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Provide a full summary of the comic book.

[Assistant]
1st story: Paper Skin
1st story:
His name is Remy LeBeau. Though these days, most people know him as Gambit. He was an X-Man… one of the good guys. He was a good mutant fighting for good things. ‘Course, that went against his nature. You see, Remy is also a thief, through and through. And it was only a matter of time before he stole from the X-Men, too.
Remy gives his life to the cards. There was enough chance in them to keep things interesting. And also, enough structure to take away responsibility. But they are not enough… not anymore. Now, the cards are just brightly colored pieces of paper. So much more, so much less. Remy just wants one card right now. There’s only one card that can rule his soul: the Queen of Hearts. He knows what he has to do.
Westchester, Xavier’s, nighttime…
Rogue sleeps tightly in her bed. It’s been a while since she had a good night’s sleep, and tonight won’t be any exception. She wakes up, and finds Gambit waiting for her! Startled, Rogue can’t believe Remy has the nerve to come back to the school after all the things he has done. Remy defends that he doesn’t have any nerve: he just got love. Love for her. Rogue attacks Gambit, shouting that he doesn’t have any love except for his own greed. She wants to know how Remy could do it to the team. How could he steal Cerebro’s files and hand them over to outsiders?!
She doesn’t understand that, after all the things the X-Men have done for Gambit, after all he meant to them, he still stabbed them in the back. Gambit claims he had his reasons. Rogue doesn’t buy that, confident that she should kill the Cajun where he stands. Remy doesn’t think she will, and takes out… a wedding ring! Gambit wants Rogue to be with him, and marry him. Rogue is speechless.
Gambit defends that Rogue can’t be responsible for the rest of the world. None of the X-Men can be. She deserves to be happy! Remy wants Rogue to come with him, as they can be happy together. Rogue wants to know how Remy can be so… cruel. He knows that she can’t ever touch his bare skin without hurting him and absorbing his memories and powers. She refuses to risk hurting him like that… or wipe him like that. She cries, and tells Gambit to go away. He does.
Later, at the secret lair of Mr. Sinister…
Sinister is aware that Gambit proposed to the woman he loved, but she didn’t accept. He isn’t surprised. He’s confident that Rogue will never want to have any part of Remy, as she knows her curse and imperfection. She has no hopes or dreams. Sinister asks Remy why he would think Rogue would want him when she is already wet to her own misery. Gambit tells Sinister that he knows the villain believes he knows everything. Sinister defends that’s actually the truth and, with an evil look on his face, claims that he will always know everything as well.
Gambit laughs at that. He wonders if Sinister knows so much, he wouldn’t need all those files from Cerebro. Sinister defends that he’s merely a connoisseur of information, like a collector. And, after all, absolute information is absolute power. And the quality of the information Gambit has provided him these past few months are quite exquisite. They were also well worth the exorbitant fees the Cajun demands. There’s just one more thing Sinister needs. But Gambit refuses to work for Sinister any longer. He just wants to be paid so that he can move on. He takes out his staff and charges up a playcard, and threatens Sinister to give him his money this instant.
Sinister isn’t impressed, and tells Gambit to put his toys away. He explains that one element of the cure for the Legacy Virus will be downloaded this evening onto SHIELD’s mainframe as well as into Cerebro, like they agreed to do. Gambit thinks that’s good. He takes off, wishing he could say it was a pleasure working for Sinister, but then he would be lying. Sinister still has one more thing to say to Gambit: he has the cure for Rogue’s condition!
An even more secret room in Sinister’s lair…
Sinister explains to Gambit that in this room, he holds his most priceless possessions. He found the first one more than thirty years ago, hidden in obscurity, beneath an archeological dig in India. The others were harder to find. They were lying under an ancient burial ground, beneath hundreds of Arctic ice. Many men died trying to possess the item of course, but naturally, Sinister survived. He hands Gambit over a box.
Remy is confused, as it’s just a… Tithe Box. And there isn’t anything remarkable about Tithe Boxes. Sinister claims that there’s more to the Box than meets the eye. He knows that it holds knowledge unfathomable by mere humans… or mutants. These Boxes have already brought Sinister an incredible amount of knowledge, but he wants more. He has located the last Tithe Box as well, but doesn’t have it in his possession just yet. He wants Gambit, the finest thief in the world, to bring it to him. In exchange, Sinister promises to give Gambit what his heart has always desired but could never acquire: his precious Rogue.
Later…
Gambit opens a sewer hatch nearby the Baxter and Chrysler Buildings. He wanders around it, but gets hold up by a security fence. He charges up a playcard and throws it against it, destroying the fence. He smiles. He enters a big room, which is home to surviving Morlocks! Remy remembers Sinister’s words to go to the Morlocks’ so-called Forgotten Stone City. There, he finds another tunnel and jumps down into it. As he lands, he notices that the tunnels go even deeper, and finds lots of Morlocks praying in front of a stone statue on which the Box lies.
Remy takes a closer look at the Morlocks, and wonders what horror could birth this world that it would create such horrible looking people. This is like a bad dream. Gambit even believes that, maybe, he is finally in over his head. He wonders if he shouldn’t just go back and forget about it all. But then he remembers Rogue, and realizes that if he leaves he’ll never have her. And besides, nobody said that live lasts forever.
Gambit jumps down to the Statue and takes the Tithe Box, but the Morlocks of course spot him and start defending themselves. Gambit uses his powers to make a free way out for himself. But then, he bumps into… Rogue?! Rogue explains that she was following Gambit down here, and now wants that Box and whatever’s inside it. Gambit explains that he needs the Box, as it carries inside what he wants – what both he and Rogue want. Rogue can’t believe Remy is still working for Sinister, who she sees as the devil. Gambit smiles that the devil has what they both want. He moves closer to her body, and makes a passionate smile on his face.
Rogue, in pain, tells Gambit to stop doing that as it’s killing her. She just wants the box so she can give it to the Professor, confident that he’ll know what to do with it. Gambit refuses to do this, claiming that this is none of Xavier’s business. He charges up some playcards again and throws them at the ceiling, which starts to collapse on Rogue, giving hem the chance to escape! Rogue can’t believe Remy just did that. Gambit is confident that she can handle it, seeing all the super-strength she has. After all, she is a hero. Rogue shouts at Gambit not to go back to Sinister, thinking he doesn’t know what he’s getting into. But Gambit ignores the warning and takes off.
Gambit climbs out of the sewers, realizing he has betrayed Rogue once more. He doesn’t get that all this drama can come out of this small, stupid box he’s carrying. He also wonders why Sinister has gone through so much trouble to get his hands on it. He wants to know what secrets it could possibly hold. Remy wants to take just a little peak into it, but remembers Sinister’s exact words not to do that. Sinister shows up behind Gambit, promising he’ll lose everything he holds dear if he opens that box. Gambit realizes that, and this will be something even he won’t risk doing. Besides, if he wants, he can always steal it back later from Sinister.
Sinister orders Gambit to hand the box over to him this instant. He does so. Sinister congratulates the Cajun, telling him he has earned his fee and more. He shows him a fluid, explaining that it will cure Rogue of her absorbing powers. After drinking the fluid, she will be able to control them. She will be able to touch any human without absorbing their memories and personalities, at least, unless she chooses to. Gambit wonders if what Sinister is saying can all be true. But, Sinister has already vanished from sight. Remy isn’t surprised.
On that moment, Rogue angrily flies through the ground beneath Gambit, ready to attack him! Gambit loses his balance and almost drops the fluid, but luckily Rogue catches it. She demands to know what it is. Remy tells Rogue that she looks very beautiful right now, almost like a goddess. But Rogue doesn’t want to hear any of those words. She demands the truth, as she thought she and Remy were friends who cared for each other. Gambit explains that the fluid will cure Rogue, but she doesn’t believe that. She thinks Remy loves her so much Remy is willing to so easily believe Sinister’s possible lies.
Later, in a small hotel room…
Gambit tries to explain everything to Rogue, like why he worked for Sinister and did what he did. At first, he reveals, it was just a way to acquire a key to the cure towards the Legacy Virus. Remy thought that a few small betrayals would be outweighed by the good it could do for the entire world. Remy swears that he was going to stop after that. But then, Sinister wanted one more thing. Rogue realizes that Sinister wanted the Tithe Box for a vial of promises. She reminds Gambit that he doesn’t know what was inside that box, as he could have handed Sinister over the means to destroy this entire planet. All of his good intentions would have been for nothing.
Remy is confident that everything can still work, as he lo...! Rogue shushes him. She walks away, telling Gambit he was a fool for believing Sinister. Gambit doesn’t think it matters if it was right or wrong. He believes that all that matters are he and Rogue. He knows they don’t have anything to lose. They could keep on loving each other and never doing anything about it, or they could take the chance, no matter how small it is. Rogue realizes that Remy won’t listen to reason. She is determined to prove to him that Sinister can’t be trusted.
