Chapter 39: Nature
<strong>Chapter 39: Nature</strong>
<span style="font-weight:400">“That’s nice and all but…you overestimate yourself too much.”
<span style="font-weight:400">Everyone turned to look at who spoke just now and saw Benjamin casually walking toward Apocalypse.
<span style="font-weight:400">Apocalypse frowned but he didn’t act out. Instead, he continued to gaze at him as if he was an insect beneath his feet.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Name yourself, child.”
<span style="font-weight:400">“There’s no need for you to know my name.”
<span style="font-weight:400">“And you say I overestimate myself? You-”
<span style="font-weight:400">“Kneel.”
<span style="font-weight:400">Benjamin activated the Ne of One again with a new spell.
<span style="font-weight:400">Suddenly, Apocalypse’s knees bent and he was forced to kneel on the ground.
<span style="font-weight:400">Apocalypse was shocked and tried his hardest to resist, leaving him in a posture that was half kneeling and half standing.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Hoh? You can actually resist it.”
<span style="font-weight:400">“What sorcery is this!?”
<span style="font-weight:400">“Blood magic.”
<span style="font-weight:400">Benjamin answered nonchntly and Apocalypse gave him a re.
<span style="font-weight:400">“You think this is enough to defeat me!?”
<span style="font-weight:400">The next moment, the earth around them started to rise and turn into sand which then formed countless spikes aimed at Benjamin.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Petty tricks.”
<span style="font-weight:400">Benjamin didn’t bother blocking them and just let them stab at him.
<span style="font-weight:400">His symbiote suit acted immediately and created small tentacles which grabbed onto each spike to prevent it from reaching Benjamin.
<span style="font-weight:400">Well, not like it would do anything since he can turn his own body to earth or electricity to avoid being injured.
<span style="font-weight:400">Once the symbiote grab the sand spikes, he hurled them all to Apocalypse.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Hmph!”
<span style="font-weight:400">Apocalypse snorted and created an energy shield around him that pulverized the sand spikes before they got near him.
<span style="font-weight:400">Benjamin narrowed his eyes and continued to hurl other things at him. Mainly just to annoy him.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Enough!”
<span style="font-weight:400">Apocalypse changed his tactic and his body suddenly grew in size while he was still resisting to kneel.
<span style="font-weight:400">“You think yourself as powerful?”
<span style="font-weight:400">Apocalypse mocked as he grew bigger and bigger.
<span style="font-weight:400">“You know nothing of power!”
<span style="font-weight:400">Roaring, he lifted both hands up and mmed them to the ground.
<span style="font-weight:400">Benjamin raised his hand and on hismand, towering trees began to sprout from the earth, creating a dome that protected all of them.
<span style="font-weight:400">Natasha looked at the wooden dome in surprise.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Huh? Ben, did you gain a new power again?”
<span style="font-weight:400">“Yep. Pretty neat huh?”
<span style="font-weight:400">“You can…what? Control trees now? How are you even getting these powers? This isn’t logical!”
<span style="font-weight:400">Iron Man asked agitatedly and Benjamin just shrugged.
<span style="font-weight:400">“It just happened. And no, it’s not as simple as controlling trees…”
<span style="font-weight:400">Benjamin smiled mysteriously.
<span style="font-weight:400">Suddenly, the clouds above them gathered and darkened. Flickers of lightning came and went along with the rumbling sounds of thunder.
<span style="font-weight:400">The wind around them started to be chilly and grew stronger by the second.
<span style="font-weight:400">Wolverine frowned and looked at Storm.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Storm?”
<span style="font-weight:400">“It’s not me…”
<span style="font-weight:400">Storm looked confused as well as she was not the one responsible for the change in weather.
<span style="font-weight:400">“It’s me.”
<span style="font-weight:400">Benjamin chuckled.
<span style="font-weight:400">He walked out of the dome and looked up at Apocalypse’ towering figure.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Stay in the dome, all of you. I’ll deal with this one now.”
<span style="font-weight:400">Benjamin then took out a certain item from his Inventory.
<span style="font-weight:400">Something that he had gotten a long time ago.
<span style="font-weight:400">It was none other than two Pym Particle Vial: Positive!
<span style="font-weight:400">Crushing it in his hand, his body started to quickly grow in size, matching that of Apocalypse!
<span style="font-weight:400">Although Ant-man needed a suit to make himself shrink or grow, this was an enhanced version by the System and can be used directly.
<span style="font-weight:400">Of course, there was a time limit to it and it can’t stay that size for long.
