Jean Grey-Summers knelt down, closing her eyes and taking in the scent of the flowers in the garden. A few feet away, her husband, Scott Summers, watched her with his pockets resting in the pockets of his jeans. Although he no longer needed them to hold back his optic blasts, he nonetheless wore the ruby-quartz glasses he used to rely on. After spending his entire adult life up until recently wearing them, habits develop. Especially in the bright afternoon sun.

Jean’s long fingers ran down the flowers. “Looks like the garden’s being taken care of in Storm’s absence.”

“Mostly Illyana’s doing,” said Scott. “She said it’s helping her readjust to this world and gives her a sense of normalcy.”

“If the past is any indication, that won’t last for long,” said Jean. She took another whiff of them. “There’s something on your mind, Scott.”

Scott said nothing, just allowed his gaze to fall on his feet. “Picking up stray thoughts?”

“No, but I don’t need to be psychic to tell when something’s bothering you.” Jean stood up again and came back to him. She placed her hands on his shoulders and Scott wrapped his arms around her waist.

“Having you back here, with Rachel, it’s been great,” he said.

“And there’s a ‘but’ coming…”

He sighed. “You’re going back to Genosha soon. And I’ll still be right here.”

“Scott…there is something you can do about that.”

“Go with?” Scott shook his head. “No…with Cassandra’s return and most of the team scattered, now is definitely not the time to think about retirement. There’s far too much going on right now. Hank’s got his hands full with the school and Warren and Storm are both with the X-Corporation. Then there’s Alex’s team. Which means there’s no one else to head up this group.”

“Maybe that’s not your concern anymore,” said Jean. “Scott, no one’s given more to the X-Men than you. Don’t you think it’s time you let yourself relax a little? Take a break? Hank can handle things here, you know that. Especially when he’s got good people backing him up.”

“Jean, no,” he said. “You know I can’t. Maybe when things have calmed down a little, once we’ve figured out what Cassandra’s agenda is, then we can see about moving down there. Until then, you just have to trust that I know what I’m doing and I’m doing what’s best for everyone.”

She kissed him gently. “I know. It’s difficult, but we’ll be fine. We—” Jean paused and her body wavered slightly. “Ohh…”

“Jean…? Are you okay?”

“Yeah…yeah I’m fine, I just…” She grimaced slightly, moving a hand to rub her forehead. “…nnn…just got a headache.”

“How did that happen?” asked Scott.

“I don’t know, I just…” She stumbled a little and Scott braced her against his arms. “…I’m not feeling too…”

“Jean…? Jean!”

She collapsed and Scott quickly held her up with his arms. He carefully knelt down, cradling her as he placed his hand on her forehead. “Jean? Can you hear me? Jean, wake up!”

No sound came from her lips, she lay unconscious in his arms, her eyes shut tightly.

FROM THE ASHES…?

By Ryan Krupienski and Dino Pollard

Recently, the X-Men were attacked by strange, alien-like creatures, pursuing Cassandra Nova. The culprit behind them still remained a mystery, although some rumors had begun to spread throughout the student body, some suggesting that Cassandra herself was behind the attack.

Cecilia Reyes-McCoy put those rumors out of her head. She was a doctor, first and foremost, and that’s where her priorities lay for the moment. Two patients were under her care—Peter Valentino, the metamorph called Proteus. And Neal Shaara, whose ability to generate intense solar plasma led him to adopting the name Shiva.

She looked over Peter’s chart. Her eyes scanned through the test results, amazed at what she read. From his bed a few feet away, the mutant called Proteus could tell she was puzzled by the results.

“Everything okay?” he asked. “Do I get a clean bill of health or what?”

“I’d say so.” Cecilia slowly stepped closer to him. “Your body is healing together remarkably well.”

“That’s good, right?”

“It’s very good, I’m just wondering why.” She looked up at him and adjusted her glasses. “Peter, have you always been a quick healer?”

Peter thought back to the times in the past he’s been injured. “I don’t think so.”

“Recall being sick a lot? Anything like that?”

“No more than most people, I’d guess.”

“Okay…” She took a pen from the breast-pocket of her lab coat and scribbled something on the chart.

“Why?” he asked. “There’s nothing wrong with me, is there?”

“No, but I think you may have experienced an expansion of your shapeshifting powers,” she said. “Your recovery speed isn’t superhuman—you’re definitely not on the level Logan was or anything like that. But it is pretty accelerated. How does your neck feel?”

Peter’s hand lightly touched the bandaged wound where one of the creatures took out a chunk of his skin. “A little sore, but not too bad.” He looked at Neal in the bed beside him, who slept on his stomach. One of the creatures clawed his back, which had been bandaged. “What about him?”

“I can hear you, y’know,” said Neal, his eyes still closed. “Next time, some stronger morphine would be nice.”

“Keep complaining and see how quickly my bedside manner evaporates,” said Cecilia with a smile. She placed Peter’s chart down and drew Neal’s.

“You said it might be infected?” asked Neal.

“Infected?” asked Peter.

