The Karma Conundrum part V: The Big Blubbery Brain Breacher's Bee-zare Bye Bye

In the fifth and final chapter of the Karma Conundrum, we're still dealing with New Mutants # 34 and the question on everyone's mind: what's been eating Karma? Or, better put: who's been eating as Karma?

The answer is provided by Magik and Warlock, who teleported into the past to get some answers. It turned out Karma had been taken over by Amahl Farouk, an evil telepath who once fought professor Xavier to the death and lost...Wait, wait, I'll have the kids do the talking, they're awfully good at it...

"I have a plan. And you funnybunny, are the key! Consider it your chance to play the hero."

Funnybunny? Really? Following the masterplan of someone who talks like an eight year old girl just fills me with hope and confidence of a positive outcome. Still, Warlock agrees and they both teleport away to start planning the rescue of their teammates... They'd better hurry though...

"You are the strongest, most stubborn of my toys.
Your spirit must therefore be the first to be tamed."

Man, the mental humiliation shtick is getting pretty tiresome. For a change of pace, Karma temporarily releases Storm so she can speak her own mind for the last time. After Ororo is done yelling obscenities at Farouk, yes she knew who he was straight away, Kar/mahl confirms and reveals the suspicions about how he survived ánd what he has planned for revenge...

Yup, the real Karma is still alive, trapped inside her own body. And after he's done reconfiguring Ororo and the New Mutants, they'll unwittingly serve as Charles Xavier's executioners. He'll never see it coming. A brilliant plan, really... speaking of brilliant strategists...

"I don't want to end up like these mutants. So I accept."

Last time, we covered how Magik allied herself with Karma and now she wants to formalise their working relationship into a permanent partnership. Sealed with a handshake and a kiss. Only, Karma actually wanted to get close so she could possess Magik too. During their struggle, Illyana's light circles quietly teleport Storm and the other captives. How she can do that while fighting Karma? Simple... She's not exactly Illyana.

"Bismallah... You are not human!"

Not human? Look who's calling the pot a disembodied mental entity.

Magik's ruse worked like, erm, magic... and teleporting Karma's victims to Limbo freed them from her possession. Reunited, the team attacked their former teammate who tried to do the whole mind control thingie again...

"Look out, he's nabbed Rahne again"

Yeah, looks like... but when Dani Moonstar used her powers to scare Farouk with his biggest fears, she expected to see professor Xavier again, just like last time. Instead, she manifested an Vietnam war era American chopper raining bullets and death. Which meant one thing: Xi'an was in possession of her own body again. But where did Farouk go then?

Let the games begin...

"Our suspicions have just been confirmed... Farouk is masquerading as one of us. He struck down the child because he feared her wolfen instincts might detect him."

Yeah, that makes sense... Unless you actually stop and wonder why if he was so afraid of Rahne, he didn't hide in her... Instead, he took up residence inside Storm. Or did he?

"Come Farouk... face your slave. Instead of catching her by surprise when she was weak and wounded... let us see how formidable you truly are."

Dems fighting words, Xi'an... unfortunately, all those months imprisoned inside her own mind, had left Karma's mental self as bloated and ineffective as her physical form, as Farouk tried the same trick he did when he was inside her head: pacify Xi'an with all the extatic comfort she could wish for. And she almost gave in too, if not for Storm and the New Mutants who showed up... as bees.

 Yes... truly bee-zare.

In spite of all that, Xi'an finally realises her own innerstrength and breaks out of her self imposed shell in an actually inspiring sequence. Restored and ready to fight, Karma makes short work of Farouk, transfering all the mental bulk she shed to his form and sending him on his way. Shocked, Farouk fled and sought refuge once again on the astral plane.

All's well that ends well, right?

"I will not be his slave... better death than such a fate. Go, my friends... let the flames claim me."

Sheesh Karma, you're such a Debbie Downer sometimes... You just beat an aspect of the Shadow King... Mon dieu, that's reason enough to celebrate. Here, have a cookie, feel better. Or don't, cos, while her astral form shed the pounds, Karma's physical form was still morbidly obese after months of excessive indulgence in food and drink. Which is actually a nice way of showing the kids that victory doesn't necessarily include a happy end... or that there are no prices to be paid.

