With the X-Men back on their current island base, we
find Carol Danvers sparring with the Starjammers. Peter Corbeau oversees the
training, and picks up some interesting readings on Carol, even as she
eventually gets overpowered by her sparring partners. Meanwhile, Colossus
continues to recuperate from his recent wounds, watching movies with his sister
Illyana Rasputin. Kitty Pryde reflects on her feelings for Peter, being overjoyed at his
survival but being scared of all the dangers that come with the X-Men’s life at
the same time, wishing she had someone to talk to about all of this. Corbeau
tells Carol that although her powers are gone, her changed genetic structure
remains intact, making her superior still to a regular human! Nightcrawler then
teleports in to grab Moira MacTaggert, so she can continue to assess
Professor X in his comatose state. Lilandra brought Oracle, the Imperial Guards’
telepath, to try and tap into Charles’ mind. When she does, however, she’s
overwhelmed by the war Xavier is currently waging within himself and starts to
lash out across the room!
Storm generates a wind to blow Wolverine across the
room, allowing him to sever the tie between Oracle and Xavier! Everyone is
thrown for a loop, though unhurt, and Xavier’s situation remains unchanged.
Kitty then comes in to alert everyone of a talk show broadcast with
Senator Kelly! Kelly talks of the dangers of mutants, and reaffirms his stance that
mutants must be studied, and dealt with if necessary! Moira realizes that,
since Charles initially worked with the government when he founded the X-Men, they
likely have files and data on all of them which could put them in danger! Kitty
suggests a computer virus that would erase the information, confident that the
Starjammers could whip something up. Meanwhile, we cut to the Rio Diablo home
of Havok and Polaris, who receive an unexpected visit from Cyclops! Not alone,
Scott re-introduces Alex to their father, Corsair, and they all have a big,
confusing Summers family reunion.
The following day, the X-Men pull up outside the
Pentagon, planning to use the virus to erase the data the government has on the
X-Men. Storm, Wolverine, and Carol enter the building, while Nightcrawler waits
in the car, Wolverine even using a phony medic card showing metal
prosthetics due to war wounds to get through the metal detectors. They make
their way through, when Carol suddenly bumps into Rogue, the very woman who
stole her powers months ago! They engage in a fight against Rogue, where she absorbs
Wolverine, gaining his enhanced senses and temporarily knocking him out! Storm
blankets the area in fog and knocks Rogue away while Carol slips off to
complete their objective, secretly followed by Mystique in her guise as Deputy
Director of Defense!
Rogue finds the X-Men once again and Nightcrawler
teleports in to help, asking about Mystique and the questions he has for her.
Rogue grabs Storm, absorbing her powers but quickly finds that she can’t
control them, making things far worse! The X-Men struggle to defeat her while
being careful not to touch her. Meanwhile, Mystique disguises herself as Nick
Fury and takes Carol by surprise in the computer room. Carol gets the upper
hand, however, and knocks out Mystique after a quick scuffle, reverting her to her
natural form. Storm generates a tornado that carries Rogue out of the building,
giving them time to escape, hoping that Carol was able to complete their
objective. We find that she did just that, erasing all of the data the
government had on the X-Men, in addition to the information on herself, feeling
that that’s not the woman she is anymore, and the woman in the data is
essentially gone. Carol meets up with the X-Men again outside the Pentagon,
ready to start a new life, wherever it takes her.