Reality shattered around him as gold runes flared and swept forward. Then he was gone, dropping into the Mirror Dimension.
Shit!
I had one fucking job.
I'd dicked around for far too long, and now Earth was going to pay the price. Manny chose that exact moment to materialize beside me in one of his bodies. He wore flowing, monk-like robes, and his skin and hair were white, contrasting sharply with his glowing blue synthetic eyes.
"A rather stimulating fight, sir," he said. "One of your better martial showings. The tactics left a lot to be desired."
"I know, Manny," I said dryly. "I was there."
I raised Rebellion, and all its copies vanished, merging with the original.
"Calibrate the global spatial lock and shielding we have around Earth to detect Kal's unique soul signature and repel him."
"Already done," Manny said, "though I fear it won't be enough. That Khopesh he was using had an energy signature we've never encountered before. It's certainly demonic, but it's so much more than that."
"So, like Rebellion or Yamato?" I asked.
"Likely. And we have no idea what it might do to you or anybody else if or when it hits them."
I swallowed. "Fill Jean in on the situation and deploy the rest of the Sentinels. We need as much of a buffer as possible between him and his targets when he reappears."
Manny's eyes flashed blue. "Doing that right—He's just passed the moon and is coming up on the shiel—"
We were there before he finished his sentence, floating in space and more than ready to end things. I tapped into my True Form and prepared to rain down hell.
Jean's POV
The nanite and Arcanite suit flowed over me like a second skin, shielding every inch of my body in dense layers of impact-absorbent leather and metal. My helmet faded away as if translucent, leaving my field of vision unobstructed as I drifted into the stormy skies above Krakoa.
Magneto waited for me in the air, clad in black armor accented with purple. The wind blew through his long white hair, peaking out his helmet, and he wore a perpetual smirk.
He'd been growing stronger and stronger since receiving his armor from Dante. Most days, he didn't need it. Having his body thoroughly enhanced with metal and a super soldier serum had raised the ceiling of his power exponentially.
He could tear armies apart with lazy waves of his hand. With his armor, he could do the same to cities, perhaps even whole countries, if nobody stopped him. That was why Dante had tightened his hold on him. He'd created a special Sentinel from the corpses of dead Devourers and marked it with enough stealth and power runes to eviscerate a small moon. It followed Magneto everywhere, completely hidden by its stealth enchantments.
It was one of Dante's better creations, and I approved.
Pyro, Sabertooth, and Mystique floated beside him, dressed in ordinary clothing. Only Pietro wore Sentinel armor, similar to the suit protecting me.
He waved as I approached. "Good to see you again, Jean. Sorry, I haven't stopped by lately."
"It's alright. Pietro. We're all busy."
Magneto offered me a bow. "Jean Grey. We are honored that you invited us to your hunt."
"It's not so much my hunt as it is everybody else's," I said. "If we don't put this threat down before it spirals out of control, the planet will be overrun by an invasive species worse than the demons."
"Invasive species?" Pyro snorted before laughing. "Call them what they are: vampires. Either way, I'm happy to fry 'em."
Sabertooth chuffed, while Mystique remained a wall of composure, at least on the surface. Her thoughts were as stormy as the skies overhead. She was reluctant to fight but determined to see it through because of what it could mean for her.
A chance to ask Dante for a favor.
She wanted to be transformed like Magneto. They all did. As far as motivations went, it was transparent and something we could easily handle.
"We won't be 'frying' em'," I said very slowly, shooting Pyro a withering look. "At least not all of them. Most didn't ask for this, and not all of them are killers. Not yet. "
"And just how do you plan on separating the potential people eaters from the actual ones?" Pryo asked.
I gave him a sidelong glance, and Mystique provided the obvious answer. "Telepathy. You have no conception of just how powerful she is, do you?"
Pyro opened his mouth and shut it and spoke no more, sparing me from his critiques.
Manny materialized beside Magneto, startling him and everyone else. Instinctively, the Omega-level mutant raised a hand and swiped at him, unleashing an attack packed with enough demonic energy to eviscerate a lesser android. It barely rattled Manny, however, washing over him like water.
Manny blinked at the display, and I felt a little panic creep into the other mutants, all except Pietro. He'd met Dante's new Sentinel Prime before.
"Everybody, this is Manny. He'll be providing your temporary gear and assisting you on our hunt."
"It's lovely to meet you all," Manny said in his clearly artificial voice, his avatar drifting forward under its own telekinetic power. He wore monk's robes, and his skin was so white that looking at him was almost painful. "I've heard so much about you, and I believe I have the optimal loadout for our impromptu hunt, given everything we know about the enemy."
He waved a hand, materializing three liquid-metal suits, a blade, and a helmet. The blade and helmet were for Pietro and Magneto, respectively. The weapons had also been equipped with enchantments that channeled direct sunlight and Anathema Fire.
According to Dante, a single slash could be enough to kill any vampire, no matter how powerful.
"If you'd please put on your armor, the onboard AIs will explain how the enchantments work. We don't have much time."
Pyro was the first to reach out and touch the floating suit closest to his size. It opened up, spun, and swallowed him whole.
"Holy shit!" Pyro called out, his voice sounding almost synthetic.
Sabertooth went next, followed by Mystique. Pietro snatched up his blade without preamble, while Magneto gingerly removed his helmet and replaced it with the fresh silver one.
I watched as the members of the Brotherhood tested their new armor, looking a little lost as information about its systems and functions was drip-fed to them. Magneto turned to Manny.
"How long did it take Dante to make the armor and weapons you just delivered?"
"No time at all," Manny said smoothly. "He didn't make them. I did, on his behalf. He's currently in space, engaged with an approaching army. He doesn't have time to—"
The AI continued talking to Magneto as Manny sent me a mental message.
Kal-Tar, leader of the Black Horde, survived his battle with Dante and is approaching Earth as we speak. Dante wants you to keep an eye out.
He played with his food again, didn't he? I sent back.
The Synthezoid looked somewhat embarrassed, confirming my suspicions. I rolled my eyes.
Tell him I'll keep an eye out, I sent back. And tell him to stop fucking around and deploy all the Sentinels.
If Krakoa burned down because of his fuck-up, I was going to be beyond angry.
"Already done, ma'am," Manny said. "The Sentinel deployment, not the other thing."
My left eye twitched.
First Lauren, and now this? I was getting really tired of cleaning up Shin's mess. I took solace in the fact that the Phoenix would sense Kal immediately. The situation hadn't completely spiraled out of control yet.
"Our first stop is Germany," Manny said, drawing my attention back to the group gathered in the air. "There are fifteen Originals there, and the Sentinels are just about to engage. Is everybody ready?"
They answered with various versions of "yes" and a collection of nods. Then we were off.
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