A familiar sonic boom cracked through the sky as Alex landed heavily in the courtyard of the base.
"It's the Headmaster!"
"Man, I wish I could fly too..."
Mutant students who had been training or playing nearby turned at the sound, eyes wide with admiration.
To break free from gravity's grip—that dream alone stirred wonder in every young heart.
And Alex didn't just fly—he was said to shoot lasers from his eyes like Scott, move at the speed of sound, and shrug off bullets like rain.
A crowd of excited young mutants rushed over to greet him.
Alex responded with a simple nod to each of them, calm as always.
A mechanical rustling sound caught his attention.
Looking over, Alex saw Vincent deep in training.
Thick vines snaked from the ground at his command, coiling upward and lifting an entire car effortlessly.
With a roar, Vincent hurled the car skyward.
But before it could crash down, another bundle of vines shot from the ground, catching it mid-air like a safety net and gently lowering it to the ground.
"You did it, Vincent!"
"That was incredible!"
Cheers erupted around him. The other students clapped and shouted in celebration.
Vincent took a deep breath, face flushed with pride. He barely acknowledged the praise—his eyes were locked on Alex.
"Headmaster—I did it!"
Vincent was one of the base's earliest members. Back when Alex first brought him in, his control over his powers was laughably unstable.
Now? The difference was night and day.
Alex smiled, walking over and clapping a hand on Vincent's shoulder. "Well done."
That single compliment sent Vincent soaring.
Even though he and Alex were close in age, Vincent knew they were worlds apart.
He was a rising star.
Receiving praise from a living legend?
"Keep at it. Just pretend I'm not here."
After exchanging a few more greetings, Alex made his way into the meeting hall.
The room was buzzing with energy—full house tonight.
Scanning the crowd, Alex saw that Hank, Raven, and Copycat had all returned from their Lorien retrieval missions.
Smith and Number Six were there as well—and sitting beside them were two new faces, one adult and one younger.
Clearly, more Lorien survivors.
Apparently, the retrieval team had succeeded in their mission—and even beat Alex back to the base.
Of course, it wasn't because they were faster—it was just that their targets had been much closer.
"Looks like your mission went smoothly."
Alex stepped confidently into the room as all eyes turned to him.
"It did," Raven nodded. "We didn't run into any Mogadorians."
She glanced at Alex. "Judging by your timing, yours went well too."
Alex gave a slight nod.
Then he turned to Smith and Six. "You don't have to worry about the Mogadorians anymore. They're all dead."
Both Smith and Number Six lit up in astonishment and joy.
It sounded unbelievable—but they had seen Alex fight before.
"What?! The Mogadorians are dead? That's impossible!"
The long-haired man sitting beside Smith spoke up, eyes filled with skepticism.
Alex turned toward him, expression calm.
Smith quickly jumped in. "Alex, this is Henry—Number Four's protector. And that's Number Four."
"Henry, this is the man I told you about. The one who took us in—Alex."
Henry's eyes widened, realizing his earlier outburst had been inappropriate. "Regardless, thank you—for everything you've done for us."
But the younger man beside him—Number Four—wasn't so convinced.
"You're really Alex? Are you actually as strong as they say?"
He stared Alex down, unable to hide his doubt.
On the way here, Smith and Six had told them all about Alex's feats—how he killed entire squads of Mogadorians, slaughtered Bloodthirsty Devourers, and took laser blasts to the face without flinching.
It sounded less like a warrior… and more like a fairy tale.
Not even the Kree were that overpowered.
"Four!" Henry snapped, clearly displeased.
Even if some details had been exaggerated, it was undeniable that Alex had united the Lorien survivors.
They owed him everything.
Alex didn't respond to Four's jab. He just turned to Smith.
"Did you tell them about the Sacred Stone?"
Before Smith could reply, Henry stepped forward.
"He did. And here..."
He pulled a metal box from his travel pack and handed it over.
"This is what you're looking for, right? The Sacred Stone."
"Henry!" Four looked alarmed.
"I know what I'm doing."
Henry cut him off firmly.
As Smith had explained, the Sacred Stone was originally meant to help find the other Lorien survivors.
And now that it had served that purpose…
There was no point clinging to it.
But more importantly, Henry wasn't naïve.
He understood the situation clearly.
They had no say in the matter anymore.
And refusing Alex now?
Would only be suicide.
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