(Three)
Logan came down from the slope and walked unhurriedly over to Kane. He hadn't seen any signs of anyone coming and had decided to come down. Maybe Kane would have some meat cooking and would want to talk for a while. He greeted Kane and was about to ask him something when the wind shifted. Logan froze. The wind carried the scent of a large group of people coming their way. "Someone's comin'."
Kane looked at him. "How do you know?"
"I'm an alpha. It's what I do."
At that moment, there was a flash of light and a small pack of large men, warriors, materialized in the middle of the camp. The leader was massive, over six feet tall and very powerful. He was Clan by his dress and tattoos – he had the most markings of any Clan man Logan had seen so far. They covered most of the sides of his chest and arms. The only gap was down the front of him where the Honor Sword would be if he had it. His hair was fiery red and tied back in a long ponytail. He had a long broadsword in a sheath tied to his back and a Dognan energy gun strapped to his thigh. His face was cruel, his eyes mean. There was no mistaking the malice or power of this man.
At his feet crouched a small black haired man, clearly some kind of feral alpha. He was dressed in a ragged pair of leather pants and wore no shoes on his feet. He carried no weapons. His eyes darted quick and sure about him as he took everything in, sniffing at the air. He grinned wickedly up at his Master, showing broken, jagged teeth.
"Easy, Reese," the big man purred, patting this creature of his like a pet.
Behind him stood another man, his Second, Joseph. Joseph had a large amount of tattoos and carried a broadsword as well. His hair was a deep brown and tied back as everyone else's was. He was tall and sturdy, a heavily muscled warrior as were most of Valentin's men. He looked over the crowd with the arrogance of someone who has been in power for a long time. He would be as cruel as his Master.'
The people of Kane's camp immediately dropped down to the ground, kneeling submissively in terror. Valentin turned his withering gaze on Kane and sneered, "Kane."
Kane dropped down on one knee. "Valentin," he returned with equal contempt.
Valentin looked next at Logan who hadn't moved. "And you are?"
"Neutral observer," Wolverine drawled in return to the question. He slouched arrogantly, hooking his thumbs in his jeans, looking for all the world like this was just some sort of causal bar fight and not something much more serious. That was all right, he figured he could take Valentin without working up much of sweat. The bigger the bully, the bigger they fell. And they always fell, each and every one.
Valentin approached him cautiously but without real fear. "And what have you seen?"
"Nuthin' that impresses me all that much."
Valentin stopped and smiled at him indulgently, like the cat who had swallowed the canary - or was about to. "Really?"
Logan yawned, bored by this punk's pathetic attempts to intimidate him. "Really."
"Well, we'll just have to work harder then."
Valentin's men began to laugh.
Logan didn't get the joke, but then all the hairs suddenly went up on the back of his neck. He turned to look behind him, but it was too late. A flash of light blinded him and Reese, the feral alpha, was suddenly there, inexplicably standing right beside him when he had just been quite a few feet away. Logan then realized that this beast was the teleporter and before Logan could react to that irritating little fact, a restraining collar was placed on his neck and his target flashed away. The man then reappeared next to Valentin bowed on one knee, a sly and proud grin on his face.
His master looked down at him, pleased. "Very good, Reese."
Reese garbled something lovingly up at him only Valentin could understand.
Wolverine was not so amused. He snarled in frustration and yanked on the collar, feeling the red rage rise. He let it, it couldn't make this mess any worse at this point than it already was. The collar wasn't coming free no matter how hard he tugged on it. Fine. If Valentin was going to cheat, so could he. He then popped his claws, feeling his flesh shred and bleed without healing. It didn't deter him in the least – he was a pain junkie and shivered with the joy of it, looking forward to the coming battle. He was going to rip this jackass a new one and love every minute of it.
If Valentin had been surprised by Logan's hidden weapons, he gave no sign. He stepped towards Logan without hesitation, accepting his invitation, and they circled. Valentin still had that large sword strapped to his back but didn't pull it. Instead, he suddenly kicked up dirt into Wolverine's eyes and with a speed startling for such a large man, smashed a massive fist into his face.
Logan didn't even try to evade it. The collar had dulled his senses and delayed his reaction time, he hadn't even thought to dodge the blow. The force of Valentin's strike lifted him off his feet and sent him sailing backwards a few feet before he landed gracelessly on his back with a thud. He did get some satisfaction in spite of his pain, though – hitting his metal laced bones was like hitting a brick wall. Valentin howled with pained surprise and gripped his wrist in agony. That he hadn't expected.
Wolverine shambled drunkenly to his feet with a wicked laugh. It had been a really long time since anyone had sent him for a flight like that, this was getting interesting. He came back to Valentin without fear and circled him once more, sniffing at him like a buzzard to the kill. Valentin's wrist was obviously injured and the big man wouldn't be able to strike out at him again, not like that. How nice. Logan chose his moment and lunged, swinging one clawed hand out menacingly just for show. He drew no blood, he had only wanted to intimidate Valentin and wasn't quite ready to take this to the next level, not until he was certain of just what he was dealing with. Even now they were still only negotiating in their stubborn, high testosterone way, Logan was hoping this could still end in his favor without someone being dead.
