Ray was walking through the streets with a look of complete defeat on his face.
"How the hell did I end up saying that to Alex when I don't even know any mutants besides him?"
Ray had accepted that mission from Alex only because he truly believed he could do it.
But now that he stopped to think about it, he realized he had never met or participated in any mutant group before, since he had spent years constantly running from the Institute, especially because he carried far too many government secrets that should never leak.
But now, with the help of Vox and Alex, he had finally found the courage to stop hiding.
Mostly because there was no real reason to anymore.
With Alex's protection and the cursed energy he had learned to use, Ray no longer feared the government like he once did.
Unfortunately, none of that helped him find mutants willing to join the Sanctuary, which still sounded weird to Ray.
It genuinely sounded like he belonged to some kind of cult.
Since Alex had already said anyone who complained would get punched, Ray decided to stay quiet.
He had no idea whether Alex was joking or not, and honestly, he preferred not to risk it.
As he walked through the streets, Ray slowly began worrying about not finding anyone to recruit.
That would be a serious problem.
Alex had already done a lot for him over the last few days.
The least Ray could do was repay some of what had been invested in him.
Letting out a sigh, Ray started thinking about where he could find people hiding from the government.
After thinking for a few moments, he could only come up with three options.
The first was doing exactly what he had done himself—blending into society and building a new life while changing as much about yourself as possible.
The problem was that this only worked if your mutation hadn't drastically changed your appearance.
The second option was hiding somewhere nobody would search or where almost nobody ever went.
Sewers.
Abandoned buildings.
Or even the destroyed section of the city where Alex had built the base.
The third option was far riskier, but also the one with the highest chance of recruiting many people at once.
Invading the black market.
Attacking slave traders.
Or attacking the Institute itself.
After thinking for a while, Ray quickly realized he should investigate every option except the last one.
There was no way he could invade a place like that, much less go against the black market, which was heavily protected.
So Ray decided to go with the easiest and closest option.
Exploring the destroyed district of New York.
It was probably the best hiding place for fugitives rejected by society.
After all, Ray himself had chosen that area because almost nobody passed through it anymore.
Ray knew the area was massive and still heavily damaged.
If he searched the entire district, it would take at least a week.
And that estimate only worked because of his speed.
Without it, the search would probably take an entire month.
The worst part was that even if Ray found mutants, there was no guarantee they would join the Sanctuary.
Still, Ray understood how important this was now that Alex had announced the existence of a new organization in the area.
If they relied only on Alex, victory would be nearly impossible.
A gang wasn't just about strength.
It was about protecting territory.
And their territory was enormous if they counted the destroyed sections of the city.
If Alex truly intended to take this seriously, then he needed more people by his side to protect it.
Some time passed after Ray started searching for mutants, and as expected, he hadn't found anyone.
At that point, he was already preparing to give up and return empty-handed.
But just as he was about to leave, Ray noticed a strange light shining from inside an abandoned building in the distance.
One was yellow.
The other was a deep crimson red.
The lights were far too bright and unnatural to come from something normal like a flashlight or fire.
That immediately caught Ray's attention.
He considered heading toward the lights, but stopped for a few seconds.
He realized he had already pushed Vox's regeneration abilities quite a lot recently.
And what if he forced it too far?
If he got involved in whatever was happening over there, he might be forced to rely on Vox's regeneration again.
And the real problem was that Ray had no idea what Vox's limits actually were.
He didn't know if Vox could regenerate something as serious as a lost limb or something even worse.
But just as he was about to back away, Ray remembered the first time he fought Tyon.
He had gotten completely destroyed.
Every bit of military training he had ever received had been useless against that creature, who simply couldn't be hit.
Only after focusing cursed energy into his fist had he managed to land a punch on Tyon.
And even then, it caused absolutely no damage.
But ever since that humiliating defeat, Ray had asked Alex for help to improve himself.
Since then, he had been training as hard as possible in everything—from physical strength to cursed energy control.
So without hesitating anymore, Ray started moving toward the source of the energy.
The closer he got, the louder the screams became.
"You son of a bitch! You know damn well the government is already hunting us and you still want to take her to a hospital?!"
"BUT IF WE DON'T DO SOMETHING, SHE'S GOING TO DIE!"
Two voices echoed from the upper floors.
They seemed to be arguing about taking someone to a hospital, which immediately intrigued Ray.
But something else caught his attention even more.
Apparently, they were being hunted by the government too, just like him and Alex.
When Ray got close enough to enter the room, he suddenly realized something important.
He had absolutely no idea what to say.
