Chapter Summaries

Henry asked Audrey Hepburn about the United Nations personnel’s political maneuvering during UNICEF relief missions, and she explained how aid and temporary peace could still save children despite imperfect motives and methods. Henry understood why he admired her and continued helping, though he remained committed to living by his own priorities.

• Henry asked Audrey Hepburn whether the United Nations personnel’s questionable conduct was normal.
• Audrey Hepburn explained that UNICEF missions delivered supplies and medical aid while also bringing temporary peace, and that she accepted imperfections as long as efforts were genuinely aimed at saving children.
• Henry realized he admired Audrey Hepburn for helping others in ways he could not, and understood why he continued to assist her.
• Audrey Hepburn clarified that charity would become a transaction if aid depended on demands, and that donations had to be spent with the purpose of saving children.
• Henry reaffirmed that he would help when it made him happy, then returned to work alongside Audrey Hepburn.

After UNICEF ordered Audrey Hepburn to take a two-week vacation, Henry accompanied her on a flight from New York to Switzerland. During the flight, they saw a strange mass of orange fire in the sky, and Henry noticed a space shuttle lose power after approaching it.

• UNICEF ended its final report and required Audrey Hepburn to take at least two weeks of rest after months of nonstop work.
• Henry boarded a first-class flight with Audrey, spending the journey reading War and Peace and writing down ideas for Linux.
• A shifting mass of orange fire appeared outside the plane, puzzling the passengers and Audrey.
• Henry fetched a camera and explained how to photograph the sight through the window, and Audrey took several pictures.
• Henry used Super Vision to see a space shuttle approach the strange energy and lose power, hovering nearby.

Henry returned with Audrey Hepburn to her farmhouse in Switzerland after seeing a strange fiery object from the plane. News reports said the damaged Endeavour shuttle had been rescued by the X-Men, while Henry suspected the incident was connected to the events of Dark Phoenix.

• Henry flew safely with Audrey Hepburn to Geneva and returned with her to her home in Tolochenaz.
• Audrey Hepburn reunited with Robert Wolders and her five Jack Russell Terriers, then told Robert about the fiery object she had seen from the plane.
• Robert told Audrey that NASA had blamed the light on a solar flare and that the Endeavour shuttle had been damaged during its first mission.
• Henry doubted the official explanation, reasoned that the incident was not his problem, and helped Audrey prepare dinner.
• Robert announced that the X-Men had rescued the Endeavour astronauts and that Professor X had received a medal.
• Henry wondered whether the shuttle incident was connected to the movie Dark Phoenix.

Henry received a call from Mystique asking him to help with trouble inside the X-Men, despite his efforts to avoid her. He reluctantly agreed to go, then left Audrey Hepburn’s house to find them.

• Henry hung up when Mystique identified herself as the caller, then rejected her repeat call as a wrong number.
• Mystique confronted Henry about his role in the X-Men’s recent troubles and demanded that he help her.
• Mystique said she needed outside combat support because she could not trust people within the X-Men, and threatened Henry if he refused.
• Henry hung up before Mystique could tell him where she was, then told Audrey Hepburn he was going out to help someone in trouble.
• Audrey Hepburn wished Henry well and told him to be careful.

Mystique brought Henry Brown aboard the Blackbird after Professor X's actions involving someone's memories came to light. Henry challenged Professor X over his belief that altering another person's mind was justified, while the X-Men continued on their flight.

• Mystique argued with Professor X about hiding his actions and controlling another person's memories, while Hank McCoy tried to calm her.
• Henry Brown appeared outside the Blackbird's windshield and phased through the glass into the cabin.
• Henry explained his phasing technique to Quicksilver and criticized the X-Men's education before taking a seat.
• Mystique confronted Henry about how he knew Charles had altered someone's memories, and Henry said Charles's actions fit someone who believed his own good intentions justified taking shortcuts.
• Henry compared Professor X's mental interference to physical punishment and psychiatric illness, and Professor X angrily objected but did not use his telepathy.

