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"The professor's ability violates people's privacy," Aidan said casually. "Most people respect him now, but eventually they'll get suspicious. And Charles might not always be able to hold himself back."
Magneto's face darkened as the implications sank in. The morning breeze rustled through the trees around them, but Erik barely noticed. Ever since he'd returned, the world felt completely different. Everything had shifted while he was away.
"You're saying Charles will become the very thing we've been fighting against," Erik said slowly, his voice barely above a whisper.
"Not on purpose. But power corrupts, even the best intentions." Aidan leaned back on the bench, watching a group of students practice their abilities on the far lawn. "How many times have you seen telepaths go too far? Start with 'just a little peek' and end up controlling everyone around them?"
The question hit harder than Erik expected. He'd seen it before - mutants who started with noble goals, then gradually convinced themselves that a little mental nudging was for the greater good. Then a little more. Then complete control.
"Charles isn't like that," Erik protested.
"Charles is human. Well, mutant, but you know what I mean." Aidan shrugged. "Give anyone unlimited access to other people's thoughts and eventually they'll use it wrong. Maybe not today, maybe not next year, but eventually."
Especially this Baymax Company and the kid sitting next to him. Aidan never went overboard with violence, but every time he showed his power, it was perfectly calculated. He didn't just stay on the right side of morality - he actually made himself look like the hero every time.
Erik studied the young man's profile as he watched the students. There was something unsettling about how Aidan could discuss Charles's potential corruption so matter-of-factly.
"So what's your solution?" Erik asked.
"Remove the temptation. Charles takes the suppressant, goes back to being a regular genius instead of a mind-reader. Problem solved."
"And if he refuses?"
Aidan's smile was sharp. "He won't. Charles is too smart not to see the logic."
Erik could see the strategy now, and it was brilliant in its simplicity. Aidan stayed on the sidelines from the start, watching everything play out like some kind of chess master. Only when things got bad enough did he swoop in like a savior to clean up the mess. During the invasion, both the Baymax Company and the Avengers helped out. But somehow the Avengers ended up looking scary to regular people with their raw power and collateral damage, while Baymax got praised for actually rescuing individuals one by one.
"You planned this whole conversation, didn't you?" Erik realized. "Getting me to agree to your terms, then hitting Charles with the suppressant idea when he's watching."
"Charles is listening to every word we're saying right now," Aidan confirmed. "Aren't you, Professor?"
Professor Xavier's slight wince confirmed it. "I apologize. Old habits."
"See what I mean?" Aidan gestured toward Charles. "You just proved my point. You couldn't help yourself from eavesdropping on a private conversation, even knowing it would prove you can't be trusted with that power."
The accusation hung in the air like smoke. Charles opened his mouth to defend himself, then closed it as the truth of Aidan's words settled in.
"I'll consider the suppressant," Charles said quietly.
An hour later, Magneto was walking through the Brotherhood's hideout, that damning list weighing heavy in his pocket. The abandoned warehouse smelled of rust and old concrete. His footsteps echoed as he moved between the makeshift living spaces his followers had created.
"Everyone, gather around," he called out, his voice carrying that familiar authority that had held the Brotherhood together for years.
Mystique emerged from the shadows first, her blue skin catching the dim light filtering through broken windows. "Erik? You're back early. How did the meeting go?"
"Better than expected. We have new orders."
Pyro lounged against a concrete pillar, absently creating small flames that danced between his fingers. "Let me guess - more recruitment drives? Hit more government facilities?"
"No." Magneto pulled out the list, the papers crinkling in the silence. "We're cleaning house."
The mood shifted instantly. Mystique straightened, her yellow eyes narrowing. "What kind of cleaning?"
"The kind that's long overdue." He looked around at the dozen or so Brotherhood members present. "Some of our people have gone too far. Killed innocents. Become the monsters the humans say we are."
Toad shifted nervously in the corner, his tongue darting out to wet his lips. "Boss, you're not talking about-"
"I'm talking about justice." Magneto's voice cut through the space like a blade. "We fight for mutant rights, not mutant supremacy. There's a difference."
He started reading names from the list. With each one, faces around the room grew more tense. These weren't strangers - these were people they'd fought alongside, shared meals with, trusted with their lives.
"This is what we're doing now," Magneto continued. "We clean up our own mess. We show the world that mutants can police themselves."
