Darkness Gathers

Part One of the Darkness Trilogy

Chapter Ten

Logan and Renegade weren't far down the highway again before Logan was once again awake. He shot a quick glance at Renegade immediately taking notice of the change in her attire. Growling to himself at the fact that she had taken the extra time to change clothes he turned back to the window, momentarily content to let her drive. He caught the scent of blood in the car and narrowed his eyes at the scenery speeding past them running a hand through blue black hair as he tried to figure out where the blood would have come from.

"Good morning, Sunshine! Aren't we chipper this morning?" Renegade mocked once she realized he was moving and awake again.

"You really think we have time for wardrobe changes?" he snarled at her even as he turned away from the window to glare at her again.

"I needed a new shirt. My old one had three holes in it and was soaked in blood. Besides I got it when I fuelled up; it's not like I went to the mall."

"Gotta give you credit…you didn't crash," at least now the blood made sense to him and as much as he may not trust her she hadn't deserved adamantium to the side.

"But it was close…a little warning next time?"

Logan was about to reply when the communicator that was built into the dash of Scott's car flared to life. It took Logan a minute to find the right button to get the speaker phone to work, he wasn't exactly Mister Electronics, but he finally managed to get it working.

"Logan, Renegade, we have an issue," Xavier's voice filtered through the speakers and based on the background noise he was on the Blackbird.

"In case you missed it, we're a little busy, Chuck," Logan growled in reply.

"It's related…Kat managed to stumble upon a Chimera facility on her way to California."

"Sorry but did you just say 'Chimera'?" Renegade broke in.

Logan shot another distrustful glare at her as Xavier spoke, "We can explain it all later, Renegade. About five miles from your position is a campground that's closed for the season; park there and we'll pick you up with the Blackbird."

The communicator fell silent as did both Wolverine and Renegade. He knew that this was going to be the worst thing that Kat had faced since getting away from them the first time around. He was only hoping that the knowledge that the X-Men would come for her would give her the strength to hold out and resist anything they tried to do to her. The fact that Renegade seemed to have knowledge of the group wasn't sitting well with him either as he contemplated what that meant. He barely realized they were at the campground parking lot that Xavier had mentioned until Renegade was parking and he finally spoke again.

"You know about Chimera," it was a statement rather than a question.

"Of course," Renegade retorted before covering her own history with her knowledge of mythology. "Chimera is a mythical creature that is supposedly a fire breathing hybrid of a lion, a snake and a goat. That would make an awesome pet."

Logan snorted as he slid out of the car but said nothing more as the Blackbird descended to the parking lot, the main ramp lowering as it hovered just above the concrete. Without another word or even a backward glance at Renegade, Logan sprinted onboard. Renegade heaved a sigh but followed after him quickly wondering just what kind of trouble the feral had landed herself in this time.

"Really? You had to take my car?" Scott muttered at Logan from where he was currently piloting the jet back into the sky and on course.

"Get over it," Logan growled as he turned to Xavier while the Blackbird piloted by both Scott and Storm rocketed off again. "Where is she and how did this happen?"

"Does it matter how she got there? What matters is getting her out," Xavier informed him tersely.

An old, and unfortunately familiar, tingling pain greeted Kat when she finally pulled herself back into the conscious world. At first she didn't move, she merely took stock of what was happening around her. As near as she could tell she was alone though scents lingered in the air around her. Her warm, heavy coat was gone as were her jeans and riding boots. The stiff fabric of fatigues met twitching fingers as she relied on sound and smell to assess her whereabouts. The metallic scent of blood also greeted her nose but it was faint and old, probably from whoever had occupied this cage before she'd ended up there.

Finally she cracked her eyes open and cringed against the harsh florescent light. Pain rippled down her body as she slowly pushed upright but it was a pain that no one could possibly ever understand. This was pain that translated right down to her DNA; pain that didn't fade or turn to an ache but one that only got worse the longer she went without the serum. Mentally she shuddered at the thought of going through it all over again but she knew without a single doubt, that she would face it a million times over before she ever even considered being what they wanted her to be. Vaguely she registered that Xavier was still in her mind…or back in her mind. It was difficult for her to make out anything he was trying to tell her.

By her best guess it was going to be at least another hour before the real fun began with the withdrawals so until then she was going to gather every iota of information she could. Even knowing the withdrawals were closing in and with the threat of the pain that could come should they decide to push her system like they always had in the past to force a manifestation, she'd never felt stronger. The feral paced the cage-like cell and she struggled to control the instincts of her feral nature. Assuming it was merely the effects of the serum, Kat put off the need for the increased effort; there was no way that they could have dosed her with enough of the stuff to increase her feral abilities already. Then again…it felt different this time, even the lead up to the withdrawals wasn't the same, seeming to be more intense than it ever had been in the past.