"You have all earned a rest... and I know the perfect place. An island in the Aegean called Kirinos. There, for a time, you can be happy"

The Karma Conundrum ends with Storm setting up the events of the X-men and New Mutants adventures in Asgard by taking them on a holiday to the Greek island of Kirinos...

And here's where we hit a bit of a snag in regard of Storm's presence in the story. As great a character she is, it becomes clear she's really just standing in for Charles Xavier. The Evil Karma storyline would have worked even better if Warlock had sought out the professor, after all he was the one Farouk was really after.

Ongoing storylines like the second Secret Wars and Charles' injuries after his mugging in Uncanny X-men most likely prevented the professor's presence. A shame, really... Having Illyana betray her mentor to Karma instead of Storm would have packed a real emotional gut punch. And heck, it becomes even more obvious Charles was meant to be there when Storm brought up Kirinos.

She'd never been there, it was Xavier who visited the island after returning from 'the war'. A fact he also revealed back in Uncanny X-men # 117. At the time, that war had to have been the 1950 - 1953 Korean conflict, but by the time New Mutants # 34 came out, it would have been Vietnam.

"I went a little crazy, then I became a nomad, bumming around the mediterranean. Eventually, I came to the isle of Kirinos. The people there needed my help... In return, they gave me the care and love I needed to burn the psychic poison out of my system."

It only makes sense that he'd take his traumatised students there, hoping Kirinos would do the same for them.

Let's see how that went...

"SEE what that devil Farouk has done to me! I am a freak... un monstre!"

... Looks like there's a lot more to do on the island than just burning psychic poison. 

Legion Lost part III: Sole Soul Survivors

In the third and final installment of Legion Lost, the New Mutants and professor Xavier finally come face to face with 'the Arab', supposedly controlling the mind of David Haller, better known as the mega powerful mutant Legion... who also happens to be Xavier's son.

After surviving inside David's wartorn mind, Xavier and his students finally took to the offense in New Mutants # 28, by taking the fight to the  Arab who was living inside the big, black dome that kept on growing and growing. 

According to Jack Wayne and Cyndi, split personalities of David who controlled his telekinesis and pyrokinesis respectively, the Arab was using his control over David's telepathic gifts to influence the young boy in a sneaky attempt to completely take over his mind. That's why professor Xavier was determined to stop him, with lethal force if necessary.

But, how does one penetrate a seemingly impenetrable object? Well, as Douglas Ramsey points out by referencing an old Star Trek episode, and the Vulcan scholar Kiri-Kin-Tha from that same franchise was fond of stating as well: "Nothing unreal exists".

"Thing is, the phasers worked all along. 

It's just that the villains, who were telepaths, wouldn't let the crew see that."

Once inside, Charles Xavier realises Jack Wayne might not have been too truthful about what 'the Arab' had been doing... For one thing, it seemed many of young David's damaged memories had been carefully repaired, giving the boy small fragments of his sanity back. In effect, his ever increasing mental health might be the big black dome that was slowly taking over the ruined mindscape outside. 

So the Arab... Or Jemail Karami as his real name turned out to be... was actually helping him. Karami was part of a Palestinian death squad that attacked David and his mother Gabrielle, killing his foster father David Shomron in the initial assault.

The shock of witnessing this triggered David's vast telepathic powers and he absorbed Jemail's mind into his own, shattering the lad's psyche in the process. But during the time inside David's head, Jemail got a new perspective on the world, renounced his violent ways, and actively tried to repair the damage he had caused...

Which was something Jack Wayne, as a splinter personality, wasn't too pleased with... If Karami cures David, there'd be no more Jack. That was reason enough for Jack to trick Xavier and the others to get him close enough to Jemail to do just that.

The moment he got within striking distance, Jack attacked...knocking out Jemail, Charles and several of the New Mutants. Luckily, Moonstar was on hand to revive Jemail using a subtle form of mind control....

"She reaches out with her psi-talent... praying to the great spirit and her Cheyenne ancestors for help as she uses her power to draw upon Jemail's happy memories to calm and revive him."

With Jemail restored to normal, the different aspects inside David Haller's head finally have a heart to heart. Neither of them can actually leave the boy's mind, that's why they decide to make the best of it and work together in David's best interest... But that's something Charles Xavier didn't realise until he woke up from the coma Jack's assault blasted him into... A good two weeks later.

