1st story:
Outside an airport in Curitiba, Brazil. Warren Worthington III is studying a map when his cell rings. Who snuck an X-phone into his bag? It’s a transponder too, comes Jean Grey’s voice from the receiver. They put that in there about a month ago. The Professor was getting tired of having to use Cerebro to track Warren down every time he bolted. So he’s in Brazil? Does this have something to do with his parents’ visit yesterday?
Warren tells her to hang on, he’s gotta find someplace to change, but yeah. She didn’t pick up anything wrong Jean recalls, but maybe she was too focused on his mom’s boots.
Flashback:
Jean greets the Worthingtons, the enthusiastic mother and the somewhat dampened father, at the door, telling them she buzzed Warren’s room and instantly falling in love with Mrs. Worthington’s boots. Mrs. Worthington asks her for her size ad promises to send her a pair. He husband interjects that they can’t stay long…
Warren flies down and hugs his mother. His father chides him to watch those things, referring to his wings. Warren apologizes. Never mind, his father amends, but shouldn’t they be tucked away or some such? This is the only pace where he doesn’t have to hide them, Warren replies. Fine, his father agrees reluctantly, before pointing out that he doesn’t see the other students having wings.
Seeing Hank ambling towards them he admits that one is a bit off. Everyone else can hide it easier than him, Warren remarks and greets Scott and introduces him. Scott instantly gushes that they are all very lucky to be classmates of Warren’s. He’s been a big help to everyone. Well, Worthington Sr. replies somewhat mollified, except for sporting sunglasses inside he likes that one. He has to or he’d be back outside on the ground, Warren replies and introduces Jean and Hank.
From outside Bobby frantically waves at them. Who is that? the Worthingtons ask. The pool boy! comes the immediate reply. He didn’t think the school had a pool. Right, he shouldn’t even be here, Warren continues and adds that the professor will be back soon. His folks tell him they can’t stay long. Is there somewhere they can talk?
present:
So they knew something was up? Jean recalls. But Warren seemed normal when he came back out of the library. Hank hoped his folks wouldn’t pull Warren out of school, while Bobby gushed that Warren’s mom is hot!
Walking through the airport in his uniform and displaying his wings, Warren is drawing stares while he admits that he didn’t feel normal. He was probably numb. He tells the people he needs a little room and asks Jean if she knows Portuguese. Nope, comes the reply. So what’s over there causing trouble?
A relative. The one who found them their jungle guide when they were in Africa. His aunt. The photographer? Jean asks. Aunt Mimi went missing during a photo shoot in Brazil. Jean feels bad for Warren, knowing she is his favorite relative. It’s not the first time she is missing, Warren explains, but she usually calls mom by now. It’s not even a dangerous place, just these waterfalls at a national park.
Cerebro quickly informs Jean that Iguacu Falls are considered one of the natural wonders of the world. Jean shouts at Warren over the phone, asking why he didn’t tell them.
Pained, he admits he doesn’t know. He breaks off, having reached the park. The natural wonder of the waterfalls takes his breath away. This place makes Niagara look like a street puddle. But he doesn’t think his eagle eye is going to do a lot of good here.
Jean tries to comfort him, reminding Warren Mimi’s been all over the world. Clearly, she knows how to take care of herself. Everywhere, Warren recalls. She’d come stay with them for maybe a week and then get antsy and have to go again. And wherever she went, she always would write him and send photos. He used to track her travels on a map. Even though he was no Hank McCoy he was always great in geography because of her.
Dang it, guys, he suddenly swears. Is there someone there? Jean asks. Just birds flocking after him, he explains. It always makes him feel guilty because he’s not leading them somewhere they want to go.
Bobby enters Jean’s room, loudly shouting: speedy delivery. Her pen pal from state prison sent poetry. Just funnin’. It’s a credit card offer and something from Wanda. A card… he’ll slip that under Worthington’s door.
Jean telekinetically grabs the card… it’s from Warren’s aunt. Is it from here? Warren asks. Jean tells him it is. Mimi tells him how she wanted to go to those waterfalls, but secretly she intends to go in them… right down the Devil’s Throat. She thinks she’s going to find something she’s been seeking for years. It may be a while before he hears from her again but, as the other explorer in the family, she knows he would do the same.
The card is dated a week and a half ago. Jean adds that the Devil’s Throat is the name of the place where several falls merge. Is he near that? Right above it in fact. Warren stares down doubtfully, hoping she didn’t go in there. Suddenly, he notices a rope fastened to a circle of rocks going over the fall. He tells Jean to stay on the line. He’s going to check this out. The rope goes back into the falls, he informs her. He thinks there must be a cave under there. She found a secret cave.
Jean tells him to wait. The files don’t say anything about caves under those falls, just thousands tons of water. She warns him not to go there, but he flies into the falls… and straight though to the other side where he fns himself in a huge valley.
