Six weeks later, Logan and Marie were on a private plane, along with a skeleton version of his and Stryker's teams.
Logan had convinced Stryker that he no longer needed a full team, so the good doctor sent almost all of his men away, save for the ones who were "vital" to the program. Luckily, Victor was not one of the team members who stayed. Logan was glad that he could avoid bringing his brother to the new facility to live with the young women who were already, or were about to become, pregnant. Sad to say, but the feral couldn't be trusted not to hurt them in their delicate conditions.
With him, he took the most compassionate, most obedient team members he had. Of those few he took, one of them was Peter, a gentle giant who had already been "paired" with Katherine, one of the girls Stryker was holding. Peter was the epitome of the 'strong, silent type'. He was a nice guy, but out of the ten years he'd known him, he had said maybe five words.
Now, as he sat on the plane next to Katherine, whispering to her intimately, he realized that their "pairing" might be working out pretty well, given the circumstances.
Logan glanced across the aisle at Marie, who looked extremely ill. The turbulence, combined with her pregnancy, was making for a very unpleasant flight.
She'd made several trips to the bathroom and now seemed to be contemplating filling the barf bag she clutched in her hands. Logan got up and walked a few rows up before he leaned over to whisper to Stryker, "Isn't there anything you can give her? She's real sick."
Stryker, who had been reading, glanced at Marie from atop his glasses and shrugged before looking back down at his paperwork, "She's fine."
"No she's not. She can't stop puking her guts out."
Stryker gave Logan an odd look and sighed, "She is fine, Colonel."
Logan sighed and looked back at Marie, then walked to the galley, where a small refrigerator was. He rummaged through it until he found a ginger ale. He filled a glass with ice, and then poured the ginger ale over the ice before walking over to Marie and handing it to her, "Here."
She glanced up at him, "What's this?"
"Ginger ale…should help take the edge off."
Marie cautiously took the glass from him and muttered, "Thank you."
She slowly began sipping her ginger ale, which did help calm her stomach and prevented her from vomiting again. Meanwhile, Stryker had watched the exchange with great interest.
When they landed at the private airstrip, they were driven, via motorcade, up winding roads that led them deep into the mountains. It seemed to take hours to reach the new facility. When they did finally reach it, everyone seemed taken aback at how intricate and large the place was.
The new facility was a network of buildings that resembled large log cabins. There was a large building in the center that seemed to be slightly raised above the others. Down below the large center building, there were several other buildings connected to it via covered stairways.
Thanks to the blueprints he'd skimmed over, Logan knew that the center building was the living quarters, so he, Peter and his other two team members led Marie, Katherine and the two other females to the living quarters.
The girls hadn't really seen each other prior to today since they'd been isolated before, so Logan could tell that they were chomping at the bits to talk to each other. When they entered the girls living area, they found a kitchen, living area and separate bedrooms and bathrooms. There was a shared game room and library inside the general living facilities nearby.
Stryker followed them into the quarters and patted Logan on the back, "No need to guard them closely in here, Colonel. No knives, no weapons…no opening windows."
Marie shot Stryker a glare before walking to her new bedroom, which was equipped with a comfy-looking full sized bed, large windows and an attached full bathroom. She opened the dresser to find nothing but the bare essentials. White tank tops, sweat pants, underwear and a couple of sports bras.
She almost jumped out of her skin when Logan appeared at her door, "Settling in OK?"
"Shit! Don't you make noise when you walk?!"
Logan held up his hands in surrender, "Sorry. Didn't mean to scare ya."
Marie relaxed slightly, "Yeah. I'm settlin' in fine."
"Good to know."
He started to walk away, but she called his name, which prompted him to stop and turn around to look at her, "I just wanted to thank you…for the ginger ale earlier. It helped."
"Don't mention it."
Logan walked away and left the girls living quarters before locking the only door from the outside. As soon as he was gone, the girls all convened in the living room.
They stood there in silence for several moments before Marie spoke up, "Um. I'm Marie D'Ancanto. 19 years old. Turn 20 next month…ran away from home when my mutation manifested itself a few years ago…I'm pregnant…and the leader of our security team is the father."
