Gunn looked up to see him first! ,and the young,dark skinned man scowled at him."Man,when you dig for dirt,do you always unearth a graveyard?"

Angel just stared at him uncomprehendingly."What?"

"After what seemed like three Sunnydale lifetimes,I - Willow was able to break the encryption," Cordy told him.She had dark circles under her tired hazel eyes,and her newly short chestnut hair hung limply against her cheeks.She'd been up for at least twenty hours now,by his estimation.

"And you found something interesting?"An obvious,stupid question,but they let it slide.

"No.What we found was some sort of accounting program ledger or something,"she said with scorn,waving her hand in a dismissive gesture.

"But there was something weird it,"Gunn interjected,picking up the narrative.Someone must have filled him in on the previous proceedings."This Safe Harbor joint was listed as a holding of the
Syon Corporation."

Angel crossed his arms over his chest and frowned as he joined them behind th! e front desk."Never heard of them."

"Neither did we,"Cordy admitte d."But a web search eventually turned up a magazine article that referred to the Syon Corporation as a 'massive tax dodge' for Ryan Flemming and Genisystems."They both looked at him as if this had been a major bombshell,and he shifted uncomfortably,reluctant to say what was on his mind.

But Gunn must have seen it."You have no clue who they are,do you?"He asked,in a manner suggesting he knew the answer.

Angel hesitantly nodded,feeling like a two hundred year old idiot."No,no idea."

"Look,I know you're a dead guy,but have you been living under a rock?"Cordy asked incredulously."Ryan Flemming is only a software kajillionaire,probably the richest one in this state,which is saying something."

"And Genisystems is some big deal software company,second only to Microsoft.Even I know that."Gunn finished,trying not to sound smug but failing.

"What would that have to do with a counseling service for mutants and demons?"

"Could he be a demon?That might explain a l! ot,"Gunn said.

Angel turned instantly as the lobby door opened,tense and alert,and even the sleeping Wesley was startled to consciousness."I'm awake,"he claimed,sitting up and causing the book to fall to the floor.

But it was Logan who came in,giving Wes a strange look that he probably deserved."Good for you.Want a medal?"He said sarcastically,but Wes was still groggy enough that it went over his head,or at least by it.

"Where have you been?"Angel asked,and kept his voice studiously neutral.He'd heard the faint noise of glass breaking a few hours ago,and he was relatively sure it came from the room Logan was staying in,so he went downstairs to make sure he was all right.He knew it couldn't be a full frontal assault-Logan would make a hell of a lot more noise fighting even a sizable contingent of ninjas-but he snuck downstairs and into his room,just in case.

He never found Logan.What he did find was a clawed bed,the shattered remains of the mirror glittering ! on the bathroom floor,and a room full of the smell of fear.He must hav e had a nightmare,a very bad one:everyone was scared of something,but he almost didn't want to know what had terrified Logan that much.He'd never smelled fear on him before,not even when he was besieged by the commandos.

As for the mirror,it was his guess he punched it out of frustration or self-loathing.He'd hit mirrors for the very same reason,although he never saw his own reflection.He wondered what was going on with him,but Angel knew he wouldn't want someone asking him that very question,so he wasn't about to ask it of Logan.

But he felt he had some insight into him now-in spite of his overconfident demeanor,he was deeply troubled,and possibly for very good reason.It almost shamed Angel to realize Cordy had come to that decision long before now.

Logan frowned at him,back to his usual fearless self.It was a comfortable fiction he was happy to go along with."I went to get my bike.I left it outside of Metcalfe's place."

"And it was still there?"Cordy exclai! med in surprise."In Los Angeles?Does it turn invisible?"

"No,but it can take care of itself."Logan's eyes narrowed at Gunn,who was studying him with obvious curiosity."Who the hell are you?"

Gunn raised an eyebrow at his cold tone,but decided not to take it personally."Charles Gunn,I work with these guys.So you're Logan,huh?"

"What gave me away?"He sniped,then looked at Cordy."What have you got?"

She filled him in,and for a moment,Angel held out hope that he wasn't the only one who didn't know who Flemming and Genisystems was,but Logan's brow furrowed,and he replied, "Genisystems?That software company?"

Damn it!Now he really felt like a moron.

"So rich boy's behind this,huh?"Logan grumbled."Makes sense.That many guys would cost a lot,not to mention their weaponry.And their silence."

"All we know is he has a connection to Safe Harbor,nothing more,"Angel countered,not wanting to admit Logan had a point.

