Hi everyone,
Time to get right into the second part of ROM's first meeting with Marvel mutants, as I write about the eighteenth issue of Marvel's ROM: Spaceknight. The cover shows the half-human, half-Dire Wraith menace known as Hybrid in the foreground, locked in battle with Wolverine, Storm, Colossus, Nightcrawler, and the star of this magazine. The story was titled "And a Child Shall Deceive Them!" The issue had a cover date of May 1981.
We pick up right where the action left off in the last issue in the first panel, as ROM stands against the X-Men, who mistakenly believe that the Galadorian was trying to assault the young Jimmy Marks in his human form, whom Sprite, aka Kitty Pryde, was holding in her arms. ROM stood outside the remnants of the Mark home (that had been destroyed during his confrontation with Hybrid in issue #17) and recounted his encounter with Jimmy's father, Jacob, who was a Dire Wraith, and his son, who quickly changed forms and attacked the Spaceknight and slew his dad.
Nightcrawler teleported onto ROM's back, and Wolverine lashed out at the armored alien, as Storm flew in the blizzard that was not something that she created. Hybrid, still in his human form, smiled as he watched the battle begin, still cradled in Sprite's arms. The Galadorian shrugged off the attacks from Nightcrawler, Wolverine, and Colossus, just before several farm implements flew into the air and broke against his armor. The tools were undoubtedly issued forth by Hybrid.
As the storm increased in intensity, it became more difficult for the participants and observers to see who they were facing or who was even next to them. Soon, ROM met Sprit, who was scared by the alien identity of Hybrid right behind her. Instinctively, she leaped to escape the being and phased through ROM's armor. The process weakened the Spaceknight temporarily. Meanwhile, Colossus joined his teammates Nightcrawler and Wolverine. Wolverine admitted that there was something strange about the battle. The trio split up to find young Pryde. Above them, Storm hovered in the air, trying to combat the strange winter weather. With everyone separated, ROM soon found himself confronting Hybrid by himself.
Our hero brought his neutralizer forth from subspace, and even on a slay setting, still had difficulty against his foe. He was aided temporarily by Colossus, who leapt at Hybrid. To his surprise, he found that the alien was able to reach into the Russian's mind, remove his armored form, and wound him in the process. The X-Man collapsed in the snow, where he was soon found by his friend Nightcrawler.
While Nightcrawler administered CPR on his fallen teammate, Wolverine unsheathed his claws and attacked ROM once more. Sprite watched their confrontation until Hybrid reached out for her. She found one of the snowmobiles that Steve Jackson and Brandy Clark had left behind last issue when they went to deliver Jimmy's mother, Marjorie, to the local hospital. She started the motor and pushed the vehicle at her attacker. Hybrid simply lifted one hand and disassembled the snowmobile into its components, and flung them through the air back at her. The last piece to fly at Sprite was the engine, which harmlessly phased through her body.
Sprite had no sooner evaded the machinery when she backed up against Wolverine, a moment before ROM's punch landed the Canadian mutant into the fresh snow. The two X-Men talked and realized that the silver Spaceknight wasn't their enemy after all. ROM then renewed his attack against Hybrid, who knocked the neutralizer from his hand. Wolverine picked up the weapon, but was shocked by the feedback from its safeguard systems that prevent anyone but ROM from using it.
Undaunted by Wolverine's rebuff, Sprite picked up the neutralizer and fired it out in front of her. Surprisingly, she was able to wield ROM's weapon without being harmed. The neutralizer's rays continued firing at Hybrid, who turned to face his new attacker. ROM flew to assist the young girl and was once again locked in combat with his enemy. He called out to the young mutant during the skirmish and advised her to adjust her own atoms so that his weapon could be reset. Sprite did so, and both Hybrid and ROM were dispatched to limbo.
With Hybrid gone, the fierce blizzard was over instantly. Storm swooped down to rejoin her comrades, who were recovering and trying to understand what had just happened. They walked away from the battlesite, thinking that the silver-armored one sacrificed himself against the enemy. As the X-Men left the Marks' homestead, we see ROM's neutralizer half buried in a small snowbank. On the last page, we see the silver Spaceknight plummeting helplessly through the dimension where he usually vanquishes his foes.
This was the finale of one of the best battle epics in this title's history. Both issues are well worth picking up, whether you're a ROM fan, an X-Men fan, or a fan of both. Next time, I'll write about the nineteenth issue of ROM: Spaceknight, where we find out what happens to ROM in limbo and his meeting with another longstanding Marvel character. We also find out more about the Galadorians in another chapter of the Saga of the Spaceknights. Until then, have a great week and don't forget to be kind to one another.
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