Katherine spoke up, "How far along are you?"
Marie sighed, "13 weeks…"
The young Asian girl plopped down in an arm chair, "My name is Jubilation Lee, but you gals can call me Jubilee. I'm 18 and I ran away from home last year. I'm not paired yet…"
The last young lady spoke up, "I'm Lauren. 18…not paired yet."
Katherine favored the other girls with a wave, "Katherine Pryde, but my friends call me Kitty. I'm 17…paired with Peter…not pregnant yet."
Marie noticed the fear in Katherine's voice and frowned, "How long have you been paired?"
"Coming up on two months."
The girls looked at each other, but said nothing. They all knew the rule by now. Girls who weren't successfully bred would become lab rats by default.
A heavy silence settled over the room before Jubilee clapped her hands together, "Enough with the doom and gloom. We're out of those damn cells, let's see if there's anything in the kitchen we can whip up."
An hour or so later, the girls had put a frozen pizza in the oven, and were tossing various pre-cut veggies in a salad (since they weren't allowed knives). Kitty glanced over at Marie as she sprinkled some pepper in the salad, "So…how do you like Logan?"
"I don't", Marie said quickly.
"You guys don't talk?"
Marie shook her head quickly, "What's to say?"
"Well…I dunno. Pete and I talk about everything."
She cocked her head to the side and regarded the young woman carefully, "You actually…like him?"
"Well, I have to admit, I thought he was sexy from the moment I saw him, but I guess I realized that we're kinda both victims of circumstance."
Marie furrowed her eyebrows and leaned against the counter, "But he's choosing to follow an order that is wrong! It's morally wrong."
Kitty sighed and looked Marie square in the eye, "Being 'wrong' is all relative. To him, not following an order is 'wrong'. He's been in the military for twelve years. This is his life and he tries to live it as best he can. He didn't hurt me…and even though I don't want to be here…I know why he's following those orders."
"So…are you just content with having to be bred?"
Kitty pursed her lips, "I'm terrified of getting pregnant. I don't think I'd survive if I had a baby, then had it taken away from me."
Marie's hand subconsciously moved to her belly, "I've had nightmares about that moment since the day I found out I was pregnant."
When Jubilee bounded into the kitchen, the girls immediately changed the subject.
That night, Marie laid down in her bed with the door open, welcoming the distraction from sleep if it just so happened that any of the other girls stayed awake. She was so happy about having social interaction, she wouldn't mind if it interrupted her sleeping patterns.
The "house" was quiet, and, before she knew it, she had started to drift off. She didn't hear it when Logan entered her room and closed her door. It wasn't until she felt his weight on her bed did she jump and gasp, "Oh my god! You scared the shit outta me!"
He placed a finger against his lips in an effort to shush her, "Shh…sorry. I didn't mean to scare you."
Marie ran a hand through her hair and sat up, "What are you doin' here?"
Logan stared at her for a second, "I uhhh…I guess I just wanted to check on you."
She furrowed her eyebrows, "You did?"
"You are carryin' my kid…" he said with a brief smirk.
Marie stared at him for several seconds before she shook her head and looked down, "No. I'm not. I'm just incubating a super soldier…"
Logan stared at her, "I may not know you very well, but I know you well enough to know that you don't really feel that way."
"So what? Even if that's not how I feel, what good will it do to whine and cry about a future that I can't change?"
He nodded and sighed, "Good point, I guess."
She sighed, "Are you finished checkin' on me?"
"Actually, no."
Marie rolled her eyes and laid back down, "Fine. Continue checkin'. I'm goin' to sleep."
Logan stared at her, "You'll hate me forever, won't you?"
The level of sadness in his voice when he said that surprised her. She rolled back over to look into his eyes and realized that he actually looked concerned.
Marie's expression softened slightly, "Hate is a really strong word…I usually reserve it for ex-boyfriends and bitchy customer service people…"
Logan let out a brief laugh before falling silent and looking at her, "You know why I did what I did, right?"
"Maybe you should try explaining it again."
