Flashback:
Storm had told Psylocke the story long ago. How Logan met Mariko Yashida during some adventure in Japan. How, against all odds, they fell in love. The savage and the princess. Romeo and Juliet. It couldn’t work, of course. But even though they were apart, she was the love of Logan’s life and he hers. So later, when she asked him to kill her to avoid a painful death by poison, his love for her gave him no choice. Wolverine vowed revenge on the man who poisoned Mariko. Matsu’o Tsurabaya.
Present:
This is why Matsu’o had her body destroyed, Betsy realizes. Why he had Jinn’s wife killed. This is why Matsu’o dressed his killers up like Hand Ninjas. This is all an elaborate suicide attempt. This is why the now-unconscious Yukio was protecting Matsu’o. She was asked to make sure he stayed alive so he could continue to suffer at the hand of Betsy’s friend and teammate Wolverine. This could be a problem, she admits.
Wolverine orders her to walk away. Instead, she asks how long this has gone on. Not long enough, he replies Matsuo’s got it coming: every cut. Every drop of blood is payment for what he took from him. And it will never be enough.
Betsy learns from Matsuo’s mind that today is the anniversary of Mariko’s death. On this day every year, Wolverine visits Matsu’o and takes a part of him. Matsu’o fought for a time, sent men against Wolverine… then finally gave up. He tried to end it, but Wolverine wouldn’t let him. He made sure Matsu’o stayed alive.
Why not just kill him and be done with it? Betsy suggests. Because that’s too easy, he insists He and Matsu’o are both gonna live with what he did. They’re both gonna suffer!
Betsy reminds him this isn’t who he is. This isn’t what X-Men do. That’s rich coming from someone there to kill a man, Wolverine scoffs. But she’s always been a little bloodthirsty, hasn’t she? “Don’t act like you know who you are!”
Still, Betsy refuses to allow this to continue. She will not walk away. So perhaps they can just skip the psychoanalysis. Fine by him, he agrees and attacks her. He hits her, drawing blood. She realizes that, if she hadn’t moved, he would have taken off her head. He’ll kill her before he lets her kill Matsu’o. Fine by her, she decides and strikes with her telekinesis.
She understands his rage and wonders why she tries to stop him. She reaches for a sword and draws blood with it, all the while wondering why she is doing this. She and Wolverine have been through much together. Saved the world together more than once. They even died together. And, when Matsu’o stole her life, it was Wolverine who reminded her who she was. She saw herself through his eyes. So she will do the same for him now.
However, when her psychic knife pierces his skull, Psylocke is in for a surprise. The holes that used to be in Wolverine’s mind are full. He knows exactly who he is. Well… bollocks! she swears.
Logan’s mind fights by shutting down and just like that he’s gone and only the animal remains fighting her even more mercilessly. His rage overwhelms her physically and mentally. She can barely think as she defends herself with her sword. He’s not going to stop, she realizes.
That moment, Wolverine is chased away by fire thanks to Jinn. Jinn tells her he will not forgive her for invading his mind. But she showed him truth. He’s going home to bury his wife, then he suggests she take her own advice. She should choose to live.
Wolverine has healed but, before she can sense him coming, he attacks Jinn and claws at him. Screaming, Jinn flies away. Betsy pushes Jinn out of her mind. She has to. Because being burned alive only made Wolverine angrier. But Jinn gave her what she needed. He let her focus.
Again she uses her focused psychic powers against Wolverine, this time weakening him. She could try and remind Logan of who he is. Remind him of the honorable man that Mariko Yashida saw in him so long ago. She could ask him what she would see now, not just his rage, but what he’s done to Matsu’o. But none of that matters. Jinn said it of Wolverine, but he may as well have been talking about her. She is already dead and does not know it. And, as Wolverine himself said, she can no longer pretend to know who she is. This life is not hers. She died a long time ago. And she is so very tired of fighting.
Psylocke drops her sword. Spreading her arms, she announces, enough. If he wishes to kill her so he can continue torturing Matsu’o, then kill her! She will give Mariko his regards. She stands there, expectantly.
Wolverine hesitates for a long while, then retracts his claws and turns around. “Kill him!” he tells her. But some day the two of them are gonna have to talk about this death wish she’s developed. He helps up Yukio and tells Betsy he’ll meet her at the Blackbird. If she sees the fire guy, tell him it wasn’t personal.
Is that it, then? she asks in disbelief. He’s not even going to stay and watch? After a look at Matsu’o he replies “nope” and walks on.
Matsu’o thanks her. He does not get to thank her, she orders. He took everything from her, everything she was. Her whole life! He knows, he replies. It is a horrible thing to lose oneself. He looks at himself in the mirror and cannot reconcile what he sees with who he is. This is what he does to people, and for that he is truly sorry.
Is he ready? Betsy asks. Matsu’o agrees. He it would be her, he adds. British people are so very dependable. She snorts amused and uses her telepathy.
Suddenly, Matsu’o finds he is whole again. Moments later, he is greeted by his dead love Kwannon, who tells him how much she missed him. Now finally they will be together. Matsu’o sits down, thanking Elizabeth and asking her to make it quick. Psylocke uses her psychic knife to kill him and his corpse falls into the sea.
For so long, my life has been out of my own control. Chaos and serendipity, wrapped in insanity. I have suffered. I have lost. Not just my life, but my very soul, my self. But no more. Now I know who I am.
Later on Utopia, Mercury enters her quarter to find Psylocke waiting for her. She killed a man this morning, Betsy states bluntly. When she asked if they should kill Sack for attacking Mercury and her friends, Cessily said “no.” She’s lost her family, her friends have died and she’s been torn apart by enemies and still she wouldn’t kill Sack. She tells her to hold on to that. Whatever this life may take from her, never let it take away who she is. Hold on to herself with everything she’s got!
Cessily doesn’t understand and asks if Betsy is okay. Betsy admits it’s been a difficult few years and, unlike Mercury, she did lose herself. But the man she killed today, she killed him for the right reasons, if there is such a thing. She went to Japan. Did she find what she was looking for? Mercury asks. Later Betsy sips some tea and combs her hair, thinking it’s a start.
