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They were born mutants--possessing powers of a genetic origin which made them outcasts of society. But one man -- Professor Charles Xavier -- brought them together to learn to use their unique gifts in the service of a world that hates and fears them... Marvel 2000 Proudly Presents... Uncanny X-Men #1 “DEATH OF A DREAM” Part One Written by Cory Wiegel From a story originally by Gwyna The Xavier Institute for Higher Learning. Salem Center, Westchester County, NY, USA. For those X-Men attending the memorial of their fallen comrade and friend – a man who they only knew as Joseph – that early afternoon was an idyllic one. Clear skies allowed a bright and warm sun to embrace their mourning hearts. Birds chirped as they filled their sky, deer galloped across the estate in peace, and the air smelled of freshly trimmed trees, bushes, and grass. Although they all felt heavy with the loss of a brave and heroic man, their senses were reassured by nature's grace. There was no body for them to honor. No casket with personal effects to bury. No vase to display with the cremated remains thereof. Only a large photo of the silver haired young man staring into the distance rested on an easel at the center of the estate's garden. A headstone would later be erected in the memorial cemetery along with other fallen X-Men. The many men and women in full black, gray, and white funeral attire would pay their respects in the estate's garden until then. Although he was only with them for a short time, Joseph had made the ultimate sacrifice to set the world right in the wake of an attack by Erik “Magnus” Lensherr – the mutant terrorist known to the world as Magneto – who had crippled the Earth's magnetosphere in an attempt to hold the world hostage. Joseph was able to restore the magnetosphere at the expense of his life. While the Earth was saved and Magneto was defeated, left at the feet of the X-Men to be taken into custody, the United Nations would still cede the island nation of Genosha to Magneto for him to create a mutant safe haven. The scales of justice were corrupted, to no doubt of the X-Men and the world, as fear and cowardice had won that day. It would be a wrong that would have to be righted another day but through means unknown to the X-Men at that time. After delivering the eulogy for Joseph's remembrance service, Professor Charles Xavier sat in a gold futuristic hover chair beside Joseph's memorial. As Professor X, the leader of the X-Men and a surrogate father to many of them, Joseph's death weighed on him the heaviest because it was the direct result of his oldest friend's actions. He somberly greeted and thanked each of his current and former students and their allies as they passed by Joseph's picture to share prayers, flowers, and small tokens of remembrance. Outwardly, he remained stoic and upright, as others would need him to be their pillar in one of their darkest moments. Inwardly, he swore that this could never happen again in vain. So long as he was their leader, the X-Men would see to this. Professor X, Storm, Nightcrawler, Cyclops, and Phoenix After Joseph's memorial, the X-Men all gathered in the living room for beverages and hors d'oeuvres. It was the first time many of them had been in a room with each other for several months. It was a bittersweet time for the longtime friends and teammates in that regard. “Thank you for ending your sabbatical so early,” Professor X said to his first two students. Scott and Jean Grey-Summers – or Cyclops and Phoenix, respectively – stood with their arms around each other's waists. “Of course, professor,” Phoenix replied. “We've all been through so much lately. I don't think we could get through it without each other.” “I couldn't agree more,” Cyclops added. Professor X simply nodded in agreement. Ororo Munroe and Kurt Wagner – Storm and Nightcrawler – approached the trio. “Greetings and salutations, meine freunde,” Nightcrawler said as he reached for Cyclops's hand. “Hey Kurt, long time no see,” Cyclops said as he reached out to meet Nightcrawler's hand. They shook hands vigorously as Storm and Phoenix exchanged hugs. “It's so good to finally see you again, Jean,” Storm said as they embraced. “You too, Ororo,” Phoenix said. “I'm so sorry it was under these circumstances.” “Me too,” Storm said. Cyclops and Nightcrawler released their handshake so Cyclops could take a turn hugging Storm and Nightcrawler could hug Phoenix. Professor X seemed to observe the reunion distantly. The four friends shared such warmth and camaraderie even despite everything that had happened. For a moment he felt genuinely reassured by it, but at the same time was gripped with troubling thoughts. “Please excuse me,” Professor X said abruptly. He telepathically maneuvered his hover chair around the group and headed toward the living room exit. His students studied him as he left. “Is everything okay with the professor?” Cyclops asked. Storm could only frown. “No,” she said. “I don't believe so...” At the center of the wake, Bobby Drake – Iceman – approached two of his oldest friends with arms wide open. “Hey-ey! Look at this,” Iceman said. “The New Defenders are back in action!” Hank McCoy – Beast – chuckled as he was wrestled into a playfully overzealous hug with Warren Worthington III – Angel – by Iceman. “It's good to see you too, Bobby,” Beast said as he ruffled Iceman's hair. Angel rolled his eyes and pushed away at Iceman halfheartedly. “That makes one of us. Watch the suit, please.” “Ah, c'mon, Warren,” Iceman said as he jabbed and pushed back at Angel. “You can't tell me it doesn't excite you to have us three swingin' bachelors back