My Quest to Read All X-Men Related Comics in Order from Beginning to Present time

[SunflowaSeeds]

X-Treme X-Men #10-18 Continued...

Shanna Cho reports to the world that the X-Men were able to save them from an attack by an alien invasion, but sadly some of their own were hurt in the battle. Captain America, Iron Man, and the Thing are there to help the wounded X-Men though, as they carry the more critically wounded into a M.A.S.H. unit. The Doctors work frantically trying to save the wounded heroes but Storm, Rogue and Gambit seem far-gone.

Rogue thinks that her healing factor should save her, but has to discover that she is completely powerless. Seeing Storm’s spirit leave her body, Rogue panics and tries to follow her, only to slip into the astral plane where she is welcomed by Jean Grey. Phoenix informs her of her plan to save Storm, while Rogue needs to help Gambit who has now ascended into his own spiritual world. Back with the living in the M.A.S.H. unit the Beast, Jean, Nightcrawler, and Wolverine have teleported in to help. The X-Men set out to help their friends. Nightcrawler tries to persuade Davis Cameron that just because Heather may look different does not make her a monster, while Wolverine and Jean calm Heather down from a near Shi’Ar berserker rage. The Beast has brought a new set of mechanical fingers to try and save Gambit, since he cannot use his now bulky fingers for such delicate surgery. Jean enters the astral plane and heads for Storm’s spirit world, where she is surprised by the beauty of Storm’s soul. Turns out that Ororo deliberately took the chance to meet her deceased parents in the afterlife, before she returns to her body, after she introduced her best friend Jean to them. At the same time, Rogue heads to Gambit‘s spirit world, where she tries to convince him not to die. Gambit thinks that it is a good day to die as he just saved the world, and he is willing to step into the light. Yet Rogue drags Gambit’s astral form back to the land of the living. Later, as the healthy check on the sick Heather finds that her brother has run away and he does not want her to follow. While Wolverine informs Rogue that Gambit may never treat her the same for taking away his chance at peace.

 

[SunflowaSeeds]

New X-Men 127-130

In the section of Manhattan called Mutant Town, Xorn assists Cyclops and Phoenix in dealing with an anti-mutant riot fueled by the mauling of a dog by a suspected mutant. After a conversation with Xavier, Xorn decides to personally search the city area and find the mutant before he is found by the mob. Xorn's investigation leads to his discovery of a mother and her son Sonny, a twelve year old boy in a hulking body. When Sonny's mother collapses from a deliberate overdose of medication, Sonny goes wild, rampaging in the street and a nearby drug store. The police quickly converge on the youth and, through gunfire and a flame-thrower, end his life.

Professor Xavier announces the opening of the X-Corporation office in Paris and promises that it will be a refuge for mutants in times of trouble. Any mutant needing assistance can simply think "X" and a team of trained X-Men will arrive to help. After the speech same said group of X-Men (Cannonball, Darkstar, Multiple Man, M, Siryn and Rictor) discusses their next mission; the train running through the Channel Tunnel has derailed, trapping passengers. As a possible gene-hazard is on the train, the X-Corporation has been called.

Jean meets with Xavier and asks for his help in understanding her new psychic abilities and their significance. After a few tests, each revealing new levels of telekinetic sensitivity, Xavier finds that he is able to speak directly with the Phoenix Entity through Jean.

Their experiment is cut short with the arrival of military forces and their quarry, a mutant called Fantomex. Wounded and on the run, he tells Xavier that is requesting sanctuary. He also informs them that because of something he stole, something big and bad has gotten lose on the train wreck.

The X-Men emergency team, he tells them, is probably already dead. Back in the States, Cyclops confides in Emma Frost and admits to the changes that he has gone through and the strain these changes have put on his marriage. Out of options, he says he is asking for help. Emma tells him that he has come to her just in time.

Despite having the X-Corporation office surrounded by an international strike force, Xavier decides to grant asylum to their quarry, the mutant terrorist Fantomex. Using the two X-Men's telepathy and Fantomex's flying saucer, named E.V.A., the three mutants make good their escape.

After arriving at his secret lair in the mountains, Fantomex tells Xavier and Phoenix about the information her has acquired about Weapon XII. Showing them a disc, Fantomex claims that it has proof of the entire Weapons Plus program, since it's inception in World War II. The latest manifestation called Weapon XII is a genetically engineered monster, bred in incubation units that speed up time and the evolutionary process itself. The disc is theirs for one billion dollars. He will help save their X-Men rescue team in the Channel Tunnel, if they make a promise to help him in turn; help him to kill Weapon XII itself. Meanwhile in the tunnel, Darkstar finds herself separated from her team. She calls out through her communicator, but none of her teammates reply. Although she uses her darkforce powers to repel a group of wolves and other menacing forms, they continue moving forward, step-by-step. Elsewhere in the Channel, Monet was run over by the same creatures and lies either unconscious or dead. Under the power of the being known as Weapon XII, the very train passengers they were sent to rescue, now possessed, have begun a relentless assault against the band of mutants.

Meanwhile, in his flying saucer, which he reveals to be his mutation, Fantomex flies Phoenix and Xavier to the tunnel's entrance. Along the way, he informs the two X-Men of the nature of Weapon XII; it is a mind with bacterial properties, infecting his enemies until they become him. The three mutants arrive on the scene and, through Phoenix's telepathy, hold Weapon XII's thralls so that the strike team can escape. Their colleagues freed, Fantomex and Phoenix enter the tunnel to confront the rogue mutant. As Fantomex makes his way deep into the tunnel, Xavier uses his telepathy to peer inside and confront Weapon XII mind to mind. Along with his mental assault, Xavier sends in a wave of Madroxes under his command. With their enemy distracted, Fantomex makes his way to its former containment pod and activates the "kill switch," ending both the threat and life of Weapon XII. The threat now ended, Phoenix comes to a startling revelation after gaining a chance to peer into Fantomex's mind. Fantomex's current identity is totally fabricated. His true past is that of being the latest of the Weapon Plus program; he is the former designee Weapon XIII. Faced with allowing him to go free or turn him over to the authorities, Phoenix allows Fantomex to escape through the tunnel and into the world at large. The crisis now passed, Xavier and his X-Men confront the arriving military who offer a deal; they will tell the world that the X-Men have assisted in the saving of passengers from a biological weapons accident in the Eurotunnel in exchange for the X-Men's verification of the story. Despite the death of their teammate, Darkstar, Xavier accepts; it is a grim cost in order to continue to operate under the watchful eyes of the authorities whose intolerance they are trying to change.

 

[SunflowaSeeds]

New X-Men 131-133

In Paris Professor Xavier, among friends of the deceased, gives the eulogy for the recently departed Darkstar. Meanwhile, in Westchester Archangel teaches a class on flying to the flight-capable students of the Institute. While the rest of the class follows Archangel to the nearby Shi’ar space cruiser, the Beak remains behind wallowing in self-pity. Trying to cheer him up through a series of heal-meant insults, Angel eventually decides to lift his spirits through a passionate kiss.

Arriving at the Shi’ar space cruiser, the Beak revels in his recent romantic tryst, blissfully oblivious to the money being given to Angel for her winning the dare. Inside the Institute, Emma Frost reads a magazine whose lead story concerns the Beast’s recent “outing”. Citing her certain knowledge that he is not gay, she chides him on his joke. Replying back, the Beast tells her that he is trying to challenge preconceived notions about language, gender and species. Before leaving, he tells Emma to not mess with Scott and Jean’s marriage; it’s undignified and Jean will kill her.

Undeterred herself, Emma goes to the Cerebra room and telepathically contacts Scott, who is piloting an X-plane back to the States. Mentally constructing a bedroom, replete with candles and pillows, she suggests that they solve his marriage problems through a bit of role-playing. Dressing in the Dark Phoenix costume, Emma tells Scott that she will be Jean and he will be Scott. At first reluctant, Scott agrees to the unconventional therapy session.

In the ruins of Genosha, Quicksilver, Sabra and Thunderbird survey the devastation. On his return to the domed X-Corporation HQ on the island, Quicksilver comes across a very much alive Unus the Untouchable. Shortly after Unus is returned to the dome, the team is joined by Professor Xavier and Phoenix IV, stopping on their way to India. Hearing Unus report that he has seen the believed-dead Polaris, the X-Men begin a search for her. Instead, however, they come across the Toad and two other followers of Magneto’s legacy constructing a monument to the fallen leader out of the remains of the Mega-Sentinel. Not wishing a confrontation, the X-Men continue their search for Polaris and soon afterward locate her. Wielding powerful magnetic forces and surrounded by luminous “ghosts,” Polaris is attempting to dig something out of the rubble. The X-Men try to subdue their demented friend and recover whatever she has been searching for. Finding a black box, a recording device used by Magneto in his final moments, they inadvertently activate it. As the voice of Magneto fills the air, supplying his final testament, Quicksilver and Polaris use their powers and their fervor to complete the Toad’s job, finishing the transformation of the Mega-Sentinel into a monument to Magneto. As the X-Men watch the fallen Magneto being memorialized before their eyes, they listen to his words. Magneto tells them that their voices will never be silence. They will be heard beyond this life… and far, far beyond this death.

After dispatching a group of Afghani mercenaries working for a mutant slave ring, Wolverine finds their camp, nearly burned to the ground. Inside, he discovers it’s personnel dead, along with the mysterious Fantomex, holding a burka-clad woman, Wolverine’s objective. Surrendering the woman, Fantomex takes the camp’s ledger, his objective, and disappears, leaving Wolverine to deal with the slavers’ reinforcements. After telepathically foiling a hijacking of his flight to India by Kashmiri nationalists, Xavier narrowly avoids assassination at the Mumbai airport. X-Corporation Mumbai members Feral, Proudstar and Thornn arrive and help to capture the would-be sniper, a very demented Lilandra who still believes Xavier to be Cassandra Nova. Disguised as humans, a group of Lilandra’s advisors, quickly arrives to take charge of their missing empress and are joined by the stunned Xavier. At the X-Corp Mumbai HQ, Phoenix and the others, also including Sunfire, find the slumbering Wolverine and wonder about the location of his recently rescued objective. After briefly donning the Cerebra helmet, Phoenix identifies the mutant as being the sum of the dust which lies ubiquitously on the floor. Her cover blown, the mutant transforms from her dust form into human and speaks only the word Turaab, which Wolverine says means Dust.

Elsewhere, Xavier arrives with Araki and Lilandra at their Shi’ar spacecraft. Returning Xavier’s students, who have recently traveled to the Shi’ar homeworld to assist in aid, Araki and Lilandra inform Xavier that they will be cutting all ties to Earth during the disinfection period. When asked by Xavier what the disinfection refers to, Araki informs Xavier that the Phoenix has hatched. And she is merciless.

