Warnings: Cussing. I cuss. Too bad, so sad.
I love getting everyone's reviews, and I'm glad y'all are enjoying the story too. You guys rock.
I changed 2 of the groups from the previous chapter. It'd been so long, I had forgotten what I wanted.
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Retrieval of Self: Chapter 11
Heading back through their escape route, Scott couldn't help but be proud of the damage he'd done. He almost never used the full power of his beam, but in this case, the satisfaction of the destruction was well worth it.
It wasn't easy getting everyone through the rubble of what was formerly the garage. Logan and Hank had to help the Professor through some of the collapsed sections while Rogue almost got a skinned knee from tripping over some stray debris. Scott himself had trouble as his leg was still badly injured from their escape two days prior. He had dosed himself with some painkillers on the X-jet and hoped it'd be enough to get through their raid. As he almost tumbled over a large beam, he barely avoided landing in a puddle of blood. He stopped, staring transfixed at a particularly large puddle. He doubted anyone could survive that much blood loss.
A few guns littered the area, lying near pools of blood.
"You did what you had to do," Logan said as he joined Scott.
"I know, it's just…" Scott stopped and shrugged - at a loss of how to convey his emotions.
"If you hadn't, we'd still be lying in those cells, like caged animals."
Scott nodded. "I'd do it again in a heartbeat." Logan nodded in return and walked over to check on Kurt. The queasy feeling still stayed with Scott despite Logan's reassurances.
"X-men." Professor X waited until everyone was focused on him. "We stick together until we come upon the functional portions of the facility then split up into our respective teams. The element of surprise is key. So maintain absolute silence unless it's essential. Kurt, will you be able to guide us back to the location of the cells?"
"Ja."
Scott could hear the exhaustion lacing Kurt's voice. He wondered how much of a strain Kurt's teleportation earlier had inflicted on him.
"I don't want you depleting any more energy than needed, so please allow Hank to carry you."
As a testament to Kurt's fatigue, Kurt let Hank help him up on his back without protest.
"This feels oddly familiar. Though I think that Herr McCoy is comfier than Scott."
Scott smiled at Kurt's joke, glad to know that he was down but still wasn't out just yet.
"Hey, I'll have you know my back is perfectly comfortable!"
"Ja, like lying on Avalanche."
There was a brief pause as everyone looked at Kurt whose eyes widened when he realized his mistake.
"Talk about your Freudian slip," Rogue murmured.
Scott's lips twisted up into a smirk.
"Wait, no. Not the Avalanche, but an avalanche." Kurt flailed to prove his point on Hank's back. "Like rocks! I mean lying on Avalanche would probably be softer than a real avalanche…" Kurt trailed off as he seemed to realize what he just said. "N-not that I-"
Spike shook his head. "Man, not an image I needed."
"As fascinating as this all is, I believe we have a task at hand." Professor X's commanding voice quickly focused everyone back on their purpose. "I believe everyone knows their roles. Logan, you take point. Ororo, rear. Let's go."
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As they ran through the dimly lit halls, Kitty became aware of how fast her heart was beating. She swore that their clandestine passage would be compromised by the echoing of her booming heart. As they headed deeper into the heart of the facility, Kitty saw signs of habitation - fewer lightbulbs were out, the few rooms with windows looked neatly arranged while most rooms were closed from prying eyes. Some rooms even had signs detailing their purpose.
As they rushed by one open doorway with signs of renovation inside, Professor X signaled for everyone to stop, holding up two fingers and pointing ahead. Kitty held her breath, hoping that the guards hadn't heard their approach. While they waited silently, a trickle of conversation floated to them.
"-ran away like scared little girls."
"Bunch of cowards."
"Kemp's checking the mansion from top to bottom now. Seeing if any of the freaks are holed up somewhere."
"He'll find them. He's one of the best trackers I know."
"Wish I could've been there. I wouldn't've let those muties get away."
"Yeah. Ain't nothing coming down this fucking hallway."
As the guards continued to converse, the Professor quickly exchanged glances with Logan. After a moment of silent communication, Logan slinked around the corner while everyone waited. After an eternal minute, one loud crack followed by two thumps reached Kitty's ears.
Smirking, Logan rounded the corner. "Knocked them out cold."
