The marina at night was never as lively as it was during the day, but the impact of a ten-meter meteorite splitting a luxury yacht in half was not something anyone could ignore.
The explosion rolled across the water like thunder. Steel screamed. Glass burst outward. Waves surged violently against neighboring vessels, lifting them high before slamming them back down.
Within seconds, the entire dock was in chaos.
On nearby yachts, wealthy owners rushed out in panic. Marina staff shouted into radios. Tourists strolling along the beach froze in shock before instinct took over.
"What the hell was that?"
"A terrorist attack?"
"Is that an explosion?"
They hadn't seen the meteorite descend. From Richard's summoning to impact, less than a second had passed. To ordinary eyes, it looked like a sudden catastrophe from nowhere.
Only one person had witnessed the entire sequence clearly.
Emma Frost.
From the rooftop where Richard had placed her, she watched the meteor streak downward and obliterate the Caspardina in one clean, merciless strike.
She didn't worry about Shaw.
She didn't worry about the Hunters.
What briefly tugged at her thoughts was something far more mundane.
Her wardrobe.
Her custom pieces.
Her white gowns, tailored by European designers. Limited-edition handbags. Handcrafted heels that existed nowhere else in the world.
Many of them had been custom commissions. White had always been her signature. She had spent a fortune cultivating that identity.
Now they were at the bottom of the bay.
She frowned faintly.
Then exhaled.
They were only clothes.
She could buy more.
Her gaze returned to the silver-haired figure hovering above the marina.
Below, more people noticed him.
It was impossible not to.
A tall, handsome man with waist-length silver hair and a two-meter blade floating in midair tended to draw attention.
Recognition spread quickly.
"It's him!"
"Richard!"
"Wasn't he in San Francisco this afternoon?"
"Is that Avengers tech?"
"Is he fighting the Mutant Affairs Department?"
Videos of him summoning a meteor against Hulk had already circulated worldwide. East coast, west coast—it didn't matter. Everyone with a phone had seen it.
The yachts that still had power started engines immediately.
They pulled away from the docks without hesitation.
Staff abandoned posts.
Beachgoers ran.
The lesson from San Francisco had been clear: if Richard was involved, you did not stand nearby to watch.
Richard ignored them.
He floated effortlessly, sustained by the enhanced Grand Wind, silver hair drifting with precise control.
Telepathy extended outward.
Shaw was easy to detect.
The psychic helmet blocked intrusion but did not erase his presence from mental space.
He sensed him.
He sensed the Magneto clone.
He sensed No. 8—the water-based Hunter.
He did not sense No. 7.
Good.
That one had died in the meteor impact.
Plunder activated automatically.
[New abilities acquired: Flame Creation, Flame Projection, Mental Isolation.]
[Similar ability detected. Ability fusion in progress.]
[Telepathy strengthened.]
[Skill "Grand Flame" can be enhanced. Enhance?]
"Yes."
[Grand Flame strengthened.]
He dismissed the panel.
Below, the sea churned violently.
The Magneto clone rose first, encased within a spherical magnetic field that deflected debris and stabilized flight. Shaw hovered inside that protective envelope, absorbing ambient kinetic and magnetic energy continuously.
No. 8 emerged separately.
He did not require protection.
He stood upon the ocean surface, waves bending obediently around him.
Water spiraled upward at his command.
Richard studied him more closely now.
Earlier, he had assumed simple elementalization—body-to-water conversion.
But this was broader.
Hydrokinesis.
Control over surrounding seawater.
That changed the evaluation.
Elemental body plus environmental control.
That raised the rating.
Seven to eight.
Perhaps higher depending on limits.
Could he control only seawater?
Or any liquid?
Blood?
Oil?
Chemical solvents?
Interesting.
Decision made.
Kill the water unit first.
Then Shaw.
Then the Magneto clone.
Teleportation activated.
Richard appeared directly behind No. 8.
He swung Masamune without hesitation.
The blade passed through the watery neck cleanly.
The head separated, arcing into the night sky before splashing back into the ocean.
But the body did not fall.
Water reformed instantly.
The head regenerated.
No. 8 turned smoothly, raising both arms.
Five waterspouts erupted around Richard, spiraling upward violently, converging from multiple angles.
Richard did not move.
He did not teleport.
He let the waterspouts collide against him.
They slammed into an invisible magical barrier and dispersed into mist.
"You're impressive," Richard said calmly. "Immune to most physical attacks."
He stepped forward and seized the water-being by the throat.
"But you shouldn't demonstrate elemental control in front of me."
Cold surged outward.
Grand Blizzard.
Freezing magic erupted from his palm in a violent wave.
The waterspouts solidified instantly.
The ocean surface beneath them crystallized into expanding ice.
No. 8's body froze mid-motion, water structure locking into translucent ice.
For a moment, he resembled a statue.
Richard tightened his grip slightly.
The frozen body shattered.
Ice fragments scattered across the newly formed ice sheet.
They sank slowly as the freeze began to crack and fracture.
Combat intelligence confirmed.
Minimal.
No adaptive retreat.
No tactical flexibility.
Plunder activated again.
[New abilities acquired: Water Control, Water Elementalization, Mental Isolation.]
[Similar abilities detected. Ability fusion in progress.]
[Telepathy strengthened.]
[X-Gene database updated.]
[Beta Level Abilities: Energy Emission, Energy Absorption, Invisibility, Super Vision, Telepathy, Giant Form, Gravity Restraint, Heat Vision, Air Bullet, Bounce, Attack Transfer, Telekinesis, Force Field Creation, Energy Manifestation, Water Control, Water Elementalization.]
Richard scanned the data briefly.
Beta.
Not Alpha.
Disappointing.
But temporary.
Ability stacking would elevate it eventually.
He turned his attention back toward the dock.
Shaw and the Magneto clone had landed amid wreckage and twisted steel.
Energy radiated visibly from Shaw's frame now.
He had absorbed kinetic force from the meteor, magnetic reinforcement from the clone, environmental turbulence.
He was saturated.
Good.
Appetizers were finished.
Now dinner began.
Richard descended slowly toward the dock, Masamune angled downward, silver hair illuminated by distant marina lights.
Shaw stepped forward.
The Magneto clone's magnetic field intensified, metal fragments lifting from shattered vessels and forming a rotating halo of blades around him.
The bay steamed as residual heat met cooling ice.
The wind shifted unnaturally.
Richard stopped ten meters above them.
"Your batteries are gone," he said calmly.
Shaw's expression hardened.
"I don't need them."
Energy rippled through his body as he launched upward toward Richard with explosive speed.
The real fight began.
.....
Want to read ahead by more than 60 chapters. Then join my p@treon Right Now.
Link: p*atreon.com/BookReaderBoy (Remove the *)
Also Free members get 2 advanced chapters for Free as well.