This New X-Men run is probably the best stuff I've read so far

 

[SunflowaSeeds]

Soldier X #1-12, Full Series

Irene Merryweather hasn’t heard from Nathan Summers in two years. While researching a story she is attacked by a couple of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents who are after information on Cable. Some mystery attackers confront them but they are disposed of by a Sumo wrestler in drag who then hands a computer disc, from Cable to Irene. On the Disc Nathan starts to explain what has happened since she last met with him. He tells her about a trip to Egypt he took after receiving a letter from a mystery person. Whilst there he meets up some time displaced soldiers, just like him. He saves them from some locals after spitting some of the metal from his arm at their gun. It turns out that the metal is dissolving. After they leave he is reunited with his mentor Blaquesmith who was the person that sent him the letter.

Cable is given a new mission from Blaquesmith; find a missing girl. As Nathan investigates Blaquesmith finds himself a girlfriend. Nathan comes upon the girl’s father, being terrorised by the Armenian Mafia.

The man, Oleg, identifies his daughter as Magdelena, and a very powerful healer, who was used by her mother in helping the sick in exchange for money, and who eventually took her away to her home village of Krasnaya Polyana. Nathan tells Blaquesmith of this, and goes to find her. Blaquesmith’s new lover, however, grew up in Krasnaya Polyana, and feels sorry for anyone who goes there. Nathan and Oleg arrive at a train station near Krasnaya Polyana. Oleg, frightened and sober, flees and leaves his new friend to rescue his daughter. Agents Dragonfly and Jordan of S.H.I.E.L.D. play a tape they have of Nathan's last whereabouts, which shows him storming a church. Magdalena, the 13 year old mutant healer, is being forced into healing by her mother, but Nathan is here to rescue her. When he carries her away a mystery man wearing goggles knocks him out. The video fizzles out.

The very disgruntled Armenian Mafia are torturing information on the whereabouts of a man with a metal arm from a mail man (who Nathan stole a bike from). Oleg wants to end the torture and reveals where Nathan went, Arpoun, the leader, already knew. He's just allowing his brother to practice the art of torture. In Krasnaya Polyana, Nathan's is busy fighting someone called Geo, a small man with a metal arm, who is angry at Nathan, because of them the Armenians think killed their men in Moscow. The Armenians arrive and intervene. Nathan uses his TK powers to kill several of them with giant splinters of wood. It's then that Arpoun realizes it was Nathan who killed his men previously. Geo is annoyed by Arpoun calling him a loser and starts a fight with the Mafia leader. Nathan uses this to his advantage and gets inside the church, where the sick people are turn on Magdalena, sucking her dry of life energies until she is dead. Nathan lifts her up, and somehow miraculously heals her. Her mother Vera is not too happy of this, dead she would have been the perfect martyr. Father Dimitri, Magdalena's uncle, helps Nathan and Magdalene escape the town in an old truck. As they drive off, Oleg and Geo jump aboard with a captive Arpoun. The remaining Armenians fire machine guns behind them, and Vera is angry that she got left behind. Dimitri knows only one safe place they can head for - Saint Lenin. There they are held under siege by the Armenian Mafia, who brutally torture Magdalena's mother Vera in full view of them. Inside, Nathan makes a disturbing discovery about the young healing mutant; she is not the same girl he brought back from the dead. She can drain energy from people. Oleg can't stand his wife's torture no longer; he grabs a gun and goes to save her. However Nathan stops him, and goes out in his place, minus his TK shields. The Armenian mafia prepare to fire upon him.

Trying to make a point, Nathan faces the bullets of the Armenian mafia head on, directing his telekinetic abilities only to heal his wounds, but not to deflect the bullets. Asking what he demands of them, the Armenians give up their torture victim Vera. Nathan takes her, and walks back but gets weaker by the minute. The assembled pilgrims think they just witnessed a miracle and hope to heal their own wounds by touching Nathan as he walks by. However when it doesn’t work, they get enraged. Too weak to put up a fight, Nathan goes down, but is saved by Geo. The man with the cyborg arm tells Nathan to complete his task, while he keeps the masses at bay, at the expense of his own life. The crowd kills him and rips his metallic arm off. In the Sanctuary, the dying Vera asks her daughter Magdalena for forgiveness, which she is granted. Well aware of her daughter’s changed powers Vera asks for a kiss, a kiss that drains the life out of her and kills her. Nathan realizes, through this, that he is a madman, his powers limited only by his own imagination. He has to be who he is, and if the world perceives this as him being a madman then so be it. He creates a huge illusion of himself, scaring the crowd away, and picks up Geo’s arm, which he gives to Father Dimitri for safekeeping.

When SHIELD agents Jordan and Dragonfly later investigate, they are led to believe that Nathan died and became a ghost, the only thing remaining of him being the metal arm. Right then, Irene barges in, telling the agents she knows where Nathan is currently located, as she has been receiving Nathan’s diaries. Reading them, she became so engrossed that it she is on the verge of losing her job at the Daily Bugle.

 

[SunflowaSeeds]

Soldier X #1-12, Continued and Finished

In Kashmir, several men working for General Daid-Khan search for a mysterious person gifted with telekinetic powers. As the locals aren’t willing to help, the General’s men take the children hostage, and throw them off planes one by one, to find out which of them is capable of flight. Nathan Summers makes the plane stop in mid-air and rescues the children.

A boy named Rafi tells Nathan that there was a stranger in his village who only said the word "Askani." The boy takes Nathan to his village, only to find occupied by the mad General’s army, who wants Nathan to work for him. The General wishes to fly; Nathan turns the General's translator into a creature with wings. The General wants Nathan to make him an atom bomb; Nathan turns his hands into enriched uranium. One clap and he'll go critical. The General doesn't believe him and prepares to clap his hands; but his subordinates shoot him dead before he can try it. Nathan uses his powers to make the soldiers vanish before thy can cut of the General’s hands and sell them. Blaquesmith enters the scene; only it isn't really Blaquesmith, but a failed teacher called Nigel Novotny, made to look like Nathan's mentor by Jackie Singapore, so that he trusts him. They want Nathan to become a religion through the media of films. Nathan thinks this might be a good idea, and decides to help Nigel by teaching him.

In the year 4006 live the descendents of the followers of Nathan Summers‘ Askani teachings. While some facts about his life have been mixed up over the years, the basics of his teaching stayed the same. According to their legends, Nathan Summers willed himself to die so others could live. A boy named Jonathan is learning the ways of Askani and his powers from his Granma, a wise old woman with the marking of Askani. Jonathan prefers more to swim with the dolphins than learn about meditation and the teachings and the learning he can receive from the Goddess Dear Iryn. Then a man comes to them; a war is brewing between two fishing families at Red Field. The Granma decides to help, as is their duty. On their journey they encounter a man who treats the Granma as a beggar, which gets Jonathan angry. After the incident Granma goes to pray at a Dear Iryn shrine, while Jonathan thinks Dear Iryn is boring. Later, a Serpentine Marauder attacks him; but his Granma sacrifices her own life so he can live. Devastated, Jonathan goes to the Dear Irene shrine and discovers she is not boring, but a comfort. He heads to Red Field to continue what his Granma set out to do, and with his faith manages to avoid a conflict that would've surely ended in bloodshed. He is injured though, but a friendly fisher girl spreads the blood out over his eye to mimic the sign of the Askani. This one good deed brings him closer to his faith, and he knows that he is now a true Askani.

25 years ago a young Jonathan Keller is beaten by two black boys because of his color. He briefly sees Nathan Summers' face in a puddle of water, before it vanishes. In the present, Keller leads a racist faction, W.A.R. (White America's Redemption), who destroy a plane at Los Angeles International Airport. They plan to take America back from the blacks and the Jews and anyone else they don't see as pure white American. Jonas Keller was once a Special Forces operative who went missing in the Middle East two years ago. Meanwhile Nathan Summers returns to the US and secretly enters the Pentagon to interrogate one of the Generals about Keller. He plans to recruit Keller and his fanatics to his own cause, an unspecified mission. Nathan makes the General forget their conversation and leaves for W.A.R.‘s new base in Dallas. However Keller is ready for him, expecting him to come for them. He has a trap waiting - several of his men, armed with explosives; their minds drugged up so Nathan can only discover their intent, to come for him personally, before it's too late.

Keller's Texas ranch explodes. Nathan rescues the only survivor, Jed, who for some reason never activated the C-8 explosives strapped to his chest like the others. Nathan telepathically eases his pain and asks him where Keller is, but Jed dies of his injuries. However, Nathan finds the information he needs in the boy's brain and flies away. Keller tells his men that while the man they lured to the ranch wasn't killed the plan wasn't a failure. He will come directly to them now, just like he wants it. Nathan does, destroying helicopters that attack him and disintegrating the fanatics‘ weapons.

Nathan approaches Keller and tries to read his mind, but can't, it’s almost like there being nothing. However he does learn one important fact; Keller is a mutant; a precog. He can predict the future. When Keller was just a boy his powers manifested and he saw this meeting, and has been preparing for it ever since; his army and his bombing just a way to lure Nathan to him. Keller has a blank spot though; he can't see past this point. He tries to explain, even to entice him to rule with him, but Nathan uses his powers to neuter Keller's mutant powers. With Keller no longer a threat Nathan leaves. Keller shoots himself in the head, dead. Nathan, when he tried to enter Keller's mind, gained his ability of foresight temporarily; the reason that Keller saw no future past this point was because he didn't have one.

In Miami, Florida, a young girl called Magda Ramirez is accused of murdering her parents after they discover she is a mutant. Nathan hears of her plight as he journeys around the world over the space of 13 months, taking down cults that try and release nerve gas in Tokyo; recruiting more people to the Askani way; helping priests from guerrillas in Colombia; helping bomb victims in Tel Aviv. All the while, though, he is thinking of Magda, who has been given three consecutive life sentences. However, riots by humans convince the court to overturn that conviction. She is now to be given the death sentence in 24 hours time. Nathan races to the US to stop her execution, using non-violent methods to take out her prison guards (such as cutting off the oxygen to their brain and paralyzing them with their own fears). He finds Magda, and asks her the truth about what happened to her parents as he doesn't believe that she killed them. However, as she won‘t tell him anything, he tries to enter her end. He then discovers that Magda is mentally blocking him; she is a telepath.

