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  Toph stood in the ter of the courtyard at Xavier’s School fifted Youngsters, her bare feet pnted firmly on the ground, feeling the vibratioh her. She could sense every shift in the earth, every movement of those around her—except for the one person she o keep track of the most: Storm.

  The wind whipped around her, a gust that sent chills down the spines of those watg from the sidelines. But Toph, as always, was uerred. Storm’s attacks were relentless, striking from above where Toph couldn’t sehem through the earth. It was frustrating, infuriating even, but she refused to let it get to her. Nero had warned her about this, about the dangers of fag an oppo who could take to the air, and he’d drilled her on Observation Haki relentlessly.

  She inhaled deeply, fog on the space around her, lettiher seake over where her sightless eyes failed. Storm was somewhere above, using the wind to her advantage, and Toph had to rely on her newly honed Haki to feel her out. The air buzzed with electricity as Storm summoned lightning, the charge building up, ready to strike.

  Toph could feel it—the subtle shift imosphere, the way the air crackled just before the bolt came down. She moved, her body reag on instinct, and the lightning struck the ground where she had been just moments before, leaving a scorched pat the earth.

  “Yettier at this,” Storm called out, her voice carried on the wind. “But you o trust your instincts more. You ’t always rely on the ground.”

  Toph gritted her teeth, frustration bubbling up inside her. Trust her instincts? It wasn’t that simple. Her whole life, she’d depended on the earth beh her feet, on the vibrations that told her where to step, where to strike. Taking that away from her felt like losing a limb.

  Anust of wind blew past her, and she could feel Storm moving again, cirg her from above. Toph closed her eyes, not that it made much difference, and focused on her breathing. Nero’s voice echoed in her mind, urgio stay calm, to reach out with her senses beyond just what she could feel in the earth.

  “e on, Toph,” she muttered to herself, her fists ched. “You’ve got this.”

  The air around her grew heavy, thick with moisture as Storm prepared atack. This time, Toph didn’t wait for it to e to her. She stomped her foot on the ground, sending a shockwave through the earth, but she didn’t expect it to hit Storm. It was a distra, a way to force Storm to reveal herself, to make her move.

  The ground quaked, sending ripples outward, and Toph felt the fai disturban the air—just enough to pinpoint Storm’s location. She smirked, twisting her body and ung a rock straight into the sky, not toward where she felt the disturbance, but where she predicted Storm would dodge to.

  A sharp gasp followed by the sound of the rock shattering against an invisible barrier told Toph she’d hit her mark, or at least e close. She grinned, proud of herself for the briefest moment before the wind picked up again, this time mgressive, more determio throw her off bance.

  “ry, Toph,” Storm called, her voice ced with approval. “But you’ll have to do better than that.”

  Toph huffed, brushing off the pliment as she tried to steady herself against the buffeting wind. “I keep this up all day,” she shot back, though she could feel the strain in her muscles, the toll this training was taking on her.

  Storm was relentless, not giving Toph a moment’s rest. The attack came from above, a burst of wind that nearly koph off her feet. She dug her heels in, refusing to be thrown, but the effort left her exposed. Storm seized the opportunity, sending a bolt of lightning streaking down toward Toph.

  This time, Toph didn’t dodge. She couldn’t—not with the wind pressing down on her like a weight. But she didn’t o. With a shout, she smmed both hands into the ground, pulling up a wall of stone just in time to absorb the impact of the lightning. The force of the strike shattered the wall, sending ks of rock flying in all dires, but Toph remaianding, her stanwavering.

  “Yetting predictable, Storm!” Toph shouted, her voice defiant as she tried to catch her breath.

  Storm desded slightly, just enough for Toph to sense her closer to the ground. “Am I now?” she replied, a hint of amusement ione.

  Toph couldn’t help but smirk. “You think you’re so tough because you fly and shoot lightning,” she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. “But guess what? I’ve got tricks too.”

  She felt the earth beh her feet, the f solidity of it grounding her, givirength. But she didn’t to fight Storm, irely. She closed her eyes again, f herself to tu everything but the fai vibrations in the air, the subtlest ges that would give Storm away.

  There—a slight shift in the pressure arouhe ti movement that indicated Storm reparing to strike again. This time, Toph was ready. She didn’t move to block or dodge; instead, she went on the offensive.

