Jason Chandler: Yeah it was a sad way to begin a story.
cabrera1234: You'll see ;)
Evil Soul: No problem. I figured someone would still want to read the old version.
Logan slowly opened his eyes expecting to find himself staring up at the night sky on the train tracks. Instead he was staring up at a ceiling light that was so bright enough to make him squint his eyes shut. Then he heard the sound of a continuous beep that he knew all to well. He was on a bed in a hospital. One of the many places in the world he hated the most. He wondered what poor soul had the kindness to bring him here.
He ripped the IV cables from his arm and sluggishly sat up allowing him to get a good look of the room. From what Wolverine could see the room was lined with metal and had state of the art equipment. Already warning bells were going off in his head. Where in the hell was he?!
The sound of the electronic door opening caused Wolverine to instantly drop his body back on to the medical bed. Thankfully whoever was entering the room didn't get the chance to see him move. Feigning sleep Logan could hear the perfect movements of the persons boots from what he could guess. Whoever was in the room with him was in perfect health which meant that dealing with him or her wasn't going to be simple.
Cracking an eye open slightly, Wolverine was stunned from what he was looking at. A tall green man dressed in a blue over shoulder cape. This told him that whatever hospital he was in it was not an ordinary one.
J'onn examined the patient who had been unconscious for six hours. With his keen eye the martian discovered that despite the lack of wounds on his body, he was covered in blotches of blood. No one survives a battle without the scars to show it. He had lost count on how many times he had to patch up other league members from their battles. It was to be expected in their line of work.
There were no traces of bruises or scars anywhere. However there was a reason for this. Even though though the illusions appeared to be fighting him it could be possible that they were trying to restrain him. If he remembered that madmans words correctly 'But your friends? People who would've hesitated?'.
After all they were his family, they wouldn't dream of hurting him. That was clearly exploited from the illusionest and now here he was. Laying in a medical bed covered in the blood of his family.
J'onn shook his head not wanting to think about it. It only made him relive that horrible memory of watching his family burning on Mars. While the circumstances were different the outcomes were the same. Losing your family was a difficult experience for any creature to go through.
As he mused something caught the Martians attention. Curious he saw that it was the IV cables that were supposed to be pumping fluids into the patient. His eyes narrowed in confusion when he found them just lying loose on the ground.
He was unprepared for a strong hand to grasp him by the throat and slam him into a nearby wall. Before J'onn could react he saw three metal blades inches away from piercing his face. The martian could see that his patients face was scrunched with a fierce look. His teeth...no fangs were bared like a wolves. He could hear audible sound of snarling coming from his throat.
"Alright...I'm only gonna ask you this once." He spoke in a low but threatening tone. "Who are you and where the hell am I?"
J'onn could see the fierceness in his eyes. He had a feeling that if he didn't answer that demand he would skewer him. Even if the threat didn't carry any weight due to the fact that the martian could easily reform his body. The Martian knew he had to calm the situation down before it escalated any further.
Before Wolverine could get any answers he felt something pinch the skin of his arm. Wincing he saw that it appeared to be a dart. He didn't even have time register where it came from when several more entered his body. Wolverine began to feel lightheaded as his grip around J'onn's throat started to loosen. Groaning he then fell limp into the green aliens arms.
"I told you he was to dangerous to watch without proper surveillance." J'onn looked up and saw Batman standing at the doorway of the medical room.
Sighing the martian gently placed Logan back on the operating table. He removed the tranquilizer darts from the unconscious mans body and disposed of them in the trash. J'onn examined the mans body for what seemed to be the tenth time. He was once again unconscious, the sedatives within those darts must've had a mild dose.
"We need to restrain him." Batman advised next to J'onn. The martian tried everything he could to not jump in surprise. Being startled was something he did not like to express. Especially in front of Batman.
Internally calming his nerves J'onn decided to protest. "Do you think thats necessary?" He knew that response sounded weak, but he didn't want to see the man tied down like a mental patient.
"If you didn't notice you were almost perforated." The detective berated. "We need to take necessary precautions when watching him. We don't know what he's capable of."
