Interlude: Great Awakening
Charles Xavier retreated from the edge of the young mutant's subconscious. He appeared haggard, and his astral form dulled. He shuddered, having paid a toll to enter the teen's mind.
Without a doubt, Charles was convinced that the child was a telepath of some kind. He had never witnessed mental shields as strong as Jeremy's before, and the way the child resisted him only confirmed his suspicions. It was a passive force, almost like a secondary mutation.
Thadump.
Charles's eyes widened as he scanned the astral plane, feeling a foreboding sense of dread that washed over him. His mind and powers were heightened beyond their norms, so it could be a common occurrence in the plane that he wasn't aware of, but he was doubtful.
He turned, hands outstretched, ready for an attack, but nothing happened as he flexed his amplified powers if he had known that the young man was the CEO of York Industries' son.
'Something was off about the tower,' he thought, but he couldn't quite place it. As he turned to leave, a sudden pulse reverberated through the astral plane, causing him to drop to his knees in horror. He quickly turned back, his hands outstretched.
'No.' he gasped as the astral flexed like plexiglass.
Astrid|Emma
Suddenly, the world of dreams and daydreams expelled many of its residents, and the waking world shuddered on the brink of collapse. The universe would have almost ended if it weren't for entities so far removed from Coles's scope.
As is often the case with events of such magnitude, some attempted to control it. However, those few who tried were snuffed out like candles, as the psionic impact was more significant than anything ever witnessed.
The phenomenon called the Great Awakening happened across the entire planes. None knew the cause or where the impact originated; not even those conceptual beings had an idea. All except one, Xavier, was a transferred soul that carried powers not of this reality or existence; not even the great beings were aware of what occurred.
The world over, comatose patients suddenly opened their eyes. Among them was Astrid Bloom, a powerful mutant with a normal childhood in England with her loving parents. However, her father passed away when she was a child. Nine months later, Astrid's mother got remarried to a man named Aubrey Chilton. Although Astrid had mixed feelings about her mother's new marriage, she eventually accepted the couple. Astrid's mother and stepfather had another child not long after their marriage.
She now had a new sister named Yvonne. Soon, change happened rapidly, as her Mom changed Astrid's room into a nursery for Yvonne. Astrid now had no choice but to sleep on the couch. As years went by, Astrid became increasingly depressed and resentful. She was enraged over her new sister and how she was now being treated.
When she turned thirteen, her telepathic powers activated. Astrid claimed her mother favored Astrid's half-sister, Yvonne, and sent her away after discovering her abilities. Astrid had mind-controlled Yvonne into killing their parents. Yvonne was sent to a mental institution shortly after that.
Astrid then moved to New York City. This taught Astrid to count on herself. How she got accepted to Empire State University is still being determined. Still, she met Emma Frost, who she also found to be a mutant. Astrid taught Emma how to use her powers.
Astrid had become very close to Emma, and they shared everything. However, Astrid had an evil plan in her mind to harm Emma and was manipulating her to turn against both male and non-mutant humanity. She had taken control of Ian's mind (who was Emma's boyfriend at the time) and made him act as a bigot. Emma eventually discovered that Astrid was behind Ian's wicked actions.
Astrid tried to justify her actions to Emma, telling her that she did it to spare her heartbreak in the future. But Emma could see that Astrid was being insincere. In a desperate attempt to control Emma and falsely accuse her male love interest of assault, Bloom tries to imprison Emma by trapping Frost's psyche within Astrid's psyche.
Astrid's strategy of using telepathy against Emma backfired when Emma could immediately access and absorb all of Astrid's memories, knowledge, skills, and abilities, including her understanding of telepathic combat. With this new technical skill to support her already superior power level, Emma could break free and attack Astrid with her telekinetic powers, leaving Astrid shocked and helpless.
Their confrontation was brief, and Emma's vast potential outmatched Astrid. Emma had used her powers to leave Astrid in a catatonic state, effectively destroying her mind. Emma was deeply influenced by Astrid teachings, which stated that humans, regardless of whether or not they had telepathic abilities, were essentially just "soulless meat puppets" created solely for the pleasure of those who could manipulate them. This belief significantly impacted Emma, which led to her becoming one of the most formidable and dreaded White Queens of the notorious secret society known as the Hellfire Club.
The event had shaped Emma Frost's position on mutants and humankind long before she met Xavier. With access to Astrid's techniques and training, she had hidden that part in the deepest recess of her mind under lock and key, never thought of by her.
In the present, those memories flowed from the deepest recess of her subconscious. Emma languished on the ground as she gripped her head. Her hellions had no idea what to do and could only assist her to her couch as she writhed in pain.
But, Astrid, unconscious in a hospital in central New York, opened her eyes after a decade of being brain dead as her soul had been lost on another plane. Astrid stood up, shocking the nurse as she ran to get the doctor, missing the words from her mouth.