  With a sharp inhale, she extended her senses outward, letting her Observation Haki guide her movements. The air hummed with energy as Storm charged up anhtning bolt, but Toph didn’t flinch. She could feel the exaent wheack was about to e, the split sed before Storm released it.

  Toph moved in a blur, faster than she had before, ung herself toward the source of the disturban the air. Her hands shot out, and for the first time, she felt it—Storm’s presenot through the earth, but through the air itself. It was faint, like a whisper in her mind, but it was enough.

  She twisted mid-air, swinging her leg in a wide arc. The motio a shockwave through the air, disrupting the lightning bolt Storm had just released. The bolt fizzled out before it could even reach the ground, leaving Storm momentarily stunned.

  Toph nded with a thud, a wide grin on her face as she straightened up. “Gotcha,” she said, a note of triumph in her voice.

  Storm hovered above, a look of surprise crossing her face before it softened into a smile. “Impressive, Toph,” she said, genuine admiration ione. “You’ve e a long way.”

  Toph shrugged, trying to py it cool despite the adrenaliill c through her veins. “Yeah, well, I had a good teacher,” she said, irely willing to admit just how much this vieant to her.

  Storm touched down lightly, the wind around her settling as she approached Toph. “But don’t get too cocky,” she added, a teasing glint in her eye. “There’s always room for improvement.”

  Toph rolled her eyes, but she couldn’t suppress the smile tugging at her lips. “Yeah, yeah, I know,” she said, though she couldn’t help feeling a surge of pride. This rogress, real progress, and it felt damn good.

  All of a sudden, Sokka’s frantic voice broke the silence, ruining the moment as always. “Look at the sky! Look, Toph, you see it?”

  Toph, suppressing her satisfied grin from the earlier spar, couldn’t resist messing with him. She turned her head towards a random part of the sky, waving her hands dramatically. “Do I? Of course I do!” she excimed, sarcasm dripping from her voice. She then csped her arms across her chest, turning away with a bemused snort.

  Sokka caught himself, realizing his blunder. "Sorry," he muttered sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck.

  Storm, meanwhile, had her attention on the fiery message burning in the sky. She squinted, reading it aloud with a hint of . "‘The Hand, your King demands an audience?’" She sed the message, her mind already w through the implications. "Is that Kira?"

  Sokka nodded, his earlier embarrassment gone as he focused ouation. "Yeah, it’s gotta be him. He’s been causing all sorts of trouble, just bsted Pier 37 to bits. Haioned something about Mago being involved too. Wolvi thinks we should check it out."

  Toph, who had been listening quietly, felt a surge of curiosity at the mention of Kira. Though she couldn’t see the sky, the vibrations in Sokka’s void the tension in Storm’s words told her everything she o know. "So, what’s the pn?" she asked, keepione casual despite the underlyiement she felt.

  Storm took a deep breath, her mind clearly rag through the possibilities. "We o figure out what’s going on. If Kira’s making a move, and Mago’s involved, it could mean trouble for all of us."

  Sokka nodded, gng at his phone as it beeped with a new message. "Hank and Scott are on it. The Hand’s this shady anization with ties to all kinds of crime—" He paused, his face darkening as he read the ini. "Shit. This is not good."

  Toph, always attuo the shifts in people’s voices, picked up oension immediately. "What’s wrong, Snoozles?" she asked, turning toward the sound of his voice, already expeg some bad news..

  Sokka hesitated, then sighed. "The Hand’s got an underground facility where they’re experimenting on mutants. Kira cut a deal with Mago—he causes trouble for the Hand, and Mago gets to free the mutants. But you know what that means. We ’t let those mutants fall into Mago’s hands. He’ll brainwash them into devoted ‘superior homos!’"

  Toph rolled her eyes, a smirk tugging at her lips. "It’s Homo Superior, fool."

  Ign their bickering, Storm stepped forward, her tone sharp and anding. "How do you know all this, Sokka? We’ve only just heard about Kira’s move."

  Sokka gnced up from his phone, his expression serious. "I used to survive in Hell’s Kit. I have a tact there still." He held up his phone, showing the message he’d just received. The sender’s name fshed on the s: Saintess Sakura.

  Storm’s eyes narrowed slightly, reizing the name. "Saintess Sakura... She’s that healer from Hell’s Kit, right? We tried recruiting her once, but she turned us down. Said her help was for everyone, free of charge."

