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Chapter Two

Oklahoma Cemetery

(Katharine 'Kitty' Pryde P.O.V)

It's been, well... Close to a decade since Kitty Pryde activated her Mutant Gene, and joined the X-Men in their never-ending fight for a mutual Mutant and Mankind peaceful co-existence, and Kitty could safely say, her life since then had been nothing short of colorful.

From dealing with Magneto's Brotherhood and his Acolytes to Apocalypse and his Horsemen. From hostile alien civilizations to cosmic entities that consider wiping out galaxies to be nothing more than stretching out their legs.

It's been one heck of a wild run.

Sometimes, Kitty couldn't help but wonder about her place in all this. Her Mutant ability was density manipulation or simply put, the ability to phase through objects. In the grand scheme, it is nothing much. While Scott, Ororo, and the others try to say otherwise, Kitty can't stop that sinking thought that maybe/surely her best wasn't enough.

Withstanding recent events merely complimented her moody sentiments.

Focus... Now is not the time for self-pity.

... ... Anyways, ever since Kitty had become a Mutant and with all the experiences it had given her -both the good and bad. The one thing Kitty can proudly say she's quite an expert in is being able to properly interact with newly activated Mutants.

Not to tut her horn, but after Jean, Ororo, and maybe, other Telepaths. Kitty is quite sure that she is up there when it comes to interacting with Mutants -especially, the ones who still have not been properly initiated to the world of Mutants.

But then again, after going through the process for over more than thirty times, the signs had become quite easy for her to identify.

Despite how the world sees it, there isn't much difference between a Mutant and a Mutate, or any superpowered folks in general—of course, with the only exception of an X-gene. The Hulk going on a rampage is no different from James going full-on Wolverine.

Powers were still powers no matter the form it takes or where it comes from.

Which once again, brings her back to dealing with newly activated Mutants. Just like in most first contact movies -the man meets alien types- having contact with a Mutant requires calm and understanding.

Show that you are there for them and that they don't need to go through that sudden significant and transitional change in their life alone.

She has seen firsthand, the miracles performed by such sentiments.

'God, I miss that cheerful redhead.'

Cheerful, till... Kitty couldn't bring herself to continue her line of thought.

It'll only dampen whatever happy feelings, Kitty has managed to scrounge up.

Compared to most Mutants, Kitty considers herself to be quite lucky. Her powers started with a migraine and then slipped through her bed down to the basement. Of course, her parents were confused and afraid –heck, she was too. But they accepted her for what she was; a Mutant.

Maybe that is why, unlike some others, Kitty did understand that Xavier's dream was worth fighting for.

Not just for the Mutants but for the Humans as well.

If only he had been truly honest with us.

Sighing, Kitty—no, Shadowcat rubbed her face with a small groan and then activated the device on her wrist with a holograph springing up.

"What're you doing messing around with that thing, git?" Wolverine asked, a brow raised in bemusement.

"Nothing," Shadowcat replied. "Just going over the information one more time."

"Diligent as ever aren't you, Miss Pryde?" Emma quipped from the floating device.

"It's Shadowcat, while on the field." Shadowcat corrected, "And I like to think of that as one of my good points."

"Hmm~ you're right. Well, that leaves you, Wolverine to deal with local authorities… But you can always holler if it gets too much for you to handle."

"Hmph. I'll show you, too much." Wolverine grunted and stomped away.

Sighing, Shadowcat eyed the device. "Can you both stop trying to step on each other toes? I get tired just watching you two argue about every single thing."

"Can you blame me? He's the one making things hard for himself and easy for me."

There was the familiar sound of adamantium glistening followed by panic cries of alarm. Wolverine, unsurprisingly, was getting a tad too stabby with the police officers who weren't being cooperative.

Same old story.

"Hey, are you gonna' stop him?" Emma asked.

"Nah, he's a big boy. Besides, that's his M.A.—it's not like he'll cut anyone, right?"