"Jeremy York!" She wailed, her shout shattering the windows in the private wing laid for by Emma Frost.
Emma Frost
Emma Frost had jerked away, surrounded by her students. She stood on wobbly legs before speaking in an alarmed, scared tone.
"Xavier, what have you done."
All across the world, psionics had lost consciousness only to wake with utter dread. Even the mystical masters of the arts had stumbled in their training.
The Ancient One
"Ancient One, we must attack now; the psionic will fail," Mordo argued.
She didn't respond, afraid to utter a syllable as she sensed the chill from earlier still lingering on her, attached to her very essence, a threatening feeling when a god has required payment for a debt.
'Did she owe the Shinto goddess? Yes. She did. Her actions to prolong her life had just about caused the end of the realm.' She sighed and opened her eyes, prepared to turn down the ma nonce again, but in a split second, all of the sanctums glared at their mystical shields.
"No! This cannot be. A dimensional breach is imminent." Ancient One roared, jumping to her feet, her earlier fears gone as hundreds of years of training came to the forefront. Kamr-Taj erupted in action as archaic ancient wards glowed with power and had been dormant since the time of the first Sorcerer Supreme.
"Who?" Mordo asked in a hiss as he ran alongside her.
She waved her hands, and the spell form shattered. She cursed for the first time in years as she refocused; mystical energies were still haywire.
She cast her sling-ring, cutting the air in sparks of sheer mystical energies. She gasped, sputtered, and tripped; Wong had caught her, placing an arm around her shoulder.
Soon, a veritable flood of Dark energy permeated the room as a mark appeared on her forehead, signifying her connection to the Dark realm.
As the Dark Lord sensed her actions, she could feel the strain on her soul increase as the flow of Dark energy took its toll on her body and soul, but she could also feel the results of her spells.
She gripped the Eye of Aggamotto. 'Vishanti, protect us.' Time parted as she peered through multiple timelines.
Wong and Mordo stood in awe of what they were witnessing. This was the sorcerer Supreme. Unbeknownst to them, a dark symbol attempted to form on her head. Still, another one, a blue Kanji, superimposed itself atop the dark lord's claimant, albeit weakly, forestalling its power somewhat and giving her a second more to do what must be done.
Though she could see the multiple timelines, she couldn't see his, which made her even more afraid this time. Just who or what was this anomaly that gods shielded him from her?
Wong and Mordo, enraptured in time energies, watched as the world was rewound to a time before the breach. Ancient one stumbled but righted herself and peered through the diverging timelines, her face impassive.
The dimension breach had been halted, but the entities waiting to take the earth remained ready, and she knew that time would come soon. She needed to find the new Sorcerer Supreme; during the time shift, she had been able to see the man who would lead the mystical world.
'Dr. Steven Strange, I hope you are up for the task.'
Alarmed, she turned to see an enraged Mordo slip through a portal. The man turned and glowered at her before the portal snapped closed. Her many years of walking the realm had allowed her to grasp the details of the mountains in the background; an archaic castle sat atop a hill. Mordo had returned home. She had seen the outcome of her actions in using the eye.
Chapter 78: Second Chance
Was his action detrimental to mutant-kind? No, he didn't think so; he hadn't done anything to put a spotlight on mutant-kind; he was keenly aware that he had been outed as one of the tabloids, and after realizing Xavier was in contact with the government agencies meant the powers that be were at least aware of him.
To put him down, the professor uttered words that had been more for the telekinetic than for him; he could deduce the struggle in the man's words, the implications behind the action, and the acquisition that was put into the assault.
Trapped as he were in his subconscious, the carefully laid trap by the professor, a feat he still couldn't wrap his mind around; he had been depending on the system and not been proactive after his first assault from a telepath. Cole could feel his heart pounding inside his chest, like a wild animal trapped inside a cage, his adrenaline racing throughout his system as the unfamiliar emotion of fear crept behind his growing self-doubt.
The X-Men leader had cast a final noncommittal gaze over the parting particles of his astral form. Cole struggled immensely to stop what was about to happen, attempting to halt his vanishing form from dissipating.
Thadump.
'What?' Cole thought as he could hear the rhythmic beat of a heart. Was that his heart? Was he testing his heartbeat? 'Focus!' he thought, feeling it cost him the precious time he needed as his astral form began to break and his consciousness slipped.
Cole cycled through his abilities, drawing blanks as nothing seemed to work. He had been cut off from the system, but he shelved that thought as he knew that was impossible; if he had been separated, he would die. The impression he had gotten from his earlier estimation was singular and to the point; the system wouldn't allow itself to fall under the Seay of another.
Thadump.
His heart quaked inside him as he carefully reviewed the list of abilities he could use to free himself, and his mind worked at an increased pace. In all honesty, it was a Hail Mary notion, but one he took anyway. His parallel mind and numerous personas were the only reason he had endured the command to sleep so long, but he was slowly but surely being shut down.