  Sokka turo Storm, urgen his voice. "This just got bigger. You talk to the big boss. I’ll get Hank to prep the jet. Toph, go grab Jane and the others. We’ve got a mission."

  Storm let Sokka’s anding tone slide. Despite his younger age, he knew how to rise to the occasiohings got serious, and this was definitely one of those times. Sokka wasn’t oo mess around wheakes were high.

  Toph gave a curt nod, no time for banter. She unched herself into the air, nding with a thud that sent ripples through the ground. With a powerful stomp, she sent a massive vibration through the earth, feeling out the locations of everyone in the school. It was her way of sweeping the area, making sure she kly where to go.

  Her senses extended outward, the vibration spreading through the ground like a wave. She felt the walls, the floors, the students milling about i was like reading a map, each person’s position ing to her in an instant. There was Jane, he sce bs. The others were scattered around, but oo far.

  Toph took off, her feet barely skimming the ground as she made her way to the bs. The world around her was alive with movement, the subtle shifts in the earth guiding her as she darted between buildings. She could feel the ground pulsih her, a living, breathing thing that she was intimately ected with.

  As she reached the b, she smmed her hand against the wall, sending a shockwave through the room. "Jane, we’ve got a situation. Sokka says we’re on a mission—grab year a at the jet."

  Inside, Jane jumped slightly, feeling the tremor in the floor beh her. She didn’t o ask questions; Toph’s tone said it all. "Got it," Jane called out, already moving to gather her things. She knew when Toph meant business, there was no time to waste.

  Toph didn’t wait around. She turned on her heel and shot off toward the dorms where the others were. Each step sent more vibrations out, trag her friends. She found Jubilee lounging oeps, and Kitty was just ihe entrance, chatting with Colossus.

  "Jubilee, Kitty! Get to the jet, now!" Toph barked, her voice cutting through the casual atmosphere. The urgen her voiapped them out of their rexed state immediately.

  Jubilee’s pyful demeanor vanished as she scrambled to her feet, reizing the seriousness in Toph’s tone. "On it, Toph!"

  Kitty phased through the door and gave Colossus a quiod. "e on, big guy, we’re needed," she said, her voice steady as she took off after Toph.

  Colossus didn’t need more than that. He followed, his heavy footsteps eg through the hall as they made their way toward the jet.

  Toph moved through the school like a whirlwind, colleg everyohey needed with a speed that only she could manage. She reached the hangar just as Sokka and Hank were running final checks o. The vibrations of the engine were strong, humming through the ground, ready t into a.

  "Sokka, everyone’s on their way," Toph reported, her tone all business.

  "Good," Sokka replied, barely looking up as he and Hank fiheir prep work. "We’ve got no time to lose. Storm’s handling things with the Professor. We move as soon as she gets here."

  Toph nodded, pnting her feet firmly on the ground as she waited. One by ohe others arrived, each with a determined look on their face. Jubilee and Kitty slipped inside, already suited up for a. Jane appeared a moment ter, her usual calm repced by a sharp focus. Colossus brought up the rear, his massive frame making the hangar feel smaller than it was.

  Storm arrived st with Cyclops and Logan, her expression grim but posed. "We’re cleared for takeoff," she said, her voice carrying the weight of what y ahead. "The Professor’s aware, arusting us to hahis."

  Hank fihe st of the checks and gave a thumbs-up to Sokka. "Yood to go," he firmed.

  Logan turo the group, his face serious. "Alright, listen up, bubs. We’re heading into a situation with a lot of unknowns. Kira’s involved, and that’s bad enough, but with Mago and the Hand in the mix, we o be ready for anything. Stick to your training, and stay focused. We do this by the book, no heroics."

  When they arrived at the shopping district, chaos was already in full swing. Toph could feel the vibrations of hundreds of feet pounding against the ground, the frantiergy of the battle surging through the earth like a living thing. The air was thick with tension, and even without seeing, Toph could sehe danger surrounding them.

  As the jet oph immediately sprang into a, her feet eg with the pavement in a solid thud. The vibrations raced up through her legs, giving her a clear picture of the battlefield. She could feel the clustered masses of Hand agents moving iic patterns, their steps heavy and uncoordinated, like they were trying tain trol of a situation that had already spiraled out of their grasp.