The X-Men arrived in Red Hook to bring Jean Grey back after the Phoenix Force intensified her powers and emotional turmoil. When Jean rejected Professor X and Cyclops and fought the team, Henry stayed behind Mystique as the battle left the X-Men defeated.

• Hank landed the Blackbird in Red Hook, where Professor X and the X-Men went to find Jean Grey.
• Henry considered how Jean's memories of her mother's death, Professor X's deception, and her father's rejection had left her vulnerable and dangerous.
• Professor X and Cyclops tried to persuade Jean to return, but she remained furious and unconvinced.
• Police arrived, and Jean used telekinesis to flip two police cars, starting a fight with the X-Men.
• Jean defeated Cyclops, Storm, Nightcrawler, and Quicksilver, while Henry hid behind Mystique instead of joining the battle.

Mystique tried to calm Jean Grey, but Jean’s Phoenix-powered outburst sent her flying. Henry cushioned Mystique’s impact and saved her from a broken stake, while Beast blamed him for the destruction and Henry explained why stopping the force outright would have killed Mystique.

• Mystique approached Jean Grey and tried to soothe her, while Professor X froze Beast and the police to give her a chance.
• When Mystique touched Jean, Jean erupted with Phoenix power and blasted her away; Jean fled before checking what had happened to Mystique.
• Professor X released everyone from his psychic hold, and Beast followed the trench to find Mystique injured in a pit.
• Henry climbed out from beneath a mound of dirt and explained that he had used his super speed to cushion Mystique’s impact and keep her from being impaled on a stake.
• Beast accused Henry of allowing the destruction, but Henry argued that stopping the force instantly would have killed Mystique.

After Phoenix’s rampage left Mystique and Quicksilver badly injured, Henry accompanied the X-Men back to their underground base. Mystique confronted Henry for standing aside during the fight, and he defended his choice to let Phoenix vent rather than risk more destruction.

• Henry joined the X-Men on the X-Jet as they carried the injured Mystique and Quicksilver back to Xavier’s School.
• Beast treated Mystique and Quicksilver and found that both had suffered severe injuries.
• Mystique mocked Henry for watching the X-Men’s battle instead of helping, and Henry argued that fighting Phoenix could have endangered the town.
• Mystique accused Henry of letting them get beaten, and he said Phoenix needed to vent her anger before they could reason with her.

Henry explained that Qin needed quiet and time to recover, while the X-Men had to find her and resolve the situation themselves. He warned that the U.S. government could pursue Qin for the damage she caused and denied responsibility for the destruction in town before preparing to leave.

• Mystique challenged Henry for pushing the X-Men to confront Qin, and Cyclops grabbed him and demanded to know what he knew.
• Henry removed Cyclops's visor and tossed it to Storm, then explained that Qin seemed frightened, physically distressed, and in need of a calm place to recover.
• Henry warned the X-Men that Qin's destruction of police cars and civilian property could bring government action, while the White House had shut down Professor X's hotline to the president.
• Cyclops suggested that the solar flare Qin absorbed during the Endeavour rescue mission had caused her condition, and Henry let him pursue that explanation.
• Henry said the X-Men needed to handle the U.S. government and denied responsibility for the damage in town, claiming he was in Switzerland and had not entered the United States.
• Henry asked whether anyone had more questions and said he was leaving, telling the X-Men not to seek his help next time.

Mystique took charge after Henry left and sent the X-Men to investigate Qin’s condition and whereabouts. In low Earth orbit, the Diberians decided to seize the cosmic energy inside Qin to rebuild their homeworld.

• Mystique failed to persuade Henry to stay, and Nightcrawler teleported him out of the infirmary.
• Mystique ordered Beast to consult Reed Richards about the energy Qin had absorbed and assigned Cyclops and Storm to investigate Qin and contact Erik.
• Nightcrawler returned, and Mystique sent him with Storm while Cyclops volunteered to visit Erik.
• A science officer told Vuko that Qin had absorbed cosmic energy and could potentially learn to control it.
• Vuko asked the Diberians whether anyone opposed an operation to capture the energy and use one of their own as its vessel.

