Marvel: Starting as a Time Criminal, Stealing Powers

"Kill him! Kill him now!"

Cyclops roared madly, the burning pain and darkness in his eyes driving him to the edge of insanity.

Wolverine let out a feral growl, crouched like a beast, and leapt off the stage!

His Adamantium claws popped out midair, flashing with a deadly cold light, and slashed down viciously!

At that moment, Rogue couldn't bear to look.

Blood would splatter. Heads would roll.

It was just like the scene from last night—when the werewolf's arm had been sliced off.

Only this time… it was a different opponent.

But under Professor X's psychic control, Rogue couldn't even close her eyes. She could only watch, helplessly, as the bloody scene unfolded before her.

Bang!

But no sound of flesh being torn followed.

Instead, Wolverine's chest caved in, his spine cracked and exploded through his back, and he flew backward like a cannonball—smashing through the auditorium wall.

If the mind-controlled students were capable of shock, their faces would've all frozen in disbelief.

The man who didn't even flinch under Professor X's control had just one-punched Wolverine across the room.

Even his metal-coated spine had burst through his skin. The blood spray alone was enough to send a chill through the crowd.

Mystique was speechless.

How?

That was Professor X's psychic control, and Wolverine, the school's toughest fighter!

Before anyone could process what had happened—

Crack! BOOM!

The auditorium lit up in a burst of thunder and lightning!

Storm had floated into the air, eyes glowing pure white, surrounded by spiraling winds and electricity.

The stunned mutant students felt their hair rise.

They were already weak from blood loss—and now, with primal fear of lightning coursing through them, they turned even paler.

Mystique shouted at Russell:

"Watch out for Storm's lightning!"

"Get close to her—don't give her a chance to attack from range!"

She figured that with Russell's strength—strong enough to crush Wolverine with a punch—he might have a chance in close combat.

As for the heat vision earlier, she assumed there had to be a limitation. Otherwise, why didn't he use it again?

But to her surprise… Russell didn't move at all.

Storm thrust her hands forward. A massive bolt of lightning shot across the air, crashing directly into him!

But the scene Mystique expected never came.

The crackling thunder wrapped gently around Russell's body, spiraling down his arms like a caress, and finally gathered into his palm—like flowing water returning to its source.

It looked like the lightning was bowing to him.

The moment was so surreal, so shocking—it sent chills down everyone's spine.

Russell chuckled softly:

"Using lightning in front of me? …You dare?"

As he finished, the lightning in his hand erupted with terrifying force—

It turned on its master.

A bolt, far stronger and more violent than before, surged toward Storm like divine judgment!

The entire auditorium shook.

Even those not targeted by the thunder felt the overwhelming pressure—as if heaven itself was punishing them.

The awe in the students' eyes turned to sheer terror.

Mystique, still stunned, stared at Russell's back.

And finally… she understood.

That calm, indifferent attitude of his—wasn't arrogance.

It was confidence. The confidence of someone who never took any of them seriously.

She had seen that kind of aura in Magneto before.

But this was different. This was far beyond Magneto.

He broke through dimensional space.

He resisted Professor X's psychic control.

He crushed Cyclops' laser vision.

He sent Wolverine flying with a single blow.

He just dominated Storm's lightning.

There was no doubt now—Russell could have kept using his heat vision. He just chose not to.

He wasn't S.H.I.E.L.D. He wasn't from Earth, as far as she could tell.

When had someone this powerful even appeared in the world?

While everyone stood frozen in disbelief, Russell finally moved.

He strolled forward—calm, casual—like walking through a garden.

With a lazy flick, he slapped Beast aside.

With a glance, Colossus was crushed into the floor like a nail into concrete.

Dazzler, who could manipulate energy, was knocked unconscious with her own weapon.

Nightcrawler teleported into the fight—only to be caught mid-blink, grabbed by the throat, and hurled into Strong Guy, knocking them both out cold.

And just like that—

Russell reached the stage.

The entire X-Men squad lay scattered behind him.

They hadn't even been able to slow him down.

They couldn't hurt him. They couldn't delay him.