  Above, she could sehe faint hum of energy that indicated Storm was flying overhead, ready to strike at a moment’s notice. But then Toph felt something else—a preseting through the air with a swifthat set her senses on edge. It was Kira, his ughter eg through the streets, his presence a dark void in the sky as he soared away from the battlefield. The vibrations in the air told her everything she o know: Kira was in trol, and he was enjoying every sed of it.

  For a brief moment, Toph could feel Storm’s hesitation in the air, like the crackle of static before a lightning strike. Storm was torn, caught between the urge to chase after Kira and the duty to stay with her team. But the chaos on the ground demanded her attention, and Toph felt the shift as Storm made her decision, redireg her focus to the battlefield below.

  Toph smirked, catg the movement of her teammates as they spilled out of the jet. “Guess it’s our turn to up the mess,” she muttered, feeling the energy of the earth c through her, ready to be unleashed.

  The grouh her feet shifted as she sent a powerful tremor through the pavement, targeting the dense cluster of Hand agents that were verging on the bookstore. She felt the shockwave ripple out in a wide arc, the earth responding to her and as it buckled and cracked, throwing the agents off bahe vibrations told her they were stumbling, their rhythm broken, and that was all the opening she needed.

  “Stay focused,” Cyclops barked, his voice cutting through the chaos as he fired a precise bst at a group of agents trying troup. His beams were sharp and trolled, carving a path through the enemy ranks with deadly accuracy. “We o keep them tained. Don’t let them scatter.”

  Toph nodded, already sensing the agents trying troup after her attack. She stomped her foot, and the earth answered, jagged spikes shooting up from the ground to hem them in, f them back toward the entrance of the bookstore. Each step she took sent tremors through the ground, pushing the agents closer and closer to their iable frontation with the X-Men and the Brotherhood.

  Kitty phased through a nearby wall, reappearing behind a group of agents who had broken off from the main cluster. With a swift, fluid motion, she disarmed them, her movements ghost-like as she dahrough their attacks.

  Jubilee joihe fray, her hands crag with energy as she unleashed a barrage of explosive bsts. The bright fshes of light and color disoriehe agents, sending them scattering in fusion. Toph grinned, feeling the familiar rush of adrenaline. She didn’t o see the explosions to know they were effective; the vibrations told her everything she o know.

  Colossus barreled through the chaos like a living tank, his massive frame plowing through the agents with unstoppable force. He didn’t o be fancy—his sheer strength was enough to send the Hand’s soldiers flying in every dire. “Keep the pressure on!” he rumbled, his voice deep and unwavering as he tio bulldoze his way through the enemy ranks.

  Jane, who had been holding back slightly, finally stepped into the fray with calcuted precisioelekiic powers lifted debris from the ground, turning it into projectiles that she u the agents trying to break away from the fight. She was methodical, each strike measured and deadly.

  Logan, cws out, was already ihe bookstore, cutting down any Hand agents who had mao slip inside. His growls and the sound of metal meeting flesh echoed through the building, adding another yer of iy to the fight. “They’re trapped now,” he snarled, his voice carrying out into the street. “Let’s finish this.”

  With the st of the Hand agents ered between the X-Men and the Brotherhood, Storm finally desded from above, her presence bringing a sudden stillo the battlefield. The wind swirled around her, carrying an aura of authority that silehe chaos for a moment. “This is your st ce,” she called out to the agents, her voice calm but with an edge of steel. “Surrender, or face the sequences.”

  The agents, their backs against the wall, hesitated. Toph could feel the uainty in their movements, the faltering of their steps as they realized they were outmatched. But they were traio fight, to resist until the end, and she could sehem steeling themselves for a final, desperate stand.

  “Looks like they made their choice,” Toph said, the ground tremblih her as she prepared to strike.

  Without waiting for further orders, she sent a massive k of Earth through the earth, the force of it rippling through the street and smming into the agents with bone-crushing impact. The ground buckled and heaved, throwing them off their feet and into the waiting arms of the X-Men and the Brotherhood, who wasted no time in subduing them.

  As the dust settled, Toph could feel the remaining agents lying motionless on the ground, their fight drained from them. She stood in the middle of the battlefield, her chest heaving as she caught her breath.

  The group barely had time to catch their breath before they found themselves fag the Brotherhood. Mystique stood at the front, her arms crossed, a sly grin pying on her lips as she positioned herself in front of a trapdoor leading down into the earth. The tensioweewo groups alpable, the air thick with anticipation as they sized each other up.