Nathan Summers enters Magda Ramirez's mind, determined to discover the truth about the murder of her parents. She doesn’t want him in her memories, but Nathan breaks through her mental defenses and finds what he came looking for. Magda's father tried to shoot her for being a mutant, but her mother stepped in the way to protect her daughter and was killed instead. Magda's father, grief stricken, put the gun to his moth and killed himself. Magda fought with him over the gun, but couldn’t stop him from killing himself. Back in reality, Nathan urges Magda to flee with him, convincing her that she is indeed innocent. However Magda can’t let go of the idea that it was still her fault, for if she was not a mutant, none of this would have happened. Nathan takes Magda into his own mind and shows her the future he came from, and the odds in which he battled against like the techno-organic virus, to get where he is today. She is surprised that Nathan lost so much, but still fights to help others. She is almost ready to leave with him, but then realizes she can’t leave the prison for her to escape would just show people that mutants are above the law. Later that day, as Magda is taken to be executed, she mentally talks to Nathan, thanking him for helping her. In his hotel room a safe distance away, Nathan breaks down in grief.

.

 

[SunflowaSeeds]

Weapon X#1-5

The Director, Malcolm has a nightmare about the time that Wolverine escaped and mutilated him, back when he was a guard for the original Weapon X program. The team's current mission is to bring in their newest recruit Madison Jeffries. Weapon X fight and defeat the Zodiac, a terrorist organization that brainwashed Jeffries into serving as one of them. Back at the Weapon X compound, the Director gives Kane a promotion, partially to annoy Brent Jackson, Weapon X’s second in command. Aurora tries to seduce the Director though with no success. She then takes Marrow under her wing to show her how to properly use her newfound beauty against men. Since Weapon X’s teleporting systems were damaged by Sabretooth, they need other means to teleport and Brent Jackson and Washout are sent to recruit Locus. However they discover her dead, apparently by Sabretooth who also stole the files on possible candidates for recruitment. Malcolm checks on Madison Jeffries, who now lives in Room X where he can build whatever the Director desires. Besides working on several versions of his old Box armor, he has also been given a special assignment by the Director - a model of a concentration camp.

Marrow is sent to a country in South America to assassinate it’s president during a soccer game. She succeeds, but is spotted by the crowd and chased by a mob. Mesmero, serving as her back-up, saves her by hypnotizing the crowd into believing that an old man was the killer. Aurora tries to seduce the Director again and he almost gives in, but then reminds himself to not let himself get distracted from his true goal. He sends Aurora and Wild Child on a mission to recruit a teleporter, hoping that their special romantic history won’t cause any problems. Once they arrive at the cabin of the teleporter, Aurora claims that she is in charge, and against better reasons enters first and doesn’t take Wild Child’s warnings seriously. It turns out to be a trap set by Sabretooth, there never was a teleporter to recruit. Aurora is seriously injured and Sabretooth forces Wild Child to watch the whole time. The Director decides to end this once and for all and calls in Agent Zero and sends him after Sabretooth. Meanwhile Agent Jackson discovers that Sauron leaves at night to drain people of their life energies. Jackson taunts him that the Director would not approve, but then offers his help in order to gain Sauron’s loyalty.

At the Weapon X headquarters, Aurora’s bandages are removed and it turns out that Sabretooth has scarred her face. The Director, who went through a similar thing, now wants to help her. Wild Child doesn’t seem to be too happy about that idea. Zero's search begins at a New York City morgue, where he discovers that Sabretooth has been killing people for three weeks now. Suddenly and inexplicably, he receives a note from somebody who can tell him where Sabretooth is. Disguised, he meets up with his informant: Omega Red, who claims to have become a legitimate businessman. It turns out that Sabretooth has been selling the information he stole from Weapon X and plans to sell his information to other countries so they can set up their own Weapon X programs. Later, Sabretooth arrives at the Waldorf Astoria hotel to make a deal, but he finds Agent Zero instead. Agent Zero defeats him and wants to kill him, but Weapon X stops him by activating his implants. Zero takes a handcuffed Sabretooth to the Weapon X compound to an overjoyed Director, who welcomes Sabretooth back.

Now that Sabretooth is back in the custody of Weapon X, The Director questions him about the whereabouts of the discs that contain full dossiers on nearly every mutant on the planet, but Creed has some mental blocks installed and they can’t access his memories. Even Mesmero doesn’t get through them. Agent Jackson wants to kill him, but the Director objects; unless they know what happened with the disks they need Creed alive. In the meantime he thinks that Sabretooth should be put to use, and he has Mesmero place his own mental blocks into the twisted mind of Creed, that prohibit him from acting out his violent rages unless directed so by the Director. The other agents (Kane, Marrow, Sauron and Washout) are sent out to try and locate former associates of Creed in hopes of obtaining information on the location of the discs. They hunt down Avalanche and the Blob, but they don’t know anything. Instead Marrow and Sauron get into an argument themselves. Secretly the Director visits the room of Madison Jeffries, and he shows his loyal servant that the earlier plans of a mutant concentration camp are well under way. The camp overseers are equipped with modified Box armors.

Screams ring throughout a home. Parents frantically rush to their children only to learn that siblings are exchanging horror stories of government controlled monsters. As the parents try to console the children the members of Weapon X break into the home. The family are mutants themselves and Weapon X has plans for them. They are boarded onto a jet with several other mutants. Aboard, Billy and Wendy Taylor befriend a blue skinned mutant named Maggott who has two giant slugs as part of his mutant powers. The jet arrives at some sort of concentration camp guarded by dozens of Boxbots. Some mutants try to fight their captors only to discover that they are powerless while they are beaten up without mercy. Cecilia Reyes, another detainee of the camp, explains that Weapon X is using the power canceling mutant Leech to negate all their powers. The mutants are divided into two groups. The ones that have green M's may somehow prove useful to the agency. However, the mutants with red M's are sentenced to die. Billy witnesses the death of Maggott and other red M'd mutants and tells his father. When Billy’s father confronts the Director about what happened to the red M'd mutants, he is led away and never seen again. In the following weeks, the mutants have to endure sessions in which the program attempts to pluck whatever useful powers they can find. There is only two options, join the program and become another agent of Weapon X, or slowly die. Some mutants accept the offer, while Billy’s mother, exhausted and on the brink of dying from the sessions, makes an arrangement with Dr. Windsor, who secretly helps some mutants escape. Windsor remains true to his word an leads Billy and Wendy, who has adopted one of Maggot’s slugs, to freedom.

 

[SunflowaSeeds]

Uncanny X-Men #410-412

Wolverine, Iceman, Archangel, Nightcrawler and Stacey X, as well as Monet, on-loan from X-Corporation, are heading to Scotland after Xavier reported a distress call he picked up. Tensions run high between Stacey and Monet, and soon their jet is attacked by large fireballs which are fired from a nearby island. In Vancouver, a young boy with a fish-like appearance, Sammy Pare, is bullied by some other kids. He ponders commiting suicide, but returns home where he finds that Professor Charles Xavier is waiting for him. Xavier invites Sammy to the Xavier Institute. Sammy is very keen to go, and he meets the Beast who is piloting the jet that Xavier arrived in. Xavier realizes Sammy has a gun with him, and confiscates it. As they prepare to leave Vancouver, Xavier contacts the X-Men, and learns that they are in danger and injured. To complicate matters, the Juggernaut has appeared.

Suddenly, vines attack the X-Men and capture Angel. The Juggernaut then reveals that it was he who called the X-Men for help, surprising his long-time opponents. They are attacked by more vines, and everyone except Nightcrawler and Iceman are captured. The captives begin to have their energies drained from them, while Wolverine and Juggernaut try to escape from their captor - Black Tom Cassidy, whose form has mutated so that he is basically the root of a bunch of vines.

Nightcrawler tries to reason with Black Tom, and manages to free Stacy X, while Black Tom loses control over Iceman. Stacy uses her power on Black Tom, and while he is distracted, Wolverine, Archangel, Monet and Juggernaut are able to free themselves. Archangel’s appearance somehow loses its blue hue. Iceman attacks Black Tom with a powerful surge of ice, before Black Tom begins to tear the island apart. The X-jet with Professor X onboard has arrived. The X-Men and Monet make their way into the jet, but Juggernaut is knocked into the water by Black Tom. However, Samuel Pare, dives into the water and rescues the Juggernaut. With everyone safe, Xavier offers Juggernaut to return to the Xavier Institute to recover for as long as he needs. This surprises the X-Men, and Juggernaut accepts. The beginnings of a bond are also formed between Juggernaut and Sammy Pare.

In the meantime, a nurse named Annie Ghazikhanian is looking after an unresponsive man. She has been doing so for a year, and has developed strong feelings for him. While spending time with her patient and her son, she suddenly discovers that he resembles the believed-dead X-Man, Havok. Almost reluctantly, she phones the Xavier Institute and leaves a message informing Cyclops that she thinks she has his brother. Nurse Annie Ghazikhanian says her goodbyes to the mute Havok, who had been her patient for the past year. She reveals her feelings to him, which Cyclops overhears when he arrives to collect his brother. As he departs, Annie tells him that Havok will need someone to look after him.

 

[SunflowaSeeds]

Uncanny X-Men #413-415

Nurse Annie and her son, Carter, arrive at the Xavier Institute for Higher Learning. Annie is nervous about being there and admits to herself that she feels racism towards mutants. Xavier and the X-Men return to the Institute and have several medical emergencies. Husk communicates with Xavier telepathically, but when Annie is given the chance, she declines. Annie goes to the infirmary, to find Iceman and Archangel in need of medical attention. Annie is met with prejudice herself however, as Iceman refuses to let her stitch up his wound. She turns to Archangel, who has a broken arm and a broken leg. She tries to help him, but Stacy X and Husk begin to fight about Archangel. Stacy gets particularly nasty, and Husk runs away. Archangel scolds Stacy. In all the confusion, Xavier realizes that he had forgotten about Havok. The X-Men are surprised to learn their former teammate is here, and several of them accompany Xavier and Annie to visit the catatonic mutant. Wolverine, accompanied by Sammy and Carter, finds Juggernaut on the Institute grounds, and Wolverine warns him that if he crosses the line, he will cut him no slack. Sammy and Carter, however, decide that Juggernaut is cool. Xavier attempts to find Havok on the Astral Plane, but cannot reach him. Annie talks with him, and Xavier offers her a full time position at the Xavier Institute as its nurse. Annie is confused, assuming Xavier would have preferred a mutant, but Xavier explains to her his philosophy of unification and cooperation. Annie accepts the job, and then goes to check on Husk, to see if she is all right. Husk is not very welcoming however. Annie thinks to herself that, despite her racism towards mutants, she has her reasons for taking the job here - and goes to her quarters, where her son is displaying his mutant power.

