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Hello! Thank you for choosing to give this story a chance! This is my first ever X-Men fanfic, as I've only recently finished watching all of the movies at the insistence of my husband. I'm so glad that he was relentless in his efforts to convince me to give them a chance, because I love them! In particular, I love the character of Magneto – not quite a villain, but definitely not always a hero. I hated that he didn't have the happy ending that he deserved with someone that he loved, so I decided to change that, at least in my own mind.

Some disclaimers beforehand: I obviously do not own any of the characters in the Marvel universe, save for the ones that I invent myself. Also, I am only very loosely following the storyline. I will be taking a lot of artistic license with this story, so please keep that in mind as you read and forgive me. Some of the characters and events may seem different, so you've had your fair warning. This story takes place around the time of the events in DC, so Apocalypse has yet to happen.

I think that's all that I have to say beforehand. I hope that you enjoy the story and, if you do, please leave a review! I'm a big fan of constructive criticism and suggestions. Favorites and follows are also appreciated, as are private messages. I try to respond to every private message that I receive.

Happy Reading!

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Chapter One: In the Beginning

* Calla *

It was a calm day in Egypt, which meant that it was the perfect environment for tourists. They came from all over the world to stare at the pyramids and wonder aloud about those that had built them.

But I didn't have to wonder.

I'd been there.

The sun was high in the sky and I was sweating beneath all of the garb that Egyptian women wore daily, but I didn't dare remove it. I didn't want to draw any unnecessary attention to myself, and blending in was the only way to be sure of that.

It was drawing near to time for the tour of the pyramid, so I made my way over to the group, edging closer step by step. A woman travelling alone would draw too much attention, so I hoped that if I quietly snuck into the middle of the group, no one would pay me any mind. To my great relief, it worked. Soon, my plan would be complete and I could finally rest. Possibly for the rest of time.

Minute by minute, I reminded myself. Nothing is final yet.

But soon, hopefully, it would be.

The tour guide arrived just then – a short, stocky man dressed in explorer garb. No doubt, he was one of those that had tried to explore the pyramids for loot. Perhaps he'd used up all of his money and was offering tours to earn his ticket home. England, I guessed from his pale skin and smooth accent.

He spoke to us about group safety for a few minutes and then waved for us to follow him towards the pyramid. I stayed right in the middle of the group, not even listening to the conversation around me or to the guide, who spoke of the pyramid's history rather inaccurately. If only he knew of the people that had constructed the great pyramids, the battles that had been fought there, the people that had been so reverently laid to rest there…

I'll be among them soon.

The group came to an abrupt halt and it was all I could do not to slam into the back of the tall gentleman walking just in front of me. There was gasping and murmuring, and I peered around the man's arm to see what looked to be a mirage in the distance, floating beside the pyramid.

It was a man – tall, strong, and dressed in the traditional loincloth of a time long ago. His shoulder length hair was a rich brown, and I knew that his eyes matched. In fact, I knew nearly everything about this man. At one time, he'd been a lover of mine.

"Just a mirage," the guide assured the group, chuckling. "People see all kinds of things out here in the desert. That's why it's imperative that you remain hydrated and stay together. The desert can drive people to madness."

Those around me continued to whisper about the "mirage" that they had seen, and I did my best to ignore him floating there, looking at me with sad eyes. I wondered if he knew what I was planning.

Of course he does. Why else would he be here?

But I told myself that my mind was simply inventing things due to the heat. In an effort to convince myself of this, I took the canteen from its holder on my hip and took a few deep swallows of the water inside.

The heat wouldn't have this effect on you. On others, yes, but never on you.

I told my inner voice to be silent and stopped with the group at the base of the pyramid. There, the guide gave everyone permission to touch the structure. As the people moved to do so, my heart began to pound inside of my chest. My opportunity had finally presented itself.

Deep breath.

