Witnessing the demise of his allies, Beast's fury ignited. His rage surged as he charged towards Apocalypse.
However, before he could reach his target, Apocalypse retaliated with a surge of power that incapacitated Beast, leaving him lifeless among the fallen mutants.
Apocalypse turned his attention to Spyke, brutally breaking through his bone armor while delivering a fatal blow. Witnessing the loss of her nephew, Storm's grief transformed into seething anger.
She unleashed a tempest of her powers, summoning winds and lightning in a furious assault on Apocalypse. However, the malevolent being, redirected her own elemental forces back towards her.
Storm too fell victim to Apocalypse's unstoppable wrath, leaving a chilling silence amidst the remnants of the battlefield.
Ray summoned arcs of crackling electricity that surged through his body and he directed bolts of lightning towards Apocalypse, each strike carrying immense power.
However, Apocalypse, unfazed by the electrical onslaught, absorbed the energy effortlessly, redirecting it back towards Ray.
Leaving his body convulsing before he collapsed, the electrical energy dissipating into the air.
Iceman, known for his ability to control and manipulate ice, seized the opportunity to freeze Apocalypse in a desperate attempt to subdue the powerful being.
His icy tendrils wrapped around Apocalypse, encasing him in a frozen prison.
For a brief moment, there was a glimmer of hope as Iceman's powers seemed to momentarily restrain the malevolent entity.
Sensing an opening, Sunspot tapped into his solar-powered abilities. He surged forward, gathering and focusing his fiery power to break the ice encasing Apocalypse.
Yet, to the astonishment of the mutants, Apocalypse summoned a surge of energy that shattered Iceman's icy hold and dispersed Sunspot's scorching assault.
The overwhelming force of Apocalypse's power surged forth, overwhelming both Iceman and Sunspot in a relentless wave of energy.
They fell victim to the villain's indomitable strength. Iceman was broken into many pieces, while Sunspot, fiery form, extinguished as he fell to the ground.
Logan drove his adamantium claws into Apocalypse's leg, making the tyrant pause. For a moment, hope sparked in the remaining mutants' eyes.
But then Apocalypse smiled, a smile that would haunt their nightmares forever.
"Is that all you have, old man?" He taunted, and with it, he threw him far.
Rogue absorbed the powers and memories of her teammates, enhancing her own abilities.
Kitty, using her phasing abilities, attempted to phase Rogue directly into his chest, bypassing him, hoping to drain his essence.
But Apocalypse merely laughed, his sheer strength of energy rendered their efforts futile.
"Your puny powers are nothing to me!" He grabs both Rogue and Kitty, with a merciless squeeze, it is over. All that remained was ash on the wind.
Alex Summers utilized his control over energy and plasma blasts. He unleashed powerful beams of concussive force towards Apocalypse.
Cyclops took aim, unleashing the full force of his optic blasts.
"For our future!" he cried. At the same time, Jean amplied the mental assault, desperately probing for any chink in his psychic armor.
But with a casual flick of his hand, Apocalypse deflected it all. Jean tried to assault his mind but cried out, clutching her head as he invaded her thoughts instead.
Wolverine's adamantium claws again clashed against Apocalypse's impenetrable armor.
"Is that frustration I sense, old man?" Apocalypse taunted. "There is no hope for any of you."
"As if we'd give up so easily," snarled Wolverine, unsheathing his adamantium claws. He rushed at Apocalypse, ducking a haymaker and scoring deep gashes across thick flesh. But the wounds sealed instantly before Logan's eyes.
"My X-Men...it has been an honor," Charles Xavier shouted.
The X-Men fought on valiantly, but it was becoming painfully clear that even their combined efforts could not stop the unstoppable force of Apocalypse.
Still, Apocalypse shrugged off each attack with contemptuous ease. It was then that Professor X sensed the others' hope beginning to waver.
Reaching out mentally to his students, Charles said.
"Do not lose heart, my X-Men. As long as even one of us draws breath, there is still a chance. We must believe in ourselves and our cause - mutant and proud!"
Meanwhile, Jean redoubled her psychic attack, aiming to overwhelm his defenses. "Help me!" She cried. Charles joined the mental onslaught.
Apocalypse howled, genuinely troubled for the first time. But then he grinned sinisterly and delivered a blow that sent Wolverine crashing through the stone Sphinx.
"You insects are starting to annoy me," He rumbled.
Apocalypse focused his wrathful gaze upon Alex and Scott Summers, and unleashed a devastating surge of his energy.
Alex and Scott, despite their formidable powers, were unable to withstand the overwhelming force that bore down upon them, and they were engulfed by it.
Jean again attacked Apocalypse. But even her power was no match for what they faced. With a mere flick of his wrist, Apocalypse sent Jean flying after snapping her neck like a twig.
Charles sensed the end was near and tried desperately to connect with Apocalypse's mind, but there was only darkness within.
As the telepath focused his power, Apocalypse grabbed Charles by the face and crumpled his skull inward, killing their leader instantly.
Horror and despair gripped the hearts of the mutants as their friends fell one by one.
One by one the lights went out across the blackened sky, until only Logan and Ben remained.
Logan was blinded by tears and rage, but Ben looked at everything calmly.
With grim finality, Apocalypse turned to the feral mutant. "Now, at last, this pathetic world will know true power."
A snap of his fingers engulfed everything in nuclear fire.
As the blinding light faded, Logan slowly opened his eyes. Around him, nothing remained - just endless ash and cinder stretching to the horizon.
