GENETIC ECLIPSE

Prologue I: One of Twelve

By Shawn Gauthier

“How could you have allowed this to happen?” asks the young boy sitting in the middle of the room. The large cluster of Askani Sisters who are dancing around him repeatedly obstruct Blaquesmith’s view of the boy. Still, there is little doubt in Blaquesmith’s mind who the boy is. He, after all, has practically raised the boy himself as if he were his own son.

Blaquesmith also knosw what the boy is referring to. He remembers his protests to what the Askani Sisters had done to the boy, how they had brainwashed him into believing instead of allowing the boy to learn the wisdom of the Askani way at his own pace.

“Nathan, I tried to stop her,” he pleads.

“Don’t call me that,” snarls the boy in an adult’s voice. “There is no more Nathan. Now there is only the Askani’son, the Chosen One.”

“Don’t say that,” Blaquesmith continues to plead. “You know you mean so much more to me than that.”

“Do I?” questions the boy, rising to his feet. “Then why are you so quick to sacrifice me to the Askani? Why do you want to re-afflict me with the techno virus? Why do you want to take away my new powers when they are the only chance I have at emerging from my battle with Apocalypse alive? You heard the secret verses of the Askani’son Prophecy that tell of my death.”

The boy’s accusations cut at Blaquesmith like a knife. He knows that there is some truth in what the boy is saying. Yes, he does plan to reintroduce the techno virus into his body, but only to prevent him from becoming an even bigger threat to all that lived. Blaquesmith also knows that the boy is referring to the last few verses of the prophecy that he himself had just learned while searching for the Askani Mother. In the verses, it was revealed that the Askani’son would not emerge from his final showdown with Apocalypse alive.

‘Am I really willing to sacrifice him to the prophecy?’ wonders Blaquesmith to himself. He knows that if the Askani’son Prophecy does not come true, Apocalypse will destroy all in his pursuit to create a world governed by one rule: only the strong survive.

Suddenly, Blaquesmith becomes aware that something is wrong. He and Cable haven’t been in this room for years. Then there is the boy’s voice. Though it is Cable’s voice that the boy is using, it is his adult voice. Plus, how can the young Nathan be referring to things that would not take place for several years in his life?

“How long did you think you could keep your secrets from me?” asks the boy. “My powers have increased to unimaginable levels and you thought you could keep your secrets from me?”

The answer suddenly occurrs to Blaquesmith. “I’m dreaming!”

A startled Blaquesmith darts upright in his bed.

‘It was only a dream,’ he thinks, ‘or was it?’

Blaquesmith springs out from beneath his covers and runs down the corridor towards Nathan’s private room. The trip takes only a few seconds but it seems like an eternity as he relives the events of his dream over and over again.

Blaquesmith realizes as he reaches for the doorknob of Cable’s door that the room beyond will be empty and that Cable now knows everything that is inside his head.

Kitty Pryde has come to Joseph’s restaurant ready for anything, and as she steps from the cab outside to the facility’s doors she takes the time to look for any potential traps or places perfect for an ambush.

{I’m here,} she speaks in her mind. {Can you hear me?} She poses this question inside of her head and waits for a response.

{I’ve been with you all day,} answers the voice inside her head. {I’ve saved a seat for you in the booth in the back.}

After hearing the voice again in her head, she is sure it’s Cable speaking to her. When he entered her mind early this morning, requesting for her to meet him at Joseph’s, she was still half asleep. In fact, by the time she was fully awake she was not entirely sure if it was all just a dream. She came here hoping to prove it was only that.

Though she was hoping it was all a dream, she’s somewhat relieved when she hears Cable’s voice. She feels safe knowing that he is there with her. She has always considered him a sort of pillar of strength among the X-Men, but she also knows something important must be happening for Cable to have invaded her mind this morning. All of these thoughts race through her mind, putting her on edge as she enters the restaurant and makes her way to the back table where Cable is waiting.

“It’s great to see you, Cat!” exclaims Cable as he rises from his chair to hug her. Kitty is unprepared for such a show of emotion in Cable’s greeting. She stands rigid and speechless until Cable motions for her to take a seat at his table.

“I’m so glad you could make it,” continues Cable as he takes his seat opposite of her at the table, “I was very eager to speak to you.”

Recovering from her initial shock, Kitty is finally able to reply. “How could I turn down such an invitation, especially in the way in which you asked me? I assume that something important must be happening.”

