Chapter 196: The Flying Fox

"What’s happening?" Ororo asked, noticing how completely absorbed Logan was in the file.

"A while ago, Logan had a relationship with someone named Sarah Kinney¹. What he did not know was that she was a scientist working for Transigen, a corporation attempting to turn Meta-Humans into weapons."

"Logan, being himself, unknowingly left her with a child, giving the company what they considered the perfect weapon."

"For some time now, they have been training that girl to become an instrument of death against both Meta-Humans and ordinary humans."

"If it were not for the information we gathered, she could eventually become responsible for countless casualties."

The girls and Ororo were both horrified.

In a quiet show of support, Ororo gently squeezed Logan’s arm and stroked it, easing some of the tension radiating from him.

"I believed Logan had the right to know. He also has the right to know that I intend to extract every Meta-Human child from that facility soon... in case he wants to participate."

Logan finally looked up from the file.

His eyes met Jason’s with a mixture of hatred, anger, and barely restrained fury.

"When are we leaving?"

"Right now, if you want."

Logan handed the folder back before immediately heading toward the stairs.

Jason stored the file away and rose from the sofa.

"I am coming with you," Ororo said.

"I strongly advise against it."

"What Logan is about to face can only be resolved in one specific way."

He slowly drew a finger across his throat.

Ororo grimaced.

She wanted to object.

Instead, she remained silent.

Knowing that children were being raised as living weapons....and, more importantly, that Logan’s own daughter had been forced to endure the very nightmare he himself had survived....deeply disturbed her.

Jason walked toward the exit and headed for his car.

"When everything is over, I will either send you the location so the X-Men can secure the facility, or I will personally bring the children here."

"In the meantime, it would be wise to keep your distance from both Logan and the girl."

"If they truly created her to be a weapon, she will be extremely dangerous until she becomes emotionally stable."

"Ready, Bub. I will ask the cat for the keys to the Blackbird¹."

"There is no need."

"I will handle the transportation."

He pressed a button.

The car instantly collapsed into a Nanocube, which he casually stored away.

"We are taking that one."

He pointed toward the sky.

Everyone looked up.

A section of the sky appeared to distort before seemingly splitting apart, revealing a massive aircraft that had been completely invisible only moments earlier.

"Ladies and gentlemen..."

"I present to you the Flying Fox."

"How did none of our systems detect it?" Ororo asked.

"It was designed to be a shadow."

"A ghost."

"No conventional detection system can find it."

"It could carry out an operation anywhere on Earth, and no one would ever realize it had been there."

Everyone shivered slightly at the casual way he described such an alarming capability.

The aircraft slowly descended.

He had originally intended to use the Bat-Wing, but after considering the possibility of transporting multiple people, he had decided the Flying Fox was the better choice.

Once it landed, Logan and Jason walked toward the ship as the rear ramp lowered, revealing Karen waiting inside.

Jason raised an eyebrow.

She was wearing a suit remarkably similar to his own, except it covered her entire body and featured a blue bat emblem that reminded him of Bluebird.¹

"What do you think?" Karen asked, placing her hands on her hips before giving a small spin.

"It could be useful someday."

"It looks perfect on you."

"But you know you are not coming, right?"

"I know."

"I prefer the safer option over the riskier one."

"That does not mean I cannot dress for the occasion."

She spoke in the playful tone she reserved exclusively for him and Cortana.

Internally, Jason wondered where things had diverged between Karen and Cortana.

From the very beginning, Cortana had always wanted to take direct action.

Karen, on the other hand, resembled him far more, preferring calculated caution over unnecessary risks.

Sighing, he walked past her and entered the cockpit.

Karen turned around and noticed the girls below staring at her.

Recognizing exactly who they were from everything her mother had told her, she deliberately gave them an arrogant, mocking smile.

Predictably, it irritated every one of them.

Jean watched the unfamiliar girl smile that way and instinctively reached out with her telepathy.

She found...

Nothing.

