GENETIC ECLIPSE

Part XIII: Armageddon

By Ryan Krupienski

Author’s Note: This story is continued from X-Men #13.

Egypt.

This ancient land was among the first to serve as home to one of the many ancient human civilizations; it holds secrets that are thousands of years old, many that modern society has already discovered. One secret that remains a mystery to humanity at large, though, is the secret of an ancient evil more powerful than any other force on Earth.

Throughout time, he has been known by many names… Set, Huitxilopochti, Sauru, Kali-Ma, En Sabah Nur…

However, those that know of his existence know him by one name… and they utter that name with an underlying note of fear and hatred in their voices. That name is Apocalypse.

The small squad of inviduals walking slowly towards the massive pyramid before them all harbor hatred towards Apocalypse, and with good reason. He has been a thorn in all their sides at one point or another, and they’re here at his innermost sanctum to even the score and take him down once and for all.

For Cyclops, Apocalypse is his most hated enemy; he has time and again attempted to manipulate and destroy his family, in one instance infecting his son Nathan with a techno-organic virus that would have killed him had Cyclops not let the Askani take him into the future where he would be cured. Not only was Nathan cured, but he was raised to become the man known as the Cable, the man who would one day destroy Apocalypse. Like his father, he ranks Apocalypse as his most hated enemy.

Archangel once had his very soul tainted by Apocalypse; Apocalypse kidnapped him and transformed him into his Horseman of Death, tinting his skin blue and giving him sentient metallic wings to replace the feathered ones that had been impaled and destroyed by the Marauder known as Harpoon. Although his metal wings have since been shed and his feathered wings returned, Archangel still feels something inside him, a part of Apocalypse’s evil still lingering within.

Dazzler has not encountered Apocalypse but once, mere days ago when he attacked the X-Men’s Chicago headquarters and kidnapped Shadowcat. She knows of him, though; she knows of what he’s done to several people she considers to be friends, and of how he’ll remake the Earth into a nightmare if he isn’t stopped. For the sake of her daughter and the world she’s going to grow up in, Dazzler means to help bring down Apocalypse for good.

The Juggernaut is here for different reasons; he doesn’t have a personal vendetta against Apocalypse per se, and he certainly doesn’t possess as heroic a spirit as his companions. He’s here to set his best friend, Black Tom Cassidy, free from the power of Apocalypse that has transformed him into the Horseman known as Famine. No one is going to stand in the Juggernaut’s way… he will set Tom free, even if he has to beat the living daylights out of Apocalypse himself!

Although the sand is blowing furiously about the Egyptian desert, none of it is even touching the four X-Men and their unlikely ally; Cable is using his telekinetic powers to surround them all with a shield to keep them from being blinded by the storm. The five walk slowly towards the pyramid before them, Cyclops at the head of the group. It’s been quite a walk from the Blackbird, but it was necessary to not fly in too close to the pyramid so as to remain far enough out of range of the base’s radar and retain the element of suprise.

“Cable, are you sure the secret entrance you mentioned is directly ahead of us?” Dazzler asks as she eyes the pyramid’s base stones. “All the stones look exactly the same, none look like they might be an entrance…”

“That’s the whole point of it being a secret entrance, Dazzler,” Cable replies. “It’s there, trust me.”

Juggernaut snorts. “Who needs a secret entrance? I can just make us an entrance!”

“And alert Apocalypse to our presence here… sure, Marko, that’d just be brilliant,” Archangel replies in a mocking tone.

Cyclops stops and turns to face Archangel and Juggernaut, a hint of rage in his expression. “Don’t. Start.” He says no more and starts walking again, the others following.

Several minutes later, they reach the base of the pyramid. Cable steps forward and begins to run his hands across the massive bricks, searching for the one that is the opening to the secret passageway. He finds the one he’s looking for and pushes it in, causing the stone on its right to dissolve and reveal a dark, rocky tunnel.

“All right, let’s go!” Cyclops commands, taking off down the tunnel. The others nod and follow.

Inside the pyramid, on its upper levels…

Standing in front of a computer monitor is Apocalypse, a blank expression on his face. “So, Cable knew where the secret entrance was,” he says with a sigh. “Not suprising.”

