Ever since the death of Blaquesmith and my own cryptic dream of a giant clock, I've been trying to figure out who these Twelve might be. All I know about them so far is that it's my job to find them, but how can I find them if I don't know who they are?

According to Askani lore, the Twelve are twelve mutants who will alter the fate of mankind.

I know that, Prosh. With all the mutants in the world, I have to find a way to narrow the list down, though.

Where would you like me to begin?

To start, bring up any previous mentions of the Twelve that I haven't been privy to.

One moment please...

 

When Cyclops was serving as leader of X-Factor, he took a short leave from the team to check on you and your mother, Madelyne in your Anchorage home when you were a baby.

Unfortunately, you were already gone, believed dead after an attack by the Marauders.

In rage, Cyclops used his optic blasts and destroyed the house, which drew the attention of Mastermold. Mastermold identified Cyclops as one of the Twelve, one of the Strong.

I have discerned that it was Tanya Trask, the woman you know as Sanctity, who programmed the identities of the Twelve into the Mastermold unit.

Sanctity? What does she have to do with this?

I wish I could provide you with an answer to that question, Nathan. But the truth is, I don't know.

Sorry. Continue.

Sanctity had programmed the identities of the Twelve into the Mastermold unit. As you already know, Mastermold and Nimrod merged after traveling through the Siege Perilous and became the being known as Bastion. Bastion had this data stored in his computers, and I attempted to hack into it. I was only able discern a small number of these identities.

Bring up their files.

 

Subject: Cyclops

Name: Scott Summers

Affiliation: X-Men Alpha

Powers: Optic blasts

One of the original X-Men, Cyclops has also served as a leader of X-Factor. Following the death of Charles Xavier, and the factioning of the X-Men, Cyclops took over leadership duties of one of the X-Men teams. On the team's first mission, Cyclops had an encounter with a mutant who called himself Payne. This encounter ended with Cyclops falling into a coma.

After he woke from the coma, and after Phoenix had returned to the X-Men, Cyclops formed a team of X-Men to venture into deep space as a favor to the Shi'ar Empire. Following that excursion, which ended with the death of Warlock, Cyclops has fallen into an odd state. He resumed leadership of X-Men Alpha, but on their last mission, he defeated Mark Rogers, a man holding an office building hostage, by unleashing an optic blast that killed Rogers.

I saw that on television. Scott's the last person I ever expected to do that. When we spoke at Rogue's funeral, he told me that ever since Xavier's death, he has been seeing visions of what he think may be the Apocalypse. Could this possibly be a connection to the Twelve?

It's entirely possible.

Prosh, what's the likelihood that my father is one of the Twelve?

Very strong. He was named by Mastermold as one of the Twelve, and his visions as well as his connection to you make the probability of him being part of the Twelve extremely high.

Okay, who's next?

 

 

Subject: Phoenix

Name: Jean Grey-Summers

Other Aliases: Marvel Girl

Affiliation: X-Men Alpha

Powers: Telepathy/telekinesis

 

One of the original X-Men, Jean first came to Professor Xavier as a young girl when she was in telepathic contact with her friend at the time of her death. To prevent her powers from surfacing too soon, Xavier placed mental blocks in her mind. Later, Jean joined his first team of X-Men where she met and fell in love with Cyclops. After being rescued by the X-Men from Stephen Lang in space, Jean piloted the space shuttle containing the X-Men through a solar flare, while trying to hold it together with her telekinesis. Jean's effort, while noble, failed, and she was saved from death by the Phoenix Force. The Phoenix replaced Jean and stored her body in a regenerative coccoon beneath Jamaica Bay. The Phoenix, posing as Jean, took her spot in the X-Men and aided the X-Men and Lilandra in defeating Lilandra's mad brother, D'Ken, from using the energies of the M'Kraan Crystal. Following that encounter, Phoenix became seduced by Mastermind of the Hellfire Club, and this caused her to transform into the Dark Phoenix. As Dark Phoenix, she consumed an entire sun and thus, wiped out all life in the D'Bari star system. She sacrificed herself on the moon, and the X-Men thought that it was the death of Jean. However, the Avengers and the Fantastic Four discovered the real Jean in the coccoon beneath Jamaica Bay. After Jean was freed, she and the rest of the original X-Men formed X-Factor. Following the death of Professor Xavier, Jean's psychic abilities increased greatly, and she has begun displaying the Phoenix avatar as of late. During Apocalypse's last battle, Jean was captured and impregnated by him. She escaped, although we are not certain exactly how she did.