So, after all this time, Charles finally gets to properly meets his son David. But while Jemail did his best to mend the boy's mental state of mind, part of the 'peace treaty' negotiated by Dani meant that he still wasn't all there. In fact, splinter personalities Jack Wayne and Cyndi were now openly fighting for 'air time'...

"Forgive me, professor. I lacked the strength and knowledge to deal with these psi-selves"

But at least David was communicating again... And father and son had an emotional, heart felt first meeting that also doubled as a reunion in a way. After al, they'd already met back in Haller's own head. At the close of the issue, Charles made a very poignant promise to his son...

"You have my word... I'll never lose you!"

Well, if you can't trust your father, really... who *can* you trust?

Anyhoo, a month later Secret Wars II kicked off and Charles was too preoccupied with the Beyonder to really notice the plight of his son. And by the time the Beyonder left, Xavier had pretty much signed his own death warrant by pushing himself too hard for too long, collapsing in Paris during Magneto's trial (where Gabrielle Haller was present too, who was watching Legion?)

Still, that's why, a short six months after the touching father and child reunion, we get to Uncanny X-men # 200 and this particular scene...

"And we'll never know... if you don't... try!"

Words to live by, Charlie... even if you were in the middle of a fatal heart attack at the time. Unfortunately, after Lilandra and the Starjammers used their advanced alien medical technology to save him, circumstances made it impossible for Charles to return to his son... A boy he never told Lilandra about on panel to begin with...

Xavier remained in space for most of the 80s, only returning to Earth when the X-men told him about the rise of his old enemy the Shadow King...who by then had taken over his son's mind... After Moira MacTaggert forced him in Uncanny X-men # 259  to use Cerebro in an attempt to locate the missing X-men...

"My head... it hurts it HURTS!"

Yeah... If only Xavier had been around to train his very vulnerable telepathic son. The Shadow King took control of the boy and he became the focal point of Claremont's final story arc during his initial X-men run: the Muir Island saga. In the end, the Shadow King possessed David Haller's body and father and son were forced to fight. Charles won, driving the King from his son's mind, but he was crippled in the process.

Still, one has to wonder if things would have turned out differently if Xavier had remained on Earth. For instance, if Charles had been a presence in Legion's life all the way through the modern day, would he have been able to provide a lasting impact?

"In mercy's name, cease fir...*"

Probably not.

And let's not forget what other writers did to Legion after Chris left. Scott Lobdell and Fabian Nicieza used poor David as the impetus for the wildy succesful 1995 crossover Age of Apocalypse. The lonely, hurt young boy woke up one day and figured out why his father was never there: Magneto.

If Magneto never rose to power, his father's dream of mutants and humans coexisting peacefully would come true and 'daddy' would spend more time. David used his latent temporal powers to travel back to 1950s Israel, where Xavier and Magneto first met. He also ran into his mom and this disturbing scene happened...  

"Mother...?"

Those glowing eyes are usually a dead give away mind control is in play... Because this is what Gaby saw...

"Don't call me Charles... Not tonight..."

Urgh, talk about oedipal complex... A son sleeping with his own mother, who he mindcontrols into believing he's in fact his father. But hey, let's not claim comics are formulaic, it's not like the son would plan to kill his father... Right?

"Shakkreeee!"

Well, not unless your father happens to jump in front of the psychic knife you were planning to kill Magneto with... Xavier's death caused the Age of Apocalypse... way to parent, Charlie.

But hey, back in 2012, Xavier got yet another chance to prove himself as a parent when he went off with Legion to teach his son what he needed to know... And right in the middle of that, the Avengers versus X-men crossover went down...

"Father... make it stop..."

Xavier did indeed try and make it stop, by forcing former star pupile Cyclops and the other members of the 'Phoenix Five'  to stand down. An enraged Cyclops finally incinerated Charles, killing the professor and forcing his son to grow up...Legion did just that, scoring the lead in the recently relaunced X-men Legacy. 

And whát a legacy indeed...

Legion Lost Part II: Charles Xavier You *ARE* The Father!

