DEADLY NEW WORLD

Part VI: Destruction

By Dino Pollard

When I was a boy, my father would tell me stories about his time in a Nazi concentration camp. Of his entire family, he was the sole survivor. And why? Simply because he was Jewish.

All my life, those stories have influenced me. The Nazis who killed my father’s family weren’t finished. He was beaten to death when I was ten. By the Ku Klux Klan.

When I was fourteen, I discovered I was able to control metal paperclips. As time went on, this ability grew to include keys, watches, rings, coins, nearly anything metal. I continued to develop my abilities.

At thirty-seven years of age, I’ve mastered them.

And now, the time has come for my people to suffer no more prejudice.

The Xavier University. Westchester.

{{ Dazzler, I want a full blast to override th’ visual receptors!! Thunderbird! Beast! M! Get ready t’ move in physically!! Psyche, Cyclops, I want you to try an’ take ’em out from a distance! Storm, cover their backs! }}

“You seem to be very good at this, Logan,” Charles noted.

“What can I say, Chuck,” Logan stated. “Ya been fightin’ as long as I have, y’ pick up a few things. What I’m wonderin’ is when is Washington gonna give us an assigment.”

“I spoke to Dr. Cooper this morning,” Charles replied. “She said that we should just continue with the training, and that they’ll be in touch.”

“It’s been three weeks, now…” Logan muttered. “Startin’ t’ get antsy waitin’ f’r Magneto t’ make a move…”

“The President has had his hands full with this current incident involving China and the spy plane. It couldn’t have come at a worse time for either them or America.”

“So… what? We just keep trainin’ then?”

“That’s all we can do, Logan…”

Manhattan. Specifically the Lincoln Tunnel.

The Lincoln Tunnel runs underneath the Hudson River, connecting Manhattan to Weehawken, New Jersey. Around ninety-seven feet of water sit on top of the tunnel. It’s a route many people use every day. Yet, no one ever stops to think about what might happen if the tunnel were to collapse. It’s something commuters think of as impossible. It’s the busiest vehicular tunnel in the world, after all. If it was dangerous, it wouldn’t be permitted.

The man dressed in a leather costume, complete with a purple-tinted helmet and cape, thought otherwise. He saw it as the perfect opportunity to show mankind that he was serious.

He hovered above the tunnel and closed his eyes. His hands moved about, and as they did, they seemed to move faster. And faster. His eyes began to glow as steel girders shot up from the tunnel, cracking the material which protected the commuters.

The Hudson River was eager to replace it, though. Within moments, the entire tunnel was flooded, and the man smiled at the knowledge that these humans were praying for their lives to be spared as the water took away their lives.

How ironic, that the very element that brings life, is now causing horrible deaths.

He turned his attention to the George Washington Bridge. Concentrating hard, he watched as the support structures collapsed. Cars plummeted into the Hudson as well to join their brothers in a watery grave.

Magneto has arrived in New York.

The White House. Washington, DC.

{{ …Millions dead… }}

{{ …The bridge collapsed into the Hudson… }}

{{ …Tunnel completely destroyed… }}

{{ …Believed to be Magneto’s opening salvo on America… }}

President George W. Bush sighed as he listened to the reports of the incident in Manhattan.

“This is the work of a monster…”

“We’ve waited too long, sir,” Dr. Valerie Cooper stated.

“I know,” Bush replied. “Contact Colonel Fury, have him dispatch SHIELD to help in the rescue effort. And get me Xavier.”

The Xavier University. The office of Professor Xavier.

“Yes, I’ve just seen it…” Charles replied over the phone. “We won’t hesitate a moment, sir. This is what the X-Men were founded for, and we’ll be there.”

He hung up the phone and hit pause on the remote. The image of Magneto’s footage from China appeared.

“Erik… what have you done…?”

The hangar. A few minutes later.

Charles stood in front of the X-Men, wearing a leather jacket with X symbols on it.

“Magneto has made his first move… and it’s a grisly one,” he stated. “It’s up to the X-Men to put a stop to him. Wolverine will be the field commander.”