Unfortunately, I had to find out about the baby through other means. I'm still not very pleased at the fact that Jean has decided to keep the child. It's part of Apocalypse's legacy, and it should be destroyed.

It's just a child, Nathan. And, at this point, an unborn one. It's similar to the question, would you kill Hitler as a baby if you had the chance?

There's no question in that scenario for me, Prosh. I would kill him.

Perhaps, but if Apocalypse has no control over the child, who's to say that the child will become evil? You have glimpsed different realities, Nathan. You should know better than anyone how circumstances can affect the outcome of a situation.

Is it possible that Jean's one of the Twelve?

With her recent increase in power, combined with the fact that Apocalypse chose her of all other woman on Earth to carry his child, then I would have to say yes. I should also mention that Jean is an omega-level mutant.

Omega-level mutant?

An omega-level mutant is a mutant who possesses unlimited potential. Jean is one such mutant, as both you and Nate Grey are.

Who's next?

 

Subject: Storm

Name: Ororo Munroe

Affiliation: X-Men Alpha

Powers: Weather manipulation

Ororo Munroe was orphaned at a young age, and she became a pickpocket on the streets of Cairo in order to survive. She eventually returned to her homeland of Kenya where she was worshipped as a goddess due to her mutant ability to control the weather. It was at this time that she was approached by Professor Xavier to join his second team of X-Men in order to rescue the original X-Men from the living island of Krakoa. Since then, Storm has been present in nearly every incarnation of the X-Men, and she has led them for much of that time. She has recently been involved with activities outside of the X-Men, however. She teamed with two other heroes, Black Panther and War Machine, to combat the threat of Al Azziz, a being who was created by Apocalypse. And she also recently took a brief leave of absence from the team for unknown reasons.

Any clue as to what those reasons might be?

I believe it may have had something to do with the Shi'ar and Lilandra, but I cannot be certain.

She wasn't part of Scott's strike force though, was she?

No, she wasn't.

In regards to the omega class of mutants, does Ororo fall into this class?

Storm does have great potential, but it does have a limit. So in answer to your question, no, she doesn't fall into the omega class. She is, however, an alpha-level mutant.

Probability of her inclusion in the Twelve?

Very good. She was named by Mastermold. Add to that the fact that she recently faced Al Azziz, an agent of Apocalypse. And her power is great.

Next entry.

 

Subject: Iceman

Name: Robert Drake

Affiliation: None

Powers: Temperature control

Robert was the youngest of the original X-Men to be recruited by Xavier. Of all the X-Men, it appears that he has been least-dedicated to the cause. He has taken frequent leaves of absence from the team, and tried to pursue a career in accounting. Over the years, he did serve as a member of both the Champions and the Defenders before forming X-Factor with the rest of the original X-Men. Following the battle with the Shadow King on Muir Isle, Iceman rejoined the X-Men and remained with them for a good amount of time. During this period, his body was possessed by Emma Frost, who used his powers in ways he never dreamed possible. After this encounter, Iceman began experimenting with his powers a bit more. Following the death of Xavier, Iceman left the X-Men and struck out on his own. He currently works as a waiter at Harry's Hideaway in Salem Center, and has built a life for himself away from the X-Men. However, he recently assisted X-Men Alpha in their battle against the Brotherhood.

Why would Iceman be a candidate? He's always been something of a slacker in terms of his abilities.

Despite what you may think of him, Nathan, Robert is an omega-level mutant.

Drake is an omega?! Are you sure of that?

