Disclaimer: I don't own the X-Men
Changed
As Logan said, "Three," he popped his third claw though not without a little hesitation. He had never killed a man in this way. He had never thought that he would have to. At the moment though he figured that the man deserved death because he would just be let off by the authorities. That and Logan didn't want to let anyone live who was a friend of Vargas. The kid had his stench on him so that meant that he at least had met Vargas and since he was a criminal he had earned himself Logan's wrath.
His claw went up through the man's head and came out the top. The man's blood gushed down and coated Logan in the crimson spray. The only thing holding the man upright after that was Logan. He retracted his claws and the man's body fell to the ground in a head along with his friends. "That is where gutter trash belongs," Logan said to the body.
* * * * *
Rogue and Sage watched in horror as Logan popped his third claw. Never had Wolverine done that no matter the person. Rogue was scared deep down that they had lost Wolverine in that instant. She feared that perhaps the animal had indeed claimed him finally.
They ran into the alley and heard him say, "That is where gutter trash belongs." At that instant Rogue knew that he was still the Logan that she knew only that he was in a great deal of remorse. She just had no idea how grief stricken that he was.
Rogue yelled at Logan when she was only fifteen feet away, "Logan what do ya think ya are doing."
Logan looked up at her slowly and she thought that she saw a tear but she wasn't sure. Then he spoke to her in a voice that sent a shiver down even her spine. "I am taking care of business. Since none of you are able to avenge our fallen friend then that task falls to me. I am the only one it seems that is equipped to deal with it.:"
"What do ya mean," she asked curiously. She wanted to know how he thought that when he knew that they all missed Psylocke. Some more than others like Neal but they all missed her.
"I mean that I am the only one willing to kill the man that killed her. I am tired Rogue of letting these people go who kill my friends. I have had it. No one else wants to avenge them then that is fine. I shall be their avenging angel then. I am the best at that and there is nothing to do about it darlin'. Rogue, I owe Vargas a blood debt and there is nothing that will protect him. Not even you and the rest of the X-Men," Logan said almost sadly. He believed everything that he had said. After all there was a reason that he had been chosen as the Horseman of Death.
"Ah sugah you don't need to do that. We all care about you. Some of us more than others. Logan we don't want to see you get hurt. We don't want to see you become something that you have fought so long not to become," Rogue said trying to reason with him. Deep down though she knew that she couldn't. He was and had always been unreasonable.
Sage stepped forward and placed a hand on Logan's shoulder. "You didn't need to kill them. They were just young men," she said though she knew that it was best that they were dead. She had seen how they had chased the girl and she knew what they would have done to her had Logan not been there.
"They had to be killed. I had to do it for all the girls that these pieces of trash had done this to before. I had to get payback for them," Logan said.
"Sugah ya are startin to sound like Ghost Rider," Rogue said. She had met the spirit of vengeance once and she didn't wish to repeat that meeting.
"So what Rogue. He isn't around and we owe it to Psylocke. Now if you will leave me be I a man to hunt," Logan said as he started to walk by Rogue.
She reached out and put her hand on his shoulder to stop him. He stopped and looked her in the eye through her ruby lens glasses. "What now Rogue," Logan demanded.
"Will you at least return with me to see the rest of the team. Storm in particular I think would like to see you. She would also like to talk to you," Rogue said knowing it to be true.
"I don't have anything to say to her. It was her job to make sure you were all alive. It was her job to keep you safe," Wolverine barked at Rogue who released her hold on him at his words.
"Do you truly feel that what happened to Psylocke is Storm's fault. If you do then I am sorry Logan. I am sorry for you," Sage said sadly.
"As a matter of fact I don't know what to believe. I have seen to much and been the one to survive when better people had died. All I know is that Storm was the senior member of the group. She should never have let Psylocke fight Vargas on her own," Logan said sadly.
"That could be true yes but you also know that Psylocke was honorable and she had decided to fight him that way so that Beast wouldn't be killed. She deserves to be remembered with fond thoughts and not to have that sullied by exacting revenge," Sage said wisely. At least she hoped that it sounded wise.
