Homelander spoke thoughtfully, "Does it really have to be a child born in the normal way? What if he was created in a laboratory instead?"
His own origins immediately came to mind.
In the mutant world, humans had long been conducting all kinds of experiments on mutants. Their obsession with mutant abilities was obvious. Secretly acquiring mutant DNA and cultivating children they could control was far from impossible.
That single remark opened a new line of thinking for the others, and they all fell silent in thought.
If the answer lay in laboratory experimentation, then any of the four options could theoretically be correct. The biological parents might not even know such a child existed at all—after all, the child would have been artificially created.
Bruce Banner speculated, "From a genetics standpoint, Erik's child should have inherited at least part of his abilities. But among these four options… none of them really fit."
Magneto's power was relatively straightforward: control over metal, or more precisely, magnetism. None of the four options directly matched that ability. If one had to stretch for a connection, Option B—Jean Grey—was the closest.
In earlier footage revealed by the quiz, Jean Grey had demonstrated the ability to manipulate objects from a distance—telekinesis—which at least bore some resemblance to Magneto's control over magnetic forces.
The players racked their brains, but the light screen had already begun the answer countdown. No one rushed to press the button—no one felt confident.
Still, time waited for no one. As the countdown neared its end, the players exchanged glances and clenched their teeth, pressing the buttons almost simultaneously.
This time, Iron Man won the quick-answer opportunity. After a moment of thought, he said, "For this one, I choose B."
Natasha Romanoff glanced at him and said firmly, "I'll go with B as well."
Homelander, however, did not follow them this time. He chose C on his own—not because he believed Magneto and Mystique had been involved romantically, but because Kurt Wagner's background felt more like the product of a laboratory experiment.
Perhaps someone had stolen Mystique's and Magneto's DNA and engineered Nightcrawler.
After looking at the others, Bruce Banner chose D.
Then the result was announced—and every single one of them was wrong.
[Player Tony Stark answered incorrectly and loses 4 points.
Player Natasha Romanoff, player Bruce Banner, player Erik Lehnsherr, and player Homelander all answered incorrectly and each lose 1 point.]
Tony Stark slapped his head in frustration. "Shit! I actually hesitated about choosing A! I was this close to the right answer!"
Natasha Romanoff asked in confusion, "But doesn't Quicksilver already have parents? And a sister?"
"That's exactly why I thought he was unlikely," Tony groaned. "I figured the quiz might pull another reversal. But I guessed wrong so many times before that I tried to play it safe—and still walked right into the trap!"
Erik Lehnsherr was equally stunned. "Quicksilver… why him? I remember your world has a Quicksilver too, doesn't it?"
"Yes, our world has Quicksilver," Tony shrugged, "but we don't have you, or Charles, or Wolverine. Don't ask me why—multiverses are just that strange."
At that very moment, outside the light screen, the Marvel Cinematic Universe's Quicksilver was completely dumbfounded.
"You're kidding me… Magneto is my father?"
Wanda Maximoff was just as shocked. "Then that means… in another parallel world, we actually have a father?"
"Uh…" Pietro looked at his sister. "The problem is, we're so different from that version. I don't even look like that Quicksilver."
Wanda shook her head. "Your abilities are the same, and your names are the same. That's enough. I'm curious—what am I like in that world? If we ever get the chance, I'd really like to visit."
Pietro took her hand and nodded. "If you go, I'll go with you."
Wanda smiled. "You just want to race your other self, don't you?"
Pietro was caught off guard, a hint of embarrassment flashing across his face, but he shrugged anyway. "Believe it or not, the race idea wasn't mine—it was Barry's! He's the one who wants to race two of me!"
"All right, all right. I believe you," Wanda said helplessly, smiling.
---
In the Eternal Space, Magneto—who had inexplicably gained a son—was still stuck in shock.
Homelander sneered. "If you think about it, you two really are alike. You love grand entrances, and so does Quicksilver."
Tony Stark snapped his fingers. "He's right. Every time Quicksilver shows up, it's a highlight moment. In that sense, he really did inherit your flair, Erik."
Erik Lehnsherr looked utterly baffled. "If he's my son, then why didn't he acknowledge me when he rescued me earlier?"
"Maybe neither of you knew at the time," Natasha Romanoff said with a faint smile. "Erik, shouldn't you actually be happy?"
Magneto forced a stiff smile. Happy? Hardly. If anything, he was drowning in questions.
At his current point in time, Quicksilver—and Wanda—didn't even exist yet.
Just then, the light screen began playing the explanation footage, sparing him further speculation.
In the footage, Stryker transported the captured mutants to a secret military base—one seemingly built into a massive dam.
Erik Lehnsherr narrowed his eyes. "If I remember correctly, this is where Logan was transformed into Wolverine."
Tony Stark nodded. "You're right. I remember it too."
Bruce Banner frowned. "Did they capture these mutants to use them in human experiments?"
"That's a standing policy," Tony replied dryly. "Stryker—the military commander you just saw—is obsessed with human experimentation. But I suspect this time, it's connected to Charles. Charles was invaded by Apocalypse and used to launch the world's nuclear weapons. Stryker may not know the full truth, but he's definitely suspicious of Charles Xavier."
Iron Man was right.
In the future footage, Mystique, Quicksilver, Hank, and Moira were all locked inside specialized containment cells. Stryker appeared to interrogate them, and his primary concern was unmistakable—
the whereabouts of Charles Xavier.
___
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