I'm positive. He has amazing potential, and what we have seen so far is not even the tip of the iceburg. He was also named by Mastermold as one of the Twelve.

How do we know that Mastermold was right, though? You said that Sanctity programmed the identities into its memories, so maybe she did it just to throw us off.

It's a possibility, I suppose.

Let's just move on.

As you wish, Nathan.

Subject: Franklin Richards

Name: Franklin Richards

Other Aliases: Psilord

Affiliation: Fantastic Four

Powers: Reality control

The son of Mr. Fantastic and the Invisible Woman of the Fantastic Four, Franklin Richards is one of the most powerful mutants in existence. He can bend reality to his will. Due to the amazing power possessed by a child so young, mental blocks have been placed on him to prevent him from accessing the full scope of his powers. After the Fantastic Four and the Avengers sacrificed themselves to eliminate the threat of Onslaught, Franklin took them from death and placed them within a pocket universe of his own creation. Following this, it was also through Franklin that the heroes were restored to this universe.

Can't say that this really comes as a surprise to me. We saw what Onslaught was able to do when he controlled Franklin's power, so it makes sense that one of the most powerful mutants in existence would be part of the Twelve. This goes without saying, but Franklin is definitely an omega-level mutant.

No.

What do you mean no? How can he not be omega-level?

Franklin's power exceeds that of omega-level. He has the potential to be on the same level of power as the Celestrials.

Oath...

Precisely.

Let's move on...

 

Subject: Apocalypse

Name: En Sabah Nur

Affiliation: None

Powers: Molecula—

Wait, stop. Apocalypse?! That can't be right. He's the one we're supposed to be fighting against. How could he possibly be one of the Twelve?

Perhaps the goals of the Twelve aren't as clear cut as we thought they were? Perhaps there's more to this than simply the end of Apocalypse.

But how could it be Apocalypse? The Twelve are supposed to decide the fate of mutantkind.

No one ever said that the fate of mutantkind would be positive.

This can't be right. Why would Apocalypse even be a candidate?

He was named by Mastermold.

This lays even less credence to Mastermold. Now I'm totally convinced that we can't go on the mutants it named as the Twelve. We're right back at square one, now.

Perhaps, but perhaps not.

What are you talking about?

Perhaps Sanctity made an error when she was inputting the data into Mastermold. Or maybe, despite the fact that Apocalypse opposes the Twelve, that may still make him one of the Twelve due to the fact that the battle with him will determine the final fate of mutantkind. Whatever the case, we shouldn't discount Mastermold's theories or Apocalypse completely just yet. It seems that there's more here than meets the eye.

Okay, who's next?

Mastermold only named six of the Twelve. The other six still remain a mystery.

And there's no way we can be certain that these six are definitely part of the Twelve yet... just great.

What would you like me to do next?

Let's run down a list of all possible candidates for the Twelve. Focus specifically on higher-level alpha mutants as well as omega mutants. Try and narrow it down as much as possible with the data we have so far.

This may take a few moments.

That's fine. Let's just get to it.

Scanning...

 

Subject: Archangel

Name: Warren Worthington III

Aliases: Angel, Death

Affiliation: X-Men Omega

Powers: Psionic

Warren Worthington sprouted feathered wings from his back at puberty and used them as a hero known as the Avenging Angel. He was approached by Xavier and joined the original X-Men. During Angel's time with X-Factor, his original wings were damaged by the Marauders and needed to be amputated. The wings were replaced by metal wings given to him by Apocalypse, and Warren used them as the Horsemen known as Death. After being freed from Apocalypse, Warren's metal wings remained, and he was forced to cope with the new change in himself. He became much darker and took on the name Archangel. After much time, his metal wings molted revealing his original wings beneath them. For a time, Warren was whole once more, but after defeating Omega Red, who was currently serving Apocalypse as Death, Apocalypse had Warren replaced Omega Red and bonded his wings with adamantium. During a battle with the heroes, Warren's adamantium wings somehow shattered revealing his current, energy wings beneath. These new abilities appear psionic in nature, due to the fact that the wings are simply a psionic manifestation and not physical, as are the talons that his fingers grow into. These talons and the flechettes Archangel fires from his wings do no physical damage, but instead, they tear through the victim's psyche. With these new wings, he has taken up with X-Men Omega.

