A/N - so I really wanted to post this as one giant chapter...but it's just taking too long. So yes... I apologize in advance for this cutting out but I thought you'd rather get a chapter then wait for me.
Cheshire, Canuckle, Retrokill...thank you as ALWAYS for the reviews. You know I eat that stuff up.
Cheshire and Retro - yup...it's finally the first hint at the larger world Canuckle has been spending so much time perfecting in her own work. I admit I'm pretty far behind but this is just the beginning. Lots of goodness planned.
Retro - thanks for the real feedback. Took what you said into account and while you might not see it in this chapter, I will definitely be working more of what we talked about into my work as a whole.
The three ferals headed straight for the hangar where they found a very cranky Domino waiting for them along with Fitz and Simmons. Domino had on a new suit with a particular amount of armor guarding her middle. For once Greer was thankful to see the lucky assassin...right up until she couldn't tell if her and Logan wanted to murder...or sleep with each other.
"Logan...why don't we leave the kiddie's with their goodie bags and go find a quite island to terrorize? Remember that week in Mali..." Domino said with a smirk as she teasingly unzipped the front of her uniform just a little too low for mixed company.
"Why don't you keep yer mouth shut and be happy you got paid and not stabbed?"
"Oh Logan...always with the short, stocky temper." Apex caught the duffel Domino tossed at him while keeping her smirk on Logan and unzipped it to find replacements for the guns and armor SHIELD had taken from him. He recognized it from the shack...
"How long?" Apex wasn't angry...simply curious.
"How long what?" Greer looked between Apex and Logan, with Domino raising a humored eyebrow as she leaned against the stocky feral who promptly shrugged her off with a small growl.
"How long has Logan had Domino reporting to him." Apex calmly explained as Greer dropped her jaw for a second before turning back to Logan who gave a shrug.
"Couple weeks...maybe a month. Knew Fury would reach out to someone to cover his ass so I called in a favor to have Domino make herself available. Thought it best to have a set of eyes on the two of you."
"Wait...so does that mean..."
"Told ya I had a hand in that uniform of yours." Domino smirked as Greer let out a growl.
"You're lucky I don't eat the handicapped." the tigress grumbled as she grabbed some gear from the bag and slipped on a new belt and thigh holster before reaching for her sidearm. Logan gave Dom a nudge to give the girl a break.
"Wasn't about to let you run out there playin' commando without some protection Tigger. Besides, blacks a good color on ya, right Apex?" the taller feline paused his own preparations at Logan's comment but all he got from him was a knowing look that he couldn't interpret.
"Ummm... sir..." Fitz took a hesitant step forward with what appeared to be a pair of high-tech glasses in hand.
"You got somethin' for us kid?" Fitz seemed to wither from the stares coming at him from the numerous ferals and known assassins but Simmons was there to support him and stepped in.
"Yes! You see Fitz here has figured out a rather ingenious way to make sure none of you get controlled again. It's actually quite impressive when you stop to think about it...I mean the compound ions that -"
"What I think Simmons is trying to say," Fitz cut in as Simmons gave an apologetic smile, "is that if you would all just put these on for a moment, they should scan a layer of protection over the eye to prevent the signal from entering the corneal vertex of the brain."
Fitz was met by uniform silence. Letting out a sigh he tried again, "It should stop you from getting controlled. Wolverine was right...it takes an initial programming to be affected but seeing as how it's possible all of you might not actually remember being programmed in the first place..."
"We got it kid. Hand 'em over." Logan slipped on the glasses and and passed them around until they ended up back in Fitz's hands. With that taken care of Greer moved to follow the rest of the group but Simmon's reached out a hand to stop her. Despite her appearance, Simmon's just found it hard to believe this...girl was running with a group like this. Which just so happened to include the mutant that had only hours before attempted to kill all of them and if Simmons was reading right happened to also be this girl's...boyfriend.
"Yeah Jemma?" Greer asked, surprised by the random gesture.
Jemma… Nobody called her that… and Simmons found her hand gripping Greer's arm tighter.
"Don't go." she blurted out before she could stop herself causing the tigress's eyebrow to arch.