Logan suddenly shot an acrid glance at Gu! nn,who had been surreptitiously stealing glances at his hands."What th e fuck are you staring at?"He growled,almost literally-his upper lip curled,exposing a canine tooth that could have passed for a fang."You want to see my claws,huh?"

Gunn was clearly startled by the vitriol in his words,and took a step back.The menace radiating from Logan was nearly palpable."Hey man,chill,I didn't mean anything by it.It's just that when Cordy told me you-"

"I show you my claws,"he snarled."And they'll be the last thing you see."

Angel put his arm out,holding Logan back as he took a step forward,but without warning Logan threw a hard elbow-metal hard-and caught him in the side of the face. Angel reeled backwards as Logan advanced on Gunn,who made the unwise decision to hold his ground.

Cordy shot to her feet,and stood right between Logan and Gunn."Back off,"she warned angrily,staring him straight in the eye."He didn't do it."

Now it was Logan's turned to be startled along with Angel-what did she know?Had she seen his room and drawn the sa! me conclusions?"What?"Logan asked,still angry,but Cordy's words had unbalanced him and he was no longer in attack mode.

"You know exactly what I mean.Now go sit down over there."After a brief pause,she added,with a good deal of menace in her voice,"I mean it,Logan.Now."

Angel briefly rubbed the growing bruise on his face-at least it confirmed his hypothesis that he had metal all over,more or less-and while he knew he could have tackled him while distracted by Cordy,he decided to see how this played out.She seemed to have some kind of info on him that Angel was lacking.So why hadn't she shared it with the rest of them?

With an annoyed huff,he took a step back,lowering his hands balled into fists (but Gunn would have been lucky if he only punched him)."You're just lucky I have a weakness for pushy women,"he told her,storming off towards the recently Wes vacated couch.

"I'm not pushy,"she shot back."I'm...assertive."

Gunn scoffed,which he tried to cover wit! h a fake cough when she glared at him,but nobody bought it.

"What was that about?"Angel asked her,not bothering to look to Logan for answers.He was hardly forthcoming.

But Cordy barely looked at him before taking her seat once more."You're asking me?I'm not the one with the macho bug up his butt.Could the testosterone poisoning in this room get any worse?"

"You wanna tell me you're not pushy again?"Gunn commented dryly.Then his dark brown eyes scudded over to him,and he asked,"Hit the sweet spot?"

"What?"

"I've never seen you beat back with an elbow before."

"Logan isn't your typical Human,"Angel said,hoping to leave it at that.But he could see the new questions forming in Gunn's eyes,and he didn't know what to say or how much to tell him.Thankfully,Wes came to the rescue.

"I did find several of the chemicals,"Wesley interjected nervously,straightening his glasses.He probably didn't know any more about Logan than Angel did,but he wanted to defuse the tension before it exploded anew."They're generally used in medica! l and scientific research."

"What kind of research?"Logan asked,sounding anxious as he bounded right back up to his feet.That struck a nerve.He had no idea why,but Angel knew it had.

"They have multiple uses,it seems,but they seem most likely to be used in the fields of genetics and virology."

They all thought about that for a second,and Logan was the first to curse."Motherfucker!"He spat,slamming his fist on the front desk and putting a hole right through it.

"Whoa,"Gunn commented."How strong are you?"

Logan threw another evil look in his direction,but otherwise ignored him."They're either trying to make mutants or kill them.Either way it doesn't sound good."Logan said,staring at Angel,and he knew it was only aimed at him.After all,they were the ones that had to put a stop to this thing."But since the commando squads are murdering mutants left and right,I'm betting on the latter."

"Okay,jumping to conclusions much?"Cordy replied,but then,after a mom! ent's hesitation, added,"But on the other hand,I wouldn't be all that surprised if Flemming was involved in this somehow.There's just something...creepy about him."

"If that were a crime,most of L.A. would be in jail,"Gunn opined.

"Does Flemming have a corporate address?"Angel asked,but then quickly added,"No,wait-do we know where these chemicals are being shipped?I doubt they'd be going to Safe Harbor."

"I'll check,"Wesley said,picking up the papers off the intact side of the front desk and studying them carefully."No,I don't believe so."

"Back to corporate,"Angel said.

"Genisystems has a huge complex in Pasadena,but I doubt he ever shows up there,"Cordy replied."The microserfs write the codes now,not him."

"Wait a moment,"Wesley,said,holding the paper up to the light.The invoice was printed on thin yellow paper-a copy of a copy,perhaps-and it appeared almost translucent with the light behind it.But Angel could just barely make out what Wesley was squinting at;there was an impression on the paper,as if someone had writ! ten on the first copy,but not hard enough to have it show up on the other copies."There's a Pasadena address here,but not Genisystems,I believe."He laid it out flat on the desk,and carefully wrote down what pieces of the address he could make out on a notepad.He then ripped off the sheet and showed it to Cordy."Is this Genisystems address?"