Worthington's definitely a strong candidate for the Twelve, I'll tell you that much. Apocalypse has tinkered with him so much over the years that it must've been for a reason. He doesn't use the same Horseman twice, but in Worthington's case he made an exception. And this new mutation Worthington has undergone only further proves that theory. Is it possible that Worthington could be an omega-level mutant?

It's too uncertain to say at the moment, Nathan.

Why's that?

I can't be sure if Warren's latest mutation is due to omega-level potential, or simply due to Apocalypse's genetic tinkering.

Let's see what else you've come up with.

 

Subject: Banshee

Name: Sean Cassidy

Affiliation: Generation X

Powers: Sonic pitch manipulation

Sean Cassidy was a former agent for Interpol and first encountered the X-Men when he was with a group known as Factor Three. He was approached by Professor Xavier to join the second team of X-Men and accepted the offer. Since then, Banshee has been an on and off member of the X-Men, taking frequent leaves of absence. During the Phalanx attack, Banshee teamed with Emma Frost, Jubilee, and Sabretooth in order to locate several young mutants the Phalanx had targetted. Following that encounter, Banshee became the headmaster of the Massachusettes Academy where he remains to this day as the educator of those young mutants he saved.

Banshee's never really been much of a big player in my book. Do you really think he could be one of the Twelve?

He is an alpha-level mutant.

That's true. The skill he's demonstrated with his sonic scream is nothing short of extroadinary. I know that his daughter, Siryn, was never able to come close to his level of control. Let's keep Cassidy on the maybe list for now and move on.

 

Subject: Beast

Name: Henry McCoy

Affiliation: X-Men Alpha

Powers: Strength/agility

The eldest of the original X-Men, Beast was also the most intelligent. Following his graduation from the school, he took a job with the Brand corporation. When burglars broke into his lab, to prevent them from stealing a serum he was working on, he drank it. It caused him to grow thick, blue fur all over his body and made him more beast-like in appearence. Following this, he joined the Avengers and served with them for quite a time. He rejoined his original teammates in X-Factor, and following the attack by the Shadow King on Muir Isle, rejoined the X-Men. He devoted much of his time and effort to curing the Legacy Virus, and was instrumental when the cure was discovered.

Beast is probably the one member of the original X-Men who I don't think makes the cut. His powers don't seem broad enough.

That may be so, but don't you agree that it's more than a little ironic that all of Xavier's original students save for him are strong considerations?

Are you suggesting that Xavier was some sort of prophet and that's why he chose those five as his original students?

It's quite possible. Especially considering the fact that the portion of his power he passed on to Cyclops gives him glimpses of the future. It's definitely something to chew on, Nathan.

Moving on, Prosh...

 

Subject: Bishop

Aliases: Luther Bishop

Affiliation: None

Powers: Energy absorption/redirection (formerly)

Born some 70-100 years in the future, the man known as Bishop was raised on the legends of the X-Men in a mutant version of the Japanese internment camps. He was raised by his grandmother, an elderly man named Hancock, and an elderly man known as the Witness (presumably a future version of the X-Man, Gambit). Following the deaths of his grandmother and Hancock, Bishop and his sister, Shard, were taken in by the Xavier Security Enforcers (XSE)—a team of mutants who eliminated mutant threats. They trained him well, and he quickly rose through the ranks, but remained as a grunt officer, completely content with eliminating the scum rather than working a desk job. When the criminal known ad Trevor Fitzroy escaped through a time portal into the past and brought many convicts with him, Bishop and his squad, Malcolm and Randall, accompanied him. Malcolm and Randall were both killed, and Bishop eliminated all of the criminals save for Fitzroy himself. Following that, Bishop joined the X-Men and fought by their side for a good while. Following the death of Xavier, Bishop formed X-Men Omega, and led them until an encounter with the mutant known as Deus resulted in the loss of his powers. Since then, Bishop has moved to Chicago and established himself as a private investigator.