"And if they resist?" Sabretooth asked from the back, his voice a low growl.
Magneto's eyes flashed. "Then they learn why I lead the Brotherhood."
Meanwhile, Professor Xavier sat in Cerebro, the amplifier humming around his skull as he cast his consciousness across vast distances. Each mutant signature appeared in his mind like a distant star, some bright and clear, others flickering with fear or pain.
A young girl in Montana, maybe fourteen, accidentally freezing everything she touches. Parents don't understand, getting scared.
He marked the location. Social worker visit first, then maybe Scott and Jean could help with power training.
Three teenagers in Florida using their abilities to rob convenience stores. Not malicious, just desperate for money.
Another mark. This one would need Erik's touch - show them what real power looked like, scare them straight before they hurt someone.
A man in his thirties in Nevada who could phase through walls. Using it to spy on neighbors.
Charles's expression soured. That was exactly the kind of behavior that gave all mutants a bad reputation. This one went on the priority list.
Hours passed as he systematically mapped the hidden mutant population. Each mind he touched carried its own story - fear, anger, hope, confusion. So many young people discovering abilities they didn't understand, with no guidance and no community.
This is why we need the Institute, he thought. This is why Charles's dream matters.
But Aidan's words echoed in his mind. How many times had he justified a little telepathic nudge here, a small mental adjustment there? Always for good reasons, of course. Always to help.
Maybe that's exactly how it starts.
Down in the Hive, Aidan stepped through a portal and found himself back on Apex Island. The transition from autumn air to the lab's recycled atmosphere always took a moment to adjust to. May and Peter had already gone home to Queens - smart move, since Queens was far enough from Manhattan to avoid the worst damage from the invasion.
The lab buzzed with activity even though no humans worked here. Robotic arms moved in precise choreography, assembling components for projects he'd barely had time to think about. The AI had been busy while he was gone.
He walked across the main floor, his reflection multiplying in the polished surfaces around him. The scanner recognized him and the floor started its familiar descent. Green light washed over him as security systems confirmed his identity for the dozenth time.
The elevator dropped through layers of increasingly serious engineering. First the research levels, then manufacturing, then the deep ocean sections where the real pressure started. Through the acrylic walls, he caught glimpses of the underwater world most humans would never see.
Schools of fish moved in perfect formation past the windows, their silver scales catching the artificial light. Somewhere in the distance, larger shapes moved through the darkness - creatures that had made their home in the deep waters around the island. A giant squid's tentacle brushed against the outer hull, the impact barely registering through the reinforced barriers.
"Still gets me every time," he murmured, watching a jellyfish the size of a car drift past, its translucent bell pulsing with internal light.
Inside the Hive proper, robots worked with mechanical precision. No chatter, no break rooms, no office politics - just pure efficiency. The constant hum of machinery created an almost meditative background noise.
"White Queen, status report on current projects."
"Chitauri technology reverse-engineering proceeding on schedule. Defensive robot upgrades at 73% completion. Arena combat system for Leviathan corpses still in design phase. Satellite construction complete and ready for deployment."
"Show me the satellite."
A holographic display materialized in front of him, rotating the satellite's schematic in three dimensions. Every component was highlighted with status indicators - all green.
"Manufacturing room. Follow the markers."
The path lit up beneath his feet. He walked through corridors lined with workstations where robotic arms assembled circuit boards with microscopic precision. The air smelled faintly of ozone and hot metal.
The manufacturing bay was massive - easily the size of an aircraft hangar. Their satellite sat in the center like a technological sculpture. Solar panels folded against its sides like sleeping wings, the main cylindrical body gleaming under work lights, signal dish pointed toward what would soon be Earth, and the space pillar mounted prominently on the front end where energy still pulsed in slow, hypnotic waves.
"Beautiful work," Aidan said, walking around the satellite to inspect every angle. "Any last-minute adjustments needed?"
"Built to exact specifications. All systems tested and functional."
"Perfect. Let's send this baby up to orbit."
He stepped back to a safe distance. "Initiating teleportation. Monitor gravitational capture and orbital insertion."
"All systems monitoring."
The air around the satellite began to shimmer. Electric sparks danced along its surface, growing brighter until they formed a coherent field. Reality bent, twisted, and the satellite simply ceased to exist in that location.
Aidan's battle suit had already materialized around him - the portal's pressure differential hit like a truck if you weren't prepared. The familiar weight settled across his shoulders as his helmet sealed with a soft hiss.
