X-MEN #22

OUT OF CONTROL PART 2

By: Bodhi Ouellette

Some City in Singapore:

?: GAAAAH!
A young man, about in his mid 20's, wakes up from a nightmare. Sweat drops from his face, and his whole body is warm and covered in sweat. Another person besides him, a young woman, a bit younger than the man, wakes up as well, and turns on the lights beside her on the bureau. The woman places her hands on the man's shoulder.
Woman: Neal?! Neal, are you alright?!
Neal: *Heavily signing* I'm fine, Natalie. Just a nightmare. There's nothing to worry about.
Natalie: Yes there is, Neal. This is the third nightmare this week. You've been having these for a while now. Is there something that's bothering you recently?
Neal: I don't... think so, no.
Natalie: Well then. Let's get back to bed. We'll figure this out tomorrow.
The two lie back down in their bed.

The Next Day:

Neal and Natalie are out in an open market area. Goods such as food, clothes, household items, and more are all laid out on tables with rows of rows of these sellers consumables. Neal and Natalie walk over towards one of these sellers, who is selling some fruit.
Seller: That'll be 10 bucks.
Natalie gives the seller the 10 bucks. They begin to walk off towards another seller.
Natalie: You don't look so good, Neal. Couldn't sleep?
Neal: No. I was thinking.
Natalie: About what?
Neal: About why I was getting these dreams. In every one of them, they always involved my old friends in some way.
Natalie: You mean during your time as an X-Man?
Neal: Yeah. They were in pain. They were... changing. They were dying, Natalie. And I was there, watching it.
Suddenly, a random pedestrian begins to feel pains within himself, starts to go awol, and he begins shooting acidic goop out from his entire body, projecting everywhere. People begin to panic, scream, and run. Neal turns to look at Natalie.
Neal: Go find someplace safe! I'll handle this!
Natalie: Ok. Be careful!
Neal: I always am.
Neal projects himself over towards the mutant with a flash of light. Before the mutant can even know it, Neal appears behind him, and blasts a powerful plasma beam at the mutant. The mutant falls right down to the ground. Neal walks over towards him. The mutant's body starts to turn into pure acid.
Mutant: Help... me... It's... rejecting me...
Soon after, the mutant melts into pure acid.

New Utopia- Medical Labs:

Havok & Forge are all lying on beds, sedated. Forge and Kelly are caring for them, while Wolverine, Armor, Kitty, Marvel Girl, Colossus, Beast, Storm, and Professor X are also in the room.
Wolverine: Do you know what happened to them?
Kelly: They were perfectly fine, until they began to feel pains inside them.
Storm: Is their an explanation as to why they're in pain?
Kelly: It has to do with what the Savage is doing. He is evolving them to their second or third mutations. Hundreds of mutants all over the world are experiencing this. Some, successful. Others, not so much. I think one of us have experienced a secondary mutation, recently, am I correct? (Kelly looks towards Kitty)
Kitty: I figured I was going through one when I started disappearing out of thin air back when we stopped that Mesmero person.
Kelly: Exactly. Unlike these three, Kitty experienced a secondary mutation that, surprisingly, went smoothly, and without any pain. But the Savage is moving the process forward, to quicken the secondary mutations faster.
Wolverine: So, I'm going to assume that Savage and his little toy is what's causing all of this, yeah?
Kelly: Precisely. He's messing with natural progression, and he has to be stopped.
Wolverine: Well, we ain't gonna just stand here while he does that now, are we?
Kitty: We can't just go out stopping that Savage without a plan.
Storm: Kitty is right. We need someone that can disable the machine, but Forge is out. Who do we go to?
Professor X: (person) We have only one other person who can do what Forge can't at the moment...

In Another Room:

Danger is working in maintenance for New Utopia. The place is dirty, dark, with the exception of very few glips of light coming from the exit. A shadow however, can be seen approaching Danger.
Danger: I'm busy.
Professor X: I'm afraid whatever you're doing will have to wait.
Danger turns around to see Xavier and Wolverine standing.
Professor X: Someone is messing with the mutant gene through a machine. Forge is out, and can't help us deactivate it. But you can.
Danger: If I do this, may I please be excused from doing any maintenance for a month?
Professor X: Granted.

Cerebro:

All of the X-Men are inside Cerebro, with Danger as well, standing on a platform, while Kelly floats above them on her chair. A blueprint detailing the machine Savage has is displayed all over Cerebro.
Kelly: After evaluating the structure of the machine the Savage is using, I've found some features this thing has. It's heavily armored, meaning taking this sucker down won't be easy. However, there is a weak spot, in the middle of the machine. The core is visible. If we can get Danger near the core, she can disable it, while you guys can keep the Savage distracted. Danger. You know what to do?
Danger: Affirmative.
Professor: Let us all get ourselves ready then, before the Savage can do even more damage.
?: Not yet, you guys aren't.
All the X-Men turn around to see someone approaching out of the shadows.

Apartment in Singapore:

Neal kneels down to pull a box hidden under his bed. He opens the box, revealing his old Thunderbird costume. Natalie kneels down towards her husband.
Natalie: Are you sure you have to do this?
Neal: I have to. The dreams that I've been having. It was a calling. A message. My friends are going to die, and I'll be there, watching. I don't know if I was unable to save them in my dreams, but I want to be there to warn them. On every mission they take, there'll be any chance they'll die. And I have to be there to make sure they don't.
Neal closes the box again. He stands up and grabs another bag with him. He begins to head out the door, before he turns around back at Natalie.
Neal: I'll be back, Natalie. I promise.
Natalie walks towards Neal and gave him a kiss on the lips.
Natalie: You better.
Neal: I promise.

That shadow reveals himself as Neal Shaara, Thunderbird yet again. He had returned with a vision. A vision of death. And he was the life that would keep them alive. However he would do it.
Storm: Neal!
Storm and some of the other X-Men approach Neal. Storm gives Neal a big hug.
Neal: Hey, Ororo. Long time, no see, am I right?
Storm: It's good to have you back, Neal.
Wolverine: And perfect timing. We need some help. You still have what it takes in you?
Neal: You, Logan, have no idea...

To be continued in X-Men Issue 23! The X-Men are going in, full force! The Savage must be stopped at all cost, and now with an extra member, they'll need all they can get to stop the fabric of Evolution being tempered again!