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Chapter 83 - Chapter 84: Seizing the Power of the Phoenix

Jean had arrived.

Burning with an unquenchable fury, with hatred sealed away for decades, she crossed impossible distances in an instant, descending upon the deepest level of the dam.

Even the floodwaters raging toward her dissolved into nothingness within ten meters of her body, effortlessly annihilated by a terrible, surging energy field.

A domain.

The sheer pressure of it was horrifying to behold.

"Charles! I've come for revenge!"

Her voice rang with thunderous weight. Her eyes, now pits of inky black, flickered beneath crimson waves of hair that danced unnaturally around her head.

Magneto's expression twisted the moment he laid eyes on her. He muttered lowly, "Damn it."

The force radiating from her was overwhelming—no, divine. That annihilating energy field wasn't merely power. It was a realm, a manifestation of dominion.

Gritting his teeth, Magneto tried to wrench control of the magnetic fields, channeling his full mastery over magnetism. But with just a single glance from Jean—

His entire magnetic construct was obliterated.

A Tier Four mutant trying to stand against an Omega-level entity, it wasn't even a contest.

"Jean! Fight it! You're not the Phoenix, you're Jean Grey, my student! Don't give in to fear. You're stronger than this!"

Professor X reached out telepathically, trying to breach the walls of her psyche and connect with her core identity.

But Jean only responded with a cold, blood-curdling laugh.

"You locked me away for decades, and you still think you did nothing wrong?! You never asked my permission. You never asked Jean's permission. You just sealed me away—me, the Phoenix! And you still think you were right?!"

Her voice dripped with fury and betrayal. This wasn't just Jean, it was the Phoenix Force itself, shaped by Jean's thoughts, memories, and feelings. But it, she, was no longer just Jean Grey.

She was Phoenix.

Jean raised a hand. A massive psychic wave exploded outward, laced with the will to annihilate. She hurled it directly at Xavier.

All she saw was him, this old man. Her hatred was absolute.

She didn't even acknowledge Martin.

"Huh. What a mess. Charles, this was your doing. You really should be the one to fix it."

Martin shrugged, but his eyes glinted. A flicker of yellow energy pulsed as the Mind Stone flared to life, and a psychic barrier surged forth, instantly deflecting Jean's devastating blast.

"The Mind Stone..."

Jean narrowed her eyes. She recognized the power instantly.

Before this universe, the Phoenix had traversed countless realities, absorbing shards of infinite knowledge. She knew this energy signature the moment she sensed it.

An Infinity Stone.

Widespread across the multiverse. Common, yet maddening.

"That damn Hag Nemesis... can't even sleep without leaving pieces of herself everywhere."

Jean's eyes were cold now. She hated the Infinity Stones. Their presence stirred a primal disgust within her.

Every Infinity Stone was a leftover fragment of Nemesis, each endlessly copied across the multiverse.

"Get out of my way. I don't care if you have the Mind Stone, you won't stop me."

Darkness surged in Jean's eyes. More energy gathered—stronger, deeper, more terrifying. She attacked again and again, but each time, the Mind Stone flared, deflecting her strikes.

"I find you fascinating, Phoenix. Why waste your time with Jean, when you could be with me? I can take you across the multiverse."

With a flick of his hand, the Space Stone glowed, conjuring a vortex. It swallowed everyone else, leaving only Martin and Jean amidst the deluge of incoming floodwaters.

"Your smile disgusts me. No one... no one, commands me!"

Enraged, Jean screamed. Waves of searing light exploded from her, coalescing behind her into a massive flaming shape.

A Phoenix.

The burning outline flared, its wings stretching across space, a manifestation of emotion and cosmic force. Countless beings across the multiverse suddenly felt a shadow in their minds—

A burning bird, born of wrath and transcendence.

The Phoenix Force, the embodiment of the hopes, rage, and emotions of all living things across infinite realities.

"Beautiful."

Martin's voice was almost reverent. He gazed upon the vision, eyes shining.

This power, this indescribable, pure, radiant power, he would claim it.

Once the Phoenix was his, he'd never have to worry about Jean losing control again.

Martin stepped forward.

He had made his decision.

He would take the Phoenix Force.

Energy erupted violently around him. The Mind Stone flared again, unleashing torrents of refined psychic power—vast, pure, impossible to measure.

It surged toward Jean like a tidal wave.

TSSSSHH!

Jean turned her head. With a single glare, she tore through the psychic current. Behind her, the Phoenix flared its wings, casting blinding light. Phoenix energy poured from her body, magnifying her power exponentially.

Two supreme minds collided.

A psychic storm detonated.

Lakewater split apart in towering arcs, roaring like a beast. The devastation could have erased cities, but here, it was insignificant—shattered and reformed again and again, nothing more than debris before gods.

Any lesser mind caught in that storm would be shattered, no hesitation, no warning. Total psychic annihilation.

In battles like this, defeat is worse than death.

This storm wasn't just force, it was cosmic terror, capable of shattering the minds of billions in an instant.

"Why cling to Jean's body, Phoenix? Why not become one with me?"

Martin's eyes sparkled with purpose. The Mind Stone pulsed again. He shaped its power into a blade, a perfect mental scalpel, and strode forward.

Each step was precise, deliberate, as if measured to the millimeter.

His calm, surgical approach only infuriated the Phoenix further.

"You'll die. Maybe I can't kill you now, but others will come. Other Phoenixes. They'll destroy you. Even the Mind Stone can't protect you forever!"

Jean roared. Her voice cracked with fury.

Martin simply smiled.

"You're wrong. I didn't come this far because of the Mind Stone. I have power of my own."

With a final flare, the Mind Stone blazed.

Martin shattered her final defense.

Then he placed his hand over Jean's heart.

"Now... you belong to me."

He leaned in, whispering those words softly against her ear.

And then—

He reached in.

Through the veil of flesh, into the divine—

And ripped the Phoenix Force from her body.

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