Biography - Page 2
Vulcan could not drive the image of D’Ken killing his mother from his mind and the only way he could think of to purge them was to kill D’Ken himself. Discovering a Shi’ar ship in space, he impulsively destroyed it, though kept one crew member alive to question. It was through this captive that he learned of D’Ken’s catatonic state, though this did nothing to dissuaded Vulcan of his path of revenge. If he could not have revenge on D’Ken, he would have it on D’Ken’s people.
He quickly located another Shi’ar ship and took command of it by force, all in order to travel more quickly through the Shi’ar Galaxy by accessing their stargates. To ensure the X-Men could not follow, Vulcan destroyed the stargates behind him as they traveled, an act which drew the attention of the Imperial Guard. [Uncanny X-Men (1st series) #477]
Gabriel’s plan for revenge on the Shi’ar started with defeating the Imperial Guard. However, while he managed to kill several members of the Guard, he underestimated Gladiator’s abilities. The praetor punched Vulcan so hard not only did he knock him out but the man’s eyeball. When he awoke, Vulcan was locked away in an alien prison cell with a synthetic eye and a power dampener. In his despair, Gabriel was visited by a vision of his childhood self, a manifestation of his own self-deprecation that reminded him he was still just a scared child and, due the advanced aging, was really just thirteen years old.
Little did Vulcan know that a conspiracy was quickly forming around him; a secret order within the Shi’ar saw him as a potential powerful ally in removing Empress Lilandra from power. The secret order arranged for his escape and made sure he met fellow prisoner Deathbird in the process. Together, the pair cut a swath across the empire, fighting off those that would put them back in prison. Along the way, the pair succumbed to their passions and soon became lovers. [Uncanny X-Men (1st series) #480-483]
Before long, the pair were summoned by Deathbird's People to the location of D’Ken’s respite. Vulcan wanted to kill D’Ken but his new lover convinced him to put his hatred aside for her, which he reluctantly agreed to. Surprising everybody, Vulcan actually healed the neural pathways in D’Ken’s mind, awakening him after 
years of catatonia. Despite saving his life, Vulcan still maintained his animosity towards the emperor, though both D’Ken and Deathbird believed they would move past it. D’Ken, in a surprising move, actually invited Vulcan to join the royal family using an arcane law; any child born in the high palace may rise to become royalty. It was agreed that Vulcan would marry Deathbird at the site of the M’Kraan Crystal. [Uncanny X-Men (1st series) #483]
The icing on the cake for Vulcan was that Charles Xavier, who had followed him into space, had been captured by the Shi’ar. D’Ken planned to hurl him into the M’Kraan Crystal at Vulcan’s wedding, something which the young mutant eagerly agreed to. As well as Xavier, Gabriel’s former teammate Darwin had also been captured. Seeing Darwin as the closest thing to a friend he had, Vulcan asked Darwin to be best man at his wedding. Repulsed by what Vulcan had become, Darwin confronted him about all the lives he’d taken. Vulcan, however, showed no remorse, claiming he was what Xavier and the Shi’ar made him. [Uncanny X-Men (1st series) #484]
The wedding to Deathbird came soon after and Gabriel exchanged his vows with his beloved Deathbird. The X-Men and Starjammers, including his brother Alex and father Corsair, crashed the wedding immediately after, and Vulcan was near distraught that they hadn’t killed Xavier yet. During the commotion, Gabriel single-mindedly focused on executing Xavier, seeking the man out and hurling him into the M’Kraan Crystal. Truly changed from the wide-eyed boy Xavier had recruited, Gabriel didn’t even seem to care when his friend Darwin dived into the crystal after Xavier, apparently killing himself.
His revenge on Xavier complete, Gabriel moved on the next target of his vengeance: D’Ken. While D’Ken was distracted, tormenting his sister Lilandra, Vulcan attacked, burning the flesh from the emperor’s bones. With D’Ken dead and he having just married to Deathbird, Vulcan claimed the throne for himself by both the right of combat and the right of succession.
In order to secure his throne, Vulcan immediate made to execute Lilandra, but he was interrupted by his father Corsair. Gabriel claimed he had no father, that Corsair was just the man too weak to save his mother. Corsair tried to make Vulcan listen to him and, despite this being the first time he had met his father, it didn't stop Vulcan from killing him with an energy blast. Effortlessly rebuffing attacks by Corsair’s distraught friends and family, including his brother Alex, Vulcan was caught by surprise when Polaris crushed his armor around him, badly hurting him. He was saved though by his new wife and the Imperial Guard, who managed to help him escape the scene. Further thwarting Vulcan’s plans, Charles Xavier and Darwin actually survived their time within the M’Kraan Crystal. [Uncanny X-Men (1st series) #485-486]
It was not an easy transition into the role of Emperor for Vulcan. He was not immediately accepted by much of the Shi’ar people, due to the fact he murdered D’Ken and because he was not Shi’ar. Only the fact that he was married to Deathbird held some supporters on his side. To make matters worse, Lilandra and Admiral Ka’Ardum were leading a rebellion against him, with the help of his brother Alex, some other X-Men and the Starjammers. Knowing he was not loved by the people, Gabriel would sometimes dress in disguise and walk amongst the people of Chandilar, listening to their views of him.
Vulcan personally led his fleet against Lilandra’s rebels, above the Clench world of Feather’s Edge. Unfortunately for him, Vulcan’s flagship was destroyed in a surprise attack by a third party, the Scy’ar Tal, who had a grudge against the Shi’ar for expelling them from the M’Kraan world a millennia ago. Vulcan survived the attack and retaliated against the alien newcomers, but their leader, the Eldest, defeated both he and Gladiator with ease. The Scy’ar Tal then used advanced technology to drop a star of Feather’s edge, destroying it.
Realizing he could not defeat the Scy’ar Tal alone, he convinced the X-Men to aid him in taking down the alien threat. While reluctant and mistrustful, the X-Men recognized the threat the Scy’ar Tal posed to innocent Shi’ar. Together, Vulcan, Havok and Gladiator took on the Eldest and managed to defeat him, only for another to rise in his place. Deducing that the Eldest took his energy from the rest of his species, Vulcan stole that energy, rendering the Eldest powerless. Having seized control of their star dropping weapon Finality, Vulcan eagerly betrayed Havok, hurling him into a sun, while also ordering the betrayal of the rest of the X-Men and Starjammers.
Now in control of Finality, the Emperor ordered the destruction of the Scy’ar fleet, despite the fact they were in orbit around the M’Kraan world. A sun was dropped on the fleet, destroying all trace of the Scy’ar Tal and the M’Kraan world. Havok survived his brother’s attack though and returned supercharged, destroying Finality. Despite his brother’s newfound power, Vulcan still defeated him and captured a number of his comrades as well, sentencing them to a maximum security prison. His decisive, ruthless actions against the Scy’ar Tal won the support of much of the Shi’ar population and also convinced rebel leader Ka’Ardum to abandon Lilandra and join his side. [X-Men: Emperor Vulcan #1-5]