36,000 kilometers above Earth, space twisted and sparked. The satellite materialized in the vacuum, its systems immediately coming online. Solar panels unfolded like mechanical flowers as energy began flowing through its circuits. Tiny thrusters fired in calculated bursts, nudging it into perfect geosynchronous orbit where it would hang motionless relative to Earth's surface.
One eye in the sky, operational.
Back in the Hive, Aidan shed his armor and moved to the control station. Multiple screens lit up with telemetry data, orbital mechanics calculations, and system status reports. Everything was green across the board.
"Connection established. All systems nominal," White Queen reported. "Ready for operational testing."
"Let's see what this thing can do. Give me a view of Apex Island."
The main screen flickered, then displayed an ocean view that looked too good to be true. Colors too vibrant, details too perfect.
"Turn off the image enhancement," he said, recognizing the artificial processing. "I want raw feed."
"Enhancement disabled."
The real Apex Island appeared on screen - the white central building rising from tropical vegetation, beaches with actual sand patterns instead of perfect curves, and the construction area where grass was still recovering from heavy machinery. Real, imperfect, honest.
"Now show me Xavier's Institute."
The satellite's cameras pivoted smoothly, refocusing across hundreds of miles in seconds. The Institute grounds appeared in crisp detail - students moving across lawns, some using powers in small ways. A girl was making flowers bloom faster, another was levitating his homework while walking.
"Image quality is perfect. What about the special functions?"
"All sensors operational. Electromagnetic spectrum analysis, thermal imaging, motion detection, and communication intercept capabilities online."
"Good. Now let's test the real prize. I'm going topside for teleportation trials."
The elevator carried him back to the surface where afternoon sun warmed the artificial grass. A sheep was grazing peacefully near the landing pad - probably escaped from the small farm they maintained for food production.
"Perfect timing," he grinned. "White Queen, lock onto this sheep and transport it to the spaceship at Xavier's Institute."
"Target acquired. Initiating transport."
Blue light erupted from the sky like a spotlight from heaven. The sheep looked up with mild interest as energy surrounded it, probably wondering if this was some new type of weather. The light intensified, reality bent, and the sheep vanished.
Hundreds of miles away at Xavier's Institute, students looked up as an identical beam deposited one confused animal on their lawn. The sheep blinked, looked around at its dramatically changed surroundings, and decided this was perfectly normal.
"Maa... maa..."
"Transportation successful. Zero energy loss, perfect molecular integrity," White Queen confirmed.
"Outstanding." Aidan opened a portal, eager to check on his four-legged test pilot. "We just revolutionized travel for earth and space ."
The portal's familiar energy washed over him as he stepped through dimensions like walking through a doorway.
At Xavier's Institute, the sheep was already making friends with some students who were delighted by its sudden appearance. Scott Summers was trying to explain orbital mechanics to a group of teenagers who were more interested in whether they could teleport themselves.
"Can we try it?" one student asked excitedly.
"Absolutely not," Scott replied firmly. "We're not testing experimental technology on students."
"But the sheep looks fine," another pointed out.
The sheep, for its part, had decided that interdimensional travel was significantly less interesting than the grass it was currently eating.
Aidan emerged from his portal nearby, drawing curious looks from the students. "How's our test subject doing?"
"Seems perfectly normal," Scott admitted. "But that doesn't mean-"
"Relax, Summers. I'm not planning to teleport students anytime soon." Aidan knelt down to examine the sheep, running a hand through its wool to check for any signs of molecular displacement. "Though once we perfect the system, you'll be able to visit anywhere on Earth instantly."
"The applications are incredible," Scott said, his tactical mind already running through possibilities. "Rescue operations, disaster relief, rapid deployment..."
"Medical emergencies," Aidan added. "Transport patients to hospitals in seconds instead of hours. Ship medical supplies anywhere on the planet instantly."
Around them, students listened with growing excitement. A world where distance meant nothing, where anyone could help anyone else regardless of location.
"There's more coming," Aidan said, standing and brushing sheep wool off his hands. "This is just the beginning."
"Tech City blueprints are finished," he told Scott. "Once construction starts, we'll have a proper research center where humans and mutants can work together on projects that help everyone."
"When do you start building?"
"Soon. Thor and I have some other business to handle first."
PLZ THROW POWERSTONES.