Marvel: Xenomorphs

"You sound like you're in a bad mood. Did you lose a lot of people in Alaska?"

Facing Magneto, even in this unconventional first conversation, Duncan remained calm. He showed no signs of nervousness, anxiety, or any other unnecessary emotions.

Just by listening to Magneto's hoarse yet unrestrained voice, filled with anger and frustration, Duncan already had a good idea of the situation.

Unlike other major organizations that could monitor the situation in real-time via satellites, Duncan didn't know the specifics of the battle.

But considering how quickly Magneto had picked up on the subtle signals Duncan had sent and responded so promptly...

"From what I know, the Deviants are strong, but they alone shouldn't be enough to cripple your Brotherhood," Duncan said.

"There were also several Eternals involved in the fight, each with powerful and practical abilities. Under any other circumstances, I could have killed them all single-handedly! But they escaped too quickly!"

Magneto's tone grew slightly heavier.

For someone of Magneto's caliber and composure to show such obvious emotional fluctuation, it was clear that the Brotherhood's losses were far greater than Duncan had initially estimated.

Or perhaps it was because Magneto had failed to achieve his goal, damaging his authority in the process?

"Also, I refuse to acknowledge those crawling creatures on the ice as Deviants. Kid, no matter how much you know or where you got your information, you'd better rethink your words!"

At this moment, Magneto finally revealed the discovery that he found most intolerable.

Losing people would only make Magneto angry, but now, it was beyond mere anger.

"Being attacked by both the Eternals and the Deviants would cause casualties for any organization on this planet. That's something you shouldn't dwell on."

To make the conversation easier, Duncan grabbed Mystique's seemingly slender but well-trained arm and pulled her closer.

Mystique remained expressionless. She had experienced many dangerous and complex situations, and her mental fortitude was well-honed. Being humiliated by Duncan in various ways was just a minor scene to her. She had already prepared herself for this.

This was something that Elektra, who was still new to the game, couldn't handle.

"However, if you're trying to deny that these animal-like Deviants have any connection to mutants, there's no need for that," Duncan said.

"So you're saying these inferior creatures are the ancestors of mutants?"

"No, of course not. The Deviants are closely related to mutants, that much is true. But it's not the Deviants that attacked you," Duncan explained.

Magneto fell silent for a moment. "There's more than one type of Deviant?"

"There are many types. On Earth alone, there have been two kinds. One is the inferior creatures you mentioned, which you've already encountered. The other went extinct 20,000 years ago due to an irresistible force."

Duncan counted on his fingers: "Beyond Earth, in the vast universe, there are even more types of Deviants. Some have gone extinct, while others are thriving, having built civilizations far more advanced than Earth's."

"That's a lot of information. I can't help but wonder if you've gone mad," Magneto said.

"In this world, it's the mad ones who lead the way. You don't think those who follow the rules and love order would become great revolutionaries, do you?" Duncan spread his hands and then slowly closed them. "Thank you for the compliment."

For a moment, Magneto was genuinely unsure.

Was this a lie? Or perhaps a lie mixed with some truth?

"What about the Eternals?" Mystique suddenly asked.

"Similarly, for every type of Deviant, there's a corresponding type of Eternal. That's the iron rule. The creators of this world surely love to create in pairs," Duncan said.

"Tell me, what exactly happened 20,000 years ago? You'd better not lie. Tell me everything you know, and I'll find a way to verify the truth..." Magneto's voice came through the communication device.

"Interesting. If I'm not mistaken, you're already planning how to crush my forces, capture me, and interrogate me for information, aren't you? In fact, you're probably thinking about who has telepathic abilities so you can extract knowledge directly from my brain?" Duncan let out a low chuckle.

In fact, Magneto was indeed planning to do just that. Given the gravity of the situation, how could he rely solely on Duncan's words? After all, Duncan wasn't like Professor X, a long-established figure with a proven track record.

Not even S.H.I.E.L.D. could protect Duncan. That was Magneto's stance.

"If you think I'm scheming something nefarious, you'll get nothing from me. Don't underestimate my power. I have many means to use at critical moments, or you'll suffer greatly, just like what happened when the Deviants and Eternals suddenly appeared and attacked you," Duncan said slowly.

"I've captured a few Deviants. I can hand them over to your pets for hosting."

"Bingo! I love conversations like this. That solves the problem, doesn't it? Ten Deviants per question. Fair price," Duncan clapped his hands.

"Five. Take it or leave it."

Magneto couldn't be bothered to haggle over numbers with someone like Duncan, who had been a nobody not long ago. Given his personality, if he weren't so unsure about Duncan, he would have already taken action.

Why use words when force could solve the problem?

But until he could confirm Duncan's true origins and sources of information, he could afford to be patient for a short while.

"By the way, among the Deviants you captured, is there a Deviant leader?" Duncan had long been eyeing that cunning and powerful leader-level Deviant.

"If you're talking about the largest and strongest one, no. If it weren't for that beast, the Brotherhood wouldn't have suffered such heavy losses. That creature even took Juggernaut in the end..."

"Wait, did you say Juggernaut? The Deviant leader took Juggernaut?" Duncan, who had been indifferent until now, was visibly surprised. "Is this Juggernaut a proper mutant?"

Mystique suddenly interjected with a mocking tone: "You've been putting on an act all this time, but you've just lowered your performance at the most inopportune moment. Do you have some special feelings for that oaf Juggernaut?"

Magneto, thousands of miles away, also looked puzzled.

Juggernaut was one of the Brotherhood's key members, Professor X's brother, with an indestructible body and immense strength. He was a bit dim-witted, but was Juggernaut really worth Duncan's surprise?

He hadn't interacted with Duncan up close and remained silent, waiting for Mystique's judgment.

But before Mystique could speak, Duncan spoke first.

"Folks, whether you believe it or not, if luck is against us, and Juggernaut is indeed what I suspect... we're in big trouble."

Because Juggernaut possessed a reserve of energy far beyond ordinary imagination, something that was rarely activated.

And the source of that power was also a multiversal-level entity...