Fate/Marvel: Chaldea Descend

( 3rd POV )

An hour later...

High in the sky, just above the now snow-covered Winterlands, a black aircraft appeared from the dense clouds. It was the Blackbird, the X-Men's sleek, futuristic private jet, descending through the heavy cloud cover with precision.

The jet's aerodynamic hull sliced through the frigid Alaskan air like a blade, making its way toward a mysterious distress signal.

Inside the jet, the atmosphere was tense. The X-Men sat in silence, their breath visible in the dimly lit cabin. At the controls, Gambit's eyes were narrowed in concentration, his hands steady as he expertly guided the Blackbird through the turbulent skies.

Beside him, Wolverine—Logan—stared out the window with a look of disgust on his face. Even before landing, the scent of blood and ice filled his nostrils, stirring memories he'd buried decades ago.

"You're twitchier than you used to be, mon ami," Gambit remarked, as he piloting the Blackbird. "Something 'bout this place got under your fur?"

But his friend Logan just growled at him. "Shut it, Cajun." Remy could only shrug his shoulder before focusing back on his task.

At the rear of the Blackbird, the younger X-Men—Cyclops, Nightcrawler, Iceman, and Shadowcat—exchanged uneasy glances. While Storm remained calm and composed. Her sharp eyes scanned the horizon through the window, assessing the situation.

"Touchdown in 30 seconds," Remy announced, "Be ready for anything folks."

The Blackbird, settled onto the snow-packed ground with a quiet hiss of hydraulics. The hatch unsealed with a soft exhale of air pressure, revealing the figures inside.

Storm was the first to step out of the Blackbird, her black cloak billowing against the bitter wind. Her eyes tightened with concern as she surveyed the unnatural cold that surrounded them. She had seen snow many times before—she could command the weather itself—but this... this was outrageous.

The several-mile area of mountains, hills, forest, and lake was frozen solid, a sight that was both outrageous and concerning. As according to their information, this place was supposed to be a lush, green area, not an icy wasteland.

"This isn't natural," Storm said, her voice tight. "No weather pattern could create this…"

"Sweet Christmas," Bobby Drake—better known as Iceman—whistled, stepping out with a grin. "Did Krampus throw a tantrum here?"

"Are we sure this isn't you?" Kurt Wagner, the indigo-skinned mutant known as Nightcrawler, chuckled as he stepped beside Bobby. His tail flicked behind him as he observed the frozen scenery with his bright yellow eyes. "Or perhaps you have long-lost siblings, ja?"

"Quit joking, Kurt." Cyclops—Scott Summers—adjusted his visor, his usually not so bright mind rarely calculating possibilities. "If this was an attack, then whoever did it had enough power to flash-freeze an entire facility. That's no small feat, even Bobby is not at that level yet."

Then there was Logan—Wolverine. The moment his boots hit the ground, his instincts flared. He knew this place, in fact he is very familiar with it. The Facility was tied to his past, a dark chapter of his life he wished he could forget.

"This ain't right," Logan muttered under his breath, his voice tinged with a mixture of frustration and wariness. "Even though I hate this place, I must admit that their defenses are anything but weak. This is Stryker's treasure vault, after all. This whole situation feels weird."

Before their departure, Professor Xavier and Beast had given the team a thorough briefing. The emergency distress signal had seemingly materialized out of thin air, with Cerebro failing to detect any unusual activity beforehand. It was as if the signal had come from a phantom, leading them to this desolate, ice-covered graveyard.

The message had been succinct, providing only one instruction: to pick up the newly rescued mutants at this location, with no additional details or explanations.

Some of the team members harbored suspicions that this could be a trap, but the X-Men, driven by their sense of duty and responsibility, decided to take the risk anyway. Despite the potential dangers, they couldn't ignore the possibility that innocent Mutants lives were at stake.

Gambit remained silent for a moment, his mind racing with possibilities. He finally broke the silence, his voice tinged with suspicion. "Who do you think did this? Could it be Magneto again, or maybe the Hellfire Club? If it's them, I wouldn't be surprised."

Ororo, deep in thought, weighed the possibilities. "Magneto's Brotherhood was defeated by Chaldea not long ago, so it couldn't be them," she replied, her tone thoughtful. She paused, considering their recent encounters. "As for the Hellfire Club, their recent movements have been rather unclear—"

But just as she was about to elaborate, the voice of one of her students interrupted her train of thought.

"Ms. Ororo, look over there!" Kitty exclaimed, pointing to a group of unconscious mutants lying on the ground not far from the entrance gate.

The X-Men's attention snapped to where Kitty was pointing, and they immediately rushed over to the fallen mutants. Gambit was the first to reach them, his movements swift and efficient as he knelt beside one of the unconscious figures.

Gambit checked the mutant's condition. He felt for a pulse and examined the visible injuries. "He's still breathing. His pulse is stable," Gambit reported, his voice calm but tinged with concern. "There are a few bruises here and there, but overall, he seems okay. Just asleep, it seems."

