AUTHOR'S NOTE: As promised, chapter 29 fully corrected and ready to go. Enjoy. ;p
Chapter 29
At first he was positive he was simply hearing things; then when he saw those sky blue eyes gazing down at him it all came flooding back. For a second all he could do was gape at the man he saw standing above him. Black hair slicked back, rising into two points on either side of his head. Remy's mouth went dry, his eyes flickering back and forth as Loki and then Steve appeared on the edge gazing down at him with equal if not greater astonishment.
"INTRUDERS!" One Eye screamed; his voice breaking the spell over the Cajun. Gambit's attention automatically snapped back to the present as he spun to face Sabretooth. The feral had begun to roar even louder, cursing underneath his breath something about fools as he tried to yank the stakes out with sheer strength. To Remy's left Wolverine bristled, his adamantium claws sliding out. Even in the dim light the Cajun could tell Logan only possessed bone claws. If he tried to take on Wolverine….
"Logan?" Remy said despite himself. Then he made a decision.
Turning around he spun his staff a final time. Slashing at one of the bonds that held Sabretooth. The feral looked shocked as his hand came free, trailing thick rope. Next Remy slashed at the other one, releasing the blond feral. Wolverine froze; staring at his mate as if he were insane.
"Get me t' Logan, you sorry bastard!" Gambit ordered the blond man. For a second Sabretooth looked as if he meant to attack him. He saw the feral's amber eyes flicker as he gazed at the Cajun. It would be so easy for his former tormentor to overtake him right then and there. Despite all those months of training against a simulation of Sabretooth, Gambit could not be prepared to face the real thing.
"Thanks, Cajun. Didn't know you liked our time together so much. Enjoy yourself?" Sabretooth laughed as he flexed his claws. Reaching up he ripped the last of the ropes from his wrists as around them the rest of the Lupine people began to scramble. Shouting and screaming, the crowd dissolved into chaos. Wolverine roared, trying to establish control while at the same time reaching for his mate.
"Get me t' Logan, cher, an' maybe I'll convince Loki to give ya a quick death." Remy hissed. Sabretooth snarled at him but turned dutifully away. With a roar he dove into the crowd, tearing at the bodies which were in front of him. Hunters had begun to pour out from all sides, closing in on them.
"REMY!" Loki screamed as he watched the unlikely pair beginning to fight. He had seen the Cajun release the Sabretooth and exchange words. All the trickster could do was hope the man knew what he was doing. Beside him Logan had already shouted as he dashed along one of the pathways towards his Cajun. What worried him was the fact Remy was actually headed away from them. Loki saw the red eyed man shout something at Sabretooth. The feral roared, but Gambit screamed at him again and they had stopped coming towards them. Going in the opposite direction as the Cajun's staff spun in a blur as he fought off any who got in their way.
"Come on, we need to get to him!" Loki shouted at Steve. He didn't wait to see if the former Avenger would listen. Moving fast, he dashed after Logan heedless of his own safety. He heard the heavy breathing of Steve behind him keeping up. They met the first wave of panicked ferals head on and began to fight their way through.
Remy had remembered Daken with a sickening jolt. Wolverine disappeared momentarily in the crush of bodies. Some unseen signal went through the crowd, and most of the ferals avoided the two men. Though the Cajun suspected Sabretooth speaking in some guttural language probably helped as well. A mother and two children crossed their path cowering as she herded them along. Being sure they did not get trampled to death in the moving mass.
Gambit had been heading directly towards Loki and Logan, but when he remembered his step-son he had stopped and cursed. He could not leave Daken there to rot. While he felt divided in the role the boy had played in his capture, the young Lupine had at least tried to repair the damage he had done. He had attempted to get Remy to safety at the risk of his own life. So he had shouted at Sabretooth to get him to Daken first. His former tormentor had cursed, demanding where it was the Cajun wanted to go and to make up his damn mind. Remy's hands had begun to shake despite the death grip he had on his staff.
You can't be losin' yo' mind now, cher. Keep it together. You ain't doin' dis fo' you; you is doin' it fo' Logan's son. Lose yo' nerve now an' it will be de death of ya.
His red on black eyes flashed warily as they came closer. Already Remy spotted the great boulder One-Eye had moved to bring him out. A quick glance showed the crowd had begun to thin as the Lupines headed for the surface. He saw no sign of Wolverine and felt his heart skip a beat. Turning back to Sabretooth he pointed at the boulder his voice deadly calm despite his inner panic.