Memories of a pissed-off Wolverine flitted by and Kitty's smile slowly turned stiff

"... Right?"

Meanwhile, the voices only grew louder.

"Now you listen here, bub!"

Shadowcat blinked, "Know what? How about I go take a look."

"Or," The telepath speaking through the device interjected. "I can simply do this..."

The agitated officers suddenly froze as their eyes dazed for a moment. With a few calming words and an apology to a perturbed Wolverine -who certainly did not expect it- the law enforcement platoon entered their vehicles in a somewhat mechanical fashion and drove away.

"All things considered, I am still connected to the Cerebro, and distance isn't much of a problem to a telepath of my caliber," Emma said in a slightly smug tone.

Shadowcat hummed. "Well, in any case, thanks for the assist."

"You're welcome, darling."

Walking towards Wolverine who stood by the entrance of the cemetery with arms crossed akimbo while wearing a scowl on his face, Shadowcat said.

"How are you holding up?"

"Dandy..." Wolverine spat. "Let's just get going. We're already wasting too much time as it is."

Shadowcat nodded, and without any further ado, the Mutant trio walked in...

... And left the planet, Earth.

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An abridged profile compiled by New Mutant Squad co-leader, David Alleyne, 'Prodigy'.

Name: Adam Abrams

Age: 17

Sex: Male

Relatives: Jeffery Abrams (father). Jessica Abrams (Mother). Nathaniel Abrams (Younger sibling—Brother). Cassie Abrams (Younger sibling—Sister)

Character Background: African-American with a suspect of Wakandan heritage. Adam Abrams was born to Jeffery Abrams and Jessica Abrams in the year 19, in St. Luke's Presbyterian Hospital, New York. Initially a New Yorker, Adam Abrams relocated to Oklahoma at the age of 3 due to his parents' sentiments on the rising superhuman activities in the city.

Apart from the birth of Adam Abrams's siblings, there are no interesting incidents of note.

Character Observation: As an ace in both academics and physicals, Adam Abrams has been publicly hailed as a genius from the age of 3, with a slight precocious tendency. Nevertheless, unlike in most observable cases, such a tendency hasn't been accompanied by any solitary behaviors—quite the opposite. It should be duly noted that if there is anything one must be wary about Adam Abrams; it would be his violent disposition.

It was during Adam Abram's tenure as the Head of Public Morals that St. George High saw a substantial positive increase in the enforcement of school rules and regulations. The number of 'casualties' in his quest for an institution of order and peace bothered dangerous.

Simply put, over 35 individuals have been officially hospitalized, and they were the lucky ones.

Overall Personal Assessment (Audio Recording): I know you asked for my evaluation based on my Mutant ability to absorb the skills of those around me—still not sure how that's gonna help.

So, while I won't say that my opinion isn't good enough. I only hope that you take it with a grain of salt—so, don't trust it, much. Anyway, considering the strange happenstance around the observable galaxy on Halloween and the supernova-like energy the Cerebro had picked up on that day which suddenly vanished and reappeared on this day, one should consider that we may be dealing with an Omega Level Mutant—which isn't necessarily a good thing considering our track record with those kinds of Mutants.

For now, I'll just hold on to the hope that this one isn't a lost cause like the others...

Like always, Adam Abrams must be met with calm and patience which means no sudden fit of aggression. Considering his personality, all forms and projections of anger will be responded to in kind.

The Omega firepower kind.

Hah... Now I suddenly feel restless.

I wish you all good luck and seriously, don't die out there—especially you, Mr. Logan.

Prodigy out...

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Kitty has often wondered what Paradise looks like.

Not the metaphysical kind that exists after death. That will be for the future Kitty—or the dying Kitty to worry about. For now, she was more interested in that kind of place where the first words that would wholeheartedly spring out from the mouth would be ' Beautiful'.

An inevitability, considering the places Kitty has been to ever since becoming an X-Man.

