Logan watched through the bars as Kitty began to limber up, and wondered for the umpteenth time, just how they had gotten into this mess. He was fine. Well, better off than Kitty. He was exempt from fighting…after the first one, their captors had realised that Logan was a killing machine and more than a match for the rest of their captives. He spent most of his days in his cage at the side of the ring, Listening to the dying screams of the defeated with the rest. He was kept well fed…they wanted to keep him in condition at least until they could find a decent match for him.

"You gonna be ok?"

Kitty shrugged, adjusting the horrible Genoshian collar around her neck.

"I'm sure it will be nothing I can't handle, Logan. It's not my first time in the ring…and god willing, it won't be my last."

Logan nodded and reached through the bars to give her a reassuring hug. "You will be fine, darlin'. Rip 'em to shreds. Go for the eyes. No mercy."

"No mercy." Kitty sighed, squaring her shoulders as the front of the cage shot up. She knew she was lucky to have Logan beside her. They probably should have been separated, but the jailors had found out that a pissed off wolverine was a dangerous wolverine.

OOOoooOOO

Kitty walked out into the bright sunlight, squinting in the brightness. Her opponent had been let out at the same time as her, and had immediately taken up a defensive position. But as their eyes readjusted to the light, her opponent faltered.

"Pride…" Came the whisper, and a bolt of fear shot through Kitty's heart when she heard the voice. Around the ring, cameras were trained on them, beaming the footage up to a satellite that in turn sent the images to those with enough money and blood lust to watch…and below them, the other fighters calling for blood. Only one fighter was gripping the cell bars tightly, screaming No! in a voice that would rend tears from the hardest man's eyes.

"Jubilee…?" Kitty took a step forwards and looked back to the cage holding Logan.

"NO! Don't do this! Please!" Logan wrestled with the bars, trying his hardest to break through.

"Never thought it would come to this, Pride." Jubilee let her hands drop to her sides, as did Kitty, ignoring the taunts from the crowd.

"I know, Lee. We always battled for Logan's attention…now are we to do it for our lives?"

Jubilee's body jerked as a wave of electricity passed through her, making her scream with the pain, as the guards punished her for not fighting.

"It's death one way or another, Kit-kat. One of us or both of us is gonna die. Either by their hands or our own. And if it's gonna be me…good luck." Jubilee slowly got back to her knees, rubbing her neck.

"FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT" a chant had sprung up around the crowd, and Kitty nodded.

"Hug first. No…no blame…"

"…no shame." Kitty murmured, and hugged Jubilee close, tears spilling down her face. Jubilee held her tightly. "Say goodbye to Wolvie for me." She whispered, pulling away to look Kitty in the face. Her bright blue eyes were filled with sadness. She knew the fate that awaited her. She was smaller than Kitty, lighter and younger. She hadn't been as well trained in the arts of hand-to-hand fighting. Sure, she'd had some training from Logan, Remy, Scott and the others…but her training had been sparse and interrupted by attacks and in the end, by being sent to the Frost Academy. And she was injured from when they had taken her. If they did fight…she would die. If they didn't fight, they would both be killed…executed for the cameras. They had come to see a death, and a death they must have.

Stepping back from each other, they both put their hands to their hearts, giving a small bow.

"Love ya Pride. Now come and get some ass whoop. And give Wolvie a kiss for me when I'm gone."

The black shield went up around them, blocking all sight and sound other than the dirt circle they were standing in, signalling the start of the fight and blocking the view of the other captives.

Logan slumped down in the cell, horrified as the two girls he regarded as his daughters faced off for a fight to the death.

"You know both of 'em?" The guard outside his cage asked, curious. Logan had never shown much interest for any of the fights before.

"They're my daughters." He explained brokenly. "My goddamned daughters!" he shook the cage again, letting out a feral roar. "You sick bastards! Don't let them…don't let them do this!"