“Actually, I wanted to met with you in private, which is why I asked you to come alone. I also wanted to make sure that I invited you to your favorite restaurant … a great place for great news.”

Kitty sits in shock and disbelief. Did he just confessed to invading her private thoughts this morning? It’s true that Joseph’s was her favorite restaurant, but she just assumed it must have also been one of Cable’s favorite places to eat. It didn’t seem too suspect before because half of the city’s population considered Joseph’s their favorite place to eat. Now, however, she just learned that one of her friends has abused his powers on her. She feels violated and angered. Once again, she is speechless.

“Cat, I won’t leave you in suspense any longer. I want you to know that I have selected you to be one of the Twelve.” Cable pauses for a reaction. When he doesn’t get one he goes on to explain. “You do know about the Twelve, don’t you? The whole save-the-world-against-Apocalypse-and-guide-mutantkind-into-a-better-future thing…”

Kitty remains silent.

“Come on, Cat, say something,” presses Cable a final time.

Kitty finally finds her voice. Boy, does she ever.

“How dare you!” she screams at Cable. “How dare you violate my mind for something as insignificant as where I like to eat! How dare you disturb my sleep and make me worried all day that there is trouble coming just so you could get me alone and dump this bombshell on me! How DARE you!”

It is Cable’s turn to be speechless as the other customers begin to stare at them.

“Then you spring this little bit of information on me as if you were inviting me to join some exclusive club! Well let me tell you something, mister, yes I do know what the Twelve are about, and no I don’t want to be a part of it!”

“No,” repeats Cable in disbelief. “You can’t say no, Cat!”

“Cat? Cat?! Why are you referring to me as Cat? I’ve been called a lot of things, but never Cat. Shadowcat, yes, but Cat, never!”

“Now calm down,” soothes Cable before he’s interrupted by a couple seated at the table behind them.

“Yes! Why don’t you calm down, little chickie, and give us all a break by shutting up!”

Both Cable and Kitty turn to find a greatly irritated Absorbing Man and Titania sitting at the table behind them.

‘Why couldn’t it have all been a dream?’ thinks Kitty to herself, knowing what’s going to happen next.

Only seconds after learning of Cable’s departure, Blaquesmith woke everybody else up to tell them the news. Blaquesmith is frantically tearing through Cable’s private quarters, looking for any clues as to where he might have gone since he’s been unable to locate him with any of his sophisticated equipment, while Jarard surveys the grounds outside to determine Cable’s mode of transportation and hopefully some clue as to which direction he went.

In the middle of this whirlwind sits Harold in a small chair, calmly sipping his coffee. He enjoys few things in life as he does a morning’s first cup. He repeatedly chuckles to himself as he observes his two new friends, and remembers his former life at the Everwood Facility only days ago.

‘Life sure is strange, isn’t it honey?’ thinks Harold to himself, addressing his dead wife. Harold has always believed that she’s up in Heaven, constantly watching him and listening to his thoughts. ‘Only days ago, I would have happily welcomed death just so I could be reunited with you again, but now everything is different. It turns out that these new friends of mine are responsible for saving the world, and I honestly doubt that they could do it without my help. So I hope you understand if I have to put off our reunion, as I now have to help save the world. I know you will understand.’

Exhausted, Jarard comes back from his search outside and collapses to the floor next to Harold. “Nothing. He took none of the vessels from here, and I could find no sign of him or in which direction he went.”

“Did you think he needed a vehicle to escape, or that he would resign himself to walk to wherever he was going? This is the same man who can move things with his mind, freeze an army of futuristic robots in their tracks, and survive an explosion at ground zero. You need to start thinking outside the lines, sonny. My guess is that he used his powers to fly to some nearby location where he commandeered some standard mode of transportation so that he could just blend in with the surroundings, making him harder to follow.”

Jarard looks up at Harold in his chair. First his face wears the expression of annoyance, as if he takes insult that Harold would even suggest that he knows more than he did, but slowly his facial expression turns to surprise as he realizes that Harold is probably right.

Just then, Blaquesmith enters the room announcing that he has also found nothing useful in Cable’s room.

“Of course not.” It is now Blaquesmith’s turn to hear Harold’s words of wisdom. “Are you surprised he didn’t leave a map or directions to his location? If he wanted us to know where he went, we wouldn’t have left in the middle of the night.”

