. I'm really not in the mood for it right now."
"Jean,"
"Or do I have to make you think that you're a ten year old girl if you keep pushing it."
"You wouldn't."
"I'll ask Kitty if she can braid your hair." Jean threatened. Scott immediately stopped what he was doing and even scooted a few inches away from the redheaded telepath. This caused her to roll her eyes and shake her head. "That doesn't mean you have to stop talking to me, idiot." She said to him.
"Sorry." Scott said.
Scott started to try and think of something to talk about; just about anything to talk about. As he tried to think, Jean could obviously the frustration as he tried to change the subject. After knowing the boy for so long, she didn't need her telepathy to read him like an open book. So she decided to step in and help out before he fried to many of his brain cells.
"There's a new action movie playing this weekend. How about we go see it with a couple of the new mutants?" she asked him.
"Or we could just make it a night for ourselves." He suggested and placed his hand over hers.
"I think you might be onto something." Jean as she gave him a smile. The two began to lean in closer in order to kiss when they were abruptly interrupted.
"Jean, we are about to land. I need you to find Logan and bring him to my office." Professor Xavier said within her mind.
"Which one?"
"The eldest."
"Will do." She thought. "Rain check on that kiss?"
"Sure thing." He said. Scott watched her stand and leave as he let out a frustrated sigh.
"Scott, I need you to fetch young Logan from the infirmary. He will need to be present in my office as well."
"I'm on it." Scott said.
Wolverine let out a grunt as he followed Jean to the Professor's office. He had been gone for a few hours, which had Logan concerned again. Whatever it was that he was looking for must have been interesting. As they approached the double doors of the office, Logan raised a surprised eyebrow when he saw both Rogue and Kurt walking to the office as well.
"What are you and the Elf doing here?" he asked them.
"The professor asked us." Rogue said.
"I got the feeling that it was important. Any idea why?" Kurt asked.
"Not one." Wolverine said as he took a deep breath. As he did, he got the whiff of a scent he hadn't smelled in a while. A scent that was coming from inside Xavier's office. He took another breath to make sure, and a small feeling of dread started to form in his mind. "What ever it is, I think shit is about to hit the fan."
As they all entered, Rogue and Kurt immediately came to a dead stop as they saw who was standing behind the Professor with her back to them. Even Jean paused for a moment while Wolverine sneered.
"What the hell is she doin' here?" Rogue demanded as the figure turned. Wearing a black tank top and a pair of black slacks was none other than Mystique herself.
"This had better be good, Charles." Wolverine growled.
"I assure, it is." Charles said.
"I'm glad to see both of you are doing well." Mystique said as she looked at both Rogue and Kurt.
"Save it ya blue assed bitch. You gave up the right to play mama when you dropped him off a bridge." Rogue replied. She saw the woman partially flinch at the comment. Obviously it had struck a chord which gave Rogue a feeling of satifaction.
"Professor, what's going on?" Jean asked.
"I will explain in a moment. There will be one other person joining us shortly." Charles said as he looked up to the doorway.
"You wanted to see me Professor?" Logan asked as he entered the office as he finished sliding a grey long sleeve shirt over himself.
As soon as she saw him, Mystique emitted a small gasp. She tried to swallow the small lump that had formed in her throat and did her best to fight back tears that were threatening to fall. She hadn't realized how much he had grown.
"Yes, I did. Jean, please close the door." Charles asked as he rolled forward. As soon as the door was closed, Charles took a deep breath. Emotions were already running high and they were about to get even higher as soon as he spoke. "Logan, Dr. McCoy and I made a discovery to who your mother is."
"You did?" Logan asked anxiously. "Why didn't you say anything earlier? I,"
Logan had taken a few steps forward as he was talking. When he was close to the Professor, he stopped dead in his tracks as soon as the scent assaulted his nostrils. He took it again and followed it. As he did, he saw that it belonged to the blue skinned woman with the long red hair and yellow eyes. She was doing her best to keep her composure while she also looked to be nervous as well.
"Kid, are you all right?" Wolverine asked as he noticed how his son kept his gaze locked on Mystique.
Ignoring his father, Logan slowly made his way to Mystique. It was almost like he was in a trance as he kept looking at her up and down. He was sure that he had never seen this woman before in his life, but her scent was unmistakable. The closer he walked to her, the more powerful it became. He stopped when they were only a few inches apart, both unsure of what to say or do next.
"I-is it?" he asked as he looked her over again. "Is it you?" he whispered to her. Mystique smiled slightly as she began to sing in a small whisper. Kurt and Rogue had no idea what she was singing since the words she said were in Japanese. To Logan though, they were as clear as crystal. More importantly, it was the voice. The voice echoed in his ears and sounded exactly like he remembered. He quickly wrapped his arms around her in a loving embrace which she returned. "Mom." He whispered to himself.
"MOM?!" both Kurt and Rogue asked in shock.
