Cable #64 Summary

by Rainer Ho Ten Soeng

Summary of Cable #64: "Who is Nathan Summers?"
Special ORIGIN issue!

Technical information:

* Publisher: Marvel Comics
* Release date: February, 1999
* Writer: Joe Casey
* Penciller: Jose Ladronn
* Inker: Juan Vlasco
* Colorist: Gloria Vasquez
* Letters: RS/Comicraft/ST
* Editor: Mark Powers
* Editor in Chief: Bob Harras
* Total number of pages: 32 pages with ads; 22 pages without ads
* Subtitle of the book: "T'Was The Night Before Dying"
The Origin of the man called Cable

Main characters in the book:

Cable: Two thousand years from now, a dark era will dawn for mankind. The achievements of generations past will be little more than dust, crushed beneath the iron heel of the ageless conqueror Apocalypse. In this future, society stands on the precipice of utter destruction. In the present, there is one last hope for humanity -- a man who has traveled back to the twentieth century in a desperate attempt to prevent those tragedies before they occur. Now, Nathan Dayspring Summers, also known as Cable, uses his mutant ability of telekinesis to fight for a better tomorrow -- and seeks his own fate as a man out of time.

Irene Merryweather: A former reporter for the muckraking Inquiring Eye, Irene dreamt of one day working for a legitimate newspaper such as The Daily Bugle. But when her investigations led to the loss of her friends and her job, Irene dedicated herself to chronicling the life and mission of the man called Cable.

Blaquesmith: The gnomish, misshapen enigma known as Blaquesmith has long been Cable's mentor and task master, training him in the use of his great powers and following him through time to the twentieth century. Blessed with the innate ability to create all manner of high-tech gadgetry, Blaquesmith has often run afoul his pupil, as he is more than willing to deceive others, even his allies, in order to achieve his goals.

The Askani: Founded by Rachel Summers, they are a quasi-religious group of freedom fighters in the future epoch from which Cable came. It was the Askani who brought the infant Nathan Summers to the far-flung future in order to protect, train and nurture him as the 'Askani'Son' who could lead them to victory over the forces of evil.

Aliya: Cable's first love, Aliya, was a member of the Askani Sisterhood. The two met when they were in their teens, and were eventually wed. Together, they fought and sacrificed much in order to destroy the evil of Apocalypse and his various followers. Unfortunately, Aliya was a casualty of that conflict, as she died in her beloved's arms after being wounded in a ferocious battle. In some ways, Nathan has never truly recovered from her loss ....

Apocalypse: Born into slavery at the sawn of civilization, the warlord also known as En Sabah Nur lives by a merciless philosophy: Survival of the Fittest -- that only through conflict and strife will the weak be culled from the strong .... and only the strong deserve to live. War .... Plague .... Pestilence .... these are his tools. A mutant with an incredibly long lifespan, Apocalypse can also alter the atomic structure of his body to change his form and is possessed of superhuman strength.

Ozymandias: Once, before a thousand sunrises, Ozymandias stood as a king stands among his minions. But that was before the dark one called Apocalypse felled and imprisoned him. Now Apocalypse has cursed Ozymandias in the most horrible of ways: the former king has to set his blind eyes and his stone hands to one singular task. In order to fend off the madness which would otherwise overtake him, he has to record all the images Apocalypse makes him see and etch them in stone like a sculptor.

Remarkable quotes:

1. "Nathan .... you're sure? You have been putting this off long enough. And I am not talking about a little witty repartee, y'know .... I want all the answers .... -- .... -- Hold on cowboy .... I am not your shrink. If you've got something you want to get off your chest, that's one thing. But I don't want you using this interview for your own therapy ...." (Irene Merryweather)

2. "My life is as convoluted -- as confusing -- as any you'll ever come across. I've spent years trying to get things straight in my own head --" (Cable)

3. "If Nathan remained in the present, the techno-organic virus would kill him. But if he were taken, by Askani, into the future -- two millennia from now -- he would have a slim chance to live. Cyclops had no choice. As unthinkable as it was, to save his son's life, he had to give him up. Personally, I can't even imagine the pain -- the guilt -- that went along with that decision. There's a look in Nathan's eyes when he speaks about his father .... a sadness that perhaps he tried to bury long ago. That kind of emotion, you can never get rid of." (Irene Merryweather)

4. "That led me to the next phase of my life -- .... -- My involvement with the Clan Askani. I thought it was a way to learn .... to fight the good fight. Unfortunately, they saw me as some sort of Messiah .... an uncomfortable situation I've had to deal with to this day .... " (Cable)