What do you think, Prosh?

There are two reasons why I think Bishop would be exempt from the Twelve.

And they are?

1) He has no powers
2) He is a temporal anomaly

What do you mean by that?

He comes from the future and therefore, exists outside of this timestream.

So do I.

Yes, but you were born in this present era, which exempts you from being a complete anomaly.

If Bishop still had his powers, do you think he might be a candidate?

Doubtful. The anomaly theory still stands, powers or not.

 

Subject: Cannonball

Name: Samuel Guthrie

Affiliation: X-Men Alpha

Powers: Propulsion through use of forcefield

Samuel Guthrie was a founding member of the New Mutants, and served as their leader for a good while. After you became the New Mutants's leader, Samuel was confident in following and even followed you when you changed the team to X-Force. Following your absence, Cannonball surfaced as the team's leader and proved that he was very capable in that role. After serving with X-Force for many years, Sam was finally given the opportunity to become an X-Man. Although he left the team for a bit to return to X-Force, he did return to the X-Men following the death of Xavier and served as the leader of X-Men Alpha when Cyclops was in a coma. It's also been discovered that Sam is an External, a mutant who cannot die.

Sam has been trained by myself, Xavier, and Magneto. And I can confidently say that he's turned into the best the three of us have had to offer him. Plus, the fact that he's an External means that he has an even greater chance of being one of the Twelve.

I couldn't agree with you more, Nathan. However, despite his power, Sam is only an alpha-level mutant.

So is Cyclops and Storm, but they're strong possibilities. And I've always felt there was something in Sam that I couldn't quite explain, something that always told me I had to focus a lot on training him. This might be it.

 

Subject: Chamber

Name: Jonothon Starsmore

Affiliation: Generation X

Powers: Psionic

The first manifestation of Jonothon's powers resulted in a psionic explosion that destroyed his chest and lower half of his face, leaving nothing more than a gaping hole which was filled with psionic energy. Following this where he was attacked by the being known as Emplate. After Emplate was defeated by Generation X, Chamber joined their ranks. He has been with them ever since, attempting to learn how to control his powers. Due to the fact that he has no mouth, he can only communicate telepathically.

Starsmore is young, but what's his potential like?

He could possibly be omega-level, but it's too soon to tell in his case.

Could he be one of the Twelve?

If Phoenix is one of the Twelve, then it's doubtful.

Why?

Logically, it doesn't make sense to have two psionics in the Twelve.

Point taken. But you can never tell how this fate stuff is going to work out.

 

Subject: Gambit

Name: Remy LeBeau

Aliases: Colonel Remen Leonov, the Witness, possibly others

Affiliation: New Orleans Thieves Guild

Powers: Charge objects with kinetic energy

Adopted by Jean Luc LeBeau, Patriarch of the New Orleans Thieves Guild, Remy was trained in the way of the thieves. He was forced to marry his best friend, Belladonna Boudreaux of the Assassins Guild in order for an alliance between the warring Guilds to be struck. Belladonna's brother, Julien, had other things in mind and challenged Remy to a duel. Gambit defeated and killed Julien and was excommunicated from the Guild in order to keep the peace. He struck out on his own and made a deal with Sinister. He formed the Marauders for Sinister and led them down into the Morlock tunnels when they wiped out the Morlocks. Disgusted at his role in the massacre, Gambit struck out on his own once more, when he ran into a deaged Storm in Cairo, IL. After helping her get away from the Shadow King, Gambit and Storm worked together as thieves and when Storm returned to the X-Men, Gambit accompanied her. He remained with the X-Men for a long time, and following the death of Xavier, joined X-Men Omega. Following an attack on the team by Sabretooth, Gambit left and returned to his own life in New Orleans. His father, Jean Luc, was killed by Bullseye and after Gambit brought the killer to justice, he became the Patriarch of the Thieves Guild.