I moved forward as the others did, and I placed my hand against the aged stone, closing my eyes. I felt the connection instantly, and my body buzzed with it. But the entrance that I had created so long ago was not there. Reaching out with my mind, I discovered that we were on the wrong side of the pyramid; I hadn't even noticed, as I'd been trying so hard just to blend in.

With a low curse, I blew out a breath and focused my energy. In the next instant, the people around me shrieked and gasped as a sudden burst of powerful wind kicked up sand all around them. I used it as my cover to rush away, and only let up once I was safely at the entrance.

Moments later, I was inside, and the entrance closed behind me. The smell of old dust nearly overwhelmed me, but I knew that I would grow used to it after a few minutes. I needed to press on. I owed it to myself to press on.

The flame that I had conjured floated beside me as I navigated through the narrow, twisting tunnel. I walked with purpose, eager for my end. Not the true end that I had desired for centuries now, but close enough. It was better than the endlessness that I'd been forced to endure since the beginning of time.

The narrow tunnel eventually opened up into a larger chamber and I felt a sense of peace as I lit the waiting torch mounted on the wall. There was a pallet on the floor and nothing else visible to the eye, though my treasures were buried far beneath my feet. I hadn't kept much on my journey through life, but the things that I had would always be safe, and that gave me comfort.

Before I could lose my courage, I knelt and then laid on the pallet on the floor. Staring up at the ceiling above me, I spoke aloud. "It ends here."

Nothing answered me back, so I closed my eyes. I searched through my being for the power at my core and, once I had reached it, I unleashed all of it. The ground trembled beneath me, the air swirled all around me and far, far away the fire and water reacted. Destruction was the price of my peace, but I felt that I had earned it. In truth, I had earned it long, long ago.

And then there was darkness.

And silence.

Finally.

"Not yet."

My consciousness opened its eyes and looked around at the forest. I recognized it from so long ago, and I had thought that I would never see it again.

And then Nour was in front of me, clearer than he had been beside the pyramid.

"Not yet," he repeated, and gave me a small smile. "Is this truly what you desire? To forfeit this gift?"

"This curse," I corrected him and felt the tears sting my eyes. "Why won't it let me die?"

"Most would consider immortality a great gift," he said softly, and I remembered how he had died. Shot through the heart with an arrow in battle. I remembered my pain upon hearing of his death, though it wasn't the last pain that death would ever cause me. Not by a long shot.

"I am sorry for your death," I whispered, and then my voice grew as strong as my resolve. "But those that say that immortality is a gift have never experienced it."

"None have. Save for you." He stepped closer and smiled at me, sadness in his eyes. "What is it that you are hoping death will bring you?"

The words left my body as no more than a soft breath. "An end."

"You know you cannot accomplish this."

I knew. I had tried more times than I could even count. "I know that I cannot bring death to myself. But I believe that I have discovered a way to… make myself sleep. Perhaps even forever. Alive, but… only barely."

"And that is better than living?" The tone of his voice told me that he did not believe that it was. "To lie in a hidden chamber forever rather than to experience the world?"

I snorted. "I have experienced the world, I can assure you." I could not think of a place that I had not been.

"It is ever changing," he disagreed and frowned. "Even this pyramid, for all that it is the same, has changed much."

"It's older, but it hasn't changed all that much. Not to me."

"Do not do this," he pleaded with me. "I wish so much more for you. And I know there must be others who would say the same. You are too gifted to remain locked away from civilization forever."

"Civilization means nothing to me." I hoped that he could see how true it was. How much I meant it. How much I wanted this.

And he did. With a sigh and much sadness in his eyes, he nodded his head. "Very well. Then I will not keep you any longer."

And then everything went black.

* One Hundred and Twenty-Three Years Later *

Alex Kent jumped as a bug flew out of the pile of rubble and nearly into his eye. With a cry of disgust, he swatted at it until it had disappeared. When he straightened, he saw many of the workers laughing at his misfortune, and felt his face turn bright red.

