SUPERNOVA

Part II: Brother vs. Brother

By Ryan Krupienski and Dino Pollard

Somewhere In The Sahara

Kurt Wagner lies on the ground, having just been knocked down by an optic blast from his fellow X-Man, Scott Summers. Kurt looks up at the man he has called friend and fought beside more times than he can count, in shock. Even though Scott wears a ruby quartz visor which conceals his eyes, Kurt can tell there seems to be no remorse in the man. Not even in his voice when he speaks.

“Don’t make this hard on yourself, Nightcrawler,” he says. “Professor Xavier sent us to bring you back to the mansion.”

“Xavier or Cassandra?” asks Nightcrawler.

“There’s only one Professor Xavier, and that’s Cassandra,” replies Cyclops.

“Hey, what’s going on?”

Domino, Havok, Fantomex, Bishop, Deathbird, and Sunpyre, who comprise the rest of Nightcrawler’s team, rush to his aid. Cyclops’ team, Storm, Colossus, Iceman, and Ecstacy, stand by his side.

“Something’s not right,” says Nightcrawler as Bishop helps him to his feet.

“What’s this about, Scott?” asks Havok.

“The Professor wants you to return to the mansion,” replies Cyclops. “You either come willingly or by force. The choice is yours.”

“Mind control, has to be,” says Havok. “No way Scott would blindly follow Cassandra like that.”

“This isn’t up for debate,” says Cyclops. “Either way, you’re coming back with us.”

“Make this easy on yourselves, my friends,” says Colossus. “Do not make us hurt you.”

“You’re the leader, Kurt, what do you say?” asks Havok.

Nightcrawler stands stoic for a few seconds, and no words come forth from his mouth. Instead, he vanishes in an explosion of smoke and brimstone and when he rematerializes, he appears in mid-air and delivers a swift kick to the back of Cyclops’ head.

“Overpower them!” he orders, before vanishing from Cyclops again. “We outnumber them, so let’s use that to our advantage!”

“And whatever you do, don’t let Ecstacy touch you!” exclaims Havok as he fires off a plasma blast at Ecstacy. She nimbly dodges the blast and attempts to close in on him.

“No kill shots, Fantomex!” exclaims Domino as her and Fantomex avoid bolts of lightning that fly from the clouds at the command of Storm. The wind begins to accelerate around them, but Fantomex still moves with an incredible speed across the battlefield to avoid Storm.

The Iceman extends his arms and with a thought, the moisture around his body and in the surrounding air begins to freeze. This effect continues around the X-Man Bishop as he soon finds himself encased within this huge block of ice thanks to the efforts of his teammate.

“You’re coming with us, Bish, whether you like it or not,” says Iceman with a grin. “The Professor’s got some big plans for the X-Men, and that includes you, timecop.”

An interesting phenomena begins to unfold before Robert Drake’s eyes. The block of ice surrounding Bishop begins to melt at an incredible rate. Within a few moments, the ice is nothing more than water around the large man’s feet. Bishop stretches out his body slightly, enjoying his new freedom, before directing his attention to his opponent. The time-lost X-Man’s eyes begin to glow brightly with energy, and through his hands, he directs that energy at Iceman in the form of a concussive force blast.

“You’re an idiot, Drake,” says Bishop as he approaches Iceman. “I’m immune to temperature changes, boy – I absorb the ambient energy from heat or cold.”

Bishop grips Iceman by the collar of his shirt and lifts him up into the air. Bishop pulls his arm back, and energy begins to encircle his closed fist.

“Your little trick only succeeded in providing me with enough energy to knock some sense into you,” says Bishop. He drives his fist forward and the impact of the blow, combined with the concussive energy gathered around his fist, could have the potential to knock Iceman’s head clear off his shoulders if that were Bishop’s intention.

He tosses Iceman’s unconscious body to the ground and turns to see Fantomex and Domino dodging Storm’s lightning blasts. He watches as Domino’s luck seems to fail her for an instant as a lightning bolt hurtles towards her. Bishop leaps into the path of the lightning and the electricity courses through his body. His cells instantly begin to convert the electricity into energy beneficial for him. The excess energy, however, begins to channel down into Bishop’s hands and he expels it quickly towards Storm.

