World's End

• Writer - Chris Claremont
• Penciler - Alan Davis
• Inker - Mark Farmer
• Lettering - Virtual Calligraphy
• Lettering - Rus Wooton
• Ass't Editor - Sean Ryan
• Associated Editor - Nick Lowe
• Editor - Mike Marts
• Editor in Chief - Joe Quesada
• Colorist - Matt Milla

Bad Company

Summary

  Wetherell reports on cold weather around the world: the Thames frozen, snow in San Diego and the Sahara. The president is expected to declare a state of emergency, but at Xavier's the kids make snowmen.

  Inside, the X-Men are on alert. Hank has matched he telemetry to when Ororo was trapped as a chrome statue, kicking her claustrophobia into overdrive (UXM 145-147). They know her Blackbird is in the Canadian Rockies, but there's no contact with her squad. The storm cells are merging; within a week they'll cover the planet, and they'll be beyond Ororo's control long before that. They're looking at an Ice Age, and humanity won't survive.

  Ororo begs Rachel to stop, but she thinks she's Hauk'ka and wants to exterminate humanity. Masano worries that they'll be killed by the ice age, too; Kaidan says everything is under control, but Masano wishes Raina was there to rein him in.

  From the cliffside, Kurt watches the storm, hoping for a miracle. Betsy thinks about skiing, not Kurt's sport, because of the boots. Kurt doesn't like where his thoughts are going; Betsy tells him to have faith in himself, and she sees the burden of leadership on him.

  In the cave, Brainchild gets Leash to take control of Raina, just like Ka-Zar. X-23 immediately jumps her, and when the heroes try to restrain her, she takes Leash hostage. Lucas and Kurt realize she's onto something, and Brainchild turns on Leash, telling her she's been naughty. She releases Raina, who immediately calls for her blood, and X-23 explains Raina's scent became like Leash's, and like Ka-Zar. Lucas lets X-23 threaten Leash again, and she releases Ka-Zar; then X-23 knocks her out. Kurt warns Brainchild not to try stunts like that.

  Even X-Men have their limits, and the weather is forcing them to act. Brainchild has a plan; he thinks he can interrupt the amplification process, but Rachel must be kept linked to her, or Ororo will die and the storms rage. Lucas wonders what's in it for him; he says mere self-preservation.

  They say goodbye to the saurids, who have confidence in him, and Kurt teleports everyone to the citadel; it's a rough trip with so many, and they all arrive queasy. Raina's access code has been blocked, and Hauk'ka soldiers attack them; melee ensues. Raina, Betsy, and Brainchild fiddle with the lock, and Masano and Kaidan attack them, but Betsy is immune to mindblasts and kicks them both down. Raina orders a ceasefire, and Kaidan thinks she's under mind-control, but Masano trusts his instincts.

  Betsy offers to use TK to open the door, but that would leave her weakened; Kurt decides to teleport her in, with Raina's description as his only guide. There's a whirlwind inside, and Betsy protects them with a TK shield. She approaches Rachel and is glad to realize Ororo is still fighting; she's able to slice Rachel with her psychic katana, and the shockwave blows open the doors.

  Betsy is now linked to Rachel as she is to Ororo; Brainchild rushes in and uses his device to manipulate Ororo's genome, not to stop the storms but to increase them: he again wants to conquer the planet.

  The X-Men have their own wild card, and X-23 lunges at Brainchild. Ororo is still out of control, however, and she tells X-23 to kill her before she flash-freezes everyone. Lucas tells X-23 to stay her hand; Betsy tells Rachel they're all in this together, human and Hauk'ka, and she releases her to make a free choice. She's about to lash out at Betsy when Kaidan contacts her telepathically, ordering her to help the X-Men stop the storm.

  She realizes she must merge minds with Ororo, a scary intimacy, and the strain of overcoming the storm could kill them both. The X-Men can only watch, and the weather quickly warms, melting the ice and snow. Ororo and Rachel collapse.

  A bit of Rachel's psyche is in Ororo now, but she's free of Hauk'ka control. The Hauk'ka soldiers enter, and they have a standoff. Kurt offers a truce, to learn to share the world instead of mutual annihilation, and Kaidan agrees. Rachel is still lizard-like and can only hope the genetic cascade will reverse itself.

  Kurt addresses the Hauk'ka council, convincing them to support "the law of civilization," and offering them a chance to join the Savage Land community. He and Raina shake hands.