Cypher rode Warlock as a skateboard across the high-rise roads of the futuristic metropolis. Arbitrators wearing uniforms that resembled the New Mutants black & gold uniforms were chasing after him in a hover car. However, they veered off the road and Warlock swooped to catch them. Warlock carefully set them back down and Cypher left a graffittied message saying that Humans Are People Too!Across town at Heroes Plaza, Mirage looked up at a statue of herself. She was lost in thought about knowledge of how & when she was going to die when Cannonball arrived to comfort her. Later, she stole supplies from a hospital, but was caught by arbitrators as she left the building. They were surprised by her uniform underneath her trenchcoat, and caught off-guard by her mutant powers. She managed to escape ,but lost the medical supplies. Cannonball drove them both Downtown where the regular humans lived in abject poverty underneath the glittering towards of the rich mutant society. When they saw a couple of arbitrators stealing a mutant child from it's family, they were forced to intervene, save the parents, and scare away the arbitrators. However, they were suddenly joined by a superhuman who had a rainbow streak flying behind them. When they landed inside, they addressed her as Julie Power, but it was in fact her younger sister Katie. However, as this was in a distant future, Kate was an overweight elderly pensioner. She led them away to somewhere more private to exchange stories.
Uptown, the Chief Arbitrator was informed of everything that had transpired. The shadowy figure of the Chief Arbitrator change his tone when he saw the faces of the New Mutants and declared that he would deal with the matter personally.
Miles below in the Downtown, Cannonball & Cypher passed out rations to the humans, while Warlock entertained the children with comical faces. However, Mirage's Valkyrie gift meant that she could see the death image surrounding many of the malnourished & sick children. She couldn't understand why the mutants did nothing, and was visibly angry when Kate Power told her that they just didn't care. They were then joined by members of Kate Power's New Mutant Bratpack, including a Native American with white feathery wings called Archangel who Mirage was instantly smitten with. They helped to spread rations and cheer among the humans while Kate explained what had happened to society. Humans were used for menial and base chores, but weren't allowed to enter the mutant upper society. Kate was considered as a pied piper, luring mutant children away to help the humans.
Suddenly the food truck exploded, and Arbitrators began to fire among the human population. During the fight, the New Mutants noticed that Kate was using the super human abilities of all of Power Pack. However, they were soon fenced in by volcanic blasts. Warlock merged with Cypher to protect him. They were finally captured when Sunspot jumped on top of Cannonball, forcing him out of the air.
Magneto recalled the horrific events of his childhood in a Nazi concentration camp. He was buried alive, and as he burst out of the ground gasping for breath he woke screaming from his nightmares. He poured himself a drink, but as he thought about the offer to join the Hellfire Club he threw his glass at the mirror.
In the future, Kate and the New Mutants were held in an energy field. The Chief Arbitrators entered the room, and the New Mutants were shocked to see grown versions of Magma & Sunspot. Mirage & Sunspot argued; she refused to believe they were the leaders of this society, and he insisted it was the ideal drea. After Magneto joined the Hellfire Club, mutants rose to superiority. Magma & Sunspot endorsed the 'culling search' to snatch children from their families.
Warlock was still hidden inside Cypher. A tiny strand of Warlock reached out threw the containment field and bit threw the power cable. The energy field dropped and the New Mutants fought for their freedom. Kate Power blasted a hole in the window, but the others inststed that she make a run for it to lead her New Mutant Bratpack against the Chief Arbitrators. As she flew away, Kate promised to make a difference for her brothers, sister, best friend and everyone else who had died because of mutant supremacy.
The New Mutnats were soon secured by the arbitratoris. Seeing that their young friends would remain defiant, Sunspot ordered mutant-psis with telepathic powers to modify the New Mutants' memories. He threatened that they would come to accept his mutant metropolis and thank him for it.
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