Dr. Stasis

California, Alameda Research Center.

This was a small private medical research facility in California, indirectly affiliated with the R&D department of the Federal United Pharmaceutical Group. It was neither famous nor obscure, the sort of place that would be hard to notice even across the entire country.

That day, inside the laboratory, an ordinary-looking lab supervisor was carrying a stack of documents out of the lab, preparing to submit the day's experiment logs.

However, the moment he stepped outside, he saw a black-haired young man in a strange uniform standing in the corridor beyond the laboratory door.

"Nice to meet you, Dr. Stasis." Miles wore a calm smile. "You can call me Miles. I'm from the Xavier Institute. Given the extent of your research into mutant genes, I assume you haven't failed to hear that name..."

"Sorry, I don't know what institute you're talking about..." The man shook his head and instinctively raised his voice. "How did you get in here? Security..."

As though he had seen through his thoughts, Miles made a silencing gesture.

"Shh."

The entire world instantly fell silent.

The humming ventilation system overhead was the first to go quiet. Then the low whirs of the laboratory's various machines seemed to have their throats seized, stopping one after another. The nearby surveillance cameras slowly turned toward other empty corners as if they had come alive.

The corridor fell into darkness, leaving only the faint red glow of the emergency lights in the corners.

Not far away, a female janitor pushing a cleaning cart remained bent over, while the water in her bucket still rippled. Elsewhere, two chatting researchers had frozen in place. One still had his mouth open, his smile stiff as wax.

As far as the eye could see, everyone had become lifeless statues.

Time seemed to have stopped.

Thus, in that silent world, only Miles's voice remained.

"We mean you no harm. We merely hope to receive some assistance from you," Miles continued. "And rest assured, everyone in this facility is already under my control. I've also cut off all electronic communications here. No one else will know about our meeting today."

"..."

The man met Miles's eyes. A flicker of shock passed through his gaze, but he still forced himself to remain composed. "Listen, I don't know who this 'Dr. Stasis' you're talking about is. My name is Joseph Grey. I graduated from California State University..."

"That's just your disguise, Doctor," Miles said. "If you were truly as ordinary as you claim, I would have invaded your mind long ago."

As he spoke, Miles snapped his fingers with a sharp clap.

"Whoosh..."

The door at the other end of the corridor opened, and Madeleine slowly walked in.

When dealing with a stubborn father, it was more appropriate to have his daughter persuade him herself.

The moment Madeleine saw the man, she instinctively murmured.

"...Father?"

However, the instant the man saw Madeleine, his expression changed drastically.

There was no joy in it—only uncontrollable terror!

"...Ugh!"

At the same time, after taking a few steps toward him, Madeleine suddenly felt another dizzy spell strike her head. Her eyes, which had only recently regained their light, were once again covered by a layer of crimson without warning!

A scorching wave of heat slowly spread outward from her...

Miles froze, then his expression changed wildly!

What was going on?

The Phoenix Force was actually going out of control at a time like this!

"Shit, move if you don't want to die!"

In that critical moment, the man suddenly shouted. He swiftly pulled a syringe filled with dark blue liquid from his pocket and lunged forward!

Before the destructive power within Madeleine could erupt completely, he drove the needle brutally into her neck and pushed in the entire dose!

As the drug took effect, the berserk energy around Madeleine calmed like flames being doused.

Then her body went limp. She collapsed to the floor and fell into a deep sleep.

"Huff... Huff..."

The man took several heavy breaths. He turned back and looked at Miles again with an extremely complicated expression before finally sighing helplessly.

"Fine, you guessed correctly. I'm Stasis... What do you X-Men want with me?"

"Two things."

As Miles stepped forward and carefully helped Madeleine up, he asked, "What exactly are you and your brother Obadiah trying to do? And... how can we save Madeleine?"

Faced with Miles's question, Dr. Stasis thought briefly and sighed. "So you encountered Obadiah? No wonder. Since you're with Madeleine, he was bound to come looking for you sooner or later."

"You mean Obadiah's real target is Madeleine?" Miles asked.

"She's one of his targets." Dr. Stasis said, "Since you were able to bring Madeleine here, it's clear you get along well with her. Then... fine."

He casually picked up a bottle of pink solution from the lab bench, removed his glasses, and began rubbing it over his face.