"Excuse me?"
"You shouldn't be doing this… Feral gene splicing abilities or what not … You shouldn't go … You're too… It isn't safe." Greer frowned questioningly at the brunette … Was Jemma concerned about her?
"I have to Jemma… Its my job…"
"No, no it isn't. Working in a government laboratory, that's a job … Gallivanting around the globe dodging gunfire and trying to kill someone … That's not a job. Besides, there are more than enough people in line to do it." Simmons gestured at the other ferals and assassin. Greer lowered her ears in consideration of Simmon's words but ended up giving the brunette an apologetic smile.
Simmons narrowed her eyes.
"You're still going aren't you?"
"I'm sorry. Like I said, I have to..."
"No you don't, you can stay here in the lab with Fritz and I … We can do… Just do normal things that people our age do…I bet you can even join SHILED!" Simmons tried making it sound like she was inviting her to a slumber party.
Greer shook her head.
"As tempting as that sounds, I need to go. Stryker did...this" and Greer gestured at herself a little sadly, "to me… and if he didn't, I would be happily doing things people our age do. But he needs to pay and I'm going to make sure he never does this to anybody else ever again." There was pause and a few awkward stares before Jemma reluctantly released Greer's arm.
"Al - Alright. I understand…" she said softly before wrapping the tigress in a hug, surprising the both of them.
"Just be safe and don't die so we could grab that coffee I was talking about…" she joked before letting go of a still very stunned Greer.
"Now go … Unleash hell." Simmons said with a grin before awkwardly rejoining an uncomfortable looking Fritz. Greer could only stare at her in amazement before giving her own grin and nodding. She couldn't believe it...Someone outside the mansion wasn't afraid of her… Simmons wanted to hang out… God that's so...
"Tigger!"
Her joy was short lived as Logan barked at her to join the group. Stating that if she wasted anymore time, Stryker would be long gone. With one more wave to Simmons, Greer headed for the rest of the team. Maybe SHIELD really wasn't as awful as she thought it was… Not all its people anyway… But Greer knew with a smirk that it'd be wise to keep that thought to herself.
Back in the elevator Fritz stared at Simmons silently until she noticed him.
"What?"
"You two were getting pretty friendly…." he grumbled.
"Oh shut up Fritz, you're just jealous she spoke to me and not you… Besides, she saved my life."
"I did too. I shut the phone off."
Simmons only rolled her eyes.
"She saved me from getting my skull bashed in...Do you always have to be so specific?
There was a pause.
"I thought you hated cats…"
"No. Whatever gave you that idea?"
"Well you did leave a decomposing cat liver next to my-"
"FITZ!" Simmons scowled before trudging back into the building with a grinning Fritz behind her.
...
After that it was back onto the jet and a long flight to some island off the west coast that didn't even have a name. Before heading out Logan had briefed them on what he had been able to cobble together: the island had been a refueling station during WWII and it seemed Stryker had moved in for the time being. Domino had reached out to some underground contacts and found out he was using as a staging area for the first big auction of the newest 'Weapon': the Bio-Soldier ('Banshees' Greer muttered). Rumor was that a lot of heavy hitters would be attending and it was to take place tonight at 2am. Apex and Greer's primary mission was to find and eliminate Stryker.
"What about the auction?" Apex slipped on his tracker, Greer just finished gearing up along with him.
"Your job is Stryker. Find 'em, kill 'em. Don't worry bout anythin' else. I've got the rest covered." Apex let that process for a second and nodded his head.
"Show me the island." At that point Logan had handed over the file Fury had given him and informed them he wouldn't be joining them on the flight. He had some business he needed to take care of first.
"Stay safe out there Tigger." Greer only hesitated for a moment before wrapping Logan in a hug, ignoring the rolled eyes from Domino.
"Thanks...for getting us outta there." Greer stepped back to stand with Apex who slipped a hand onto her hip.
"Was nothin," Logan turned his attention to Apex, "Take care of our girl." Logan leveled him with a serious look that he returned in kind.
"Always." That was enough for Logan and with a grunt and a nod he headed out with Domino assuring Logan she'd be just fine as well.
