Homefront,+Part+4+of+4


 * Age of X: Homefront, Part 4 of 4 **




 * Plot**

(Takes place at the same time as Academy X Issue 55)

The death of Billy hits everyone hard. Ruth is positively catatonic. She keeps saying that this wasn’t supposed to happen. Bastienne and Samantha are distraught, as are Jessica and Lucius. Even Dane and Honoka are visibly upset. The group plans a funeral for Billy and attempts to keep Ruth as calm as possible. The students are also upset, especially the Ardents. Taz is inconsolable. The headmasters bring in a counselor to talk to the kids. The following weekend the school holds a memorial service for Billy. Several eXalts speak about how he was the heart of the team and the school. Each student leaves a single flower on his memorial stone. Later that day, Jess tells the group that part of Billy will live on: Gilberto has his X-gene! Meanwhile, David had asked permission to attend the funeral but was denied. On the day of the funeral he is approached by a S.H.I.E.L.D. guard who is revealed to be Maria Hill. She says she’s sorry to hear about Billy’s death. She makes him an offer – perhaps S.H.I.E.L.D. could do for him what they did for her? A duplicate could take his place so he could be free. They could even change his appearance so no one would suspect. She says Captain Henderson would not volunteer this time, however! David has to think it over. He’s also concerned about chest pain he’s been having recently… The next week passes, but everyone is still sad. Agape visits to say that one of the mutants in a coma is having heart problems. Everyone is worried about their progression of their hemolytic anemia. The only theory the group has about the situation is that everyone with the condition has faced the Purifiers. Did they somehow use bio-warfare? Hank McCoy has developed a treatment that should slow the progress of the condition – but it’s too late for Billy. Agape admits a secret she’s been keeping. She says that losing Billy made her realize what’s important. She wants Cameron back. She contacted the east coast school and offered to give her mutant power back to Bobby Drake if they locate and save Cameron for her. On Friday, the school receives notice from the California Department of Social Services. Based on their investigation (which didn’t even involve visiting the school!), they have recommended that the wards of the state housed at Academy X be recalled. Liam, one of the student staff, listened in on the conversation telepathically and spreads word to the rest of the student body. They are outraged. They refuse to turn over the kids who will be “recalled.” Many of the staff worry that the kids will be removed by S.H.I.E.L.D. forcefully if they refuse. Is this the moment that violence will break out between Academy X and the government? The staff holds an emergency staff meeting to discuss their options. The only one that seems palatable involves moving the school. Even if they stay, the mutant registration database may soon be public. That could lead to targeted attacks on mutants. But where would they go? As David predicted, other states are considering or already moving forward with mutant registration laws. Other countries don’t seem any friendlier. If only Genosha still existed, that mutant country would have sheltered them. But Genosha is too far and still too dangerous – parents of many students would not agree to that. The staff of Academy X decides to consult with others for advice. Samantha talks to Emma. Emma offers to take in the third of Academy X kids that will be affected. Sam knows this isn’t an option, however – the student body as a whole will refuse to be broken up that way. Mac manages to talk to Doctor Strange. The former Sorcerer Supreme proposes a radical idea. If the group is really prepared to move the school, and if Genosha isn’t an option, perhaps they can create their own mutant country. Mac brings the idea to the staff. There is a lot of debate on either side. Finally, a vote is taken. The group agrees to move the school. This is where the crazy part of the plan comes into play. To create a new nation, the group will need land. Doctor Strange arrives via magical teleportation. He explains his plan to raise a piece of land from the ocean floor just outside San Francisco. It just so happens that there is already a large piece of land under the waves that would be perfect for this purpose: Asteroid M, the orbital base of Magneto when he began his “career” as a terrorist years ago! He could then transport the school and its grounds on top of the asteroid. They would then have an island all to themselves – a new piece of land for their new sovereign nation. Once again Liam is listening in. Sam can tell the kids are excited by the idea. The group agrees to move forward with the plan. On Sunday – Halloween – Doctor Strange performs the necessary magic. Asteroid M returns to the surface. An even more powerful spell transports Academy X exactly as it was in Half Moon Bay to Asteroid M. The entire grounds are transported: buildings, woods, everything. Agape uses her mutant ability to pull groundwater up for storage so they will have a water supply. Dondre