The future:
Hope has learned that her future self, alongside Blaquesmith, has manipulated Cable with the visions to create a better future and to create a perfect past for Hope and Cable. Which didn’t work.
Future Hope tells her she will arrive back in the past at Easy Eats, moments after she left. Which doesn’t leave her much time to get to Avengers Mansion. Why wouldn’t they send her to— Hope begins. Blaquesmith answers all potential questions pre-emptively: No. No. It doesn’t work like that. They move through time, not space. And no. Let’s talk transportation.
Covered! future Hope announces and cuts off Hope’s shoulder cape. She informs her it will take her four more years to figure out that ratty shoulder rag looks ridiculous. She has something better. She attaches a more modern jetpack to her back.
Future Hope admits she screwed up bad and now Hope has to put it back together. But she is a badass and she’s got this. Hope replies people say she is exactly like Cable. She always loved that, future Hope agrees. Her too, Hope replies, but she thinks they aren’t. Dad is a much better liar.
Hope is teleported away and arrives years earlier in the convenience store, Psimitar in hand. She takes off immediately.
Avengers Mansion:
X-Force is attacking the Avengers Unity team. Dr. Nemesis is riding a huge sandworm. He who controls the Spice, controls the universe! he shouts. Sunfire asks if he is quite drunk or quite senile. That’s Dune! comes the angry reply. Read a book!
Boom Boom tries to attack the Scarlet Witch, who reflects her timebomb at Rogue (probably not quite accidentally).
Spitting bullets at Captain America! Domino mutters. If granddad could see her now! Throwing his shield at her, Cap remarks he is sure her grandfather would be thoroughly disappointed.
Forge in an exo-suit admits he is outmatched against Thor but he’ll be damned surprised if zapping Thor won’t be the highlight of his day. Likewise, Thor replies and zaps him with a lightning bolt.
Domino hangs on to Nemesis’ sandworm and shouts at him to slow the roll as the worm is chasing Sunfire, who sets the worm on fire. How did he not see that coming? Dom sighs. Oh he did. It lasted longer than he expected.
Havok watches the battle through a window. This is not what he wanted, he sighs. Ah, but it’s what he got, Wolverine tells him. What’s the plan here? Havok asks. Depends on who he asks, Logan replies. He got no interest in punching old friends to protect the honor of their front lawn. He’ll have to let Alex know how he feels if any of them make it all the way through the door.
Alex remarks he could end this right now. They are here for Cable. He explained himself but he can’t just let him go. Sure he can, Logan points out, just won’t. Alex doesn’t see it as that simple. Cable’s been playing God in front of the whole world. Innocent people… Sometimes good intentions don’t clean the slate. Logan tells him Cable made his call. Time for Alex to make his.
Alex enters Cable’s cell, to be pushed back by a telekinetic surge. Cable is in the grip of another seizure.
Outside reporters are covering the fight which the Avengers are winning. Boom Boom and Colossus are trapped in a prison of the Scarlet Witch’s making. Wanda herself is arguing with Rogue. Domino tries to cover Nemesis’ and Forge’s exit.
Suddenly, Hope at high speed flies past the news helicopter. She lands in front of Avengers Mansion and figures breaching Avengers security is a lot easier than she imagined. Wouldn’t be so sure about that, Wolverine tells her, blocking the entrance. So far she‘s only made it as far as the door. He explains he has no dog in this race. But she knows he can’t let her inside. Not in the middle of all this crazy. So why doesn’t she head out and they’ll pretend she never— Hope orders him to shut up. If he doesn’t let her see her dad right now, people are going to die! That so? he asks. Yes! The building begins to shake. Logan relents and lets her enter.
Inside, she finds Cable in a telekinetic fit. Havok, pressed against the wall, orders her out. He pleads with Cable to find a way to stop this. This is his daughter! Cable’s psychic powers attack him.
Hope figures she’s too late. Cable’s unconscious and his power spills everywhere. She tells herself to do what she came here for. She recalls how Blaquesmith and future Hope explained their intention was to evolve Cable’s telepathy, change his mutation. They now believe it didn’t take, which means Cable’s powers are growing and changing too fast and that’s killing him. Dodging a telekinetic blast, she shouts at him to watch it with the brain lightning.
Blaquesmith explained the psimitar acts as a lightning rod for Cable’s mutant powers. It directs and focuses them. It could provide an outlet release for excess power of his brain. Unfortunately, she will have to make direct contact.
Please work, Hope begs and shoves the psimitar into Cable’s forehead. A psychic shockwave emits from the mansion.
At point zero, Cable has come to. Is he okay? Hope asks agitated. Not the word he’d use, Cable replies. But he’s still ticking, if that’s her meaning. So, she stabbed a psimitar into his forehead, Hope points out the obvious. With a grimace, he draws the blade out. She can explain all of this, she adds.
Turning to Havok, Cable remarks he made a real mess here. He helps up Alex, who points out he brought Cable here. So, what does he think? Cable asks. He thinks he and X-Force are still wanted fugitives. Alex has a job to do here and can’t ignore that fact. But now that he’s seen what Cable sees… what he’s trying to prevent – thanks for that, by the way – he also thinks Cable is probably right. There are things out there the Avengers can’t touch. And X-Force is uniquely equipped to deal with those threats.
So where does that leave them? Cable asks. There wasn’t much he could do, Alex decides. His nephew is an omega level telekinetic. He trashed the mansion, knocked Havok out. By the time Havok could assemble his Avengers, X-Force already had a twenty minute head start. Cable thanks him. Don’t mention it ever, Alex replies. They shake hands.
Hope grins as they head out. That was a pretty serious moment they had there, she tells Cable. Shut up, he orders. For a second, she thought they might hug it out. No judgment. She’s just saying he might have to buy her silence with ice cream. Fine, he sighs.