Her mind seemed to jump from thought to thought as she paced and she struggled to focus long enough to even get her bearings in the small cell. Her feet were bare, which made sense considering it was another good deterrent against trying to escape and the fatigues she was wearing were thin. The room itself was cold but she shrugged that off; her feral side had always kept her from feeling the cold as badly as a normal person so she was only slightly chilly. Harsh lighting and no windows in the room meant sunlight would be hard to deal with as well once outside, but there were ways to deal with that.

Footsteps in the hall outside her cage drew her full attention finally as the feral finally kicked in and took over a little more. Still she knew she didn't have enough information to attempt an escape attempt and when the footsteps continued past her location she relaxed back into her pacing. She nearly panicked when Xavier left her mind but he was quickly replaced by Jean's presence. The other telepath was even harder to make out for Kat but it was a familiar feeling of being with family that kept her mind settled and when she thought about it a little longer she realized that the drug's effects on her mind were probably interfering with the telepaths as well. That was why they kept switching off.

More footsteps approached her door but the fallout from this current serum was hitting a lot faster than it ever had in the past. Even the feral was being pushed down and she found herself in more and more of a fog. She hadn't devolved into full-out hallucinations yet but it wasn't going to be long before that was what happened. For the moment she was…complacent though how long that was going to last with the feral side was anyone's guess since it responded in some unpredictable manners on occasion.

The lock clicked and four large and fully armed men stepped into her cell but she merely stared at them. Her earlier strength seemed to be ebbing away and she stumbled when one pulled her out into the hallway. From there on out she followed them sedately, occasionally lifting her nose as a unique scent managed to catch her easily distracted attention. The hall seemed to stretch out endlessly in front of her as she fell further into a dreamlike state. Without a fuss she let the soldiers hand her over to the scientists who pushed her into a chair, strapping wrists and ankles down for their own safety. There was no way to know what their new serum was going to do with this particular mutant. She heard their voices but the words didn't register in her mind.

The sharp prick of needles into veins in both wrists jerked her back to the real world briefly and she snarled at the lab coated men who didn't even give her a second look. That stung a little, sure she wasn't exactly huge at five foot ten and a hundred and twenty pounds but that snarl tended to get some kind of a reaction from people. That thought flitted away from her mind as quickly as any others had as she sank back into the chair. She remained restrained where she was for several minutes, not moving as she stared above her at the brightly colored lights that were starting to appear in front of her eyes. Whatever they'd shot her with this time was…different. She caught the shrugs of the scientists and let the different scents of the lab filter into her mind. Cognitive ability was slowly starting to return but she still felt like she was flying.

"There hasn't been a decent affect in any of them since we started this new serum! This one is expendable; let's see how much it's going to take to get some results! Double the dose and hit her again," Doctor Wayfield's voice was what finally pulled the cognitive process back in its entirety but still Kat remained as she'd been; this time though, she was biding her time.

"We'll need more samples from the donor soon. We'll be down to only a couple of doses of the new serum if we do that," another voice, softer than Wayfield's but definitely male replied.

"Fine, we'll call him in again in a few days. It's not like he questions anything we do."

Kat bit her tongue when the next round of shots entered her arms. This time it was as if they had shot liquid fire into her veins. As the drug spread through her body it left behind a burning trail that made her want to claw her own skin off to find the source and get rid of it; still she managed to appear as she had been all along; staring at the ceiling as though fascinated by something there. There were some things that still didn't seem to be entirely real however so apparently this new serum had some new side effects to go with it as well; it was if everything happening around her was a dream and other than the very real pain nothing else was real.

Finally the fire seemed to subside and when she still didn't seem to be responding to anything, they released her restraints. It was then that Kat finally attacked despite the pain that always came with the serum bonding to and changing her genetic code but it was also something the feral used as fuel. The process itself was enough to elicit a mutant response in some since the body was stressed to such a high level. The fact that when she swung at the nearest lab coat to her, her hand appeared to be a very large, white and fur covered paw ending in sharp claws that sprayed blood over the walls didn't even register in her mind as being unusual; nor did the fact that everyone seemed to be a lot taller as she leapt out the door, leaving a bloody mess of bodies behind her in her all out dash to freedom, throwing her body through a window at the end of the hall.