Cordy looked at it,then checked her computer screen."No.But it's close."

"Let's go,"Logan said,although it wasn't so much a comment as a demand.

"Why not?"Gunn said with a shrug."I always wanted to see how the rich white geeks live."

"You're not going with us,"Angel told him.

Gunn glared at him."The hell I'm not.Even with the hairy Terminator over there,you're still going to need some back up."

"What did you just call me?"Logan snapped.

Angel rolled his eyes,but only Gunn could see it."We don't know what this place is;it could be nothing more than a warehouse.If it turns out to be more,I'll call you.But right ! now,I need you to get Cordy and Wesley home."

"What?I'm the driver now?"He replied crossly,glowering at him.

Cordy shut down her computer,and stood,taking her coat off the back of her chair and shrugging it on."I need some sleep.You can drop me off,Gunn,or just give me your keys.I'll drive myself home."

Even Gunn knew that sounded bad,and he threw his hands up in a gesture of frustrated surrender."Just blackmail me into it.Man,you are in one assertive mood today,Cordelia."

"Twenty hours without sleep does that to me,"she replied,then looked at Wesley."You ready?"

"I'm fine,"he claimed,suppressing a yawn.At the chorus of disbelieving looks he received,he admitted,"I suppose I could use a couple more hours' rest."

The three of them left,but at the door,Gunn stopped and looked back at him."I mean it man-call me,or I'm comin' after you."

"I'll let you know,"he promised,but it felt like a lie.

As soon as they were gone,Logan gave him a curious look,and said,"Cordelia I understand,but why the hell do those guys hang a! round?Are they relatives?"Before Angel could think of a response,he shook his head,and said,"Never mind.Can we just go now?"

Angel sighed wearily,and grabbed his duster off the coat rack in the corner.He just knew this was going to be a long afternoon.

After what seemed like an unnecessary amount of bother-Angel told him to drive,and hid in the back seat of the car,a blanket pulled up over him because it was 'still sunny' and he'd burst into flames if he wasn't covered up-they found the location.And if that wasn't bad enough,he made him pull over into a shady spot before the building's entrance,so he could use a sewer tunnel access to get into the joint.Even beyond the grossness of that(how did he stand the smell?!),this seemed to be an almost pathological problem.Did he really believe sunlight would kill him?
The address did indeed belong to a warehouse:a large lot of big industrial warehouses w! ith a well locked gate,completely fenced perimeter,and several redunda nt security systems,including armed guards on the premises.

None of which slowed him down for a second.

He parked far from the gate and found a 'blind spot' on the perimeter,then easily scaled the ten foot high chain link fence,slashing the razor wire at the top so he didn't get cut before jumping down to the other side (of course,a cut would be no big deal,it was just the principal of the thing).Then he just started walking,having no clue what he was looking for,but confident-again-that he'd know it when he found it.

The lot smelled heavily of car exhaust and various chemicals,some so sharp and acrid they gave him an instant headache.He was guessing this place wasn't up to EPA codes-but when you had a lot of money,did you give a fuck?

He soon found Angel loitering in the shadows of one tin warehouse roughly the size of an airport hanger,talking softly into a cell phone,telling Gunn it was indeed a warehouse lot,and nothing exciting.Of course,they hadn't real! ly explored it yet,but he knew he didn't want the kid in on this,and he knew damn well why:he was only human.No matter how bad he obviously thought he was,if the commandos showed up,he'd be dead in ten seconds.Which,in Logan's opinion,would be no great loss,but Angel liked him for some unfathomable reason.

Once he was done giving the polite version of the 'stay the fuck away' speech,he pocketed the phone,and Angel gestured quietly at the warehouse behind him.Logan gave it a quick once over before peering around the corner.

There was nothing special here-it was a big ass warehouse that matched about a half dozen other big ass warehouses on this lot...and then he realized he didn't smell anything around it.The other places carried the reek of their chemical contents,but not this place,which indicated the products were stored better here, or it was empty.On the surface,absolutely nothing to worry about,but it was different,and it was best to find out why.

They spli! t up,Angel going around back as he went around front,and he found the huge loading doors securely locked.After glancing around to make sure no one was in hearing range,he shot out the claws on his right hand and sliced through the locking mechanism:a key card reader that spit sparks at him,sending brief electrical shivers through his metal pseudo-skeleton before it died away.Then the door slid open, and he braced for a fight.

