"You're not staying to help?" Mystique asked, her voice carrying more bite than weakness.
It wasn't that she needed him as a meat shield—though he had proven useful at that. What Raven really needed was numbers. With Xavier's credibility shaken, she had to anchor the team herself, keep them from unraveling completely. The Brotherhood wasn't an option—too branded, too political. The kids at the school? Not trained for war.
That left Henry. Alien or not, he was the most practical option. Even if all he did was take hits, that was one more line of defense.
Henry shrugged. "Help with what? This is family business. Me stepping in would only make it worse. Call me when you've got aliens to punch. Earth drama? Not my thing."
"Then get the hell out."
The team, still reeling from their humiliating defeat, didn't argue. No one had the energy to beg him to stay, and Raven herself didn't want to waste time trying to twist his arm. If he wasn't going to commit, she'd rather not have an outsider sitting in on what came next.
Henry grinned. Permission to leave granted—perfect. No sense running into fire when he could be living comfortably in peace. Being a superhero didn't come with a paycheck.
He clapped a heavy hand on Nightcrawler's shoulder, making Kurt flinch with a startled "ach!"—just as Henry expected. "Hey, pal. Be a guide and poof me outta here. I don't know these underground hallways, and if I wander into the wrong place—say, a women's locker room—things could get awkward."
Kurt tilted his head. "But… those places have signs. Nobody stumbles into them by accident."
Henry grinned wider. "Alien, remember? Don't read Earth languages."
"…Oh. Right." Ever-trusting Kurt bought it without question. He grabbed Henry's arm and—bamf!—the two vanished in a puff of brimstone smoke.
With the outsider gone, Raven's focus sharpened. She couldn't sit up, but her voice was crisp as she asked, "Where's Charles?"
"In his office," Storm answered.
Mystique had seen horrors Xavier never would—mutants taken by soldiers, dissected in labs, turned into test subjects. She had infiltrated summits alone, assassinated Trask, the man behind the Sentinel program. She wasn't just a lieutenant or a loyalist. She had always been willing to take action.
And now, with Xavier paralyzed—mentally, if not physically—Raven took charge.
"Hank, I need you to analyze whatever Jean absorbed. Don't give me that solar flare nonsense. Her mutation doesn't work like that. I want the truth—what she took in, and what it's doing to her."
Hank hesitated. "But I still need to monitor your condition—"
Raven's glare cut him off. He corrected quickly, "Though… my astrophysics background is limited. I already stretched my analysis as far as it goes. But I know someone who might help. The problem is, he might dismiss it as trivial and refuse."
Raven's brow arched. "And he's reliable?" She didn't mean his intellect—she meant his stance on mutants.
Hank sighed. "Richards is… Richards. He's a genius, maybe the genius. In his eyes, humans and mutants are equally foolish. He doesn't see a distinction. If he insults you, it won't be prejudice—it'll just be Reed being Reed."
Another headache, then. Still, Raven nodded. "Fine. If he can help, bring him in."
"I'll try to reach him." Hank moved off to place the call.
Raven turned to the others. "Scott, use our contacts. Find Jean. Ororo, go to Genosha. Ask Erik what he knows."
Just then—bamf!—Nightcrawler reappeared in the center of the room, looking lost.
Raven sighed. "Kurt, go with Ororo. Gather intel."
Scott immediately cut in, his tone firm. "Raven, let me go to Erik. Ororo should handle the intel."
Ororo didn't argue either way, so Raven relented. "Fine. Sort it out amongst yourselves. Just move."
The three exchanged glances, then bolted from the med bay.
Raven, sinking back into the bed, muttered under her breath. "Ah… youth."
Meanwhile, in Earth's orbit, aboard a battered D'Bari warship, another council was forming—one that could change the fate of their species. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ 𝔫𝔬𝔳𝔢𝔩·𝔣𝔦𝔯𝔢·𝔫𝔢𝔱
The ship's science officer bowed before their leader, Vuk, and reported:
"We have traced the energy that destroyed our homeworld. It is not a weapon forged by any civilization. It is an independent, free-roaming force of inconceivable scale.
"It is not only destructive. Our long pursuit has shown us instances where this energy reshaped planetary landscapes… even seeded primitive life.
"Until now, we have avoided it because we had no means to harness it. But this planet's natives have shown us a path—using a single host to contain the energy.
"Our surveillance confirms: the chosen host still functions, wielding abilities beyond her kind. With training, she could unlock its full potential.
"I propose we claim the energy for ourselves. Select one of our own to serve as vessel. Through them, the D'Bari will rise again."
Vuk's gaze swept the bridge, voice hard as steel. "Who among you objects? Speak now."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
🎉 Power Stone Goal Announcement! 🎉
I'll release one bonus chapter for every 500 Power Stones we hit!"
Let me know what should I do
Your support means everything—let's crush these goals together! Keep voting, and let the stones pile up! 🚀
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~