Disclaimer: I do not own the X-men I do not intend to make any money off of their usage.

David's POV

Ugh my head feels like I got hit with a steel pipe what the hell happened. Did I outdrink my healing factor. It allows me to get drunk but I haven't had a hangover since my powers emerged. This doesn't feel like any hangover I have ever experienced.

"General Stryker the mutant is waking up." General who? What the hell is going on.

"Where the hell am I?" I asked to no one in particular as I sat up on the floor of a cold metal cell.

"You did quite a bit of damage here. Incapacitated some of my best guards." A man nearly 6 foot with lightly graying hair and glasses said as he approached my cell.

"Maybe next time you should hire better guards." I replied as the memories began to come back to me.

"On the contrary I have the best guard one could hope for. X-23 would you step forward?" He said and a few seconds later a thin teenage girl stepped into my sight. There was something extremely familiar about the girl I cant quite place my finger on it however. A scent that I know I have smelled before. "Say hello to your captor young man. Its funny you took down a dozen highly trained highly armed men but were taken down yourself by such a small child." I took one look at the girl and knew she was a mutant and I also knew that she was being controlled in some way. If I can figure it out she could possibly be a strong ally in my escape.

"X-23 huh doesn't look like much. Let me out of here and I will show you just how much you are overestimating your guard dog." I glared at the man pretty sure he wouldn't go for it. But the girl let loose a low rumbling growl and I knew she was feral right then. Maybe all I need to do is unleash the animal inside her and she will go beserk. I have seen Logan do it once in the danger room and as Dangerous as it would be for me I know it may be my only hope at getting out of here.

"That wont be necessary, you see I have seen your mutation in action. If I simply let X-23 tear you to pieces it would ruin other plans I have for you. Your healing is not quite as advanced as others I have come across but I believe if your powers were boosted you could possibly survive the bonding process." He smirked before walking away.

"Bonding process what the hell are you talking about?" I yelled at his back. I was hoping to keep him talking but he didn't bother to even glance back my way as he left the room. Then it hit me like a ton of bricks. Bonding process, a feral mutant, and as hard as she hit me. I have only been hit by one other person that hard, and I remember him telling me about his nightmares of the bonding process. I am screwed, I need to find a way out of here and fast. I will have to worry about fighting X-23 when the time comes for now I need to figure out a way out of here.

Jubilee's POV

"Professor please tell me you have found something?" I asked once he emerged from Cerebro. He had been in there for 8 hours now and all I have been able to do is sit outside of the door.

"No I am sorry Jubilee. Wherever he is at he is either shielded from me or he is not using enough power for me to pick up a trace of it." He replied taking my hand in his. "Rest assured Jubilee I am merely taking a short rest to relax my mind and then I will get right back to the search. As hard as it may be I need you to remain calm. Getting worked up is no good for anyone David included." He then added.

"How do you expect me to remain calm? As much as you may not want to admit it professor he is one of us. He would have gladly given his life for the X-men and he nearly did for me. We have to help him." I nearly yelled in my frustration.

"Jubilation assemble your team and go to the danger room. If we are to rescue him I will need you and your team at your best." He said back through a smile and I had to stop and take a serious look at him. As exhausted as he looks he appears to be serious and that's all I need to know.

"We will be ready professor." I replied before heading off to find my team.

Network's POV

Ok an emergency team meeting. Maybe we will finally be heading out on our first mission. But why are we gathering in the danger room instead of the war room. And why is Surge here I was sure after what transpired between her and Jubilee that she would no longer be a part of the team.

"Everyone I feel I need to inform you that we will be going on our first mission soon. Although I can not say when for sure. So in the meantime we will take the time we have before hand to prepare in any way we can." Jubilee said trying to be the fearless leader but her words seemed tired and strained she clearly hadn't slept much last night.

"Jubilee vat is going on?" Nightcrawler asked before I had the chance. I clearly am not the only one who noticed she seems troubled.

"And why am I here I want nothing to do with you?" Surge then spat angrily.

"I asked you here because we need you Surge." Jubilee replied and now I know something is really wrong. Jubilee wouldn't throw her pride aside that easily unless it was something bad. "You may not like me and I am fine with that. This is bigger than me and you."

"What is wrong Jubilee?" I then asked. My concern has been growing exponentially since we entered the room.