"Kent, stop fooling around." Professor Michael Reed was clearly annoyed with his research assistant. Alex was young and almost as intelligent as the professor himself, but Michael wished that he possessed just a tad more decorum. The workers that they'd hired already thought him a fool, and Michael did not wish to be a fool by association. He was a professor, for God's sake, and one of the world's foremost authorities on ancient Egypt. That's why he had been granted so much access to the pyramids. Access that had led to a most curious discovery.

While studying some of the tombs inside of the Great Pyramid of Giza, a most helpful device had alerted him to the presence of a hidden chamber. With permission, he had begun to tunnel his way into it. Well… the workers had begun to tunnel the way into it. And along the way, they were coming across some most intriguing hieroglyphics. They seemed to tell of a being with immense power. A goddess, Professor Reed had decided, for the Egyptians depicted in the drawings seemed to be worshipping her.

He was under the impression that the hidden chamber was her tomb, and he was most excited to be the one to discover it. He could only imagine the great riches that they would have buried a goddess with, and he couldn't help but wonder if he would be allowed to keep a jewel or two as a thank you for his discovery. Of course, he could always slip one into his pocket when no one was looking…

"Professor!"

Alex's voice drifted into his ears only a split second before a blast sent him flying backwards. As luck would have it, he crashed into a pile of sandbags which, while not the softest thing in the world to land on, provided much more cushion than the piles of stone scattered about. Looking around, he noted that some of the other men hadn't been so lucky.

Alex Kent was mere feet away, crouched behind a rather large pile of stone. His face sported a few bleeding cuts and he was covered in dust, but he seemed to be fine otherwise.

Michael coughed and struggled to sit up, certain that his ribs were bruised, if not broken. "I said that no dynamite was to be used." He was going to ruin the man that had dared to disobey his orders.

"No one brought dynamite, Professor." Alex coughed and shakily pulled himself to his feet. "Did you not feel the earthquake?"

Not that he could recall, but he had been quite preoccupied with thoughts of the riches of the tomb. Of course, he didn't voice that. "You mean to tell me that the blast was a result of the earthquake? Earthquakes don't cause explosions."

"I know, Professor. I'm only telling you what I witnessed. They had just broken through the last wall and into the chamber there and-"

"They made it into the chamber?" Suddenly, nothing else mattered. Not the earthquake, not the explosion, and not even the men that had died. Michael Reed could think only of the fame that would be awarded him when he presented his discovery. Of course, he was already famous in anthropologic circles, but after this… the entire world would know his name. He would not only be famous, but wealthy. And after years and years of research, he deserved it.

"Yes, but-"

He ignored Alex and climbed down from the pile of sandbags, ignoring the pinching pain in his chest. "What did it hold?"

"No one had a chance to look inside, Professor. Professor!" he called after him as Michael rushed towards the large hole in the wall. "Wait! You need to put on a suit so that you cannot be contaminated by any bacteria!"

With a curse, the professor stopped and returned to the spot where Alex was preparing all of the materials that they would need. All around them, the workers that had lived were lamenting the dead, and warning of the great danger that rested in the chamber that they had discovered. But the professor ignored them all. There was no such thing as curses.

Once they were suited up in the appropriate protective equipment, the professor and Alex made their way towards the chamber. The air around Michael buzzed with his own excitement and as he reached the entrance, he clicked his flashlight on and shined it inside.

His disappointment was almost palpable. There were no jewels, or riches of any kind. The chamber was small and held only the body of a woman lying upon the ground. So, not a perceived goddess, then, as the Egyptians never would have buried a goddess in such a small chamber or lying upon the ground.

"Just a body," the professor said in disgust. "Not even wrapped in Egyptian fashion. Likely just a looter that could not find her way out and died alone."

"But how did she get into the chamber?" Alex slowly approached the body and reached out with their dusting tool and began to swipe away the dust. As he did, the professor shined his flashlight all around the chamber, hoping that he was missing something.

Sadly, he was not.

"Professor!"

At the surprise in Alex's voice, Michael whirled around. "What? What is it?" But then he saw. "It can't be."

