ᴄʟᴀᴡꜱ ᴀɴᴅ ʀᴇᴅᴇᴍᴘᴛɪᴏɴ ⤷ ʟᴏɢᴀɴ ʜᴏᴡʟᴇᴛᴛ

.𝟏𝟏

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The team gathered in the dimly lit corridor, the cold, damp walls of the abandoned dam pressing in on them. They had just received Mystique's signal—she was in, and the spillway had been opened. The path to Cerebro was clear, but everyone knew the mission was far from over.

Logan glanced at the others, his expression grim. "She's good," he said, his voice low and approving.

Magneto, standing slightly apart from the rest, allowed himself a small, knowing smile. "You have no idea."

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As they moved through the corridors, Logan could feel the tension mounting. Every step echoed ominously, the shadows seemed to stretch and twist, and the sound of distant machinery hummed through the walls. They reached the command room, where two guards were struggling to force the door open.

Jean paused, her face set in concentration as she used her telekinesis to lift the guards off the ground and push them aside. With a flick of his wrist, Magneto tore the door from its hinges, the metal creaking and groaning as it gave way. Inside, Mystique stood waiting.

"Have you found it?" Magneto asked, his voice cold and direct.

"A large portion of energy from the dam has been diverted to this chamber," Mystique replied, her gaze steady. "Cerebro."

"Can you shut it down from here?" Storm asked, stepping forward, her concern evident.

Mystique shook her head. "No."

Magneto's expression darkened. "Come, there's little time," he said, turning to lead the way.

Jean stepped forward, determination in her eyes. "Not without us," she insisted.

Suddenly, Storm's eyes widened with realization. "Oh my god, the children," she gasped, turning to Mystique. "Kurt, will you come with me?"

"Yes," he responded in unison, his resolve clear.

"Where are they?" Storm demanded, her urgency palpable.

"They're being held in a containment cell one level down," Mystique answered.

"We'll get the children and meet you at Cerebro," Storm said, already forming a plan in her mind.

"I'll try to find Scott and the professor," Jean said, steeling herself for what lay ahead.

Storm cast a wary glance at Magneto and Mystique. "Will you be alright without us?"

Jean nodded. "Yeah, I'll be fine."

As they prepared to split up, Jean's gaze fell on a metallic device on a nearby table. Storm frowned. "Where's Logan?"

Jean sighed. "He's gone."

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Logan rushed through the dimly illuminated corridors, his heart pounding as his thoughts kept drifting back to Lottie. Her perfect smile, her soft blonde hair, the way she seemed to understand him like no one else could. The memory of her gave him strength as he navigated the maze-like structure, determined to find answers—or at least some form of closure.

He approached a room that seemed out of place, standing in stark contrast to the others he had passed. Inside, a large chamber filled with a dark, viscous liquid caught his eye. The walls were lined with X-rays of various skeletal structures, each one eerily familiar yet distinct. Logan's breath hitched as a wave of memories assaulted him—images of pain, of metal being grafted to bone, of screams echoing in sterile rooms.

Closing his eyes, Logan let the haunting memory of his own time in a similar tank flicker across his mind before pushing it aside. As he stepped closer to the tank, the dark liquid within began to bubble ominously, reflecting the room's cold, clinical light. His fingers brushed over a table covered with surgical tools, each one sparking a brief but vivid memory of its use on him. The instruments felt almost like old enemies, reminders of the past he couldn't escape.

"The tricky thing about Adamantium is, if you even manage to process its raw, liquid form, you've got to keep it that way. Keep it hot. Because once the metal cools, it's indestructible. But you already know that. I used to think you were one of a kind, Wolverine," Stryker's voice echoed in his mind, a bitter reminder of the man who had turned him into a weapon.

Logan's attention snapped back to the present as he noticed movement at the stairwell. A female mutant, her eyes cold and devoid of emotion, approached. Stryker's final words echoed in his head, "I was wrong."

Before Logan could react, the woman lunged at him, sending him flying backward with surprising force. He growled as he unsheathed his claws, his instincts kicking in. The woman responded by extending five long, razor-sharp claws from each of her fingertips.

"Holy shit," Logan muttered, his eyes widening.

The mutant didn't give him time to process her next move. With a fluid spin, she slashed at his face, leaving deep, stinging wounds. Logan retaliated with a series of swift strikes, but she dodged each one with unnerving agility, countering with a powerful kick that sent him crashing into a stone pillar.

As she charged at him again, Logan thrust his claws into her stomach, trying to hold her back. He moved with her, delivering rapid, brutal slashes to her face, each one meant to bring her down. But the mutant merely groaned, her lips curling into a grin as her skin began to heal, the wounds sealing up as if they had never been there.

"Shit," Logan spat, realizing this fight was far from over.

The mutant launched him into the air, slamming him against the metal chamber suspended above the liquid tank. Logan felt a searing pain as she stabbed him multiple times in the back, each strike driving deeper into his flesh. But he wasn't done yet. Summoning the last of his strength, Logan slashed through the chains holding the chamber up, sending the woman hurtling into the tank below.

For a moment, it seemed like the battle was over. But as Logan rolled onto his side, gasping for breath, the woman emerged from the water, her claws gleaming. She lunged at him once more, slicing through his side with a vicious swipe. Desperation fueled Logan's next move. He grabbed a syringe filled with raw Adamantium from a nearby table and plunged it into her stomach, injecting the molten metal directly into her body.

The effect was immediate and horrifying. The woman's eyes widened in shock as the metal surged through her veins, streaming out of her eyes like tears of liquid steel. She staggered backward, her movements becoming jerky and unnatural before she fell into the water with a heavy, metallic clank.

Logan stood there, panting, watching as the water stilled and the woman sank out of sight.

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