They settled to uncomfortable co-existence. Did daily chores that needed to be done, gathered food and storage it, repaired what needed repairing and scavenged the ruins of the Free Zone. Marie wasn’t trying to avoid him, didn’t try to run, and Logan did his best to assure her about his identity. It wasn’t working so well, but unexpected situation arose. They had been digging the ruins, still looking for the entrance to sublevels, when heavy slab of concrete fell over Logan, knocking him unconscious and pinning him to the ground from waist below.
He woke up alone. Team had cleared the place and left him behind. Standard procedure in combat. You fell, nobody came looking for you. You had to make your way back to the camp by yourself. Only few escaped. It was safer to tag along the Army than try to make it through the lines on your own. Both sides took prisoners, and their treatment… Mere thought of what would happen if enemy found him now made him shiver. He had already spent more time in enemy hands than he cared to remember. At least most of the prisoners had one hope, dying after handling got too rough. He didn’t have that privilege. Even collared his mutation managed to keep him alive.
He tensed. Somebody was approaching. From behind. Light footsteps. Small unit. Friend or foe? He tried to crane his neck, and managed to catch a glimpse of a girl. A clone? No. Scent of BC wafted to his nose. Breeder. Fucking marvelous. Breeders had usually only one thing on their mind.
“Are you alright?” She asked, staying out of his reach.
“I will be as soon as I can get this off from me,” he grunted, patting the slab of concrete covering his legs.
“Should I… Can I help?” Does the bear shit in the woods?
“Yeah. Go and find a sturdy branch.” He watched her running off. If he were lucky, she would remember what to do when she found that branch and come back to him with it instead of wandering away.
No matter who that man was, she had to help him. He seemed to be quite skilled in survival, something she would have to learn from him. He couldn’t teach her if he was dead. Granted, both Logan and Camo were practically immortal, but even their mutations had their limits. Sturdy branch… She finally spotted one probably strong enough, that she could use to wedge him loose from under part of a wall that had collapsed on him.
Looked like this one wasn’t as dimwitted as the rest of the Breeders. She returned with dry but sturdy looking pole, and without waiting instructions jammed it between the concrete slab and a pile of rocks.
“I’ll try to rock it loose, but you have to tell me if it feels like it starts to fall on you,” she said, concentrating to the task at hand.
“Yeah.” Definitely smarter than most of the Breeders. And from the looks of it a first-timer. Most Breeders were constantly either knocked up, or dragging their stretched stomachs, trying to find a suitable partner. This one had firm-looking body. And this one was quite young. Funny-looking white stripes on her hair. She was grimacing and huffing, her body trembling. He could feel weight on his legs shifting. It was working, but she was doing it wrong. She would sprain something if she kept pushing.
“Stop. Straighten your back and bend your knees.” There. Good deed of the day done. She wouldn’t be much use for him if she got hurt before he got out of this trap.
Finally he was able to crawl away from under that rock. He stood up slowly, observing his surroundings. He had no recollection of how he ended up in her in the first place. His gaze landed on the Breeder. She was walking towards the forest.
“I think I saw some blueberries while I was looking for that branch. I’ll go and get them. We already have enough dried ones, but I was thinking I could make some soup tonight…” Soup? Right. Breeders had more privileges when it came to food. He shook his head. He had no idea how close the enemy lines they were. He couldn’t let her wander off. He would need her to guide him back to the camp.
“Hey! Wait up!” He shouted after her. She stopped and turned to look at him. Really look at him. Tilted her head, squinted her eyes and everything. Then suddenly she let out a shriek, charging towards him, arms spread like wings. Claws extended. He couldn’t smell a threat, but she sure acted like she would become one soon. He had seen a Breeder go berserk over a dead offspring, and it hadn’t been a pretty sight. Afterwards there had been almost nothing left of the destroyer that had killed the baby.
Instead of attacking him Breeder dodged his claws and wrapped her hands around his waist, burying her head against his chest, making him stumble backwards before he gained his balance again.
“Get your hands off before I lop them off.” Voice was cold and bitter. She had been so overjoyed of the sight of the Wolverine, a tangible proof that Logan was alive, that she had forgotten the first rule. The most important rule. Shiver run down her spine and she backed off from the Destroyer, gaze lowered to the ground, shoulders hunched. Small. Small, casual movements. Not a threat. Not a threat. Hands visible. Do not look at him. Back off slowly… Her body disobeyed. She turned around and started to run.
Fucking unbelievable. Enemy after all. He started after her. He would have to catch her before she got back to her own camp. He wasn’t going to let her alert possible capturers. She was fast, but not fast enough. He could outrun her easily. She was stupid enough to turn every now and then to look if he was following.
Last glance was too much. She realized it when something rolled from under her foot making her stumble and fall on her hands and knees. It was all over. Heavy weight landed on her back. Wolverine. She was out of breath and trembling when he rolled her over, straddling her thighs and pinning her wrists above her head, face looming just inches from hers.
“Thought you could get away from me?” Those yellow eyes scanning her face. Nostrils flaring. One hand tangling to her hair, other hovering over her ribcage.
“What’s your status?” She could only stare at him. She had no idea what he was speaking about.
“What’s your status, bitch?” Hard yank from her hair made her wince.
“I don’t understand…”
“Your fucking mutation! What’s your mutation?”
Definitely first-timer. Probably on training. Only reason to put perfectly healthy Breeder on BC. What she did on the front line was a mystery, but unimportant right now.
“My skin. I can drain life force and mutations,” she stuttered.
“Good.” He wouldn’t cut her up. Not yet. They could probably use her offspring back in the camp. There had to be somebody able to fuck with her. First he would have to find his way back there, but that couldn’t be so hard. All he had to do was to find fresh enough trail of his team.
“You’re coming with me.”
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