NOVEL NEXT Chapter 66: 66
'.....'= Thoughts
"....."= Conversations
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The process was slow and laborious, with Charles guiding Bobby through deep breathing exercises and relaxation techniques to ease him into a state of vulnerability. Bobby's memories emerged in fragments, and Charles had to tread carefully, ensuring that Bobby remained grounded in the present as they delved into the past.
As the memories resurfaced, Bobby's body tensed, and Charles could see the anguish and fear in his eyes. It was a harrowing experience for both of them, but Charles kept a firm grip on Bobby's hand, offering reassurance and support as they navigated through the darkness together.
Finally, a face emerged from Bobby's memories, and Charles felt a knot form in his stomach. It was someone he knew, someone whom he had trusted and confided in. The shock and betrayal weighed heavily on Charles knew that this revelation would have a profound impact on their lives.
Yet Charles was still doubtful whether it was actually the same person that he knew. He focused on Bobby whose face scrunched up with pain, yet didn't let out a scream.
Charles decided to let Bobby go to sleep in order to recover from the pain and trauma he had just undergone.
Meanwhile, Tony had already returned from his exploration of the base. Although he appeared to be empty-handed, John knew that Tony had already taken care of all the valuable items inside the base.
Phil silently eyed Tony and then looked at the mutants from the Brotherhood and spoke, "Although Bobby was present at the scene of the tragedy, John wasn't there at that time."
He paused and continued playing the video where everyone saw John with a Naginata in his hands fighting Magneto's wife and daughter's bodyguards.
The person in the video looked exactly like John, using the same weapon. However, John, who was also watching the video, observed that the person imitating him didn't use the Quake Quake Fruit powers and was fighting using only his physical strength and the Naginata-like weapon.
"Even though the person imitating John still seemed to be overpowering the mutants with his physical strength," Phil announced, "this person, although he has the same appearance and weapon as John, is not John at all. John, at that time, was already in Russia completing a mission of his own."
As Phil started showing footage of John going to the airport and further CCTV footage of John in Russia, John observed everything. Though it seemed that Phil was on John's side and doing him a great favor, John knew that it wasn't true at all.
To be honest, he was disgusted by the behavior of SHIELD, who wanted to use him as a guinea pig for their operation. He would be a fool not to understand SHIELD's true goal in helping him.
John also knew that he had faults in everything. He had made a quick decision to go to Russia without considering all the consequences. He had given in to the greed of a "system upgrade" and acted without thinking. It seemed that he would have to reconsider the way he made decisions in the future.
From everything he had witnessed, John knew that SHIELD was using him as a scapegoat, and with the help of Natasha and Hawkeye, they planned to transfer all the mutant kids who were imprisoned by RED to their headquarters. John would be the person who would take all the blame for it and become a target of Russia instead of SHIELD for the kidnapping of the mutant kids.
John had a chill in his eyes as he looked at Phil, who was trying to prove his innocence to the mutants of the Brotherhood. However, John knew that Phil's plan had failed due to the intervention of Wanda.
Based on the information he received from Wanda, John knew that she had been sent to monitor him and had no knowledge of the imprisoned mutant kids. It made John wonder whether HYDRA knew about this. It made sense for them to know about the operation since SHIELD was infiltrated by them up to a high level. Or maybe Fury managed to keep everything a secret from HYDRA, but to John, the possibility of this happening was minimal.
"That is not him," Aurora spoke as she watched the footage of the person imitating John fighting their comrades. She and Toad had fought with John for quite a while and knew what he was capable of. Furthermore, she was familiar with his fighting style.
Toad also nodded his head in agreement after watching the footage. With all the other proofs provided by Phil, it became easy to reach the conclusion, compared to Bobby's theory, that someone was imitating John and trying to create a rift between him and Magneto's faction.
"Seems like you are not involved, kid," a solemn voice came from near Juggernaut.
John looked at Magneto, who had now woken up.
"I said the same thing earlier," John replied, gauging Magneto's reaction and anticipating his next course of action.
However, Magneto didn't reply at first and looked at Charles and Bobby, who were away from the group.
'Seems like he heard everything,' John concluded.
"I hope you won't disappoint me this time, Charles," Magneto grumbled under his breath as his eyes flashed with complex emotions.
For now, he had decided to wait and observe what Charles wanted to find out.
Magneto looked at John and asked, "If you were in my place, what would you have done?"
John contemplated a bit and answered honestly," I would have beaten the shit out of you first."
Magneto's eyes twinkled at John's response as he spoke, "Don't become like Charles."
"Yeah, and I won't become like you either," John replied, confused by such sudden advice from Magneto.
Magneto chuckled at John's response and nodded in agreement. "Fair enough, kid. Just make sure you stay true to yourself," he said before turning his attention back to Charles and Bobby.
John watched as Magneto walked away, pondering over their conversation. He knew that the lines between good and bad, right and wrong, were often blurred in their world. But he was determined to walk his own path, one that didn't lead to either extreme.
As the events unfolded, John couldn't help but wonder where his path would lead him. But for now, he knew one thing for sure - he was not going to let himself be swayed by anyone's agenda. He would make his own choices, and face the consequences, whatever they may be.
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