Storm, her eyes scanning the scene, knelt beside Gambit. "We need to make sure they're all stable and get them to a safe place," she said, her tone authoritative. "We can't leave them here in this cold. Kurt, I need you to transport them back inside the Blackbird."

"Copy that," Kurt responded promptly. He knelt beside two of the unconscious mutants, touching them lightly before teleporting back into the ship.

With each teleportation, he reappeared inside the Blackbird, carefully placing the mutants in secure positions. He repeated this process multiple times, with caution.

As Kurt continued his teleportation efforts, the other X-Men remained vigilant, their eyes scanning the frozen entrance for any signs of clue.

Logan stalked toward the Facility's entrance, his boots crunching through ice. The massive steel door was sealed under a layer of crystalline frost, its surface etched with intricate, almost mystical patterns. He snarled, slashing at the ice with his adamantium claws.

SHINK!

The ice didn't chip. It didn't crack. His claws screeched harmlessly against its surface, throwing sparks.

"The hell?"

The others were equally surprised by this discovery, knowing that Logan's claws were the sharpest weapon they had, yet the ice remained undamaged.

"Well, I guess it's my turn," Kitty said, stepping forward.

She immediately activated her phasing abilities, preparing to pass through the glacier gate. However, the moment her fingers made contact with the ice, something unexpected occurred.

As Kitty's hand touched the ice, a sudden surge of energy pulsed through the frozen barrier, causing her to recoil in surprise. The normally transparent and intangible state of her phasing ability was disrupted, preventing her from passing through the glacier gate.

"What!?"

Suddenly, a faint blue glow accompanied by a low hum resonated through the glacier. The ice that encased the Facility's entrance and the rest of its structure, once impenetrable, began to crack.

The fissures spread rapidly, and in an instant, the ice crumbled into fine, dust-like shards that scattered into the cold wind like ash.

The X-Men were left in stunned silence, their expressions a mix of confusion and tension. The teenagers, normally full of energy and chatter, were rendered speechless by the unexpected phenomenon.

Even Logan, a veteran of countless battles who rarely found himself caught off guard, felt this phenomenon unsettling.

"What the hell was that!?" Logan growled, his voice tinged with both annoyance and unease.

"This..." Remy was so shocked that he even dropped his usual cards to the ground.

The brainy Scott, snapped at Kitty with angry look. "Our last clue about what happened here vanished just like that!"

Kitty's eyes widened in panic as she hurried to clarify herself. "T-that wasn't me! I swear that wasn't me!" she exclaimed, her voice shaking with anxiety. "Before, I couldn't touch the ice. It was like it was repelling me."

She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself as she recounted her experience. "When I tried to phase through it, the ice wouldn't let me. It felt like there was some kind of force pushing me away."

"Enough, Scott." Ororo eyes narrowing in thought, stepped forward to reassure Kitty. "It's alright, Kitty. We believe you," she said, her voice calm and steady. "Whatever caused the ice to disintegrate, it's clear that it's not your doing. We need to focus on finding the source of this disturbance."

Ororo turned her attention to one of her students. "Bobby, have you noticed anything unusual about the ice here?" she asked, her tone both curious and concerned.

Bobby, the popsicle guy, remained silent for a moment, closing his eyes as if to focus his senses. After a brief pause, he opened his eyes and hesitantly conveyed his observations to Ororo.

"This whole area is strange. Honestly, I've been trying to use my powers to control the ice around us since we landed. But, just like Kitty said, it's like the ice is resisting me."

Bobby, now fully in his Ice mode, stared at the land of ice with a terrified expression. "It's like they refuse to be controlled by me and will attack me at any time, and that's coming from a literal ice guy like me. It's like they are alive..."

The revelation sent a shiver down the spines of the X-Men. The idea that the ice itself could possess some form of consciousness or resistance was unsettling. Ororo's mind raced as she processed Bobby's words, realizing the gravity of the unknown situation.

"Was zur Hölle…?" Nightcrawler breathed as he arrived beside the group, having just finished his task. His expression was one of bewilderment as he took in the scene before him.

"Goddamn it," Logan growled, his instincts kicking in as he cautiously stepped backward. His eyes darted around, searching for any signs of danger. "Someone's playin' games with us."

Ororo scanned the area with a keen eye. "Did anyone feel anything? A shift in the atmosphere, maybe?" she asked, her voice tense with suspicion.

Logan, relying on his heightened senses, sniffed the air. "No scent. No traces. Whatever did this... it was gone a long time ago," he said, frustration evident in his tone.

"So, what are we gonna do now?" Scott asked, looking to his teammates for direction.

Gambit still silent. His gut told him that whatever had done this wasn't something they wanted to meet without a plan. "Maybe we should step back an' rethink dis whole thing, non?"

"But we can't just leave it be," But the boy scout, Scott argued, his sense of duty kicking in. "This place… it's too important, The Professor said it himself. We need to figure out what happened."

Logan exhaled through his nose, frustration lacing his features. He hated mysteries. He preferred things he could fight, things he could cut down. But right now, all he had was cold and questions. "No, The Cajun is right. We'll go back first, take those people back to the mansion. Once they wake up, we'll get our answers."