It was disappointing to find nothing but black metal drums waiting for him.

He heard something behind him and turned with his claws extended,nearly impaling Angel,who stopped just in the nick of time."There's no back entrance,"he said neutrally,but his slightly startled hazel eyes seemed to say "You're a crazy motherfucker,aren't you?".If he wanted to think that,fine-Angel was obviously unstable himself,hiding from the sun and traveling in sewer tunnels,and wasting time with that dorky British guy and the inexcusably cocky Gunn.Cordelia was the only one who made sense:at least she had a power.

Angel glanced be! yond him,scanning the contents of the warehouse,and frowned."This isn't what I expected."

Logan didn't bother to agree,although he did;he simply retracted his claws and decided to have a look around.Angel joined him,soundlessly heading over to the opposite side of the warehouse,and he had to grudgingly admit that was perhaps the only likeable thing about the comically hulking (you could probably fit Wesley and Gunn side by side within the width of his shoulders:the guy was built like a quarterback.Or possibly Frankenstein.) and broody guy-he was generally quiet,and didn't need to be told what to do.

The metal drums all had various hazardous materials warnings on them,and felt/sounded more or less full,stacked three deep against the wall,ringing the warehouse like an emergency barricade.There was nothing on them that told him what precisely was in them,which was very disappointing.

He paused in the middle of the cavernous warehouse and sniffed the air,trying to f! igure out what was bothering him about this place.Something was wrong here,and he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

"Smell something?"Angel asked,coming up beside him.He shook his head in frustration,and Angel commiserated,"I know.It's really clean in here."

And that's when it hit him:he knew what the problem was."Not clean-sterile,"he told him,scrutinizing their surroundings with greater interest."This place has been sterilized."

Angel joined him in searching the place more closely now."But there's no sterilizing equipment here.Maybe they brought a team in."

"Why bother?"

Angel shrugged his broad shoulders as he scrutinized some near by barrels."Maybe they had a spill."

"Or maybe they knew we were coming."

"Maybe-"Angel began,then stopped,suddenly looking down at the ground.Logan felt the tremble too,and had a split second to wonder if it was an earthquake before the floor suddenly disappeared beneath them,and they both fell into a pool of white light.

They both managed to land on their feet,but as Logan str! aightened up,he heard a loud,echoing crack,like a dozen guns being cocked at once.He looked around to find them both surrounded by twenty black clad commandos,half with semi-automatic rifles and the other half with...crossbows?All aimed at their faces,with their fingers tensed on the trigger.

Logan stood back to back with Angel,and said,"This looks pretty damn bad,doesn't it?"

"I've seen worse,"Angel replied,and Logan almost smiled-he picks now to crack jokes.A guy after his own shtick.

Then two of the rifle boys fired.

When one of the shots hit him in the throat,Logan reached up and grabbed what appeared to be a hollow dart-drugs?As if in answer,he suddenly lost all feeling in his legs and hit the cool white floor hard,feeling light headed as a growing numbness spread through his body.He was dimly aware of Angel collapsing to the floor beside him as he heard the soldier boys talking but couldn't understand their words.

'This can't be happening again;I w! on't let it,'Logan mentally raged,fighting to stay conscious.

But it was his last thought before the darkness flooded into his mind and swept him away.

For a second he thought he was functionally blind;he saw nothing but white,pristine and as bright as the sun,but then he moved,and he saw...he wasn't sure what he was looking at.Dark spatters peppered the flat white snowscape as far as his blurry eyes could see,and when he looked up,he saw the sky was actually tending towards grey,the clouds heavy with the promise of more snow.
He shoved himself up to a sitting position,feeling numb to his core,and as cold as a block of ice.How the hell did he get here?Where was he?

Who was he?

Only then did he realize he was naked,save for some metal dog tags hanging from a chain around his neck,and he tried to look at them,but they were frozen fast to the skin of his chest.

If it was that cold,why wasn't he dead yet?

He stood up,even though his limbs didn't feel like they were a part! of him-they felt like frozen meat somehow grafted onto him-and tried to have a better look at his surroundings.It was then he noticed the smell:acrid and raw,melted plastic and slagged metal,charred flesh...

Something horrible had happened here,and he was vaguely aware he was somehow involved in it,but he didn't know how,or why.He knew he should get out of here...but his mind was as empty and barren as his surroundings,as clean and untouched as the snow;he was operating on pure instinct and nothing more.He was barely conscious,and still didn't understand how he could be alive at all.

