Uncanny New X-Men

Chapter 12: Return of the Horsemen- Part 1

By

The Uncanny R-Man

Disclaimer- All familiar characters belong to Marvel.

The Xavier Institute For Higher Learning-

Everything had returned to normal for the X-Men after their little skirmish with Sebastian Shaw and his all-new Hellfire Club. Seeing that Shaw ended up as a bedtime snack for Shuma-Gorath, they were sure that they wouldn't be hearing from the Hellfire Club anytime soon. Well, that was if that Umar woman could be trusted.

Scott and Jean were in the kitchen with Little Rachel. Scott was trying to feed his infant daughter, but the red-haired cutie wasn't having any of it. As soon as Scott placed a spoonful of baby food in Rachel's mouth, she would spit it straight out again. Scott's shirt was covered in mashed up vegetables and all of that other junk that could be found in baby food.

'Rachel, sweetie...' Scott sighed heavily. 'You have to eat. If you eat all the nummy food, you'll grow up big and strong, just like your older sister.'

Little Rachel just blew a raspberry in response.

'Well, I give up!' Scott groaned as he slumped down into his chair. 'If Rachel doesn't want to eat, then I doubt anybody is going to be able to make her.'

'Oh Scott, don't be such a pessimist.' Jean rolled her eyes. 'You just don't have a woman's touch. Observe...'

Jean picked up the spoon that Scott had dropped on the table and scooped up some baby food from the jar.

'Here comes the airplane...' Jean cooed as she started to move the spoon about as if it was flying. 'The airplane's coming in for landing, open up wide... Vrrrrrrrrr...'

Little Rachel opened up her mouth and allowed herself to be fed.

'Good girl.' Jean smiled as she wiped her daughter's chin. 'More?'

Little Rachel opened her mouth in preparation for more food.

Jean started to imitate an airplane again.

'Here comes the airplane... Neeeeeeooowwwwww...'

Scott just sat there with his arms crossed over his chest and sulked.

'It's favouritism is what it is...'

Meanwhile-

Scott and Jean weren't the only ones that had children to look after. Hank McCoy and Emma Frost also had their own child that needed their utmost attention.

It was time to change Christian's diaper. Hank looked at all of the equipment he'd need. Clean diapers, tissues to wipe, poopy bags, and talcum powder to make the baby's bottom springtime fresh.

Hank picked up the carton of talc at looked at it sceptically.

'Pray excuse my ignorance, but what good is talcum powder on a baby who's bottom is covered in fur?'

'Then don't use it.' Emma shook her head. 'Really Henry, for such an allegedly intelligent man, you know absolutely nothing about babies.'

Emma barged past her fuzzy blue partner and proceeded to change her son at quite an alarming speed.

Hank blinked in confusion.

'How did you...?'

'I am a woman.' Emma stated simply. 'We have an inbuilt knowledge of such things.'

Hank frowned slightly. Ask him to solve a complex mathematical equation, or ask him to whip up a brand spanking-new image inducer, and he'd have no trouble, but ask him to change a baby's diaper, and you'd have trouble. Having a great big pair of paws didn't help.

'You really do enjoy proving yourself to be superior, don't you?'

Emma clutched her heart dramatically.

'Why, Henry Phillip McCoy! You wound me so!'

Hank gave his lovely blonde partner a glare.

'Now you are abusing sarcasm.'

Elsewhere again-

Elsewhere the Institute, Kitty and Piotr were hanging out with Rachel (the grown-up one) and TJ. Lockheed was there, but he was more concerned with dredging up the remaining scraps of Kitty's potato chips.

'You seem to have gotten pretty used to the fact that there are two of you.' Kitty stated. 'Isn't that against the laws of the space-time continuum, or something?'

'This isn't Back to the Future, Kit...' Rachel pointed out. 'I think it's kinda cool having a little me around. A pretty odd kind of cool though.'

'Oh, I can't wait to have kids of my own...' Kitty gushed.

Piotr spat out his soda in surprise and Lockheed looked up at his pet human, the empty potato chip bag still on his head. Both Russian mutant and alien dragon looked at each other fearfully.

