earth-367

In the early afternoon on Saturday (3/1), the Xavier Institute is attacked by an unknown mutant who manipulates the surrounding foliage, trapping the X-Men and one of their students in a forested maze. The situation is quickly brought under control, and seems to be the result of a messy international custody battle. The incident doesn't even make the local news thanks to the X-Men's quick response.

Shadowcat is out for a brisk walk in the wooded area surrounding the mansion, something they’re very familiar with. Strange, then, when they notice that the path is trailing off, and the number of trees has grown hauntingly dense. They can no longer tell which direction the mansion is in, and before they can come up with a plan of action, woody vines erupt from the forest floor and entangle them.

Meanwhile, Empath is out on one of the verandas enjoying the afternoon and keeping tabs on a couple students who are messing around with their powers on the lawn. Suddenly they hear the distressed shout of their teammate from beyond the treeline. One of the students, Veronica Milanović, is a firestarter who’s always eager and never in great control of her powers. The second she hears the scream, she takes off into the forest.

Empath narrowly catches up with Veronica. She overzealously uses her powers to light several of the trees on fire, which causes the foliage to react violently, attacking both student and teacher. Empath and Veronica work together, with them helping Veronica to finally get her fire powers under control for the first time.

White Queen rushes outside, where more and more students have arrived to check out the commotion. The forest is visibly overgrown now, with thick trunks making it hard to enter. White Queen makes quick time by telepathically tracking Shadowcat to navigate to the thickest part of the forest, where they find Shadowcat knocked out and bound in vines. They work to free them as the team finally regroups.

When the X-Men corner the source of the trouble, they catch a glimpse of a normal looking man with a black moustache. Rather than fight, he makes a run for it, using his control over vegetation to assist his escape. Once he’s gone, all of the trees return to normal, and the overgrown plant life recedes. It’s like nothing ever happened.

Well, besides the trees that Veronica set on fire.

Later they learn that the man behind the forest’s eruption was Thomas Cassidy, an Irish mutant who was mistakenly convinced that his niece, Theresa Cassidy, had been sent to Xavier’s in secret. It seems like he’s in the middle of a very messy custody battle over the girl, and had plans to steal her away from the American school.

He escaped the scene of the crime, and his current whereabouts are unknown. He likely returned to Europe.