When we last left the New Mutants, they had accompanied their mentor Charles Xavier to Moira McTaggert's mutant research lab on Muir Island. One of her patients, an autistic boy called David, had accidentally put Tom Corsi and Sharon Friedlander into a coma and Charles was asked to help out.

When Moira and Wolfsbane suffered a similar fate before the end of New Mutants # 26, that gave Xavier a lot to do ánd recap at the beginning of # 27.

"Only an extraordinarily powerful telepath has such a capability"

Isn't it funny how intelligent people can be oblivious to the obvious at times? David is the son of Charles' former lover Gabrielle Haller... and now turns out to be a powerful telepath. You'd think Xavier would put two and two together, right? He doesn't... not until he finally, with the help of Mirage, enters the astral plane to look for Rahne and the others. But first, we're treated to this delightfully creepy tidbit...

"WOW! Professor, you look fantastic! I never dreamed you were such hot stuff!"

Here we have a 14 year old girl basically telling her teacher he has a nice ass. Can't blame her for being surprised, after all he was in a wheelchair for most of the time she's known him.

Anyway, while it looks like Wolfsbane is approaching them, it's actually a psychic illusion that tears into Xavier and Dani, before bursting into flame. Meanwhile, in the real world, the flames appear around their bodies, shocking Doug Ramsey and Gaby Haller... right before sucking them on to the astral plane as well. Because... well... because.

Shocked and tired of being toyed with, Charles brings the full range of psi talent to bear and bluntly tears into the walls around David's mind, hoping to break through. This causes the boy considerable pain, and as he cries out, his true face ánd an obvious truth is revealed...

"This is Gaby's secret, the boy sees it in her thoughts and I in his. David Haller is my son!"

No duh, Charles... look at the size of those bushy eyebrows Bill Sienkiewicz drew on the kid... Apparently, it's a hereditary trait. 

After breaching his mental wall, Xavier tried to bring the others into David's mind... but he got surprised by how quickly the boy's defenses were being rebuilt and lost most of them as they tumbled down into his mindscape. Holding on to Gaby, Charles literally came face to face with the people who ran David's head...

"Momma... poppa... help me!"

You have to feel sorry for the little boy on the far right. No way this child is able to deal with the three adult personalities vying for control over his body. He wants to be good, but he can't help doing bad. But now his parents were there to help... unfortunately, they weren't in the best of shape. Gabrielle was unconscious and Charles was still suffering from the severe injuries he received after a beating in Uncanny X-men # 192.

Xavier pushed himself and Gaby into David's mind. But the effort proved too much. He passed out and when he came to, he was alone and a little disoriented by what he saw...

A dark, disturbing amalgam of places the boy had been to, with a mysterious, seemingly impenetrable black dome dominating the scene. Sienkiewicz's abstract tendencies really sold this premise, giving the inside of David Haller's autistic mind a true sense of alienating weirdness.

And that was before Charles even met the many, curious inhabitants... Like a curious telepathic Arabic man and... Jack Wayne.

"The big man's grin is infectious. And in spite of himself, Xavier warms to him"

But it's not like they have too much time getting acquainted, because the mind of David Haller is like a war zone in more ways than one.  Xavier gets chased by black helicopters with gatling guns, and Jack is the first to explain to him what was going on...

"See that dome... that's where you'll find the kid's essence, whatever's left of his true personality. The Arab's responsible for the dome and the military hardware... he keeps the kid prisoner inside."

That's enough to convince Xavier he needs to penetrate the black dome and with Jack's help he sets out to do just that. Meanwhile, in another part of David's mind, Moira McTaggert, the New Mutants and Gabrielle Haller meet the same young Arab that Charles ran across, but Gaby's reaction to the man is rather explosive.

Turns out he was part of a Palestinian terroristgroup that attacked Gabrielle, her lover Daniel Shomron and David, killing Shomron and traumatising the young boy into his current autistic and catatonic state. Ignoring for a second that autism isn't triggered by trauma, it's obvious Gabrielle is more than a little ticked off at this terrorist.

But he disappears before she can catch up with him, just as a young punkish girl makes her first appearance...

"Watch how you talk to m, ladydoc..."

