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Chapter 148 - Chapter 148: Extermination of Mutants

"My old friend." Professor X sat in a plastic wheelchair to visit his longtime companion, Magneto.

"Charles, here to play chess again?" Magneto already had the plastic chessboard set up.

The two elderly men sat down across from each other. They had only played halfway through the game when Magneto suddenly showed a bitter expression. "Charles, you really shouldn't have come."

"Erik?" Professor X instantly sensed something was wrong. "What did you do?"

"Charles, I didn't mean to. But the drug was too strong. I couldn't resist... He asked me a lot of questions."

"What did you tell him, Erik?" A chill crept down the professor's spine.

"Everything." Magneto's eyes had already grown unfocused.

The professor quickly looked around. From the wall vents, knockout gas was pouring in, thick and heavy. He struggled and fell from the wheelchair, crawling toward the wall in hopes of alerting Cyclops, who had accompanied him.

But Cyclops had already been ambushed—by a woman in a tight combat suit with black hair in a high ponytail. Who else could it be but the Lady Deathstrike?

Both Cyclops and Professor X were captured.

Back aboard the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier, Liu A'dou had no idea that it had all begun. So, to the dismay of the agents, they kept seeing this Asian man wandering around the ship—first on the command bridge, then in the lab, then in the hangar. Totally unrestrained. But with Director Nick Fury still recovering and no orders in place, most agents assumed Liu A'dou was some inspector or government official on a special tour.

Eventually, Acting Commander Maria Hill was informed and immediately had agents bring Liu A'dou in.

"Mr. Liu, I must remind you of your position. This is S.H.I.E.L.D.'s most advanced Helicarrier, not a theme park. You wandering around like this puts me in a difficult position."

"I was just strolling," Liu A'dou replied with an innocent look, sizing up the poised and composed female agent. She exuded that no-nonsense American professionalism and independence.

"You are a civilian. I expect you to stay in your room. For the time being, I'll have Agent Ada Wong remain aboard the Helicarrier to accompany you. If you need anything, tell her. But do not roam freely."

Maria had already given him the most generous terms. Until the director recovered, she had to take command.

"Not even a tour?"

"No."

Fine, Liu A'dou thought. I've seen pretty much everything I wanted anyway.

"Then I hope you find the people trying to kill me soon. I don't want to feel like a prisoner."

"That's none of your concern. We're investigating."

Liu A'dou was escorted back to Ada's quarters. Bored, he turned on the TV—news channel. It was covering a story where Spider-Man had helped an old lady find her missing cat. Even that's newsworthy?

Then came coverage on the reopening of the Stark Industries Expo. Repairs were almost complete.

The report noted that a third of the contractors working on the expo reconstruction were from China. Then it shifted to "Made in China" products at the expo—from infrastructure to merchandise—and finally to Stark Industries' subsidiaries and factories in China.

Of course, Liu A'dou thought, this world's just as full of Chinese-made goods. I wonder how much of this room is made in China?

He started inspecting the room. Sure enough, the blanket, the pillow, even the S.H.I.E.L.D. logo on the wall—Made in China. Even S.H.I.E.L.D. couldn't escape Chinese manufacturing. There had to be even more out there.

Just as Liu A'dou was looking for more Chinese-made items, a voice suddenly echoed in his mind.

"Help..."

??

"Help..."

Liu A'dou recognized the voice—it was Professor X.

"Professor? Is that you? Where are you?"

"Liu, contact the X-Men quickly. Stryker is about to launch an attack."

"Professor, what's going on? Who is Stryker?" Liu A'dou didn't understand why the professor wasn't contacting anyone else—why him, of all people?

"He's going to attack the Academy. Warn the X-Men." Professor X's voice grew weaker and weaker until it faded completely. But at least the message had been delivered.

The professor had scanned for the most active lifeform in New York with the last of his strength. He assumed it would be a mutant—but ended up reaching Liu A'dou instead. That was all he could manage. He had no energy left to try anyone else.

Then Liu A'dou remembered. Stryker… that name—he was the Secretary of Defense. A lunatic extremist who wanted to wipe out all mutants. He had even used Adamantium to modify Wolverine. Now he was probably trying to use Professor X's powers to locate every mutant on the planet and slaughter them. The professor must have already been captured.

He immediately left the room and found Acting Director Maria Hill.

"I just received a message—Professor X has been captured. The man who took him is named Stryker. He's planning to attack the Xavier Institute."

"..." Maria clearly didn't believe him. "I already warned you. If you keep making trouble and ignoring protocol, I'll throw you in the brig."

Ada Wong, however, trusted her husband. "Acting Director, shouldn't we at least contact the mutants and verify Professor X's status?"

"That won't be necessary. Stryker is the Secretary of Defense. Why would he want to capture Professor X? They're supposed to be allies." If Director Fury were here, maybe he would've taken it seriously. But Maria, as acting director, was cautious and rigid in her decisions.

Clearly, no help would be coming from S.H.I.E.L.D.

"Then give me a jet. I'll go check myself."

"No. You are not to leave the Helicarrier." Maria refused without hesitation.

Typical bureaucratic nonsense. No wonder he always preferred to act alone. Liu A'dou figured he'd have to take care of this himself.

Meanwhile, Stryker had made up his mind. The mutant extermination plan would begin now. He ordered a strike on the Xavier Institute to seize the Cerebro device.

"Load all weapons with live rounds. I don't want any prisoners. Just bodies."

In the original movie, Stryker was at least restrained by political pressure and public opinion, so the soldiers used tranquilizers. But in this world, he had an entire squad of loyal racial purists. No need for tranquilizers—just live ammunition. Even though he was Secretary of Defense, technically he didn't have the authority to act unilaterally, but public sentiment was shifting too fast in favor of the mutants. Stryker had to make a ruthless, overwhelming move.

Facing the elite mutant extermination force he had personally trained, Stryker gave the order coldly.

"Don't hesitate. Kill them all. No exceptions—kids, adults, doesn't matter. Exterminate them."

Snap.

A coordinated salute. The racist soldiers' faces lit up with fervor. The extermination squad was finally going into action. Killing mutants was like killing animals to them—they couldn't care less.

Weapons loaded with live ammo, they boarded helicopters headed straight for the Xavier Institute. Stryker joined them, accompanied by the Lady Deathstrike. He needed to ensure that Cerebro remained intact so he could use it to carry out the final phase of his genocide plan.

Night fell.

Wolverine had gone to Alkali Lake in the north, hoping to uncover his past. But the base was long abandoned. Disappointed, he returned to the mansion, hoping Professor X would scan his mind again—but the professor refused. It was too dangerous.

Frustrated, Wolverine drank alone deep into the night. Finally, he resolved to speak to the professor again—but Professor X still hadn't returned.

The school remained quiet. Students were in their rooms—some asleep, others secretly staying up.

Elsa didn't sleep early. She preferred sitting by the window and gazing at the moon. It helped her recharge more than sleep ever could.

Suddenly, dark shapes interrupted the moonlight.

Elsa narrowed her eyes. They were military helicopters. Armed ones.

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