Over the Indian Ocean, a plane nears its destination; its home: Wakanda. However, despite the weather forecast clouds begin to gather and a thunderstorm starts. Didn’t they have assurance by the queen that their weather would be clear? one of the pilots nervously asks. He thinks someone has different ideas, the other replies and tells his colleague to look. Standing in the air is a being in a panther-shaped silver armor.
The Ghost Panther comes in, smashing the canopy. The men panic. They are seven miles high. At this altitude, they fear the explosive decompression will destroy the aircraft. But nothing happens. The Ghost Panther reminds them that the Panther doesn’t bring harm to the people of his realm. The men find this impossible. The Black Panther was murdered by Eric Killmonger! Which do they believe, the Panther demands – the news or their own eyes? The winds of change are blowing; the time is coming to make a choice. Who will they follow: the queen who betrayed her love or the Ghost Panther who stands against her?
The Ghost Panther walks into the cabin and orders the passengers to set down their weapons. An impostor! a Dora Milaje cries and orders the guards to take the Panther down. Easier said than done, beloved, the Ghost Panther replies, taking out the men with martial arts moves. Trying to kick the Panther, the Dora Milaje seethes at someone other than her monarch using her title. Her loyalty and skill do her credit, the Panther admits, but they are no match for the Ghost Panther. The woman is taken out.
The Ghost Panther steps into the chamber behind where a drugged ‘Ro is tied up. The girl puts up a brave front and the Ghost Panther assures her he is there to help and frees ‘Ro, then flies them off towards Genosha with her where the plane can also make an emergency landing. The Panther is unaware that they are being tracked by Lockheed.
Wakanda, a powerful state in East-Africa. Its former ruler, the Black Panther, has fallen to be replaced by a woman who everyone believes to be Storm. T’Challa gave her refuge when she fled from the X-Men and eventually asked for her hand in marriage. But on their wedding day, he was murdered. Storm, by all reports, avenged him. Because she wore the royal ring, she stood as his wife and heir and the people welcomed her. The land prospered. All was well or so it seemed.
Enraged, Storm addresses a hologram of Mariko Yashida, who had promised to deliver the mysterious young preteen version of Storm, ‘Ro, to her. Mariko reminds her she did do that when she handed the girl to the Wakandan embassy in Tokyo. She and the Consortium can hardly be blamed if Storm’s people weren’t competent enough to finish the job.
Storm calls her a traitorous witch, and reminds her of all she sacrificed for the Consortium. Has Mariko forgotten how loyally she served as their agent in the X-Men? How she killed her oldest friend Wolverine at the Consortium’s behest?
And what a fine job she did of that, Mariko sneers. The Consortium is still cleaning up the mess. Perhaps they’d be better off removing that problem at the source. Is that a threat? Ororo snaps. One she’d do well to heed, Mariko warns.
Storm gives the order to sever the com-link and get that arrogant human out of her sight! Angrily, she asks about the plan and is told that their search was hampered by weather. Perhaps she might help….
Must she do everything?! she shouts displeased, but relents. She’ll do what she can but at the same time she warns them to move ahead with their plans for Genosha. Somehow she has the feeling all their troubles come from that wretched island…
Summers Cove Alaska. At the bottom of the cove the Starjammer hides. Inside, the X-Men, Cyclops’ father Corsair and two sometime X-Men, Havok and Polaris, are discussing the current situation. The Consortium is trying to kill them all and now one of them, ’Ro, is in serious danger and they may try to use her as a bait. He’s still no quite sure how all of this happened, Nightcrawler sighs.
Shadowcat blames herself. She went to Japan looking for answers, finding trouble instead. She never imagined Mariko would betray them. And now her Consortium has their hands on ’Ro, Gambit worries.
Jean summarizes that they shielded Ro’s bio-signature from the X-Men’s scans, both conventional and telepathic. She could be anywhere. If she’s still in this galaxy, the Starjammer can find her, Corsair assures them.