"Something had happened to David. He is hurt and by himself somewhere and I have no idea where. The professor is looking for him as we speak and once he is located we will be joining the X-men in a joint rescue operation." Jubilee answered and my heart sank. I know where he is at but he made me promise that under no circumstance would I give away his location. I don't break my promises but can I really keep this one.

"Something happened to Karma? How he is too powerful, how could he be hurt?" Alex asked and my hurt sank even more. He will be pissed once we rescue him but at the same time he will be rescued so he cant really be that mad can he?

"Network is something wrong?" Jubilee asked, I guess she could sense my trouble.

"No it's just David means a lot to all of us." I replied covering my tracks. If he is not found by tonight I will tell them where he is at. I only hope it wont be too late.

the training session was rough but one of the best we have had by far. Everyone seemed to be determined and we all worked together to get the job done. I read stories online all the time of tragedies bringing people closer together but I have never seen it with my own two eyes until today.

"Good session everyone. Get some rest I do not know when we will be heading out but we need to be at 100%. Surge I know we are not on the best terms but thank you for following orders and thinking twice before acting." Jubilee said one we were preparing to leave the danger room.

"Like you said this is bigger than us. We can work on our problems after we rescue Karma, but until then we need to work together." Surge said extending her hand to jubilee as a truce. Jubilee accepted and I couldn't help but smile at their actions when just a few short days ago they were at each others throats. I just hope things go as smoothly for us on the real mission.

David's POV

I have been sitting in this cell for hours. Nothing but my thoughts and the horrible smell of the guard across the room. Fuckin prick keeps spewing his hatred of mutants because he knows I cant get to him. Or so he thinks, Just because I am in this cell doesn't mean I don't have a trick up my sleeve but I wont use it on him unless I need to. As Long as I have some hidden power I can use as a weapon I have a bit of an advantage and I am not going to waste it. For now I will just let his comments slide.

My mind begins to race, what if my escape attempts fail? What if They do get ahold of me and attempt the bonding process? What if I never see the people I care about again? No I cant think like that. If I go down I am going down swinging. I will go down fighting for everything I believe in the very things that brought me here in the first place. I will fight for the honor of Mutants everywhere. I will fight for the love of the friends that I have. I will see my family again one day this is not the end of Karma. These people are in for one rude awakening as soon as I can figure out how to unlock my cell. Until then I will lead them into false beliefs. I will let them think that they have won. They may have the advantage but I was always one to root for the underdog.

A plate of a disgusting looking excuse for food was slid into my cell. I wouldn't feed this to a pig let alone a human. But then again to them I am probably lower than a pig. Just as I am about to throw it back at the guard I stop and think. If I am going to break out of here I will need every bit of strength that I have. I eat the food after smelling it to make sure they didn't add anything extra to it. It was as disgusting as it looked and I feel like it took more energy fighting to keep the disgusting stuff down that I would stand to gain from it.

Occasionally the guard in the room steps away from the console he sits at and I can see the monitors he watches all day. I use these opportunities to study the layout of the different floors for any escape rout I can and so far it looks like my best bet is to go out the way I came in. Easier said than done though. Now I have a metal laced feral to look out for that I am certain will not hesitate to kill me if they tell her to do so. She will attempt it anyway. She wont be the first feral I have faced off with. And I have learned to hold my own against Logan although he doesn't attempt to actually impale me. I wonder if she has his claws, or just the skeleton? Sabretooth had long fingernails but not the 9 inch long unbreakable razor sharp claws. I hope she doesn't have that in common with him.

Speak of the devil, I look over at the monitors and I can see the girl. She is surrounded by a few guards. She definitely has some enhanced strength judging by how easily she just threw that guard twice her size. There is Stryker, what does he have in his hand? Is that a syringe? She immediately calms back down once he sticks the needle in her neck and then everyone goes on about their day as if nothing happened.

An hour later and another guard comes in. Much to my surprise it is the one that got tossed by X-23. I just smirk at how much fun I am going to have toying with him.

"What's up Ray I see the freak started to resist again." The first guard said.

"Yeah, the bitch is getting harder and harder to control. They are going to have to start upping her dosage. She is getting those injections every four hours now." Ray informed him. which may help me although I am not sure how yet. How do you combat a chemical reaction. Hank would probably know, too bad I cant call him right now. I will come up with something or I will just wing it. That always seems to work pretty well for me.

A few hours later, I cant tell how many for sure being stuck inside this cage and I receive another visit from Stryker and X-23.

