Issue #143
Proactive Regression Part 1
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In a world that hates and fears mutants, Professor Charles Xavier fights for peace and understanding. There are many obstacles in this struggle and his gifted team, the X-men, have overcome many. After confronting challenges on a cosmic level, Xavier and his X-men now face a crisis of a very different kind.
While the X-men were away fighting the Shi’ar, the mutant nation of Genosha descended into chaos. With Wanda Maximoff injured, Alex Summers gained new authority. With this authority, he closed Genosha’s boarders and stopped exporting the alien technology that had been key to maintaining peace. He believes humanity is plotting against them. He may end up being right because President Kelly is preparing an aggressive response.
In the midst of this escalating conflict, the Mutant Liberation Front has returned. Stryfe has taken over and launched a series of attacks. This has reignited old fears and inspired new ones, but this time there may be more to it.
Investigations by James Proudstar and Mystique have revealed a possible connection to the shadowy private military company known as White Cell. The nature of this connection isn’t clear, but Charles Xavier is determined to stop this threat before it escalates. He’s in a much better position now that he has the use of his legs. However, not everyone in the X-men is at full strength for this coming battle.
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Xavier Institute – Danger Room
“Errr! Come on! I…can do this!” grunted a determined Jean Grey.
“Warning. Safety limits exceeded,” announced the Danger Room AI.
“Override all safety measures! Pass code 161016!” she yelled out.
Her mind was heavily strained. Sweat dripped down her face as her body and mind ached. It was the kind of training that would have broken a weaker mind by now. Jean Grey was intent on completing it no matter what the safety alerts told her.
This was a high level scenario tailored specifically for psychics. It involved her using her telekinesis to hold up a massive weight that looked like an oversized piston. She had to keep it up as long as possible in order to protect an image of unconscious civilians below. If she faltered, they would be crushed and the scenario would be over. It was a scenario she had run many times before with little incident. That was before the Phoenix Force went silent, leaving her without the cosmic presence that once aided her.
“Just…a little bit…longer!” she grunted as she fell to her knees.
The weight shook erratically as it continued to descend. Even with Jean’s full telekinetic might, she couldn’t hold it back. The strain was so bad that she started bleeding from her nose. More alarms sounded. She continued to ignore them. With each passing second, the weight kept inching lower. It was about to crush the target. Jean kept pushing harder, but it was no use.
“Can’t…keep…going!”
She was about to give out completely when the doors to the Danger Room were literally slashed open and Logan came storming in.
“Emergency shut down! Code 823722!” he yelled.
“Code accepted. Program terminated.”
Within moments, the image of the massive weight faded. It disappeared just as the targets underneath were about to be crushed. Once it was gone, Jean Grey nearly passed out, her body going limp from exhaustion. Logan ran over and caught her just before she hit the floor. She looked like she just went ten rounds with a pissed off Juggernaut. It was the most defeated he had seen her in quite some time.
“Damn it, Logan! Why did you stop the program?” she groaned.
“I should be yelling at you for a change, Jeannie. What in the freakin’ hell were you doing?” yelled Logan as he tried to hold her up.
“I was…training,” she said breathlessly.
“Since when the hell did training involve throwing your brain into a goddamn blender?”
“You’re one to talk.”
“I got a healing factor. You don’t,” he reminded her, “For crying out loud, we got enough bullshit going on without you torturing yourself! Save the self-loathing to Summers. He’s better at it.”
Jean groaned under Logan’s harsh words. It was an odd role reversal. Usually she was the one to scold him for being reckless and foolish. She knew she was in a bad state when he was the reasonable one. It showed just how much losing the presence of the Phoenix Force had affected her.
Logan resisted the urge to scold her further and helped her back to her feet. She was still light-headed. Blood was still trickling down her nose. Logan tried to wipe it away, but she brushed off his grip. She didn’t care to be helped at the moment. The last thing she needed was to feel helpless.
“Come on, Jeannie. Don’t to that,” said Logan in a less abrasive tone, “I know you’re messed up after losing the Phoenix Force.”
“I didn’t lose her, Logan. She’s just…dormant,” said Jean strongly.
“Well if you’re trying to wake her up, this ain’t the way. You’re supposed to be the one who thinks shit through. You know you can’t rely on meof all people to do it for you.”
“I’m not asking you to, Logan. I’m supposed to be stronger. Just as I’m supposed to pass this scenario without feeling like truck ran over my brain. I used to be able to hold up that weight without overthinking. Now it’s like my mind has been downgraded.”
“In other words, you’re feeling weaker. No need to be coy about it. I know how much it sucks,” he said.
