The night fell rather quickly upon the mutant nation of Utopia. The skies were clear and a soothing breeze gently rocked the waters of the pacific against the rocky shore. Slowly he walked to the edge of the balcony and leaned on the railing. His gaze, perpetually hindered by the red tinge of his ruby quartz visor, seemed lost. Even though his eyes were clearly watching the powerful lights of the nearby city of San Francisco he wasn't really watching. The man known as Cyclops was lost in thought, a rather normal occurrence in these dark days. But whatever he thought, whatever his fears and worries were, he never shared.
The other man moved slowly and silently. Such was his precision that he wasn't noticed until he stood right next to him. His back was rigid as he stood tall, more likely than not hovering a few inches from the ground. His metallic helmet floated gently next to him, close to his head in case there was need of it. The man known as Magneto was not going to leave anything to chance.
For a few moments the two men stood silently, gazing into the city. The breeze increased slightly, but it was barely a caress. The silence of the night became too loud to withstand, and Magneto finally spoke.
"Are you happy Scott? Is this what you dreamed when you so idealistically confronted me at every turn?" he asked without changing his gaze, his feet finally touching the hard marble floor.
Scott Summers did not reply instantly. He weighed his options; he shifted his arms slightly upon the railing. "Are you?" he decided to answer, "Are you happy, Magnus?"
"Extremely", the old man replied. "My people are safe, which is what I always wanted. True I might have strayed from my goal through the use of more violent ways, but I always wanted mutants to be safe. You did what I could not, Scott. You saved mutantkind. For now," he stressed the last words ever so slightly, shifting his head slowly to watch the slim man who he tried to kill so many times in the past.
"For now?" Cyclops took the bait, he knew Magneto wanted him to and he felt there was no harm in humoring the old man.
"Yes. For now. I too thought the option of living peacefully in a secluded island was the way to fulfill my dreams. I fought for a heaven for years and many times I almost… lost my way, I almost lost hope. My real question is… can you hold it together Scott? Can you learn from my mistakes? Or are you doomed to repeat them? What I said the other day is not an empty phrase. The reason I came here, the reason I submitted myself to your leadership is because I see a great deal of myself in you. I see the man I wanted to be when I was your age. But life made me bitter, it made me angry and I did terrible things… things I now regret. Will you be able to learn from my past? Will you be able to be the man I should have been?"
Scott Summers did not answer. Silence returned. A wisp of cloud slowly gathered above them. The breeze seemed to grow stronger. As silently as he arrived, the man known as Magneto began to leave.
"Ponder my questions, Scott. Ponder their answers," he said as he left the balcony. And his voice became almost a whisper in the wind. "For the sake of us all…"