"Bull fucking shit!" Wolverine shouted.
"Logan, please." Charles addressed the elder in an effort to calm him.
"This has got to be some sick and cruel joke, Charles! There's no way in hell that she's his mother!" Wolverine shouted.
"What are you talking about?" Logan asked as he broke the hug and turned to look at his father. "Dad, it's her."
"No. If you knew what this twisted bitch has done to this place and your girlfriend." Wolverine growled.
"I'm with him, Logan. She's got to be up to something." Rogue said.
"What are all of you talking about? Professor, what do they mean?"
"I'm afraid your mother has a rather checkered past." Charles said.
"It's all right, Charles." Mystique said. "I've done a lot of things I'm not proud of. I also work for a man that has clashed with Charles and his students before."
"That's putting it mildly, mother." Kurt said.
"Hold on. What did you call her?" Logan asked as he turned to Kurt. Did you just call her,"
"Yeah. She's Kurt's mother." Rogue said.
"Your mother? But Rogue's your sister and that would – mean,"
"Not by blood!" Rogue quickly spoke up, realizing where her boyfriend's mind was going. She was sure she had told him that Kurt was only her brother in a legal sense, but she wouldn't blame him if he forgot. "She adopted me when I was a kid."
"Oh Thank God." Logan said with relief. "This isn't making any sense to me. Professor?"
"Mystique is a shape sifting mutant. She can alter her physical appearance to whomever, or whatever, she so wishes." The Professor explained.
"I don't care if she can make herself look like Bozo the clown. Why in the hell would she make herself look like someone I was in a relationship with and have my kid?" Wolverine demanded.
"The Weapon X Program." Mystique said, causing the elder Logan to glare at her.
"What do you know about that?" Wolverine asked.
"More than you realize." Mystique said.
"I believe everyone should take a seat. This may take a while." Charles said.
He ushered everyone to the various sofas and chairs in his office which they reluctantly obliged. Kurt and Rogue took a seat with Logan while Mystique took a chair and Wolverine chose to remain standing.
"Now start talking." Wolverine said.
"This should be good." Rogue said in a heavily sarcastic tone.
"I've worked with Magneto for several years. For a time, I actually believed that what he was doing was justified. We always kept moving our base of operations to avoid detection. The Weapon X Program was why. I don't know how, but they found us and tried to surround us. I provided cover so Erik could escape. Once I knew he was safely away, I tried to escape and ran straight into a platoon of their soldiers. They took me to their facility and immediately began to run tests and take samples." Mystique explained, but almost spat out the word "sample" when she said it.
"Let me guess. They screwed with your mind too?" Wolverine asked.
"No. They never made it that far. I did spend enough time there to become acquainted with several of their other 'test subjects.' Several of them were former military. Including one that was a former Canadian special forces operative." Mystique said as she glanced at Wolverine. This made Wolverine raise a confused eyebrow in response.
"How close did you get?" Kurt asked.
"Close enough to plan an escape attempt. For weeks, we observed and memorized everything we saw. We made sure we compared notes and planned everything we were going to do to the finest detail. Including what we would do once we were discovered."
"I'm surprised you didn't just make yourself look like one of the guards." Rogue said.
"I would have if I could. They kept injecting me with a mild sedative that suppressed my abilities. I did learn enough during my time with Magneto to know how to steal from the guards without them noticing, like key cards and a few other items. During a shift change, we made our move. We escaped our cells and made it to the security room. We were able to find out how to leave the base, but we hit a snag.
"We tried to figure out their security codes, but soon realized they were changed on a weekly basis. We were able to piece together the newest code, but they changed the duration between the changes. We immediately triggered the alarms and had to make a break for the airfield. Not all of us made it." Mystique remained silent for a moment or two after telling that part of her story. "We all stuck together at first and did our best to lay low. When we made it over seas, we finally went our separate ways. I stayed with the Canadian."
"You mean dad?" Logan asked her.
"Yes."
"Bull shit." Wolverine said.
"It's the truth." Mystique said.
"Then why look like Yoriko? Why take her form?"
"Because it was her house we were hiding out in. You lived in Japan before the Program kidnapped you. It was a vacation home you two had stayed in before your relationship with her ended."
"I suppose you know how that happened?"
"Don't you dare take that tone with me, Logan." Raven said as she stood and walked up to Wolverine. "The only reason I know is because you told me. She played you because of what you were. She set you up so you could be her father's little lab rat." Mystique said as she got in Wolverine's face.
"He raises a good question. Why make yourself look like her?" Kurt asked.
"It was hiding in plain sight. The only time she had been there was when she was with Logan. So I had to look like her so no one would become suspicious. Then I found out I was pregnant, and I was actually content to settle down. I didn't want to go back to Magneto or my life back in the states. I was happy."
"Then how do you explain these?" Wolverine asked as he extended his claws.
