"Charles, you promised me you wouldn't read my thoughts."
Raven's voice carried a hint of bitterness as she looked at him. The words were calm, but the emotion behind them was complicated.
Charles lowered his head slightly.
"I promised you many things," he admitted quietly. "But I'm afraid I won't be able to keep all of them."
For a moment neither of them spoke.
Then Raven took a slow breath.
"Take care of yourself, Charles."
With those final words, she turned and began walking away from the X-Men.
Her footsteps carried her across the sand toward the distant beach. Charles watched silently, the pain in his eyes impossible to hide.
Eric, however, smiled faintly.
He had expected this.
Raven had never been the same as Charles. Beneath her calm exterior, she had always rejected Charles's idealistic vision of hiding mutants and pretending to be something they weren't.
She believed in embracing what they were.
And that belief aligned far more closely with Eric's philosophy.
But just as Eric allowed himself a satisfied smile, Raven suddenly stopped.
She didn't turn around immediately. Instead, she stood still for a moment before speaking.
"Sorry, Eric," she said seriously. "But I didn't choose you."
Eric's smile froze.
A second later, Raven turned the other direction and began walking again.
Toward Rorschach.
For a moment, even Rorschach was slightly surprised.
He hadn't expected Raven to reject Eric and choose him instead. But after thinking about it for a second, the decision actually made perfect sense.
Raven had grown up with Charles, yet she never fully agreed with his worldview. That much had always been obvious. In the original timeline, that disagreement was what eventually drove her to follow Eric.
But even Eric's ideology wasn't something Raven completely embraced.
In fact, she would eventually leave Eric as well only a few years later, choosing to operate independently instead.
Eric's views were simply too extreme.
Back then, Raven had only two choices—Charles or Eric.
Now there was a third option.
Someone who wasn't trapped in Charles's idealism but also wasn't consumed by Eric's extremism.
Raven walked steadily toward Rorschach and stopped beside him.
Hank was already standing there.
As for the remaining three—Alex, Sean, and Darwin—they exchanged several uncertain glances.
In the end, none of them moved.
They chose to stay.
"Charles, Eric… everyone," Rorschach said calmly. "Our paths may separate here, but the world is big. I'm sure we'll meet again."
He raised a hand casually.
"Goodbye."
Without any further hesitation, Rorschach turned and walked away with Hank and Raven.
"Charles… farewell."
Eric spoke as well, his tone calm but resolute.
Then he left without looking back, accompanied by Angel Salvadore and Riptide.
In the end, only Charles, Moira, Alex, Sean, and Darwin remained standing on the devastated beach.
They watched silently as their former companions disappeared into the distance.
A deep melancholy hung in the air.
…
United States Department of Defense.
"Our fleet has lost contact."
The naval general delivering the report spoke with a grave expression as he addressed the powerful officials seated around the round table.
Every face in the room darkened instantly.
Just moments earlier, they had issued the order for the fleet to attack the mutants. And now—almost immediately afterward—the fleet had completely vanished from communication channels.
This wasn't a simple radio interruption.
When a military fleet lost contact entirely, it usually meant only one thing.
Something had gone terribly wrong.
"What about the Russian fleet?" the Secretary of Defense asked in a deep voice.
"They've lost contact as well," the general replied.
The officials around the table exchanged uneasy glances.
Both fleets had gone silent at the exact same time.
What had happened out there?
Had the mutants been eliminated?
Under normal circumstances, the combined firepower of the American and Russian fleets would be more than enough to wipe out a handful of individuals.
They could level a city if necessary.
But now those fleets had simply disappeared.
The situation was beyond anyone's expectations.
…
Cuban Beach.
"Hank, Raven… wait a moment."
Not long after leaving Charles and the others behind, Rorschach suddenly called out.
Raven turned around curiously.
"What's wrong?"
Hank simply adjusted his glasses and looked over calmly, waiting for an explanation.
"Nothing serious," Rorschach said casually. "It just feels like my abilities got stronger during the fight with Shaw."
Stronger again?
Both Raven and Hank stared at him in disbelief.
Rorschach was already absurdly powerful. Hearing that he had grown even stronger felt almost unfair.
Was he trying to make sure no one else had any chance to keep up?
Still, neither of them could hide their excitement.
If their teammate was becoming stronger, that was obviously good news.
Rorschach didn't waste time explaining further. Instead, he focused his mind and opened the system panel.
[Host: Rorschach]
[Age: 16]
[Speed: 164.4 meters/second]
[Strength: 127.2 tons]
[Physique: 308 (Average healthy adult male: 10)]
[Mental Strength: 271 (Average healthy adult male: 10)]
[Current Template: Homelander (Unlock Progress: 15%)]
[Abilities: X-Ray Vision (Basic), Super Hearing (Basic), Heat Vision (Basic), Flight (Locked)]
[Origin Points: 2026]
When Rorschach saw the number beside Origin Points, his heart skipped a beat.
He had never possessed that many points before.
It was practically a fortune.
[Host has surplus Origin Points. Would you like to use them immediately to strengthen your template?]
The system prompt appeared again.
This time Rorschach didn't hesitate.
"Strengthen."
[Congratulations. Homelander Template Unlock Progress Increased to 35%.]
Thirty-five percent.
Rorschach couldn't help feeling excited.
This was the biggest jump in template progress he had ever experienced.
When the system panel refreshed, the changes were astonishing.
[Host: Rorschach]
[Age: 16]
[Speed: 378.2 meters/second]
[Strength: 341 tons]
[Physique: 510 (Average healthy adult male: 10)]
[Mental Strength: 581 (Average healthy adult male: 10)]
[Current Template: Homelander (Unlock Progress: 35%)]
[Abilities: X-Ray Vision (Intermediate), Super Hearing (Intermediate), Heat Vision (Intermediate), Flight (Locked)]
[Origin Points: 26]
The improvement was massive.
His speed had jumped beyond subsonic levels and was now approaching the speed of sound. His physical strength had exceeded three hundred tons, while both his physique and mental strength had increased dramatically.
Even his abilities had advanced from basic to intermediate levels.
The gains were enormous.
But the system wasn't finished yet.
[Host has unlocked over 30% template progress. Flight ability can now be activated. Would you like to unlock it?]
Rorschach froze for a moment.
Then his breathing quickened.
Flight.
The ability he had been waiting for since the beginning.
Without the slightest hesitation, he answered.
"Unlock."
A strange transformation immediately spread through his body.
The change was subtle yet unmistakable.
And in that instant, Rorschach clearly realized something.
He could finally fly.
.....
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