A few days later, Nova sat across from Emma Stone, Wanda, Pietro, and Magneto. The room was dimly lit, the quiet hum of energy pulsing in the air.
Magneto's sharp eyes scanned Nova, taking his measure. After a long pause, he finally spoke, his voice laced with curiosity and caution.
"So… you're the newly awakened Omega-rank mutant?" he said slowly. "The one with the ability to trade with, what I think is are fictional characters?"
Nova smiled," Are you sure they are fictional? Or the information passed through universe and slipped in author's minds in form of dreams of ideas?"
Magneto didn't answer right away. His expression remained unreadable, but the flicker of thought behind his eyes betrayed a growing interest.
Suddenly Emma leaned forward and said," Well his not believing or believing doens't matter to me. Just bring out the ARCANE TRUNK and PHEONIX TEARS, I brought the money to buy them."
Pietro, seated to her left, frowned and leaned in. "Hold on. I was interested in the trunk. I said I wanted it first."
Emma turned to him slowly, her expression cool and unimpressed.
"Did you bring one million, nine hundred and fourteen thousand dollars with you?" she asked, voice flat. "In actual currency?"
Pietro didn't answer.
Magneto spoke up again, his attention still fixed on Nova. "This trunk… is it trunk that Peitro is so excited about? Time-altered interior? Half an hour outside equals an hour inside?"
Nova nodded. "That's one of its functions. It's stabilized. No temporal bleed, no spatial warping. Fully anchored."
Magneto's eyes narrowed slightly. "Technology or magic?"
"Magic," Nova answered. " Afterall wizards made it, so ofcourse it's magical."
There was a brief silence. The kind that settled before a storm. Magneto leaned back slightly, the weight of what Nova said sinking in.
"A magical artifact," Magneto said slowly, "with localized time distortion... in the possession of an Omega-level mutant who can cross realities."
He looked toward Wanda and Pietro, then back at Nova.
"Tell me—why sell it at all?"
Nova leaned back in his chair, unbothered by the question, a calm confidence in his posture. A faint smile formed on his lips as he answered.
"Why not?" he said. "I'm a trader. So, of course, I'll trade or sell things. That's what I do. Besides, I have the blueprints for this Arcane Trunk. I can have another one created—identical in every way. Or, if I want, I can commission a custom version with even more specialized features."
He paused, letting the weight of his words settle. "It'll cost more—both in materials and favors—but it's well within my reach."
Magneto studied him carefully, the gears turning behind his eyes. The silence that followed wasn't filled with doubt—it was calculation.
After a while, he asked, "Let's talk about it later. You previously said that Wanda's red energy isn't her mutant power. Then what is that red energy of hers?"
Nova smiled, "Ah, indeed. We were in the middle of negotiations, but they suddenly left… rather abruptly."
He didn't press, but the way his words lingered carried an unmistakable hint—subtle, but intentional. A quiet probe, almost as if the question was less about Wanda and more about what caused the unexpected departure.
Magneto didn't answer right away. His expression remained composed, but there was a flicker beneath the surface—something taut, restrained. Not quite irritation… more like tension coiled around caution.
"…It was something related to mutant matters," he said finally, voice clipped and measured. "Charles made a discovery. One significant enough that he felt the need to inform us in person."
Nova's eyebrows rose slightly, his expression calm, but his thoughts had already begun to stir.
So the three factions work together here. Xavier, Magneto… and the Hellfire Club?
He didn't let it show, but internally the realization sent a quiet pulse of interest through him. That's unusual. Cooperation between them isn't impossible, but rarely stable. Especially with someone like Sebastian Shaw involved.
If Magneto is working alongside Shaw instead of killing him, then what's the history here? What kind of events led to this balance?
He leaned back slightly, folding his arms in a relaxed gesture, though his thoughts were anything but idle. Was it a shared threat? A crisis? Or just cold, pragmatic politics?
Even more curious was the effect of this alliance. The world around him didn't carry the same scars he'd expected—no constant protests, no overt violence in the streets. People were cautious around mutants, yes, but the disgust, the seething hate… it wasn't in the air. Not in the same way.
They still fear mutants, he noted silently, but it's not blind rage—it's wary respect. Or maybe… calculated tolerance.
