Chapter 28: Paradise Lost

The Fastest Man Alive

Chapter 28

Paradise Lost

Magneto – The Master of Magnetism

He sat and watched as that Boy paraded his people across the stage with that monkey of a man. He couldn’t help but grip the arm of his throne at the sight of the Boy, but as he gritted his teeth, the pain within his shoulder flared up again at the mere sight of him.

He could barely make himself look at the metallic arm that he constructed for himself. With the twisting and destruction his arm had received during the fight, it was ruined beyond repair. This was another thing that he owed that Boy.

This arm was not only a blessing but also a curse. It was a stark reminder of who and what he was facing. He will have his revenge soon, and his spies had already reported to him about movements in the shadows for mutants to be placed under the thumbs of their nations.

There was nothing to do but to gather his forces slowly. The humans were secretly preparing for war, and it would be a war that they received. With that thought, he got up to stand at the viewing port of his sanctuary. His current forces were in the thousands, but that wouldn’t be enough. They would need a game-changer in the ranks and he had been working on that for a while now.

Ohh, he will have his revenge on that Boy, but for now, he will have to settle for being a god among monkeys.

With his feet crossed as he floated mid-air, he closed his eyes and breathed deep. With each passing moment, each breath was slow, steady, and controlled. He slowly reached out to the planet below; first he took control of the hidden weapons satellite but only kept the control to tentative touches. This wouldn’t work if he startled the monkeys so soon.

From there, his magnetic touch spread to his specially created satellites in orbit. Once his hold was firm over those, he felt the beads of sweat begin to concentrate on his brows. It would seem that this was his current limit.

This was a marked improvement from the last time he stretched his abilities this much. With steady breathing, he was currently controlling over eighty-eight illegally hidden weapons platforms in orbit with his ten amplifier satellites mixed in.

Humans would bow down to their Homo Superior or else, and this was a step towards his revenge against that Boy.

Undisclosed Underground Location

General Irling was not having a good week. First, another one of those costumed meta’s had shown herself in New York creating all kinds of paperwork for him, and now he was tasked to see what one of the defense labs had cooked up.

It was paperwork upon paperwork, and sometimes he wondered why he hadn’t retired to his private lake yet. Then he would be reminded why when Ross fucks up another one of his own operations.

Irling could never and would never leave the defense of the nation in the hands of a half-bent revenge nut like Ross. The man was an excellent general but throw his daughter into the mix, and Ross fucks it all up.

Irling had to place all those thoughts out of his mind, because today he was going to examine the Sentinel program. These egg heads were trying to push through to control the meta-human criminals.

Putting those frustrating thoughts aside, Irling began to tap his feet. It was bad enough he had to come out here but now egghead scientist had him waiting. Before he could speak up though a monstrosity of a robot came walking into the testing grounds.

From the reading material that they had given him, this mark one variant was at least twenty feet tall and was made with some new smart plastics and ceramics. The colors were a shade of purple and grey. Each hand of the tall robot had five fingers, and the feet were one substantial part with what appears to be a working ankle joint.

“Alright, Trask why the hell am I here looking at this thing.”

“This my dear man is a Sentinel to end the mutant threat to America and her people,” Trask replied with solemnity.

Irling wanted to yell at the man, the President himself was on stage with that Blake pretty boy. How in the blue blazes was he going to sell this and get it approved?

“The President himself has aligned with these Meta-humans.”

“All you have to do is watch General,” Trask stated as he turned around and watched back to the testing areas.

A LIVE FIRE IN 3…2…1!

It was both fantastic and frightening for Irling. This robot was more than the next step in handling the growing meta-human situation. This robot was the next step in warfare, and it needed to stay with America and her people.

Even though his inner child was clapping in joy because any young boy would love a giant robot, Irling was feeling more than a little trepidation with this surprise. There was a saying that Irling hated with a passion. Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth, but that wasn’t true.

You not only look in the horse’s mouth, but you check the whole damn thing. This was a situation that if it wasn’t handled correctly; it could quickly end his career and see him placed in jail for the rest of his natural life.

Unfortunately for Irling, he failed to notice the mad gleam within Trasks eyes.

Benjamin Blake – Speedster / Billionaire / Man on a Mission/ Not Quite a Spymaster

I have been having the craziest week as far back as I can remember. Not only did I fight vampires, but also shoving my tool down the throat of Raven. Ooh, I was enjoying myself, but I knew she had ulterior motives for trying so hard to get me into bed.

My enemies were growing stronger, and with me getting into situations that would give me away due to my powerset. It was time for a game-changer, From what I knew and discovered; the speed force was far more than a hyper-speed boost.

I was still in the process of mastering the space and time feature, but I was going for something far different today. Today though I had to clear my mind for the task ahead of me because I had finally made it to my destination.