He didn't even know how to convince them to join the Sanctuary.
And to make matters worse, he was still wearing ragged clothes that made him look like a homeless man.
That was a problem.
Because if a guy dressed like a beggar approached you talking about some group that would help you, you'd probably think he was insane.
But if that same man appeared wearing an expensive suit, people would naturally pay more attention.
"Ahhh… there's not much I can do about that. Let's just act naturally. Worst case scenario, I'll show them a little of what Alex taught me and try to persuade them."
Ray finally gathered enough courage and was about to enter when Vox suddenly moved and whispered something into his ear with its uncomfortable, gurgling voice.
"R-Gurgle… clothes…?"
Suddenly, Ray felt his mind become hazy and his vision blur.
At the same time, Vox began secreting a strange white liquid.
When Ray looked closer, he realized it was actually silk.
The silk wrapped around his old clothes and dissolved them while an elegant and luxurious suit slowly formed over his body.
"W-What the hell?"
Ray was completely caught off guard.
Thankfully, his military training still had some use left in it.
Otherwise, he probably would've screamed in panic the moment this happened.
Looking at himself now, Ray realized he was wearing the exact same elegant suit he had imagined moments ago.
It was almost as if Vox had pulled the image straight out of his mind and recreated it on his body.
Confused, Ray looked toward Vox, who now seemed half asleep on his shoulder.
Staring between the suit and Vox, only one thought crossed his mind.
'Was Vox some kind of silk worm? No, wait… even worse, does he actually have a species besides being a curse?'
But before he could think any further, the argument upstairs suddenly intensified.
Deciding to intervene, Ray finally entered the scene in a mysterious manner.
"YOU KNOW DAMN WELL WHY SHE'S WITH US!"
A man of average height with golden hair and blue eyes shouted angrily.
He had a lean physique.
Standing in front of him was a shorter man with light brown hair and round glasses that gave him a strange appearance, especially because his body was absurdly muscular.
"Stop talking shit, you little bastard. If it weren't for me dragging you out of that damned hellhole, we wouldn't even be here!"
The short man shouted angrily at the blond while fury twisted across his face.
At the same time, his hair began glowing in a pure crimson color.
But the blond still had something to say, his own eyes shining brightly with an intense yellow glow.
"Damn it, Boris, I know that… but Kara helped us a lot too. She sacrificed her family for us, man."
When the blond said that, Boris seemed to calm down a little.
A guilty expression crossed his face as he turned away.
At that exact moment, both of their glows faded as if the argument had temporarily ended.
Boris looked toward the corner of the building where a woman with dyed white hair was breathing heavily.
Bandages wrapped around several parts of her body, but severe burn marks were still clearly visible across her skin.
"Fuck… I know. But we can't take her to a doctor. They'll capture all of us, and her family's sacrifice will have been for nothing, Josh."
Josh, the blond man, knew Boris was right.
Besides, they didn't even have money.
If only they had some kind of help.
"Sounds like you people need some assistance, huh?"
A voice suddenly interrupted both men's thoughts from the stairway behind them.
The unexpected voice startled them immediately, causing the strange glows around their bodies to flare up again.
That voice had appeared out of nowhere.
Soft and slow footsteps echoed through the abandoned building as the figure approached the duo.
Both men became increasingly tense and prepared to attack.
But what they saw surprised them slightly.
A well-dressed man wearing an elegant suit stepped out of the darkness of the staircase with a calm and relaxed posture.
A faint smile rested on his face, yet there was something deeply unsettling about him.
A heavy and chilling aura surrounded his body.
His appearance itself was strange.
Messy stubble covered his face while his hair was perfectly arranged in an almost military style.
"Ah, no need for all that, friends. I'm here to help you."
Ray spoke calmly as he stopped a few meters away.
"I came here with a very interesting proposal for you two."
Josh and Boris exchanged confused looks.
It wasn't just because he somehow found them.
It was the fact that he had casually appeared out of nowhere saying something like that.
Still, neither of them lowered their guard.
They had been hunted by the Institute for far too long after escaping.
Being cautious was mandatory.
"And who exactly are you, mysterious man appearing from the shadows?"
Josh asked cautiously.
Boris clicked his tongue in irritation because Josh had actually decided to entertain the stranger instead of attacking immediately.
Still, Boris also wanted to hear what the man had to say.
"Ah, forgive my lack of manners."
The man placed a hand on his chest politely before speaking.
"My name is Raymond. My friends call me Ray."
A small smile appeared on his face.
"And I came here to invite the two of you somewhere."
When the two men heard that, confusion immediately appeared on their faces.