As he wiped, his plain, unremarkable features seemed to be washed away, transforming completely into another appearance. What emerged was a face seventy percent similar to that of Obadiah Essex.

Clearly, this was Dr. Stasis's true face. On his forehead was an unusual "♣" symbol.

[A club?]

"First, regarding Madeleine..." Dr. Stasis said slowly, "Madeleine was originally created by me as a weapon to kill Obadiah. Once she sees Obadiah's true body, the switch embedded in her genes will activate, maximizing her Phoenix Force while also maximizing her extreme hostility toward Obadiah, compelling her to attack."

"But unfortunately, she isn't Jean Grey herself." Dr. Stasis sighed. "Her body still cannot perfectly bear that power. Once the Phoenix Force erupts, it grants her immense strength while continuously consuming her life energy. A few days ago, at the Aegis Research Center, she should already have gone berserk once..."

"By coincidence, I wasn't there at the time. Based on what I know of her, she should have completely lost control by then. So, frankly speaking, the fact that she has survived until now is somewhat surprising to me."

"So how do we save her?" Miles continued seriously.

"It's difficult," Stasis answered calmly. "Once the Phoenix Force erupts, her life enters a countdown. The tranquilizer I made can only keep her calm for a few minutes. At the shortest, one day; at most, one week. The Phoenix Force will burn her completely to ashes. Of course, if her power erupts again, that process will be brought forward indefinitely. She could be completely devoured by the Phoenix Force the very next second."

After saying that, Dr. Stasis thought for a moment, then added, "Come to think of it, I have a suggestion. Before Madeleine truly can no longer hold on, you can send her to the Essex Corporation. At the moment before her death, her Phoenix Force will strengthen to its theoretical limit, infinitely approaching Jean Grey's level of power. In that case, you'll have a high chance of directly killing Obadiah with her."

"That sounds awfully cold-blooded," Miles said. "Is Madeleine nothing more than a weapon to you?"

"To be precise, a bomb," Dr. Stasis replied.

"..." Miles stared seriously into Stasis's eyes and said quietly, "You're truly the biggest bastard of a father I've ever met."

"Why would you say that?" Dr. Stasis asked. "Would you treat a bomb that could kill you at any time as your daughter? Even I face a considerable risk of being killed when I'm near her."

"..."

Miles shook his head, forcibly suppressing the urge to beat the man in front of him, then asked, "Then tell me. What was the difficult method you mentioned?"

"Are you sure you want to try it?" Dr. Stasis confirmed again.

"Yes." Miles nodded seriously.

"Fine. Then follow me." Dr. Stasis turned and walked into the laboratory.

Then, from a hidden compartment, he carefully removed a complex metal case. From within it, he took out a golden-red serum glittering with fiery crimson sparks.

"This is... Phoenix Serum." Dr. Stasis explained slowly. "It's a special genetic serum I created through research on Jean Grey's genes and the Phoenix Force. It can temporarily grant an ordinary person Phoenix Force compatibility, giving them the possibility of obtaining the Phoenix Force."

"So we just inject Madeleine with it?" Miles asked.

"Of course not. Doing that would immediately trigger a complete eruption of the power inside her and burn her into ashes!" Dr. Stasis shook his head. "The function of Phoenix Serum is only theoretical. In practice, this serum's effects are very limited."

"According to my research, the Phoenix Force possesses its own consciousness. It favors those who already possess Telepathy, as well as people with exceptionally intense and unusual emotions and spirits. If one cannot gain the Phoenix Force's recognition, the only result of injecting Phoenix Serum will be complete consumption by its berserk power."

"So what does this have to do with saving Madeleine?" Miles asked thoughtfully. "Do you mean creating a new Phoenix Force vessel to help Madeleine bear the burden?"

"Exactly." Dr. Stasis nodded. "You're a psychic as well, aren't you? You can inject Phoenix Serum and become a new Phoenix Force vessel. If you accept Madeleine's Phoenix Force Mark, you can help her share the pressure brought by the Phoenix Force's growth. That will give her a chance to wait until the Phoenix Force inside her has truly finished developing, allowing her body to adapt to that power."