together again, right?” “I'm not exactly a full-time bachelor anymore, remember?” Angel remarked with a grin as he glanced to Betsy Braddocke – Psylocke – as she approached the three. “Whaaat?” Iceman said as Psylocke took Angel's arm and smiled. “You two are still a thing? I could have swore you would have dropped flyboy by now.” “Oh, trust me,” Psylocke remarked teasingly. “The thought has crossed my mind from time to time...” Angel embraced Psylocke. They both knew that couldn't be further from the truth. “And what about you, Hankster?” Bobby asked. “I've been married to my work for some time, as you may recall, but Trish has made for a fine mistress,” Beast replied coyly. Iceman mocked a painful and contorted face. “Man, a guy goes to help his convalescent dad around the house for a little while, and you all start think about settling down?” Iceman said. “I'm going to have to find new wing men.” “You know that a wake isn't exactly the most tasteful place to plot your next big conquest, right?” Psylocke asked with a furrowed brow. “Maybe we can swing by Barracuda afterwards,” Angel said with a hint of snark. Beast's eyes went wide in mock shock as he covered his mouth. “Ugh. For the last time, I'm not gay!” Iceman said with an exasperated groan. “This isn't about the time we all shared a bathroom together, is it? Betys, scan my pervy mind and tell them I like chicks!” “Hard pass, Robert, but maybe next time...” In the kitchen, Logan – Wolverine – found himself searching through the cabinets and pulling out random bottles of alcohol as he came across them. He heard the sound of the door swing open and smelled the whiff of a familiar musk. “Whatcha drinkin', LeBeau?” he asked. Remy LeBeau – Gambit – was taking off his and loosening his collar as he walked to the island. “Armand de Brignac?” he asked in return. Wolverine glared at him for a moment, to which he smirked slyly. “Kidding. I'll take whatever's on the house, mon ami.” “Beer and whiskey it is.” Wolverine took a couple glasses between his fingers in one hand and a bottle of Jack Daniels in the other to the island. He poured the two a pair of tall glasses and slid one to his teammate. “T' Joseph,” Gambit toasted. “To Joseph,” Wolverine echoed. They clinked glasses and downed their entire glasses without much more ceremony than that. Neither of them were particularly close with each other, nor particularly close with Joseph, although they respected his sacrifice. It was awkward enough in a room with friends and teammates to honor a man they had mixed feelings towards, but privately and with each other? That's where the booze came in. “So...” Gambit said as he swished his whiskey around in its tumbler. “So...” Wolverine echoed as he began pouring more. They let the silence linger as they took their next drink slower. Suddenly the door burst open again. Sarah – Marrow – marched through with an irritable expression. “Can't believe I let Storm an' Kitty put me in this itchy scratchy piece o'... ugh...” Marrow grumbled as she pinched and pulled at her black dress. She walked over to the island that the two leaned on and went straight for the bottle of Jack. “God, I need a drink.” She began drinking straight from the bottle without even acknowledging her two teammates. “Uh... how old are you again, darlin'?” Wolverine asked with skepticism. Marrow broke from her chug just long enough to answer. “Shut it, old guy.” She then went back to drinking. Gambit and Wolverine exchanged a look. “Old enough, apparently,” Gambit smirked and the three drank. Back in the mansion's living room, the woman known only as Rogue sat in a chair in the corner. She had either been somber or in quiet tears a good part of the day, but was prone to small outbursts of laughter and anger interchangeably, and occasionally a combination thereof. “ – And where th' heck did that swamp rat get off to?” Rogue grumbled as she wiped away tears from her eyes. “Can't a girl get a shoulder t' cry on for longer than five minutes?” Her teammates Piotr Rasputin and Kitty Pryde – Colossus and Shadowcat – couldn't help but chuckle softly as she railed against Gambit for slipping out of Joseph's wake so quickly. “There there, Rogue,” Colossus said with a gentle and warm smile. “Yeah, I'm sure Remy's just scrounging up some swamp cheese,” Shadowcat said teasingly. Rogue grumbled to herself, “More like fungus and snails...” Colossus and Shadowcat chuckled again. Rogue's emotions could always be a bit on the volatile side and in her times of grief she would lean into a sassy demeanor to compensate for it. Gambit was always a convenient target and one hard to sympathize with, at that. Absent or not, Rogue's casual abuse of him provided their teammates with some levity. Colossus rested his hand on Rogue's covered shoulder while Shadowcat leaned down and embraced her in a careful hug. Skin to skin contact with Rogue was rare and often dangerous, but genuine affection could be expressed in other ways. Rogue put a gloved hand on Colossus's while simultaneously hugging Shadowcat, then sighed. “Geeze Louise, ah'm probably a mess by now,” Rogue said as she released her friends. “Do a gal a favor an' spot me your compact?” “Yeah, sure,” Shadowcat said with a smile as she began to dig through her purse. When she found it she quickly handed it to Rogue who popped it open and began to examine the damage done to her make-up by crying that day. She started to try and correct it with her tissue when she, as well as all of her friends and teammates, heard Professor X's voice in their minds. “My X-Men, I'm sorry to interrupt you all during our time of mourning, but please meet me in the foyer room. I have something I