[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/Bh20knA.png[/img]
[b][i][color=#ffffff]In … The Beast Within: Pt. VII[/color][/i][/b][/center]
[b][color=#ffffff]Kitimat, British Columbia[/color][/b]

[color=#ffffff]With each bullet that came hurtling from Colonel Rick Flag’s pistols, Omega Red was knocked backwards. Logan watched in shock as the colonel sent the Russian further and further back. Not a single bullet was wasted, nor missed, and try as Red might to shield himself from them, the soldier found a way to pin him down. He looked over to Logan and for a moment, wind flicking Flag’s red hair around in the wind, some faint memory seemed to awaken in the mutant. Germany? No, that didn’t make sense. It had to be his mind playing tricks on him.[/color]

[color=#ffffff]As quickly as the thought had appeared in Logan’s mind, it disappeared, and Flag shouted over to him.[/color][b][color=#fff2cc] “Can you stand, soldier?”[/color][/b]

[color=#ffffff]Sabretooth released Logan for a moment to allow him to test his balance. He took a step forwards and began to tumble to the ground, finding himself in Victor’s large hands once again. A contented purr came from Sabretooth as he eyed Logan’s bloodied form. Though he didn’t recognise the man, and despite their having arrived to save him, something in Victor’s eyes told Logan that he was more foe than friend.[/color]

[b][color=#ffff00]“Who … who are you people?”[/color][/b]

[b][color=#b45f06]“Looks like we can skip over the niceties, Flag,” [/color][/b][color=#ffffff]Creed called out. [/color][b][color=#b45f06]“The runt’s gone all One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest on us again.”[/color][/b]

[color=#ffffff]A flicker of annoyance crossed the colonel’s face as he hastily reloaded one of his pistols and started firing once more.[/color][b][color=#fff2cc] “Goddamn it.”[/color][/b]

[color=#ffffff]This time Omega Red made no effort to block the hail of bullets Flag sent towards him. He clenched his fists, stood his ground, and took the damage the colonel was inflicting without flinching. At the first sign of a break in the firing, Red reached down and forced his fingers into one of the grey wounds on his chest. With a wince, he plucked the bullet out and examined it closely with a sneer.[/color]

[b][color=#ff0000]“What is this trickery?”[/color][/b]

[b][color=#fff2cc]“You like that? Something the boys cooked up back at the lab,” [/color][/b][color=#ffffff]Flag said proudly.[/color][b][color=#fff2cc] “We know [i]everything [/i]about you, Arkady, including your nasty little carbonadium habit. Without it, you need to feed off people’s life force or you’ll give in to the radiation poisoning. Well, these babies hasten the radioactive decay in your cells … thinking of it as getting a little taste of your own medicine.”[/color][/b]

[color=#ffffff]The Russian tossed the bullet aside.[/color][b][color=#ff0000] “You are [i]all [/i]cowards, resorting to parlour tricks rather than facing me like like true war-”[/color][/b]

[b][color=#b45f06]“How’s this for parlour tricks?”[/color][/b]

[color=#ffffff]Having set Logan down, Sabretooth appeared behind Omega Red. One clawed hand tore through the Russian’s left side and the other cleaved the skin from his face. Four long gashes ran along Omega Red’s face, exposing the sickly looking grey flesh beneath it, and leaving him struggling to see. He roared in pain and blindly sent his tentacles flying towards Creed. The hulking mutant managed to grab the left tentacle with his hand, but the right tore directly through his bicep. Yet there were no cries of pain from Sabretooth, he simply yanked his arm down, allowing the tentacle to tear directly through the muscle on his arm, and then pulled Omega Red towards him.[/color]

[b][color=#b45f06]“See, I don’t go down as easy as the runt. Those tentacles of yours? I’ve seen ‘em done before by men twice as big and mean as you. I’ve never had no need for toys or ... [i]enhancements[/i]. Everything I need to beat you, I’ve got right here.”[/color][/b]

[color=#ffffff]A kneeling Logan watched on in shock as Sabretooth and Omega Red traded blows. Watching Creed was like watching a mirror of himself, except bigger, faster, and more vicious. He seemed impervious to the damage that the Russian was dishing out – or perhaps, worse still, the pain seemed to be driving him. With every wound that appeared on Sabretooth’s hide, he seemed to grow in strength and determination.[/color]

[b][color=#ff0000]“This, [i]this [/i]is what I wanted from Weapon X, a real challenge,” [/color][/b][color=#ffffff]Omega Red laughed.[/color][b][color=#ff0000] “You are strong, but not strong enough. You people are [i]all [/i]the same. You fight for yourselves, for greed. I fight for the glory to my homeland, to restore my people to their rightful place.”[/color][/b]

[color=#ffffff]Once more Creed was able to pluck one of the Russian’s tentacles out of the air as it hurtled towards him. This time he rolled out of the way of the second and used Red’s own tentacle to knock him off his feet. Sabretooth pounced on him, sinking in a deep chokehold and wrapping his legs tightly around his waist. The Russian clawed at his arms in an effort to break free of Creed’s grasp, but with each attempt Sabretooth only sunk the chokehold in deeper and deeper.[/color]

[b][color=#b45f06]“The last time I checked, Big Red, there wasn’t [i]anything [/i]glorious about that freezing hellhole of a country you call home. And you’re wrong about something else too: I’m not fighting for greed … it’s about something much more important than that. I’m here to show the runt what the best [i]really [/i]looks like.”[/color][/b]