Without hesitation, he started talking, "I'm over 150 years old. Of those years, over a hundred of them have been spent in the military, taking orders. I'm a soldier. It's who I am. It's been engrained in me. I receive an order from the government I serve, I follow it."
"Without question?"
Logan nodded, "Yeah. Good soldiers don't question. That's somethin' else you learn after serving in the army for over a hundred years."
Marie let out a sigh and closed her eyes, "Why couldn't you have picked another profession to immerse yourself in? If you'd a been a doctor who saved lives, no questions asked…we—you and I-"
"…we might've had a fighting chance…" he finished for her.
She stared into his eyes for some time before looking away, "Thank you for comin' to check on me."
Logan stood and nodded, "Yeah. Thanks for talkin' to me…without yelling."
Marie rolled her eyes and smiled as he turned and walked out of her room.
Maybe it was the breakthrough they had that evening. Maybe it was the fact that their surroundings were more relaxed…or maybe it was their growing baby, but Marie and Logan began to interact on more comfortable, friendly terms.
The girls were still being subjected to round after round of tests, but the difference was, after they got done getting poked and prodded, they were able to come back to the quarters and seek comfort in a pint of ice cream as they curled up on a couch with a friend to talk to.
The situation was a little more tolerable, but the fear and uncertainty that lay in the girls future kept them on edge.
Six weeks after their arrival in the mountains, Marie was almost 20 weeks along, and Kitty had yet to become pregnant.
Logan heard more buzz about making Kitty a test subject, and he could tell that Peter was not happy about that possibility…but so far, it was only rumor.
The season changed, and winter was now upon them. Logan heard on the radio that a snowstorm would hit their area, so he and his team performed a thorough check of all of the generators. He took it upon himself to go into the girls living quarters to make sure they had extra blankets and space heaters just in case the power did go out.
When he arrived at Marie's door, he noticed that it was slightly ajar. He took a quiet step forward to peek in and saw her laying on the bed with headphones on her tummy. She was gently humming a song as she stroked the small swell in her abdomen.
For some reason, Logan's heart clenched painfully in his chest. She looked so sweet…so maternal…so beautiful.
Before he got too lost in the scene of her lovingly stroking her belly, he cleared his throat and knocked on her door. Marie quickly jumped and snatched the headphones away before sitting up, "Hey. Makin' the rounds?"
Logan nodded, "Yep. Just wanted to make sure you have extra blankets before we hunker down for the storm."
Marie nodded, "Yeah. I think I'm set."
"Good."
He started to walk out, but she stopped him with one simple statement, "I can feel it move."
Logan turned around quickly to see her sheepishly cradling her belly. He took a cautious step forward, "Come again?"
"The baby…I felt it move."
"When?"
Marie shrugged a little, "It started a week ago, I think. Like bubbles at first…but now it's like…little nudges."
"Oh…"
There was a moment of silence before she pursed her lips, "Do you wanna try to feel?"
Logan stared at her for a few moments, "Um…yeah. I guess. Sure."
He slowly walked over and sat down beside her on the edge of the bed. She took his hand and placed it on her stomach. After a few awkward moments of complete silence and stillness, Logan felt the faintest of nudges against his hand. His eyes widened as he snatched his hand away and stared at her stomach, "I felt it!"
Marie laughed, "Told you."
Logan couldn't help the grin that spread across his lips, "That's crazy…"
She lovingly stroked her stomach and nodded, "But it's real…it's our real baby."
He looked at her with sad eyes, "Marie—"
"I know I've pretended that I can accept that I'm just incubating a super soldier…but I can't lie to myself like that anymore. I know that this is my baby. This is our baby. It might be a boy with your smile and my eyes…or a little girl with my stubbornness and your sense of adventure. Every time I close my eyes, I think about this baby, and all the wonderful things they could grow up to become…if I could escape this place."
Logan started to shake his head, "I don't—"
She grabbed his hands and looked at him with tear rimmed eyes, "Please, Logan. I know you're a soldier. I know that orders are the most important thing to you, but please…this is your child. Shouldn't the presence of a life you helped create take precedence over any order you're given?"
