Notes: Sangofanatic: Thanks! Sorry that the updates have been so slow, writer's block has been pestering me a lot. XX-Goth-Gal: In this chapter, there's just one left on her hit list-guess who it is. And I think you're gonna be a bit surprised at what happens after this. Marie: Thanks for the lovely review! I'm always critical of my work and mission scenes are not my favourite thing. And to answer your question, she walked down the corridor to another room, sorry for not making that clearer. Jade: Thank you so much! Your review was fantastic and really made my day, I'm glad you like this fic so much. Blair: Unfortunately, romance wouldn't fit in this fic easily and I decided when I wrote this to not include any. It's dark and bloody and I intend to keep it that way. Sorry. Quinevere: Thanks! Tanya: Thank you so much! I always take it as a compliment when people ask for a quick update and feel bad when I can't manage to write anything. Glad you like! Furine Panpasu Kitsuchi: Thanks! I love reviews like yours so thank you so much. Unearthlyangel89: Thank you! I plan on having much fun with the X-Men's reaction to it all, and how Rogue deals with their reactions.
Again, this chapter was incredibly difficult to write and is a bit on the short side, thanks in part to random fits of writer's block. But we're nearing the end now, just two-four chapters to go and if you ever have any con crit, don't be afraid, I don't bite, lol, and I'm always interested in improving my writing.
Chapter Ten
Twenty minutes later and she only had one target left. Her left shoulder was aching, which was not surprising because there was a bullet buried somewhere in her flesh. She'd tied a temporary tourniquet around it but knew that she needed to get some proper medical attention soon. It was a distant thought, though, just an automatic note sent to her consciousness by her ever-practical brain.
After five minutes of aimless wandering, Rogue walked into an empty room that appeared to have been an office of some sort and let herself relax for a moment, taking note of her sweat-soaked skin, her panting breath and her pounding heart. She slumped to the floor, resting her head against the wall, and just let herself breath for a little while, feeling the adrenaline that still rushed through her veins. She was so close, just one more death and she would finally be free of this place. So close…
But, as usually happened in her life, things weren't that easy. She had one target left, but no idea how to find him. She didn't even know if he was still in the building, it would just be like that slimy rat to tuck tail and run when things got bad. She should've kept one of the guards alive, made him tell her when Adams was. But she'd been so caught up in the killing, the bloodlust, that she hadn't stopped to think about that.
Rogue sighed, closing her eyes and relaxing her grip on the gun. Her fingers were hurting, her whole hand starting to cramp up from holding the gun so long, and after a moment's hesitation she put it gently on the floor in front of her, wiggling her fingers and clenching and un-clenching her fist.
She needed a plan. For once, her usual strategy of just charging in head-first wouldn't work, mainly because she didn't know which direction to charge in. If she knew where Adams was, then she'd just grab her gun, check her ammo, and run after him, but he could be anywhere. She shouldn't have spent so much time killing the guards. Yes, they'd been important people to kill, she'd fulfilled her promise of killing everyone who touched her and Jean, but Adams was a lot more important. He was the big fish, her personal, private personification of evil and wickedness. When he was dead, when his warm blood coated her hands, she would finally be able to rest. If he escaped, if he fled before she could kill him, he would always haunt her, she could feel it. It was like she was locking away this horrid experience, burying it deep in her mind, pushing it out of her heart, and Adams' death was the final brick, the last shovel of dirt, the snap of the lock.
Rogue shook her head to clear her thoughts, berating herself for letting her mind wander, she had to remain focused. Just a little while longer, then she could rest. She kept repeating that in her head like a mantra as she forced herself to stand up. She had to think calmly, logically. There was always a way, always a solution, she just had to find it.
She looked around and noticed for the first time that there was a computer on the desk in the corner. Well, that should help. Smiling wryly, she walked over and sat down, turning the computer on and waiting for it to boot up. She wasn't entirely sure what she was looking for and she spent a few minutes searching folders. She found a list of names that she assumed were people who paid to see the fights and saved it to disk, thinking that maybe the Professor would like to see it. She found another list of names that had a date and a power listed next to it. She recognised a couple and knew that it was a list of the dead mutants. She saved that, too, as well as some bank account information. There was a lot of money in various accounts and she intended to see that it was put to good use.
After nearly ten minutes of searching, Rogue found more than she'd hoped for-a map of the building, including a secret tunnel that appeared to lead away from the building. Bingo. Rogue studied the map, noting the various entrances to the tunnel, and figured out that the nearest one was just a few doors down from where she was. Picking up her gun, she checked the ammo and then set off again, walking swiftly down the hall until she found the right office. She strode to the back wall, and felt around near the bottom until she found the small little depression. Pushing it as hard as she could, she heard a small click and a section of the wall swung inward to reveal a set of stairs that lead further downwards.
It was dim, lit only by a few lights set into the walls, so she moved slowly, clinging to the wall and straining to hear any movement that wasn't her own. By the time she stepped onto even ground, she knew that she was nearly half a mile beneath the surface, well beyond help if she should need it, not that she actually cared about that.
She knew from the map which direction to go in and began walking at a brisk pace. She had no idea how far ahead Adams was and if he'd actually reached the end of the tunnel, he could be anywhere in the town and she'd never find him. That thought spurred her on, made her ignore the needles of pain that shot through her body, until she was nearly running.
Logical thought fled, her brain descending into the most primitive of states that was often ignored by the average person. It was the state of the hunter, the killer, where nothing mattered but catching her prey and killing it. Even the Cage hadn't forced her to this level of primal thought, not quite, though it was similar. It was strange and she knew that later, when she could afford to, she would think about it, study the way she had thought and acted when this primal mood had settled over her. But for now, she merely used it, twisted it to her advantage, let it rule her body and trusted that it would help her survive.