would like to speak with you all about...” Professor X sat in his hover chair at the center of the foyer room of his mansion, just under the balcony of the second floor, as his X-Men gathered around him. They poured in from the halls, the stairwell, and even the front door, until all fourteen of them settled in right before him. While chatting quietly among themselves as they entered, they quickly grew silent as they all stood before their leader, looking to him for the purpose of his summoning. “Thank you all for assembling here today,” Professor X began. “It's a shame that it takes the death of a friend and teammate to bring us together like this, but it is also a testament to our strength, not just as X-Men, but as family. It seems that some changes in our way of doing things are in order, though. I've had the chance to reflect on recent events and speak to many of you in depth about my thoughts, and I've made some hard decisions.” “What are you thinking, professor?” Cyclops asked. Everyone was wondering the same thing. Professor X considered his words for a moment. He looked over his students' faces and took in their presence before continuing. “I will make time to go over my plans in more detail very soon, but it would be unfair for me to ask you all to join me without knowing what you're committing yourselves to. For the moment I'll say this... I believe the time is now for the X-Men to take a more active role in the world's affairs. To not just help mend our world's very social fabric, but to weave it well into the future as well. “We have spent much of our time waiting for and subsequently responding to threats as they arise to mutant kind and humanity alike. There was a time when this was enough, and it has even been inspiring to many, but the tides have been turning against our efforts ever since the Onslaught event. Operation: Zero Tolerance was just the start of a very real public policy threat that may be irreversible next time. “Now, in the aftermath of Magneto's war on humanity, he has taken power on the world stage like never before. We must fight like we have never fought before. Not just on the battlefield, but in the classrooms, in the courts, on the campaign trail, in the media, in the sciences... At our disposal, in this very room at this very moment, we have more potential than ever to change the world for the better. The question is what will we do with that potential.” The X-Men stood silent. Some, like Cyclops and Storm, stood up a little taller. Tears began to well in the eyes of others, like Rogue and Beast, as they heard the call. Gambit and Psylocke merely smirked at a speech that they found surprisingly inspiring, if only a bit. Others, like Marrow and Wolverine, stood unmoved but in their hearts felt a sense of pride at being apart of something like this. “So, what say you, my X-Men? Will you join me in the next phase of our dream?” All agreed, either quietly or with a nod, and so Professor X nodded approvingly. “Very good. Then everyone suit up and meet me in the Danger Room,” Professor X said a she turned around in his hover chair and headed for the lower level elevator with several generations of X-Men at his back. “The future begins today.” NEXT ISSUE: Head over to X-Men #1 by Dino Pollard for “DEATH OF A DREAM,” Part Two! X-PRESSIONS Questions, comments, and general feedback can be sent to me at [email protected]! For those of you who haven't seen my thread on MARVEL 2000's message board, “The Nostalgia Project,” I'd like to introduce to you a bit of a passion project that I started in November 2019. Our site has been around for twenty years now, but the original UNCANNY X-MEN (VOL. 1) issues have been lost for at least half of that time if not longer. In conjunction with Dino Pollard's X-MEN (VOL. 1), these issues made up the foundation for the X-MEN BRANCH's status quo and branching continuity. Seeing as how I'm one of the few people still around to remember these issues, I decided to take some time to rewrite them all in a similar tone, pacing, and style to the original issues based off of the plots from their original writers (Gwyna, Jay Corafa, and Dino Pollard). As such, they probably read as very late '90s, which is totally the point! X-MEN (VOL. 1) is largely untouched with a few minor tweaks to grammar, format, and spelling that I caught as I was rereading them. The only major change that I made was putting both titles into a read order and dubbing the story-arc “DEATH OF A DREAM.” When the site first launched, MARVEL 2000 didn't provide story-arc or individual issue titles. They were simply “ISSUE #1, ISSUE #2, etc etc.” This update should go a long way to making these stories accessible and providing a reference point for anyone who wants to build off of these stories or mention them in later projects. It's my hope that this project will rejuvenate interest in the X-MEN BRANCH and will motivate people to want to read a lot of the old stories that we all put our love and care into back when we were just kids. The vast majority of these old stories are still around, if not currently uploaded to the site, and are just ripe for the reading and building off of. Even if there isn't a particular story or character that a reader or writer is interested in following-up on, I think they'll at least feel inspired to write themselves! Readers can expect a bulk of issues to be released every month (I'd say between 3-5) for the next three months until the project is complete. All but two issues have been completed, but should take no time at all to finish at my current pace. So stay tuned, let me know what you think, and most of all please enjoy!!! Cory. W Jan. 18, 2020 |