OOOoooOOO

"Is everyone in position?" Nick Fury whispered into his radio. The area was now swarming with SHIELD troops, both X-men teams, Excalibur, Alpha flight, and various other superheroes who had joined the fight. Once they had realised who had taken Kitty and Logan, they had all seen the chance to finally put a stop to the Camarian Killing Circle. The telepaths, working together had managed to find Kitty's psi signature and had tracked it to a small island in the Pacific.

"Affirmative."

"Move in."

"There's a fight in progress." Scott murmured into his communicator.

"Don't bother with that right now. The guards are putting up resistance on the west front." Storm murmured from her vantage point high above them.

In the end, it was a swift battle, and to everyone's amazement, most guards surrendered without a murmur, handing over their weapons. Only a few die-hards fought to the death, and most of Nick's men managed to take care of them.

The different teams re-formed and met up outside the arena.

"Look for Logan and Kitty." Scott ordered Rogue and Bobby. "Bruce, can you shut that down?" He pointed to the black shield. Batman nodded and went to look for the control panel, joined by Reed Richards and Bruce Banner.

"He's over there." Jean opened her eyes and she, Rogue and Bobby ran to the far side of the arena, to where Logan's bloody hands were still struggling with the bars.

"Logan!" Jean exclaimed, putting her hand out to stop Bobby and Rogue. "He's in a rage…it's not safe." She warned as Rogue nodded, seeing the madness in his eyes.

He growled wildly and hurled himself at the bars again.

"Do you know what's gotten into him?" Jean asked the man in the next cell. The weedy man got up from the ground and walked over to the front of the cell, making sure to keep out of reach of the now feral Canadian Mutant.

"Not too sure, sweetheart. He was screaming something about his daughters?" He shrugged awkwardly.

"Jean, Batman has found the control room. He's shutting the shield down now." Scott's voice echoed out of her communicator badge. Rogue glanced over her shoulder as the shield flickered and then finally died.

"Jean!" Rogue spun her friend around, pointing into the ring.

Two figures were in the middle of the ring, both dressed from head to toe in midnight black. And one was very definitely Kitty. She was kneeling on her opponent's chest, both hands wrapped tightly around her neck.

"Kitty, stop!" Jean cried out, running forwards. "It's over, you are free! Stop!" she screamed, finally getting through to Kitty's adrenalin fuelled brain.

As they approached, Kitty slowly and carefully took her hands from around her opponents neck and stared down at them. Jean's heart froze as Kitty looked up at her, horror written across her face, and she looked back down, giving a sob.

"I had to, Jean." She whispered numbly, sliding off the prone figure's chest. "It was either that, or both of us…I'm sorry…I couldn't…"

Jean's feet raised puffs of dust as she slid to a halt beside her, falling to her knees.

Outside the stadium, heads rose as a devastated scream rose up into the air, followed by another, and then another.

Nick thrust a clip board into a subordinates hands and ran inside, joining others as they hurried towards the sound of the scream. He faltered when he saw Jean pumping on a black clad figure's chest as Bobby carefully inflated it's lungs.

"Tell me that's not Kitty." He whispered to Remy.

"Non. Kitty is standing beside them…I don't know who that is…"

OOOoooOOO

"Damnit, breathe!" Jean shouted, pounding on Jubilee's chest.

"Jean…" Bobby murmured brokenly between breaths. "I think she's gone."

"No!" Rogue shouted, her arms wrapped tightly around herself. "She can't be gone. Keep going. Keep going!"

Suddenly Jubilee's chest heaved as she drew in a ragged breath. Jean pulled her upright and held her close, kissing her head.

"Thank God…oh, thank God." She clung her tightly to her, rocking her back and forth, tears streaming down her face as Nick and Remy reached them, Scott not far behind.

"Kitty, it's good to see you still alive." Scott said breathlessly as he reached them. "What's wrong, Jean? Who is that?"

"I killed her." Kitty said brokenly, turning away from them, her hands turning into fists at her side. "I killed her. She was dead. It would have been my fault…" Tears were streaming down her face as she spoke, and she angrily shook Scott's hand off her shoulder.

