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Chapter 103 - #103

"For years, they fought amongst themselves, fighting for the resources of the Earth has to offer, and when the civilizations of the Eternals and the Deviants reached their height, the true gods returned. No one knows why, but they annihilated the Deviants and sank Atlantis beneath the sea. 

The Eternals didn't thrive after that. Instead, they broke apart in civil conflict. Some of their best left Earth, but things only got worse—those who left ran into the Kree. The Eternals were nearly wiped out.

"Then the Kree turned their attention to the X-gene," Ethan said, piecing it all together. "They studied the Eternals and Deviants and used what they learned to create a new race: the Inhumans."

It wasn't hard to guess why the Kree hadn't cleaned up their experiments on Earth. The Celestials treated Earth like their private lab. 

Even if the 'true gods' didn't leave a guardian behind, the Kree knew better than to poke the bear. 

When your creator is a bald space god towering dozens of feet tall, you think twice before meddling.

"Our ancestors," Apocalypse continued, his voice even and emotionless, "were the Eternals and Deviants who stayed on Earth. After their civilizations collapsed, they slowly integrated with humans. Their mutated genes were passed down."

"Do you know why these 'true gods' created the Eternals and the Deviants?" Ethan asked. 

It was the question every artificially created race asked themselves. Why were they made?

And if someone made them, couldn't they be unmade just as easily?

"No one knows the will of the true gods," Apocalypse replied, voice as flat as ever. "Not us. Not even the Eternals."

The room went quiet after that. No one had a good answer. No one dared to speak until Ethan finally broke the silence.

"If the Eternals and Deviants built powerful civilizations, they must've left behind knowledge. Training systems for controlling powers. Did you inherit any of that?"

"Yes," Apocalypse said. 

"Though most of their teachings were lost, fragments survived. The ones who remained—along with survivors from Atlantis and other large mutant enclaves—shared what they had. I collected it all. In my mind, I now hold over one hundred and thirty thousand tomes on mutant ability enhancement."

Ethan's eyes lit up. 

"That's better news than I expected. Right now, mutants have no proper training system. Everyone just wings it. If Professor X and Magneto had learned this stuff when they were younger, they'd have been Omega-level long ago."

"There's more good news," Hank said, stepping forward with a tablet in hand. 

"Apocalypse's X-gene is atavistic. His Deviant traits are more dominant than Eternal ones. That's why he evolved the way he did."

Ethan turned to him. "And this helps us how?"

"It boosts the success rate of our X-gene serum. Thanks to his unique genetics, we're ready for mass production."

"So what now?" the White Queen asked, arms crossed.

Professor X didn't answer immediately. He exchanged a glance with Magneto, then looked at Ethan. 

Charles was old now. He knew this new age belonged to the younger generation. 

Ethan had proven himself. 

He and Magneto would support from the sidelines, offering advice when it counted.

Ethan nodded slowly, considering the weight of the moment. 

"We focus everything on mass-producing the X-gene serum," he said firmly. 

"Then... we wait. For the day it's finally needed."

...

In the days that followed, mutants kept a low profile, but anyone with sharp instincts could feel the tension rising beneath the surface, like a storm quietly brewing.

Nick Fury was one of those people who always sensed trouble before it arrived. 

It hadn't even been a week since the dust settled, and he was already demanding a report.

"You mutants have been pretty active lately," Fury said, arms crossed, his one eye fixed intently on Ethan across the table.

Ethan, casually leaning back in his chair, looked unfazed. "The world's changing fast, Fury. You know that better than anyone. We're just trying to protect ourselves. A few secret moves here and there—nothing wrong with that, right?"

"Secret moves?" Fury scoffed and slammed a newspaper down in front of him. "You call this a small action?"

He pointed to the headline. "People in Egypt are panicking. They think they got hit by nukes. The shockwaves from your explosion in the desert reached all the way to Cairo."

Ethan picked up the paper, gave it a glance, then smirked. "A 2.3 magnitude quake? These days, even a sneeze makes headlines. And if I'm not mistaken, humans don't feel anything below a 3. So, again—what's the issue?"

"And let's be real," Ethan continued, flipping the paper aside, "no one detected nuclear radiation, did they? I think you know exactly what went down."

Fury remained silent for a beat, his expression unreadable. Truthfully, if he'd wanted to escalate things, he would've gone straight to Professor X. 

The fact that he was sitting here talking to Ethan meant there was room for negotiation.