Valentin was clearly a veteran warrior, he dodged Logan's half heartedly swung blades quickly and spun, kicking Wolverine in the face. He wore heavy boots with steel toes and Wolverine felt his lips tear as his mouth exploded with pain. How he didn't lose teeth on that one he didn't know. He twisted and went down on his knees hard, blood pouring from his open, gasping mouth. Damn, he was getting his ass kicked instead of the other way around! He was beginning to regret his choice to hold back. Maybe there was only going to be one way that this was going to end after all.
Valentin just laughed, thinking he was winning this all on his own, and paced around the downed man in a circle. "You alphas are all the same. So arrogant with your silly powers."
Logan calmed, trying to get back under control. He knew he was letting his rage get the best of him and that he was better than this. He could beat Valentin down without resorting to murder, it was just a matter of time. He wiped his chin as he stood up on shaky legs and pulled his torn lips back in a bloody smile. He spat blood and they circled again. He was about to make his next move when a volley of red glowing objects flew past him overhead towards Valentin. Logan knew to keep his head down but his opponent did not. The ground exploded in front of Valentin and he spun away, cursing.
Logan looked behind him and saw Gambit and Henry coming. " 'Bout time you guys showed up," he couldn't help but tease. He was happy to see them.
"You know us, better late dan never," Remy wheezed with as much humor as he could muster. He was still weak but putting up as good a front as he could. It wasn't working, he was quite pale and looked like he would fall down at any moment. He hadn't healed enough for this.
Valentin wasn't a stupid man. He wasn't about to wait to see what might come his way next and so barked a command at Reese. Quick as a wink the feral man blinked out and was gone.
"Watch yer backs!" Logan called out to his teammates, his untrusting eyes never leaving Valentin's face. "He's got a teleporter!"
Gambit and Henry braced themselves at the warning but Reese did not appear. Instead, the rest of Valentin's army melted out of the blackness and came towards them. There were at least three hundred men in total, all in prime physical condition and armed with swords and arrows. More than a few of them carried Dognan energy guns. The X-men were completely surrounded with no way out.
Valentin scrutinized the three mutants before him. He was even bolder now with his men behind him and his voice was haughty and proud as he commanded, "You boys had best decide now if you wish to live or die."
"Kneel down and live to fight another day," Kane advised them from behind Logan, his voice trembling with real fear. All of Kane's earlier bravado was now gone, so much for him standing up to Valentin.
There really wasn't much choice and though it rankled him to do so, Logan got down on one knee. Gambit and Henry went down behind him, taking his lead. It didn't mean they were all out of plans. Their submission was outward only -- they all knew how this game was played, stay down and wait for the best time to strike again.
Valentin approached Wolverine more confidently now, his men following closely behind. He came up to Logan and gave him a backhand slap, wanting to establish his dominance. "Both knees for you, outsider!" he sneered. Logan started to stand, flushed with rebellious fury, but Valentin knocked him back down. "Stay down, wild one, or maybe I'll take one of your friends. They seem a bit weaker than you."
Logan stayed as he was, his sides heaving from his barely controlled impatience. He knew there was no way out of this, not just yet anyway. His anger still burned however, rising up out of him in a deep, throaty growl.
Valentin eyed the feral man warily, but didn't back down. Another of his men approached him from the main pack, carrying more restraining collars and energy cuffs. Logan snarled at the sight of them but didn't fight as he and the others were next restrained. There was no profit in it, not the three of them against three hundred. He would probably make it, but not his teammates. He would have to wait.
That finished, Valentin next turned to Kane. "Come here, Kane. We must talk."
Kane stood and obeyed nervously, his face pale. He looked up at the larger man and Logan smelled his fear. Valentin could as well, the red haired Clansman grinned with evil intent and Logan knew Kane was going to die. Valentin's voice was calm as he spoke, "Cerebus tells me you've been to see him, Kane. He is pleased that you have freed these alphas, they are prized above the others. Supposedly, they are the ones of legends told on the Far Earth. Fallen's little X-men. They seem a bit pitiful to me, but Cerebus wants them just the same. He shall have them."
"They are his," Kane stammered, clearly hoping a little generosity might get him out of this.
It wasn't going to happen. Valentin's voice became more haughty and arrogant. "Of course they are. And I shall bring them, not you. Did you really think this meager offering would get you what you want? The pilot? As if Cerebus would give his First Pilot to a two bit piece of Clan trash like you? Please! Not when he has someone else in mind more deserving."
"She'll never bow down to you!" Kane snarled and recklessly drew his sword.
Valentin just laughed at the sight of it. "Fallen and I know each other in ways you'll never understand," he growled. He pulled his own sword and they circled just as he and Logan had done. Kane could see that Valentin was wounded from the brief tussle with Wolverine and was all over it. Kane lunged wildly and without finesse, Logan almost groaned aloud at the sight of the man's stupidity.
