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Chapter 33: My Heart Aches
2022-10-19 Author: Great Demon Spirit
Tony opened the door and let Pyro John in, observing the teenager who now seemed a bit reserved and nervous.
Honestly, Tony was very happy that someone came to find him, but with a touch of regret. The one who left the deepest impression on him was Iceman Bobby, a Level 5 potential Mutant.
Bobby was different from Jean Grey. Jean Grey possessed the Phoenix Force; one could say she had Level 5 strength upon Awakening, but Professor X had timely sealed off the source of her Power. As for Iceman Bobby, although his current abilities weren't high, he possessed Level 5 potential. As long as he encountered certain opportunities in the future, Bobby would unleash his potential and become stronger. His unfathomable ice-creation ability could, in theory, freeze the entire Universe. Of course, that's just theoretically; he might die of old age or be killed by someone halfway through, considering powerful individuals were everywhere in this world.
Still, Pyro John's visit was enough to please Tony.
Tony narrowed his eyes and asked him, "It's so late, what are you doing here?" He asked, though he already knew the answer, hoping the teenager would speak for himself.
Pyro John was very nervous, beads of sweat appearing on his youthful face. He stammered, only managing to get a full sentence out after a long pause: "Do you still need subordinates?"
He was drenched in sweat. For some reason, he felt extremely nervous and pressured in front of this young man. But because of this, a certain decision in his heart became even firmer.
"I am indeed planning to assemble my own team, and I think highly of you," Tony said lightly, causing John to suddenly look up, his eyes shining with ecstasy.
"But definitely not now. At least for now, I can't let you join me, John. You're still too young, and you're not ready," Tony said, pouring a bucket of cold water on him without hesitation.
John was unconvinced and wanted to argue, to tell the man in front of him that he was fully prepared, but the next sentence struck him so hard that he couldn't lift his head.
"You're too weak. I'm about to go to war with the Vampire Clan. It's extremely dangerous. How much help can you be? You might even become a burden to me."
John lowered his head, utterly dejected. He couldn't refute Tony's words. The fiercest battle he had ever experienced was leading a group of people in a brawl against another group led by Iceman Bobby. It was a completely different world from Tony's.
"Trust me, John, I'm happy you came to find me, but you came too early. You need to become stronger to join my team. Trust me, when you're strong enough, I will definitely come find you," Tony said, patting John's shoulder and sighing.
When Tony said this, he was heartbroken. He genuinely wanted to build his own team and wished he could just snatch John, this stock of potential, to be his subordinate. But he couldn't. He was completely broke right now. The so-called team would most likely not die in battle against enemies, but starve to death collectively.
He, the great Mechanic tony, a complete pauper, forming a team? A team just to starve to death?
With the little money he had now, how many Superpowered Individuals could he support? He struggled to even support himself; he was worried sick.
Tony now only hoped to risk his life plundering the Vampires, making a huge fortune. The wealth accumulated over thousands of years must be quite impressive, right?
John left, filled with both frustration and anticipation. Something flickered in his eyes; the teenager seemed to understand what he needed to do in the future. He finally had a goal.
Tony patted the wall and sighed, "Have you heard enough? If so, hurry up and leave."
Then a young girl walked out of the wall. If Tony remembered correctly, this girl was Kitty, nicknamed Shadowcat, whose spatial abilities allowed her to pass through barriers.
Little Kitty stared at him for a while, then left without a word. She had overheard Tony and John's entire conversation.
Tony sat there in a daze, clutching his chest. Letting two young ones go consecutively made his heart ache terribly. Playing the part of a big shot cost money, and what he lacked most was money. Not to mention, his Transformer Legion also required a continuous influx of cash; it was a bottomless pit.
Tony sighed repeatedly, beating his chest and stomping his feet, almost dying of heartache.
"It seems you regret it deeply. Do you want me to call them back?" Professor X had also arrived. Such movements couldn't escape his notice. He teased Tony.
Tony huffed angrily, "Old man, believe it or not, I wanted to snatch them away more than once just now. I've been holding myself back. I regret it terribly, my heart aches..."
Professor X was uncharacteristically serious. "Tony, they're still too young and don't understand anything. I don't want you to interfere with them too much, at least not now."
Tony fell silent, eventually nodding helplessly. At Xavier's School, John could gain knowledge, but with Tony, John's combat power would soar. Tony had that confidence, but undoubtedly, Professor X wouldn't easily let people go.
Xavier's School primarily focused on teaching Mutants how to live as people and how to coexist peacefully with Humans. Only a small portion who joined the X-Men had the opportunity to learn combat.