Gambit tells Rogue that if she can’t trust in the love he has for her, there is no point into all of this. He tells her goodbye. Rogue asks Gambit to wait, having one last plan that will be the only way to make him see the error of his ways. Rogue takes the fluid, thinking that if she’s right about her suspicions, Remy will finally believe her, and if she’s wrong, they will finally be together. She drinks it. They both share a kiss, but then, Gambit collapses!
Sinister’s lair…
Sinister walks down some stairs, and remembers the day he opened the first Tithe Box. He admits he was quite horrified. He also believes that any lesser man would have been crushed by the knowledge he discovered, as he learned the awareness of how the fabric of reality was truly shaped. But he smiles that he has always been better than all the others. The knowledge merely strengthened him, and given him the resolve to do what’s necessary.
Sinister walks towards the floor, where a big golden star is painted on and candles are placed around it. But he does wonder if all his machinations have been worth it. He wonders if the knowledge he has gained will set him free from his current state of slavery. He wants to know if he will finally gain free will. P>
He places the box on the star and, now, everything has been put into its place. Sinister tries to open the box, but then, a charged up playcard flies right next to his head! An angry voice calls out to Sinister, shouting that he has lied and that the fluid didn’t work. It’s Rogue! And her kiss with Gambit killed him. All that’s left of him is now trapped into her soul. And now, she wants to make sure that Sinister will never toy with anyone’s life ever again. Sinister smiles that Rogue will always be toyed with.
She wants to know what he is talking about. Sinister calls Rogue a toy. And he even calls himself a toy. He believes that everyone on this world is a toy. He believes that’s how it’s written… now and forever. It’s what they made them. Rogue wants to know who “they” are. Sinister reveals that he betrayed Rogue because it’s the way “they” want him to. He explains that these Boxes will give him the power and knowledge to stop it. Rogue swears that Sinister will never open those Boxes, because she will destroy them… and him!
Rogue flies towards Sinister and gives him a hard punch, causing him to land against a wall, which collapses on him. Almost out of breath, Sinister calls Rogue silly, claiming that he is the only one who has read all of the sculptures, and that he is the only one who holds all of the secrets. She warns Rogue to be aware, as this is one secret that when she discovers it, she will wish she died with him. Rogue doesn’t care about that. She only cares if Sinister dies. And he does.
She takes a look at the box, and wonders what could be inside it. She wonders what knowledge could be so vulnerable that Sinister would sacrifice his own life for it. She must know. She must learn what secret evils have led to the death of her beloved Remy.
Rogue opens the Tithe Box, and devastated finds comics books about… the X-Men and the other heroes?!


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Provide a full summary of the comic book.

[Assistant]
What if… the Angel Remained a Horseman of Apocalypse?!
Behold the creation of devastation. Stare into the face of madness. En Sabah Nur – the immortal mutant known as Apocalypse – has once again assaulted nature itself in his all-consuming quest to test his Darwinian credo of “survival of the fittest.” X-Factor, the mutant group comprised of the original X-Men, came to the Citadel of Apocalypse in an effort to stop his latest scheme. But as this newly born monstrosity lets loose a primordial scream and unleashes energies of horrific power they don’t know what disturbs them more: the destruction or the scream. As team leader, Cyclops’ first thoughts are of the others. And despite the fact that Marvel Girl recently lost her telepathic powers, Jean Grey still senses something terribly amiss. Even Iceman is chilled. While, ironically, it is the dim-witted Beast who is the first to realize the truth.
Peering at the being before them, Beast remarks that Apocalypse’s other Horsemen mighta made him dumb, but he’s smart enough ta recognize Angel. Iceman asks what he did to him while Cyclops says to Warren that they thought he died. Warren coldly replies that, in a way, perhaps he did. The Warren Worthington they knew is no more! They let the humans cut off his wings! They let them strip him of his pride! Now they must live the results!
As Warren flings his metal feathers at his former teammates, Cyclops gives the order to Jean and Bobby to get the shields up. Firing his optic blast at Warren, Cyclops begs him not to do this. Whatever Apocalypse has done to him, they can help. Warren asks help?! Like they helped him lose everything? They couldn’t do anything for him but Apocalypse, he gave him power.
Just then, Warren flies into the ground below them and emerges with great force, knocking Jean and Cyclops to the ground and using his paralyzing feather blades on them. Leaping on Warren’s back, Beast implores him to snap out of it. Though Beast’s powerful limbs are perhaps a match for Death’s strength, the regressed mind of Henry McCoy does not anticipate the ferocity of his former teammate. Flinging Beast off of him and into some nearby machinery, Warren turns his attention to Iceman. Warren asks him why fight him. For his pathetic dreams of justice? Was it justice when the doctors lied to him? Maimed him? Apocalypse has rebuilt him. Given him the truth and the truth cuts deep. Enraged, Warren flies into Iceman, destroying him.
Realizing what he has just done, Warren drops to his knees and calls out Bobby’s name in despair. Nearby, Iceman tells Warren to calm down, he’s okay. Apocalypse made him believe he was dead, made him believe they couldn’t help him. But he had a hunch that if he attacked him and believed he was dead, he might snap out of it. And it looks like the ice dummy he whipped up proved him right. Apocalypse states indeed Bobby Drake. It appears his pitiful ploy was surprisingly effective. If he wishes to be reunited with his colleague so strongly, he may have him but he predicts that he will not find his current incarnation to their liking.
Floating away, Apocalypse bids his Angel of Death farewell. Charging towards him, Warren angrily tells him not to think he can escape without paying for what he did. As the Citadel starts to fall apart, the remaining members of X-Factor escape. And as they gazed upon the crumbling Citadel, X-Factor believed their teammate was lost to them once again. But it soon came to pass that Warren Worthington, unable to exact revenge upon Apocalypse, would return to his friends…accepting his transformation by taking the name Archangel.
Washington, D.C. The villains once known as the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, now working for the government as Freedom Force. They gather now to discuss an alarming development. For in the months that have passed, the mutant community has become targets of a serial killer who has cut a red swath through their ranks. Blob proceeds to tell Mystique that she’s interrupting his afternoon nap. Does she have any news on this sick freak? Mystique tells him now’s not the time to sleep on the job. Listen to what Irene has learned. The woman called Destiny may be blind, but she sees what others cannot: visions of the future.
Destiny states that the killer has sent a message to X-Factor, daring them to stop him. They are determined to stop the flow of blood. To do so, they will soon attempt to capture all known rogue mutants. In doing so, they hope to protect possible victims and flush out the guilty. But they are being led astray, they are manipulated. By who? That is unclear. Mystique remarks that she was contacted yesterday by Cyclops. He requested that they place themselves under his protection. She, of course, refused. Now Irene senses they will use force to… Before she can finish her thought, the team is hit by a sudden optic blast. Picking himself up off the ground, Blob says Irene shoulda sensed sooner.
Arriving on the scene, Cyclops tells Mystique that they tried asking nicely. They can’t afford to ask again. After Blob tells them to bring it on, Beast leaps on his back and grabs him in a sleeper hold, much to the Blob’s amusement. The Blob’s primary ability is to become virtually immovable. Additionally, his extraordinarily dense epidermis leaves him physically invulnerable. But unexpected asphyxiation through telekinesis? Everyone – especially large men like Fred J. Dukes – needs oxygen. Once the Blob passes out, Beast lets him go and he falls face first into the ground. Beast tells Jean way to go. He was so busy laughin’ at him, it never occurred ta him she was blockin’ his windpipe with her T.K.
Their first suspects apprehended, X-Factor follow the meager clues they’ve managed to accumulate, leading them to the dangerous duo of Black Tom Cassidy and the Juggernaut. As X-Factor crashes through the wall, Juggernaut says to Tom here they come, just like he predicted. Tom replies yes, but they’ll not burst into their home an’ find them whimperin’ like puppies. After Jean uses her telekinesis to block Tom’s weapon blast, Cyclops gives the order to Iceman to cool off Tom. With that, Iceman freezes Tom in his tracks. Cain Marko and Tom Cassidy, despite their notorious reputation, enjoy a warm friendship. A friendship that the Juggernaut will not see extinguished.
Enraged, Juggernaut rushes towards Archangel who just stands there smugly. Cyclops calls out to Jean to shield Warren. Once he charges, no physical force can stop the Juggernaut but a telekinetic force focused on the ground beneath him produces an altogether different result. They say victory is sweet but Cyclops is left with a bitter taste. Cyclops tells his teammates to take them in. But it doesn’t look like these two are the killers. He doesn’t even know if they’re getting closer. He has the feeling someone’s playing them for fools.
The New York headquarters of the infamous Inner Circle of the Hellfire Club. An organization whose genteel exterior masks dark intentions. After Cyclops blasts a massive hole in the side of the building, Jean asks him if he thinks a direct assault is the best… Cutting her off, Cyclops replies that it’s for everyone’s good. They could be the killers. And if they are innocent they can’t leave them unprotected. You know they won’t come willingly. Scott then gives the orders to his teammates to spread out and find Shaw. Turning to Warren, Scott tells him to stay close to him. He doesn’t want him freezing up like he did against Marko and Cassidy. Sebastian Shaw, the Black King of the Hellfire Club’s infamous Inner Circle, can absorb kinetic energy and use it to enhance his own physical strength. Kinetic energy such as Cyclops’ optic blast.