All at once, a vibration ran through the ruined earth.
Logan leapt to his feet, claws unsheathed, as a massive form emerged from the debris. Apocalypse, unharmed by his own power, smiled down at the last mutant.
"You still live? Impressive. But futile." Apocalypse lifted his hands, crackling with energy. "Now you will join the others."
As the last echoes of battle faded, the mutants lay defeated, their powers extinguished, their strengths overpowered.
Apocalypse stood amidst the fallen, a grim silence enveloping the once vibrant and powerful team.
Apocalypse now looks at Ben with pity and disdain, "Now only you are alive," Apocalypse taunts him, "So will I also end your life."
"I was gathering my powers, also your fight has weakened you, so you know what my power is," Ben looked calmly at him.
"I have seen, you can pause anything, so what, I will kill you like others," Apocalypse answered, but he didn't take tension for just one.
"Ha, ha, ha, Now I will show you my power," Ben said as he started to reverse the Time.
With a resolute determination, Ben concentrated his time-altering abilities, channeling an incredible force to reverse the flow of time itself. Rewinding the sequence of events.
The fallen mutants, one by one, began to reemerge, their forms slowly materializing, their expressions a mixture of confusion and relief.
Their hearts beat once again as life returned to their bodies. Each mutant's emotions surged forth—grief turned to relief, fear shifted to determination, and sorrow transformed into hope.
Charles Xavier's face revealed a mix of astonishment and gratitude, his mind connecting with the inexplicable turn of events.
Erik, Wanda, Kitty, Ororo, Logan, and all the others, resurrected by the reversal of time, showcased a myriad of emotions.
The mutants, brought back from the clutches of death, expressed their astonishment and gratitude in a wave of heartfelt emotions.
Tears welled in some eyes, while others simply gazed around in bewildered disbelief.
"How can you do it?" Apocalypse was shocked.
"But I will kill them again," He shouted at Ben, while everyone looked at Apocalypse.
"I will revive them again," Ben calmly replied, but he stood weakened, gasping for breath, time manipulation has exhausted him from the immense task of reversing time to revive the fallen mutants.
"So, I will kill you first," Apocalypse shouted, he seething with rage at the resurrection of the X-Men, seized the opportunity to strike at the vulnerable and fatigued Ben.
"Leave...him...ALONE!" Jean voice boomed with demonic fury.
Apocalypse was shocked who shouted, then he noticed it was Jean, her red hair flowing behind her like a flame. But her eyes...glowed with an unearthly light, brighter than any star in the blackened sky.
But before she could do anything, the malevolent entity, recognizing the moment of weakness, he deployed his own unique power, energy manipulation coupled with an understanding of temporal disruptions.
Ben tried to use his Time Pause power to freeze the attack coming toward him.
But Apocalypse was using a strange, powerful energy that messed with the flow of time around him. Because of that — and because Ben was already tired — his powers didn't work properly.
Apocalypse saw the opening.
He launched a brutal attack, hitting Ben hard before he could react. Ben couldn't block it or stop time in time.
The powerful blast hit him full force.
Ben was overwhelmed, and the energy was too much for him. He couldn't fight back.
Then, in a flash of light… Ben vanished.
"Ben!" Jean screamed as her powers exploded with sadness and anger.
Storm, Rogue, and Kitty also reacted with rage, their eyes filled with shock and pain.
For a moment, everything stopped. The battlefield was silent.
The one who had saved them — Ben — was now gone.
Everyone stared at Apocalypse, their hearts heavy.
Apocalypse stood tall, laughing loudly.
"Ha ha ha ha! Who can stand against me now?" he shouted like a madman.
Apocalypse, breathing heavily, his strength fading, floated above the broken battlefield. He glared down at the X-Men — beaten, bruised, but still alive.
"I'll kill all of you... but not now. That time will come."
With a final look of disdain, he turned to fly away.
But before he could escape—
CLANK!
A glowing chain shot from the sky and snapped tightly around his neck, yanking him mid-air like a ragdoll.
ZAP-ZZZZT!
Energy crackled across the sky.
A deep, menacing laugh echoed through the clouds above — wild and familiar.
All eyes turned to the sky.
Descending from the heavens, roaring through the clouds on a burning Interstellar Harley, cloaked in swirling cosmic flames and lightning — was Ben.
His eyes burned bright. His presence was unstoppable.
As he descended, a song boomed across the skies, it comes from his Harley Interstellar.
"He walks alone, across the stars,
With fire in his soul and a trail of scars.
He slays the dark, he rights the wrong,
The fallen rise when he rides along.
Unbreakable heart, a fate self-spun —
He's the storm. He's the sun.
He is the one they couldn't kill...
The last stand of will — invincible still."
He walks alone, through fire and storm,
Ben Tennyson — the legend reborn.
From dust and death, he rose again,
A hero carved from cosmic flame.
He breaks the chains, he ends the night,
He stands alone, and still will fight.
Invincible heart, soul forged in pain —
Ben Tennyson rides again.
Jean, Rogue, Kitty, Wanda, and even Storm gasped, their eyes wide with shock and relief.
"Ben… you're alive!"
They ran toward him, stunned, tears mixing with their smiles.
APOCALYPSE, caught in the glowing chain, writhed midair in disbelief.
"You—how are you alive?! I killed you!"
BEN landed, stepping off the Harley slowly.
"You tried. But death doesn't take me that easily."
Harley roared behind him like thunder as Ben walked forward, the chain still tight around Apocalypse's throat.