Scott, the boy scout, was about to argue further, but Ororo cut him off before he could. "Alright then, I agree. Let's head back to the Blackbird first."

The others nodded, albeit reluctantly. As much as they wanted to investigate, the safety of the rescued metas came first.

Once the X-Men were back inside their ship, the Blackbird's engines roared to life with a powerful hum. Ororo's voice rang out, "Remy! We're ready!"

Remy pocketed a shard of ice that glimmered with unnatural warmth. "Oui, chère. Keep your t'under."

As the jet ascended into the cold, wintry sky, Kitty glanced back at the now-barren icefields, a puzzled expression on her face. "Whoever did this… they helped these metas. Why hide?" she wondered aloud, her curiosity getting the better of her.

Cyclops crossed his arms, his expression a mix of contemplation and stubbornness. "Maybe they're afraid of us or not ready to be found. Don't overthink it, Kitty. In the end, they are just cowards,"

As the Blackbird lifted off, carrying the unconscious mutants away, the X-Men remained unaware of the unseen war that had just unfolded before their arrival. Hours later, the Shadow Border phased back into reality thousand miles away, its engines humming softly.

Inside the room, Ken and Kadoc were engrossed in a video game, their focus intense as they played. Their servants, along with the two newcomers, Lorna and Domino, watched them with curiosity. The atmosphere was relaxed, a stark contrast to the recent chaos they had faced.

Anastasia, who had been silently observing her master playing, suddenly paused. She closed her eyes and whispered something inaudible to the others, her expression serene.

"Thank you for your hard work, Viy."

.....

In a certain location, inside a secret dark room. Its walls lined with obsidian alloy that drank greedily at the faint glow of holographic screens. Dozens of monitors flickered with streams of data—DNA sequences, mutation profiles, and fragmented codes that danced like serpents across the void-black surfaces.

The air hummed with the sterile chill of cryogenic systems, punctuated by the rhythmic drip-drip of nutrient fluid leaking from a fractured pipe overhead.

At the room's heart stood two towering life-support capsules, their glass surfaces fogged with condensation. Inside, shadowy figures floated suspended in amniotic fluid, their features obscured but their silhouettes unnervingly familiar.

The man in the special dark coat stood before them, his pale fingertips brushing the capsule glass with the reverence of a sculptor admiring his masterpiece.

"It's finally complete," he murmured, his voice a velvet rasp. "It's almost time..."

Behind him, the lab's heavy door hissed open. Footsteps echoed—sharp, deliberate—as a figure strode into the room. A man with crimson skin seemed to smolder in the dim light, his tail flicking behind him like a whip. He stopped a few paces short of the man, kneeling with a deference that bordered on theatrical.

"Master," The man whispered, his voice gravelly and accented. "We've got the news that The Alkali Lake facility has been destroyed."

The mysterious man did not turn. His attention remained fixed on the capsules, his head tilting slightly as he studied a hologram detailing synaptic activation rates. "And?"

The devil-like man's yellow eyes narrowed in suspicion. "The intel reported that the entire complex was encased in ice. Not only that, but the surrounding area also turned into a mini Arctic. We initially thought it might be the work of the X-Men or the Hellfire Club."

"Fufu, how unfortunate for Stryker," the mysterious man mused, his lips curling into a smile that never reached his eyes. "Though I suppose the damn parasite would also be displeased by the situation. After all, the base was in his jurisdiction."

"Then, what is our next plan?" the red-skinned man asked, his voice tinged with urgency. "Should we investigate the attacker? The lab housed fragments of the E***x Protocols. If our enemies recover them—"

"—they will find nothing of value," the mysterious man interrupted, finally turning. The mysterious man gaze at him with his menacing red eyes while the red ruby on his forehead is flickering with dangerous light.

"The Alkali Lake branch was a petri dish, Azazel. It has long been separated from our main branch. Let the fools scavenge its scraps. Our true work..." He gestured to the capsules, "has always been here."

Azazel, the red-skinned man, remained silent as he listened to his master's words. His expression conveyed respect and understanding, yet his eyes were blank, devoid of any sign of life.

The mysterious man waved his hand, causing the air behind him to ripple and distort. A portal materialized, swirling with crimson energy that cast hellish shadows across the lab.

Beyond it lay a vast expanse of sands, dominated by an ancient-looking pyramid at its center, not far from where they stood.

"Come, Azazel," the mysterious man beckoned, his voice carrying a sense of urgency as he motioned for his red-skinned puppet to follow.

"It won't be long before He awakens," he continued, his voice trembling with barely restrained fervor. "The world has dawdled in mediocrity long enough. It's time to usher in... the next step."

With a final, lingering glance at the capsules, the mysterious man stepped through the portal, followed closely by his obedient dog.

"Fufu, He is going to like these gifts..." he murmured, a twisted smile playing on his lips as he disappeared into the swirling crimson energy.

The portal's light flickered and pulsed, briefly illuminating the cold, sterile environment of the lab before it sealed shut leaving the lab silent save for the steady drip-drip of fluid…

.....

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A/N: Please donate your power stones and leave more reviews for my story, I appreciate it and thank you for your support!