Emerging from the wreckage, Shaw grabs Cyclops by the throat and proceeds to call X-Factor fools for daring to attack them in their home. Tightening his grip around Scott’s throat, Shaw exclaims that they may be able to hunt the others down like dogs, but they’ll find the Hellfire Club does not permit such insults. Gasping for breath, Scott begs Warren to help. Archangel watches and makes a decision. A decision to save a life with death. Just then, Archangel flings his armored wings into Shaw, mortally wounding him.
Back at X-Factor headquarters, Scott angrily asks Warren what is wrong with him. This operation is difficult enough without his behavior. First he put himself in jeopardy against the Juggernaut. Then he hesitated when Shaw had him, and then when he did act he nearly cut him in half. Scott begs Warren to talk to them, they’re concerned. With his back to his teammates, Warren asks concerned? He then asks Scott to tell him if he was concerned when his name was almost added to the list of victims of the “Mutant Massacre.” Was he concerned when the Marauders had him alone down in that stinking sewer? Was he concerned when they pinned him to the wall? Was he concerned when they ripped out his wings? Because he sure didn’t feel his concern then, he just felt alone. Holding out his hand to Warren, Scott tells him he’s right. They failed him in the past but they’re there for him now. Beast pipes in that’s right, ol’ buddy, they’re family.
And as Archangel folds into the arms of his friends, he sheds a tear. Not for what he has done, but for what he must still do. As a band of assassins, the Marauders are not used to being targets. But that is the role they find themselves in while they hole up in a munitions warehouse as the mutant serial killer and X-Factor close in.
Inside the warehouse, Sabretooth remarks that this whole thing stinks to him. Someone’s knockin’ them off and X-Factor’s closin’ the noose on their necks. Somethin’s not straight up. It’s like someone’s pulling their strings and settin’ them up for the big fall. Turning to Vertigo, Creed and asks her to go fetch him a cold one. He can’t concentrate with her hangin’ all over him. Turning his attention to Prism, Creed tells him that Sinister may have given Blockbuster, Riptide, and him another shot at life with that clone garbage. But if they don’t figure this out, they’re gonna get their butt planted six feet under again. Prism tells Creed not to take his frustration out on him. They’re all getting paranoid and his attitude isn’t helping things. Marvel Girl was the one that took him out before. He doesn’t know what connection X-Factor has to the murders, but she’ll find herself added to the list if she comes after him. Creed tells him that it looks like he’s gonna get his chance. He smells company. And before their eyes, another is lost to the mutant killer, the Maurader called Prism.
As X-Factor enters the warehouse, Archangel remarks that it looks like they got there a second too late. Jean asks where that blast came from. Was it from one of their own? Scott tells them to not take any chances and to end this quick. With that, Iceman freezes Vertigo’s blood, taking her out of the battle. As Scalphunter fires his gun at X-Factor, Riptide says to him and Blockbuster that maybe it’s them. Maybe X-Factor are the killers. Riptide proceeds to tell X-Factor that if they want some of what they gave the Morlocks, come and get it.
And with the killer possibly in their midst, X-Factor realizes the time has come to face the ones who tore their Angel from the sky. Jean tells Riptide that she’s sorry to disappoint, but they’re not the killers. They’re innocent. And they’re not like the Morlocks, they can fight back. With but a thought, Jean Grey follows Iceman’s example and telekinetically paralyzes Riptide’s lungs. While Scalphunter, unaccustomed to such tactics being directed at him, simply panics. As Scalphunter fires indiscriminately, he accidently hits a crate of explosives.
Using the distraction, Sabretooth tells Harpoon and Blockbuster that it’s time to motor. He knew he was right. Someone is pullin’ the strings. He’s got them all fightin’ amongst themselves, doin’ his work for him. Just then, the three Marauders come face to face with ones they don’t know. After Blockbuster asks who the freaks are, War introduces him, Famine and Pestilence, the Horsemen of Apocalypse. He tells them to bow before them. They are the chosen, the instruments through which En Sabah Nur will separate the wheat from the chaff. Harpoon proceeds to rush towards them and tells them to separate this.
But with a clap of War’s mighty hands, Harpoon realizes he is but chaff. Blockbuster may be a cold-blooded mercenary, but after the hours of training and the dangerous missions, he had grown to consider his fellow Marauders as friends. A big man all his life, he had also found an ally in his own body. And so it is quite fitting that the last thing Blockbuster realizes is the fact that even his body can turn against him at the hands of Famine.
Readying himself for battle, Creed states that he thinks he has this whole mess figured out. The killings, the mutant murders, they’re behind them, right? But they didn’t do it alone. No. They had help; someone on the inside. Well the jig’s up. When Creed leaps at Pestilence, she calls out now. Sabretooth, while not the smartest of men, is indeed well versed in the arts of the killing fields. And where the Four Horsemen ride, there too rides death. Pierced with metal wings, the dying Sabretooth looks up at Archangel standing over him and with his last breath says they w-won’t know… what h-hit ‘em…
And now we shift our gaze from the battlefield to the war’s nerve center: the new stronghold of Apocalypse. Apocalypse proceeds to tell Archangel that it is a pleasure to see him once again. His time spent away from the playing field, the months in his rejuvenation chamber, was truly time well spent. And now he… what’s this?! On that monitor, those bodies (Colossus, Nightcrawler, Juggernaut, Blob, Cyclops, Marvel Girl, War, Famine, Pestilence, and others), those executions weren’t authorized. Does he realize what he’s done? He was given the task of bringing an end to the weak, not to the strong. He has slain members of the elite, those that would one day lead his army. He has upset the order, the order that he has orchestrated for millennia. Who does he think he is?!
Spinning Archangel’s chair around, Apocalypse is shocked to see him covered in blood. Archangel asks who is he? He is the taker of souls. He is the wolf that these sheep searched for in vain. Yes, he slew the “elite,” his so-called “family.” He had no choice. They were the weakest of all. They were the ones who trusted him, believed in him. Believed he turned against him. For how could they suspect him? He, who was betrayed. He, who forgave them. How could they not trust them as he led them to slaughter?! Apocalypse angrily tells him that was not his purpose.
Rising from his chair, Archangel asks his purpose? He should know his purpose better than anyone, his self-proclaimed “creator.” So look upon his creation. He believes in a world where only the strong survive and now only he remains. But the war has not ended. He will decide if he is worthy. He will decide if he is strong. He will decide if he survives. For he was torn out of the heavens by his hand. Now he is his angel, his angel of death.


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Provide a full summary of the comic book.

[Assistant]
Family Ties
A somewhat older, one-armed Colossus contemplates on his life while painting in his studio. “It’s easy to destroy, isn’t it? But what about creation?” he asks himself. He wonders why he, Piotr Nikolievich Rasputin, the Soviet Union’s finest warrior, stopped fighting; why he pounded his sword into a paintbrush. Indeed, he now spends his days painting but realizes the answer to the above question is: because he had too much blood in his hands.
There was a time, though, when his hands were not stained; instead they were clenched in anger in the face of a threat in his beloved homeland. After so many years, his mind travels back to that dark day. Piotr wonders: what if things had gone differently? What if he had never left his post as Colossus, proud member of the Soviet Super-Soldiers?
(flashback)
Dressed in a Soviet military uniform, Colossus watches a monitor that shows Phoenix wreaking havoc to Edinburgh. Piotr turns to his Soviet Super-Soldier teammate and girlfriend, Darkstar, and asks her if the woman on screen is the one who threatens the State. Colonel Yuri Brevlov walks in, warning “Comrade Rasputin” to resist being blinded by her beauty. Colossus realizes that even Brevlov, the head of the KGB, feels fear.
Brevlov informs Piotr that the woman on screen was once one of the most powerful beings of the planet, a being of unimaginable psionic ability. Now, she is indeed the most powerful being on the planet, only she’s currently a woman in body only: intelligence has reported that she has been possessed by an entity called Proteus, a mutant who can manipulate reality. Brevlov informs Colossus and Darkstar that they are watching a live feed from Edinburgh, Scotland. If they don’t act quickly, she may turn her attention elsewhere, namely the USSR.
When Darkstar asks what the name of the woman is, Colossus provides the answer: she is Jean Grey, codenamed “Phoenix” of the American-based mutant group known as the X-Men. The word “X-Men” triggers a long-buried memory and Colossus sheds a tear. Darkstar asks him if he’s okay, but Brevlov interrupts them by notifying them they must act quickly. They are to join the others in the briefing room. As Brevlov exits, Darkstar again asks her beloved why he is crying. Colossus assures her he can never cry as long as he has her in his arms and she laughs in response.
In Edinburgh, amidst a landscape of fire and chaos, Moira MacTaggert begs her son, Proteus, to stop this madness and let go of Phoenix’s body. Floating in mid-air, Proteus mockingly remarks that he doesn’t look like a “bloody boy” in this body. Proteus taunts his mother by asking her whether she’s ashamed her son turned out to be such a freak. He believes she should have spent less time with her experiments and more with her child! As he says this, he starts warping reality around his mother; and Moira’s body starts melting.
