Uncanny X-Men, The (1981 series) #217

On Muir Isle, the new X-Men participate in a training exercise to assess their skills. Psylocke runs across a field when a blinding light from Dazzler lights up the sky. Rogue, carrying Dazzler, pursues Psylocke. Thinking Psylocke blinded, Rogue drops Dazzler to handle the rest herself but ends up getting mind-blasted. Psylocke alters Rogue’s perceptions causing her to miss her and slam into a cliff face! Dazzler blasts Psylocke from behind and runs in close when she sees that Psylocke isn’t moving. Psylocke reveals she was just playing dead and takes control of Dazzler to blast at the suddenly arrived Longshot. Due to his luck-based powers, the blast misses Longshot, allowing him to tie them up in some weighted lines. Rogue grabs Psylocke and Banshee, who was overseeing the exercise, calls time and ushers them inside where he can debrief them on how they did.

Later, Banshee debriefs each of the X-Men on how they did. He determines the unpredictable nature of Longshot’s powers could make him the X-Men’s new surprise ace in the hole. He also points out that Rogue and Dazzler both made some hasty decisions, and that if they’re going to survive as a team, they’ll need to learn to work together in tandem. Meanwhile, Moira MacTaggert oversees the injured in the infirmary and updates Callisto as to how things are going. Moira worries about the X-Men, concerned that without Storm and Wolverine here to be the core, that the new team will fall apart. Later still, the X-Men are working out in the gym and some taunting from Callisto gets Dazzler to storm out in frustration. Feeling out of place here, but with nowhere else to go, Dazzler contemplates how much she really wants to be an X-Man, and if she has it in her. She heads out in a boat to the mainland, hoping to get some time just to herself.

On the mainland, in Ullapool, Dazzler stumbles across a party at a pub and enjoys feeling normal for a little bit. She dances and sings and enjoys the company of the patrons deep into the night. As she’s finally leaving, a guy speeds past in a car and Dazzler recognizes him as Juggernaut from the X-Men’s files! She speeds off on a motorcycle to see what Juggernaut is up to. She soon finds him stopped and runs into his car. Juggernaut questions why she’s following him and is surprisingly elated when he realizes who she is. Turns out Juggernaut is a fan of hers and is quite pleased to have run into her. He apologizes for scaring her but tells her he has a job to do. Knowing what that must mean, she blasts his tires to prevent him from driving off.

Dazzler then generates several light bubbles in an attempt to hypnotize Juggernaut, but he realizes what’s happening and let’s loose a huge thunderclap to break free. Juggernaut chases after Dazzler, not really wanting to hurt her, but tired of her getting in his way. She blasts a bunch of rocks, trying to bring an avalanche down on him but he easily smashes them to bits. Feeling stupid for trying to take on Juggernaut by herself, Dazzler ends up slipping down a cliff, allowing Juggernaut to catch up with her. Juggs suggests she stick to singing in the future and she temporarily blinds him to slip away. She runs up a grassy knoll, finding no place to hide, to make one final stand. She unleashes all of the energy she has left in a concentrated laser beam, feeling weaker every second as Juggernaut slowly advances on her. Juggernaut finally reaches her, Dazzler’s beam having had no effect, when she suddenly collapses. Juggernaut cradles Dazzler, absolutely devastated that he’s seemingly killed her! To be continued!