Whatever the case, it was working. At least on the surface.
Nova glanced at Magneto again. I need to find out more. About their alliance. About Shaw. About what kind of man Magneto is now, if he's willing to sit at the same table as someone he once had every reason to destroy.
Information was power. And right now, Nova didn't have enough of it.
Not yet.
But seeing that Magneto have no intention of continuing, Nova turned to Wanda," Well you previously saw the contract. Let me show it to Magneto."
Magneto looked slightly surprised and intrigued as a hologram appeared infront of Nova which soon expand and a contract appeared infront of him.
---
SYSTEM NOTIFICATION
TRADE INITIATED
TRADER: NOVA
CLIENT: WANDA MAXIMOFF
TRADE OFFER: FULL INFORMATION ON MUTANT ABILITY & CHAOS MAGIC
PAYMENT OFFERED: DNA SCAN
---
DING! TRADE ITEMS ARE NOT OF EQUAL VALUE.
DNA SCAN IS MORE VALUABLE.
TRADER, PLEASE PROVIDE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION OR MODIFY TRADE FOR SUCCESSFUL TRANSACTION.
----
Magneto's gaze lingered on the floating contract, the glow of the holographic text flickering across his stern features. Though he said nothing for a long moment, his silence wasn't idle—it was measured. Analytical. And unmistakably intrigued.
He finally spoke, voice low and firm.
"Well. According to this… Wanda's DNA scan is more valuable than the knowledge you're offering."
He glanced up, eyes locking with Nova's. "So… have you considered what you need to add to make this an equal exchange?"
Nova didn't flinch or hesitate. If anything, he looked mildly amused, as if this development was more interesting than inconvenient.
"Why don't you tell me what you want?" he said, tone casual but edged with intent.
Magneto didn't miss a beat.
"Join my Brotherhood."
The words landed with weight. Not shouted, not demanded—but delivered with certainty.
Wanda's eyes widened slightly. "Wait… you're asking him to join us?"
Pietro, who had been lounging against a column with his arms folded, straightened up. "That's new," he muttered. "Pretty sure this is the first time you've invited someone to the Brotherhood without threatening them first."
Magneto's expression didn't waver. "I see value where it exists. And Nova's value is… considerable."
Before the silence could deepen, Emma Frost's voice rang out like ice over glass.
"No."
All heads turned as she stepped forward with graceful authority, her expression unreadable but eyes flashing with defiance.
"You already have an Omega," she said to Magneto. "So does Charles. The Hellfire Club has none. That alone should make this obvious."
Her gaze settled on Nova with clinical precision.
"He belongs with us."
Nova's brow arched faintly. "Belongs?" he echoed, his tone quiet but sharp enough to draw attention. "Interesting choice of words."
Emma didn't back down. "You operate like a business. We operate like one too. That makes us compatible."
"You also lie, manipulate, and stab your allies in the back when it suits your bottom line," Pietro said with a scoff. "Very compatible."
"Pietro," Wanda warned gently.
He raised his hands. "I'm just saying."
Nova, who had been watching the exchange like someone enjoying a particularly dramatic play, finally stepped forward. His voice was calm, but with a growing edge of steel behind it.
"I'm not joining any of you. Not the Brotherhood, not the X-Men, and not the Hellfire Club."
He turned his gaze to each of them in turn. "I'm the Trader. I remain neutral. That's how this works. Anyone—any of you—can come to me. I'll listen. I'll offer. I'll deal. But I don't take sides."
The firmness in his tone left no room for argument.
Emma's lips parted like she wanted to protest again, but she didn't. Instead, she studied him for a beat longer, then tilted her head ever so slightly in acknowledgment.
Magneto's expression was unreadable, though something flickered in his eyes—respect, maybe. Or caution.
Pietro muttered under his breath, "Dude just said 'I'm Switzerland' and made it sound threatening."
Meanwhile Wanda looked at the contract still hovering in the air, the glowing text unchanged.
---
TRADE STATUS: INCOMPLETE
DNA SCAN > KNOWLEDGE OFFERED
PLEASE ADD ADDITIONAL VALUE TO BALANCE TRADE
---
XxxxX
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