Suddenly, Wolverine jumps upwards and strikes Phoenix with his claws. He urges Jean to fight this creep as she’s stronger than him. Cyclops orders Logan to sheathe his claws. They’re trying to save Jean, not kill her. Wolverine assures him they’re all out there to save her. They all try their own way and Wolvie himself will do what he does best. At the same moment, Cyclops unleashes an optic blast on Phoenix/Proteus. S/he retaliates by warping reality around Cyclops, turning him into a literal, monocular Cyclops!
In the Shi’ar Empire, Lilandra addresses her beloved Charles Xavier, confessing that, even though she is the empress of such a huge empire, her time with him is worth more to her than any of it. Xavier, however, wishes it hadn’t taken the deaths of his students to give them this life.
Suddenly, Xavier screams. He urges Lilandra to quickly show him the way to the Transport Room. She tells him it’s on the Alpha Level but asks to know what the matter is. Xavier replies he is sorry but doesn’t have a second to lose and departs immediately. The telepathic distress call he just received means his X-Men are still alive… but that could change if he doesn’t act at once.
At the headquarters of Soviet Super-Soldiers, Brevlov is briefing the team on the Proteus crisis whilst showing them the previous hosts of Proteus on monitor. The deranged mutant once known as Mutant X escaped his holding cell in Muir Island. He craves two things: to remake reality as he sees fit and to find new forms to possess. His power is so great that he literally burns out the host bodies he inhabits. He’s jumped from person to person making his way towards Scotland. Intercepted by the X-Men, Proteus has now settled in the body of Phoenix; coupled with her power he’s set out to mold the world as he pleases. Their mission is to stop him.
Crimson Dynamo states he understands why himself is sent to defeat this threat but can’t understand why this simple man – pointing at Ursa Major – joins them on such an important mission. Ursa Major is exasperated to hear this and transforms into his bear-like form, intent on tearing Crimson Dynamo’s armor apart. Fortunately, others present intervene to stop them from fighting: Darkstar constrains Ursa Major and Vanguard does the same with Dynamo. Brevlov fires with his gun at the air and demands from his comrades to stop this childish bickering at once.
Darkstar instantly uses her connection to the Darkforce to open a gateway to the conflict in Edinburgh. As the team passes through the gateway, Colossus tells Brevlov to have faith on them. They won’t fail. Brevlov thinks that, even though they teach “God is the opiate of the masses,” he himself prays that if a God exists then this God should be with. He prays that God has mercy on his soul.
In the streets of Edinburgh, the X-Men are still fighting the Proteus-possessed Phoenix when, suddenly, Darkstar’s gateway opens in mid-air. The Soviet Super-Soldiers emerge with Crimson Dynamo releasing the first blast against Phoenix. Darkstar congratulates him. Dynamo urges them to end this quickly because he has a bottle of vodka waiting for him back at the headquarters! Darkstar constrains Phoenix by use of the Darkforce and Dynamo hits her with some blasts. However, Phoenix easily repels them with her powers. Vanguard approaches her from the left, ready to strike her with hammer and sickle. Suddenly, though, both Phoenix and Vanguard are frozen, immobilized in mid-air, courtesy of Charles Xavier.
Professor X has just short-circuited the brain waves of both Phoenix/Proteus and Vanguard and urges the members of the X-Men and Soviet Super-Soldiers on the ground to listen to him as he can’t hold the two combatants for long. Ursa Major threatens him that, if he doesn’t release their comrade, they will destroy Xavier along with Phoenix. Xavier explains to them Jean isn’t like the others; Proteus burned through his other hosts but Jean’s power is too great. Not only her consciousness still exists but it called out on him. If there’s a chance to save Jean, then he must take it.
Moira confesses to Charles that she has tried to cure her son, Brian, but has failed. The only way they can help Jean is by ending her pain: striking Proteus down. Darkstar intervenes, assuring Moira she can imagine the pain she feels for her son, being a woman herself. However, she asks her if there’s a way to stop him. Moira reveals that, besides his need for new bodies, he has one fundamental weakness: metal. The energy matrix that comprises his form can’t abide inorganic metal. Xavier is horrified to realize Moira is ready to let go of her son but she shouldn’t sentence Jean to death.
“Like you killed my sister?!” Colossus angrily asks Xavier. Wolverine intervenes, asking Piotr to back off, otherwise they will learn which of the two has the stronger steel. When Darkstar asks Piotr how Xavier can be responsible for Illyana’s death, Piotr reveals that he has never told anyone of this because his shame was too great. He sees Xavier has also kept it a secret from his pupils. Now is the time for truth, though. He starts narrating the story.
(Piotr’s narration – flashback inside the flashback)
Xavier had come to a farm in Siberia where Piotr lived with his family. Promising fame and glory, he attempts to lure Piotr away from his family. Piotr’s father asks Xavier why they should their son leave them when he can do so much good for the collective. Xavier replies that Piotr could do even greater good not just for his family but for the entire world. Even as they speak, forces conspire to fan the flames of hatred between humans and mutants. Mutants should stand united and promote peace.
Suddenly, a villager bursts in the Rasputins’ house, screaming something about Illyana in the fields. Piotr rushes there and finds a shocked farmer who tells him that Illyana was playing too close to the workers and, after a tractor lost control, no one could stop it in time before it was too late. Piotr frantically pushes the man aside and holds Illyana’s lifeless body in his arms, bursting into tears.
(back to real life)
Piotr screams that Illyana is dead because of Xavier’s lies; because of his promises for American glory! It was because of Xavier he hadn’t been out in the fields working. If he had, he would have been near his sister, near enough to save her.
Storm unleashes a lightning bolt at Colossus’ feet. Carrying a single-eyed, unconscious Cyclops, she warns Piotr if he doesn’t stop this bickering now they’ll lose yet another life. Cyclops is in shock and needs medical attention if he’s to survive. “Or do you only care about ghosts of the past?” she asks him.
Without warning, Xavier pulls Colossus’ mind in the psychic plane, the telepathic representation of thought only the most skilled minds can enter. Xavier’s astral form tells Piotr’s astral form that he didn’t kill his sister. Colossus blames him for Illyana’s death and, deep down, he also blames himself. Piotr is wrong, though: she died in a horrible accident and he couldn’t prevent it because he wasn’t there. As painful as it is for Piotr, no one’s to blame. However, they will both be at fault if they don’t save Jean. The only way to achieve this is if Piotr can trust Xavier. Piotr replies he is listening.
After they agree on their plan, Xavier returns them to the corporeal world. Floating above Xavier, Phoenix/Proteus realizes it was Xavier who immobilized him/her. Moira had told Proteus all about him and his telepathic brain. Xavier states that playtime is over. Brian’s mother was right: Xavier’s mind is, indeed, powerful and he did paralyze Brian. Xavier assures him he can do even more if he takes his body.
Proteus asks Xavier why he’s offering his body and abilities to him: what’s the catch? Xavier assures him there are no risks involved. He just cares for Jean’s life. He cares for her the way Brian wishes his mother cared for him. Charles was the one who recruited Jean into the X-Men and, thus, is responsible for her. Xavier makes Proteus an offer: release his hold on Jean and take his body instead.
Proteus accepts the offer and leaves Phoenix, occupying Xavier’s body. Proteus is exhilarated by the power in his new vessel; though suddenly he screams! Proteus realizes Xavier is trying to drive him out of his body and warns him if he is expelled he’ll kill Phoenix. With Proteus disoriented, Colossus seizes the opportunity and attacks him only for Xavier/Proteus to tear off Piotr’s left arm with his amazing strength. Proteus warns him to stay away, realizing Moira told Piotr about his weakness.
In pain and holding his arm, Colossus rises from the ground and asks Xavier if he can see and hear him now. He tells him that for years he used his art to escape the pain of his sister’s death, the pain of knowing he did not act when he had the chance. Today, though, he acts. Upon saying this, Piotr grabs his torn metallic arm and impales Xavier’s body with it, killing both Xavier and Proteus in the process, as the metal short-circuits the energy matrix that comprises Proteus.
(back to present time)
That was Colossus’ last mission. However, after all these years, the questions people have about that day still swirl in Piotr’s head. What was the deal struck between Piotr and Xavier? Did Xavier really offer his life in exchange for that of Phoenix? Or did Piotr take it to balance the scales?
Darkstar, now Piotr’s wife and also a retired member of Soviet Super-Soldiers, walks in the studio, bringing her husband some food. She tells him he shouldn’t keep pushing himself so hard. She reminds him they’re done saving the world and now is the time to relax. Piotr agrees with her; she kisses him on the cheek and adds there’s someone who desperately wants to see him. It’s none other than their little daughter, Illyana.
She rushes into the room and hugs her father. She notices he has paint in his hand and he asks her to help him clean it up. Piotr realizes that no longer a warrior, he has become what he always yearned to be: an artist. No longer a hero of the state, he is a hero only in his daughter’s eyes.


[User]
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Provide a full summary of the comic book.

