X-Factor #25

Writer: Peter David
Marvel, $2.99 US, $3.05 CAN
'Messiah Complex' pt.3

In an abandoned church in New York, a small group of Purifiers are holding a meeting when the mutant Wolfsbane attacks them by surprise. She escapes into the street and runs into a man in a trench coat and nondescript clothing. The purifiers warn him away, but instead he opens fire on the mutant, hitting her multiple times. A truck suddenly pulls up and Rahne jumps in, getting away.

The stranger says that he has been searching for the Purifiers and introduces himself as Joaquin Murrieta, but friends call him Jake.

Safely in the truck, Rahne goes back to her human form and complains about the fake blood stains on her shirt while Siryn reports to Cyclops that Rictor has successfully infiltrated the Purifiers. Rockslide and X-23, members of the New X-Men, come in and request a conversation with Cyclops.

Its raining in Dallas, Texas. In front of Forge's Aerie, Jaime Madrox and Layla Miller arrive. A holographic Forge answers the door and is introduced to Layla.

Inside, Forge reveals that he's invented a time machine called a chronal tracer. Using it, he's found that all timelines for mutants stopped after M-Day, the event that depowered nearly the entire mutant population. Since the new mutant birth, however, two new branches were discovered, which of course bears some investigation.

At the Sacred Heart Hospital in Santa Cruz, an accident victim is wheeled into the emergency room. When a nurse named Amelia is called, the patient, Wolverine, sits up and identifies her as Amelia Voght, a former Acolyte of Magneto. After attempting to escape, she's captured by Storm and Nightcrawler, and is persuaded to give them the whereabouts of the Marauders. She tells them to wear thermal clothing, because she's sending them to Hell Frozen Over.

Back in Dallas, Madrox agrees to send two of his duplicates into the timelines to investigate. Because of past dupes' inconsistency, Madrox is uncertain he can produce two that will cooperate. His fears are allayed, though, when he makes one who is selfless for the mutant cause and another who just wants to get the job done.

After the selfless dupe is sent off without a hitch, Layla decides to jump into the portal just as it activates again, sending her and the no nonsense dupe into the second timeline. Madrox Prime demands that Forge bring Layla back, but is told that they went on a one-way trip. Forge reveals that he never planned to bring Madrox's duplicates back, but that they were secretly instructed to kill themselves after they found the needed information, instantly transferring said info back to Jaime. Just as he begins a tirade, Madrox loses consciousness, collapsing on the floor.

At the mansion, the New X-Men are upset because they're not involved in the current crisis. Cyclops lets them know that they will be used when the time comes, but only then.

In New York at the Purifier stronghold, Rictor, undercover as "Jake", is scanned to make sure he doesn't have mutant powers. He is surprised by the level of technology they possess. He is even more surprised when the local Purifier leader reveals a false wall in the church that opens into a huge warehouse filled with high-tech weapons, ammunition, and soldiers. He remarks that they are in one of the smaller bases, which doesn't compare to their base in Washington.

Submitted by Marcos Alvarado. Thanks Marcos!