“Don’t worry, you’re fine, Peter,” said Cecila. “Your tests showed no sign of infection, but that could be because of your healing. As for our destroyer of worlds…”

“Very funny,” said Neal. “You have a codename I can make fun of?”

She chuckled. “No, I was the smart one in this group. Next time you see Hank, you can ask him how much crap he gets from me about ‘Beast’.”

“I kinda like it,” said Peter.

“Yeah?” asked Neal. “Hank came up with it and I liked it better than his first choice.”

“Which was?”

“Corona.”

Peter chortled. “He wanted to name you after a beer?”

Neal smiled. “Yeah, guess so.”

“Again, I reiterate—Beast,” said Cecilia. “Anyway, did you want to know about that infection?”

“Huh?” asked Neal, staring at Peter. He blinked and craned his neck to try and look at Cecilia over his shoulder. “Oh, sorry! Yeah, the infection…?”

“No signs of one, fortunately,” said Cecilia. She placed the chat back at the end of the bed, beginning to get the feeling that she became a third wheel. “I…think I’ll let you two get some rest. I have some things to check up on anyway.”

The Astral Plane

Jean opened her eyes, finding herself lying on barren, rocky ground beneath a star-covered night sky. She pulled herself to her feet, looking down at her body and finding herself dressed in the green and yellow uniform she wore as Marvel Girl.

“Hello Jean.”

A bright light came from the distance, blinding her. Jean shielded her eyes from it and when she opened them again, she saw a fiery blaze slowly approach her. Once it came closer, she could see it wasn’t a blaze at all, but a woman. A woman whose skin and hair seemed to be made of the same flames as those that surrounded her. But she wore a red and yellow bodysuit with the emblem of a bird over her chest.

Jean recognized it, the outfit worn by the Dark Phoenix.

“I’m getting a little tired of this,” she said. “I thought I told you that you’re nothing more than a figment of my imagination?”

“Now, you and I both know that’s not true.”

“If you don’t back off, I’ll get rid of you myself.”

“Really? And who is in your corner, exactly? Charles Xavier is dead and there isn’t a telepath on this planet who can help you against me.”

“I don’t need anyone’s help to erase a bad memory,” said Jean.

“Come now, Jean, don’t be foolish. I’m not here to fight. I’m here because it’s time. It’s time for us to become one.”

Jean concentrated, using her psychic abilities in conjunction with with the Astral Plane to fashion a suit of armor for her that replaced her old costume. Also in her hand, she generated a flaming sword.

The Phoenix smiled. “Very amusing. But it will take more than that to face me.”

Jean lunged forward, bringing the sword forward. The Phoenix raised her arm, a flaming talon surrounding it and blocking Jean’s strike. She slashed forward with her other hand, a similar talon formed around it that burned through Jean’s entire body.

She grimaced from the pain and began muttering to herself. “It’s not real…you’re fine. This is just your mind playing tricks on you.”

“I’m hurt, Jean. That you think so little of me.”

Jean glared at the Phoenix and a burst of pink energy arched from her forehead. It snared the Phoenix, wrapping her in a psionic net. “You’re trying to bind me?”

“Looks like it’s working!” She jumped at the Phoenix, her sword cutting through the entity’s body. She continued to administer strike after strike, the Phoenix helpless during the battle.

“Jean…stop. It doesn’t have to be like this! Just think! Think of all we could accomplish! All the good we could do! If only we were together, we’d be an unstoppable force! One that could be used for the benefit of man and mutant alike! But if you destroy me, you’ll only destroy your true potential!”

Jean hesitated for just a moment and that was the moment the Phoenix needed. The psionic net snapped free and the Phoenix’s fiery wings spread. Her talons went for Jean, who brought her sword up in defense. It shifted, changing into a flaming lance capable of holding back the creature.

She locked eyes with the Phoenix and the two of them unleashed the full extent of their powers.

The result was a massive explosion of psionic power.

Jean’s eyes snapped open and she almost jumped up. Scott held her firmly though, and she only twitched a little. “Jean, thank god!”

“…Scott?”

“Are you okay?” he asked. “What happened?”

“I…it’s nothing,” she said. “I just got a little light-headed.”

“C’mon, let’s get you on your feet.” He slowly stood, helping her up as well. Jean braced herself against his body for a moment before pulling away from him so she could stand on her own.

“Thanks,” she said. “I’m fine now, though.”

“Are you sure you’re okay?” he asked. “It’s not like you to just collapse for no reason.”

She smiled at her husband. “Scott, really I’m fine. In fact, I feel better than I have in a long time.”

“Okay, I believe you,” he said. “But could you do me a favor and have Cecilia check you over? Just for my benefit?”

“Will it get you to relax?”

Scott grinned. “Promise.”

“Then I’ll do it.”

Hank McCoy stood over the dead body. One of the creatures who attacked the mansion the other day. He had just finished the autopsy and its anatomy had been very strange. He activated a button and a scanner lowered from the ceiling, its light flashing over the creature.

The door opened and Hank turned with a bit of surprise to see the young woman called Husk standing there. “Paige?” he asked.

“I thought you were gonna let me help out with the autopsy,” she said.