5. "Aliya .... knew me better than anyone ever had .... or ever will. It was almost frightening how well she knew me. For the brief time we had together .... well, I've never known love like that .... and probably never will again .... -- .... -- Her passing made me realize something. Two millennia from now, the world is a lost cause. So much pain. So much upheaval. So much death. And no matter how many wars I fought, the reality of that situation never changed. The only way to make a permanent difference was to prevent that hellish future from ever happening .... There was only one way to do that. I had to come back here .... to the era of my birth." (Cable)

6. ">Sigh< This is tougher than I thought .... okay, here goes .... You're a mutant. It's out in the open, we're all cool with it. You were telling me before about what you can do .... the nature of your abilities .... mind powers and all the rest. Well, it got me thinking .... about Kenny, and his Down Syndrome. I know this is asking a lot, but is it possible for you to use your powers in some way to help him? Maybe make him .... normal .... ?" (Stacey Kramer)

7. "He believes it is time for mankind to face a crisis that goes far beyond the realm of natural disaster .... and he will be the instigator of that crisis. He feels the wind of change blowing all around him. Lightly at the moment. But soon those winds will surely rise in intensity and purpose. He will be the coming firestorm .... he will embody that final conflagration. He will survive as the strongest of the strong. And the world will surely tremble at the sound of his name .... Apocalypse." (Apocalypse)

8. "He (Apocalypse) is my mission .... in two thousand years he will have permanently scarred the Earth with his evil. By the time I came of age, it was too late to save the future .... the damage had been done. So, instead, my mission is to stop the future. Prevent it. Change it. Undo the damage retroactively. .... Just by being here I am enacting change. By fighting the good fight, I am enacting change. But, to ensure that hellish future, my future -- never happens, I've got to stop him now .... kill him now .... burn him completely from the face of existence." (Cable)

9. "The final confrontation is coming .... I can feel it. When it happens, nothing else will matter. To change the future, I would give up everything. To face him in final conflict .... that is my destiny. Nothing I do can change that. .... Either he dies .... or I die." (Cable)

10. " .... These are dark days .... and they are getting darker .... " (Santa Claus)

11. "Y'know, contrary to popular belief, you don't always say or do the right thing every time. You may be a mutant but you are still human." (Irene Merryweather) 12. "I suppose finding and fulfilling one's destiny is just as much of a gamble as anything else .... the only thing you can do about it .... you roll the dice .... and take your chances." (Cable)

13. "I watched him walk away, the shadows enveloping him as he moved deeper into the recesses of the safe house. At that moment, I had some kind of premonition (which normally, never happens to me), as if that selfsame darkness would threaten to swallow him whole in the coming year. I realized that someone had to stick around .... to bear witness .... So I got on the phone to Jameson .... and turned him down. If the Bugle's even around by the end of next year -- hey, if any of us are around by then -- I know the job will be there waiting for me. But now's not the right time. Too much is at stake." (Irene Merryweather)

14. "I asked Nathan the tough questions .... and, in turn he gave me some tough answers. .... but, for all of his power and all of his responsibility, Nathan is still searching -- just like the rest of us -- for his own answers .... the ones that mean something to him, and only him. Those answers go far beyond any questions I could ever ask. Personally, I think he's just now figured out what it is he's truly fighting for. But that discovery brings with it a whole new set of problems that he never expected to face. Welcome to the human race, Nathan. Glad you could finally join us." (Irene Merryweather)

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Summary of Cable #64: "Who is Nathan Summers?" Special ORIGIN issue!

It's Christmas in Hell's Kitchen, that pauperized neighborhood on Manhattan's West Side. It's cold and dark and despite the time of the year, despite the fact that it has snowed, very little would have reminded a neutral bystander that it's Christmas, and a white Christmas at that, if he or she would not have known it. The filth is still there, the struggle to survive is still there, the desperation is still there but most importantly the hopelessness of it all is still there. The only thing joyful and festal at first sight is a lonely Santa Claus who is trying to cheer the people up and who begs them for some spare change to buy presents for those children whose parents could not afford to buy them anything. But even Santa has an opened beer bottle next to him standing on the floor.... No, Christmas in Hell's Kitchen sure is not the kind of Christmas most of us enjoy and celebrate year after year.

