After their adventure in Chicago, rather than head
home, the X-Men visit Angel at his unique home in New Mexico. He welcomes them
and introduces them to his girlfriend, Candy Southern. Cyclops then asks to
talk with Angel somewhere more private and Angel suddenly scoops Scott up and
flies away with him, to Professor X’s annoyance. Angel flies Cyclops out to a
remote butte and Cyclops recounts to him their recent run-in with the Hellfire
Club, and that they had personal and specific knowledge about the X-Men. Angel
admits that he’s technically a member, inherited from his late parents, but
that he only ever visited once, and reassures Cyclops that he couldn’t have
given them any info. Cyclops also admits that part of his visit is because the
mansion doesn’t feel safe anymore, not to mention his worries about Jean.
Jean Grey herself then arrives and Angel takes that as his cue to leave. Scott and
Jean then share an intimate night together, in the midst of all the chaos, with
Jean even holding back Scott’s optic blasts so she can see his eyes.
A week later, the X-Men decide it’s time to scope out
the Hellfire Club for themselves, while the club celebrates the date of its
founding. Wolverine and Nightcrawler make their way through the sewers beneath
the Club’s fifth avenue location. Wolverine slashes at a power line, stripping
the insulation so that the rising water will cause a blackout at a hopefully
opportune time. Nightcrawler applauds his sneaky tactic and lets Cyclops know
that they’re in position. The others, meanwhile, plan to scope out the club
from the inside, with invites to the Hellfire’s Club’s party under false names,
provided by Angel. Angel himself remains at his home with Professor X, who
admits that he has been unable to re-establish his psychic rapport with his
X-Men, making their mission that much more dangerous.
Colossus and Storm enter first, eyes wide for any
signs of trouble. Scott and Jean then enter and are instantly spotted by the
inner circle of the Hellfire Club via their monitor screens. Sebastian Shaw
tells Jason Wyngarde to prove his control over Jean, saying that she can
lead their attack against the X-Men. Wyngarde then does just that, cutting in
on Scott and Jean’s dance to steal her away, once more putting her under a
hallucination that she’s slipped back in time. He then leads her upstairs and
his façade slips for a second, letting the following Cyclops see that Wyngarde
has been Mastermind this whole time! Scott follows them but is suddenly blasted
by Jean, now transformed into the Hellfire Club’s Black Queen! Colossus and
Storm hear the commotion and rush to help, only to be intercepted by Sebastian
Shaw, who reveals that he is a mutant, with the power to absorb kinetic energy,
so the harder he gets hit, the stronger he becomes. Shaw makes quick work of
Colossus and Storm sets up a fog in hopes to escape him.
Elsewhere, Nightcrawler and Wolverine sneak into the
basement from the sewers when Nightcrawler is grabbed by Donald Pierce, sending
an electrical field coursing through Nightcrawler, leaving him helpless.
Wolverine slashes Pierce’s arm, revealing that he’s a cyborg, before he is
intercepted by the final member of the Inner Circle, Harry Leland. Leland uses
his ability to increase an object’s mass on Wolverine, making him heavier and
heavier, unable to move, until the floor gives way, sending Wolverine
plummeting into the sewer below! Storm, the lone remaining X-Man, is soon
caught and defeated by Shaw. The Hellfire Club toast their new Black Queen and
their defeat of the X-Men. Well almost, as in the sewers, we see that Wolverine
is very much not dead and he’s coming to repay the Hellfire Club with a
vengeance! To be continued!