#15

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A SAGE ADRIFT

#15

Emma still looked around the room out of habit to spot any escape points but from what she had heard about the Ancient One, she would have a better chance of getting Sebastian Shaw to do actual charity without actually hoping to get anything in return than being able to escape from the Ancient One without her will.

So, she just tapped her foot and crossed her arms, waiting for an answer from the Ancient One.

The Ancient One then once again snapped her fingers and it took all of her control to not flinch at the sudden movement as they found themselves in a small room sitting on a comfortable chair but even the ridiculously comfortable chair failed to provide any sort of comfort to her. A chill ran down her spine as she realised that despite being a telepath and an advanced one at that which allowed her to have an advanced thought processing speed, she was still unable to figure out what had just happened there.

"Mr.Uzumaki," The Ancient One began, "is a special case as you might have been told by your old friend Mystique but what you don't know is just how special and crucial he is to the universe and the inhabitants within, i.e., us."

"What?" She questioned with a tone of incredulity, "What has the universe got to do with him? I get that he is extremely strong but so are you and I don't see you being the lynchpin that holds the universe together,"

"I won't go into the details with you, Ms.Frost but know this, Mr.Uzumaki is someone who is destined for great things, and if Fate has its way, great things will happen to Earth as well. Right now, the future is in a great flux, and depending on the mindset that Mr.Uzumaki adopts from the things he witnesses, the future of the entire planet and the universe along with it will change."

Emma's brows furrowed in confusion at her statement, "Wait, you can see the future? And if he is so important supposedly then why was he living in the middle of nowhere doing menial labour?"

The Ancient One paused for barely a moment but Emma could clearly see the frown that was swiftly replaced from her face to return it back to her placid expression.

"Ms.Frost, some things must happen the way they happened for the most ideal future to come into play. What I want you to do is make sure that Mr.Uzumaki is not dragged into the dirty politics of the Hellfire Club and while I am sure he himself will do most of the work, I want you to make sure that he doesn't fall too much when he exacts his revenge or justice on the terrorist group. In exchange, I can guarantee you the complete obedience of one Sebastian Shaw."

Emma's eyes widened as she leaned forward in interest. 

"Really?"

Having Sebastian under her heel would not only satisfy one of her greatest of wishes but also allow her business as well as clandestine operations to soar like never before. Also, it would add another very powerful mutant to her side. All in all, a very profitable deal for her. All she had to do was keep watch over a very powerful but a very naive person. 

She eyed the Ancient One with suspicion evident in her eyes. "This almost seems too good to be true/"

The Ancient One once again snapped her fingers and this time, they found themselves standing in some sort of dungeon.

"This," The Ancient One began as she started walking through the door that had just opened with a loud creaking sound, "Is a dungeon where we, occasionally, keep prisoners that can turn out to be useful later on. Like, Mr.Shaw, for example."

Soon, they walked ahead and reached a cell where Shaw was kept. "Kept" would be a very apt term since he was splayed on a metallic bed with all his limbs tied to the ends, making for a very satisfying sight.

"You have no idea just how happy this makes me," Emma said as she tried to use her powers to peak into the mind of Shaw or anybody else here but promptly started coughing because her mind was just given a very painful slap by something before she could actually find something.

"Oh, yes. I would advise against using your powers here since this is a restricted zone and we regulate all types of powers in here. Mr.Shaw, for example, is not able to call on his powers." The Ancient One said as she crisscrossed her arms a couple of times in the air in a seemingly random pattern before a yellow door flashed in front of her. The cell bars then began to recede back into the ground slowly as the bed that Shaw was resting on was brought to the front.

"Why is he unconscious?" She found herself asking as she cleaned the blood that was trickling out of her nose due to the backlash of having her astral form be lightly damaged. Oh, the damage would heal soon enough but she would have to deal with a little headache for a couple of days.

"Because of that," The Ancient One pointed to the top of the bed where a small rectangular box jeweled with a small black piece of rock could be seen. The rock seemed to change colour and flicker for a second before turning back to its original appearance.

"That is something that I absolutely detest using. It is something that goes against everything I have ever taught to any of my students but Mr.Shaw here is a particularly useful person for you and a very apt example of the case that some people truly deserve the worst. That, Ms.Frost, is a mind-control gem, pure and simple. I have since sealed the entryway but there is a dimension made up of pure psionic energy."

Emma's eyes sparkled at that. She had recently found out from a wandering mystic that all mind-based powers came from one energy source: Psionic energy and the more psionic energy you have, the more powers you can exert. She was curious about any place where she could get the energy but the mystic had no idea where he could get it aside from mutants who were naturally born with a connection to a place of infinite psionic energy. She opened her mouth to ask the question but the Ancient One beat her to the answer.