J'onn hated to admit it but as Batman was right. Despite Superman informing other league members of their otherworldly arrival no one aboard the Watchtower were aware if he was dangerous or not. Even he wasn't aware of what he could do. The martian hadn't delved deep enough into his mind when he appeared in in conference room.
Heeding Batman's advice J'onn wrapped the leather straps around Logan's body. He knew that he was going to regret this later but safety measures were important.
"I'll take over from here. You go coordinate the members on their assignments." Batman ordered without hesitation.
The Martian sighed and walked out of the room. He wanted to argue with the detective on the matter, but thought against it. Maybe some time away from the medical wing would do him some good.
"Do you think it was wise to leave him in the medical wing?" Wonder Woman cautioned. Having an otherworldly man in the watchtower that they knew little about wasn't the best the decision. Despite the horror he went through Diana found herself agreeing with Batman on keeping him confined until further inspection.
Superman shook his head. "If I'm being honest no it wasn't. But after hearing what J'onn told us about him...I didn't have it in me to just leave him in a cell."
The Amazon hummed in acknowledgement as the two walked down the hall to the medical wing. The news had soon spread around that a man from an alternate earth had arrived in the tower. Of course gossip amongst the league members began to spread like wildfire. Where did he come from? Who was he? And many more that weren't worth mentioning.
Both heroes entered but were surprised to see Batman and Martian Manhunter tending to him. They also took notice of the leather straps around him. The detective had informed them of the incident with J'onn and Logan. They did not want to treat the poor man like a mental patient but for everyones safety and his it was necessary.
Clark knew that the Martian wouldn't be happy with that but it was for the best.
"Batman, J'onn wasn't it Flash's turn to watch him?" Superman asked.
"It was but I relieved him of his duty." The detective casually responded while examining the X-ray. "And besides he found it hard to watch a person covered in blood while in the hospital. I believe his words were 'I don't know how long I can watch this before I throw up all of the two hundred burgers I just scrarfed down.'
The two lightly laughed as they approached the monitor. They examined digital graph of the mans entire skeleton trying to search for any type of skeletal damage. Superman narrowed his eyes at the screen. He knew what he was looking at was not ordinary bone structure.
"I take it from your expression that you've discovered that his skeleton isn't normal?"
"No it itsn't."
"What makes you say that?" Diana asked curiously. She looked at the screen wondering what the two found that was so unusual. Unfortunately her knowledge on the Watchtowers technology wasn't as high as Clark's or J'onn's.
Superman activated his x-ray vision and examined Wolverine's skeleton. It was indeed unusual from what he could see. "Well Diana, if you could see what I see...every bone in his body is covered in metal."
Wonder Woman blinked at that. "How is that even possible?" She asked curiously as Martian Manhunter enhanced the screens visuals, revealing a clear picture of Wolverine's skeleton.
"When I peered into his mind I discovered that he was subjected to some sort of surgical experiment." J'onn explained vaguely. The sheer memory of what he had seen just sent a disgusting feeling through him.
Silence filled the room as no one knew how to respond to that. The silence was soon broken by the shift of the medical bed. Everyones attention was brought to a sound that many of them could've easily mistaken for a rabid dog growling. The man was writhing uncontrollably trying to free himself from leather straps that held him down. His fierce glare was on the four strangers who were in the room. Logan remembered the green man from before but the other three were new.
Martian Manhunter quickly rushed to the mans side. "Calm yourself! We will not harm you!" Superman and Wonder Wonder Woman followed the martian's example as they both tried to to hold his body down gently without severely hurting him.
However an audible sound was heard, it sounded like a blade was being unsheathed. Once they all heard it everyone flinched back from what they saw. Three sharp metal knives had shot out from between the knuckles of each of his hands that were clenched tightly into fists. Superman, Wonder Woman, and Batman were surprised at what they saw, though the detectives hand instantly went to his utility belt ready to draw his batarangs at any moment.
J'onn who had small experience with this before placed his hand on Wolverine's head. His eyes glowed indicating that he was using his telepathy to calm the man down. After a few minutes the martian managed to get the man to calm down. Wolverine slowed his breathing and sheathed his claws. He heard the green man exclaim that they wouldn't harm him. So far they hadn't because they could've easily with him bound to the bed.