And inside Cable's safehouse Irene is realizing that all too well. Sitting behind a laptop computer she is contemplating on the events which have occurred in the last few months and which have changed her life so dramatically. It seems like only yesterday that she was a journalist working for that scandal rag known as the Inquiring Eye while hoping and praying that one day she would get the chance to work for a real newspaper like the Daily Bugle. And just look at her now: where is she standing now? Where has life taken her? Was it her fate to celebrate Christmas all alone in the secret safehouse at 45th and 10th of the man called Cable? A man who has come from the future to prevent the evil madman Apocalypse from ever having it his way and who saved her life in the process? Was it meant to be this way? Is this what she was fighting for; to be the chronicler of Nathan? Irene can't seem to find the answers to those questions immediately....

And while Irene is deeply entangled in her thoughts, life has gone on outside the safehouse. And unfortunately a disaster has happened: a heavy earthquake has wreaked havoc in Mexico City in the early hours of the morning! Mexico City was rocked on its fundaments by that irresistible force of nature which made a lot of victims and downed several skyscrapers. Christmas not only seems to have passed over Mexico but also seems to have been replaced by a local Hell on Earth. What happened there? Was it just an unexpected and inconvenient display of Mother Nature's awesome power? Or were the Mexicans tested in a way to see how they would handle and react to this little apocalypse (!)? And even though this latter option may sound quite irrational, it's still the explanation most Mexicans seem to prefer.... The answer is not sure yet but Stacey and Kenny do see on a TV in the showcase of a shop that the Mexican people are showing the flexibility of the human spirit by rallying together and being pointedly determined to begin rebuilding their beautiful city ASAP. Christmas may have started on the wrong foot in Mexico but in many ways the true spirit of Christmas is much more apparent in Mexico City than it has ever been in Hell's Kitchen.

This becomes painfully clear when Kenny all of a sudden spots Santa Claus on the street. And just like any other kid Kenny dashes off to talk to Santa and be with him. Unluckily though Kenny doesn't see that right at that moment Santa is being pushed around by some gangsters who want their share of the money he has collected so far. After all he is standing on their turf, in their street, in their neighborhood and if he wishes to collect money there, then he can only do so if he gives them their 'fair' cut. In just one little touching scene we see we see the best and worst elements out of Hell's Kitchen confront and clash.... Stacey realizes the potential danger Kenny could be in by interrupting those thugs and she therefore pulls him away from Santa much against his wishes. Welcome to Christmas in Hell's Kitchen....

But things are not staying at their all-time low for each and everybody: Irene's Christmas is definitely taking a turn for the better when she suddenly hears Cable entering the safe house. And she is even more surprised when she sees he walks right up to her and tells her that he's ready to give her the interview she has always been asking for. At first Irene is afraid that Nathan wants to do this for all the wrong reasons. What if he just wants to get something off his chest? Or what if he just wants to surprise her because it's Christmas? Irene realizes quickly though that none of this is the case when Cable assures her that his intentions are pure and well-meant. By telling Irene about himself, his past and his mission he is simply honouring an old Askani tradition. Besides that after all he has been through lately, and just as important after all he has put Irene through lately, he owes her this as his friend and chronicler. Especially when one also keeps in mind how much Irene helped him in his most recent entanglement with S.H.I.E.L.D.. If Nathan really wants Irene to be his chronicler, if he really trusts here and wants her to be his friend then he will have to give her the information she needs and always asked for. He will have to open up to her and share some of the secrets from his past with her. And on this cold Christmas morning Cable is more than ready to deliver Irene the goods.

But just like Irene had always imagined this is in no way an ordinary 'interview'. How do you ask somebody who has come from the future to talk about his past? How do you ask a man, a mutant, whose has taken it upon him to prevent a hellish future from ever happening, to open up and spill out the beans? To make things even more difficult the interview starts rather awkwardly. Cable assumes correctly that after Irene's outstanding article on S.H.I.E.L.D.'s involvement in some mysterious and dark events recently, Jameson must have offered her a job at the prestigious Daily Bugle. (see Cable #62 for further details) And Cable wants Irene to know that if her destiny is to work for the Bugle then she should take the job even if it would mean that their ways would part.... Irene cuts him off however by telling Nathan that she has not taken a decision yet. It's her dilemma, her problem and her business; she will deal with it in private and when she's made up her mind Cable will be the first to know! But since they were supposed to do an interview which was supposed to focus in on Cable and not her, they could begin perhaps with the task at hand right now? Cable agrees with her and then starts talking for the very first time about his past and his words paint a vivid and almost unbelievable picture in Irene's mind.

