Chapter 7

-Laura- 

Ducking under a kick thrown at her, she readied a counterattack with the aim to end the battle that had stretched on for hours. She did not understand why she and Damian were fighting but she, as well as he, knew it was for the sick machinations of Kimura. 

Swiping at him with her claws in an upward fashion, she hit her mark. His chest sliced with two prominent claw marks making themselves known. 

Leaping away to gain distance, Damian's eyes shone amethyst and as a result the atmosphere got heavier, the pressure that he seemed to suppress began to exude, giving a physical manifestation as a result of his powers. 

Suddenly he roared and she was slammed into the ground, gritting her teeth she looked around for anything that could get her out of this situation. 

Her eyes caught the sight of a short sword sheathed in the weapon rack nearby. Getting up with a great amount of effort, Laura growled when she pounced at Damian her bones creaking in the process from the weight pressing down on her she tackled him to the ground with a surprising amount of power for her stature. 

Down on the ground, Damian tried to block all the strikes to the body he received until he blasted her away. Laura making use of the situation, dashed to the weapon rack as soon as she touched the ground. 

Damian quickly got up and shifted to face Laura, he raised an eyebrow, "You've got to be fucking kidding me!" he exclaimed, narrowly dodging the sword that was swung at his head. His gaze graced over the shine on the sword that was unnaturally sharp and clear enough that he could see his reflection as Laura twirled the sword with her hand. 

Bursting from her position with speed, she was on him with a flurry of attacks that wore him down until he was on the floor panting heavily and she was standing over his body. "Well done X-23, well done." A voice pierced the silence that had encroached upon the two children. 

  Offering a hand, Damian stared at it for a few moments until he accepted it with a bitter look on his face. 'Prideful' Laura noticed. But it seemed he knew when to swallow it. 

He exhaled, "Guess it's your win again." He murmured quietly knowing that she would hear him. A soft hum was the answer she gave to him. This was one of the many sparing sessions she had won against Damian since Kimura thought to pit them against each other in order to push each other to their limits. 

While she had won a numerous amount of time over the week since their first 'meeting' she knew that he was holding back his power in consideration for her. And it pissed her off a bit, here she was fighting with everything she had while he fought with a hand tied behind his back. 

"X-23, bring Damian to the briefing room. It's time he got a mission and proves his worth to the Facility." The unmistakable voice of Kimura ordered through the intercom in the training room. 

"Follow." She said quietly, her thoughts occupied with her previous musings. Making their way through the Facility, Damian tried to strike up a conversation with her.

"So, am I ever going to get to know your name?" he questioned as he turned to look at her. But she wasn't going to respond as they were just outside their destination, the briefing room. Turning to him one last time, she stared into his green shadowed eyes. 

He raised an eyebrow at her behavior before she just walked off. "Luara," She stopped for a moment. "My name is Laura." And she was gone after saying her piece. 

-Damian-

Weird. Very weird.

That was the thought that came to mind over the week he spent with Laura. The way she looked at him, the way she fought. Everything spoke volumes of her nature, she was a hunter, a beast. A predator. 

'And she fought like one too.' Damian thought, running his hand on the slashes and cuts she left on his body with her claws and sword. The only word that came to mind when he took in her fighting style was ruthless and relentless. 

'Gotta be careful when I fight her. Very careful.' 

Entering the briefing room, he saw Kimura standing with what appeared to be agents of the Facility. She dismissed them when she saw Damian standing there. She grinned from ear to ear. 

"Well, if it isn't gravity boy," She giggled, and Damian clenched his fists hard enough they were turned many shades paler. "Seems the Boss thinks your mission ready. Me, I think you're going to die but hey, what's life without a little risk. Right~." She finished. 

Clenching his fists so hard they nearly bled, he nodded slowly in a begrudging manner. "Understood."

-Later- 

Dressed in clothes normal for a child his age, he made his way through the crowd ignoring the gaze that was constantly honed on him. Looking up to the roofs, he found Kimura watching him and his every move. 

Turning away, his eyes landed on his target. A politician advocating for mutant rights. The briefing he received, instructed Damian on what to do to finish the mission and what would happen if he proved... incompetent. Not that he needed a reminder. 

Walking through the crowd he caught the sight of his target, an average build and physique. Brown hair and eyes coupled with an unassuming face that was accentuated with his suit and tie. 

'Surrounded with guards. Okay Damian, how the fuck are you going to do this?' He wondered. Looking around he spotted his target getting taken to a nearby hotel. 'Huh, that... that could work. the only question is am I ready?' 

The plan was simple get in, kill him and get to Kimura for extraction. 

He didn't want to kill him or anyone else for that matter, but he wanted to survive more than to go against his orders which would result in his demise. 

Waiting until nightfall to make his move Damian entered the hotel. Asking the receptionist for the politician's room and receiving weird looks on the way. 

Arriving in front of the door, he knocked two times before waiting for the door to open to be greeted by the imposing form of a giant. He was at least six feet tall and had the physique of a bodybuilder. 

Looking down, he saw Damian standing there, "What's wrong kiddo?" His voice deep and masculine but his tone was kind when speaking to Damian. 

Damian started shaking as he muttered under his breath. He was starting to regret knocking when he should have just broken in and made it quick. But he just couldn't bring himself to do it. 

Crouching down the guard tried to listen to what he was saying.  "...orry." Damian's lips quivered. 

"...Sorry, I am sorry." Tears fell from his eyes as he cried. For himself or the people he was about to kill, he didn't know. He just knew he was sorry.

"It's okay kiddo, nothing's wrong okay. You have nothing to be sorry about okay son." Those were the last things the giant could remember saying before his vision darkened. 

Damian tried to close off his heart in order to complete his mission. He knew it was going to cost him. The result, he couldn't remember. All he knew was one moment he was at the door knocking out the guard by shifting the density of gravity surrounding them and throwing him into a wall thereby rendering him unconscious. 

The next, he was covered in blood, guts and appendages. The target his was supposed to kill was strung up in the room by his intestines that looked like they would tear apart at any moment but held strong. 

The guards that were supposed to be protecting the politician suffered a different fate. Some were headless with blood gushing like a fountain from where their heads should have been. 

Others had their arms and legs ripped off and seemed to be beaten to death with them. Some were vaporized by what one could assume was an energy blast. 

Damian paled as he threw up what he had to eat the previous night. His stomach churned when nothing else came out. 

A pit formed in his stomach as he fully took in the sight before him with shaky and ragged breaths accompanied by sniffles and tears. 

"Damn gravity boy," That voice was the last thing in existence he wanted to hear at the moment. "Color me impressed. Didn't think you had it in you." She mused. 

Turning to face Kimura, he spoke, "Why... Why did I have to do this?" Kimura, already smiling, answered him. 

"Because you are a tool. A weapon to be used at our leisure in whatever way is desired." His head snapped to look Kimura in the eyes, a weight so palpable descended upon the hotel building, shaking it as though an earthquake had come. 

His eyes shined a dark amethyst. An aura of energy shimmered into existence and coated his body in blacklight as the markings of  [Conduit] showed and glowed, illuminating the room. 

Breaking the distance with a dash, Damian cocked his fist back as all of the energy surrounding him diverged to his fist before he delivered the strongest punch he could throw to her face with a shout of pure unadulterated rage. 

Her eyes widened before narrowly dodging the blow that would have killed her, she drew a syringe from her person and injected him with it swiftly. 

"Fucking monster." Were the last words he heard before he drifted off to the sweet and enchanting embrace of rest.