Storm soars through the sky, reveling in the fact that
she can fly again while Madelyne scans her with the complex machinery left
behind by the Reavers. Though advanced, the computer systems are also
intuitive, allowing Madelyne to use them just fine. The X-Men then engage in a
training session in order to test the defenses of their new home. Rogue zooms
toward the town, until she’s blasted by Havok! Psylocke then scrambles her
perceptions, allowing Dazzler to blast her as well, right into Colossus’ waiting
arms. Colossus pins her and Wolverine pins his fist against her neck, forcing
her to surrender. Madelyne confirms that the systems seem to all be working
perfectly, and is happy to feel like she’s actually contributing something for
once. Storm commends the team on a job done before questioning where Longshot
is, as the exercise was meant for the entire team.
We then see that Longshot has been scouring the
underground sections of the town base, having been guided there by strange
voices. He kicks down a door and finds the Reavers’ entire treasure trove of
stolen loot! Not only that, ghostly apparitions swirl about him, seemingly
coming from the very valuables themselves! They begin to overwhelm Longshot,
until he can’t take it anymore! A couple days later, the X-Men continue to try
and clean out their new living area, when Dazzler comes across something gross
and moldy under a bed. This is the last straw for her as she loudly exclaims
how terrible she finds living here, with no books, TV, nowhere to go and
unwind, causing her to shine bright as a star in frustration. The others agree
with her frustration, and Storm generates a monsoon in order to clean out the
entire place and swoop everything old and unwanted outside, where Havok blasts
it to bits! All the while, Gateway watches over everything, unspeaking as
usual. Rogue brings him up some food and tries to connect with him, with
dubious results.
Later, Dazzler finally manages to wash off all the
grime from earlier, when Longshot finally awakens, having been unconscious
since his venture into the underground a couple days earlier. He explains that
the treasure was calling to him and Psylocke confirms he’s telling the truth.
Rogue grabs a necklace from the trove at random and Psylocke transmits what
Longshot is seeing from it to everyone else. They see a necklace expertly
crafted, before being gifted from a father to his daughter, and passed down through
the family for generations until it was stolen by the Reavers. Wolverine feels
that this is crazy even by their standards, and feels that they have more
important things to do than return apparently haunted loot. The others express
their thoughts that they should at least try, as a way to do more than just
stop the bad guys. So they work hard, combing through all the loot, and having
Psylocke transfer what Longshot sees to Madelyne in order to pinpoint where and
to who each piece of stolen treasure needs to be returned. Eventually, they’ve
divided the loot into categories for each continent, as well as ones that they
couldn’t find enough information about, with a particular motorcycle catching
Dazzler’s attention that she wishes she could keep.
The X-Men then head to Gateway, knowing all of this is
for nothing if he won’t help them. Rogue tries to get through to him, not
knowing how much progress she’s made, until his bonfire suddenly lights,
signaling that he’s willing to aide them. Psylocke transmits the coordinates of
everywhere they need to go to him, and the X-Men use his portals to go all over
the world, returning as much of the loot as they can! Storm even spots Magneto
and the New Mutants caroling and subtly makes the weather nicer for them. The
X-Men make all the stops necessary, ending with the initial necklace they used
to discover what was going on, as Longshot sheds a tear. The following morning,
the X-Men celebrate, having returned everything in a single night, and
Christmas night at that! Wolverine and Storm then present Dazzler with the
motorcycle she longed for, hoping it’ll help ease her into living there.
Finally, Rogue goes to visit Gateway again to thank him for his huge part in
helping them. She brings him some cake and gifts him a flute, before moving to
leave. He stops her, and motions for her to sit with him, playing his new flute
as the two of them just sit and enjoy each other’s company.
For the special marvelite in you