[center][i][b]Agent Designation: X-23
Mission Parameters: Training Scenario
Target Priority: None
Evaluation Commencing...[/i][/b][/center]

Yesterday it had been a bear. The day before, a mountain lion. It had been almost a week since she'd faced a human, or even another mutant. She preferred those fights. At least when it resembled a human she knew what to expect, how to anticipate. People were smart, and she knew how to counter smart. The animals were worse. Nothing but feral instincts and the need to kill. If you cut a human deep enough, they'd back off to regroup and recover and plan a new approach, but with these animals it didn't matter how deep the cut was, they wouldn't stop coming until either you or them was dead. 

It probably didn't help that they were genetically and cybernetically enhanced too. Teeth and claws sharp enough to rend steel, and speed and strength that far outstripped her own. Every time, the odds got stacked higher against her, and every time she was in worse shape when she finally put them down.

Today, the room was pitch black except for a single light shining down on the center where she stood, so so caught their scent before she saw them. They smelled like wolves, but... wrong somehow. Like someone had taken the pure intent of nature and twisted it, deforming it into a creation that only vaguely resembled the original creature. She saw the eyes next, almost glowing with a dark red hue that caught the light above and turned it back on her. Her heartbeat quickened and her nostrils flared as she strained to determine how many there were exactly. Her ears told her at least five, but her nose was picking up over a dozen scents that weren't her own. 

She really hoped that was just Harkins pumping chemicals into the room to mess with her. Her heart sank at the thought he might not be, that the pack surrounding her might actually be more than a dozen strong, and every muscle in her body went rigid. In truth, she was grateful for the fear. For the adrenaline it brought. She was going to need every edge she could get, and the adrenaline with its boost to her strength and speed and stamina was more than welcome.

The first attack came from behind, and her only warning was the subtle scratching of claws on the metal floor. She reacted on instinct, whirling and unsheathing her claws as she drove a fist toward the predator's temple. Her blow struck true, driving into the creature's head and killing it instantly, but it was no ordinary wolf. With nearly twice the size and four times the weight, its momentum was more than enough to drive her off her feet and into the darkness surrounding her small pool of light. What happened after would be little more than a blur of teeth, claws, and pain in her memory as the pack descended on her. When it was over, she stood broken and bloodied over the corpses of nine augmented wolves, her costume torn to shreds and her wounds still pouring blood as they began to close.

Exhausted, she dropped to her knees in the midst of the carnage and closed her eyes as tears began to stain her cheeks. Why? What did they want from her that they would put her through test after test designed to drain away every last shred of who she was? Sometimes, it seemed that there was no purpose beyond causing her pain, but the animalistic, primal part of her mind knew that these tests made her stronger. Knew that if she went back to the first creature she had struggled to defeat, it would be little more than trivial now. Pain was the quickest way to learn, and no one could endure more pain than her. No one she knew, anyway.

"Excellent work, 23. Report to the showers and clean yourself up."

She opened her eyes and glared at the now-transparent observation room windows and the man that stood beyond them, but was too exhausted to manage anything more. Slowly, she moved to comply with the order and made her way out of the testing room and toward the showers, already dreading whatever they had in store for her next.