The Scott and Jean Archives
The lake has finally frozen over. Jean visits the X-Men for the weekend and they go ice-skating. Warren whisks a reluctant Jean away to “couple skate”. She had hoped that Scott would join them in the activity, but he purposely forgot his skates.
While the rest of his team mates are having fun, Scott sneaks off to practice his optic blasts. He had discovered on the day he accidentally blasted Angel, he “subconsciously weakened the beam” that would have otherwise been fatal. Scott decides to test his control of his powers.
But his test did not go as he had hoped. He still does not have control over his powers.
Scott: “I’ve always told myself there was a higher purpose than mine a reason why I was chosen to possess such awesome power! But what if I was wrong if the professor was wrong and I’m merely the victim of a blind, unreasoning fate A fate that will separate me from Jean from the girl I love forever!”
In a fit of rage, he causes a mini avalanche when he blasts at a hill.
Scott: “No it can’t! I won’t let it! I won’t be alone any longer! I love Jean and I’ll smash anyone, anything that would keep me from her!”
What Scott doesn’t know is that by loosening the rocks and soil, he has revealed hidden secret tunnels once used by the British during the Revolutionary War and now the hideout of the “Super-Adaptoid”.
The Super-Adaptoid had been awakened. He decides to resume his secondary mission to “evolve others into beings like [himself]--and, with them, to conquer the world”.
All the X-Men except Bobby are tired of ice-skating for the day. They decide to head back inside for a Danger Room training session. Bobby is intent on perfecting his skating. He sheds his civilian clothing and performs better on the ice as Iceman. The Super-Adaptoid watches Iceman and plans to turn him into the next adaptoid.
The Super-Adaptoid sneaks up behind Iceman, who is able to defend himself. While the Super-Adaptoid is momentarily frozen, Iceman rushes back to the Institute to warn the X-Men about the attack. But none of the X-Men believe Iceman. Scott who returned after Iceman did not see the robot, only the clothes Iceman had left behind. (The Super-Adaptoid was already following Iceman’s trail.) Scott dismisses Iceman’s claims as well, and goes to change so he can join the others for training.
The X-Men are tired of hearing the Mimic boast about how he is the best because he has the combined powers of everyone, and that he does not need the extra training. A fight erupts between the X-Men and the Mimic. Even Xavier has lost his patience with the Mimic’s “insolence” and “overwhelming ego”. As the Mimic will not stop picking fights with the X-Men, Xavier expels him from the Institute. Cyclops notices that Xavier had to swallow his pride to admit that the Mimic will never be a team player, but wonders what else is troubling the professor.
Xavier is in the lab figuring out how to defeat Factor Three while the X-Men continue training outside. They are attacked by the Super-Adaptoid. Turns out, the Super-Adaptoid was pretending to be weak earlier so Iceman would lead him to the rest of the X-Men. He knocks out the X-Men with sleeping gas.
The Mimic returned to tell the X-Men off, and runs into the Super-Adaptoid. The Mimic agrees to become transformed into the next adaptoid, but changes his mind during the transformation process when he senses he is losing his free will and is being told to “destroy” the X-Men. Having no desire to kill or be controlled, the Mimic fights back against the Super-Adaptoid. He puts up a valiant effort but the Super-Adaptoid soon gains the upper hand.
As a last resort, the Mimic telepathically plants a suggestion in the mind of the Super-Adaptoid to make a “pantographic tracing” of him to acquire all his powers of the X-Men. The Mimic was not able to copy the powers of the Super-Adaptoid because they were artificially created. By that logic, the Super-Adaptoid should not be able to copy the Mimic’s acquired powers because he does not really possess such powers either. The gamble paid off, shorting the Super-Adaptoid’s circuits and depowering him.
The Mimic’s humbling experience makes him realise he does not deserve to have such powers, and is happy going back to being just a normal person.