<span style="font-weight:400">He only has 5 minutes.
<span style="font-weight:400">It was more than enough time to whoop Apocalypse’s ass!
<span style="font-weight:400">“As a wise man once said. Pick on someone your own size.”
<span style="font-weight:400">“Fine. I’ll kill you first.”
<span style="font-weight:400">Benjaminughed and raised his fist to punch at Apocalypse. His fist flickered with lightning that struck down at the same time.
<span style="font-weight:400">Apocalypse took the hit and his jaw was blown off but he didn’t care. It only took a second or two for it to regenerate.
<span style="font-weight:400">This guy’s healing factor is so absurd thanks to his ability to manipte his own molecules.
<span style="font-weight:400">Not only can he heal instantaneously, but he can also give himself new powers.
<span style="font-weight:400">Apocalypse opened his mouth and fire shot out from it, heading straight at Benjamin’s face.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Spitting fire, really? How original.”
<span style="font-weight:400">Benjamin sneered and simply blew cold wind from the atmosphere to extinguish the me.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Let me show you how it’s done.”
<span style="font-weight:400">Benjamin smiled and stomped his feet on the earth. The next moment, the pyramid where Apocalypse used to sit on started to shake.
<span style="font-weight:400">The bricks fell off one by one until everyone could see a huge mountain had reced it.
<span style="font-weight:400">But that wasn’t over.
<span style="font-weight:400">The mountain started to shake as well as if it was about to release something from within.
<span style="font-weight:400">Iron Man’s HUD was scanning the mountain and Friday’s voice reported to him.
<span style="font-weight:400">[“Boss, scans show volcano activity in that mountain. It’s about to erupt.”]
<span style="font-weight:400">“WHAT!?”
<span style="font-weight:400">As if on cue, the mountain exploded.
<span style="font-weight:400">*BOOM!!!*
<span style="font-weight:400">Everyone expectedva to start raining down on them but it didn’t.
<span style="font-weight:400">Instead, the magma shot to the sky and…curved towards Benjamin!
<span style="font-weight:400">The magma straightened on his hands and formed a huge hammer!
<span style="font-weight:400">“No matter how powerful you think you are…you are no match for Nature itself.”
<span style="font-weight:400">Benjamin grinned and raised the magma hammer, still red hot from the volcano.
<span style="font-weight:400">Lightning continued to strike the hammer to continue heating it up and prevent it from hardeningpletely.
<span style="font-weight:400">Apocalypse''s eyes widened as he was repeatedly struck by the hammer.
<span style="font-weight:400">He kept trying to fight back but nothing he did manage to hurt Benjamin.
<span style="font-weight:400">At thest resort, he tried to mentally attack him but…
<span style="font-weight:400">“ARGH!!!”
<span style="font-weight:400">“Tsk tsk tsk. Mental attacks won’t work on me.”
<span style="font-weight:400">Apocalypse red at Benjamin and energy started to gather in his eyes.
<span style="font-weight:400">With a boom, that energy shot out toward Benjamin who casually blocked it with one of his hands.
<span style="font-weight:400">“YOU CAN’T KILL ME!!! I AM IMMORTAL!!!”
<span style="font-weight:400">Apocalypse shouted while still shooting the energy beam at Benjamin.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Maybe so…but there are fates much worse than death.”
<span style="font-weight:400">*BOOM*
<span style="font-weight:400">Apocalypse staggered as he was hit by the hammer and crashed onto the newly made volcano.
<span style="font-weight:400">Benjamin lifted the magma hammer and changed it into a sword this time.
<span style="font-weight:400">Looking over at Apocalypse who was no longer able to resist kneeling, Benjamin lifted the magma sword and stabbed it straight through his heart!
<span style="font-weight:400">He didn’t die, however, as Apocalypse once again manipted his molecr structure and prevent him from dying.
<span style="font-weight:400">Well, this guy’s own healing factor was overpowered enough to begin with so even without the molecr alteration, he would still live.
<span style="font-weight:400">Even blowing his brains out might not guarantee his death.
<span style="font-weight:400">Apocalypse’s body started to shrink back. Perhaps due to him being unable to maintain the size or some other reason.
<span style="font-weight:400">He even began to manipte the magma sword to remove it but Benjamin’s own control plus the pain won’t allow him to do so.
<span style="font-weight:400">At best, he managed to resize it as he shrunk. But Benjamin still made sure it stayed in his chest.
