The shadow beings that suddenly appeared last issue
attempt to drag the X-Men into the dimensional rift leading to their realm.
Forge has Storm shoot off his mechanical leg, freeing him from their enemies’
grasp and allowing him to try and look for a solution. Meanwhile, Naze uses a
spell to attempt to gain aid from his god, but he’s overrun and taken over by
some other unknown force! Meanwhile, at the Dallas Airport, the blizzard
continues to rage. Nightcrawler suddenly teleports in, grabbing Amanda Sefton
and teleporting them both to the Blackbird just as quickly. He explains that
the X-Men have need of her magical abilities and he teleports them both to
Eagle Plaza where they find their friends still in the snares of the shadow
beings. Amanda uses a spell to free them, but Rogue’s prolonged exposure has
caused her to transform into a Dire Wraith! Colossus struggles against her,
trying to keep himself safe while doing his best not to hurt her.
Just then, Magik teleports in as well, sent by Xavier
to lend her magical help as well. She uses her soulsword to free Rogue and
Storm from the last remaining clutches of the shadow beings, turning Rogue back
to normal, albeit heavily injured. Amanda struggles to seal the dimensional
rift and Magik tries helping as well but gets blasted back hard into the wall
for her efforts. Amanda says that some other magical being keeps countering her
efforts, which gives Storm a realization. Forge has Nightcrawler teleport him
to the roof, where it turns out the Wraith Storm thought she killed last issue
was not entirely dead, being the one countering Amanda. Forge kills the Wraith,
allowing Amanda to seal the rift. Colossus checks on his sister and she admits
the extent of what occurred when she was trapped for seven years in limbo. She
wasn’t just Belasco’s captive, she became his apprentice. Peter expresses that
it doesn’t matter to him and that she’s still his sister no matter what.
Meanwhile, Forge finds Naze nearly dead and he and Storm part on rocky terms
once again.
Elsewhere, near the Bermuda Triangle, Lee Forrester
spots from her boat someone struggling in the ocean against a shark. She pulls
the man out of the water and is shocked to discover that it’s Magneto! Back at
Xavier’s School, Nightcrawler finds Storm swimming in the pool and asks that
she attend a meeting of the X-Men he’s called, even though she’s no longer a
mutant. Later, Rachel, Magik, and Sunspot attempt to eavesdrop on the meeting,
when Professor Xavier comes out to chase them all back to bed. Now alone,
Rachel is able to telepathically hide her thoughts, much easier than she could
for the others, so she can continue to listen in. In the meeting room,
Nightcrawler expresses the disillusionment he’s begun to have with Xavier’s
dream. He points out that Storm was maimed by the U.S. government and that
Senator Kelly’s Mutant Control Act is likely to be enacted into law. Kurt feels
that things have only gotten worse and that the X-Men serve no real purpose
anymore. People will continue to hunt mutants so why even bother; let others
handle it. Kurt points out all of their friends that have been hurt or killed
fighting pointlessly for Xavier’s impossible dream, including Thunderbird and
Jean Grey.
Upon hearing this, Rachel flips out and runs into the
room, her telepathic abilities assaulting everyone in the room, particularly
Nightcrawler. Xavier calms her down and Rachel expresses that Jean Grey can’t
be dead, because she’s her mom! Rachel says that the X-Men are still important
and telepathically shows them what transpired in her past, from the Days of
Future Past timeline. The X-Men see themselves killed and the mansion blown up,
showing the worst that can happen when Xavier’s dream dies. Each tries to
process this as best they can, and Xavier in particular feels sadness at what
becomes of his dream. Rachel tells about how she came back in time to fix things
and ended up in the wrong past. Rachel points out that if they give up now, all
the sacrifices will have been for nothing, and even if it ends up being
pointless, they still have to try. Storm reminds Nightcrawler of a saying he
likes to quote, “with great power, comes great responsibility” which encourages
Kurt to fight for Xavier’s dream once more. Meanwhile, in an epilogue, a dock
worker comes across a mysterious magical amulet that signifies bad things for
the future!