Rom and Starshine save a group of children from young Dire Wraiths, and Rom realizes how cold and ruthless his partner, whom he secretly loves, has become. While he banishes one Wraith to Limbo, an old foe slips out: Hybrid, the half-human, half-Wraith horror. Appearing as a young boy, Hybrid emerges in Cameron County, is taken in by a local preacher, and quickly becomes a preacher himself after draining the life from his foster father.

Rom and Starshine soon sense something wrong at the church. Inside, Hybrid ambushes them, banishes Rom to Limbo, and captures Starshine. He frees Brandy Clark from her armor and declares that he intends to make her his bride to spite Rom.

Nearby, Professor Xavier and several New Mutants are visiting Cannonball’s family after helping extinguish a forest fire. Sam learns from his younger brother Josh that the younger siblings all know he’s a mutant, and hope they might become mutants too, seeing it as a ticket out of their difficult life. Later, the New Mutants and the Guthries attend the old preacher’s funeral. There, Xavier, Magik, and Wolfsbane immediately sense malice around the new preacher. Reading their thoughts, Hybrid decides he wants the female mutants as brides as well, hoping his children will inherit their powers.

Hybrid sinks the church underground. When the mutants investigate, he triggers a cave-in, trapping them with him. He incapacitates Xavier and captures the team except for Magik, who escapes to Limbo. However, she finds herself in Rom’s Limbo, where all the Dire Wraiths Rom has banished attack him. Illyana helps Rom fight them off and teleports them both back to the church, arriving just as Hybrid’s wedding ceremony with Brandy begins.

Rom is helpless against Hybrid’s magic, but Illyana wounds him with her Soulsword. Brandy snaps out of her trance, seizes Rom’s Neutralizer, and prepares to destroy Hybrid, all while knowing the neutralizer is deadly to humans wielding it. Xavier recovers in time to shield her from the worst of the backlash, allowing her to destroy Hybrid and survive. However Brandy loses her powers in the process and can no longer aid Rom in his war against the Wraiths, something Rom quietly admits he’s relieved about.