Post comes into the room slowly, approaching Apocalypse. “Lord Apocalypse, the three X-Men Gambit, Wolverine, and Shadowcat are being detained by the Hounds in the control room. Four more X-Men, and the one known as the Juggernaut have…”

“I know, Post, I know,” Apocalypse replies calmly. “Gather the Horseman. Tell them to dispose of our unwelcome guests.”

“Right away,” Post obeys, walking swiftly out of the room.

Apocalypse’s facial expression does not change. He simply walks to a platform in the middle of the room and teleports down to a level of his stronghold that no one but him is even aware exists…

Cyclops and his team continue down the tunnel and eventually come to an intersection where six different passageways meet. He turns to Cable and asks, “Nathan, do you know which way is which?”

Cable studies the different tunnels for a moment, struggling to remember where to go next; he knows this place, he studied it inside and out in his own future. Before he can reply, though, the ground beneath his and his teammate’s feet begins to shake. The next thing they know, they’re being raised into the air on a circular platform that had previously been a part of the ground they had been standing on. They all look upward and see a faint light that becomes bigger and brighter as they get closer to it.

“Be ready for anything,” Cyclops says, touching the knob on the right side of his visor.

The platform continues to rise towards the circular opening until it meets with and fits inside the opening; Cyclops and his team are now inside a different room, and a very, very big room at that. Stones like those on the outside of the pyramid make up the walls; fires are burning on four 10-foot-high columns, each in one of the room’s corners; in the middle of each of the walls is an opening to a tunnel, from which there is no light.

“Nobody’s here. What now?” Archangel asks, stepping off the circular platform with his teammates.

“We get ready for an attack,” Cyclops replies, “because there will be someone here.”

“Got that right, One-Eye,” comes a low, snarling voice from one of the doorways. Heads turn to see an incredibly huge and savage Sabretooth standing at the doorway, smiling devilishly and breathing with a low growl. “Me an’ my friends here are gonna rip all o’ yer guts out and have us a nice snack!”

Dazzler glances around at the other doorways and catches sight of Black Tom Cassidy, Omega Red, and Threnody, all ready to attack. “He wasn’t kidding about the friends part, guys!”

Cyclops says nothing and immediately lets his optic blasts loose, hitting Sabretooth directly in the chest and sending him flying down the dark passageway from which he had come. “Hit them all with everything you’ve got, don’t hold back!” he shouts as he runs towards Omega Red alongside Cable.

The Juggernaut immediately charges towards Black Tom, and Dazzler and Archangel go for Threnody. Black Tom snickers as his body morphs into a wooden form and grows to an amazing size, greater than that of the Juggernaut. “Cain, m’boy, ye’re outta yuir league!” The Horseman’s arms and legs begin to extend and branch out in the form of tree roots, surrounding the Juggernaut completely. He struggles against the prison Tom has built for him, grimacing and growling in anger.

“Tom, I’m really getting sick of this Famine crap! I’m gonna break outta this tree-thing you’ve grown around me… and if I have to pound reality back into ya, I will!”

“I’ve got a better idea… how about ye drop dead!”

Black Tom begins to sup the Juggernaut’s lifeforce, causing the behemoth’s body to shake violently. Within seconds, the Juggernaut falls to the ground, seemingly lifeless. Black Tom smiles wickedly as he surveys his work; he mentally commands the wooden structure surrounding the Juggernaut to dissolve and returns to his natural form. He kneels down beside his one-time friend, snickering and grinning. “Sorry, old friend, but ’tis the way it had t’be…”

Suddenly, a massive hand rises from the ground and wraps around Black Tom’s neck, as the Juggernaut returns to his feet. “HA! You crack me up, Tom. Actually thought that’d do the trick?”

Juggernaut turns around at the sound of Sabretooth’s savage growl, catching sight of the Horseman returning from the tunnel Cyclops had blasted him down and leaping towards Dazzler. Without giving it a second thought, Juggernaut swings his arm and launches Black Tom right at Sabretooth, shouting to Dazzler to move out of the way at the same time.

Black Tom hits Sabretooth with such force that they are both rendered unconscious, even before hitting the wall and falling to the ground. Juggernaut meets Dazzler by the Horsemen’s bodies, rubbing his hands together while admiring his handywork. “Heh… whaddaya you X-Men call that? Fastball special…”

Meanwhile, in another section of Apocalypse’s stronghold…

The X-Men known as Shadowcat and Gambit stroll down the dark corridor cautiously, following Wolverine; he picked up Sabretooth’s scent while the three of them were battling the Phalanx-Hounds, and he’s definitely spoiling for a fight. And once he’s found Sabretooth and taken him out, Apocalypse is next.