“Yes, that is true,” counters Blaquesmith, “but none of this helps us find out where he has gone.”

“Maybe we shouldn’t be looking for him,” answers Harold. “He must have left without us for a reason. I say we just give him space and see if he returns.”

“You can’t be serious!” adds Jarard in surprise. “How can we allow the Askani’son to be running around out there unprotected? If something was to happen to him, we would all be doomed!”

“Well, he seemed to be able to take care of himself fine before without us,” comments Harold. “Besides, what choice do we have?”

To this, Blaquesmith and Jarard have nothing to say until Jarard finally breaks the silence. “Then what should we do now?”

“Why don’t we spend the time getting to know each other, get all on the same page? Why don’t you tell me about the Askani, the Askani Prime, and the Askani’son.”

“What did you say?” asks Cable standing up from the table.

“Why doesn’t everybody just calm down,” states Kitty, trying to prevent the inevitable.

“I said why don’t you guys shut up,” barks the Absorbing Man, also rising from his place at his table. “I’m trying to have a moment here with my girl.”

“I’m not your girl anymore!” snaps Titania, revealing that the couple was having a spat before Kitty’s tirade interrupted them.

Titania’s last comment fills the Absorbing Man with rage as he lunges at Cable and sends them both sprawling to the ground. Patrons of the restaurant begin fleeing as Titania, now left facing Kitty, suddenly attacks. Kitty, however, uses her phasing powers and easily evades the attack.

Meanwhile, Cable and the Absorbing Man continue to struggle with each other until Cable uses a telekinetic burst to separate them. The Absorbing Man is the first to his feet and uses the time to activate his powers. Reaching for a concrete wall, he intends to use his powers to morph into concrete, but instead Cable uses his powers to push a cheap, tin plated ashtray in between his opponent’s hand and the wall. As a result, the Absorbing Man morphs into malleable tin. With a smile on his face, Cable immediately begins punching and denting his opponent with little concern for the Absorbing Man’s well-being.

Kitty continues to use her powers to evade Titania’s blows by phasing. Titania’s punches pass harmlessly through her.

“Titania, listen to me,” pleads the ghost-like Kitty, “we have no beef with you or your husband.”

“He won’t be my husband for long!” screams Titania, launching a fresh volley of swings at Kitty.

“Yes, but I’m betting that you don’t want to see your man get hurt. It’ll happen if we can’t stop this,” Kitty continues to plead. “The man he’s fighting is extremely powerful and out of the Absorbing Man’s league. Plus he has been acting out of character lately, and very nonchalant about using his powers. We have to stop them from brawling before any permanent damage is done!”

Titania, finally hearing Kitty’s words, turns to see what Cable is doing to her husband. What she sees freezes her heart cold.

“Noooooo!” screams Kitty as she lunges to stop Cable.

The two women see the Absorbing Man levitating off the ground in thin air, presumably by Cable’s telekinetic powers. Thus, he is unable to make contact with any objects from which to change his current make up of malleable tin. What is truly horrifying is what Cable is doing to the lower half of the Absorbing Man’s body; he’s rolling it up from the feet like the lid from a can of anchovies.

What permanent effect this will have on his opponent remains to be seen.

For over an hour, Harold Griffin has sat patiently, listening to Blaquesmith’s retelling of Cable’s life. How he was infected by Apocalypse as a child and sent forward into the future where the Askani Clan cared for him and taught him to use his powers to battle the infection. There they also trained him to become the Askani’son, the Chosen One, he who will stop Apocalypse.

He then heard about the numerous battles fought by Cable in the future against his archenemy, Apocalypse, and the loss he suffered with the death of both his wife and her son. Harold could relate to what must have been Cable’s feeling of great loss, and found himself empathizing with him.

Finally, the tale took a last turn as it was finally revealed how Cable had traveled back in time in order to battle Apocalypse and his ‘protegé’ Stryfe only a few years ago.

“Now the legend tells us that it is time for him to gather the Twelve, so that they can assist him in ending the threat called Apocalypse. Thereafter, they will guide the fate of mutantkind for generations to come,” ends Blaquesmith.

“Fascinating… but I’m still slightly confused,” states Harold. “Where does the Askani Prime come into play?”

