Chapter 40 - Mind Stone

[May of 2012]

[°New York City°]

A Day Later

Andrew's P.O.V

I sat in an underground cave, far beneath the surface while staring at the Mind Scepter in my hands.

Yes, I already got it.

Taking this from the hands of HYDRA was easier than one would thought as when they were securing and relocating the Scepter to different location, I just made the moving vehicles flip and crash and then went inside one of them containing the said weapon and then disappeared.

I made sure to not be seen – while in my heroic persona – by any cameras that was attached all over the vehicles as i have plans for my "hero" identity.

Now, Let's see..

Holding the blade. I then applied immense physical force to the tough Scepter as it eventually broke and revealed the Mind Stone/Gem inside.

I carefully made the Infinity Stone hover in the air in front of me as i stared at it curiously.

The Stone looks like.. Well, stone. It has no definite shape and the only thing that will seperate it from other normal stones was the fact that its friggin' glowing and was emitting subtle but vast amounts of energy.

Even though, I'm not touching it, I can already feel the vastness of its energy and the power it holds.

I wonder what would happen if i eventually touch it. Through the time that I've gained this new body, I have been doing all i can to bring back my original physical strength and now i have even surpassed my past strength and was now at a solid 80 tonnes of pure physical strength.

So I'm a bit confident that the stone will not be able to destroy my body just from its radiation and the fact that it is the Mind Stone so the energy would definitely be a bit tame compared to others like the Power Stone.

So with that in thought, I steeled my balls and then reached out my hand.

Immediately after grasping the stone. Enormous amounts of energy coming from it suddenly flooded my whole body as i grunted while a pained look replaced my nervous visage.

The energy wasn't as tame as i imagined it to be as I felt like it was tearing through my muscles and flesh as if there's no tomorrow.

But my regeneration immediately also kicked in as it healed my teared muscles while the energy was doing its job of destroying the said muscles.

I gritted my teeth but after a while, the pain eventually subsided as i felt the energy of the stone beginning to get calm as it flows through my body freely.

My shaken organs and destroyed muscles and flesh healed at a visible rate as i released a sigh of relief.

Phew~

I thought it wasn't going to stop..

Anyway. After the energy became more tame. I focused my senses to it as it flows inside my body and tried to fuse my own psionic energy with it.

My eyes widened in surprise as the process was so easy as my energy fused with the stone's energy almost instantaneously that it left me speechless.

That's it? But it's so easy.

I was a bit suspicious with how easy it was but i just shoved it to the back of my head as this was something to be celebrated rather than to be wary about.

*Whoosh!*

My eyes widened again as i felt the stone's energy – fused with my own – that was inside me and the energy that continously gushing out of the stone in my hand real time, both suddenly started gushing in my body and began pouring in my energy reserves while a portion fused with my very own body – temporarily enhancing it in the process.

This is.. Energy Absorption?

Just like that? Did I just gained another ability just like that?

A thought then flashed in my mind at the thought of Energy Absorption. I then made the stone hover in front of me as i willed the energy inside my body to gush outside and gather in my hand.

*Wheeew*

My hand then began to glow in light-gold as i felt the energy from my body gather at it. The energy felt.. Strong. It seemed to be as strong as my medium-effort psionic attack as i observed it with fascinated look.

I then made the energy gush to my other hand and then made them dance in both my hands as i freely manipulated them like a kid. It was at this time that i thought about the name of this specific ability.

Energy Manipulation.

A smile surfaced on my face as I made the energy return to my body while I turned to look at the hovering Mind Stone in front me..

Let's see what you still got..

—-—

3rd Person P.O.V

A Day Later

Andrew walks the wide lobby of the Celestial Industries leisurely as the staff at the counter and the guards all greeted him respectfully while he nodded back at them.

A slight smile can be seen on his face as he seems to be in a good mood.

The reason for his bright mood was what happened yesterday and the unimaginable things that he can now do.

Yesterday. He just gained a real and not quasi ability of Biological Manipulation. Not only that. The more he interacted with the Mind Stone and absorbs its energy, the more his control over matter increases.

By now. His telekinesis is already bordering to molecular level and he have even tried and was able to transmute a freakin' rock intro a jade, well not pure jade, but still!

Matter Transmutation!

While he still can't transmute it into a diamond – as he don't even know that mineral's molecular structure – he's still pretty sure that not long by now as his power increases that he will eventually be able to do those kinds of things.

Back to the present. Andrew stops in front of the elevator and got into it along with the other workers who quickly recognized him as the most easy going high level person within the company as they smiled at him – some warmly, some flatteringly.

The ride was a bit long as a kid that was brought by her mother tapped all the buttons. The mother – that was actually there for a job interview but had no choice but to bring along her kid – quickly apologized to him repeatedly which he quickly stopped and replied that it was fine.

The elevator eventually opened to his floor as he got out and walked to the door with card name that says "Aldrich Killian" with a "CEO" under it.

He opened the door after saying hello to the secretary outside and then went inside her, err, went inside the room.

Aldrich Killian seems to have been expecting him as he quickly stood up while letting go of his pen and greeted him "Good Morning, Boss."

"Hmm." Andrew hummed in reply as he sat on the couch. "How's it going?"

