The mutant children, guided by their pure and innocent instincts, naturally resisted the brutal brainwashing and harsh training.
But the facility was under tight security, guarded by heavily armed forces. Donald Pierce's mercenaries served as the institute's enforcers, and the children stood no chance of fighting back. With no way to resist through strength, they could only turn to passive defiance — and sometimes even self-harm.
Little Laura once tried to slash her own wrists with her claws, but because of her accelerated healing, she couldn't even take her own life.
Later, the Alkali Institute deemed these mutant subjects defective and prepared to eliminate them in batches — through euthanasia.
The nurses who had cared for the children day and night couldn't bear to witness such cruelty. Risking their lives, they helped a few of the children escape. Laura was one of them.
Gabriela Peréz spoke of a place far to the north — a haven, a mutant-only Eden. But when Donald Pierce's mercenaries came after her, she was no longer able to get Laura there safely.
In desperation, she reached out to the bald old man again — and sought help from Logan.
At the end of the video she recorded, the kind-hearted nurse revealed a shocking truth: she wasn't Laura's mother. But Logan was her father.
Tears shimmered in her eyes as she begged Logan to take Laura safely to Eden. She likely knew she didn't have much time left.
Logan watched the video in silence. His already weathered, worn-down face grew even darker. If only he could turn back time — twenty years, or even just ten — he could've done more. Taken more responsibility.
But now? He was old. Tired. Limping. No longer the tireless, unstoppable warrior he once was. There were things he simply no longer had the strength — or the ability — to do.
The viewers watching this scene felt an overwhelming mix of emotions, like a stone pressed against their chests, making it hard to breathe.
In previous videos from the quiz games, superheroes were always the central figures — no matter the odds, no matter how powerful the enemies, they always found a way to triumph. It was inspiring.
But in this glimpse of Logan's future, the audience felt something else — a crushing sense of helplessness.
Even though Logan didn't save the dying man in the footage, which went against what people expect from a hero, no one could really blame him. Everyone could see just how heartbreaking it was to witness the fall of the once-mighty Wolverine.
Off-screen, Erik actually cracked a rare joke. "I used to think my future was miserable enough… but after seeing yours, Logan? Especially yours? I feel a bit better."
Logan muttered a curse under his breath but didn't argue.
Charles gave a bitter chuckle. "Maybe… this terrible future is what I deserve. I can't shake the feeling that… the future me did something terribly wrong."
The video hinted at such a dark truth — and offscreen, Charles began to feel genuinely uneasy.
Erik gave him a long, thoughtful look but said nothing.
Onscreen, Logan drove to a casino hotel, hoping to rest for a bit.
To outsiders, the three of them must've looked like a grandfather, a father, and a daughter on a road trip.
Laura stood in front of a store window, staring blankly at a display of new clothes. At her age, it was natural to be drawn to bright and pretty things. But more than that, what she longed for was probably the image of the father and daughter mannequins holding hands in the window.
She'd grown up without a real childhood, without love or warmth. After meeting Logan, that instinctive bond in her blood made her yearn even more deeply for a father figure.
Logan didn't pay much attention to the details. He had too much on his mind. After settling Charles and Laura in, he took the bullet-riddled car to a used car lot, hoping to trade it in. On the way, he stopped by a bar, as usual, to unwind.
Bored, he pulled out one of Laura's X-Men comics — and was shocked to discover that the "Eden" Gabriela had mentioned… was made up. It only existed in the comics.
Logan erupted in anger: "You've got to be kidding me."
When he returned to the casino hotel, he noticed suspicious figures — pursuers were closing in.
Suddenly, an overwhelming psychic wave exploded through the building. Logan immediately recognized it — this uncontrolled surge of mental energy could only come from Charles.
Logan fought his way to their room, where several mercenaries lay frozen. It was obvious: Charles had unleashed his powers to protect Laura.
But with his mind ravaged by dementia, Charles could no longer control his abilities like he once could. His frenzied mental storm spread indiscriminately, engulfing the entire hotel.
In that chaos, only Logan and Laura — thanks to their healing factors — were still able to move. The two of them worked together to take out the attackers, then gave Charles his medication to calm the psychic storm.
After that incident, they had no choice but to keep running.
The car radio later reported what had happened at the casino — over 400 people had been affected during Charles's psychic outburst. The numbers rivaled the tragedy from a year earlier in Westchester.
Back then, Charles had suddenly fallen ill, leading to injuries for over 600 people — and the deaths of seven mutants, including several X-Men. That was the dark truth Logan had been keeping from him all along.
Suffering from dementia, Charles had no memory of the catastrophe. Still groggy in the backseat, he even blamed Logan for not protecting Laura better.
Offscreen, Charles buried his face in his hands and let out a broken cry of anguish.
He thought his future couldn't get any worse — but this was something else entirely.
Erik looked at him for a moment, but didn't gloat. He just said calmly, "You must have suspected something already. It's not surprising that the world's most powerful mind would one day lose control. Honestly, you should be grateful you weren't wearing that helmet — or half of humanity might have died without a sound."
"Oh my God… oh my God…" Charles lowered his hands. His eyes were red. Tears streamed down his cheeks.
"What have I done… what did I do?"
Logan raised an eyebrow and said, "I got old. You got old. That's all there is to it."
Erik, with a faint smile, added, "Honestly, I should be thankful that I didn't appear in that future at all."
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