The battle with Apocalypse, while visually overwhelming, had been contained. 

No casualties.

 No witnesses.

 Just miles of empty desert. 

The sandstorm that followed erased nearly every trace. If handled properly, the incident could easily be brushed under the rug.

"Even so, you owe me an explanation," Fury said, tapping his fingers on the table. 

"We registered an energy discharge equivalent to ten tons of TNT. And when you include the mutant energy output, that number could double. Anyone generating that much power is going to draw eyes."

He leaned forward. "I can handle the fallout, because like it or not, you mutants are allies now. But I need to know what the hell happened out there."

"We eliminated a dangerous mutant who'd just woken up after sleeping for a few thousand years," Ethan said coolly. 

"Justice beat evil. The X-Men saved the world again. Ring any bells?"

Fury didn't look impressed. "You're telling me that to take down one mutant, the entire X-Men squad had to step in? Not to mention Magneto's Brotherhood? You guys make it sound like you fought an Egyptian god or something."

Ethan shrugged. "Wouldn't be the first time mythology turned out to be real."

Fury narrowed his eye, but didn't press further. He hadn't come for a full debrief—just to get a read on the situation.

 Still, the sudden spike in mutant activity was raising too many flags.

Sensing the tension, Ethan suddenly leaned in, his voice dropping slightly. 

"Alright, since you're not satisfied, how about a little tip—free of charge?"

Fury arched a brow.

"During our mission, we captured someone. After a little persuasion, we confirmed he's Hydra. Not a grunt, either. He had intel. Good intel." Ethan's tone was casual, but his eyes were sharp.

Fury's expression changed, ever so slightly. Hydra. That was something worth looking into.

Ethan grinned. "Figure you've wrapped up all that Asgardian, Hell, and sorcery stuff, right? Sounds like you're bored. So here—consider this your new project. Wouldn't it be fun?"

"Oh, that's it~" Fury nodded coolly, as if he'd already heard it all before. No reaction, no surprise—just typical Fury.

Ethan's smile stiffened. "Uh, either I didn't explain it right, or your ears are officially malfunctioning."

He narrowed his eyes at the Director. Something felt off. Could this really be Fury sitting across from him? Was this some kind of Hydra clone? Had the man been brainwashed and replaced?

Fury raised an eyebrow. "You should know Hydra's motto."

Ethan folded his arms, waiting.

"Cut off one head, two more shall grow in its place," Fury said evenly. "Hydra isn't just some rogue group—it's an idea. A belief in absolute power, in control. Peggy Carter may have brought down their last stronghold back in the day, but Hydra isn't about bases. It's ideology. It survives in every era, always adapting. That's why even now, traces of Hydra remain. I've found some hints myself."

Ethan nodded slowly. "Alright then. How about this? You ready for the second bomb?"

Fury leaned back. "Go ahead. Hit me."

They'd known each other too long. Fury knew Ethan never dropped by without stirring the pot—and lately, between aliens and sorcerers, there wasn't much left that could rattle him.

"The Hydra member we captured is a high-ranking one. According to what he told us... Hydra has already infiltrated the upper levels of S.H.I.E.L.D. Quite a few of them, actually."

"What?!" Fury slapped his hand on the table and shot up from his seat. His calm flew straight out the window. "Do you even understand what you're saying?"

Ethan stayed relaxed. "The guy's still in our custody. You can send someone to interrogate him yourself. But make sure it's someone you'd bet your life on."

Fury narrowed his eye. "Does he have names? Anyone inside S.H.I.E.L.D. we can identify?"

Ethan shook his head. "Not a chance. Hydra's entire system is compartmentalized. Even their top brass don't know the full picture. That's how they've lasted this long—you should know that better than anyone."

Fury sat back down, frowning deeply. "That complicates things."

"Sure, but come on. You've felt something was off for a while, haven't you? All those dead ends and silent leads. That sense of something just out of reach? You didn't imagine that."

Fury didn't answer.

Seeing that his words had hit their mark, Ethan gave a small nod and turned to leave without another word.

This wasn't mutant business anymore—it was S.H.I.E.L.D.'s mess to clean up.

 And while mutants like Professor X could easily root out the traitors with a flick of the mind, Fury would never hand that kind of power to outsiders. 

Not unless he was truly desperate.

And Fury? He wasn't that desperate.

Not yet.

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Word count: 1624

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