At a farm in Ontario, a teenage boy is beaten by his father, only for the boy to manifest a mutant power, energy which radiates throughout the farmhouse. In Quebec, Professor X has a meeting with Northstar, inviting him to teach at the Xavier Institute, specifically due to his sexual identity. Northstar declines the offer, but agrees to go and assist a squad of X-Men, investigating the powerful mutant energy in Ontario. Archangel, Iceman, Nightcrawler and Stacy X arrive at the farmhouse, and are annoyed when Northstar shows up, arguing with them. The mutants search the farmhouse, they find furniture and belongings strewn all over the place. They soon locate the young children, and then their older brother. The X-Men prepare to take the children someplace safe, but the older boy explains he can’t go on the plane and announces he is going to explode once more. He does so, and knocks Northstar backwards. Northstar is annoyed, and scolds the boy, before deciding that he will fly the boy back to Westchester, as he is the only one who can withstand the boy’s energy. Northstar begins the journey, and after wanting to know why the boy’s father was angry with him, he reveals to the boy that he is gay. This concerns the boy, who struggles and tries to jump from Northstar, but he releases more energy, and falls. Northstar is knocked back by the blast, but manages to fly down and rescue the boy before he hit’s the ground. In the X-Men’s jet, Stacy continues to try and talk with Archangel, before suddenly her skin starts to turn into scales. The boy unwillingly explodes once more, and the energy knocks both he and Northstar into a field. Xavier telepathically contacts Northstar and tells him to get the boy to the Avengers, who have a special chamber. But Peter is very badly injured. Northstar begins to cry, disturbed that neither he nor Xavier have the power to save the boy. Northstar assures Peter that he won’t leave him. Peter knows he is going to die this time, and shortly, he does after exploding once more. Northstar soon wakes in the infirmary at the Xavier Institute, and learns that Peter’s brothers and sisters are safe with extended family, before assuring Northstar that there was no way to save the boy. Northstar announces that he has given the idea some thought, and would like to teach at the Institute.

Iceman and Archangel get into an argument about Iceman’s unwillingness to visit the school nurse, while Iceman berates Archangel for trying to get the attention of a female mutant. The mutant is called Josette and she is an empath. She tries to seduce Archangel. Iceman arrives in the infirmary where Nurse Annie is looking after Northstar. Annie and Iceman argue, before Iceman agrees to let Annie examine him - but not in front of Northstar. When Northstar never comes to Annie’s defense during the argument, Annie realizes that Northstar likes Iceman. Iceman shows his chest to Annie - which is becoming ice, and he cannot change it back.

He thinks it is a secondary mutation. Afterwards, Annie convinces Iceman to take Northstar to the diner to get something to eat. On the way, they encounter Josette, who begins to seduce Iceman. Northstar is very unimpressed, but Iceman is influenced by her empathic power. Iceman and Josette go outside and sit closely, until they are attacked by Josette’s husband, a clay-like mutant called Rober’. Rober’ is very angry and beats Iceman severely, despite Josette’s protests. Northstar arrives on scene and takes down Rober’ to rescue Iceman, eventually splitting Rober’ in two. Afterwards, Annie watches over the injured Iceman, and Northstar assures Annie that Iceman is not gay. Referring to Havok who is still in a coma, Annie points out that you can’t help who you fall in love with. Meanwhile, Nightcrawler visits an empty church and speaks about how angry he is.

 

[SunflowaSeeds]

Uncany X-Men #416-420

Nightcrawler encounters Iceman experimenting with his powers. Iceman makes comments about the state of the X-Men and how it seems anyone can hang around the Mansion and call themselves an X-Man. He inadvertently upsets Nightcrawler during this. Stacy-X, meanwhile is still in the infirmary, but has her bandages removed. During the process, Nurse Annie is very distracted as Professor X is in the infirmary, still trying to reach the comatose Havok. Professor X reveals that he has contacted Polaris and that she will arrive in the morning. Archangel accompanies Nightcrawler and Stacy-X to the X-Ranch, but flies alongside the jet. Stacy is worried Archangel is ignoring her, but Nightcrawler tries to explain that Archangel is getting over Psylocke. After leaving the X-Ranch, Stacy has collected some personal memoirs. Meantime, Juggernaut is leaving the school grounds, and Squidboy accompanies him. Their journey takes them some miles away from the institute, to an old house, which Juggernaut begins to demolish. It is the old Marko house. He relives some memories of his father beating him and displaying some of the same behaviors he now has, before continuing to tear the place apart. With the house completely destroyed. Juggernaut and Squidboy seem to have bonded, and sit down to watch the sun set.

A teenage couple, a boy who is a normal human and a girl, who is a mutant with an obvious mutation, are hassled by some bullies, who warn the boy that he will end up a mutant too if he has one for a girlfriend. Suddenly, the bullies are attacked and killed by what appears to be a group of mutant werewolves. The couple thank the strange creatures and attempt to leave, but the werewolves tell Mandy, the girl, that they do not approve of mutants mating beneath them, and kill her boyfriend David.

At the X-Mansion Archangel and Husk both try to deal with personal issues regarding their lovelives. Juggernaut bonds with Sammy Pare and Carter Ghazikhanian. Stacy X makes an unsuccessful pass at Nightcrawler. Only Archangel, Northstar, Wolverine and Husk make it to the assignment Xavier had for them, where they are joined by Charlotte Jones, who tells them it appears as if mutant werewolves have killed four human boys. They follow a trail to Lobo Tech, an industry owned by Warrens company, Worthington Industries, however he says he was not aware he owned it. Wolverine is attacked and badly injured, and Maximus Lobo makes his presence known.

Carter tries to use his psionic powers to reach into Havok's mind and pull him through, but somehow he gets caught in there. Annie tries to coax him out, until Polaris arrives and attacks Annie. Polaris physically injures Annie, who is only trying to help Carter. Meanwhile at LoboTech, Archangel and Husk ask Northstar to bring the injured Wolverine to safety while they fight for their lives against Maximus Lobo and his mutant werewolves, until they are both so badly injured Warren can barely fly them to safety. Upon reaching a forest, they both pass out. Northstar arrives at the mansion and interrupts an argument between Iceman and Juggernaut and he tries to tell them of the situation Archangel and Husk are in. Near White Plains, Husk sheds her steel skin, having miraculously recovered from her injuries. She and the recovering Warren try to make their way out of the forest, but Warren is too badly injured to move very far. They begin to get into an argument when Paige predicts a different kind of war between mutant groups. Afterwards she tells him that Psylocke came to visit her in a dream, to tell her Warren was following the wrong path with her. Before they can continue the discussion, they are attacked by Maximus Lobo and his fellow werewolves.

Back at the institute Northstar rushes into the infirmary with the injured Wolverine, to find Annie being threatened by Polaris. Lorna sends him through the roof before they are joined by Xavier, Juggernaut and others. Xavier de-escalates the situation just in time to see Alex awake from his coma. Alex and Annie try to coax her son out of the void, and Professor Xavier enters the young boy's mind. He almost succeeds, until Carter is pulled out of Xavier's reach. As Iceman, Northstar and Juggernaut prepare to leave in the X-Jet, Iceman threatens to kill Northstar if anything has happened to Archangel, before a desperate cry for help is heard from Husk, before she is cut off.

At White Plains, Warren and Paige continue to battle the ferocious werewolves, and Warren finds out that Maximus was responsible for his father’s death. The injured Paige falls unconscious, and Warren tells himself that he must save her at all costs. He manages to get the werewolves off of her and they manage to escape. Though not for long as the werewolves herd them back to Lobo-Tech Industries. Warren discovers that he has a healing factor in his blood and uses it to heal Paige. The X-Men and Juggernaut soon arrive, and a battle ensues. As Maximus Lobo releases flammable liquid into the building he then sets it alight. Juggernaut shields everyone while they all escape. Safe in the streets below, the X-Men witness the building blow up and Juggernaut walk out. Archangel’s healing factor heals his wounds, and they return home.

At the Xavier Institute, Havok, Polaris and Annie try to help Professor X, who is still linked, to Annie’s son, Carter. When the two are finally separated, Xavier tells Annie that they need to have a serious talk about her son, and his father.

Later, Archangel says goodbye to Psylocke, before moving on with his life, and visiting Paige.

Nightcrawler in the meantime reveals his problems to Father Whitney, including that he finds it difficult to believe in God these days, before he is told rather bluntly to leave.

 

[popotak]

I think I have to stop now reading hentai stories and began to read X-men episodes. I realize it is more amazing, then.

 

[SunflowaSeeds]

X-Treme X-Men: Mekanix #1-6

The anti-mutant group Purity claims that one of the students in Prof. Benes’ Advanced Physics class – a class that includes Kitty Pryde - is a mutant. Kitty is seething, but can’t do anything about it. She has to attend her first session of mandatory counseling with Dr. Maureen Lyzinski, since she’s been put on probation after beating up several fellow students. Kitty refuses to talk to the woman until the very end of the session. When looking at snapshots that show a younger Maureen as a soldier, Kitty mentions that her father enlisted in Vietnam as a young man.

As the girl leaves, Maureen worries about Kitty, who, once outside, breaks down crying. Later while working at the bar she runs into another former student of Xavier’s - Shan aka Karma , who’s also studying in Chicago and who invites Kitty over for dinner with her family. Later at night, they discuss their former and current lives. Kitty tells Shan that her father was killed on Genosha and that there are people who will never stop trying to get rid of mutants. Some of those people – three Purity members – Tom, Jeff and Alice are meeting in a dorm. Tom has hacked into the physics lab’s network and the command protocols of Prof. Benes’ experiment. When he leaves the room, the other two start manipulating it. Kitty’s class, in the meantime is getting ready for the big experiment. They also discuss the Purity’s site attack on them, with Kitty trying to keep out of the argument, until Benes asks them to start concentrating. Suddenly the experiment goes wild, the other students run and Kitty jumps for Benes as around them everything explodes. In another part of Chicago, Shola Inkosi, a Genoshan exchange student with no place to go, has nightmares about the destruction of Genosha. Determined not to fall asleep again, he goes looking for a coffee shop. When he is accosted by a gang he uses his psychic powers to dismantle their guns - and several cars as well – and then calmly orders his coffee. On Lake Huron a mysterious freighter resists any attempts to be boarded, and the Coast Guard members who try to do so, die in the process.

The experiment of Kitty and her class is about to turn into a runaway disaster. Professor Benes orders the students to flee through the getaway tunnel. He’ll shut down the system manually. Kitty knocks him out and asks the others to take him with them. She has a better chance of surviving. Kitty manages to shut down the system and follows the others. In the tunnels, she is found by volunteer helpers Tom More and Shan. They encounter the others and Shan possesses them to lead them to the exit. Just as the tunnel is about to collapse around them, they are saved by the telekinetic Genoshan mutant Shola Inkosi. Tom reacts with disgust towards Shola and Kitty angrily reveals that she is a mutant as well.

The next day, she reluctantly discusses both her father’s and her own tendency to keep secrets with her psychiatrist. Later, she is questioned by the police, who seem to be quite suspicious of her. When they ask her whether she is a mutant, she sarcastically says yes. Later, she learns that all her classmates gave the same answer.

