American Comics: Starting from the Invincible Young Hero

Chapter 68 Magneto Template

Russell didn't care at all.

Fireman's ability is to control flames, but he cannot create them. His power is average, only enough to counter superhumans like the Human Torch who rely on flames.

To put it bluntly, based on what he has seen so far, apart from Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver, Magneto's subordinates are all a bunch of rotten apples.

"His avalanche ability seems strong, but the seismic waves he emits have limited damage to organic objects. His flesh ball strength is barely passable, but his brain isn't very sharp."

Magneto introduced his subordinates to Russell, intending to make Russell not underestimate the Brotherhood he controlled, but Russell's opinion remained unchanged.

But putting aside the others, one Scarlet Witch is enough.

……

Late at night, the moon is full and the stars are sparse.

Insects chirped and birds sang, and a mountain breeze swept by.

People in the camp still occasionally look up in surprise at the top of the hill, where a simple wooden villa has been erected next to the tent that originally belonged to Magneto and his daughter Scarlet Witch.

Bright lights shone through the curtains and floor-to-ceiling windows, casting a faint glow on the hillside below.

Deep in the mountains and forests, there is a modern villa that stands out so much that it's hard to miss.

Around the campfire, the crowd chattered about what they had seen and heard during the day, discussing what Russell's abilities really were, and how they were certainly not as simple as he made them out to be.

"Quicksilver, didn't Magneto say that he was going to launch a nuclear missile and start a world war? Why did he bring someone back halfway?"

"You...you came back with the Infinite Man, you should have seen how Magneto recruited him, and you should have seen his abilities."

The toad nudged Quicksilver on the shoulder and asked him a question with a thick tongue.

"Him? I didn't see him, I don't know."

Recalling the military base that looked as if it had been destroyed and leveled by the aftershocks of the battle, and his father Magneto's words admitting his defeat, Quicksilver rolled his eyes and waved his hand.

"But you'd better not provoke him."

The old man has really taken a liking to him lately.

He left with a remark, then crawled back into his tent to prepare for sleep.

Despite being Magneto's son, Quicksilver never received any love and had to live on the hillside like everyone else.

Under the lights in the villa.

Two steel pellets, like obedient sprites, spun in Russell's palm. He casually propped his feet on the coffee table, but his consciousness was deep within the earth, with even the smallest iron molecule under his control.

The emitted electromagnetic field could easily cover thousands of miles, create force fields, control metals, distort light, and generate magnetic rays and electromagnetic pulses... Russell had an unprecedented feeling.

I have never felt so close to being a god.

Sitting still, one can remotely destroy a city or even a country thousands of miles away.

"It could even disrupt the Earth's magnetic field, causing the steel on an entire continental plate to become agitated, thus destroying all modern civilization on that continent!"

No wonder Magneto always likes to fly in mid-air, towering above everyone, as proud and unquestionable as a king, creating a grand spectacle with a wave of his hand.

Compared to what Magneto could do at his limit, he was actually quite restrained.

Russell closed his eyes.

By reading the electromagnetic waves of radio channels and television signals in the air, he quickly learned about the current state of the world.

"In terms of technology... there are no tablets, no smartphones, but there are laser guns, laser tanks, and spaceships?"
Technological development has become somewhat distorted.

"As for superheroes—no Spider-Man, no Avengers, no Hulk..."

"But there's Captain Marvel?... However, Captain Marvel was short-lived and has disappeared from people's sight for a long time."

"People don't even have a concept of the word 'superhero'."

Perhaps because the timeline is too early, in the 1980s, superheroes had hardly appeared yet, and people's first reaction to people with strange abilities was that they were mutants.

"Since the 1940s, friction between ordinary people and mutant groups has become increasingly serious."

Russell opened his eyes, his gaze thoughtful.

Superheroes are not the main theme of this universe; mutants are the protagonists on the stage.

He was mistaken for a mutant by Magneto and Professor X, but he didn't explain because that would be too troublesome and would make people wonder how he acquired his abilities.

"Mutant, or human..."

This question isn't actually difficult to answer. While Russell isn't a mutant, he's not an ordinary human either. The word "mutant" itself isn't inherently sinful. Humans fear, discriminate against, and persecute mutants primarily because they possess special abilities, are superior and stronger than humans, and have greater potential.

Humans subconsciously fear being replaced by evolution, just like the ancient apes that were once replaced by humans.

Such concerns are not without merit; mutants do indeed seem to represent the next stage of human evolution.

"Of course, it's also because humans are still the dominant species in the world, while mutants are being driven away, discriminated against, and persecuted everywhere."

Adding flowers to brocade is never as appreciated as providing charcoal in the snow.

The gratitude of one powerful mutant is greater than that of a hundred ordinary people.

Russell tapped his fingers on the sofa armrest, his eyes shining.

He will establish an unprecedented mutant nation, and his name will be known throughout the mutant community and all of humanity.

Moreover, he doesn't mind doing a good deed whenever he feels like it.

For example, peaceful evolution between humans and mutant groups, since humans were once part of the ancient apes.

knock knock!

There was a sudden knock on the villa door.

"The door is unlocked."

Scarlet Witch pushed open the door and entered. She first looked around the spacious and bright villa, then glanced at Russell on the sofa with a slightly embarrassed expression.

"Is there something you need, uh..."

Russell seemed unsure how to address the Scarlet Witch, but when asked for a favor, the Scarlet Witch immediately gave her name.

“Wanda Maximov, just call me Wanda.”

"Similarly, just call me Russell."

"How...did you do that?" Like a shy little girl entering a boy's room late at night, Wanda put her hands behind her back and gestured towards the villa with her eyes.

"By controlling molecules, soil can be transformed into steel, ceramics..."

"Can you get me one too?"

It doesn't need to be that big; just a place where it's convenient to wash my hair and take a shower will suffice.

Wanda smiled and asked.

Men may adapt to mountain life easily, but it's not so comfortable for girls.

"Of course, it's no trouble at all."

Russell chuckled and shrugged.

Seeing that he agreed, Wanda was overjoyed, then remembered something and said...

"By the way, your father wants to see you."

"what's up?"

Russell stood up, and the two talked as they walked out.

"Mystique is back. Oh, right, you might not know her. She's a mutant with the ability to shapeshift."

"A natural-born spy? A master of intelligence gathering."

"Indeed, it seems that Father has been sending her to a certain place to gather information recently. The news she brought back today has made Father furious."

Under the moonlight, the two walked side by side, and Wanda clicked her tongue in amazement.

"I rarely saw my father so angry, like a volcano about to erupt."

My father asked me to come over so we can discuss our next steps. There's something urgent that needs to be done.

After Wanda and her brother Quicksilver found Magneto, they stayed with the Brotherhood of Mutants. Apart from her brother Quicksilver, who had no patience for anything, they hardly encountered any other people their own age.

Now that she's met Russell, Wanda enjoys having a peer with whom she can have quiet conversations.

"Is something urgent? What is it?"

Russell raised an eyebrow.

(End of this chapter)