Charles turned his wheelchair and asked Tony if he would continue the war with the Vampire Faction.
Tony nodded emphatically, explaining that it wasn't a matter of whether he wanted to fight, but that the Vampire Faction would definitely continue to fight him and wouldn't easily compromise. Moreover, the Vampires were carrying out the God-Creation Plan, and Tony was the best Touchstone.
"The war cannot cease. I came here also to seek an opportunity to become stronger," Tony said.
Charles nodded silently, indicating he would provide Tony with all the help he could.
"Tony, sometimes I truly worry that you'll follow the same path as Erik," Charles voiced his deep-seated concern. He didn't want Tony to go down Erik's path, which was extreme and dangerous.
Tony smiled. He told the old man that he wouldn't and couldn't be like Erik. However, he did need to flex his muscles, because there were still people coveting him. He needed a battle record to intimidate those petty individuals. They would target Tony, but they wouldn't target Professor X and Magneto, because they had been brutally dealt with by those two before, but not yet by Tony.
"Professor, you haven't used your abilities to harm many people, but that doesn't mean they haven't been intimidated by your powerful abilities. At least, I won't be hostile towards Ordinary Humans; I come from the group of Ordinary Humans, and all Mutants come from Ordinary Humans," Tony said with a smile. Suddenly, an idea struck him, and he probed, "Perhaps the First Mutant in history is the only exception?"
"The first Mutant? Who?" Charles, who had been feeling pleased about Tony's philosophy, looked at Tony in confusion upon hearing this question, not quite understanding.
Tony's heart sank. That terrible possibility had become a reality.
"Just a guess," Tony said dismissively, stating that he speculated the First Mutant in history might be different from them, the later generations.
Charles looked thoughtful. He could tell Tony was hiding something from him, but since Tony wasn't willing to say, he saw no need to press the issue. He could also investigate this First Mutant in history himself.
After Professor X left, Tony sat alone, too drained to even complain.
It turned out that the timeline he was on had not yet been reset; it was the most original one.
Speaking of which, that dangerous old guy, Apocalypse, couldn't still be hibernating in the Egyptian Pyramids, could he? He'd been sleeping for thousands of years already.
A storm was brewing. The world had just gained another supremely troublesome immortal.
(end of chapter)
2022-10-19 Author: Great Demon Spirit
Tony opened the door and let Pyro John in, observing the teenager who now seemed a bit reserved and nervous.
Honestly, Tony was very happy that someone came to find him, but with a touch of regret. The one who left the deepest impression on him was Iceman Bobby, a Level 5 potential Mutant.
Bobby was different from Jean Grey. Jean Grey possessed the Phoenix Force; one could say she had Level 5 strength upon Awakening, but Professor X had timely sealed off the source of her Power. As for Iceman Bobby, although his current abilities weren't high, he possessed Level 5 potential. As long as he encountered certain opportunities in the future, Bobby would unleash his potential and become stronger. His unfathomable ice-creation ability could, in theory, freeze the entire Universe. Of course, that's just theoretically; he might die of old age or be killed by someone halfway through, considering powerful individuals were everywhere in this world.
Still, Pyro John's visit was enough to please Tony.
Tony narrowed his eyes and asked him, "It's so late, what are you doing here?" He asked, though he already knew the answer, hoping the teenager would speak for himself.
Pyro John was very nervous, beads of sweat appearing on his youthful face. He stammered, only managing to get a full sentence out after a long pause: "Do you still need subordinates?"
He was drenched in sweat. For some reason, he felt extremely nervous and pressured in front of this young man. But because of this, a certain decision in his heart became even firmer.
"I am indeed planning to assemble my own team, and I think highly of you," Tony said lightly, causing John to suddenly look up, his eyes shining with ecstasy.
"But definitely not now. At least for now, I can't let you join me, John. You're still too young, and you're not ready," Tony said, pouring a bucket of cold water on him without hesitation.
John was unconvinced and wanted to argue, to tell the man in front of him that he was fully prepared, but the next sentence struck him so hard that he couldn't lift his head.
"You're too weak. I'm about to go to war with the Vampire Clan. It's extremely dangerous. How much help can you be? You might even become a burden to me."
John lowered his head, utterly dejected. He couldn't refute Tony's words. The fiercest battle he had ever experienced was leading a group of people in a brawl against another group led by Iceman Bobby. It was a completely different world from Tony's.
"Trust me, John, I'm happy you came to find me, but you came too early. You need to become stronger to join my team. Trust me, when you're strong enough, I will definitely come find you," Tony said, patting John's shoulder and sighing.
