(Interlude)
On a freeway, a car rides at full speed. Its unseen driver talks to himself: “I sing of the Holy Road, the eternal two-lane, the forever blacktop beneath my wheels… exploding past the horizon into infinity, connecting all points between. I sing of the Divine Engine, forged by lightning, tempered in the storm. The eternal connection of man and machine, transcending the laws of physics in pursuit of symbiotic revelation. I sing of the Sacred Journey that gives purpose to the Midnight Driver, soothing his troubled soul with speed and motion as he roars into the unending night. I sing not of the destination, but of the ride. THE ride. ”
At Zhao’s base, the X-Men are set free. Krystalin and Victor Ten Eagles are back to their normal selves, but can’t remember what happened to them. Shakti explains that they were under the influence of Zhao, the once brilliant leader of the last generation of X-Men. Shakti also mentions the drugs Zhao took that drove him insane. Xi’an, while bending over the fallen Zhao with an evil smile on his face, explains that Zhao’s only mistake was to challenge him. Xi’an sadistically tells Zhao that he should have stayed retired. Xi’an says that the X-Men belong to him. Xi’an votes to leave Zhao to the coyotes outside.
Shakti turns to Zhao, revealing that he is not dead yet, but just in a coma. Shakti doesn’t understand it though: the one moment Zhao was all-powerful and floating over Xi’an, and the next his psychic aura disappeared. Shakti asks Xi’an what he did to Zhao. Xi’an laughs, saying that Zhao wanted to go inside his head, so he gave him the grand tour. Xi’an jokes that some people just don’t like intimacy.
At the back, the other X-Men notice that Xi’an has changed, but don’t know how to tell him that or what to do about it. Ten Eagles says that the X-Men didn’t know the old Xi’an, who was together with him in the Lawless. He did. Victor reveals that Xi’an was ruthless back then, and would hurt someone without thought. Victor thought that Xi’an had changed, but apparently not. Xi’an overhears them and tells Victor that he wasn’t such a good guy either in those days. Victor defends that it took him some time, but now he has finally exorcised his inner demons that fueled his rage.
At the back, Tim whispers to Krys that both Xi’an, Ten Eagles and Junkpile were members of the Lawless. He wonders what sort of a group that must have been. Xi’an mentions that he himself also owns a few inner demons himself. And, when Zhao attacked him, he unleashed them all. Xi’an angrily explains that he knows Zhao expected him to crumble under his psychic attack, but they fought where Xi’an is strongest. And that made Zhao vulnerable to all the hate and anger Xi’an had been carrying. Xi’an wants to make Zhao pay, but Zhao’s X-Men step forward and order Xi’an to step away from their master.
Psycho K hopes that Xi’an knows what he has done, because now he has doomed them all. Xi’an isn’t impressed by the threat, saying that, if they want to challenge him, he’ll gladly accept and kill them as easily as their master. Frostbite wants to accept, but One Eyed Jack holds her back. Jack realizes that they can’t afford to waste their energies, knowing what happened to Monster. Jack fears that the same thing is possibly going to happen to them if they use their powers too much. Jack says that he had hoped to find a way to reverse the process but, with Zhao brain dead now, that is most likely not going to happen. Shakti believes that, if she had access to Zhao’s research, she could possibly slow the process down by using the compound’s medi lab. Meanstreak thinks that he can easily break Zhao’s security codes if necessary.
Victor doesn’t understand why they even bother to help their enemies. Krys says that like they were their “enemies” were under Zhao’s mind control. Victor says he knows that but, unlike them, they didn’t kill anyone. Xi’an gets angry and says that nobody does anything until he says so. Shakti tells Xi’an that these outbursts are not like him. Xi’an gets even angrier, telling Shakti that she doesn’t need to tell him what to do and that he is sick of all of this, and leaves. Meanstreak stops Xi’an, as he doesn’t understand it. Meanstreak tells Xi’an that it was he who lectured him about commitment to the team, and that it was Xi’an’s dream to resurrect the X-Men. Xi’an pushes Meanstreak away, telling him that the dream is over.
Meanstreak believes that Xi’an has lost his mind. Xi’an denies, claiming that he only came to his senses. Xi’an wants to have his piece of the action. He says that they all have powers, and can succeed where others have failed. Victor tells Xi’an that he is living in the past: the Lawless self-destructed. Xi’an leaves, with the final note that Ten Eagles can go back to his artist life if he wants to, and that he doesn’t need anyone.
