'To counter gods, you must use the power of gods.'
As Alex mulled over Logan's words, he found them increasingly thought-provoking, layered with meaning.
He rubbed his temples—a futile gesture, given how sluggish and clouded his mind felt—but he needed some form of release.
From their conversation so far, Logan clearly wasn't the reckless brute he used to be. If anything, he had grown wiser with age—perhaps even playing the fool to conceal how much he really understood. To be able to infer so much from Alex's fragmented explanations spoke volumes. And this Logan's appearance was completely different from the Wasteland Wolverine Alex remembered.
Most likely, this was due to him being a variant from a parallel universe.
Setting that aside, as Logan had rightly pointed out—if mortals wanted to go up against gods, deception and illusion were often their only options. They had no alternatives.
While the Dark Watchers weren't exactly mortals, and Alex wasn't exactly a god, Logan's metaphor still hit frighteningly close to the truth.
Ever since they'd severed their connection to their anchor source of cosmic energy, the fallen Watchers' combat capabilities had plummeted. Though their power was largely tech-based, using any Watcher technology now—after betraying their own kind—was essentially suicide.
If they confronted Alex head-on now, they were as good as dead. In fact, Alex wouldn't even need to lift a finger; there were multiversal entities out there who could pose a serious threat to their existence—something previously unimaginable.
The Watchers, as a race, were nearly unkillable—unless they chose death themselves. That included Alex: before, even he wouldn't have stood a chance at ending one. So now the real question emerged.
If the Dark Watchers were truly this weakened, then why would they go to such lengths—risking everything—to lure him into this universe?
Alex had no answer before. But after what Logan said, his thoughts took a new turn—perhaps there was something about this universe itself that made it special.
The Dark Watchers weren't idiots. Corrupted as they might be, the forbidden knowledge they possessed didn't dull their minds. If they chose to make a move despite the danger of being exposed, it meant one thing:
He had to be the critical piece in whatever they were planning.
'The uniqueness of the Logan's universe…'
Alex furrowed his brow. Try as he might, he couldn't think of anything particularly noteworthy. He knew this timeline well—too well. Nothing here had ever struck him as extraordinary.
He had clear memories of everything in this world: the decline of the mutants, the collapse of the X-Men, the tragic deaths of Wolverine and Charles Xavier, and the final flicker of hope found in the new generation of mutants. All of it was etched in his mind.
There were no insane Deadpools here. No apocalypse-level cataclysms. No multiversal cosmic titans descending from deep space.
Compared to other timelines, this world was... bland. Like an old man quietly slipping into the grave—no suffering, no resistance. Just silence, fading into death and oblivion.
And now, the Dark Watchers clearly wanted to rewrite that fate.
They'd even turned their eyes on him to make it happen.
But there was still one thing Alex couldn't wrap his head around: Why would those beings bring heroes from other universes into this one? It made no tactical sense.
If the Dark Watchers wanted to manipulate him using these outsiders, then they would've needed to interact with them somehow. Yet, no matter how much Alex probed, none of these foreign arrivals carried even the faintest trace of unfamiliar energy.
Even Polaris and Blink—they were completely clean. No residual cosmic signatures. No quantum distortions. They were like blank canvases, untouched by anything strange.
"Weird…" Alex muttered.
Alex muttered to himself as Miss Minutes emerged from the shadows. She floated over to the sink in front of him, staring silently at her own reflection in the mirror, then spoke.
[Sir, what are you thinking about?]
Hearing her voice, Alex slowly straightened his posture.
"Ma'am, I'm trying to figure out what's so special about this universe—and why they chose it. If they just wanted to get rid of me, there are plenty of apocalyptic timelines they could've used instead. Every one of those is crawling with threats, most of which would've been a nightmare even for me."
"I don't believe the Dark Watchers would make such a rookie mistake. If they lured me here, it means they understand this universe intimately. They selected it with extreme precision."
[You mean...]
Miss Minutes tilted her head, unsure.
[...this universe holds some hidden importance, something we don't understand—and that's why they chose it to execute their unknown plans?]
