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Selene's chair sat on a raised platform that may as well have been a throne on a pedestal. Lady Tessa returned and settled into position beside her. Then the doors opened and Emma entered arm in arm with Dante. Neither of them looked marginally cautious.
Selene would've written them off as idiots if she didn't know their abilities better.
'Arrogance.'
Skullfire's power was nothing in her eyes. She had seen far greater men in her lifetime and watched them crumble. If it came down to it, she could take his life without breaking a sweat; she was reasonably certain of that.
Her first action was to cast a telepathic probe toward Dante's mind. Her psionic powers touched an impenetrable wall, as though his mind wasn't even present. Perhaps his telepathy-immune was the reason Emma had been drawn to him.
"Greetings, White Queen," she said, filling her words with warmth. "And Sir Dante."
"Cut the pleasantries, Selene," Emma said, her gaze filled with a cold fury. "Why did you do that?"
"I'm afraid I'm not certain what I've done to earn my White Queen's ire."
Selene still had use for Emma and her connection to Dante. Dante and Emma's new powers, while nothing in her eyes, would be quite useful for dealing with certain problems that had grown inconvenient.
Emma released Dante's arm and crossed the floor toward her, stopping only at the foot of the stairs that led up to Selene's platform. "Then what did you mean by the message? You said you'll explain your actions."
"Oh, that." Selene crossed one leg elegantly over the other and smiled. "Tessa, bring him in."
Tessa gave a bow and withdrew through the side door. She returned moments later accompanying a man.
He stood at six-foot-two, broad across the chest and shoulders. His face was wide, heavy-jawed, and covered in mutton chops. His hair was lustrous black and swept back in a ponytail. The Victorian-style blue frock coat and fitted black breeches on his six-foot-two, broad build was in fashion in the 18th century.
Shaw put both of his hands on his cane as his sharp eyes surveyed the room, stopping on Emma Frost. The blonde's skin crawled with goosebumps.
Dante, on the other hand, seemed unbothered. Those dark eyes seemed to have seen far too much than his age would show.
"Meet Sebastian Shaw." Selene gestured calmly. "His father served the Club faithfully and built Shaw Industries into a multi-billion dollar empire. It's now in Shaw's hands."
Shaw Industries brought a look of recognition on Emma's face.
"Sebastian himself awakened as a formidable mutant in his own right." Selene paused and grinned. "From now on he will serve as our Enforcer. The Black Bishop."
Shaw kept that stern expression. "White Queen, it is an honor to finally behold you in person."
"The honor is mine."
He stepped forward and kneeled on one knee, taking Emma's hand. The etiquette from a bygone era meant to confer honor upon a lady.
As his mouth descended to her knuckles, Dante's fist connected with his face. Shaw reacted but he wasn't quick enough. The cane scraped the floor and barely stopped him from falling in humiliation.
"Did she give you permission to touch her?"
The coldness on Emma's face was replaced by a fond smile. She drew a handkerchief from her jacket and took Dante's hand before brushing it on his knuckles.
"Stray dogs carry all manner of disease," she said and let the cloth flutter to the floor without a second glance. "Better safe than sorry, wouldn't you agree?"
"You're right."
Shaw touched the side of his face and glared at Dante. "Who is this arrogant pup?"
"Nobody, really." Dante looked moved past Shaw to Selene. The confidence in that gaze was striking. "Though I wouldn't mind filling the Grandmaster's seat."
Selene recognized his grand desire and smiled. "We have no such seat, I'm afraid. I can offer you the White Bishop."
"Then we should create one." He raised his clasped hands and drew them apart, and between his palms a shimmering chess board conjured into existence. An illusion so great it cast shadows on the floor. He lifted the pieces one by one and repositioned them. "Grandmaster. The one who moves all the pieces. It feels like the right position for me."
Shaw seemed intrigued by the magic trick, but the words spoken by Dante hardened his expression.
Selene allowed herself a moment to laugh. Dante's request was just absurd enough to get a genuine laughter out of the Black Queen. "Your partner is quite something, Emma."
"Did he stutter?" A side of Emma's mouth curled up. "Given what he is capable of, we should consider ourselves honored that he's willing to lead the Club."
Selene's smile faded. "Have you been brainwashed?"
"I'm merely stating the truth."
"White Queen, you think this little boy is capable of outranking us all?" Shaw asked, having recovered himself. He crossed the distance until he was looking Emma directly in the eye, then let his gaze slide sideways to Dante. "Let's settle it the old way. The two of us will fight."
Emma's chin tilted. "What are we betting on?"
Shaw leaned his cane against his leg and straightened his cuffs without a care in the world. "One billion in your currency."
