Due to the simultaneous wars launched by A.I.M., the Sinister Six, and the Brotherhood of Mutants, the entire United States had been thrown into a chaotic mess. In New York, the X-Men were out in force, tasked with protecting Senator Kelly while he promoted the Mutant Registration Act, aiming to prevent his death from escalating the conflict between mutants and American society.
The Brotherhood of Mutants was an organization that had clashed with the X-Men for years. From the era when Magneto was still the X-Men's primary rival to the present, they had always been a group of extremists preaching mutant supremacy, seeking to eradicate all of humanity through the most radical means.
Currently led by Mystique, the Brotherhood—consisting of Blob, Toad, Pyro, and Multiple Man—stormed the scene, only to be swiftly driven away by the X-Men's superior teamwork despite the Brotherhood's numbers. However, after they repelled the Brotherhood, they encountered a very thorny problem.
The most troublesome individual, Mystique, had vanished.
"Members of the X-Men, is it really necessary to be so alarmed?"
Senator Kelly didn't quite understand their extreme caution. In his view, since the terrorists had been driven off, the surrounding area should theoretically be safe. He looked around helplessly, pondering what benefits this assassination attempt could bring him.
As a senator who advocated for anti-mutant sentiment in Congress, Kelly didn't actually hate mutants; on the contrary, he harbored no ill will toward these superpowered individuals. After all, he hadn't lost friends or family because of mutants, nor did he have any relatives who were mutants themselves; he effectively had no personal grudge.
The only connection was that his financial backer back then was Stryker, and now it was Stryker's successor. These people were the standard anti-mutant interest group, and as their spokesperson, Kelly naturally had to speak for their interests. Thus, in terms of attitude, he didn't actually harbor much discrimination against the X-Men.
Therefore, Cyclops implemented a method that wasn't very respectful of privacy but was highly effective: he had the White Queen scan the minds of everyone nearby to detect exactly who Mystique was disguised as.
It was at this moment that Kitty arrived from the other side of a portal. After witnessing the tense scene, she felt curious, but she still followed the Professor's instructions, approaching Senator Kelly and saying: "Hello, Mr. Kelly. I am Shadowcat of the X-Men. I hope you will reconsider the Mutant Registration Act."
"I'm sorry, young lady. This isn't just my view; the anti-mutant act is a social consensus, a..."
Professor Xavier didn't give Senator Kelly any time to react. In an instant, his consciousness was pulled into another time and space. Here, he saw an older Shadowcat, Spider-Man, and a Charles Xavier whom many believed to have died long ago.
"Professor Charles? They all said you were dead."
"It was destiny that allowed me to live again."
The Professor sighed helplessly and looked around, showing Senator Kelly visions of the future. Kelly discovered with horror that his own daughter was actually in the concentration camp before his eyes; like the others, an ugly letter scar "H" had been carved onto her face near her eye.
"This is the system the Sentinels use to distinguish humans from mutants," Charles Xavier said beside him. "Humans with no superpowers and no signs of mutation will have an 'H' carved near their eye. Those with superpowers or the potential to inherit them will be carved with the letter 'A,' and mutants will be carved with the letter 'M'."
"This..."
Kelly saw everyone—ordinary humans, superpowered individuals, and mutants alike—subjected to daily blood tests, given only basic clothing and limited rations. He watched in terror as the Sentinels slaughtered humans in batches—not mutants, but humans and those classified as "A."
On the contrary, mutants were rarely slaughtered; instead, they were subjected to meticulous dissections.
"Why?" Kelly asked the Professor tremblingly. "Why are they doing this?"
"The X-gene can emerge at any time as a genetic mutation through human reproduction. Because of this, the number of mutants is growing daily. Nimrod, realizing this, likely determined that eradicating humanity itself is the most efficient means to control the mutant population."
It turns out that humans cannot control super-intelligent AI, nor can they predict its development. No matter which super AI it is, once it is born and defeats its own kind, it will ultimately follow the same path.
"They will 'take care' of humanity based on what the program deems 'correct,' regardless of whether such care is necessary."
The Professor looked at Senator Kelly: "This is why the X-Men saved you, Senator. Because Nimrod is a product of human hatred and fear toward mutants. We hope that by saving you, we can reduce that hatred and fear."
"I... I can't give any guarantees." Kelly's voice was filled with confusion and panic. "I can only say, I'll do my best! I'll do my best!"
When Senator Kelly returned to 2013, he was in shock. He realized that what he was doing was a massive mistake; he had to persuade the people behind him and tell them what he had seen.
Sensing this, the Professor was quite gratified; it seemed the gears of fate had begun to turn.
However, at that moment, the White Queen's telepathic detection of the entire area had concluded. After finishing the scan, the White Queen gave an answer that no one expected: "Mystique isn't here."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean that Mystique is not in the vicinity. Unless there's a telepath stronger than me protecting her nearby, she simply didn't come." Emma looked at Cyclops, who fell into thought. "The attack on the Raft prison, the terrorists attacking the President, and the assault here—they all happened almost simultaneously. The timing was precise, aimed at keeping all the superheroes busy."
"You mean there's a connection behind these three events?"
"Cyclops means that, generally speaking, humans can't coordinate something this precise," Logan answered Iceman's question. "Remember our greatest enemy? He hasn't appeared yet."
Nimrod had not appeared from beginning to end.
"If all this is part of its plan..." Cyclops frowned. "Then where exactly did Mystique go?"
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