"It's not just that, Marie. I don't think you realize who'd be lookin' for you even if you did manage to escape this place. You're seein' how nice this place is on the inside, but all it is is Alcatraz, 2.0. I designed the security in this place. I hand-picked the men who guard the perimeter. Even if an escape was made, they'd realize it immediately. And then, after you make an escape, you could never stop running. It doesn't matter whether you try to flee to Canada or Bora Bora…their jurisdiction is everywhere. They would hunt you down."
Marie wiped at her eyes, "He can't take my baby…"
Logan pulled her into a hug, which she allowed for a few moments before she pulled away from him and laid in her bed, preferring to curl into her pillow.
He left her room that night realizing that he'd failed the "good person test" yet again. She'd given him multiple chances to be a better person than he was soldier, but, for some reason, he pissed those chances away.
The next morning, he escorted Marie to a room located in one of the adjoined buildings. It looked almost like a private theater room, except for the fact that there was a medical table set up in the front of the room with an ultrasound machine. There was a large screen and stadium-style arranged seating, just like in a movie theater.
Stryker arrived and instructed Logan to help Marie onto the table as he and Dr. Henry turned on the ultrasound machine.
Soon after they got situated, one of Stryker's assistants led several men in. Most were in military uniform, while some were in civilian clothes. Logan took a seat in the front row as Stryker began talking to the gathered crowd, "Gentlemen, you're here to witness a very very exciting moment in the phase of our Super Mutant Soldier project. You all will have the distinct privilege of watching the anatomy ultrasound performed live on our very first subject…our primary subject. The paternal donor in this case is Colonel James Logan Howlett, who is currently my head of security. He has incomparable regenerative capabilities and has far more strength and stamina than the average man. He also has enhanced senses. The maternal incubator in this case has the unparalleled ability to siphon the powers and life force of anyone she touches. If these powers happen to combine in this child, he or she could be the perfect soldier. Today, during this ultrasound, we'll be ensuring there are no imperfections and we'll probably want to look for gender."
Marie lay back as Stryker placed the sonogram wand against her stomach. Suddenly, the large screen before them flickered to life and showed the larger-than-life image of the baby as it kicked and punched inside of her.
Logan's mouth dropped open a little as Stryker began pointing out pieces of the anatomy…a perfect head, perfect spine, perfect brain, long arms, long legs, big feet…and a penis. He felt his heart begin to thud painfully again…only this time, he wasn't confused as to why he felt so conflicted.
Marie tried to remain stoic as they made the announcement, but she couldn't stop one of the many tears that were threatening to fall from the corner of her eye…
When the ultrasound was over, they left the images replaying on the screen as the men filed out of the room. Logan, who was too filled with emotion that he didn't understand or know how to handle, called Peter to have him take Marie back to her quarters.
After Marie left, he was alone in the ultrasound theater with the video images of his unborn son replaying on the large screen before him.
He sighed and walked over to the screen before timidly reaching a hand out to touch it. He traced his hand over the baby's profile before closing his eyes and letting out a breath.
"A boy…", he whispered.
Hours later, when most of the people in the compound were asleep, Logan crept into Marie's room and woke her up as he put a hand on her mouth. She looked confused as she sat up, but he shushed her, "We're gettin' outta here."
Her eyes lit up as he grabbed her some clothes to put on. She quickly and quietly put on her clothes and a large, thick jacket he supplied before he opened the door.
They were immediately confronted by Peter's formidable presence, who stood directly in their path. Logan reached back and pushed Marie backwards, readying for a fight.
"Outta the way, Peter."
Peter sighed, "Take Kitty with you. Please."
"What?" asked Logan.
"She's not pregnant…and I think that, if she stays, and doesn't get pregnant, they'll start using her for experiments. I can't let that happen to her."
Marie peeked around Logan and saw the sad expression on Peter's face. Logan narrowed his eyes, "What's it to you if they experiment on her?"
Peter straightened and cleared his throat, "I love her, sir."
Logan let out a breath, "Go get her ready. Make it quick and quiet."
The younger man nodded quickly and rushed to Kitty's room. Marie looked at Logan, "What about the other girls?"
He shook his head, "I was just tryin' to get you and the kid safe. It's bad enough we have to drag that other girl along. If we turn this into a field trip, we'll be easy as hell to catch."
