(Three)
Kyle ran through the rickety building, his heart thundering in his chest. He had heard Kimble blasting out the wall of the holding cell without knowing for sure what it was. Kyle knew Logan was there, he had been the one to string him up, after all. His first thought was that other X-men had arrived to free their teammate. When he heard Lakotashay shout, "Kimble is dead!" he knew it was much worse than that.
Kyle used his power to break into the holding cell. He saw the open hole 'Shay had made and the pilot taking off. He watched as Logan was pitched off into space and Kimble disappearing off to the right. Kyle leapt out the window but missed where Kimble had gone next. Where? There! Kimble was just disappearing into the loading bay. The warehouse was large and there was a toolshed and a hazardous storage area down by the water. Kyle swooped down after him, hoping he wasn't too late.
(break)
Kyle never saw Rogue who hovered only a short distance away. She had never ended up finding Storm, she had done laps around this stupid building but they kept missing each other. She heard the noise Lakotashay had made as she tore the holding cell apart and flew right over. She now tailed Kyle as silently as she could.
She had seen Logan go flying, a fair toss by Kimble - poor Wolvie, snicker, snicker - but wasn't worried. She knew Remy was close by in the boat and that Wolverine would get picked up. So much for her getting him out of this without Gambit knowing. Not much she could do about it now. She didn't know how badly Logan had been injured, but like most X-men, wasn't concerned. They all knew he could heal up and didn't give it much thought. Her target had shifted to Kyle now. She had decided to err on the side of caution and not interfere until she knew for sure what was going on.
She followed Kyle closely, doing her best not to be seen.
(break)
Kyle landed quietly outside the open bay door, not wanting to startle Kimble by rushing in on him. He could hear Kimble throwing things around and making a mess, he hoped it was just Kimble having a hissy fit. Let him break a few things and then he would calm down. Kyle didn't start to panic until he heard the splash and smelled the reek of kerosine. He ran then, oh yes. "Kimble!"
He rounded the bend and skidded to a stop.
The pilot stood in a pool of kerosine, an unlit flare in his hand.
"Easy, Kim. Easy. Just take a minute, son."
The pilot stood in place as if he hadn't heard. A single tear dripped down from his face and pitter patted down to the lake of death at his feet. It was only a sign of fear, of the coming pain. It was the promise of release from all of this insanity that kept him going and he had no intentions of stopping. He fingered the flare, trying to figure out how to set it off.
"What are you doin', Kim?"
"Gonna go see my father."
Kyle cursed softly when he heard the voice. It was that stupid little girl, Lakotashay. Kimble's hair was loose, making him seem smaller and more feminine. She had taken over more than just the pilot's voice this time, he could see. The thought of her being in total control made his guts hurt.
"Look, kid. I know you're upset, but this isn't what you want. What about the ShaRain? What about your angel?"
"Ain't no angels fer monsters like us." She lowered her hand, ready to drop the flare.
"Kimble! Wait! Don't do this! What did that asshole say to you?"
"He tol' Kimble we wuz bad. Some kinda fuckin' pervert. We tricks people inta givin' it up ta us," she replied calmly with a small smile. "He called Kimble a rapist, imagine that. The Lover a rapist. Kimble didn' take it too good. He gave up and now it's up ta me ta finish this."
Kyle's mind was racing. Obviously Kimble was taking this whole nightmare as a personal attack and was damaged more severely than he ever imagined. "Wait, Kimble. Listen to me. It isn't true. Just because he said it, doesn't make it right."
She just looked up at him. "Kimble is gone. He ain't ever cummin' back. There's only me now. We ain't no hero, no ShaRain. I'm Lakotashay. I'm just a pile of worthless dog shit, fuckin' rat puke jus' like Logan sez. That's what a rapist an' a killer is, y'know. Well this pile of puke is gonna end this, makes it all right again."
