BIOGRAPHY - Page 6
Hank McCoy continued experimenting on Banshee in an effort to expunge the Apocalypse Seed from his body. He attempted to formulate a nano-tech payload that could break down Banshee’s bio-circuitry. After leaving the X-Men, Hank arranged to lecture at Harvard University in exchange for laboratory space. During a visit from Havok about starting a new X-Men roster, they were attacked by the Reavers. Hank “activated” Banshee during this fight, releasing him from stasis. 
Although Sean’s mind was his own, his body was emaciated and depleted from the removal of the Horsemen bio-armor and circuitry. He could barely talk, but he could scream. Banshee could only contribute so much to the battles that followed with the Reavers and O*N*E. At the conclusion of this conflict, he begged off of any further experimentation by the Beast and chose to fly free seeking his own future. [Astonishing X-Men (4th series) #13-17]
Sean’s wandering meant he was absent when the majority of the X-Men were apparently killed fighting with Nate Grey. In the dark times for mutants that followed, “Vaxx” was an anti-mutant vaccine distributed with the help of O*N*E to prevent the X-gene from manifesting in children. 
Hope Summers decided on a militant response to the current climate, and she recruited Banshee to the Mutant Liberation Front under her command. Cyclops and the few surviving X-Men opposed the MLF and ended up taking Banshee and Hope prisoner. [Uncanny X-Men (5th series) #13-15] While Cyclops disapproved of their methods, Magik lobbied for releasing the duo as active members of the team. [War of the Realms: Uncanny X-Men #1-3] The ongoing struggle with O*N*E only led to more mutants dying, and Banshee was one of the casualties. He was stepped on by one of the new techno-organic Sentinels, which then exploded for good measure with Sean underfoot. [Uncanny X-Men (5th series) #16-21]
All the rules changed when Xavier and Magneto founded a new mutant nation-state on the living island of Krakoa. Flowers grown only on Krakoa produced innovative and miraculous drugs, which gave the mutants leverage to enter the United Nations and the world stage. Amnesty and citizenship for all mutants brought together unlikely allies on Krakoa, like Apocalypse on the ruling Quiet Council or Sean’s cousin Black Tom using his powers to integrate into island security and defense. Developments in mutant technology led to “circuits” of several mutants, using their powers in conjunction for incredible results. None more amazing than the Five, who could bring mutants back from the dead. With preserved genetic material acquired from Mister Sinister's archives, a cognitive back-up from Cerebro and the Five’s mutant gestalt, Banshee and many other mutants returned to life. In Sean’s case, he was resurrected with no trace of the Deathseed or its emaciating after effects, reuniting with his daughter and many others. [House of X #1-6]
For the longest time, Sean Cassidy had wanted to retire and live as a gentleman of leisure, and Krakoa finally afforded him the opportunity. There were many younger X-Men ready and willing to take up the banner of defense and exploration for Krakoa, allowing Banshee to spend time at the Green Lagoon or catch up on his reading. Banshee was up for a little excursion when he ventured 
through the Arakko Gate with Unus and Apocalypse’s prodigal grandson Summoner on a mission of mercy. However, they were attacked in Otherworld when Summoner betrayed them on behalf of Arakko and the First Horsemen. Summoner brought a critically wounded Banshee home to further mislead Krakoa, but it was his memories that warned Nathan and Rachel Summers of the true threat. [X of Swords crossover] Banshee also took to the air in defense of Krakoa when Knull blocked out the sun and assailed the Earth with his symbiotes. [King in Black crossover]
These brushes with danger only seemed to reaffirm Sean’s desire to enjoy his later years in peace. He graciously accepted Emma Frost’s invitation to the first Hellfire Gala on Mykines, and they had a pleasant reunion. However, Banshee had to turn down her offer to join the Marauders, 
a Krakoan pirate crew overseen by Kate Pryde that ran rescue missions to shores unfriendly to Krakoa or mutants. [Marauders (1st series) #21] Still, Sean and Emma remained in contact. When Banshee’s police friends in Ireland called upon him, he found the black market of Krakoan drugs under assault by different mafia and the Reavers of Verendi. With a telepathic S.O.S. to Emma, Banshee called in the Marauders and they dealt with the killer cyborgs before stabilizing the situation. [Marauders (1st series) #23]
Although he begged off joining the Marauders, Banshee did have a bit of nostalgia on his mind when the next X-Men team was chosen by psychic vote at the gala. He put his hat in the ring but 