"You may be right Sage but I know how to do things only one way. I owe Psylocke and if nothing else I am going to make sure that she gets to see her home one last time," Logan said angrily.
"So you still plan on killing Vargas right sugah," Rogue asked.
"That's right Rogue. He has made a list that only a very few ever have. He is right up there now with Sabretooth," Logan replied.
"Fine just meet us at this address. Please come and talk to Storm before you do anything else," Rogue asked.
"I will think about it," Logan said as he took the offered piece of paper with an address on it. He looked at it and noticed that the address was in a better part of town.
"We will see you there Logan. Right now though we need to round up the rest of the team," Rogue said as she picked up Sage and they flew off. Logan watched them and saw Rogue wave to him quickly so as not to drop Sage.
Logan decided that he would indeed go see Storm. He wanted to see if she even felt any remorse about not being able to help her friend. That and Wolverine had nothing better to do. Well actually he did but he had to leave a message for Vargas. After that it would just be a matter of waiting.
* * * * *
Logan spent the rest of the day going from bar to bar and finding anyone that knew anything about Vargas. He found only a very few people and all of these he found out about them. One man was a murderer, and another was a thief. Others as well were criminals and so each of them that deserved to die did. The murderer was the first. Logan left a message written on a piece of paper at each death.
Deep down he was scared that for the moment he was a lot like Sabretooth killing without any remorse but the thing was Logan didn't want to kill. He was doing to make the city a better place. Everyone that he had killed were criminals of top order excluding the first few. He had killed a drug dealer as well. He was doing the city a favor and yet with each death he still felt a bit sad. Not much because he was a soldier but nevertheless the feeling of remorse for each death was there. It was just a very tiny spark in a dark night.
Logan knew that the news stations would play the deaths and read the notes and he also knew then that those he let live would carry his message back to Vargas. Two such people were twins. They hadn't fought him though he knew that they knew how to fight. They just took his message and left. He knew that Vargas was going to get his message and he wandered what his reaction would be.
* * * * *
Rogue and the rest of the team was rounded up at the house and they were all waiting for Logan to show up. It was still early in the afternoon and Rogue had a feeling that Logan would wait until nearly dark to show up. He was just that way and she didn't fault him for that. She almost felt the same way that he did. That and she knew more about him than anyone else. She understood him better and she knew that getting Psylocke's body back was a point of honor to him in a way.
"Well where is he Rogue," Bishop asked brusquely. He didn't like waiting like this. He would rather be doing something. That and he had never truly gotten along all that well with Wolverine. What did he care if Wolverine decided to turn on them. Bishop figured that he would deal with it when it happened.
Storm wasn't looking forward to the meeting at all. From what she had been told Wolverine blamed her for Psylocke's death and that was something that she wasn't sure that she could deal with. She knew that they were all her responsibility since they had went along with her. The thing was though that each had to do things their way.
Rogue looked around at them, her friends and family, and noticed that Storm was the most apprehensive of them all. She knew why and she didn't blame her. Rogue would defend Storm though because Storm had done nothing wrong as she saw it. Wolverine was just grief stricken and when that passed he would see the folly of his accusations.
Rogue hoped that Logan would come back to himself before he did something that he would regret. Rogue picked up the remote control and turned the T.V. on and the first thing that they saw was a newsflash.
"Yes I am here at yet another site of a murder. People though are starting to say that these killings aren't the work of some mad killer. No they are saying that these men are the bottom of the barrel. These men deserved to die it is being said by the general public. Also there was another note just like the others," the reporter said.
As they watched the reporter read a note that was addressed to a man named Vargas. "Vargas this and all succeeding notes are warnings. Come out of your hole and face me so that my friend can rest in peace. Vargas you and I have a date with each other and nothing will keep you safe. Go ahead and find me if you can," the note said. They all knew who that was from and they all knew that Wolverine was getting dangerously close to becoming a criminal. Rogue out of them all understood him. She knew why Logan did it and she also knew that nothing would stop Logan from killing Vargas. Deep down she knew that to be the truth.