Meanwhile, Bloodhawk and Liebowitz arrive at the Savage Land and step out of their landing helicopter. Bloodhawk can’t understand how such a land can exist. Liebowitz explains that the Savage Land sits on top of the largest geothermal heating system known to man. The Savage Land created a contained ecosystem that’s supported land and animals life for millions of years. Hawk (in human form), tells Liebowitz that he did not lie when he said that he hasn’t seen anything like this before in his life.
Liebowitz mentions that he has spend a lot of his life there and that he likes the people who life there. But some of the Megacorps are hungry for the wealth of resources that can be found in the Savage Land. They have sent some of their big guns to lean the locals. And Liebowitz wants Bloodhawk to convince the Megacorps that they are wrong about that. Bloodhawk says that he would be glad to help out.
At the same time in Polvadera, New Mexico, a mutated businessman gets attacked and defeated. La Lunática appears, saying that she knows that she is being followed by Circuit-skips for months now. And she intends to send them all back in pieces. The Circuit-skip calls La Lunática crazy if she thinks she can do that. La Lunática touches her foe with a deadly touch, and says that he should tell his masters that not even Brimstone Love himself can convince her to return to the Theatre of Pain.
Back at Zhao’s place, Xi’an takes a bike and wants to leave, but is stopped by Tim. Tim compliments Xi’an on the cool bike, saying that he used to work on them all the time when he was a Grease Monkey in the Synthia Transportool. Tim says that he could rebuild one in the dark. Tim says that Kris and Meanstreak think that Xi’an is acting crazy. Xi’an thinks that they have sent Tim to talk him out and to not leave. Tim, with an evil smile, says that he hasn’t, and wants to join Xi’an on his trip. Xi’an says he won’t stop Tim, but he has to keep up with him as he won’t be waiting for him. Tim finds that okay, and they leave together at full speed.
Inside Zhao’s compound, the remaining X-Men and Ten Eagles try to figure out how Xi’an could have changed so much in such a short time. Shakti reveals that Xi’an confided her that he had been haunted by visions of his former outlaw self. Shakti wonders if Xi’an couldn’t be suffering from some sort of schizophrenia. Victor finds that a little farfetched but Shakti says that she doesn’t know for sure and is only guessing.
Shakti reveals that she is better in solving empirical problems, like finding a solution to the Chosen’s X-Men. Frostbite suggests a “deep freeze.” Shakti isn’t sure about the idea if they don’t have the right equipment, but Frostbite states that she will be the right tool, as she is a walking refrigeration unit, as it were. Psycho K gets a bit scared. But they have to move fast, because One Eyed Jack already gets out of control. And it hurts.
Some time later, Shakti and Meanstreak prepare some containment cells for the Chosen. Shakti says that she can’t guarantee that they will be revived. Frosbite says she has no other choice, that she is dead anyhow, because her body would compensate the cold. Victor doesn’t much care for that and shows it. Frosbite takes that as an insult and they begin to fight. Victor still holds Frostbite and her teammates for the death of his friends. He didn’t have many, but they were some of them. Victor knocks Frosbite down, saying that he never said he exorcised all of his inner demons.
Meanwhile, Joseph Gersh and his unseen prosecutors arrive at a hidden base, where they chain Gersh in a chair and interrogate him. Gersh, with electric sparks floating off his body, still claims that he is not a mutant and begs for his life. It’s no use: Joseph gets killed.
At the same time, Xi’an and Tim arrive at a road house. Xi’an wants to contact an old friend of his, who can help him decipher Mama Hurricane gave him earlier. Tim doesn’t get it, because he thought that Xi’an was through with the X-Men. Xi’an confirms, but claims to have other plans. And those require some muscles. Xi’an leaves. Tim drinks something, but suddenly notices La Lunática in the crowd! She looks at him and Tim chases her outside.
Meanwhile, Xi’an, in a phone booth, calls his friend Lennertz, who is surprised to see him, because Lennertz thought that Xi’an was dead. Xi’an says that he isn’t and wants to see Haiku. Lennertz tells Xi’an that Haiku probably won’t want to see Xi’an after the way he left things.
Elsewhere, Tim catches Luna and attacks her. Luna tells him to back off, but Tim doesn’t want to, fearing that Luna will alter his mind again like the last time. Luna tries to contain herself into punching Tim, who says that he is done with controlling. He transforms into Skullfire and attacks Luna at full force. The female vampire quickly gets up and gets the upper hand in the battle and… kisses Tim!
Tim doesn’t understand. Luna sees Tim liked the kiss, and explains that her touch raised the inner demons within him. Tim confirms. Luna says that she knew when next they would meet; she and Tim would be connected through passion and pain. Luna rubs her finger through some oil, and asks Tim to let those feelings burn for her. Luna rubs the oil through Tim’s face, giving him an evil look, and Tim says that he’s her man.