As a Mutant, Kitty has been to every continent on the globe, either rescuing or recruiting newly activated Mutants or fighting against any anti-mutant organizations. Kitty has even traveled off-world—one notable place being Asgard in a joint mission to rescue Ororo during the Hammer Fiasco.

As Ogun, Kitty had spent most of her time—time being possessed so to speak- roaming the Asian continent, doing things that haunt her to this day. As a member of the Excalibur, Kitty has been to Avalon, commonly known as the mystical realm, Otherworld, facing otherworldly threats.

Heck, as a prisoner, Kitty has technically been to hell, or Limbo, as Illyana and Doctor Stranger call it—still couldn't see the difference, though. Besides, Kitty wouldn't count anything in that place as beautiful.

Kitty has been to many places—either too advanced for the current time or atypical enough to be found anywhere except in storybooks. Kitty has seen opulence and wonders at its finest.

But nothing has ever made her truly think it was beautiful...

Especially, not when the circumstances surrounding the reason for Kitty being there were mostly dire.

But at this moment, in this certain place, Shadowcat—no, Kitty Pryde could only look around the unearthly picturesque scenery in a dumb yet fascinated manner as the words that unintentionally came out from her lips were—

"How beautiful..."

"It truly is, Miss. Pryde."

Whirling, Shadowcat skirted back in alarm only to see Emma Frost dressed in her white apparel with crossed arms and all, while she bore a seemingly impressed look on her face.

But that wasn't important...

"How did you get here?" Shadowcat asked, "Unless I missed something, you should be back at the Institution... Are you even the real Emma Frost…?"

{No need to get all worked up, Miss. Pryde. I am the real Emma Frost. Here in the flesh.} The former White Queen projected her thoughts into Shadowcat's mind.

"That touch… I've had my share of Telepaths and I admit, yours feels familiar to the Emma I know." Shadowcat relaxed her stance—but not completely. "But, if you're here, does that mean you snuck out and followed us in the Blackbird without our knowledge?"

"Why would I do something as crass as that? If I wanted to follow you, all I need to do is ask. Besides, I was back at the institute using the Cerebro. But as soon as you both entered the dome, I suddenly found myself here. Wherever here is? Then again, I'm not all negative at the sudden turn of events."

"Yeah..." Shadowcat slowly nodded. "Me too."

If it weren't for the situation at hand, Shadowcat would have thought that she had died and gone to Heaven. As a Jew, Shadowcat has often wondered what Paradise looked like, and this—yeah, if someone told her this is Paradise, Kitty would believe them.

First was the air. How can Shadowcat even begin to describe it?

It was sweet in a way, she couldn't describe. While it is true that the air outside has become polluted by all sorts of toxins; both natural, supernatural, and manmade. There were still some 'clean' places so to speak.

But even that couldn't compare to the air, Shadowcat greedily breathed in.

The greenery, spanning as far as the eyes could see was lusher than the fields of Avalon. The natural small elevations and lowlands across the expanse were filled with occasional trees all sporting luscious-looking fruits of various kinds.

The sky was a rich exotic blue with snow-white fumes sprayed around in various shapes, decorating it.

Some were very recognizable.

Shadowcat's lips tugged as she recognized the obvious [X (X-Men) A (Avengers) 4 (Fantastic Four)] emblems amongst the various shapes outlined across the white firmament.

Seems like someone's a superpower nerd.

Which is good ostensibly speaking.

But that wasn't where all the weirdness in the sky ended. There were two suns. One yellow, the other, a fairer shade of gold. It looked marvelous, especially with how the clouds formed around the two celestial bodies in a sort of celestial ring.

But that wasn't all—not in the slightest.

The green expanse before them wasn't deserted—quite the opposite, they were populated by people. People, who Shadowcat is quite sure weren't humans.

Winged humanoids, some with large white wings, others black, and a few sum with wings made of fire soaring around cheerily.

Handsome and beautiful Elf-like humans played with obvious-looking Centaurs, Unicorns, and Pegasus.

