Two weeks passed in the blink of an eye.
Mario had spent most of that time on Endstar, though he made a point of visiting Afterlife every few days to check on operations there. He'd learned the hard way that letting things run without supervision usually meant finding creative disasters waiting for him.
At the moment, he was watching Ivan craft telepathy-resistant headbands in his workshop. The Russian had completely reverse-engineered Magneto's helmet, and the results were impressive. The alloy was composed entirely of materials found on Earth, which was both convenient and slightly disappointing. Mario had been hoping for some exotic alien metal that would give them an edge.
"Mario..."
A soft female voice came from behind him.
Mario shivered and turned around. "Change your voice. Seriously. That thing you're doing right now is a crime against humanity."
The tall figure standing beside him was none other than Supergiant. After they'd destroyed the Mad Titan's army and defeated Thanos himself, Mario had kept her on Endstar. Currently, she was assisting Ivan in testing the telepathy-resistant headbands.
"What is it?"
"Dr. Jorgenson requests your presence. There's been a breakthrough in the mutant gene research."
Mario's face lit up immediately. He grabbed the two completed headbands from the workbench and tossed them into his inventory.
"Ivan, see if we can mass-produce these. I want everyone equipped."
Without waiting for a response, he left the workshop and headed toward the laboratory where Banner and Karen were conducting their research. Karen was waiting for him at the entrance, arms crossed.
Mario could barely contain his excitement. "Please tell me you've cracked it."
Karen rolled her eyes. "How could it be that simple? We've only had ten days. Decoding genetic sequences isn't like following a recipe."
Mario's enthusiasm deflated. If only I had a gene-cloning mod. Then I'd show you what real technology looks like.
Seeing his disappointment, Karen decided to stop torturing him. "The lab has successfully developed a serum that can suppress mutant genes. Based on our current experiments, once the suppressor is injected, mutants will lose all changes brought by their X-gene, including physical alterations to their appearance."
Mario considered this for a moment. "A suppressor? So it only inhibits, it can't permanently change them?"
"Based on our current research, there's no way to fundamentally alter mutant genes without causing catastrophic genetic collapse." Karen pulled out a file folder and opened it, revealing a single A4 sheet covered in technical terminology and complex formulas.
Mario glanced at the document, then up at Karen.
"What made you think I could understand any of this? Just explain it to me like I'm five. Or drunk."
Karen paused, then laughed. "I thought you knew everything."
She tucked the document against her chest and continued. "Completely altering mutant genes is beyond our current biotech capabilities. But I believe we'll definitely achieve it in the future."
Mario nodded thoughtfully. He was already thinking about the High Evolutionary, that guy's biological technology was incredibly advanced. And then there was Rocket. Once they found him, their research capabilities would skyrocket.
"As I mentioned earlier, attempting to completely cure mutants leads to genetic collapse. So based on that principle, I developed a special serum. Once it hits a target, it automatically injects and triggers immediate genetic breakdown. The mutant dies within seconds."
Mario found himself looking at her with new eyes. This woman had first created a serum specifically for killing vampires, powerful enough that even La Magra exploded after a few shots. Now she'd developed one targeting mutants.
At this rate, she would probably end up inventing an airborne pathogen capable of wiping out an entire species.
"Excellent work as always."
He briefly considered establishing a dedicated biochemical warfare division with her at the helm, specializing in species-specific weapons. Then he reconsidered. That was a bit too dark, even for him.
Though to be fair, even among vampires there were outliers like Blade. He couldn't paint them all with the same brush. At most, ninety-nine percent could be eliminated.
Following Karen deeper into the lab, he suddenly stopped in his tracks. Through the lab's observation window, he spotted a woman, a completely naked woman. She was currently performing various movements according to Banner's instructions.
Banner himself was fully geared up in protective equipment, taking notes. His eyes showed only scientific focus, not a trace of anything inappropriate.
No wonder I'm not a professor. If that were me in there, I'd probably need to touch at least twice to verify the data.
Karen noticed his lecherous grin and smiled. "Like what you see?"
"Mm. Body: eight out of ten. Face: eight out of ten. Very impressive specimen."
His answer sparked Karen's curiosity. "Then what score would you give me?"
Mario turned and gave her a thorough once-over, his expression deadly serious. "Body: seven. Face: seven-point-five."
Smack.
"My face is at least eight points," Karen protested, reaching out to swat his arm.
The window wasn't one-way glass, those inside could see out just as easily as those outside could see in. After completing Banner's instructions, the woman noticed Mario standing outside and she walked straight over to the window.
She mouthed something, but he couldn't hear through the soundproof glass. The lab used specialized materials to prevent outside interference.
He pointed to his ear to indicate he couldn't hear, then gestured toward the nearby communication room.
Inside the communication room, Raven spun around happily, showing off her human form. "Look! I'm completely normal now!"
"Very good. But maybe put on some clothes first."
Raven smiled charmingly. She was used to nudity, her shape-shifting had always meant technically wearing nothing but projected appearance. What others saw as clothes were just part of her transformation.
