Alex's head spun, his senses thrown off balance.
He blinked, finding himself in a dark, cramped appliance store inside the mall—the same one he'd entered before crossing into the X-Men world. His pulse quickened.
He was back where he started.
A month in the X-Men world, but how much time had passed here? More urgently, this mall swarmed with zombies, including a deadly second-level phantom zombie.
Alex had picked up combat skills, but facing that monster? He wasn't so sure.
He sighed, frustrated. If he'd known he'd return, he'd have copied Azazel's teleportation, even if it cost 10 years of his life. It would've kept him safe.
Or maybe Angel's flight to slip away.
Tensing, Alex spotted two stainless steel cups. With his magnetic powers, he twisted them into sharp, gleaming metal shards, letting them hover by his sides for protection. The mall's zombie threat loomed large.
Bang, bang, bang! Gunfire exploded nearby, sharp and loud.
The noise lured zombies toward it. Alex guided his shards, slicing through two zombies' heads, then crept toward the sound, staying on the second floor for a vantage point.
Below, a supermarket door gaped open.
Three Awakened fighters battled a zombie horde. A burly man unleashed a machine gun, cutting down zombies in a fiery storm. A lean man hurled ping-pong-sized fireballs, blasting stray zombies' skulls. Leading them, a woman in a red trench coat wielded a spear, her strikes swift and deadly, carving through the horde like a predator in a herd.
"Impressive," Alex whispered. They were second-level Awakened, no doubt.
Whoosh! A black shadow lunged, claws flashing. Alex dodged, sending his shards forward. They clashed, ripping a chunk from the railing. Alex tumbled to the ground below.
"Don't shoot! I'm human!" he shouted, feeling guns trained on him.
"A human here?" the gunman muttered, lowering his weapon.
A piercing screech cut through, like metal scraping. A gaunt, beast-like figure clung to the second floor, with sharp teeth and a bone tail—cut down by Alex's shards. A second-level phantom zombie, the one that wiped out his old team.
Its gray eyes locked on Alex, and it leaped, lightning-fast. The woman in red moved quicker, her spear piercing its skull. With a flick, she tossed the corpse aside, unfazed, like it was nothing.
She eyed Alex's floating shards, then scanned him with a watch-like device—an energy scanner, rare like those at Greenridge base. "Only 5 crystal points?" she said, glancing at the readings. "A first-level Awakened, alone in this city?"
"What a newbie!" the gunman laughed.
"That phantom zombie took out my team," Alex said, sheepish. "I've been hiding for days."
The scanner measured energy as "crystal points": single digits for first-level, tens for second-level, hundreds for third-level. His father, Greenridge's former leader, had over 300 points, a third-level Awakened.
"Guess fate's on your side," the woman said. "Surviving with 5 points? Join us as a reserve member. Hit second-level, and you might go official."
"Deal," Alex nodded. Alone, he'd die in this zombie-infested city. These fighters were his way out. Reserve status was fine—strangers owed him nothing, but teammates were a lifeline.
Altruism? That vanished in the apocalypse's first year.
As they moved, the team introduced themselves. The woman, Claire Parker, was the captain, a second-level Awakened with 75 crystal points. The fireball user, Evan Holt, had 52 points, also second-level. The gunman, Max Stone, had 38 points, second-level.
"Alex, first-level Awakened, 5 crystal points," Alex said.
"Welcome aboard," Claire said, nodding. "Stick with us, you'll make it."
"Got it," Alex replied, ready to roll.
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"By the way, Alex, you mentioned your team got wiped out in the mall. Is there a safe base nearby?" Claire asked, leading the way.
With Claire, Evan, and Max—second-level Awakened—clearing the path, the four moved smoothly out of the city, carving a path through the zombies. Claire glanced back, waiting for Alex's answer.
Alex controlled a gleaming steel bayonet Max had given him, guiding it through the air to cut down zombies one by one, pulling his weight. "About 20 miles west, there's Greenridge Mountain," he said. "A survivor base is up there, with around 20,000 people."