The earth beneath Shadowcat lightly trembled as mountain-sized Giants strolled in the distance. Trails of every notable element were left behind by the Elemental humanoids.

Yeah, this place is certainly not Kansas.

'Could this be the Otherworld?' Shadowcat thought to herself.

While the Otherworld is commonly known as the center authority of Magic on Earth, and as such, contains most if not all the mythical creatures in the globe, Shadowcat should have been able to recognize its famed Light towers which were situated in all its regions.

Not seeing it would mean this is not the Otherworld—

Hmm…?

Wait a minute...

Shadowcat looked around. "Emma, where's Logan?"

"Oh, him." Emma Frost thumbed backward. "He's right over there."

Strutting towards the duo was Wolverine and on his hands were a pair of… Beers?

Even Emma couldn't stop the nonplused look from showing on her face at the sight.

"Hmm. Never pegged you for one to drink while on the field, Wolverine." Emma noted, "Good to know for future reference."

"Oh, buzz off. You know I never do this."

"Then what's that on both your hands?" Shadowcat pointed out.

"Beer." Wolverine simply replied.

"Did you sneak them out as we exited the Blackbird?"

"Nope, believe it or not, I found it growing on a tree." Even the stoic Wolverine couldn't stop the quirking of his lips. "A beer that grows on trees."

"You seriously expect me to believe that—?"

Shadowcat sarcastically raised a brow—but to that, Wolverine merely gestured his head to wonders before her, and whatever budding opposition within her died.

"… Well, alright, I could believe that. But if it did grow on a tree, why pluck it out, anyway? Do you know if it's even safe for human consumption?"

"See, now that's where my handy Mutation finally comes in." Wolverine's lips widened a bit. "What's bad for you isn't necessarily bad for me. Besides, I get this feeling that I'll need it for what's to come."

At Emma Frost, Wolverine asked.

"So what's your take on this, Emma? Are we in some kind of telepathic landscape or something?"

Sighing, Emma Frost rubbed the side of her head.

"I… I don't think this is a mental landscape. If that were so, then I should have been able to cause some kind of ripple in it. Considering my appearance and the dome we're in, we have to consider every single thing we encounter from now on as real."

Wolverine's head seemed to lower at that. Abruptly, the regenerative Mutant popped one of the beers open and chugged it down in one go.

"50 bucks says we're dealing a Mutant on Richard's kid scale," Wolverine grumbled. "We're dealing with a Reality Warper."

That Shadowcat and even Emma couldn't refute those words says a lot about Wolverine's deduction.

In the end, the gifts that every Mutation brings are always about luck.

To some Mutants, their Mutations were gifts that made them powerful, strong—special even. To others, their Mutations were a curse that they had to live with all their lives.

Not all Mutants get the power they desire, and some even obtain abilities that threaten their safety or that of those around them.

But there are the few 1% selected with gifts that essentially made them Gods.

Proteus.

Legion.

Marvel Girl.

Franklin Richards.

Apocalypse.

Vulcan.

People call them the Beyond Omega Mutants. But to Shadowcat, all she saw were ordinary people who slept and woke up the next day with the powers of a god.

As she said, Kitty Pryde had seen enough signs to recognize the kind of Mutant they were dealing with.

But that doesn't make it any easier.

As an X-Man, Shadowcat does not have much success in dealing with Mutants of such caliber.

Just the issue of Quentin Quire, an Omega Telepath and Telekinetic has given Shadowcat nightmares that refuse to go away.

People—children died that day.

But that doesn't mean that Shadowcat will give up just like that.

Every day, Mutants are persecuted, killed, and detained for something they cannot control, and their opposition does not stop merely at the anti-mutant parties. Even their fellow Mutants were on the 'Naughty' list, doing everything within their power to widen the already vast rift between mankind and Mutants.

Sometimes, Shadowcat feels like she is fighting a losing war. Nevertheless, she will fight it.

After all, Kitty Pryde is an X-Man.

