The SHIELD helicarrier, currently 10,000 feet over West Hollywood:
Commander Maria Hill is informed of another X-Men situation. Come on! she exclaims. She is told the temporal displacement department is picking up some disturbing readings from the Jean Grey School for Higher Learning. Hill snaps she sees she is going to kill Henry McCoy.
Dazzler (or actually Mystique posing as her) points out they don’t know if it was Henry who— Hill explains that Henry McCoy is always doing whatever he wants whenever he wants. People always complain about Wolverine doing whatever he wants but Wolverine holds to a code. He’s a samurai with a code. A messed-up code, but a code nonetheless. It is Henry McCoy who really does whatever he wants whenever he wants. And she has learned to hate him. Not because he is a mutant. She just really hates Henry McCoy.
“Dazzler” asks what she should do. She wants her to find out what Dr. Henry McCoy is doing to the time-space continuum. She wants her to remind him it’s against the law. And by law she means the laws of nature. For him to be abusing the time-space continuum… She wants everyone who doesn’t belong in this era to go away! And she wants them to help her put a lid on all of this before the New York Times or some kid with a blog of any of the Avengers find out this is happening. And before the X-Men blow up the moon!
Moon? Dazzler asks confused. She had a dream where the X-Men accidentally blew up the moon, Hill admits. It was a very vivid dream.
Utopia:
Young Jean Grey and Cyclops on the run are meeting up with the grown Cyclops’ team of X-Men (and their students).
How long have they been on the run? Cyclops asks. Not long, his younger alter ego replies. Wolverine and Hank McCoy are hard to shake. He knows the feeling, older Scott agrees and introduces his team to them. Their teammate Angel greets them while the other students still try to wrap their heads around the idea of time-displaced X-Men.
Tempus gushes at Jean, telling her she is a big fan. The X-Men from the future that they ran from, were any of them there? Confused, Jean replies she is not exactly sure who they all are. Snidely, the Stepford Cuckoos ask if she isn’t Jean Grey, all-powerful queen of the psychics. Can’t she poke around in their brain pans and easily find out they are the devoted students of Scott Summers’ mutant revolution? Emma chides Celeste and Phoebe that their Jean Grey envy is not attractive. “I learned it from you, mom,” Celeste shoots back.
Emma explains this is sixteen-year old Jean, who just unlocked the first stages of her mutant power something like yesterday. Emma suggests they link everyone together telepathically to share information. The Cuckoos and Emma focus and Emma tells Jean to do the same.
The young X-Men’s memories of the future X-Men are replayed. They are particularly perturbed by the young man claiming to be Xavier’s grandson. He is, Illyana announces out of the blue. How does she know? Cyclops asks. She has met him before, she shrugs. When did this happen? Cyclops demands. Ignoring him, Magik teleports away. Cyclops asks if any of the psychics picked up her destination. The Cuckoos assure him you do not want to go into her head. Ever.
Magneto summarizes the future X-Men came here to tell the originals to go home. Finally! Angel bursts out. Did they say what would happen if they didn’t? Magneto continues.
They said it wasn’t in their best interest to know too much about their future, Scott explains. Jean adds they psychically blocked them which she found suspicious. The Cuckoos agree that they were hiding something. Or sparing them something, adult Scott points out.
Jean insists they don’t want to return to their own time. They all know what’s waiting for them if they go home. They want to stay and help build a new future! And they are coming to them for help. Adult Scott, Magneto and Emma do not answer.
At a Pacific coast highway are the Jean Grey School X-Men and the future X-Men. Young Xavier tries to use Cerebro, then sighs, finding no sign of young Scott and Jean.
Sarcastically, Kitty Pryde points out Scott and Jean will have to be in charge of their own destiny. When Storm tries to calm her, Kitty interrupts, pleading with her to let the original X-Men be and live their lives. All the X-Men do is fight for freedom. How can they stand there and tell her attacking them is like—
Storm interrupts, reminding her they were all grieving the death of Charles Xavier and were happy to have the young X-Men as a reminder of what they are supposed to be doing here. They all knew deep in their hearts they should not be here. That it was dangerous.
