As the Golden Gate Bridge rose into the air beneath the setting sun, Xiang Qian was comfortably enjoying the afternoon tea provided by the hotel.
The steel dragon, more than a thousand meters long and weighing over ten thousand tons, stretched across the sky before Xiang Qian's eyes. The twisted metal let out a shrill, teeth-grinding screech that nearly drowned out the screams of everyone who witnessed it.
Even Xiang Qian, who had spent years carving out a place for himself in the Soul Universe, couldn't help feeling dazzled by the sight in the real world. He had run through countless scenarios for how Magneto might take the island, but seeing Magneto carry it out in person left him with nothing but heartfelt admiration.
Having shed the illusory body in the Soul Universe that rivaled the gods, Xiang Qian was still only human in the real world—even though he carried the power inheritances of two great sanctuaries.
"My abilities have limited my imagination." Xiang Qian sat back down at the tea table and drained his cup. His calm, composed manner stood out starkly against the uniformly stunned expressions of the people around him.
With a tremendous roar, the steel dragon came crashing down toward Alcatraz Island. Even in the hotel's presidential suite, several miles from the shore, they felt the ground shake distinctly. Dust shaken from the ceiling sprinkled into the tea, a fine layer of white foam floating on top.
As Magneto wielded his gift without restraint, all of San Francisco trembled.
Xiang Qian set down his teacup with a huff and clapped his hands to rouse his still-stunned subordinates. "All right, time to get to work. Seal every entrance and exit to the room, and cut off all internal and external communications that don't belong to us. Turn on the wireless signal jammers, and activate the anti-bugging and anti-surveillance devices."
Xiang Qian issued one order after another, then turned to Red Star. "Lao Hong, guard the door. Without my permission, nobody gets in—not even the president of the United States!"
Two drones, which had been standing by, lifted off from the hotel rooftop and flew toward Alcatraz Island.
Xiang Qian calmly assembled a finely crafted P226 that had clearly been modified. As he worked, he watched the footage relayed by the drone on his tablet.
Between Alcatraz Island and the city's shoreline, a bridge now lay across the once-empty water, turning an impassable gulf into an open road.
Urged on by radical groups, the many Mutants who had gathered along the shore surged onto the bridge in groups. The police and National Guard tried to stop them, but their defenses crumpled at once before the Mutants' bizarre array of powers, as flimsy as paper.
A few scattered gunshots did nothing to stop the Mutants. Instead, they ignited the crowd's fury. Police cars and armored vehicles were overturned one after another. The police and soldiers scattered like startled birds and beasts, while the few brave souls who dared stand in the crowd's way were quickly swallowed up.
The surging mass of people poured toward Alcatraz Island in the middle of the bay.
A palm-sized Spider-Bot scurried through gaps in the pipes inside the building. Without anyone noticing, it came to rest above the doorframe outside General Ross's command post.
Every word spoken inside the command post was transmitted without a trace of interference to the presidential suite at the Hilton.
"Order the front-line troops to fire tear gas as soon as the Mutants set foot on Alcatraz Island. Request support from the nearby Air Force base. I want them to blanket the entire bridge with tear gas."
"Tell the soldiers that each combat team should have two riflemen use rubber bullets, while everyone else uses live ammunition. When the Mutants land on the island, prioritize rubber bullets. If they cross the security line, switch to live rounds."
"Magneto is on the bridge. Metal bullets won't work on him, so distribute all the specially made ammunition we brought in. Make sure every soldier has enough. Tell the boys that Magneto is the biggest terrorist ever to set foot on American soil. The moment he appears, he becomes our primary target."
"Whoever takes down that terrorist gets to go to the White House and receive a medal from the president!"
General Ross spoke with booming confidence, issuing one military order after another with an inspiring air and constantly encouraging his men.
Xiang Qian carefully fitted the slide over the barrel, soon completing the assembly of the pistol. The instant he finished, a network of fine, mysterious engravings running from both sides of the grip to the front sight glimmered with a faint red light, then vanished in a flash.
A communications request came in on the frequency Xiang Qian had reserved for allied forces.
"James, we've reached San Francisco." It was Hank's voice.
Xiang Qian was astonished. "Weren't you shot?"
"It's just a flesh wound. I'm fine. I think things are more important here."
Xiang Qian understood. As expected of the Beast—he really was tough as nails.
"I suggest you get to Alcatraz Island right away. Magneto's causing quite a scene over there. I have a live feed from a drone and can share it with you." Xiang Qian sent Hank the drone feed.
A moment later, the Beast's startled exclamation came over the comms. "Erik did this? That's insane!"
"I suggest you find a way to destroy the bridge as soon as possible and stop more Mutants from landing on the island. There are too many of them. Even a swarm of ants could eat Alcatraz bare."
The Beast asked anxiously, "The soldiers on the island won't mistake us for Erik's accomplices and take us out too, will they?"
"No. I've already spoken with the island's commander, General Ross, and he welcomes your help. You can contact him now on the battlefield communications channel."
"Then what are you doing?" Hank asked, surprised.
Xiang Qian was attaching an accessory to the pistol's rail. He answered casually, "Me? I can cheer you on from the hotel—if you need me to."
"Fuck!" The voice came through the channel very faintly. It sounded like Wolverine Logan.
Xiang Qian smiled without taking offense and focused on calibrating the P226 in his hands. After installing the electronic equipment on the rail, he put a monocle in front of his left eye.
With everything ready, Xiang Qian switched on the monocle's power supply.
A tiny red dot appeared on the lens. As the muzzle of the P226 in Xiang Qian's hands moved, the dot moved in sync.
Xiang Qian smiled with satisfaction at the performance of the shooting aid. He gathered a little magic power in his hand, and the fine engravings on the pistol glowed red again. This time, the light was brighter and more vivid, lingering on the gun.
Only when Xiang Qian let the magic power in his palm dissipate did the glow on the gun fade and dim.
This was the first gun in the world—and so far the only one—that could injure Magneto with ordinary metal bullets, without needing specially made ammunition.
Perhaps, aside from the surprise shot Mystique fired at Magneto on the White House lawn all those years ago, this was the only gun to have ever wounded him.
Xiang Qian wondered what expression Magneto would wear if he ever got the chance to see this gun again.
Xiang Qian turned his attention back to the computer screen. On the live feed, fierce fighting was underway on Alcatraz Island.
The tremendous uproar didn't need to come through the screen. It carried directly across several miles of distant water, passing through the thick glass of the floor-to-ceiling windows and reaching Xiang Qian's ears.