"If it succeeds, you'll also share a small part of Madeleine's power through the Phoenix Force Mark," Dr. Stasis said. "It won't compare to Madeleine's own power, but it will already be immensely powerful compared to other mutants."

"Of course, the greater likelihood is that you'll fail to gain the Phoenix Force's recognition and be directly consumed by its power, your consciousness annihilated."

Dr. Stasis spoke flatly. "Even though you're already a psychic, the success rate remains below one in a thousand. So, are you willing to gamble?"

"Of course." Miles's expression remained unchanged as he accepted the Phoenix Serum without hesitation.

He had a vague feeling... the Phoenix Force... had probably already recognized him.

I'll save you... Madeleine.

With that thought, Miles put away the Phoenix Serum and secretly let out a breath of relief.

Then he continued questioning Dr. Stasis.

"Then, the second question. Why did Madeleine start losing control when she saw you just now?"

"That brings us to the relationship between Obadiah and me," Dr. Stasis continued. "How much do you know about Obadiah, me, and Dr. Nathaniel?"

Miles thought for a moment before answering, "As far as I know, you and Obadiah are biological brothers, while Dr. Nathaniel is your father."

"Sorry, you only got part of it right," Stasis replied. "In fact, Obadiah, the current Nathaniel, and I... are all clones of the former Dr. Nathaniel."

"...What?!" Miles cried out in surprise. "How did that happen?"

"Ah... That would count as our true family secret. Let me think about where to begin." Dr. Stasis thought for a moment, then asked Miles, "First, how much do you know about the research achievements of our father, Dr. Nathaniel?"

"Dr. Nathaniel's research?" Miles considered it. "The Metempsychosis technology, as well as the Apocalypse Plan that Obadiah proposed based on it."

"Very good. Since you understand Apocalypse and Metempsychosis, I won't waste too much time explaining that part." Stasis continued, "The essence of Metempsychosis theory is the deconstruction and simulation of Apocalypse's consciousness reincarnation ability."

"First, you need to understand something. Apocalypse can accumulate abilities through constant reincarnation. What does that prove? It proves that consciousness itself, just like the body, can carry abilities and memories! More than that, this alone can prove that souls truly exist! This should have been a monumental discovery worthy of being recorded in the history of biology!"

"Unfortunately, mutants were a sensitive subject in that era. Dr. Nathaniel, whose main field was genetic soul studies, did not have many academic achievements publicly known to the masses, though he did not care about that."

"Through his research into souls, during his old age, he proposed an even further hypothesis—if a person's soul were split apart and placed into separate bodies to grow, could those originally divided souls become new, independent individuals? He believed it was highly feasible, because according to his research, souls were far more malleable than flesh and possessed the ability to complete themselves."

"So, he performed an experiment to divide a soul," Dr. Stasis said slowly. "And the experimental subject was himself."

"So..." Miles steadied his shocked emotions and instinctively guessed, "He split his soul into two parts, and those were you and Obadiah?"

"No." Stasis shook his head and held up four fingers. "Four parts."

"Four?!"

"Using his own genes as the blueprint, Dr. Nathaniel cloned four different embryos. Then he divided his soul and implanted the pieces into them. Due to his personal tastes, the four of us were differentiated by playing-card suits, each bearing a corresponding mark at the genetic level." As he spoke, Dr. Stasis pointed to the "♣" symbol on his forehead.

"According to Dr. Nathaniel's original plan, the four of us each represented one of his different ideals and personalities. They were..."

"The '♠' representing power: Obadiah, Orbis."

"The '♣' representing technology: Stasis, which is me."

"The '♥' representing order: Ritts, Righteous."

"The '♦' representing chaos: Nathaniel... which was himself." At that point, Dr. Stasis explained, "Yes, he transferred his original consciousness into the final clone and began a new life under a new identity. The diamond symbol represents him. To us, diamonds are both our father... and our brother."

"Four clones..." Miles muttered, slowly processing this astonishing fact before asking in disbelief, "As for Ritts of the '♥,' do you mean Ritts Yore, the proposer of Project ATHENA?!"

"Yes." Dr. Stasis nodded.

"But she's a woman!" Miles still found it hard to believe.

"Do you think changing one's sex is some particularly difficult issue for geneticists at Nathaniel's level and ours?" Stasis asked in return.

