A Not-So-Happy Birthday

Part Seven

It's Not the Years...

Logan smiled, not even bothering to hold his side as he helped Kitty to her feet and walked over to the writhing body of his anything-but-friend.

"'Happy birthday,' huh, bub? Couldn't think of a better present. Thanks," Logan sneered as three long metal claws swiped through the hair-covered neck, bisecting Sabretooth. The head rolled, spewing blood, mouth moving as if trying to speak, but unable — it had no voice box and no lungs to force air through it anyway. Logan smiled, more like baring his teeth, and spat blood mixed with saliva on the floor by the head.

"Wolvie!" Jubilee almost tackled him, wrapping her arms around his neck, half-choking him.

"Hey, kid. How are ya?"

"Ohmygod, Iwassoscared, youwouldn'tbelieveit, ohmygod — I made it. Jeez, I'm fine, whaddaya think, I'm some kinda baby?" Jubilee chided him.

Sparing Logan from coming up with any more of an answer than "naw, kid," Elektra moaned and pushed herself to her feet, clinging to a wall to keep from tipping over.

"I think... there's a little too much of my blood... on the floor," she gasped, pushing sweat- and blood-soaked hair from her eyes.

"Sure put yer fair share there, darlin — an' not all of it yours. What'd ya think you were doin?"

An eyebrow arched coolly. "With what, Logan?"

"Killin' Meltdown, ya cold-blooded bake-me!" Wolverine growled.

"Meltdown?" The eyebrow almost vanished into the bloodied hairline. Her dark eyes flicked to the body of Sabretooth's partner on the floor. Uh-oh... I think I might have made a small mistake... "You knew her? She... wasn't his partner... was she," it wasn't a question.

"Nope," Logan replied coldly. What would have happened next none of them knew, though they all had a bad feeling about it.

But a quiet groan came from the blonde girl on the floor. Elektra silently breathed a sigh of relief, not caring if Logan saw it or not. That was one less innocent life on her hands. She looked at the body. Elektra was grateful the girl wasn't dead, yeah, but she was embarrassed, too. Oh, sure, she'd been rushed, and concentrating more on Creed than the brat, and she still put her down for the count, but still, that should have been a kill! ... All's well that ends well, I guess, she told herself, unconvinced.

"Well. I'm going to — uhn — go get the information I need. You can deal with them, Logan. And thanks for your help," she batted her eyelashes at him.

"Go to hell, Elektra," he grumbled good-naturedly. "And, kid, you didn't hear anything either one of us said, got it?"

Elektra responded to Logan's 'sudden attack of fatherliness' with Japanese. Kitty snorted and tried to swallow her laughter. Jubilee gave Logan an insulted/confused look. "I'm not a kid. And what'd she say, anyway?"

"You don't want to know, sweetie," Elektra picked up two of her blood-soaked sais and sauntered (as much as she could on her leg) out of the room, ignoring her spinning head and battered body. Logan flicked her off and disentangled himself from Jubilee.

"Okay, Jubes, I gotta get Tabitha outta here, so Kitty'll help you. Okay, pun'kin?"

"Gotcha, Wolvie. Gimmee your hand, Jubes, you look pretty beat up."

"You're telling me!"

* * *

Elektra slipped silently into a small, dark, smelly room with a phone. She didn't want to know what the gunk that coated it was. Thank god for my gloves... She definitely did not want to touch it. It was probably something that came out of Creed... good god, Elektra! You have to use that thing, you dork, don't even start! She shuddered, and gingerly picked the phone up. She looked for the dirties numbers, and went in order of piled gunk on them. The phone rang as she held it near her ear, not touching it... ring... ring... ri — click!

"Victor," came a voice over the other end. "Have you eliminated Elektra yet?"

"Mmm," she said, "not quite, dear."

Dead silence. Elektra smiled as she watched the small box she held in her hands. One of the LEDs went on.

"Don't worry, though," she reassured the voice, "he tried his best. And you surely won't have to give him whatever reward he was promised. I took care of that for you."

