X-men Supreme Issue #71: Election Day PREVIEW!

X-men Supreme Volume 3: Ashes of Hope is nearly complete! The latest battle between the X-men and the Brotherhood of Mutants has played out in the Kings and Tyrants arc. Now the big election has finally arrived in the world of X-men Supreme and it promises to change the world for the X-men and the human/mutant conflict forever. It was only a few months ago that America had a real election with world-ranging implications. There have been times when Marvel comics has taken real developments in politics and social movements and worked them into their stories. I hope to do the same with the X-men Supreme fanfiction series moving forward.

But the final issue of X-men Supreme Volume 3: Ashes of Hope is more than just the end to this latest installment in this fanfiction series. It's an important building block for the future of the X-men Supreme fanfiction series. I have every intention of continuing this series in another volume. But expect that volume to be very different from the previous three. So far, the X-men have faced major threats such as Cameron Hodge, the Brotherhood of Mutants, the Friends of Humanity, the Shi'ar, Weapon X, the Inner Circle, Shadowking, and the Phoenix Force. A number of those threats will continue to emerge in future stories, but expect threats of a very different kind in the near future. It's going to create a whole new set of conflicts for the X-men and it begins with the next and final issue of X-men Supreme Volume 3: Ashes of Hope! I've prepared an extended preview for all the wonderful X-men fans who have supported this series thus far.

While the Professor and the others were out casting their vote, those that stayed behind remained glued to the TV. It was getting late in the day and it wouldn’t be long before the results started coming in. All day the coverage was mixed between the election and the revelation about Senator Kelly’s son. It seemed every major network was obsessing over the possibilities.

Even though Hank, Ororo, Kitty, and Kurt stayed close to the TV, officially they were still on standby. With Cerebro still down, Hank was coordinating with Tessa to make sure the X-men could respond to any major mutant-related event. So far all was quiet. It was a relief in some ways and a concern in others.

“Your American media is making quite spectacle of zhis election,” commented Kurt, who was sitting next to Kitty while eating an overstuffed sandwich, “Does your country go through zhis every four years?”

“I wish I could say this is a fluke, but even if it was it wouldn’t be a very big one,” said Kitty, who was flipping through various news channels, “Then again, I don’t think there’s ever been an election that involves anti-mutant hate-speech, staged terrorist attacks, and abductions.”

“I think it’s amazing so many people have turned out to participate,” said Ororo, “I was always under the impression that Americans had a problem with voter apathy.”

“Well when you throw the threat of mutant wars into the mix, you can get pretty much anybody off the couch,” commented Kitty.

Looking at images of polls being overwhelmed, it was easy to see how impassioned everybody was. It may or may not be a good thing for human/mutant relations.

“The high turnout has another benefit. We may know the result of the election much faster,” said Beast, who was sitting on a recliner next to the couch working on his laptop.

“Great, then the backlash can begin even sooner,” said Kitty dryly.

“Don’t be so pessimistic, Kitty,” said Kurt as he swallowed the last of his sandwich, “I get zhe feeling if ve haven’t had an incident now, ve von’t have one for zhe rest of zhe day.”

“Your sentiment appears to be well-supported, Kurt,” said Hank as he kept typing on his laptop, “I just got some encrypted signals from Tessa. So far activity on Genosha is staying contained, the Morlocks aren’t staging any attacks, and District X is still quiet. Granted, Jamie Madrox has had to crate a few extra clones to keep wary mutants from acting out, but as it stands now we’re in the clear.”

“That’s a relief,” said Ororo, “But are you sure Tessa can cover everything? Not be skeptical of your new girlfriend, but she’s no Cerebro.”

“Wow, did I just detect some bitterness from Miss Munroe?” said Kitty under her breath.

“Can you blame her? Zhis woman stole her boyfriend,” Kurt reminded her.

It was true. There was some bitterness in her tone. She did try to hide it, but didn’t do a very good job of it. Hank didn’t make too much of it though. He understood there were more pressing matters than old relationship sentiment.

“Tessa is no machine, but she can get the job done,” assured Hank, “Hopefully, we won’t have to rely on her vast brain power for very long. Charles and I are hard at work on the new Cerebro interface. Not to sound too esoteric, but it will be something to behold!”

“Hey, be as esoteric as you want, Mr. McCoy,” said Kitty, “Whatever you have planned, I’m sure it’ll be great. Chances are we’re going to need it.”

“With current poll trends, I don’t disagree,” sighed Hank, “But if Tessa’s tracking programs are any indication, we should be getting the results soon.”

“Zhat’s good news. I don’t know how much longer I can stand vatching American news,” said Kurt, “I miss my CSI reruns.”

“Don’t we all?” sighed Kitty, “That reminds me, where’s Logan? If the results will be coming in soon doesn’t he want to be around to see it?”

Ororo shifted at the mention of her lover. While not surprised by his absence, she still worried about his reasons for running off. She suspected it involved more than just blowing off steam with a casual bike-ride.

“He…had something personal to take care of. Didn’t say what it was, just that he needed to handle it on his own,” the African woman said.

“Personal, he says?” said Hank suspiciously, still having an interest in his ex-lover, “And that does not worry you?”

“Of course it worries me, Hank. But I trust Logan. When you love someone, you need to trust them,” said Ororo, “Besides, you know how he feels about politics.”

“Can’t say I blame him,” shrugged Kurt, “Vhatever it is, I hope it’s nothing serious.”

“Totally,” said Kitty, “With Logan, personal could mean any number of things.”

“And between him and Warren, who knows vhat kind of trouble zhey’ll cause.”

Their sentiment did little to ease Ororo’s concerns. If the past was any indication, Logan’s personal issues could mean something much more volatile. It didn’t always affect the team, but it was certain to affect his relationship with her. This election was sure to cause many changes. They were going to need each other to get through them.

There was plenty of temptation to worry more about Logan. The same could be said for Warren. Then one of the news stations just showed a breaking news message.

“Oh dear, it looks like we’ll have to speculate on those two later,” said Hank as he set his laptop aside, “It looks like they’re about to announce the winner!”

“Looks like it,” said Ororo as she moved in closer, “Better turn it up, Kitty. This is what we’ve all been waiting for.”

“Ugh, I can’t watch,” she groaned as she turned away.

A new message on the TV came up and the image panned onto one of the broadcasters, who made the historic announcement.

“Well it’s official. The latest numbers have confirmed a winner. The next president of the United States is…”

I'm very excited about the future of the X-men Supreme fanfiction series. There are still so many stories that I want to tell and a lot of them will stem from what happens in X-men Supreme Volume 3: Ashes of Hope. X-men Supreme has come a long ways and there is still so much more to come. With all these shifts, it's more important than ever that people take the time to provide feedback. Please post your comments in each issue if you can. If I'm doing something you think is wrong, please tell me so I can correct it! If you want to contact me, feel free to do so at any time! Until the final issue is ready, take care and best wishes! Excelsior!

Jack