"We should bound and gag them so our presence remains undetected," Hank chimed in.
Professor X nodded. "See to it." Logan and Ororo headed off. "We'll encounter more guards as we get closer. We'll move at a slower pace."
Through several more hallways and one more pair of guards, Kurt finally signaled them to stop.
"If we kept going mostly straight, we'd be at our cells. That way," Kurt pointed towards the right, "are the laboratories. I dunno about the last way."
Professor X nodded. "This is a prime location for us to separate into our respective teams. Everyone, good luck. Be alert and safe," Professor X encouraged before heading in the direction of the labs.
Kitty took one last look at her friends before turning off and joining Storm and Jean.
After heading straight with a few turns here and there, they came upon the cells.
"S-so this is where you were held?" Kitty asked with trepidation. "It's so-" she paused as she looked at the cold concrete floors, metal bars, and harsh lights, "-bare."
"I can see Logan didn't take a liking to the decor," Ororo said as she picked up pieces of the bars from Scott's cage.
"It wasn't pleasant," Jean said as she averted her gaze from the cells. "But right through this other door is where they tested my abilities. There are a ton of equipment and computers that look perfect for destruction."
Suddenly, the abrupt, blaring klaxon stopped them dead in their tracks. The lights began flashing a sinister red.
"Looks like they're aware of our presence. We must hurry." Ororo motioned at them to pick up the pace, and with that, they began sprinting down the hallways, the sound of their feet seeming to keep time to the flash of the lights.
Scanning the side rooms as they ran, Ororo suddenly veered off into a cracked door.
She quickly closed the door behind them. The room seemed to be an observation room with a glass window overlooking an empty training area. "Our lack of detection has held so far but will probably end here. The racket from destroying these computer terminals will draw any nearby guards' attention. Kitty and I will take care of these quickly. Jean, you keep an eye on the door. After we're finished, we move room to room destroying anything electronic causing as much destruction as possible."
Kitty nodded in response and began phasing through the computers while Storm electrified anything remaining.
With a ferocious grin, Jean telekinectly threw a filing cabinet against a wall, the papers within flying out. Storm followed up with a rain cloud, soaking the paper into useless wads.
As they slammed the door on their way out, three guards were menacingly standing just outside, but had no time to react as they were promptly disarmed by Jean and quickly followed by a chain of lighting from Storm. The guards dropped to the floor.
"And that is just the beginning of what you'll get," Jean said as they ran past.
Feeling a release of tension with exercising her powers and putting down the guards, Kitty eagerly followed Storm into the next room awaiting annihilation.
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Logan led Evan and Rogue quickly down the hallway, any pretense at stealth throw out when the alarms started blaring. He wagered that some guards had come upon the men they had tied up earlier.
Logan wasn't worried about any of that. He had made the mistake of letting anyone survive from the previous Weapons X experiment, and it was his students who had paid the price. Falk was not leaving this building tonight.
However, Logan had no clue as to where Falk's office could even be located. They had picked a hallway at random, in hopes of finding where the offices were located.
Picking one of the doors to his right, Logan grabbed the handle and flung open the door. Energy deflated at seeing nothing inside, Logan started to close the door.
"Wait" Rogue put out a hand to catch the door. Reaching inside, she flicked on the light switch. In the far back corner, there was a stack of computers and keyboards along with several office chairs. "Seems like we're headed in the right direction."
"A little help here!" Evan's voice caught Logan's attention. Turning back, he saw that Evan had already covered himself in a plate of protective bone armor and was throwing spikes down the hallway.
Glancing father down the hallway, Logan saw two guards returning Evan's fire with tranquillizers. So far none had penetrated Evan's shield, but it was only a matter of time before one got a lucky strike. The hallway was too long for him to make a wild run at the guards before he was taken out by the tranquillizers himself. He heard a few tranquillizer darts bounce off the open doorway he and Rogue hid behind. Frustrated, Logan growled menacingly, willing to run pell-mell down the hall if it meant he could protect the kids.
Before Logan got a chance to head off on his kamikaze mission, Rogue yelled right next to his ear.
"Toss me one of your spikes, Evan!"
Sharing a confused look with Logan, Evan threw her the spike in his right hand before quickly reforming another to throw at the guards.
