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8. Already Dead

"Yes, the children!"

Pietro furrowed his brow. Seeing Alex's message, he finally realized what was wrong. This orphanage was unnervingly quiet.

Ever since entering the Church of the Next Generation's orphanage, Pietro's nerves had been on high alert. Unlike Alex, he was born and raised in this world and knew better how deranged mutants like himself could be.

Although it had been a long time since anyone saw Emma use her mutant powers, and rumors claimed she had abandoned them to fully commit to the church, neither Alex nor Pietro believed it. To them, mutant abilities were less a 'gift' and more a 'curse'.

Curses are not something one can easily abandon. With his heightened senses, Pietro felt a peculiar magnetic field or some extremely unusual psychic energy the moment he stepped into the orphanage.

This psychic energy was imperceptible to ordinary people but detectable to mutants with innate psychic abilities like the White Queen or President X. Pietro could also sense it when running at high speed, because his brain being in a heightened state.

In a flash of silver, Pietro appeared in the orphanage's cafeteria.

"Not here."

Before finishing his sentence, Pietro vanished again, leaving only a hoarse echo. As he darted through the orphanage, Pietro's expression grew more frustrated. The psychic feedback intensified. Initially, it was just a fleeting sensation, but as he ran, the energy seemed to 'come alive' and began to focus on him.

"Not in the dorms either. Damn it."

Pietro, with an instinctive aversion, tried to shut out the vague psychic energy, focusing entirely on searching for the children. However, he soon realized he was already enveloped in that eerie energy.

In his high-speed state, the world appeared almost still. Usually, the only sound in Pietro's ears was the rush of wind. But now, he was horrified to find everything around him changing.

A substance, like mud was floating in mid-air, it was constantly bubbling out of the white mist, like asphalt boiling under high heat. It was everywhere and growing. When Pietro tried to look at it, it seemed nonexistent. It was something that continuously emerged and vanished, like Schrödinger's cat.

Pietro didn't want to notice it or tried to ignore its presence, but the energy quickly spread and enveloped him.It felt like being touched by slime or some other amorphous creature, sending a shiver down Pietro's spine. He couldn't fathom how it managed to catch him in his high-speed state.

The next moment, a murmur, like someone talking in their sleep, began to echo in Pietro's ears, drifting around him. It was a voice devoid of logic or useful information, filling Pietro with agitation, unease, and other negative emotions.

"Not in the chapel either! Damn, is today not Sunday? Why is the choir room empty..."

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Honestly, if not for the hope Alex had given him, Pietro would have run to the top of the Himalayas by now, as far away as possible from here.

Since being captured by President X and sent to the mutant prison, Pietro hadn't encountered such psychic energy. But he swore the energy he faced now, though not as strong as President X's, was far more bizarre. Clearly, this was a more twisted, chaotic entity, bringing fear, delusions, and claustrophobia, attempting to drive people insane.

Ordinary people might not perceive it, but over time, the influence would strip away the most basic sense of order from their minds, replacing it with distortion and chaos when they stepped into the orphanage's domain.

"Maybe I need a different approach." Pietro gave up on stopping to rest. After searching almost every room in the orphanage, he found no trace of any children.

The only clue left was...

Closing his eyes, Pietro suppressed his nausea and tried to actively connect with the psychic energy.

"Come on, show me where you all are."

Meanwhile, Alex's conversation with Emma was becoming more lively. In any world, conversing with a charming, intelligent woman was a pleasant experience.However, Alex remained vigilant. The moment he felt any psychic intrusion, he was ready to draw the gun hidden in his sleeve and take down the beautiful woman before him.

"Where were we? Oh yes, this incredible monastery. Emma, I remember you spent your entire fortune to build this place. It's admirable. Your quote in the newspaper, 'Everything we do is for the next generation,' stuck with me. I couldn't sleep before coming here. Your presence is awe-inspiring. I even read all the reports about you. Interviewing you is my honor."

"Everyone is special, Alex. To me, you're a very interesting journalist. Would you like to stay for lunch after the interview?"

"Lunch? Yes, of course, I'd love to have lunch with you. I'd do anything for you!"

Alex's face wore a sincere smile, like a fan meeting their idol, eager but hesitant to get too close.

Suddenly, Alex looked up at Emma, curiosity in his eyes. "Emma, where are the children?"

"What?" Emma was momentarily taken aback, not expecting the sudden shift in topic.

"This is an orphanage, right? Where are the children?" Alex blinked, adding, "I want to interview them too. My editor gave me a big section for this story."

"The children... yes, they should be in morning class now. Sister Lisa takes them there every morning." Emma's smile didn't waver.

To confirm this, a faint sound of recitation drifted from a distant classroom. Alex turned towards the direction of the classroom.

"Would you like to see them? The children would love to meet you." Emma tilted her head, inviting him kindly.

Listening to her, Alex's smile slowly faded, replaced by a stern, cold expression.

"No need."

As he spoke, Alex raised his left hand. Instantly, a particle beam gathered in his palm.

Pong!

Crack—

The repulsor blast struck 'Emma' square on her chest, it's sound was followed by the sound of shattering glass. As she fell to the ground, Alex turned, hiding the Iron Man gauntlet in his sleeve, and looked at the collapsed 'Emma.'

"You deceived me, Emma."

It was a dried corpse, with a palm-sized hole in its chest from the blast. It had been dead for some time, its clothes decayed and emitting a faint stench of rot.

"I guess you are Sister Lisa."

Staring at the corpse for a moment, Alex slowly pulled out the photo he had taken earlier. The picture now showed two lifeless, hollow-eyed corpses.

...

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