The future:
A lab, an older Hank McCoy hangs upside down, the room is full of blackboards with his notes and formulas. Age of Apocalypse he mutters, Age of Ultron, Age of X, Age of Aquarius, Age of Enlightenment… President Stark, President, Rogers, President Dazzler, President Jameson, President Brevoort…
Young Xavier and Raze enter the lab. Xavier addresses Beast, remarking he is a hard man to find. But, being that no one has seen him in years, that was probably of his own design. Oh my stars and garters! Beast exclaims and jumps down. He really does say that, Raze marvels, like that old guy Drake said.
Xavier, you are alive! Beast exclaims. He might be thinking of his father, Xavier replies. Or his father’s father. Beast realizes he is Charles Xavier’s son and asks how old he is. Eighteen, he is told. Beast climbs up again, intending to write this down.
When Raze is puzzled Xavier explains that Dr. McCoy has been struggling with the conundrum of the space time continuum. He is the one who brought the original X-Men forward in time and never found a way to send them back. Oh yeah, he hates those guys, Raze replies, looking at a piece of circuitry. Xavier continues, Beast blames himself for a series of events that led that team to ruin. And it drove him bat s-word Cocoa Puffs.
Which one is he? McCoy demands of Raze, who reluctantly tells him his name. He asks more questions and Raze makes fun of him until finally admitting his parents are Wolverine and Mystique. Beast adds that to his formulas.
Raze decides he’s useless. Xavier replies he just needs a little help putting everything back where it belongs. He uses his power…
What did he just do? a saner Beast asks. He’s suffered enough, Xavier replies. Crying, Hank thanks him. Xavier demands information about Charles Xavier and the X-Men. He wants to know where it all went wrong. What difference does that make now? Hank asks. Xavier wants to fix it. Hank tries to explain you can’t fix what already has been done. He’s tried everything. Not everything, Xavier insists.
Today, the Canadian wilderness:
X-23 was stabbed and left for dead by Raze. Having healed herself, Laura awakes. Claws unsheathed, she gets up.
In the cafeteria, Mindee, whose mind has been overtaken by Xavier, mentally attacks and tortures the other students and X-Men present. She begs for someone to stop her before he makes her kill someone.
The astral plane:
Jean Grey finds herself on the astral plane at the mercy of Xavier, who announces his mistake last time was not dealing with her first. She asks where they are. He thought she’d come further along as a psychic. He reckons this will be easy.
Jean attacks and he scoffs at her straight-forward attack. He strikes back, assuring her he respects her. He is not treating her like the others. Why is he doing this? she groans. Why does everyone ask that? he shrugs. Why does she think? Because he hates them. He hates who the X-Men are and who they will become. They stand on his father’s grave and speak of his legacy and have done nothing but make a mockery of it. If he was alive today he would be disgusted. But he is not alive because the X-Men murdered him! And then they moved into his house and took his money and they didn’t even have the courtesy to keep his name on the school he built. She wants to know why this is happening? Because they deserve it! Because they think of nothing but themselves!
The future:
Madripoor:
The Brotherhood is gathered. Why can’t they beat the X-Men? Xavier rages. Because the X-Men have mastered magic, technology and bending the laws of physics, Beast points out. Magic trumps psychic, even at Xavier’s level. And just as they have found a way to stave off Xavier’s psychic attacks, they will find the Brotherhood soon enough.
Beast announces he is done fighting his mutant brothers. He sees Colossus and the others and remembers the good old days and it breaks his heart. This is not the life he wanted.
Xavier orders him to be quiet. He doesn’t care what he wants. He let Beast have part of his own mind so they could engage in a civilized conversation. But the reason the X-Men are like this, that his father is dead, is in part because of Beast. He doesn’t get to leave here. He doesn’t get a vote. He is Xavier’s puppet. Say: I understand. “I understand,” Beast echoes dutifully.
All of them, Xavier orders and the others (save for Raze) echo the statement. He likes when he makes them do that, Raze grins. He’s not puppeteering him like that though, right? He’s his brother, Xavier replies. They are family. That’s not an answer, Raze pushes. Stop it, Xavier orders and wonders how do they defeat the X-Men and take back his father’s legacy.
The Present:
The cafeteria:
The others beg Mindee to stop attacking them psychically. She cries Xavier is controlling her. A bored Raze mutters if this was any of the X-Men he actually gave a #*$& about he might really enjoy this. He licks Mindee’s face and asks where Cyclops is. He really wants to gut a Cyclops.
Elsewhere, Cyclops is carrying Jean while Emma is suffering from the screams of the others. Her psychic powers are of course not broken enough to spare her this kind of hell. Cyclops tells her to find Xavier. He’ll stop the screaming. Possessed by Xavier, Jean announces: He’s right behind you, Slim. He turns around to see the Brotherhood.
Kill me, Xavier has Jean say. Xavier urges him to do it. He killed his father, no problem. This should be easy for him. He takes control over Scott. who asks him not to do this as his visor begins to open. Jean regains consciousness. Emma tackles Scott, making his eyebeam aim elsewhere and hit Molly Hayes.
Xavier orders Deadpool and Xorn to kill them in front of him. Make it a show! Emma thought they took care of these future-pains in the ass already.
The future:
Madripoor:
Xavier is still musing. Let’s go back in time, Raze suddenly suggests. He points at Beast. Time travel guy here, he’s already messed up the entire mutant timeline. Let’s go back in time and kick their asses before they master magic and tech and all that. Let’s pull a McCoy, go back and beat them. How far back? Xavier inquires interested. Not so far back that they would endanger their own existence, Raze considers. Like right after he was born. Xavier would be one. The X-Men won’t even see them coming. And this is the best part: If they lose, they can come back yesterday, grab themselves and keep the fight going. If they completely blow it, they could send themselves a message.
Xavier muses he could go back and save his father’s life. Raze warns him he can’t. The Phoenix killed him and he is not sure Xavier is at its level. If it killed Professor Xavier, it would kill him too. Timetravel gives him a headache, Xavier sighs. No kidding, Raze pans. Look what it did to McCoy.
Beast asks them not to do this. Raze asks why Xavier keeps letting go of his brain. He wants him to beg, is the reply. He orders McCoy to send them back in time. But what day? Raze wonders.
Suddenly there is a knock at the door. A messenger leaves a note. It turns out it’s from Raze. He’s written himself a message from the past. They do go back in time and get their butts kicked again but good. Their X-Men followed them. It didn’t go well. But there’s instructions on how to try again and win. Oh, they are good! This is good! They are all over this baby, he grins. Xavier announces they eliminate Jean Grey and end the X-Men forever.
Present:
Diamond Emma hits Deadpool and Xorn and shouts at Cyclops to get Grey out. No, she can do this, Jean protests.
On the astral plane, Xavier asks what she is doing. New trick she learned, she replies as her eyes begin to glow. He shouts he knows everything about her. If he knew everything, what was about to happen wouldn’t be happening, she retorts, calling him a bastard.
And in reality, X-23 gets ready to attack him.