"Yes, Ms.Frost, all psionic energy can be traced back to a single source and mutants are naturally born with a connection to it. In fact, all sentient beings have a connection to it but it is inactive for most of their lives. Now, back to the gem. Some sorcerers in the past devised a ritual to trap a part of the psionic energy and corrupt it to the point that should the owner of the relic decide, he could absolutely mould the mind of any ordinary person. Now, Mr.Shaw here is not an ordinary person by any means so I was able to get just a small change done to his mind. He is now absolutely obedient to you and you alone, Ms.Frost."

Emma's eyes sparked with interest at the mention of the gem. If she could get her hands on more of-

Just as the thought crossed her mind, goosebumps rose in her arms as she heard the Ancient One speak, "No, Ms.Frost. That is the last gem in existence which I had kept in case of a rainy day but I realise now that aside from a few vile people, no one deserves to have their mind controller. You, as a telepath, might not realise it but I have very strict guidelines against mind spells. Anyway, off you go," The Ancient One said while waving her hands that opened the bonds on Shaw's hands.

He then slowly began sliding off the slightly tilted beg right into a portal that swallowed him up and closed soon after.

At her questioning look, the Ancient One clarified, "Oh, that leads directly to one of the medical rooms of the base you are currently staying at. Feel free to check in on him later."

"Wait, That's it? How am I supposed to control him because the gem is still right there on the bed." Emma said while pointing at the top of the bed where the gem was. The gem no longer looked completely dark but had gained a brownish colour.

"Oh, the gem is already spent, Ms.Frost. The commands are permanently carved onto Mr.Shaw's brain. All you have to do is command him and he will follow, there is nothing complicated about this. Now, I'm sure you have a busy day ahead of you so I will not take much of your time."

"No, wait. I have so many questions, regarding both Naruto and-"

*Snap*

And Emma found herself standing in the same spot that she was before, in front of the meeting room that Naruto was presumably waiting in, for her. Before she could debate herself whether to go check on Shaw or talk with Naruto, the answer was taken out of her hands when Alex ran into her.

"Ms.Frost, thank god you are still here. Come, Sebastian Shaw just landed in the medical room. We have tried to stop him but he has defeated every one of us. Even my barriers could barely slow him down."

Her eyes widened once she realised that Shaw was actually conscious and going by the statement of the Ancient One regarding his mind, there was only a single thing that was changed and that was obedience to her. The rest of his mind was intact and he was still a prideful arrogant genocidal bastard who would not flinch at killing everyone in his way and right now, her entire team was in his way.

"Let's go, NOW!" She commanded Alex who formed a barrier around them and just rammed through walls, going straight to the medical room where Shaw was apparently dumped by the Ancient One. She cursed her in her mind for not informing her that Shaw would regain consciousness soon enough. There was nothing she could do for now aside from ordering him to stand down.

"STOP!" She shouted as soon as Shaw was in her line of sight. She tensed and activated her diamond form in case he didn't follow her orders but sighed in relief when it seemed that Shaw had heard her because his body literally froze the moment she had shouted.

All around the room, she could see members of her medical team strewn around, probably rag-dolled by him the moment he had awoken. Thankfully, none of them were seriously injured or worse, dead so she ordered for all of them to get themselves healed.

Thankfully, none of them needed the attention of a healer because the only person she knew who could heal people and was on good terms with them was Naruto himself and she had not yet cleared out a deal for them.

She still had to rethink everything now that the Ancient One had warned her. Maybe, bringing in Naruto was a mistake all along? She should have just handed him over to the hippies at Xavier's mansion and dusted her hands off the matter.

But, looking at the frozen form of Shaw as he hatefully looked at her with his eyes, she realised that her decision was correct even if the only benefit she got from the deal was Shaw himself.

The things she would do to him, in revenge, Oh, she could barely wait and control herself but before she could act out on her wildest fantasies, she said, "Shaw, you can move once I am done speaking. You are not to act against any member of my team, here or outside. You will not intentionally withhold information or hold action that could end up harming me or any member of my team. You will not use your powers on anyone without my express permission. You are not allowed to contact anybody outside of the people in this base without my permission. You are not allowed to speak unless spoken to. You will answer all of my questions truthfully. You will not contact any spies that you might have on my team. That's all."

A wide smile plastered itself on her face as Shaw lowered his arm and looked at her grinning visage with a hateful snarl on his face, unable to do anything except look.

Oh, this was going to be so much fun for her.

Word Count - 2149

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