It’s been a bad year for the ol’ canuckle-head. He got the adamantium ripped out o’ him by Magneto, his mutant healin’ factor is almost non-existent, and now he’s got Lady Deathstrike rainin’ on his parade. She tracked him all the way to Ottawa and she don’t even know that the very thing she wants from him is somethin’ he don’t have anymore.
As an enraged Lady Deathstrike crashes through the window of the home belonging to Heather Hudson, she calls out to Logan and asks if he thought she wound forget about him, did he think she’d give up? With a swipe, she knocks Heather and Puck backwards. Logan tells Deathstrike to leave them out o’ this, this is just between her and him. Deathstrike responds by grabbing him, forcing him backwards, and telling him that this is no shiai, no formal match. There are no rules of engagement, no conditions, especially none set forth by him. Logan tells her that he gets the point, down and dirty, no holds barred. With that, he slams Deathstrike’s face into a table.
Heather takes off out of the room and tells Puck to help out Logan, she needs time to put on her guardian suit. Puck replies that he has a personal score to settle with Deathstrike, she tipped over his rowboat in Vancouver harbor. When he rushes towards her, Deathstrike swats him away with a swipe of her arm and tells him that he was as inconsequential then as he was now. Logan grabs Deathstrike by the throat and slams her face first into an oven. As he does so, he tells her that they may not mean much to her, but they’re his friends. He says to her that maybe he should do Heather a favor and scrape the baked-on grease off her oven with her face.
Before he can ask Puck if he’s okay, Deathstrike lashes out and knocks him and the oven backwards. When she does so, she knocks the gas-line open. Deathstrike then says to Logan that he mock her righteous vengeance? Shingen was right about him, for all his pretense about Bushido, he is just a gaijin dog with no honor. She adds that his precious Mariko licked the gutter when she pledged her troth to him. Logan picks himself up the ground, wipes the blood of his chin, and tells Deathstrike that she just crossed the line.
As Deathstrike charges him, Logan is seein’ red, but what he’s hearin’ is the hissin’ o’ leakin’ gas and the cracklin’ o’ Deathstrike’s cyber-circuits shortin’ and sparkin’ make for a bad combination. The house begins to catch fire. As bad as the one-two combination Yuriko landed on his face, the counter-combo that he blew the timin’ on was worse. He tried to save it with a sacrifice roll. It would have worked if the cellar stairs weren’t there. As they tumble down the stairs, Logan thinks to himself that at least it got them out of the fire.
Outside, Ronald Parvenue witnesses the goings-on safely from his limo. When his driver, Sturgis, points out the fire, Ronald tells him that he sees it and to go around the block. Yuriko can get herself out of her own little mess without involving him and the press. Inside, Heather appears in her Vindicator suit and tells Puck that she’s ready for action; better late than never. Puck informs her that the action’s moved downstairs. With that, Puck and Heather head downstairs to join in the fight.
Deathstrike turns to see them and tells Logan that the loyalty of his friends is almost touching. She asks if their excruciating deaths will cause him pain. She wants him to witness every ending stroke, every tortured scream. She then lashes out at Puck and Heather, knocking them backwards.
Outside, Sturgis recommends to Parvenue that perhaps it might be expedient to exercise a little damage control now, before the problem escalates. Parvenue answers that even the hired help have opinions these days. Sturgis replies that he’s just looking out for his own future. Next door, Heather’s neighbor wonders what is going on over at the house with all the smoke. She knows they have some strange goings on in there, but this is certainly a matter for the fire department. Before she can pick up the phone, Parvenue tells her that there’s no need for that, the situation is well under control. The lady asks him if he’s sure. Parvenue asks her that doesn’t he look like someone who knows what he’s talking about?
Inside, Deathstrike prepares to deliver the killing blow to Puck and Heather. She tells Logan to watch. Watch her send his friends to eternity, before she wrecks her long awaited vengeance on him, and takes back her birthright. From behind her, Logan pops his bone claws and tells her that ain’t gonna be so easy, seein’ as he ain’t got what she wants anymore. ‘Course, if she still wants to go to claw city with him, he’ll be happy to oblige.