Kyle cursed again. Damn Leon and damn that stupid plasma. Yes, it bound Kimble to them, but it played such havoc with his emotions. Kimble been teetering on the edge for a while now and Gail's death and Logan's words had shattered him, all made possible by the plasma that made him so receptive to the empathic feelings of others he couldn't block out.
Lakotashay turned away from him again and examined the flare more closely. This was not a hard thing to figure out. It didn't take her long.
"Zander, help me!" Kyle found himself shouting with no other option immediately available.
'Shay just laughed at him and popped the flare. Kyle realized to his horror that the room they were in was filled with canisters with large labels on them, most of them reading "Hazardous" and "Flammable". This room was one huge bomb and Lakotashay was now the fuse. It was just a matter of seconds before the whole thing blew.
Less. Lakotashay threw her head back and screamed with joy at the coming blackness as she released the glowing flare.
(break)
Gambit was standing on the prow of the boat, looking through the binoculars. It was damp out here, the humidity from the bay getting into everything. He tried to ignore the wetness in the air as he checked out what was going on at the warehouse. He startled and rocked the boat just a little when he saw one wall of the building burst apart and Kimble fly out, Logan in tow. He watched as Kimble pitched Logan out towards them.
"Is that Logan?" Fallen asked from behind him.
"Yeah, I 'tink so," he replied, his body already starting to shake. He just knew this was going to be bad. "See de two of dem ain't changed a bit. What a surprise. We gotta go pick 'im up."
"Kimble looks okay," Fallen said nervously, hoping that Anya's prediction hadn't come to pass. "I mean, how bad could he be if he can fly?"
Remy wasn't so easily comforted. He can lose one person and still be alive, understand? Anya had said. He shivered and gooseflesh broke out over his arms. He jumped down and started up the motor on the boat. He steered towards where Logan had splashed down.
Fallen turned on the spotlight and moved it out ahead of them. It took a few minutes but she found him, he was dog paddling unsteadily, barely afloat. They pulled up along side and Fallen hauled him up onto the boat.
"Are you all right?" Fallen asked. She passed her hands over him, shocked by the huge burns on his chest and shoulders.
"I'm fine!" Logan snarled more harshly than he had intended. He saw the hurt look in her eyes, but said nothing more. He pulled away and stumbled to the furthest spot away from the both of them. He sat down heavily and put his head in his hands, covering his face. His body was trembling from shock, his shoulders a huge throbbing ache. He was wasted.
"What happened to you?" Fallen asked again, but was shoved aside as Gambit came over and grabbed a handful of Logan's wet and dripping hair.
"You were told ta stay away! What you doin' 'ere? What did you say to 'im! You better 'ave some good news for me, mon ami!"
Logan just looked up into his eyes and Remy knew it then, he knew everything Anya said had come true. "You-you fucking asshole! You arrogant fils de la putain! You were told to stay away!" Remy snarled, his eyes already growing shiny as he struggled for control. "Baiser abruti! Vous morceau de merde!"
"I thought I could help...I thought I could..." Logan sputtered, but couldn't finish. The devastated look on Remy's face was too much.
"Is 'e dead? Is 'e gone?"
"I don't know...maybe. That little girl's got him."
Gambit snarled and turned away. He wanted to beat Wolverine senseless but knew it would accomplish nothing. He went back to the driver's seat of the boat and stood there as if waiting for a signal. The tears finally came and he turned away, not wanting the others to see him cry. What a stupid fucking waste. He should have known better than to think Logan could have been trusted. The man was stubborn, just like himself. After a moment he sighed and wiped at his face. He started up the boat and headed away. He wanted Logan out of here, away from his sight. He would come back for the girls.
(break)
Logan stared off into the black foaming water streaming out behind the boat as they sped away. It had been a long time since he had felt the darkness coming for him again, and he was certain it was on its way now. The last time was over a year ago. Now here it was again, swallowing him up. He closed his eyes, but all he could see was the face of the man who had captured him and done that horrible twisted thing to him. Crazy John. Logan sighed and rubbed his temples. What had he been thinking the night the Dognan had taken them? That when you were as old and as experienced as he was, sooner or later everything happened to you. It all catches up to you when you're not looking.
