Thunderbird had nearly forgotten about Dr. Campbell, and even Liam Hayes hadn't immediately connected the dots. The name alone didn't carry much weight unless you knew what stood behind it.
But once you understood his work, everything changed.
Dr. Campbell was the architect behind the infamous Hound Project, a program designed with a single purpose—eradicate mutants entirely. It wasn't just another anti-mutant initiative; it was systematic, cold, and terrifyingly effective.
If anyone needed a reference point, there was only one that mattered.
The Sentinels.
The same machines from X-Men: Days of Future Past—adaptive, relentless, unstoppable. Those weapons that had wiped out entire timelines weren't just theoretical here. They were tied directly to Campbell's research.
Because of that single project, countless parallel worlds across the Marvel multiverse had already been reduced to nothing.
Liam didn't know exactly which timeline he had landed in, but one thing was absolutely certain. He wasn't going to sit back and let this world be erased by Sentinels.
Fortunately, the Hound Project was still in its early stages. That meant there was still time to intervene, still time to break it before it became unstoppable.
"It's not too late," Liam said, his voice steady but decisive. "We move now. We save them."
He didn't waste another second.
Without waiting for a response, he grabbed Thunderbird by the shoulder and activated his teleportation. Space folded instantly, and the two of them vanished from where they stood, reappearing in a narrow alleyway a moment later.
It was a familiar location—the same place he had visited with Polaris before. With a clear spatial anchor, his teleportation was precise and effortless.
"Where are they?" Liam asked, scanning the surroundings quickly. He didn't have time to hesitate.
"Over there!" Thunderbird pointed without delay, his familiarity with the area making navigation easy.
Liam didn't argue. He grabbed him again, and the two of them blinked onto the rooftop of a nearby building. From there, he chained teleportations one after another, each jump guided by his line of sight.
Everything he could see became a reachable point.
In less than a minute, they found their targets.
Evangeline and the others were hiding carefully, moving with extreme caution as they tried to avoid detection by the Sentry Secret Service. When Liam and Thunderbird suddenly appeared in front of them, several people instinctively reacted.
Ivan Jielin's hands transformed instantly, her fingers elongating into sharp, crimson dragon claws. She nearly struck without hesitation, her instincts kicking in before her mind could catch up.
Fortunately, she pulled back just in time.
"Hoo… you're finally here," Ivan exhaled, her shoulders relaxing slightly as she recognized Thunderbird.
The tension in the group eased, but only slightly. They were still being hunted.
Evangeline stepped forward, her posture composed despite the situation. She carried herself with authority, the kind that came from experience and responsibility. Most of the underground mutant network relied on her financial support, making her a central pillar of their operations.
"Don't worry," Liam said with a confident smile. "As long as I'm here, no one's getting hurt."
Evangeline studied him carefully. She had heard about this young man before—the one who had shaken up the underground organization—but this was her first time meeting him in person.
"You're Liam," she said, her tone measured but curious.
"Yes, ma'am," he replied casually, nodding once.
Even as they spoke, Liam's attention flicked briefly to Ivan's transformed hands. The ability to manifest dragon claws alone was already impressive, but he could tell instinctively that it didn't stop there. That power likely had deeper layers—possibly even full transformation potential.
"Let's move," Evangeline said, her expression tightening again. "The Sentry Secret Service could catch up at any moment. They brought specialized anti-mutant weapons this time. We shouldn't engage them directly."
Thunderbird nodded immediately. "Yeah, we—"
He didn't get to finish.
The air shifted violently.
The demolition duo had already found them.
Both mutants stood at the far end of the alley, arms raised. There was no warning, no negotiation. A massive, invisible shockwave surged forward the moment they locked onto their targets.
The walls on both sides of the alley cracked instantly, fractures spreading like spiderwebs through concrete.
"Watch out!" Thunderbird shouted, but it was already too late.
Ivan reacted first, her dragon claws fully formed as she stepped forward, ready to block the attack head-on. Her instincts were sharp, her response immediate.
But Liam was faster.
He vanished from his position and reappeared directly in front of the group, placing himself between them and the incoming force.
Boom!!
The shockwave slammed into him with explosive force, kicking up dust, debris, and shattered fragments of concrete. The entire alley trembled under the impact.
For a moment, everything was obscured.
When the dust settled, Liam was still standing there.
Unmoved.
Unharmed.
"Hoo… good thing you showed up," Thunderbird muttered, exhaling in relief. "We would've been done for."
Ivan stared at Liam's back, her eyes filled with disbelief. She hadn't even seen him move clearly, and yet he had intercepted the attack without taking a single step back.
"Hey," Liam said casually, turning his head slightly. "You got any coins on you, Thunderbird?"
"…Coins?" Thunderbird blinked, completely thrown off by the question.
"I've got one." Ivan didn't hesitate. She reached into her pocket and handed over a coin without asking why.
"Thanks."
Liam caught it, weighing it briefly between his fingers. The size, the mass—it was perfect.
He flicked it lightly upward.
Ding!
The coin spun into the air, glinting under the light as it rose.
At the same time, faint arcs of electricity began to dance around Liam's body. The air itself seemed to tense, a subtle pressure building as electromagnetic force gathered in his hand.
His hair lifted slightly, his clothes rustling under the invisible energy field forming around him.
"Ever seen a railgun?" he asked, his voice carrying a hint of amusement.
"An electromagnetic—" Thunderbird started.
"No," Liam cut him off, a grin tugging at his lips. "A super electromagnetic railgun."
The coin reached its peak and began to fall.
In that exact instant, Liam moved.
He raised his arm, aligning it like a barrel. Electromagnetic force surged, forming an invisible track along his forearm. As the coin dropped into position, his fingers snapped forward.
Boom!!
The world seemed to split.
A blinding orange beam erupted from his fingertips, brighter than sunlight, tearing through the air with terrifying speed. The sheer force of it distorted the space along its path.
From the perspective of those behind him, it looked like a streak of pure destruction carving through reality itself.
Where the beam passed, the ground shattered instantly. Cracks spread outward violently, chunks of earth splitting apart under the pressure.
In a single moment, the beam shot upward into the sky, disappearing into the distance after piercing everything in its path.
The aftermath was silent.
Thunderbird stood frozen, his mouth slightly open. Ivan was no better, her earlier composure completely shattered.
"This… this is insane," Thunderbird muttered under his breath, unable to process what he had just witnessed.
That single shot burned itself into their memories, something they would never forget for as long as they lived.
Across the alley, the reaction was even more dramatic.
The demolition duo stood rooted in place, their expressions blank, as if their minds had shut down completely. Behind them, the Sentry Secret Service agents had collapsed to the ground, many of them paralyzed with fear.
The beam had passed dangerously close to them.
Too close.
If Liam had lowered his aim even slightly, none of them would still be standing.
But he hadn't aimed at them at all.
From a distance, the damage was clear. An abandoned building far behind their position had been completely pierced through, a massive hole carved cleanly across its structure.
Thankfully, it had been empty. Otherwise, there would have been casualties.
....
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