“What about you?” Hank asked.

“Someone needs to pilot the jet,” Charles replied.

“Jet?” John asked. “What je–”

Thunderbird was cut off as the hangar doors opened. Inside was a large military plane.

“X-Men, say hello to the Blackbird.”

Times Square.

Magneto’s path of destruction continued. And now, in the center of Times Square, he concentrated. The large monitors that Times Square was famous for suddenly imploded, sending shards of shrapnel flying. He magnetically overturned cars, tossing them about.

Mankind would learn to fear his wrath.

The Blackbird whistled through the air, and the cloaking shield was dropped. The large jet suddenly became visible, and Charles Xavier was the pilot.

“Get ready to move!” he shouted.

“Remember th’ plan!!” Wolverine shouted to the rest of the team over the roar of the air whipping about them. The emergency exit hatch was opened. “Those who can fly, help those who can’t!! Psyche, your TK’s gonna come in REAL handy here, so use it!! Storm, see if ya can try an’ get Magneto’s attention away from destroyin’ something else. As f’r the rest of you, hit ’em long, an’ hit ’em hard!!”

He pulled the collar of his jacket up and looked down at the emptiness.

“Awright… GO!!!”

Storm was the first one out, her winds steadying her as she fell. She maneuvered herself away from the jet, unleashing chain lightning at Magneto, trying to get his attention.

“Just great…” she muttered. “It worked… now he’s pissed…”

“Go!”

Thunderbird was the next one out, followed by M. The young woman grabbed hold of his arms and pulled him towards Magneto. Summoning all her strength, M hurled the Native American mutant towards their foe.

“Go!”

Cyclops, Beast, and Dazzler dropped next, followed by Wolverine. The four X-Men plummeted in freefall, until something stopped them.

Psyche hovered there, and slowly lowered each of them to the ground.

“WE’RE OUT, CHUCK!!” Wolverine exclaimed into his headset. “GET YER ASS OUTTA TH’ CROSSFIRE!!”

The Blackbird rose and rocketed off, leaving the X-Men alone to handle the battle.

Storm’s attack had caught Magneto off-guard, but he was prepared for anything else. Case in point–Thunderbird. Magneto used his power to latch onto the metal in the mutant’s bloodstream. Then, he magnetically slammed him into the ground.

“THUNDERBIRD!!” Psyche exclaimed.

“I’m alright…” Thunderbird weakly muttered, slowly getting to his feet.

“Foolish child,” Magneto stated. “Why do you wish to protect our oppressors?”

“Well, ya gotta do something until Dark Angel comes on,” Cyclops replied. He pressed a button on the side of his visor, firing an optic blast at the Master of Magnetism. However, it struck some sort of invisible forcefield before it even reached Magneto.

“Don’t you realize that you have no prayer of stopping me?” Magneto asked. “With but a thought, I can shut down the bloodflow of iron to your brains. I can magnetically hurl you into the center of the Earth’s core. If it involves magnetism, then I am the master!!”

“God, will someone shut him up already?” Storm asked, unleashing a chain lightning attack. “He sounds like some Saturday morning cartoon villain!”

“Even though this is the only real supervillain I’ve ever met, I thought they were supposed to sound like that,” Beast stated, as he began scaling a building. Once he was high enough, he leapt forward, hoping to surprise Magneto. However, Magneto simply repelled him, sending Hank McCoy into a building.

“You all right, Beast?” Storm asked.

“Yeah…” Beast replied. “It only hurts when I… ow…”

“Enough babblin’!!” Wolverine exclaimed. “Psyche, just like we played it out in th’ Danger Room!!”

Coiling his legs, Wolverine propelled himself into the air. Jean Grey gave him a telekinetic shove, increasing his speed towards their foe.

*SNIKT*

While the Beast’s attack didn’t catch Magneto by surprise, Wolverine’s adamantium claws did.

“ARGH!!!” Magneto screamed, slamming Logan into the pavement. “GET AWAY, TRAITOR!!”

