Swish!
The instant Rorschach's heat vision tore through the air, the winged mutant reacted with impressive speed. His wings snapped open, and with a quick twist of his body he shifted sideways, narrowly avoiding the blazing beams that sliced past him.
The attack missed by only a small margin.
Hovering in the air afterward, the winged man folded his arms and stared coldly at Rorschach. His expression carried a rare seriousness, as if he were facing an opponent he could not afford to underestimate.
Shaw had been right.
This man was truly dangerous.
The fact that Rorschach could emit destructive heat rays from his eyes alone already made him an extraordinary threat among mutants. For most of them, such a power was practically impossible to counter.
But the heat vision was only part of the problem.
Rorschach also possessed abnormal physical strength, incredible speed, and durability far beyond that of an ordinary mutant. From every angle, he seemed frighteningly well-rounded, as if there were no weaknesses to exploit.
Even Shaw himself had been injured in their previous encounter.
With someone like that guarding Eric, eliminating the man controlling the submarine's magnetic field would not be easy.
As for Rorschach, he didn't immediately continue attacking.
The reason was simple.
The Blackbird's limited space restricted his movements. If he unleashed his power recklessly, he might destroy the aircraft itself before eliminating the winged mutant.
And that obviously wasn't an option.
Fortunately, the coastline was already visible ahead. Once they reached land, Rorschach would have far more freedom to deal with someone like this winged opponent.
In truth, the most efficient solution would have been Charles.
All Charles needed to do was place his fingers against his temple and focus. With a single thought, he could freeze the winged mutant's mind, causing him to lose consciousness and drop helplessly into the ocean.
But that option wasn't available right now.
At this moment, Charles was fully concentrating on the submarine below.
The instant Eric lifted the submarine from the ocean, Charles had sensed something strange inside it. There was a specific location where his telepathic perception simply could not penetrate.
The sensation reminded him of what had happened earlier in the Manhattan hotel.
That meant only one thing.
Shaw was hiding there.
Previously, Charles had been unable to break through that kind of mental barrier. But now the stakes were far greater. The outcome of this confrontation could determine the future of the entire world.
There was no room for hesitation.
Charles poured all his mental strength into breaking the barrier.
Because of that, he had no spare attention for Shaw's followers.
Fortunately, the X-Men were fully capable of handling those enemies on their own.
In fact, that was exactly how things had unfolded before. The team had fought Shaw's subordinates directly while Charles focused solely on Shaw himself. Without their protective helmets, those villains would never have lasted long if Charles had targeted them personally.
But until Shaw revealed himself, Charles remained occupied.
Which meant the others had to rely on their own strength.
Luckily, that wasn't a problem.
"Nicholas!"
Another voice suddenly echoed from the submarine.
After the winged mutant was forced back by Rorschach, another figure climbed out from the wrecked vessel.
This newcomer was a bald man with a powerful, muscular frame. His skin was strangely pale—so white it resembled freshly painted plaster.
To someone unfamiliar with him, he might have looked dangerously ill.
But in reality, this was simply the physical result of his mutant ability.
The bald man was perfectly healthy.
He glanced upward at the winged mutant and shouted.
"That guy is inside! I can't get close!"
The winged man's expression turned slightly annoyed.
"That Eastern-looking guy is blocking the way!"
"Fine," the bald mutant replied with a grin. "Then leave it to me."
He suddenly stretched both arms forward and slammed his palms outward.
The motion resembled a giant delivering a crushing blow.
Boom!
The ocean beneath him exploded violently.
A massive wave surged upward like a collapsing dam. The towering wall of water rose toward the sky and crashed directly toward the Blackbird fighter.
"Holy—what is that?!"
"A wave! Hank, watch out!"
Alarmed voices filled the aircraft.
"Everyone hold on!" Hank shouted as he fought with the controls. "This is about to get rough!"
He pulled the aircraft sharply to one side, trying desperately to avoid the incoming wave.
"Charles, get down!" Rorschach shouted.
Without hesitation, he dropped to the floor and reached out, grabbing Eric's arm. With a powerful yank, he pulled Eric back into the aircraft.
A split second later—
BOOM!
The gigantic wave slammed into the Blackbird.
The fighter jet vanished beneath the water's crushing force. The entire aircraft shook violently, tossed around like a fragile leaf drifting in a storm.
Inside the cabin, the mutants were thrown around by the terrifying impact. The violent shaking made it feel as if the ground itself had collapsed beneath them.
The world spun wildly.
It was like experiencing a massive earthquake in midair.
Fortunately, everyone had their seat belts fastened.
Rorschach's strength allowed him to anchor himself securely to the aircraft's structure. He remained steady as a mountain despite the chaos around him.
Eric also reacted quickly.
Using his magnetic power, he anchored himself to the aircraft's metal frame while gripping Charles tightly to keep him in place.
No one was thrown loose.
Moments later—
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The damaged Blackbird lost control and was forced into an emergency landing along the coastline.
The violent shaking grew even worse as the jet scraped across the ground.
With a deafening crash, the first-generation Blackbird slammed into the shore and broke apart.
The once-impressive aircraft was reduced to twisted wreckage in seconds.
Inside the shattered cabin, several mutants nearly vomited from the impact.
Thankfully, their safety restraints had done their job.
No one was seriously injured.
"Cough… cough…"
"Is everyone alright?"
"Moira? Raven?"
"Charles, we're okay!"
Despite his somewhat frail appearance, Charles recovered faster than anyone else. His mind was extraordinarily strong, and he quickly climbed to his feet to check on the others.
Most of the team still felt dizzy.
Rorschach, on the other hand, was already standing calmly inside the wreckage.
His breathing was steady.
His clothes weren't even disheveled.
It was almost as if the violent crash had never happened at all.
Without wasting time, Rorschach, Charles, and Eric helped the others free themselves from their seats.
One by one, the mutants climbed out of the destroyed aircraft.
Across the beach, Shaw's submarine had also fallen from the sky and smashed into the ground.
The massive vessel had shattered upon impact.
Standing near the wreckage were four figures.
The pale bald mutant who had summoned the tidal wave.
A tall man with dark skin, dreadlocks, and sunglasses, standing casually with his arms crossed.
Another man who appeared completely ordinary, with no visible distinguishing features.
And finally—
The winged mutant hovered above them, his metal-edged wings beating slowly in the air.
The four of them faced the X-Men across the ruined battlefield.
The distance between the two groups wasn't far.
An invisible tension spread across the beach as both sides silently prepared for battle.
.....
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