Rachel Grey insists everyone should live their own lives the way they want to. Future Kitty scoffs, even if the results are disastrous? Who’s to say? Rachel shoots back.
“Hey, future Yenta me!” present Kitty snaps. Either tell them exactly what happens because of the original X-Men being here that is so bad or shut up! It’s not in their best interest to know, older Kitty reminds her. Doesn’t she believe her? Present Kitty snaps she can’t believe she would turn into the kind of person that would attack these children. She doesn’t believe it. “And if I did, then screw you/me. I wasn’t a big fan of myself to begin with!”
Older Kitty apologizes for her younger self’s attitude. Future Deadpool points out he used to think he was in a comic book. Kitty tries to plead with Wolverine. He reminds her he hasn’t changed his tune on this one second. The originals shouldn’t be here. They need to go home and the world needs to keep on running. Nothing is more important to him than their school.
Kitty points out that a lot of people tried to tell him what and where and how he should be. She remembers people telling him he was nothing but an animal! So it’s okay for him not to listen and turn away but it’s not okay for them? Logan replies she isn’t mad at him. She’s mad at McCoy for bringing them here in the first place!
This is so dysfunctional that she doesn’t think most of them can tell how dysfunctional it is! This is them at their worst! This is why people hate them! Storm tells her she is still grieving Xavier. She is all emotion and no… They are letting them do this, Kitty snaps. Storm points out Kitty doesn’t even trust herself.
Kitty warns them they are going to make her make a choice she doesn’t want to make. They have to listen to her. These are her students. These kids have to choose for themselves or their entire lives as mutants and teachers are a lie!
Young Xavier announces he can’t find them. He asks Xorn if she has anything, as he suddenly receives a telepathic message.
On Utopia, Cyclops stands alone. Emma stands some distance away while young Scott and Jean keep to themselves. The kids wonder what is happening. Triage figures older Cyclops is trying to make up his mind whether he wants to help the two or send them back.
He’s made his decision, Cyclops finally announces. They help them. No! Emma snaps. They have to go back! They are mutants and they need help and that’s what they do, Cyclops points out. Emma orders him to say it for what it is. The only thing he loves more than the faded memories of Jean Grey is himself. Now he gets to have both!
Magneto interrupts more politely, but still agreeing with Emma. Cyclops replies he has this under control. Magneto can only begin to understand the emotions that are driving his decision. He is still grieving the loss of Charles Xavier. But he is the leader of the group and he needs more than his lost innocence driving.—
He needs to think with his head and not his you-know-what, Emma interrupts. One of the Cuckoos admiringly admits she is the best.
That’s enough! young Angel interrupts. He tells his teammates they don’t belong here. They never did! He was outvoted and he’s stuck here, fine. But now they learn that the future gets screwed because of them staying here and they still want to stay? It’s time to go!
Tempus tells him to let them do what they want. Triage points out the problem is they came as a group. They have to leave as a group. Exactly, Warren agrees. If he leaves alone, that just causes more problems. Suddenly, he stops talking and stands there frozen. Young Scott asks Jean if she did this. This isn’t her, she replies. That’s not entirely true, Xorn, flanked by her teammates, announces. They are going home. It has been decided.
Jean turns to Scott only to find him and the others mentally paralyzed as well. Xorn muses nothing would make her happier than if they could end this calmly. But she knows that’s not going to happen. If roles were reversed, she would punish anyone for doing this to her. So she doesn’t blame Jean for trying.
Get out of her head! Jean shouts and lashes out. Xorn tells her to cool it. Don’t remind her this is all her fault anyway. She mentally pushes Jean to the ground.
That’s enough! Emma, flanked by her Cuckoos, announces. She called the future X-Men over to come and get the young X-Men home. Because Cyclops is wrong, and that is that. But no one said anything about a metal-masked Jean Grey from the future and no one said anything about her beating the hell out of herself. Xorn wants to psychically battle someone? Pick on someone who absolutely despises her! Too bad no one’s watching. Black Queen versus White Queen. The message boards would love this!
