Magneto took a deep breath, the shutters of cameras flashing as he spoke in his usual calm, commanding tone. Today, he was not just a mutant imploring with the world, but a leader imploring on behalf of his people.
"Ladies and gentlemen, a vast majority of you have only known of me and my reputation as what is called a terrorist, an anarchist, and other colorful terms that I will not repeat. My convictions and my background no doubt speak of a man who has seen the worst of humanity and returned such hostility with an iron fist." He paused. "Such hostility no longer has a place in our current situation. There is a threat looming on the horizon, one that will seek to annihilate anyone deemed as weak, to prune and weed out anyone who stands in his way. I know this, because this is not the first time that we as mutants have faced him. He is the being known as Apocalypse."
There were murmurs of surprise and shock as that name was familiar to many in the room.
"I stand here, as acting leader of Genosha, to implore our world leaders, and its people, to prepare for the inevitable. Apocalypse will come, and he will bring destruction upon this Earth. That is…unless we stop him."
He looked straight into the camera, and spoke.
"This is no longer about mutants versus humans. This is about the entire Earth, and how it will survive against Apocalypse. Which is why I am asking that all mutants who hear the sound of my voice to contact the X-Men. We must protect this planet against Apocalypse's regime, lest he doom us all."
The abandoned building they had found themselves in wasn't much, but it allowed them to lay low for the time being. Roberto Da Costa, so used to his upper class life, with the money and influence his family had, was understandably jarred by the experience at first. But the uncertainty of the state of the world had called for desperate measures on their part, even if tensions were high.
Jubilee and Roberto had been thrown from the explosion aboard the asteroid, and Jubilee, injured and unconscious, had put Roberto into a state of protective survival. She had twisted her ankle in the blast, and despite knowing that she probably hated his guts right now, he couldn't bring himself to leave her.
She didn't say much to him at first, unless it was necessary. After all, they had just been fighting each other on the asteroid, before everything went to hell and everyone else onboard had seemed to disappear. He had chosen Magneto over the X-men, the Master of Magnetism the only teacher he had really had when he was at the Institute, and his anger at his family for turning him over to the Prime Sentinels taking precedence.
She surprised him one morning, offering an apology. She hadn't understood his reasoning, his decision to follow Magneto. There had been hurt feelings involved on both sides, and after watching him take care of her, regardless of who was on what side, it made her realize how wrong she had been to be angry at him.
He had simply shook his head. "You don't have to be sorry, Jubes. I made a snap decision, and while I don't regret it, I am sorry that I hurt you."
Things seemed to be better after that. They made do with what they could find, and found an old banged-up television to keep an eye on the news, hoping to hear about what happened to the others, where they had gone.
Roberto was taking a nap, trying to get some much needed rest when he was shaken awake.
"Roberto! Roberto, wake up! You need to see this!" Jubilee was desperately trying to rouse him from sleep.
He shot up, rubbing his eyes. "What? What? What's going on?"
"It's Magneto! He's giving a statement at the UN."
Roberto shot out of bed and over to the TV, where a worn and exhausted Magneto was giving a statement.
"….one that will seek to annihilate anyone deemed as weak, to prune and weed out anyone who stands in his way. I know this, because this is not the first time that we as mutants have faced him. He is the being known as Apocalypse."
They heard the murmurs on the television and Jubilee's face was grim. "And here I thought we had seen the last of that guy."
Roberto kept listening, wondering where Magneto was taking this.
"... Which is why I am asking that all mutants who hear the sound of my voice to contact the X-Men. We must protect this planet against Apocalypse's regime…"
Roberto and Jubilee looked at each other, wondering if this meant that the others that had disappeared had also returned, and if it was truly safe to come out of hiding and try to find their way back to the Institute.
"What do you know about this Apocalypse guy, Jubes?"
"That he's creepy and talks too much? And taking over the world is kind of his schtick. He tried to turn mutants into his Horsemen. More like his slaves. If he's back, it's possible he may try something like that again."
"Or he could already have started. Something about the way Magneto spoke tells me that Apocalypse may have already paid a visit."
"Only one way to find out." She smirked.
He smiled and held out his hand. "You ready to blow this joint?"
The cameras and clamour of voices as he climbed into the waiting vehicle were muffled against the soundproof glass, and there was a silence that overtook the atmosphere as he sat in the car and was escorted to the Institute, the drive allowing him to be alone with his thoughts once more. Given his diplomatic status, the UN had all but insisted upon the security detail, although he couldn't help but chuckle at the thought, both at how ridiculous it was for the Master of Magnetism to be escorted in a car made primarily of metal, and the irony of how the last time he was speaking before the UN, it had been as a wanted criminal, chained and collared.
He cared not for their protocols, but he didn't have the mental strength to argue over this silly rule.
Upon arriving at the Institute, he steeled himself for the other task on his plate- rebuilding.
He knew that the speech he had given at the UN would no doubt bring any mutants that were still out there to their front door, and when he had first arrived back from Ancient Egypt, the Institute was still in ruins from Bastion's attack.
Construction had already begun, rebuilding the home of the X-Men into what it once was.
The outside would be the same, but the inside was a different story.
There was a silence, a somberness to the mansion now. Knowing that Storm, Wolverine and Morph were among the Horsemen had been a terrifying discovery, one that left the remaining X-Men shaken.
In his absence, it seemed that the remaining members had recruited some members of the Brotherhood to assist in the fight, among them his own children.
In their own unique ways, they were worried. After all, how does one react upon seeing their father, a once unmovable object, crying out in anguish?
Wanda was the pillar of strength, no words offered, but a hand on his shoulder when she passed him.
Lorna, his sweet youngest daughter, never left his side for long, like she was afraid he would break down. The words 'I'm fine, Lorna' were repeated, but even she could see it wasn't necessarily the truth.
His son, Pietro, watched from a distance. Kurt was discreetly feeding him information about his father's condition, knowing that despite the turbulent nature of their relationship, he still cared about the man who was his blood.
Magneto could handle assuring his children he was fine. He could handle talking strategy with Cyclops and Jean, observing the progress that Forge and Bishop had made with recreating the futuristic weapons of Bishop's time.
What he couldn't deal with right now was the man that was a glaring reminder of his guilt and anger.
"Magnus-" Charles Xavier, for the umpteenth time since Apocalypse had returned, had tried to talk to him.
"Charles, I am in no mood."
"Then tell me when you will be in a mood. Please, we must talk-"
"Talk about what, Charles?" He turned to face him now, the weariness in his eyes. "How you destroyed my mind twice for your own selfish gain? How you drove her away from me because you were so paranoid? Well, I suppose you don't have to worry about that now, do you?" The last sentence was spoken with bitterness.
"Magnus, that is not true. She was one of my own, too. She was f-"
"If you say the word family I will throw you across the room." He said through gritted teeth. "Is this how you treat your family? Abandoning them? Leaving them and me to figure it out as we went along?"
"Magnus…please….I know you are angry, and I know that your anger with me is deserved, but please, Rogue wouldn't want-"
"Don't. Don't you dare tell me what she would or wouldn't want. I know what she wanted. Did you? Did you even ask her?"
Before Charles could open his mouth, Magneto cut him off.
"Don't answer that. I don't particularly care for your answer. The only thing I care about right now is fixing this damn mess that we are all in, so unless you have something worthwhile to contribute, I suggest you stay out of my way."
He didn't wait for a response, the door to his room shutting with finality.