“You’re certainly becoming the plucky little lab assistant,” said Hank. “Just watch out for my wife. She may be a doctor, but she’s also Puerto Rican.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” said Paige, moving closer to the gurney. “But seriously, why didn’t you tell me?”

“Well honestly, I thought you’d like to spend some time with your brother,” said Hank. “Especially after the ordeal he just went through, seems like he could use some good old fashioned family bonding.”

Paige’s brother was the Avenger called Cannonball. Recently, the Avengers had to deal with the United States declaring war on them, Doctor Doom falsely promising them asylum, and then the Red Skull altering reality. With Avengers Mansion destroyed during an assault from the military, Sam had opted to stay at the Institute until new accommodations could be arranged.

“He had an Avengers’ meetin’ at Tony Stark’s mansion,” said Paige. “Guess they’re figurin’ out their next move.”

“So it would seem,” said Hank. He felt a slight twinge of jealousy for Sam, mostly due to his own nostalgic thoughts regarding his time as an Avenger.

“So what’ve you found out?” she asked.

“Well…” He removed his gloves. “It’s some form of bio-organic lifeform.”

“What’s that mean?”

“Most-likely man-made, grown in a lab,” said Hank. “Stuff like this has been done before, but this is unlike anything I’ve ever seen. The research that must have gone into this—it’s years beyond my knowledge.”

“So you don’t know who sent them, do you?” asked Paige.

“Unfortunately not, although Cassandra did suggest Amanda Mueller was behind it.”

“You don’t believe her?”

Hank removed his round spectacles and cleaned them off with a handkerchief from his pocket. “To be honest, I’m not sure what to believe, my dear. Cassandra’s history hardly makes her a reliable source. But this may not be beyond Black Womb’s capabilities. Of course, there are other potential enemies—lord knows how many people Cassandra has ticked off in her life.”

The mechanical helmet rose up, removing itself from Jean’s head and she opened her eyes. A few feet away, Cecilia sat at a computer and looked at the map of Jean’s brain with Scott standing behind her, looking over her shoulder.

“Everything looks fine to me,” said Cecilia. “No abnormal brainwave activity—for a psychic, anyway—chemical levels, rhythms, everything is within normal range for Jean.”

“So what caused her to collapse?” asked Scott.

Cecilia looked up at him. “Well she is the President of a controversial nation, we were just attacked by B-horror film rejects, a woman who almost killed her is living under our roof, and she works alongside Magneto.” Cecilia stood and playfully slapped Scott on the chest. “Oh yeah, and her husband worries too much. I’d be stressed, too.”

“See?” asked Jean with a playful look at her husband.

Scott raised his hands in defense. “Okay, okay. I just wanted to be sure.”

Cecilia removed her lab coat and hung it up on a hook hanging by the door. “I’m going to take my leave. Been working all day and between you two and the boys in the infirmary, I need to see my husband.”

“Have fun,” said Jean. Cecilia closed the door behind her and Scott sat on a chair, moving closer to his wife. She kissed him. “I told you, I’m fine. Are you going to relax now?”

“I’ll try,” said Scott. “You just scared me and I’m worried there’s something you’re not telling me.”

She sighed. “Cecilia’s right, I am under a lot of stress. Running Genosha, Cassandra, it’s all been very hard to deal with. And what makes it worse is I’m on my own down there.” her hand wrapped around Scott’s. “I need you. You and Rachel. I thought I could do this on my own, but I can’t. I’m missing out on my daughter’s life and I’m worried you and I are going to start growing apart.”

Her emerald eyes gazed into his and she gently removed his glasses. “Please come back with me. I don’t want to be away from the two of you anymore. I want my family back.”

Scott nodded slightly and raised her hand to his lips. “Okay.”

“Really?”

“Yeah,” he said. “Having you here made me realize how much I missed you. And watching you collapse like that scared me, and I want to be there for you when something goes wrong. And I can’t do that if I’m in Westchester and you’re in Genosha.”

Z’Noxx Chamber

Cassandra Nova lay awake in her bed. The Z’Noxx Chamber was developed years ago by her brother, a place completely blocking off all telepathic access—no minds in or out. The X-Men felt it was the best place to keep her, even if her powers weren’t active. At least until they could decide what to do with her.

It gave her time to ponder. Perhaps too much time to dwell on her actions. She wanted to try to find ways to make amends, to make things right between her brother’s students and her.

The landscape changed and Cassandra found herself somewhere else. A large void with her bed and her the only things. She slid off it and stood, but there was no floor. Just swirling colors all around.

She could detect another presence, one that gave her a chill. “Who are you?”

Her answer came in the form of silence. She could see him ahead of her, like a wraith. Cassandra folded her arms, trying to put on a brave front. “Really, my dear, if you’re going to intimidate someone, you have to try harder than that.”

The entity began to laugh. A dark, ominous laugh that came from everywhere, surrounding Cassandra and quickly disintegrating her courage. The Astral Plane swirled around her, creating a sense of vertigo and she fell to her knees, clutching her ears before finding herself back in the Z’noxx Chamber.

And the entity’s words echoed in her mind.

“Your time will come.”