"The program captured one of your friends. You found out through an old contact that they took him some time after we escaped. When they captured him, they almost killed his daughter in the process. You two served together and you wanted to try and rescue him. When you didn't come back, I knew what had happened."
"What was his name?" Wolverine asked in an effort to call her bluff.
"His name was Maverick."
Images flashed within Wolverine's man. They were images of himself and a platoon of other soldiers in uniforms as they performed various military missions together. He also remembered of drinking with the man while a small child, a girl, sat with them. Wolverine was confused for a moment, but he knew the man was real. What he had just flashed back to were real memories and not the programming they had crammed into his brain.
"Logan?" Charles asked.
"Just – I think a few memories just bubbled up. That doesn't mean she's telling the truth. I don't believe a word of it."
"I don't care what you think. The man I loved is gone, and all that's left is nothing but a shadow of the person he used to be." Raven said.
"Keep pushing it, lady." Wolverine threatened.
"Enough of this!" Charles said sternly.
"I know one way to confirm what I'm telling you is true." Raven said as she looked at Logan on the couch. "Charles told me of your other abilities. If you want, you can touch me and see for yourself if I'm lying or not."
"No way." Rogue said. "Logan, I've seen into her head. It's like a bag full of wet cats in there."
"I need to know, Rogue. This might be my only chance." He said to her. He leaned his forehead against hers and held her hands in his. "If anything goes wrong, I've got you and dad to help me. Please, I need to find out." He begged his girlfriend.
"I really think this is a bad idea." Rogue said as she looked in his eyes. "If I have to, I will stab you again." She whispered.
"I know." He whispered in return before giving her a small kiss on the lips. Logan then stood and walked to where Raven was standing as he removed the glove from his right hand. "I have to warn you. This isn't going to be a pleasant experience."
Mystique raised her hand and Logan raised his. Logan was very anxious as he drifted his hand closer. He was afraid that she was lying and that he would never know what happened to his mother while another part of him was scared of what else was in her head. It was obvious that she was hardly a saint, but he needed to know the truth. Muscling up his courage, he pressed his palm against hers. The memories and abilities rushed into him immediately as well as all of her emotions. He immediately broke contact as he fell to his knees as his mind tried to deal with the sudden overload of information and sensations. Rogue was quickly by his side to make sure that he was okay.
"Logan?" she asked.
As he looked up, something strange happened. Logan's skin shifted its hue to the same blue as Mystique's skin as his hair became red and his eyes turned yellow. For a moment, he looked like a blue skinned version of his father. Logan closed his eyes and took several deep breaths as the memories began to settle like the sea after a storm. The most prominent ones took time for him to sort. As he opened his eyes, his skin and hair shifted to normal. After a one full minute, his eyes returned to their normal color.
"I'm okay." He breathed as he caressed Rogue's face and kissed her. "I'm okay. I'm still here." He reassured her.
"Well, kid?" Wolverine asked.
"She's telling the truth. All of it's true. She really is my mom." Logan said.
Everyone in the room seemed to pause for a moment. None of them knew what to say or do. Logan stood to his feet and soon embraced Mystique in another hug which she returned. Rogue wanted to say something but decided to keep her mouth shut. Wolverine just let his words sink in before turning and storming out of the Professor's office. There were several students trying to act casual, but the old mutant paid them no mind. He was to angry to care at that moment. He needed some fresh air.
Wolverine had just stepped out onto the patio at the rear of the mansion, next to the swimming pool. He didn't know what to think at that moment. All he felt was the one emotion that he seemed to be on an intimate basis with. Rage. He was trying to remain calm, but it nothing was working. His fists were balled so tightly that his knuckles were white. His jaw was clinched so tightly that he was sure that he was jamming teeth downward into the bone itself. Every single fiber of muscle in his arms, shoulders, and back felt like a metal coil that was wound to the point of snapping. With a scream of anger that sounded like it had come from the dawn of early man itself, Wolverine unleashed his claws and lashed out at the nearest thing that was close to him. When he looked up, he saw that he had slashed several large ceramic flower pots into pieces.
"Don't you ever get sick and tired of being mad all the time?" Raven asked as she joined him on the patio.
"Why?" Wolverine asked as he retracted his claws. "The entire time I've been here with Charles, you knew we had a son and you said nothing. Why didn't you tell me?!"
"You barley remembered who you were and remembered nothing about us. How was I supposed to tell you that we had a child? You never would have believed me." she said to him.
"That's no excuse! If you could have at least told Charles about him, he could have grown up here! He would have been safe."
"Safe? You call this place safe? Attacks from Charles' step brother, from Saber tooth, and that snot nosed, computer game obsessed, teenager that managed to hack the mansion's security systems like a child with a set of legos. Do you honestly think this would be the safest place to raise a child?" she demanded. "He was better off away from us. Away from this chaos we seem to attract."