*Sniff*

“What is it, Logan?” Kitty asks inquisitvely, knowing that Wolverine’s picked up more scents. “Who else…?”

“Friends,” Wolverine replies. “Cyke, Worthington, Cable, Dazzler… an’ the Juggernaut.”

“The Juggernaut? What’s he doing here?” Kitty asks with a hint of astonishment.

“He was at de mansion when we fought War an’ Famine,” Gambit answers, “he was lookin’ to free Black Tom from Apocalypse’s min’ control. Guess he ain’ gon’ give up till he does, non?”

“Can’t say I blame the guy,” Wolverine chimes in, still leading his teammates down the seemingly never-ending corridor. “Much trouble as those two are, they’re still friends. An’ friends stand by each other, no matter what.”

Just as the conversation is about to continue, the three X-Men come to an intersection, with five other passageways lying before them. “This way,” Wolverine says, pointing to the tunnel on the far right.

It will be several minutes before they reach the rest of their teammates. Hopefully, that’ll be enough time…

…Because despite outnumbering the Horsemen five-to-two, the X-Men and the Juggernaut aren’t doing too well.

Omega Red has his tendrils wrapped around the necks of Cable and Cyclops, and Threnody has Archangel at a disadvantage after having punctured one of his wings. Only Dazzler and Juggernaut are at full strength, but they’re still not sure how to handle the Horseman known as Pestilence without putting the lives of father and son at further risk.

“Lemme charge in an’ deck him,” the Juggernaut says anxiously, rubbing his hands together enthusiastically. “Then he can try suckin’ my life force an’ see where it gets him.”

“Marko, don’t be stupid,” Dazzler says disapprovingly, “that’s only going to get Scott and Cable killed…”

“Indeed it will, woman,” Omega Red remarks, raising his captives up into the air; they’re both squirming, trying to unwrap Red’s tendrils from their throats, but to no avail. Even if they did break free, the Horseman’s enhanced death aura could suck the life out of them regardless of whether or not the tendrils were touching them.

It’s a seemingly hopeless situation – to all but Cable. One of the abilities he possesses is telekinesis, and the feat he has planned won’t take too much of it to do. While Omega Red is occupied with Juggernaut and Dazzler, Cable uses his teke to slide Cyclops’ visor open and direct the beam straight towards the Horseman. Caught completely off-guard, Omega Red releases his captives and is sent slamming into the wall. He’ll be down for a good couple minutes.

“Nathan,” Cyclops says between coughs, rubbing his throat as he gets back on his feet, “that was extremely dangerous! If your concentration had slipped… even for a second…”

“But it didn’t, Scott,” Cable replies, “so stop worrying so much. We’ve got to help Archangel!”

Everyone turns to see Archangel and Threnody battling it out, throwing punches every which way at eachother. They rush over to the other side of the room to help, but stop when Thredony put their teammate in a choke-hold. “One more step and he’ll be nothing more than a pile of ash!”

Angel looks at his teammates, standing there in front of him; he can see it in their eyes, they’re more than ready to help him, but they’re also afraid. They’ve all lost enough friends, so understandably they’re being cautious.

“Thredony, listen to me,” Archangel says, gasping for air between words, “you don’t have to do this. Fight Apocalypse’s control… don’t let him corrupt you! He’s using you… as soon as you’ve served his purpose…!”

“SHUT UP!” Threnody screams, her voice shrill and feral. “I’ve been nothing all my life… and now Apocalypse has given me a new one! One with purpose!”

“Killing innocent people?” Cable asks rhetorically. “That’s your purpose?”

“Culling the weak is more like it,” Threnody replies. “You all are fools. You should have joined Apocalypse when you first had the chance, all of you. You’re never going to win!”

“Care to place a bet, mon chere?”

Every turns around to see Wolverine, Gambit, and Shadowcat come into the room through one of the passageways, primed and ready for action. “Now how ’bout you be a nice lil’ Horseman and let monsier Wings go, non?”

“I don’t have time for this!” Threnody releases her hold on Archangel then pushes him a few feet in front of her; she proceeds to slash him across the chest with her fingernails, cutting him deeply. He falls to the ground as the blood spills from him; Dazzler cries out his name and kneels down besides him, as Cyclops and Cable charges toward Threnody.