“Easy for you to say. As you love pointing out, you’re the one wit the healing factor. You don’t need to be stronger,” said Jean bitterly.
“That ain’t fair, Jeannie.”
“I know it isn’t! It’s a terrible thing to say, but I’m in a terrible mood in case you haven’t noticed!” she cried, “When the Phoenix Force went silent, I didn’t just lose the power. I lost a part of myself. It’s like there’s a limb missing and it’s making me feel crippled! You can’t understand it. Nobody can!”
Logan fell silent. He was tempted to console his former lover, but she continued resisting any form of comforts. It put him in an awkward position. He was not very good at counseling others when they were messed up. He was usually too messed up himself to offer any decent advice. This was an unusual case to say the least.
Jean Grey had grown a lot since he first met her and the Phoenix Force was a big part of that. Just as the adamantium in his bones had become part of him, this cosmic being was part of her. Not having it anymore affected her in so many ways.
He gave her a minute to breathe. He didn’t say anything, but he kept his worried gaze on her. Jean felt it and it pushed her to gather herself. She shouldn’t be taking her frustrations out on the people she cared about. This was her problem. She had to deal with it.
“I’m sorry, Logan. I…I’m not used to being a total bitch,” she said solemnly.
“Don’t apologize, Jeannie. You’re still a lightweight,” said Logan with a half-grin.
“I just feel like I’m putting everyone in danger by being so weak. It used to be my Phoenix powers were something we could rely on to get us out of tough spaces. Now that I can’t use them, it makes everyone around me more vulnerable.”
“We got along without it before. We can do it again,” he reasoned.
“I keep telling myself that. I still can’t bring myself to accept it,” said Jean with lingering frustration, “I’ve already let it hurt the people I care about. I’ve kept Scott at a distance even though he needs me right now. I haven’t trained with the others even though I know we have an emerging crisis with the Mutant Liberation Front. Hell, even my grades are slipping.”
“You make it sound as though you can’t get along without this thing. Like none of us are safe without it. You really think we’re that soft?”
“Damn it, Logan! I’m being serious!” she groaned.
“So am I,” he said in a less hostile tone, “I won’t say you shouldn’t worry about it. I’ll just say you don’t need no cosmic bird to kick ass. You’ll just have to learn to do things the hard way again. It’ll suck, but if you can handle an ex like me and a prick like Cyke, then you can manage.”
The idea of learning how to be weaker wasn’t appealing. After embracing the Phoenix Force so completely, it was hard to remember how she got along without it. However, she hadn’t forgotten that she was able to hold her own before it entered her life. It meant that she may be more vulnerable along with her friends. She had to trust them to be stronger while they trusted her to adjust.
Logan offered her another comforting gesture. This time she didn’t push him away. She allowed him to lead her out of the Danger Room. She had strained herself enough for one day.
“I wish it was as easy as it sounded,” sighed Jean.
“And I wish the clouds rained whiskey, but I know that ain’t happening,” said Logan with a wry grin, “At least you still got time to get your head together. You’re joining Chuck for all the bureaucratic shit with the MSA. I’m joining Ro’s team for our little visit to White Cell.”
“Is that the same team with Kurt and Mystique?” asked Jean.
“Yep,” he affirmed, “I’m stuck on a mission with the woman I’m sleeping with and her son. Plus, I gotta deal with James freakin’ Proudstar and that trigger-happy personality of his. So consider yourself lucky. At least as lucky as X-men can be.”
Logan was not an optimist to say the least, but he never lost perspective. He never shied away from a challenge either. The Professor was already implementing an ambitious plan to confront this crisis. Everyone was prepared to do their part. Even if she didn’t feel as powerful as she had with the Phoenix Force, Jean Grey had to be prepared as well. Cosmic entity or not, she was an X-man and the world needed the X-men.
‘It can’t be a good sign when my ex is making this much sense and I’m this big a wreck. The X-men go into space, six weeks go by, and the world finds new ways to go to hell. And I have to help drag it out of that hell…without the Phoenix Force. God, why does that sound so damn hard? Given my luck, it’ll probably get harder before the end of the day.’
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Pentagon – Later That Day
It had been a while since Charles Xavier immersed himself in human/mutant politics. He quickly realized how little he missed it while recovering from his addiction. He and his X-men received a lukewarm welcome from the MSA. President Kelly refused to meet with him. Their apparent disappearance hurt their credibility. General Grimshaw was now the lone intermediary and even he didn’t express much confidence.
When he arrived with Bobby, Kitty, Piotr, Jean, and Scott, they were greeted by armed operatives. They were scrutinized as they went through the numerous security barriers. It was pretty uncomfortable. The MSA were supposed to be allies and now they were being treated as potential targets. It wasn’t just because of high tensions either. The mood throughout every branch of government had changed. It was like everyone was preparing for war.