"If you loved him so much, then why did you leave him? He needed you!" Wolverine asked.
"Why do you think? After they had you and ran their experiments, they probably pried the information about our house out of you with a snap of their fingers. They came looking for me and I had to fight with everything I had to make sure they didn't find him. Once they were gone, I made sure Logan found his way to the home of his best friend. I'm not as heartless as you think, Logan. I wanted him to be happy."
"I came looking for you." He said, causing Raven to slowly look at him. "I don't remember a lot, but I do remember going to that house. Then I found nothing but ashes, and a picture of you and the kid. It felt like my heart had been ripped out of my chest."
"So a small part of you does remember what we had." She said.
"At least tell me this. Why didn't you go to Charles? You two grew up together and he would have been more than happy to give you a roof over your head. So why go back to Magneto?"
"I care for Charles. He's the closest thing I'll ever have to a brother; but he's too naïve. He doesn't really know how cruel and cold the rest of the world is. Not like us. Magneto does, and his methods made more sense."
"Don't give me that. You wanted revenge. Plain and simple."
"You're right, I wanted revenge. I wanted them to pay for every ounce of flesh they cut from me and every needle they jabbed into my body. I wanted revenge for taking away the life that I wanted, for making me leave my son, and for taking you. I wanted them to suffer just like they made the rest of us suffer. I knew Magneto would give me their heads on a silver platter."
"Except he left you to save his own ass."
"For his vision of a better world." Raven said with a bitter taste in her mouth. "He would sacrifice his own children if he thought it meant that mutants would be the dominant beings on this planet. For the first few weeks, I actually deluded myself into thinking that he would come for me. That he would find the lab and tear it apart to save me. When I eventually found my way back to him, he acted like I stepped out to get a pack of cigarettes. After what he did to Kurt, I wanted to make him pay as well. I just had to be patient and wait. He took from me what was precious, so I did my best to take away his dream. To me, he's no better than the people that put that melted poison on your bones."
"If you felt like that, then why did you stay with him?"
"If you're so wise, then you tell me where else I'm supposed to go. Everyone here hates me, my own children want nothing to do with me, and everything else I tried to build for myself has been torn away. Where else was I supposed to go, Logan? After Apocalypse fell, Magneto decided that he had to rebuild. I don't know where he is, but he left the Brotherhood to me for now. So I'm trying to make it into something better than what it was."
"You know what they say. The road to hell is paved with good intentions." Wolverine said and barley noticed as she made her way back into the mansion.
"If you'll excuse me, I'm going to go talk with my son." She said.
"That will have to wait." Charles said as he came outside to join them. "Logan, I know you don't like talking about what you went through during your time in the Weapon X program, but this is important. It's obvious that your son's additional abilities came from the same program that gave you your adamantium skeleton. Do you remember anything about the program at all? Where it was located or who may have been in charge."
"I've tried to forget as much as I can about that place. But every single detail about it sticks out like a bad scar." Wolverine said as he closed his eyes. "The man in charge oversaw everything. He was there when they put the metal into me, and he was smiling at every second of it. The sadistic bastard was even there for every single phase of our conditioning. He was watching when they sent me out for training. He sacrificed his own soldiers to make sure I was a more efficient killer." The old mutant said as he turned to look at his old friend.
"He had you kill his own men?" Charles asked; repulsed at what he was hearing.
"They were new recruits. He sent them out into the woods for what they thought was a routine security patrol. I can still hear them screaming and begging for their lives when he forced me to gut every single one of them. The man you want is named Stryker. William Stryker."
Logan was asleep in his room; and a very welcome change form the rather itchy and stiff bed in the infirmary. The events of today were overwhelming to him. The excitement of finding his mother again and the somewhat horrific realization of what all she had done. The memories from her mind confirmed everything the others had said and he still couldn't believe it. The woman that had showed him so much courage and love for not only him and Kurt was also capable of so many cruel and horrible things. A nap seemed like the best thing in order for him to acclimate so much information. Sadly, a relaxing sleep was out of the question. It had been some time, but now he was suffering from horrific nightmares again.
He was strapped down to a cold hard surface. He kept fighting the restraints that held him in place as his throat became raw from his constant screaming. He could see masked people in scrubs gathered around him while an enormous light shone above him as it almost blinded him. They were taking scalpels and cutting off pieces of his flesh. They were even cutting parts of him open to take more samples. Large needles piercing his skin and pushing deeper. He could feel the needles touching and piercing the bone. They wouldn't even give him anything for the pain, making it so much worse. Every agonizing scream of pain was ignored. Their backs always turned when he begged them to stop or to kill him and end his suffering. Then there was a man in the shadows. He was looking down from an observation balcony above like it was a show for his entertainment.
