All of Camelot—nay, all of Albion and the entire world—continued to follow the situation closely; countless people feared for their lives, which only brought even greater chaos.
Law and order collapsed due to the actions of desperate people, or those who merely sought to take advantage of the situation to let their inner darkness out.
Albion remained tense, but as it was confirmed that no Sentinels seemed to be there, nor moving toward them, the fear slowly disappeared.
But it never went away, not fully.
After all, while the Sentinels remained at large, there was always a risk, always a chance.
Yet none remained more nervous, more fearful, than the mutant population.
Those who had so far decided not to move to Albion suddenly found themselves desperate for the safety it offered, no longer daring to remain hidden around the world.
The ones already living in Albion were worried about whether or not they were easy targets; they weren't hiding; they lived openly. It wouldn't be hard to find them.
-----
In Utopia, the largest mutant town, built entirely from the ground up by the mutants who sought a new home, thousands were gathered in the large city square.
In the center stood a large stone platform, and above it, two great statues towered.
Arthuria, King of Albion and eternal friend to all mutants, and Erik Lehnsherr, first King of Mutants, shaking hands in friendship, the symbol of the alliance between the two that granted sanctuary to all law-abiding mutants.
Their eyes were on the platform, waiting nervously. The mood was electric, a cocktail of fear and hope, a desperate need for reassurance in a world gone mad.
And then, he appeared.
A displacement of air caused it to ripple, and that ripple then turned into a person.
Red-and-black, tight-fitting armor, a red cloak hanging from his back, and the classic helmet now adorned with the shape of a crown. The Master of Magnetism, the King of Mutants, Magneto.
His appearance brought about silence, as all held their breath for a moment, and then, as they released that breath, they cheered. The roar was deafening, a collective expression of relief and adoration, a desperate cry for a savior.
Magneto stood on the platform, his presence a towering monument of defiance, a stark contrast to the fear that had gripped the hearts of his people. He raised a hand, and the crowd fell silent, their eyes fixed on him, their hope pinned on his every word.
"My people," he began, his voice resonating with a power that seemed to bend the very fabric of reality. "I know your fears. I have seen the images, heard the reports. The world has once again turned against us, with a fury that seeks to erase us from existence."
His gaze swept across the assembled crowd, his expression a mixture of sorrow and defiance. "But I am here. I am with you. And I will not let them harm you. Not here. Not in our home."
He raised both hands, and the metal of the statues around him shimmered, the stone and steel seeming to vibrate in response to his will. "They call themselves Sentinels. Machines of destruction, built on a foundation of hatred and ignorance. They are strong, yes. But they are machines. And machines... they have their weaknesses."
A low murmur rippled through the crowd, a spark of hope igniting in their eyes.
"I! I am their weakness! I shall tear their metallic bodies apart piece by piece! I will grind them down into dust until not a single gear remains to turn against our children! I will be their reckoning! I will be their end!"
His voice rose, a torrent of righteous fury, a promise of vengeance that was as terrifying as it was reassuring.
The crowd roared their approval, their fear replaced by a newfound sense of power, a belief in their king, a faith in their ability to fight back.
"But I am not your only hope," Magneto continued, his voice softening, his tone shifting from one of defiance to one of unity. "Our friends, our allies, the humans of Albion, stand with us. They have opened their doors, their hearts, their kingdom to us. They have offered us sanctuary, and for that, we owe them our friendship, our gratitude, and, if need be, our lives."
He paused, his gaze sweeping over the crowd, a silent command for their attention. "And our own king, Arthuria, the Once and Future King, she too stands with us. Though she is not here with us right now, her will, her protection, extends over this land, over this sanctuary. Her knights, her armies, stand ready to defend us, to fight alongside us, to ensure that our home remains safe."
He then gestured toward the city, a sweep of his arm that encompassed the entire settlement. "This is Utopia. Our home. Our sanctuary. A testament to our resilience, our strength, our unwavering belief in a future where we can live in peace, without fear, without persecution. Yet, as a proud people, you all know of my ambition: a nation of our own."
"To achieve that dream, many of our brothers and sisters have left the protection of Albion to aid me in securing a truly independent future for us all," he explained, a hint of pride in his tone. "But that also means that while you here remain safe under Arthuria's protection, those out there, fighting for our future, still need my help."
"We can't hide here; we can't stay out of this battle; we must strike back, and the first battlefield of this war shall be Ireland, where our brothers and sisters toil for our dream of a nation," he declared, his tone final. "I will not abandon them. I will not leave them to face these machines alone. And so, I will go to them. I will fight for them. And I will win."
He then looked around at the crowd, a challenge in his eyes. "But I do not go alone. I go with your strength, with your courage, with your unwavering belief in our cause. I go with the knowledge that you are here, safe, protected, and ready to defend our home should the need arise."
He paused, letting his words sink in, then he raised a fist to the sky, a symbol of their collective power, their shared destiny. "For Utopia! For the future! For our children!"
The crowd erupted, a deafening roar of agreement, a unified cry of defiance that echoed across the city, a promise that they would not be defeated, that they would not be erased.
Magneto's expression was grim, a warrior preparing for battle, a king ready to lead his people to war. With a final, decisive nod, he vanished as quickly as he had appeared, leaving behind a city filled with a renewed sense of purpose, a community ready to face the challenges that lay ahead.
-----
Magneto's speech quickly spread through the mutant community and to the rest of Albion.
Further bringing about a wave of relief.
After all, everyone trusted that Magneto, the Master of Magnetism, would be able to deal with robots made of metal, and with him clearing out the Sentinels clustered near their borders, the risk of an invasion grew less likely.
For now, the people of Albion felt safe. They could watch the horrors unfold across the world with a sense of detachment, a grim reminder of the fragility of their own peace.
-----
Yet no sooner had Utopia calmed down than a new wave of unease spread.
At first, someone began clearing a small area just outside the town, and then emergency responders arrived.
People were curious and a little concerned; after all, there should be no fighting, and no need for any of that.
But it didn't take long for people to realize what was happening, as a small blue cloud appeared and left behind a few young children.
The blue cloud kept appearing and disappearing, and as it did, more children appeared; in between, a few adults appeared and did their best to calm the children.
And from that, it didn't take long for people to learn what was happening.
An evacuation.
These people were the followers of Charles Xavier and belonged to his school. The fact that they appeared here clearly meant that the only other mutant stronghold in the world was under attack.
And that they didn't think they could win. The fact that they were willing to give up their own school, a place that meant so much to them, spoke volumes.
It meant the Sentinels were strong. Far stronger than anyone had expected.
The X-Men, the famous superhero team, the protectors of mutantkind, had been forced to flee.
The calm in Utopia evaporated, replaced by a chilling dread.
If the X-Men couldn't stop them, who could?
Magneto's promise of victory seemed like a distant, perhaps naive, dream. The reality of the situation was a brutal, sobering wake-up call. This was not a simple battle. This was a war for their very existence.
The people of Utopia, the mutants who had found a home, a sanctuary, now faced the terrifying possibility that their sanctuary might not be safe after all.
And as the last of the teleporting waves brought in a group of tired-looking X-Men, their costumes torn and their faces grim, their presence was a stark confirmation of the rumors.
Their school, the Xavier Institute for Higher Learning, had fallen.
The Sentinels had won.
(End of chapter)
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