Returning to her apartment, Kitty finds that it is being searched by the FBI and that, despite her protests, she isn’t permitted to enter. She leaves, easily shakes off her FBI “tail” in the subway and pays a visit to her lawyer. Afterwards, she attends another of her mandatory counselling sessions, where her psychiatrist tries to understand why Kitty feels so responsible for everything bad that has happened in her life. Later, working at the bar, Kitty is met by Shan and her siblings – their apartment was also searched by the FBI. As a result, Shan was thrown out. Kitty’s boss, Dylan, helps by offering the two girls a new apartment. While Dylan plays babysitter, Kitty and Shan want to make sure that Shola, the Genoshan mutant who saved their lives, is all right. Unfortunately, they find his apartment ransacked and several mutant-haters throw Molotov cocktails at the building, not caring that Shola has upstairs neighbours, whom kitty and Shan have to save from the fire. The two girls confront the armed fanatics but, unfortunately, due to a can of pepper spray, they cannot use their powers on them. Help comes from Tom More, who’s learned that his girlfriend, Alice, used the computer virus he created to cause the accident at Bessemer Station and had made sure that Shola was outed as a mutant. They are joined by the angry Shoal, who is about to kill the mutant-haters, until Kitty convinces him that there has to be a better way. The fanatics are arrested and Kitty asks Tom to help them move. In the meantime, the freighter, Amazon Belle, closes in on Chicago. Its mysterious passengers scan several mutant targets and intend to follow their prime directive – find them and destroy them.

Tom More helps Kitty and her friends clean up her apartment after she got it back from the FBI. The doorway has also been defaced with anti-mutant messages. Kitty, who has installed cameras throughout the building, reveals to her landlord, Dylan, that it was a neighbor's kid, from a "decent family." Shola, in the meantime, promises Tom that he'll give him a demonstration of his powers the next day. The next day, Kitty has another psychiatrist's session and asks Maureen about her war experiences. Maureen opens up about her past but Kitty refuses to do the same thing when it is her turn. Tom, in the meantime, pays a visit to his girlfriend and fellow Purity member, Alice, and realizes how torn he is about his loyalties. Shola expects him in his car, has him drive to an abandoned quarry and there gives him a spectacular demonstration of his telekinetic powers, which may or may not include a possible threat. In the evening, Shan's siblings insist that there's a monster at the window. Shan and Kitty find one of the new breed of Sentinels and together manage to beat it before it can notify the other Sentinels, who are responsible for several disappearances of people during the last few days. Unfortunately, the other Sentinels deduce what happened and decide to embark on a "search & destroy mission."

Kitty and Shan find that their fight against the Sentinel scout is not over, as the creature keeps on adapting to whatever they throw at it. Even collapsing a warehouse on it doesn’t stop it. Help arrives in the form of the telekinetic Shola who manages to destroy the creature for good. The next day, at her shrink session, Kitty angrily reveals to Maureen that she is a mutant. Later, her classmates ask her to speak at a student meeting that decides whether Purity will be banned from campus and Kitty reluctantly accepts. While Kitty argues her case with Alice Tremaine, Shan and Shola realize with horror that the other Sentinels are coming for them all.

Shola fights against the Sentinels, who are attacking the student union, while Shan, whose powers are useless, runs away. Soon, she is joined by Kitty and together they take care of one Sentinel, until Shola joins them to take care of the other. While Shan possesses all students to evacuate them, Kitty calls Tom to come and get them. They drive away, luring the Sentinels after them. Eventually, they make it to Bessemer station, where, using teamwork, they lure the robots into a trap and destroy all of them – or so they think. In the meantime, Alice Tremaine has found a damaged Sentinel at the student union and has made it her project to repair it, so it can kill more mutants. Later, Kitty has a talk with her shrink and, for the first time, is willing to work with her. Later still, at the bar Lieutenant Ramos tells Kitty that she has the Police’s respect for what she did and she goes to join her friends in the bar.

 

[SunflowaSeeds]

Wolverine v2 #187-189

Logan meets up with an old drunk at a bar. Strangely, Logan requests a ride with him and the new acquaintances hop into the drunk’s truck and speed off to the west. On the ride to the drunk’s destination, Logan brings up a question about the two dead bodies in the back of the drunk’s truck. The old man tells him that they were a couple of men that had done him wrong. Telling more stories, the old man does not see an oncoming semi and barely misses getting the two of them killed, as he swerves off the road. Logan demands the keys from him and the two continue on with their journey. On the way, Logan tells the old timer that he noticed that one of the men was shot in the back. The man confesses that they were just a couple of hitchhikers he had killed a couple of days ago. After a brief conversation, the two of them end up at their destination and Logan gets out to allow the man the ability to do what he came there for. The two men stand near a bridge that has been condemned and serves now as a dead end over looking a large drop. The old man is there to kill himself but does not have the guts to do it, so Logan drives him over the cliff to help him.

A detective by the name of Lester Brown is investigating the tragic death of a drug dealer named Elijah Snow, or as some call him, “No-Show.” Lester finishes a bottle of alcohol, as he nears the apartment of Juwan and Tawanda Barnes. Lester meets Juwan and, after an accident on one of the steps of the building, he meets Tawanda too. Tawanda defends her child and she denies Lester any hints about why Detective McLawry shot and killed Snow. Lester gets frustrated and leaves. In his car, he finds that his case against McLawry is going to be closed, which drives Lester to a nearby liquor store, where he purchases more alcohol. Waking up in front of his headquarters, Lester stumbles in to find that Tawanda is there, filing a report against him for police brutality. Before her report can be finished, she gets disgusted with Lester and leaves. Lester is called into his chief’s office and told that he is no longer on the McLawry case, he is also told to stay away from Tawanda and her kid. McLawry overheard the conversation between Tawanda and Lester. He tells his partner, Murphy, that he has to pick up his dry cleaning so he will see him later. Murphy, confused, tells Lester about McLawry’s laundry pick-up, leaving Lester to worry about Juwan’s safety. His worries are confirmed, as he shows up at the apartments to find Juwan murdered and that room in shambles. Later that night, Lester and McLawry meet at a local bar. Lester accuses McLawry of killing Juwan but finally leaves after causing a scene. Logan, mysteriously walks in after Lester leaves and asks if a drink that McLawry offered Lester was still up for having.

Inside the Chief of Police’s office, Detective Lester Brown is questioned about what has recently happened. During the conversation, he states that he lost his gun and his keys. After he is suspended, Detective McLawry heads out to a bar to celebrate along with his buddy Detective Murphy. In the bathroom, McLawry is confronted by Logan, who tells him that he knows what happened. Outside the bar, McLawry smacks Logan over the head and takes him out in the middle of nowhere. After a conversation ensues where McLawry confesses what he had done, McLawry shoots Logan in the head and buries him in a shallow grave. Once he leaves, Logan escapes and heads to Sullivan’s where Lester is at. Once he goes to the restroom, he leaves a package for Lester that contains his gun and a map. Ecstatic, Lester heads out to prove what he had said about McLawry was right. Content with what he did, Logan drinks the Bourbon he had left for Lester.

This is the end of Wolverine Volume 2. Crazy that I've finally made it through. A lot of this series was not too entertaining in my opinion, but some good moments. I like Logan best when he is operating in Madripoor with people like Viper, Yukio and Silver Samurai as guest stars. The next series will be written by Greg Rucka so I'm definitely pumped for that

 

[SunflowaSeeds]

Wolverine v3 #1-6

While dining at the Doggie Diner and reading a book, Logan is watched by Lucy, one of the waitresses. Lucy goes home that night with one of the other customers. Later, the man leaves, insulting Lucy by throwing some money over his shoulder as he walks out. Across the hall, Logan is watching through the door of his apartment. The next night, Lucy is writing by lamplight when she hears something in the hallway outside. She opens the door to see Logan with a knife sticking out of his leg. The next day at the diner Lucy notices that he does not have a scratch on him. Logan leaves one of his books on the table when he leaves and Lucy takes it with her. She works up the nerve to knock on his door and he lets her in. Only a blanket and a pillow on the floor surrounded by beer, books and a desk lamp furnish Logan’s apartment. Lucy gives him his book back and she tells him that she calls him Mean Man. Since he reads so many books, however, Lucy presumes he’s the kind of Mean Man that only does mean things to mean people. Before leaving, she asks Logan if he’ll look out for her and he says yes. Back in her apartment, Lucy cuts out most of the interior of the Poe book and hides her journal inside. She sticks Logan’s books on her bookshelf among her own volumes. Soon after, two young men enter the apartment building with machine guns. They leave moments later, after killing Lucy and gunning down Logan. They think him dead. Later, Logan finds the Poe collection and takes it to the Doggie Diner. There, he begins to read Lucy’s journal.

Wolverine removes a bullet from his body and heads off to the local gun shop to show it to the shopkeeper, Blaine. He tells Blaine that he wants to know about some guys calling themselves ‘The Brothers' who weild Mac 10s. Blaine gives him a name, Tom Leeds, who does shows all over the state. Cassie Lathrop prepares for the show where she assists Tommy.

Wolverine approaches Tommy at their stall. He asks for some AR-15’s and lots of rounds. Tommy says that he can hook him, and might even have something in his private collection if he’s interested. They meet up and he asks how many AR-15’s Tommy can get him, but he tells Logan that he can get him what he really needs, M16’s, no conversion needed. They agree to meet in Melford where Logan can check them out the next day. Logan then casually asks if he has any converted Mac 10’s. Tommy says he got cleaned out of them last December. He enters his motel room alone where Wolverine forces him to reveal who he sold the Mac 10’s to. After a little gentle persuasion, Tommy reveals that it was to a guy in Westfall called Dennis Terril. He leaves the motel, but not before he spots Cassie outside, aiming a gun at him. He tells her not to do it and she doesn’t, but she does call someone on her walkie-talkie and tells them they have a problem.

ATF agents surround the gun shop belonging to Tommy Leeds and arrest him in his apartment upstairs for several firearms violations. Cassie is amongst them and Tommy calls her a traitor as he is lead away to jail. Cassie is adamant that she wants to dig deeper, and find out who the little guy was who wanted to buy weapons from them. Wolverine arrives in Westfall, Oregon and calls at a café. There, he is confronted by a large, bearded man, who takes offence when Logan mentions the name Dennis Terril. He tries to get Logan to leave but he isn’t going anywhere, instead taking the issue outside where he is jumped by the man and his friends after mentioning Lucy Braddock’s name. Discovering that the bearded man is Joe Braddock, Lucy’s father, Logan gives him her journal as Joe breaks down in tears. Cassie, meanwhile, uses unorthodox methods to find out where Logan has gone from Tommy Leeds, and heads out to Westfall on Logan’s trail. Logan talks to Joe at his home and gets the low-down on the Brothers he’s looking for and Dennis Terril who he learns is the crooked sheriff. The Brotherhood of the New World is headed by a man called Cry, who likes young girls. Lucy was kept in a cell overnight by Terril but then mysteriously vanished. As they chat, Logan senses something outside and finds Joe’s shack surrounded by the Brothers along with Terril. When Logan isn’t forthcoming, they attack.

