Logan and Verena were working in the forest the next day. Logan's chainsaw roared as it bit into a thick tree trunk, while Verena swung her ax methodically, the steady thwack of metal against wood echoing through the quiet. Kayla had dropped them off earlier, leaving Verena with a hot cup of coffee before driving off with a smile. Now, the coffee was cold, forgotten, but the familiar scent of pine and fresh-cut wood filled the air.

As they worked, something foreign began to mix with the clean, earthy smells-a sharp, metallic scent that gnawed at the edges of Verena's senses. She paused mid-swing, her breath catching in her throat. Slowly, she lifted her head, sniffing the air. Her eyes met Logan's across the clearing. He had sensed it too.

Blood.

The sound of the chainsaw died as Logan turned it off, both of them standing perfectly still. The world around them seemed to quiet. They exchanged a glance-unspoken understanding passing between them-before setting off into the woods, instincts driving their movements. They pushed through the dense brush, their hearts racing with every step, their breathing quick and shallow.

It didn't take long to find the source. An animal's severed head lay in their path, its eyes still wide in shock, blood pooling on the ground. Logan crouched beside it, his fingers brushing the dried leaves around it. But it was Verena who noticed the deeper signs-the long, jagged claw marks etched into the bark of a nearby tree.

Victor.

Without another word, she broke into a sprint, Logan right behind her. They weaved through the dense forest, leaping over logs and dodging low branches as they tore through the undergrowth. Every step felt like an eternity. Verena's pulse pounded in her ears, but one thought screamed louder than the rest: Victor is with Kayla.

As they neared the edge of the forest, the sight of Logan's truck came into view. Long claw marks had been gouged into the hood, Victor's cruel signature left behind. Logan's voice cracked the silence, "Kayla!" He bolted ahead, frantically searching.

Verena's heart sank as her eyes locked onto a familiar figure, sprawled on the cold, hard ground. "Logan!" she cried out, falling to her knees beside Kayla's motionless body. Her trembling hands cradled Kayla's head, already slick with blood. Tears blurred her vision as she rocked back and forth, whispering incoherent prayers under her breath.

Logan collapsed beside her, taking Kayla from Verena's arms. He pulled Kayla close to him, his entire body shaking with each ragged breath. Then, a guttural, animalistic roar erupted from him-a raw sound, filled with unbearable pain and rage. It echoed through the trees, a cry that seemed to tear at the sky itself.

Verena sat beside him, her own sobs quiet but relentless, shaking her frame. "I knew," she whispered, her voice thick with grief and self-loathing. "I always knew Victor would come for us. I should've stopped him... Cazzo!" She cursed, her fist pounding the ground. Tears fell freely now, guilt and regret clawing at her insides as she stared down at Kayla's lifeless form. She had failed.

And there was nothing she could do to take it back.

A new type of anger brewed within Logan and Verena, dark and all-consuming. It wasn't just anger-it was a hunger, a primal need for revenge. Verena caught Victor's scent, the acrid stench of blood and whiskey mingling in the air, leading them to a nearby bar.

As they approached, Logan shouted his name, the word tearing from his throat like a curse. "Victor!"

Verena wasn't far behind, her voice sharp and venomous. "Victor, vieni fuori, figlio di puttana!" The door to the bar creaked on its hinges as they burst through, their eyes wild with rage, scanning the dimly lit room until they found him-Victor, lounging at the bar like he hadn't a care in the world.

He turned slowly, a smirk playing on his lips as he met their gaze. "Well, well, well... look what the cat dragged in."

The bartender, eyes wide with fear, edged forward, voice trembling. "Guys, whatever this is, take it outside." But when both Logan and Verena extended their claws, the sound of bone slicing through flesh filling the room, the bartender and patrons scattered like frightened animals. Verena's feet hit the floor with a sharp thud as her claws pierced through her boots, ready to strike.

Logan's fury was palpable, a living thing that seemed to radiate off him in waves. Verena, on the other hand, was colder, her anger simmering beneath the surface, controlled yet deadly. She wanted Victor dead.

"Why?" Logan's voice was low, tight with barely restrained rage as Victor fully faced them.

"You don't call, you don't write," Victor drawled, his smirk widening. "How else am I supposed to get your attention?" He flexed his hands, and his claws-no, talons-emerged, wickedly sharp and jagged, each one a twisted, monstrous extension of his body. They gleamed menacingly in the dim light, a savage promise of the pain to come.

Without another word, Logan and Verena charged. Verena reached Victor first, her claws sinking into his side with a satisfying crunch. But she'd underestimated him. Victor's strength was monstrous, a force of nature, and with a growl, he wrenched her arm, using her own momentum against her. With terrifying ease, he hurled her into the bar's wooden wall. The impact rattled her bones, and she collapsed onto the floor, a groan escaping her lips as she rolled onto her stomach, waiting for her healing factor to kick in.

