Chapter 125: Beating Up an Elderly Man
Lynn lowered his wrist and looked at Magneto.
"I suggest making a decision quickly."
Magneto's jaw tightened.
Before he could respond, one of the Brotherhood members behind him finally lost patience.
The mutant was short, broad-shouldered, and covered in a thick layer of rocky armor from head to toe.
With a roar, he charged forward.
His fist shot toward the back of Lynn's head.
The attack was fast.
By ordinary human standards.
Lynn didn't even turn around.
His right arm moved backward casually.
Five fingers closed around the incoming fist.
Perfectly.
Then he squeezed.
Crack.
The sound echoed throughout the clinic.
The mutant screamed.
The rocky shell covering his hand and forearm shattered instantly.
Fragments scattered across the floor.
Beneath the broken armor lay flesh.
Bruised.
Torn.
Deformed.
Lynn had crushed the entire forearm.
The mutant collapsed to his knees, clutching the ruined limb while tears streamed down his face.
Lynn released him.
Then looked back at Magneto.
"Ten seconds are over."
He moved.
No warning.
No preparation.
No visible exertion.
One moment Lynn stood behind the counter.
The next—
He vanished.
The Immortal Divine Body exploded into motion.
A white shockwave erupted from the floor beneath him as he accelerated beyond the speed of sound.
Magneto reacted instantly.
Decades of combat experience took over.
Every nearby metal object surged toward him.
Armor.
Helmet.
Fragments from the ruined clinic entrance.
Steel support beams torn from the walls.
Layer after layer of metallic protection formed before him.
A fortress.
A barrier powerful enough to stop tanks.
It might as well have been paper.
Lynn's hand punched through every layer.
The steel buckled.
Collapsed.
Exploded apart.
Magneto's magnetic reinforcement accomplished nothing.
Five fingers closed around his helmet.
The entire exchange lasted less than three-tenths of a second.
Magneto immediately retaliated.
Instinctively.
A massive electromagnetic pulse erupted from his body.
The energy output was staggering.
Enough to cripple power grids.
Enough to disable military electronics across entire districts.
The pulse detonated directly against Lynn's hand.
Nothing happened.
Vibranium Resonance activated.
The energy dispersed.
Absorbed.
Neutralized.
Lynn remained completely unaffected.
Magneto stared.
"Boy—"
That was all he managed to say.
Then the world rotated.
Lynn swung his arm.
Magneto's body left the ground.
His trajectory formed a perfect arc.
The force was carefully controlled.
Enough to incapacitate.
Enough to break bones.
Not enough to kill.
Lynn still needed a patient.
Magneto crashed through the doorway he had personally destroyed.
Then continued across the street.
The impact folded a parked delivery van inward.
Metal screamed.
Windows exploded.
The alarm began blaring immediately.
The entire vehicle now possessed the rough outline of a human body.
Silence followed.
The Brotherhood stood frozen.
They had witnessed Magneto battle entire teams of superheroes.
They had seen him tear apart Sentinels.
Destroy military hardware.
Manipulate entire bridges.
Now he had been thrown out of a clinic like unwanted garbage.
Using one hand.
Lynn calmly returned behind the counter.
Picked up his tea.
Took a sip.
Several moments later, coughing echoed from across the street.
Metal shifted.
Magneto climbed from the wreckage.
The right side of his helmet was badly dented.
Blood dripped from the corner of his mouth.
His left arm hung unnaturally.
Probably fractured.
His aura of absolute dominance had disappeared.
Not entirely.
But enough.
He stared toward the clinic.
His hands trembled slightly.
Not because of pain.
Magneto had endured far worse.
The problem was comprehension.
His powers hadn't merely failed.
They had been irrelevant.
Completely.
Every magnetic manipulation.
Every electromagnetic attack.
Every trick he possessed.
Worthless.
The sensation was deeply unsettling.
Like discovering gravity no longer functioned on a particular person.
The Brotherhood members remained rooted in place.
Unsure whether to help their leader.
Or run.
Lynn's voice drifted out from the clinic.
Calm.
Flat.
Professional.
"Clean up the scrap metal at the entrance."
"Put it in the trash."
"Then bring your boss back inside."
Nobody moved.
Lynn sighed.
"You don't understand English?"
A green-skinned mutant girl immediately flinched.
Then hurried toward the shattered debris.
Others quickly followed.
No one wanted to test his patience.
Two minutes later, Magneto returned.
Two Brotherhood members supported him.
His damaged arm had been tied against his chest with torn cloth.
Most of the blood had been cleaned away.
The dented helmet remained.
The legendary Master of Magnetism looked remarkably disheveled.
Lynn sat behind the reception desk.
Tea beside him.
Leg crossed comfortably over the other.
"Sit."
He pointed toward a chair.
Magneto remained standing.
His pride resisted.
Even now.
Even after being launched through a vehicle.
Lynn glanced toward Polaris.
The young woman remained unconscious.
Her condition continued deteriorating.
"Your daughter has roughly thirty hours remaining."
His tone remained casual.
"If standing dramatically is more important than keeping her alive, I can throw you back outside."
Magneto's jaw tightened.
Several seconds passed.
Then he sat.
The chair creaked beneath him.
"How much?"
No apology.
No negotiation.
Only business.
Lynn smiled slightly.
"That depends."
He opened a notebook.
Wrote several lines.
Then turned it around.
One hundred tons of rare metal ore. Any type. Complete Brotherhood mutant X-Gene database. Property damage compensation.
Beneath those items was a final line.
Total cost multiplied by four.
Magneto's temple twitched.
"Four times?"
Lynn began counting on his fingers.
"You destroyed my entrance."
"Destroyed part of my wall."
"Ruined my floor."
"Attacked me with surgical equipment."
He raised another finger.
"And your subordinate attempted to ambush me."
Four fingers remained raised.
"Four offenses."
"So the bill is multiplied by four."
The logic was flawless.
At least in Lynn's mind.
"If you disagree," he continued, "you're welcome to leave."
"I won't stop you."
The room became silent.
The Brotherhood members avoided eye contact.
Nobody dared interrupt.
Several seconds passed.
Then several more.
Finally—
Magneto spoke.
"...Deal."
The word sounded as though it physically hurt.
Lynn nodded.
The notebook disappeared.
Business completed.
"Everyone else stays outside."
He stood.
Then walked toward Polaris' stretcher.
"You."
He pointed toward Magneto.
"Come with me."
"You're observing the procedure."
Magneto rose and followed.
After several steps he stopped.
"Doctor."
Lynn didn't look back.
"What?"
For a brief moment, Magneto hesitated.
Then asked:
"What is your name?"
Lynn continued walking.
The answer came without turning around.
"Look at the sign outside."
Magneto glanced toward the clinic entrance.
The damaged sign still hung above the doorway.
Miracle Clinic
Lynn
He memorized the name.
Carefully.
Very carefully.
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