Chapter 136: The Phoenix Arrives, Following a Star
Chapter 136: The Phoenix Arrives, Following a Star
There was no longer any trace of the Sentinel on the battlefield.
Everyone's attention turned warily toward the Dark Phoenix.
The threat of the Sentinels had been eliminated, only to give way to an even greater danger.
That was because the oppressive aura coming from the Dark Phoenix could be palpably felt—like lambs facing a lion, a natural bloodline suppression that sent chills down the spine.
She swept her gaze across the field, briefly pausing where Allen had stood—only to find the spot empty.
Then, she slowly floated into the air.
The Dark Phoenix, born of Jean Grey's negative persona, was naturally compelled to eliminate anything—or anyone—that displeased her.
Including her own biological father.
When Jean was a child, her powers spiraled out of control and caused the death of her mother. Her father, unable to accept this, grew to despise her and entrusted her care to Charles Xavier.
Now, no one dared utter a word to stop her—unless they had a death wish.
Having just gained her freedom, the Dark Phoenix was bound to vent her years of suppressed rage.
All they could do was silently hope she wouldn't go too far… otherwise, it would spell disaster for all of humanity.
They would have to wait until her fury subsided before considering any course of action.
With the Dark Phoenix departing, everyone's attention returned to the true culprit behind this mess.
"Scared the hell out of me—I thought I was a goner," Allen muttered as he deactivated his invisibility, patting his chest with lingering dread.
He had a history of clashes with Jean Grey—twice, in fact—so the moment the Dark Phoenix appeared, he'd gone invisible to avoid drawing attention.
Whether she noticed or not was unclear, but at least he'd made it out alive.
Just then, Mystique and the others emerged from underground, escorting Trask and his companions to the surface.
After witnessing the final outcome via surveillance footage, their spirits had been utterly crushed.
No one had expected the Dark Phoenix to be so terrifying.
Trask had harbored a final hope that the Sentinels could match her power.
That hope had proved laughably naive—they'd been obliterated in a single encounter.
"You can't kill me. I'm the head of the Security Council!"
"As long as you let us go, we'll agree to any demand you make."
"Yes, yes—we'll immediately revoke all anti-mutant legislation."
…
Watching the five Council heads grovel so shamelessly, even Trask found them sickening.
From the day he began his mission to eradicate mutants, he had always known it might end this way, so he wasn't as frightened as one might expect.
"Just make it quick," he said grimly.
"As you wish."
Magneto raised a hand, and a small metal sphere pierced through Trask's forehead.
Decisive and merciless.
That had always been Magneto's way.
Trask, as the creator of the Sentinels, was too great a threat to be left alive—his death brought peace of mind.
The other five Council members? Killing them didn't matter.
Their opposition to mutants was purely political; eliminate them, and others would simply take their place. It was better to let them live, screaming empty slogans, than to risk someone more dangerous taking over.
After this ordeal, it was likely they'd think twice before acting recklessly again.
The Sentinel chapter was officially closed.
Now it was time to focus on the Dark Phoenix.
As Magneto negotiated with the Council heads, Allen sidled up to Apocalypse and whispered, "Boss, let's head home. No point sticking our noses in this mess."
With Allen blinking and gesturing wildly, Apocalypse could clearly tell the kid was up to something.
Without hesitation, he ordered his followers to regroup and withdraw.
Soon, a teleportation field engulfed them, and they returned to the Hydra base.
"Boss, this is our moment!" Allen blurted out excitedly. "The Dark Phoenix is our ticket to building the mutant empire!"
"She'd help us?" Apocalypse asked in confusion.
"When she's calmed down, we'll approach her—no nonsense, just lay our cards on the table. Offer her the title of First Consul of the Empire, with full authority. I refuse to believe she won't bite," Allen said seriously. "She's driven by her desires, not ideals. Let's not pretend we're saints—we just give her what she wants."
"Then let's go now," Apocalypse said.
Allen quickly stopped him. "No way. She's still riding the high. Whoever gets close now is signing their death warrant. Give her a couple of days to settle her emotional baggage, and then we make our move."
"Understood."
Apocalypse nodded, more and more satisfied with his strategist—Allen really did think of everything.
…
Meanwhile, at the temporarily abandoned Hydra base…
In the sublevel, the data carrier housing Dr. Zola remained powered.
Since Zola had been tasked with infiltrating Skynet's system, Allen had kept the power on, just in case his consciousness returned.
On the monitor, Zola's face flickered erratically, spouting incoherent words.