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untitled
An Avengers Secure Holding Facility, somewhere in the Pacific Northwest. 'Say it again' Carol Danvers a.k.a. Captain Marvel declares. 'If you're telling the truth – look me in the eyes, Yelena Belova, and say it again' Captain Marvel continues, as she stands in an interrogation room, with Yelena Belova a.k.a. the White Widow, sitting before her. 'In do not know what happened to Jennifer Walters in the Red Room' the White Widow responds, adding that whatever Captain Marvel's outdated intel has her believing, she is no ally of the Winter Guard. 'Now, why do I have trouble believing that last bit?' Carol snaps. 'You think I am acquaintance of every Alexander Sergei and Maksim in tights, Captain Marvel? Russia is very large country. Americans sometimes forget this' Yelena smirks. 'Dammit, Yelena!' Carol shouts, slamming her fists into the table, denting it. 'It's been three days. You have answers – and I need them' Carol declares.
Carol turns away from Yelena and pinches the bridge of her nose as she informs Yelena that they have records putting her in Russia weeks ago, but that since the best surveillance teams on the planet have no idea how or when she got out, she must be able to understand their suspicion. At that moment, outside the facility, several armed soldiers appear. Captain Marvel glances at Yelena and reports that Black Widow still vouches for her, but her friend the She-Hulk has been kidnapped and tortured, and the Winter Guard is waging war on the Avengers. 'If you're really on our side, then help me' Carol remarks, as the soldiers outside begin scaling the facility. The White Widow reminds Carol that she is not an Avenger, to which Carol asks her whose side she is on.
Suddenly, the facility is blown open, and several armed soldiers enter the interrogation room. 'Wolf Spider Spetznaz – Kremlin special ops. Not my side!' Yelena calls out to Captain Marvel as smoke fills the room. 'Good' Carol replies, before announcing that she won't pull her punches. She starts firing energy blasts at the operatives. One of the soldiers shoots at Captain Marvel, but the weaponsfire blows a hole in the internal interrogation room door. 'There's more of them circling the building!' Carol calls out, before she sees Yelena leap through the interrogation room door. 'No!' Carol exclaims. 'You don't have any weapons!' Yelena dodges the blast from a weapon that one of the operatives aims at her, then she takes the weapon from him. 'There – now I have a weapon' Yelena replies, as she then shoots the operative, then jumps out of a window, landing outside the facility.
Yelena drops her weapon, and as she reaches for it, someone shoots the weapon. 'It's over, traitor' one of the operatives declares in their native Russian, putting a foot on Yelena's back and aiming their weapon at her head to keep her down. 'Red Widow sends her regards' the operative utters, when suddenly, someone on a motorcycle speeds up, and slams the wheel of the motorcycle into the operative, knocking them back. The rider removes their helmet – it's Natasha Romanoff the Black Widow. 'Sorry I'm late. Traffic was brutal' she jokes.
Later that night, at the Web, the Black Widow's San Francisco base of operations. 'The White Widow is in your custody, then?' Carol Danvers asks as her image appears on a monitor. Natasha looks back at the screen and tells Carol that she is worried about Jen, too – but that Yelena doesn't need to be “in custody”. She assures Carol that she and Yelena will debrief, then if they come up with any helpful intel, Carol will be the first one she calls. 'I hope so... She-Hulk's life depends on it' Carol replies, before the screen goes blank.
Yelena enters the room, drying her hair after having a shower. 'Thank you for the rescue, Natalia' she utters. 'I'm starting to regret it' Natasha replies, before asking Yelena if she gets how serious this is. 'The Winter Guard and the Avengers are, like, actively trying to kill each other' she explains. 'I do not answer to the Avengers' Yelena replies. 'What about to me?' Natasha asks her. Headshots of several other Russian superbeings appear on the monitors, and the Black Widow reminds Yelena that she disappeared without a word. 'I kept expecting you to turn back up, until the Guard attacked Avengers Mountain – and I learn you're in Russia... with my ex-husband'. Natasha adds that they just fought Red Guardian, and now he is MIA.
Yelena tells Natasha that she is sorry, that she is not meaning to be flippant, but that she and Alexei had mutual interests in the motherland, and it became more complicated than it should have – but their mission was not supposed to involve anyone else – not even the Winter Guard. Natasha reminds Yelena that the Winter Guard came after her, and are still coming. 'Hence “complicated”' Yelena remarks, adding that doesn't mean she wants the Winter Guard dead. Natasha presses a button on the computer console, and an image of Ursa Major, covered in blood, appears. 'Some of them already are' Natasha reports. 'Mikhail...' Yelena utters, shocked.
Natasha tells Yelena that she knows she was close with Ursa Major, and informs her that it was not an Avenger who killed him. The monitor changes again, this time showing an image of a woman cloaked in red. 'Red Widow' Yelena exclaims. 'Yes, that's  what she calls herself. But she's not like any other Red Room graduate. Not like us' Natasha remarks, while Yelena tells Natasha that she doesn't even know if the Red Widow is human. 'If you know anything that can help the Avengers take her down, before this war takes another life -' Natasha begins, to which Yelena assures her that she will tell her everything. 'I do not know if it will help, but at least you will understand why Alexei and I went home...and why I do not hate the Winter Guard' Yelena declares, rubbing her forehead. 'I pity them' Yelena reveals.
(Three weeks earlier)The Russian Federation Combined Arms Checkpoint, which is twenty kilometers from Ukraine's Kharvik Oblast border wall. 'A hundred klicks of empty border in either direction, but we have to cross here?' Yelena Belova asks as she looks at the checkpoint through infra-red binoculars. She scales a wall, 'Da, da. I understand' she tells someone that she is in communication with. 'Clearing them now' she reports as she drops down onto the other side of the fence.
Yelena begins making her way through the checkpoint buildings, taking down officers as she goes about her plans. 'Sergeant, did you hear that?' a military officer calls out while making himself a coffee. He turns back to several monitor screens. 'Must be Vanya fooling around again. If he thinks that -' the officer begins, before going wide-eyed, 'Bozhe moi!' he exclaims, when suddenly, Yelena Belova grabs him from behind. 'Wait. Keep this one conscious' a voice calls out. 'The more he sees, the more he'll report' Yelena replies. 'Good. We are not slinking in like smugglers, Yelena. We are coming home' Alexei Shostakov a.k.a. Red Guardian declares as he enters the room, arms folded, he tells Yelena that they will let Russia see their Red Guardian has returned for them.
Meanwhile, inside the Uragan, a prototype mobile command center, where the Winter Guard are meeting. The expert assassin known only as the Red Widow stands before the team, as images of Alexei and Yelena appear on a screen. The Red Widow is also the liaison between the Winter Guard and the Russian Security Council. She tells the Winter Guard that they must all ironically be familiar enough with the phrase “never meet your heroes” because today, they will be arresting one. She declares that Alexei Shostakov was the USSR's failed response to Captain America, and declared missing in action near the end of the Cold War, only to resurface in the United States after rotting away for years in a prison.
The Red Widow announces that approximately eighteen hours ago, Alexei overpowered a border checkpoint full of soldiers and crossed onto Russian soil, with the aid of known defector, Yelena Belova, who the Red Widow adds is also known as the White Widow, the Black Widow, and the Red Room's second biggest mistake. She tells the Winter Guard that drone footage suggests they are headed toward the decommissioned Koschei Air Station, where there is an attached KGB facility that once served as the Red Guardia's base of operations. 'What they want there is anyone's guess, but that's a problem for our interrogators' she remarks.
The Red Widow informs her teammates that the Security Council considers Belova and Shostakov high priority threats. 'Their apprehension or elimination trumps whatever other leads you were currently chasing' she tells them, before making it clear that this is not an excuse to flex costumed egos, not an investigation, either – but a manhunt. 'Any questions?' she asks. 'Not that the Winter Guard makes a habit of questioning orders' the Red Widow adds. Seven super-powered begins stare back at at the Red Widow and say nothing. Chernobog, the Slavic god of blood and darkness. Mutant twins Layania Petrovna a.k.a. Darkstar and Nicolai Krylenko a.k.a. Vanguard, who wears the Red Guardian costume. Perun, the Slavic god of storms, Major Mikhail Ursus a.k.a. Ursa Major the mutant bear, the synthezoid called Vostok and Dimitri Bukharin a.k.a. Crimson Dynamo, who suddenly breaks the silence by reminding the Red Widow that he was put in charge of this team, not her. 'Easy...' Vanguard tells his teammate.
Darkstar tells her brother that Dimitri is right, and reminds him that they did not reform the Winter Guard to become mercenaries. 'Didn't we already have a Red Room full of perfectly capable assassins? Seems like a waste of resources' Ursa Major exclaims. The Red Widow turns to leave the room, and tells the Guard that she will be sure to share their concerns with the Security Council – after they have brought these traitors back to Moscow. Several members of the Guard get up and leave the meeting room. 'All of us against two of them? It'll be a bloodbath' Ursa Major remarks, deciding that there is no point in being sober for it. Perun decides that “the werebeast” as he calls Ursa Major, is right, and boasts that this is beneath a god such as him. 'Our kind of work, then' the frightening Chernobog grins, revealing his mouth full of razor-sharp teeth.