As he spoke, Alex realized Claire's team wasn't from Greenridge. It made sense. Back when he was the leader's son at Greenridge, he knew or heard of most strong second-level Awakened, but Claire, Evan, and Max were unfamiliar. In this apocalypse, with danger everywhere, it wasn't odd for survivors to drift or join other bases.
"Just 20,000? That's a small base," Claire said, nodding. "Let's head to Greenridge."
The group fought their way out of the zombie-infested city. A few second-level evolved zombies popped up, but Claire and her team handled them with ease.
"Finally, a base!" Max grinned, his eyes lighting up as he clutched his machine gun. "We've been lost wanderers for two weeks. Man, I'm dying for a hot meal, and maybe charm a couple of ladies, heh heh heh." He talked a mile a minute.
Evan stayed quiet, his fireballs flashing faster, cutting down zombies. Alex noticed their opposite vibes: Max's loud energy versus Evan's calm focus.
The 20-mile trek flew by. Soon, Greenridge base loomed ahead, nestled at Greenridge Mountain's base. Towering earthen walls wrapped around half the mountain, while a sheer cliff guarded the rest—a natural fortress.
"Greenridge… I'm back," Alex whispered, his heart swelling with mixed emotions. Left for dead in the mall, powerless and betrayed by his team, he never dreamed he'd return. Now, with his Awakening, he vowed to grow stronger and one day reclaim this base.
Inside, Claire slipped into a quiet corner and pulled two 50-kilogram rice bags from a tiny pouch on her belt.
Alex gaped. How'd those fit?
"It's a dimensional bag from Valor City," Max said. "Made by a space-powered Awakened. Rare here, but no big deal back home."
That cleared things up. In the mall, Alex had wondered why they left the supermarket empty-handed.
Rice was plentiful at Greenridge. With money useless in the apocalypse, folks bartered goods. The team hit a restaurant, ate their fill, then rented a wooden house. It wasn't much, but it beat camping out. Rent cost a few supplies every ten days.
"Alex, you're the local pro," Max said. "Take me to the trade market. We need stuff."
They set off, but when Max saw a woman by a grove, he wandered off with her, leaving Alex to shop.
Smiling and shaking his head, Alex went on alone.
In the apocalypse, danger lurked everywhere. Awakened fighters, facing death daily, lived for the moment, savoring life's fleeting joys.
As Alex walked, he quietly pondered his Awakening. Before triggering his powers, his crystal points were a mere 1.
Now, they'd climbed to 5, likely thanks to Charles's training. He'd felt his metal control sharpen during those sessions. Did higher crystal points boost his copied abilities' strength?
Earlier, walking with Max, Alex had acted chummy, slinging an arm around his shoulders. As expected, touching Max—even in this real world—triggered his ability. A mental drive appeared in his mind, ready to copy genes. His power worked here, not just in other planes.
Glancing at his palm, Alex noticed a faint tattoo, slowly forming a computer pattern, more defined than before. His pulse quickened. Could completing the pattern let him travel planes again?
Max's shopping excuse was flimsy—Claire's dimensional bag was stuffed with supplies from the supermarket. Still, at the trade market, Alex didn't leave empty-handed. He snagged a map.
Back at their house, Claire and Evan pored over the map, intrigued. "Valor City's here," Claire said, tracing a spot. "Greenridge is here. That's over 400 miles. We've come a long way."
Bang! The door slammed open. Max burst in, breathless.
"What's wrong?" Claire asked, turning, brow furrowed.
"I saw Ethan," Max said through gritted teeth.
"Ethan? He's hiding here!?" Claire's face darkened, her voice icy.
Alex's eyes widened. He knew Ethan—a third-level Awakened with a steel body, now Greenridge's temporary leader. Ethan arrived a year ago, his strength earning Alex's father's trust fast.
Seeing Max and Claire's reactions, Alex sensed trouble. Ethan and Claire's team knew each other—and it looked like bad blood.
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