The man's name was Crazy John. John hadn't wanted Logan sexually, no. He had done it to break him. He had been drawn in by Wolverine's reputation as the meanest cuss around. He wanted the challenge. Anybody could beat 'ol Logan up. Hell, everyone knew Creed had set him on fire once. Sabretooth had bragged loudly about it and that guy never boasted unless he had done the deed himself. No, Crazy John wanted to do the undoable. He wanted Logan broken. Now, that would be a real accomplishment. Something to be proud of. John had set up cameras and everything to record the event as proof. He was going to show the world what a wuss Logan really was. He knew that Logan's testosterone laden ego would never be able to take it and he had been right, just not in the way he'd expected.
Logan had been drugged heavily through most of it, but he was aware enough to know what was being done to him even if he couldn't stop it right away. Afterwards, when the deed was done and Logan had revived a little, he snapped. John had miscalculated the dosage of sedative and Wolverine broke free of his captor and hunted him down. He did quite a bit more than just rip Crazy John's heart out, oh yes. Logan was a killer, to be sure, but he was Merciful Death. Mr. Quick and Relatively Painless. Not that night. He had ripped and shredded, then ripped and shredded some more. He dragged it out over several hours, feasting on the man's screams until he couldn't stand it any more. Later, there hadn't been anything left to identify. Didn't really matter, though. Crazy John still haunted him. He had come unbidden from Logan's nightmares. Just one more to add to his large collection.
The thing was...what really frightened Wolverine about the whole thing, was his loss of control. Sabretooth and he had a long standing rivalry, most of which came from Creed's disdain over Logan's unwillingness to give into the beast. Creed lived for the hunt. He savored it, wanted to taste the blood and drink it all down. Logan refused. He was afraid that if he started down Sabretooth's dark path, he would never be free of it. That night, Wolverine had gone as close to that path as he had ever been. He had left the building, covered in blood. He had not eaten of his prey, but he had rolled in the man's carcass, wanting the smell of his death all over him. The thought of it now made his stomach lurch.
The fear of another total loss of control was not the only side effect of that terrible night. The sight of any sexual abuse was now more than Logan could bear. When he saw the files of Kimble's excessive persuasion of Bruce, he had felt that sickening leaden weight in his guts. It had been there again when Kimble was kissing Holly, a girl of fourteen and a virgin. The idea of Kimble stealing her innocence was more than Logan's hair trigger temper could stand. He perceived Kimble as a thief, stealing what he wanted and using some kind of magic or hypnosis to do it. Didn't matter that his victims were unharmed. A monster who steals without pain was still a monster.
Logan felt his stomach heave, this time for real, and he was vomiting over the side of the boat. He felt awful now, sick. He gripped the rail with sweat slicked hands and almost went over himself. He felt Fallen grab at him and resisted the urge to lash out at her. "Let me go!"
"What's wrong with you?" Fallen asked, her concern obvious.
"Too much sea water," he said lamely, not even trying to cover the lie.
They both turned sharply when the building behind them suddenly exploded, the sound of it loud and thundering across the bay. First the loading bay, then the rest of it in a spectacular series of explosions, shooting fire up in the sky. Looks like they got to see fireworks after all.
Logan stood quickly, gripping the rails. "No!" he shouted, before he could stop himself. "Nnnooo!"
The fire and smoke billowed to the sky like a bright red accusation. Logan just knew that it was Kimble. It had to be. He'd done this horrible thing. He'd killed himself and it was all his fault.
Gambit stopped the boat and looked back at the fire, his eyes wide. He had heard Logan shout and felt a searing pain in his guts. Oh, no. Not this. Not this! Anya, you bitch! He gunned the engines and swung back around, heading back.