The fresh pain hadn't even faded yet when they attached a strange harness to his head. It was cold unfeeling metal as it pressed firmly around his head. That was when he heard it. It was the sound of a drill starting. It may have been small, but it was so close to him that it sounded like it was as loud as the engine of a massive monster truck. As the sound grew closer, his blood ran cold as he realized what they were about to do. He shook, trying to free himself as he begged. His voice was so hoarse and broken that he couldn't even hear himself. He tried to violently shake his head out of the device that was around his head, but he couldn't even do that. The harness around him kept his head firmly stationary. Now he was crying as he begged them to stop. He was hysterical as the drill grew closer while trails of hot tears fell down either side of his face. When it made contact and began to dig, he began to scream.
Logan shot upward as he gasped for breath at such an alarming rate that he was making himself light headed. His heart thundered in his chest so hard that he could feel it practically shake within his ribs while the thumping of his pulse hammered in his ears. He was sweating so much that the cool air within the room was making him shiver like when he was a child in the dark. He quickly leapt out of his bed and into the bathroom. He turned on the sink and cupped his hands over the cold running water and began to repeatedly splash cold water on his face. He lost count at how many times he did it, but he shot off the tap as his heart rate began to finally slow. He looked up to gaze at his reflection and jumped slightly at what he saw. His skin was blue again, his hair was red, and his eyes were yellow. As he looked at himself, he suddenly realized the nature of his nightmare. He thought he was reliving a repressed experience during his time in that lab, but he was wrong. It wasn't his memory he was reliving. It was his mother. He had seen through her eyes what they had done to her and felt her fears and her pain. Good God, how could people do that to her?
"Logan? Suga, are ya all right?" Rogue asked from the other side of the door.
"It's okay. It's just another nightmare." He called out.
"Can I come in?" she asked.
Logan looked back at his reflection again and saw that he was looking like himself once more as he breathed a sigh of relief. He sighed in relief as he took a deep breath. "It's open." He called out.
Rogue came in wearing a green jersey style night shirt and pair of grey exercise shorts while her hands and legs remained bare. She didn't need to worry about adding protective layers whenever she was around him.
"You were screaming bloody murder a minute ago." She said.
"I was reliving one of my mom's memories. Jesus Christ, I think those assholes were taught medicine by Jack the Ripper." He said as he took another breath.
"Was it really that bad?" Rogue asked him.
"It looked a scene from one of the Saw movies." He said as he walked back into his bedroom.
As he walked closer to Rogue, she saw the concern in her eyes. She also glanced down and raised her eyebrows slightly. "What is it?" She just glanced down again, trying to indicate that he should look for himself. When he did, he saw that he was standing in front of her without any clothes on at all and causing him to blush. "Oops."
"It's a-all right." She said as she began to blush herself. They had slept with each other, but that had been a very new experience. It had also been in the heat of the moment and didn't actually get a decent look at each other. "Ya want me to stay for awhile?"
"I would really like that."
Logan crawled back into his bed and laid back down on his back when he glanced at Rogue. His eyes widened when she stood by his bed and removed her shirt followed by her shorts. As she stood there in her natural beauty with the moon bathing her in its light, she truly looked like an ethereal gothic angel of the night.
"You are so beautiful." He said out loud.
She smirked as she crawled into his bed and lay beside him. She rested her head on his chest as the two held each other close and felt content in each others arms. As she let her head rest on him, she could hear his heart was still beating rather hard and fast.
"You're still shook up by that, aren't ya?"
"It was really intense." Logan said.
"Is there anything I can do?"
"Just stay with me for the rest of the night."
"I think I can do that." She said as she almost melted into him.
There was no more talk and no love making. There wasn't even any heavy petting as they held each other close. For now, this was enough. This was all they both needed.
The next day had come and felt tense from the very moment that the rays of the morning sun made their way into the halls of the Xavier Academy. Breakfast had been its usual mad house while Wolverine sat in the corner with a mug of coffee. He chose to keep to himself as he played out various things in his very confused head. Rogue was sitting not too far from the window as she barley picked at her bowl of cereal while she watched her boyfriend talk with Mystique outside at the patio table. There were several smiles and more than a few shocked looks between the two of them. Still, it was strange to see this woman that Rogue hated for so long actually acting like a human being.
"Everything okay?" Kurt asked as he took a seat beside her and momentarily surprising her.
"Just making sure she's not up to her old tricks." Rogue said.
"It's still hard to believe that Logan is our brother." Kurt said.
"He's your brother, Kurt. Not mine." She said.
"You know what I mean." Kurt said as he glanced out the window. "I'm happy they're getting along."
"But?" Rogue asked. It didn't take a genius to notice that the interaction between Mystique and Logan was making the blue fuzzy teleporting teen jealous.
"But what?"
"Come on, Kurt. That blue fur of yours is turning green."
"All right. It feels like he's stealing my dream. For so long, that's what I kept hoping would happen to me when I found her. Instead, she turns out to be a,"
"A vindictive and homicidal bitch?"
