American comics: I am full of martial virtues and I love to be kind to others.

"Walk!"

They rushed toward the back staircase, with Lynn contacting Professor X via communicator as he ran.

"Professor, we need evacuation support! The north roof of the library!"

“Roger that. Storm and Cyclops are on their way,” Professor X’s voice was steady and calm. “But be careful, I sense Victor nearby. He’s waiting for his chance.”

Lynn's heart sank. Victor's decision not to intervene personally meant he was waiting for the perfect moment—perhaps when Rogue was exhausted, or when Lynn and his teammates were tied down.

They rushed up to the second floor, through the chaotic reading room—which had been left in disarray by the earlier battle—and reached the escape staircase at the back.

Lynn pushed open the door leading to the roof, and the scorching sun and heat wave immediately hit her.

The roof was flat, covered with asphalt, and scorching hot from the sun. A few rusty ventilation ducts and a water tower were the only shelters.

“Over there,” the little rascal pointed to the edge of the roof, “jump over there and you’ll find the general store—”

Her words suddenly stopped.

Because there are already people on the roof.

Jason stood beside the water tower, his body covered in wounds, but they were healing at a visible speed. Logan had clearly fought him, but hadn't been able to completely stop him.

Behind Jason stood Victor Lane.

“Agent Lynn,” Victor said with a smile, “we meet again. And Anna-Marie. I’ve always wanted to get to know you.”

Lynn instinctively stepped in front of Rogue. "Your plan has failed, Victor. The X-Men are on their way."

“I know,” Victor said. “I can sense them. But they’ll be here in a few minutes. That’s enough.”

His eyes began to glow blue.

Lynn immediately closed her eyes to avoid looking directly at him. "You little rascal! Don't look him in the eyes!"

But the little rascal didn't close her eyes. She stared straight at Victor, her eyes filled with a mixture of anger and fear.

“You’re the monster who controls others,” she said. “You want to turn me into your puppet too?”

“Not a puppet,” Victor’s voice softened and became seductive, “a partner. Anna Marie, I know your pain. You’re isolated, afraid, treated like a monster. But I can give you a sense of belonging. The mutants with me are family; we protect and understand each other. You don’t have to endure that loneliness alone anymore.”

Lynn felt nauseous. Victor's voice had a hypnotic rhythm, and even without looking into his eyes, one could feel the mental pressure.

“Don’t listen to him!” Lynn shouted. “He said the same thing to Marcus and Elena! He’s just using you!”

“I didn’t exploit anyone,” Victor said. “I simply helped them see their potential. Marcus and Elena found purpose and meaning with me. You took them away, leaving them back in that state of confusion and pain.”

The little rascal's expression wavered. Lynn could see she was struggling—Victor's words had struck a nerve with her most vulnerable spot.

“Anna Marie,” Lynn said, trying to keep his voice calm, “I know you’re lonely. I know you crave acceptance. But Victor doesn’t offer true belonging; he offers control. He enters your mind, changes your thoughts, and makes you believe what he wants you to believe. It’s not your choice; it’s manipulation.”

“Shut up,” Victor’s tone turned icy. “Jason, shut him up.”

Jason immediately rushed toward Lynn with astonishing speed.

Lynn had no time to dodge; Jason's fist struck him in the chest. Even through the bulletproof vest, the force of the punch sent Lynn flying backward, crashing heavily into the ventilation duct.

A sharp pain erupted in his chest; Lynn felt several ribs crack. He coughed up blood, struggling to stay conscious.

“Lynn!” the little rascal called out.

“I’m fine,” Lynn said, struggling to her feet, but Jason was already close in again.

This time, Lynn didn't try to dodge. Xavier's training replayed in his mind—Logan had taught him how to deal with powerful enemies. Don't fight them head-on; use their strength against them.

As Jason threw his second punch, Lynn dodged to the side, grabbing Jason's arm and using the momentum to spin himself around. During the spin, Lynn delivered a powerful knee strike to Jason's abdomen, followed by an elbow strike to his temple.