"Damnit, who is it?" Nick shouted, torn between going back to work, or attending to the strange drama unfolding in front of him.

"It's Jubilee!" Bobby half-shouted, rubbing his face with his hands. "It's Jubilee." He said more softly, sitting on the dust with a thump. "What the hell is she doing here?" He asked with a mixture of rage and the remnants of the terrible fear that had gripped his heart when he had seen just who Kitty had been fighting. "She's supposed to be in college!"

Trying to compose herself, Jean gently laid Jubilee's limp body back on the ground, smoothing the hair back from her face. Tentatively, she attempted to reach into Jubilee's mind. After a few moments she shook her head, still unable to break through the girls shields.

"Kitty, I need you to answer me. What did you do to her besides strangling her?" Jean asked, still not meeting Kitty's eyes.

"I…I don't know. The fight was so…mad…we both were landing kicks and punches all over the place. It was so manic…we both knew one of us had to die, but…we were afraid…didn't want to kill each other…" Kitty said brokenly as Storm landed behind her, dragging her into her arms.

"Sweetheart, I thought I would find you dead." She murmured, and blinked in astonishment as Kitty burst into heart-rending sobs.

"Get her out of here, Ororo." Scott ordered quickly. "Take her somewhere quiet. Go to the Med Tent and have her checked out. Rogue, go with them…explain it to her." he finished more gently. Ororo looked confused, but did as she was told, scooping Kitty up and rising up into the sky.

"Jean…?"

Jean was examining her carefully. "She has broken ribs. Punctured lung…I'm not sure what else, and I won't until I get her somewhere more suitable."

Nick gave a sharp nod and walked a few steps away, speaking quietly into his radio.

"There's a med-lift on it's way. It will land in the stadium and bring you straight to the HQ."

Jean nodded gratefully. Looking up above the structure that surrounded them, she saw a small black spot getting closer in the sky, swooping down out of the glare from the sun. The chopper was already approaching.

OOOoooOOO

"Med-evac chopper is on it's way, Dr. McCoy. It's got one of the captive fighters on it. Not in good shape. There was a fight in progress when the attack began." A soldier shouted in the door to where Hank was assessing the injuries on a soldier.

"There now. That's not too bad. Just a straight break. Now, if you would go with this beautiful nurse here and be good, she will put a cast on it for you."

Sending the soldier off, he turned back to the messenger. "What type of injuries?" He asked crisply, stripping off his gloves and beginning to set out a tray of things he might need.

"They didn't say, but the order for the chopper came straight from Colonel Fury, sir." His tone indicated that this in itself was unusual, and that Hank should possibly prepare himself for something odd.

As it was, Hank was not prepared for the look on Jean's face as she ran inside the room ahead of the gurney, grabbing a pair of gloves crying out 'It's Jubilee.'

OOOoooOOO

Nick stood surrounded by now empty cages, staring in at Logan as he gripped the bars.

"Are you calm yet?" He asked mildly. Logan gave a small growl, his eyes narrowing.

"Let me out of here, Fury, before you lose your other eye."

"That will do." Nick murmured, unlocking the door and stepping back.

"Where are they?" He snapped, slamming the door open.

"Kitty is in the Med-tent with Rogue and Storm. She's ok. A bit battered and bruised."

"Jubilee?"

Nick took a deep breath. "She's at HQ. Jean and Hank are taking care of her."

"yeah, but how is she?"

Nick took another breath, trying to work out the most tactful way to say what was to come.

"When they got to them, Jubilee wasn't breathing. Jean and Bobby managed to revive her. She's in good hands, Logan."

Logan nodded. "Where's the med-tent?" He murmured, flexing his hands. Nick silently led the way through the hordes of SHIELD men that filled the area, all standing around looking both menacing and aware.

"They're in here." Scott murmured, lifting the tent flap. Nick stood watching warily as Logan stalked inside, unsure of how things were going to pan out. He gave a silent sigh of relief as Logan pulled Kitty off the gurney where she was sitting and wrapped his arms around her tightly. Storm and Rogue were talking quietly in the corner, and Storm rose to her feet as Logan walked inside.