"You need t' move dat."
"Like hell I will." Sabretooth spat. When he saw the shocked look on the Cajun's face the blond feral only laughed at him.
"What, you think I'd do this for free? I want somethin' in return."
"Dis is no time to barter!"
"Well, guess your shit out of luck then." Sabretooth mocked him. Gambit shot a look over his shoulder. Common sense called for him to just wait for Loki and the others to reach him. They would take care of this. Yet the Cajun had a gut feeling he would not have a choice. He could easily be killed right here and now just as safety was only a few yards away.
"Name your price, bastard." Remy hissed at Sabretooth. He had broken out into a cold sweat as he glared at the feral. It was sickening as the feral's smirk widened at winning the round.
"I ain't going to be killed, tortured, quartered, or any other bullshit your fanboys got planned for me. And don't go trying to hire a mercenary or nothin' to finish the job, either. I'll know." Sabretooth warned, tapping his nose. His amber eyes flashed as he became serious, the gold glare narrowing at his victim.
"If I get killed because I piss someone off, then boohoo for me. Other than that, you and the others ain't to lay a finger on me."
"Deal." Remy said breathlessly. Sabretooth fixed him in his gaze for a split second longer then growled.
"Swear on it."
"Fine, cher, I swear on my life dat I agree t' de terms you set. Happy?"
"No." Sabretooth answered.
Before Gambit could protest the feral had turned back around. Grabbing one edge of the boulder he grunted as he began to move it. Shifting it to one side, he revealed the gaping black hole inside. Remy held his breath as he moved towards the entrance, his heart pounding as he gazed into the blackness.
"Daken, come on cher, we have t' go!" Remy called into the dark. He heard movement and then a flash of a pale arm. Then sky blue eyes met his own; dulled over with pain. Shakily the boy rose and moved towards him; taking one careful step at a time as if he had only recently remembered how to walk.
"Tell the runt's whelp to hurry up. I can't hold this damn thing much longer." Sabretooth growled. Remy ignored him, but he held a hand out to his step son to hurry him along.
Daken didn't hesitate as he reached out to grasp the Cajun's hand. Stepping back Remy drew his step son with him until he was out of the cave. Relief flooded his features as he pulled the boy into a quick embrace. He then just barely missed his foot being smashed as Sabretooth dropped the boulder and let it roll back into place with a grunt. He glared at the pair then checked to see if anyone else was coming towards them.
"Alright, you got your fucking kid. Now we need too- AAAAAARRRRRRHHHHHH!" Daken and Remy both jumped at Sabretooth's roar. When they turned around all they saw were three shining adamantium claws sticking through the feral's chest before he was tossed over the edge only to land with a thud at the bottom as a pool of blood began to spread around him.
Wolverine glared at them, his claws dripping red with fresh blood as he advanced on them. Gambit pulled Daken behind him as he held his staff up, taking a swing at the feral with the red blades Logan had installed it. The blades which, somehow, slowed down a healing factor to the point where any cuts from the blades made any wound he inflicted mortal.
Wolverine simply reached up and blocked the staff with his claws. With a twist of his wrist, he yanked it from Remy's grasp and tossed it off to the side. It landed with a clatter down below beside the prone form of Sabretooth. Remy felt his blood run cold as he continued to back up with Daken behind him.
"Carcajou… Cher, stop. You don't want t' be doin' dis…"
"You tried to leave. Why, Mate?" Wolverine demanded, his tone guttural. He approached them with shoulders hunched, his dark blue eyes gleaming with bloodlust. When he bared his teeth, Gambit saw nothing but sharp fangs. Over the coming weeks it seemed as if he had become less and less human. Now the Cajun could not even recognize anything he loved about the man.
"Go away." Remy said weakly and then with a jolt he came to a stop. He looked behind him in a panic to demand why Daken had stopped and saw to his dismay they had backed up into a corner. Surrounding either side of them was sheer rock and no way out except for past the bloodthirsty Lupine headed towards him.
Wolverine continued to advance, now only three yards away from them and closing the distance with long strides as he approached in a half crouch. His dripping claws left a trail of blood droplets behind him, staining the ground with their glistening colors like oil in the pale light.
"Mom…" Daken hissed into his ear. Gambit set his mouth in a grim line as he tensed, going rigid. He had a death grip on Daken's hand as if he could will the boy through the stone and to safety.
