Title: From the Inside

Rating: PG-13 (I refuse to bow myself for the new system :p )

Genre: Genereal/Action

Summary: On a day which couldn't be worse, Max bumps into a stranger trying to steal her bike. Never could she know that hers and the strangers paths soon would cross again... Dark Angel/X-Men (Wolverine) Crossover!

Disclaimer: I am so sorry guys for the waaay too long overhaul of not updating. I browsed through my old stories the other day and I realized that I had just stopped updating this story, without even knowing why, since I had additional chapters waiting. But then I remember my computer crashing down on me, and that I just never got to it after that.

So, without further adue or excuses, here's the next chapter… the fight between Wolvie and Alec ;)

" Hey there, y'can talk with your little missy later, ok? Now it's fight time!"

The speaker glared at Alec, and he shook his head. He straightened himself, taking in the man before him. He wasn't tall, but he was nothing but pure muscles. Sure, some of the guys he had beaten before also were well built- but these look like actual, real muscles. He had something about him that reminded Alec of an animal, and he found his nickname in here fitting.

" He ain't gonna dive, ain't he?" Cindy asked as Max sat down next to her. " No, he's a fool and he'll remain so. I just hope he survives this..." Cindy wanted to reply, but couldn't as the speaker announced that the fight began, and the sound of ringing clocks belled in her ears.

Wolverine had watched the kid fight since one of his first matches here, and he had to hand it to the kid, that he was good. He seemed to have military training, much as well, since he fought so well. There seemed to be some superhuman strength in there as well, but Wolverine didn't worry. He gave this two minutes, at tops. And then he'd be playing around with him...

Alec started the fight with approaching him with a quick punch from this nasty left hook. Wolverine easily blocked it away, and as Alec backed a few steps to regain composure, he decided to use his speed and strength at the same time, so he approached again, using both arms, and one leg.

This time, the Wolverine didn't block them off, instead he only stood rather still and took the blows. Alec had time to think that hitting the guy was like hitting steel, a brick wall, but didn't let that stop him. He decided to go fast and furious on him, and take him down and use that he would get tired, which would slow down his reflexes.

He went on him, delivering kicks and blows at him but the man only took them all, blow after blow. Max, sitting in the audience actually thought for a moment that Alec might be able to take this guy, but she couldn't help but wonder why Wolverine wasn't doing anything. He was just standing there. But then she remembered her training, and what Wolverine was doing to Alec- he was making Alec tired...

After a few moments of punching more, Wolverine decided that it had to end now. When Alec threw an extremely powerful blow, meant to take Wolverine out, he just rose, and did the same thing to Alec as he had done to Max the night before. He met him dead on, knuckle to knuckle, and Max winced herself, as she saw the pain written in Alec's face when their knuckles connected.

Alec withdrew his hand immediately, shaking it. It hurt like hell, but he had to ignore it. He wasn't going down that easily and wasn't helpless just because he couldn't use on of his hands. But as he swirled around and lifted his leg to kick him in the head, Wolverine just intercepted it, grabbed the leg, and threw him into the net. When Alec rose, he was there, and Alec tried to punch him, but he just threw his hand and arm away, and instead Wolverine hit Alec's face with a blow of his own, making Alec go down to the floor, again.

Alec winced in pain, thinking in his blurry world that his guy knew precisely where to hit. His vision was blurry, and Wolverine moved with great speed and elbowed him in the back, making Alec's rise impossible. Alec grunted out his pain, thinking this was enough, and rose to his feet as Wolverine gave him space to do so.

Alec charged at him after spitting out some blood on the cage floor, and furiously began hitting with his well hand, and kicking with his legs. But after a few seconds it looked like Wolverine got tired of the games, and then when Alec tried to spin around and hit him in the neck, Wolverine was already there, grabbing his arm, twisting it, and after mumbling a "sorry, kid"… Alec's world would go black.

Wolverine held his arm, twisted it and made sure he strained the kids elbow and then at the same time as he kicked his legs out from underneath him, he sucker punched him at the temple, which sent the kid off to the land of the unconscious.

"... and the winner by knockout, the WOLVERINE!"

Max and Original Cindy rushed over to the cage, to collect their unconscious friend. Max looked at Wolverine when they called his name and announced him winner- he didn't look happy, actually. Like this wasn't something he was proud of, more of like just something he had to do.

Max could relate to that, she didn't always like to fight but when it required to, she did because she had to. But she had always thought that cage fights were ludicrous, and Alec's beat down just showed she was right. She made a mental note about reminding the unconscious X-5 of that...

