Chapter 124
The chamber burned with light, flame and thunder colliding in the belly of the volcano. The X-Men drove the Mandroids back step by step, but Moses Magnum stood tall in the wreckage, his eyes glowing like molten ore.
"Your struggles are noise," he thundered. "The world bends to me!"
He slammed his fists into the ground. The entire chamber buckled. Storm lost her footing, Colossus barely kept the ceiling from collapsing outright.
Cyclops wiped blood from his cheek, visor flickering. "We can't keep trading blows with him. We need an opening—now!"
Nightcrawler bamfed behind a Mandroid, kicking it into Thunderbird's waiting punch. "Logan!" he called through smoke, "where are you?!"
Thunderbird barked, "Probably off sulking again."
But Logan was already there, crouched behind Magnum, body screaming with pain from the stealth trick. His claws gleamed faintly in the red light.
Feels like swallowing fire every second I use this… but it's worth it, bub.
Magnum's tremor-sense stretched, searching. He scowled. "You're not here. You can't be here."
Logan smirked from the dark. "Oh, I'm here. Just not where you want me."
He lunged. Adamantium sliced across Magnum's back, deep enough to stagger him. Magnum howled, throwing up a quake-wave that sent Sunfire and Banshee tumbling.
"Damn it—keep him busy!" Cyclops yelled. His optic beam flared again, forcing Magnum to block.
Colossus charged, smashing through debris to grab Magnum by the waist, straining to hold him. "Strike, tovarisch! Now!"
Logan didn't need the invitation. He came from the side, claws raking across Magnum's ribs. Sparks, blood, and a scream tore through the air. Magnum's quake faltered.
"Enough!" Magnum bellowed, veins pulsing with raw seismic power. "If I die, I take Japan with me!"
He raised both arms, and the chamber screamed in protest, lava bubbling closer.
Logan gritted his teeth. Only one shot. He sprinted, ignoring the agony boiling his insides. The stealth wrapped around him like poison smoke. Magnum turned, too slow.
Logan leapt, claws out, and buried them deep in Magnum's back. The villain shrieked, stumbling to his knees, power breaking like glass.
Storm swept her arms wide, winds quenching the falling lava, pushing back the suffocating heat. Banshee's scream tore through the last of the Mandroids. Sunfire burned the wreckage to slag.
Magnum collapsed, bound by Colossus's grip and Nightcrawler's quick ropes. His chest heaved, eyes wild with fury and fear.
"You… you cannot cage an earthquake," he rasped.
Logan yanked his claws free and leaned close, voice low, feral. "Guess we just did, bub."
---
The ceiling above ripped open, floodlights cutting through the smoke. A sleek hoverjet hovered down, engines whining. Misty Knight's voice rang out over the roar.
"Need a lift, X-Men?"
Colleen Wing leaned from the hatch, katana strapped at her side. "Or at least a ride home before this volcano cooks you alive."
Cyclops exhaled, visor dimming. "Perfect timing. We've got a prisoner for you."
As the team carried the bound Moses Magnum toward the jet, Logan lagged behind a moment, wiping blood from his claws, chest heaving. The stealth trick still burned inside him, like acid chewing bone.
He looked at the others climbing aboard—their laughter, their relief, their exhaustion.
Then at Magnum, snarling in chains.
Logan smirked, muttering to himself. "Blind spots save lives, bub. And end a few too."
The jet engines roared, lifting them into the sky. The base crumbled below, swallowed by fire.
The X-Men were already on to the next fight.