Without hesitation, Rogue repeatedly slammed the spike straight down into the door hinges. Realizing what she was up to, Logan began utilizing his own strength to help pry the door off.
With a clang, the last hinge fell to the floor. Wasting no time, Logan hefted the door into his hands and using the door as an unwieldy shield, ran straight at the guards. Any darts shot his way caromed off until he slammed the first guard with the door against the wall, knocking him out cold. The other guard was already fleeing down the hall.
"I don't think so, bub." Logan threw the door down and hurtled himself after the coward. In seconds, he had caught up, grabbed the guard's head and smashed it against the wall.
"Pretty impressive," Rogue commented as Logan walked back to them.
"Not bad thinking yourself," Logan said as he inspected the door. There was a split starting to spread out from the center. "Ch, particle board. Cheap ass shit." Still, it wasn't bad as a barrier against the tranquillizer guns, so Logan picked it up.
"Leaves me a little bare here." Rogue gestured down at her unprotected state.
"Touch me."
"In your dreams, Spyke."
"Please, like I even wanted you to."
"Spyke's right," Logan interjected. "Just a small tap and you can bone up together."
Both Rogue and Spyke stared at Logan before bursting into giggles.
Logan just covered his face with hand in exasperation if not to hide a small smile himself.
"Ok, ok, I'm ready," Spyke said as the last of his laughter faded. He held out his index finger and with a brief tingle, Rogue stood next time him covered in full bone armor.
Logan nodded and started leading the way. As they walked, the hallways became noticeably posh – delicate fixtures on the walls, paintings and greenery along with decorative tables lined the larger, carpeted passageway.
"Seems like Falk decided to spare no expense," Logan commented as he glanced at a crystal bowl on a table filled with intricately engraved metal balls.
The door a few rooms down creaked slowly open. A scientist peeked around. Upon seeing them, she tried to slam the door shut, but Logan was faster. Foot in the way, the scientist couldn't close the door completely.
"Don't kill me, please!" Mascara ran down her face.
"Tell me where Falk's office is," Logan growled.
"D-d-on't!"
"Tell me, and I won't hurt you."
"Down to the r-r-right. Then you go s-s-straight until you take two lefts then a right." She shakingly pointed.
"Thanks," Logan fiercely grinned before quickly grabbing her shirt and slamming her head into the door. She sank to the floor.
Logan turned towards his students. "Take out any liabilities. She would've called Falk and warned him."
Seeming unperturbed, Rogue and Spyke nodded. It seemed like the past month had left them all a little bitter, harsher.
After several more easily dispatched guards, a few scared scientists, and some twists in the hallways, Logan brought them to a halt.
"There's about 4 guards in front of a door just down this hallway," Logan whispered. "I'll bet anything that Falk is cowering in there."
"Good. Let's take him down." Spyke created a particularly intimidating spike in his hand.
Grasping the door tightly, Logan barreled around the corner before flinging the door with all his strength at the guards. Caught unaware, the guards were hit with such force that the door splintered apart.
Following quickly behind, Rogue and Spyke followed, pinning the guards against the carpeted floor and cracking their heads with reinforced punches.
"Wait here," Logan commanded. "I want to confront Falk alone."
Rogue and Spyke nodded and took positions outside the door.
"Do you think that Logan will, you know?" Evan made a motion of slitting his neck.
"I dunno, and I don't care. Falk imprisoned and tormented our friends and Kurt-" Rogue clenched her fist. She couldn't say whether she could go through with getting rid of Falk permanently. But she'd support whatever Logan chose to do.
"Yeah, you're right." Evan resumed scanning the hallways. They both strained to hear what was happening inside the office, but it seemed that this door was particularly thicker than the others. With nothing else to say, they lapsed into silence.
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Logan slid into the office, hearing the door close with an ominous click. Inside, he was greeted with similar luxurious décor as the hallways – leatherback chairs, an ornate, sturdy desk, and plush carpeting.
Falk had his back turned to the door and was frantically rummaging through a file cabinet in the back of the room. "As soon as I'm finished with this last drawer and the computer finishes with the jump drive, we'll head off to my car. You are to protect me with your life. You are to protect these files with your life. We'll set up at the location in Brisbane." He paused a second. "Damn I hate losing that specimen. With insight into his powers – teleportation of all things! – and the data I've accumulated. He would've been marvelous." Falk clenched some files angrily before resuming his search. "I'll get him back. He's mine. This time I'll hire a more competent security force."