It never even registered in her mind that she was running on all fours, nor did the fact that she wasn't cold even though given what she'd been wearing she should have been freezing. The sound of rifle fire behind her and the snow exploding as bullets flew into it around her did register as she dug harder into the snow and found another speed. Once again she could barely pick out that Xavier was in her head and was trying to talk to her but as much as she tried she just couldn't seem to make out the words and as snow exploded just inches from her left side she stopped trying and poured everything she could focus into running.

It was only a few minutes in reality but to Kat's drug fuelled mind it had been hours of running and trying to avoid assault rifle bearing Chimera security before she skidded to a halt, digging into the snow covered, rocky ground. Below her she heard the sound of a fast running river and she spun to face her assailants that were slowly closing in on her in a half circle, cutting off any chance of escape.

"Alright…just come back with us and no one has to get hurt," one of the security detail stated softly as though talking to a frightened animal.

Kat merely growled and bared her teeth a little surprised when the man took a quick step back and raised his rifle again. While she couldn't entirely hear Xavier herself, she hoped that he could at least hear her as she glanced back over her shoulder at the ledge she was currently positioned on and made a decision that wasn't entirely logical but every instinct in her being told her it was the only choice to be made.

Professor, tell Logan I'm sorry. I'm not as strong as he wants me to be. I'm not going back…I can't. Let Remy know this is not his fault…I was a terrified idiot and tell the others…I'm sorry and they've been the best family anyone could ever want she thought at the piece of her mind where she felt Xavier the strongest.

While she couldn't hear him, she could feel him; his shock and horror as he realized what she was going to do. There was a chance that she'd survive the jump into the water below but it was freezing outside and the water was going to be a lot colder than the air. Still she couldn't see another option and so with her heart in her throat she closed her eyes and flung herself off the edge of the cliff and into the freezing water below.

The current pulled her downstream before the feral managed to override everything else and it was instinct and pure will to survive that got her to the far bank. She managed to half pull herself out of the water before her body simply refused to do anything else and she laid there panting and shivering, clinging to the bank with her legs and hips still submerged in the water.

The team was nearing their chosen drop off point when Xavier launched to his feet catching his balance on the back of a seat in front of him. The whole group knew whatever was happening was bad. Xavier was nearly ghost white and had a look of absolute horror and pain on his face. It was only moments later when that look turned to complete bafflement that the rest of the team relaxed marginally.

"That's new," he muttered. "What the hell have they done?"

"Professor?" Jean questioned having immediately moved to his side at his first move.

"Sorry, Jean. I don't think we're going to have to go in after her. She's launching her own escape though in a manner that was very much…unexpected."

He continued to monitor her movements, directing Scott as the feral sprinted through the trees and snow. He knew the instant she was cornered and also knew they'd never reach her in time.

Without realizing he was speaking out loud he gasped, "No…"

Even knowing she'd survived the leap from the cliff into the water, he knew the chances of surviving that kind of exposure, even in her current form, was slim. For a moment Xavier ignored the concerned questions of the others. If they didn't reach her soon her chances would be even worse. He forgot, however, to factor in the fact that they had Renegade along.

Finally Wolverine grasped the front of Xavier's jacket and shook the man slightly unable to wait any longer, "What the hell is going on?!"

The feral was terrified and Xavier finally tuned back into the group, "Scott! Get to the river just west of that ridge! Now!"

Scott corrected their heading and Gambit finally spoke up, sounding quiet and not at all his usual self and he was still flicking the same cards through his fingers, "What's happenin', Professor?"

"She jumped…" Xavier sounded shocked at the idea and a little out of it as the drugged mind of Kat wreaked havoc with his own to a lesser extent despite his shields against it. "She's still alive but we have to act fast and get to her."

Wolverine immediately moved to the door, "When we're close tell me and open the door, then circle back and pick us up."

"That's not a good idea…" Scott started but was cut off when Jean moved to him and laid a hand on his arm.

"Just this once, leave it alone and do it."

Scott nodded once as Gambit launched to his feet and paced after Wolverine, "You not goin' wit'out Gambit."

Wolverine growled at the Cajun as he took the specially packed emergency kit from Beast, "I don't need to deal with you too! Renegade, keep him here!"

Before anyone could utter another word the ramp dropped and Wolverine was jumping into the wooded area along the riverbank. The rest of the group watched the feral disappear into the snow covered landscape below before going back to their original work, preparing for the worst.

"Damn it!" Renegade muttered before launching into an argument with Gambit; after all she'd wanted to go along with Wolverine as well.