With that Shadowcat turned to Emma—who strangely bore a queer smile while looking at her.

"Can you pick up Adam's location?"

"Easy enough. He certainly isn't hiding his presence that's for sure." Emma said, pointing at the distance. "He's approximately 300 miles away from us."

"Ugh, that's what I need; a 300-mile cemetery..." Wolverine groaned. "Mutants these days sure don't make things easy for us, do they?"

Sighing, Shadowcat said. "Let's head ou—"

"On second thought. Hold your horses, everyone."

Emma interrupted Shadowcat with a grim look while her skin glistened with her secondary Mutation.

"Someone or something is coming, and it's very powerful."

Shadowcat assumed a combat stance, while Wolverine tossed away the half-emptied can with adamantium claws popping out.

Sure enough, there was a sound of flapping coming from above. Shadowcat looked up—and felt her heart skip a beat as a handsome being descended on their group.

Now, Kitty could candidly say there is no man in her heart except Piotr—even though, he is missing at the moment. Sure, she had seen fetching men and remarked on their structure, but that was where it ended.

This man-being though, really seemed to make Kitty's heart beat like a high school girl.

Tall and symmetrically burly with a face that seemed straight out of a million-dollar art piece. The gild glowing Caucasian blonde with four wings of fire smiled, halting some distance away from the group while raising his hands amiably.

"Greetings, travelers from the beyond." The angelic being lightly dipped his head. "I, Arthaus welcome you to Eden."

There was something hypnotic about his voice that made the X-Men almost lower their guards.

The key word is, almost.

Wolverine's eyes narrowed. "Alright, bub. Cut that shit out, or things will be getting real dicey around here."

{I suggest you stop that aggressive behavior. For our safety even if you don't value yours} Emma who had assumed back her normal form, established a mental link and broadcasted to the group.

Glancing at Emma, Shadowcat said through the link.

{Any reason why?}

Emma raised a brow.

{Color me surprised. I expected opposition from Wolverine not from you, Miss. Pryde.}

{Just consider me an interested party}

{In his good looks?}

{Emma!}

{Hahaha… Alright, alright} Emma smiled but Shadowcat could easily spot the nervous bead of sweat trailing down the side of her crystalline face. {As soon I'd spotted Arthuas, I'd dived into his mind by instinct—and before you give me the reproachful look, know that I did it merely for our safety}

Shadowcat sighed—wondering when the next cause for sighing would come.

{… Go on}

{I couldn't sneak into his mind at first. His mental defense was on Xavier's level—no, it even surpassed that. But Arthuas knew of my probing and intentionally let me in, and I saw everything…}

Emma paused, letting the fact sink in.

{Katherine. Logan. We just may be dealing with one of the most powerful Mutants in all history of Mutants. Every living being in here can modify Reality to a certain extent, and Arthuas there is on the level of creating worlds in their thousands… We're dealing with a Mutant who hands out Omega Level powers like candy}

And that took their guard to the top throttle.

Arthaus smiled knowingly. "There is no need for alarm, X-Men. We've been expecting you for quite a while. Please follow me, I'll take you to my Creator. He's been eagerly awaiting for the past 3 months… Or was it, 3 days."

"3 days?" Wolverine said in an outburst. "Sure your internal clock isn't going all looney on you?"

Arthuas laughed. "Please, Mr. Logan. Time is merely a tool to me."

Matter gathered and coalesced into an ethereal archaic clock, which hovered above Arthuas's hand.

"I tell it what to do. It is more or less my Universal Constant. But today, the Creator has been messing up with time for, well … Quite some time now. Thankfully, I can manage this. His excitement usually instigates louder changes than this."

"And what's louder than messing up with time?" Wolverine asked.

"Hmm… The birth and destruction of worlds and ideas."

"Ugh… Now I wish I didn't ask. This makes me want to drink even more—"

A familiar weight settled on his hand as Wolverine looked down to see an unopened can of beer. Shrugging, Wolverine withdrew his claws and popped it right open.