They meant nothing.

In the stunned silence, Russell now stood before the trembling man on the stage.

Though Cyclops couldn't see, he wasn't deaf.

He had heard everything—the sound of claws, lightning, screams, crashing bodies…

Now, the only thing he could hear was the sound of footsteps.

Each one fell like a hammer on his heart.

Closer.

Closer.

Until finally... there was nowhere left to run.

Cyclops hit the cold wall behind him. That final thud crushed his last shred of hope.

"Why?!" he screamed, losing all composure.

"I just wanted to live! Why are you stopping me?!"

"This world is cruel! Only—"

Bang!

Before he could finish, his head exploded—like a rotten watermelon.

"Noisy."

Russell didn't even bother to dig through his memory.

"This guy didn't even know who his 'gods' were."

The real problem was the priest.

But Ancient One should've handled him.

Russell glanced over at Professor X, who had finally regained consciousness, but said nothing.

The ritual circle dimmed.

All the Mutant students who had been bound by the black tentacles collapsed to the ground.

A few X-Men, who had been forced under Professor X's control, slowly began to stir.

Colossus, still half-buried, struggled to pull himself free from the concrete.

The spell was broken.

But the trauma would linger.

At that moment, everyone's faces turned pale, their eyes filled with shock and awe.

Although they had been under control the whole time, they could still see everything that happened—like watching a movie through their own eyes.

Especially the scene where they themselves were nearly swatted like flies—it was terrifying.

Aside from Pyro, who died from excessive blood loss, the others were not in mortal danger, despite some injuries and blood loss.

They had survived.

Everyone looked at the figure on stage. Alongside their gratitude, their eyes were filled with admiration and disbelief.

He was too strong.

Not just taking on—but effortlessly crushing nearly all the elite mutants in battle!

It was like something out of a fantasy.

If someone had said this an hour ago, they'd have been called insane.

But now, it was undeniable reality.

Mystique's eyes were the most complicated.

She was not only shocked by his strength—she didn't even know how to face him anymore.

She sighed and turned toward Professor X, who seemed stunned by what had just happened. His eyes were still vacant and hollow.

Mystique quickly climbed onto the stage.

Without even glancing at Russell, she approached Professor X, intending to comfort him. The students still needed their principal.

But before she could speak, she suddenly noticed that his eyes had turned pitch black.

Mystique's heart jumped.

A chill ran from the base of her spine to her scalp, and the hairs on her body stood on end.

She had never felt such terrifying malice in her life.

Just one look, and her will felt like it was about to collapse!

Even though she wasn't under any direct control, it felt like her soul was being stared down by some unspeakable evil.

She was frozen—unable to move.

Suddenly, a hand wrapped around her waist and yanked her backward.

Mystique felt herself escape from that gaze, and warmth returned to her waist.

It was a comforting feeling—safe, calming, like nothing she'd ever felt before.

Still, she quickly shook it off, focused, and warned:

"Be careful! Something's wrong with the Professor!"

Russell, holding her by the waist, replied casually:

"Relax. It's mine."

His?!

That single word sent a jolt through Mystique.

That kind of language was only used when referring to gods or devils.

But the summoning ritual had been interrupted. How could something so terrifying still appear?

Russell didn't explain.

Just then, thick black smoke began pouring out of Professor X's eyes, ears, nose, and mouth—spreading across the ground with a sickening hiss.

It slithered, alive, forming a new magic circle.

BOOM!

A crushing aura descended. The very space trembled.

All the mutants—except Mystique, who was in Russell's arms—were pinned to the ground by the weight of this force.

Students who had just escaped death now looked horrified again.

The ceiling of the auditorium shattered as a crack split the sky, and pure black energy surged into Professor X's body!

Kamar-Taj – Sanctum Sanctorum

At the intersection of the three Sanctums, the dimensional defense network suddenly lit up.

In New York, dark energy began leaking through the golden barrier.

Though they'd prepared for this, Wong and Mordo were still shaken.

"This is Mephisto's dimensional power!"

Wong swallowed nervously. "Are we really going to just stand here?"

Mordo looked to the man beside him.