Her expression shifted to confusion.

She searched deeper.

Nothing.

Absolutely nothing.

It was as though the girl simply did not exist.

Yet Jean could clearly see her standing there.

She knew she was real.

Karen merely turned around, gave a small wave, and closed the rear hatch before making her way toward the cockpit.

As she walked, she noticed the oldest man in the room gripping his seat as though his immortal life depended on it.

"The most dangerous man in the world is afraid of heights," she murmured as she walked past Logan.

"Grr," Logan replied.

Once inside the cockpit, Logan settled into the co-pilot’s seat.

"Set a course for the San Francisco Mountains," Jason said as he unfolded a Nanocube and began changing into the Red Hood suit.

Karen quietly redirected the interior cameras elsewhere.

This has to be a joke, Jason thought as he finished putting on the suit.

Leaving the helmet beside him, he sat down and closed his eyes.

They would reach their destination soon.

....

"We will arrive in a few moments," Karen said.

"Perfect."

He looked out the window and saw that night had already fallen.

"I extended the flight. I thought nighttime would provide better conditions for the operation."

He picked up his helmet and stepped out of the cockpit.

Logan frowned when he saw the suit but said nothing.

The two stood before a holographic table as a detailed three-dimensional projection of the facility appeared.

"This is a detailed holographic map of the base we will be infiltrating. There are multiple entrances and exits. It is a highly secure facility."

"How are we getting in?" Logan asked.

"Like every supposedly impenetrable place, it has a weakness."

"Arrogance always creates a blind spot."

"Our entry point is here."

He pointed to one section of the hologram.

"This is Cell X-23."

"Do not call her an experiment."

"Her name is Laura," Logan said firmly.

The response surprised Jason.

He was genuinely relieved to see there was still plenty of humanity left beneath Wolverine’s rough exterior.

"Inside the facility are several people who no longer agree with the experiments."

"I contacted each of them."

"They will help us."

He enlarged a photograph.

"One of them is Sarah."

Logan’s expression softened almost imperceptibly.

"If we have her with us, calming Laura down will be much easier."

Logan grunted.

"Not that kind of control," Jason clarified.

"If Laura truly inherited your personality and was engineered for only one purpose, then Sarah will know better than anyone how to reach her emotionally."

Logan reluctantly nodded.

If his daughter truly resembled him...or was even worse....there would not be many gentle ways to handle the situation.

"You are responsible for finding Sarah."

Jason handed him a bracelet.

"Tap it twice."

"It will project a map of the facility."

"The bracelet is tracking her phone, so locating her should be easy."

"Your route will be... considerably messier."

"Stop talking like Yoda."

"I will handle Laura."

Logan raised an eyebrow.

"If necessary..."

Jason held up a small grenade.

"It is the same type I used on you."

"There are very few ways to calm someone like you down, Logan."

"You are stubborn to the core."

A faint grin crossed Logan’s face.

He shot Jason an amused, sarcastic look, though both of them knew the grenade’s effects would only last a few minutes.

"We will be landing shortly," Karen announced.

Jason grabbed his helmet and walked toward the rear hatch.

Logan followed.

The hatch opened, revealing the sprawling facility below.

"Ready to make a mess?" Red Hood asked, extending his hand.

"Making a mess is my middle name, Bub," Logan replied, slapping it.

Jason patted him on the shoulder and nodded.

"I know."

Without another word, he applied just enough force to shove Logan out of the aircraft.

"AHHHHHHH!"

Logan tumbled wildly through the air.

The immense weight of the adamantium bonded to his skeleton caused him to plummet much faster than an ordinary person.

Just before he slammed into the ground, a concealed parachute deployed behind him.

His descent immediately slowed.

"...More or less."

He still hit the ground hard enough to leave a sizable crater.

From above, Jason nodded in satisfaction.

"See?"

"I told you it would work."

"That landing looked perfectly safe."

Logan’s muffled growl echoed from inside the crater.

"Grrrr..."