“Shit this is bad…” Psyche muttered.

“Oh really, y’think?” Cyclops asked, trying to help Thunderbird up. “We’ve got Wolverine and Beast down for the count, and T-Bird isn’t exactly in the best shape…”

“I’m fine…” Wolverine muttered from his spot in the pavement.

“How are we gonna do this without Wolverine’s help?” Dazzler asked just as Storm and M landed beside them.

“We need to think up a battle plan,” M replied. “He’s too powerful for one-on-one battle. We need to use teamwork.”

{{ Tell me you know what you’re doing, Xavier!! }}

“Trust me on this, Colonel,” Charles replied. “These students have been well-trained.”

{{ Well it looks like your well-trained students are getting their asses handed to ’em!! }}

“Just give it a bit more time…” Charles stated.

{{ Awright, fifteen minutes. Then we go ahead with an airstrike. }}

“With metal planes, Colonel? Are you out of your mind?”

{{ Hopefully we won’t have to use them. Not if yer kids do what they’re supposed to do. }}

Charles deactivated the comm-link and sighed. He opened a different channel.

“Wolverine? Wolverine?”

{{ Wolverine’s out right now, Professor. }}

“Monet?!”

{{ Don’t worry, we’ve got things under control. }}

“Let me try to talk to Magneto, M.”

{{ I’m sorry sir, but I think the time for talk has passed. Just let us handle this. }}

“It’s not my intention to destroy harbingers of our future,” Magneto stated, hovering above the X-Men. “I’m actually surprised Charles had the gall to send children after me.”

Metal objects began to rise, hovering about him.

“Regardless… if you’re not part of the solution, then you’re part of the problem.”

“Oh, shut up!” Storm exclaimed, unleashing a chain lightning attack. Magneto acted as if it had no effect on him.

“COVER!!” Dazzler shouted, unleashing a massive light blast. The X-Men shielded their eyes. Magneto was momentarily blinded, though.

The attack left him seeing white. His vision came back into focus just as M’s fist connected with his jaw.

“CYCLOPS!!” she commanded, flying back. Cyclops unleashed a massive optic blast, causing Magneto to reel.

Dazzler followed it up, firing several hard-light blasts at Magneto, with Psyche backing her up with a TK attack.

To top it all off, Storm whipped up gale force winds, slamming Magneto deep into the ground.

“Is he dead yet?” Cyclops asked.

“Doubt it…” Wolverine muttered, coming up beside Cyclops. He moved closer, then stopped. “Oh shit…”

“What’s wrong?” Dazzler asked.

“I can’t move.”

Magneto’s eyes snapped open as some invisible barrier forced the team back. He slowly hovered out of the small crater, his eyes glowing brightly.

“Can someone explain to me why he can still move?” Psyche asked.

“A forcefield of some sort…” M noted. “That’s all I can figure out…”

“X-Men, stand down!!”

“What the fuck?!” Cyclops exclaimed.

“It’s Chuck,” Wolverine noted, looking up as the Blackbird streaked by. “Guess he finally decided t’ join th’ party…”

“Erik!”

“Charles…?”

“You have to stop this now. Don’t make me hurt you, Erik.”

“I’m sorry, Charles. But you should know more than anyone that the time for talk is done.”

“We can work with the humans. We don’t have to be enemies.”

“Always the peacemaker, eh?” Magneto stated with a slight chuckle. “Wake up, Xavier. The humans will never accept us. Right now, I imagine that the government is planning a counter-strike against the entire mutant population. I won’t let that happen.”

“And I won’t let you do this.”

Magneto suddenly began to convulse, as if he were going into a seizure. His powers began to turn against him.

“What the hell is he doing?” Thunderbird asked.

“Saving our asses,” M replied with a grin. Psyche simply smiled, as if they sensed what was happening.

“Did I miss something?” Thunderbird asked, looking at Cyclops. Scott Summers simply shrugged.

“Do you know what’s happening, Erik?”

“Get out… of my mind…”

“Gladly… once you stand down.”