Springing to his feet, Jarard eagerly begins to retell the tale of the formation of the Askani Prime. He tells how the mysterious disappearance of the Askani Mother caused a rift in the Askani Clan, as some of the followers believed they should wait for the Mother’s return while others followed Sister Clarity and her belief that the Askani must abandoned their old ways and take a more aggressive stance against Apocalypse. As a result, the Askani Clan suffered through a civil war.

“But we do know where the Askani Mother is?” asks Harold at the end of Jarard’s story.

“What do you mean?” replies Jarard, obviously perturbed at being interrupted.

“She talked to us through my former roommate,” answers Harold, motioning to himself and Blaquesmith. “That is why the Guardians came.”

“What the hell is he talking about?” demands Jarard, now addressing the all-too-quiet Blaquesmith.

“I think it is time we all put our cards on the table, gentlemen,” comments Harold, realizing that he’s just let the cat out of Blaquesmith’s bag.

Acting at the speed of thought that only comes from years of training, Kitty dives for the Absorbing Man. She phases in mid-air, allowing herself to pass through Cable’s telekinetic field and touch his prisoner, allowing her to effectively phase both of them out the other side of the field.

Kitty immediately begins to unroll the Absorbing Man’s legs with her hands. It takes some time, but eventually she manages to unfold his entire body. She finishes just in time, as the pain becomes too much for the Absorbing Man to retain his focus, causing his body to revert back to flesh and bone. It’s obvious from his screams and the awkward positioning of his legs that the Absorbing Man will suffer numerous fractures to both of his legs.

“Honey!” exclaims Titania as she rushes to his side. Kitty, on the other hand, takes up a defensive position between the injured Absorbing Man and Cable.

Cable is shocked to see the look of determination in her eyes, as if she expects him to attack. He knows instantly that if he does, she’ll find a way to stop him, or die trying. Curious by her reaction, Cable instinctively reaches into her mind to see what’s the cause of it. He is immediately assaulted by two facts.

The first and closest to the surface is her inherent willingness to do good. She is the living definition of a hero. Her whole life has been dedicated to helping others. It’s so strong in her that it’s more of a driving desire than willingness.

It’s this characteristic that has made her a core X-Man and, more importantly, a good person.

Cable knows right away that his first instinct was correct; she is to be part of the Twelve. Not because of anything she has done in the past or will do in the future, but for what she is and what she has to offer the group. He knows Kitty Pryde must be the first member of the Twelve.

The second thing to strike him is her current overwhelming feelings towards him. She does not hate him. She does not fear him. She pities him. She pities him for what he’s lost. Through her eyes, he feels and experiences the admiration she once had for him. How she once considered him a devoted and kind man, even though she didn’t always agree with his tactics. She has always looked up to him, but all of that is gone.

Thanks to the link he’s established between their two minds, Cable catches a glimpse of himself as Kitty sees him now. She sees a man who is driven to the point of breaking and who has sacrificed too much of himself to obtain his goals. It’s obvious from her thoughts that the ends do not justify the means.

For the first time since his powers increased, Cable is forced to see himself not as the Askani’son or the paramilitary mutant, but for what he really is: a man near-driven to madness.

Suddenly, Cable is once again reminded by Kitty what the truth is. He is a man, and that means that he possesses a gift called free will. He is allowed to make his own decisions, including which paths his life will take. He is not the victim of any preordained destiny dictated in the Askani Clan, their Mother, or any of their prophecies.

He has to take control of his life, and his first decision is to once again become the man he once was, a man who earned the admiration of truly special people like Kitty Pryde. He has to become infected with the techno virus once again.

Overcome with this realization, Cable collapses to his knees. Kitty immediately rushes to his side.

“What have I done?” he wonders out loud.

“It’s okay,” soothes Kitty as she eases from her defensive position. “You’re not yourself. Somebody must be controlling you or influencing you.”

“If it was only that easy,” replies Cable. He then goes on speaking but as if to himself. “All I could think of was, ‘how dare this two-bit thug attack me, the Askani’son.’ If he had succeeded in killing me, all would pay the price because I wouldn’t have been able to stop Apocalypse. I started to believe in the prophecies and my own hype… it must be these new powers. The more I use them, the more I think I lose my grip on humanity.”

Finally coming to terms with what is happening to him, he once again addresses Kitty Pryde. “I’m so sorry,” he whispers.

