The Juggernaut‘s powers have been turned against him, in a brutal nightmare-fuel reversal that threatens a grotesque death for the X-Men‘s leader Cyclops. Cain Marko has the power of unstoppable momentum – as he builds speed, he becomes exponentially harder to stop, even breaking the laws of physics thanks to the magic origin of his powers. Now, he finds himself locked up, and surprisingly unable to charge to freedom.
In X-Men #25, fans learned that Cyclops has been captured by Orchis, and is now the prisoner of Doctor Stasis under the codename Prisoner 10. While Cyclops’ eyes have been sewed shut to nullify his powers, he also exists under constant threat of death: Stasis has revealed Scott is connected to a bizarre trap, where he can be pulled through a small hole in the wall via an adamantium cable and instantly crushed to the size of a baseball. Now, fans see what’s on the other end of that cable.
In a preview of X-Men #27 from Gerry Duggan, Phil Noto, Joshua Cassara, and Guru-eFX, Kate Pryde’s Shadowkat infiltrates Orchis’ prison, only to find Juggernaut – last seen severely injured after his battle with the Nimrod Sentinel. He confirms that while Orchis can’t remove his magical momentum, they’ve made it so that if he tries to use it, Cyclops will pay the price.
Juggernaut’s Powers Have Been Turned Against Him
Juggernaut has come a long way in the last few years – first rejecting his demonic patron Cyttorak and then allying with Nightcrawler’s heroic Legionaries to find a new home on Krakoa. His crowning moment came at the Hellfire Gala, when Marvel’s mutants voted him worthy of membership on the new X-Men roster. However, an instant after the announcement, Orchis struck, and Juggernaut was pummeled while attempting to take down Nimrod. While fans believed he might have died in the fight, it turns out he survived, and is now being used as a failsafe should Cyclops try to escape. However, as Kate discovers in this preview, he’s not the only such precaution, and Scott’s body has also been booby-trapped.
With few mutants left alive on Earth and two such major assets locked up in the Henry Gyrich Re-education Center, it won’t be long before the X-Men carry out a prison break. However, with mad scientists and genius AIs aplenty, it’s not as simple as just reaching their kidnapped members. The X-Men will need a plan to outsmart villains who look at the Unstoppable Juggernaut and see nothing more than the materials for a gruesome deathtrap.
Even Freeing Juggernaut Could Destroy the X-Men
If Cain can be freed, he’s likely to go after Orchis with a vengeance – a situation which poses another problem, given Firestar is currently working for the group as the X-Men’s mole. The information has been kept need-to-know, meaning Juggernaut sees Firestar as a true traitor, and one of the architects of the massacre that ruined perhaps the happiest day of his life. Whether attached to Cyclops or running free, Juggernaut poses a major threat to the X-Men‘s continued survival, despite finally being on their side.
X-Men #27 is available from Marvel Comics October 4.