Valentin was perfectly calm and therefore far more accurate -- he sidestepped just as he had with Logan and with an easy, well timed stroke, hacked Kane's arm off and sent the man's sword sailing off into the growing darkness. Logan cursed Kane's recklessness. Kane had been seriously outmatched, it hadn't even been close to fair fight.
Beyond all help now, Kane screamed in mortal agony, bloody foam and spit flying from his mouth. Valentin walked up to Kane as he finally sank to the ground on his knees and lay his sword across Kane's neck. "No one gets Fallen but me!" he snarled and cut the man's throat with a single angry thrust. In disgust, Valentin then tossed the man to the dirt like a sack of garbage and spat on him as he twitched and bled out into the ground. His grisly work here now done, Valentin cleaned his blade on Kane's leather pants and sheathed it with a satisfied click.
At that moment, Fallen herself finally came from the Lucky Dragon with Reese following behind her, loping awkwardly on his hands and feet like a big broken dog. In contrast, Fallen's strides were long, confident in her authority. Reese had a hard time keeping up.
Valentin watched their approach with keen interest. "Ah, Fallen, so good of you to join us."
Fallen saw Kane's ruined body and without preamble, hollered, "How dare you!" at Valentin with shock and fury. She went right up to the big man and recklessly slapped him viciously across the face. "Who do you think you are?!" she snarled, her face flushed.
Valentin didn't answer her challenge immediately, but wiped his chin with one hand. He smiled a wicked smile that only grew larger as he took her in. He towered over her, enjoying his superior height and laughed, amused in some sick way by her blatant lack of respect. "You look good, Fallen." He licked his lips in anticipation, his eyes gleaming.
Fallen just glared at him and fearlessly held her ground. "Who do you think you are, coming in here like this and slaughtering your own people?" she repeated, demanding his answer.
"Who am I? I am first General and may do as I please." He clearly wanted to avoid talking about Kane and discuss more personal matters, his eyes roamed over her with unveiled sexual interest. He purred at her, "It's good to see you again, my pretty. It's been a while. Did you miss me?"
Valentin was looming over her, trying to prove just who was boss here, but Fallen wasn't having any of it. She raised her tiny fists and defiantly hissed at him like a cat, showing him her long canine teeth. She had no fear of him and it seemed inevitable that they would come to blows just as he and Kane had done. Logan couldn't wait to see it. Fallen didn't have a restraining collar so he figured she would use her powerful telekinesis against Valentin and get them all out of this. It was going to be awesome watching the man get his comeuppance. He couldn't wait to see Valentin go for a flight. It was sure to be glorious and oh so satisfying.
Still, if the pair was going to fight, they were taking their time sweet damn time about it. Valentin was amused by Fallen's defiance and continued to freely undress her with his eyes. He dared to reach out and touch her chin and smiled when she jerked away from him in disgust. He continued to bait her, saying, "I see your jaw has healed since our last meeting, how nice. Time again to put that mouth of yours to good use."
Amazingly, Valentin started to unbuckle his pants and Logan was stunned. Didn't this guy know who he was dealing with? Fallen was going to pound him into next week.
"You put that in my mouth and I'll bite the fucker off!" Fallen warned, meaning it. She made no move against him, though. She simply stood her ground, unyielding.
"Hmm....We have ourselves a bit of a problem, then don't we?" Valentin teased, his voice still hard and amused. He slid his belt off, letting it rasp through his thick and callused hands before dropping it to the ground. "Whatever shall we do?"
Logan grinned in anticipation, he couldn't help it. If there was going to be a fight, surely it was going to happen now. There was no way that someone as blessed with abilities as Fallen was was going to let this brute of a man follow through on his threats of sexual misdeeds to come.
Valentin, done with waiting, finally started it. He arrogantly bent to kiss Fallen, so very sure of his own authority to do so, and she spat in his face. She was a good shot, her large wad of spit went right into his left eye. He snarled in exasperation and impatience, and savagely punched her in the face with as much force as his sprained wrist would allow. Unfortunately, it was still quite a bit.
Fallen's legs buckled from the blow but to her credit, she didn't go down. Having been on the receiving end of that fist, Logan was amazed she didn't fall. Even more stunning was that she had allowed the blow to connect at all. Where were her shields? No telekine worth their salt would have allowed that fist to ever touch them. What the hell was gong on here?
Damn..... Logan cursed to himself as it finally dawned on him what he should have already known from the fearful reaction of Maylee and the twin personalities on the ship to Valentin's arrival. With dismay he understood now that this was some kind of brutal ritualized dance that Fallen and Valentin had done before. Logan had seen enough repeat offenders in the battlefields of domestic violence to now see this for what it was. Fallen wasn't going to stop this or even help them at all.
Oblivious to what the others around her might have though of her, Fallen stood and laughed as blood now poured freely from her nose. It wasn't broken, but he'd split her lip. Her eyes were crazed, wild, and no longer sane.
"Just like old times, eh Fallen? Old times..." Valentin said wistfully, his smile huge now with the victory she had just given to him without so much as a fuss. He caught her hair in his good hand and dragged her towards Kane's tent. She feebly tried to slap and claw at him with her hands but he just ignored it. He roughly tossed her inside the tent and followed, closing the flap behind him.