Devil’s Island

"Someone actually defeated me? And there were two of them?"

Apocalypse looked utterly incredulous. At that moment, a sentence echoed in his mind: "Watch out for Iron Man. He will kill you."

Black Light had left those words for Apocalypse.

"Iron Man? Hmph, who could possibly kill me? I am Apocalypse."

Apocalypse snorted and activated his power, controlling the surrounding earth and boulders. The city above immediately began to shake violently. The citizens panicked and hurriedly grabbed whatever was nearby. Fortunately, the shaking soon stopped.

The citizens looked at one another, unsure why, but they all had the feeling that disaster was about to strike.

On the streets of the predominantly earth-yellow city, Apocalypse, who had only just escaped, walked slowly beneath a cloak. Compared to several thousand years ago, the city was clearly far more bustling.

"No matter how prosperous they become, humans are still only slaves. They will never surpass gods."

Apocalypse muttered to himself. After sleeping for thousands of years, he had become somewhat weak. That was why he needed to disguise himself.

At that moment, Apocalypse saw a glowing rectangular box ahead. He walked over and found someone inside the box speaking: "Under Iron Man’s leadership, we successfully protected God’s City and Tokyo. Let us cheer together for Iron Man! Long live Iron Man…"

"Iron Man?"

Apocalypse recalled Black Light’s warning, and his brow furrowed slightly. After some thought, he placed a hand on the screen, and his eyes gradually turned white.

Under Apocalypse’s power, the television rapidly switched channels. Vast amounts of information poured into his mind and were swiftly absorbed.

In a short time, Apocalypse had grasped thousands of years of Earth’s history. At last, he also learned who Iron Man was.

"Iron Man? Hmph, merely a false god. There is only one god in this world. Apocalypse is about to return."

Apocalypse snorted disdainfully and prepared to head to New York to deal with Iron Man. Mutants and humans could only have one god, and that god was him—Apocalypse.

Just then, two images surfaced in Apocalypse’s mind. In the first, Scarlet Woman pinned him to the ground and mercilessly beat him down. In the second, a giant armored man pinned him to the ground and mercilessly beat him down.

Apocalypse’s face darkened a little. He thought to himself, Iron Man is no simple opponent. Even the Doomsday Master was no match for him. To be safe, I should recover my full strength first.

At that moment, the shop owner spotted Apocalypse and shouted angrily, "Hey, you poor bastard, stay away! Can you afford to pay if you break the TV?"

"Foolish mortal."

Apocalypse snorted. The wall behind the shop owner seemed to come alive and swallowed him whole.

"First, recover my strength. Then find helpers. Finally, rebuild the mutant empire and become the god of mutants and humans once more. No matter how powerful humans become, they are still only my slaves."

Apocalypse laid out his plan, then turned and left, lest Iron Man discover him too soon.

In the blink of an eye, nearly three months passed, and it was now 2001.

After Election Day, America became much more stable, causing Iron Man’s approval ratings to rise sharply.

Yes, Iron Man’s approval ratings. Everyone knew who truly ruled the country. As for President Richard, he was only responsible for giving speeches and collecting money.

Because God had resealed Original Sin, the number of Evil Believers dropped sharply. On average, there were only a few incidents involving Evil Believers around the world each day.

These new Evil Believers were generally not very strong. Most were merely more physically powerful than ordinary people, and only a small number possessed superpowers. Therefore, they were no match for the Mutant Guardians and were eliminated one after another.

The governments of various countries did not ease up on their support for mutants because of this. On the one hand, no one knew what the future held. On the other, mutants represented a nation’s strength.

Under such circumstances, mutants were doing better and better. Ordinary people had basically accepted mutants, and discrimination had become rare.

This could be seen from the fact that mutants could openly walk the streets, shop at malls and supermarkets, go to the movies…

And all of this was thanks to the Mutant Savior, Mr. Bert Wang, Iron Man.

Of course, that did not mean everything was settled. Beneath the surface, undercurrents targeting mutants still existed. In addition, some ordinary people had begun to envy mutants. In short, there was still much work to do.

In the Secretary of Defense’s office, the current Secretary of Defense, Wang Bert, dressed in a crisp suit, looked over the report in his hands and nodded in satisfaction.

After taking office, Wang Bert used "investigating the flow of funds" as his opening and brought down several generals in a short time. The military high command suffered a heavy blow as a result, and quite a few senior officers chose to pledge allegiance to Wang Bert in order to save themselves.

