Marvel: Starting as a Time Criminal, Stealing Powers

Professor X's eyes widened instantly, and Russell's pupils were reflected in them.

The world around him seemed to mirror itself endlessly—like two mirrors facing each other, layers overlapping infinitely.

Until, suddenly—

It all shattered and collapsed.

In the pitch-black void, fragments of a glass-like world floated everywhere, each piece reflecting countless shocked expressions.

"This is impossible!"

"This can't be happening..."

"T–"

"X–"

Professor X floated in the void, internally screaming in disbelief, his voice echoing wildly in all directions, growing denser and faster with each repetition.

Eventually, the sound seemed to resonate from the depths of his soul—layer after layer!

Professor X roared, feeling as if he were going mad from the sound of his own voice.

In an instant, his powerful psychic energy burst outward. Wherever the transparent ripples passed, the fragmented mirror-world was shattered even further!

And then—everything vanished.

Professor X plummeted suddenly into an abyss.

The shattered world disappeared, replaced by a boundless, endless darkness.

He knew this was the psychic realm—his own domain.

But that only made it more terrifying.

Because he couldn't resist at all.

Just like the enemies he had once pulled into this world... now it no longer belonged to him.

At that moment, he suddenly remembered their first encounter.

Flirtatious. Harmless. Weak.

It turned out everything had been an act.

The truth was—Russell was a psychic master who completely surpassed him.

Not just a werewolf. Even hundreds of werewolves wouldn't be able to hurt him.

But Professor X wasn't ready to give up.

His eyes lit up suddenly, as if he wanted to pierce through the void and find a way out.

But then—white light emerged from the darkness.

Born from the shadows, the light enveloped him, bringing a wave of unprecedented peace. All his anxiety, fear, and tension vanished in an instant.

He found himself standing on solid ground, though he didn't know when it had appeared. He looked up at the sky with a blank expression.

Snap!

A crisp snap of fingers echoed.

All the white light began to flow like a reversed river of time. It converged into a single palm, transforming into a glowing feather.

Russell raised his hand and gently blew on it. The feather floated up into the sky and vanished.

Just like that—the entire world changed.

The white light faded from Russell's pupils. He looked down at Professor X, whose eyes had lost all focus. A faint smile curved on Russell's lips before he disappeared without a trace.

The next day.

A frantic knocking echoed outside the room.

"Professor!"

"Charles!"

"Something's happened—get up, quickly!"

Professor X's eyes shot open.

For a moment, he was dazed. Then instinctively, he looked to the side.

Nothing was there. Everything looked the same as usual.

A flicker of confusion appeared in his eyes. He felt like… he had forgotten something important.

Outside the door, anxious voices called again.

Professor X pressed the switch by the bed. The door unlocked automatically.

"Come in," he called.

The door opened and hurried footsteps followed.

Cyclops, Jean Grey, and Storm rushed in, panic etched on their faces.

Jean spoke first:

"Professor, the S.H.I.E.L.D. agent... he's dead."

Professor X's face changed instantly.

The werewolf attack had failed. And now the second strike had come so quickly?

His expression darkened.

"Where's Raven? She lives across from Russell. I warned her to be careful yesterday!"

At that, the three exchanged looks. After a long pause, Cyclops spoke up.

"Professor… Raven is missing."

The S.H.I.E.L.D. envoy was dead. The hospital where he was stationed had been compromised.

The conclusion was obvious.

Professor X stood stunned.

Shock, confusion, regret, sorrow, grief—all kinds of emotions flickered across his face.

He had adopted Raven when he was in his forties. He had raised and taught her, nearly from childhood to adulthood. And in the end… she had betrayed him?

Why?

Hadn't she already left the Brotherhood?

Jean, sensing his thoughts, spoke softly:

"Professor… Raven might not be a traitor from the Brotherhood. And Magneto's real target has probably never been us."

"Besides," she added, "there may be more than one spy in the academy. Raven alone couldn't have put Xingyue to sleep."

Cyclops said seriously:

"Professor, we can't go on like this."

"You need to use Cerebro to scan the entire academy. And you also need to report this to S.H.I.E.L.D."

Professor X was silent for a long time before finally nodding.

Classes were still in session, and the students had no idea what had happened.

Revealing the truth would cause panic—and the X-Men feared it might tip off the enemy.

One level underground.

Jean Grey pushed Professor X's wheelchair toward the EEG room.

Now that the decision had been made, Professor X didn't hesitate.

He approached the Cerebro system and put on the neural amplifier.

Taking a deep breath, he unleashed a wave of powerful psychic energy, which was then magnified by the machine.

