The Wolf Inside

Chapter 9

Lunar led the way to where Xavier would be when something she hadn’t expected happened. Stryker walked out of the room with Lady Deathstrike beside him, he looked at the two with an almost disappointed look before taking out a syringe that held the mind controlling serum. Lunar turned into her wolf form, snarling as the shift sent pain through her wounds, before stepping forward. “Let us pass.”

            “What has this mutant been putting in your head?” Stryker raised an eyebrow. “Phantom you would be dead without me, whatever Summers told you was a lie. Now I must go see Wolverine, after all these years he’s finally come home.”

            “You’ll have to pass us first.” Cyclops replied as he put a hand to his visor in preparation to blast Stryker.

            “Deathstrike, take care of these two then come meet up with me.” Stryker handed her the serum. “Don’t kill them… they could still have a bit of use left before it comes to that.”

            “Coward! Fight us!” Lunar growled and launched herself at him, intending to rip out his throat.

            Stryker didn’t even flinch though and her attack never reached him, Deathstrike kicked her into the wall before making her nails grow out and attacking Cyclops. Lunar staggered to her feet and watched as Stryker walked off before turning back to the fight, it wouldn’t last long though, she already could see that. Lady Deathstrike was more skilled at close combat than Cyclops and she wasn’t in any shape to fight, blood was already running out of the cuts on her side and soaking the fur there. Still she jumped back into the fray hoping to at least destroy the syringe before being taken down.

            Lady Deathstrike glared at her as Lunar slammed into her side before flipping out of the way and over her head. Cyclops aimed his optic blast at her but Deathstrike spun and dodged it. Lunar lunged towards her again but was once again too slow to land a hit, Deathstrike landed on her back this time and stabbed her nails into Lunar’s shoulder blades. Lunar staggered under the weight but with the deep wounds she’d just received sunk to the ground and went still, Deathstrike got up and Lunar could hear her continuing to fight with Cyclops until the struggling ceased.

            “Find the mutants that have entered the base and kill them.” Lady Deathstrike ordered before walking off down the hall.

            Lunar felt the blood running into her lungs but forced herself to get back up and follow after Cyclops as he left to follow orders, he wouldn’t attack her as she wasn’t an intruder, which meant that she still had a chance of helping whoever he did run into. To her surprise he went to the lower level where the machines keeping the dam from breaking under pressure were located instead of towards the gunfire in the entrance, after a few minutes though she could understand why. If the intruders found out where the kids were being kept or that Cerebro II was in this direction they would have to go this way to get to them and that would mean going through a lot of hiding places they could be ambushed from.

            “Cyclops, these are your friends… don’t attack them.” Lunar sent a weak thought towards him as she stumbled. “Do you want their blood on your hands?”

            He didn’t answer or slow down as she continued to follow him, Lunar could feel herself growing weaker as more blood filled her lungs making less room for the precious oxygen she needed to live. After six minutes of trailing him Cyclops finally came to a stop and hid behind some of the machinery, she stayed near the doorway, although she did hide in the shadows, and waited with him for someone to show up. It didn’t take long ether, three sets of footsteps rushed towards them and Lunar could just make out Cyclops’ hand going to his visor before a woman’s voice shouted and a red laser blast shot through the doorway.

            “Scott?” The woman who screamed the warning stepped forward and Lunar heard the other footsteps moving away quickly. “Scott where are you?”

            Lunar grunted as she stood back up and came out of her hiding place at the same moment Cyclops came from his. Lunar stayed where she was as the woman looked from her to Scott, the last thing she wanted was to be thought of as the enemy, which was probably what was going through the woman’s mind. She didn’t get to act on it however because Cyclops sent another red beam towards her, Lunar watched in shock as the woman put up her hands and blocked it, she could tell the woman was strained at first and reluctant to hurt him but as Cyclops made the blast stronger she was forced to send the optic blasts back at him. Cyclops flew backwards while the woman fell back in the opposite direction, Lunar felt herself sliding back as well but pressed herself against the ground to minimize the amount of energy hitting her. When the woman stood back up she locked eyes on Lunar and Lunar backed away before cautiously sending a thought into her mind.

            “I’m a friend… Let me help.”

            “Telepathy?” The woman looked at her and Lunar turned into a human and walked forward, though it felt as if she were ripping herself apart as her form shifted.

            “Only in one form.” She told her. “Come on, let’s go help Cyclops… he’s not in control of his actions, Stryker has a serum…”

            “I know. We found Nightcrawler.” The woman said.

            “So he made it out safe…?” Lunar turned to her. “Well that aside, I’m Lunar.”

            “Jean.” She replied, though Lunar could tell she wasn’t thrilled to be working with the enemy.

            When they got near the area Cyclops had landed they found it seemingly empty, Lunar shifted back into her wolf form and listened closely for any sign of Cyclops’ location. “He’s to the left!”

            A few milliseconds after Lunar’s warning, another laser blast shot towards them, Jean held up her hands and blocked it again before sending the energy upward; the third time he attacked though she wasn’t so lucky. Jean flew back into more machinery, breaking some of it, and Lunar heard a cry of pain as cement landed on Jean’s leg. Cyclops prepared to shoot again but Lunar ran into his side to unbalance him, he turned to her in shock as if he just noticed her presence before being thrown into the wall by an invisible force. When Lunar turned around she saw Jean’s hand drop to the ground and realized what had happened.

            “Jean?” Cyclops’ confused voice questioned as he rubbed his head.

            “Scott she’s hurt get over here.” Lunar instructed him as she shouldered the cement off Jean’s leg.

            “Jean, no, I’m sorry I didn’t mean this!” Scott ran over and helped her up. “I could see you but I-I couldn’t stop-”

            “I know it’s okay.” Jean cut him off.

            A groan went through the building and Lunar looked up to see cracks appearing in the structure. “We have to get out of here, the fighting is breaking the dam’s structure. The pressure could cause it to collapse.”

            “We have to get to Cerebro.” Jean replied, turning to Scott.

            “We’ll take you.” He replied. “Lunar can you take out any guards that could be guarding the Professor?”

            Lunar panted as blood dripped onto the floor but she shook herself and started walking towards Cerebro’s location. “Yeah, follow me.”