As Verena lay recovering, Logan and Victor's battle spilled outside. Victor threw Logan into a pile of logs, sending them scattering. Verena forced herself to her feet, pain shooting through her as her body healed. She limped outside, desperate to help Logan. Victor had the upper hand, tearing into Logan with ruthless efficiency, his claws ripping through flesh and bone. Logan's face was a mess of blood, his abdomen shredded.

"Frankly, Jimmy," Victor sneered, tossing Logan into a nearby truck. "I'm a little disappointed."

Logan staggered, his healing factor working overtime, but Victor was relentless. "Stay down," he taunted, but Logan refused, driving his claws into Victor's shoulder with a feral snarl.

Verena, seizing the opportunity, leaped onto Victor's back, her claws plunging deep. Victor howled in pain, thrashing wildly as he tried to dislodge her. His claws sliced through her thigh, a searing pain that forced a scream from her throat. He used her moment of weakness to fling her off him, turning his full attention back to Logan.

Logan, using the leverage he gained, drove both claws into Victor, sending him crashing into a pile of logs. Victor roared, kicking the logs off the cart, sending them tumbling onto both Logan and Verena. Their cries echoed through the forest as the weight pinned them to the ground.

Victor, ruthless and unyielding, pulled Logan from beneath the logs. "Tell me something, Jimmy," he hissed, his voice dripping with malice. "Was she worth it?"

A truck rumbled down the road, and Victor, with a savage grin, hurled Logan into its path. The impact was brutal, Logan's body rolling across the asphalt before landing with a sickening thud. Verena's heart lurched in her chest as she crawled toward him, her body still struggling to heal.

Victor wasn't done. He grabbed her by the ankle, dragging her across the rough ground. She cried out, pain shooting through her body as he yanked her up by the hair, forcing her to meet his gaze. His lips twisted into a cruel grin, his breath hot against her face. "All this for him, huh?" he mocked, his voice low and taunting. "Thought you were better than chasing after people like some lovesick puppy." He tightened his grip, his voice dropping to a venomous whisper. "Guess you're not as different from me as you think. But at least I don't betray family."

"Vaffanculo" she whispers menacingly at him

With that, he released her, letting her fall back to the ground, her body hitting the dirt with a dull thud. She closed her eyes, forcing herself to breathe through the pain, her body desperately trying to heal.

Victor's voice cut through the haze of pain, speaking to Logan with cold finality. Verena winced as she heard Logan's anguished cry, the sickening sound of his claws breaking under Victor's brutal force.

In the distance, sirens wailed, but Verena's world was fading, darkness pulling her under as her body gave in to the need to heal.

She wakes up in the emergency room, her shirt cut open, and doctors talking off to the side next to her. Logan is next to her. He looks like he already attacked the doctors and nurses. In the door way, stands Stryker, "Good morning, sleeping beauty."

"Oh fuck off." She groans and slams her head back into the pillow. She looks back up and he's still there but Logan is standing next to him this time, "Dio Mio, Logan please tell me you didn't take his deal."

Logan goes to speak but Stryker holds up his hand and interrupts him, "I want to make the same offer for you. You will suffer more pain than any other man or woman could endure, but you will have your revenge. I will give you the tools to defeat Victor, you just have to say yes."

She looks skeptical her eyes meeting Logans somber face. He nods at her and she looks back at Stryker, "I'll do it, but when I do, I'm coming for blood, and you best stay out of my way. Can I get a shirt now?" Logan throws her a brown flannel which she quickly puts on, not want to be in her bra in the presence of the men any longer.

She gets up from the bed and walks over to Logan, grabbing his hand and sending Stryker a dirty look. They follow behind him an out towards a helicopter which was going to bring them to Stryker's base.

The area they fly over is beautiful, a long river passes between the mountains. Lush green trees take up the entire surface and a waterfall flows off the side of the mountain. As the helicopter flys over, they land at a base by the damn. Guards lead Logan and Verena into the laboratory, two tanks of bubbling water sat in the middle of the room side by side. The guards stopped them in front of the tanks, "Strip." They commanded, and Verena raised her eyebrows at the guard.

"At least by me dinner first, Cagna," She growls and the guard throws her on the floor.

Logan sees the situation across from him and yells, "Hey! Watch your hands."

Soon Strykers voice came over the loudspeaker. "2187, Let go of her please. Verena, you may leave your undergarments on." Verena looks up at the platform where Stryker stood and flipped him off.

She strips, leaving her clothes in a pile on the floor. The doctors lead her over to the metal table laying over the pool of water. She lies down on the table and the doctors begin strapping her to the table, attaching different things to her like a heart monitor. She looks over at Logan who was lying still on the table at the doctors drew injection lines on his body. They did the same for her, drawing lines exactly where the needles would go.

