At Hughesovka Ironworks #5 located in central Russia, Wildchild has Logan bound and hanging precariously over a vat of melted metal. Standing at the controls, Wildchild asks Wolverine if he can read Russian; he bets he can. Him, nope, but that guy could. He’s the one who showed him how to turn the thing on, work all the controls an’ stuff. Told him that once the needle gets to about there, well, that’s when Wolverine will go into the melted metal feet first.
Wild Child then says to him that guys like them, what can he say, they’re hard to kill. But he’s pretty sure dunking him in a cauldron of molten iron’s a good place to start. His flesh, of course, will burn away in just a few seconds. Then his bones until eventually all that’ll be left is that adamantium of his. Which, when this thing cools is gonna be pretty much stuck. Pointing at the vat, Wildchild asks him if there’s anything he wants him to write on the side there. A, uh, whattya call it – epitaph? Wolverine tells him “@#$% you, Wildchild.” Wildchild thinks about it for a second and then says he likes it.
Raising his arms in the air, Wildchild states that ‘if all of you are gonna be this easy, he might just…’ Wolverine asks what he means, ‘all of us?’ Looking up at Wolverine, Wildchild says to him that he means he hasn’t figured it out yet. Logan thinks to himself that the only thing he’s figured is there ain’t no way it’s a coincidence that him, Omega Red an’ Wildchild are all in the same place at the same time. For some reason, ‘Romulus is pittin’ us all against… us.’ Nuke, Daken, Sabretooth, Cyber, Omega Red, Wildchild – ‘all of us.’
Coming to a realization, Wolverine says ‘my God’ and thinks to himself that this was all part of a plan, his plan. Wildchild tells him now he’s gettin’ it. There’s only room for one at the top of the food chain and Romulus? He’s getting too old for this. It’s time to name a successor but first, they have to prove they’re worthy by killin’ off all the others. He then tells Wolverine that obviously, he’s got quite a lead on the rest of them. Wolverine then thinks back to everything he’s done since he got his memories back – killing Nuke, beheading Sabretooth, leaving Cyber for dead was what he wanted him to do. “I am what you will become.” He thought he was free but this whole time he was just a pawn – nothing has changed.
Wildchild says to Wolverine that he really didn’t know, huh? Wow, that’s… Pointing down at the needle on the control, Wildchild tells Wolverine uh oh, ‘fraid he has some more bad news for him. As he starts to lower Wolverine into the molten metal, he tells him that he thought Omega Red was the last to know, an’ get this, he wasn’t even interested. Holding the carbonadium synthesizer in his hand, Wildchild says it wasn’t until they told him they’d give him this thing. He then wonders what it is.
Just then, Omega Red crashes through the wall and tells Wildchild that the device is his. Engaging Wildchild in battle, Red tells him that he has come for what belongs to him. As they do battle, Logan continues to head towards the molten metal. He recalled that Wildchild’s plan was to drop him in feet first. His plan ain’t much better. He’s going in hands first. He knows it’s gonna be bad. An’ even knowin’ that, once he’s outta there, he’ll eventually heal don’t make it better.
Swinging, Logan is able to angle it so he lands in the molten metal arms first and lets out a yell. Grabbing Red around his neck from behind, Wildchild states one down. Headbutting Wildchild, Red calls him a fool and asks him if he really thinks that he will be the one to kill the Wolverine. Free from Wildchild’s clutches, Red tells him that killing Wolverine is not a thing that can be done in a day but something you must commit your life to doing. Take it from one who knows.
At that moment, Wildchild sees Wolverine escaping the factory with his arms burning. Wildchild calls out to him to go ahead and run, he’ll find him again. He’ll find him an’ he’ll rip him to &@#$ing pieces, you son of a… Taking the opportunity, Red jams his coil through Wildchild’s chest. When he does, he takes the C-synth from him and says to him that if he could, he would beg for his life now, yes? Flipping Wildchild away from him and into the molten metal, Red says to him to be thankful he let him die with some honor. As Wildchild burns, Red tells him ‘do svidaniya, Wildchild.’
