CHAPTER 131 – BETWEEN THE WALLS
The Danger Room hissed and roared like a mechanical beast, gears grinding, steel walls shifting with murderous intent. Colossus stood at the center, his armored skin gleaming under the harsh lights. The two vice-walls pressed inward, slow but merciless, a trap meant to crush mountains.
His shoulders strained, arms braced, metal muscles flexing, but his breath came ragged. He planted his feet, teeth clenched, yet the walls edged closer.
"Cyclops!" His voice boomed with effort, echoing in the chamber. "Enough! I… I cannot continue!"
From the control booth above, Cyclops stood rigid, arms folded, visor glinting red under the lights of the console. His voice cut sharp over the intercom.
"You're fine, Colossus. Sensors show no serious strain. You can stop those walls if you dig deep enough. So why aren't you?"
Beside him, Logan leaned against the console, arms crossed, a cigar hanging from his mouth. He squinted at Piotr's struggle with something colder than pity. Then he let out a low grunt.
"Physically fine, yeah. But you're missin' the point, Summers. Kid ain't pushin' 'cause somethin's eatin' him inside."
Cyclops didn't turn. "You're saying he's holding back? Then tell me why, Logan. Because right now all I see is hesitation that could get us killed in the field."
Logan answered with steel instead of words. SNIKT. His claws slid free and dug into the console's panel with a hiss of sparks. Circuits screamed, screens flickered, and Cyclops' control of the room shorted out in a shower of light.
"Logan!" Scott barked, snapping toward him.
But the Canadian was already gone, stalking out of the booth with smoke trailing in his wake.
Down below, the walls creaked tighter. Piotr's knees bent. His breath rattled, his hands straining against steel that didn't care. He flinched when he heard the heavy clang of boots stepping into the chamber.
Logan walked right into the shrinking space, unfazed by the groan of metal. He dropped between the two walls, sat down cross-legged as if on a park bench, and lit his cigar with casual indifference.
"Logan!" Piotr's voice cracked with panic. "Get out! You'll be crushed!"
Logan exhaled a lazy ribbon of smoke, eyes half-lidded.
"Don't think so, bub. Not 'til you stop lyin' to yourself. You're stronger than these walls. We both know it. But you ain't fightin' 'em 'cause your head's somewhere else."
The Russian's wide eyes darted between the inching steel and the stubborn man puffing smoke. His chest heaved.
"You don't understand—"
"I understand just fine." Logan blew another plume. "'Cause unlike me, unlike Summers, unlike most of this sorry lot—you actually got family. Blood. People waitin' back home. You got two families now, bub. That's what's twistin' you up inside. You don't know which one to fight for."
The walls groaned louder. Sparks danced at their edges. Logan stayed put, arms draped on his knees like he was meditating.
"Logan, please! Move!" Piotr's voice rose in desperation.
"Not movin'." Logan's grin was thin, sharp. He tapped ash onto the floor. "If you give up now, we both get flattened. You wanna live with that?"
Piotr's heart thundered. His hands shook against the steel. He thought of his sister's laughter in the fields. He thought of the X-Men's voices at his side. The pressure inside him tore in two directions.
Above, Cyclops' voice crackled through the half-dead comm. "Logan destroyed the controls. I can't shut it down. It's on you, Colossus. Push past it or you both die."
The Russian's eyes locked on Logan, who only sat there calmly smoking, daring him to decide.
A roar tore from Piotr's throat. His armor gleamed brighter as he surged with power, veins of strength he had buried under guilt and doubt. He braced, shoved, and the air shook with the metallic scream of walls giving way.
With a final bellow, Colossus forced the steel apart, bending the vice like clay in the hands of a sculptor. The room trembled as the mechanism snapped and gave, the trap broken.
Breathless, sweat on his brow despite his armored hide, Piotr staggered. His voice cracked with shame. "I… I was tired of thinking. Of struggling inside. I just wanted… to give up."
Logan stood, brushing ash from his chest. He clapped a hand against Piotr's armored shoulder.
"Then stop thinkin', bub. Start livin'. You fight for both families. That's the trick. Don't choose. Just keep swingin' 'til there's nothin' left standin' in your way."
The Danger Room hissed as the program shut down completely, lights dimming. From the balcony, Cyclops stepped in, arms folded tight. His visor glinted at Logan first, then at Colossus.
"Good work, Colossus." His tone softened a fraction. Then, with a sideways glance, "And Logan… thanks for the assist. Now go fix the panel you shredded."
Logan smirked, flicked the last of his cigar onto the floor, and muttered under his breath as he walked past.
"Always with the naggin', Summers. One day you're gonna thank me for breakin' somethin'."
Colossus, chest still heaving, managed a faint smile despite himself. For the first time in days, he felt lighter.
And as the sun fell, the chapter moved to night.
Logan at the wheel of Xavier's car, headlights cutting through the dark streets. Storm sat in the back, silent, regal even in her brooding. Logan's eyes caught her in the rearview mirror, sensing that same quiet storm he'd seen in Colossus earlier.
He didn't say a word. Just drove.
The road led them to where her past waited.