I was currently standing on a hill overlooking a valley of sorts. The tree’s had grown back from that last time this part of the land was devastated. That didn’t stop me from putting the parts of the puzzle together and deducing the location.

It was in this location that a particular mountain was destroyed by Xavier to trap his half brother within. Caine had become a deserter during the Vietnam war but when Charles was finally able to track him down; Caine had already discovered the Crimson Gem Of Cyttorak.

I wanted that nigh limitless strength that Cyttorak could provide the wielder of his gem. Falling for his bullshit wouldn’t do though, but I had plans for his ass because I knew what everyone else didn’t due to my comic knowledge. Cyttorak wasn’t the actual owner of his dimension. He also wasn’t as intelligent as most would think, and that was going to be his failing today.

With my mind made up; it was time to stop stalling and proceed with my hair-brained plan. I closed my eyes then took a deep breath to center myself, then with purpose, I opened them while filtering through the different spectrums of my sight.

First was the electromagnetic spectrum, then next was the thermodynamic sight allowing me to see the body heat of a few rodents and other various animals going about their business.

Then there was the psionic sight and I found something, it was roughly six hundred feet to my left and about fifty feet in front of me. Then with one more shift in my vision, my target blossomed with a crimson glow beneath my feet.

This fucking guy was just there beneath my feet trapped under what used to be a mountain because he was too fucking stupid to actually do anything other than try and punch his way out with unlimited power.

With a thought, I cloaked myself within my aura, then with a grim smile of finality; I did a slight hop and dove right into the ground. I sunk beneath the grass, leaves and through small insects and other things.

The experience was almost enough to drive me crazy, but if I could take being trapped inside my mind, I can take being underground with its all inclosing darkness. The all-encompassing silence and suffocation, but I was able to at least breath.

As I sank into the ground, there was no up, no down, and everything was any direction. I would not fail here because I had more than a purpose for being here. With focus, I directed the flow of energy beneath my feet, then took my first step towards Cain Marko.

When I arrived at where the bright glowing crimson light was emitting from; I found Cain Marko sandwiched under more than five hundred tons of dirt pressing him down. For a moment, I just stood there and watched him from beyond his sight. Cain Marko, aka the Juggernaut, was a behemoth of a man.

From what I could judge, he was standing at least ten feet tall with arms so massive his bicep is the same size as my torso. He must have been overcompensating for something.

Unlike Logan, who gave off a wild feeling, Cain was giving off the sense of unbridled power. This gave me goosebumps wondering about what it would be like to face off against the Hulk.

Cain was holding up the mountain while also slowly pushing his hands through the soil advancing.

It was too bad for him that he would not survive beyond today. Before Cain was aware, I struck like an angry viper. My aim was for his left pectoral, where the crimson light was emanating.

Without a second thought, I plunged my hands deep within his chest, but once my hand closed around the gem; I was blasted with the feeling of crackling energy moving up my arm.

There was no white; there was no black; there was only red filling my vision, but I was prepared for this. My mind was still my own, which made me happy that I took the time to set up my mental defense.

I closed my eyes and sank within my mind ignoring the feeling of energy I was receiving from the gem. The gem was a lie; the real truth lay in what the master of the gem was trying to do to my mind.

When I delved into my mindscape, I found a bright red star banging against the death star that I was using as my decoy mental fortress. The red star was so busy pounding away at the fake mental fort that it was wholly unaware of the approaching superstructures closing in around it.

Before It could register its surroundings, I had four of my superstructures fire their stasis beams. With the crimson star held within the beams field, my mind rocked as it desperately attempted to break free of my mental constructs firm hold.

While gritting my teeth, I called in the other roaming death stars that I had created to roam my mindscape to ward away any mental probes other than Jean. With the added defenses coming to back up the four already in use, it was finally time to call in the cage for this new mental invader.

Building a Dyson sphere in the real world might not be viable, but there was nothing that said I couldn’t create one within my mindscape. Around the crimson star, four separate parts closed down around it, removing the glow from my view.

Then to make sure I went with enclosing rings like those from Nidavellir space station. First the one with a four-point enclosure then I brought in more and more until the invading star was surrounded. Maybe all these defenses were overkill, but I am an American, and I like to live by the phrase that there was no kill like overkill.

I wanted to breathe a sigh of relief, but I knew that this wasn’t the end of my ordeal. The next part would either make or break the risk I am taking. I drew on my connection to the speed force and drank deeply from its cup.

The golden star within the center of my galaxy burst forth with its glow. With the burst of power, everything within the solar system brightens with colors and popped with vivid clarity and power.

With a mental command, I directed this all towards the intruder then created another connection to absorb. With that new connection created, I held onto it as I launched myself at the star.

With power crackling from my eyes and hands, I dove right through the outer casing holding the crimson star in its place.

