The evening had been expensive but worth it. Lucien had taken Galacta, Anna, Laura, Daniel, and Illyana out for shopping and dinner, spending a whopping ten thousand dollars between clothes, food, and basic necessities for his new roommates.
Watching them pick out their first new clothes in months—or years, in some cases—had been worth every penny.
Now Lucien was laying in his room, staring at the ceiling. Galacta had crashed at their place, claiming Lucien's couch was more comfortable than her own bed. Daniel was in the other bed across from him, already fast asleep and snoring softly. The girls had taken the master bedroom together.
Lucien quietly opened the loot box he'd gotten from today's daily quest. Inside was something that made him sit up with excitement—a C-Rank Dungeon Key, shimmering with blue energy.
Finally. This was the first time he'd gotten anything above E-rank. This was exactly what he needed to push his strength to the next level.
He put it in his inventory and decided to save it for later. Right now, everyone needed rest more than he needed power.
Sleep came easier than expected.
He woke up at five in the morning, his internal clock as reliable as ever. Quietly, he slipped out of the apartment and headed to Central Park to complete his daily missions. The four hundred push-ups, sit-ups, squats, and pull-ups took about forty minutes, followed by his twenty-kilometer run.
I could do this much faster, he thought as he jogged through the empty streets, but it oddly feels relaxing running slower.
When he returned to the apartment, everyone was still sleeping. Looking at their peaceful faces, he realized this was probably the first time in months—maybe years—that any of them had felt safe enough to sleep deeply.
He didn't have the heart to disturb anyone.
Quietly, he slipped into the bathroom for a quick shower, then headed to the kitchen. He didn't know everyone's food preferences yet, so he decided to go all out.
He made fluffy pancakes with real maple syrup, crispy bacon, scrambled eggs with cheese, fresh fruit salad, hash browns, and toast with different spreads. The smell of cooking bacon filled the apartment, and he could hear people starting to stir in the bedrooms.
When he thought the food was almost ready, he gently knocked on both bedroom doors.
"Everyone up," he called softly. "Breakfast is ready."
Daniel stumbled out first, his hair sticking up at odd angles. "Smells amazing in here. Is that... is that actual bacon? Like, real bacon?"
"As real as it gets," Lucien replied with a smile.
From the master bedroom, Anna emerged looking refreshed. But Illyana came out after her with sweat beading on her forehead, looking tense and alert like she'd been fighting something in her sleep.
"You okay?" Anna asked, noticing Illyana's condition before Lucien could.
Illyana immediately put on her bratty front, waving a dismissive hand. "Nothing. Just the AC isn't cooling enough in there."
Everyone knew it was an obvious lie—the apartment's temprature control was perfect—but nobody called her out on it. She clearly wasn't comfortable sharing whatever had happened.
Lucien nodded. "Well, get ready, everyone. See you at the table."
He returned to the kitchen to finish plating the food. Within a few minutes, everyone had freshened up and gathered around the dining table. The spread looked impressive even by his standards.
"Holy crap," Daniel said, staring at the table with wide eyes. "This looks like one of those hotel breakfast buffets. You know, the ones rich people go to."
"I can't remember the last time I had a real breakfast," Laura said, already reaching for the bacon. "In the facility, breakfast was this gray paste they said contained all essential nutrients."
"Don't remind me," Illyana said with a shudder. "I'm pretty sure that stuff was designed to keep us alive, not actually nourish us."
Anna smiled as she took a bite of pancake, her eyes closing in appreciation. "This brings back memories of our first pizza. Remember how good real food tasted after months of that facility garbage?"
Lucien smiled at the memory. "You cried a little when you tasted it."
"I did not cry," Anna protested, though she was grinning. "I just... had an emotional response to proper seasoning."
"You definitely cried," Lucien teased. "Happy tears, but still tears."
"Okay, maybe a tiny bit," Anna admitted. "But can you blame me? After eating flavorless mush for months, that pizza was like... like tasting color for the first time."
Illyana cut into her pancakes and took a big bite. "This is way more tasty than those trashy, nutrient-packed cubes they fed us. Seriously, how did they even make food taste like nothing? That takes skill."
"Bad skill," Daniel added, loading his plate with hash browns. "The kind of skill you don't want."
Laura was working her way through the bacon, eating with the efficiency of someone who'd gone hungry too many times. "They probably did it on purpose. Happy prisoners are harder to control."
"That's dark," Daniel said, pausing mid-bite.
"But probably true," Anna agreed quietly.
Galacta, who had been quietly demolishing her third helping of pancakes, looked up. "At least you guys got food at all. On some planets my father visited, the inhabitants had already exhausted their food sources before he arrived. Starvation is, unfortunately, common across the galaxy."
The table went quiet for a moment as everyone processed that casual mention of planetary destruction.
"Well, that's... perspective, I guess," Daniel said weakly.
"Sorry," Galacta said, noticing their expressions. "I forget that cosmic horror isn't great breakfast conversation."
"It's fine," Lucien said. "We've all got our baggage."
Laura grunted in agreement, already moving on to her second plate. Lucien had made extra food specifically for her and Galacta.
Laura was wild about the food... technically, she was wild about everything. Galacta was literally the daughter of a cosmic entity who devoured planets. No matter what he put on the table, she probably wouldn't get her fill.
"So," Lucien said as everyone continued eating, "today I'm bringing the other kids to the X-Mansion. Did you guys want to tag along? Might be interesting to see the place."
"Yes," Anna said immediately. "I want to see where they're going."
"Sure," Daniel nodded enthusiastically. "I'd like to see where I almost ended up. Plus, I've heard stories about the X-Mansion since I was a kid. Never thought I'd actually get to see it."