Below him in the settlement are people of different ethnicities and dressed in clothing from different epochs. They point at him, but seem curious in a friendly manner, not freaking out. Warren asks them about his aunt Mimi. They recognize the name and point him towards a tower. He flies there and on the balcony Mimi, a woman with a passing resemblance to Lara Croft, is expecting him with open arms, welcoming him to the Land of Mists.
Warren gets a drink and notes how nobody’s weirded out by his wings. That’s nice. Mimi explains that the people have seen a lot of interesting things and they are very accepting. She asks him to fly her around so she can tell him about this place.
She tells him how she heard about a lost land hidden in the waterfalls. She wasted some time looking in Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe before she realized the legend meant Iguacu. When the Conquistadors arrived in the 1500s, a group of natives escaped here. They brought some of the peaceful Portuguese colonists with them. But there have been people here a thousand years before, escaping war and oppression.
The bioluminescent algae on the cavern walls produce light for miles underneath. You’d never know you weren’t on the surface. Warren admires the strange animals they fly over and wishes Hank could see them. How long is Mimi going to stay? She may be a while, she concedes. Here’s so much to study. But she’s never showing her photos to the outside world. This land needs to stay a secret. He calms her that if there’s anything he can do it’s keep a secret.
Well she can’t, Mimi replies. She blabbed about him to someone she’s met and she’s just down below. She refers to a beautiful native girl fishing. They join her and Mimi introduces Bera to Warren. Bera immediately kisses him and Mimi explains they don’t shake hands here. She’ll let Bera show him around some more while she’ll go help prepare the banquet in his honor tonight.
At night, Warren is at the banquet. Mimi introduces him to this year’s Mist King. He’s not going to kiss him? Warren asks. Bera in the meantime is clearly smitten with him and his wings.
Sometime later, the X-Men with the help of a trusty boat and Iceman’s iceslide get through the water falls, intent to find Warren. Warren comes to greet them. They’ve totally saved the day again, Bobby cries while Beast marvels at the local wildlife. Bobby babbles that Warren should have seen them: He was freezing all the rushing water, and Scott was eye-smashing them a path and then Jean went all Moses on the waterfall. And then they got through and saved him, not noting that Warren wasn’t in any danger.
Jean angrily points out he could have popped back out and let them know he was okay. Beast remarks this place in incredible. Warren suggests they let Mimi give them the tour. He can’t remember what anything is called. Except for her he adds when Bera joins them.
Cyclops suggests they stay tonight and then all head back in the morning. But Warren chooses to stay.
Later at the mansion, Scott explains that he tried to talk him out of it. Could it be mind control? One of the plants he ate? No, he thinks Warren’s making his own choices, Xavier decides. Had he known the kind of place he was going, to he might have expected this. See, that place was full of half-naked hotties and all they got is Jean, Bobby adds helpfully. This is the perfect time to recruit some girl students. While Jean fumes, Hank asks if there is any way he could go back to record? The flora and fauna? Animals long thought dead and pre-Columbian structures.
Cyclops suggests Warren is going through something but hell get over it. He’s going through being a mutant, Xavier replies. He knows Scott feels his mutation affects him more profoundly than the others, but consider Warren.
Scott can still walk out in public as himself. Robert can ice down. Henry can walk upright. Nothing clearly separates them as from the rest of humanity as Warren’s wings do. When he first came here, he had been happier that he had ever been. Among people with whom he could be himself. But this is still but one house and they are only five. They all hide their true nature, but none more so than Warren. A whole society where he is accepted… Imagine how he must feel.
He would be most happy for Warren to return, but if he doesn’t, he won’t begrudge him that. His hope for all of them is to pave the way for the world to accept the inevitable mutants who will come. So they can all live in peace with humanity. Yet no one can decide that for any of them. If they want what’s best for Warren, then they may have to let go.
2nd story:
Bobby finds Hank fiddling with the Danger Room controls and asks what he is doing. Hank explain he is configuring it for regression therapy mode as the professor asked. He wants them to relive the time when their mutant genes manifested and evaluate them. It has profound significance on the kind of adults they are.
Bobby sees Warren in there, young Warren, that is. The see “widdle” Warren served by his butler, having riding lesson, but always unhappy. When he asks some kids if they will play hide ’n’ seek with him, they laugh at him and ask if he will have his butler find them.
Outside, Bobby is pitying Warren. He would have played with him. Being super-rich isn’t always ideal, Hank adds.
One morning, little Warren wakes up with wings on his back. Angrily, his mother tells his father he had too many eggs while his father blames his boarding school. Warren rises up, announcing he wants to say something. Exclaiming wheee, he happily flies outside.
Hank writes down that his mutation offered new freedom and sense of self. Would Bobby like to… Bobby?
But Bobby is already inside, helping Warren fight the evil kids. Ok, simulation over! an annoyed Hank shouts.
