With a heavy press on the gas pedal, James pushed the Chrysler to full throttle, roaring forward like a wild stallion breaking free.
The sudden acceleration caused Lorna to slump back into her seat. Holding onto the purple-haired girl beside her, she stared in shock at James.
"What's going on?" Lorna asked urgently, steadying herself. She had no idea what had triggered the old man in front of her.
But James didn't care about her question anymore. Right now, his only concern was Charles' safety.
After all this time hiding and laying low without incident, Old James wasn't about to let something go wrong just when a new life was within reach.
Charles was, after all, a killer responsible for countless innocent deaths. If someone with ill intentions exposed him, Charles' second chance at life would be over—James knew that all too well.
He pressed the accelerator harder, wishing the car could go even faster. Veins bulged on the back of his hand gripping the steering wheel, his entire body seething with rage.
Seeing this, Lorna understood something serious was happening. Though it didn't seem related to her, she hesitated briefly before shifting herself from the back seat to the front passenger seat.
Noticing her move, James frowned.
"You two need to get out."
"You're going to have to slow down first," Lorna snapped, then glanced ahead to the convoy of vehicles. "Who are they? Mutant hunters too?"
Most likely, they're after you two, James thought grimly.
"I can sense they're heavily armed, but their route doesn't seem aimed directly at us."
Lorna watched the convoy carefully, then quickly deduced that their path matched the old man's route. And given his intense reaction, the situation was clear.
"They're after your friend?"
"That's none of your business," James replied coldly.
"I can help you," Lorna said, fastening her seatbelt. "At this speed, catching up to that convoy won't be easy."
James hated to admit it, but she was right.
After a pause, he turned to her.
"What do you want to do?"
Lorna smiled confidently.
Suddenly, she raised both hands. The Chrysler immediately went out of control, the whole body lifting off the ground. The rush of acceleration and the weightless sensation washed over them both.
"Oh shit!"
James cursed, gripping the steering wheel as if it could somehow keep them safe.
The rear wheels spun rapidly, propelled by some unknown source of power. The extended Chrysler now shot forward like a missile, soaring through the air straight toward the convoy.
Lorna, amused, glanced at the anxious old James with a slight smirk. "Afraid of heights?"
At the question, James blinked awkwardly.
"Tell me where to go. You want to get to your friend before they do, right?" Lorna said quickly.
"In that direction," James said, already feeling the urgency. Suppressing his discomfort, he pointed northeast.
Following James's indication, they could see a deserted factory far in the distance. Judging by the barren surroundings, it had been abandoned for a long time.
"Hold tight!" Lorna confirmed the location. Without holding back her power anymore, she fully took control of the flying luxury car, speeding straight toward the target.
In this empty wasteland, a car flying through the sky stood out like a beacon—it was obvious they'd be spotted the moment they left the ground.
But James didn't care about that anymore. His only focus was ensuring Charles' safety—his sole reason for being in this world now.
Honestly, if it weren't for Charles, James would have chosen death long ago.
"Such a pity,"
Lorna sighed, steering the airborne car's path and speed, then glanced at the purple-haired girl still unconscious beside her.
"If Clarice were awake, with her abilities, we could get wherever you want in the blink of an eye."
"Clarice."
Hearing the name, James furrowed his brow sharply. He turned toward the purple-haired girl, his nervous eyes clouded with complex emotions.
In the depths of his fading memories, there was once a woman named Clarice—valiant and powerful. She had played a crucial role in the battles against the Sentinel robots and evil organizations.
Most importantly, her mutant power was to open portals linking different locations, which perfectly matched the abilities of the young girl sitting beside him now.
By appearance, she also bore some resemblance to the woman in his memory, sparking a strange thought in old James' mind.
"Get ready, we're about to land."
Just as James was lost in thought, Lorna suddenly reminded him.
Snapping back to reality, the old wolf noticed they were very close to the factory, and they had managed to put some distance between themselves and the convoy.
Seeing this, James didn't have time for distractions. He turned to Lorna. "No need to land. Park the car at the north gate of the factory. We'll regroup there."
"What about you?" Lorna paused.
The next moment, she saw James unbuckle his seatbelt, open the door, and jump out of the flying car midair without hesitation.
Worried the old man might be hurt, Lorna instinctively used her metal manipulation to catch him gently and place him safely on the ground.
James had braced himself for a hard impact, but to his surprise, his landing was as light as a feather.
Thinking back to the girl with abilities matching the man in his memories, James quickly realized she must have helped him. He nodded at the car still in the sky, then sprinted toward the building.
He kicked open the door, only to be met by a tightly armored Caliban.
"Logan, you're back," Caliban said with surprise, eyeing the very urgent Wolverine before him. "And you've brought a new friend?"
"Cut the small talk. Get ready, we're leaving now," James said without wasting time.
"What's going on?" Caliban stared blankly, his tone puzzled. "Did you cause trouble again out there?"
In his mind, they had enjoyed a long stretch of peace. He couldn't understand why James suddenly wanted to leave.
"Just listen to me. If you don't want to die, move fast!"
James had no patience left. He pushed Caliban aside and charged into Charles' room.
Charles' room was a small semicircular cold storage converted into a makeshift chamber. Inside, besides a worn-out stretcher bed, there were only three dilapidated wooden tables.
On one of the tables, some plants were growing. Because there was hardly any natural light, an artificial purple grow light was installed to keep them alive.
This was all set up to give Charles something to do in his spare time—or put another way, to give him a little distraction.
"Logan, you're back."
Charles, dozing on the bed, was startled by James bursting in. But after seeing who it was, he relaxed slightly.
"Looks like you've been taking your meds on schedule. That's good," James said quickly, grabbing the wheelchair nearby. Without even looking, he shoved all the medication from the table into the bag on the back of the wheelchair.
"You know, Logan, I just had a dream. Guess who I dreamed about?"
Charles asked calmly, his slow, feeble reaction contrasting sharply with James' urgency.
"I don't have time for your nonsense."
James pulled the wheelchair close to the bed, steadied it, then wrapped his arms around paralyzed Charles and lifted him up.
"Hey Logan, what's going on exactly?" Caliban walked in, stammering nervously. "I felt unfamiliar mutants nearby—what's happening?"
"Didn't you hear what I just said? Pack up and get moving. You want to stay here and wait for death!?"
James snarled at Caliban, then transferred Charles onto the wheelchair.
"As I said before, Logan found Magneto."
Charles didn't resist at all. Or rather, he simply didn't want to.
"We're going to see an old friend. Good job, Logan. You didn't disappoint me—you rescued Magneto from the Pentagon. We have to change everything. We can't let the Sentinels come into existence. We're going after Raven."
"Magneto's dead. Long dead. Raven's dead too."
James knew Charles' mind was tangled up now—Alzheimer's had twisted his memories. He probably still believed he was reversing the timeline.
Pushing the wheelchair out the door, James called for Caliban to hurry after him while he quickly headed toward the north gate.
What James hadn't expected was that just after rounding the corner outside the building, he saw dozens of people ahead, guns raised and aimed at him.
Apparently, they had been waiting there a long time.
And the leader wasn't anyone else—it was Pierce, the man James had encountered before.
...
📢Advanced chapters on p@treaon📢
For advance chapters: [email protected]/Uchiha_Itachi007 (replace @ with a)
1. 30 advanced chapters of American Comics: Multiverse of Madness.
2. 30 advanced chapters of Warhammer, but Emperor's Chosen.
3. 20 advanced chapters of The Witcher: Wolf School's Hunting Notes.