was ultimately passed over along with several others. The runners-up shared a drink together after the vote, but still toasted the victors. Banshee and these candidates were later drawn together by Sunspot on a mission to help the Shi’ar find their missing Empress Xandra. This eclectic roster of X-Men learned to work together fighting Sidri Hunters in space and proved their loyalty and valor to Xandra. However, she then fogged their memories of the adventure so that other psychics could not seek out her hand-picked team of X-Men, leaving them in the dark until the next time she needed their aid. [Secret X-Men #1]
On St. Patrick’s Day, Sean Cassidy found time to return to County Mayo and check in on Cassidy Keep. He found the castle abandoned except for Black Tom, who flippantly informed Sean that Eamon O’Donnell was “no longer among us.” Interpreting the worst from Tom’s remarks, Banshee 
started a fight with his estranged cousin, which was only interrupted by the arrival of Theresa. Siryn reminded her father of his own death and long absences from home. She inherited Cassidy Keep after his death and had done a better job as its keeper than he, caring for Eamon’s extended family after his purely natural passing. The Keep was empty merely because Theresa gave the staff the holiday off. She told her father that she and Tom had made their peace long ago, and it was past time for him to move on as well. With a piece of humble pie, Sean accepted his daughter as keeper of the keep, and awkwardly asked his cousin if he wanted to grab a pint at Doyle’s and mend fences. Tom agreed, in the holiday spirit, and the Cassidy boys left to rebuild their relationship. [X-Men Unlimited Infinity Comic #26]
As idyllic as the Age of Krakoa seemed, it was built on a lie. Moira MacTaggert had been a mutant all along, a secret she kept from Sean and shared with only Xavier and Magneto. Her death against Mystique’s Brotherhood was faked, allowing her to work towards orchestrating Krakoa’s rise from the shadows. Moira’s power of reincarnation gave her nine lifetimes of experience watching mutants fail to overcome the Sentinels or post-humanity. Although Krakoa was her brainchild, she became bitter towards the mutant cause and wanted to escape the cycle. A falling out with her old nemesis Destiny sent Moira on the run, dying and with her power neutralized. She 
needed back onto Krakoa fast but could no longer access the gates. Feeling out of options, Moira lured Banshee off-island by letting him know she was alive. While she told him the full truth, Moira didn’t have time to let him process everything and perhaps choose to help her. Instead, she murdered Sean and then skinned him to horrifically wear enough of his flesh to fool the gates and get back onto Krakoa. [X Deaths of Wolverine #4]
Moira survived this only as an electronically preserved intelligence, joining Orchis as an enemy of mutantkind, and a resurrected Banshee had to process the scope of the betrayal just perpetrated on him. Moira had been the one true love of his life since Maeve’s passing, and now he knew he was merely a passing fling for a woman centuries older than he. Shortly after, he also fell victim to the Skinjacker known as Switch, a mutant who possessed other bodies and then made mystical 
sacrifices of their borrowed flesh to his new god. Switch’s effect was traumatic on most of his victims, and for Sean it was yet another violation of his body and soul. Nightcrawler offered to let him recuperate at the Altar, a pocket astral space occupied by the Legionnaires acting as Krakoa’s police force. [Legion of X #2]
From the Altar, Banshee encountered the mage and favor-broker known as Mother Righteous. She arranged for Sean to become host to the Spirit of Variance. This supernatural entity broke ranks with its fellow Spirits of Vengeance, having concluded that revenge was a vicious cycle that led nowhere. Instead, this “mutant” spirit sought to inspire change and new ideas, fitting perfectly with Nightcrawler’s burgeoning mutant religion, the Spark. Together, they called themselves Vox 
Ignis, Herald of the Spark, and began patrolling the astral plane outside the Altar to ensure the safety of mutant ideas, literally and figuratively. Sean was deeply thankful towards Mother Righteous for helping him find purpose after his lowest point. Believing she had the best interests of others at heart, Vox Ignis acted as Mother’s agent in protecting Legion and the Altar from threats internal and external. [Legion of X #3-6]
Frankly, as a former police detective, it’s embarrassing that Sean failed to see through Mother Righteous’s thin veneer to the self-absorbed opportunist she really was. She was openly unhappy when Legion made better defenses for the Altar in the astral plane, thinking that security would make him less likely to take one of her deals. Still, Mother’s spying alerted her and Banshee that a stowaway had infiltrated Krakoa by bonding with the Technarch named Warlock during a visit to the astral plane. Mother Righteous dispatched Vox Ignis as her emissary to warn Krakoa’s Legionnaires that they were in trouble.
