> "The speech has shocked the entire world."
> "In just a few days, the President of the United States has made two completely contradictory statements."
> "These conflicting declarations have cast even more doubt over the Cuban Missile Crisis. Everyone wants to know—what really happened back then?"
Inside a luxurious villa, Alex, Hank, and the three girls—Raven, Emma, and Copycat—were all gathered in the living room, watching the news broadcast on the large screen.
Everyone was in great spirits.
"You did it, Alex. You actually pulled it off!"
Hank adjusted his glasses, his face flushed with excitement. He couldn't hide how thrilled he was, both impressed and exhilarated.
When Alex had first claimed he'd fight for justice for mutants, Hank had been skeptical. After all, mutants had already been thoroughly demonized in the eyes of the public. How could they possibly restore their image?
The only way would be if the U.S. government turned around and publicly contradicted its own narrative—a public slap in the face.
But how could something so impossible ever happen?
And yet, Alex had done it.
He had made the United States slap itself in front of the whole world.
At this moment, Hank felt nothing but total admiration for Alex. He was glad—grateful, even—that he had chosen to follow him in the first place.
"Yes, Hank, he really did it!" Raven laughed with joy. "I knew from the start that he could."
Alex had never let Raven down. In her eyes, he was always the strongest mutant.
"The U.S. finally made the smart move." Emma Frost, the White Queen, scoffed coldly. "If they hadn't, I wouldn't have minded joining Alex for another round. In fact... I was looking forward to it."
"Well, Emma, I guess you'll just have to be disappointed," Copycat said with a laugh.
Clearly, the U.S. had made the wisest choice.
As for Alex, his expression remained calm. The reversal didn't surprise him.
Because, truthfully, the U.S. had no other choice.
He and Emma could slaughter anyone in the country without anyone even realizing how it happened—and there was nothing the government could do about it.
Forget about taking them down—they couldn't even find them.
In that kind of situation, what options did the U.S. really have?
And besides... the Smiling Boy himself was a mutant.
"Still, even if the Smiling Boy has retracted his previous statement, the reality is that things haven't changed much for mutants on the ground," Hank said, more composed now. "If anything, the public feels even more betrayed. That anger needs a target—and once again, it's falling on mutants."
Many people simply refused to believe the truth.
That's how this country worked—people believed what they wanted to believe, not what was true.
Of course, some would change their perspective after learning the truth. But once the damage was done, the consequences were hard to reverse.
Once you've fought, once you've suppressed a group—how can you just pretend it never happened?
Both sides feel the same.
"Hank," Raven sighed. "Mutant-human coexistence is a deeply complex social issue. It's not something Alex can fix on his own."
Alex didn't speak, but he nodded slightly, agreeing with her.
Racial conflict was nothing new. Take the simplest example: even among ordinary humans, skin color alone had caused centuries of unsolvable problems. How much worse would it be for mutants, who weren't even the same species?
Even without the Cuban Missile Crisis, once mutants entered the public eye, conflict was inevitable.
Could that be avoided?
Frankly, Alex didn't think so. It was human nature—and human nature couldn't be changed by one man.
Sure, with his power, he could level a city to make a statement. He could force ordinary people to respect and fear mutants.
But what would that accomplish?
A race that survives only because of one man's protection has no future.
And Alex never saw himself as the babysitter or overlord of mutantkind.
He already acted as their nuclear deterrent. That was enough.
The rest... he'd leave to Erik and Charles.
"Are you saying there's no solution for mutants?" Copycat asked, her voice soft but serious. She gave voice to what everyone else was thinking.
"Well... Shaw's plan may have been extreme, but it was a solution," Emma said, shrugging.
If conflict was inevitable between two species—then what if only one of them remained?
"Emma, mutants aren't genocidal maniacs," Raven said sharply. "Even Erik—radical as he is—never wanted to wipe out all of humanity."
"I'm just saying," Emma replied with a shrug, clearly not taking her own words too seriously. "That plan died with Shaw anyway."
Everyone turned to Alex.
"What do you think?" Hank asked, eyes full of hope.
The others looked to him as well, waiting.
"There is a plan," Alex said after a pause, his tone deliberate. "But it's still far from ready."
If the conflict between mutants and humans couldn't be resolved—then maybe it could be sidestepped.
Creating a nation for mutants alone.
It wasn't impossible.
But it wasn't easy, either.
And right now... they weren't ready.
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