“MORTAL how dare you interfere with my avatar.”

Just the mere presence of this being almost made me bow down to him reflexively, but unfortunately for him. I wasn’t some weak-minded babe in the woods. I bow for no man nor god period. Not even The One Above All himself could make me bend the knee if he showed up within my mind this second.

“Cyttorak, we bargain, or we fight,” I yelled at the mad demons projection that he was trying to plant within my mind. For a moment, he froze in what I believed was him thinking it over.

I was sure he was thinking it over because of the power I was holding within my hands about to unleash on his ass, but his next words solidify to me that he had forgotten the dangers a human could pose to him.

“A GOD does not bargain with lesser insects,” Cyttorak yelled out to me as the crimson glow from the star blasted out trying to overpower my mental defenses.

“I could have brought you plenty of death and destruction. If only you took the bargain.”

With that said and done, there were no more words necessary for me to reply to this fake god. Cyttorak was more of a parasite of a demon; he was no god, and his very function was about to be used against him.

With my power held within my hands charged up, I launched it towards the star. We were both enclosed, so there was nowhere for Cyttorak to run from my strike, and it was true. I tried to talk, but he didn’t want to listen, so there was no need to listen to his insipid begging for me to release him.

The issue with Cyttorak was that the gem was a dimensional link into the dimension where he resides. The saving grace for me was my mental defenses and the factor that the speed force was on the same scale as the crimson dimension.

There was no blocking the speed force it was all-encompassing, it was everywhere and anywhere, even in places that there was no time. The speed force was beyond the Phoenix force, but unlike the Phoenix force, the speed force had no will besides that in which the wielder imparts upon it; and my speed force was as unyielding as myself.

With my hands roaring with the power, I plunged them into the star. Once my hands were within the crimson dimensional link, I felt it. There was a resonance of the dimension that I couldn’t possibly describe in words, and the feeling was as if another part of my being was slotted into place.

“HERE’S JOHNNY!” I yelled down at Cyttorak as he just looked at me from his throne, stunned. I should have been scared, I should have been worried, but the widening of his eyes egged me on for more. He left the door open for me, and I was going to come right in and take his fucking power for myself.

AAARRRGGGGHHH

With a roar, I lashed out at the parasite sitting on his throne. Pure, unfiltered power lashed out from my mouth, but Cyttorak already teleported himself somewhere else out of my site. It was lucky for him that I was only able to open a small 3×3 sized hole into this dimension but now that I know the feeling; I was confident that I could return later.

With my gateway opened into the crimson dimension, it was time to take all the power I could. With a mental command, the power I was using to keep the portal open for my little attack began to pull in reverse. That was when I felt another connection slot into place, but I ignored that feeling to focus on the real situation at hand.

This was also one of those time’s my mad genius, combined with my comic knowledge, worked in my favor. The Dyson sphere came alive, pulling in all the power it could draw on. Nothing within the crimson dimension was safe from me or the Dyson sphere; it was all absorbed within me. There was no need to dump it within the speed force, this was not momentum or kinetic energy, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t store the energy myself.

I pulled and pulled, and then with the energy I was stealing I created another star created out of the Crimson dimension. Hell, I was at this for so long I lost track of time, but I was already reinforcing it with the speed force tying in my own hidden connection to this realm of power.

The portal I created for my entry in the realm was finally large enough for me to enter through, but before I could place a leg down, Cyttorak appeared before me again. The look on his face was all but telling. It was obvious that I had pulled a massive draw from his powers because he was half the size of his throne.

Before I could fire a short joke at the parasite; that fucker had teleported in front of me. Unfortunately for me, I hadn’t even gotten my foot through the portal yet. A resounding thump rang out around us as I was kicked back through the portal to my side.

It was so jarring that I was sent back to reality and out of my mind. I was again met with darkness, but my saving grace was that my aura was never released. I felt it though at the fringes of my mind that mad thirst for bloodshed and destruction, but my will was my own and nothing or no one can influence my mind.

I repeated my mantra as I examine my mind only to find that the star that was used to infiltrate the Crimson dimension was still there but less than half the size of Texas. I snorted at that because this battle between him and me was far from over.

After the view of my mind, it was time to organize my mind with the other star. That power star needed to be settled in with the rest. It was time to examine my body to note the changes and fix anything that was out of order.

What I found made me shake my head, I was now nine feet tall and from all the muscles on my body. My weight had to be pushing over a ton easily, but this wouldn’t do for my daily activities.

This power was mine to command, and I refuse for it to lay upon me its ideals of the perfect host body. Closing my eyes, I searched for and found the power feeding into my size and then with a thought I reversed the idea, shutting it off.

I slowly brought my height down to six feet six inches, this now placed me at the same height of Thor, and I could always change this later.