Once on the ground, Wolverine began tracking Kat by scent. He was close enough to her position that her scent filtered to him on the bitterly cold wind that was beginning to pick up. He knew that he needed to find her fast; being soaked in ice water and then laying out in the snow and the wind would kill her almost as fast as that jump could have. He growled under his breath at the situation and at himself for pushing her and making her think things that she never should have. He paused and sniffed the air again; she should be in sight in the next few strides.

Wolverine picked up his pace and stopped, looking for his fellow feral but his gaze only spotted a half drowned snow leopard that had managed to drag itself half way up the bank before collapsing. Kat's scent saturated the spot but she was nowhere to be found and he snarled at the trees around him. Something wasn't right with all of this but he took a step closer to the poor creature only to stop in mid stride; the snow leopard lived in central Asia not North America. He finally listened to what his nose and his instincts had been telling him; as improbable as it seemed, this big cat was in fact his Kat. He tossed the pack that Beast had given him next to her head as he skidded to her side. Before he bothered to pull her from the river he checked for wounds but found no evidence of blood. Immediately thereafter he hoisted her from the water before digging an emergency blanket from the pack even as her eyes flicked open, pale green meeting vivid blue.

It didn't immediately register in Kat's mind that this was really Wolverine. She was so cold now that she wasn't even shivering any longer so between that and the effects of the serum she wasn't sure she could trust what she saw. What she did trust were her instincts and her nose. Scent never translated into her hallucinations and her nose said that this was really Wolverine and she was finally free from Chimera again. A deep, shaky sigh escaped her lips before her form melted and twisted; fur retreated back into skin, ears and teeth shrunk, knees reversed and paws became hands and feet once more before she fell back unconscious, collapsing into Wolverine's arms.

Wolverine was stunned as he watched the transformation from large cat back to human. He barely recovered quickly enough to readjust his hold around her before she was limp once again and he finally realized that while her body had apparently learned to shift itself to another form, clothes were not a part of that deal. He frowned when she still didn't start to shiver despite being naked, wet and exposed to the cold winter air. He shook it off quickly however, wrapping her as fully as he could manage in the emergency blanket before he gathered her and the pack in his arms. The Blackbird was hovering ten feet up river, ramp extended to the bank and he hurried as much as he could while holding Kat as tightly against his warm body as was possible.

Wolverine wasn't even far enough inside the jet for the ramp to ascend and close before Beast took the unconscious and hypothermic woman from him. Silence had settled over the group as Beast started on his assessment of her condition the cringe the doctor gave giving away the fact that she was in bad shape. Wolverine paced just behind Beast as he worked, managing to keep Kat's body covered as he drew blood samples for analysis when they got back; he'd need to know if his research from the original serum was going to be of any help to her when the drug started to leave her system this time.

Renegade shook her head as watched, along with the rest of the team other than their pilots, while Beast worked frantically to keep Kat this side of breathing. As Scott and Storm made a hasty retreat from the Chimera facility to the rapid shot fire of assault rifles aimed at the Blackbird, no one said a word other than an occasional mutter from Beast while he worked. Jean and Xavier gave Beast the room he needed while Wolverine and Gambit paced behind him, glaring at one another though they didn't speak.

Renegade finally rolled her eyes and sighed, "You know…you have the one person who can heal anyone of anything standing right here…"

Beast jerked his head up from where he was hovering over the still unconscious and motionless Kat, "My apologies…I tend to get wrapped up in what I'm doing and I'm still not used to that option."

Renegade shook her head and stepped in beside Beast, "Just be ready to catch me, I don't really want to crack my skull open when I pass out."

Beast nodded but she ignored him for the most part as she laid a hand on Kat's bare shoulder. She momentarily wondered why the feral was naked but shook it off deciding she could get the answer from Wolverine later. Light flared from her hand and into Kat healing what she was able to which translated down to the symptoms of her hypothermia; even she couldn't touch the serum bonded to her genetic code. As the light faded Renegade collapsed but was easily caught by Beast before she actually hit the ground. As he moved the newest member of the team to a seat, Wolverine stepped up beside Kat who jerked upright seconds later with a snarl automatically lashing out at the nearest person. Wolverine caught her fist and jerked her into his shoulder until she relaxed again.

"Sorry, Logan; reflex," she muttered as he gradually released his hold on her.

"If you ever do that again…" he growled before sighing and shaking his head. "I'm sorry, Kid. I never should have said what I said."