Meet Cyndi, another one of David's made up personalities. While Jack Wayne controls the boy's telekinesis, she possess his pyrokinesis... In other words, she can set things on fire. Heck, in all likelihood her name is derived from 'incendiary', which means 'capable of causing fire. She also has a fiery personality, a typical teenager distrustful of any and all authority figures, preferring chaos over boring, adult order. She's also the one who torched Moira's lab...

But Dani Moonstar has bigger concerns, not to mention questions for Gaby Haller.

"I want to know more about that Arab."

You gotta love how innocent the mid 80s were, in retrospect, Nowadays, refering to someone as 'that Arab' has an ever so offensive ring to it. But here we have Gabrielle Haller, smoking in her astral form by the way, explaining how 'that Arab' terrorist attacked her and her family in Paris. 

Gaby finally decides to come clean about her son. She always knew he was Charles' child and that he had mutant potential. Witnessing the terrorist attack as a young boy, triggered his enormous psionic powers before he was ready to use them.

This caused David to fully absorb the Arab assailant's mental being into his own, which caused his autism and the formation of split personalities like Jack and Cyndi to help deal with a trauma he couldn't grasp at that age...

While Gabrielle is filling in the New Mutants, the professor is getting briefed by Jack Wayne, who has a slightly different take on the Arab's influence on David's mind...

"Imagine... Bein' killed an' then reborn as part of the consciousness of your intended victim.
Ironic, huh?"

Basically, Jack tells Charles that 'the arab' is holding his son prisoner and expanding the black dome to increase his control over the boy's mind. If he isn't stopped, it won't be long before David completely disappears and a murderous terrorist is allowed to run the show inside the head of an extremely powerful psionic mutant.

Handing Charles a knife, Jack dares Charles to end it... If he has the guts for it. Accepting the weapon with grim resolve, Xavier ends the issue with a classic 1980s action movie tagline... "Let's go!".

Just how all this will end is answered in the third and final chapter of Legion Lost: Sole Soul Survivors

Legion Lost Part I: "Charles Xavier *ARE* You The Father? "

Nothing good ever came out of Muir Island.

It's not the fault of the island itself, it's a perfectly decent piece of chilly rock. Mostly, it's Moira McTaggert's fault. After she opened up her mutant research facility there, things took a turn for the worse.  Whether it was Moira's own son Proteus going mad... and deciding to mind and body control his mom while inhabiting the body of his father...

"You're mine, body and soul. Accept that... reality, Moira. You won't like the alternative."

... And let's not forget the Charles Xavier had most of Moira's pupils killed in a desperate attempt to free his X-men from Krakoa...  Needless to say, Muir didn't exactly have a stellar track record when it came to aiding ailing mutants. Knowing this, one would think Israeli ambassador Gabrielle Haller would think twice before sending her severly autistic mutant son David to the Scottish research center. But no, in fact, when she made her first appearance back in New Mutants # 1, Gaby seemed far more occupied with dropping this behind the scenes bombshell...

"Charles Xavier... is the boy's father."

Yeah, but don't tell him that. Just move the boy to Muir for treatment and hope for the best...

And everything seemed fine, until the troubled lad caused all sorts of problems... Especially for cop Tom Corsi and nurse Sharon Friedlander, both former Caucasians who found themselves transformed into Native Americans in the wake of getting possessed by the Demon Bear. They went to Muir to recover and regroup, but didn't exactly get too much downtime.

 "It's an astral form... like the one Professor Xavier manifests! This kid must be a telepath, too!"

He was, and then some... this spectral astral image from Gabrielle's son was so intense, that he put both Tom and Sharon into a mental coma. Distraught, Gabrielle urged Moira to do the obvious but rather unwanted thing: call in Charles to help out.

Arriving with the New Mutants in tow, Charles was totally unaware David's mother was his former girlfriend... In fact, this was the first time readers realised the professor wasn't hallucinating when he fought alongside Magneto to save former nazi deathcamp survivor Gaby from Baron Strucker back in Uncanny X-men # 161.

"Then, I'll have to use all my feminine wiles... to attract its attention"

Yes, the young Gaby from Charles' fever dream turned out to be Gabrielle Haller, a prominent Israeli politician currently working as an ambassador. But the care for her son David had taken its toll on her, which became painfully apparent when Charles and Gabrielle met after so many years...

"It's been so long. You're as lovely as ever."