"What kind of stories?" Illyana asked, her tone curious despite her attempt to sound disinterested.
"You know, the usual stuff. Secret underground training rooms, high-tech everything, Professor Xavier's legendary Cerebro machine. My mom used to say it was like a school for gifted kids, but also kind of like a fortress."
"Sounds about right," Anna murmured. "Fortress is probably accurate, given the government involvement."
"Sounds interesting," Illyana said with her usual smirk. "I want to see what all the fuss is about. Plus, I know someone there."
He wanted to ask whom she knew, but he stopped; he would know in some time anyway.
Laura just grunted, which he took as agreement. However, he did feel her getting tense.
"I'll pass," Galacta said, stabbing another piece of pancake. "I gotta work on my blog today. My posting schedule is very important to my readers."
"Blog?" Daniel asked curiously, perking up. "What kind of blog?"
"I write about my life here on Earth," Galacta explained casually. "Day-to-day stuff, cultural observations, trying to understand human customs. That sort of thing."
"That sounds really cool," Anna said. "What's it called?"
"'Cosmic Girl's Guide to Earth Life,'" Galacta replied. "Most people think it's fantasy fiction because I write about being the daughter of Galactus. Some of my posts about his eating habits get pretty popular."
Daniel nearly choked on his orange juice. "Wait, you actually write about that? About your dad eating planets?"
"Why wouldn't I? It's my life. Though I try to keep it informative rather than traumatic. Like, last week I wrote about how different planetary ecosystems affect the nutritional value of worlds. Very educational."
"And people think it's fiction," Illyana said with genuine amusement. "That's actually brilliant."
"It's actually pretty popular online," Galacta continued. "I've got about fifty thousand subscribers who think I'm just a really creative writer with daddy issues."
Lucien smiled at that. "Send me the link later. I'd like to read it."
"Really? Most people just want to read the dramatic posts about cosmic destruction. You sure you want to read my thoughts on Earth coffee culture?"
"Especially that," Lucien said. "I bet you have interesting perspectives."
"Well, they're not entirely wrong about the daddy issues," Illyana said with a grin. "Just wrong about the fiction part."
Galacta laughed. "Fair point. Though to be honest, having a cosmic entity for a father is probably less traumatic than whatever you all went through in those facilities."
"Different kinds of trauma," Anna said. "But trauma all the same."
The conversation fell into a comfortable silence as everyone continued eating.
After breakfast, everyone got ready. Lucien had already asked Natasha about bringing the others along—it would have been a real bummer to ask the kids and then find out SHIELD wouldn't allow it.
They met Natasha at the designated location, where she was waiting beside a black Hummer that looked like it could survive a direct missile hit.
"Everyone ready?" she asked as they approached, giving the group a quick assessment.
"Ready," Lucien confirmed.
"Good. Fair warning—the X-Mansion is under pretty heavy security these days. Government requirement. Try not to take it personally."
"How heavy are we talking?" Laura asked, her tone sharp.
"Perimeter guards, surveillance, some restrictions on movement. Nothing too invasive, but it's noticeable."
"Sounds like a prison with better PR," Illyana muttered.
"That's unfortunately not entirely inaccurate," Natasha admitted. "But it's the best option available right now."
The Hummer ride was comfortable, though Illyana kept making comments about government vehicles and their lack of style. "Seriously, would it kill them to add some color? Everything's black or gray. Where's the personality?"
"It's designed to be intimidating, not fashionable," Natasha replied from the driver's seat.
"Well, mission accomplished on the intimidating part," Daniel said, looking out at the reinforced windows.
Twenty minutes later, they transferred to a Quinjet where the other rescued kids were already waiting.
The flight to the X-Mansion took about an hour. Through the windows, Lucien could see the sprawling grounds as they approached—green lawn, trees, and what looked like training facilities scattered around the property.
"Wow," Daniel whispered, pressing his face to the window. "It's huge. Like, really huge."
"Looks expensive," Illyana observed. "Old money expensive."
The mansion itself was enormous, a classic Gothic revival structure that looked like it belonged to old money aristocracy. Which, given that it had been built by the Xavier, was probably accurate.
As the Quinjet landed on a designated pad behind the mansion, Lucien could see they were expected. Several figures were waiting for them near the main building.
They disembarked and walked toward the mansion proper. What caught everyone's attention were the two figures standing guard beside the entrance.
They looked like Sentinel units at first glance, but as they got closer, it became clear these were humans in powered armor suits. The armor was sleek, high-tech, and definitely military grade.
"Sentinel guards," Natasha explained, noticing their stares. "Human-operated, not autonomous. Security requirement from the government."
"They look friendly," Illyana said sarcastically.
"About as friendly as they're supposed to look," Natasha replied.
The gate they'd entered through was equally impressive—black metal with the iconic X symbol emblazoned in silver. It looked both welcoming and forbidding at the same time.
"So this is it," Anna said quietly, taking in the massive structure. "The famous X-Mansion."
"Home sweet prison," Illyana muttered, though there was no real venom in her voice.
Laura was studying the guards with professional interest. "Two at the front, probably more around the perimeter. Standard security positioning for a high-value facility."
"High-value prisoners, you mean," Daniel said quietly.
"It's beautiful," one of the younger rescued kids said with obvious awe, not catching the darker implications of the conversation.
Lucien had to admit it was impressive.
But he couldn't shake the feeling that all this grandeur came with strings attached. The mansion might be beautiful, but those guards at the door were a constant reminder that the people inside weren't truly free.
As they approached the main entrance, the massive doors began to open, revealing figures waiting to welcome them inside.
.....
POWER STONE GOAL: 700 ( 1 Extra Chapter)
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