What's LeBeau's potential?

It is very high.

What is it?

He may possibly be omega-level.

He's never displayed anything remotely near that degree of power.

It's there, but it seems that there has been some genetic tinkering that may have hampered his powers.

Could that be related to his experience with Sinister?

I would say it's a very strong possibility.

What's the possibility of him being part of the Twelve?

Very low.

Why do you say that?

In the future, Gambit will become the Witness. That very name alone implies that he will witness something. Bishop assumed it was the deaths of the X-Men, but perhaps it's the Twelve? Make no mistake, Gambit will play a role, just not a direct one.

 

Subject: Havok

Name: Alex Summers

Affiliation: None (Presumed deceased)

Powers: Converts cosmic rays into plasma blasts

Alex Summers is the younger brother of Cyclops. He first encountered the X-Men when he was kidnapped by the Living Monolith. Following that, he took on the name Havok and joined the X-Men. He remained an on-again, off-again member of the team until he ventured through the Siege Perilous. When he returned, he became Genoshan Magistrate until the X-Men convinced him of who he truly was. Following the Genoshan conflict, Havok became the leader of the government's X-Factor, where he remained until he was taken to the Dark Beast by his former teammate, Random. The Dark Beast twisted Havok's perceptions and made him into an agent for him. Havok broke free from McCoy's mind control and formed a new Brotherhood, whose goal was to defeat the Dark Beast. Havok attempted to reform X-Factor following his skirmish with the Dark Beast, but a plane carrying him exploded. Recently, a new Alex Summers emerged, but it was revealed that this Summers is an evil counterpart from an alternate reality. He is currently allied with the Brotherhood and goes by the name of Prelate.

I guess that means Havok's officially out.

Not necessarily.

If he was blown up, we can't really use him, now can we?

Stranger things have happened in the past, Nathan.

Assuming that my uncle is one of the Twelve, would we be able to substitute Prelate?

That is a possibility, but why would Prelate want to stop Apocalypse? In his reality, he worked for Apocalypse.

In that case, we better hope that Alex Summers isn't on the list.

 

Subject: Joseph

Name: Charles Lehnsherr

Aliases: Magneto

Affiliation: X-Men Omega

Powers: Creation of magnetic fields

Born in an alternate reality ruled by Apocalypse, Charles Lehnsherr is the son of that reality's Rogue and Magneto. He came to this reality through the M'Kraan Crystal where he was raised by the woman known as Astra. During the Onslaught skirmish, he was discovered with no memory of his past or who he was and was assumed to be an amnesiac Magneto somehow deaged. Believing he was Magneto, Joseph joined the X-Men to atone for his past sins. When the true Magneto resurfaced however, Joseph fought him in battle and sacrificed himself in order to repair the Earth's magnetosphere. Recently, he was resurrected by the mutant called Deus and discovered his true origins. He has since joined X-Men Omega.

He does have power that possibly rivals that of his father's.

Yes, but he cannot be one of the Twelve.

Why do you say that?

Like Bishop, he's a temporal anomaly. Joseph does possess possibly omega-level powers, but he wouldn't be a candidate for the Twelve. Instead, it would be...

 

Subject: Magneto

Name: Erik Lehnsherr

Aliases: Erik the Red, Magnus

Affiliation: Acolytes, Fallen Angels

Powers: Creation of magnetic fields

A victim of the Holocaust, Erik Lehnsherr watched his entire family wiped out. Following the war, he and his wife, Magda, moved into a small town with their daughter, Anya. However, once the townspeople discovered that Erik was a mutant, they burned his house down. Erik was only able to save himself and his wife, but he was unable to save his daughter. Outraged, he destroyed the town and everyone in it. Magda, fearing her husband's rage, left him, never telling him that she was pregnant with twins. Later in life, Erik met Charles Xavier in Israel and the two held a longstanding friendship. However, Erik felt that mutants should rule and the end result was a falling out with Xavier. Erik then became Magneto, a frequent foe of Xavier and the X-Men. Recently, Magneto was given control of the island of Genosha by the United Nations. From there, he operates his own terrorist organization, a group of former students of Xavier's called the Fallen Angels.

