Roger, Hank and Xavier thought that it was best to rescue Ororo before they allowed the Black Serpents total control of the northeastern region given all that they were willing to throw at Ellis. Going along with the decision, Logan then immediately made plans to run in and grab Ororo and maybe Matthew Adams if there was a chance. He did not tell too many people what he was doing, cluing Roger, Hank and Xavier alone in every once in a while in the short time he had. However, three days after he returned back from freeing the human camp and seeing that Fiona was comfortable downstairs, he decided that he was ready to leave the comforts of the living room and head right back down to DC.

During dinner in the dining room (something that used to be a playroom for the youngest students when they were a school), which Logan hardly joined nowadays and found discomforting (if he had to be honest with himself), he informed Hank and Xavier that he wanted to leave the next night. The guards on duty that stood in the doorways nodded along with the two mutants, one of them radioing in a code to someone, most likely to Roger. Logan expected the master spy to show up and take a swing at Ellis again anyway, although he wanted to do this alone. Who else would be the pain in the ass to him too, when Hank was too conspicuous and Xavier unable to stand?

In the meantime, Logan found the dinner table too quiet for his tastes. The scrape of forks against plates wasn't something he liked to begin with, ever since those kids had been picked up and their teaching staff shredded and only down to the three of them. He tried taking some of his food with the pair who only talked of the weather, but soon left the table. He excused himself, muttering about checking up on Colossus and Fiona, and exited the dining room just as Hank was about to say something akin to Logan waiting for them to come with him. Immediately, Logan went to the living room, packing up what he needed, and snuck to the door that led to the underground system. On the way, he heard Xavier try contacting him, his reassuring voice echoing in his head.

Logan, please –

Not now, Professor. I need to think.

You aren't doing yourself any good by running away like this.

This is what Roger wanted. You and the Fuzzball agreed to it. I agreed to it. We need Storm. She needs us. No question about it.

That's not what I meant, Logan. It's about Danielle.

What about her? Logan had reached the cool hallway by then and was hooking a left to check on Colossus in his room, but stopped and leaned against a wall to keep himself steady. The mention of Danielle sent shivers up and down his spine and the pain stabbed him in the chest, harder than he expected.

Logan, you need to understand her sacrifice. We might not be able to reach her and that's something we all need to accept. We might even have to lose her.

No. Logan was determined on that, although the pain increased with the thought of Danielle dead. I cannot accept that, Professor.

Logan –

By then, Logan had enough of baring his soul and started walking again, ignoring the Professor begging him to confront his anger. He heard Xavier ask him to continue talking, but soon gave up. Logan figured that he still had some hope left for him and would see Logan talk again. However, the older mutant had his doubts, eating him alive like worms in soil. He could not imagine a world without Danielle. It was impossible for him to keep on living if she was dead. However, he could not accept her dying in the name of freedom for everyone. Danielle Mitchell was many things, but she was not a martyr. Logan was sure of it…and of rescuing her too.

Colossus was actually in the hallway, sitting at a corner and drawing something in fast motions. Logan noted that he was ok and then moved in the opposite direction towards the infirmary. He peeked quickly as the doors opened, seeing Fiona still sleeping peacefully, her vitals on the machine still registering that she was hardly alive. Sighing, Logan left, heading back upstairs. Just as he was about to face the music with Hank and Xavier, he sensed another presence below. He turned around, walking back down the stairs and following the scent. He soon came across Roger, writing something down on a notepad.

"I didn't expect you to get here so fast," Logan remarked, a statement that hardly startled the master spy.

"I was in the neighborhood anyway," Roger replied without looking up from his writing. "I was planning on picking up Storm with you and heading back up to Mae. I miss my wife, you know. Nights are getting cold and I bet she wants to kill me by now."

"I understand."

"You aren't married, Logan. How would you know?"

The barb stung badly. "I wouldn't, but my days are pretty lonely too."

"Uh-huh." Roger stopped his pen from flying and looked up at Logan. "Ok, so you have the plan?"

