After Logan: Rogue and X-23

Comic Book Heroes

The day Logan started fading Rogue pushed herself to exhaustion.

The car she had stolen was miles behind on the plains with no gas remaining. The moment it stopped Rogue didn't pause, sliding out and continuing on foot. She must have only gone a mile when she felt it. The strength of his mind lessening considerably.

She stumbled, startled at how harshly it shrank away from her. Rogue froze, disoriented in the burning sun trying to get her thoughts in order. Of course he'd been fading for years but it had never been this sudden.

She squinted as it fell into place. It was a reasonable conclusion for anyone except for Logan. Rogue collapsed to her knees in shock.

She didn't believe it. She couldn't believe it. She hadn't come all this way to discover that he....

Angry, Rogue pushed to her feet. He wasn't. He couldn't be. It had to be due to something else. Logan wasn't gone.

Later, she crawled into an abandoned gas station cursing the heat that seemed to radiate from everything. She had little water left and there had been a sign for a rest stop some miles ahead but she couldn't make it any farther tonight. She had pushed herself too hard after that first mile.

The door was in no condition to keep other people, or animals out but after dragging over one shelf she didn't have any energy to drag over a second one.

Curling up in a dusty corner Rogue hoped for a few precious hours of sleep. She didn't want to rest long, she had to keep going and the longer she waited the quicker the trail went cold. She hated the delay but couldn't fight the facts. She needed rest.

As she started to drift she had one last thought: exhaustion was a gift because she didn't have to fight for sleep.

~

Sweat gathered in her palms and ran down the back of her neck. The gloves Hank made for her were supposed to be breathable but they'd been running for so long that she was burning.

Her lungs and legs. Her feet and arms. Whenever she felt like collapsing she looked at Bobby who never slowed and kept her going with just a glance.

It felt as though they were running endlessly. They passed what looked like the same doors and took what felt like the same turns.

They wouldn't make it. She could feel it. They couldn't run and fight at the same time and there would be no avoiding a fight. Their pursuers we're catching up to them.

"Bobby-"

"Just a little farther." He gasped.

A little farther felt like ten miles but suddenly there was the door. They slid to a halt.

"I'll get it open." He said, raising his hands as the steps of their followers grew louder.

Rogue kept her back to the door while he worked ice between the cracks, her eyes scanning the dim corridor.

"I got it."

"They're coming." She replied, shapes emerging from the shadows.

Behind her she heard the door groan as it was forced open.

"Let's go." Bobby took her hand but she didn't move.

"They're coming Bobby." She said again. "We can't out run them anymore." And they couldn't fight all of them either.

He pulled her hand. "Rogue." She didn't move. "Rogue."

She spared a moment to glance at him, letting herself be pulled towards the exit. "We won't make it Bobby."