"You two should come take a look at this." Domino called from the cockpit back to the two felines. They had been reviewing the layout of the island and base, going over the best way to get to Stryker...not to mention how best to find him in the first place. At Dom's call they put down the file and headed over to look at the news feed she had streaming.
It was chaos...
"We have video of the incident that occurred in the streets of Dubai only a few hours ago." The screen showed two armored Screamers crashing through a downtown area, fires and screams were everywhere as soldiers attempted to stop the two Screamers as they continued their rampage, killing and destroying at an alarming rate.
Greer saw Apex clench his fists and he knew she felt the same...more killing. More death.
"As of yet there has been no word from authorities as to the motives of these two individuals but after finally succumbing to police fire, the death toll has risen to thirty-five..." Dom switched off the feed and even her usual sarcasm was gone as she stared straight ahead.
"A demonstration...for the auction tonight." Apex growled as Greer turned back to the files. She read through them again, chanting to herself as if memorizing for a biology exam, She wanted to be ready ... She was going to be ready.
Domino just pushed the jet a little bit faster...they were almost there.
...
Getting to the island wasn't difficult. As far as Stryker was concerned, no one outside of Weapon X and the bidders or their representatives were aware of that nights location. It had been set up in under a week and would be torn down in less than a day. This was simply a staging ground...a place to raise the funds needed to continue producing his newest Weapons.
Apex and even Greer were looking forward to watching the entire place burn.
They landed the jet just offshore less than an hour before the auction was supposed to go down. The island itself was mostly rocks and sand with a large concrete building in the center rising out of the island like a squat tower with a series of fences around it. At the moment, all three were looking down at their target from atop a small rise.
"Stick to the plan for once," Domino muttered to Apex as she put down her binoculars, "You two find Stryker and kill him. I need to get to Bravo position." Domino whispered and was about to slip away as Apex caught her arm.
"We never discussed a Bravo position..." Greer felt like she wanted to pace she was so tense and didn't like Domino keeping some secret agenda any less than Apex did. But she held her tongue and just allowed Apex to handle it. He was always better at it anyway...
"Relax Panthro...I'm meeting up with Logan. Should be right behind you. Consider us your...distraction." Apex glanced at Greer who gave a small nod of her head and he let Dom slip into the night. Once she was gone, the two ferals mutually braced against each other, Apex with his hands on Greer's hips as hers rested on his chest. Tails encircling each other. There was plenty Greer could have said but instead she just took the moment to take Apex's scent in.
"Better be one hell of a shower after this is over." Greer finally muttered which earned a smirk from the panther. He had grown fond of how she relieved stress ... he jokes. Gently he wrapped a hand around the back of her neck, a move Greer mirrored bringing their foreheads together. Apex closed his eyes, taking in her scent before opening them when Greer kissed him on the cheek. She only stared back, as if trying to search for something...
"If anything happens tonight...I just want you know -"
Apex interuppted her by pulling her closer.
"Nothing is going to happen tonight. We're going to make them pay for what they've done. To you...to everyone." Apex rumbled and Greer nodded her head. Despite the hesitation, he could see the determination in the tigress' eyes.
"Let's go." She whispered and with a brief nuzzle they separated and made their way towards the tower.
The two ferals had studied the layout of the island to the point Greer was confident she could draw it backwards with her eyes closed. Maneuvering around the guards and over the fences for her at this point amounted to a formality. Less then two minutes in and they had their backs to the tower itself. The tower though...that was a different story. It was new with no records and whatever they had put into the concrete prevented a high-level scan of the building. Which meant that they were going in blind.
So that called for a much different strategy and Greer was rather proud that she had thought of it.
"So this will work...right?" Greer looked to Apex for reassurance as they both slipped on their inducers.
"It'll work, just like you said. No one is looking is Colton Hanes or Greer Nelson. We'll slip inside as a security detail, locate Stryker...and finish him." Greer nodded her head and clicked her pendant, grateful for the boots she had stored on the jet for both her and Colton. As she glanced down at herself, for a moment, she couldn't resist the urge to run and find a mirror...to see her old self dressed in tactical gear, armed for war, and about to engage in an assassination mission. The mental image alone almost made her laugh...almost.