"Yes?" Remy whispered back. His lips barely moved to form the words as Wolverine came within only a few feet of them. The light casting him in darkness save for his two eyes gleaming like a hungry animal's at them.
"I'm sorry."
A split second later Remy felt searing pain in his right arm. He screamed, his other hand automatically reaching up to stop the flow of blood suddenly going down his arm. What appeared to be a bone claw protruded out of his right arm right above his elbow. He stared, then screamed again as the claw was yanked out. Daken grabbed him by the back of his shirt and suddenly Remy was being shoved forward towards Wolverine.
The move startled the feral. When he caught scent of his mate's blood he pulled up short and reaching up catch his mate as he all but fell into his arms. Daken went into a half crouch and lashed out at the tendons of his sire's legs. His bone claws, an extra one beneath each wrist, cut the flesh easily. Wolverine roared as he legs went out from under him, suddenly useless.
Grabbing Remy again, Daken yanked him away out of his sire's grasp and shoved the older feral over the edge, sending him toppling down to join Sabretooth. Gambit's face had gone completely pale as he stared first at his step son then at his arm which continued to bleed. Blood gushed over his fingers and stained the ground even more.
Across the cavern, Logan heard his Cajun scream. He looked about frantically, cursing his poor eyesight as he looked for the other man. He spotted the younger man on the far side of the cavern. Remy's face was ashen as he gripped what appeared to be a bleeding wound in his arm. Daken stood over him as his son peered over the edge of a twenty foot drop, gazing down at a bloody mess that appeared to be Wolverine.
Despite the fall the feral was already recovering. Rolling over, he got up and shook himself off like a dog. Logan felt the hairs rise up on the back of his neck at seeing his other half. He felt an animalistic roar rip from his throat as he jumped down to meet Wolverine. Drawing his own set of claws, he rushed the other.
Wolverine had barely gained his footing before he heard the challenge. He spun to see what it was and growled when he spotted his human counterpart. The feral still had enough of his intelligence left to worry about his mate. Mate had been hurt. Mate was bleeding. Mate needed his help.
Mate needed… Needed… What? He could not remember.
This he knew, though. Wolverine knew battle. He had been christened in the blood of his enemies. Roaring his own challenge, he raised his claws and met the man head on. Their claws locked with their first clash, and began slashing at each other. The man known as Logan weighed his options and drawing on the countless years spent training as a samurai, calling forth all his knowledge of martial arts given to him by ancient masters and orders lost in history.
Loki stared in mute shock as the two halves faced off against each other. Wolverine ran on nothing but instinct, but Logan held his own with his experience and training. The two traded blows as one tried to gain the upper hand over the other. Trying to take the side he hated down so he could rule. Somehow, it seemed almost as if the two had done this before. They had fought this battle many times it seemed.
"Loki, Remy's hurt!" Steve yelled catching the trickster's attention. Loki's eyes snapped up and he spotted Remy on the far side. The man had sunk to his knees and held his arm, his face pale whether from pain or the stress he had gone through the following months, he did not know.
Without a word he dashed towards the Cajun. It felt as if it took forever before he was at Remy's side, pulling the man into his arms and burying his face in his auburn hair. His fingers burned as he hurriedly healed the wound. The skin knitting together as the blood stopped. It wasn't until the sobs reached his own ears that Loki realized he was crying. He was relieved to have finally found the Cajun.
"Loki?" Remy asked, dazed as the trickster pulled him into a crushing grip. Daken stood on his other side, completely rigid. Raising his head, the Cajun spotted Steve running towards them. Having slung his shield over his back to keep it out of the way, he too came over. Stopping, he came up short as he saw the demi-god crying.
"Mr. LeBeau, are you injured?" Steve asked breathlessly. Remy stared at him, then at his healed arm, and then finally back down at the two figures fighting each other. Then he raised his gaze to stare at Daken who met his gaze. His face was impassive, a neutral mask as the boy stared at him.
"Why?" Remy asked him quietly. He saw Daken's eyes flash for an instant, whether it was regret or sadness, the Cajun could not know.
"It was the only way to save you." The boy said quietly, nodding down towards the two figures below.
Gambit reached up and touched Loki's arm still in shock. As he watched the two fight, he could not help but feel… What did he feel? Guilt? Remorse? Anger? Rage he had been yanked between these two for ten years like a rope? His very self almost torn in the process?
He had half a mind to let them fight to the death for what they had done.