<span style="font-weight:400">Benjamin looked down on him from above.
<span style="font-weight:400">“En Sabah Nur. You are under arrest. I think I can speak for the whole world here that your sentence is imprisonment…for eternity. I’d say execution but that’s too troublesome thanks to your powers. Instead, you will wish that you could die. And no, you do not have the right to an attorney.”
<span style="font-weight:400">“NO!”
<span style="font-weight:400">Apocalypse roared but no one cared about him.
<span style="font-weight:400">Lightning struck at him repeatedly from above while Benjamin conjured a sealing formation and surrounded him with it. All the while controlling the magma topletely envelop Apocalypse.
<span style="font-weight:400">Even as he was being encased by magma, Apocalypse kept struggling as he used various powers but it was all useless.
<span style="font-weight:400">He also couldn’t teleport himself out as the sealing formation also restricted the space around him.
<span style="font-weight:400">Benjamin even spat out Hellfire and surrounded the magma-d Apocalypse so it will burn for all eternity. Apocalypse would live in constant pain of burning and healing over and over.
<span style="font-weight:400">As if that wasn’t enough, Benjamin controlled the earth and surround Apocalypse again, fixing up the volcano mountain.
<span style="font-weight:400">Then, he picked up all the bricks of the previous pyramid and formed it around the volcano.
<span style="font-weight:400">Benjamin added more inscriptions on the bricks to seal Apocalypse even more…
<span style="font-weight:400">Looking at the disaster around them, Benjamin sighed at theck of vibrancy and used the power of Nature to fix everything.
<span style="font-weight:400">Trees grew in deste ces,kes formed…in just mere moments, an oasis was formed with Apocalypse’s pyramid prison at its center.
<span style="font-weight:400">Just in time, the 5 minutes were also up and Benjamin started shrinking down.
<span style="font-weight:400">He looked at everyone and found that they were all staring at him in shock and dumbfounded.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Ben you…just how powerful are you?”
<span style="font-weight:400">Natasha asked.
<span style="font-weight:400">“How powerful? Hmm…it’s a bit hard to put it into words. Well, I’m akin to a God I presume.”
<span style="font-weight:400">“A…God?”
<span style="font-weight:400">“Yeah. I have some control over Nature itself. Global warming, drought, heavy storms, and such won’t even be an issue now.”
<span style="font-weight:400">Benjamin chuckled.
<span style="font-weight:400">He looked back at Apocalypse’s pyramid prison and pointed at it with his thumb.
<span style="font-weight:400">“That thing should hold him off for…well the rest of eternity. Unless someone is powerful enough to remove it and release him, which I doubt will happen.”
<span style="font-weight:400">“What do you mean?”
<span style="font-weight:400">“Well…if they are powerful enough to remove it, then there’s no reason why they would remove the seals and release someone weaker than them right?”
<span style="font-weight:400">“...”
<span style="font-weight:400">That…seemed to make sense?
<span style="font-weight:400">Benjamin smiled and shook his head.
<span style="font-weight:400">Although if someone wanted to get Apocalypse as their henchmen, that could still happen. But that will be a whole new set of problems anyway.
<span style="font-weight:400">“If you’re still uneasy we can like chop him up and send his limbs to every corner of the universe.”
<span style="font-weight:400">“...Uhh, that shouldn’t be necessary…”
<span style="font-weight:400">Captain America replied.
<span style="font-weight:400">Wolverine, who also has a high level of healing factor, shivered at the thought that this might happen to him if he ever makes an enemy out of Benjamin…
<span style="font-weight:400">“Anyway, that’s taken care of. We should get back now.”
<span style="font-weight:400">Not long after, the whole world received news of Apocalypse’s defeat under the joint operations of the Avengers, X-Men, and the EPD.
<span style="font-weight:400">Everyone celebrated and those who tried to take advantage of the situation were also quickly apprehended.
<span style="font-weight:400">The Avengers, X-Men, EPD, and anyone else involved also celebrated and organized a party.
<span style="font-weight:400">Sincest time, it was the Avengers who had hosted it, this time, they all got together in the X-Mansion that night to party.
<span style="font-weight:400">Well, not inside the mansion itself but in a small forest near it.
<span style="font-weight:400">There’s a bar, DJ stage, bonfire, lights, music, and everything. It was a mini-rave sort of thing and everyoneughed and danced as they had fun.
<span style="font-weight:400">Benjamin also helped make the DJ stage a bit fancier by controlling the trees to make the stage and a half dome around it.