“It’s okay,” Kitty reassures him. “We’ll get the Absorbing Man the help he needs, and then we’ll figure out where to go from there.”

“No. Not for that,” explains Cable. “I’m sorry for what I have to ask of you. Though I wasn’t in my right mind at the time, I did speak the truth about your being one of the Twelve. We will need you with us, but I fear what it will cost you. I don’t want to be responsible for losing you again, Cat.”

Kitty looks at Cable with a look of equal parts confusion and concern.

“I’ll do whatever is required of me, Cable. You can depend on that… but are you sure you are okay? I’m concerned about you and why you keep referring to me as Cat.”

“I’ll have to explain at a later date. Right now, I need to get back to the others and undo what’s happened while my mind is still clear and not clouded by my powers. I think the more I use my increased powers, the more deluded I become. Can I ask you to make sure that the Absorbing Man receives the medical attention he needs?”

“Of course,” answers Kitty, still obviously concerned as she helps Cable back to his feet.

“Thank you.” Having said that, Cable immediately runs out of the restaurant and out of sight.

Kitty watches Cable leave and then turns to see that medics are already arriving to take care of the injured, including the Absorbing Man. Upon grabbing a bottle of wine and a glass from the nearby table, Kitty phases up onto the restaurant’s roof where she pours herself a glass and looks out over the city. Lifting her glass towards the heavens, she says a quiet toast for the Askani’son, the Chosen One.

On the roof of the adjourning building where Kitty is enjoying a quiet moment with a glass of wine, an invisible figure observes her. Touching a few keys on its forearm, the creature sends word to his master – Apocalypse.

“I have detected the identity of the first named,” reports the observer. “Kitty Pryde is one of the Twelve. Should I confront her, or continue my surveillance of Cable?”

Moments later the answer comes. “Continue to follow Cable. I have already sent other agents to intercept Pryde.”

To his credit, Jarard remains quiet while Blaquesmith fills in the gaps of the story of the Askani’son. Blaquesmith relays how he discovered the truth about the last verses of the Askani’son Prophecy that foretold the death of the Askani’son during the final battle with Apocalypse. He then goes on to tell of his encounter with Harold’s roommate, and how the Askani Mother used the roommate to get a message to him. Reluctantly, he tells of her warning of what Cable will become if the techno virus remains out of his body, and that the time has come for him to gather together the Twelve. He finishes by adding his deduction that it’s the Guardians who are holding her prisoner.

When he finishes, they all sit together in silence for several minutes, each of them taking in the missing information they just learned and weighing its significance. It’s Harold who breaks the silence.

“Well, now that we’re all on the same page, our path seems clear,” he explains, using his gift of finding the simple solution to complicated problems. “I’m sure we all agree that we must help Cable to fulfill his part of the prophecy, and hope that somewhere along the way we can find a way to keep him alive. I assume that we are all in agreement with this.”

He pauses until he gets affirmation from the others before continuing. “The most immediate threat to him seems to be the Mother’s warning of what he will become without this techno babble virus or whatever you call it. So, our first objective is to get him to concede to being reinfected with the virus.”

“How do we do that if we can’t even find him?” asks Blaquesmith.

“And what if he doesn’t want to? How do we force the most powerful being on the planet to listen to us?” adds Jarard.

“How can the two of you have so much faith in this Askani’son Prophecy and yet have so little faith in us?” snaps Harold. “There is always a way. We just need to work together to find it. But that means no more secrets or hidden agendas between us. We have enough problems to overcome without adding more ourselves. Are we all in agreement to this?”

Again Harold pauses and waits for some sign of agreement from the others. When they both nod in agreement, Harold begins to experience a new feeling of camaraderie form between them.

“Maybe there is hope for us yet,” states Harold with a smile on his face.

Suddenly, the door to the room bursts open, and Cable staggers inside. “I need your help! I need to find a way to get the techno virus back inside of me.”

A smile spreads across Harold’s face as he says, “See, I told you we could do it.”

Read the second Genetic Eclipse prologue in Shadowcat #5, then read parts 1-3 of the crossover in Uncanny X-Men #14, Apocalypse #8, & Shadowcat #6!

NEXT ISSUE: Cable gets caught up in the Genetic Eclipse crossover as Apocalypse attacks the X-Men – but first he needs to survive becoming infected with the techno virus again! And as if that’s not enough, Post also decides to attack!