The Diberians began a covert operation on Earth to capture the person who absorbed the cosmic energy. Reed Richards joined Hank McCoy at Xavier’s School to examine the supposed solar flare and noticed something concealed in the X-Jet footage.

• Vuko ordered the Diberians to infiltrate Earth and find the native who absorbed the cosmic energy.
• Reed drove to Xavier’s School after Hank sent him a report about the solar flare phenomenon.
• Hank showed Reed the X-Jet’s recordings and firsthand data from the rescue of the Endeavour.
• Reed concluded the phenomenon was not a solar flare and suspected the footage’s dark region hid something because the stars’ brightness and positions were wrong.

Reed and Hank developed a photograph that revealed a concealed alien spacecraft had watched the Endeavour rescue mission without intervening. Their analysis of the cosmic radiation data uncovered a rapidly repeating pattern, leaving Hank and Reed wondering whether the phenomenon was alive.

• Reed and Hank modified the C-41 developer and produced a photograph showing a spindle-shaped spacecraft near the Endeavour rescue mission.
• Reed estimated the spacecraft’s size and distance, and concluded it had observed the mission without intervening.
• Hank considered whether the alien ship and the cosmic radiation were connected, but continued examining the data with Reed.
• Reed used Hank’s visualization tools to create overlapping graphs that showed a pattern repeating dozens of times over ten minutes.
• Reed asked for a complete copy of the data, and Hank agreed on the condition that Reed share his research results and disclose the data to no one else.

Scott visited Genosha to find Qin, but learned she had already left after fighting U.S. soldiers who came to seize her. Erik demanded an explanation of what happened to Raven and Peter and why Qin had fled, leaving Scott to face the severity of Raven’s injuries.

• Erik confronted Scott as the X-Jet arrived in Hammer Bay, and Scott said he had come to find Qin.
• Erik stopped Scott from leaving and demanded to know what had happened, so Scott described the battle in Red Hook.
• Erik asked about Raven and Peter, and Scott said both had survived but suffered severe injuries.
• Erik explained that Qin had sought sanctuary, fought the soldiers who came for her, and left after the battle.
• Scott suggested Qin had fled because she believed she had killed Raven, but Erik replied that Raven was not all right.

Storm took Nightcrawler to the New York Continental Hotel to request information about Jean Grey, then led him through the subway and into an abandoned underground route. They entered New York’s hidden underworld, where nonhuman beings and the people living below the city operated beyond the authorities’ reach.

• Storm and Nightcrawler visited the Continental Hotel, where Charon told Storm that Jean Grey had appeared on Genosha Island and defeated a U.S. military task force before disappearing.
• Storm placed a request with Charon to notify her when he learned Jean Grey’s whereabouts and declined his offer of paid work until her urgent business was resolved.
• Storm warned Nightcrawler not to cause trouble at the Continental, then took him to a subway entrance and bought tickets.
• Storm kept Nightcrawler from boarding a departing train and led him down onto the tracks and through an abandoned subway route.
• Nightcrawler recalled how Mystique had rescued him from a Berlin death match and how he had joined Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters, before entering New York’s underground world with Storm.

Ororo and Kurt visited Bowery King beneath New York to ask his network to locate the missing Qin Grey. Bowery agreed to have his people report sightings, and Ororo left him with a warning not to provoke the dangerous Mutant.

• Ororo led a nervous Kurt through an abandoned subway settlement to meet Bowery King.
• Bowery welcomed Ororo and introduced himself to Kurt, whom he recognized as Nightcrawler.
• Ororo asked Bowery to find Qin Grey and notify the X-Men, explaining that Qin had flipped two police cars and posed a serious danger.
• Ororo warned that violence between New York authorities and Mutants could lead to disaster, then teased Bowery about calling the X-Men before his people made matters worse.
• Bowery agreed to tell his people to report Qin's whereabouts and not take any other action.