"Hello, David is it?" He more stated than asked.

"Your good." I replied looking up at him from my place on the floor.

"No it just turns out you are not very good at keeping yourself hidden. How are the X-men? No doubt they will be searching for you." He then smirked looking back at me.

"Maybe your not that good. I am no longer with the X-men." I informed him. "I was to bad for them and you will soon find out exactly what I mean."

"I am afraid you are mistaken, you see after tomorrow you will be bonded with adamantium and you will be completely under my control." Shit I don't have as much time as I thought. But then again maybe I wont need much. I can hear X-23's heart rate climbing and her breathing becoming more erratic. She begins straining against the control they are keeping her under.

Stryker pulls a syringe out from his coat pocket and prepares it for X-23. "Don't worry David you will become acquainted with this little cocktail soon enough." He remarks and suddenly an idea forms. I don't have to combat a chemical reaction if she doesn't receive the chemical. Time to use my trump card.

The energy I have saved up wouldn't be much but I had planned a few ways to use it. I drew all of the kinetic energy from the bullets the night before and shot it directly at Stryker. It didn't amount to anything more than a hard shove but it knocked him back into the wall and the syringe fell from his hand. It broke once it hit the floor and the contents spilled. He looked down fearfully before looking at X-23. The animal was coming to the surface he had only a minute or so before she regains who she is. He quickly exits the room and shuts the door behind himself leaving just me her and now the guard trying to restrain her. She is clearly in pain as the animal is fighting the residual chemicals in her brain but her strength is stronger than ever. Two metal claws appear from her hands and make quick work of the guard leaving vita organs spilling out onto the floor. They are not quite as long as Logan's but if the guard is any indication they are every bit as sharp as his.

"X-23 you are ok, they are no longer controlling you." I said and now I am holding her attention. A hole is cut in my cell door and I think I may be in trouble.

She makes her way into my cell with blood on her mind. I know from dealing with logan that the best way to handle an animal is to show it that you are the alpha. She growls at me trying to show her dominance. I stand tall and draw a deep breath sucking in air to make myself appear even larger. She is unfazed and she leaps at me. I duck and dodge to the side just in time to avoid her attack. I grab her wrist and bend it backwards behind her back and pull her into to me. I quickly grab her other arm and hold it still so that she cant attack me with it. I am holding her back to my chest and I breathe a low deep warning into her ear. Before I can react she extends her foot straight up and another claw on her foot pierces my lung. I refuse to let go. I can feel my lung filling up with blood but as quick as it does my healing begins to expel the blood from my lungs and seeps from the hole in my chest. I can feel my lung stitching itself back up.

"Damn it X, I am trying to help you!" I scream into her ear loudly and it seems she understood. Her body doesn't relax or submit but she does stop trying to attack. It could just be a trick but there is only one way to find out. I release her from her hold and she turns to face me with her claws still out.

"I want to get out of here just as bad as you do. If we work together we can make it happen, they will never hurt you again do you understand me?" I ask and she stands perfectly still searching my features for any sign of deception before turn and walking toward the door. She slices the door clean off of its hinges and kicks it over.

It seems like every guard in the building is waiting for us on the other side all with their guns drawn. We are soon met with a ail of gunfire and X-23 rushes forward without thinking twice before stopping and noticing that all of the bullets hung suspended in the air. She turned and looked back at me before continuing. She decapitated one guard quickly and ripped another chest open. I have never seen another humans heart in person until that moment. When I have a second I will try to ask her to refrain from killing but at the moment it is them or us and I have to choose them. I rush forward to join her still stopping the bullets before punching one guard taking his gun and smacking another with it. A third rushes me with a knife drawn and I can sense him from my side. I lean back as he lunges with the blade. I grab his wrist and snap it causing him to drop the blade to the floor. I then hip toss the man putting him on his back. A swift kick knocks him unconscious. After all of the guards and a scientist lay either dead or incapacitated we move forward. We find a set of stairs and make our way up. I learned quick that she is not one for words. Every time I say something she either just nods or complies. She has stopped with the killing though which I am thankful for. The last floor was a bloodbath I have never seen anything like that. We are met with more and more opposition but they put up little match the two of us together are a seemingly impossible team. She is good, even without killing she is severing major muscle groups and nerves preventing men from being able to stand or even move for that matter she has had some serious training. With her speed se could be even deadlier than the Wolverine.