Jason groaned in pain, but didn't fall. His regenerative abilities were too strong; ordinary blows had almost no effect.

“You’ve gotten stronger,” Jason said, his voice hoarse, “but not enough.”

He threw punches again, this time a series of attacks. Lynn barely blocked the first few, but the fourth punch hit his shoulder, the fifth grazed his cheek, and the sixth struck him directly in the abdomen.

Lynn fell to the ground again, the pain making it almost impossible for him to breathe.

“Enough,” Victor said. “Don’t kill him. He’s still useful.”

Jason stopped attacking, but remained standing next to Lynn to prevent him from getting up.

Victor turned to the little rascal and gave him that gentle smile again.

“You see, Anna-Marie. Your ‘protectors’ can’t protect you at all. But I can. Join me, and you will never have to fear anyone again. Your abilities will become your pride, not your curse.”

Tears welled in the little rascal's eyes. Lynn could see she was on the verge of collapse—Victor's words, coupled with witnessing Lynn's defeat, were destroying her last remaining will to resist.

“Don’t listen to him,” Lynn said with difficulty, his mouth full of the taste of blood.

But just then, a loud bang came from the sky.

A bolt of lightning struck from the clear sky, hitting Jason squarely. The super-powered mutant convulsed from the shock and collapsed to the ground.

Storm appeared in the air, her white eyes flashing with electricity, her silver hair fluttering in the wind.

“Stay away from that girl, Victor.”

Immediately afterwards, a beam of red energy shot from another direction, striking the rooftop entrance. One-Eyed Dragon stood on the roof of the adjacent building, his goggles gleaming a dangerous red light.

"You're surrounded."

Victor's expression finally changed. He hadn't expected the X-Men to arrive so quickly.

But he quickly regained his composure. “Storm, One-Eyed. Professor X’s right-hand man. But you’ve forgotten one thing.”

His eyes emitted an even stronger blue light. "You all have thoughts."

Lynn felt an immense mental pressure envelop the entire roof. His vision began to blur, and his mind became muddled. But the same pressure seemed to have a greater effect on Storm and One-Eyed—they both stopped attacking, their expressions blank.

“No!” Lynn struggled to his feet, but Jason—Jason who had recovered from the lightning strike—pressed him back to the ground.

Victor walked towards the little rascal and held out his hand. “Come on, Anna-Marie. Let’s get out of here together.”

Little Rascal looked at Victor's hand, then at Lynn lying on the ground, and at Storm and One-Eyed Dragon who were under mind control.

She made her decision.

“Okay,” she said, her voice trembling, “I…I’ll go with you.”

Victor smiled victoriously. "A wise choice."

He reached out his hand, ready to grab the little rascal.

But just as their fingers were about to touch, the little rascal suddenly changed her tactics—instead of shaking Victor's hand, she grabbed his wrist and pulled him toward her.

Her other hand—the one without a glove—was pressed directly against Victor's face.

The moment their skin touched, Victor's eyes widened in shock. He tried to break free, but the little rascal's strength was unexpectedly powerful—the abilities she had absorbed from the silver-eyed man hadn't faded yet. She used her metal manipulation abilities to control the metal buttons and zippers on Victor's body, fixing him in place.

"You want to control my mind?" the mischievous boy said through gritted teeth. "Then let me see what your mind is like first."

Victor's spiritual energy began to be absorbed. He felt his consciousness slipping away, his memories being drained, and his abilities being stripped away. This was a fear he had never experienced before—all along, he had been the one controlling others. Now, the roles were reversed.

“Let go,” Victor’s voice grew weak.

“No,” said the little rascal, “I want to see what you did to those people. I want to see how many dirty secrets are in your head.”

Viktor's memories began to flood into the little rascal's mind—the people he had manipulated, the plans he had carried out, the organizations he had served.
There's too much. The amount of information is overwhelming.

The little rascal's expression began to contort, and her body began to tremble. She had absorbed too much; her mind couldn't take it anymore.

“Anna Marie! Stop!” Lynn shouted, breaking free from Jason’s grasp—who was in disarray because Victor had been attacked—and rushing toward the little rascal.

