The Moon was at it's peak as I flew the quinjet to Xavier's school. Part of me knows what a waste of time this is but an order is an order. There's gotta be one kid still awake to verify I was there. I'll walk in and get out.
Minutes went by until I was overhead of the mansion. Bingo, lights. Now I just need those night owls to look at me. After landing the quinjet, I was surprised to find the back door of the yard open. I mean, I know there's powerhouses sleeping here but still, the bare minimum of security would be great. Upon entering the school hallways it didn't take long to find the night owls still awake, and unsurprisingly they were kids watching movies.
They didn't even blink when I stood by the doorway. I sighed, "Hey!" They turned around, "good, you saw me, goodnight."
"Goodnight." they said, confused.
Leaving the kids behind I strode by the hidden elevator and heard X-23 training. Should I say hi? It's been awhile... No mission comes first. Always.
Leaving the mansion I exited into the
moonlight. Before I turned on the engine of
the quinjet I removed any possible tracking
components, perhaps I am paranoid but that itch since Russia hadn't left me just yet. The fact Fury's senses are also in disarray enforced that itch.
Completing the task at hand I was about to turn on the engine when I heard a foot step walk upon the metal floor of the haul. My neck turned by reflex to access the
danger, "X-23?"
She was covered in sweat, to the point it
dripped down onto the floor. Her long strays of jet black hair covered her face and she wore a dark tank top for athletic activities yet had black jeans on.
In a raspy voice similar to Wolverine's she
spoke, "Where have you been?"
"On a work trip." I said turning on
the engine, "I'm going on one right now."
I turned to look at her covered face. She
just stood there... "Wanna come? It looks
like you could blow off some steam."
X-23 sat in the co-pilot seat as I closed the haul behind her. As the quinjet took off I felt her gaze on me. What's wrong with her? Fifteen minutes of flying to this secret HYDRA base and I couldn't stand her gaze any more.
Staring at her, I spoke, "do we have
a problem X-23?"
"Explain why for half a year you
couldn't stop by once a month at least."
"Classified." I answered.
"You owe me an explanation-" I stopped
her, "I don't owe you anything X-23. I-We
barely know each other. I'm only taking
you with me because I prefer someone
covering my back to where we're going."
"You're an asshole 636." she said.
X-23 relaxed her body into the seat, "It's
been tough this year, we got a bunch of
new arrivals since your little work trip
and I haven't been able to make... what's
wrong with me?"
"You don't need people X-23," I said piloting the quinjet, "we're almost there."
"And end up like you 636? I think we're different despite our shared origins. You seem happy with being a weapon." Her opinion bothered me.
"No response 636?" she asked.
"Clear your head of these pointless thoughts X-23. We're here."
The location was in the mountains of Alaska. Woods spread everywhere and no roads led to the place. Upon landing I could see a concrete bunker, old and no one guarding. The systems on the quinjet showed no inner workings as well. The place is either dead or hiding something.
"Can you at least tell me what I've blindly walked into?" X-23 got up and stretched, the bones in her body cracked, especially the ones in her knuckles.
"We're going into a HYDRA base. In case you didn't know, they make weapons like you and me as well as being my one and only purpose for existing." I turned off the quinjet and opened the hall, "let's go."
Stepping out of the plane X-23 watched the treeline for movement and eyeing her facial movement, I watched as she constantly breathed in the surrounding scents for danger. Then she extended her claws while looking towards the bunker.
"Catch a trail, a scent of someone?" I asked closing in on the entrance.
"No, but my instincts are spiking. There's definitely something to watch out for."
"To be expected then," I melted a giant hole into the steel entrance, "ladies first."
"What? Just because I regen better than you? No, you first, you got that grey armour on you smartass."
"Alright then scaredy cat." Before I could take a step she elbowed me out of the way, "maybe in the next 6 months you grow a pair of balls 636."
Astoundingly there weren't any traps or self defense systems inside. Everything was powered off. I had to use my glowing fists as a flashlight. Despite seeing light bulbs there weren't any light switches. The layout was simple as well, a straight tunnel by the looks of it with rooms on both sides.
