Chapter 748: Dementia in the Water Tank
Life is full of surprises. Once an X-Man, now just a booze-soaked rideshare driver.
He goes by the name James Howlett these days, leasing a luxury car to drive for apps, trying to save up for a boat to escape out to sea—an all-too-familiar portrait of a middle-aged man beaten down by the world. No, more like an old wolf with barely any teeth left.
Off-screen, Charles watched the video with a complicated expression.
"Have the X-Men really become nothing but a historical footnote now?" he murmured. "Logan... I can't even imagine how much you've gone through all these years."
As the man in question, Logan couldn't stay indifferent watching a video of his future self. His face stayed stiff, but his eyes silently reddened and welled up with bloodshot emotion.
He muttered, voice low and heavy, "I did imagine what I'd look like when I got old. Guess the only thing I got right was the drinking part—everything else turned out completely different."
Erik, as usual, couldn't resist a cold jab. "A drunk driver, huh... Logan, you sure take pride in your work."
Logan merely shot him a flat glance, not bothering to respond.
Everyone could tell—the reason the old wolf was drinking like that was to numb himself. It was also a sign that even his powerful regenerative body was failing with age.
Back when he was still young and strong, his healing factor made it basically impossible to get drunk.
But now, life had worn him down. Alcohol had become a crutch—only when he was half-drunk, half-awake, could he silence the memories and keep going.
So here's the question:
Why is this toothless old wolf still holding on?
Even when he was in his prime, Logan had long grown weary of his endless, seemingly meaningless life. Especially after blow after blow, he'd sunk deeper into despair. If Charles hadn't taken him in back then, he might've already found a way to die.
Now that he's old, broken, and tired, what reason does he have to keep living?
In the video, Logan picks up a ride to a cemetery. In the pouring rain, he sits in the car, bored and listless, sipping from a bottle.
Then, a middle-aged woman with a thick accent approaches and calls him Wolverine.
That name... For James Howlett, the grizzled rideshare driver, Wolverine was a name buried in the past. Hearing it again now—clearly meant trouble.
And sure enough, the woman, with her heavy Mexican accent, had come looking for help.
But Logan wasn't interested in trouble. He was tired. Just staying alive was hard enough. No matter how much she pleaded, he refused her without hesitation.
After the funeral, Logan stopped by a hospital to make a shady deal—secretly buying some medication. But the moment he got back to his car, trouble followed.
A brash young man wearing sunglasses climbed into the backseat, instantly seeing through Logan's disguise.
This stranger had clearly been sent by the woman at the funeral. Logan was baffled. He didn't want to get involved. But as life often goes, trouble doesn't ask for your permission before showing up.
The young man came prepared. He not only recognized Logan—he also knew his biggest secret: an old bald man hidden near the Mexico border, now classified as a weapon of mass destruction.
Off-screen, Erik smirked and glanced sideways at Charles.
"Hear that, baldy? Remind you of anyone? What do you think, Charles—should we place a bet? I'm putting money on that old bald guy being you."
Charles shook his head. "I'm not stupid."
From the title alone, and the way the video unfolded, it wasn't hard to guess—Logan was working as a rideshare driver to take care of someone. Someone old. Someone close.
That person, without a doubt, was Charles Xavier.
Back in the video, the young stranger threatens Logan, telling him to call if he hears anything from the Mexican woman, then tosses him a business card before leaving.
The card identifies him as Donald Pierce, Head of Security for the Alkali Corporation.
Logan realizes he's been dragged into something much bigger. On his way to the Mexican border, he calls the owner of the yacht he's been trying to buy, trying to haggle down the price. It's obvious now: he wanted that boat to escape with Charles.
The deal doesn't go through. Logan drives to a run-down factory near the border.
That abandoned factory was home now—where he lived with two other endangered "mutant species": one was Caliban, the albino; the other, of course, was Charles.
From Logan's conversation with Caliban, we learn that Charles, now seriously ill, is being kept inside a large water tank outside. The medicine Logan bought from the hospital was for him.
Off-screen, Erik let out a short laugh.
"Charles, you really are hooked on those pills, huh? Honestly, I'm dying to see what you look like in old age."
Charles looked calm, but his clenched fists betrayed him.
"Everyone gets old eventually," he replied in an even tone. "I doubt I'll fare much better than Logan."
Logan raised an eyebrow. "At least I don't need anyone looking after me. You'll probably be worse off than me."
Back in the video, Logan grabs the medicine and heads out to the tank. As he approaches, he hears mumbling from inside.
He opens the door. The space is surprisingly large. Charles, now frail and old, sits in his wheelchair, tracing circles over and over again. His mouth won't stop rambling—disconnected, nonsensical phrases with no coherence at all.
He doesn't even recognize Logan anymore. He shrinks away, afraid and confused by his presence.
This was harder to watch than anything else.
The Charles people remembered was wise, calm, composed—a gentleman and a mentor. A man who always seemed to have the answers, who protected and guided young mutants with his intelligence and unshakable will.
But the Charles in the video? A doddering old man, likely suffering from dementia, unable to care for himself. The only things recognizable were his wheelchair and that familiar bald head.
It was a cruel irony. The same Charles Xavier who once led the X-Men with such conviction—now reduced to this.
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