"Might as well take advantage of the situation."

"Logan..." Shadowcat chided, while she asked the winged man. "Since you, or rather, Adam knows what we are here for, and he isn't opposed to seeing us. Can you take us to him?"

"It will be my pleasure, Miss Katherine." Arthaus curtsied. "So how do you want us to go?"

"Huh?"

"Ah, forgive my lack of clarification. I meant to ask if you're okay with being teleported or do you desire any other form of transportation."

With a noise of understanding, Shadowcat was about to reply when Emma cut in.

"Any form of transportation, you say. Do you mean by anything?"

"Indeed, Mrs. Emma. Anything."

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"You know, despite all my unfortunate dealings with powerful teenage Mutants, I'm quite sure I can find a place for Adam on my team when he enters the Institution," Emma said with a hint of a smile on her face.

"When, not if. Bold words you've got going there, Emma." Shadowcat said. "… Well, I do admit; I like that optimistic part of you. Hah… Anyways, just keep your expectations tempered—and your eyes on the road."

"But there is no road."

"Even so. It still doesn't make it easier for me to relax." The phasing Mutant sighed. "Tell me, why the hell did we not take the teleportation, again?"

"Because doing so would have prevented us from getting this beautiful new car."

Shadowcat blandly regarded the telepath. "Ah… Is that so?"

In a way, Shadowcat couldn't fault Emma for her decision—no matter how materialistic it may seem. As someone who has known the telepath ever since she was a teenager. Shadowcat could confidently say the Emma of now is vastly different from the Emma of before.

Ambitious. Materialistic. Greedy. Ruthless... That and many more vices comprised Emma Frost, the former White Queen of the Hellfire Club.

Her egocentric mannerisms made her allies with Mutant extremists and anti-mutants—for as long as they acted within her interest.

Back then, trusting the telepathic White Queen was asking to get burned when you least expected it.

Now though, Emma has changed.

Shadowcat still feels iffy about Scott's marriage to Emma which happened just after Jean's death. But she could respect his decision -just barely, though.

But Shadowcat has to admit; that she liked the changes it brought particularly to Emma.

Emma being this tempered is quite the sight, and while hints of the White Queen often rears its ugly head, it was not on a serious basis.

Now, all Shadowcat sees is an X-Man with an eccentric quirk—like most of the others.

So Emma's request for a white opulent Lamborghini didn't bother Shadowcat in the slightest. In a way, this gave her time to prepare for the upcoming meeting with Adam.

Shadowcat looked out the window at the lush blurring scenery with an incoming sigh.

'I can do this… I can do this.'

The phasing Mutant has dealt with all sorts of Mutants—but how does one initiate positive communication with a Reality Warper?

'God help me so I don't screw this up.'

Up ahead was the flaming winged Arthuas, who served as their guiding map, and by the side was Wolverine, who funny enough, copied Emma by asking for a ride of his own.

A much sleeker version of his motorbike back at school.

'Logan's gonna be keeping that bike if he could help it.' Shadowcat thought with lips quirking.

Clang…! Boom...! Clang…! Boom…! Clang…! Boom…!

The earthshaking reverberation came far out in the distance. Shadowcat could feel her throat going dry as she watched the… Well, she felt quite iffy calling the source of the thunderous sound, 'Giant Beings'.

'There is Giant as in building size tall, and Giant as in make mountains look like carpet… They are the latter.'

The Titans were two in number; one with a rock-like appearance with veins of lava streamlined across its body. Its eyes shone like mini-suns, and on its right hand was a burning hammer. The other appeared to be a hovering female with what appeared to be clouds serving as its clothes and hair.

In a cloud-dispersing grunt, the rock Titan scooped out mountains of earth and beat it with its hammer until it turned into an orb of light. The wind Titan gestured and the orb was telekinetically lifted to the sky—becoming one of the stars amongst the millions up there.

"Reenactment of the creation story. Godlike power in full display." Emma muttered out.