That didn't mean he would drop his guard as Wolverine still kept his fierce glare trained on them. "Who the hell are you?"
Superman of course trying to keep the peace gestured for Batman to stand down. He complied but kept a steady eye on him. Seeing that everyone has managed to calm down Superman began the introductions.
"I'm Superman." The tall man in blue and red gestured to himself. He then motioned to the others. "These are my colleagues. J'onn J'onzz, Wonder Woman, and Batman."
The feral mutant stared at each of the four as the one called Superman listed off the names of his cohorts. He noticed that even though he was a little cooperative they were still very close to the bed. This meant that they were ready to take action just in case. Smart. Not taking cautionary steps would'nt have been a wise move on their part.
He decided to ask the next important question. "Where the hell am I?" Wolverine saw all four of them glance at each other with hesitance. That simple question made the atmosphere tense to the point it made his nose itch.
J'onn spoke first. "We...will answer your question after you answer ours first. Do you remember how you arrived here?"
Now it was Logan's who was stumped into silence. His mind tried to recall the events before waking up in this room. He could remember the the institute being raided, a battle, blood, death...and then...
The four founding members watched the man's brow furrowed in confusion when J'onn asked that question. As seconds became minutes his expression shifted into shock then horror. He looked over his body and saw that he was completely covered in blood. The blood of the X-Men.
When more silence continued J'onn spoke again. "You are aboard our orbital satellite. The Justice League Watchtower.
Wolverine's frantic eyes snapped to the martian. Despite whirlwind of emotions he was feeling at that moment one thought bombarded his mind.
'I'm where?!'
"You...arrived through a portal from what we could guess." Diana explained as best she could. Not knowing how to properly word what they saw in conference room.
"In short you've landed in an alternate earth." Batman said briskly. Not wanting to dwell this matter any longer than they had to.
Wolverine could only stare at the four in stunned disbelief. A part of him wanted to think this was all just a dream. That he would just wake up on those train tracks and see another freighter crushing him underneath. However he knew that what they said was the truth. His hightened senses couldn't pick up any lies. There was no denying it, he was on another earth.
But if that was the case...then he had to know.
"...Am I the only who made it?" His gruff voice sounding despondent as he asked.
Another wave of silence followed filling the room with tension again. Logan gazed directly at them as they once again hesitated to tell him. Not know howing the gravity of their answer would affect him. Wonder Woman, Batman, and Superman remembered what J'onn told when he delved into Wolverine's mind. The martian didn't go into excruciating detail at what he saw but had told them enough.
Martian Manhunter sighed sadly as he told him the inevitable that he hoped he would handle. "No...you were the only one."
That very revelation made Wolverine clench his eyes tightly. A small part of him had hoped that someone had managed to survive the battle and be transported to this earth like he did. But huge part of him knew that was all but blind hope. His head just simply slouched onto the medical bed as all of the weight he had been bearing had just increased. His world was gone along with the remnants that were his family. And the latter was caused by his hand.
They could only watch with sympathy as he allowed his tears to spill from his eyes.
After sometime Logan was released from the medical wing and was standing in the leagues shower room. He stared up at the nozzle as it sprayed the water down cleaning him of the blood and grime. He was glad that he was the only one in the stalls as it allowed him to be alone with his discouraging thoughts and feelings.
They were impossible to ignore. And even if they weren't he didn't know if he would allow himself to. Everything just...happened in an instant.
Turning the knob he stept out of the stall, grabbed a towel and dried himself off. Logan then put on the pair of grey sweatpants and white wife beater that was offered to him by the green man J'onn J'onzz he recalled. Walking over to one of the sinks Logan placed his hands firmly on the edges with his head hanging low to the point it would've went passed his shoulders. His mind replaying everything again that lead up to where he was now. He gulped back the bile that was forming in his throat.
Logan slowly lifted his staring at a mirror that was covered in layers of moisture from the running waters heat. Running his hand along it he saw the reflection of a man who was internally beatean. His eyes appeared bleary and lethargic. The lips on his face practically drooped heavily to the direction of the ground. It was the expression of self loathing.