All of the dust was gone from the woman's face and she looked… impeccable. No decay whatsoever. In fact, she had beautiful, flawless skin accented with high cheekbones and a wide forehead.

"How is that possible?" the professor whispered as Alex continued to dust with renewed vigor.

"Her clothes look to be from the 1800s," Alex said as he took in the garb that the woman wore. "This is… incredible. She's somehow been perfectly preserved." He reached out slowly and touched the body. "She's not even hard. How is this possible?"

Perhaps I may become famous for my discovery after all, Michael thought. Even if there are no riches.

"Professor! She's alive!" Alex's shocked expression told him that it was no joke. His assistant was crouched beside the body, his ungloved hand on her wrist. "She has a pulse!"

"My God…" The professor rushed forward to feel for himself, as none of this seemed possible. But it was somehow possible, for the professor could also feel the faint pulse in the young woman's wrist. "Fetch a stretcher immediately! We must get her to the nearest medical center."

"And then what?" Alex asked, but he didn't wait for an answer. He rushed out of the chamber, off to fetch a stretcher so that they could transport the woman out of here.

"I don't know," the professor answered as he stared down at the face of the miraculous young woman. "Perhaps she is a goddess after all." For surely no mere human could survive trapped inside of a pyramid for as long as it would take for that much dust to accumulate on their body.

"How did you survive?" he whispered as he gently removed her head covering to reveal dark, wavy hair.

Suddenly, there was a rumble throughout the pyramid.

Another earthquake, the professor thought, and began to stand to flee.

But before he could, he saw the young woman's eyes flutter and then fly open to reveal a blue brighter than any sky or body of water that he'd ever seen.

"You're… you're alive," he whispered, though he'd already known this. But it was one thing to suspect a miracle and another thing entirely to witness it.

"Unfortunately," the woman said, and the professor fainted right into the arms of Alex, who'd just returned with the stretcher.

* Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters *

"Erik," Charles said impatiently. "It's your move."

"I know that just as well as I did when you told me five minutes ago," Erik replied without taking his eyes off of the board. Charles was going to have him beat no matter what move he made next, but he still clung stubbornly to the last vestiges of hope.

"Then make your move so that I can call checkmate and end this game. We can always play again."

"This is our fifth game of the day," Erik reminded him and sighed, finally resigning himself to the fact that he was going to lose. Surprise, surprise. He moved his knight to take Charles' rook.

"Thank you." Charles moved his queen and called checkmate. Game over. "So, you don't want to play again? Perhaps your luck will change."

Before Erik could respond, there was a great rumbling beneath their feet. The largest earthquake that Erik had ever felt. He sprang to his feet as Charles gripped the wheels of his chair, eyes wide.

"A student?" Erik asked.

Charles shook his head. "I don't know of a student that could create an earthquake that extreme." He closed his eyes and concentrated. "People are feeling it all across the state… the nation… I need to get to Cerebro."

Erik nodded and headed for the door, Charles following close behind. On the way to Cerebro, they had to reassure students that everything was fine and they should return to the dining hall to finish their dinners. Hank McCoy, another professor at the school, met them on the way and silently joined their group.

Once inside the room that housed Cerebro, Charles reached for the helmet. "I'm going to see if I can figure out where the earthquake originated."

"You don't think it was natural?" Hank asked.

"No," Charles said. "I think that there might be a mutant out there that caused it."

"That would have to be one powerful mutant," Erik mused. "To shake an entire nation."

As Cerebro lit up, Charles spoke with wonder. "Not just a nation. Nations. I think that the whole world felt the earthquake."

"The whole world?" Hank sounded both surprised and impressed.

"Who is this mutant?" Erik mused softly.

"That's what I'm trying to find out, but… whoever it is… their mind is too strong. I can't get inside." But it was obvious that he was putting all of his energy into it.

"Someone that can keep Charles out?" Hank said softly to Erik. "I don't like this."

"Nor do I."