Nice to see some new reviews appearing! Hope you enjoy this as much as I enjoy writing it. Thanks to everyone, including my old timers!

- CHAPTER SIX -
Desperate

Logan and Storm quickly threw themselves into a run, their footfalls loud and echoing in the horrific silence of the mansion. It was now quieter than it had been even when everyone was sleeping. The life of the mansion was dead. The only sounds came from the activity outside, where the carriers could be heard closing up.

Logan led the pair through the empty corridors where broken ornaments lay in pieces on the floor and portraits had slipped to an angle. The walls were scarred with the forceful entry, scratched and burnt with weapon fire. One of the windows had been smashed, the curtains that had been draped either side of it were now strewn across the debris of the floor in a unfurling ripple of crimson.

A cabinet lay on it's side, blocking passage through the hallway, but Logan merely speeding up, hurling himself over expertly. He landed heavily on the other side with a thud of his feet and continued running. Behind him, Storm belatedly reached the fallen furniture, but being clad in her ankle-length nightdress, she was in the wrong clothing to be vaulting over obstacles. Deciding against blasting the cabinet out of the way (one of Charles's favourites,) she instead slowed down so she may awkwardly clamber over it, hitching her dress to her thighs. Once across, she speeded up so she was closer to Logan.

But then, across the silence of the mansion, and out on the grounds there was a echoing boom which caused both of them to stop. "They know we're missing," whispered Storm, "Quick! The Sentinels will track us down in minutes!"

"Wait.." Logan wasn't looking at her, he was looking closely at something on the wall.

"What is it?" asked Storm as she turned. Logan stepped closer, extending his hand to the wall. There was a metal needle pierced into the smooth woodwork, a vial attached filled with a ghostly white liquid. It had mechanisms on it, proving that it had been shot from a gun. Logan fastened his large fist around it, yanking it out of the wall and letting it lay in his palm.

"This is what they were shooting.."

A second explosion shook through the building, causing Storm to look round with a gasp. "Logan, we must go!" She grabbed him by the wrist, spinning around and running round the next corner. Logan was pulled along with her, a frown upon his face as he held the cool needle in his hand. Storm released his as she faced the wall, running her finger tips down the surface. "Here it is."

With her finger, she pushed it at inch into the foundation of the wall itself, and it automatically rose up. Beyond it lay a dimly lit tunnel, it's walls grey and foreboding. A few bare bulbs hung from the ceiling, casting the weak light out into the blackness of the mansion's corridor. Logan recognised this as the very same exit Rogue had pleaded him to follow her in over a year ago. The night he met Stryker..

Storm had slipped inside, already on ahead, running barefooted down the dim tunnel. The lighting silhouetted her strangely, framing the flight of her hair and the billowing ripples of her dress. Logan stepped inside, turning to ram the secret door down firmly so that their exit was safely sealed. Turning, he ran on after her, joining footfalls echoing rhythmically with the pair's heavy breaths. Corners were turned, seemingly endless to the desperate mind. Logan could see Storm faltering as she continued running, the constant speed taking it's toll, for she had not slowed once.

As her speed began to decrease, Logan caught up with her, slipping an arm round hers in encouragement. They couldn't stop yet. Not until they were out of the mansion. Storm cast him a side-ways glance, managing a slight inclination of her head in thanks before her speed picked up once more, and she pressed herself on regardless. A large barred door at the end of the tunnel was unlocked and pushed upon by the joining effort of Storm and Logan. The cool air hit them gently as the pair staggered out into the bitter woodland skirting the mansion walls.

Logan pushed the door shut as Storm went on ahead, looking around cautiously. She made her way through the dew tipped blades of grass. Reaching trees, she peered between the large trunks, watching the carriers lift from the grounds of the mansion and ascend quietly into the sky. Logan slowly came up behind her, his eyes too shifting upwards. A soft sigh exhaled from Storm as she turned to look at him, "Well, we're out," she murmured quietly, sounding unsure as to whether that was good news or not.

