X-Force Vol. 1 #001 (X-Force Card)

Cable and his X-Force (Domino, Shatterstar, Warpath, Cannonball, Boom Boom, and Feral) attempt to take down the mutant terrorist group known as the Mutant Liberation Front. X-Force breaks into the MLF’s base and take out the guards with little effort. Next, X-Force is confronted by Forearm, Kamikaze, Wildside, and Reaper. Shatterstar cuts off Reaper’s left hand, Warpath knocks out Forearm, and Feral breaks Wildside’s jaw. Stryfe rigs the base to blow and escapes with the injured MLF via Zero’s teleport.

Elsewhere, Gideon trains Sunspot in battle tactics and business. In Antarctica, G.W. Bridge and SHIELD are in search of Cable. Back at the World Trade Center, Black Tom takes the building hostage.

Synopsis

Cable and his team have located a Mutant Liberation Front base in Antarctica. After making the proper preparations, the team drops in and commencing battling MLF grunts. The fight seems to go too easily until Shatterstar informs everyone that Forearm, Reaper, Kamikaze, and Wildside have joined the fray. Cable gives Shatterstar his reigns and the alien charges for the person leading the MLF charge, Reaper. After a quick bout, Shatterstar chops off Reaper’s left hand and then knocks him unconscious, willing himself to buy into his team’s stance on killing only if needed. Meanwhile, Cable is grabbed from behind by Forearm, who is quickly knocked around by Warpath. In anger, Cable demands that fighting the underlings doesn’t matter – he’s there for Stryfe.

Watching from another part of the Antarctic base, Stryfe sees that his forces are outclassed. He instructs Thumbelina to have Zero begin the movement of their operations; he then orders the base to self-destruct.

Back at the fight, Feral takes on Wildside (where has Kamikaze been this whole time?) and, after some playful banter, brutally breaks his jaw. She’d like to kill the guy, but Cable holds her back long enough for Zero to port in and whisk Wildside away. As Zero departs, the team sees Stryfe on a landing and Cable tries to shoot him. Zero arrives and teleports Stryfe away. X-Force notices the building becoming more unstable and Cable bodyslides the team to their awaiting craft above ground. Domino steps into the driver’s seat and punches it while the base explodes. The team has mixed feelings about what they accomplished.

In Manhattan, Gideon and Sunspot prepare for the day with a light workout. Pleased with Sunspot’s progress, Gideon informs him that he can help out with the Jankos stock buyout.

At the smoldering ruins of the MLF base, G.W. Bridge scans the wreckage. He inspects a weapons fragment and determines that Cable had definitely been there. He also determines that Cable needs to be taken down.

X-Force makes its new home out of the old Sentinel base of Larry Trask in the Adirondack Mountains. The facilities are almost perfect for the team. In the hanger, Cable inspects their craft. Cannonball enters and asks why X-Force gave up on taking out the MLF. Cable explains that he wants to look out for the team. He pulled them out after doing Stryfe plenty of damage while keeping their casualties to a minimum. Cannonball then asks about Tyler, Cable’s son. Cable explains that Tyler was only like a son. They had fought side-by-side until Stryfe turned Tyler and then eventually killed him. Interrupting, Domino informs Cannonball that the team is waiting on him for workouts. After Cannonball leaves, Cable telekinetically lifts some tools to make his job easier. Domino is incredulous, knowing that the team would have a ton more questions if they saw that he had mutant abilities. He swears that they can learn in time and that he’ll be careful.

At the World Trade Center, Gideon and Sunspot enter the board room in which they hope to buyout the Jankos Corporation. After some playful banter with the secretary, the men meet Ariana Jankos. They also meet Black Tom Cassidy, because Ms. Jankos does not want to sell the shares and Black Tom is there to swindle money from the gathered companies to keep the Jankos Corporation afloat.

As G.W. Bridge heads back to Canada, he calls Nick Fury and gains permission to take Cable down by any means necessary. Bridge puts in the order to get Weapon X involved.

Note: The character Domino is actually the shape shifter Copycat.

Poly-Bagged.  X-Force Card