When Tony said this, he was heartbroken. He genuinely wanted to build his own team and wished he could just snatch John, this stock of potential, to be his subordinate. But he couldn't. He was completely broke right now. The so-called team would most likely not die in battle against enemies, but starve to death collectively.
He, the great Mechanic tony, a complete pauper, forming a team? A team just to starve to death?
With the little money he had now, how many Superpowered Individuals could he support? He struggled to even support himself; he was worried sick.
Tony now only hoped to risk his life plundering the Vampires, making a huge fortune. The wealth accumulated over thousands of years must be quite impressive, right?
John left, filled with both frustration and anticipation. Something flickered in his eyes; the teenager seemed to understand what he needed to do in the future. He finally had a goal.
Tony patted the wall and sighed, "Have you heard enough? If so, hurry up and leave."
Then a young girl walked out of the wall. If Tony remembered correctly, this girl was Kitty, nicknamed Shadowcat, whose spatial abilities allowed her to pass through barriers.
Little Kitty stared at him for a while, then left without a word. She had overheard Tony and John's entire conversation.
Tony sat there in a daze, clutching his chest. Letting two young ones go consecutively made his heart ache terribly. Playing the part of a big shot cost money, and what he lacked most was money. Not to mention, his Transformer Legion also required a continuous influx of cash; it was a bottomless pit.
Tony sighed repeatedly, beating his chest and stomping his feet, almost dying of heartache.
"It seems you regret it deeply. Do you want me to call them back?" Professor X had also arrived. Such movements couldn't escape his notice. He teased Tony.
Tony huffed angrily, "Old man, believe it or not, I wanted to snatch them away more than once just now. I've been holding myself back. I regret it terribly, my heart aches..."
Professor X was uncharacteristically serious. "Tony, they're still too young and don't understand anything. I don't want you to interfere with them too much, at least not now."
Tony fell silent, eventually nodding helplessly. At Xavier's School, John could gain knowledge, but with Tony, John's combat power would soar. Tony had that confidence, but undoubtedly, Professor X wouldn't easily let people go.
Xavier's School primarily focused on teaching Mutants how to live as people and how to coexist peacefully with Humans. Only a small portion who joined the X-Men had the opportunity to learn combat.
Charles turned his wheelchair and asked Tony if he would continue the war with the Vampire Faction.
Tony nodded emphatically, explaining that it wasn't a matter of whether he wanted to fight, but that the Vampire Faction would definitely continue to fight him and wouldn't easily compromise. Moreover, the Vampires were carrying out the God-Creation Plan, and Tony was the best Touchstone.
"The war cannot cease. I came here also to seek an opportunity to become stronger," Tony said.
Charles nodded silently, indicating he would provide Tony with all the help he could.
"Tony, sometimes I truly worry that you'll follow the same path as Erik," Charles voiced his deep-seated concern. He didn't want Tony to go down Erik's path, which was extreme and dangerous.
Tony smiled. He told the old man that he wouldn't and couldn't be like Erik. However, he did need to flex his muscles, because there were still people coveting him. He needed a battle record to intimidate those petty individuals. They would target Tony, but they wouldn't target Professor X and Magneto, because they had been brutally dealt with by those two before, but not yet by Tony.
"Professor, you haven't used your abilities to harm many people, but that doesn't mean they haven't been intimidated by your powerful abilities. At least, I won't be hostile towards Ordinary Humans; I come from the group of Ordinary Humans, and all Mutants come from Ordinary Humans," Tony said with a smile. Suddenly, an idea struck him, and he probed, "Perhaps the First Mutant in history is the only exception?"
"The first Mutant? Who?" Charles, who had been feeling pleased about Tony's philosophy, looked at Tony in confusion upon hearing this question, not quite understanding.
Tony's heart sank. That terrible possibility had become a reality.
"Just a guess," Tony said dismissively, stating that he speculated the First Mutant in history might be different from them, the later generations.
Charles looked thoughtful. He could tell Tony was hiding something from him, but since Tony wasn't willing to say, he saw no need to press the issue. He could also investigate this First Mutant in history himself.
After Professor X left, Tony sat alone, too drained to even complain.
It turned out that the timeline he was on had not yet been reset; it was the most original one.
Speaking of which, that dangerous old guy, Apocalypse, couldn't still be hibernating in the Egyptian Pyramids, could he? He'd been sleeping for thousands of years already.
A storm was brewing. The world had just gained another supremely troublesome immortal.
(end of chapter)