“You two handle Colossus, Storm is mine,” says Bishop. Before he can offer up another blast at Storm, powerful winds send him flying into the air and keep him suspended, but constantly moving. He is too disoriented to get a proper beat on Storm so he can fire another energy blast at her.

“You should’ve accepted the help,” says Storm.

“AWAY FROM HIM, WEATHER WITCH!”

The exclamation comes from Deathbird as she flies towards Storm. She brings her scythe up in a large arc, and the energy blade passes through Storm. Ororo cries out in pain, and her concentration is broken, and the winds she used to keep Bishop suspended dissipate. Bishop falls towards the ground, but his descent stops as Deathbird grabs his arms.

“You are lucky I didn’t take offense to our last conversation, Bishop,” says Deathbird.

“I appreciate that,” says Bishop. “I just need an energy source, and then I’ll be able to…”

“No, I’ll handle this one,” says Deathbird.

She dives towards Storm, and before the white-haired X-Man can regain her composure and muster a lightning bolt, the blunt end of Deathbird’s scythe is jammed into her abdomen. Storm is knocked free from the winds which sustained her in the air, and Deathbird takes this opportunity to deliver another blow at her with the energy scythe. Storm falls from the sky, and Bishop moves quickly to catch her before she strikes the ground.

Ecstacy moves extremely quickly, nimbly dodging Havok’s plasma blasts. She’s boosted her own adrenaline levels, increasing her speed and strength considerably. Alex Summers, however, doesn’t have the benefit of controlling chemical reactions in his body. But he’s seen firsthand how Ecstacy’s powers work, and he doesn’t plan to let her use them on him. He tries to keep her at bay, but she moves too fast for him.

Ecstacy leaps over his head and delivers a roundhouse kick to the back of his skull. The effect causes Alex to lose his balance slightly, but he recovers quickly. He grabs Ecstacy’s head with his gloved hands and drives his knee into her torso. She loses her breath, but quickly boosts the adrenaline in her body once more, and her elbow slams against his chest. She them strikes his throat with the palm of her hand, and for an instant, he can’t breath. She takes the instant to touch his uncovered face with her bare fingers. Within a matter of moments, she elicits the proper chemical reaction, and Alex Summers falls into a deep sleep at her feet. Ecstacy only gets a moment to bask in her victory before extra weight is suddenly added to her back.

“Guten tag,” says Nightcrawler, materializing with his arms and legs wrapped around her. Ecstacy is startled, but before she can strike at Kurt, he teleports with her in tow. The two disappear and reappear at several different spots across the battlefield in rapid succession. When Nightcrawler finally releases Ecstacy, she falls unconscious. Nightcrawler has practiced and developed his teleportation skills much over the years, to the point where he is able to quickly compensate for the shift between dimensions and locations. For someone who is unaccustomed to it, it can be a very uncomfortable experience, as Ecstacy has just proven.

Domino ducks under Colossus’ fist before it strikes her and she slips under his legs. He turns to grab her, but a barrage of ammunition from Fantomex distracts his attention.

“Remind me to kill Bishop for suggesting we take on Colossus,” says Domino. “We’re probably the two people who have the least effect on him.”

“Can’t your luck can turn him back into human form?” asks Fantomex.

“My powers don’t work that way,” she replies.

“Wonderful,” says Fantomex.

“Let’s see how much luck I do have, though,” says Domino as she leaps in the air and brings her feet down to strike Colossus, firing at the behemoth with her pistols before her feet strike him. It has no effect on the Russian mutant, who instead grabs hold of Domino and throws her against the side of the Blackbird.

“Hmm… that wasn’t very nice,” says Fantomex.

“You’re next,” says Colossus, as he moves towards the newest X-Man. Fantomex backs away, but then stops and stands still with his arms crossed across his chest. If not for the mask he wears, Colossus would see a grin on Fantomex’s face. Because sneaking up on Colossus from the air is Deathbird, and her energy scythe is ready to strike. The blade cuts to the core of Piotr Rasputin’s nervous system, and the sudden shock forces a transition from his organic steel form to one of flesh and blood. Fantomex moves swiftly and slams the butt of his guns against the back of Colossus’ head.

“Thank you,” says Fantomex.

“You’re welcome,” says Deathbird.

“Maybe there’s something to this teamwork thing after all,” he says.

“Don’t get sentimental on me, terran,” says Deathbird. “You are still beneath my notice.”

