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XGO CHAPTER 20
🕑 Added 2025-04-11 10:42:27 +0000 UTCThe Manhattan skyline stood like a steel and glass fortress against the bruised evening sky. Storm clouds gathered with unnatural speed, swirling into a vortex above the city as lightning forked between skyscrapers. New Yorkers, accustomed to superhuman battles, heard the sound of thunder.
Then, a sonic boom shattered the fragile silence, rippling through the city with enough force to crack windows along Fifth Avenue.
Pedestrians stumbled as the pressure wave hit, car alarms blaring in a discordant chorus. Then came the shadow—darker than the night itself—streaking between buildings at impossible speed. Security cameras across the city captured only a black blur, the footage too distorted to reveal any details.
"Holy shit!" A construction worker on the 42nd floor of a half-built skyscraper dropped his wrench, which plummeted toward the street below. He fumbled for his phone. "You seeing this?"
His colleague stood frozen, staring as the sleek, reptilian form of Toothless banked hard around the Empire State Building. The Night Fury's wingspan stretched nearly forty feet, powerful muscles rippling beneath scales that seemed to absorb rather than reflect light. He moved with a predatory grace that made fighter jets look clumsy by comparison.
At Times Square, the massive electronic billboards flickered as Toothless passed overhead, the electromagnetic disturbance from his plasma-charged body temporarily disrupting the power grid. Thousands of people stood transfixed, phones raised to capture the impossible sight. The videos would later show a black silhouette against the electric glow of advertisements, green eyes flashing as the Night Fury twisted between buildings with impossible precision.
"It's heading for the harbor!" someone shouted, as Toothless executed a vertical climb, rocketing up the side of One World Trade Center. Tourists on the observation deck screamed and pressed against the glass as the dragon shot past, close enough to see the individual scales on his hide, the powerful jaw that could crush steel, and the intelligence burning in those cat-like eyes.
From his vantage point high above the city, Toothless surveyed his target. The Statue of Liberty stood illuminated against the darkening sky, but it was the flashes of combat around its base that drew his attention. Even from this distance, he could make out the distinctive red laser beams of Cyclops, the crackling electricity summoned by Storm, and the gleam of adamantium as Wolverine battled Sabretooth.
And there, at the crown of the statue, stood Magneto—his cape billowing in the wind, his hand extended toward the young woman bound to a strange device. Rogue's terrified eyes reflected the gathering storm as Magneto prepared to sacrifice her to power his mutant-enhancing machine.
Toothless tucked his wings and dived.
The air screamed around him as he accelerated, breaking the sound barrier for the second time. His streamlined body cut through the atmosphere like a missile, leaving a visible distortion in his wake. People on harbor cruises and ferry boats pointed upward, some diving for cover as the Night Fury streaked overhead, the downdraft from his wings capsizing smaller vessels.
On Liberty Island, the X-Men fought with desperate intensity, knowing that Rogue's life hung in the balance. Wolverine snarled as Sabretooth's claws raked across his chest, blood spraying across the concrete. The wounds began to close almost immediately, but the pain was real, fueling Logan's rage as he drove his own claws into his opponent's shoulder.
Nearby, Cyclops fired optic blasts at Toad, who leapt and twisted with inhuman agility, cackling as he dodged each attack. "Too slow, visor-boy!" he taunted, his long tongue whipping out to snatch Cyclops' glasses. The sudden, uncontrolled blast from Scott's eyes carved a trench in the earth and sent Toad flying, but also forced the X-Man to clamp his eyes shut, rendering him temporarily blind.
Jean Grey stood with her arms outstretched, maintaining a telekinetic shield that protected her and an injured Storm from Pyro's flames and Avalanche's seismic attacks. Sweat beaded on her forehead as she strained to hold back the onslaught, knowing she couldn't maintain the defense much longer.
"Their reinforcements are coming," Mystique reported, her yellow eyes scanning the skies. "Brotherhood, prepare for—"
A high-pitched whistle, unlike anything ever heard before, cut through the battlefield noise. Veterans of a hundred mutant conflicts looked up in confusion, having never encountered such a sound.
"What the hell is that?" Avalanche demanded, his concentration breaking as he searched for the source.
Mystique's eyes widened. "SCATTER!" she screamed, her instincts recognizing the sound of an apex predator on the hunt.
The warning came too late.
Toothless unleashed a plasma blast that struck the ground between a cluster of Brotherhood soldiers with pinpoint accuracy. The explosion sent shockwaves through the battlefield, blue-white energy clinging to everything it touched, searing through armor and flesh alike. The ground trembled as the blast ripped through the Brotherhood ranks, sending bodies flying.
Before the dust had settled, Toothless landed with a thunderous impact, wings flaring wide in a display of dominance. The battlefield fell silent for a breath—then chaos erupted once more.
"What the fuck is that thing?" one of the Brotherhood soldiers screamed, raising his weapon.
A dozen more followed suit, automatic fire erupting across the battlefield.
Toothless moved like a living shadow, a blur of lethal precision. Instead of dodging, he charged into the gunfire, his scales deflecting bullets that would have torn through armor plating. He closed the distance in seconds, jaws snapping down on the first gunman. The man's scream was cut short as Toothless flung him aside like a ragdoll.
Panic set in.
"Concentrate fire!" a Brotherhood lieutenant shouted. "It's just an animal!"
Six mutants formed a firing line, their combined powers converging on the Night Fury. But before they could launch their attacks, a sudden burst of blue light emanated from the Omnitrix on Toothless' chest. In an instant, his form shimmered and split into dozens—each a perfect replica of himself.
The Brotherhood watched in horror as the sky darkened with Night Furies, each one identical to the first. Their synchronized movements suggested an eerie intelligence, a hive mind working in perfect unison.
"Fall back!" Mystique ordered, desperation lacing her voice. "Defensive positions around Magneto!"
Juggernaut, seeing his allies faltering, roared and charged toward Toothless. "NOTHING STOPS THE JUGGERNAUT!"
Toothless turned, calculating the threat. Instead of dodging, he met the charge head-on, using the behemoth's momentum against him. At the last second, he vaulted over Juggernaut's head, then fired three plasma blasts directly into his back. The impact sent the unstoppable force crashing to his knees. Before Juggernaut could recover, Toothless wrapped his claws around the giant's massive frame and took to the sky.
Wolverine, still locked in battle with Sabretooth, stared in disbelief. "Did the kid just take down the Juggernaut?"
From the top of the Statue of Liberty, Magneto observed the carnage below with cold fascination. As debris swirled around him in a protective vortex, he murmured to himself, "Such magnificent creatures... So powerful, so evolved. So this is your power, Alex."