Why was this man named Raymond here?
And what exactly did he mean by "invite"?
Neither of them trusted him.
Out of all the things this man looked like, friendly definitely wasn't one of them.
"An invitation to what exactly?"
Josh once again took the lead in the conversation, making Boris slightly uncomfortable with the situation.
Unconsciously, Josh glanced toward the woman lying on the floor beneath a coat not too far away.
That small movement didn't escape Ray's notice.
Following Josh's gaze, Ray finally noticed the woman covered in burn wounds.
"Well, what a surprise. I thought it was only you two here."
Ray casually continued speaking while slowly walking around the area.
"But back to what I was saying… I'm here to invite you to join an organization called Sanctuary."
A faint smile crossed his face.
"We offer something that groups like ours usually don't."
As Ray spoke, he carefully kept moving around the room.
He maintained enough distance to react in case the two attacked him while also positioning himself closer to what was probably their weakest link: the injured woman lying on the floor.
Neither Boris nor Josh noticed Ray's cautious movements.
What they did notice was the way he kept looking toward Kara.
Because of that, both men instinctively moved closer to her protectively.
"Sanctuary doesn't promise peace like the X-Men."
Ray's voice remained calm and steady.
"Nor supremacy like the Brotherhood."
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"We promise a place without fear."
A heavy silence filled the room for a moment.
"A place where we can fight against the people who truly ruined our lives."
Ray's expression darkened slightly.
"The government… and all the people helping fuel this anti-mutant campaign."
Looking at the girl from afar, Ray could immediately tell her condition was terrible.
Her breathing was uneven and strained.
The burns covering her body were severe.
Only her face seemed untouched.
When Boris and Josh heard the stranger's offer, both of them became nervous.
But the biggest reason wasn't even the danger.
It was the fact that everything about this situation had happened way too suddenly.
And more importantly…
They had never even heard of a group called Sanctuary before.
For all they knew, this could easily be an Institute trap.
"Oh, and we also have something very difficult for mutants like us to find nowadays."
Ray smiled faintly.
"A safe place."
He shrugged slightly.
"Not comfortable yet… but safe."
Ray then looked directly at the two men.
"So? What do you think?"
That final sentence caught Boris' attention immediately.
Josh, however, still looked worried about Kara lying weakly on the dirty floor.
Seeing the stranger casually observing the surroundings, Boris quietly pulled Josh closer to Kara and began whispering.
Unfortunately for them, Ray could hear everything perfectly.
Ever since learning how to use cursed energy, all of his senses had become absurdly sharper.
"Josh… this sounds promising."
Boris kept his voice low.
"He said they have a safe place. Yeah, it could be dangerous… but you know how bad things have gotten lately."
His expression hardened.
"Ever since the Institute started tracking us, it feels like they always know where we are."
Boris glanced toward Ray for a brief second.
"If this guy is telling the truth, maybe this Sanctuary actually has a way to hide from them."
Josh still looked uncertain.
"I don't know, Boris. What if this is an Institute trick?"
His eyes shifted toward Kara.
"If we go, we'll have to bring her too… and you know she's not in good condition."
Boris took a deep breath and looked at Kara lying weakly on the ground.
After several long seconds of silence, he finally sighed.
"…We should go."
Josh turned toward him in surprise.
"If this really was the Institute, they would've stormed in shooting instead of trying to talk first."
Josh looked like he still wanted to argue.
But in the end…
Boris was right.
Slowly, Josh turned toward Raymond with a determined expression.
"Fine. We'll go."
He pointed toward Kara immediately afterward.
"But only if you accept our friend too."
Josh hesitated briefly before continuing.
"She isn't a mutant."
Hearing that, Raymond almost felt like crying tears of joy internally.
The suit had actually worked.
Maintaining his calm expression, Ray simply turned around and calmly started walking toward the stairs.
"Then follow me, gentlemen."
A small smile appeared on his face.
"We've got a long way ahead of us."
___________________
Hey guys, this chapter was really more focused on Raymond and Vox. I hope you enjoyed it, because it was important for you to understand how the future recruitments are going to work — recruitments that you probably won't fully see so they don't take too much of Alex's screen time.
But aside from that, I hope you liked it.
If possible, feel free to check out my Patreon.
As always, if you enjoyed it, feel free to send power stones or rate the story, it really helps a lot.
And if you have any constructive criticism or anything that could help me improve, don't hesitate to say it, I always read everything.
Also, just so you know, I really enjoy reading your messages, it genuinely makes me happy to see people enjoying the story.
Good night.