Bang!
A slender, fair arm punched effortlessly through ten centimetres of alloy steel. Artoria withdrew her hand; the changes in her body over the past two days were unmistakable—she was drifting further and further from what could be called human. She raised her hand before her eyes; with superhuman sight she could see tiny scales invisible to ordinary skin. They had appeared only today, yet her defences had already risen another notch. Without needing to coat herself in mana, she could take a direct hit from a howitzer and emerge unscathed.
"Feels no different—still the same as before?"
She slid a finger across the back of her hand; the skin felt as soft and smooth as ever. Then she scratched with a nail. A harsh metallic screech rang out, and only then did she feel a twinge of pain. A pale line appeared, vanishing almost at once. Through her enhanced vision she watched a layer of scales flake away like dust in the air, instantly replaced by new growth.
"Interesting. Has the serum fully fused with my body? Is this what happens when Mystique's ability mutates under cosmic radiation?"
Standing before a full-length mirror, she saw no outward change—her appearance was untouched, her skin even more flawless—but she knew the surface was now dragon-scale. After so long stirring her draconic blood, catalysed by Mystique's DNA and cosmic rays, the transformation had finally borne fruit.
"Feels weird, but at least I didn't turn into a rock-man."
Since that banquet, Artoria had kept an eye on both the Fantastic Four and the Ten Rings. The very night they returned, the changes had begun: The Thing had finally appeared, along with Reed and Susan's brother. Susan herself had joined Artoria's company, though she had avoided the chaos Ben caused; only Artoria noticed her transformation. Susan begged her to keep the secret, and Artoria agreed.
She wasn't the blabbermouth Hope; why spill the beans? Still, it looked as though the Fantastic Four might soon be the Fantastic Three. Of the six who had gone into Space, three had changed. Reed suspected Artoria and Susan, but he had no way to see her: first, Tony wanted him dead; second, the uproar Ben had stirred kept him pinned down until the storm passed.
"Raven, how have you been these few days?"
In the training room she used telekinesis to lift weights, honing precision. After a shower, Artoria arrived at the office just as the newly hired Raven walked in. She wasn't in her blue-skinned form but in a stunning human shape—ripe and alluring as a peach.
"I thought I'd never live an ordinary life again. Thank you, Miss Artoria."
Clutching a stack of files, Raven gave a shy smile. At first she had felt out of place; after all, she and Magneto had spent years steeped in blood—infiltration, assassination, poisoning. Returning to normal life was jarring, yet she had adapted quickly.
"I couldn't bear to leave such a cute girl doing dirty work."
Gazing at Raven, Artoria tenderly lifted a strand of her hair. The gesture, meant for a domineering CEO flirting with a secretary, came off flirtatious in an entirely different way, setting office gossip ablaze.
"Look! The boss is hitting on another girl—such a waste."
"Damn, I'm handsome too—why can't I save a girl who's gone gay?"
"Give it up. Drop two hundred pounds and maybe, but with that otaku gut? Dream on. Here's some Chinese I just learned: a toad lusting after swan meat—no idea of his own weight."
"Y-you—watch me pound you so hard you'll need a proctologist."
"Hah! Bring it on."
Not to mention those topic-derailing goofballs who act like they're about to start a boy-love drama, Artoria had Raven's heart fluttering—then she walked off without a care, not even asking when they might share tea or a drink. She simply patted Raven's shoulder and left, leaving Raven feeling a little bruised.
"You lose. Ten minutes max; I win."
"Tch."
Susan and Hope had already spotted Artoria flirting with Raven through the glass door. They exchanged a look, not angry at all, and instead bet on how many minutes Artoria could keep it up. Hope lost, sullenly handing twenty bucks to Susan; she clearly wasn't in the best mood.
Back in her office, Artoria had no idea what those two were up to. If she had, she'd have murdered them—how dare they gamble with her? Brave. She, Artoria, would crown them the Kings of Cheek. The last person who'd joked about her, Maya, had been slapped so hard she couldn't sit for three days.
"It's raining—lousy timing."
For some reason Artoria felt restless in her office. Watching the dark clouds outside, she saw the first drops begin to fall. She'd planned to stay until eight or nine, but she left early, heading for the garage and driving home. She had a feeling something was about to happen.
Behind the wheel of her limited-edition silver Ferrari, Artoria sped toward her little castle. Thunder cracked overhead like some hammer-swinging guy arriving on Earth, but she knew it was only natural lightning. Uneasy, she let Saturday take the wheel, closed her eyes, and tried to nap.
As her mind relaxed, a shadow suddenly dropped from the sky and slammed straight into the hood. Artoria jolted awake, frowning as she stepped out to find a woman lying on the crumpled metal. Taking in the figure, she cursed her luck, lifted the stranger with telekinesis, and popped the trunk—only to freeze when she saw a face eerily similar to her own.
But the woman was covered in blood. Artoria quickly laid her in the passenger seat. Fortunately the car still ran; she floored it toward home. The residual magic clinging to the stranger told her this was no ordinary patient, and a hospital was out. Luckily her maids had medical training—two even held nursing licenses—so emergency care should be possible.
"Who exactly are you?"
She glanced at the unconscious woman, pale as paper, whispered the question, and sped on.
---------------------------------
I hope you're enjoying the fanfiction so far! If the story has you hooked and you can't wait to see what happens next, you can unlock 30 chapters in advance over on my Patreon: patreon.com/TLHimejima1
Every bit of support means the world to me so if you're loving the ride, don't forget to drop a Power Stone and let me know.