The evil despot Apocalypse has been, for as long as Nathan can remember, a constant factor of the worst kind in his life. It's Apocalypse who is in one way or the other responsible for everything Nathan's life has turned out to be. Nathan's very first memories are about a horrendous and fierce battle on the moon where his parents and their teammates of X-Factor were desperately trying to save Nathan out of the hands of Apocalypse. And although they managed to defeat En Sabah Nur they could not prevent that Apocalypse infected the little infant Nathan with an aggressive and deadly techno-organic virus that would have surely killed him under normal circumstances. Medical science was by far not advanced enough in this era to cure little Nathan from that virus and therefore Cable's fate seemed to be sealed.... But just when all hope seemed gone and all seemed lost, suddenly a solution was offered to the desperate Scott and Jean Summers, Nathan's parents. (BTW: actually Jean Grey is not Cable's real mother; she is his stepmother who adopted him so to speak. Cable's biological mother is Madelyne Pryor, Jean Grey's clone) The female warrior named 'Askani' had traveled back to the twentieth century to bear witness to that battle on the Moon between Apocalypse and X-Factor. And although she originally never intended to interfere at any stage or to make her presence known, she realized that she had a job to do when she saw that little baby struggling against that techno-organic virus that was destroying his body from the inside. Askani just couldn't let that little innocent child die without trying the most to save it and therefore she offered Scott and Jean a way out: if they would allow her to take Nathan with her two thousand years into the future their son would have a slim chance to survive and live. As much as they wanted Nathan to survive it was still a horrible decision for Scott and Jean to take. Should they give Nathan away? Should they give him to Askani even if that would mean that they would not be there when he would take his first steps and utter his first words? How could they give him away, how could they possible part from the child which they loved so much? Scott and Jean had to fight their feelings, their hearts and their doubts but in the end one thing solved their dilemma: their love for their son. And with great pain and guilt in their hearts -- if his parents wouldn't have been mutant heroes fighting for good and the sake of us all, Apocalypse would perhaps have never hurt their son -- they did the last thing they could for their son. They gave him away to Askani so that he wouldn't surely die but have a chance to live. Scott and Jean thus made the ultimate sacrifice; they gave up their son in order to save him. And even though Cable has long been an adult now, even though all of this happened years and years ago, Irene can still see the pain and sadness in Cable's eyes when he relives those gripping moments. Something broke in Nathan when he was forced to leave his parents under such circumstances at such a young age and by the look on his face Nathan never really got over it....

And so Nathan grew up in a far away future which was ravaged ironically enough by that very same monster which infected him on the Moon. Yet again Apocalypse's actions had a major influence on Cable's life by making the era in which young Nathan had to grow up in a truly dark age for humankind. Fortunately enough Cable still had some things to cling on in life: one of the few goodies of his youth was that he, against all expectations, could spend an important part of it in the presence of his father and adopted mother. Both of them spent quite some time in the future where they not only raised Nathan to the best of their abilities to adolescence but also helped him to deal with the TO-virus and his powerful manifesting mutant abilities. Unfortunately enough Scott and Jean were not only Nathan's parents but also X-Men and as such they were very much needed in their own era. And even though they loved Nathan very much they therefore had to leave him eventually again.

With their departure Cable entered the next stage in his life when he entered the Clan Askani. For him it was a way to learn, a way to prove himself, a way to fight the good fight and most of all a way to fight the evil done by that madman Apocalypse.. And Cable was right about all that: during his stay with the Askani Nathan really did learn a lot. With their help and support he developed himself into an excellent, experienced and highly skilled warrior and strategist; a true master in the art of warfare. It's safe to say that without the Clan Askani and their training Cable would have never become the man he is nowadays. But just like every coin has two sides Cable also had to deal with something which made him quite uncomfortable: his rapid development into one of their best warriors convinced the members of the Clan that Nathan was the long awaited 'Chosen One' who would lead them to victory over the forces of evil one day. The Askani saw him as some sort of 'Messiah' and there was nothing that Cable could do to change their minds. He simply had to accept their exceptional and excessive admiration and respect for him even though he himself kept saying that not himself, but his mission to one day stop Apocalypse was important. But some things are very hard to change and the Askani'Son found out that this was apparently one of them....