Darkstar, Vanguard and Crimson Dynamo remain in the room. 'We may not like answering to her, but -' Vanguard begins, to which Crimson Dynamo declares that he did not agree to lead a hit squad. 'Say what you will about Belova, but Alexei was a national hero' Dynamo adds. 'He's not a hero. The Red Guardian we grew up idolizing is long dead... if he was ever worth idolizing in the first place' Vanguard suggests, before proposing that the three of them are the ones who should bring him in. 'Well...we wanted Russia to have “Avengers of her own”' Darkstar points out. Dynamo tells her that he had hoped for less emphasis on the “vengeance” part. 'Besides.. .the Avengers would've flown' Dynamo adds.
Shortly, at the checkpoint facility, 'It's the Winter Guard... and quicker than I would've liked. Dimitri and his damn trains' Yelena remarks as she looks through some infra-red binoculars. 'The enter Guard? After two old traitors without a super-power between them?' Alexei asks. 'Wouldn't have taken Crimson Dynamo's joke of a transport otherwise' Yelena replies. Alexei holds something up and tells Yelena that they will only stay long enough to make an impression, as they have what they came for – the first of many. Yelena asks Alexei if he is sure that hard drive is still worth all this. 'Ha! “What the pen writes, the ax cannot erase”!' Alexei quotes, before asking Yelena to stall the Guard for a little while, and he will prepare their exit strategy.
Outside, all eight members of the Winter Guard are present and accounted for. Crimson Dynamo tells the team to spread out. 'We have our orders – whether we like them or not' he adds. Perun grunts and frowns, so the Red Widow glances over to him and suggests to him that if he still thinks this mission is beneath him, then he can go wait in the train. 'Otherwise...give us a little fog of war' she asks him. Perun raises his powerful ax above his head, and thunder boom as the sky grows dark and a thick fog envelops the facility. Ursa Major rushes forward, sniffing the air, he announces that he has their trail. Crimson Dynamo wonders what the point in leading the Guard here was – an ambush, or perhaps some Cold War weapon Alexei stashed away. Darkstar offers to do a room-by-room search, and her brother tells her to be careful. 'This place feels haunted' Vanguard remarks. As she steps through one of her Darkforce portals, Darkstar tells her brother that she is not afraid of ghosts.
Vanguard notices a hatch in the ground has been moved, and lifts it up. 'Someone opened this hatch recently -' he begins, before an explosion bursts forth from the hatch. Vanguard is able to shield himself, while Crimson Dynamo appears overhead and puts the flames from the explosion out by releasing a foam from his armor. 'Booby traps? Stay alert!' he warns everyone, while Perun suddenly stands on something and is knocked backwards by a blast.
Inside the facility, Darkstar has entered a large abandoned room. “KGB” signs can be seen on the walls. She begins to explore the facility, when suddenly, out of the shadows a figure emerges – 'Chernobog!' Darkstar exclaims. 'Did we startle you?' Chernobog asks. 'No more than usual' Darkstar remarks, before asking 'Since you're here though, remind me – you're the God of Blood, Darkness and what else?' Darkstar puts her hand on a framed painting, as Chernobog answers her question: 'Secrets'.
At that moment, Ursa Major lumbers through the fog. 'Is that you I smell, Yelena?' he calls out. 'Can hardly recognize it with Alexei's stench all over you' Ursa Major adds. 'Surprised a drunk like you has any sense of smell left!' a voice calls out. Ursa Major growls and spins around, claws at the ready – but there is no one there, just a statue of a man, a relic of times past. 'You're the unrecognizable one!' Yelena suddenly exclaims as she emerges from the fog, leaps at Ursa Major and knocks him backwards. 'They tortured you. Left you to rot in a gulag. Now you crawl back to play super hero?' She asks him as she flips herself backwards through the air, then lands on Ursa's shoulders and shoves her hands into his neck, shocking him with her widow's bite.
Ursa throws Yelena off of him, and she lands in the snow. 'What would you have me do? Where would I go?' Ursa Major asks. He claims that he is not fit to frolic on Xavier's island like other mutants, and at least this gives him a chance to do some good for his people. 'And you're what? Playing bodyguard?' Ursa Major then asks Yelena as he drops down towards her – but she holds his jaws open with her bare hands, keeping him at bay as she informs him that she and Alexei have a chance to do more good for the people than a hundred super heroes. 'The information we're after -' she begins, but Ursa Major interrupts her, remarking that he didn't realize assassins could be so gullible. 'You helped me once, so let me help you!' Yelena tells Ursa Major, suggesting that he look into Red Guardian's last assignemnt. 'As about Operation Snowblind' she tells him. 'Eh?' Ursa Major begins, when suddenly, 'Ah, damn you -' he mutters as Yelena detonates some explosives, which blow up in his face, and enable her to slip away. 'Trust me, Mikhail' Yelena calls out.
Back inside, 'Hmm. Full of surprises' Alexei remarks, as Vanguard enters the room he is in. 'Red Guardian! Enough. I don't know what you think you've accomplished here...but it's over. I'm bringing you in' Vanguard declares. 'Ha! So this is my latest replacement, eh?' Alexei asks, turning away from a briefcase on the desk in the room. 'You cut quite the heroic figure. Though the shield's a bit much' Alexei remarks, referring to the Captain America-like shield that Vanguard carries. Vanguard ignores that comment and instructs Red Guardian to hand over whatever is in the case and surrender. 'No... I don't think I will' Alexei responds. Vanguard leaps forward to attack Red Guardian, whose fist clangs against Vanguard's shield. Red Guardian then hurls a boomerang towards Vanguard, but Vanguard is able to dodge it. 'Ha! Nice trick, but -' Vanguard begins, before the boomerang suddenly darts back, and smacks him hard enough to force him forward, causing him to fall through a large glass window. 'I told you the shield was a bit much. Always preferred the boomerang' Alexei remarks as he stands at the smashed window and looks down below.
An instant later, the part of the facility where Alexei stands explodes, and Alexei is shunted out, landing on the ground below. Clutching the briefcase, Alexei pants, catching his breath. 'Well, now...that's the spirit!' Alexei exclaims as Crimson Dynamo and Vanguard close in on him. 'Red Guardian – Alexei. Stand down. Now' Crimson Dynamo orders him. 'You couldn't stop Belova?' Red Widow asks Ursa Major as the two of them join Vanguard and Dynamo in surrounding Red Guardian. 'She's resourceful' Ursa Major mutters. 'You're a half-ton bear with anti-espionage training and three black belts' Red Widow snaps. 'She's very resourceful' Ursa Major replies. 'No more skulking around' Perun calls out as he joins his teammates. 'For once we're in agreement. Time for blood' Chernobog announces as he and Darkstar step back through one of Darkstar's portals. 'Enough, both of you – the fight's over' Darkstar utters. 'I dunno. I can fly and he still managed to throw me out of a building' Vanguard replies.
The Winter Guard completely surround Red Guardian, who holds the briefcase and looks at the Crimson Dynamo, telling him that he really would be on his side, if only he had the time to show him. 'Plenty of time on the trip back to Moscow' Crimson Dynamo suggests as he raises his arms, transformed into some sort of weapons blasters, at Red Guardian. Holding a small device in one of his hands, Red Guardian announces that, thankfully, some of the Guard were more easily convinced. 'How do you think I've stayed one step ahead of you all day? You've got a traitor of your own' he claims. 'Don't believe me?' he asks. 'Have a demonstration' he tells them, as he presses a button on the device in his hand, which suddenly causes Dimitri Bukharin to lose control of the Crimson Dynamo armor. 'What the hell – how's he doing this?' Bukharin asks as a remote override engages the weapons, and the armor begins blasting the other members of the Winter Guard, striking Perun and Vanguard. 'No! I can't control it!' Bukharin calls out, while Darkstar looks on in horror.
'You bastard! What have you done? Vanguard shouts as he leaps at Red Guardian and slams his shield into him, knocking the older hero backwards. 'Heh. You can try to stop me or you can help young Dimitri – but you don't have time for both' Red Guardian responds, as Vanguard looks up to see Crimson Dynamo hovering above the checkpoint, energy blasting from several points on his armor. His armor tells him that system integrity is only at twenty percent, and Dimitri can be heard shouting within the armor. 'Hold on! We'll get you out of there!' Darkstar calls out as she manifests several Darkforce fields to protect her teammates from the Dynamo armor's energy blasts. At that moment, Chernobog rises up towards Dynamo, when Perun suddenly comes between them, 'She doesn't need your help, fool!' Perun declares, while Chernobog responds by hissing at his fellow god.
Ursa Major growls as one of Dynamo's blasts strike him, then suddenly, Vostok emerges from the fog and tells Bukharin to hold fast. 'If I integrate my system with your suit's -' Vostok begins, but the armor's computer reports that the endgame protocol has been engaged. 'Dimitri!' Vostok exclaims as the Dynamo armor grabs Vostok by his head, and suddenly, begins to tear apart his synthezoid body. 'No, no, no, please, God!' Bukharin calls out, telling Vostok that he is sorry, while Vostok begins to scream.
