In San Francisco, Storm discovers a street gang
harassing a couple and swiftly and effectively takes them all down. Not long
after, the police arrive and Lieutenant Bree Morrel introduces herself to
Storm. She’s glad of the help the X-Men have been providing in her city and
asks if they might stick around, which Storm says she’ll consider. She returns
to the house of private investigators Jessica Drew and Lindsay McCabe where the
X-Men have been staying, to find Kitty Pryde getting ready to leave for a date
with their friend David Ishima. Kitty and David head out and Rogue announces
they’ve gotten an old postcard from Scott and Madelyne. She suggests heading up
to visit them while they’re still on the west coast, and the thought of seeing
her father again causes Rachel to drop the dishes she’d been telekinetically
carrying. She lashes out, sending things flying every which way and Rogue
attempts calm her down, telling her that she has to tell Scott the truth about
who she is sooner rather than later, in order to put her demons to rest.
Meanwhile, aboard her flight, Amanda Sefton continues
to stress over Nightcrawler’s recent existential crisis. She’s heartbroken
about how things ended between them, and wishes she could fix what’s been
tearing him up inside. Back in San Francisco, Kitty and David are getting back
from their date, when suddenly the ground sweeps them along in a tidal wave,
the signature of Avalanche! The other X-Men attempt to run outside, only to
have the exit blocked by an energy web courtesy of Spider-Woman and Spiral. Colossus
and Rogue manage to pull the web apart, knocking out Spider-Woman in the
process. Spiral announces that Freedom Force has come to arrest the X-Men,
before reflecting Rachel’s resulting attack back at her. Pyro generates a huge
firebird, the heat of which mixes with the fog to generate a freak downpour.
Rachel, playing possum, telekinetically lifts Storm in order to make it seem
like she still has her powers, which does at least give Freedom Force pause.
Spiral teleports Blob there suddenly, who swats away
Rogue while Spiral blasts Storm, causing Kitty to have to use her phasing
powers to save Storm from a nasty landing. Colossus rips open a fire hydrant
and attempts to spray Pyro with it but Blob intercepts, before Avalanche buries
him underground. However, Colossus uses that to his advantage, lifting the
ground Blob is standing on from beneath, allowing Rogue to hurl Blob miles away
into the ocean! Jessica Drew confronts the new Spider-Woman who says they’re
now federal officers bringing in wanted criminals. Things then go horribly
wrong when Rogue absorbs Spiral, and Spiral’s psyche is the one who takes over!
With Spiral effectively overtaking Rogue, Freedom Force are able to swiftly
overcome the rest of the X-Men! The X-Men are saved by the timely arrival of
Lieutenant Morrel with a squad of police, who convinces Freedom Force to leave
and return with a proper warrant for the X-Men’s arrest. The X-Men take the
opportunity to get out of there while Freedom Force is gone, and decide it’s
time to leave San Francisco for good.
Meanwhile, a Jane Doe is brought into San Francisco
Memorial Hospital having suffered several gunshot wounds! While the doctors are
unable to identify her, we see that it’s none other than Madelyne Pryor!
Finally, back in New York, Nightcrawler sees Judith off at the airport as she
heads to Ruritania, the country she’s now Queen of! Nightcrawler tells her to
call if she needs help and she admits that he’s the one she’s worried about.
Nightcrawler ponders why she said that. With a damsel to protect, enemies to
conquer, and impossible odds to be overcome, Nightcrawler feels that he
couldn’t be happier…
For the special marvelite in you