Anything to add? Corsair asks Nick Fury who along with Daisy Dugan is witnessing this via video conference. Nothing about the girl, he replies. But his sources are coming up with lots of interesting data about Yashida and the Consortium and their growing ties with SHIELD and the Hand.
While the others get up Kurt tells Kitty she can tell him the truth. Why did she really run off to Japan? It’s complicated, she replies, everything about her is changing so fast. After all he’s been through these past few months, he thinks he can relate, Kurt replies wryly. She admits he’s right. He already knows that she inherited Logan’s claw, his healing factor, even his attitude. What he didn’t know is he wants them all back along with her life!
Is she saying Logan is still alive? he bursts out, drawing the attention of the others. They have to find him and—She already did Kitty replies, and has the scars to prove it. This isn’t their friend. This is a monster!
How can she say that? Kurt insists. If he’s alive they can reach into his soul… He has no soul! she insists. If Kurt tries to reach out to him, he will slice off his hand.
Jean quickly stalks out of the room. Scott shouts her name. Sabretooth keeps him back. He tells him they are both grown up and Scott has a team to lead and a kid to save. He’ll go deal with red; Scott go take care of business! Cyclops remarks he sounds just like his son. Sabretooth warns him he’ll kill him if he says that again.
Sabretooth joins Jean, who stares out of a window. Is she okay? he asks. She is going to find Sinister and make him pay, she announces. For Logan, for Madelyne, for Scott and for herself. Does he have a problem with that? Is she kidding? Sounds like fun. She could bear losing Logan, Jean continues. She can even bear Mariko’s hatred, but to know there is a copy out there wearing his face… Then they’ll keep things simple, Sabretooth suggests, flexing his artificial hand. They find him and they carve his skull off!
Back in the meeting room, Polaris and Havok announce they have something. A lock on ‘Ro’s signature and they are not going to believe where it is. Actually, Alex amends, he’s getting two contacts, both along the east coast of Africa. One’s in Wakanda, probably the Storm who killed Logan. But there is another signal in Genosha in Hammer Bay. It seems a bit off. Most likely it’s got an echo but it’s definitely there. Since he is still officially a magistrate he can get there without any red tape.
Sounds good, Scott tells him. Knowing Ororo’s history in Genosha, there is no time to waste. The Consortium must have transferred her there for a reason and it can’t be good. Or there could be another player they don’t know about, Havok offers. Whose side are they on? Only one way to find out. They go in there together!
Genosha, a former superpower whose power was based on the slavery of mutants. Not so long ago, the X-Men hoped to bring all that to an end and set the mutants free. Now the island’s population works together, at least on the surface. Beneath the surface, things don’t look so perfect.
Somewhere in a dungeon, a Morlock asks another to check on the girl. She is still out cold, he is told. The Consortium nearly drowned her in sedatives. Best tell the Boss she’ll likely be out for hours.
Lockheed enters the cell and ‘Ro awakes too, happy he has found her. She’s been playing possum. She finds a splinter on the ground and uses it to pick the locks for her handcuffs. She and the dragon sneak outside to see the two Morlocks. She tries to pummel them with ice and snow but only manages a minor snowfall. Lockheed uses his flames to turn the snow to fog and she makes a run for it, only to run into Callisto who informs her she didn’t need to break free. All she had to do was ask.
‘Ro demands answers. With a smile Callisto, tells her she is not calling the shots. She wants answers she will have to ask. The Ghost Panther introduces himself and reminds ‘Ro how he rescued her from the Wakandans. To help save two nations. From whom? ‘Ro asks. From herself, is the cryptic answer.
Back in Wakanda, Chancellor W’kabi informs Queen Storm that the courier transport has been found. It made an emergency landing on the island of Genosha. It was attacked and the prisoner was taken. By – according to all witnesses – the Spirit of the Black Panther himself.
Angrily, Storm summons lightning, shouting she fears nothing, last of all ghost stories. Her husband died protecting her and, so long as she lives, she will protect this land he loved. She orders him to call the Dora Milaje. It is time for the hunt!