'I don't think Peter's ready for the pitter-patter of little Cossack boots just yet.' TJ smirked. 'But when he is ready, I'm sure that he'll be a wonderful daddy.'

'I'm a little worried about how Lockheed would feel though.' Kitty continued. 'D'you think he'd be jealous if there was somebody else getting doted on instead of him?'

'I dunno, Kit...' Rachel frowned thoughtfully. 'I kinda doubt the dragon's that shallow. he'd just be glad to have another pet human around to look after.'

Kitty nodded in agreement and picked her beloved dragon up off the table. Kitty removed the empty potato crisp packet from his head and tickled him under the chin. Lockheed cooed happily.

Unfortunately, the time of quiet relaxation was cut short as Professor Xavier's astral form appeared before them.

'Kitty, Piotr, Rachel, Talia, you are needed in the War Room. The matter is of great urgency. You must hurry!'

Then, Xavier's astral form disappeared as suddenly as it appeared.

'Nertz.' TJ pouted. 'Just when I was getting all relaxed and laid-back.'

The War Room-

Once again, Professor Xavier was holding court while the gathered X-Men listened intently.

'I apologise for interrupting your down time, but this is a matter that cannot wait until later.'

'It's not like we were actually doing anythin' important, Chuck.' Logan shrugged. 'The X-Jet ain't gonna service itself. Don't come runnin' to me when ya explode in a great big ball of fiery death when yer on yer way to yer next mission.'

Xavier activated the monitor screens around the room. The monitors showed four figures wreaking havoc in Washington. In fact, they were perilously close to the White House.

'It seems that the Horsemen of Apocalypse are up to their old tricks...' Xavier explained.

One of the figures on the screens looked like a flaming skeleton in some kind of see-through armour. He was shooting the place up with energy blasts from some kind of gun-type device where its right hand should have been. He must have been War. Another figure was wearing some kind of armour that covered their entire body. This person was grabbing people off the street and sucking the life out of them with their bare hands. That meant that he was Famine. The third figure was swathed in a black hooded cloak that hid his features. He was blasting people with energy from their hands. The unfortunate victims fell to the ground, their skin covered with boils and scabs. That could only have meant that he was Pestilence. The last figure was female, but that was all that could be seen of the person. She was wearing spiked armour that completely covered her body. She was also wearing a skull-type helmet and swinging around a nasty-looking sword. That meant that she was Death.

'I knew that t would only be a matter of time until Apocalypse reared his ugly head.' Scott narrowed his eyes angrily underneath his ruby-quartz visor.

'Do we have any idea who these new Horsemen are?' Hank inquired. 'They don't seem all that familiar to me.'

'Cerebra didn't recognise their mutagenic signatures.' Xavier shook his head. 'Either they are entirely new mutants, or Apocalypse has taken existing mutants and has tampered with their mutagenic signatures to such a degree that Cerebra was unable to recognise them.'

'I can't help but recognise that cloaked figure...' Scott leant forward to inspect the image of Pestilence. 'Those energy blasts almost look like... No, it can't be.'

Logan nodded in agreement.

'Now that ya mention it, that guy does look kinda familiar. When was the last time ya heard from Alex, anyway?'

'Oh, God...' Scott held his hands up to his head. 'With all that has happened, Rachel being born, and the mess with Shaw's new Hellfire Club, I never stopped to think where Alex was.'

'We can't know for certain that this new Pestilence is Alex, Scott.' Kitty tried to reassure the X-Men's Fearless Leader. 'Alex could have just got held up with his time away with Annie. I know I sometimes forget the passage of time when I'm out partying.'

'I'd rather see it for myself.' Scott shook his head. 'If Alex is Pestilence, then I'd dread to think who these other Horsemen might be...'

TBC...

Next: Return of the Horsemen- Part 2

Has Alex been turned into the Horseman Pestilence? If so, what has happened to Annie What's-Her-Face? And what about the other Horsemen? Which X-Man has also lost a family member to Apocalypse's Horsemen? Tune in next time to find out...