"Oh Logan what are you doing," Storm said sadly. She knew though, and she knew that they needed someone else to talk him out of it. Logan wouldn't listen to any of them because some of them like Bishop had never made an attempt to get close to him. The only ones that had ever truly been close to Wolverine were Kitty and Jubilee.
* * * * *
The plane landed at the airport and a young girl wearing a yellow jacket disembarked from the plane. She had a bag in one hand and with her other she pushed her sunglasses a bit higher up on her nose. "Well Wolvie the cavalry is here," she said as she started towards the exit.
She had no idea where she was going to go and while she waited near the exit she watched the T.V. which was located in the next room over for those who were waiting for friends and family. On the T.V. was a newscast that was telling about all these killings that had happened today. As she watched she heard the note being read and she felt a chill go up her spine at what the note said.
Her hand involuntarily went to her mouth as if to cover it. "Oh Wolvie please don't let that be you. You were the one that convinced me that killing was a bad thing," Jubilee whispered to herself.
At that time she heard a voice in her head. It was the professor and he said, "Jubilee you need to get to this address. At that address you will find Storm and the rest of the X-Men that are with her. They will need your help in convincing Logan that his course of action is wrong."
"All right professor. I will get there as fast as I can. I just hope that it isn't too late to help Wolvie," Jubilee said in her head in response to the professor.
She didn't get a response from him but then she hadn't really expected one. She hailed a taxi and jumped in. She needed to hurry. She didn't want her Wolvie to get into too much trouble because of his grief.
* * * * *
Logan had spent the better part of an hour trying to rationalize the killings. He knew that he shouldn't have done it but it was the only way that he knew he could reach Vargas. Death was something that the man understood and for some reason seemed to almost respect.
After the last killing Logan had looked down at his blood covered hands and just shook his head. "I'm turning into Sabretooth all in order to get to one man. That is what Sabretooth would have done but it was also all I could think of," Logan said sadly as he nearly shivered at the thought of becoming Sabretooth.
"I can't kill anyone else but Vargas now. It shouldn't take too long to get a answer from him," Logan said as he retracted his claws. He didn't wash his hands after each killing like he should have. No he felt that he should carry their blood on him for at least a little while. Even though they were men that had deserved every slash and cut that he had inflicted upon them.
It was dark now and he decided that he needed to get to the mansion or whatever the place was and talk to Storm and the rest of them. He finally washed off and stopped off long enough to get a change of cloths from his stashed duffle bag. He changed into his old brown uniform as he headed towards the address he had been given.
* * * * *
Jubilee knocked on the door and Rogue answered it. She smiled after the initial shock of seeing Jubilee wore off. "Sugah what ahre ya doing here," Rogue said as she stepped back to let Jubilee in.
"I was sent by the professor to come and talk to Wolverine about what he has been doing," Jubilee said getting right to the point.
"Oh he has been a little different ever since he had found out that Psylocke's body had been taken and that she had been killed," Rogue said as she led Jubilee into the room with the rest of the team.
Storm rose and embraced Jubilee like she would a beloved sister that she hadn't seen in a while. "It is too bad that sad tidings bring you to us. I wish it could have been some other time child," Storm said as she released Jubilee.
"Me too but Wolvie needs our help and I am not about to give up on him. He never would give up on any of us," Jubilee said knowing it to be true.
"That's right sugah. We owe it to him to at least try to stop his course of action," Rogue said. Then she added, "Have a seat and stay awhile. We are waiting for Logan right now."
"Thanks Rogue I appreciate it," Jubilee said as she blew a bubble and popped it. She was always chewing gum especially when she was nervous.
They all knew that sooner or later Logan would show up. He always kept his word and he had given it that he would be there. They just hoped that they could stop him and if not then they hoped he would let them help him in some other way.
* * * * *
Logan looked at the door to the place and shook his head. They were all going to hate him now but that was to be expected. He had done things that no X-Man should do and he was willing to take the reactions from them. He would though carry through with what he had started and he would kill Vargas. Psylocke would find peace and he would see to it.
Logan reached up and knocked on the door lightly and waited for the answer to come. He took a deep breath and squared his shoulders. He would be himself when they answered the door. They couldn't take that away from him and even he couldn't lose himself completely to the monster that lived inside him.