Logan nodded his head slowly as he pulled back from the tree trunks, turning to sit down in the cool grass. They had entered a small clearing, surrounded by dense, dark trees that blocked out much view, including the starlit sky above. The wind rustled through the crisp newborn leaves, causing a scratchy whisper to background the distant aircraft drones. Storm crouched down besides him as she watched him expectantly. But Logan was looking at the needle he still held in his hand. He slowly uncurled his fist to bring the instrument closer to his gaze so he may study it.

"This has something to do with the fact why there was so little retaliation."

"But what could it do?" Storm slipped to sit on her knees, watching the needle with a cautious expression.

Logan turned the needle slowly, extending his left arm at the same time. Storm quickly grabbed the arm with her hand, sensing his plans, "Don't."

At her stern voice, Logan looked up slowly. The needle was poised above the delicate flesh of the underside of his forearm. "We need to see what it does. I'll heal."

"I don't care if you'll heal," snapped Storm, "You don't stick alien objects into your body!"

"Why? Because it could kill you?" Logan snorted quietly, "I'm doin' us a favour. We need to know what we're up against." Before Storm could protest anymore, he had plunged the needlepoint into his skin, and the fluid was injected. He threw down the empty vial, watching his unmarked flesh.

Storm, looking torn between furiousness and fear, watched anxiously. Logan flexed his arm slowly, as though testing it for movement. His fingers also wriggled. Curious, he glanced to Storm. There didn't seem to be anything happening.

Then he felt it.

A slow, sleepy sensation washing oh-so soothingly over him. His worry and concern seemed so unimportant. His mind became sluggish and slow, his body relaxing it's tense state as he slumped tiredly against the tree.

At the same time, in the back of his mind, he was screaming for his consciousness to snap out of it, that this was a dangerous choice. But his mental and physical state just slowed down uncaringly to a weak state. Storm leaned forward slowly, watching, as Logan merely seemed to become overly relaxed. Too relaxed for the situation. Too relaxed for Wolverine. Logan slowly looked her way, casting her an almost bored gaze. There was no sharpness in his eyes; they had lost their intense stare, their depth. It was surprising how much Storm found this shocked her. How unsettling it was.

"Logan," her hands met his arms again and she shook him gently, as if hoping to rouse him out of this state. But he merely shook his head in an unhelpful manner and continued to lie there.

However, he slowly seemed to come round, his eyes regaining their feral glint and relaxed features becoming stern and fierce, He sat up, staring at the needle he had thrown to one side. "Must be brief. With my healing powers battling against it."

"It's a relaxant?"

"Something like that."

"What do you mean?"

But Logan shook his head, sighing quietly, "I don't know, it's hard to explain." He looked down at the arm it had been injected into, "You sort of.. feel tired.. but easy going." He shook his head once more, "It's strange, but also worrying. They must have a lot of this to use it one everyone here."

"It might just be for those in large groups like we are. I dare say to some mutant living alone would just be cornered by a fleet of soldiers." Storm lowered her head slowly, closing her eyes, "I don't know which is worse."

But Logan seemed keen to keep things swiftly moving, "We can't sit here till sun rise. We need to keep moving. Those Sentinels will be tracking us down as we speak."

"And how exactly are we going to travel? We can't go back and get the X-Jet, not yet."

Logan stood to his feet quietly, giving an idle stretch of his limbs that caused his metal joints to crack unpleasantly, "We'll grab a car or something. Come back for the jet when we know the place is clear."

"Grab a car?" repeated Storm as she too rose besides him, looking displeased, "Logan, we're not criminals."

"No," agreed Logan softly as he set off walking towards the road through the trees, "we're desperate."

I had already written this chapter.. then I accidentally deleted it. Meaning one very pissed off author! It was so good too.. bah. So if this seems a little off, it wasn't originally, lol. Review, make me feel better, please!