“DEATH to all who stand in the way of APOCALYPSE!”

Threnody’s body suddenly begins to glow, and Cyclops and Cable inch backward. For a moment, it seems as if Threnody’s in control, ready to unleash a blast of energy that would certainly take its toll on the assembled X-Men. Then, a look of confusion and worry sweep over her face; her body is glowing brilliantly with energy, and she can feel her insides burning. There is a soft humming coming from the power surge, and Cyclops and Cable back away even farther, meeting with Wolverine, Gambit, and Shadowcat.

“What’s… happening… to… MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE….!”

Those are Threnody’s last words before her body dissolves right before the X-Men’s eyes. They are relieved she is no longer a threat, but they can’t help but feel a bit of remorse; she was an innocent victim, after all.

“What the…?” Kitty starts, her jaw wide open.

“She was weak,” comes a loud bomming voice.

The X-Men look up to see the High Lord himself, Apocalypse, levitating in the air above them. “You’ve done remarkably well, X-Men. As I expected you to. Although I must say I’m disappointed in the Horsemen I selected to carry out my plans. Their failure shall cost them.”

Apocalypse’s eyes begin to glow a deep purple, as the bodies of Sabretooth, Black Tom, and Omega Red vanish into thin air. Apocalypse then lowers himself to the ground, his massive, imposing form standing tall above his enemies.

Juggernaut stares for a moment at where Black Tom’s body had just been, then turns to Apocalypse with wide, angry eyes. “Where’s Tom?! WHAT DID YOU DO?!” he demands, lunging towards Apocalypse and tackling him to the ground. The anger swelling inside of him, Juggernaut balls his fists and readies himself to pound the living daylights out of the immortal mutant.

Apocalypse grimaces and pushes the Juggernaut off of him, following up with an energy blast that sends the vessel of Cytorrak smashing through wall after wall of the pyramid, far beyond the battleground. En Sabah Nur rises to his feet, as the X-Men ready themselves for an attack. He simply vanishes as did his Horsemen, his last words being, “You have meddled in my affairs for the final time, Children of Xavier. You shall now encounter… ARMAGEDDON!”

The X-Men survey the area; there’s no one in the room but them. They all decide to turn their attention to Archangel, whose wound is suprisingly healing up rather nicely…

“Warren, what’s happening? How are you doing this?” Dazzler asks, clutching Archangel’s hand tight as she stares on with amazement at his healing wound.

“Must be… another… one of Apolcaypse’s… ‘gifts’,” Archangel manages, trying to sit up. “You gotta go… find him…”

“He’s right, we don’t have time to waste,” Cable says with a nod. He starts to walk away when all of a sudden, the ground begins to shake violently. A huge figure, bigger than the Juggernaut, smashes its way through the wall on the other side of the room. Despite the brand new green iridescent armor he wears, Cyclops instantly knows who the man is…

“HOLOCAUST!” Cyclops exclaims, as his mind flashes back to his battle with the madman on Avalon.

“Not anymore, Prelate Summers,” Holocaust responds. “I am now the Fifth Horseman of Apocalypse… I am ARMAGEDDON!”

Without hesitation, the X-Men prepare themselves for battle. Cyclops touches his visor, his optic blasts begging to be released; Cable charges his Psimitar with all the psychic energy he can manage; Dazzler lets the light flow through her body, ready to escape through her pores at her command; Gambit whips out his bo staff and a quintet of playing cards, charging them with extreme amounts of kinetic energy; Wolverine growls ferally and extends his bone claws; Shadowcat takes out the Honor Blade of the Clan Yashida given to her by Wolverine, also concentrating enough to phase her body on a second’s notice.

It’s showtime.

Armageddon makes the first move, sending his fist slamming into the ground; the resulting shockwave causes the X-Men to scatter, some to even fall to the ground. Without a second thought, Gambit throws his cards through the air, and they explode upon impact with Armageddon’s armor. They do no damage, though; Cyclops follows up instantly with a massive optic blast, and Cable with a surge of telekinetic energy from his Psimitar. The blasts are enough to cause the Horseman to stumble backwards, but fail to do any damage.