Magneto. Why am I not surprised?

He is truly one of the most powerful mutants on the face of the planet, Nathan. There's a very strong possibility that he's one of the Twelve. Like his son, he possesses powers that are possibly omega-level.

Magneto has no lost love for Apocalypse, either. If we need his assistance, we shouldn't have any trouble in getting it.

 

Subject: Namor

Aliases: Namor McKenzie, Sub-Mariner

Affiliation: Defenders

Powers: Strength, endurance, flight, breathe underwater

The son of a human and an Atlantean, Namor was the first mutant to reveal himself to the world. He is the ruler of the undersea kingdom of Atlantis. During World War II, he fought alongside Captain America and the original Human Torch as a member of the Invaders. In modern times, he waged war on mankind for the damage they did to his oceans. He was defeated by the Fantastic Four on several occasions, and eventually ended his war on humanity. He has served as a member of the Avengers in the past, but he has returned to the team he helped form, the Defenders.

There's something about Namor that always rubbed me the wrong way. I think there may still be some speculation as to if he's a mutant or not.

According to my data Nathan, Namor is most-certainly a mutant.

I dunno about this one, Prosh. There's something about him that just doesn't add up.

We cannot discount his possible involvement, however.

 

Subject: Psylocke

Name: Elisabeth Braddock

Aliases: Captain Britain, Kwannon, Lady Mandarin

Affiliation: X-Men Omega

Powers: Telepathy, shadow manipulation

The sister of Captain Britain, Betsy is a British-born mutant who possesses powerful telepathic abilities. She served as Captain Britain for a time, and joined the X-Men following the Morlock massacre. After Psylocke traveled through the Siege Perilous, her mind was placed in the body of Kwannon, a Japanese assassin for the Hand and she became the unwitting pawn of the Mandarin. She was rescued by Wolverine and Jubilee and returned to the X-Men. In the body of Kwannon, Psylocke is everything she ever wanted to be — beautiful and deadly. After she was brought to the brink of death by the mutant known as Sabretooth, Psylocke's life was saved by the mystical energies of the Crimson Dawn, which placed a red mark above her left eye and granted her the ability to control shadows. Following the death of Xavier, she joined X-Men Omega, but the Crimson Dawn aspect of her powers makes her teammates weary of her.

You said that it's not very likely for there to be more than one telepath in the Twelve, right? So that means Psylocke's out.

Not if Phoenix or Chamber are out. She still remains a strong possibility.

She's nowhere near Jean's level of power though, is she?

No, Psylocke is only an alpha-level mutant at best.

What about her shadow powers?

That has nothing at all to do with her mutant abilities.

So how do you explain them?

Those powers are a result of her exposure to the Crimson Dawn. Nothing whatsoever to do with her natural mutation. Just as her Asian body has nothing whatsoever to do with her natural mutation.

 

Subject: Rogue

Name: Rosemarie Charleston

Aliases: Carol Danvers

Affiliation: None (Presumed deceased)

Powers: Memory/power absorption, flight, strength, invulnerability

Rosemarie's father abandoned her and her mother when she was a young girl, and her mother would routinely subject her to abuse throughout much of her life. This forced Rosemarie to build up blocks around her mind, and it constantly left her mutant power to absorb the memories and abilities of she came into contact with on. She ran away from home and was taken in by Raven Darkholme, the mutant known as Mystique. Taking on the name Rogue, she fought alongside Mystique's Brotherhood and permanently absorbed the powers and memories of Carol Danvers, the Avenger known as Ms. Marvel. Following that, Rogue joined the X-Men to try and control her powers. She remained with the team for many years and joined X-Men Omega after the death of Professor Xavier. When she finally confronted her past, Rogue gained control over her powers. In a recent battle with the Apocalypse Dawn, Rogue was killed by Alastaire, the leader of the Dawn.

