Nightcrawler is about to challenge the X-Men’s new paradise.
In the newest X-Men series, “Way of X,” Nightcrawler is being given the task of bringing a major Omega-level mutant into the X-Men’s new fold of Krakoa.
But doing so means Nightcrawler has to face his doubts in the X-Men’s supposed utopia.
Krakoa
A bold move for the X-Men books came in the House of X/Powers of X mini-series as Charles Xavier was met by the X-Men’s longtime ally Moira McTraggett. Long believed to be human, Moira revealed she was really a mutant whose power was to be reincarnated in a new timeline with all her memories of her previous lives.
Moira declared she had seen every timeline where the divisions of mutants would ultimately destroy them. Xavier thus believed the only thing to do was create a mutant nation on the island of Krakoa.
There, X-Men allies and even enemies are welcome to work together. A major move has been the “Ressurection Protocols,” where, thanks to a mix of Mister Sinister’s cloning techniques and telepathic downloads, mutants can be brought back from the dead, stronger than ever before.
While most mutants are loving becoming immortal, devout Catholic Kurt Wagner has his doubts. As he argues, how can they be sure their souls carry on when they’re reborn, and are they indeed the same people?
Kurt is also concerned with the “Crucible,” where mutants who had lost their powers are given a chance to fight for the right to be reborn. Those who are deemed worthy are killed for the rebirth, and Kurt finds this “ceremony” a near abomination.
These doubts are sinking in as Kurt is given the task of bringing in a major Omega-level mutant: Charles’ Xavier’s son, Legion.
Who is Legion?
During a time over twenty years in the past, Charles Xavier was in Israel, where he first became friends with Erik Lehnsherr, aka Magneto.
Xavier used his mental powers to soothe the troubled mind of Gabrielle Haller, a war survivor. They had a brief relationship before Xavier left, unaware Garbeille had his child, David.
David was born one of the most powerful mutants of all time, a multiple personality case with each persona having its own separate power and a threat.
David was rendered comatose before awakening, his personas brought together and became more powerful than ever before. He went back in time to attempt to kill Magneto but accidentally killed Xavier, creating the famous “Age of Apocalypse” timeline.
The character gained fame as being the basis for the FX Legion series.
David has bounced between a more rational figure and troubled by his madness with the X-Men worried about a madman with the power to reshape reality. Thus, Xavier feels having David on Krakoa can aid not just mutants but also himself.
Too bad David doesn’t want to go.
Kurt’s search
Xavier is worried that David may be connected to the Patchwork Man, a demonic figure haunting the island. Kurt is sent to find David, discovering him at the grave of Blindfold, a precognitive mutant who had committed suicide before Krakoa’s founding.
Confronting Kurt, David asked the difficult questions: why would a woman who could see the future kill herself before a “mutant paradise” came to be? And why is Xavier not that eager to revive someone who can see what’s to come?
David seemingly obliterates Kurt before asking more, but with the Protocols, Kurt will undoubtedly be back. Yet this just adds to his growing concerns on how something darker is on its way for the X-Men.
Whereas Kurt had been interested in starting a “mutant religion,” he now feels very uncomfortable with how Exodus is turning mutant history into myth (complete with the Scarlet Witch’s name used as a curse after she depowered millions of mutants) and if the constant resurrections are destroying what made the X-Men human.
Kurt knows first-hand how various forces from William Stryker to the Church of Humanity have used religion to justify their war on mutants and fears mutants may make the same mistake.
There’s also the Order of X, a group of humans who worship mutants as gods. While most of Krakoa dismisses them as crazies, others seem open to indulging that worship.
Legion’s arrival is going to test that faith as Kurt’s worries the X-Men are headed into a holy war may bear fruit.
Way of X #1 now on sale.