His training and the values and virtues he was taught by his parents, soon came in handy though. When Nathan got older he became more and more determined to change things for the better. And in order to do so there were wars to be fought, engagements to be won and battles to be decided. The highlord Apocalypse had poisoned society with his evil and his forces of darkness could only be defeated by putting up a good fight. And being a true warrior Cable gave it his very best shot. Blood was spilt on countless battlefields and Nathan made sure that Apocalypse's forces received their fair share of blows. But all of Cable's skills and dedication couldn't prevent that he suffered a tremendous loss as well. His wife Aliya, whom he loved more than anything else in life, died after being seriously wounded in a ferocious and intense battle against the forces of evil.

Her death tore Nathan's soul apart, shattered his heart and left emotionally a big scar that would never disappear again. Aliya, the love of his life, the woman who showed him what real love was and the woman who knew him better than even his very own parents, died right there in his arms and there was nothing Cable could do to prevent that. War can be hard and cruel and Cable learned this basic truth in the hard and most horrible of ways.... Nothing would be the same way anymore after her demise and a part of himself died with her for always and ever.

And yet, in some very odd way, there was also some good to be found in Aliya's death. There was a lesson to be learnt here and the Askani'Son proved to be an excellent student. Cable realized that no matter how many battles he won, no many how many enemies he defeated the world would still continue to know a lot of pain, death and upheaval. Cable's victories in the future would not change the reality of the situation that two thousand years from now the world would be bowed down by the dark reign of terror of Apocalypse. The answer to change all that and to end the power of Apocalypse could not be found in the future. No, the only way in which Apocalypse could be stopped in his tracks and the only way to prevent that hellish future from ever happening, was if Cable came back to the era in which he was born. He had to come back to cut away and destroy the roots of Apocalypse's future reign of terror before those roots got the chance to grow and poison society. And so Cable came back to prevent the world as we know it now from turning into a hellish place where life was horrible and death was seen as a relief and an easy way out. Besides that his return to the era of his birth was meant to honour his wife Aliya and to make sure that she didn't die for nothing.

Needless to say of course that Cable had to deal with quite a culture shock when he came back from the future. He had to get used to life in New York City in the twentieth century and he had to adapt himself to the change in environment. It was not always easy and most certainly not in the beginning. But moving to Hell's Kitchen helped Cable a lot because the harsh and difficult conditions most people had to deal with there, reminded him of the importance of his mission and the cause he was fighting for.

An even greater help for Cable was his acquaintance with Stacey Kramer, a native New Yorker who worked as a diner waitress in Babel's. Stacey has always had a positive effect on Nathan and being with her always gave him a measure of peace. In fact Cable and Stacey had developed such an intimate relationship in time that Nathan has even told her that he's a mutant and as such a bit different from other people. And Stacey reacted to this news as a true friend and not at all as one might expect from a person who lived in a society which hated and feared mutants in general. Stacey didn't reject Cable and she didn't push him away. Instead she wanted to know everything about his powers and how they worked. Nathan was so relieved and glad about Stacey's reaction that he openly and minutely told her about the nature of his mutant gifts and the things he could do with them. In his enthusiasm to finally show Stacey his true colors, Nathan might have said too much in this respect to her by mischance. Stacey was apparently so impressed by Nathan's powers that she overestimated them in her hopes for her little brother Kenny.... A few days after Nathan told her about his mutant abilities she approached him when he, together with Stacey and Kenny, had stopped in Babel's for something to eat some extensive Christmas shopping with both of them. It has always been her heartfelt wish that someday Kenny would be just like all those other 'normal' kids. And since Cable has told her that about his mind powers Stacey decided to ask him a favor which perhaps she had no right to ask, but still did so for the sake of her brother. Would Nathan be able to use his mutant abilities to make Kenny normal? Could he do that for her? Could he do it for Kenny? Could he cure her brother from the Down Syndrome which would otherwise always limit him in his possibilities? Cable was baffled but at the same time also deeply moved by her request. He could see that it wasn't an easy thing for Stacey to ask him just like he could also sense how vulnerable she was now that she finally asked him the big question. It's the love for her brother which gave Stacey the courage and guts to ask her friend Nathan if he could do perhaps the unthinkable and the impossible. The hope which glowed in her eyes, the trust in him which shone through her words have made a deep impact on Cable.

But how could he possibly help her with this one? Kenny's condition has a genetic cause and what good would Cable's 'mind powers' do in that respect? How could his mutant abilities possibly change something which was genetically encoded and determined in Kenny's DNA? Nathan would not be able to do anything for Kenny even if Stacey would put a gun to his head.... And to make things even worse Nathan has not told Stacey yet that he has recently lost his telepathy; that means that he can not even link himself anymore to Kenny's mind even if he would try with all his heart and compassion. How can he ever tell that to Stacey however? How could he ever destroy the hope of a woman he has come to like? How could he ever destroy her heartfelt wish and disappoint her? Cable is in a difficult situation here and there doesn't seem to be any easy ways out in which nobody will feel hurt or let down....