"You... but... alone?" the voice sputtered, unable to restrain its curiosity. Another LED went on.

"What, you think I called the police on him? Honestly, it's not as if I have a private army I keep on hand to deal with things like this. Of course I did." The third one lit up... almost there, she mentally crossed her fingers.

"You... you... impossible... nobody... not even that Wolverine... could kill... "

Elektra laughed once, harshly. As long as she could keep insulting this idiot gently, they'd keep talking. "Him? You have to be kidding me. Honestly, that old timer? They're both too ancient to keep up with Elektra: Assassin." She hung up the phone before the voice could say anything else and glanced at the small box. She had it. Alone in the dark, smelly, dank room, Elektra smiled evilly, a pure grin of death, as the blood dripped down onto the floor.

* * *

Logan had managed to get the sai out and bandage Tabitha's wound with the black leather cape she wore — that had probably thrown Elektra's aim off the necessary bit in the melee, he figured. So she'll need a new cape — too flamin' bad. Not his problem. She wasn't even supposed to be here. The fact that Kitty wasn't either didn't so much slip his mind as end up under a different heading. Kitty was... Kitty, and they'd fought together before. Good thing Elektra didn't hurt Pryde, Logan's mind told him. Otherwise, she'd still be in there, right next to Vic.

He slung the unconscious X-Forcer in front of him on the motorcycle before turning to make sure the kids were okay. Jubilee would need to spend some time in medical care, but as long as she got that, none of the injuries should be life threatening, as long as she hadn't lost too much blood. She got on behind Kitty after a brief argument over who got to drive the bike. They just had to get Smith to a hospital pronto — she'd survive if they got there soon enough.

"You two okay there, pun'kin?"

Kitty rolled her eyes and smiled. "Wolvie, relax and ride, okay? C'mon, you finally got Sabretooth for good — you should be happy."

Wolverine smiled feraly. Oh, yeah. That was one way to put it.

* * *

The house was dark and still. She saw the car in the driveway. So, he thinks he's safe, does he? Thinks he's got away in time? That just by going somewhere else, I can't track him? Thinks his car's nondescript enough that he lost me with those silly maneuvers? Ha. She smiled coldly in the darkness.

There was a person in the lounge, surrounded by a very sophisticated security system, and armed guards patrolled the property. They had Uzis and something bigger over their shoulders; probably some sort of blade in a belt or boot, she figured. Thinks that'll protect him? Sure. Right. In his dreams...

Silent as the shadows she moved in, she hopped the fence and slid up the wall, leaving the three Dobermans dead below before any of them had the chance to bark...

The first guard dropped before she was even in the house; he didn't even have time to gasp before she caught the body and let it down to the floor gently, silently...

* * *

Late, two nights later, Wolverine sat alone in the kitchen of the X-Mansion. Nobody knew that he had returned to get a few things — like a credit card for hospital bills — and he'd decided to grab a bite to eat before returning. Kitty was at the hospital with Jubes and Meltdown still; Jubilee was about to be discharged and handed back over to Frost, not too the worse for wear. Meltdown looked like she was going to pull through. Logan still had to drop a message for Frost and try to get in touch with the X-Force-kids, though that was doubtful. He scanned the headline on the front page of the newspaper on the counter, then smiled.

The news was hopping with the mystery murder of a highly placed government official and his entire security force — including three Dobermans, still in their kennel area. None of the guards had drawn a weapon, and those that didn't die with surprise on their faces died without knowing they were dead, just like the dogs. The only one with a different reaction was the official himself. He was sitting in his lounge where he'd apparently been getting very drunk.

He had fear on his face. And someone with lipstick had finished his drink for him.

The man called Wolverine smiled as he ate another bit of the not-quite-stale cake in front of him. Good one, darlin', he thought, guess you got what you were after...
 
 

Well, I hope you all enjoyed it. Sorry Meltdown-fans, but I don't really like Tabitha all that much, though I tried to be fair and write her the way she would probably act. Hope you liked my takes on the characters, and the way everything finally panned out. Drop me a review — pretty please with birthday cake on top? It isn't really stale, I swear!