Issue+24+-+'I'm+Your+Pusher'


 * Issue 24 - 'I'm Your Pusher' **




 * Plot**

A little over two weeks have passed since the fall of Asgard. Norman Osborn has been removed from the security chief of the United States and Steve Rogers has taken his place. S.H.I.E.L.D. has once more been given jurisdiction over mutant affairs, and Maria Hill is overseeing west coast operations again. At Academy X, David wishes they could utilize the powers Billy, Samantha, and Cameron have gained from Academy M’s MGH before they wear off. Unfortunately, the Purifiers have gone underground since the attacks on Oldeani and Josh and S.H.I.E.L.D. has had no luck finding any leads.

Mid-week, David is concerned that there’s something going on with all the MGH out there. His main worry is that the MGH Lucius made may have been based on a sample from Nikkya Lewis, one of the Purifiers. He’s also concerned that Academy M may be infiltrated by a Purifier using MGH. When he tells Dane, the headmaster questions whether it’s possible Academy X has been likewise infiltrated. They come up with the idea, despite Bastienne’s objections, to use the gene reader taken from the Purifiers’ attack on the Lightfoot farm to see if it will detect humans using MGH as mutants. For their plan they need Matt to take MGH and then scan him. He is indecisive about being scanned, however, as he spent most of his life hoping for mutant abilities and only recently came to terms with being a normal human. He speaks to Samantha about it, and she reluctantly gives her assent as it’s for the safety of the students. Even with MGH, however, the G-Reader says he’s human. Jessica, even though she was given Hope, reads as a mutant. David and Dane come up with the idea to give flu shots to the students and secretly scan to see if they’re mutants. Fortunately, they all are. They're now confident that none of the students are secretly Purifiers.

A few days later on Friday afternoon, Dane is doing paperwork when his sister Ginny comes in. She says that their mother’s insurance won’t cover the damage from the Purifier attack. Ginny is mad that he hasn’t called to check on their mother and says he’s a terrible older brother. Dane leaves to get a loan, but cannot do so without collateral. Meanwhile, Bastienne is giving a tour of the school to Jessica’s younger brother, Gabriel. Jessica and Daniel are working in the lab downstairs trying to isolate any possible harmful elements hidden in the MGH the eXalts have taken. They determine that there is a secret biological ingredient – one that works like a virus inside the host body. It’s present in the MGH from Academy M, the samples taken from the students, and the MGH made by Lucius. There is concern about this finding. Samples are sent to Reed Richards, the X-Men, and other teams to see if they can help.

At the end of the tour Gabriel seems polite but a little bored. Bastienne gets him to admit that he’s already told Cordelia Frost that he’ll attend Academy M. He’s been impressed by the luxury and feels compelled to join since they saved his life. Bastienne tells him that she understands but that he’s always welcome at Academy X. She also says that he’ll have to tell his mother and sister. Meanwhile, Jessica realizes that Daniel has been growing. This worries Daniel because he always reverts to a 16 year old when he dies, including returning to that height. Upstairs, Cameron is using the last of his MGH powers to do homework. He gets an IM from Daniel saying that he should ask Maya to the prom which is coming up. He says they’ll talk about it later, then falls asleep due to the exhaustion of doing so much homework. During the nap he dreams of Nikkya, whom he knew during his captivity in the Weapon X program.

Before dinner Samantha gets a package from the Morlocks; since they can’t give her a regular baby shower they have sent her presents. There are cloth diapers made from old t-shirts, a homemade rattle, a diaper bag made from duct tape, and so on. Meanwhile, Ginny approaches David in his room and asks if she can join his secret team. Apparently Gunther told her about it because he has a crush on her. David says there’s no team, but he’d be happy to give her some extra training. She agrees. At dinner, as a favor for her friend, Roxy tries to get Cameron to ask Maya out to dinner. He isn’t ready to do so, however.

After dinner Jessica’s mother and brother are leaving. The security room alerts the eXalts that a cab has arrived supposedly containing Erica and Hugo. After the group manages to ascertain that they really are their former students, they welcome them inside. They soon learn that Hugo’s parents were killed during an assassination attempt on the boy. Brian Cruz, another former student, was also killed. Hugo contacted Erica, and they used some of his parents’ money to come back west. Erica asks to be an Exemplar because she feels Bastienne will better understand her than Billy. The headmasters agree to let her change teams. They call a therapist for the students to offer counseling for the deaths of Brian and Oldeani.

At an impromptu staff meeting that night the MGH findings are discussed. Lucius admits that he doesn’t know how to cure Hope. Dane shares that his source has news: the east coast staff did surveillance of Jacob Robitaille. Jacob apparently discovered the X-Men's spying and went underground. Daniel reveals his concerns about his growth. Even killing him doesn’t return him to his original height. Tests are done on the staff and their growth seems normal. Billy, Cameron, Dane, Daniel, Jessica, and Samantha all have the virus-like element from the MGH in their systems. The next day Dane receives news from his source. She’s tracked Jacob Robitaille’s financial records and discovered that he’s funding a facility very close to them: a secret complex on Mt. Whitney. While the eXalts are doing research on the facility, Jubilee awakens from her coma. After losing months of her life, she wants to go along. David agrees and they also bring Maya and Amanda in case their mutant abilities can help. The group gets into the Blackbird and leaves to investigate the lead.

Upon nearing the facility they can see that it’s a castle built into the side of Mt. Whitney. Maya tries to connect to security or computer signals, but her contact only sets off the defensive measures. Missiles fire at the Blackbird. The first hit causes the controls to freeze! Samantha pulls the jet up from its dive. She stays on the plane with Maya and Amanda while the other eXalts and Jubilee hurry to the castle. Maya finally manages to jam the missile’s radar system and David destroys the missiles. Dane breaks down the door and two robot sentries emerge. Daniel creates a soul dagger and fries the system of one robot. The second one is damaged, then switches to rounds containing the mutant "cure", Hope! The eXalts scatter. Jubilee is almost hit! Billy manages to rip out some vital wiring and shuts down the last robot.

Inside the eXalts find that the computer records have been erased by a magnetic pulse. There are many lab stations and it appears that MGH has been made inside the facility. The records are missing, but behind a garbage can is a crumpled UPS shipping document. It details shipments to be made to Roger at Academy M, Chancy at Academy X, and dealers in San Francisco and Los Angeles. It is signed at the bottom by Jacob Robitaille! Later tests reveal that there are traces of Morlock DNA at the lab! Confirmation that the Purifiers are behind the MGH spreading through the area makes the eXalts worried. Without any clear idea of where to find the terrorists, however, there is nothing they can do...


 * Next:** Issue 25 - 'Watch Out My Children'
 * Previous:** Issue 23 - 'Losin' Your Mind'