Meanwhile in Mexico City the human spirit seems to have overcome the natural disaster which hit the city so relentlessly, in a stirring display of unity and determination. Thousands of rescue workers and volunteers have been busy for hours in a row to save and comfort as many people as possible. Others have been doing whatever they could and have started to rebuild the city wherever possible. It looks like humankind not only defeated but also gloriously overcame the challenge nature had put in its way. Unluckily though things are much, much worse than most of us could have ever imagined at first sight. The earthquake which hit Mexico City was not just a natural disaster. No, in fact humankind could have considered itself lucky if that has been the case. But luck seems to have run out on all of us....None other than Apocalypse himself is around to see if and how mankind would pass this test against nature. The situation in Mexico City was nothing more than an interesting case study, a predecessor of a world to come where only the strong will survive and the weak will be swept away from the face of the planet. En Sabah Nur's dream and destiny are slowly beginning to get formed and shaped and the time in which he will rule the Earth as a depot and tyrant is coming closer and closer everyday. It's time for humankind to be really tested, to face a crisis far more serious than just another natural disaster; it's time to separate the weak from the strong in the mother of all crises and Apocalypse is determined to fulfill his destiny and to be the instigator of that crisis and the embodiment of that final conflagration. Apocalypse is the name and the world will get to know him much sooner than it could ever hope for and much better than it could ever wish for!

Apocalypse.... the same tyrant who turned the future from which Cable came into a horrible nightmare, the same despot whose evil forces killed Aliya, the same monster who infected Cable with the TO-virus, is ready to sow the seeds of his coming empire in today's society. But Cable is not about to let that happen! He has personally seen and experienced how much pain, grief and despair there will be when Apocalypse gets it his way and he is determined to stop that madman in his tracks no matter what. His mission is to stop Apocalypse, to kill him, yes, to burn him completely from the face of existence and to make history forget that En Sabah Nur ever existed! For the sake of all the future generations Apocalypse has to be stopped and Cable is firmly bent on being the man with his foot on the brake here. It's Cable's destiny to fight the good fight against the embodiment of evil and after their clash only one of them will be left standing. If he would die while trying to stop that despot then so be it, he is not afraid to die. But he will make damn sure that 'Pocy will have to pay a high price in each and every case. It's 'put up or shut up'-time and Cable is ready to face the 'Eternal One' in that final and decisive conflict....

The question however is if Apocalypse can be stopped that easily? It's more than likely to assume that he will have taken his precautions and will have set events in motion which would 'guarantee' him that he would survive as the strongest of the strong no matter what.

And this seems to be the case all the more when Cable's mentor, Blaquesmith, is suddenly disturbed in his meditation by none other than Ozymandias, the (former?) pawn and lackey of the highlord Apocalypse! Blaquesmith is surprised and shocked to see Ozymandias so suddenly and unexpectedly intrude upon his place. What could he possibly want? Has he come to attack him? And how come he knew where Blaquesmith could be found? Would that mean that Ozymandias would also know where Cable could be found? That would be very dangerous since it would be logical to assume that if Ozymandias knows this, his master Apocalypse will know it as well! What's the matter here? Blaquesmith is immediately on guard but despite his feelings of unease Ozymandias manages to put him more or less on ease by assuring him that he hasn't come here by order of Apocalypse. No, on the contrary, his former master has casted him out and left him for dead since he had no use for him anymore. The man who has witnessed countless people getting humiliated and judged by Apocalypse now finally knows what that is like out of personal experience.... And that just doesn't sit well with the man who was once a king in his own land. Ozymandias has a score to settle with his former master and in order to achieve that he has come to Blaquesmith to show him something very few people have seen before. It's essential that Blaquesmith comes with him and sees it with his very own eyes for what he's about to see is no less than a warning to all living being on Earth. Blaquesmith doesn't really trust Ozymandias but the urgency and sincerity in his voice are much too real and frightening for this to be a trap, or not? He'll just have to take his chances with Ozymandias since what he is about to show him could be very important. And so a cautious but also curious and alarmed Blaquesmith leaves with Ozymandias to see with his very own eyes what the former king was talking about.