Nice try, Prosh. But as your data proves, she's dead. Move on.

 

Subject: Rachel Summers

Aliases: Phoenix

Affiliation: None

Powers: Telepathy/telekinesis, time travel

The daughter of Cyclops and Phoenix in a possible future, Rachel's era is one under Sentinel rule. She traveled back through time to the present, and she became embodied with the Phoenix Force. She was a member of the X-Men for a time, and then left with Nightcrawler and Shadowcat to form Excalibur. In order to save Captain Britain, Rachel switched places with him and traveled 2,000 years in the future, where she formed the Askani alongwith Sanctity and Blaquesmith in order to stop Apocalypse. She became the Mother Askani and eventually traveled back in time to the present in order to stop Apocalypse once and for all. However, this failed, and she was restored to a youthful body through your efforts.

It's not possible.

Why do you say that?

Go by what you said to me earlier, Prosh. First off, this would make four psionics, counting Chamber. Second, like Bishop and Joseph, Rachel is a temporal anomaly.

I think you're cathing onto this, Nathan.

 

Subject: Warp Savant

Name: Unknown

Affiliation: None

Wait, stop. Who the hell is Warp Savant?

I'm... not sure.

You've got a file on him and you don't know who he is?

Strangely enough... yes.

Why would that be?

I did a search of all alpha-level mutants who could possibly be connected to the Twelve in some form. For some reason, he came up.

Could he be one of the Twelve?

Possibly, but for some reason, all I'm able to discern from him is that he's a high-level alpha mutant and calls himself Warp Savant.

That's... odd...

Shall we simply move on?

Yeah... that sounds best...

 

Subject: Wolverine

Name: Logan

Aliases: Patch, Weapon X

Affiliation: X-Men Alpha

Powers: Healing factor, heightened senses, retractable bone claws

Born to a Native American tribe, the man whose only name is Logan has fought through many hardships in his life. In his time, he has been a samurai in Japan, an agent of LLL&L, a soldier for both the Allies and the Axis, and an agent for the Canadian government. His skeleton was bonded with adamantium by the mysterious Weapon X project, and they also gave him memory implants to prevent him from figuring out the truth to his past. He joined the X-Men at the request of Professor Xavier, and has served with them ever since. In a battle with Magneto, his adamantium was magnetically leeched from his skeleton. Recently, Logan uncovered the truth of his origin, but has also discovered that the Shadow King used him as a pawn during World War II.

With everything Logan's been through over the years, you would think that would make him a natural candidate for the Twelve.

Especially since he defeated a being known as the Destroyer.

But, despite his determination and his deadliness, I doubt that Logan is one of the Twelve. It seems like the same situation with Beast, if you ask me.

I don't think we should fully discount him yet, though.

Okay, who else is left?

 

Subject: X-Man

Name: Nate Grey

Aliases: Nathan Summers

Affiliation: None

Powers: High level psionics

A refugee from an alternate reality ruled by Apocalypse, Nate Grey was created when Sinister combined the genetic material of Scott Summers and Jean Grey. Taken under the wing of the mutant known as Forge, Nate defeated his reality's version of Sinister, and also helped with defeating Apocalypse. However, in the final hour, Nate was transported to this reality through the use of the M'Kraan Crystal. A stranger in a strange land, Nate has only recently begun to accept his role in this world, and he has recently bonded with this reality's version of his "parents" - Cyclops and Phoenix.

Thoughts, Prosh?

I believe you and I are of one mind on this, Nathan. It's impossible for the X-Man to be one of the Twelve. He is, essentially, an alternate reality version of yourself and your role is that of the Gatherer.

Still... I can't shake this feeling that he might have some role in this...

An interesting theory is posed, however.

What's that?

How do we know that the Gatherer is not one of the Twelve?

.....

Nathan?

I don't think there's any way to answer that, Prosh.

Then the question remains, how do we know who the Twelve are?

...I don't have an answer for that, either.