When he finally got to General Grimshaw, he was led into a special conference room that was adjacent to the MSA control center. The rest of the X-men had to wait outside while the General gave Xavier a quick overview of what was going on. Using a series of three-dimensional projectors, he played over footage of several major terror attacks by the Mutant Liberation Front. He also showed a few reconnaissance images of the naval blockade over Genosha. Together, they painted a very grim picture.
“As you can see, the world got considerably closer to hell while you were off getting your legs healed,” explained General Grimshaw as he played over the footage all at once, “The Times Square attack in New York was just the beginning. Over the last few days they’ve hit downtown London, the Beijing financial district, the Burj Dubai, downtown Cairo, Red Square in Moscow, and the Eiffel Tower in Paris. They didn’t completely destroy these landmarks. They just scarred them.”
“And why would they do that? Why not go the extra distance and finish the job?” wondered Xavier.
“They don’t have to. They just need to show us they could. And unlike their old attacks, these ones actually hurt people. The death toll is already in the hundreds.”
“They’ve grown bolder and more ruthless. That much we can agree on,” said Professor Xavier as he looked over the disturbing images.
“We could’ve used a warning or two. I kept calling you X-men and every time I ended up on the phone with Emma Frost,” said the General sternly, “She always had the same excuse. You were sick and the others were in the Savage Land. The more I heard it, the less I believed it.”
“You can’t expect me to apologize for circumstances beyond our control, General,” retorted Xavier, “You know my team would have been there unless something incredibly dire was standing in our way.”
“Oh I have no doubt that you were dealing with something heavy. It may have even been something more dangerous than Genosha and the Mutant Liberation Front combined. What makes me upset to no end is that you’re blowing smoke in my face.”
“I’m not trying to deceive you, General,” coaxed Xavier.
“Yet you avoid telling me the truth,” he retorted, “You act as though I don’t notice things. Six weeks ago, we detected an alien anomaly that descended upon our planet, unleashed this bizarre energy burst over Genosha, and then disappeared. This all happened after I heard reports from Muir Island that someone hijacked a jet and flew it to Genosha. Now I have no way of proving that you or the X-men were involved. But the fact that you disappeared after is a hell of a coincidence. As you’re probably surmised by now, I don’t take kindly to coincidences.”
There was a threatening undertone to his voice. General Grimshaw was a smart man with unparalleled access. He was in a position to connect the clues they left behind. Xavier could sense it in his overly hostile thoughts. He knew the X-men were involved in the alien anomaly. He didn’t press as hard as he could have on the issue. He just made it clear that it bothered him.
“I’m sure we could spend all day debating about what happened six weeks ago. For the moment, we have more Earthly concerns,” said the General as he expanded the hologram depicting the attacks, “The attacks by the Mutant Liberation Front couldn’t have come at a worse time. That alien cluster-fuck derailed our rebuilding efforts with Genosha.”
“Yes, I would imagine such an incident would leave them quite shaken,” said Xavier, trying to focus on more relevant issues.
“It left them more than a little shaken. They closed their damn boarders and threatened to cut off the power they’ve been feeding to all over the world. Since a lot of areas are still trying to rebuild from the last round of attacks, they’re still dependant on that power.”
“So why haven’t they shut if off if they want a confrontation?”
“Leverage…plain and simple,” said the General, “They understand that if we attack them, they could shut down that power and hurt a lot of people in the process.”
“By they do you mean all of Genosha? Or just Alex Summers?” questioned Xavier.
“We’re still trying to figure that out. That kid may be a punk, but he’s smarter than anyone in President Kelly’s inner circle gives him credit for. He wants something. Somehow he’s convinced Wanda Maximoff that this is the best way to get it.”
“What do you think he wants?”
“I don’t know yet. That’s what I hope you and your X-men can figure out,” said Grimshaw, “The Mutant Liberation Front attacks are adding a lot of pressure. The two conflicts are feeding off one another. The more hostile everyone gets towards mutants, the more anxious everybody gets and I do mean everybody. Russia, China, Saudi Arabia, France, and Britain all want to launch a pre-emptive strike on Genosha. They’ve concluded that Genosha is somehow behind the Mutant Liberation Front.”
“I find that highly unlikely. It was the Mutant Liberation Front that killed Polaris,” Xavier pointed out.
“That’s what I told them. They aren’t convinced. The growing consensus is Genosha has been so frustrated by human/mutant clashes that they’re ready to make a bold move. They need answers to prove them otherwise or they’re going to strike. That could lead to the first shots of a war that neither side will win.”