X-Cutioner's Song - Plot

Plot

Mutant pop-star Lila Cheney organizes a free concert in Central Park to promote diversity in society and invites Professor Charles Xavier to speak at the concert. His speech is interrupted by Stryfe who, disguised as his doppelganger and arch-nemesis Cable, shoots Xavier with a bullet that infects the professor with a lethal strain of the Techno-organic virus.

Meanwhile, War and Famine, the Horsemen of Apocalypse, attack Iceman and Colossus, distracting them from Caliban, who kidnaps Cyclops and Jean Grey. The Horsemen are working for Mr. Sinister, who is impersonating the Horsemen's former master Apocalypse. Mr. Sinister organized the kidnapping as part of his newly formed alliance with Stryfe. Stryfe trades Mr. Sinister a canister containing the past and future Summers family DNA history, and receives Jean Grey and Cyclops in the exchange.

While Xavier is rushed to the hospital, X-Factor and the Blue X-Men Strike Force go after X-Force, Cable's team of mutants formerly known as the New Mutants. X-Force, however, is in the dark about Cable's current location (having been separated from him during a S.H.I.E.L.D.-organized raid of their headquarters). But tension caused by their association with Cable causes the two groups to attack and ultimately capture X-Force. Meanwhile, Mr. Sinister doublecrosses Stryfe by revealing to the X-Men that Stryfe, under the guise of Cable, was the shooter.

While the Blue X-Men strike team, X-Factor, Boom Boom and Cannonball go after the Mutant Liberation Front, Storm's Gold X-Men strike team, along with Quicksilver, confront Apocalypse over Scott and Jean's kidnapping, hoping as well to gain a cure for the virus that is threatening Xavier's life. Apocalypse is incredibly weak, having been nearly killed by Cyclops in their previous encounter and having been prematurely awoken from his regeneration chamber by his minions the Dark Riders. After learning from the Dark Riders that someone had been impersonating him, and ordered his old minions to kidnap Jean and Scott, Apocalypse barely escapes with his life. Archangel finds himself becoming more and more consumed with punishing Apocalypse for his crimes, most notably Apocalypse's converting Archangel into the blue-skinned, metal winged angel of death.

The Mutant Liberation Front is defeated, though at the cost of Rogue being blinded by MLF member Strobe. Meanwhile Bishop and Wolverine locate Cable and after a brawl, realize his innocence and agree to work together to find Jean and Scott.

Apocalypse is ambushed by Stryfe, who declares that he is out for revenge for unknown wrongs committed against him as a child by Apocalypse. After Stryfe stabs Apocalypse in the chest, he escapes and Apocalypse seeks refuge amongst the X-Men, ultimately curing Xavier of the techno-organic virus as payment for sanctuary.

Cyclops and Jean are systematically tortured by Stryfe, who blames the two mutants for ruining his life; a claim that leaves the two X-Men stunned since they never encountered Stryfe before their kidnapping. Making cryptic comments about the two being his "mother and father", Stryfe and his new minions the Dark Riders, who pledge their allegiance to Stryfe after he defeats Apocalypse, move the two to Apocalypse's former base on the Moon, where Scott and Jean escape, entering the vacuum before realizing they are not on Earth. Her powers no longer blocked, Jean sends a frantic SOS to Wolverine, who discovers at the same moment the two's location.

The X-Men, knowing Xavier will live now that Apocalypse has safely purged the techno-virus from him, head into space to save their teammates. Cable, Wolverine, and Bishop head out to Stryfe's base on the Moon too and arrive there first, decimating Stryfe's defenses just as the X-Men (Storm, Psylocke, Polaris, Cannonball, Havok, Iceman and Archangel) and Apocalypse arrive. Splitting up, Apocalypse is ambushed by the Dark Riders, who mercilessly beat their former master to the brink of death. Apocalypse is later confronted by Archangel, who gets his revenge by refusing Apocalypse a mercy killing.

Upon catching Jean and Scott Summers outside the moonbase, Stryfe saves the two mutants and takes them to a giant time portal he had constructed on the Moon. As Cable, Cannonball, Havok and Polaris make their way to the tower, a forcefield is activated that prevents any without the Summers DNA from approaching the tower (i.e. Polaris and Cannonball) just as Stryfe activated the tower's time portal technology. Cable is able to pass through this forcefield so he could confront Stryfe alone, as Stryfe planned. However Stryfe did not realize Havok, being Scott's brother would also be able to pass through the forcefield, so the two may confront Stryfe together. After neutralizing Havok, Stryfe horribly injures Cable then reveals his cyborg visage, including his robotic left side of Cable's face. Stryfe cryptically condemns Cable as being "a feeble copy" of Stryfe and a "mockery of humanity". Stryfe then tries to kill Cable but is consequently distracted from holding Jean Grey and Cyclops in telekinetic bondage resulting in them being breaking free. Playing on Stryfe's emotional pain and anger, the two try to calm Stryfe from his rampage but Stryfe refuses, stating that he has been abused and betrayed too many times to believe them. Stryfe collapses the active tower upon the X-Men as Cable grabs Stryfe and orders Cyclops to activate the time vortex, a plan that would kill both Stryfe and Cable. Cyclops reluctantly does so; both men are sucked into a massive vortex that is created as the tower explodes in a fireball.

As the X-Men gather on the moon, Havok reflects on how the crisis began with everyone believing Cable to be the murderer, but in the end he saved them all. Cyclops and Jean Grey meanwhile have more important and ultimately more tragic things to ponder: the fact that either Stryfe or Cable is Cyclops' son Nathan Christopher Summers, who Cyclops was forced to abandon and send into the future after Apocalypse infected him with a techno-virus.

Mr. Sinister has a minion, Gordan, open the canister given to him by Stryfe only to find it empty. As Mr. Sinister is walking away angrily, he hears Gordan cough and tells his minion to see a doctor. As the story ends, Stryfe's ultimate revenge is unleashed upon the world in the form of the Legacy Virus, which Stryfe placed inside the container he traded Mr. Sinister.