"..." Miles fell silent for a while before asking again, "So what is the relationship between the four of you?"

"As clones of Dr. Nathaniel, we hate one another. Since the day we were born, we have constantly fought each other. That is an instinct Dr. Nathaniel engraved into our souls."

Dr. Stasis answered, "He viewed our births as his final experiment. This was a war between Essexes. Only the last one alive could represent the correct path, inherit everything he possessed, and prove himself to be the true Essex!"

"More than a decade ago, Obadiah and I fought for control over the Essex Corporation. In the end, he won." Dr. Stasis said slowly, "Using the Essex Corporation's capital, Obadiah implemented the Apocalypse Plan, gained an Apocalypse Body, and became the strongest among the four of us."

"To oppose Obadiah, that Artificial Apocalypse, I created Madeleine. In my view, the Phoenix Force was a far greater power than Apocalypse."

"As for Ritts, she threw herself into the government, advancing Project ATHENA and developing the Super Leech in an attempt to wipe out both Obadiah and me, along with all mutants."

Dr. Stasis let out a deep sigh. "Unfortunately, my experiment was not completely successful. Though Madeleine inherited the Phoenix Force, she was fundamentally incapable of carrying that power. She could only be used as a living bomb. Even more unfortunately, Madeleine went berserk and disappeared during the incident at the Aegis Research Center a few days ago."

"Without Madeleine, if Obadiah and Ritts find me now, I will undoubtedly die. That is why I hid my identity and concealed myself here."

"That is also why I am willing to cooperate with you X-Men. I need your help to fight Obadiah and Ritts... as well as our fourth brother."

"You mean that '♦' gentleman?" Miles asked. "Where is he?"

"I don't know." Dr. Stasis shook his head, then answered, "The '♦' represents the consciousness of our father, Nathaniel Essex himself. He possesses the truly complete Metempsychosis technology. In recent years, Obadiah has been hunting him down to obtain complete Metempsychosis, forcing him to change bodies several times, but he still escaped in the end. So now, nobody knows where he is."

At that point, Dr. Stasis added, "In theory, any random passerby you see outside could be him."

So this is the truth behind Mr. '♦,' Nathaniel Essex?

His consciousness cannot be destroyed. He can keep possessing others and become anyone in the world...

If an existence like that were an enemy...

Miles drew a deep breath, temporarily suppressing the shock in his heart before continuing, "So... the Apocalypse Plan, Project ATHENA, Madeleine... all these plans were fundamentally products of the conflict between you Essexes?!"

"Correct." Dr. Stasis nodded.

Just as I thought...

Miles drew a deep breath and continued following his train of thought. Then he said slowly, "So, as a weapon against Obadiah, Madeleine reacted to you because, like Obadiah, you are also Nathaniel's clone. Your genes and souls are extremely similar!"

"By your own description, if Madeleine is a bomb, then you are one of its fuses too!"

"Yes."

"If that's the case..." Miles's mind raced. "Then the fuse that first caused Madeleine to go berserk at the Aegis Research Center... couldn't have been you. You created her, so you wouldn't make such a basic mistake. That means it could only have been... Ritts!"

"She went to see Madeleine while you were away, triggering Madeleine's berserk state!" Miles continued muttering to himself. "That's it. It had to be her... Madeleine also said that she met a woman that day... The woman she saw in the illusion Jossen hypnotized her into seeing was partly based on Ritts... That was why her power went out of control... Because Ritts is also one of the clones, and she would trigger Madeleine's reaction too!"

"So... the incident at the Aegis Research Center was personally orchestrated by Ritts! This was also part of the struggle between you Essexes! She wanted to control Madeleine but failed, so she sought help from the Xavier Institute, then drew the Essex Corporation's attention over, causing Obadiah to notice us..."

"Absolutely correct!" Stasis lightly clapped his hands.

"Then there's the final '♦,' Dr. Nathaniel himself..." Miles instinctively continued thinking. Suddenly, for no reason at all, he recalled the offhand remark Madeleine had made before boarding the Blackbird.

"I just feel like it's somewhat dangerous to stay at the Institute..."

There's danger at the Institute... danger enough to make Madeleine uneasy...

Could it be...

At that moment, an utterly horrifying guess surfaced in Miles's mind!