"Yeah." Logan crossed his arms in defense. "There are tunnels underground everywhere in the city, but all of them are guarded…except for one. By the old ruins of that courthouse of the Supreme Court, there's an underground sewer that leads straight into Peter and Mary Ellis' home. The line is parallel to their main one and crosses right in the middle, leading to their tunnels. Storm, you said, is on the west side of the house on the third floor."

"Yeah, she is, and Matthew Adams is on the east side, but in the dungeon. We can see about getting him first and then use him to get Storm. In the meantime, I can disable the cameras and mics."

"Right, what I was thinking too. Now, we can cross to the main passageway, switch places with some guards and head upstairs. By the time the guards are supposed to be changed, we'd be where Storm is. It'll be easy to hide her after our four hours of watch without raising an alarm, since we'd be right back where we're supposed to be. By then, we can go back to where we came from and head back here."

"Sounds solid. With just the two of us and Matthew, I'm sure we can make it."

"Yeah. Have a few guys that can take over the transport system?"

"Already on that. Anything else?"

"Not that I think of right now. We are traveling light."

Roger nodded. "Right. However, I think we should leave tonight."

"What? Why?" Logan expected a day to prepare and another to get there.

"Less people are out tonight," Roger pointed out. "One quick word to Charles and Hank and we'll be off. Think you can be ready then? I can get your pack."

Logan nodded slowly. "Not a problem. My bag is at its usual spot."

Roger didn't say another word. He dashed off and soon was back with Logan's gear and his own. From there, the two traveled another way to the garage, Roger picking a vehicle that was compatible with the melting snow and driving off inconspicuously into the night. The garage and then the gates opened and the night enveloped them as they navigated away from Salem Center and towards the back roads of Westchester. Logan assumed, with Roger driving, it'd take longer with the road blocks, ID checks and military personnel inspecting their vehicle. However, the master spy managed to skip all of that, soon arriving in New Jersey in no time flat and moving south quickly. By the time the sun weakly came up the next morning, the pair were in DC and soon ditching their car.

Logan was surprised by his surroundings. The last time he had been in DC was to do some snooping and to check on Danielle and her new baby. Then, the city had been decked out in decorations for the new heir and was celebrating the arrival of a boy, although chaos remained outside of that happy bubble. Now, it seemed like it was in ruins. Battles had been waged in the streets and the military had been pushing back. The smell of dead bodies were everywhere, even from those living off of what had been left behind. Windows had been shattered, a lot of doors were hanging on hinges and the streets echoed with the occasional gunshot. It was dark, despite the sun coming out, and gloomy. It was not a capital city anymore. Logan saw it as a black hole of shame.

"Come on," Roger finally said, nudging Logan in the sides with his elbow. "Let's get out of here before someone sees us."

Logan nodded, following Roger through the deserted walkways and streets of DC. An hour later, they found themselves at what used to be the Supreme Court. Logan kicked some of the ruins aside, stepping over flowers, teddy bears and even messages of hope, always mistaken as treason instead of compassion. He and Roger then walked to the back of what used to be a proud building and found the manhole for the sewers. Roger lifted the cover and went down, Logan following him after putting the cover back behind them. From there, the two carefully walked a pathway, meeting several homeless people on the way, all of them hiding from Ellis. While the two had to tell all of them that they had nothing and prove it as they showed their bags, they still had to watch their pockets. Roger did not think them threatening, since none of them were spies from Ellis anyway, but Logan was suspicious and always checking out their surroundings left and right before they departed from the residential end and entered into a darker end.

From memory of the maps, Logan led Roger through them silently, stopping every so often, and soon came upon the tunnels underneath Peter Ellis' home. Shushing Roger, he moved on alone and quickly disabled the three men needed for uniforms. From there, he hid the unconscious bodies in a nearby closet, pulling off their clothes. Roger then came forward, eager to execute the next step of their plan. The two then changed, Logan hiding the last clothing in his pack, and waited for the signal to move to the next position.