“Such a charming woman,” says Fantomex. “I can see why Bishop chooses to keep your little relationship a secret.”

“How did you…”

“Body language speaks louder than words,” says Fantomex.

“Set Storm down on the ground right now, Bishop,” says Cyclops. “Gently.”

Bishop, who has his back turned to Cyclops, does as he’s ordered. He lays Storm’s unconscious body on the ground and then turns to face the leader of the X-Men.

“Don’t be ridiculous, Summers,” says Bishop. “You know your powers are useless against me.”

Cyclops stands his ground, the sunlight reflecting off of his visor. His expression remains stoic and blank, and his arms are folded across his chest. Bishop takes a step forward, and Cyclops fires an optic blast at the ground by his feet, causing him to stumble.

“My powers are only useless if I use them on you directly,” says Cyclops. Bishop reaches for the gun strapped to his leg. The instant he unholsters it, Cyclops fires off another optic blast, one that knocks the gun free from Bishop’s hand. Before Bishop can react, Cyclops’ palm slams against his chin, and Scott follows it up by kicking Bishop’s feet out from under him. Bishop lands on the ground, and Cyclops drives his palm against Bishop’s forehead, rendering him unconscious.

Cyclops stands, but he doesn’t see Sunpyre fly towards him, preparing to strike him down while his back is turned. She approaches closer and closer, and Scott pivots on the ball of his foot and fires an optic blast that knocks Leyu Yoshida out of the sky.

“You were giving off too much heat, I could tell there was an obvious temperature increase,” he says as he walks towards her. He fires off another optic blast that knocks her unconscious. “Your control is good, but not good enough.”

Cyclops calmly turns around at the sound of clapping and sees Fantomex standing there.

“Bravo, Mister Summers,” he says. “Looks like all those long hours in the Danger Room really pay off. Now that Wolverine is dead, I’d wager that you are probably the most dangerous X-Man. Next to myself, of course.”

“Your enhancements, right Fantomex?” asks Cyclops. “You think they make you better than me, don’t you?”

“As a matter of fact, I do,” replies Fantomex.

“You’re wrong,” says Cyclops. “From the moment you first set foot in the mansion, I didn’t trust you. Those long hours in the Danger Room you mentioned? For some of them, I trained against Fantomex simulations.”

“I’m flattered,” says Fantomex. “But a simulation is quite different from the real thing.”

“I know,” says Cyclops. “Which is why I’ve already worked out three different strategies to defeat you.”

Smoke and brimstone signal the arrival of Nightcrawler as he teleports next to Fantomex. Deathbird also lowers from the sky and lands next to Nightcrawler.

“Do those strategies include them?” asks Fantomex, motioning to his teammates.

“Three against one, Scott,” says Nightcrawler. “The odds don’t look good.”

“I agree,” says Cyclops. “For you.”

Scott takes a step forward, but then stops suddenly.

{Get out of here,} comes Ever’s telepathic voice inside their heads.

“Ever, are you all right?” asks Nightcrawler.

{I just regained consciousness, I’m aware of the situation,} replies Ever. {Cassandra’s control over Cyclops is too extensive, I can’t override it. Cassandra is also trying to break through my own defenses. I can only hold Scott in place for a few moments and by the time I release him, you three should be gone.}

“You’re coming with us,” says Nightcrawler.

{No, Cassandra’s already got a bead on me,} replies Ever. {It’s too dangerous, she could overtake me at any moment. Just go – now!}

As much as Nightcrawler hates to do it, he grabs the arms of Deathbird and Fantomex and the three of them teleport just as Ever’s effect on Cyclops expires.

Hammer Bay, Genosha

Erik Magnus Lehnsherr stands on a balcony and looks out over Hammer Bay. It was once a beautiful area. And soon, it will be once again. Genosha is going to be a new haven, his life’s work. Everything he has strived to accomplish is about to come to a peak.

“We have a problem.”

Erik turns and faces the source of the voice. “What’s that, Charles?” he asks.

“There’s trouble at the institute,” replies Charles Xavier. “She calls herself Cassandra Nova Xavier, and she’s told the world that she is and always has been me.”

“What do you mean?” asks Erik.

“She told the world Charles Xavier was a psychic mask, a facade she created,” replies Charles. “And now, she’s taken control of the mansion, and I fear she also has my former students under her command…”

CONTINUED IN AVENGERS ASSEMBLE #1!