He pulled the little rascal's hand away from Victor with all his might. The moment they touched, he felt a violent dizziness—the little rascal's power began to drain his life force—but he did not let go.

"Let go," the little rascal murmured, his eyes unfocused. "Too much... I've seen too much."

“You have to stop,” Lynn said, feeling his strength draining away. “You’ll kill yourself.”

The little rascal finally let go and collapsed into Lynn's arms. Her eyes—one brown, the other blue, like Victor's eyes.

“I saw it,” she said weakly. “I saw everything he did. Those people. So many people.”

Lynn held her, feeling so weak he could barely stand. He looked at Victor—the mind manipulator lay on the ground, unconscious, his face as pale as a sheet.

“Lynn!” Sarah’s voice came from the rooftop entrance. She rushed up, froze at the sight before her. “What happened?”

“Little Rascal absorbed Victor’s abilities and memories,” Lynn said with difficulty, “too much. She can’t hold on much longer.”

"I'm fine," the little rascal tried to stand up, but immediately fell down again. "I just... need to rest."

Storm and One-Eyed Dragon recovered from Victor's mind control and rushed over to help.

“Professor X,” Cyclops reported through the communicator, “Victor has been subdued, but Little Rascal is in bad shape; she’s absorbed too much.”

“I’ve sensed it,” Professor X’s voice came through. “Bring her back. I need to intervene immediately to help her integrate those memories, otherwise her consciousness may collapse.”

"Where's Victor?"

“Bring them back too. Alive.”

Lynn looked at the unconscious Victor, a complex mix of emotions welling up inside him. This man had caused so much suffering, controlled so many innocent people. But now, he was just a powerless man lying on the ground.

Jason had already escaped—in the chaos, he seized the opportunity to jump off the roof and disappear into the streets of the town. The other mutant attackers also scattered and fled.

“Should we chase after them?” Sarah asked.

“No,” Lynn said, “let them go. We have what we wanted—Victor is caught, and Rogue is safe. We can chase the others later.”

The storm summoned a gust of wind that carried them from the rooftops to the ground. The X-Men's plane had already landed in an open area outside town.

Lynn helped the little rascal toward the plane, each step arduous. His wound was bleeding, his ribs ached terribly, and the little rascal's touch made him feel as if a part of his life force had been drained away.

But he didn't complain. They won.

The little rascal regained some of her senses halfway through, and looked up at Lynn with a mixture of confusion and gratitude in her eyes.

“You saved me,” she said, “even knowing that touching me would hurt me, you still pulled me away. Why?”

“Because you deserve to be protected,” Lynn said, “just like anyone else.”

The little rascal was silent for a moment, then said softly, "Thank you."

“You’re welcome,” Lynn said. “Now, let us take you to a safe place. Professor X will help you process those memories.”

“Those memories…” The little rascal’s expression turned pained. “What Victor did… was far more terrifying than you can imagine. He had a large, powerful organization behind him. They planned… planned…”

“Don’t rush,” Lynn said, “Let’s talk about it once you’ve calmed down. We have time.”

Little Rascal nodded, leaned on Lynn's shoulder, and closed his eyes.

As the sun set, it bathed the town of Meridian in an orange-red hue. Traces of battle remained on the library's roof—collapsed ventilation ducts, charred lightning bolt marks, and scattered debris.

But the townspeople seemed oblivious to what had happened. They continued with their daily lives, unaware that a battle concerning the future of mutants had just taken place above them.

Lynn glanced back at the old library, then turned and walked toward the plane.

The X-Men's Blackbird fighter jet flew through the night, its stealth coating making it almost blend into the dark sky.

Lynn sat in a seat at the back of the cabin, bandages from his medical kit wrapped around his wounds. The pain in his ribs had turned into a persistent dull ache, but it was much better than when Jason had hit him on the roof. Dr. Hank had given him an injection of painkillers and anti-inflammatory drugs before departure, enough to sustain him until he returned to Xavier's School for further treatment. (End of Chapter)