----
Beast gently helped Magneto to his feet. Erik's wrinkled face was twisted with rage. Once, he had been one of the most feared men on Earth. Now, he'd been humiliated like a rookie.
Nolan shook his head as he observed Erik.
"That level of power," he muttered, "wasted on someone who barely understands it."
There was no need to elaborate. Anyone who knew Magneto's reputation understood. He had god-tier potential… but limited execution.
"Alright," Nolan said, voice light but dismissive. "Tour's over. Your jet's waiting. I'd suggest you leave."
He gestured toward the exit.
"And next time don't come uninvited. It's clear your kind doesn't harbor much goodwill toward me. So I won't pretend to care about keeping peace."
"I'm sure the U.S. government would be very interested in my findings on the X-Gene."
The lab door hissed open. Max and Aleksei were already there, standing like quiet bouncers.
"Nolan," Charles said calmly, "we truly came in peace."
He was trying to salvage the conversation, but Nolan didn't buy it.
"Charles, you of all people should know," Nolan said with a small smile, "that mutant oppression isn't always the fault of humans. Sometimes… you do it to yourselves."
"You gain power and suddenly, restraint vanishes. You become beasts swinging hammers. Extremism. Violence. That's what people see."
Charles tried to probe Nolan's thoughts, but the man's mental defenses were too slippery. Nolan was intentionally baiting him psychologically playing him like a piano.
Nolan didn't need to hunt mutants. If they kept showing up and handing themselves over on a silver platter… all the better.
Charles read the room. This conversation wasn't going anywhere. Still, he kept his composure.
"Then I suppose we'll talk another time," he said politely.
"Sure," Nolan replied. "But next time? Don't bring him."
---
On the rooftop, the X-Jet lifted into the sky and turned back toward the Xavier Institute.
Inside the jet, the air was tense.
"You shouldn't have attacked him," Charles said quietly, looking at Erik.
"You've gotten weak, Charles," Erik shot back. "That man insulted our kind, talked about researching our people experimenting and you sat there like a coward."
"Maybe it was that little death of yours that changed you."
His words were sharp as daggers. Beast remained silent, bracing for the verbal storm.
"I'm not afraid," Charles replied. "And Nolan isn't our enemy. At least not yet. The mutant situation is too fragile to go around making more enemies."
Beast finally spoke. "Your temper just pushed away one of the few people who might've actually helped us."
"He may be the only one capable of reversing the effects of the X-Gene suppression serum."
"Given what I saw in that lab, his tech, his understanding of gene expression, it's far beyond my own work. I wouldn't be surprised if he's already cracked the suppressor compound entirely."
"That's why we went there. To try and work with him."
Erik scowled. "You couldn't solve it, but he can?"
To him, Charles and Hank were the most brilliant minds he knew. If they couldn't fix it, who could?
Beast let out a slow sigh. "If he's capable of isolating the X-Gene down to the molecular level, then yes. He's working beyond cellular expression. I'm still operating on the microcellular plane."
"The suppression serum was designed to attack the gene's unique expression markers… If he's where I think he is—"
He stopped. Erik was already lost.
"Forget it. I'll dive deeper when we return."
The cabin fell silent.
---
Meanwhile, Nolan had already moved on.
To him, Magneto wasn't a threat. Not really. As long as Erik remained ignorant of the full electromagnetic spectrum, he was nothing but a glorified metal bender.
He could pull bridges, sure—but all he did was swing heavier hammers.
If Erik had even a modest understanding of electromagnetic theory, if he had studied coil guns, railguns, or even basic weaponized EM manipulation, he could've been ten times more dangerous.
But instead, he settled for flinging knives.
"Control over magnetic force," Nolan murmured, examining the vial of blood he'd taken. "One of the fundamental forces of the universe… and he barely scratched the surface."
He was determined to master it.
Unlike most powers, magnetism wasn't flashy. But it was foundational one of the universe's Four Fundamental Forces. Even in a world with magic and chaos energy, those forces remained pillars of physics.
And Nolan wasn't one to leave power on the table.
His thoughts were interrupted by the lab intercom.
"Dr. Nolan," came Max's voice. "Subject Blackvoid is requesting a conversation."
Black sky.
Nolan's eyes narrowed slightly. The only remaining test subjects in this wing were Blacksky… and Scott Summers.
He sealed the blood sample and placed it into a containment pod, then walked toward the holding cells.
Inside the reinforced vault, Blacksky waited.
His voice came low and defeated.
"If I agree to your terms… will you let me go?"
There was no defiance left in him. Nolan had already drained the demon-infused mutant like a factory-farmed animal, extracting dark energy daily like he was milking a cow.
At this point, death would've been a mercy.
But Nolan didn't grant mercy. Not yet. Not when there was still value.
Blacksky had finally realized the terrifying truth: the worst fate wasn't dying in battle.
It was surviving in Nolan's lab.
He had once feared devils. Now he served one.
And the devil's name… was Nolan.
----
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