In that instant, the tiny black particles hidden in the system's gaps silently melted away and vanished.

Afternoon — Queens.

Inside an empty church, Mystique—disguised as another woman—sat silently in a confessional booth.

A moment later, a priest appeared on the other side of the lattice. He spoke with satisfaction:

"You did well. The plan was flawlessly executed."

"Now, it's time for you to meet the master's messenger and become a herald of this world."

A rare look of excitement flashed across Mystique's face.

Ever since she left the Brotherhood in despair, she had been disillusioned with the world.

Mutants couldn't win—neither Magneto's radical path nor Professor X's idealistic moderation could succeed.

The conflict between humans and mutants was like an eternal paradox—unsolvable.

No one was truly wrong. The world itself was wrong.

Then, that night in this very church, she heard the voice of God.

This world is broken.

Only a god could change that.

Only by worshipping a true god could hatred be erased forever.

And now… success was within reach.

"Where do I find him?" Mystique asked excitedly.

The priest replied calmly:

"Where else? Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters."

Mystique froze.

Even as she left the church, she could hardly believe it.

She knew there was a teammate stationed at the academy, but she never imagined that person was the messenger of God!

How did they infiltrate the school?

And more importantly… the priest said she could go back.

At that moment, a black van pulled up in front of her.

Clearly, it had come to pick her up.

Inside the vehicle, Mystique sat in a daze the entire way, trying to guess who the messenger might be.

By the time the car stopped, she realized they had arrived at the back entrance of the school.

The gate opened, and the van drove into a warehouse before the engine cut off.

Mystique stepped out and followed the sound of movement.

After weaving through a few shelves, she saw a man crouched on the floor, sorting through something.

Then he turned around—and revealed a face she knew all too well.

Seeing her stunned expression, the man smiled.

"Surprised, Raven? I thought you'd figure it out."

Mystique's breathing quickened as she stared at him in disbelief.

"Scott!? How could it be you?"

Cyclops raised an eyebrow.

"Why not me?"

"Because I'm the Professor's top student? Or because I love Jean?"

Mystique still couldn't believe it.

"But if it's you… why did you need my help planting that device in the ventilation system?"

Cyclops clapped his hands and stood up.

"It's simple. I don't have access clearance either. The only time I can get near that area is when I'm with the Professor or the others."

"And here's the kicker—once the neural room is activated, if the Professor's in the castle, he'll sense it."

"That's why he has to be at least half a kilometer away. That's why I picked the target next to the artificial lake."

"And let's face it—it's not easy to find a moment where he's gone, and you can enter the underground lab without being seen."

"Luckily, we had that S.H.I.E.L.D. agent. His death—plus your betrayal—and just a few carefully planted words… and the Professor actually used Cerebro to search for more spies."

Mystique suddenly recalled all the things Cyclops had said in the past.

He always seemed to dislike the S.H.I.E.L.D. envoy—provoking him, even threatening him.

Now, in hindsight, it was all part of a plan—to sow conflict, stoke resentment, and push the Professor toward activating Cerebro.

Even if the Professor hesitated at first, that seed would grow.

And once it reached the tipping point… everything fell into place.

Still, Mystique had one question she couldn't shake.

"But I still don't understand—why did you betray the academy?"

"Don't tell me it was for the sake of Mutants."

Hearing this, Cyclops's eyes darkened.

After a long silence, he muttered:

"It's all for Jean."

"Her power… doesn't belong to her. It's destined to destroy her. Only the Great Dark God can save her."

Mystique was stunned.

As one of the strongest psychics in the school, Jean didn't own her own power?

And it sounded dangerous—apocalyptic even.

Mystique didn't ask further. Instead, she said:

"You brought me back. That means everything's ready."

"What do you need me to do?"

Cyclops shook his head.

"Your mission is complete."

"Now… witness the sacrifice and welcome the birth of a new world."

Mystique's brows furrowed.

"Sacrifice? What sacrifice?"

Cyclops answered softly:

"Just a necessary one. For a greater future… it must be done."

Mystique fell silent.

The warehouse returned to stillness.

Perched casually atop a shelf, Russell had been silently watching the entire conversation, lost in thought.

The Dark God…

Were they trying to summon Dormammu, Lord of the Dark Dimension?

Or perhaps Chthon, the God of Chaos and Black Magic?

Russell recalled the black flames that had erupted from the mouth of that mutant earlier—they seemed powerful enough to contend with either.

Still…

He frowned.

Something was missing.

But it didn't matter. He'd find out soon enough.

Russell lowered his head and looked at Cyclops…

…with the same expression he used when staring at the dead.

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