Minutes seemed to pass, but he knew them only to be seconds as he became sluggish, and his last image was the retreating back of Professor Charles Xavier.
He hadn't thought the man would attack him again so soon. Were the Xmen always this proactive, or was something going on he wasn't privy to? He also hadn't actively involved himself with the mutants, a mistake he would pay for; this spiritually induced coma was something the man had utilized before, at least by the ease and methods he took.
Cole had forgotten that this wasn't the MCU, and he had to contend with numerous threats far earlier than what the Avengers and the X-men had to deal with. His approach had been to remain on edge but shift the outcome in favor of the fated victor or, if he had to, and he had been doing it, rescue those he deemed needed. Scorch was the first; the man was an outlier, but his power and unique biological makeup made him the ideal person to have his Fate altered.
He had the system, which theoretically should have made him better off or at least able to bridge the gap, but Xavier had shown him that he still had a long way to go. Even with his newfound Persona, that gap wasn't bridged. Monsters like Xavier, Magneto, hell, and even Mystique had years to hone their craft and familiarize themselves with their abilities.
Long ago, he realized that he would have it quite more challenging as he would have a lot to train and practice with. The spiritual or heavenly realm, referred to in Marvel, was newfound ground and an area that one couldn't be a master in; even with his predisposed knowledge granted by the system, he was sure that he only scratched the surface of the arcane.
Xavier had beaten him; his loss voided everything he had accomplished thus far; he thought about his team; no, he stopped his train of thought and recognized that they were his friends, his people, and he had failed them.
With a monumental sigh of apathy, Cole Stephens slept his final thoughts on a second chance.
Thadump!
The thundering of his heart awakened him. He lazily opened his eyes only to see the astonished professor glaring at him in open objection. Cole's heartbeat reverberated beyond time and space; each pulse was untraceable as the system had protected him.
Numerous upheavals shook the world due to Xavier's actions and the subsequent manipulation of time by The Ancient One using the Time Stone. These events weakened the veils that separated our world from other entities, allowing previously unheard-of creatures to enter. As documented by spiritual records, this occurred over several decades. As a result of these events, the world's natural shield was weakened.
Not even Cole was aware of these beings: Ancient evils, great cosmic beings, even the celestials had felt the pulse, but a lesser but still terrible threat had focused and redoubled their efforts intently. The lords of fear had sensed the newborn power of fear that presided in the mortal plane, especially Nightmare, a mysterious being of unfathomable power. Still, a goddess brought low by Zeus who grew fat in Omnipotence City had been riled up outside him.
Xavier's need to safeguard mutant-kind had been beyond his expectations. Yet, he still wasn't aware that his attempt had shifted the tides of war, which had been fought for Millenial.
Cole blinked, his physical body blinked, and he opened his spiritual eyes only to be met by Xavier's incredulous eyes boring into him.
'Did she help him?' he wondered, knowing that wasn't the case. The Ancient One had to be the one who manipulated time, and it wasn't because of him; something else had occurred, ' he deduced.
Because of the system, time had no hold on him; not even the time stone could manipulate him outside of the physical. Cole was aware of the different timelines and differences.
The outside world had continued blissfully unaware of the altered timeline. Suddenly, Kaecillus wards pulsated, sensing something, so he turned, monitoring Jeremy's silent, meditating form. The Master of the mystical arts slowly looked around, his senses stretching out.
He pointed the ring toward an area seemingly random; the red glow of his ring illuminated the space, shearing through the physical, and he saw what had caused the wards to erupt, and his face contorted in rage.
Kaecillus had been attempting to remake the building into a Sanctum, similar to what Dr. Strange had done to his mini-castle. Neither Kaecillus nor Cole trusted The Ancient One to protect the world from its most vicious enemy, Dormmamu, especially after Cole rebuffed and stole a soul that was rightfully his.
"Xavier," the red lantern growled as he flared his power in rage, preparing to attack the man. Suddenly, Jeremy tilted and started to lose balance. Kaecillus rushed over, propelled by the power of the lantern ring. The ring significantly boosted his physical abilities to be beyond that of a super-soldier. He grabbed his Master and shook him, attempting to wake him from whatever had occurred.
Cole quickly reached out and stopped Kaecillus's attempts to wake him. "We are under attack! Protect the women and defend the building!" he ordered urgently, his eyes still closed and fluttering sporadically behind his eyelids. Cole sensed the environment shift, as time didn't affect him like it did others. Still in his subconscious, Xavier had also benefited from this heightened awareness.
Cole remained in his position, observing as his astral body rapidly reformed, anticipating that a fight was about to break out. The powered-up Xavier would undoubtedly be a formidable opponent, but Cole was determined not to let what happened before repeating itself. This was his second chance, and he would not waste it.
Xavier stared directly at the teen, who suddenly awoke from his subconscious, unaware of what caused it.
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