"Close enough."
"You know," Rogue said as she glanced from Kurt to Logan. "You can still talk to her."
"No way. She's done too much already. I'm not going to let her play me for a sucker again."
"I don't blame ya. I've washed my hands of her completely. But there's one problem, Kurt."
"What's that?"
"You're not me." Rogue said, causing him to glance up. "You don't know when you might have another chance to talk to her again. I'm just sayin."
Kurt paused for a minute before he glanced out the window one more time. He watched Mystique talking to his older brother before groaning to himself. Kurt then stood up and walked outside. He stood beside Logan and talked to them for a moment before sitting down. A large part of her wished that Kurt had went in the opposite direction and forgot that Mystique ever existed. But she knew how big of a heart Kurt had and didn't want to regret not talking to her. She knew he had questions and only Mystique had the answers he was looking for. What could she say? He was her little brother. It also felt good playing the big sister. She wouldn't tell him that, but she did like looking out for him. She kept watching them as they talked before they paused rather suddenly. It looked like they were transfixed on something before she recognized the looks in their eyes. The Professor was talking to them. From the way their posture changed, it was something important. They soon began walking inside with Logan taking a quick seat next to her while Kurt and Mystique made their way to the elevator that lead to the lower levels of the institute.
"Something big?" she asked them.
"It looks like it. Dad, Dr. McCoy and I are heading north to find someone. We're taking Kurt and mom with us."
"Why her?"
"Don't know yet." Logan said.
"Just be careful. I won't be there to save your butt this time." She said.
"What makes you think I'll get hurt?" Logan asked her and saw the look she gave him. "I'll try."
"No tries about it, you do."
"Yes, ma'am." Logan said and gave her a quick kiss on the lips before following the others.
"Guess that gives us some time to ourselves, Cher." Gambit said as he sat on the counter behind her.
"Don't you have a poker game to cheat at?" Rogue asked him, already annoyed by his presence.
"Now that cut ol' Remy to the quick Cherie. What makes you think this Cajun is nothing but a scoundrel?"
"How about everything?" she asked as she tried to leave.
"I don't like to loose a challenge." He said as he hopped off the counter and tried to block her exit while he laid on what he thought was Southern charm. "How about you have quick bite with me this evening? Maybe we can get to know each other a little better?"
"I'd rather have my teeth pulled." Rogue said as Remy grunted and felt a brief moment of light headedness. He placed a hand against his forehead as he tried to keep his balance. Looking down, he saw Rogue's uncovered hand leaving his bare forearm and soon realized what she had done to him. "By the way, this for fighting dirty against my boyfriend." She said as she replaced her glove and walked out of the kitchen.
Remy was confused for a moment when he felt a strange tingling in his back pocket. Glancing downward, he noticed that the back pocket was glowing slightly with a thin trail of smoke rising for it. That was when he realized she had just stolen enough of his powers to energize the deck of cards he kept in his pocket. The entire deck.
"Aw, hell." Remy said before the cards ignited and sent him propelling forward.
The blackbird eased down on a snow covered terrain despite the fact that the winds of a frigid snow storm blew. As the engines powered down, the lower hatch opened as several mutants descended. Wolverine, Logan, Mystique, Beast, Night crawler, and Professor Xavier gazed at their surroundings while they made sure their thermal clothing was keeping them warm. All except for Beast. Given his natural blue fur coat, there wasn't any real need for thermal gear unless the temperature dropped even more. The visibility wasn't well, but not completely obstructed. To the South of them, they could see the lights of a cabin down wind from them. Wolverine had brought a pair of goggles and mounted them over his eyes and he gazed toward the cabin.
The goggles offered clarity as he zoomed in. So far, nothing really stood out about it. There was an SUV that was obviously snowed in, a stump with an axe embedded into the top not too far from a stack of firewood, and not really anything else. He moved the goggles towards the windows and could only make out a few pieces of furniture and maybe a fire burning judging by the lighting. That was when he saw someone walk past the window. The figure had been moving too quick to get a decent look, causing Wolverine to curse under his breath. He began looking at the other windows when he spotted the figure again. The man's hair had now turned several shades of grey, there were several more wrinkles than before, and he was wearing a pair of wire framed glasses. Still, it was a face Wolverine knew too damn well.
"It's him, all right. Looks like I owe you a shave, Beast." Wolverine said.
"If your face is any indication of your barber skills, I think I'll decline." Hank said.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" Kurt asked.
"If we want answers, Elf. Plus, I've been dying to get some payback." Wolverine growled.
"You and me both." Mystique said.
"We are here for answers, not revenge. If we have any hope as to why Logan was given his abilities, Stryker needs to remain alive. So the both of you need to keep control your tempers." Charles said and earned a frustrated grunt from Wolverine. "Logan?" Charles asked him.
"I can't promise anything, Charles. I will try." Wolverine said.