Wang Bert did not wipe them all out. As long as they were not "anti-mutant elements," he accepted them.

Through this method, combined with his lofty reputation, Wang Bert gained control of most of the military in a short time and became a Secretary of Defense with real power.

"The problem is that it’s going too smoothly. I’m even starting to doubt whether the Human Supremacy Organization really exists."

Wang Bert placed the report on the desk and sneered inwardly. Those people are being so obedient because they’re probably gathering their strength for one last desperate counterattack.

This time, they won’t just go all out—they’ll stake their lives on it, because this is their last chance. If they lose, they will become nothing but trash in the dustbin of history.

"Sir."

At that moment, the female secretary knocked and entered the office. "You have a meeting at two this afternoon. It’s time to leave."

"Everything about being Secretary of Defense is great except for the ridiculous number of pointless meetings. Should I get a robot specifically for attending meetings?"

Wang Bert grumbled inwardly. Just as he was about to stand, he suddenly sensed something and said, "Cancel all meetings and appointments this afternoon. I have something to do."

"Yes, sir."

The female secretary did not ask why. Given his identity as Iron Man, let alone an ordinary meeting, he could skip even a meeting with the president.

Wang Bert added, "Also, unless something especially important happens, do not contact me this afternoon."

The female secretary nodded. "Yes, sir."

After giving his instructions, Wang Bert willed himself from Washington to a resort villa on the outskirts of New York.

Then, Wang Bert walked to the villa’s front gate and pressed the doorbell. Soon, Mystique’s voice came through the intercom. "Iron Man, why didn’t you just teleport inside?"

Wang Bert said flatly, "It’s a matter of courtesy. No one wants others casually breaking into their home."

"You weren’t so courteous when you captured me."

Mystique said unhappily. Back then, she had disguised herself as a female senator, only for Wang Bert to arrest her in her own home and throw her into the resort villa to keep two old men company, watching them play chess and fish every day.

"There’s no need to be courteous to prisoners."

Wang Bert said, "Mystique, if I hadn’t shown mercy, you would definitely be locked in prison now."

"So should I thank you? And what’s the difference between this place and a prison?"

Mystique complained as she opened the gate with the remote. Wang Bert entered the villa and said, "What prison has conditions this good?"

Mystique emerged from the side and said disdainfully, "The conditions are indeed excellent. So excellent that I have to repair watches every day to pay for living expenses."

Wang Bert laughed. "Can’t be helped. Those two old men don’t know how to make money, so they can only rely on you."

"Bert, I can hear you."

The Professor said unhappily. Sitting across from him was Magneto, who looked displeased, as if everyone owed him eight million dollars. The two were playing chess.

Wang Bert walked over and asked, "Professor, I understand you. You’re a rich second-generation heir who has never had to earn money. But Old Magneto, why are you broke too? You started from nothing, so you should know plenty of ways to make money."

"I have two ways of making money."

Magneto glanced at Wang Bert and said, "The first can be found in the law books. The second is using superpowers to dig up rare metals. Which one do you think I can use right now?"

"That’s true."

Wang Bert smiled. "Mystique, you’ve really had it rough. By the way, how many months until Old Magneto’s daughter gives birth? She doesn’t have medical insurance, so who’s paying the hospital bill?"

Magneto’s face darkened at once. First, his daughter refused to acknowledge him and got pregnant before marriage. Second, he had no money to pay for her hospitalization. The more he thought about it, the more miserable it felt.

Thinking of something, Magneto glared at Wang Bert. He knew this guy had not found his daughter for him out of kindness. This daughter was even more troublesome than Quicksilver. With children like these, he would lose at least ten years off his life.

"Pietro said he would find a way to handle the money, but Lorna refused. Lorna said the child was hers and she didn’t need anyone else to meddle."

Mystique shook her head. "Honestly, Erik is terrible at raising children. Compared to him, I’m the real expert. My son is much better behaved than his son and daughter."

Magneto complained, "As if you ever raised him."

Wang Bert said, "Old Magneto, stop thinking about mutants all the time. Focus on teaching your children and making up for what you failed to do before."

Magneto stubbornly replied, "They are indeed my children, but mutants are also my children. I can’t abandon my other children for their sake."

"If you remain so obsessed, it’ll be hard for me to give you opportunities to make money."