Cassie arrives in Westfall and asks a couple of men where Dennis Terril might be. They point her in the direction of the sheriff’s office down the street. Later, a man arrives in a pick-up with some friends of his and enters the office, using a key. Cassie wanders over and finds him with his hands inside the drawer, looking for something. The man tells her that he’s a good friend of Terril and calls himself Cry; because he makes so many ladies cry for more. He again puts his hand into the drawer as two of his friends approach Cassie from behind. Sensing danger, she reaches for her gun but Cry uses mace to blind her and the three men beat her unconscious. Wolverine and Joe Braddock flee the house as the gunfire begins and make their way to a stream nearby. Wolverine tells Joe to get to his friend’s house and then head for Portland to tell Blaine at the gun shop what has happened. After Sheriff Terril orders some of the Brothers to check out Joe Braddock’s friends, he drives into town with Logan in the back of his car and, when he stops, Logan threatens him, forcing him to reveal Cry’s whereabouts. Terril makes the mistake of bad-mouthing Lucy and Wolverine kills him, before spotting Cassie’s Jeep parked outside his office. He sets off to find Cry’s place. Cassie, meanwhile, finds herself a prisoner in Cry’s fortress in the desert, where captive women pay a high price if they disobey him.

Taking a mirror from one of the other prisoners, Cassie breaks it, which provides her with a shard of glass to use as a weapon. Wolverine manages to enter the compound and blends into the shadows. He finds a man who is taking a cart of food and drink to the prisoners and forces him to lead him to the generator. Before he gets there, though, he smells Lucy in another room and inside he finds bloody clothing belonging to her and many other items of female clothing. The man flees and three other Brothers appear. Wolverine is furious and attacks in a berserker rage. The man with the cart, believing Wolverine to be of no further trouble returns to his duties and enters the room where the prisoners are being held. Cassie quickly grabs him and stabs him in the back. After disposing of his three foes, Wolverine heads outside and Cry orders him killed. He slips back into the shadows and soon finds the two men who killed Lucy. He does the same to them and heads off to find Cry. It doesn’t take him long and he kills Cry, as Cassie arrives, aiming her machine gun at him. He tells her not to pull the trigger; he isn’t her enemy and never was. He departs as Cassie waits for help from her fellow ATF agents.

Wolverine is drowning his sorrows in a New York bar, having driven three days from Oregon to meet with Nightcrawler. Kurt tries to get to the bottom of why Wolverine is feeling particularly morose. He enquires about the dead girl, Lucy Braddock, and the two discuss death, murder and the fact that Wolverine killed twenty-seven men three days ago. Wolverine needs reassurance, maybe even absolution, for what he feels are his crimes and Kurt provides the reassurance, but not the absolution, arguing that he doesn’t need it. He asks if a wolf is evil because it culls sickness from a herd? Wolverine is an honorable man, not an animal. Later that evening, Cassie dreams about him killing her in bed. He is in her, head deep, and she can’t figure out why.

 

[SunflowaSeeds]

X-Treme X-Men #19-24

The team is having a party in celebration of their recent victory over Khan's forces. Jean sits down at the table and asks the X-Treme team if they are willing to move back to the Institute to become teachers. The team does not answer her question, but only ponders if they should or not. Kitty's recent troubles over her father's death surface, causing her to leave the table. Beast helps Gambit in the Garden as he tests Gambit's recent injuries and finds that Gambit has greatly improved. Rogue approaches Gambit and tries to comfort him over his recent revelation that he has also lost his power along with hers. The two decide on not leaving one another, as they want to take their relationship day by day and see how it all turns out. The next morning Kitty says her good-byes and leaves to head back to college. Gambit and Rogue inform their friends that they are planning on leaving for a while to explore their relationship further. Neal and Heather also decide to leave together to hunt down Heather's brother and to make sure he is all right. Jean decides that it is their time to leave and Logan offers to stay behind to help Storm in her recuperation and they agree.

In Rogue’s New Orleans mansion, Sage and Bishop have a very serious conversation about why Sage doesn’t want to return to the Xavier’s Institute. Interrupting their conversation, Storm collapses to the floor above them. Sage receives a police distress call over her tech-glasses and Bishop and Sage go to investigate it. In Alaska, a Sheriff informs the two X-Men about the horrific killing of seven people, frozen to death on a glacier. The X-Men head to the victims last known residence. Sage finds disturbing evidence of abuse by the victims. Following the mutant trace found on the property, they are lead to a cabin where they find more bodies; these, however, have been buried. Sage discovers that the bodies here are the ones that were tortured and the two X-Men continue to follow the mutant’s signature to its source. Arriving at the Xavier Institute, the two X-Men are attacked by the grounds students. After defeating them, Bishop and Sage pull their suspect to the side to try and ask him why he committed the murders. The boy goes by the name of Jeffrey Garret and does not give the two mutants time to question him, as he teleports them away.

Sage and Bishop appear naked in Times Square and are taken by police to the precinct. Once there, two detectives quiz them about their knowledge of the murders in Alaska. Interrupting their questioning, a riot breaks out, in which Bishop and Sage save the day by stopping a mutant’s involuntary rampage. The detectives release them in hopes that they will solve the Alaskan murder mystery. An hour later, Storm tries to reason with Emma Frost about Jeffrey Garret's admission to the school. Emma takes herself and Jeffrey through Jeffrey's own memories. Jeffrey becomes scared and teleports Emma over a frozen lake, but then saves her. Xavier tries to contact her and asks her about the situation with Jeffrey. Emma does not respond though, causing concern for both the spying Sage and Xavier himself. Behind Emma, two red eyes glow and blood streaks down Emma's face. At Harry’s Hideaway, a drop of blood appears next to Sage's right eye and she knows that Bogan has Emma.

Sage and Bishop prepare themselves to break into the mansion. Underneath the mansion, they notice Emma's astral form heading towards Jeffrey Garret's dorm room. In the room, Emma removes a copy of Jeffries memories and takes it back to Cerebra’s room, where her physical body is. Emma takes those memories and programs the computer to play out those memories in the Danger Room. After Emma leaves the room a shadowy figure sneaks in and reprograms the scenario, taking all the security locks off line. Leading the room, Emma is attacked by Sage and Bishop. Blindsiding Emma, Bishop sends her sailing through the ceiling and into the waiting arms of Storm. Bishop and Sage hunt for Jeffrey’s dorm room. While they're doing that, Emma and Storm battle outside the mansion. After their confrontation, Emma and Storm are shocked to see a blast coming from the mansion. Emma tells Storm the she can hear children screaming. After the two arrive at the mansion, specifically Jeffrey Garret's dorm room, the women only find piles of clothes. After finding Sage's scanner, they come to the realization that Jeffrey has taken the children into the danger room and, if they're not saved, everyone in there will die. Horrifyingly, this scenario has the ability to be just as dangerous as real life, since the security protocols are all turned off. The two women enter the Danger Room to find a large mansion, filled with three employees and five well-dressed business people. They also find the students behind bars, with Bishop and Sage hung up by chains being tortured. One man named Oliver seems to be possessed by a mutant named Elias Bogan and he tells his captives, through his subjects’ bodies, how he will use them to kill all the X-Men; except for one, whom he wants to keep alive for his pleasure: Emma Frost. With that said, Storm knocks Emma out and tries to use her as bait.

Bogan posses Emma’s body and captures Storm, leaving her plan in shambles. Garret, sensing his time to escape, uses his powers to save the possessed Emma and his fellow students. After defeating Bogan’s unknown telepath, they turn their attentions to getting out of the Danger Room, in which they do just in time to hear a summons from Xavier asking them to let him in. After the X-Treme team cleans up, they have a meeting with Xavier. In the meeting, Storm tries to convince Xavier to turn Garret in to the proper authorities but Xavier rejects their suggestion. Leaving the mansion, the X-Treme team tells the others that they are fighting for a world that does not need a haven like the school to feel safe.

Meanwhile, Cannonball has been helping with the rescue effort at the Channel Tunnel in France. He was in a battle with Weapon XII, where he lost a friend and hundreds of people lost their lives. He’s trying to make right what another mutant made wrong. After setting down an injured woman, Xavier contacts Sam and asks him to meet up with the other X-Corp members so they can leave. Sam declines, choosing to stay till all the bodies are accounted for. During his aid work, Sam befriends a group called Sappers after saving one of their own from a cave in. Later that day, they are moving debris when Sam hears a noise from a pile of rubble. After searching through the pile he finds survivors and becomes a hero to the workers in the tunnel. After their search is over, the Sappers reveal that they know about Sam’s secret powers, but they like him just the way he is. Flying off and giving the Sappers a show of his powers, Sam goes to visit the grave where they buried his teammate, Darkstar. While he’s there, Xavier gives him a note that reads the location of his one time girlfriend, Lila Cheney. Sam goes to visit her and the two decide to runaway together for a while. Months later, they reappear on Earth and Sam gets a visit from Storm. She offers him a chance to join the X-Treme team and he accepts.

 

[SunflowaSeeds]

Uncanny X-Men #421-422

The original X-Men finally have some time to talk to Havok, who tells them all how much he missed them, and Polaris proposes to him, surprising the X-Men, and upsetting Annie. Juggernaut tells the Professor that he wishes to teach at the institute and join the X-Men, Xavier welcomes him, but tells him that he will have to ask Nightcrawler about joining the team, to which Nightcrawler tells Xavier he is stepping down as team leader and going on vacation with Havok and Polaris, who are taking leave before the wedding. Before he leaves, Havok goes to talk with Annie, launching Annie into a very embarrassing monologue. Ready to leave, Havok comes over to thank Annie, and tells her that he feels like he knows her somehow, before he is interrupted by Polaris telling him to go. Two days later Husk and Annie are chatting, when they are interrupted by the arrival of Alpha Flight, who order them to hand over all the children in their care.

Alpha Flight, the FBI and police officers are attempting to remove all of the mutant students from the institute, as they believe them to be in danger while Xavier is talking to his legal counsel, who at this stage cannot do anything. Sasquatch and Guardian discuss the one student they are particularly interested in removing, a Canadian boy, Samuel Pare. Juggernaut gets mad when he is told Sammy has to leave and a fight between the X-Men and Alpha flight breaks out.