Hank McCoy told Professor X that the White House had rejected their evidence about Qin, leaving the X-Men without a clear way to protect her. He later shared the findings and the authorities’ response with Mystique, whose condition was stabilizing.

• Hank McCoy showed Professor X the research and photograph linking Qin’s loss of control to alien influence, but Professor X said the White House wanted stronger evidence.
• Hank suggested handing over Henry Brown, but Professor X warned that they could not know whether he was connected to the aliens and risked making an enemy.
• Professor X rejected using mind control or relying on a mutant winning an election, and said mutants needed their own people in government.
• Hank left Professor X’s office and found Mystique recovering in the infirmary while Quicksilver struggled through physics books.
• Mystique asked for news, and Hank told her what he and Reed Richards had found and how Professor X and the White House had responded.

Mystique asked Hank to find Qin and protect her from Charles, Erik, and anyone else who might use her, while urging him to involve Henry, Erik, Scott, Ororo, Kurt, and the other X-Men. She made Hank promise to bring Qin and everyone else back safely, warning him to distrust Charles and the U.S. government.

• Mystique told Hank she did not trust Charles and asked him to find Qin personally and take her somewhere safe.
• Mystique recalled that Erik had wanted to kill her and accused Charles and the others of repeatedly risking the X-Men for government missions.
• Hank agreed to protect Qin and not hand her over to Charles or Erik, and Mystique told him to recruit Henry and ask Erik's side for help.
• Mystique instructed Hank to bring Scott, Ororo, Kurt, and the other X-Men, leaving Charles without support.
• Mystique made Hank promise to bring Qin and everyone back alive, and warned him to watch Charles, the U.S. government, and the military.

Henry received another summons from the X-Men, who told him aliens had appeared, and reluctantly agreed to meet them. As he left Audrey Hepburn’s home, he considered joining the coming battles while disguising his identity.

• Henry answered the X-Men’s call and agreed to meet after learning they needed him to fight aliens.
• Audrey Hepburn teased Henry about going out, advised him to dress better, and offered him clothes belonging to Luca Dotti.
• Henry left Audrey’s home and suspected his earlier actions had caused the X-Men to discover the aliens ahead of schedule.
• Henry anticipated several major battles that could expose him to the U.S. government and considered disguising himself or staying out of the conflict.
• Henry worried that Mystique might target him again by impersonating someone he knew.

Hank McCoy persuaded Erik to help the X-Men rescue Qin and investigate an alleged alien warship, and Erik agreed to bring a small elite team. As they waited for an ally, a flamboyantly dressed stranger appeared and introduced himself as Super Joker.

• Hank McCoy arrived on Genosha and told Erik that Raven had asked him to seek help against an alien warship and rescue Qin.
• Erik questioned how Mutants could fight a spacecraft and noted that Hank had no conclusive evidence to persuade the U.S. government to act.
• Hank reminded Erik that he owed Raven for something from 1973, and Erik agreed to help with a small team.
• Erik summoned Red Lotus and Selene to join him and Hank on the mission to the United States.
• Hank said they still had to wait for someone, but a stranger emerged from the woods, told a knock-knock joke, and called himself Super Joker.

Clown-Sup arrived in Genosha and mocked Magneto and the island before joining Hank on the X-Jet as Raven’s requested helper. As Magneto, Red Lotus, Selene, and Hank prepared for battle, Clown-Sup’s nonstop antics left Hank to pilot with the alien newcomer buckled into the back.

• Clown-Sup ridiculed Genosha’s poverty, food, and clothing, and Magneto chose to leave rather than engage with him.
• Clown-Sup claimed Raven had recruited him to help fight aliens and accompanied Hank toward the X-Jet.
• Clown-Sup took the pilot’s seat and misidentified the controls, so Beast dragged him to the back and buckled him in.
• Magneto boarded the X-Jet with Red Lotus and Selene, learned Clown-Sup was Raven’s helper, and heard that he claimed to be an alien.