She looked up to see Colton Hanes looking back at her and with a short signal the two slipped right inside.
...
"Stay calm. You belong here remember?" Apex whispered as Greer did her best to at least appear relaxed. So far her plan had worked, both she and Colton had gotten into the base and slipped in with the rest of the extensive protection detail both Weapon X and the buyers had brought with them. But it was all of this security that was making Greer so nervous...it wasn't just rogue nations that had sent envoys, but AIM, HYDRA and even the likes of Baron Nemo and Graviton had shown up.
This was it...after years of being in shadows...Weapon X was making its big debut. And it seemed the villains of the world wanted to know what it had to offer.
Finally an hour passed and there was an announcement that the auction was going to begin. They followed the crowd deeper into the complex and Greer could see a massive hall with a raised dais in the middle just ahead of them. She was certain Stryker would be there...they would follow him, wait till he was alone and then...this could all be over. They were so close...She and Colton could go home and -
"Hey there kitten..." Greer blood went cold as Creed suddenly appeared behind her, his mouth inches away from her ear as she felt a clawed hand slip onto her other shoulder. She saw Weapon X soldiers slip in and form a perimeter around them. It seemed none of the other people noticed what was happening.
"Almost didn't recognize ya without the stripes," the way he said it made Greer's skin crawl...
"But then again, yer scent has always reminded me of something that crawled outta the Bronx zoo ... So it was hard to miss."
Greer heard Apex let out a growl but Creed only proceeded to put pressure on her shoulder, his claws sinking in slightly as she felt the bones shift and Creed's other hand smoothly relieved Greer of her gun and came to rest on her hip just above her belt. Had anyone looked over, it would have appeared Creed was talking with a close friend.
"Let's not make a scene in front of all the customers." Greer snarled as Creed sank his claws in a little deeper and guided her forcefully away from the crowd and down a side passageway, Apex a few steps ahead of her with a number of guns pointed at him as well. She was ready to rip the sadistic freaks hands off...but Apex had warned her that Creed would almost certainly be there.
"If he makes us, let him. Stryker won't be able to help himself...he'll need to see us face to face. To let us know that he's won...so let Creed work for us." Greer could practically hear Apex telling her stay calm in her head and just let Creed believe he was in control. Looking down she saw Apex make the signal for her to 'follow.' He wanted them to wait and see where this went.
'Easy for him to say...he doesn't have Victor fuckin' Creed inch deep into his skin and breathing down his neck.' Greer could feel the small trails of blood on her shoulder and hip where his claws were still sunk in. Creed knew he didn't need to control Apex...he just needed sufficient control over her. After a few more hallways they were led into some type of control room, screens showing the rest of the compound and the quickly filling hall. She could see the dais had dozens of Banshees standing at attention.
"Don't think we'll be needing this." Creed tore off her inducer and tossed it to the ground before proceeding to crush it with his boot. He grinned before turning to Apex who calmly took off his own. Wasn't like any of the soldiers wanted to get near him and Creed was occupied.
"You know kitten...it's too bad you ended up this way. Seein' the old you...got me thinkin' of how much fun we coulda had. Before you got yourself all...furry." Greer just stood rigid, baring her teeth as Creed used the hand that had been on her hip to gently stroke the fur on her cheek.
Apex saw this and sunk his own claws into his palm...it was taking all of his self-control to not kill Creed right now. He could do it...he would do it. But he saw the look on Greer's face. Her focus over her own hate and revulsion. And if she could suffer through this...he could as well. They both knew the mission...revenge on Creed could come later.
"But what can ya do?" Creed let his arm drop and came to stand in front of the two felines who kept their eyes locked on him while planning the best way to kill everyone in the room. All they needed to do was be patient until -
"Oh and by the way ... Hope you two weren't watin' on Stryker." That got Greer to stop her planning and Creed smirked at her reaction. The panther might be hard to read...but she wasn't. No...he could read the surprise all over her face.