Kitty managed to stop crying, holding onto him tightly.

"Do you want to go to her?" He asked after she had stopped shaking. Kitty nodded dumbly and allowed him to lead her outside.

"Storm, take her. Rogue, will you…?"

"You don't even have to ask, sugah." Rogue murmured, levitating slightly and lifting him beneath his arms.

OOOoooOOO

Bobby was sitting outside the operating room when they arrived, holding his head in his hands. Storm was helping Kitty walk, her own badly bruised ribs giving her trouble.

"They've been in there half an hour." He said tiredly. "No news…" he gave a small helpless shrug. Kitty bit back a whimper as she slid down the wall beside him and rested her head against his shoulder as he gingerly wrapped his arm around her.

"Kid'll be ok, Kitty. You'll see. She's strong."

Kitty sniffed and nodded. "I know…but every time I close my eyes, I see her…I see my hands…" Tears streamed down her face once more. "And I see her when she saw my face…the horror…she…she told me to say good bye to you, Logan. And that she loved you."

Wolverine's head dropped and he turned on his heel and walked away, his emotions conflicting and bouncing off each other so much that he didn't know what to do.

OOOoooOOO

"Thank you all for coming." Nick murmured, putting the folder down onto the table.

"We're not all here, Nick." Heather Hudson murmured, massaging her shoulder. "The X-men are missing…all the X-men are missing?" She frowned and looked around her, seeing that others were doing the same.

"They won't be coming." Nick murmured, and immediately launched into a dissection of the assault.

"I take it that Logan and Katchen were found?" Kurt asked as he fell silent. Nick gave a brief nod.

"Logan was found in the cages. Kitty….Kitty was in the fight we interrupted." Around Kurt, the eyes of the various teams narrowed. Kitty being badly wounded would be a good enough reason for none of the X-men to be present. Kurt found himself becoming angry that they hadn't contacted him. Kitty, after all, was a member of Excalibur, not the X-men.

"She is fine. However, her opponent was badly injured…was not breathing when they reached them. She was med-evaced here…"

"What are you leaving out, Nick?" Bruce Wayne asked flatly, sensing something horrible was about to be told.

"It was Jubilee. They set Jubilee and Kitty against each other. Jean and Hank are operating on her now."

The room went into a sudden uproar, Kurt bamfing out of the room in a cloud of black smoke, adding to the confusion.

"Whaddya mean Jubilee! I thought she was in college!" Bruce slammed his hand against the desk.

"Hey, do I look like the guy with the answers!" Nick shouted back. "Jesus, I haven't seen the kid since she was sixteen! How the hell am I supposed to know where she is or was or is supposed to be?"

"Kitty and Jubilee…now that's a fight I'd pay good money to see." Came a deep rumble from the corner, the words earning Hellboy a slap on the arm from Heather Hudson. Realising what he had said, the huge red demon hunkered down sheepishly in his chair.

"Kid gonna be ok?" He asked finally as the others looked around them in shock.

Nick shrugged. "I don't know. Jean and Hank are working on her now."

OOOoooOOO

A pair of eyelids fluttered open, revealing a pair of brilliant blue eyes. They trailed slowly around their surroundings before finally settling on two people sitting by the bed. One's head was thrown back as a snore rumbled through the room. The other's head was lying on the sheet just beside her hand.

Jubilee weakly moved her hand and brushed Kitty's hair away from her face, gently trailing a finger over the stitches that ran along her forehead, careful not to touch off them in case she woke the sleepers.

"Thank god." She whispered, letting her eyes slide closed. Everyone she loved was in the room, and were alive. That was all she ever wanted. Her family by her side, alive and well.

I am very sorry for the bad ending, but I have never been able to finish this to my satisfaction. Some day, I might be able to finish it properly, but 2 years on I'm giving up and posting as it is. If anyone has any advice, or ideas on how to end it, feel free to advise….