Chapter 157: Phoenix Died Twenty Years Ago (Patreon)

Kevin killed the man with the mechanical arm decisively and cleanly. He didn't remember the man's name, but he had a vague impression of him, and naturally, it was a negative one. This man was a primary antagonist throughout the main storyline of Wolverine 3, and it was almost entirely because of him that Logan and the others were forced to abandon their quiet life in hiding and flee for their lives.

Therefore, upon seeing him, Kevin didn't even consider exchanging further words. He decisively controlled the blood circulation in the man's brain, turning it to mush and achieving 'brain death' in the most literal, physical sense.

What surprised Kevin was that the death of this man yielded four skill points. A villain who could only be considered a minor supporting character in the Wolverine universe actually provided one more skill point than Ego the Living Planet.

"Who are you...?"

As Kevin checked his newly acquired skill points, Caliban, having calmed down, began inquiring about Kevin's identity.

Over the past twenty-five years, mutants had practically vanished. Even formidable beings like Magneto were nowhere to be found, and the remaining mutants had gone into hiding in unknown locations. Furthermore, the abilities of the surviving mutants had drastically degraded. In the past, Caliban could instantly detect the presence of all mutants within a forty-kilometer radius. But now, even though he knew the man standing before him was a mutant, he sensed absolutely nothing.

The abilities of most mutants had degraded, and a power like Kevin's—capable of instantly killing any normal human—should practically not exist anymore. Yet, here he was, standing right in front of Caliban. This naturally led Caliban to wonder: where did this guy come from?

"My name is Kevin Moskowitz."

Kevin introduced himself to Caliban, extending a hand to help him up from the ground, and then said, "And who I am isn't important. What's important is that Professor X and Wolverine are currently in trouble, and we need to find them first."

"Trouble... because of that little girl?" Caliban recalled the girl who had come looking for them today and suddenly realized something. "Is she a mutant too? A newborn mutant?"

"No, she's a mutant who was transformed later. I can't explain the details right now, but when we find Wolverine, he'll tell you everything himself."

"Logan... does he know about this?"

"Initially, he didn't, but after meeting that girl, he should know by now. Alright, Caliban, enough chitchat. Now quickly take me to find them. Time is running out."

Kevin patted Caliban's shoulder and handed him a pair of sunglasses. Perhaps out of a sense of solidarity with a fellow 'mutant,' or perhaps because Kevin had just saved his life, Caliban didn't refuse this time. He first gathered a few items from the warehouse they called home, then went into a specific room to prepare himself. Only then did he come out to meet Kevin, saying, "My abilities are very weak right now. I can only give you a rough direction."

"That's enough. Come on, let's get in the car."

Kevin, undeterred, found a jeep without a mounted machine gun, located the keys among the piles of corpses on the ground, got in, and started the engine.

Caliban sat in the passenger seat, fastened his seatbelt, and pointed toward the distant desert. "The last time I sensed them, they were heading in that direction."

"Alright, hold on tight."

After confirming the direction, Kevin floored the accelerator. The vehicle shot forward like an arrow from a bow, startling Caliban, who instinctively gripped the handhold.

As the car sped along, Kevin pondered what to say when he finally met Wolverine. The current Wolverine was extremely guarded against everything. He was like a stubborn old man who trusted no one. Or rather, the current Wolverine simply didn't want any trouble. He didn't want to get involved with any corporations, new mutants, or anything of the sort. He just wanted a stable life, to save enough money, buy a boat, and spend the rest of his days at sea with Professor X.

Kevin would undoubtedly bring a lot of trouble to Wolverine. Because, by the standards of this world, he was a mutant, and an extremely powerful one at that. And the more powerful a mutant was, the more trouble they attracted. So, if Kevin and Wolverine met, Logan probably wouldn't even listen to him; he might just dump Laura onto this 'powerful mutant' and immediately flee with Professor X.

The current Wolverine was entirely capable of doing exactly that. But in reality, it didn't matter to Kevin whether Wolverine ran away or not; he just needed to know the location of Jean Grey's grave.

While Kevin was contemplating how to interact with Wolverine, Caliban, having settled down, suddenly asked, "Are you... a new mutant too? You look very young."

"No, actually, I can't really be considered a mutant. I just gained all these abilities after being injected with a certain serum," Kevin stated tactfully.

Admitting or denying his mutant identity made no difference in how he would interact with Wolverine and his group. But since he was going to ask them for a favor, Kevin figured it was best to be honest.

"No wonder I couldn't sense you." Caliban's confusion seemed instantly resolved, and he nodded in understanding. He stopped asking questions. At his advanced age, he had long outgrown the phase where curiosity about everything came naturally.

