Marvel's master of cosmic magic

Chapter 582

"Target acquired: Erik Magnus Lehnsherr."

Guided by the faint golden marker only he could see, Rowan Mercer cut through the air and headed straight for his destination.

He was looking for this world’s Magneto.

Poland, 1983. Pruszków.

Inside a steel factory, Erik Lehnsherr looked like any other worker. Helmet on. Overalls stained with grease. Hands steady as he operated heavy machinery.

Ten years earlier, after the incident in 1973, he had become one of the most wanted men on the planet. Since then, he had vanished. Not into shadows or secret bases, but into ordinary life.

He fell in love with a Polish woman. Married her. Had a daughter.

Magneto disappeared, replaced by a man who punched a clock and came home every night.

Then the chain snapped.

A massive container of molten steel swung loose, plummeting straight toward a nearby worker.

Without thinking, Erik raised his hand.

The container froze in midair.

The man lived.

So did Erik’s secret.

Another worker had seen everything.

High above the factory floor, unseen, Rowan watched quietly.

"Perfect timing," he murmured.

He didn’t interfere. He followed the thread of events as Erik rushed home, urgency written all over him.

At the house, Erik told his wife what had happened and immediately began packing.

"You saved someone," she said firmly. "You did the right thing."

"That doesn’t matter," Erik replied, shaking his head. "If they saw me, then they’ll find you too. We have to leave. Now."

"This is our home," she said softly. "So is it for our daughter."

Erik pulled her close. "Home is wherever we are together. You knew who I was when we met. I trusted you then. Trust me now."

She nodded, then turned to call their daughter.

Nina wasn’t inside.

She wasn’t in the yard either.

Panic set in.

They found her in the nearby woods.

She wasn’t alone.

More than a dozen local officers stood waiting, armed with batons and rope. Someone had already made the call.

Erik negotiated. He surrendered himself in exchange for his daughter.

For a moment, it worked.

Then everything collapsed.

Seeing her father taken away, Nina screamed. Her fear triggered something dormant. The forest responded. Owls burst from the trees, attacking the officers in a frenzy.

One of them panicked.

A wooden bolt flew.

It struck Erik’s wife.

And his daughter.

"No!"

Erik tore free and caught them as they fell. Around him, the officers stood frozen in horror, unable to comprehend what they’d done.

Erik’s hands trembled as he unclasped the necklace from Nina’s neck. Rage flooded in, cold and absolute.

"If this is what you want from me," he whispered to the sky, "then I’ll—"

"Do you want them back?"

The voice came from directly in front of him.

Everything else stopped.

Erik looked up at a young man standing amid the frozen world.

"Who are you?" Erik demanded.

Rowan glanced down at the lifeless bodies in Erik’s arms. "Not the god you’re cursing. That much I can promise."

He met Erik’s eyes. "You don’t need to know who I am. Just this: I can save your wife and daughter. All I need is your agreement."

"They’re dead," Erik said hoarsely. "I can feel it. Even Charles couldn’t—"

"You have five seconds," Rowan said calmly. "After that, their souls are gone. Five. Four—"

"I’ll do anything!" Erik shouted. "Anything. Take my soul if you have to!"

Rowan moved.

He reached out, seized the departing souls, and forced them back into their bodies. Flesh repaired itself. Wounds closed. Life surged back in.

"I’m not a demon," Rowan said lightly. "I don’t want your soul. I just need a favor."

"Erik..."

"Papa..."

His wife and daughter opened their eyes.

Erik broke down, clutching them as if afraid they might vanish again.

When he finally looked up, his voice was unsteady. "Whatever you want... thank you."

"Give me a moment."

Rowan stepped past him and waved a hand.

Memories unraveled.

The officers blinked, confused, suddenly unsure why they were standing in the woods at all.

"I erased the memories of the worker who saw you," Rowan said. "And theirs too. You can keep living here. As a normal man."

Erik took a slow breath. "Then what do you need from me?"

"Nothing dangerous," Rowan said. "I just need you, your wife, and your daughter to disappear for a short while."

Erik stared. "Disappear?"

"You don’t need the details."

With a gesture, Rowan moved them.

They stood inside a spacious, fully furnished house. Beyond the windows stretched endless void.

"This won’t take long," Rowan said. "A week, at most."

Erik swallowed, then nodded. Whatever this was, the man hadn’t lied yet.

Rowan vanished.

Moments later, he reappeared elsewhere, his form shifting, features reshaping.

When the transformation ended, Magneto stood there.

"No," Rowan corrected quietly. "From now on, I’m Erik Lehnsherr."