With Nightcrawler away and occupied by Orchis, the infected Warlock holed up in Kurt’s home, the Narthex, virtually inaccessible except by teleporting. Sean met with Juggernaut and several other Legionnaires as they tried to gain entrance to the building. Vox Ignis focused on Cypher, who was soulbonded to the captive Warlock inside, and feeling disturbing effects through their 
bond. He enacted the Variance’s version of the Penance Stare known as the “Scream of Change.” Instead of confronting Doug with his sins, the Scream measured how the link between Doug and Warlock was being altered and traced the origins of this change. Through these revelations, they foresaw Nimrod’s plan to summon a Babel Spire for the Phalanx and rouse bio-technological Sentinels from Krakoa’s mass. Warlock’s techno-organic mesh was intricately woven throughout the island, giving Nimrod a unique fingerhold into Krakoa.
Entry into the Narthex became paramount, and they could no longer worry about finding another teleporter or thinking laterally to come up with a creative solution. Instead, Vox Ignis amplified the unstoppable force of the Juggernaut by enchanting him as a Ghost Rider’s steed, unleashing 
possibly the most metal thing ever seen by man. Once they were inside, the Legionnaires dealt with Nimrod’s bio-Sentinels while the imperceptible ForgetMeNot removed Nimrod’s physical core from interfacing with Krakoa. The day was saved, but they lost ForgetMeNot and Warlock in the process, and the Altar was ravaged by astral Technarch as part of Nimrod’s distractions. [Legion of X #7-10]
The Spirit of Variance sustained Sean Cassidy’s lifespan, and he would end up serving Mother Righteous for the next 1,000 years. Mister Sinister took over Krakoa by implanting his personality in other mutants during resurrection, but he lost control of his own creations. Sinister would eventually use his “Moira Engine” to reboot the timeline and download the knowledge learned back to the Sinister of the present. Mother Righteous also used the timeline as a learning opportunity, while crafting a spell that would preserve her knowledge as well, once attached to the Engine. One component of that spell was the Spirit of Variance itself, and the manner in which the Spirit’s flame was consumed retroactively removed it from the past, present and future in the process. [Sins of Sinister crossover]
Not long after the Narthex, Banshee awoke in a state of severe confusion and disorientation over the past few months. He now had no longer ever been Vox Ignis, but no new reality had replaced that lost time, leaving him fractured. Legion and Blindfold detected the nature of his problem, which brought them to Mother Righteous. She aided the Legionnaires in rescuing Nightcrawler from Orchis, but Legion recognized how untrustworthy she was. In fact, “Mother” was another Sinister clone, one who studied magic instead of genetics. Her favor system of accepting “thank yous” for her gifts acted like a form of worship, giving her a purchase into the souls of anyone she dealt with. Legion, Banshee and the others stopped her from claiming the Altar from him, but they died in the process and so were resurrected without the knowledge of Mother’s heel-turn.
Legion vanished in the fight with Mother Righteous as well, but he apparently left a gift for Banshee. Sean Cassidy’s Cerebro back-ups were modified to remove the trauma of the past few months from his mind, leaving Banshee in better spirits than before his death. [X-Men: Before the Fall – Sons of X #1]