tunnels to create a sewer system. The kids work on creating a sustainable food supply through farming, but Sofia can create gruel for now if needed. For the first time, it sinks in: it’s real. Academy X is no longer subject to California or United States law. Doctor Strange dubs the new island nation Utopia. The new location for the school doesn’t solve all their problems, however. David is still in custody on the S.H.I.E.L.D. Triskelion. Many of Academy X’s staff is still suffering from hemolytic anemia. Dane has begun the long process of being acknowledged by the United Nations. Mac swears to continue the Unity Campaign in California to help all those mutants that are depending on them. For the moment, it seems the mutants can still visit California and the United States as they please as the government hasn’t acknowledged Utopia as a separate country. Despite the chaos over the weekend, the staff feels it’s important to resume classes on Monday to recreate a sense of normality as soon as possible. Julian has his Combat Club. Kids have their classes. Meals are made and some studying is completed. Midterms will be taking place later in the week. Monday night is also the eve of Election Day. James Sangrey is having a huge rally in downtown San Francisco. Michael can be seen in the background working the crowd. The event is hugely successful. Could the Unity Campaign’s success have something to do with Sangrey’s increased popularity? Recent polls have shown him only a few percentage points behind! Many at Academy X are watching the rally on the news. Even the kids are watching as they study. Then the unthinkable happens: Purifiers attack! Biosentinels appear throughout the crowd and begin firing indiscriminately. Sangrey is specifically targeted. He goes down, bleeding heavily. Then he uses his blood to create a shield to protect himself and Michael. The eXalts are uncertain what to do for a moment. They are no longer part of the United States – should they help? But then Mac makes a convincing point: Xavier’s mission had always been to protect a world that fears and hates mutants. The eXalts respond to the scene. For the first time, S.H.I.E.L.D. has responded ahead of them! The two groups try to stop the Purifiers, but there are more of them than ever. Then Phantasma sees something in the crowd. One of the Purifiers has transformed into a living bomb. He’s going to explode! Nightwind quickly teleports next to the Purifier and teleports away with him. In the distance, over the sea, the eXalts and bystanders can see a huge explosion. Did Nightwind just sacrifice herself to save everyone? There’s little time to find out, as the other Purifiers are still attacking. Without Mustang, Blur, or Nightwind, the eXalts consist of only Phantasma, Panzer, Icegirl, Glimmer, and Medic. Fortunately they also have S.H.I.E.L.D. on their side. S.H.I.E.L.D. Cape-Killers take down several Purifiers. Daisy Johnson unleashes a seismic blast that causes the flying Purifiers to crash. Phantasma lifts a stage full of innocents out of the way so Panzer can let loose a thunderclap that takes down several Purifiers. Icegirl and Glimmer blast several others. Medic drains a Purifier so completely that she passes out. Then Nightwind teleports back to the scene and helps take down the lead Purifier. The battle is finally won, but at great cost. A dozen PCX supporters, both mutant and human, have been killed. Dane asks Daisy Johnson if they can question the leader of the Purifiers, and she reluctantly agrees. Phantasma attempts to read his mind. She’s finally able to break through the biosentinel’s mental shields. To her surprise, the leader is none other than Jacob Robitaille! But he doesn’t look anything like Robitaille – instead of an elderly man, he’s a young brunette in his twenties! How is this possible? Samantha learns from his mind that Robitaille is indeed the leader of the Purifiers, but the Purifiers as a whole answer to the true leader of the Church of Humanity – Simon Trask. He’s still alive and using his nanites to create biosentinels. Anyone could be a hidden soldier for the Purifiers! At this point, Robitaille awakens and triggers some kind of implant that causes his body to go into shock. Within moments, he’s dead. Samantha can learn nothing else from his mind. The eXalts return to Academy X before any sticky questions of their new “jurisdiction” can arise. The next day is Election Day. Apparently the pollsters were undercounting young voters due to only polling through land lines, because when the polls close James Sangrey is announced as the 39th governor of the state of California! There is a lot of excitement and celebration over this news. Jessica has to ruin the fun, however. Through her collaboration with Hank McCoy, she thinks she knows why several Academy X staff members developed hemolytic anemia. It’s a side effect of the cloning process. The Purifiers have somehow sampled their DNA and created clones of them as weapons. It’s only a matter of time before they strike… **Next (Issue/Storyline):** Issue 56 - 'Paradox'  **Previous (Storyline):** Age of X: Homefront, Part 3 of 4
 * Previous (Issue):** Issue 55 - 'Explosive'