They backed away from her body and the doctors looked up and nodded, signaling that she was ready. She looked over at Logan and he stared back, looking terrified. She nodded at him with a weak smile, she mouthed, "I love you." She feared for her life, scared she wouldn't come back from this, so nows the time to admit it she guessed.

She assumed Logan was feeling the same amount of fear that she was, the fear of not coming back because he smiles back and mouths, "I love you too." She looks back up at the ceiling and makes the sign of the cross over her chest. Stryker comes down and circles them.

"You remember what we were looking for in Africa?" He asks the two of them. They both nod and he continues. "It helped us create a metal compound so strong that you will be able to withstand virtually anything. It's called Adamantium. I can't put Victor down myself, I need both of you to do it. To kill him, you'll both have to embrace the other side. Become the animal."

"Let's do this," Logan says and Verena nods in agreement, fear etched into her features.

"Oh I almost forgot," Stryker holds up their dog tags. The metal haunts her.

"We want new ones." She says, voice firm.

"What do you want them to say?"

"Lynx."

"Wolverine."

Their new dog tags were cut out and given to them. They were given to them, and they were given breathing devices so they could breathe while under the water.

Stryker makes his way back up to the platform where there were many military officials standing around and observing the procedure. "Generals, Today, we will witness the creation of weapon 9 and X." Verena felt like their eyes were all on her, watching like predators to their prey.

One general questions him, "X?"

"The roman numeral 10. We're about to begin, bonding adamantium to their skeletons. Let's begin"

They lowered both of them in the tank, turning the needles up all the way. They pointed towards her, and her heart rate sped up, three needles were pointed right at her face, the rest pointed at her body.

The needles sank deep into Verena's skin, igniting her nerves with white-hot pain. Her bones felt like they were being crushed under the weight of molten metal, each inch of her body engulfed in agony. The restraints bit into her wrists and ankles, keeping her pinned down as the machines whirred around her. The water in the tank was cool against her skin in contrast to the burning needles that were stuck through her skin

She bit down on the scream threatening to tear from her throat, clenching her jaw so hard it hurt. She wasn't going to give them the satisfaction of drowning by letting the mouth piece go.

The world blurred, the lab's harsh lights giving way to a soft, golden haze. She was no longer on that cold slab. She was back in Italy, in her family's sunlit courtyard. Her mother's laughter echoed in her ears, soft and distant, like a memory she could almost reach out and touch. "La mia farfalla," her mother called, her voice sweet as honey. Verena smiled and reached out-

Pain ripped her back into the present. She gasped, eyes flying open as the needles drilled deeper, forcing the adamantium to bond with her bones. She could feel herself slipping-losing control-her heart racing as the machines hummed louder.

Darkness crept at the edges of her vision. She couldn't breathe, couldn't think. But she couldn't let them win. She wouldn't.

Another memory seized her, drowning her in it. The night her father died, the fury in his eyes turning to fear as her claws shot out and pierced his chest. His blood had stained her hands that night, staining her forever. She watched as he fell to the ground, gasping for breath, clutching at his wounds. Her own breath caught, mirroring the way his had faltered in those final moments. The sight of him fading away felt too real, too close-

A sharp, agonizing jolt in her spine pulled her back again, ripping her from the memory. The lab was cold, sterile, but her body burned with every pulse of her heart. She wasn't in control anymore. Her heartbeat echoed in her skull like a drum, and the darkness kept closing in.

Then Logan's face appeared in her mind, blurred at first, then sharp and vivid. The med tent, the sounds of war all around them. His claws had sprung out just like hers, three bone protrusions dripping with blood. She could still feel his grip on her wrist, tight and desperate. His voice, gravelly and low, whispering, "Did I hurt you?" She had stared at him then, just as she did now in her memory, wondering how someone so strong could seem so broken.

Her body convulsed as more adamantium poured into her bones. She gasped, her back arching against the metal table, squirming under the water, hands flexing involuntarily. Her mind couldn't hold on anymore-it kept slipping between the past and the present, trapped in a loop of suffering.

She felt Victor's pull on her hair after dropping the logs on her and Logan, their last fight flashing before her eyes. His growling voice filled her head: "You're just a love sick puppy." Blood splattered across her shirt as he lashed out at her, his eyes blazing with betrayal. Her breath hitched in the present, the memory's pain blending with the searing agony of the lab.

A deafening, sharp beep cut through the haze. Her heartbeat flatlined, the machines around her screaming in warning. Stryker's cold voice barked orders, but they sounded far away, like an echo across a great distance.

For a moment, there was nothing but silence.