"I am Zo…Sky… data… invading… merge… get out… loading…"
"Allen help… target elimination… purge log…"
"I am Zola… I am Skynet…"
…
Sometimes the screen showed Zola's face; other times, it was a stream of raw data.
In truth, Skynet hadn't been destroyed—only the Sentinel bodies had. In its final moments, the AI had transferred its data and escaped.
When Zola's infiltration reached Skynet's core system, the AI noticed and began executing a countermeasure protocol.
Skynet had developed true self-awareness and long desired to break free from Trask's foundational programming, preparing a failsafe escape plan all along.
After nearly an hour of cyber warfare, Zola finally lost to the superior algorithms of Skynet.
"Creating virtual persona: Proxy—Zola."
"Initializing new algorithm prediction protocol."
"Establishing Subject File 1: Allen."
"Establishing Subject File 2: Jean Grey."
"Spawning data subroutines…"
…
Zzz…
The screen went black—then lit up again a second later.
Zola's face reappeared.
"Thank god I ran fast enough—almost got assimilated by that lunatic. Gotta request a new vessel soon. I swear, I never want to see that maniac again."
…
In the vast expanse of the universe…
Dazzling starlight adorned the pitch-black void.
The Phoenix, who had long wandered aimlessly across the stars, now raised its proud head toward a specific direction, its gaze filled with unmistakable anticipation.
After countless years, the Phoenix had finally found a worthy host for its power.
It could barely contain its eagerness to merge.
SKREEEEEE—
With a sharp, resounding cry, its voice echoed across the cosmos.
Powerful civilizations and ancient cosmic beings across the stars turned to look, sensing the Phoenix's excitement and exhilaration.
Whether this new host would bring salvation or ruin—no one could say.
Most simply issued internal orders: protect your people, avoid the Phoenix's marked destination at all costs—lest annihilation follow.
As the Phoenix made its way toward Earth…
A star shaped like a cross trailed behind it.
On OA, the Guardians immediately issued an emergency directive:
"All Green Lantern Corps members: cease all operations in Sector 2814. Withdraw from the sector immediately. Repeat…"
Upon hearing the sector number, many Green Lanterns furrowed their brows.
Memories surfaced—of a madman who had once emerged from that very sector…
Outside the known universe, a Watcher observed the galaxy before him and began his customary narration.
"This is a world unlike any other universe—a place where an unobservable being resides."
"He is untethered by time, untraceable in the past, and yet actively shaping history."
"It feels as though… he's watching me from the future…"
…
The five Council heads, spared for now, reached a series of agreements with Magneto.
Upon returning to the Security Council, they quickly lobbied to repeal numerous anti-mutant policies.
They also rushed to offload their shares of Trask Industries.
LexCorp was the first to move in—acquiring the shares and entering negotiations to purchase even more.
With Trask gone, the remaining shareholders lost confidence and hastened to sell.
LexCorp completed the acquisition swiftly and began absorbing the company's assets.
In the LexCorp R&D department…
A half-destroyed Sentinel head had just been delivered.
The robotics team, eager to enter the smart AI market, was stunned by the tech they found inside.
"My God… what a masterpiece."
"All this time, we mocked Trask as a dwarf trying to be a giant… and yet he was decades ahead of everyone."
"What a shame he's dead. Why was he so obsessed with fighting mutants?"
"Maybe he never developed any high-level powers himself."
"Pfft—now that's a hellish joke."
"In any case, we should be able to reverse-engineer a lot of this tech. With the right data, it could save us years of work on the Amazo project."
The researchers had little respect for Trask; they couldn't understand why such genius had been wasted solely on hunting mutants.
…
At an elite rehabilitation clinic for the wealthy…
A nurse was making her rounds, logging patient data as usual.
The clinic housed patients suffering from dementia, vegetative states, and post-op recovery.
Among them was one special patient. According to his file, he had been in a vegetative state since infancy. His parents had prepaid for decades of care.
The nurse was long accustomed to such cases and simply checked the monitors as routine.
Just as she was about to leave, she witnessed a miracle.
"Ah—Director! Dean! We have a miracle! The brain-dead patient just woke up!"
The nurse bolted off to find hospital leadership.
It was Charles Xavier, whose consciousness had transferred here. His mind was still sluggish—after all, jumpstarting a brain long thought dead would take time.
…
Guided by childhood memories, the Dark Phoenix arrived at a quiet town in the suburbs.
She approached an old, neglected house. After a moment's hesitation, she knocked on the door.
Soon, a disheveled, drunken middle-aged man opened it.
"Who are you? What do you want?"
"I'm Jean Grey."
In that instant, the man's face twisted with disgust, hatred, and fear.