The number shook Emma visibly. Even for the CEO of Frost International, a billion was no trivial sum. She couldn't use that without ruining the structure of her enterprise.
Shaw noticed her hesitation and gave a knowing smile. "I can adjust the conditions if the number is too steep."
"Oh, please say it."
"You will still win a billion dollars." He gripped his cane and raised one finger with the other hand. "But I will win you as my lover. Quite a fair trade to have the woman if her man is an unworthy little boy."
Selene watched the exchange with intrigue. Shaw was a sexually obsessed little cretin. A man with a perverted desire to dominate those in power and many other perverted kinks.
He had once tried his strength to overpower Selene and own the Club and her. Everything was futile in the pace of her, which had quickly humbled him. That was how she made him join as the Black Bishop.
Dante put a hand on Emma's head. Selene waited for Emma to slap it away and hurl abuse at her "lover." Emma Frost did not permit people to touch her hair. In all the years of knowing her, she had never seen an exception to it.
Emma glanced at Dante and gave a small nod, as though taking a step back from the conversation. There wasn't a single hint of discomfort on her face.
'This is ridiculous.'
Selene knew Dante had two lovers already, which made Emma's reaction all the more baffling. What type of brainwashing had he used on Emma to turn her so docile? What could he have possibly done to make Emma agree to the idea of being a man's third choice?
Dante waved his hand to send Emma back to the door. "Shall we begin here?"
Shaw spread his hands. "There's more than enough space to stomp your head into the floor."
Dante smiled. In the next moment, Shaw flew past Selene. Her head snapped and saw scattered dust. As for Shaw… he was embedded in the wall.
'Impressive speed.'
Selene had followed the motion as well as she was able, with eyes trained over centuries to track superhuman speed, and yet she had caught almost none of it. This easily put him in the category for one of the fastest people she had ever met.
She saw the faint golden glow on his chest, coming from under his black coat, and licked her lips.
'His life energy will be rich.'
Her body required constant absorption of life force to stay young and eternal. Life-force was also her source to enhance her physical strength, speed, stamina, agility, reflexes, and durability.
Partial absorption of life-force also gave her psychic control over people.
And it all worked through her touch.
Shaw dropped from the crater and landed on the stone floor, straightening his lapels. "My mother hit harder than that."
He wasn't concerned at all. His energy absorption power made him stronger the more hits he took. Killing him through physical strength was impossible.
Dante walked toward Selene without even giving her a second glance. It hurt her pride a bit as she considered herself one of the most beautiful women in the world. "Shaw, I know you can absorb energy from attacks. Every hit makes you stronger."
Selene offered him a slow, appreciative clap. Whether he had a mutant ability that let him read other mutants' powers at a glance, or whether seen through it in the moment—either made him more resourceful than she had expected.
He looked at her, and she smiled. Maintaining eye contact with him was nerve-wracking. The look in his eyes was that of someone regarding a corpse.
She stood from her chair and watched him walk past her to Shaw.
'I must be overthinking.'
Shaw grinned. "Knowing my mutant doesn't change much. How do you plan to defeat—"
Dante took action. This time, Selene poured everything into focus, sharpening her perception to its absolute limit.
His fist pulled back as he rotated his wrist, held the other hand up, and punched. His hand left a dark after image before it connected with the bridge of Shaw's nose. She saw a faint dark aura wrapping around his fist, which gave her chills.
Shaw's head exploded.
The shockwave impacted the wall behind Shaw and carved the shape of Dante's punch on the wall. The power within his strike was absurdly dense and concentrated.
Shaw's body dropped straight down.
Selene's hand flew to her chest. "What?"
Any energy, except for psionic energy, empowered Shaw's strength, speed, durability, and stamina, and it had no ceiling. Dante's punch should've made him stronger and durable like the previous one.
'That black energy—it penetrated past his mutant powers. What was it?'
Maybe the man was mysterious and powerful than she gave him credit for.
Dante brushed his knuckle. "By smashing your face with an energy you can't absorb. Too bad you aren't alive to hear it."
Emma exhaled softly through her nose, looking disappointed at Shaw's death. But Selene knew it was a mere act to hide her glee at Shaw's death. "Who's going to pay me a billion now? Can we recover it from Shaw Industries, Black Queen?"
Selene removed the hand from her chest and collected herself. Death was temporary for her. A night ritual under the moon would bring Shaw back to life.
"Tessa, carry the body and clean this place," she said and walked toward the room leading outside. "We'll discuss it somewhere else, Emma Frost."
Emma stepped into Selene's path, blocking the Black Queen from leaving the chambers.
***
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