And while Cable's mentor may be well on his way to discover something horrible, Cable and Stacey are visiting the special school which Kenny has to attend. His Down Syndrome will always cause Kenny to have developmental delays and Stacey wanted Cable to see what her little brother has to go through everyday. She wanted him to see how difficult life will always be in some ways for Kenny. She still hasn't given up hope that Nathan will be willing and able to cure Kenny in some way; and in case her words and request couldn't convince him to do so perhaps a visit to Kenny's school, where Nathan could see with his very own eyes how Kenny had to struggle everyday, would do the trick. Cable however still can not make himself break his friend's heart with the harsh truth about the current state of his abilities and so he stays silent all the way home with Stacey and Kenny. How can he bring her the bad news without crushing all of her hopes, without giving her the feeling that he let her down or refused her something? When he's about to leave Stacey and Kenny after bringing them home, he tries to explain it all to Stacey. But before he can truly do so he is being interrupted by the moaning of the poor man who, dressed up like Santa Claus, tried to cheer the people of and give them something of that special Christmas feeling. The thugs who harassed him earlier on the day have seriously beaten him and they have stolen all the money he had collected for the children. The man is in a bad shape; not only because of his injuries but also because he realizes that these are dark days in which very little is apparently still sacred and pure.... And while Stacey dashes off to call an ambulance, Cable is left with that man whose spirit is broken by the evil in the hearts of people. Could this be a harbinger of times to come? Is Santa the first to fall in the preamble to the dark days which lay ahead of us?"

There is a bit of an uneasy silence after that. Both Cable and Irene don't really know what to say after Cable's last sentence. The future may be darker than Irene could ever expect and things could get more difficult than she ever could suspect.... But should that stop any of them to fight the good fight? No, it shouldn't! Cable's mission to stop a madman and thus try to change the future for the better may be a big gamble but then again so's life. All Cable can do is roll the dice, take his chances and make the most of it. After all that's what we all do day after day! There's really nothing more to say to that. And when Cable walks away in the shadows of the safehouse, Irene suddenly makes up her mind. True, working as a reporter for a renowned and respected newspaper like the Bugle has always been her dream but right now there are more important things waiting for her. All of a sudden it hits Irene how crucial it is that someone sticks around Cable to bear witness of this extraordinary man with his unbelievably important mission. If Cable's successful then she can always accept Jameson's offer afterwards. And if Cable is unsuccessful, if he fails and dies trying to change the future in vain, then she owes it to him, his courage and his determination to support and help him and to be there for him as long as possible. He's earned that respect from her and there's simply too much at stake not to help Nathan wherever and whenever possible. There's really only one reasonable thing to do and Irene does just that: she gets on the phone to Jameson and tells him that she can't accept his offer; at least not for now....

After Cable has left Irene is all alone again sitting behind her laptop computer. And looking back at the conversation she just had with Nathan, it becomes clear to her that it has not been easy for both of them. There were some pretty tough questions to be asked and being a true reporter Irene didn't hesitate to ask them. But those questions were only met by some pretty tough answers from Cable. Irene has in fact only just begun to understand the meaning and impact of some of the things Cable has told her. But one thing is crystal clear to her though: just like all of us Nathan is still searching for his own answers, for the best way to live his life and for the best way to prepare himself for his unavoidable destiny. And as such Cable is just as human as all of us. And in the end that's not only all that really matters but also the thing which could make everything Cable's been through worth it....

Epilogue

Not far away from Cable's safehouse where Irene is working behind her desk, most people are peacefully asleep at this time of the night. Everything seems to be alright and normal. But then suddenly wreaks havoc and makes several building collapse on top of each other instantly killing each and everybody inside of them! And in the midst of all this chaos and destruction the silhouette of an unknown person can be seen.... Who can it be? Who would wreak such havoc just like that? And even more importantly: is that mysterious person a friend or a foe of the Askani'Son?

The Good
Yeah, the good.... well, where do you want me to start my friends? :-) It's becoming monotonous to say the same thing time after time but just like the previous issues this issue contained a lot of goodies. It was good to read about the origin of the Askani'Son for a change. A lot of the stories are focused on the present or on his future mission and in all the excitement it's too easy to forget the basics and the past of the man we all like to read so much about. Perhaps the retrospective view was as easy as falling off a log for those who read the book a little longer but for relative newbies as myself it was more than good and a relief to learn a bit more about the Askani'Son. After all you can only understand and appreciate somebody completely if you not only know where he's going to but also know where he's come from, right? And it was good to see what Cable's goal in this era is. All his confrontations with Bastion, S.H.I.E.L.D., Sebastian Shaw or Agent 18 are nice and exciting but in the end they are nothing more than little side-steps. Cable is here for one reason and one reason only and that is to stop Apocalypse in whatever way possible. And seeing how ready and determined Cable is to accomplish his mission successfully, I just know that we are going to see a lot of fireworks when the 'Chosen One' and the 'Eternal One' meet and lock horns!