We entered one that still had objects inside, the rest were barren. "I'm not one for science stuff but this seems to be some sort of chemical lab. Some of these test tubes still have some residue. Doubt they're dangerous if they were left alone like this."
"Could be 636, but it's your beloved HYDRA so watch out. My guess is they no longer had a use for this place. But why leave it and not change the task of a relatively secret bunker all things consider." X-23 said inspecting the room.
She looked me in the eye, "whatever was tied to this place must have been serious enough to cut all ties with it. Come, let's see if you catch any bread crumbs left behind."
X-23 didn't even wait for me as she walked away, she was completely focused on the mission. An effect of her childhood training. All the other rooms were similar except that the machinery was more evolved. The further we went in the more automated it became and the human element lessened for what the work required.
Glancing at the surface of the machinery, the layers of dust lessened. They were used more recently than the starting rooms. Finally we reached the end of the tunnel where a steel door remained welded shut.
"Do the honors 636", X-23 said with a sly grin.
I melted the entire doorway, "Don't worry I'll go in first this time.
"Don't worry, I don't smell anyone."
Inside were a series of 90's computers. They were spread out resembling a control centre. All of these screens were covered with dust but the one in the centre was turned on. It was a simple black screen and I proceeded to type on the keyboard to activate, that is if it still worked. A green bar showed up on screen and it started to fill up with the word reboot on top of it.
"Get ready, the reboot will probably bring back any defence mechanisms still operational," X-23 said as she gazed around for movement.
The bar filled and instantly the lights turned, We remained still for a while yet nothing happened. However I became alarmed when a series of lines of code were written rapidly on the screen until it turned into a HYDRA symbol of a skull with tentacles.
*Bizz*
X-23 and me glanced in an instant at the roof as a tile moved yet a Camera appeared, Then Static noises were heard until a voice spoke,' subject 636 and subject X-23"
My name didn't startle me but how did they know about X-23? The screen changed again and a face appeared but digitally. A male with glasses, it seems to be made up of green lines of code.
"'Who's speaking?"
The voice scoffed and in an accent, Perhaps german spoke, "as expected, you know nothing"
The computer screen next to it turned on showing a child strapped to a table. "I know everything about you and my conclusion is you're a failure, the same conclusion I had from the start."
In a stern tone I spoke, "who are you?"
"Ignorant to history, a fool. I need not speak with you as an equal. You will always be subject 636, HYDRA's mad dog."
I slammed the screen, crushing it, "although we failed to put a leash on you"
All the screens turned on with his face, "May I suggest you ask a different question subject 636"
Clam down, allow him to ridicule you. His guard is lowered. Try to extract any information, "There's no need, I've caught your scent. This secret base is only the beginning."
"You've found nothing, Only the ingredients to your creation subject 636. Behold the birth place of the viruses running through your broken system. All you will find now is an automated assembly line to produce chemicals. And we moved the majority years ago. But I can still create one chemical,"
All the screens changed to show a young girl killing crowds of people, X-23.
I looked at her and saw her taken aback. In a matter of seconds she composed herself.
"That is the correct response X-23.We are behind your birth. HYDRA held you in its embrace and you betrayed us as did your incompetent mother. Both of you are failures: A Delta class mutant and a Clone. At least HYDRA Put a leash on one"
At the end of his words the room was flooded in a thick layer of mist, A Chemical yet nothing harmed Me-"Raaa!! Wahaaa!!"
The howls of an animal filled the room. "X-23 do you have eyes on the creature?"
The echo of my voice revealed my position as the animal launched itself at me. Its claws cut through my suit that hadn't hardened enough to handle whatever its claws were made of. It clawed away at my chest until I threw a right hook powerful enough to kill a man.
It collapsed to the floor. I kneeled to examine it. The tissue that had ripped off from the hit started regenerating almost instantly, "X-23?!"
