Uncanny X-Men (Marvel Omega)

Homecoming, Part II

"Hello, Bishop."

Bishop.

That is my name. It is neither first nor surname. In the era I grew up in, surnames were reserved for humans and upper class mutants. I was not one of them. I grew up in a Nevada internment camp. The green-haired young upstart who stands before me, however, was one of the upper class. His name is Trevor Fitzroy, the bastard son of Richard Shaw.

He has me chained to a device of some sort. Behind him stand three beings whom I assume are aliens. Two of them are large males, one with pinkish skin and gold armor, and another with green skin and firearms strapped to his body. The third is female, with pale skin and white hair. There are also numerous other lanky male aliens running about. Their skin has a yellow hue, and they all seem exactly the same. I heard the green one refer to them as sea dogs. I hear a moan from my side. I strain my neck, and I see Deathbird chained next to me.

"What do you want, Fitzroy?" I ask.

"What I've always wanted, Bishop," he replies. "Power. You see, I've changed a bit since our last encounter."

"What are you talking about?"

"I've evolved," he says. "I think it's what they call a 'secondary mutation'. My mutant powers have increased. The portals I create can not only span time and space, but dimensions as well. I can jump from one galaxy to the next. During these jaunts, I've been procuring alien technology, and on one of the worlds I came to, I ran into a man named Karel. He mentioned that he was able to return to his planet thanks to the aid of a terran named Bishop. After that little piece of information, I absorbed his life energy and used it to make another jaunt. This time, I hired the Crimson Pirates, who you see before you. With their technology, we were able to pinpoint the location of your ship. It vanished from radar for a few moments, but then returned, and we've followed you ever since."

"Why?" I ask. "Why did you wait until we were close to Earth before the ambush? Why not just destroy us to begin with?"

"Because I need Earth, Bishop," he says. "You don't understand, do you?"

"Understand what?"

"To open portals, I must absorb energy from others," he says. "Usually, the energy I absorb from a person is enough to kill them. The further the distance to travel, the more energy I need to power the portal. For what I intend to do, there isn't enough energy in a single person. But in you, there is."

"What?"

"You're a living battery, Bishop," says Fitzroy. "You can provide me with a near-endless amount of energy. And with that energy, as well as the technology I've procured, I can travel to a dimension where there are no mutants. No heroes. To a dimension where I am the most powerful being. And once I locate that dimension, I can take it over and rule the people as a god."

"You're a coward," says Deathbird. "Where is the conquest in defeating a race of people inferior to yourself? There is no victory in that. It's like stealing candy from a baby."

"Oh shut up," says Fitzroy. "Like I care about conquest. All that matters to me is power, understand?"

"I'd sooner die than help you, young Fitzroy," I tell him.

"I know," he says. "But unfortunately for you, you don't have a choice."

***

The Blackbird soars across the Atlantic Ocean. The modified supersonic jet continues forward towards its destination in Australia. Inside the plane, Nightcrawler pilots the jet. Colossus sits by his side, and Wolverine leans on the back of Colossus' chair. Sunpyre and Skin both sit behind the cockpit.