While Falk grumbled to himself, he completely missed Logan's entrance. However, the other room's occupant, the young, annoying guard did not. He stared slack jawed at Logan. His hands were full of files and papers which slowly started to slid off onto the floor.
The sight of the guard and Falk caused Logan to see red. With one quick movement, Logan had a claw deep into the young recruit's neck. His eyes were wide as blood poured down his body and out of his mouth. The papers he was holding crashed onto the floor, slowly being covered in blood.
At the sudden noise of the body hitting the floor, Falk turned around. "You!"
"Yeah, me," Logan said as he flicked his claws to clean them of blood.
Falk's eyes glanced from Logan's claws to the body at the floor and back. He backed up against the cabinets. "Just think for a second."
"I've thought about it. You're dead. A remnant of Weapon X that should've been killed off long ago."
"I am making you better, stronger!"
Logan approached Falk slowly, enjoying his obvious fear. "You are using us. Making us into weapons for your own goals."
"Look at you! You're impervious. And my other speci-" Falks backtracked at Logan's fierce snarl, "I mean your student, Kurt right? He will be glorious-"
"I am not a weapon! He is not a toy!" Logan shoved off the papers that littered the desk. Breathing heavily, he continued, "None of us are."
"But isn't he superior now? Surely his powers must be magnified by-"
"You want to know what you did! You killed him! He's dying because of your fucking experiments. Your overdose!" Logan was now standing in front of Falk, claws extended. "I am going to enjoy this."
"Wait!" Falk frantically tried to duck away but was blocked by Logan's fist slamming into the cabinet next to his head. "I can save him!"
Logan barely held himself in check. "Explain. Now."
Falk nervously adjusted his sleeves. "I knew, of course, that I was giving an overdose to my speci-yes, um, that is, Kurt. It was a punishment, you see. I had no idea that he would teleport away or the fact that he could even teleport. I was simply going to let a few hours or days go by, observing the changes- they must be remarkable changes- before I reversed the effects."
"Punishment?" Logan snarled.
"That is besides the point," Falk snapped. "Were you not listening? I can reverse the effects."
Simply that easy. Just reverse the effects like -" Logan snapped his fingers and scoffed.
"Yes simply," Falk, feeling more confident, snapped back mockingly, "that easy. I didn't want a repeat of Weapon X, now did I. Instead I developed several series of decoctions. Easily administered and easily reversed. That way if a mutant became too much of a liability risk, I could handle the situation."
"As you handled this one."
"Unknown factors occurred. But if you want to save him, then you simply can't kill me." Falk smirked, knowing he had won.
Clenching his fists in frustration, Logan turned around and banged his fists against the desk so hard that the wood cracked. "Fuck!" Taking a deep breath to regain control, Logan spun back around, grabbing Falk by the collar. "And you can fix him, completely. Reverse everything you've done."
"Of course, I have never thoroughly tested my serums until now. Especially that last one I administered. Brand new. Potent. Seeing its effects first hand will be most rewarding. And an overdose no less." Seeing the fury grow in Logan's eyes, Falk hurried to his point. "But yes, I can assure you that he won't die. He is one of the most curious and exciting specimens I've encountered. It is not in my plan to lose him."
"Your plan for him ends now. You'll come with me and save him, now."
"And me? Do you think I'll simply go with you only to have you kill me in the end?"
"I won't kill you… yet. That's as good as you deserve."
"How reassuring. But I suppose it's the best I will get." Falk straightened his lab coat as Logan backed off. "Lead the way to your jet."
"He's here in the facility. You lead the way to your labs."
"How fortunate then."
Falk's back presented a perfect target for Logan as Falk guided them through the halls, but he just couldn't risk Kurt's life.
In the office, the jump drive blinked once then became a solid green, signaling that all files had been fully uploaded.
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Well, I said I would update and not leave this incomplete. So there it is. I even surprised myself. Falk was totally supposed to be killed in that last scene by Logan.
There will probably be just one more chapter and an epilogue or so.
Anyway, thanks for reading!