Gaby is right, Charles *is* a silver-tongued devil. After all, she looks extremely worn down, what, with her chain smoking, prematurely graying hair. The stress from having both a demanding job and a troubled son clearly took its toll.

Speaking of a troubled son, let's check how David's doing...

"Why did you wait so long to call me?! Gaby, I could have helped the boy as I did you!"

So that's why, without further ado, Charles decided to enter David's mind... Unfortunately, he found a bit more inside than he had bargained for. 

  "The thoughts directing David's actions seem somehow alien...
as if there's a portion of his mind that isn't him."

Something inside David that might not be him? Sounds like a proper reason for Charles to go inside the boy's mind. But because he was still suffering from serious injuries received after a near fatal mugging over in Uncanny X-men, Xavier wasn't exactly at his best. That's why he needed a bit of time to collect himself before dealing with David head on... And that left a window of opportunity for Charles and Gabrielle to catch up...

"A telepath can play god. You've no idea how tempting that is. I can change thoughts, twist memories, destroy a personality... erase it utterly...and recreate it any way I choose"

In these quiet moments together, Charles confesses his long hidden guilt about the way things went between him and Gabrielle. After all, she was his patient and after he brought her out of her catatonic state with his mental powers, they became lovers... ignoring the fact he might have subconsciously used his telepathy to influence or even seduce her. But Gaby, chainsmoking Gaby, would hear nothing of this...Even though it seemed clear she wasn't telling Xavier the whole truth about David...

Meanwhile, in the closing pages of New Mutants # 26, Moira McTaggert was finally having a long overdue heart to heart with her adoptive daughter Rahne 'Wolfsbane' Sinclair when they discovered an unexpected visitor...

Ending an issue with a big BWHOOM! of an explosion only raises interest in the sequel, so check back next time for, spoiler alert, Legion Lost Part II: Charles Xavier You *ARE* The Father!" 

Subtle Brooding part II: Embry-whoa! 'tcherdoin' there?

When we last left the X-men, professor Charles Xavier had just woken up from a long, self induced coma... seemingly looking none the worse for wear.

"Professor, you're awake! You're all right!"

If only they knew that Xavier had been overcome by the very reason he put himself into a coma: the Brood egg growing inside him.

In fact, the only reason he woke up at all was the fact the alien embryo had gained control of Charles' mind. As would be revealed in later issues, a Brood zygote had superior regenerative abilities. So if Charles' coma had purely been the cause of a physical or mental injury, it would have cleared it right up. Since Xavier went into a voluntary coma, the fact he woke up with the embryo still inside him was definitive proof the Brood was running the show.

Speaking of the Brood being in control, a few days after the professor woke up, the Shi'ar royal cruiser Z'reee Shar appeared in orbit over Earth to take Lilandra home. But before she returned to challenge her sister Deathbird, a banquet was held on board the vessel to thank the X-men for their help.

Charles was still too weak to attend (which also ensured there would be at least one Brood still on Earth). But the other X-men and their houseguest Carol 'formerly Ms. Marvel' Danvers attended...

"We're among friends, so why am I on edge?!
I keep spottin' traces of familiar scents, but I can't place 'em."

Turns out Wolverine had every reason to be suspicious when Lilandra suffered a seizure halfway during her speech...

Sheesh, looks like the princess can't hold her liquour...

"Your courage does you credit, Cyclops... but your cause is lost."

And Deathbird wasn't kidding. A hidden explosive device took out the entire team, leaving them vulnerable to whatever the Brood were planning...

"Satisfied, clan master Ram'n'ehan?"

That Ram'n'ehan was, and then some... He promised the X-men would serve as host-forms for the spawn of their blessed ruler, the 'mother-of-us-all'. The Brood Queen by any other name... And when they came to in Uncanny X-men # 162, they were decidedly being mind controlled, thinking they were on the Shi'ar throneworld.

"Sleazoids! The Brood... we're their prisoners!"

Chalk it up to Logan's healing factor overcoming the effects of the mind control, but he got brief flashes of what was really going on. His fellow X-men and Carol Danvers were mostly oblivious to the actual reality of the situation, and even his partial clarity didn't save him from suffering this fate...

"Look into my eyes, hear my voice... am I truly so terrible to behold?"

And with that, the corruption of the X-men was done...