"Good." Xavier said as he noticed Wolverine's son was making strange faces. It was as if he was being stricken with a sudden headache. "Logan?" he asked, drawing the others attention.
"I'm sorry. H-her memories are – overwhelming." Logan said as he tried to force the flashbacks out of his mind and the emotions that they were stirring. "I think I should stay here.
"Logan," Mystique started.
"I know you need me in case he won't talk, but I don't think I can control myself if I see him." Logan said as the memories kept clouding his mind.
"Very well. If we need you, Kurt will come and fetch you." Beast said.
"So are we just waiting for an invitation?" Mystique asked.
"I've got invitations right here." Wolverine said as his claws shot forward. "Enough for everybody."
"Kurt, take us in." Charles said.
"Brace yourselves. This could feel a little weird." The young teen said as they gathered round and vanished with a small pop and a puff of smoke.
William Stryker was sitting his large and very worn arm chair as he sipped a mug of black coffee. The chair had been his father's and no matter where he served, he made sure this chair was always at his home and waiting for him. Lately, it was the only thing that gave him any form of comfort. The wind howled outside and reminded him of his isolation while the glow of the fire kept him warm. He blew away the steam that rose from his mug in an effort to try and cool the liquid enough for his consumption as he brought the mug's rim to his lips. He was ready to sip its contents when he hear a knock coming from his door. His eye immediately narrowed in suspicion as he placed the mug on a nearby side table and opened its drawer. Reaching in, he pulled out a 9mm pistol and turned off the safety. He cautiously moved towards the door when he heard a knock again.
"Who is it?" he called out.
In response, the door was violently kicked in as splinters flew all over the room. As the man who destroyed his door entered, it took Stryker only a few seconds to recognize him. He raised his pistol and immediately fired off one shot, causing the man's head to jerk backwards. The man slowly turned back and glared daggers at Stryker with a very passionate hate. As he glared, the open wound exposed a smooth piece of metal underneath while the wound closed by itself.
"Did you forget I was a mutant, bub? Got a healing factor that allows me to take a lot of punishment." The man growled. He immediately rushed forward as Stryker fired three, then four more times. Each bullet struck the large man in his chest but did nothing to stop him or even slow him down. The man grabbed Stryker by the throat and slammed him against the wall while his free hand struck him in the arm pit and three razor sharp claws shot forward and pierced his flesh and stopped short of his rib cage. Stryker immediately shouted in pain in response while the man continued to growl. "Almost as much punishment as I can dish out."
"LOGAN, NO!" a voice behind him shouted.
Charles and the others entered the cabin while the Professor looked at Wolverine, pleading with him. Mystique on the other hand couldn't help but smile in satisfaction at seeing Stryker almost literally pinned to the wall.
"Logan, don't do this. Don't sink yourself down to his level. Be the better man I know you are."
Logan glared at Stryker for a moment before forcing his eyes closed. All the missions and the experiments were running rampant through his mind, along with the faces of everyone he had killed at this bastard's command. He wanted to extend his claws to their full length and let this bastard bleed to death. He didn't know how, but he stopped himself. He withdrew his claws and let the man fall to the floor ass first.
"You're lucky he's here." Wolverine said and backed up.
Stryker immediately clenched his arm tight to his body in an effort to stop the bleeding. He could already feel the warm, wet, and sticky blood coating his shirt and his side as he glared at the people in front of him.
"You've got a lot of nerve coming here, Wolverine." Stryker growled as he noticed Mystique standing at his side. "It's been a long time since I've seen you. I should have known you would've run back to the open legs of this bitch."
Mystiques leg shot outward with the speed of a diamond back while her heal made contact with the bridge of Stryker's nose. A sickening crunch could be heard as Stryker groaned and cursed in pain as blood flowed freely from both of his nostrils.
"That's the last time you get to call me a whore." The woman said.
"You damned worthless freaks!" Stryker shouted.
"We're here answers, Stryker. So you better be ready to talk or I get to carve out your tongue." Wolverine threatened.
"You can go fuck yourself." Stryker said.
Wolverine leaned down and grasped Stryker firmly by his broken nose and began to squeeze. Stryker yelled in pain as Wolverine forced him to his feet and never let go. "Didn't your mama ever teach you some manners?" Wolverine asked before bashing his forehead into Stryker's face before finally letting go of his nose. The pain was no so intense that it was a miracle that Stryker wasn't huddled into a ball on the floor. "You turned my son into one of your lab rats and I want to know why!" Wolverine growled.
"W-what are you talking about?"
"Don't play dumb with us." Mystique said. "We remembered what you did. You oversaw every aspect of the Weapon X program personally."
"So we want to know is how you found my kid, and what you did to him!" Logan demanded.
