Late at night, the car wound through the forest. The quiet woods were startled awake by the bright headlights, and birds fluttered as they flew away.
Logan sat in the middle of the back seat. Charles, on his left, slept soundly with his head leaning against the window, while Laura, on his right, rested her head on Logan's arm, also asleep.
The car was completely silent.
Logan closed his eyes, reclining in the soft seat, but he was not asleep. The data panel flashed before his eyes. After the battle just now, his Prestige points had increased significantly, now reaching 60. This made Logan realize once again that obtaining Prestige points from his own kind was much easier.
Although 60 Prestige points were not enough for him to awaken a new ability, Logan felt he wasn't far off. The last time he awakened his heat vision was when his Prestige points exceeded the 10-point threshold. Although he didn't know the exact values of these thresholds, he vaguely sensed that the required Prestige points shouldn't be too many. Furthermore, he was about to reach a mutant settlement where there were plenty of mutants. As long as he gained prestige from them, developing new abilities would only be a matter of time.
Looking away from the prestige section, Logan looked back at his Free points and Upgrade points. This time, both had increased significantly; he now had 6 Free points and 4 Upgrade points.
Without hesitation, Logan immediately added the 4 Upgrade points to his Healing Factor.
As his Healing Factor increased, Logan vaguely perceived that his wounds had become much easier to heal. During the pursuit by Dr. Rice's mercenaries, he had taken many bullets. Although his wounds had begun to heal, the piercing pain was still unbearable. Now, with the point increase, a sense of relief washed over him, and the agonizing pain finally receded.
He couldn't help but let out a long sigh and slowly opened his eyes, filled with joy. That battle was worth it! Not only did he resolve the main problem, Dr. Rice, but he also replenished his points—a win-win situation.
Suppressing his joy a bit, Logan focused his attention on the remaining Free points. After a moment of hesitation, he decided to save them. These points were a good option for emergencies; he shouldn't use them unnecessarily. If a powerful enemy appeared later, these points could cause a surprise effect, even changing the course of a battle.
Logan put away the panel, looked at the still-dark sky, and was about to close his eyes to rest when he noticed a small head moving on his right shoulder. Laura had woken up a moment ago, looking at him with her bright, teary eyes.
Logan leaned over, reached out, and ruffled the girl's hair, whispering: "Sleep a little more; you'll see your friends when you wake up."
Hearing the word "friends," Laura's eyes didn't shine with joy. She simply nodded, reaching out to touch Logan's body. She could feel the numerous bullet holes that hadn't yet fully healed under his newly changed clothes.
"It's okay, everything will be fine in a couple of days," Logan reassured her in a low voice, telling her not to worry.
Laura nodded in silence, withdrawing her hand; her eyes still shone with concern. Logan laughed softly, continuing to stroke the girl's hair. "Rest. Once we cross the border, we'll have peace for a while."
Then, he let out a deep sigh of relief, turning to look at the thick forest stretching past the window. Once the border was crossed, the US government's coercion against them would decrease significantly. Not even S.H.I.E.L.D. or the Avengers could arbitrarily cross the border to arrest them. Then, finally, he could relax a bit.
Just as Logan was reflecting, a child's voice suddenly resonated in his ears: "Logan."
"Eh?" Logan turned sharply, looked at Laura's delicate face, and asked in disbelief: "Did you just speak?"
He was sure he wasn't hallucinating; a child's voice had indeed called him softly. In the entire car, only Laura could make that sound.
"Mmhmm." Laura nodded, confirming once again that she could speak.
Logan's eyes widened in disbelief; Laura had finally spoken. He knew the girl was somewhat withdrawn and usually kept silent with strangers, even in front of them. When Gabriela left, she only waved her hand.
Caliban, in the passenger seat, had heard everything that happened in the back. He turned around, looking at Laura with equal amazement. "You can really talk?"
He had thought Laura had a vocal problem; after all, clones often had physiological issues, like X-24—a bestial wolf of low intelligence. Hearing Laura speak now thrilled him instantly.
Laura ignored Caliban and kept looking at Logan, wrapping her arms around him, leaning her head on his chest and whispering: "Thank you."
Logan was stunned, knowing the girl was thanking him for protecting her throughout the journey. He chuckled, ruffling Laura's hair. "Don't be so polite. I promised you and Gabriella I'd get you to Eden."
Laura looked up suddenly, her large, bright eyes wide with worry. "Will you leave?" she asked.
She knew this destination was just a meeting point. When the time came, she would cross the border with her friends to reach Eden and then Canada. If it was only about getting Laura to the meeting point, as he had promised, Logan's mission would be complete and he would have to part from her.
But after so much time together, she feared separating from Logan. For some reason, she had become incredibly dependent on this father she had only known for a few days.
"You don't want me to go?" Logan noticed the fear in the girl's eyes.
Laura nodded seriously. "I hope you can come with me."
Logan chuckled and nodded seriously as well. "Don't worry, I will always protect you." He ruffled her hair gently to reassure her. Reassured by the promise, a smile finally drew on Laura's lips. Leaning on Logan's arm, she closed her eyes in peace.
The car drove from night until dawn, then accelerated from dawn until dusk, finally emerging from the forest and stopping before a rocky stretch.
"Here we are. This is it," Victor said, turning off the engine. The rocky mountain across the window—that was the location at the coordinates.
Logan, holding Laura's small hand, got out of the car. Looking at the desolate and rocky wilderness, seeing no one, he asked: "Do you know where they are?"
"They should be nearby," Laura replied, her small backpack slung over her shoulder and her hand pressed against her forehead as she looked around.
Caliban, fully armed and shielding his eyes from the sun, sniffed the air and pointed to the top of a desert cliff. "They should be there."
His ability consisted of locating mutants; if any mutant lived nearby, he could determine their location with precision.
The group looked in the direction Caliban pointed and saw a lookout tower atop the cliff, with several figures barely visible watching them. A moment later, a simple wooden platform descended from the edge of the cliff with a hand crane, and a girl climbed onto it.
Laura recognized her and ran toward her excitedly: "Rebecca!"
"Laura, it really is you!" Rebecca jumped off the platform, hugging Laura with a look of joy and surprise.
"Looks like our mission is over." Logan smiled at seeing them reunited, lighting a cigarette with satisfaction. The smoke rose into the night, quickly dispersed by the wind.