—= Some time ago =—
The Xavier School was, in essence, an impregnable fortress because it was home to a mutant like Hank McCoy, who took the protection of his abode with utmost seriousness.
Numerous defense systems shielded Hank's students from many threats. After Reed Richards's visit, the level of security was amplified several times over, as he had brought with him a highly important device.
At the moment of the attack by the Sentinels and government mutants, nearly all the defense systems were activated.
Beast himself was in the medical wing, where a large number of teenage mutants had gathered.
"Bring them here," Hank instructed the students.
The incapacitated telepaths were the first casualties brought to him.
They laid Jean Grey and Charles Xavier on the table; at that moment, they were of the greatest importance, because without them, the combat capabilities of the X-Men diminished significantly.
"Thank you," the blue-furred mutant nodded.
He immediately began scanning the telepaths, and out of the corner of his eye, Hank noticed a slight smirk on the face of the girl who had brought Charles and Jean.
—= At the very moment Reed Richards destroyed the device =—
—= Xavier's School =—
When the interference subsided, I noticed something was amiss. Inside the school was an agent of Sinister who had taken Jean Grey. I was about to move in that direction when I felt the barrel of a gun pressed against the back of my head.
"I wouldn't advise you to go that way, Richards," said the owner of the weapon.
At that moment, the man stopped concealing his power. The level of psionic energy within him indicated that he was an Omega-level mutant.
"Signs of time travel detected," said Chronos.
Now I knew for certain that Cable was behind me—the son of Scott Summers and a clone of Jean Grey.
By this point, I fully understood who Cable was and what his weapon entailed. My initial wariness—caused by Cable approaching unnoticed—waned, as I now had a complete picture of Scott Summers's son.
"I suppose it's a matter of your life being at stake?" I asked without a hint of fear.
"Yes," Cable replied, lowering his weapon.
As soon as the gun barrel left the back of my head, I turned to look Cable in the face.
Nathan Christopher Charles Summers looked almost exactly like the Cable I knew from the comics, but there were differences... I frowned as I realized what distinguished Nathan from the one I knew: the techno-organic virus in his body hadn't progressed further.
"And why did you lower your weapon?"
"I know I'm no match for you," Nathan said. "Besides, the main task is already accomplished. My mother has arrived here."
Cable's statement made me frown.
"Why do you think I won't immediately start searching for Sinister's location?"
Nathan merely smiled and confidently declared:
"Because something is about to happen that will make you reconsider that plan."
After Nathan's words, an incredible surge of psionic energy erupted. In the mental plane, a gigantic fiery phoenix appeared for a moment.
"Damn..." flashed through my mind as the Phoenix took flight.
"How many times have you done this?" I asked with icy calm, though my thoughts were entirely consumed by the problem at hand.
"More times than I'd like," Nathan admitted.
"Where did she go?"
Cable didn't waste time and simply sent me the data.
"Thank you."
At that moment, I sensed energy accumulating in his device. The space around Nathan also began to slowly distort. Intervening at such a stage could create significant problems in the flow of time—not just the "usual" occurrence of someone ending up in a different era.
"Until we meet again," I added before Cable disappeared.
After Cable vanished, nothing held me back.
—= Nathan Christopher Charles Summers =—
Throughout his life, Nathan Christopher Charles Summers had witnessed an enormous array of events. Being a time traveler left its marks—especially when that traveler hailed from a distant, apocalyptic future relative to his year of birth.
With such rich experience, few things could frighten Nathan, but Reed Richards was someone who could. Nathan, due to his innate abilities honed to perfection through years of training, could clearly sense the power within this scientist.
The sheer ocean of psionic energy in his body was awe-inspiring. But when considering the other aspects of his power... the picture became truly terrifying.
What kept Nathan from killing Reed Richards in the past was not only the near impossibility due to Reed's pet enforcer named Immortus Phoenix but also that Reed Richards was one of the few people Nathan could call a friend.
Nathan's gaze fell upon his hand, which was entirely composed of techno-organic matter. He still remembered what he owed Reed Richards. Without Reed's help, Nathan would not only have lost an incredible portion of his power but also his life.
At that moment, the tunnel through the fabric of space-time ended, and Cable found himself in the near future—a cyberpunk world where corporations ruled supreme.
—= Reed Richards =—
The Sentinels had the potential to become an incredible thorn in the side, but they needed time to improve. The current iteration of Sentinels didn't possess the qualities that Nimrod would, so I effortlessly destroyed all the robots.
Along with that, I used telekinesis to immobilize the representatives of the Weapon Plus Program. Logan's former comrades were rendered motionless.
"What the?!"
"Is that Magneto?!"
"No," said Logan, who unmistakably recognized my scent. "It's Richards."
Logan's words calmed the mutants, but they didn't lower their guard.
When I entered the inner courtyard of Xavier's School, an interesting scene unfolded before me.
"My apologies for being late."
Logan smirked and said:
"Better late than never."
—= Some time later =—
"Thank you, Reed," said Hank McCoy.
At that moment, we were in the medical wing, where I was helping my furry friend restore the telepaths who had suffered from the attack.
"You're welcome."
I replied mechanically, my thoughts occupied with the task ahead. Doing the right thing at this moment was quite challenging, as the situation was extremely contradictory...
"I think I can handle the rest myself," added Hank, noticing out of the corner of his eye the X-Men waiting for me.
The X-Men and I ascended to the upper floors, arriving at a room that served both as Charles's office and a place for discussing upcoming missions.