'♦' is at the Xavier Institute?!

Thinking that, Miles immediately removed the X Terminal.

"Aurora? Aurora?! Contact Charles! Now!!"

"...Aurora?!"

Aurora did not respond. The communication channel was utterly silent.

Miles froze. What was happening?

"Bzzzt—!!"

A piercing burst of electrical static suddenly exploded!

"Beep—beep—"

"Clack, clack, clack..."

"Bzzzt..."

The next moment, every device, screen, indicator light, and control terminal in the laboratory seemed to have its throat seized by an invisible hand. They flickered wildly, flashing on and off as chaos engulfed the room!

The ceiling lights flickered unevenly, stretching the group's shadows across the walls like ghosts.

The surveillance cameras Miles had turned away only moments earlier seemed to come alive, making clacking mechanical sounds as they all rotated their lenses back in unison.

Their crimson operating lights resembled pairs of emotionless eyes, locking precisely onto Stasis and Madeleine!

"What's going on?!"

Miles's eyes narrowed as his psychic power surged out like a tide, trying to retake control of the equipment.

But in the next instant, his expression turned horrified.

He had failed.

A psychic will far stronger than his own was using the same ability to oppose him!

At the same time, Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters.

"Bzzzz—!"

The coffee machine in the cafeteria suddenly spewed scalding steam, every screen in the computer room instantly turned to static, and the danger alarm in the training room began shrieking without warning!

New York.

The images on hundreds upon thousands of enormous electronic billboards in Times Square were instantly wiped clean, replaced by flickering, bizarre patterns.

Countless tourists and residents lingering on the streets looked up in confusion. Watching the strange symbols covering the displays, they instinctively began discussing what kind of new creative advertisement this was.

Silicon Valley.

Inside the core server rooms of every major tech giant, alarms rang out deafeningly!

The CPU usage of every server instantly shot up to one hundred percent, their fans roaring as if they were about to fly apart!

"Damn it! Someone's attacking us! No—they're attacking the entire country!"

"We can't stop them! Their computing power is infinite!"

Wall Street.

The financial trading systems completely collapsed within a second. Countless lines of code cascaded across the screens, while the fluctuating stock data became strings of meaningless gibberish.

The heart of the world economy abruptly stopped beating at that moment!

Alameda Research Center, inside the laboratory.

A few drops of sweat slid down Miles's temple, yet he was completely unaware of them.

In the psychic clash within the intangible electronic realm, that will was like an unshakable mountain, pressing heavily against his senses.

What terrified him even more was the bone-deep sense of familiarity!

This was not merely a similarity in abilities, but a resonance born from the same source. It was like looking in a mirror and seeing himself distorted, magnified, and turned incomparably grotesque!

"This feeling... this ability just like mine..."

"There's no mistake. It's him..."

He found this place!

Miles's pupils suddenly contracted. He sharply turned his head, locking his gaze onto Dr. Stasis, the terror in his eyes nearly spilling over.

"Go!!!"

Without hesitation, he grabbed Madeleine and prepared to leave with Dr. Stasis!

But it was already too late.

"Crack..."

A crisp sound like shattering crystal rang through the air.

The space in the corridor before the three of them abruptly twisted and collapsed, and a void flickering with ominous purple light formed out of nowhere.

Then, a tall, burly figure stepped out from it, the "♠" mark on his forehead exceptionally conspicuous.

"Obadiah Apocalypse!"

The instant he appeared, every wildly flickering device and every shrieking alarm in the laboratory seemed to have been muted, falling silent at once.

The lights went out, and the screens went black.

Absolute silence. Absolute control.

This had originally been Miles's ability, but supported by Obadiah's psychic power, which was even more terrifying than Charles's, its effect was nearly dozens of times stronger than when Miles used it himself!

"Hiss—!!!"

In the next instant, two scorching blood-red beams shot from Obadiah's eyes!

They were Cyclops's optic-blast energy beams!

Miles did not even have time to react before the beams precisely grazed past him and pierced through Dr. Stasis's chest, leaving behind a hollow with edges charred black by the extreme heat.

"Urgh."

Dr. Stasis, his chest pierced through, slowly fell with a horrified expression.

"Thud."

His body hit the floor with a dull sound.