'Ha!' I've already faced the best the Red Room can throw at me' Red Guardian calls out as he rushes towards an aircraft positioned nearby. 'Please. Compared to me – your ex-wife's practically a pacifist!' the Red Widow responds as she leaps towards Red Guardian, her swords at the ready. 'Yelena, I need -' Red Guardian calls out, before a blast is fired at Red Widow, knocking her backwards, away from Red Guardian. 'Let's move, Alexei – I don't like that look in her eye' Yelena calls out as she stands at the aircraft, holding a smoking gun, while the Red Widow narrows her eyes beneath her cloaked face. 'Right. Leave the Guard to lick their wounds...while they still can' Alexei suggests. The Dynamo armor's computer reports that the power core is unstable, and that a full meltdown is in effect. 'Run! Run!' Bukharin calls out to his teammates.
Darkstar turns to her brother and instructs him to contain as much of the blast as he can, before she steps through one of her portals. 'Laynia!' Vanguard calls out, too late, as Darkstar teleports behind Crimson Dynamo, and starts pulling his armor off of him. 'Another second – I can pull you out if I -' Darkstar begins, before the armor explodes, sending fiery smoke up into the dark sky, while down below, the other Guard members are protected by some form of force field.
'What the hell was that?' Yelena asks as she pilots the escape plane. 'We didn't come back to Russia to kill its super heroes' she declares. Alexei tells her that they came back to enlighten them, which is rarely a painless process, and that it was no different with Snowblind. Yelena tells Alexei to enlighten her, and asks him where the remote came from – and if he really has a spy in the Guard. Alexei opens the briefcase. 'Maybe yes, maybe no. All in due time, Yelena' he replies, pointing out that what is important is what every member of the Winter Guard is also wondering – who is the traitor, and who will they strike next?
At that moment, when the dust settles, Vanguard, Ursa Major, Chernobog and Perun gather around as they find Darkstar kneeling over the unmoving Dimitri Bukharin and the remains of the broken Crimson Dynamo armor.


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Provide a full summary of the comic book.

[Assistant]
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'They look so much simpler from down here' Laynia Petrovna a.k.a. Darkstar, glamorous member of the Russian super-team called the Winter Guard, thinks to herself as she lies atop the Winter Guard's train – the Uragan Mobile Command Center – as it speeds across the Russian wilderness. Darkstar is surrounded by a dome of bright light, her Darkforce energies manifesting as a forcefield around her, as she looks up at the star-filled night sky. 'Like they're not racing along at a million kilometers an hour. Like they're not fighting gravity or about to collapse into black holes' Darkstar thinks to herself, realizing that, from down here, it is easy to forget the stars are all ripping each other apart. 'It's so easy to think of the stars as unchanging – untouchable – and why not? From down here, all they have to do is shine' Darkstar tells herself as the Uragan passes by some mountains.
Inside the Uragan, Nicolai Krylenko a.k.a. Vanguard, Darkstar's twin brother, sits in an office. 'It used to be like that for us' Darkstar thinks to herself, referring to she and her brother, who, in the office is reading some files. 'No, no one on the team could betray us like this' Vanguard declares. 'We never looked to a comrade – and imagined a traitor might be looking back' Darkstar tells herself, while in one of the other rooms on the Uragan, Major Mikhail Ursus, in his human form, iis shirtless, and holds up a bottle of vodka. 'We were honored to fight beside myths and legends' Darkstar recalls, while the Slavic god known as Perun stands in a room filled with weapons. 'Hrmm' the gruff Perun mutters. 'We didn't need to do our work in the shadows' Darkstar adds, while, in a shadowy room, the woman known only as the Red Widow has removed her cloak. She can be seen to have short hair, although her face is hidden in the shadows of the room.
Even the monitors which she looks at don't light up the room enough to reveal the Red Widow's face as she appears to be speaking to one of her contacts at the RSC – Russian Security Council. 'Yes, Sir – exhaustively. There's no official record of any “Operation Snowblind”' the Red Widow reports. 'Why is that a relief? If Red Guardian is digging up state secrets -' Red Widow begins, before saying 'Of course not, Sir. I am not questioning orders'. She adds that neither will the Guard, not after Crimson Dynamo – and they will do everything in their power to help capture Alexei Shostakov. 'And if the Red Guardian truly has a traitor among the Guard...that traitor will die beside him' the Red Widow vows.
'Did the night sky change? Or did we just get closer?' Darkstar wonders. 'When did we stop shining... and start tearing each other apart?' she contemplates, while inside the Uragan's medbay, her longtime teammate, the man behind the Crimson Dynamo armor, Dimitri Bukharin, lies motionless in a bed, connected to life support, his body covered in bandages. Beside him, the head of the synthezoid member of the Winter Guard called Vostok is connected to a computer system.
Darkstar sits up, cross-legged, as a voice calls out 'In the time of blood and shadow, when the name Chernobog was a curse and our altars always red with sacrifice...the Darkforce was our domain. Our favorite weapon'. Chernobog suddenly appears, stepping through Darkstar's powers, he grins at her and tells her that he loves what she has done with it. Chernobog then starts to laugh, while Darkstar gets to her feet and spins around to face Chernobog, telling him not to sneak up on her like that. 'We felt your shadows rippling. We were...concerned' Chernobog claims. 'Concerned. Right. Is that why you always hang around me?' Darkstar asks, pointing out that plenty of others can tap into Chernobog's “Darkforce”, and asks him what his fixation is. 'Do you want to kill me? Kiss me? Eat me?' Darkstar asks. 'Our secrets are our own' Chernobog responds. Darkstar pauses, before telling the god that they are not done discussing this.
The Uragan suddenly screeches to a halt, and Vanguard exits the train, announcing that Dimitri is in a stable condition, and that he has finished his investigation. Vanguard informs the Guard that until he finds evidence to the contrary, they must assume that Alexei sabotaged Dimitri's suit without help. 'There is no traitor in the Winter Guard' Vanguage states. 'Suuuure there isn't' Chernobog mocks as he and Darkstar remain on the Uragan's roof. Perun, Red Widow and Mikhail Ursus exit the Uragan and Vanguard tells the team that Red Guardian just wants them distracted, as he knows that he and Yelena Belova are no match for this team at full strength. Red Widow announces that she agrees with Vanguard, to which Mikhail mutters 'Of course you do. Did you write him a script?'
'Enough!' Red Widow snaps, before informing the team that they have new orders, and will be splitting up. She reports that she, Vanguard and Ursa Major will be taking the Uragan back to Moscow, where they will drop Vostok and Crimson Dynamo off for medical attention, and follow up on a promising lead. Red Widow informs Darkstar that she is to take Chernobog and Perun to what she suspects will be Alexei's next stop – a picturesque little village near Nizhny Novgorod, where she has heard that the weather is lovely this time of year.
At that moment, aboard the aircraft they escaped from the border facility in, Yelena Belova and Alexei Shostakov are continuing with their quest. Yelena looks at a map and tells Alexei that this is not as clever a hiding place as he thinks it is. 'It's not just surveillance – they know you. They'll guess where you're headed. Hell, they might even beat you there' Yelena suggests, before proposing that they make a copy of that first hard drive while they still can. Alexei glances over from where he is piloting the aircraft and tells Yelena that she knows they cannot do that. Looking at the briefcase where the hard drive has been stored, Yelena explains to Alexei that decryption tech has improved a lot since the Cold War, and asks him to at least let her take a look. 'I need assurances' she adds. 'I need to know there's information there that I can use' Yelena tells Alexei, pointing out that there is only so much a girl can take on faith.
Alexei gets up from his seat and reports that they will be in range of Moscow momentarily, and suggests to Yelena that she should get ready, before asking her if she doubts their goals already. 'My goal? Never' Yelena replies as she begins to put some sort of harness and gloves on over her white costume. 'Your methods, on the other hand...I haven't forgotten San Francisco. Natalia could have died. If you hadn't already told me about Snowblind, and what's hidden on thar drive...I might've killed you then' Yelena adds. Alexei looks at Yelena, who suddenly releases the wings connected to the harness, and she hovers above a hatch in the aircraft. 'And here I was worried about flying too close and giving away the dead drop location' Alexei remarks. 'You like?' Yelena asks. She admits that her wing's aren't quite as fast or durable as the Falcon's, but that they are lighter, and quieter – and half the cost. 'What can I say? I love a knockoff' Yelena jokes as she drops down from the aircraft and flies out over Moscow.
The Uragan has come to a stop in Moscow, and soldiers begin to carry the Crimson Dynamo and Vostok from the train. 'Bozhe moi. They're both in pieces!' one of the soldiers exclaims. 'I think I'm getting a cold' Mikhail remarks to Vanguard as the two of them and Red Widow leave the train. Vanguard tells Mikhail to focus, as this is their chance of getting ahead of whatever Alexei is planning.