<span style="font-weight:400">The DJs of the night were Nightcrawler and Iron Man who alternated with each other so the other could also have fun.
<span style="font-weight:400">Included in this party was Mao as well.
<span style="font-weight:400">Though he only stood at the corner beside Charles with a drink at hand. He felt awkward to be included in this party when he was their enemy a few hours ago.
<span style="font-weight:400">He looked at Charles’ legs and spoke after some hesitation.
<span style="font-weight:400">“So…you can walk now…”
<span style="font-weight:400">“Hm? Ah yes. Thanks to Captain Freed who healed me before.”
<span style="font-weight:400">“Captain Freed huh…”
<span style="font-weight:400">Mao sighed.
<span style="font-weight:400">Never had he seen such a powerful person as Benjamin Freed.
<span style="font-weight:400">In the past, he considered himself one of the most powerful beings on Earth. Then the Battle of New York happened and he realized there is more than just Earth.
<span style="font-weight:400">Then Apocalypse arrived and he realized how powerful Apocalypse was. He feared him.
<span style="font-weight:400">…Then there’s Benjamin Freed who yed with Apocalypse like he’s just a kid.
<span style="font-weight:400">He wasn’t awake during that time but Charles shared his memory of the fight with him and it made him feel a shiver down his spine.
<span style="font-weight:400">Forget about other things, just that so-called Blood Magic alone is too scary!
<span style="font-weight:400">If he were to tell him to ‘Die’ and not ‘Sleep’...is he just gonna die like that? Without being able to put up a fight at all?
<span style="font-weight:400">Of course, he said that he can only use a word one time but…who’s to say he hasn’t used that word yet?
<span style="font-weight:400">Charles chuckled as he could tell what Mao was thinking even without using his powers.
<span style="font-weight:400">“He is indeed too powerful…we should be d that he’s not our enemy.”
<span style="font-weight:400">“And what if he bes one, Charles? Who can we even call to fight against him?”
<span style="font-weight:400">“Based on his personality, I doubt he would be a truly evil person…that is…unless we give him a reason.”
<span style="font-weight:400">“...”
<span style="font-weight:400">Charles sighed and faced Mao with a serious expression.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Erik, you can’t keep running away from your crimes anymore. Captain Freed has already convinced the higher-ups for you to have your freedom but with a power inhibitor on you. The inhibitor will be unlocked only during emergencies or when you are needed.”
<span style="font-weight:400">“...I know.”
<span style="font-weight:400">As Charles said, Benjamin had indeed ‘convinced’ the higher-ups.
<span style="font-weight:400">Well, although they were threatened slightly, they were actually happy to have the means to control one of the most powerful mutants.
<span style="font-weight:400">Of course, Benjamin is watching them closely so as not to misuse this ‘authority’ over Mao.
<span style="font-weight:400">On the other side, Benjamin was with Wanda and Pietro who was looking at Mao curiously.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Aren’t you going to talk to him?”
<span style="font-weight:400">“I-I will but…do I look okay? I don’t look weird or anything right?”
<span style="font-weight:400">Benjamin rolled his eyes at Pietro.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Pietro, you’re going to see your dad, not your crush. And for the hundredth time, you look okay.”
<span style="font-weight:400">A while ago, Benjamin revealed to the two of them that Mao was their actual father and that the ones who raised them in the past and died were their adoptive parents.
<span style="font-weight:400">The two of them had believed him as there was no reason for him to lie.
<span style="font-weight:400">This instantly raised a hundred questions in their minds such as why were they separated, did Mao throw them away, and whether did he not like them, or such.
<span style="font-weight:400">Benjamin could only say that these questions are better answered by Mao himself but the two of them hesitated for a long time to approach him.
<span style="font-weight:400">Although they wanted answers, they were also afraid of hearing them.
<span style="font-weight:400">After some time, Wanda moved her hand and pinched the corner of Benjamin’s sleeve.
<span style="font-weight:400">“Can youe with us?”
<span style="font-weight:400">“Sure.”
<span style="font-weight:400">Benjamin smiled and extended his hand for her to hold.
<span style="font-weight:400">Wanda smiled and held his hand without any hesitation.
<span style="font-weight:400">Benjamin looked at Pietro and also held out his hand to him. He felt like he was helping two kids cross the street.
<span style="font-weight:400">Pietro also felt awkward and shook his head.
<span style="font-weight:400">“I-it’s fine. I’ll uhh, follow from behind.”
<span style="font-weight:400">“Let’s go then.”