"You can say that again," Shadowcat muttered. "Is there anything we have to offer to someone who can do things like this?"

Emma smiled and simply replied. "Their humanity."

"Huh, humanity?"

"Remember that episode with the Beyonder. Why we had gone against someone like him in the first place? Just apply that method of thinking here."

Emma chuckled as she saw the bemused look on Kitty's face.

"Just treat him like how you treat a normal human being and you'll be fine."

"How is that different from what I originally planned on doing?"

"Our Mutant friend here is someone who has suddenly become something akin to an all-powerful being. Unlike most Mutants whom we help train to understand their powers. We are here to help him remember that above all else, he is not alone… And that's where you come in. You, Miss. Pryde possesses the most empathy out of us three, and it is your empathy that will do the job of sending the message to Adam."

Shadowcat—no, Kitty blinked before her lips stretched into a small smile.

"Thanks, Emma."

This time, her thanks were truly genuine.

"… Anytime, Kitty." Emma turned forward with narrowed eyes. "Now I believe it's time to put your empathy into practice. Because we're already here."

Sure enough, the car was slowing down in front of a clearing, while Arthuas descended further ahead.

Shadowcat blinked in bemusement. "Already? Shouldn't 300 miles be much farther than this?"

"Remember who we're dealing with, Miss. Pryde."

"Ah… Right." Shadowcat sighed, muttering as she got out of the car. "A reality warping Mutant."

ᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥᴥ

Compared to the wonders of the greater part of Eden, the new place Shadowcat found herself felt quite tame in comparison.

Now what Shadowcat meant by tame is that it didn't contain the fantastical elements, she has been seeing ever since she got here.

It was still breathtaking.

It was a simple clearing. Carpet green grass painted a rather quaint scenery, and the valley winds brought about a cool and serene atmosphere.

Shadowcat readily admitted the beauty of this place. But more importantly, her attention was on the teenager right in the middle of it.

Outfitted in a red and white hoodie with grey denims, an unassuming teenager relaxed on the grass with his back against what appeared to be a tombstone.

He appeared to be sleeping.

Shadowcat blinked. 'Alright, that happened.'

Shadowcat had expected to see some guy on a big fiery throne, or some cosmic being looking down on them like how Jean is whenever she's possessed by the Phoenix or Illyana, when she's pushed into becoming the Darkchilde.

But Adam Abrams looked like an ordinary person who was taking a nap -albeit beside a tombstone.

God, Shadowcat isn't sure what to make of this.

Arthuas cleared his throat. "Lord Adam, the X-Men have arrived…"

Groaning, the Mutant opened his eyes—and Katherine Pryde finally understood the magnitude of the entity they were dealing with.

One of the few true words spoken by Professor Xavier that Kitty ascribed to was that; to truly understand someone, you must first begin with their eyes.

Anger. Happiness. Sadness. Jolliness. Envy. Hatred… Every emotion begins from those optical orifices, no matter the kind of person or being one is.

The eyes of Sabretooth are vastly different from the eyes of Magneto. One promises senseless violence while the other violence with purpose—no matter how repulsive the purpose may be.

Same with people like Captain America and Thor, or even fellow Mutants like Logan, Emma, and Jean.

The determining factor for one's sincerity and raw emotions always begins with the eyes.

For Adam Abrams—his were shockingly normal but at the same time had this enigmatic feel in them. That is what scared Kitty the most.

Innocent yet hopelessly curious. Normal yet inhumane. Sane yet very insane…

She remembered someone with that kind of look.

Kitty could remember his bored yet intrigued face when he threatened to destroy the universe on a whim. How he laughed and played while under the combined attack of the Avengers and the X-Men. His bored look as he decided to give up on his destruction merely on a whim.

He called himself, the Beyonder, and Adam Abrams is spotting the same yet terrifying the being had on his face.

Once again, a question hidden in the mind of Kitty Pryde the Mutant resurfaced.

'Can the human mind truly keep up with the powers of a God?'

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