"He wanted to be here but I talked him out of it. Told 'im it'd be best we do somethin' else...I admit it took some convincing but he came around. Told him it'd be good for business."
"What did you do Victor?" Apex growled as Creed just looked pleased with himself.
"You two are gonna put on a little show..."
"Ladies and gentleman ... I apologize for the delay but we were preparing a final demonstration for you here ... in person." Stryker stood at the center of the dais in front of a podium, dressed in his military garb with Creed not far behind. The different delegates stood around the chamber in separate alcoves, their respective security surrounding them.
"As you have already seen, our newest weapons are stronger...faster...more lethal than any other options currently on the market. But the newest weapon is no longer an individual...it is the power to make any individual into a weapon." Stryker held up a small glass cylinder in his hand.
"Banshee is the means to creating your own personal army of super soldiers. In combination with our mental control program, these living weapons can be yours. The highest bid tonight will walk away with one hundred Bio-Soldiers and the first shipment of Banshee." The room was filled with noise as the delegates conferred with their groups, the smile on Stryker's face obvious.
"Now ... I am sure all of you saw our demonstration earlier today in Dubai. But in order to truly appreciate the power that Weapon X is promising, I felt a more intimate demonstration was in order."
Greer kept her stance rigid as she stood back to back with Apex. The platform they had been left on slowly rising to leave them in the center of the dais, looking up at the raised platform on which Creed and Stryker stood with Screamers on either side.
"Apex..." Greer didn't care who heard her. This was all definitely not part of any plan. They were supposed to kill Stryker ... Not get caught by Creed and help Stryker run his little circus show. And where the hell was Logan...
"Stay focused." Apex needed Greer to remain calm. He had a feeling he knew what was coming and they had trained for it. She took a quick glance over her shoulder to see Colton quickly scanning the room. What he was hoping to find...she wasn't really sure. But what she was not going to do was let him down or allow Stryker the satisfaction of seeing her as anything but defiant.
"May I present savage Tigra of the X-Men and her successor, the notorious Weapon 22. Responsible for over fifty successful missions and one of the most lethal Weapons we have ever produced." Greer snarled as she felt all those eyes focus on her and Apex, the whispers and yells at their sudden appearance ranging from surprise, excitement, disgust and anger. She heard someone call them something truly unpleaseant and proceeded to turn to him only to stop when she heard Apex's voice.
"Focus Greer...focus." Apex growled as he reached a hand behind to steady her. They just needed a little more time...
"But these weapons are the past ... Banshee is the future." Both ferals raised their hands and tensed as five Banshees jumped down from around Stryker to surround them. "Now ... to prove it."
Greer didn't hesitate and went straight into her feral state, working with Apex to fight the Banshees as they rushed them. With no guns or knives, both ferals relied on their claws and training. The first one to reach Greer she caught under the helmet and killed with her claws through his head. Apex engaged two more, snapping bone and tendon until Greer joined him and he had the space to tilt ones head back and let her finish the job before she leaped over the body and went after the fourth with a snarl. By the time she unclamped her jaws from its neck, Apex was getting back to his feet...the last two dead beneath his claws. With a snarl of his own Apex roared at Stryker, Greer standing ready at his side, eyes red and snarling.
Stryker sneered down at them, clearly not pleased at how his little show was going and with a gesture, the rest of the Screamers slowly came to surround the dais, Creed leaping down to stand with them.
"Time to die kitties." Creed taunted...right before the entire structure shook as a large chunk of the ceiling wall exploded and rained into the hall. Apex braced Greer behind him as the rubble cam down and the dust settled and both ferals let out a breath as they saw a familiar face standing next to them.
"You two in some trouble?" Domino quipped, guns at the ready. Greer just stared for a moment before looking to see she didn't come alone: Betsy, Warpath, Deadpool and Fantomex all stood with her...and Logan.
"Shut up Dom," Logan growled, his usual uniform colors swapped for black and grey, "I got Creed. The rest of you take the Screamers...and you two...go kill that son of a bitch." Greer and Apex turned their attention to Stryker who looked like his worst nightmare had come to life.
"Let's get killin!" Deadpool screamed with joy and that's when the chaos started.