"Then it shows how out of touch you really are, Logan." Stryker said as he tried to breathe and rid himself the taste of blood that was pouring down the back of his throat through his nasal passage. "I'm not in charge of the program anymore. I haven't been since you decided to go on your little rampage for freedom."
"That's a lie." Mystique said. "I've seen his son. With what's been done to him, only your project has the resources to do that."
"Maybe. That doesn't mean I know about it." Stryker said. "You were their prized pet, Logan. After you escaped, they sacked me and took everything. I lost my clearance, my reputation, everything. I can't even get a job teaching ROTC thanks to what you did."
"If you're not in control anymore, then who is?!" Wolverine demanded.
"I don't know. All I know is that our primary backer took full control after you got away and gave me my walking papers."
"Who funded the project?" Beast asked.
"They call themselves the Essex Cooperation."
"Charles?" Wolverine asked.
Xavier closed his eyes and probed the man's mind. After a moment or so, Charles broke his contact and felt ill whit what all he had seen. "He doesn't know anything else."
"Then we've wasted our time here." Mystique said bitterly as they turned to leave.
"You and the rest of your diseased trash are nothing but a disease. It's only a matter of time before they find a cure and wipe you godless pieces of trash off the face of the Earth." Stryker said, making Wolverine stop.
"I'm not going to kill you, Stryker. But that doesn't mean I have to leave you in one piece."
Stryker had managed to grab his fallen pistol and raised it again. This time, he aimed it for the back of Mystique's head. As he began to put pressure on the trigger, Wolverine's claws came down in a downward stroke that slice the firearm into several pieces, and severing Stryker's fingers from the rest of his hand. Stryker howled in pain as he clutched his hand to his chest. The former commanding officer was now on his knees as the floor started to become decorated in his own blood.
"If you put that on ice, they might be able to reattach it." Logan said as they left. As Wolverine stepped out, he saw his son waiting outside with the rest of them. After Apparently, Kurt fetched his brother after Wolverine decided to use Stryker for a pin cushion. "If you've got something to say, go ahead and spit it out."
"It looks like it was a good thing wasn't here after all." Logan said.
"Why's that?"
"I would have cut off his dick." Logan said, making his father chuckle with a small smile.
Within moments, all of them were once again seated in the blackbird as it began to gain altitude. Xavier wasn't happy with what Wolverine did to Stryker, but he was happy that Wolverine had spared the man's life. He could sense the heavy tension in the aircraft without using his psychic abilities, and decided to shift focus somewhat.
"I feel that I've heard that name before."
"What name?" Logan asked.
"Stryker mentioned that their primary financier was a company by the name of the Essex Cooperation."
"I've heard it. It's run by a rather eccentric billionaire by the name of Nathanial Essex. The company was founded in the nineteenth century and has grown ever since. Other than that, there isn't that much information about it's primary share holder." Beast said.
"Then it's time we found out. They've got a lot to answer for." Wolverine said.
"What about Stryker? Do we just leave him there?" Kurt asked.
"Don't worry, Kurt. He's no longer our problem." Mystique said as she glanced out the window and out into the cold wilderness. As she did, a small smile spread on her lips.
He was pale and shaking a bit. The good news was that he looked to have the bleeding from his wounds under control. He had set the bones in his nose by himself, and now had a small tourniquet and bandage over the stubs that were his fingers. For the wounds under his arm, he had soaked a towel in alcohol and pressed it against the wounds. It would do for now until he could get to the nearest town and hopefully find a hospital. It was going to be a bitch to drive in this weather and his injuries, but he didn't really have a choice. He was finishing the bandages on his fingers when he heard footsteps inside his house. Fearing that it was Wolverine again, he scrambled to the kitchen where he kept another gun. Upon entering, he found something worse than Wolverine.
"Look at what we've got here." The menacing voice of Sabertooth said.
"The whole gang's back together again. I guess we must have done something good in another life. Don't know what in the flying hell it was." Deadpool said as he lifted the lower half of his red mask and took a large bite out of the sandwich he made for himself.
"Maybe hell simply froze over." Lady Death Strike said as her claws extended out of her hands while a large and pale man behind her smiled with blood red eyes looking at him.
"Enough talk." He said in a very heavy and thick Russian accent as metal tendrils extended from his wrists.
"For once, Omega Red actually has a good idea. I call the wishbone." Deadpool said as he drew his katanas. "If this were a movie, it'd probably go to black right about now and leave everything on a cliffhanger."
As the wind and snow grew in strength, the subtle quietness of the Canadian wilderness was shattered by the echoing screams of William Stryker. All through the trees and rolling hills, only the animals and nature herself were the only witness' to Stryker's final moments of pain and anguish.
"Since this is a fan fiction, I guess that'll do."
"Shut up, Wade!"
Author's Notes: I don't know a lot about Wolverine's past before the Weapon X project, so I mainly ran with what I remember from the various animated seires and comics I've read as well as the movies. Hope you've enjoyed.