Wolverine is up next; he leaps in the air towards Armageddon and nearly sinks his claws right into the Horseman’s armor, but is back-handed out of the way and into the wall. Shadowcat, having phased down into the floor and come up behind Armageddon, slices her blade into the back of his armor. There is a small scratch, nothing more; he turns to attack Shadowcat, but she phases in time to avoid him. Cyclops and Cable let loose more energy blasts, this time joined by Dazzler.

“DON’T STOP!” Cyclops shouts, the sweat pouring down his face as the red blasts continue to shoot from his eyes. He can feel his energy running out… but he can’t stop. He has to keep going… he has to use every last ounce of power he has to obliterate Armageddon!

Cable and Dazzler are also giving it their all, but it’s not working; at most, they’re holding the Horseman at bay. But he’s not being hurt, and his armor’s not cracking.

Before anyone realizes it, Wolverine, having recovered and made his way back to Armageddon, slashes at the Horseman’s leg, causing the armor to crack ever so slightly. Wolverine takes another swipe and the armor cracks some more.

Armageddon decides to hold back no longer; he raises his fists into the air and lets loose two energy beams that rain down upon the X-Men like the Horseman’s namesake. All of them fall to the ground, seriously weakened, as Armageddon steps forward and prepares to finish the job.

“I’m going to enjoy… eh?”

Armageddon stops in mid-sentence as he looks up and sees the Juggernaut diving through the air. He tackles the Horseman to the ground, then proceeds to slug him right in the chest. The armor cracks some more.

“You could have made a fine Horseman, Cain Marko,” Armageddon says mockingly, “but instead you choose to fight with Xavier’s herd of sheep! So shall you DIE!”

“Oh, give it a rest, ya dip,” Juggernaut says angrily as he sinks his fingers into Armageddon’s armor; he balls his fists up, and tears the armor off. Armageddon bellows in pain, his pure energy form now left vulnerable.

“You’ll pay for that!” Armageddon cries. Without his armor, he is now left standing as a being of pure fiery energy, shrunk down to the size of his opponents.

The X-Men, having already gotten back on their feet, regroup with the Juggernaut, watching as Holocaust struggles to regain his composure. They know it’s now or never – the Fifth Horseman has to be destroyed.

“Not so tough without the armor, are you?” Dazzler says angrily, glaring at the Horseman with disgust.

“Let Gambit take care o’ dis,” Gambit says, stepping away from the group toward Holocaust. He instantly charges his bo staff up with all the kinetic energy it has to offer, then lunges it right into Holocaust’s chest.

The Horseman’s deathcry is followed by a bright flash of energy, one that would have surely blinded the X-Men had they not closed their eyes. For moments afterward, there is silence as everyone takes in what’s just happened. They survey the damage around them; the massive room has caved in on two sides, and the floor has been torn apart. Then one of them breaks the silence.

“Now I’m gonna go finish off Apocalypse,” Cable declares, as he begins to walk away; he is stopped when Cyclops grabs his arm.

“Not without me,” the X-Men’s leader says, his expression an angry and vengeful one.

“Scott…”

“Don’t argue with me Nathan. We’re doing this together,” Cyclops says. No one is going to change his mind; there’s no way he’s not going to be there when Apocalypse is finished off.

“All of you, get back to the mansion,” Cyclops says to his team, as he and Cable start off towards the tunnel.

“WAIT! Scott!” Archangel calls out. His words fall upon deaf ears, and the two of them fade into the darkness of the passageway. “CYCLOPS!”

“It’s no use, Warren,” Dazzler says, “let them go. This is a personal fight for them.”

“And for me, to!” Archangel exclaims, slowly getting to his feet. “After all Apocalypse has done to me…!”

“This ain’t about you, Worthington!” Wolverine snaps, poking his finger at the winged X-Man’s chest. “Besides, yer not even in a condition to fight. So, all of you, c’mon… we’re goin’ back to Westchester.”

“Logan!” Shadowcat says, suprised at what she’s hearing, “you can’t be serious?! We can’t leave them to fight Apocalypse alone!”

“We have to,” Wolverine says. “It’s what they have to do…”

Genetic Eclipse comes to a screeching halt in Apocalypse #10 – it’s Cyclops and Cable vs. Apocalypse… and one won’t be walking away alive!

Then, in the Genetic Eclipse Epilogue: The X-Men feel the aftershocks of war with Apocalypse – especially the Summers, who have lost one of their own! What will become of the X-Men? Will they reunite or remain split? And will the mystery of the Twelve finally be uncovered?