Chapter 2 - Part 1: The Invitation
The roar of the black jet faded to a ghostly hum as the aircraft landed with supernatural smoothness in the park. The side hatch opened with a hiss, and the first figure to descend was exactly what anyone with basic Marvel knowledge would recognize. He was short, stocky, with a build that screamed "predator." Crossed arms, a cigar in his mouth, and that gaze that seemed capable of dismantling a soul with a single look. Wolverine.
But it was the second figure that made Kael's world slow to a halt.
She descended with a grace that wasn't entirely human. Her hair, white as snow, shimmered in the moonlight, falling over her shoulders like a silver mantle. Her eyes, the color of a stormy sky, seemed to see through the alley's facade and the city, directly to the essence of things. Her white and blue uniform clung to a form that was both powerful and graceful. Kael knew the women in this universe could be stunning, but nothing, nothing in his imagination had prepared him for that.
A single word echoed in his mind, raw and undeniable: Perfection.
He froze. His own powers, his kingdom, his plan—everything seemed insignificant for those few eternal seconds. Storm was, without a doubt or exaggeration, the embodiment of perfection. It was only Wolverine's rough movement, now just a few meters away, that made him blink and recover his train of thought.
They stopped before him. Ororo's presence was both calming and overwhelming.
"My name is Ororo Munroe. And this is Logan," she said, her voice like the warm breeze that precedes the rain, carrying a promise of power. "We're from the Xavier School."
She paused, studying his face, clearly expecting a sign of recognition. Logan watched every microexpression, every muscle twitch, his hunter's senses searching for the truth.
Kael kept his face a blank slate, with only a hint of polished curiosity. Internally, his mind raced at full speed. The dilemma was clear: surrender or play hard to get? The choice was instant. The amnesiac persona was the safest, giving more room for error and learning.
"Xavier... School?" he repeated, slightly furrowing his brow in genuine confusion. "Sorry, I... I don't think I know what that is."
Ororo and Logan exchanged a quick, confused glance. The school was famous in the mutant world, and an Omega like him should, in theory, be their primary target.
"It's a place for people with... special abilities," Ororo explained carefully.
Kael let his shoulders slump a bit, feigning resigned frustration. "Special abilities... that I have. But besides my name, Kael, I don't remember anything. The last thing I remember is waking up in that alley, with these... things in my head. I know it's not normal, but I don't know where it came from or why I have it."
The confusion on the X-Men's faces gave way to more serious understanding. The story of a powerful, amnesiac mutant was alarming and plausible.
"Amnesia?" grunted Logan, his skepticism still lingering but now mixed with a hint of professional curiosity.
"It could be a side effect of your manifestation," Ororo suggested, her voice soft but firm. "Professor Xavier can help. He's the best at understanding minds and powers. We can take you to our mansion. There, we can explain everything better, guide you about your power, and see if we can do something about your memories."
Kael looked from Ororo to Logan, pretending to weigh the proposal. It was exactly what he wanted. A safe place to learn, grow stronger, and understand the pieces on the board.
"I... guess I don't have many options," he said, with a well-measured tone of resignation. "And I'd like to know. I accept."
Inside the jet, sitting on the leather seat, Kael closed his eyes, pretending to rest. Instead, his consciousness plunged into his realm. The village air filled his spiritual lungs. He went straight to the Town Hall, now pulsating with level 2 energy. With a mental command, he initiated the upgrade to Level 3, feeling a significant amount of his resources being consumed. The promise of new structures and capabilities was thrilling. He already visualized the Research Laboratory that could be built, allowing his troops to become stronger and more resilient. His eyes scanned the new recruits in his camps: the imposing Giants, living tanks of pure strength, and the sleek, agile Goblins, specialists in causing quick havoc. His army was forming. Whatever problems he encountered at the Xavier Mansion, he would be more prepared.
When he returned to full consciousness in the jet, his eyes met Logan's. The mutant was staring at him with an intense and deeply strange expression.
"You disappeared," Logan said, his voice a low growl.
"I... sorry?" Kael replied, genuinely confused by the statement.
"For a minute there," Logan explained, pointing with his cigar. "It was like you lost all presence. Your breathing got so light it was hard to hear, your smell... faded. If I hadn't seen your body here, breathing, I'd have sworn you'd died. Is that part of your power?"
Kael smiled internally. It was an interesting limitation he hadn't even noticed.
"It's complicated," he said, raising his hands. "I'd rather explain it just once, if you don't mind. It's... very complex."