At that moment, in the aircraft above Moscow, Alexei is singing a song to himself. 'It's true what they say, eh? There's no place like home' he tells himself.
Elsewhere, a portal opens and Darkstar, Perun and Chernobog step out into the countryside. Darkstar tells the gods to fan out, as the Red Widow has good reason to think that their targets will stop here, so they need to search everywhere they can – for any sign of Alexei, Belova or anything out of the ordinary. Perun looks up to the sky and notes that the clouds are out of the ordinary – and growing fast. 'A storm's coming' he remarks. 'There are worse things coming for these peasants than a little rain, old man' Chernobog grins wickedly. Darkstar glances at Chernobog and tells him that he will not harm a soul while they are here. 'But -' Chernobog begins, to which Darkstar interrupts him, flying forward, she exclaims that Red Guardian used to mean something to people. 'He may not be a hero any longer – but we are. They should know – from the moment they see us – the Winter Guard is here to help!' Darkstar exclaims, while Perun and Chernobog follow her.
'Lucky little things' Chernobog utters while crouching behind a fence, and watching two civilians walk by. 'If Darkstar's virtue means we cannot feast on this village's suffering...it's secrets will have to do' Chernobog exclaims as he seeps into the shadows formed by the two people walking past him, his grinning mouth can be seen sticking out of the shadows. Perun is examining the village, while declaring 'The God of Storms warns of a tempest to come, and they barely bat an eye'. He notices that the village dam appears to be in disrepair, but looks over to where the church stands tall. 'Even in an old place, the old ways are forgotten' Perun remarks. 'Washed away one drop at a time' he adds, as a single rain drop falls onto his hand. Darkstar flies about the village, eventually coming to a stop on a farm. She notes that this is still good land, and wonders why a perfectly workable farm has been abandoned – and then she sees it. 'I can only think of one reason out here. Bad memories' Darkstar realizes, as she looks at the statue of Alexei Shostakov, which states that the Red Guardian was born here. Darkstar suddenly realizes that Alexei is probably not on his way to Moscow.
Back in Moscow, 'What's this lead, Widow?' Vanguard asks as he and Mikhail follow the Red Widow down some back streets. The Red Widow announces that Alexei thinks he is being clever, wants them to follow his scent across the country like hound dogs, lead them to whatever grandiose nonsense he claims to be digging up. 'But his revelations are old news' the Red Widow remarks, while Mikhail sniffs and rubs his nose. The trio enter more back alleys, and pass a woman huddled in an alley. The Red Widow tells her teammates that she and the Security Council believe Alexei is recovering intel from a project called “Snowblind”. 'Never heard of it' Vanguard states. 'No one has. Not in decades' Mikhail sneezes, before stating that he has never heard of it, either. The trio approach a large building, as the Red Widow reports that her intel is scarce, but that “Snowblind” seemed to involve data collection and destruction. 'Secret weapons? Espionage intel? Surely it would all be outdated' Vanguard suggests. 'And yet Alexei risks his life to recover it and claims it will change the world' the Red Widow points out.
As Mikhail examines their surroundings, he notes that this was a KGB facility. The Red Widow claims that it was abandoned years ago, but that the Red Guardian used to meet his Kremlin handlers in the subbasement. She tells her teammates that if her suspicions are correct, then Alexei or Yelena will be stopping by – but as she opens the door to a room, she discovers that they have already been here. 'Probably why they left a note' Mikhail suggests, as he finds some writing on the floor: “Look behind you?” Mikhail reads the note, when suddenly, 'Privyet, Winter Guard!' Yelena calls out as she appears on a railing behind them, and opens fire. Several gas bombs are detonated, knocking Mikhail and Vanguard out.
The Red Widow leaps up to the railing and calls out 'You had one chance at me – and you went non-lethal? Pathetic'. She attempts to strike Yelena with her sword, but Yelena moves backwards. 'Bozhe moi!' she exclaims. 'So you're the Red Room's latest model?' Yelena asks as she begins to climb a ladder onto a higher railing. The Red Widow follows her up, as Yelena tells her that she bets she was top of her class. 'But some lessons you just can't teach' Yelena points out, taking one blow from the Red Widow's sword, before she suddenly grabs the sword's blade under her arm, and holds onto it with her other hand – using her widow's bite energy blast on it, the sword is charged, and sends a shock rippling through the Red Widow's body. At that moment, Mikhail has transformed into his bear form, Ursa Major, and he and Vanguard emerge from the smoke. 'I'll go high -' Vanguard begins. 'I'll go low!' Ursa Major adds.
Back at the countryside village, the rain has begun to pour down. 'Red Widow didn't mention that Alexei was born here' Darkstar tells herself as she continues to look at the statue of Alexei. She then notices that a nearby homestead has been picked clean recently – so if it hid any secrets, they have been stolen, and now, any trace of Red Guardian or his family is gone – except for the statue. 'This storm is no joke' Darkstar decides, before wondering if Alexei was here before they encountered him at the border. Chernobog rises up behind two civilians walking through the rain and via communicator he tells Darkstar that the village officials talked about seeing a strange pllane this morning. 'So he beat us?' Darkstar's voice can be heard asking. 'There's a secret here...we can taste it...' Chernobog utters. Darkstar opens a portal and tells Chernobog that they don't have time to indulge his tastes, before she steps through the portal, appearing next to Chernobog in the rain, as she asks him where Perun is.
'I tried to warn you!' Perun's voice can be heard over the communicator. He's waist-deep in water, holding his ax above his head, he announces that the storm is too strong, and that if he can't hold it off any longer, he will have to redirect the flood, and then the dam will burst! Some civilians nearby are watching as Perun keeps the waters at bay. 'Is that Thor?' one of them asks. 'Run!' a woman calls out as the water speeds towards her and a little girl – then suddenly, Darkstar appears and throws a protective forcefield up around them. 'I can hold back the water – but that tractor!' Darkstar utters as a large tractor is hurled towards them by the water. 'I'm sorry, I can't -' Darkstar begins, before the woman asks her to save her daughter. Darkstar takes the child and starts to teleport away, while at the same time, 'Fret not, mother – the Winter Guard is here to help' Chernobog announces as he pulls the mother to safety, then teleports over and joins Darkstar. 'You...rescued her?' Darkstar remarks, surprised, before deciding that everyone is acting strange today.
Back in Moscow, 'Belova! Last chance to come quietly. Tell us what Alexei is planning!' Vanguard calls out as he races across a rooftop, following Yelena as she makes her mistake. 'He was right about you, Nicolai. This shield is a bit much' Yelena responds as she reaches the edge of the rooftop, and Vanguard hurls his shield towards her – barely missing her, as Yelena drops backwards, rebounds off the side of the building across the alleyway, then back to the KGB figure, then she lands awkwardly on the ground below. 'You wouldn't understand anyway' Yelena calls out. 'But would I?' Ursa Major asks as he looms over Yelena. 'You will – when you see what's on these' Yelena remarks, holding up a hard drive. She informs Ursa Major that it is one of four hard drives made during Operation Snowblind. 'This is how we fight back, Mikhail' she urges him.
'You know what it is to dirty your hands on some oligarch's orders, then suffer on his behalf. Soldiers, spies, super heroes – whether we cheat or play fair, the monsters that run the world are the only real winners. But with Alexei's intel, I can -' Yelena begins, when suddenly, 'Ursa! What are you doing? Grab her!' Vanguard calls out as he drops down from the rooftop, landing nearby. 'Huh?' Ursa Major begins, while Yelena begins to run. She taps at some controls on her harness, while Vanguard and Ursa Major begin to chase her. 'I had her cornered!' Ursa calls out, before Yelena begins to fly upwards, out of the alley. 'When did she get those?' Ursa asks. 'Damn it!' Vanguard  exclaims, before hurling his shield towards her. Yelena dodges the shield again, and tells Mikhail to think about it – to think about how he is working for – and who they all work for. 'Until next time!' she calls out asshe flies away.
Back in the countryside, the rain has subsided, while Perun, Darkstar and Chernobog stand near a river that has formed. Perun tells his teammates that the villagers are saying that some other super hero helped people get to the church on the hill before disappearing. 'We came here for nothing' he remarks. But Darkstar tells him that she doesn't think so, and that they came here to help – because even if that was Red Guardian here earlier, he couldn't save everyone. Up at the church, civilians gather outside and wave goodbye to the Red Guardian, who wears a cloak to cover his face as he walks away from the church, remarking that this is a parlor trick compared to what is coming. 'Today I save a village, but soon...I save a dream!' he boasts, adding that he has just one last coffin to dig up.
At the Security Council offices in Moscow, a soldier receives a call. The person calling announces that he wants to pass a message to the Winter Guard. 'Who is this? How did you get this number?' the officer replies. The caller holds up a hard drive and suggests to the officer that he informs the Guard that he has what they seek. 'If your heroes tire of chasing Alexei Shostakov across Russia...they are welcome to visit Chernobly'. There, in the Vampire Nation, sitting on his throne, while vampires scatter around him in the shadows, is Vlad Dracula, and he announces that he would be delighted to have the Winter Guard over for dinner.