That did not take long. Soon enough, Roger and Logan were directed by some captain to check in on Matthew. When asked about where the third guard was, Roger pointed out that he went ahead. The excuse was accepted, allowing them free access through the house. Roger had this committed to memory by studying it so many times. First, he and Logan wound their way through the dank passageways of the dungeon, soon coming upon a series of cells. With the keys taken from the guards, Roger counted out which one was which and soon found Matthew's, walking to his cell and unlocking it.

The noise hardly startled the prisoner. Matthew had been sleeping in a corner, the pair saw, and saw not in the best of conditions, especially since he didn't even respond to the door opening. It was obvious through his appearance that he was not going to pass muster for inspection and be a guard with them. Logan nodded to Roger in understanding and the two decided to leave him for last. Satisfied with that decision, they made their way out, locking the door behind them, and heading upstairs to the other side of the house, where Ororo was imprisoned.

The changing of the guard went fast. Before Logan knew it, they were inside the room Ororo was housed in. Roger whispered that he'd stick outside and they'd switch in two hours as was planned. Logan nodded, entering the bedroom and taking a quick glance around. He knew the room to be monitored, so stayed quiet and did his job, keeping to the shadows and watching Ororo sleep. She seemed to be in the same state of shock as Matthew, but not as dirty and perhaps more beautiful. It seemed like someone, most likely Peter, was using her and had dolled her up to appear prettier for appearances' sake. It was a thought that made Logan's stomach drop in dismay. Nonetheless, he waited for Roger to turn off the electronics and swap positions. After over two hours of waiting, he heard the door open behind him.

It was Roger. "We need to move…now," he said. "Peter Ellis is locking down his house because his shiny cameras and microphones are not working. If we're getting out of here alive, we need to grab Storm and Matthew and make a break for it."

"How many are out there now?" Logan asked in dismay.

"Meeting with the guards was a few minutes ago," Roger explained. "They might be ending it now. Even though we were excused from it, Logan, we still need to go."

Logan did not need to be told twice. Immediately, he walked over to the sleeping form on the bed and grabbed Ororo, following Roger out the door just as the sun peeked fully through the windows. On the way, just as Logan repositioned Ororo to rest over his left shoulder, they crept into a dark corner, seeing the other guards pass them and go into Ororo's room. Once they realized that there had been an escape, they sounded the alarm and shouted for more help. That was when Logan and Roger knew that they were going to be trapped.

Logan handed Ororo to Roger. The master spy gave him a dirty look until Logan shot him an equally hateful one. "Take Storm," Logan ordered. "I'll get Matthew. Meet me back under the courthouse."

Roger did not argue as he tossed Logan the keys, running in one direction. Logan took the other way, joining some other men and pretending to take part in their activities. Once the captain of the guards positioned him back to the dungeon, Logan took his chance. Immediately, he went downstairs, backtracking to the cell Matthew was housed in. Sensing nobody around, Logan unlocked the door and slowly walked in, ignoring the stench around him, and unleashed his claws. He noted that Matthew was chained at the neck, legs and arms. That was a quick fix, the metal disintegrating under his careful handling. It also took no time to pick up the limp body and carry him out, claws back in.

On the way back through the tunnels, Logan kept hearing Matthew mutter nonsensical words over and over again like it was a prayer that would protect him. He shook his head, thinking that maybe Matthew was dreaming, but he doubt it. When he heard Matthew talk about Peter stopping something, he listened. As he reached the end of the tunnel system and turned to the small doorway that led to the sewer, he then heard Matthew curse Peter and beg him not to touch Ororo. Matthew started struggling against Logan, but the older mutant held on tightly and restrained the squirming body. He was almost out of there and did not need someone to hear Matthew.

However, something nagged at Logan and would continue to for some time. If Peter was raping Ororo and using her as bait, then Leon Ellis might be doing the same to Danielle. And if one was interchangeable, then it would not matter. The two were dangerous…and they would need to go. That much Logan can promise to him. Peter and Leon Ellis would need to be killed and he would be the one to do it.