It was Ororo who picked up the cue, her curiosity evident. "Do you know how your power works? Many mutants with high-level abilities have difficulty controlling or even understanding what they do at first."
"The information came to me instinctively," Kael explained, which wasn't entirely a lie. "But to sum it up... I have access to a private dimension. There, I can build a fortified village and train an army. I can summon these troops to fight for me."
The silence that followed was heavy. Logan and Ororo exchanged a look of absolute disbelief.
"A dimension... an army?" Ororo whispered, impressed.
Logan, always direct, cut to the chase: "Can you create an army of medieval knights out of thin air?"
"It's more... fantasy," Kael corrected, a playful smile on his lips. "Want to see?"
Before they could answer, he focused. Two points of pink Elixir light emerged from his chest, solidifying in the air between the jet seats. In seconds, two Archers were standing in the aisle. They were beautiful, with shoulder-length pink hair and piercing blue eyes. They wore green tunics and blue capes, holding elegantly carved bows with golden details.
They weren't automatons. Their eyes moved, assessing the environment. They landed first on Ororo, then on Logan, and Kael felt their intention through the bond: they were hunters. Analyzing the danger, looking for a slip-up, an opening, a threat. They were calm, but ready.
"Incredible," Ororo said, her voice full of admiration. She leaned forward. "Can you understand us?"
The Archers turned their faces to her, and one of them let out a soft sound, almost a disdain. Their posture was one of cold confidence, almost arrogant. They were warriors, not servants.
While Ororo tried to engage the pair with infinite patience, and Kael pretended to try to make them respond more politely, Logan's eyes never left them. He didn't see beauty or curiosity. He saw their fighting stance, the way they held their bows, the absence of fear in their eyes. He smelled the potential for contained violence.
These Archers, the boy's basic troops, were lethal. If this level of quality and lethality was maintained throughout his army... the old mutant had a clear and worrying thought as he watched Kael, who seemed so relaxed: The kid is a time bomb. And he's going to change everything.
Part 2: The X-Mansion
The X-Mansion was even more imposing up close. Kael walked through the garden with studied calm, his steps firm on the stone path. Internally, however, a mantra swirled in his mind, a constant and urgent whisper beneath his conscious thoughts: The entity sealed within Jean Grey is the Phoenix Force. When it breaks free, it will kill everyone. The entity sealed within Jean Grey is the Phoenix Force...
He entered the main hall, and it was like stepping into a living piece of comic book history. There they were, the pillars of the X-Men, with looks that blended the nostalgia of the classic cartoons with the seriousness of the comics. Cyclops, with his leader's posture and the ruby quartz glasses that hid a devastating power. Jean Grey, her red hair a beacon of almost palpable psychic power, a gentle smile on her face that hid a slumbering cataclysm. Beast, blue-skinned and sharp-minded, observing with scientific curiosity. Angel, with his impressive white wings folded on his back, and Rogue, with her punk style and a casual attitude that didn't fully hide her dangerous nature. And, at the center of it all, Professor Charles Xavier in his floating chair, his gaze calm and penetrating.
Kael looked directly at Xavier, searching for any sign, any micro-expression that indicated the professor had heard his internal mantra. Nothing. Xavier's face was a lake of serenity. Then, his eyes shifted to Jean. He knew that she, with her initial control difficulties, would be a more sensitive indicator. If anyone had picked up his surface thoughts, it would be her. But again, nothing. Just gentle curiosity and a bit of concern in her gaze.
Either they have unexpected decency and don't invade minds without permission, thought Kael, or the Elixir flowing in my body, strengthening every fiber of my being, also creates a psychic barrier. The idea made sense. If a Barbarian from his village was the equivalent of a super-soldier, and he could produce them with frightening ease, it was logical that the very fuel of his power offered some inherent protection. This was one of the reasons he wanted to join the X-Men: to understand and further enhance the power of Elixir.
"Welcome to the X-Mansion, Kael," said Professor Xavier, his voice echoing softly in everyone's mind, an unconscious habit. "Ororo and Logan have told us about your... unusual situation."
Ororo then briefly explained Kael's supposed memory loss. Xavier slightly furrowed his brow. "Total amnesia upon awakening such a vivid power is indeed rare. With your permission, I would like to attempt a superficial reading of your mind. Perhaps I can find some barrier or trauma that explains this."
Kael agreed with a nod, keeping the Phoenix mantra spinning on a loop in the back of his mind, a test. He saw Xavier's eyes close in concentration. For a moment, the professor maintained his composure, but then a subtle, almost imperceptible grimace crossed his face. He opened his eyes, seeming slightly frustrated.
