"Dan!"

The boy in the ragged jeans and red plaid shirt didn't even pause at the shout.

"DAN!" a young black man covered in bling- bling, and somewhat dirty, and faded clothes. "Look at me, man!"

The boy spun around and bellowed in reply, "WHAT, Damon?"

"That's more like it." Damon sprinted to catch up with him. "Those guys down in Sector Thirteen stole my cousin's bike, and we've gotta get it back!"

"You realize that they've probably already sold it."

"Then it's revenge dude!" Whenever Damon got upset his speech sped up, but now it was also slurred.

" You got anymore of that Smernoff?"

"Only if you help." He started running. " C'mon!"

Daniel Norton rolled his eyes and followed his "friend" through the shady alleyway that would lead them to Sector Thirteen.

xXx

Something was wrong. "Damon? Where are we going?" Dan began to feel the first stirrings of unease, and this place just smelled wrong.

"Just a little further! I want to get this other dude to help…" His voice faded.

"Damon?" Dan paused, sniffing. "Damon, C'mon man."

"I'm sorry, Dan!" He heard the intense whisper, and the retreating footsteps that followed.

"You BASTARD!" he yelled. "What are you DOING?" Fog had begun to roll in, and Dan's hands balled into fists.

"Helping us." A soft southern accent reached his ears.

"What'd you want with me?!"

"I need your help for a little experiment." A short balding man in some form of Army uniform stepped out. "Young man, it won't hurt a bit." He smiled, but it didn't reach his cold eyes.

Dan's nose twitched slightly. " Liar." Dan said this as he began to run, back down the alley toward his hood.

"STOP HIM!" shrieked the fat man. Other men poured out from behind trashcans, piles of rubbish, anything that could've concealed a human. Dan kept running, his sneakers pounding on the asphalt.

Out of nowhere a shape flew out of the air with an inhuman bellow, and the sound of medal on metal. Dan turned to see this apparition, and was surprised by it shoving him away from the oncoming soldiers. This thing was strong. "Go!" it hissed.

"What-?"

"GO, BOY!" it bellowed. "RUN!" And Dan did.

Until he finally collapsed against a dirt-stained brick wall, clutching his side and breathing so hard it hurt.

"What was that?" he thought.

"You alright?" It was the voice from the alley, the thing that saved him. A man in pair of jeans, a black leather jacket, and a plaid shirt. This guy was hard; Dan could smell it on him. But he wasn't a danger to Dan, not in the way of that fat guy.

"Kid, you alright?"

"Yeah…" he gasped out. "What- what was that?"

"Something to stay away from." He turned, and strode off. "You comin'? Or do you want to wait for them to find you?"

Dan shook his head. "No way, dude. I'm comin' with you."

xXx

"Who are you?"

"My name's Wolverine." He said as they left the ghetto. "How'd that guy find you?"

"My "friend" took me there." Dan snorted.

"Well, kid, with friends like that, you don't need enemies."

"My name's Dan, not 'kid'" he muttered.

"Whatever, now c'mon."