"Fuck."
James came to a silent halt, his hands trembling slightly as he pushed Charles' wheelchair. His face was twisted with anger and frustration.
Looking up at the sky, James tried to spot his luxury car but found no trace — as if everything that had just happened was nothing but a dream.
Recalling the mutant ability of that girl, James immediately guessed a possibility: those two girls had likely stolen his car and had no intention of sticking around to help him.
The moment they saw the mercenaries, they took off. With the ability to control a flying car, no one could stop them.
"Damn it!" James clenched his fists so tight that his teeth cut into his lips.
On the opposite side, watching James's face turn pale, Pierce gave a slight smile.
He first raised a hand to calm the mercenaries around him, signaling them not to act rashly. Then, alone, he strode toward James and Charles.
"Logan," Charles said softly as he watched the scene unfold.
"I'm trying to figure this out," James replied, his brow furrowed.
"Logan, what exactly happened?" Charles asked nervously.
"Can you keep it down?" James snapped.
Without hesitation, James stepped in front of Charles, shielding him behind his own body, and fixed his gaze on Pierce approaching them.
"Whoa—Charles Xavier, America's most wanted fugitive."
Pierce whistled, eyeing Charles with amusement before turning his smirk toward James.
"Logan, fancy seeing you again."
"This is private property. You have no right to trespass here, asshole," James said coldly, glaring daggers at Pierce.
"I know," Pierce said with a grin, unfazed by Logan's murderous stare. "I'm pretty sure this place belongs to that multinational pharmaceutical company based in Shanghai. But do you really think they can protect you forever?"
James remained silent, just unsheathing his claws.
"Don't get worked up, Logan. Like I said last time we met, you're not my target—neither is this old man. Not yet, at least. I'm not in the mood to do government favors. They don't pay enough."
"What do you want, then?"
"Invaders!" Pierce shouted loudly.
Pierce let out a long sigh and shook his head, calming himself down.
"I've already talked to you about this. Our world is being invaded. In fact, protecting the world's safety should've been your job all along. But now, this miserable task has fallen on me. Isn't that ironic?"
James listened silently to Pierce's words, but he had no desire to continue the conversation. His mind was completely focused on how to get Charles and Caliban to safety.
After a moment's thought, James said quietly, "I promise you, if I see those invaders you're talking about, I'll reach out to you."
"Oh, really?" Pierce raised an eyebrow. "Then why don't you just tell me what exactly happened that night? And who buried those punks underground?"
James pursed his lips, hesitating for a moment before slowly replying,"It was a green-haired man. I don't know who he is, and I don't want any trouble."
"A green-haired man," Pierce frowned, stroking his chin thoughtfully.
It seemed he was trying to determine whether James' information was genuine. This put a lot of pressure on old James.
Sweat beaded on his forehead as James stood silently, waiting for Pierce's reaction.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Pierce nodded slowly.
"That's a very useful clue. Thanks."
James exhaled slightly.
"Can we leave now?"
"Of course. Be my guest. After all, I'm a big fan of yours," Pierce smiled and gestured politely.
James was momentarily unsure of what game Pierce was playing, but he had no time to waste on these distractions. After a brief pause, he turned and pushed Charles forward, heading straight toward Pierce.
Pierce showed no reaction at all. Even the mercenaries parted their formation, clearing a path for James and Charles to leave, as if they really weren't interested in these two old men.
But just as Caliban, carrying a large bag, hurried to keep up with James, Pierce suddenly stepped in front of him.
"Uh-uh~ you're not going anywhere."
"What?"
James snapped his head around sharply.
James frowned slightly as he looked at Pierce blocking Caliban's path.
"I know who you are, Caliban — one of the founders of the underground group Morlock, with the mutant ability to detect X-gene carriers. I heard you used to be a black market dealer. How did you end up reduced to a caretaker for an old man?"
Pierce glanced at Caliban, who was wrapped up like a burrito, then tapped his chest.
"I—I don't understand what you're talking about," Caliban said nervously, quickly replying before looking to Logan for help.
"Pierce, I've already given you intelligence. Let him go—that's what you promised!" James shouted angrily.
Pierce shook his finger and said, "Don't misunderstand, Old Man Logan. I meant that you and Charles can leave, but Mr. Caliban is not included."
"What?!" James' brow tightened.
"Almost all of these invaders are carriers of the X-gene," Pierce explained. "In other words, they're mutants — and the most dangerous, vicious kind."
Turning back to Logan with a cold smile, Pierce said, "You don't want another Westchester Incident, do you? These outsiders are ticking time bombs, ready to harm innocents at any moment. So, to handle this problem quickly…"
Pierce pointed to Caliban.
"I need this guy to work for me—to help find those invaders."
"W-what invaders?" Caliban had no clue what the two were talking about and nervously looked at Wolverine. "Logan, what's going on?"
"Don't you get it yet, Caliban? Our world is being invaded by strange parallel universes. Countless invaders have already landed on Earth, in places you don't even know about."
Pierce patted Caliban on the shoulder and continued,"We're here to invite you to be a hero. If you help us locate those mutant invaders from other universes, you'll be the hero who saves the world."
But beneath his mask, Caliban revealed a bitter smile.
He didn't doubt Pierce's words — there was no reason to lie about this, and it was easy enough to verify.
But Caliban was no longer the clueless street punk he once was.
"You… you want me to help you capture other mutants?"
"You could say that," Pierce smiled.
Not far away, James watched the visibly panicked Caliban, feeling uneasy inside.
Though he had always looked down on the albino Caliban, he had to admit that without Caliban over the years, he alone couldn't have taken proper care of Charles, let alone gone out to earn money.
Leaving him here now, handing him over to Pierce—that was something James was a hundred times unwilling to do.
Pierce seemed to notice this and smiled.
"What's there to hesitate about? If I remember right, you agreed quite readily when Apocalypse came calling back then."
"This is different," Caliban frowned. "I won't help you hunt my own kind."
"So you're saying you're refusing me?"
Pierce casually drew a pistol from his waist and loaded it in front of everyone.
"Pierce! You dare!" James roared instantly.
"Logan, I advise you not to make trouble. I'm already being merciful letting you off. Remember, you're worth a lot on the wanted list."
Pierce turned his cold gaze to Logan, speaking each word deliberately.
"Think about Charles—do you want both of you to die here, or trade this guy's life for yours?"
"I—"
James was momentarily speechless.
His eyes trembled as he looked at Caliban under threat, torn inside.
"Logan, Logan—"
Just then, Charles grabbed Logan's shirt hem, tugging hard.
But Logan had no patience to listen. Suddenly, his claws shot out as he strode fiercely toward Pierce.
Seeing Logan's murderous approach, Pierce's eyes flickered with a brief moment of panic before he suppressed it.
"What? You want to risk your lives over this guy? I already said you can leave safely."
"Save the sweet talk," James growled, grabbing Pierce's collar, claws aimed straight at his face.
"You think I don't know who you work for? You think I don't know what you do behind the scenes?"
Pierce was caught but showed no real fear.
He raised his hand, signaling the mercenaries not to fire, then locked eyes with Logan.
"So, you've met Gabriel."
James said nothing, just glared coldly.
"That woman let a group of mutant test subjects escape—and took a little girl with her. Honestly, I didn't expect she'd come after you."
"I admit, I did some dirty work before, but now, Gabriel and X-23 aren't under my control. My only goal is to find those invaders."
Pierce smiled.
"Killing me won't help. Without finding the invaders, more will come."
...
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