Wolverine (4th series) #9

Issue Date: 
July 2011
Story Title: 
Get Mystique: Final Repose
Staff: 

Jason Aaron (writer), Daniel Acuna (artist), VC’s Cory Petit (letterer), Jared K. Fletcher (designer), Jody LeHeup (assistant editor), Jeanine Schaefer (editor), Nick Lowe (group editor), Axel Alonso (editor in chief), Joe Quesada (chief creative officer), Dan Buckley (publisher), Alan Fine (executive producer), Jae Lee with June Chung (cover art)

Brief Description: 

In San Francisco, Logan is on the hunt for Mystique. Also on the hunt for her is a man by the name of Lord Deathstrike, who has been hired by the Red Right Hand to assassinate her. During the chase, Mystique is severely injured by Deathstrike. However, before he can finish the job, Logan finally meets up with Mystique and intercedes, capturing the assassin. Just then, he receives a call from Maverick, who has found where the RRH is located. Unfortunately, this distracts Logan enough for Deathstrike to escape, after which Logan returns his attention to Mystique. Mystique both berates and tries to reason with Logan, but he is resolute. He kills her and leaves her for dead, much to the delight of the watching RRH. Later, at an auction, Mystique’s body is purchased by a group of ninjas.

Full Summary: 

As Logan makes his way through the streets of San Francisco, taking out some thugs along the way, the members of the Red Right Hand discuss what has transpired. One of the female members points out to their leader that Logan is out of Hell. Free of demonic control. And he’s coming for them. In other words, everything’s going according to plan. The leader says no, not everything, as he peers at an image of Mystique on his screen.

In Argentina, two men talk with a man clad in a business suit and a kabuki mask. One of the men tells the masked man, Lord Deathstrike, that they are sorry but they don’t understand. Why exactly has he brought them to Argentina? His partner asks need he remind him the man they are paying him such an extravagant amount of money to murder is in China, still hiding inside his supposedly impenetrable complex, still surrounded by a veritable army of guards. And here he is, wasting their time, half a world away.

Without saying a word, Deathstrike pulls out a device, presses some buttons and proceeds to set up his weapon, pointing it directly at the ground, firing it. In China, a portly man lounges inside his compound, surrounded by his guards. As he does, he says that he loves oolong on the veranda. Every morning, like clockwork, he loves to sit in this chair and… Before he can finish his sentence, the man is killed when a bullet goes right through him, originating from underneath his chair. His current job done, Deathstrike gets a new target on his device – Mystique.

After disposing of the thugs, Logan kicks a door open to a makeshift, back alley operating room and asks the man inside wearing doctor’s gear where she is. The doctor tells him that she’s not there. Logan says to him that he patched her up, after she’d been stabbed. The doctor confirms that he did and asks Logan who he is. Logan informs him that he’s the one who stabbed her. Where’d she go? The doctor answers that she said… she said she knew he’d be coming. And she needed to talk to him. But she didn’t think he’d be much interested in listening. Grabbing the doctor by the collar with both sets of his claws extended, Logan tells him she was right and again asks where she is. The doctor answers that she said she’d call him. At that moment, the phone rings.

From a rooftop, Mystique tells Logan to listen to her carefully. She tells him to not go after the Red Right Hand. They’re setting him up to… Logan cuts her off and tells her that she set him up for the last time. Mystique tells Logan that he’s stupid but her words never reach their intended target, as Logan has left the phone. Mystique hangs up the phone with a curse and, a moment later, she is shot in the stomach from afar by Lord Deathstrike. Pulling up his device, Deathstrike chooses the option “explode” over his other options – “return,” “release acid,” and “homing beacon.” Just then, the bullet explodes inside Mystique, injuring her further.

Leaping from buildings to building along their rooftops, Deathstrike makes his way to where his quarry is. Still alive and determined, Mystique bandages herself up and is able to make it down to the street and onto her motorcycle before Deathstrike arrives to finish her off.

Driving his car on the streets of San Francisco, Logan’s communicator goes off. He proceeds to tell the man on the other end of the line, Maverick, to tell him he found them. Maverick informs him that so far, there’s nothing to find. He’s checked FBI, CIA, and Interpol files. Nobody has anything on the Red Right Hand. All he’s found are a few rumors. Supposedly the only requirement for membership is hating him. Logan tells him to just get him an address and speeds off. At that moment, Logan sees Mystique up ahead on her bike. Logan speeds up next to her and attempts to slice her with his claws. Mystique manages to spot him however and, using wings, is able to avoid Logan, who in turn crashes head-on into a garbage truck.

Inside the sewer, Lord Deathstrike’s eyes light up and he proceeds to fire his guns through the street above; all in an attempt to kill Mystique. After being knocked off her bike, Mystique transforms herself to look like a police officer and rushes into a nearby gun store. “She” tells the clerk that there’s a police emergency, a bank robbery, and “she” needs to confiscate some of his guns. The clerk allows “her” to do so with little resistance.

