Every hero who appeared in the sky was wearing a version of Tony Stark's technology.
Anyone who lacked natural flight ability had been equipped with a steel exoskeleton suit. These weren't fully enclosed Iron Man armors, but lighter auxiliary frames designed to enhance mobility, strength, and aerial maneuverability. The sleek mechanical structures wrapped around their limbs and backs, allowing even ground-based fighters to soar through the air.
Ethan Cole raised an eyebrow as he observed the approaching group.
It didn't take long for him to recognize the people arriving.
The X-Men and the Brotherhood of Mutants had clearly joined forces.
But what surprised him even more was the appearance of the other aircraft accompanying them. The pilots stepping out of those jets were not mutants at all. They were agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., and judging by their presence, they were all elite operatives—agents ranked at level eight or higher.
Among them Ethan also spotted two familiar figures.
Tony Stark.
And the young Spider-Man.
"Well," Ethan said with a grin, "did everyone show up to farm experience points off me today?"
Magneto stood at the front of the formation, clearly acting as the leader of the entire group. His body floated steadily in midair as he faced Ethan from a distance.
His expression was calm, but his eyes burned with unmistakable hatred.
The resentment came from both past and present. Ethan's actions had caused chaos across the world, and in Magneto's view, the man in front of him had become a danger to every mutant alive.
Ethan met his gaze without speaking.
For a brief moment the air between them seemed to freeze.
Ethan could sense the change in Magneto immediately. The older mutant had grown stronger than before. That much was obvious from the energy surrounding him.
Thin arcs of electricity coiled around his body like restless snakes. The magnetic field surrounding him distorted the air slightly, creating a faint ripple effect that shimmered around his figure.
More than thirty people now floated in front of Ethan.
It was clearly the highest combat force the United States could gather at this moment. Mutants, superheroes, and elite agents had all come together for one purpose.
To destroy him.
Ethan considered the situation and smiled faintly.
"So tell me something," he said calmly. "What made you believe you could actually deal with me?"
His eyes swept across the assembled fighters.
"Do you really think this group is enough to defeat me?"
Magneto's face remained cold.
The old mutant's expression hardened as he answered.
"You're not an invincible god," he said firmly. "And with all of us here, we have more than enough strength to stop you."
Ethan chuckled softly.
At that moment he truly looked like the villainous final boss standing against a league of heroes.
"I'm actually curious about something," Ethan said, tilting his head slightly. "You're the leader of the Brotherhood of Mutants. So how did you end up cooperating with the X-Men?"
His smile widened.
"You used to despise each other, didn't you?"
Magneto's expression darkened instantly.
Being exposed like that in front of everyone clearly irritated him.
"In the face of a threat like you," he replied coldly, "joining forces is the logical choice."
Ethan's grin widened.
"So you admit I'm strong?"
"Ahem."
The only response was a quiet, annoyed grunt.
No one in the group was willing to confirm his statement directly. Acknowledging Ethan's strength in front of him would only weaken their morale.
Ethan shrugged casually.
"Well then," he said, spreading his hands slightly, "if you want to defeat me, come try."
His tone was relaxed.
"Let me see what you're actually capable of."
There was no need for further conversation.
The tension between both sides had already reached its breaking point. On one side stood Ethan alone, yet his presence carried the weight of an entire army.
On the other side stood a coalition of powerful mutants and superheroes, each possessing abilities far beyond ordinary humans.
The collision between them was inevitable.
Magneto moved first.
With a simple gesture of his hand, countless steel bolts and metal fragments ripped themselves free from the ruined streets below. The pieces rose into the air before twisting together into dozens of long iron spears.
Then they launched forward.
The spears shot toward Ethan like missiles, crackling with electric energy as they accelerated through the sky. From a distance the attack looked almost like a barrage from electromagnetic railguns.
At the same time, Magneto's allies surged forward.
The sky itself seemed to react.
Dark clouds rolled across the horizon as Storm raised her arms. Thunder roared overhead, and violent lightning bolts began crashing down toward Ethan.
The lightning struck first.
But Ethan didn't move.
He simply looked up.
The faint smile on his face never disappeared.
Without any visible motion, the invisible force field surrounding him shifted slightly. The moment the lightning touched that barrier, the energy vanished instantly.
The devastating power of the thunderstorm collapsed into nothingness.
A split second later the iron spears arrived.
They carried enormous kinetic force along with the electromagnetic energy Magneto had infused into them. Under normal circumstances, such an attack could easily pierce armored vehicles.
Yet none of it mattered.
Magneto was undeniably powerful. His control over magnetism placed him among the strongest mutants on Earth, an omega-level force capable of manipulating entire battlefields.
But there was one problem.
Ethan possessed the same power.
And thanks to the Phoenix Force amplifying his abilities, Ethan's control over magnetic fields was far greater than Magneto's.
Under those circumstances, the outcome was obvious.
The iron spears raced forward—
And suddenly stopped.
They froze in midair ten meters in front of Ethan, hovering like a suspended wall of metal.
The electricity surrounding them flickered briefly before vanishing completely.
The energy had been erased.
The sight stunned everyone watching.
Shock spread across the faces of the attackers as they exchanged uneasy glances. Even without speaking, they all understood the same thing.
Ethan's strength was far beyond what they had expected.
Ethan slowly raised his hand.
The suspended spears trembled slightly.
Then they turned around.
Instead of continuing toward Ethan, the entire barrage shot backward—directly toward the group that had launched the attack.
In the battle of magnetic control, Ethan had defeated Magneto completely.
And he had done it effortlessly.
"Scatter!" Wolverine roared.
He immediately rushed forward, positioning himself in front of Storm as the others reacted. The group dispersed in different directions, breaking formation to avoid the incoming projectiles.
Their reactions were quick.
But the nearby aircraft weren't so lucky.
Several fighter jets flying in formation behind them had no time to maneuver away. The iron spears struck their targets instantly, punching straight through the reinforced hulls.
The kinetic force behind the impact was overwhelming.
Even the special alloys used in the jets couldn't withstand it.
Boom.
Explosions erupted in the sky as the fighters burst into flames. The burning wreckage spiraled downward in fiery arcs before crashing toward the ground below.
The mood among the attackers instantly darkened.
Everyone present could feel their confidence slipping away.
They had underestimated Ethan Cole.
And the gap between them now felt almost impossible to bridge.
"We can't fight him one at a time!" Storm shouted. "Everyone attack together!"
The others had already reached the same conclusion.
Without hesitation they surged toward Ethan from every direction.
Watching them approach, Ethan only smiled.
"Well," he said lightly, "I suppose I'm a little bored anyway."
He cracked his neck slightly.
"Let's treat this like a game."
In truth, he wasn't taking any of them seriously.
Their arrival had only given him something mildly entertaining to do. Other than that, he felt no pressure at all.
Then the battle truly began.
In the next instant, the sky above Manhattan erupted into chaos as the entire alliance launched their assault against Ethan Cole.
.....
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