The Ancient One calmly stroked his beard and replied:

"What are you so scared of? Russell the Magician is already there. If that thing dares enter, he'll beat it back like a dog."

"Besides, it's not the true form, just a projection of dimensional energy. We're fine."

Mordo muttered, "But what if Russell fails…"

The Ancient One rolled his eyes.

"Even if the universe explodes, that guy won't die. Now move—I've got other things to do."

With that, he stepped into a portal and disappeared, leaving Wong and Mordo staring after him.

S.H.I.E.L.D.

Sirens blared.

Nick Fury watched as warning after warning appeared on the intelligent system's display.

[K34 Starlink: High-energy dimensional anomaly detected!]

[Critical energy threshold exceeded!]

[Level One Threat Confirmed!]

[Standard protocol invalid!]

[Recommendation: Activate Emergency Omega Protocol!]

Fury's expression turned grim.

This was the emergency alert system built by Captain Marvel herself.

And now—it had triggered the highest level of planetary threat.

He didn't even have time to call Carol Danvers back.

But then something clicked.

If the physical world couldn't respond in time... what about the mystic side?

He urgently opened a connection to the Ancient One—

But just as he did, a voice came through the emergency comms:

"Director!"

"Mr. Russell just contacted me. He says there's no need to panic—he's handling it."

It was Black Widow.

Fury turned toward the window, and suddenly realized—

The tear in the sky was right over Xavier's School.

Russell had deliberately gone there.

Everything... had been planned in advance?

His heart trembled.

Was this all part of the Sorcerer Supreme's design?

Back at the School for Gifted Youngsters

Professor X stood from his wheelchair, his face twisted in agony. Black markings spread like veins across his head.

Anyone who looked directly at him would feel dizzy, nauseous, overwhelmed with madness.

"What is that!?" Mystique asked in terror, still clinging to Russell.

Russell narrowed his eyes.

"The power of the Dark God of Black Magic— Chthon."

"I thought he'd be after Wanda... Guess not. No matter—we'll deal with it."

Suddenly, Russell's eyes glowed milky white.

At the same time, Professor X's left eye also began to glow—exactly the same color.

This was Russell's backup plan.

He had left a trace of sacred power hidden inside Professor X's mind, just in case.

It was meant for exactly this moment.

No matter which dark god tried to use Professor X's body as a vessel, they'd fall right into his trap.

The holy energy clashed violently with the black magic.

In Xavier's spiritual world, it was like a sun had risen—burning away the ocean of chaos.

Professor X, still chained in darkness, slowly opened his eyes—regaining control.

In reality, the magic circle at his feet began to crack, light seeping through.

The suppressive aura vanished, and the mutants pinned to the ground could finally breathe.

All eyes turned toward Russell—whose eyes still glowed with holy white fire.

He had once again stunned everyone present.

Then, Russell suddenly turned his head and looked to the void on the left.

The others followed—but saw nothing.

Until—

A flaming sword suddenly pierced through space and slashed downward!

A burning rift opened in the air, revealing another realm: a twisted hell of blackened earth, jagged mountains, and rivers of molten lava.

From the fire, a blonde woman emerged, clad in golden armor, eyes glowing blue, wielding a massive blue flame sword.

Without hesitation, she dove toward Professor X—

"Chthon! Die!"

She intended to sacrifice Xavier.

BOOM!

The explosion shattered the ground, destroying the magic circle. The sky split sealed.

As the flames cleared, the woman stood tall, then turned around.

Mystique gasped. "You're... Illyana?!"

"Magik?"

But the blonde woman didn't even look at her.

Instead, she locked eyes with Russell and said coldly:

"Professor X has been infected with Mephisto's dimensional energy. He must die."

"Otherwise, Chthon will still come through him. Don't hesitate—his sacrifice is necessary!"

Mystique, Storm, and the others froze in horror.

She might be right.

Even if Professor X survived... he might want them to do it.

Sadness swept through the gathered mutants.

But Russell simply tilted his head... and laughed.

"Tsk tsk."

"And now the last piece of the puzzle falls into place."

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