Just as we are making our way to the last floor I spot a camera n the ceiling and I face it directly. "Stryker, I don't know where you are hiding but I promise you. There is nowhere on this planet that you are safe, I will find you."

We got to the roof and I can hear dozens of guards down there waiting for us. I hear a helicopter in the distance rising up into the air and its heading straight for us. Judging by the pure size its no ordinary helicopter. It might as well be a flying tank. Damn and its more than just one.

"X we have to go grab my hand." I said and she stopped and looked at my outstretched hand as I approached the edge of the building. She hesitantly took my hand just as the helicopter began to shoot at us. Enormous rounds tore through the concrete of the building as we leapt and took off into the sky. She squeezed my hand tightly scared of flying but the helicopter was still after us we couldn't go on foot. I bean flying back and forth dodging what bullets I could and stopping the rest but the pilot was good and he was keeping right on my ass.

"Hold on tight X." I said and she climbed onto my back and wrapped her arm around me. I dipped down into the trees in an attempt to lose the helicopter. I began flying quicker dodging and maneuvering through the branches. X helped and sliced the occasional one down for me. The helicopter kept firing tearing through the trees behind us. It was clear these people were not going to go let up. Then we have to take out the chopper.

I raised back up into the air and stopped a few bullets behind me and sent them flying directly back at the helicopter. they barely made a dent in the armored attack chopper. I swooped up high and decreased my speed and the elevator was soon in front of me. "Bring it down X." I yelled as I got close to the rear rotor of the behemoth bird. She stuck out her claws on her left hand and sliced through the rotors like butter. The helicopter began to spin out of control and lose altitude. It fell into the trees and the rotors that kept it in the air were soon destroyed in the process. The second Helicopter thankfully decided to leave us alone and we made off into the sky.

I landed nearly a hundred miles east. We found a river and cleaned any blood off the best we could after we looked presentable we started walking again. "Let me do the talking X." I said as we walked into a diner in the first small town we came to. The door hit a bell when we walked in which made X-23 jump slightly. I put my hand on her shoulder reassuringly and looked down at her comfortably to let her know everything was ok. We walked to the counter and were soon greeted by an elderly woman.

"Well hello, what can I do for the two of you today?" She asked and X-23 fidgeted uncomfortably.

"Do you have a phone we can use. We were camping with our parents in the mountains west of here. and we got separated. My dad carries a satellite phone on him when we make these trips I just need to get ahold of him." I replied and she smiled at us warmly.

"Sure thing there is one over there in the corner." She said gesturing to a phone on the wall in the corner of the restaurant. I thanked the woman and me and X got up and walked to toward the phone. I dialed the number Network made me memorize and it rang twice before she answered.

"Hello?" She questioned from the other end of the line.

"Sarah it's me." I answered and I could practically hear her light up after hearing my voice.

"David! Oh my god are you ok I heard something bad happened." She then said which surprised me.

"Yea I am ok, I got caught and thrown in a cell. They wee planning on putting me through a procedure. I escaped and I am in perfect health. Can I talk to Logan?" I then asked as he needed to know about this.

"Uh yeah is everything alright?" She questioned and to be honest I am not sure if they will be.

"I'm not sure but I really need to talk to him." I replied quietly so no one else in the restaurant could hear my conversation.

"Kid?" I heard after a few minutes.

"Hey gramps. Got some good news, I think." I replied to the gruff animal.

"Only you can get kidnapped and come out with good news. What is it?" He then asked me.

"I don't know if you would believe me. Meet me in central park tomorrow. I think you should just see it for yourself." I informed him. "I don't want to say much over the phone just meet me there at noon." I then said before hanging up. We walked back to the counter and the woman working approached us once more.

"Did you get ahold of your father?" She asked with a hopeful tone in her voice.

"Yeah I did I gave him our location and he will meet us here in a few hours." I assured her.

"You two look like your starving what would you like?" She asked and after the slop I ate at the facility, real food sounds amazing.

"We don't have any cash on us mam?" I informed her realizing the only thing I brought on my trip was my phone and I haven't seen it since I got knocked out.

"Its on the house." She smiled and pulled out a pencil and pad of paper to take our order.

"Thank you mam, I appreciate it. We will make it easy on you two burgers medium well." I said and she nodded before giving the order to the cook.

"Your such a polite young man its a rare quality. May I ask what your names are?" She then asked and I knew I had to come up with something.

"David Kinney and this is my sister Laura."