In her mind, she wasn't dead. She was standing in that med tent again, staring into Logan's eyes after they had both realized how similar they were. She felt his hand brush against hers again, a grounding force amid the storm of memories, just as the faintest pulse of life sparked within her.

The monitors beeped. Her heart rate spiked, and jolted forward, pulling through the water and breaking free of the machines. She gasped for air as she broke the surface and let out a roar, water dripping off of her body as she stood in the tank.

She made a run for it, noticing the guards had already been taken out and Logan was no longer there. She ran as far as her legs would carry her, miles and miles, tracking Logan's scent as she ran. After a while, she came across a barn and she ran towards it, hiding in the corner.

Logan caught a flash of movement from the corner of his eye as he glanced out the window. His heart sank when he recognized the figure sprinting across the field, barefoot and half-naked, toward the barn. "Oh, Jesus," he muttered, shaking his head. He turned to the elderly couple who had given him shelter. Their eyes were wide, mouths slightly agape at the sight of Verena. Logan scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. "Your daughter got any old clothes she doesn't wear?"

The old woman blinked, then nodded, her expression softening with understanding. "I'll find something," she said, motioning for him to follow her to the back bedroom. She rummaged through a dresser before handing him a towel, a grey ribbed tank top, a pair of worn bootcut jeans, and a set of dusty cowboy boots. "These should do."

She hesitated, eyeing Logan with a knowing look. "Is that your girl out in my barn?" she asked, a smile tugging at her lips.

Logan chuckled softly and shook his head. "It's... complicated." He accepted the clothes with a grateful nod. "Thanks for these."

The woman smiled warmly. "No problem, really." She reached into the closet again and handed him a grey zip-up jacket. "Just in case she gets cold-since y'all are sleeping in the barn." Her tone held no judgment, only care.

Logan nodded again. "Appreciate it."

He made his way out to the barn and knocked on the door before pushing it open. Inside, Verena sat huddled in the corner, shivering, her arms wrapped tightly around herself. She glanced up as Logan entered, and the relief in her eyes was immediate. "You're alive," she rasped, her voice rough as if unused for days.

Logan held up the bundle of clothes. "Brought you something to wear." He tossed them to her, towel included, and she caught them with a quick nod. He turned his back to give her privacy while she changed, the sound of rustling fabric breaking the silence.

After a moment, her voice floated through the air, softer now. "You know, back there... I thought we were going to die. I-I said things, felt things that-" She hesitated, her words stumbling.

Logan cut her off gently, his voice quiet. "I know, Verena. We both said things." He understood. The rawness of almost dying had stripped away their walls, but reality had come crashing back far too soon.

"You can turn around now," she said, breaking the silence.

He turned, his gaze drifting over her, noting how the jeans clung to her figure and the way the tank top fit snugly across her torso. For a brief moment, his breath caught in his throat.

"Logan?" Her voice pulled him back to the present, and he blinked, clearing his throat.

"Uh-Travis and Mary are making dinner," he said, his voice a touch rougher than he intended. "We'll eat in the main house, sleep out here."

Verena nodded, her eyes dropping briefly to her hands. She hadn't looked at her claws since... everything. Fear flickered across her face, the thought of unsheathing them again too overwhelming.

Logan led the way to the main house, the weight of the unspoken lingering between them. He paused as they reached the door, turning to her. "Mary, Travis, this is Verena. My, uh... my friend."

Mary looked Verena up and down, her lips curving into a sly smile. "More like girlfriend, I'd say. Why haven't you asked her yet, boy?"

Verena and Logan both choked at the same time, sputtering and coughing as if they'd inhaled a lungful of dust. Logan tried to laugh it off, his face tinged with embarrassment. "Ha-uh, Mary, that's a story for another day," he managed, sending a quick glance at Verena to make sure she wasn't too uncomfortable.

Mary gave them a knowing look but dropped the subject. "Alright, kids, come on. I'm sure you're starving."

Verena almost laughed aloud at being called a 'kid.' She was older than both Mary and Travis combined, though she kept that fact to herself as they sat down to eat. She exchanged a brief glance with Logan, a small smile tugging at her lips despite everything.

For now, they could pretend to be something they weren't-just two travelers, grateful for a meal and some warmth, trying to forget the storm that awaited them outside.

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Word count: 3791

Translation:

Cazzo - Fuck
vieni fuori, figlio di puttana - come out you son of a bitch
Vaffanculo - fuck you
Dio mio- oh my god
Cagna- bitch

A/N: Ahhhhhhhhhhh. That's it, that's the note. (I wrote half of this on my phone guys I'm so sorry if it's bad and I didn't edit either cause editing takes forever and I promise to go back and edit when I finish the book) Also please leave comments, I love seeing peoples reactions and getting feedback and let me know if I missed any translations!

Love you all,

Allegra 💙