The great Master of Magnetism Magneto is one of the most powerful mutants in the Marvel Multiverse, an omega-level being who has better mastery of the force of magnetism than any other person on Earth... but in a horrific dark timeline shown in Tales from the Marvels: Ruins #2 Erik Lehnsherr ends up dying by his own hands. Ellis' Ruins shows one of the most disturbing alternative timelines ever put into print, and no hero or villain is safe from the awful reality, including the vastly powerful Magneto.
Debuting in 1995 as a dark parody of Kurt Busiek and Alex Ross' classic Marvels series, Ruins - written by Warren Ellis and illustrated by Joe Kaufman and Terese Nielsen - the series explores a Marvel timeline where "It's all gone wrong." The story follows Philip Sheldon, a beat reporter for The Daily Bugle who also features in Busiek's Marvels, as he investigates and dives deeper into the horrific tragedies surrounding all the so-called "marvels." In Sheldon's universe every time a hero or villain experienced their "origin story," instead of gaining amazing powers, saving people, or joining teams, the characters end up dying horrifically, hurting others, or becoming literal terrorists.
There is truly no end to the horrors explored by Sheldon throughout the two-issue run of Ruins. Some of the most disturbing stories show Peter Parker becoming irradiated and slowly dying from his spider bite, but not before infecting and killing many of the Daily Bugle staff, Jeanne-Marie and Jean-Paul on the streets homeless and conjoined at the elbow, and the Silver Surfer literally ripping open his own chest cavity to "experience breathing." However, one of the most horrific stories involves an out-of-control Magneto, who has clearly tried his best to get a handle on his magnetism but is fighting a losing battle.
The Master of Magnetism has used his vast magnetic powers to achieve wildly improbably feats, showing that the upper limits of his power have not yet been recorded. In Ruins, however, it appears that Erik Lehnsherr is much less in control of his abilities and has spent his life trying to keep them under wraps. Phillip Sheldon arrives at an airport on his travels and immediately notices Magneto, in a trench coat with what looks like a bomb on his chest. As the "bomb" begins to become overloaded a massive explosion happens, and it quickly becomes clear that this machine was not in fact a bomb, but some device that was keeping his powers at bay. Erik dies agonizingly, with all the iron in his blood literally being ripped out of him by his own powers.
In Marvel's Prime universe Magneto is currently one of the main leaders of the mutants new nation of Krakoa, serving alongside Professor X as the heads of the Quiet Council. Magneto has always used his powers to aid in the plight of his fellow mutants, so it is particularly brutal to watch Erik die so alone and scared in Ruins, since he is usually such a pillar of strength and leadership in the face of adversity. Make sure to check out the classic Tales from the Marvels: Ruins to see what other horrible histories Warren Ellis came up with.