He was so cold he couldn't even shiver,and he could barely walk;he staggered through the ankle deep snow,towards a familiar shape in the near distance.After what seemed an eternity,when he was sure he'd no longer be able to stay on his numb,stone cold feet,he reached it.It was a truck,all its windows shattered,its snow frosted glass sparkling on the front seat and floor of the cab like! ice crystals.

Ironically,the door was locked,but he reached throu gh the missing window and unlocked it,and once he opened the door,he saw a muticolored blanket spread over the back of the beige vinyl seat.As soon as he crawled inside,over the icy broken glass,he pulled it over himself,wrapping himself up tightly as he curled into a fetal position.

He didn't feel any warmer,but soon he began shivering so hard it was painful,and feeling began returning to his extremities;an excruciating feeling like a thousand needles in his bloodstream,trying to stab through his skin,but he knew that even pain was good.It meant he still had circulation,and maybe he wasn't going to lose vital body parts due to exposure.

Except something in his mind told him he couldn't really contract frostbite;his body wouldn't allow it.Unless he completely and truly died,no part of him could die on its own.

He didn't understand,but that was why he wasn't worried about the glass.He knew it would shred his skin,but not for long.He didn't die,because he couldn't ! die-not like this.

Why?

The sun broke through the smothering blanket of grey clouds,its rays faint but warm and welcoming,and after some time,when the pain became a little less excruciating and the shivering a little less violent,he felt the metal tags on his skin shift and fall.He reached under the blanket and pulled them up with no longer numb fingers,hoping they could tell him something,anything.

But all that was on them was a serial number,and a single word:Wolverine.

Was that his name?No,his name was...Logan?Yes,that sounded right...but so did Wolverine,even though he knew that could not be a name.He was Logan the Wolverine?Made him sound like a boxer or something.

He felt no wiser than before,but he knew with a palpable certainty that he had to leave as soon as possible,because if they caught him-whether he was responsible or not,and he really didn't know either way-they would punish him.And he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that there were things! worse than death.

Things they had done to him.

Logan awoke wi th a jolt,momentarily disoriented-he expected to find himself back in the explosion shattered truck.But he was in a remorselessly grey room,shackled to the wall by his wrists and ankles.The wall across from him didn't look right;flat matte grey,the color didn't quite match the rest of the stone walls around it.A two way mirror,clumsily opaqued?

He started yanking violently at the wrist shackles,trying to pull them out of the wall if not break them entirely,but they held fast,and he wondered how he could twist his hands to get his claws within slashing position:his adamantium skeleton wouldn't allow him to break his wrist to do it. But if he could, he was sure he could have done it.

It was then he heard the pneumatic hiss of an airtight door unsealing,and he saw it swing open to his left,admitting a tall,pale guy.Too homely by half,with an almost perfectly anonymous face,slightly greasy black hair,and grey eyes that wouldn't have looked too out of place on a flounder,! the guy gave him a leering grin,the kind only the cluelessly smug could manage.
"Wolverine,what a pleasure it is to finally meet you."

"Fuck you,"he snapped."Get me out of these things."

That only made him leer even more."What?No 'what are you going to do to me,what did you do to my vamp buddy?',things like that?"

"He's not my buddy,"he shot back,continuing to pull at the chains."What have you done with him?"

"Those chains are adamantium,the same as you,so you really are wasting your time,"the man said,slowly coming towards him.He wondered if he could get one limb loose;arm or leg didn't matter,he could kill him either way."And how did you find us?Imagine my surprise when the squad I sent after you reported you two were on your way here.I didn't think there was anything incriminating on the discs you stole."

"Answer my question,asshole,"he growled,reluctantly giving up on freeing himself from the chains.They were adamantium,and he wasn't going anywh! ere until this prick decided he was.And as soon as the opportunity aro se,he was going to gut him like the fish he resembled.

The man continued to smile,eyeing him like a piece of meat."He's alive,for now.He's a magnificent specimen;the security camera pictures didn't do him justice.He'll be a real draw in the pit.The good looking ones are so few and far between."

"What the hell are you talking about?And who the hell are you?!"

For some reason,that wiped the smile right off his face.Good."You don't know who I am?"He sounded as if the very idea was offensive."Are you a complete moron,you mutant scumbag?I am Ryan Flemming,the man who is the savior of the human race."

Logan snorted derisively."Oh yeah,a browser that collapses every fifteen minutes will save humanity as we know it."

Flemming fumed,color finally coming to his face as his rage grew,his hands balling into pathetic fists at his side."Crack jokes,freak-you're all dead.Every single one of you,and your demon buddies too."

He remembered what the Brit had said about the chemicals,and took a wild guess."You're going to what, poison us?"