That very feeling swelled with in the feral mutant, his lifeless eyes immediately became fierce. The reflection in the mirror matched the enraged expression, as if two individuals were expressing their absolute hatred for one another.
A fist was thrown, colliding with the glass cracking it in the process. Logan exhaled a deep shuddered breath in an attempt to calm himself down. It took a whole hour but he manged to get a handle on his emotions for the most part. Shaking off remaining glass shards that were lodged in his fingers and knuckles the feral mutant cleaned the blood and left out of the shower room.
Only to stop midstep as he found the tall green man standing in front of him.
J'onn took a quick glance at the shattered mirror but focused back to what he came to do. "Would you follow me please?"
Logan watched the martian walk down the corridor, slightly apprehensive to comply. But he was to emotionally exhausted and he soon found himself walking behind.
The two arrived in what the shorter one saw was a meeting room. The man in blue and red was seated in the room, greeting both of them with a nod.
"J'onn...Logan. Thank you for coming."
Said man slightly narrowed his eyes, feeling a little alarmed that they somehow knew his name.
Noticing the tense look in eyes Superman decided to clear the air about that. "J'onn is is a telepath. When you arrived he had to peer into you mind to make sure you weren't a threat."
"I apologize for intruding into your mind. We have a strict rule of telepaths invading the mental privacies of others without permission."
Logan couldn't help but give the martian a glancing glare after hearing this. He was not fond of having a stranger entering his mind. He wanted to argue but didn't have the energy to. Not to mention he genuinely apologized for what he had to do and the fact they actually established rules for that eased his anger a little.
The feral mutant lightly sighed and casually waved him off. Removing any sense of hard feelings that might've been had.
Happy that problem was out of the way Superman kindly gestured to the seat across from him. "Please. Sit."
Logan hesitated for a moment but complied. The two men stared at each other intently, neither one saying anything.
After what probably felt like hours for the two men and possibly J'onn Superman took a deep breath and broke the ice.
"As you know we are all aware of your situation...and the circumstances that brought you here."
This caused a brief flash of a grimace to cross Wolverine's face, but quickly loosened his brow as best he could. Superman felt a wave of regret for voicing that out loud but they needed him to fully understand how difficult of a position this put them in.
"My colleagues and I have been discussing on what to do with you. Some vouched for your case while some didn't." The Kryptonian explained. He expected him to defend his position but Wolverine only stayed quiet.
Despite this Superman continued. "From what J'onn has told us you're a man who was forced into a difficult position and was forced to make a hard choice."
The two men intently stared at each other. Logan clenched his fist as once again the memory of what happened was still fresh. A small part of him was glad that he didn't bring up the harsh consequence again that had been paid from that said hard choice.
"A man who is willing to save those from the evils of your world. In short you are a hero." Superman praised with wistful smile. "Which is why I have proposition for you."
Logan still kept silent but he could already guess what the tall man in blue and red was offering.
Reaching with his arm towards the man across from him The Man Of Steel layed out his proposal. "Would you consider joining the Justice League?"
Hearing that his assumptions were right Wolverine just glanced at the Kryptonians hand.
"We would be honored to have you fight along side us." J'onn said. Joining in Superman's decision to have a new ally fight with the Justice League.
Glancing between the two the former X-Men could only try his best to wrestle with his answer. "You want me to join you?" His question came off like a statement. As if he wondered if they making the right choice of asking him this.
Superman and Martian Manhunter nodded in reply.
Logan stared at the hand that was in the form of an open invitation to join a group of people whos belief in the greater good could be to a fault. He's met and known alot of people like that in his life who were just like the man in front of him. Those who held strong ideals that made them worthy enough to follow behind.
Unfortunately he was not the one a man like Superman would want fighting shoulder to shoulder with.
Sighing heavily Wolverine gave the two men his answer...
I apologize for taking so long to update this chapter. Every time I try to revamp this story I always procastinate with it and I really need to stop doing that. I have know excuses other than to say I'm sorry forthose who have been waiting for me to continue this. I hope people are still interested in this story and if you are give me constructive feedback.