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Eventually Sammy settles the battls by telling everyone he will leave if the other students get to stay, so that it means there will be no more fighting. This compromise is agreed upon, and Sammy leaves, much to Juggernaut’s chagrin.

At an archaeology dig site with their old teacher, Havok, Polaris and also Nightcrawler are witness to a startling discovery – a mutant civilization uncovered that predates Ancient Egypt. While there, they are attacked by a religious sect, who are trying to stop the news of ancient mutant bones being discovered to the world, and apparently commit suicide by blowing themselves up. Arch-Angel gets an embarassing goodbye present from Stacy X who has left the mansion and Chamber has to face the fact that Husk seems to be getting close to Archangel.

 

[SunflowaSeeds]

Uncanny X-Men #423-424

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The X-Men wake one morning to discover six crucified mutants on their front lawn, including Jubilee, Magma, Skin and Jesse Aaronson. Together with Nurse Annie they attempt to resurrect the dead mutants by using Archangel’s healing blood. Cyclops gets mad at Nightcrawler for not doing an adequate job as leader of the second X-Men squad, and belittles him in the conference room in front of almost every other X-Man. Cyclops learns from Nightcrawler and Havok that the Church of Humanity may have been responsible for the crucifixions, and gets mad at Kurt again for not telling him about the Church when they first ran into them a while ago. Meanwhile, Archangel’s healing blood proves to have a limit when Annie and Wolverine refuse to take any more from him, though luckily enough they managed to revive Jubilee and Magma. When Kurt tells the X-Men that he was fully ordained as a priest, there are a lot of suspect looks, and when he tells them that they were all at the ceremony, they get even more concerned for him. Husk learns of Jubilee’s resurrection and Skins death, before seven of the X-Men head for St. Michael’s church, where Kurt tells them the ceremony was held and where he has been serving as a priest for some time now. The X-Men find traces of no one, until Phoenix rips apart the church floor, discovering a underground laboratory of horror.

The X-Men help the surviving mutants in the church, while Nightcrawler learns from Father Whitney, before he dies, that his becoming a priest was a scheme for the Church of Humanity to take over the world. The X-Men head to Montana to stop the Church of Humanity, where Wolverine, Cyclops and Polaris find themselves trapped in a psychic illusion, until Polaris kills the soldiers who have them trapped. Meanwhile, Phoenix deals with Mutant 143 and Bishop Desmond, while Nightcrawler, Havok and Iceman learn that Kurt was going to replace the real Catholic Pope, and be revealed later as a demon, as a result of which the world would hunt down mutants and turn to the Church of Humanity for solace. The X-Men engage in battle with the Pope, who turns out to be a nun who was raped by a priest and forced to leave her work, which she loved. The woman commits suicide, ending the Church of Humanity’s plans…for now.

 

[SunflowaSeeds]

Uncanny X-Men #425-427

Havok awakens from a dream in which he and Annie reveal their true feelings of love for each other, only to realize he is getting married to Polaris in two days. Juggernaut asks Cyclops if he can officially join the X-Men, and Havok tells him that he can be on his and Nightcrawler’s team. Later that evening, Annie arrives at a mixed human-mutant bar where Polaris’ bachelorette party is being held, despite being invited, Annie ends up sitting with Iceman separate from the party. After Annie storms away, he follows her out and the two kiss after he reveals that he is so lonely. At the bachelorette party proper, Lorna reveals much of her new personality and after discussing said personality and what marriage means to her, she apparently leaves with the stripper. At Havok’s bachelor party, a shapeshifting mutant stripper impersonates Annie, much to the disgust of Havok, who, not knowing she isn’t really Annie, jumps to protect her. After an argument with Cyclops, who planned this, Alex is confronted again with a hint that he may love Annie. This all comes to a head at the wedding where as Lorna walks down the isle, Alex calls off the wedding, and Lorna gets mad, transforming all the metal into an armor of the type Magneto wore she unleashes her powers and tells Alex that he is going to be sorry.

Lorna switches off the powers off all the mutants at the wedding by reversing their blood flow, except for Iceman, who tells her he still cares for her before she knocks him out, and Havok, who uses his powers to blast himself, Annie and Carter to safety. Lorna follows in pursuit, and Alex tells Annie that he knows all about her, revealing that her son used his powers to link their minds while he was in the coma so they wouldn’t be lonely. He tells Annie he loves her, before Lorna finds them, and after getting mad with Alex for ruining her wedding day, she attacks him with her powers, until the Juggernaut knocks her out. Afterwards, Alex and Annie go to Paris to live out a fantasy.

Husk, Jubilee and Archangel are paying their last respects to Skin at a graveyard in Los Angeles when Jubilee reveals she feels bad because she denied Skin. Husk tries to cheer her up after Warren leaves to go on some personal business. Two workers arrive at the graveyard to dig Skin up because he is a mutant, which goes against the religiously backed grounds of the cemetery. At a children’s hospital, Warren offers to use his abilities to heal all the children he can, hoping also to learn the limitations of his new healing power, after a test, the senior doctor allows him to. While Jubilee goes to talk to the cemetery manager, who is having an argument with his wife over the phone, Husk gets into a fight with the workers, one of whom she accidentally outs as a mutant with the ability to transform his body into steel. As Husk and he battle, Jubilee and the manager return, Jeremy gets fired for being a mutant and the manager offers to cremate Skin for them. Later, he gives the X-Men the remains, and after they leave he gets a phone call from his wife, who reveals that their terminally ill daughter was healed by an Angel.

 

[SunflowaSeeds]

RIOT AT XAVIERS

New X-Men #134-138

Outside of a trendy nightclub in Mutant Town, mutant fashion guru Jumbo Carnation is assaulted and killed by a group of humans. At the Xavier Institute, class prodigy Quentin Quire continues to attempt to fit in. Lacking the coolness or popularity of Slick, the coolest kid in school, and unable to attract the attention of any of the five Stepford Cuckoos sisters. Having been invited to assist in the murder of Jumbo Carnation, Cyclops and Beast visit the scene of the crime. There, they discover an inhaler and learn of the substance it contains; Hypercortisone D, a steroid designed for mutants which increases their abilities. On the way back, the two converse about the recent controversy over the Beasts sexuality, forcing him to admit that it was a puerile ruse against his former girlfriend, Trish Tilby. Back at the Institute, Quentin, having recently learned the truth about a family secret, decides to bring all secrets to light. Using his mental powers, Quentin forces Slick to drop his illusory appearance, revealing his true troll-like appearance. Later in Xavier's office, Quentin is confronted by the Professor and the Beast, who inform him that his recent blood test show signs of an emerging secondary mutation. Lost in this and other recent revelations, Quentin visits the murder scene of Jumbo Carnation. Convinced that the Professor is wrong about everything, including the danger of the Hypercortisone D drug he is taking, Quentin decides to change everything. Walking confidently into a barbershop, Quentin asks to be given the same haircut as an illustrated character in an anti-mutant newspaper article.

After being assigned to a "special class" of students at the Institute, Xorn takes the group into the woods outside the campus ground for a journey into nature. Back in the Institute, Xavier's mind is on the recent discovery of an inhaler containing Hypercortisone D, also called "Kick." Having developed a following due to his actions, Quentin attires his new gang in clothes matching his, and dispenses the "Kick" drug. Journeying out into the night, they find and assault the street gang that killed Jumbo Carnation, killing several of them. The next day, Xavier conducts a telepathic meeting with his senior staff, where they discuss how to handle Quentin and the mutant drug. Out in the forest, Angel and Beak sneak away for private time. All are unaware that they are being watched. In the city, Quentin has convinced the rest of this group to get tattoos: an omega symbol with an X below it and announces that they are the new X-Men.

In their secret central headquarters, the U-Men are having a funeral/vivisection of a fallen comrade when Quentin Quire and his gang arrive. With swiftness and cruelty, Quentin's gang tortures and kills the U-Men. Xorn and his "special class" are assaulted by another group of U-Men, who are attempting to "harvest" new mutant organs. Leadership qualities arise from the Beak, who leads the class to safety and manages to save the life of fellow classmate Dummy, who had been injured by one of the U-Men's weapons. When the Beak sends her for help, Angel runs into Xorn, who stayed behind the students to stop the U-Men. He has done so startlingly as the U-Men and their vehicle are being consumed in flames. This, Xorn tells the dumbfounded Angel, will be their secret. The class is returned to the Institute by an X-copter, which had been telepathically summoned by Martha. It arrives as Emma Frost and her Stepford Cuckoos leave for an evening event. As the car drives away, Emma is lost in her telepathic tryst with Cyclops, who is returning in the X-copter. Despite Cyclops' protestations, Emma tells him that they are only sharing a thought together, a delicious thought. Turning in for the night, Xavier is knocked out by Quentin Quire's gang. Upon awakening, Xavier finds that he has been outfitted with a helmet, which blocks his telepathic powers. With the major threat to their plan neutralized, Quentin's gang announces to the world the next morning, the opening of Open Day, that they have hijacked the Xavier Institute. School is out. They are rioting!

The riot itself escalates as Glob Herman uses his power in a new way, to lob napalm-like parts of his body, while other students create chaos. Even Wolverine is not much of a threat, as Quentin uses his Kick-enhanced powers to entrap Wolverine in a memory. The Beast attempts to diffuse the riot by a recent discovery; Jumbo Carnation was not murdered by humans, but rather died from an overdose of "Kick." Disbelieving an instructor, the rioters continue but are quickly put down by the teaching staff, save Quentin Quire and Glob Herman. While Herman attempts to chase after a bus of humans, Quentin confronts the now-freed Professor. It is the Stepford Cuckoos, however, led by a Kick & Cerebra-enhanced Sophie, who defeat prodigy Quentin Quire. The cost, though, is a high one, as Emma Frost emerges from the school with the lifeless form of Sophie.

The flaming Glob Herman continues his rampage. Luckily, he is stopped by the combined efforts of the Beast, Cyclops and Xorn, with only an automobile destroyed in the process. The next day, at a private service for Sophie, the four remaining Stepford Cuckoos announce their disillusionment with Emma’s teachings and their intention of moving to Switzerland to study under Madame LaFarge. Quentin Quire’s condition worsens, brought on by his recent overuse of Hypercortisone D. When called in to help, Xorn announces that Quentin is going through a wondrous change and, rather than stopping it, actually helps to speed him along to a higher plane of existence. Rocked by this and recent events, Xavier makes a startling announcement; when the school reopens after the summer break, he will not be returning as its headmaster. The next day, Emma has decided to take Angel as her new project and buys her expensive clothes in Manhattan, very much against Angel’s protests. That night, rather than attend the prizegiving ceremony, Angel leads the Beak into the nearby woods for a private conversation and a revelation; she’s pregnant. Meanwhile, in the garden, Cyclops finds Emma, who is very much alone and in a fragile emotional state. Cyclops’ feeble attempt to end their recent dalliances actually leads to an escalation, as Emma takes them both to a telepathic hideaway where they can indulge in their fantasies. Unfortunately, Emma and Scott are caught by surprise when Jean, having been contacted by the Stepford Cuckoos and having just returned to the States, arrives in their telepathic room.

