Storm (5th series) #1

The Storm Sanctuary, above Atlanta:
Storm stands in her new, floating headquarters, dressed in a robe and deciding on her costume. Several larger-than-life screens show her iterations of all her previous outfits.

In the meantime, somewhere else, expecting Storm, a news reporter summarizes Storm’s life to the audience: how as an orphan on the streets of Cairo she was a pickpocket, later, in the rural settlements that border Kenya and Tanzania she was worshipped as a goddess of the harvest. She has been the queen of Wakanda, the regent of Arakko, an X-Man, an Avenger a weather witch!

Finally, Storm opens the doors, dressed in her new black and gold outfit. She walks over a bridge crossing a terrarium full of exotic animals.

Outside, the reporter describes her new home – the Storm Sanctuary. After the fall of Krakoa, mutant acceptance hasn’t been this high, owing largely to Storm’s heroic actions in Oklahoma City. The reporter wonders if Storm will use this opportunity to announce her much rumored interest in running for Congress.

Storm takes a deep breath and steps outside to face the press.

Flashback:
Oklahoma City, seven days ago:
A powerplant explodes. The shockwave flattens buildings in the area. Storm flies in, carrying fellow mutant Frenzy, who fears it will be a miracle if anyone survived. Storm puts her on the ground and announces that this is why they are here, to perform miracles.

Storm notices the empty streets and wonders if everyone is trapped beneath the rubble. Frenzy offers to call in the rest of her team X-Factor to help.

That moment, there is another shockwave and Storm counters its effects with her winds. Then she uses her winds to blow away rubble to help trapped families. Lifting away rubble herself, Frenzy warns of another incoming shockwave. She offers a man her hand but he reacts panicked. A moment later, she sees why. He is wearing an Orchis shirt. Frenzy reacts surprised and hesitates. Storm orders her to snap out of it. They save everyone.

And so, they do. Eventually, Frenzy warns Storm of another shockwave incoming. Again, Storm shudders the air molecules around her to nullify the effect of the approaching shockwave. Nevetheless, a sharp piece of branch impales her shoulder, the universe’s first attempt at taking Storm’s life.

With a groan of pain, Storm tears the branch out of her shoulder and ices the wound. She decides they need to stop the shockwaves. Frenzy wants to get her to medical but in a show of lightning Storm disappears. She flies toward the powerplant, while Frenzy protects the people from another shockwave with a thunderclap of her own.

Within the powerplant, Storm vomits, already affected by the radiation. Nevertheless, she presses onwards to find the source of the recursive destruction. However, rather than finding a failing nuclear reactor, she encounters a crying mutant child at the center, surrounded by the corpses of the personnel.

The young boy cries an apology. He can’t stop himself! He begs her to kill him. Hiding behind a lead security door, Storm gets closer, then hugs him and tell him enough lives have been lost his day.

It’s three days later and the engine, what looks like a huge exotic being, has been found. People are wondering what made the reactor go nuclear. They believe that the engineers had been working with (or on) alien kaiju and are at least partially grateful to the “muties” for saving them. However, the backlash against the engineers for endangering the community has started, leaving their loved ones desperate.

Storm asks Iron Man for his expertise. Afte examining the site and expressing some professional jealousy about the ideas the scientists had, he tells her he ran the numbers. Impatiently, Storm asks how often he ran the numbers. Iron Man retorts he doesn’t ask her how she creates indoor rain clouds. 866,978,225 times. He describes in detail what he did. He is sorry, it’s not something she wants to hear, that the birth of a mutant killed all those people. In the wake of this tragedy mutants are finally looked on as heroes. They are loved. She is loved. But the price has been the reputation of those dead engineers.

She admits, she knew. She just wanted someone else to tell her she was wrong. That mutant child will be hated if people find out. They will be treated as a terrorist. The hate and fear will spread to every innocent mutant in the nation, it will make things so much worse. She has a call to make, he agrees. She continues to stay silent and has mutants have this win or tells the truth to defend the honor of the deceased.

Atlanta, now:
Storm steps in front of a lectern and the crowd. She coughs and is shocked to see she has coughed up blood. She addresses the crowd, introducing herself as former X-Man and future Avenger, as well as introducing her new home: the Storm Sanctuary, a flying fortress. Then she reveals the truth of what happened at the Oklahoma powerplant, awakening fear and hatred in the audience.

Far beyond Earth, however, Eternity is planning to make Storm his mortal host as the Eternal Storm…