Gambit collapsed back against the side of the jet and closed his eyes when he finally heard Kat's voice just as strong as it had ever been. He hadn't realized just how close he'd let himself get to the feral or just how much she meant to him. Not that he was willing to share that piece of information with anyone just yet; he was going to have to figure out how to deal with it for himself first. Still, she was alive and well so everything else could be dealt with later.

"At least I found my answer," Kat spoke quietly as her gaze shifted to Gambit.

She couldn't seem to get a handle on her empathy which meant she was randomly getting hit by the emotional state of those around her. Wolverine's guilt, Gambit's relief, Xavier's worry about what was to come next for Kat with the withdrawals; she couldn't seem to keep herself blocked from any of it for any amount of time. Every time she thought she had a handle on it again it flared and she was back to square one. The feral seemed to be harder to contain and control as well; instinct screamed for her to get out of the confined space but logic said she was safe. It was an interesting internal battle and one that she thought she'd dealt with a long time ago.

"Yeah, but I'm not going to take back my warning; be careful with the Cajun."

Kat nodded slightly and finally realized the fact that she was completely naked and wrapped only in a silver, thermal emergency blanket, "Um…where are my clothes?"

"You tell me. When I found you, Kat, you were four legged and furry. When you shifted back you were naked," Wolverine shrugged and narrowed his eyes at her. "And where's my Jeep?"

"Parked on the side of the mountain in a tourist road side turnout," Kat muttered in reply frowning at his explanation for her lack of clothing. "So…that was real; not just in my head."

Wolverine shrugged, "Looks that way, Kid. You okay for now?"

Kat nodded slightly, "Cold but otherwise I'll be okay for a couple of hours anyway. This was a new serum so I don't really know how long it'll take."

"I'll be there when it hits."

Kat nodded again as he strode away to check on Renegade. As much as he hated to admit it that move had just moved her up a notch or two in his book. He still didn't trust her as far as he could throw her but she might be good people yet. Kat turned her gaze over to Gambit and sighed not really wanting to deal with the fall out just yet but she didn't need to worry about such.

"Next time, Cher, just talk ta me, no?" he finally spoke, his voice still quiet and he kept his eyes closed still leaning against the side of the jet.

Kat nodded slowly keeping the blanket wrapped firmly around her body and shivered slightly, "Would have saved me a lot of trouble."

Gambit finally opened his eyes and looked over at her; she expected a grin to grace his features when he laid eyes upon her but he remained serious, "Why is everyone still worried about you?"

Kat cringed and shook her head, "Withdrawals; the Chimera serums are painful and highly addictive."

Gambit nodded, "Wolverine won' be da only one dere."

Xavier slowly approached wanting to give the two time to talk but he hadn't missed the way Kat was struggling with her control, "Any ideas on the control issues?"

Kat shook her head, "Not unless this serum acts a hell of a lot faster on the X-gene than the original. Which is possible; it felt like they shot fire into my veins."

Xavier nodded, "I know, I felt that too." He sighed and shook his head. "We'll have to worry about that after everything else though. For now just keep doing what you're doing and we'll hope it will all level out once the serum is absorbed and the excess is purged. Apparently there are some things that even Renegade can't fix."

"Kind of hard to fix someone's genetic structure, Professor."

He nodded in agreement before returning to his seat for the remainder of the flight. Kat slipped off the makeshift bed Beast had created for her, ensuring the blanket remained firmly around her body. Gambit followed her to a couple of seats and once she was sitting next to the window he dropped into the seat next to her in silence. She wasn't sure what to make of this new side of the Cajun.

"Remy…"

"I'm still a little annoyed, Cher but dat doesn't mean I'm quitting."

"You are persistent, I'll give you that."

"I'm a thief, mon chatton. I wouldn't be a very good one if I wasn't an' I'm one a da best."

Kat smiled a little at that, "So I guess that means we give this whole 'we' thing a shot?"

"Oui, Cher; after we deal wit' whatever dis Chimera stuff does to you."

"Don't remind me…" she growled, laying her head against the window and closing her eyes.

Gambit's movements didn't escape her notice but she didn't open her eyes again until he draped his coat over her body. He only shrugged when she gave him a confused look and then realized she was shivering. Grateful for the extra warmth, she burrowed into the coat as much as she could, pulling her legs under her body and leaning against his shoulder. She was already starting to crave the serum which meant the withdrawals would probably hit in the next twelve hours but how long they'd last this time she had no idea. A double dose could mean an extended withdrawal or a faster but harder hitting session; she'd know soon enough though.