Arc Six. Chapter One Hundred Seventy-Two. Into The Frying Pan

Carrying Talon was difficult for Wanda. It was around 50 kilometres to the coast and from there she still had to take her to the academy. Built on an artificial island across from Manhattan island. As she spied the ground she had to let go and Talon rolled and barreled across the ground, hissing at her.

"If they attack you, then fight back, anyone who surrenders must be allowed to do so, if they then betray us, well, I don't know, stab them I guess," and Talons rictus grin split as two wickedly sharp, and now serrated, blades slid from her symbskin covered hands and feet.

"Give me a moment," Wanda had been training her senses, extending out her thoughts like sonar and briefly touching those around her. As the mind of every living thing registered in her mind she realised that the building was empty. Even with the Triskelion event happening the teaching staff and cleaning crews should still be here but there was nothing, or at least, nothing alive.

"It is strange, there is no one." and Talon sniffed

"No, there are two, and one is stinky."

With a bamf, a couple suddenly appeared, followed by a smell of rotten eggs.

"She most certainly means you, Kurt, I showered," and the man shook his head,

As he let her go, Wanda could see that she was dressed in a tight bodysuit with two swords crossed over her back and a pair of sai at her waist. Her long flowing hair was tied back into a long ponytail and as she stood, giving Wanda the same appraisal she crossed her arms,

"Now, ve can do zis the eazy vay or ze hard vay, but ve only have orders to capture you, not to hurt you," said the man in a thick German accent. Thankfully Wanda had met some of the more physically mutated mutants on the island or she would have been shocked.

While he was muscular and built like Peter he was covered in fine blue hair, even his face up to his hairline. As it grew into his hair it spread into wild shaggy locks of a darker almost black fuzz that covered his head. He too wore a sword, but his was more a thin-bladed rapier or epee, Wanda could never remember the difference, and he gripped it with a three-fingered hand.

Talon growled and crouched, ready to punch but Wanda put a hand on her shoulder,

"You work for them?" And she motioned to the empty building,

"We have a contract, to find and neutralize the two," and the women tutted. "I really wish they would stop calling us mutants, but yes, you and little miss stabby there. As for our employer, well, that's confidential. Just be a good girl and come quietly and we won't hurt you."

As Wanda spread her arms, her red energy shield enveloped her, "you said that before, but anyone who works for those bastards can screw off."

The woman huffed, "a contract is a contract, and while I do like the red," and she pressed a hand to her plan and pulled it, a large purple energy blade fizzed and hissed into life, "I prefer purple."

"Not blue zen?" the man said and winked at Wanda, who rolled her eyes and tutted in response.

"Not now Kurt, do your job," and with that, another bamf and the same smell Kurt disappeared and a moment later, reappeared next to Talon, grabbed her and disappeared again.

The woman dived at Wanda, tumbling forwards and stabbing out with her blade, Wanda was forced to jump backwards and as she fired off a bolt of red energy the woman deflected it to the side with her sword. "Psylocke, and that won't work against me, but, don't let me tell you how to fight," and she dived to the side, leapt at the wall and pushed herself off, thrust at Wanda again, as the blade slid effortlessly through Wanda's shield, she ducked at the last second and the pair stood in a standoff. Psylocke standing with her blade flat across her chest smiling,

"Sorry dear, they chose me as I know how to deal with a mutant of your talents, and Kurt should be," and they could hear a muffled scream and with the same bamf Kurt appeared, blood dripping from his arm,

"She almost cut my arm off, her povers are not ze zame as ve vere told." grabbing a roll of bandage, he wound it around the gash and tied it with his teeth. "I dropped her high zough, she should be landing about now" and as they all looked up a large bat-like creature swooped down and rolling across the ground,

"Not high enough," and with a 'shnk,' two serrated blades erupted from her hands and a single serrated blade from her feet. "Wanda, kill her. We kill him," and with a roar, she leapt at him.

Kurt was agile and as she slashed and wove around him he parried each of her blows with her sword. He attempted to use his powers but each time he disappeared the slight delay in his power almost cost him his life. Her enhanced sense of smell and air pressure betrayed his arrival point as the air exploded outwards with the smell of burning sulphur. As he appeared Talon would simply pause and then thrust out an arm, her blades catching him on the arm once more. He could use his teleportation to escape, but during the fight, it was a liability.

Wanda was having little luck against Psylocke. She was right, she had been trained to deal with telekinetic powers and as Wanda threw bolt after bolt at her Psylocke would defect them with her own powers, "I can't she is too strong" and Laura growled at her

"Useless" Talon yelled at her, and as Kurt rolled back to avoid a claw, she spun and kicked him in the stomach sending him flying. "Pathetic," and either knew if she meant Kurt or Wanda.

As Wanda floated back away from Psylocke, Talon dived at her, with both claws extended, parrying them with her sword, she conjured a purple crossbow and fired twice, laughing Laura swiped the bolts out the air and rolling swept he bladed foot at Psylocke's legs. Jumping to avoid them, she brought the blade down but a tendril extended out of Talons shoulder and struck Psylocke in the stomach, winding her, "Weak, all of you. Weak!" and as her mask covered her face the jagged maw split apart and the two blades on her hands split into four. "KILL YOU ALL,"

"What the hell did you do to her?" Psylocke shouted as Talon erupted in a fury of claws and razor-sharp tendrils. Even Kurt found himself teleporting further and further away as every time he moved a tendril would dart out to where he had been and a second would slice where he had moved to. Psylocke deflected as many as she could but soon the pair were reduced to walking blood pools. Razor-sharp tendrils cutting and slicing at exposed limbs while the maniacal symbiote enhanced mutant went wild.

