129 [The First Mutant Mayhem] - Debris, Blood and Missiles - Adrienne vs Magneto

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* BANG *

* BOOM *

Val observed as Adrienne and Magneto engaged in a fierce duel. Adrienne commandeered the debris around her, using it as ammunition against her foe. Magneto, in response, controlled the metallic elements in their vicinity, launching them towards Adrienne with ruthless precision.

Magneto's gaze fixated on the metallic deck beneath Adrienne's feet. He attempted to trap her, exerting his control over the metal to coil it around her ankles.

Yet, Adrienne was swift in her reaction, understanding Magneto's intention in an instant. She swiftly levitated, gaining altitude, thus evading his metallic trap.

Magneto shifted his attention to a damaged fighter jet stationed a short distance away. With a mere flick of his wrist, he dismantled the wings from the jet. Manipulating these newfound resources, he hurled the winged projectiles towards the airborne Adrienne.

Adrienne, levitating the fighter jet's remnants, swiftly intercepted Magneto's attack. She steered the main body of the fighter jet into the path of the hurtling wings, leading to a dramatic collision. The result was a fiery explosion, the debris dissipating harmlessly around her.

* BOOM *

Emerging from the settling plume of dust and flame, Adrienne's face lit up with an unsettling grin. "I recall Shaw mentioning how you struggled to shift even a coin in your early days," she taunted Magneto. "Without him, there would be no 'you' standing before me now."

Magneto responded with a frosty glare. He ripped more pieces of metal from the surrounding wreckage, hurtling them towards Adrienne.

But she moved gracefully, deftly sidestepping the incoming projectiles. As if to underscore her dominance, she returned his attack with a blast of her own, launching a powerful psionic blast in Magneto's direction.

* BOOM *

Struck by the brunt of the psionic blast, Magneto was propelled backwards. Yet, he demonstrated an impressive resilience, quickly regaining his footing. In response, he prepared to launch his own retaliation, ready to return fire.

Meanwhile,

Val had opted for a more strategic vantage point, observing the raging battle from the relative safety of the elevator's shadow. The battle of Adrienne and Magneto played out in front of him, unfettered in its fury.

Watching their clash unfold, a thought emerged in Val's mind, 'She hasn't shown any aggression towards me. Even though I was right next to her, I was out of her line of fire. Could it be she missed the crucial moment when I caused Shaw's heart to burst? Perhaps she only arrived in time to witness Magneto's final, fatal act of impaling Shaw with metallic rods. That would explain why her wrath is solely directed at him and not me.'

* BOOM *

Val's eyes traced the trajectory of another of Adrienne's psionic blasts, directed at Magneto. Swiftly, Magneto brought a metallic door in front of him, the barrier intercepting the explosive energy.

The impact resulted in a blinding explosion, scattering debris around them. Not wasting a moment, Adrienne levitated the stray fragments, turning them into weapons and launching them at Magneto.

Observing the relentless onslaught, Val thought to himself, 'This just reinforces my belief in the importance of vigilance and strategic planning, especially when dealing with villains from the Marvel Universe. There are too many unpredictable variables, and relying on assumptions based on the MCU or the X-Men cinematic universe can be a dangerous game.'

Observing from a safe distance, Val noticed a metallic rod, guided by Magneto, strike Adrienne in her leg. A searing pain shot through her as blood seeped from the wound, triggering a vehement curse from her lips as she retaliated against Magneto.

Observing the battle unfold, Val's mind began to delve deeper into the peculiarity of Adrienne's abilities. 'In the comics, Adrienne Frost had the power of psychometry, able to glean the history of any object she touched – its past, its present, and even hints of its future,' he pondered, 'But this Adrienne seems to have a different set of powers. She's levitating objects, projecting psionic blasts... It's apparent she possesses telepathy. Whether she also has psychometry is still a question.'

From his vantage point, Val observed as Adrienne unleashed a barrage of psionic blasts toward Magneto. In response, Magneto resourcefully employed the metallic debris surrounding him, transforming the scattered fragments into a makeshift shield. Each blast striking the metallic defense erupted in a shower of sparks and noise, painting a spectacle of explosions.

* BOOM *

Val's gaze landed thoughtfully on Adrienne's swelling belly, and a whirlwind of contemplations stirred within him, Is taking her life the only solution? I don't want to, truthfully. Despite her being a notorious killer, a lunatic, a terrorist, there's innocence within her... the child she carries is pure. I can't punish the unborn for the sins of its mother. Not every criminal deserves death; some deserve redemption. But...

How can I offer redemption to her? It's evident that she was profoundly in love with Shaw. With him now deceased, her raw emotions are surfacing, intensifying her dangerous nature. Should I incapacitate her? It's within my power, but I doubt Magneto would let that pass without a fight. And that is a pointless fight I'd rather avoid. Can she reform if captured, if she were sent to a S.H.I.E.L.D. correctional facility? A place where she could give birth in safety and maybe... just maybe, surrounded by the innocence of a new life, she might choose to turn her life around then.'

Letting out a sigh, Val lowered his gaze, finding himself entrapped in a difficult predicament. He looked up, thoughts weaving a possible course of action when his eyes abruptly widened, catching a sight that jolted him into action. "Stop, Magneto!" he cried out.

Magneto had managed to trap Adrienne in a web of metallic rods, her limbs held tightly in his metal trap.

Adrienne strained against the metal bindings, struggling to free herself, but her efforts only seemed to strengthen Magneto's grip. Each desperate wriggle was met with a tightening of the metallic hold, entrapping her further.

Adrienne, upon realizing the futility of her struggle, turned her gaze to Magneto and said, "You owe Shaw your gratitude! If not for him, you'd have died in Auschwitz, just like your family did!"

Magneto, though, just offered her a chilling stare in response. He set the metallic rods in his control afloat and slowly moved toward her. "Don't you have any shame?", he asked, "You speak so proudly of Shaw, a man stained with the blood of countless innocents, a criminal, a terrorist. Yet, you support him?"

* SPIT *

Adrienne gathered a mouthful of saliva and spat it onto Magneto's face as she sneered. "I should have taken that coin from Shaw years ago," she said, "Then I would have seen his betrayal by his own creation, and I could have prevented it. Yes, he committed heinous acts, he was a murderer, a criminal, a terrorist, but above all else, he was the man I loved, my husband, whom you robbed from me. Go kill yourself, you Jewish bastard!"

Magneto's teeth gritted in anger, a spark of fury igniting in his eyes. With a swift motion, he directed the metallic rods toward Adrienne. He heard Val's desperate pleas, his voice echoing across the deck, begging him to stop. But Magneto paid him no heed, his gaze locked on Adrienne, as the rods inched ever closer to their target.

Adrienne's eyes gently fluttered shut as she watched the rods nearing her. With a soft whisper, just audible above the winds and the clanging of metal, she murmured to herself, "We're on our way to you, my love!" And then...

* SPLURT *

The rods impaled Adrienne's body in a brutal instant, snuffing out her life. Standing at a distance, Magneto found a grim satisfaction in her lifeless collapse onto the bloodied deck.

Meanwhile, Val's gaze was painfully stuck to the steel rod emerging out from her abdomen. Aghast, he whispered, "What have you done?"

Magneto was unmoved, callously spinning on his heel and ready to leave the scene, when suddenly...

Their attention was snatched upward, necks craning to view the sky. A sea of missiles was streaking straight towards them.

Eyebrows furrowing, Val watched the approaching destruction and he thought, 'What the fuck is happening?'

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