She regained consciousness and screamed in my face as it launched another attack, she's gone feral, how? Blocking her onslaught of attacks I tried to think, is it the mist? Why am I not affected then?
The voice of the screen spoke, "only one of you will walk out while the other will be torn to pieces."
No, they won't kill me. I didn't make it out to die in this fucken hole. The red light in my chest grew, they won't be forgiven. I'm stronger than X-23, I'll melt her to ash if it comes down to it.
X-23's howls intensified as her skin reddened and bubbles began to form as I boiled the air around us.
She jumped on top of me, locking her legs around me desperately clawing at me. I could see her facial muscles contouring and turning to rage but her eyes, X-23 had tears forming in them as she stared at my own eyes through my helmet.
"X-23…"
I turned off my power and grabbed her, trying to cage her in, "I'm right here X-23, wake Up! Or break free from it!... Do Something!"
Holding her tightly to my chest in order to prevent her from clawing only made her use her teeth as she began to bite me through my torn suit.
She wiggled constantly incapable of stopping and the pain of her teeth became unbearable as chunks of my flesh fell to the floor and grew back repeating the cycle.
I tried to pull her neck back with my hand until it started to glow red. No, the air around it did, a crimson red, similar to back then when I had the final exam with HYDRA.
I held the back of X-23 head softly and the glow expanded until my vision was red. I blinked and I appeared in a broken dark place. Around me pieces of glass flew and within them appeared X-23 training or eating, memories.
This isn't what I need. There has to be something to free her mind in here. As if hearing me the void attracted a larger piece of glass. In it I saw a very young X-23 exhibiting the same behaviors in the real world as she slashed wildly at a woman who resembled her. The scene repeated over and over at different speeds.
Then I saw her, X-23 as I know her in the present standing in the corner wrapped in darkness watching it, she was torturing herself with the memory.
I cautiously stepped into the glass and stood in the memory hearing the yells from the two victims. X-23 turned her gaze to me as I walked in front of her.
"I can't stop myself 636, no offense but if I couldn't stop for my mother I won't do it for you. Kill me… We both know what the result will be."
I smacked her, "where's your fucken anger, your rage? Don't stand there letting them use you. Get yourself together."
She grabbed me and pushed me into the wall, "I can't! Why do you think I stay awake at night, look at me 636. Am I not as rotten as you are? Look at yourself, what the fuck have you been doing with your freedom? A fucken weapon is what you are. A failure…"
A voice broke through not from us but from the woman in the memory. In her anger X-23 forgot to replay the memory, "your name is Laura, Laura Kinney."
X-23 paused the memory and remained silent.
"I'm taking you with me Laura." I said, "I didn't magically appear in your mind just to get insulted. Either we fix your messed up head or I'll cut it off and let you heal in the co-pilot seat as I drag your ass back to that school."
She retracted her hands, "the mist around us. It's a trigger scent, it sends me into a murderous frenzy. They implanted that into my head. You can't just-"
I interrupted her, "I'll rip the implant out then."
"How?"
I left her standing there as I exited the memory and walked back into the void. Alright now, show me the implant. Thankfully whatever power got me here brought the glass memory of the torture Laura went through as they brainwashed her mind to go berserk when the trigger scent appeared.
Now what?
Stretching out my hand I tried to grasp the memory as a whole. As I did, a red glow surrounded the glass memory and I began to pull in an attempt to rip it out. The glow grew bigger and stronger the more I pulled until once again my vision turned red.
I was back into the physical world. Laura was in my arms quiet now and seemed to be waking up from a dream. In my hands however was a piece of glass, the memory. It slowly disintegrated into dust.
"636? You did it? The scent, it's gone." She said in a weak voice.
"You're wrong, you're normal again. Well not normal-normal, just unaffected."
"That power subject 636, where did you get it? We still haven't been able to discern where you developed it." The digital voice said.
"Get up Laura, we need to find out where this lunatic comes from." I said.
"I'm afraid not subject 636, I simply bought time. Unfortunately our research into that power will proceed without you. Farewell subject 636."
*BOOM*