Some of the people working there dragged Alec to the side, where Max and Original Cindy announced themselves as friends of his, and they were here to take him home. The people nodded, and went away. But Max could feel Wolverine coming towards them, probably to brag. She sighed, and prepared herself for something snide, but nothing like that came.

It was like he also recognized her, like she had done hours ago, and he stopped dead in his tracks, but said nothing. They locked eyes for a couple of moments, but both were too proud to say something, and even if they weren't, either could think of what to say.

Wolverine walked over, and bent down besides them. Max wanted to shove him away from them, but something about his stance told her that he wasn't her to pick another fight. " Is your boyfriend OK?" he asked Max, and Original Cindy had to stifle a laugh.

" He's not my boyfriend, " Max answered, " and he's gonna be OK. What's it to you?" Wolverine gave a half laugh, then grabbed Alec's front part of the body, and helped Max carry him out of the cage.

Max picked up her cell phone and dialed Logan's number, and he answered after only one or two rings. " Hey, Logan it's me, " she started, and continued with asking if he could pick them up, there was no way she would get him onto her bicycle… They could place him in Logan's car, and perhaps even patch him up at his apartment. Luckily, Logan obliged, saying he'd be there in fifteen minutes.

But Max hadn't missed Wolverine's twitch when she had said Logan's name. But she made nothing of it.

Max looked at Wolverine, crossing her arms after putting down her cell. " A friend of mine will pick us up. Why don't you go collect your prize or something?" Wolverine raised an eye- brow at her, thinking that the kid sure was cocky, even to someone who'd he thought had brought her ass down to earth. Apparently, she still soared in the sky. High from painkillers, maybe.

" I think I'll do that..." and with that, he started to walk away, but Max wanted more from him. What, she wasn't sure, but at least a name would be sufficient. " Hey, I never got your name?" She shouted after him, and he turned, walked back and offered his hand to her. Not something any other enemy- although she wasn't sure if he was that or not- would have done to her.

" Name's Logan. What's yours, kiddo?" Max still didn't like that he called her 'kid', but she decided to ignore it for the moment. Once he knew her name, he would hopefully stop.

" Mine's Max, " she introduced herself, shaking his hand with a sturdy grip. She couldn't help but shake an inner laugh from herself, now she knew two Logan's, both funny men, hard to understand.

His hand felt a bit odd to her, someone that just had been in a fight like that and probably many like it, would normally have seriously damaged hands, bloody or at least marks and scars. But his hands felt like he hadn't done a days labor in his life, and this struck her as odd. They felt unnaturally hard as well, and it definitely had something to do with the hardness she had experienced form hitting it the night before, and that her crushed hand kept reminding her of.

" Well, good to know your name Max. Perhaps I'll see you around some day..." And with that, he walked away into the crowd, to collect his prize.

He couldn't quite figure her out, what she was. Was she a mutant, like him? Or was she just someone who had some seriously bad assed training? But she seemed young, and a strength like that wasn't normal for a person her age, or stature for that matter. He'd heard about breeding programs, where they bred the perfect soldiers, and maybe she was one of those. But then she had to have escaped, because he knew for sure they didn't let their soldiers out in the open just like that...

Thinking of all this with breeding programs, involuntary got him to think of his own involvement with the government, and their secret programs. They were the ones to have given him his adamantium skeleton, and even some of his training attributes. He would never thank them for it, because it came with a high prize, and the loss of knowing everything about his past- so he didn't really know who he was.

Imagine that.

Not being able to celebrate birthdays, because you didn't know when you were born. Not being to tell people your last name, because you honestly didn't know what it was. Not even being sure what your surname was. Always having this instinct, this crave for knowing who you were, because all you knew was who you were now, at the moment and a limited series of years back. Not being sure of anything...

But he had gotten used to it, no matter how much he hated it.

" What was that all about?" Original Cindy asked, waking Max up from her thoughts as she looked down at the badly beaten Alec, and waited for Logan who would be here any minute now. She shrugged her shoulders, as she felt her pager go off, which meant that Logan was here. " I don't know... Logan's, well my Logan, is waiting outside. Help me carry, will ya?" Original Cindy grabbed Alec's legs as they started to walk outside, but couldn't keep her mouth shut for much longer about what Max had just said.

" Your Logan?" Max looked at her, wanting to nudge her shoulder. " He's not my- you know what I mean!" Original Cindy laughed, and Max couldn't help but smile along, as they carried Alec out to the car, and drove home to Logan's.

A/N: Do as you will with the revies... but for old times sake, eh?