Captain America Fears the X-Men's Staggering New Era
In a preview for Marvel's S.W.O.R.D. #6, Captain America admits he's struggling to adjust to the X-Men's new era and mutantkind's grand ambitions.
Warning: contains spoilers for Planet-Size X-Men #1 and S.W.O.R.D. #6!
In S.W.O.R.D. #6, Captain America expresses his shock and fear over the X-Men's ambitious new era, which positions mutantkind as the dominant force in the solar system. Following on from the "fireworks" of Planet-Size X-Men #1, where the mutants psychically broadcast the terraforming of Mars to attendees of Krakoa's Hellfire Gala, S.W.O.R.D. #6 sees the visiting dignitaries grappling with this tectonic shift in world politics. While it's anyone's guess as to how Captain America will respond down the line, things are definitely big when Rogers decides to get real and process what he's just seen with someone like Doctor Doom.
Planet-Size X-Men #1 saw Magneto recruit a team of powerful mutants to render Mars habitable to the mutants of Krakoa's sister nation, Arakko. Done largely in secret with the approval of the mutant nation's Quiet Council, Magneto, Hope Summers, Storm, Ice Man, and more came together and turned Mars into world teeming with life, oceans, and breathable air... all for mutants. Debuting their accomplishment at the Hellfire Gala, the X-Men introduced Planet Arakko to the nations and heroes of Earth, and such a massive and sudden shift of the status quo has generated all kinds of reactions (not all of them good.)
In a preview for S.W.O.R.D. #6, from writer Al Ewing and artist Valerio Schiti, Captain America is processing what he's just seen, deeply affected by the mutant show of power. With the firework display on Mars having concluded and the guests returning from their telepathic communion, Rogers is trying to collect his thoughts when he's approached by Doctor Doom. Putting aside their usual enmity, Captain America admits to being "a little shell-shocked," and tells Doom that when he was first unfrozen after decades in the ice, it was footage of the moon landing that gave him something to hold onto. Noting that this mission was undertaken "for all mankind," it seems that Captain America is now trying to come to grips with the exact opposite experience.
As much as Earth's most influential humans may be struggling with what they've just seen, the show isn't over. The issue's synopsis says Abigail Brand is ready to unveil "her plans for Mysterium - and the future of human and mutantkind," finally revealing the intent behind the mysterious mineral fans have seen the X-Men's space team collecting in previous issues. Captain America's comments about how mankind walking on the moon gave him hope seem to indicate that mutantkind claiming Mars has motivated an opposite reaction of fear and concern. Terraforming an entire planet in a manner of days is a huge feat, and it's no wonder mankind feels threatened by such an awesome display of power, especially one which explicitly excludes them from the benefits.
Anti-mutant groups such as Orchis are already scrambling to recruit disgruntled gala attendees, and it's anyone's guess how Captain America himself will respond (or Doom, for that matter.) While Rogers has a fairly decent working relationship with Cyclops, it's not as if the Avengers and X-Men haven't clashed in the past, and there are hints Tony Stark may be resurrecting his secret Illuminati group, of which Captain America has previously been a reluctant member. The X-Men's leap into the cosmos could result in significant escalation and even war with mankind, potentially forcing Captain America to take some aggressive action in the future.