Aldrich seems to immediately saw through his vague question as he replied "The company is experiencing a slight setback from what we just pulled off after the Invasion but after this, we can definitely expect that we will get back to our previous graphs and even surpass it.

Andrew nodded while sipping from coke that he pulled psionically from the fridge at the corner.

It was his idea to put a fridge in a CEOs office as he thought it was convenient as he can just pull a drink from there whenever he's here.

But back to topic at hand. Andrew made the Celestial Industries perform a big and bold move as he made the company give a knock-off extremis serum to all that was hurt in the recent invasion for FREE!

Andrew and Aldrich thought about this plan for a while as they calculated the cause and effect and then went with it. With this move that they just pulled off, the Celestial Industries bacame more known to the whole world and only cave men wouldn't know about them by now.

Those people that sustained heavy and life threatening injuries was quickly healed by the miraculous serum and now those people are even saying that maybe the company is a company that was gift to them by the God.

Andrew didn't like that kind of notion as he subtly released information through the media that the company is just doing what is right and they can definitely rest assured that the future will just get better starting that day.

From that day. The company's motto "Life is good, but it can be better." circulated the internet. (A/N: LOL)

But of course. There was a reason why Andrew was doing all of this, and it was just the already established reason that he is subtly but surely gaining the globe's trust.

After this. He will start making the company release more groundbreaking things and then he will start to establish the fact to the whole wide world that the Celestial Industry is supporting mutantkind.

Even by now, the company is even subtly releasing a few articles and things with hidden messages in them that will make the people more inclined to believe that the mutantkind isn't what they thought them to be.

Andrew smirked as he thought of this. But he has plan b if this whole subtle plan of his don't work. And that is just absolute domination through force which he is really not that considering to use because of the fact that people like Ancient One and other strong beings exists in this world and the entities that is eyeing this little planet is more than enough to whoop his ass currently.

An hour passed as Andrew and Aldrich talked about business things as the former eventually left as he still got things to do, specifically, biokinesis things.

He then got on his car as he drove to his home. Once he was inside his house. He activated his invisible-mode force-field and flew away to one direction – X-Mansion

—-—

Andrew walked through the silent corridor of X-Mansion invisibly as he opened the door leading to the sub-basement. He strolled calmly as he eventually arrived infront of the Danger Room.

The place didn't change at all since he left as he saw usual silver interior and occasional projectiles that would come out of the walls and struck the practicing X-Men.

He had one word in mind why he's in here. Copy.

He intends to copy the Meta Gene of the useful metahumans here as he already had a few in mind that would definitely satisfy his greedy heart.

Storm and Iceman. These two omega level mutant was just scraping at the tip of what they can actually do. He even remembers when there's an issue where Emma Frost utilized Iceman's ability and was able to freeze an entire continent. He's not pretty sure if it's really an entire continent or what as he didn't managed to read that issue and only learned about the feat in the internet.

And then there's Storm, while she's already strong in her own right unlike Iceman(Icegay?), she is also still not reaching her full potential.

He doesn't know if this version of her was connected to Gaea or something. But he was damn sure that he will not let them Meta Gene slip from his hands.

He then looked inside the room and then looked up and saw the teachers and Xavier all standing and sitting in the viewing deck of the Danger Room.

He then put up his index and middle finger on his temple as his improved and vastly stronger Telepathy gushed inside the room.

All the X-Men who was now ready to get out of the room froze as their eyes became blank. Even Xavier wasn't spared as he also lost control of his mind and a blank expression replaced his visage.

Andrew strutted inside the room confidently as he quickly stood in front of the bombshell Storm.

Andrew swept her whole figure a glance as he muttered "A pity.." and then he brought his palm to her flat abdomen and then close his eyes in concentration.

His senses analyzed her very DNA itself as his own genome began to change as if accommodating something. After a while, Andrew opened his eyes and then removed his hand from her stomach.

He then went to Bobby Drake and then touched the latter's shoulder 'coz he ain't touching a guy's stomach. He then repeated the process as he copied his meta gene.

He then went outside and was ready to remove his telepathic hold on all of them when he remembered something again. His eyes then traveled for a bit and then spotted Nightcrawler.

"Instant Taxi.." Andrew almost hit himself for even forgetting the useful ability of this guy's bloodline.

A Few Minutes Later

After copying Kurt's ability. Andrew snapped his fingers as all the X-Men and those In the viewing deck's eyes regained clarity as they began moving to what they were about to do.

Andrew nodded in his job well done and then spotted Xavier looking around as if confused. Baldie then asked Alex Summers what time was it and then widened his eyes involuntarily as he realized something after receiving the answer.

'This guy's too good for his own sake...' Andrew shook his head as he watched Xavier alerting his students of a possible intruder of overpowering power.

Though. This was all not his problem anymore as he turned around and left the mansion thereafter.

*****

A/N: New week, new chapter.

Btw If y'all wondering why I'm currently not fighting the homeless man, it is because I managed to escape from him using the stones you gave, so give more of 'em!

Anyway. This is also a good opportunity to promote my patreon as you can now read 16 chapters from there! Double the amount from before! So go and check 'em out!

If you want to read ahead and support me at the same time, then be sure to visit my pãtreon. I post eight 16 advanced chapters of my book on pãtreon.

www.pãtreon.com/moziel

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