[color=#ffffff]Creed felt the strength beginning to wane from Red’s limbs as his breathing slowed. His hands dropped and a satisfied smile appeared on Sabretooth’s face as he sensed that Omega Red was soon to be unconscious. It began to falter as he eyed the Russian’s tentacles snaking towards him. They wrapped themselves tightly around his neck and began to restrict. From beneath him, Sabretooth felt Red attempting to struggle to his feet.[/color]

[color=#ffffff]Try as he might to hold him down, the Russian climbed to his feet. He attempted to shrug Creed from his back but couldn’t summon the strength with the chokehold still locked tight around his neck. His tentacles were not only choking Creed back, but sapping his life force every second they were wrapped around his neck.[/color]

[color=#ffffff]Sensing the impending danger, Flag began taking shots at Omega Red whilst trying not to hit his teammate. [/color][b][color=#fff2cc]“Hold him still, Creed.”[/color][/b]

[b][color=#ff0000]“I refuse to be beaten,” [/color][/b][color=#ffffff]the Russian wheezed as he shrugged the struggling Sabretooth back and forwards.[/color][b][color=#ff0000] “Not by you.”[/color][/b]

[color=#ffffff]Bullets tore through Omega Red’s thighs and calves, through his stomach, but he refused to fall. Flag reloaded, having emptied two entire clips into the Russian, and this time took aim at his torso. Both men stubbornly refused to release their chokeholds. Sabretooth’s face had grown near purple and Omega Red was wheezing so much he could barely stand. [/color]

[b][color=#fff2cc]“He’s not going down.”[/color][/b]

[b][color=#b45f06]“Doesn’t matter,” [/color][/b][color=#ffffff]Sabretooth groaned.[/color][b][color=#b45f06] “You keep firing, you hear me? The only way this ugly bastard is leaving here is in a box.”[/color][/b]

[color=#ffffff]Red stumbled, falling to one knee, and his hands once again slipped from around Sabretooth’s forearms. Try as Victor might to disguise it, his arms had begun to weaken. So too had his eyes. He heard the sound of Flag’s pistols cracking and spotted a barely conscious Logan still knelt where he had left him. He only had a few more seconds left in him. [/color]

[color=#ffffff]Sensing Creed was nearing unconsciousness, Omega Red whispered.[/color][b][color=#ff0000] “Are you prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice, tovarisch?”[/color][/b]

[color=#ffffff]Sabretooth’s eyes were closed. The world had gone black. He felt his arms about to loosen and used the last breath he had to issue one defiant proclamation.[/color]

[b][color=#b45f06]“Whatever it tak-”[/color][/b]

[color=#ffffff]A sudden, sharp stabbing pain prized Creed’s eyes opened. He looked down and noticed Logan, still barely able to stand, with his fist pressed against Omega Red. The muscles along his bloody forearm tensed as Logan withdrew his claws and the Russian, who had been moments from outlasting Creed, finally to the floor in a heap. His grey blood oozed out and stained the snow beneath it.[/color]

Logan stepped back, stared down at their beaten foe, and smiled vengefully. [b][color=#ffff00] “Who’s the coward now, bub?”[/color][/b]

[color=#ffffff]With that the diminutive mutant dropped to the floor alongside Omega Red. Creed stepped back dizzily with one hand to his stomach to stop the bleeding. Flag wandered over and placed a supportive arm around Creed to help keep him standing.[/color]

[b][color=#b45f06]“Huh, I didn’t see that coming,” [/color][/b][color=#ffffff]Sabretooth smiled as he stared down at Logan.[/color][b][color=#b45f06] “You always [i]were [/i]a tough little son of a bitch.”[/color][/b]

[b][color=#fff2cc]“He alive?”[/color][/b]

[color=#ffffff]Creed winced as he listened for Logan’s heartbeat. It was faint, irregular even, but it was there. [/color][b][color=#b45f06]“Just about.”[/color][/b]

[color=#ffffff]Logan stirred. His eyes were firmly shut, lips nearly crusted over from the blood covering his face and body, but there was movement there. Some rasp trapped in his throat that refused to come out after all the punishment he’d taken. [/color]

[b][color=#fff2cc]“What’s that he’s saying?”[/color][/b]

[b][color=#ffff00]“[i]Help him[/i],”[/color][/b] Logan pleaded in a voice that was so quiet it was barely audible to Sabretooth’s enhanced sense of hearing. [color=#ffff00][b]“[i]Help Hudson[/i].”[/b][/color]

[color=#ffffff]Creed glanced down the hill towards Heather MacNeil as she desperately attempted to save James Hudson’s life.[/color][b][color=#b45f06] “Oh, nothing important.” [/color][/b]

[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/bS0wndk.png[/img][/center]
[b][color=#fff2cc]“Let’s get out of here before anyone else decides to gatecrash our little family reunion. We’ve made enough noise on this one as it is."[/color][/b]

[color=#ffffff]Creed signalled to Flag that he was able to stand on his own and the colonel strode away to call for extraction. Within minutes, the craft had dropped Sabretooth and Flag there appeared overhead. Creed leant down and used one of his large hands to lift Logan up and throw him over his shoulder. As he did so, he noticed that Omega Red, once laid beside Logan, had disappeared.[/color]

[b][color=#b45f06]“Where’d the hell the Russian go?”[/color][/b]

[color=#ffffff]Flag shrugged his shoulders. [/color][b][color=#fff2cc]“The Wall asked for Logan and we got him. As far as I’m concerned, Arkady is someone else’s problem.”[/color][/b]