Besides that this issue had storywise other strong points as well. It was touching to see Stacey asking Cable if he could somehow cure Kenny of his Down Syndrome. It made her so human, so real and so affecting that I could almost touch her feelings there if you know what I mean. And Cable's reaction to Stacey's question was just as gripping: he knows that he can't do anything for Kenny even though he wants to help him with all his heart. But how does he have to break the bad news to his friend? How can he avoid giving her the feeling that he refused her something, that he let her down? Another goodie was the use of Santa Claus in this issue. It's true that he plays a relatively small role but IMHO he can probably be seen as a symbolic embodiment of everything good and pure in Hell's Kitchen. And look what happened to him: he was harassed, beaten down and robbed of the money he had collected for the poor children with such great difficulty.... Could this be a harbinger of times to come? Could it be a warning for the dark times we are about to face in the near future?

Artwise I had nothing to complain either. The art of Jose Ladronn was as crisp and exciting as ever! The cover was great and supported the title of the book in a precise and effective way. The art on page two which gives us a good idea about the people closest to Cable and their relationship to him and Ladronn's rendition of Apocalypse is right on the spot: IMHO he draws Apocalypse in exactly the right way. In his hands 'Pocy is scary, but also impressive and powerful even if he has taken on the look of an Egyptian business man.

All in all a very good issue even if it still left some questions to be answered (see below). But despite that I can heartily recommend it to all of you without any hesitation!

The Bad
'Bad' is most certainly a big word here my friends. This issue left me with some questions but I would not want to call that a bad feature of this issue. No, I'd prefer to say that the creative staff behind the book missed the opportunity to explain some more about the history of the 'Chosen One'. For example it wasn't clear to me exactly why Apocalypse infected the little baby Nathan with the techno-organic virus? If he wanted to kill Nathan then there for sure must have been easier and more direct ways to achieve that? And what did Nathan ever do wrong to Apocalypse? Did the highlord infect him because he wanted to punish Nathan's parents and their colleagues for opposing him? And how come the TO-virus has only infected the left side of Nathan's body? We know now that he wasn't even one year old when he was infected and I think it's safe to assume that at that age Cable's powers were by far not strong enough to keep the virus in check, right? Wouldn't it be more logical to assume that the TO-virus would have infected the whole body of a little and helpless baby? And what was Madelyne Pryor's reaction when she heard that Scott had sent Cable two thousand years into the future? Did she agree with that being his biological mother? Or did she have a major fall-out with Scott because of this? And how come Madelyne never visited her son in the future just like Scott and Jean? And on top of that: is there any bad blood between Cable and Scott? Does Cable hold it against Scott that he sent him into the future with completely strange people? Why is Cable so sad when he talks about his father? Shouldn't he be proud and glad because his father made the ultimate sacrifice in order to save him? And what made Nathan so special that the Askani considered him to be the 'Chosen One'? I know Cable is a powerful mutant but then again so is Rachel Summers for example? Why wasn't she the 'Chosen One' for example? Last but not least: how will Cable ever know for certain if he has been really successful even if he managed to kill Apocalypse? I mean Cable could manage to kill 'Pocy in one particular timeline but that wouldn't mean that Apocalypse would be dead in all timelines, right? The hellish future Cable came from could still take place but then just in another timeline, right?

And talking about Apocalypse: why does he so much believe in the survival of the strongest? Why does he want to sweep all of the 'weak' off the face of the planet? Wouldn't it be much easier for him to rule over weak people than to rule over strong ones who could perhaps effectively oppose him one day? And how can he call himself the strongest of the strong if you take into account that he nearly died in that battle on the Moon?

And what's the story on Ozymandias? Was he really casted out by his master? Or is 'Pocy playing a trick on all of us?

But please don't be flabbergasted by all these questions amigos! Like I said above this still is an excellent issue; one which you really can't afford to miss! :-)

Hope to see all in thirty again! And before I forget: have yourself a merry little Christmas my friends! Hopefully it will be the best you ever had! :-) And I wish you all a swinging, exciting, healthy and happy 1999! :-) Let us ring out this millennium with a bang, OK? :-)

Excelsior!
Rainer Ho Ten Soeng