Wang Bert shook his head. "By the way, where is Lorna’s boyfriend, Eclipse?"

Magneto cursed, "Don’t mention that bastard. Right now, I just want to chop him into eight pieces. What kind of trash man abandons his pregnant wife and leaves on his own?"

"Are you talking about yourself?"

Wang Bert asked.

Magneto was instantly embarrassed and furious. He wanted nothing more than to control the Statue of Liberty and smash this guy to death.

"Erik, don’t get so angry."

The Professor comforted him, then asked Wang Bert, "Bert, you’re a very busy man. What brings you here?"

Wang Bert smiled. "Something I’ve been planning for a long time has succeeded. I wanted to take you to see it, and also ask you to help look after a child."

"Look after a child? Bert, while I do enjoy looking after children, wouldn’t it be better to send him to the Mutant Academy?"

The Professor asked in surprise.

"His situation is a little special. He isn’t suited for the Mutant Academy. Besides, the Mutant Academy is undergoing reforms right now, and it’s quite troublesome."

Wang Bert said. The Mutant Academy had previously charged almost no tuition. After Cyclops and Jean took charge, due to a lack of funding, they planned to formalize the academy. After all, parents no longer discriminated against mutant children, so there was no need to hide.

Unfortunately, Cyclops and Jean had no experience in this area and made a complete mess of it. They also had quite a few conflicts with Storm.

"Not suited for the Mutant Academy? Bert, you’ve successfully piqued my curiosity."

The Professor put down his chess piece and said, "Erik, I’m heading out. Don’t swap the pieces."

Magneto looked utterly displeased. Was he, the great Magneto, the kind of person who swapped chess pieces?

"See you later."

Wang Bert waved to Magneto and Mystique, then vanished with the Professor.

After the two left, Magneto signaled to Mystique with his eyes. The two returned inside together, and Magneto asked, "How many people have you contacted?"

Mystique sighed. "Not many. Only around a dozen. Most of those loyal to you were captured by Iron Man."

"Only around a dozen?"

Magneto raised his right hand, which wore a bracelet, and asked, "Have you found a way to cut this thing off?"

Mystique shook her head. "Cutting it off is easy, but it has Iron Man’s spatial power on it. The moment it’s cut, he’ll immediately notice."

"That damned Iron Man."

Magneto cursed. "Over this period, I’ve completely finished studying the Mutant Transformation Device. As long as I can get out, I can turn this world into a world of mutants."

"Unfortunately, we can’t get out. Iron Man has sealed this place with spatial power. Unless the Professor accompanies us, neither you nor I can leave."

Mystique shook her head. Neither she nor Magneto had ever given up on the mutant cause. To them, peacefully coexisting with humans was absolutely impossible.

Magneto sighed. Thinking of something, he asked, "Can we get your son to help us?"

Mystique shook her head again. "He can’t break through Iron Man’s arrangements. Even if he could, he wouldn’t help me. In his eyes, Iron Man is practically the same as God."

"It’s a pity Lorna refuses to listen to me. Otherwise, if she and I team up, we might have a chance."

Magneto looked deeply frustrated. His son was reckless and unruly, while his daughter was rebellious and stubborn. What sin had he committed? Just as the two sighed mournfully, the computer in front of them suddenly lit up. Then, a gray-skinned man with an extremely eerie appearance said, "Magneto Erik, Mystique Raven, do you want to become my knights?"

Mystique asked warily, "Who are you?"

The man said, "My name is Apocalypse, the first mutant and also the god of mutants."

On Devil’s Island in San Francisco, California, Wang Bert and the Professor appeared out of thin air. Then Wang Bert pushed the Professor’s wheelchair inside. To their surprise, none of the guards noticed them at all.

"Devil’s Island? Bert, if I remember correctly, this belongs to Worthington Medical Company, doesn’t it?"

The Professor asked in surprise. "Does what you’re doing have something to do with Angel Warren?"

"No, it has to do with his father, Worthington."

Wang Bert pushed the Professor into Worthington Laboratory and said, "Mr. Worthington believes mutants are a disease. He has been researching how to cure that disease."

"Then he is destined to be disappointed, because mutants are not a disease."

The Professor shook his head. "Worthington Medical Company is a Fortune 500 company, which means Warren will inherit a vast fortune. Bert, what do you think about making Angel a director of the Mutant Academy?"