"Laura, please, stop" Wanda begged her, even she had to float up and out of her reach as rather than trying to save her friend she was gleefully attacking her,

"No, no. no. kill you all, kill kill kill" she screeched and a new assault began.

Even as Wanda began to try and attack her mind she felt as if she was staring into a maw of death and fury, feeling the blood trickle down her nose and the unrelenting physical and now mental assault continued. The bonding had failed, and now both symbiote and mutant were mad with pain and rage. Wanda could feel her thoughts and all that was left was an animalistic fury.

"Hey, short stuff," Dusk landed on the concrete between Wanda and Talon. "You two, fuck off or I let her eat you," and nodding, Psylocke grabbed hold of Kurt and with a last bamf, they vanished.

"Our prey, our prey," and she dived towards them,

Go up, Peter sent and Wanda floated up towards the top of the building, panting and holding herself. Whatever Laura had become she feared that even Peter wouldn't be enough to stop her. He had watched her fight, unwilling to interfere in case his presence distracted the pair, and seeing the empty building and feeling the lack of presence, knew that whoever it was had been successful. Sending out a telepathic pulse, he steeled himself and prepared to deal with Talon.

This was going to be a fight. Sending out probes with the Stone all he got back was rage and hunger. If Talon was in control, and not Laura, he would be fighting for his life, let alone fighting an angry symbiote. Even his simple commands were ignored in whatever seething cauldron of emotions Laura was lost in, and there was only going to be one way to stop her. Violence.

Dusk knew that even fighting Carnage he had never had to deal with something like this. Talon didn't just want to kill him, she was playing, making him bleed little by little and even with his boundless stamina and healing, he would run out before she did. She had a cheating power of regeneration, fueled by whatever mystical power gave mutants their powers while he had the Mind Stone it might not compare.

As he ducked under another tendril, batted a second away with one of his own, grabbed her arm, lifted a knee to block a foot swipe and then brought his head down as she headbutted him, he was running out of ideas that didn't involve seriously hurting Laura. If I can seriously hurt her he pondered. Well, there is one way.

Talon began to sniff the air as Duck dodged and weaved in and out of her attacks, cackling as she did so. "We taste you. Strong, but we are stronger," and as she stuck out an arm to stab him in the heart Dusk thought damn it, no choice then,

Ducking under her arm, Duck grabbed it and twisting her over his shoulder, slammed her into the ground, as she tumbled over him he felt a blade score a line up his back and he shook his head, "weak, too weak," if she was too angry to fight, maybe he could overpower her.

Rolling and springing to her feet, "kill you, eat you," and she swept the legs out from under him. As he sprung up to avoid her, she leapt off the ground and lifted herself up, kicking him in the stomach with a roundhouse manoeuvre. As he flew backwards she followed and began to slash at his chest once more.

As the armour on his arms thickened and spongified, the best defence he had against a slashing attack he taunted once more, "all that power and still pathetic," and with a pulse send a blast of rage at her. She screamed and blasted one back, equally as powerful,

"We hate you, hate you," and as she slashed out, Dusk drove a fist into her side, lifted her by the armpit and smashed her into the ground.

There was only one way out of this, and as Dusk sent out a message he steeled himself for the pain.

"Really, cause I thought last time you were wanting to screw me," and she screamed.

Scrabbling up on all fours, she clawed her way across the ground towards him, running like an animal and launched herself at him, as she sailed past, Dusk drove a fist into her stomach, grabbed her by the armour and injected her with his symbskin, before slamming her into the ground and straddling her. He had figured a long time ago that a direct connection allowed him to use his powers to a greater effect, and as Talon thrashed and struck out at him she drove both fists into his guts, and even through the symbskin armour he coughed up blood.

Calm Talon be-, but it was lost as the memories driving Talon mad came bubbling to the surface, and Dusk saw her,

"Mommy loves you, sweetheart, if you're a good girl, we'll read this book and give you a name okay." And the little girl nodded, she loved her mommy.

In the cold and grey, she was the only one who cared, she made her oatmeal warm and added the white crunchy grains to make it tastier,

She awoke, the air had a funny smell and she saw mommy with her hand bound between her legs, with tears in her eyes the girl sniffed the air and felt...angry.

When she woke up the girl was covered in blood and her hands were dug into her mommy's stomach, "I love you," and as her eyes closed and tears dripped from them, "Laura," she whispered.

"Mommy, mommy no, please no, mommy, wake up mommy," and Laura screamed into the room,

"hmm, still a failure. Send her to New York. We have a facility there, might as well pack her with the other rejects," and gas hissed into the room.

As Talon stared at her hands, digging into her Monkeys stomach, her world collapsed, pulling them out, he vomited blood and slumped on the ground. His symbskin slid back, and as the blood leaked from the gash torn in his stomach, and his eyes closed, she grabbed him and held him close,

"No, no, please, Monkey, please no," and she screamed. "Help, please, help me," and sat, Talon slipped back and Laura sat on the grass, crying. "Please, someone please,"