"Possibly," Alex nodded. "Earlier, I had Petra take Cloak, Dagger, Magik, and Wolfsbane and get them out of here. That was meant to test the Dark Watchers' reactions. At first, I thought they avoided showing themselves because they feared exposure, but judging from what we've seen... they've been watching those interdimensional arrivals closely the whole time."
Alex knew that with his current power, the Watchers couldn't even locate him. Or more accurately—they didn't dare to look in his direction. Because the moment one of them tried, Alex would be able to trace that gaze right back to them and pinpoint their location.
But things had changed.
The Dark Watchers had brought in numerous beings from alternate realities. At first glance, it looked like they scattered them randomly across the board—no clear pattern. Alex had been racking his brain trying to decipher their strategy, but now it seemed obvious.
'These so-called "random" pieces were actually pawns—vanguards of the Watchers' grander scheme.'
"Brilliant," Alex couldn't help but say aloud. "Absolutely brilliant."
[Brilliant? Sir, what do you mean by that?]
Miss Minutes blinked, puzzled by his tone.
"Ma'am," Alex said, voice thoughtful, "we've been dealing with the Watchers for a long time now. Tell me—when do you think they first started keeping tabs on us?"
Miss Minutes thought for a moment, then pulled out a pair of glasses from who-knows-where and placed them on her cartoonish face.
[It must've started in the Wasteland Universe. That was the first time you ever encountered one of the Watchers, right? No… wait. That particular Watcher had already been observing you for a long time. Which means... they'd begun digging into your past long before that.]
[I think it traces back to when Deadpool massacred the Marvel Universe. Before that, there were two timelines they couldn't monitor. Flashpoint Universe One was beyond their perception. And as for the Wasteland Universe, I remember in the first meeting records with the Watcher, it specifically said they'd never seen that universe in their vision.]
"Exactly. That's where the real issue lies."
Alex furrowed his brow and stroked his chin in thought.
"Do you remember exactly what the Watcher said back then? I asked him if he could see anything from the Wasteland Universe—my time there. He didn't hesitate. He immediately said that universe had never once appeared in his vision."
[Isn't that normal?] Miss Minutes blinked, confused.
"But think about it. The 'Wasteland Universe'—that's just my term for it. Yours too, in the records. I never told the Watcher what happened there. I never named it."
Alex stared directly at her, voice steady.
"So here's the question: out of the infinite multiverse, how did he immediately know which universe I was referring to? And how could he say—without pause—that it didn't exist in his sight?"
Miss Minutes froze, then her eyes widened with a surprisingly human sense of realization.
[Oh… oh wow!]
[If he'd learned about that universe by watching you or Pietro after the fact, he couldn't say he hadn't seen it—because he would've seen it through you. But if he didn't know it, how did he instantly recognize which one you were talking about?]
She frowned.
[Sir, are you saying... from the very first meeting, the Watcher was already lying to you—or at the very least, hiding something?]
Alex gave a slow, knowing nod.
The truth was, neither he nor Pietro had ever spoken about the Wasteland Universe to anyone. Ever since they left it, they hadn't returned. Alex had no idea what it had become.
The only lasting impression it left on him was the moment he tapped into the combined arcane power of two hell-bound dimensions to try and peer back at it—and in doing so, briefly locked eyes with something staring back.
"Before I came here, the Watcher warned me that this mission was extremely dangerous. That I shouldn't trust anyone... not even him." Alex murmured. "I think I finally understand what he meant—that he was already keeping secrets from me. Secrets directly tied to what I'm dealing with right now."
He turned his gaze back to Miss Minutes.
"Let's go back to what we were just discussing. There's still something about what you said that's been bothering me."
[Something... what?] she asked.
But Alex shook his head slowly, eyes closing as he dove back into their earlier exchange.
The Watcher's deception.
Two unobservable universes.
And...
A hidden significance.
Yes. That was it.
Alex's eyes flew open, a flash of light glinting within them. At that moment, he knew he had just seized a vital thread—one that might unravel everything.
....
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