Excalibur #41 (of 125)
At Last...The Reunion! (or the Office Furniture that ate London!)
September 1st, 1991
Think the X-Men are guest starring in this issue? Guess again! The issue that was supposed to mark a major reunion turns out to be anything but!
Attack of the office furniture!
Synopsis
Bar patrons are fleeing Neale's Pub in London. One man knows what can happen when mutants gather in one place. Despite their fears, the scene inside the pub is more awkward than dangerous. The X-Men have shown up in England and are meeting Excalibur for the first time since their "deaths." Speaking her mind, Kitty Pryde tells the X-Men that their faked deaths were unacceptable and storms out of the pub.
Meanwhile, a huge array of officers are gathered to tackle a threat, but new information leads the commander to call in more help. As the moments tick by for these officers, Captain Britain and Psylocke (his corporeal misplaced sister) meet for the first time and the mood lightens a bit. Storm follows Kitty to the hospital where Kitty checks up on Lockheed. Storm apologizes for the conduct of the X-Men and the two reconcile.
Elsewhere, a police transport is shipping some crooks. One man takes the lives of his companions and stores their souls in a gem. He hopes to be able to place these souls in other bodies so as to have an army of super-powered minions. Sadly, his escort hits a pothole and the gem falls out of the paddy wagon. The souls escape from the gem and inhabit some thrown-out furniture. Excalibur and the X-Men engage the furniture while Rogue hints at a more sinister plot for the X-Men meeting with their British counterparts. The furniture proves to be a pretty difficult foe, as when Wolverine slices through a desk it merely animates the various pieces.
On the roof of the pub, Rachel Summers is having a pity party. Colossus follows her and confirms her fears: the X-Men do not like her. Just then, Dai Thomas shows up and shoots Colossus point blank. The ruse is up, and Colossus reveals that he is actually a Warwolf, an agent of Mojo bent on capturing Rachel. Doing so (her psi-powers don't work on Warwolves), the Warwolf lets out a howl to alert the others to do the same. Down below, the "X-Men" shed their skins and reveal that they are also Warwolves. Oddly, Captain Britain thinks stopping the possessed furniture trumps the threat to Rachel. Kurt may have a plan, however, based on a theory from the waitress who saw the crystal break.
The Warwolves have conjoined and are opening a portal to Mojo's world. Rachel is about sucked in when Kitty phases through and grabs hold of her friend. The rest of Excalibur show up and knock the Warwolves into their portal. And, so as to keep the Warwolves confused and in their portal, Nighcrawler shows up with the reformed crystal (which, with its re-adhesion, has re-trapped the souls of the convicts). He throws the crystal at the Warwolves. It breaks and the souls try to inhabit the bodies of the Warwolves. This is enough to cause sufficient confusion, which prohibits the Warwolves from getting out of their portal. It closes on them and it is speculated that they are gone forever.
With the threat gone, Excalibur can't help but feel a deeper wound with the X-Men imposters. They all take some time to sort out their feelings and eventually decide to take the initiative to call their American counterparts.