 

[SunflowaSeeds]

Uncanny X-Men #428-434

Flashback 20 years ago

After playing a deadly game of seduction with the hired help around the castle, Baroness Raven Wagner and her husband Christian Wagner discuss their situation of him being infertile. At a banquet, Raven is introduced to the ruler of the island nation known as La Isla des Demonas, Herr Azazel, and the two are instantly taken with one another. Azazel woos Raven by making her realize there is more to her as a person than what she and others may think, and they later meet at a church, where at Azazel’s request, Raven reveals her true blue form to him, and they have sex. Raven proclaims she is in love with Azazel, who does not feel the same, and tells the pregnant Raven that she will raise the baby as if it were Christian’s. Months later, the heavily pregnant Raven kills Christian after he demands a paternity test done, and after Raven’s baby is born, very obviously different – blue skin and a tail Raven uncontrollably reveals herself to be blue as well. She is proclaimed a demoness and chased from the castle, where she decides to start life over with nothing. She curses Azazel and drops her baby from the top of a waterfall – it disappears mid-fall with a "bamf" noise.

Nightcrawler steals an X-Jet early in the morning and heads for the Isla Des Demonas. Before the X-Men go after him, Iceman’s secret of having a secondary mutation is revealed when one of the school staff finds him in the freezer. The X-Men prepare to go search for Kurt, Xavier revealing that Kurt may not be the only teleporter to go missing recently. As Havok and Annie say their good-byes, Xavier brings Polaris to the infirmary where he is going to conduct a probe to see if anything is wrong with her mentally. Lorna teases Annie until Juggernaut arrives and requests to talk to Xavier. The brothers get into an argument over whether or not Cain can go to Canada to see Squidboy, which turns into a big fight about their past and what Cain’s father did to them both, and how they both reacted wrong. Charles grants Cain permission to go, but only with Northstar. On the Isla Des Demonas, they find Kurt and also get the attention of several deadly looking mutants.

The X-Men discover that Carter Ghazikhanian has snuck along for the ride. They engage the situation, trying to free Nightcrawler from the circle he seems stuck in and before the hordes reach them from out of the dimensional rift. They engage the circle, but not before Iceman is struck with an arrow and seemingly killed, his body turning to ice and shattering. Archangel mourns his friend until his girlfriend, Husk is in danger and he tries to save her, when suddenly, the rift seems to explode and leaves a huge hole in the middle of the jungle.

At the Institute, Xorn suggests to Nurse Annie that her son attend his special class, an idea that makes Annie discomfortable. After taunts from Polaris, she agrees to enter Lorna’s mind with Xavier where they learn that on Genosha, Lorna began to seek the truth about whether or not she was Magneto’s daughter. Meanwhile, in Vancouver, Squidboy is abused by his father and runs away.

Nightcrawler is free from his trance, and as Warren uses his healing blood on him, Kurt gets burned. Several of the demons on Azazel’s side attack the X-Men. Things take an interesting turn when Abyss tries to use his powers to teleport some demons, and instead Mystique, among other things emerge from the teleport hole. In Polaris’ mindscape, she reveals that she is the daughter of Magneto! Xavier and Annie join Lorna in a flashback of the events occurring at the time Genosha was being destroyed, shortly after Lorna was greeted in Genosha as a princess. The trio is helpless as they live, and in Lorna’s case re-live through the Sentinel massacre, which caused Lorna to loose control and after escaping the Sentinels she retreated within herself, blocking everyone from getting in and so Havok could just love her again. In the infirmary, Lorna promises she will be good. In Vancouver, Squidboy lashes back at bullies, and possibly kills one of them, as Northstar and Juggernaut have an interesting discussion aboard the X-plane en route to see Squidboy.

After Azazel stops the fight between the X-Men and his followers, several of the X-Men and Mystique join him at his dinning table, where he reveals that not only is he Satan, but he is the father of Nightcrawler! Mystique confirms this, and Azazel informs Kurt that his stepmother, Margali is a very good friend of his. When Professor Dibble reveals that despite the historical evidence he found he does not believe Azazel to be Satan, he is killed. Meanwhile in Canada, Mrs. Pare wishes she left Sammy with the Juggernaut, though when Juggernaut and Northstar show up, she panics and calls for help. Sammy shows up, and upon seeing what his father has done to him, Cain attacks Claude Pare, breaking his arm and tossing him through the house. Just then three of Alpha Flight arrive, wearing armor, surprised to see Northstar, and ready to fight Juggernaut.

Polaris, Xavier and Annie return from Lorna’s mindscape only to learn that Annie’s son, Carter stowed aboard the X-plane with Havok and the rest of the X-Men when they were tracking Nightcrawler. Captured, Husk and Jubilee realize their powers cannot help them escape, while Havok learns that Iceman (whose head is all that remains) blames him for stealing away Lorna and Annie from him.

Nightcrawler, Wolverine and Archangel learn of Azazel’s origin – that he was a mutant from biblical times, and was sent to this dimension in exile and uses teleporting mutants to escape so he can return to Earth. With his plan foiled by the X-Men, he is seemingly trapped here – unless someone can open the portal from the other side, while a teleporter opens it from this side. At that moment, Polaris, Xavier and Annie arrive, and Lorna stretches open a recent rip in the fabric of space – the gateway they all need to escape!

Kiwi Black kills Archangel’s torturer, and the two men start to flee. In the dungeon, the captured X-Men are attacked by Ginniyeh. Ginniyeh displays a new power, the ability to alter her physical state of being, until Iceman absorbs all the water from her body, thus defeating her and restoring his own body. Nightcrawler and Abyss are planning to escape somehow when Polaris sticks her head through Abyss’ portal before she uses her powers to rip apart the castle, sending everything flying through Abyss into the real world. Wolverine escapes from his captor, and when Iceman and the others return to Earth, Annie Ghazikhanian kisses Iceman for rescuing her son, despite her romantic involvement with Havok. Nightcrawler teleports back in to confront his father, who attacks Kurt before being sucked away somewhere. Alpha Flight’s battle with Juggernaut comes to an end after Sasquatch beats Cain to the point he cannot fight back.

 

[SunflowaSeeds]

Weapon X #6-13

Thanks to the Director’s full financial and emotional support, Aurora has almost fully recovered from her injuries. Unlike before she now has real feelings for him and wishes to express her gratitude, but the Director tells her that it is not appropriate. Their conversation is interrupted by the Director’s pager, alerting him to his ex-wife is getting remarried. He summons for Sabretooth and the two set off on a secret mission. Arriving at Kathleen Colcord’s house, they make their way up the stairs to find a man with a shotgun who warns them to leave. Upon order, Sabretooth pounces on the frightened man sending him crashing through the door leading into the bedroom. There the Director confronts his ex-wife who is shocked to see him. The Director pulls a gun to kill her, but hesitates when he sees that she kept a picture of them when they were still happy. Just then his two small children walk in and the young boy calls for his daddy. After consoling his children, the director decides not to hurt their mother, though he forbids her to ever be with another man. She reluctantly concedes to his request as the Director orders Sabretooth to detain Kathleen's fiancé and bring him to the jet. Later, no longer able to deny another urge, he heads to the Aurora's bedroom. He takes her hand in his and kisses her.

Meanwhile a special program is running in the United Theater in Detroit in front of a carefully picked audience. The screen displays images of the brutality of war and informs the viewers about the Weapon X program and the Director. It even mentions the concentration camp for mutants. Nathan Summers is the man responsible for the program and at the end all of the viewers agree with his cause – Weapon X needs to be stopped.

Claiming to be the government liaison to an undisclosed military base holding mutant terrorists, Mr. Thorton holds a press conference during which he denounces everything they have heard about “Neverland” and civil rights being violated as mere rumors. Actually though, Mr. Thorton is Weapon X operative Mesmero, and he uses the press conference transmit to boost society’s fear of mutants. However, the Underground is already on Weapon X’s trail. By analyzing the video image, they discover his true identity, but don’t expose it. Instead, they decide to track Mesmero and Meltdown manages to slip him a micro camera. Through this, Weapon X learns that “Thorton’s” two bodyguards are Weapon X operatives Kane and Washout, and that Mesmero’s mother is gravely ill. Meanwhile at the Weapon X compound, Aurora, almost fully recovered, suggests that the Director too undergoes facial surgery. Wildchild spies on them, rather jealously, and is easily goaded by Brent Jackson to join his little sub-group when promised that they’ll get rid of the Director. In Denver, two mutants slaughter the customers of a fast food restaurant and leave a message scrawled in blood “Free Neverland.” When the incident makes it to the news, Cable fears that this will cause another anti-mutant hysteria, so he sends Maverick to investigate and deal with the people responsible.

Mesmero arrives home to his gravely ill mother, who tells him that today is the day she dies. He tries to save her, but too often has she been on the receiving end of his gift and, telling her son that he isn’t God, she gives him a final goodbye before passing away. Thanks to the micro-camera attached to his jacket, the Underground followed through the ordeal and Cable hopes that his failure will affect his confidence-based mutant ability. Meanwhile, Maverick and Domino track the two serial killers, who have been slaughtering humans in the name of Freedom for Neverland. It turns out they are Reaper and Wildside, believed prisoners in Neverland, but before they can be interrogated, the two terrorists get away. At the Weapon X compound, Washout discovers that his power upgrade is slowly killing him, drying out his body. Brent Jackson offers him to get revenge on the Director and asks him to join his little group within the project. Meanwhile, the Director returns from a short leave of absence with a surprise for his lover, Aurora. He too has undergone facial surgery, now looking rather handsome.

Garrison Kane receives another upgrade, allowing him to download different superpowers into his system, all save one: the ability to shape and alter technology, which would interact with his own cybernetic bodyparts. Marrow begins to suspect that they aren’t told everything, and Brent Jackson uses her doubts to make her join his little subgroup that is undermining the Weapon X program. Mesmero confides in Dr. Windsor that he has lost his powers. Apparently, when he failed to stop his mother’s death, his ego took too big a blow, affecting his confidence-based abilities. Windsor promises not to tell anyone, but Sabretooth has already overheard their conversation and realizes that, with Mesmero’s mental inhibitors no longer working, he is once more free to escape. In Utah, Domino and Maverick chase Wildside and Reaper, but they take Domino hostage. Maverick doesn’t care and shoots all three of them. Domino is only minorly injured, but pretty peeved, while the two terrorists both pass out though are not mortally wounded.