In St. Petersburg two days later, Logan makes his way through a warehouse toting a crowbar. Walking with a purpose, Logan thinks to himself that when Professor X brought him into the X-Men, he erased his memories. Everything that Romulus did to him for all those years, all of the control mechanisms he had built into his mind, disappeared. Romulus couldn’t use him to hit his targets anymore, to clean up his messes. He was beyond his reach. When the memories came back, so did everything else. Everything he’s done since then, an’ everything he had planned to do, has been exactly what Romulus wants him to do – including killing him.
Reaching a crate, Logan opens it up. Before he left the states, he asked an old friend to use her connections to plant this for him. He didn’t want Romulus to know he had it. He didn’t wanna give him time to defend against it. But now, knowin’ what he knows… He won’t kill for Romulus anymore, he’s done. Picking out his cell phone with his bandaged arms, Logan calls the Black Widow. Perched on the edge of a building, Widow asks him if he received the package. Logan admits that he did but he needs her to do another favor for him. When Widow tells him of course, Logan says to her that he needs her to get rid of this thing. He wants her to lose it, understand. It’s too dangerous to be around anybody, includin’ him. Widow tells him to consider it done. But there’s something she needs to tell him, something that her Moscow contacts passed on to her. Logan asks what, that Omega Red’s closin’ in on him? Widow says she sees of course he already knows. Logan tells her yeah, well he had a feelin’.
After he hangs up with Widow, Logan comes face to face with Omega Red. Logan proceeds to tell him that he got what he wanted, the carbonadium synthesizer is his. He then tells him not to push his luck. Red replies that he did get what he wanted and now he wants everything else. Logan says to him that if he wants to be the next Romulus, go ahead, he ain’t gonna fight him for it. Red says he sees, but tell him, does he think his son will feel the same way?
Before he answers, Logan thinks to himself that he doesn’t think his son will feel the same way. He thinks he’ll fight him with everything he’s got for it, which after what happened in New York is a helluva lot. Then again, Red’s finally got the C-synth. He’s never been this powerful before or this dangerous. Maybe Daken’ll take him down, maybe Red’ll take him down. It’s too close to call. But the fact o’ the matter is he can’t stomach it either way. He ain’t gonna let him go after his son. He can’t an’ that means takin’ care o’ him there, his way, Romulus’s way.
Logan proceeds to tell Red that mentionin’ his son was a mistake, he was gonna let him live. Red laughs and asks Logan if he’s trying to intimidate him. He has toyed with him, he has coddled him like a baby. Hid adamantium claws are nothing to him. And yet, he thinks he can defeat him with a broken sword? Opening the small crate he is holding, Logan pulls out the Muramasa blade. Red tells him to go ahead and try. What is it that you Americans say? Ah, yes, give me your best shot.
Logan thinks to himself that some people might say that after all these years, after all the gallons of each other’s blood that they’ve spilled. After all the pain an’ sufferin’ an’ hate that’s brought them to this point, Omega Red deserves better. Holding up the sword, Logan tells Red that they’ve known each other a long time. When’s he gonna remember that he’s Canadian? Determining that those people who believe Red deserves better are wrong, Logan tosses the sword into Red’s chest.
Falling to his knees, Red weakly asks what is happening to him. Logan tells him that he’s dyin’. That thing stickin’ outta his heart is called the Muramasa blade. It’s every black thing inside o’ him, boiled down an’ made harder, sharper, more deadly. It kills everything an’ anyone. With his last breath, Red asks ‘even Romulus?’ Logan replies yeah, even him.
Just then, a large muscular man who looks a lot like Logan, only older and with Sabretooth’s finger claws, and four adamantium claws coming out of his hands tells Logan that they’ll see about that. With that, Logan comes face to face with the enigmatic Romulus.