"It's extraordinary. There's... interference. An energy-based barrier that prevents me from accessing anything. It must be a passive defense of your power. Very peculiar." He then offered a reassuring smile. "Don't worry. You are welcome here. Let's go to my office, we can talk more comfortably."
In the office, after Xavier kindly offered coffee and sandwiches—which Kael accepted gratefully, now feeling the gnawing hunger in his empty stomach—he began to explain. He detailed the Village, the Arena, the Elixir system, the construction, the troop training. With each word, the eyes around him widened more. Beast shook his head, amazed. Cyclops maintained a serious expression, calculating the tactical implications. Jean seemed fascinated by the dimensional nature of the power.
"And can you give us a demonstration?" asked Rogue, her curiosity overcoming caution.
Kael smiled. "Of course." He focused and felt the Elixir flow. An ethereal pink smoke emanated from his chest, quickly solidifying into the figure of a Knight. He was a tall man, in steel armor and chainmail, with a long sword and an unmistakably noble and arrogant posture. He greeted the group with a condescending nod, but his eyes immediately locked onto Rogue. He gave her a charming smile and a slight bow. "A pleasure to meet such a... striking lady," he said, his voice smooth.
While the others processed this, Kael, feeling his Elixir reserve had already regenerated to 9/10, summoned two more Archers and then the three Skeletons. The room was now filled with his creations.
The reaction was pure astonishment. Rogue, both amused and slightly flustered by the Knight's attention, tried to chat with him. The Knight, in turn, focused entirely on her, offering compliments with old-fashioned charm. Jean, with a genuine smile, turned to the Archers. "You are lovely! Your hair is so vibrant."
To Kael's surprise, the nearest Archer lowered her bow slightly and inclined her head, a near-smile touching her lips. "The Fire Lady has good eyes," she said, her voice a melodious whisper. It was the first time one of his troops demonstrated such clear interaction beyond pure martial obedience.
After a few minutes of attempted interactions, Kael dismissed all summons with a thought, causing them to explode into a mist of Elixir that faded into the air. He then explained his increased physical strength, another gift of the Elixir.
"And you said we can visit this dimension?" asked Jean, her curiosity overflowing.
After a brief debate, Xavier, Jean, and Logan were chosen. They held hands in a circle, with Jean's warm hand grasping Kael's. He focused, and the world around them dissolved.
Suddenly, they were at the spawn point of his village. Before them stood a low, polished stone wall, easy to jump over but emanating an impassable feeling. Flanking the area, Cannons and Archer Towers were positioned, their barrels and bows aimed at the arrival point, ready to annihilate anyone who wasn't Kael.
"This is the village," he announced calmly. "And this is the welcome for anyone who enters without my endorsement." He pointed into the distance, where the Army Camp housed his army. There, they saw the imposing Giant, the ten muscular, restless Barbarians, the seven vigilant Archers, and the three Goblins with malicious grins and gleaming eyes.
Xavier was the first to notice. "Your troops... they are remarkably uniform. Are they... clones?"
"I don't see them as clones," Kael pondered. "But yes, each unit of a type is identical. It must be a peculiarity of the dimension, an efficiency in production." He quickly guided them, showing the Gold Mines and the large Elixir Collector, whose pulsating purple contents made Jean shudder slightly, sensing the raw power contained within.
When they returned to the office, the transition was abrupt. "How much time passed?" Kael asked.
"About five seconds, at most," replied Logan, still processing the instantaneous change.
Kael whistled softly. "Interesting. For us, it was at least five minutes. Time inside is significantly faster."
Xavier, back in his chair, looked seriously at Kael. "Kael, would you like to join us? To stay here, with us?"
Kael pretended to consider, lowering his eyes. "Professor, without my memories, I have nowhere to go. I have no past. If you'll have me, I would like to stay. And to help however I can."
A visible wave of relief and satisfaction swept through the group. In a world so dangerous for mutants, having an Omega on their side was an invaluable asset.
Xavier nodded to Ororo. "Please, Ororo, show Kael to his new room."
As he followed Storm down the hallway, Kael allowed his eyes to appreciate the grace of her movements, the powerful curve of her back. He smiled internally. The Phoenix entity was a problem for the future. For now, he had a second chance, a place to call home, and a fascinating power to explore. He would be happy. He would test the limits of his powers. And who knows, maybe he would become the wrench in the works that the universe needed when the firestorm finally arrived.