Out on the street, Mystique fires her weapon at Lord Deathstrike, who manages to dodge her every blast. As she continues to fire the weapon, Logan comes up behind her and stabs her through the chest with his claws. Standing over her, Logan tells her that she can either die with dignity or bleed out in the street like a dog. He doesn’t really care anymore. Just tell him where to find them. The ones she sold him out to. The Red Right Hand. Pulling the pin on a grenade, Mystique tells him sure. Once the resulting blast knocks Logan away from her, Mystique states that she’s been trying to tell him all about the Red Right Hand, if he’s just give her a damn chance.

Nearby, Lord Deathstrike attaches some device to his shoes, which allows him to scale a nearby building with ease. Readying her weapon, Mystique informs Logan that the old man has a house on the beach, just across the border in Mexico. They’re all there waiting for him. And once he gets there, they’re going to…

Before Mystique can finish her sentence, she is fired upon and struck by one of Deathstrike’s shots. Bloodied and hurt, Mystique responds by firing back at him with her own weapon. Leaping off the building, Deathstrike lands and perches on a nearby telephone wire. Getting to his feet, Logan chops a nearby telephone pole with his claws, which causes Deathstrike to land with full force on a nearby car windshield. Standing over him, Logan angrily asks him who the hell he is.

Inside the compound of the RRH, the leader asks if she’s dead yet. One of his followers tells him that, at last report, no. Though the man they hired is on the scene. One of the other members asks if they have any idea what she’s already told him. If he learns the truth, it could… it could ruin every… Cutting him off, another member (a young lady) tells him that if his only contribution is to point out the obvious, then kindly shut the hell up. The leader says they’ve waited long enough. Reel him in. One of his followers says if they make it too easy, they run the risk of him realizing… The leader answers that he’ll come. Rest assured, he’ll come and nothing will stop him. He’ll come to kill them all, just like they want him to.

As Logan holds Deathstrike captive, he receives a communication from Maverick, who proceeds to inform Logan that he found them. They’re at a house on the beach, just across the border in Mexico. The info’s suddenly popping up everywhere, like they want to be found. If you ask him, it couldn’t smell any more like a trap. Logan tells him to let him worry about that. Just tell him. As Maverick begins to give him the address, Deathstrike manages to escape Logan’s grasp and takes off down the street. When he does, Mystique shoots him twice in the head, to no noticeable effect. A moment later,
Deathstrike phases himself into the street below. Seeing this, Mystique picks up the flattened bullets she fired at her foe and asks who the hell this guy is.

Just then, Mystique turns around and faces Logan. She proceeds to tell him that was always more trouble than he’s worth, wasn’t he? Logan tells her last chance, Raven. Raven tells him that she’s not sorry she sent him to Hell. She hopes it was awful. She hopes he suffered. She hopes it broke something inside him that can’t ever be fixed. It makes her happy to think that. He deserved it, every bit of it. He’s murdered, he’s betrayed his friends. He may not wanna remember it anymore, but that’s what he is. He’s no better than she is. She only helped him because of Kurt. Because he was his friend, right up until the end. Because of him, she couldn’t be a part of… what she knows is coming next.

She tells him to stop and just listen to her for once. Clenching his teeth, Logan replies no, he thinks he’s heard enough. Pointing her gun at him, Raven tells Logan to hell with him then, you miserable old sonuva…

A moment later, the sounds of both gunshots and claws rings through the streets. The deed done, Logan walks away from the dead body of Mystique, lying in the middle of the street. Far away, the old man leader of the Red Right Hand watches on a monitor… and smiles.

Epilogue:

In an undisclosed location, near a warehouse, an auction is occurring. The auctioneer informs the crowd gathered that they have lots of interesting items up for bid tonight. From the finest in stolen S.H.I.E.L.D. technology to the freshest of sautéed baby seal brains. But first, one of their most unique items ever… the body of one Raven Darkholme, the mutant shapeshifter known as Mystique.

Dead for only a matter of hours, the auctioneer continues. As brought to them by the Lord Deathstrike. Sold as is. Whatever they do with her, well that’s between them and their god. Shall he start the bidding at one million dollars? He has one million, can he get 1.5? He has 1.5, can he get two million? He has two million. Three million. Five million dollars. He has five million dollars. Are there any other bids? Five million going once, going twice, sold! To the gentlemen in black. The winners are ninjas, dressed all in black.

Characters Involved: 

Wolverine

Mystique

Lord Deathstrike

Maverick

Various unnamed members of the Red Right Hand

Various unnamed inhabitants of San Francisco, Argentina, and China

Various unnamed bidders at an auction

Various unnamed ninjas, possibly members of the Hand

Story Notes: 

“Get Mystique” was a storyline that ran from Wolverine (3rd series) #62-65.

First appearance of Lord Deathstrike.

This issue also contains the death of Mystique, a long-time foe and sometimes ally of both Wolverine and the X-Men.

Issue Information: 

This Issue has been reprinted in:

Written By: