The Great Circle of Arakko:
Those members who remained and Genesis. The first act was one of creation:
Genesis reaches out with her mind and her mutant weapon, coaxing the heart of Arakko prime. Plants grow in the desert and the living island turns alive again. The Mother of Arakko is once more in the Seat of Victory, consulted first and last on all matters, for the victories would surely never end, and the staff in her hand whispers that it is good
At Genesis’ side, but not on it, Lactuca watches. By removing the rebels to their own corner – giving them a fair chance – she has countered the Annihilation Staff.
Craig Marshall can feel the wind change. In the commune, half his neighbors are talking loudly about the past glories of Arakko – the other half is tense and watchful. He catches words like “weaponless” and “human” aimed at his back. Peter Corbeau messaged him days earlier, offering a post at Port Prometheus. Taking his adopted kids, he figures it is time to reply.
The Fisher King notices something wrong with today’s catch. It is one of Sobunar’s, but the fish is sluggish and confused, all but hurling itself upon the spear. The Fisher King fears the worst.
In the Morrowlands, the artists find themselves influenced by Annihilation. On Okkara swords were a form of art and the artists are fashioning them again.
In Port Prometheus, there are rumors about a shift in power on Earth. Something affecting the mutants. At the local bazaars, the blaster sales are through the roofs and the various alien dignitaries eye each other cautiously. Tensions are high. They are higher in the Red Lagoon, where the fugitives Storm, Kobak Never-Held, Xilo, Lodus Logos and Jon Ironfire are in the backroom.
Kobak angrily berates Lodus Logos for asking Lactuca to teleport them away. Lodus Logos agrees he did that and reminds Kobak that they would have fallen under Annihilation’s sway or died where they stood. Kobak reminds him he was challenged for his seat. When did any on the Great Ring ever not defend their seat? He accuses Lodus Logos of bringing shame to him.
Storm tries to intervene. Kobak replies it is taking all his control not to destroy everything in the room. He demands Lodus Logos tell him why he shamed him like that. Why does he hate him so? Because he didn’t want him to die! Lodus Logos shouts. He looks away and admits he cares about Kobak. He didn’t want him to die that way. Taken aback, Kobak points out stupidly that Lodus Logos didn’t talk in a haiku. Smiling slightly and back to poetic form, Lodus Logos admits he has found a truth he cannot cage. He wronged him. Kobak replies that he meant well. If he dies, let it not be to build a throne on Arakko. He’ll find a better reason than that.
The warm moment is interrupted by the words “Sam’s dead.” Roberto enters. swaying and bleeding from the nose. Frenzy too, he continues. Dazzler, Prodigy, Jubilee… all the newly announced X-Men are dead. Everyone at the Hellfire Gal is dead. Jean Grey is dead. The Treehouse is burning, so Scott is dead. He thinks Captain America might be dead. A lot of people are dead.
Storm stammers: the Five - are they--? Roberto isn’t sure. He thinks so. Resurrection is off the table for now.
He plugs his bleeding nose, explaining he wasn’t at the Gala, just keeping an eye. Waiting to make a late entrance. Business on Earth, very secret. Don’t ask…
Ironfire observes he sounds concussed or drunk. Roberto sits down and explains, telepathic hangover. The Professor giving orders in his head… evacuation orders. Roberto used the Red Triangle Protocol to resist but the order was strong. Keeps thinking about gates… go through the gates…
Storm hands him a glass of water and asks why Charles would… Doesn’t matter, Roberto cuts her off. Gates are locked now. He got up here with Cable’s tech. But then that stopped working, so he’s probably dead, too. And they don’t know where the mutants who went through the gates are. So they are all dead. He leans back exhausted muttering, and Sam’s dead…
Who is responsible? Storm demands. Some other dead people. named Orchis, he seethes.
Storm turns away thinking this happened on Earth and at the same time the Great Ring split.
Roberto correctly figures that Genesis appeared at the meeting and it all went to hell. He was hearing scuttlebutt about “political upheaval on Mars.” Storm figures Orchis orchestrated this. They are using Genesis. She would never work with them.
Xilo asks what does it change if she made such an alliance. Sobunar is with her and the people will listen to him. To oppose her will mean civil war. What will they do? They go to war, Storm replies.
Seventy days later into the war, a battle rages at a site displaying giant monuments of Genesis and Apocalypse. Nova orders his troops to hold the line. Ground weapons to the front, range weapons to the rear! he bellows. He orders the air corps with him and warns, if they lose the air, they lose everything. For Arakko! He is joined by Sunspot who teases, asking if battle cries aren’t his mutant power. And what if you are a flier, a puncher, a blaster and a planner? Nova tells him to pick his poison – anywhere he is needed. He describes the corridor between the giant statues of Apocalypse and Genesis as the choke point of the western front, between the Vile Lands and Tharsis Mounts – the no-go-zones. If the Genesis Horde gets through here, they’ve got a land route straight into the Morrowlands. And they’ve been planning this assault for a month or more.
They notice a light in the sky to their right coming closer. It is Orrdon, the Omega rocket. Genesis’ new Seat of Loss. Sunspot figures he hasn’t impressed her yet. Nova warns Sunspot of his capacities and gets ready to fight. Sunspot holds him off and reminds him, it is not all up to him. Orrdon is coming from the wrong direction. He is flying over Isca’s territory.
Which proves to be a mistake. Fully invulnerable or not, Orrdon loses to the arrow Isca fires. Calmly, she announces that they all know the rules. The mountains are hers.
However, Genesis has sent every who joined her side against them. Nova summarizes that they can’t get past Kobak’s troops on the ground, but they will have air sovereignty if they beat the two of them. It’s all up to…
From higher up and in a red cape, Storm interrupts that Genesis challenged them all and nobody here fights alone.
Storm uses her power. She could have killed the armies of Genesis. Instead, she only blocks their way by toppling the two giant statues. She knows Genesis will scoff and call it weakness, but mercy is what they are fighting for.
Genesis’ airforce withdraws but, as Kobak bitterly states, they only won the day and it cost them another piece of their history. What history? Ironfire demands. All he sees are monuments to their sworn enemies. Let the wreckage lie in the dirt! It will make a fitting tombstone for two traitors!
Later at the Red Lagoon:
Storm wonders aloud to Ironfire whether the plural is correct here. They have seen no sign of En Sabah Nur, and he is not the type to be kept in reserve. He may have been the first to fall. Ironfire interrupts. The mage - referring to A - is not the true threat. They haven’t seen his children either or Blue (referring to the White Sword) or the Hundred. When they arrive is when the war starts, he predicts grimly.
Storm is calmer. She has danced with death before, but she is sure the next strike will be here at Port Prometheus. That would cut off their supply lines and contact with their allies. She observes that so far Genesis has avoided attacks on sea. Her hold on Sobunar may be weaker than they think. But with her ground attacks consistently being beaten, it’s her only option. She will send everything she has, Storm predicts.
So be it, comes a voice from the doorway. If Genesis’ forces try to take them here, they will finish them. Arakkii have a history with siege warfare. Read their history. It is in their blood!
It is the Fisher King now in a symbiosis with Xilo, half his body covered with Xilo’s worms.