Charles Xavier's office was the embodiment of harmony between classic charm and advanced technology. To students entering, it resembled a standard headmaster's office but with subtle nuances that immediately revealed its uniqueness. The dark wood-paneled walls created an atmosphere of warmth and solidity. They were adorned with numerous shelves filled with books on a wide range of topics—from psychology and philosophy to mutant history and astrophysics. Each book was carefully placed, as if its contents held significant importance on its own.
At the center of the room stood a large desk made of dark mahogany, covered with papers, fountain pens, and, of course, one of Hank McCoy's latest inventions—a miniature device capable of instantly scanning and processing vast amounts of information. On the desk also lay several antique books in leather bindings, adding a sense of historical depth to the office.
At that moment, no one was seated at Charles's desk. All of the X-Men were standing.
"Thank you for your help, Reed," said Ororo. "But we'd like to know what happened. Why did the Sentinels attack the school?"
Ororo's confusion was shared by all the X-Men, though Logan seemed to be starting to guess the government's motives. However, he decided not to share his thoughts just yet.
"From what I've learned," I began, recalling the data Chronos managed to obtain, "Tusk is dead. Someone else managed to initiate the Sentinel program, and that someone has significant influence over the Weapon Plus program, which is still active."
In truth, Chronos hadn't managed to find all the information. Someone was skillfully covering their tracks. I had certain suspicions that Sinister was responsible for this incident, but it wasn't time to share those thoughts yet.
"I couldn't find out more."
A silence settled for a couple of minutes. Each mutant tried to understand what this meant. The silence was broken by Logan, who said:
"Considering that Stryker was in charge of the Weapon Plus program, maybe we can get the details from him personally?"
Logan didn't even consider trying to find out the truth from the government-sent mutants, as such agents often have their memories wiped before missions.
"Find out the details in your own way?" Scott asked suspiciously, eyeing the clawed mutant.
A bloodthirsty smile appeared on Logan's face. The attack on the school had awakened the beast within him.
"Yes. Under my methods, people can't keep their secrets for long."
Before Scott could turn the conversation into a conflict, I intervened.
"If you're thinking of tracking down Stryker, you should be prepared for the government's response. Considering your methods... you won't be able to finish the operation quietly. I'd advise waiting for Charles and Jean Grey to wake up."
Scott himself had wanted to suggest waiting for Charles to wake up, so he nodded to me gratefully.
"And how long do we have to wait?" asked Rogue. "Do we have any information on when we can expect the telepaths to regain consciousness?"
"Considering that the main work has been done, I'd give them two days to recover."
Rogue looked at the X-Men and said:
"They can wait two days."
"And what if by then they hide Stryker in a hole where we can't reach him?" Logan asked, not in a worried tone but in the tone of someone thirsting for blood.
Logan's questions could sow unnecessary discord in the team, so I needed to act.
"Then I'll help you find him," I said. "Wait for Charles to wake up, and we'll figure it out from there."
—= Some time later =—
It took me two hours to leave Xavier's School after explaining my point of view, but it was worth it, as the team reached a compromise.
Leaving the mutants to deal with the aftermath of the attack, I teleported to New York—or to be precise, to the location of the Morlocks' refuge.
My arrival was noticed not only by all the reporters but also by Thor, who was examining the area with interest.
As expected, the area was cordoned off by S.H.I.E.L.D. agents and police forces. Numerous onlookers and journalists tried to get through, but they couldn't.
The Avengers stood next to one of the defeated Sentinels. Apparently, they were trying to extract information from it.
"Hmm..." Stark mused when he couldn't retrieve the necessary data. "Empty. Nothing indicating who gave the command."
Hank Pym, who had been tinkering with the robot's innards, emerged and said:
"It has a very strange construction. The design is unusual... I've never seen anything like it."
Tony and I quickly understood what Pym meant, but not everyone present was knowledgeable in robotics.
"What does that mean?" Steve asked, noticing that the conversation was heading into territory he wasn't familiar with.
"In robotics, there are certain design templates developed over years of research that are relied upon when creating a new robot. If Hank noticed that the design is strange, it means the creator of this robot is either a genius or something's not right."
"I suggest we discuss all this in a more private setting," Natasha proposed, noting that more and more people were gathering.
"I can transport us to the Tower."
The Avengers exchanged glances and nodded. Then I teleported us to Avengers Tower.
"The first teleportation is always interesting," I remarked, looking at Steve Rogers, who barely kept himself from falling over.
The blond man tried to smile, but it came out as a rather strained grin.
Natasha and Barton, to be fair, adapted more quickly, though they felt slightly nauseous. Hank Pym and Janet van Dyne were prepared, as they often increased and decreased in size. And Tony had already experienced such teleportations, so he felt no discomfort.
"Hmm... This is somewhat similar to traveling via the Bifrost," Thor remarked.
By this point, Captain America had composed himself and said:
"Let's get back on topic. Do you think aliens could be involved in this?"
It must be admitted that Rogers was quite perceptive in certain matters.
"Quite possibly," Tony stated. "Considering that the government has scientists who were raised in Germany... I'd bet they have some developments in this area. Not to mention that they most likely have Chitauri technology."
"Damn," said Steve.
"Natasha, Barton," I began, looking at the two S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. "Does Fury have any answers from the government yet?"
The red-haired spy smiled and said:
"I knew you'd ask that."
—= Nicholas Joseph Fury =—
"What the hell does this mean?!" roared one of the politicians who had been zealously pushing the Sentinel program.
In response to such questions from the politician, Fury's agents simply intensified their pressure and broke his wrist.
"Argh!"
"If I were you, I wouldn't try to lie," Fury said, looking at the politician. "My people have already discovered that the access codes were leaked from your side."
The politician's eyes, full of pain, were now filled with fear. He realized his career was over.
"Yes, you're in deep trouble."
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