Home Coming

• Writer - Joe Kelly
• Penciler - Carlos Pacheco
• Inker - Art Thibert
• Inker - John Dell
• Lettering - Richard Starkings
• Lettering - Comicraft
• Colorist - Chris Lichtner
• Colorist - Aron Lusen
• Colorist - Liquid!
• Editor - Mark Powers
• Editor in Chief - Bob Harras

Summary

  Marrow dares Bobby to speed to Westchester, over Cecelia's objections. Marrow continues her habit of provoking confrontations. Bobby opens the doors to find the mansion stripped, down to the bare wood, and everyone is disheartened. Then the X-Men zoom in, racing to the (now empty) infirmary with Scott, into whom Bastion planted a time bomb (see Wolverine 118).

  Ororo is shocked to see Marrow.

  Someone is carrying a lawyer on his shoulder, down the road toward the mansion.

  Cecelia pushes her was in to help Scott; Jean pusher her way into her mind to explain the situation. Cecelia sends Sam to scrounge up supplies while Ororo gets water and lightning to boil it, and Marrow interrupts her to make threats (see UXM 325). Bobby ices Scott to keep the fever down; Jean mentally anesthetizes him; Logan offers claws for scalpels, and they begin the operation. Cecelia finds the nanotech bomb, but isn't sure what to do next.

  The doorbell rings: Juggernaut has brought a lawyer, claiming his brother's assets. Ororo closes the door on him, and washes the road out for good measure. So Juggernaut crashes in, realizes the mansion is empty and Scott is being operated on, but still wants to attack. Then the rest of the X-Men arrive from Antarctica. Juggernaut points out Remy and Bishop are missing, and Rogue tosses Joseph aside to get at him.

  Jean loses her grip on the bomb, and Scott wakes up. Hank and Joseph go to help, while Maggott ineffectually sends his slugs to stop Juggernaut. He just laughs at the troubles the X-Men are causing themselves and walks off, his lawyer slung over one shoulder.

  Hank says they have to let the nanotechs assemble to get them all out of Scott's bloodstream, but of course it will explode when complete. Logan takes time to berate Trish for breaking the mutant story; she runs off crying, and Hank is furious. Marrow applauds, then pulls out two bones from her forearm for Cecelia to use as forceps. She gets the bomb out, and Rogue has Maggott feed it to Meany. A belch, a couple of staples in Scott's abdomen, and everything starts getting better. Maggott goes into the rest room to let his slugs back in, a nasty process, while the rest retire for the evening. Marrow scratches "This way to a dark ride" on her door.