---
They were back in the X-Men's universe now. But this time, Mario wasn't alone.
"I understand you want to tell Charles you've recovered. But your work isn't finished yet. You'll need to come back with me when this is done."
Raven nodded lightly. She was no longer naked, instead wearing blue jeans and a tight T-shirt. The only unusual element was the high-tech metal collar around her neck.
"Don't worry. I've been gone almost three weeks. I just want to visit him. The company offers flexible vacation time, doesn't it? I've been saving up all my weekends."
Mario nodded helplessly. He'd established the whole eight-hours-a-shift, weekends-off policy himself. He could hardly go back on it now.
"All right, buckle up. We're heading out."
He piloted the small spacecraft toward the most dangerous yet most familiar city in the Marvel world: New York.
The distance from Miami to New York was nothing for his craft, basically the length of an acceleration burn before having to decelerate. Over before he could really enjoy the ride.
This time, Mario didn't head to his usual haunt of Central Park. Instead, he flew directly toward a secluded estate in the suburbs of New York.
This was the gathering point that Xavier, with CIA assistance, had established specifically for mutants, the future world-famous Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters.
Currently, that vast estate housed exactly three mutants: the Professor himself, Hank McCoy, and Magneto.
When Mario hopped down from the ship and spotted Erik, he was shocked. He'd assumed there was no way Magneto would survive his encounter with Shaw this time around.
The moment Erik saw Mario, his emotions erupted. He clearly remembered that day on the yacht when he'd been planning to kill Shaw, this man had been right there on the deck. And that guy had given Emma that fucking frying pan that had knocked him unconscious.
Thinking about it now, he extended his hand and controlled a nearby metal railing, launching it toward Mario.
But before Mario could even react, Erik's attack froze mid-flight. The railing stopped just short of Mario, and judging from Erik's expression, it definitely wasn't voluntary.
"Stop, Erik. He's not our enemy."
Xavier's voice came from the building's entrance. At the same time, he warned Erik telepathically, this man was dangerous, and Erik needed to back down before he got himself killed.
"He works for Shaw," Erik snarled. "I saw him on that yacht."
Mario approached them with a smile, completely ignoring Magneto and fixing his attention on Xavier instead.
"You know why I'm here. I don't want your list of mutant locations. But..." He pulled out a bundle of blood-drawing kits. "I do want blood samples from everyone on it."
Xavier's eye twitched. How did Mario know he had a list? Even if it only covered the New York area, that information was highly classified.
Does he have telepathic abilities too? No... his behavior suggests something more like precognition.
Off to the side, seeing his best friend apparently familiar with this suspected enemy, Erik lost his composure. His face flushed red with anger.
"Charles, he's the fucking enemy—"
Pfft.
A soft sound came from Mario's custom handgun. A specialized dart hit Erik in the neck before he could finish his sentence.
Erik reached up and pulled out what looked like a tiny syringe. His eyes rolled back in his head and he collapsed unconscious.
Seeing Mario make his move, Xavier panicked. He pressed his fingers to his temple and unleashed his full telepathic power. A massive wave of psychic energy exploded outward.
But it accomplished nothing.
Mario's smile brightened. "He was too noisy. You want to try something too?"
He aimed the gun at Xavier.
"No!" Raven hurried forward and grabbed Mario's arm, looking worried. She shot Xavier a warning glance. "Stop it. You're being impulsive."
Hearing Raven's voice, Xavier dropped his hand in surprise and released his power. Not that it mattered, he still couldn't sense Mario's mind at all.
"Raven? Why do you look like... like this?"
Without her shapeshifting, Raven now appeared as her natural human form rather than her usual disguised appearance.
Then Xavier noticed the metal collar around her neck. "And what is that thing on your neck? What did he do to you?"
Unpleasant thoughts flashed through his mind. His face turned stormy as he glared at Mario like he wanted to tear him apart.
Raven touched the collar and laughed softly. "It's an employee benefit. And Charles, I'm normal now. Completely human."
Xavier still looked grim. What kind of company gives out collars as employee benefits? How twisted can they be?
If Mario had known what Xavier was thinking, he would have protested loudly. She picked that herself! What does this have to do with me?
Seeing Xavier's dark expression, Raven lightly tapped the collar. Instantly, a mass of nano-metal spread out from it. Within seconds, her entire body was encased in armor.
An energy shield formed in one hand, an energy blade materialized in the other, and flames burst from her feet as she lifted into the air.
This was nano-suit technology "borrowed" from Tony and Mario's parallel-world counterpart's Mark 50 designs. Its advantages: portable and self-repairing. Its disadvantage: terrible physical defense compared to solid armor.
"This is the company-issued work uniform. What do you think?"
The latest model nano-armor included built-in resistance to both telepathic and magnetic manipulation, specifically engineered for dealing with mutants.
Though the current version was incomplete. The long-term goal was creating Iron Man-style Sentinel robots capable of automatically adapting to and copying mutant abilities.
Xavier stared at the armored Raven in shock. Even his genius-level brain needed a moment to process what he was seeing.
Finally, he managed to speak.
"Your company... still hiring?"