Due to his albinism, Caliban appeared quite youthful, looking to be under forty years old. But in reality, back in the 1980s, Caliban was already nearing his thirties. Now, he was rapidly approaching seventy. Having lived for so many years, Caliban had seen everything there was to see; there was no need for him to pry into a stranger's past. He just needed to know that this person was here to help him.

"Have you... been living here all these years?" Caliban remained silent, but Kevin continued looking for a topic of conversation.

Caliban looked out the window and replied, "It's been like this for a whole year. Charles has Alzheimer's, and when his symptoms flare up, his abilities spiral completely out of control. To prevent him from hurting others, Logan decided to settle him here."

"What about Magneto? Where did he go?"

"Erik? I don't know. I haven't seen him in a very long time, just like the X-Men. Perhaps... he's barely surviving somewhere due to his degraded abilities. After all, he was a wanted criminal." Caliban's tone didn't change in the slightest when speaking of Magneto.

The conflicts between the Brotherhood, once led by Magneto, and the X-Men, led by Professor X—the two major mutant factions—were now nothing more than an irreversible past. Their former identities, the future of mutants—none of it mattered anymore. Now, Caliban had to rack his brain just to figure out what he was going to eat every day.

But Caliban didn't think there was anything wrong with that. At least they could still have a brief period of stability. If Logan bought a boat and set out to sea with Professor X, they might be able to live peacefully forever. That is, assuming... Laura hadn't come knocking on their door.

"Have the members of Magneto's Brotherhood disappeared too?"

"Magneto is gone, so naturally, the members of his Brotherhood have left, fled... There are no mutant organizations anymore. By the way, are you completely unaware of any of this?" At the end of his explanation, Caliban asked curiously.

Even if Kevin had later become a special 'mutant' through an injection, he shouldn't be completely ignorant of these things. After all, judging by his appearance, Kevin didn't look like someone who had been locked up in a laboratory since childhood.

"Is it weird that I don't know about this? I mean, I never paid attention to their whereabouts before."

"Then why are you looking for Charles now?"

"I want to ask him about something..."

"What is it? Can I know?" Perhaps noticing Kevin's friendly demeanor, Caliban no longer hesitated and inquired about his purpose.

Kevin thought for a moment and decided not to hide anything. "I'm looking for Jean Grey."

"Jean Grey?" Caliban was stunned and asked in return, "Why are you looking for an X-Men member who died twenty years ago?"

"?"

Twenty years? Kevin was dumbfounded.

Kevin knew that Jean Grey was dead, but he had originally assumed she was killed by Professor X during one of his seizures. But now it seemed Jean had died a long time ago?

Twenty years ago... 2009? Did the timeline of Wolverine 3 align with the timeline of the original X-Men trilogy? This isn't the future from Days of Future Past? Kevin couldn't help but frown momentarily.

The X-Men film series actually featured multiple timelines. One timeline was the original X-Men trilogy, where Wolverine was the central character. Another continuity was the new quadrilogy, focusing on Charles, Erik, and Raven (Mystique). Within the new quadrilogy, there were two distinct timelines.

One was the timeline where Wolverine returned to the present after the events of Days of Future Past, and Jean Grey was still alive. The other pertained to the chronological events of X-Men: Apocalypse and Dark Phoenix, which followed. That is, the timeline where Jean Grey completely merged with the Phoenix Force, losing her human form.

In that latter timeline, Jean Grey certainly wouldn't have died, because she was the embodiment of the Phoenix Force itself. Therefore, Kevin had assumed that this current world was connected to the timeline post-Days of Future Past, and that this was the only continuity that would lead Wolverine and Professor X to end up like this.

But he hadn't expected this...

'An independent universe...?'

Kevin quickly realized that Wolverine 3 might be separate from the other X-Men films. It must be a standalone universe belonging exclusively to Wolverine, with no connection to the other continuities. Just like the Joker movie from the DC universe, which also had no connection to the main DCEU.

However, despite realizing this, Kevin felt it only created more problems. If Jean Grey had only been dead for a year, it would be fine; the Phoenix Force might still be lingering around her grave, and Kevin would have no trouble approaching it.

But the Phoenix had been dead for twenty years. Over twenty years, the Phoenix Force had likely changed hosts many times over. How was Kevin supposed to find the Phoenix Force and make contact with it? Would he be able to find it by following Wolverine and the others?

Sorting through the complexities of the X-Men universe, Kevin finally grasped the sheer difficulty of this matter. Although the overall combat power of this mission world wasn't high, the level of difficulty was probably far greater than the Marvel universe.

It was highly likely... Kevin would have to stay in this world for a very, very long time.