  Storm stepped forward, her expression calm but her voice firm. "We know mutants are being held below, Mystique. But we won’t let you take them."

  Mystique's eyes narrowed, the smirk fading from her face. "And what makes you think you have any say in this, Storm? Those mutants are ing with us, where they belong. Not to be brainwashed into pying h humans."

  oved to stand beside Storm, his posture rigid, one hand h near his visor. "This isn’t up for debate, Mystique. We won’t let you use those mutants as pawns in your war."

  "War?" Mystique scoffed, her voice dripping with disdain. "You still don’t get it, do you, Scott? This isn’t about war—it’s about survival. Those mutants down there o learn who they really are, not be coddled by Xavier’s dream."

  "You mean maniputed into being ons," Kitty shot back, phasing through the debris as she joihe standoff. "That’s all you ever want, Mystique. More soldiers for your cause."

  Mystique’s gaze shifted to Kitty, her eyes cold. "Better soldiers than victims."

  Before the argument could escate further, Toph, who had been silently feeling the vibrations around her, suddenly stiffened. "Oh no," she muttered under her breath, her expression tightening.

  Everyone’s attention so her, the argument halting as they registered the urgen her voice.

  "What is it, Toph?" Storm asked, her focus shiftiirely to the earthbender.

  Toph’s hands ched at her sides, her bare feet rooted to the ground as she trated. "A group of people... they’ve carved a path underground," she said, her voice "tense". "They took all the mutants away."

  "What?" Cyclops snapped, his voice ced with disbelief. "How could they—"

  "Whoever they were, they knew what they were doing," Toph interrupted, her tone clipped. "The ground shifted, but I couldn’t pick it up until it was too te. They were too deep, too fast."

  "Dammit!" Logan growled, his cws extending as he turo face Mystique. "Is this your doing?"

  Mystique’s eyes widened, genuine surprise flickering across her features. "We had nothing to do with it," she replied, her voice steady, but her expressioraying her frustration. "We came here for the mutants, but it seems someone else got to them first."

  Stnced back at the trapdoor, her mind rag. "We o find out where they’ve takeoph, you track them?"

  Toph shook her head, her "frustration" evident. "No. They’re too deep, and the tunnels are colpsing behind them. Whoever they are, they covered their tracks."

  Mystique cursed under her breath, clearly a the sudden turn of events. "Great. Now we’ve lost them," she muttered, gring at the X-Men as if they were somehow to bme.

  Cyclops tightened his grip on his visor, his mind running through their dwindling options. "Then we have to find another way to track them. Maybe Cerebro—"

  "Fet Cerebro," Mystique cut him off, her tone sharp. "If they’re underground, even Xavier will have a hard time pinpointing them. We o spread out, search the area for any clues."

  Storm shot Mystique a look of warning. "We’re not splitting up. We do this together, or not at all."

  "Then stay out of our way," Mystique snapped, stepping aside to allow her team access to the trapdoor. "We don’t have time tue."

  Logan’s growl deepened as he moved to block their path, his cws glinting in the dim light. "You’re not going down there alone."

  Before the situation could spiral further, Toph stomped her foot, sending a ripple through the earth that silenced everyone. "Enough!" she barked, her voice cutting through the tension like a khe mutants are already gone. Fighting each other won’t bring them back."

  Everyone fell silent, the weight of Toph’s words sinking in. Mystique’s gre softened, and even Logahed his cws, though his eyes remained locked on the Brotherhood.

  Storm nodded, her expression resolute. "Toph’s right. We o focus on finding those mutants. And if it means w together, then so be it."

  Mystique hesitated, her eyes flig between the X-Men and her own team. After a long moment, she sighed, her posture rexing slightly. "Fine. We’ll cooperate... for now. But make no mistake, Storm. The moment those mutants are safe, they’re ing with us."

  "We’ll see about that," Storm replied, her tone measured but unyielding.

  From the start, Nero had no iion of letting Mago or Xavier take the mutants, not when he had the Neogenes, led by Warren, under his wing. Kira’s offer to Mago was simple: cause chaos a Mago’s people believe they were saving the mutants. But he never said he’d let Mago keep them. And as for Sokka, his alert to the X-Men was nothing more than a clever distra, keeping the Brotherhood and the X-Men busy while the Neogenes swooped in and took everyone.

  --

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