Upon seeing his claws, Deathstrike heads over to him and recognizes that they’re bone and asks what happened to the adamantium. What happened to her father’s process? It could not be reversed. Logan tells her that there are few absolutes in life. Deathstrike says that is impossible. The adamantium was bonded to his skeleton. Logan tells her that it was until he had a run-in with Magneto. He pulled it outta him, pulled it through his pores. When Logan retracts his claws, he begins to bleed. Deathstrike notices that he’s still bleeding and that the wound hasn’t closed. She asks about his mutant healing factor. Logan tells her that it’s pretty tuckered out, as good as gone.
For the first time in years, Deathstrike reaches out to him and the touch is gentle. There’s thoughts a’ plenty runnin’ through her head, but he has somethin’ to say. He grabs her arm and asks if she still wants to close the books on him. He knows that she sure has her reasons. Logan then tells her to look what she’s done to herself, tradin’ off her humanity piece by piece just for revenge, just to make things right with her dead father. He doesn’t have the blasted adamantium anymore, but her grudge is with him. He tells her to promise him, that it ends with him and she doesn’t hurt his two friends, her revenge will be real easy. Otherwise, adamantium or no, healin’ factor or no, his revenge will cost her in spades.
Deathstrike pulls her arm away and tells him that she has been cheated of her birth-right, her human essence, and now her just and long-awaited revenge but she will not be cheated of her honor. With that, she does a back-flip out of the basement and lands at the top of the steps into the awaiting arms of Ronald Parvenue. Logan calls out her name, but she tells him that they shall have their settling up some other time. Puck starts to head upstairs and says that he’s not going to let her just waltz out of there just like…
Logan tells him to let it go. The wind’s been let out o’ her sails and she’s just found out her life’s obsession is over. There’s nothin’ left for her. As all three of them head up the stairs, Heather tells him that is the most forgiving thing she’s ever heard him sound. Puck agrees and asks if she scrambled his brains when she wrecked the furnace with his face. Logan replies that you can’t understand another person’s loss until ya got some o’ the same yourself. Upstairs, Logan apologizes for the mess and says that he shouldn’t have come up there and laid all this hassle on her. Heather tells him not to be silly; this place was long overdue for redecoration.
While Ronald Parvenue and Lady Deathstrike travel down the road, Parvenue says that he doesn’t understand. She had Logan powerless, why didn’t she just… Deathstrike replies, precisely, he doesn’t understand. He doesn’t even know what “giri” means. Before she can continue, Cylla lands on top of the car and says that she does. Giri means obligation, among other things. She says to Deathstrike that they had a deal. A mutual sharing of intelligence on the whereabouts and status of a certain Logan, also called Wolverine. She asks that she hasn’t been holding out on her, has she? Deathstrike exits the limo and tells her that she forgot her place. She is but a pawn with delusions of grandeur.
Behind her, Bloodscream taps on her shoulder and asks what of him. Is he some lowly cur to whom the promise of a great lady means naught? He tells her to answer him true, doth the man he knows as Patch yet live? Deathstrike asks if he means Logan and affirms that he does. She adds that she no longer seeks his life. Bloodscream asks if she had a change of heart and if such a human vessel still beats within her breast. He adds that his cyborg friend and him are quite unhampered by such pedestrian frivolities and asks if she will bar their way. Deathstrike says no, she will not stop him. With that, Bloodscream and Cylla head off down the road to track their quarry.
Back at Heather’s house, Logan gets on his motorcycle and tells her that he has to go. Heather asks him to reconsider and at least stay until he’s healed a little more. Logan tells her that he don’t know if he can heal faster’n the bad-guys can catch up to him. He don’t want to be responsible for the collateral damage. Speakin’ of which, he pulls money out of his wallet and hands it to Heather for the Hudson redecoration fund. Heather tells him that this is all the money he has. Logan replies ‘cept for chump-change for food and gas. Where he’s headin’, money’s kinda useless. As he takes off, he tells them that it was good seein’ them again. It reminds him of the old days, the good times. Funny, in the end memories are all they got.
Many miles later, Logan is in a diner. The waitress asks him if he’s on a long run. Logan says that he is, all the way to Buffalo Wood. The waitress exclaims that’s over two thousand miles. Logan quips and a bug in the face for every one. He then gets on his bike and takes off. A few minutes after he leaves, Cylla and Bloodscream arrive. Cylla replies that he was just there, the tire-traces are fresh. Bloodscream adds that the scent is strong. Cylla tells him that his exhaust heat is registering on her IR scanner, but her reserves are low. Bloodscream adds that he thirsts, but they must press the chase. Logan must die, this he has sworn!