Marie pursed her lips as Peter brought Kitty out into the living room. He turned to her and took her face in his hands, "I will find you later, alright? Logan is smart. He'll keep you safe. Just do everything he says and you'll be fine."
Kitty sniffled and nodded before she wrapped her arms around him for a tight hug, "Why can't you come with us?"
"I have to stay behind to make sure you get a head start. Don't worry about me. I'll see you soon."
"Take care of Jubes and Lauren…OK?"
Peter nodded before they kissed passionately, prompting Logan to grumble, "We gotta go."
Peter kissed Kitty on the forehead and walked over to Logan, "I'm going to clear you a path out of the northeast entrance. I'll try to make sure no one realizes you're gone until dawn. After that…"
Logan nodded, "I know. I know."
Peter let out a sigh, "Look after her…please."
He nodded, "I will."
Meanwhile, Marie and Kitty were holding hands, waiting.
Peter left first, and, as promised, he was able to secure their way out of the facility. Once they were out, they were confronted with freezing temperatures, intermittent snowfall, rough terrain and limited visibility.
When Marie almost slipped and fell, Logan utilized his quick reflexes to catch her, "Shit…careful, kid. You alright?"
Marie nodded, "Yeah. Close call, but I'm OK."
Logan slowly released her, "Careful…ok? Hold onto me if ya have to."
She nodded as Kitty spoke up, "Is that a road?"
He glanced up, "Yeah. But we have to stay away from it for now. Don't wanna get spotted by any people who might be goin' to and from the facility."
It seemed like they had been walking forever by the time the sun rose. They stopped only once to give Marie a chance to rest, but they had to power on.
She was feeling a little sore and crampy, but she refused to complain so that she didn't slow progress. Sometime during their journey, Kitty spoke up, "Where are we going?"
Logan glanced at her, "A long time ago, this guy approached me…said he was lookin' for mutants who wanted to fight for the greater good. Said his name was Charles Xavier. I told him I wasn't interested. Few years later, I heard he'd founded a school for the gifted, but from what I heard through the government grapevine, the school is like a safe haven for mutants."
"Where is it?"
"Westchester, New York. We get far enough away from the facility, we can get on the road and hitchhike there….maybe get there before tomorrow."
Despite the cold, hunger and pain Marie was dealing with, she pressed on without complaint. Logan noticed how quiet she was and raised a brow, "You OK?"
"I'm fine", she answered quickly…too quickly.
He gave her an odd look, "We're takin' a rest."
"I said I was fine", she claimed stubbornly.
"…and I said we're takin' a rest. Take a load off."
Kitty happily sat down on a nearby fallen tree trunk as Marie and Logan sat on a couple of rocks. She put a hand against the side of her belly and let out a sigh of relief when she felt the baby shift within her. As long as he was moving…she knew he was alright.
Logan watched, "You OK?"
Marie nodded, "He's movin'."
"Good."
Kitty smiled, "Have any name ideas?"
Marie let out a weak laugh, "You mean other than Weapon 101?"
After a few minutes, Logan got the girls going again. That evening, he felt that it was safe enough to get them to a road and finally find a ride. It took them nearly two hours of walking along the road with their thumbs out before a kindly old man and his wife in a station wagon picked them up.
They were on their way to Virginia for a family reunion and owned a farm in upstate New York.
It took them two hours to reach the gates of the mansion that housed the Xavier School for the Gifted. Marie was exhausted, in pain, thirsty and hungry. She stood outside of the large gate, trying not to pass out as Logan hit the buzzer. After a few moments, a voice came through, "May I help you?"
"Uhh, yeah. I was told this is a safe place for—"
Before he could finish his sentence, Kitty shrieked as she attempted to catch Marie's falling form before it hit the ground.
Logan rushed to her side as the voice on the other end of the intercom system grew urgent, "Hello?! Are you alright?"
Kitty ran over to the intercom, "Please, help us. My friend is pregnant, and she just passed out."
A couple of minutes later, the gate opened. A woman with bright red hair followed by a furry blue man and another guy who wore red sunglasses rushed out.