“N-never…”

“Then I’m sorry, Erik. You know I don’t enjoy doing this.”

Magneto forced himself not to cry out in pain as synapses in his brain exploded, despite the intense pain it caused.

“IF I GO DOWN XAVIER, I’M TAKING YOU WITH ME!!”

Using the last ounce of strength he had, Magneto took control of the Blackbird. He began to crush the hull as if it were paper. He hurled it towards the ground at an incredible speed.

“NO!!” Psyche exclaimed, using her telekinetic abilities to try and keep the plane aloft. All she was able to do was cushion the fall, though.

Magneto, however, lost consciousness after the last attack. He began to fall towards the ground. The only thing that prevented him from leaving a stain in the middle of Times Square was the sudden stop provided by M.

“Did we win?” Cyclops asked.

“Maybe,” Wolverine replied. “What’s th’ status?”

“Magneto’s still alive,” Psyche stated. “I can detect a thought pattern, he’s just down for the count.”

“What about Xavier?” Wolverine asked.

“I–I can sense a thought pattern from inside the wreckage…” Psyche replied. “I think he’s alive…”

“Get that shit offa him, then!” Wolverine ordered, pointing to what was once the Blackbird. The students did what they could, tossing aside what was left of the Blackbird.

“Over here!” Storm stated. “I think I found him!”

Thunderbird ran to her side and pulled some metal off. Sure enough, Xavier was there. A bit worse for wear, but he was alive.

The White House. Washington, DC. One week later.

“The terror in New York was unavoidable,” Bush stated. “The death toll caused by Magneto’s attack is staggering–but I suppose that we should be grateful that he was stopped before anything else could happen.”

Fury leaned against the wall, a cigar dangling from his mouth. Dr. Cooper sat in a chair in front of Bush’s desk. Xavier, however, sat in a wheelchair.

“What’s the current status on Magneto, anyway?” Bush asked.

“His house doesn’t have much of an attic anymore,” Fury replied.

“Pardon…?”

“It was a very powerful psychic attack, sir,” Charles stated. “A last resort more than anything else. I detonated some of the synapses in his brain.”

“Well, whatever you did, it put him in a coma,” Val said. “According to all scans, Magneto is harmless right now. The question now is, what do we do with him?”

“The public will want blood after what he’s done,” Fury noted. “Can’t say I blame ’em.”

“I’d rather you didn’t, Mr. President,” Charles said. “I believe that Magneto’s ideals were good, but his methods weren’t. And with him currently in a coma, it wouldn’t be the time or place for an execution.”

“The man caused hundreds, probably thousands, of deaths,” Fury stated. “An’ you wanna keep him alive?”

“I know how the public feels towards Magneto, because I feel the same way. It’s because of him that I’m confined to this chair. The doctors say I’ll never walk again. But, executing Magneto isn’t the answer.”

“I don’t like this…” Bush muttered. “This isn’t a good situation.”

“I have to side with Professor Xavier on this,” Val chimed in. “I don’t think an execution is the greatest idea. The last thing we need is other mutants like Magneto reacting harshly to his execution.”

The President sighed.

“You win, Charles–for now. In the meantime, I want you and the X-Men to lay low. We’ll be in touch.”

“Of course,” Charles stated, shaking Bush’s hand.

Elsewhere in DC.

Shiner watched as the new agents ran through the training exercises.

“Magneto’s attack is exactly the event we needed. The public will be much more anti-mutant, now. This will put pressure on that sniveling worm of a President.”

“Good,” Shiner stated. “But the M-Squad–”

“The M-Squad will be given better weapons, Agent Shiner.”

“Thank you, sir,” Shiner said.

“You’re dismissed.”

Shiner saluted then headed towards the door.

“Oh, and Shiner…?”

“Yes sir?”

“Just thought I’d let you know,” the man began. “The name’s Gyrich.”

“Thank you, Mr. Gyrich,” Shiner stated, walking out the door.

Gyrich continued to watch the new recruits.

“Fucking muties…” he muttered. “You won’t last much longer. Not on my watch.”