The woman with the red hair and the blue man knelt beside her, "How far along is she?"
"About 20 weeks", said Logan.
"We need to get her inside", said the man with red sunglasses, who reached to pick Marie up.
Logan let out a warning growl, "I'll carry her."
A half hour later, Logan realized the names of the people who were helping them were Jean, Hank and Scott. They had been initially led through the mansion, then to a hidden elevator that led to a hidden lower level complete with a med lab and sterile-looking metal hallways.
Marie woke up soon after being placed on the exam table by Logan. He was flattered that she immediately began asking for him when she regained consciousness.
After an examination, Jean surmised that Marie was dehydrated and was suffering from low blood sugar.
"A good meal and an IV bag of fluid will make you right as rain", said Jean with a kind smile.
Scott took note of their new guests haggard, dirty appearance and cocked his head to the side, "What brings you here?"
"Marie here is my wife…Kitty is my sister. We're from a small town up north. When Kitty accidentally used her powers in public, they decided to run the mutie family outta town."
"That's not really true…is it, Colonel?" said the calm voice of a bald, older man who rolled into the med lab in his wheel chair.
Logan straightened and immediately recognized Charles Xavier. The only thing different about the man from their meeting years ago was the fact that he had a lot less hair.
Scott crossed his arms, "Are you three running from the law? We're not in the business of harboring fugitives…mutant or not."
Logan shot Scott a glare as Charles raised a hand to quiet the young leader, "Our guests need rooms and a hot meal. Hank, would you be so kind as to ask Storm to prepare some food for our guests while they're shown to their rooms?"
"I want to make sure Marie finishes her IV bag before I release her, so, you might need to ask Storm to have her meal brought down here."
Logan looked at Marie and took a step closer to her, "I'm not leavin' her."
"I'm fine…really", she said, favoring him with a reassuring smile.
Logan hesitated for a bit before he left her. The blue man led them to two rooms. One for Logan and Marie, and the other for her.
As soon as he was alone, he stripped down and got into the shower. By the time he was pulling on the sweats that were stashed in the closet, he heard a knock at the door. When he answered, he was face-to-face with a carmel-skinned woman with white hair who carried a tray of food.
She smiled, "All we had was leftover meatloaf…I hope it'll do."
"Uh. That's great. Thanks. Did you give Marie her food already?"
Storm nodded as she handed him the tray, "Hank took her food downstairs already."
"What about Kitty?"
"She just walked down to the kitchen with Scott."
Logan's jaw tightened, "I'm uh…kinda protective over them…so I'm sorry if I've been a little…er…short, with you people."
She held up both hands, "I completely understand. The professor says you're to be taken care of. So you're going to be taken care of."
"Thanks."
"Let me know if you need anything else", she said before turning and walking away.
Logan scarfed his food down before opening the door to go downstairs. Just as he entered the hall, he saw Marie being led by Jean toward the room. He walked over and placed an arm around her shoulder, "Hey…how are ya feelin'?"
"Just tired…and gross. I'd love a shower."
"Did you eat?"
Marie nodded, "Faster than I've ever eaten in my life."
Jean smiled, "Hank is on his way up with seconds."
Logan smirked, "Good."
When Jean was gone and Marie had the opportunity to shower, she sat down on the bed to eat some of the extra food Hank had brought her. Logan watched intently, which made her glance up from her food, "I'm actin' like a pig, huh?"
Logan shook his head, "Nah. Eat up. I'm sure it's good for the kid."
Marie smiled, "You really care about this baby, don't you?"
"Yeah. Definitely enough to destroy my life as I know it…"
She sighed, "If it's any consolation…I think you did the right thing."
"I wish I'd planned better."
Marie looked around and raised her arms, "This place is safe, warm, and has delicious food. I think you planned great."
"Yeah…and oddly enough, these people seem to wanna help us."
She raised a brow, "You seem suspicious."
He shrugged a little, "I've been around a long time…I always think there's an ulterior motive to good deeds."
Marie nodded, "I understand. How long do you think we can stay here?"
"Dunno yet. Hopefully til the baby's born…but it all depends…"
