Release: September 2026 | Writer: Jed McKay | Artist: Netho Diaz & Sean Parsons| Colorists: Arthur Hesli | Letterer: Clayton Cowles
While the X-Men and Fantastic Four Battle 3K. Quentin is inside the mind of the legendary Cassandra Nova to put a stop to her mentally. Can he complete this daunting task?
*SPOILER WARNING AHEAD!*
HERE GOES NOTHING:
Quentin has a huge task at hand. This isn't just any mind that he is attempting to enter. It's the mind of Cassandra Nova. Luckily, he keeps reminding himself that he has backup and he'll be okay.
Quentin and Cassandra fight back and forth in the opening pages of this issue. Cassandra coughs up deadly insects and bugs that try to cut through Quentin. He returns the favor by making the X-Men, fresh off a 90s cover, appear out of the ground to battle her.
Of course, Cassandra crafts giant Sentinels to battle against them. Causing a huge war between the two creations, with these strong telepaths trying to outdo one another.
Cassandra tells Quentin that she’s with 3K because the only way to end a war is to kill one side of the fight. Which in the case of the X-Virus, are the millions of humans that look down on mutantkind. She even tries to bring up Magneto.
But Quentin knows the real Magneto. He knows that Magneto has changed, and his view on the Mutant vs. Human war has changed tremendously. He's made strides and actions that show his acceptance of humans and mutants living cohesively. There's no more "collective punishment" in how she sees the world.
TIME FOR BACKUP:
That's when Quentin impales Cassandra on spikes. Unfortunately, she's just playing possum and goes deeper into Quentin's mind, literally trying to drown him.
Quentin has a heart and doesn't give up, even taking Cassandra to the deep subconscious, where it could possibly kill both of them.
Cassandra doesn't know who Quentin's "backup" is that he mentioned earlier.
The Phoenix has arrived to put an end to Cassandra Nova, setting her ablaze and removing Quentin from her mind. Sadly, the fight took a toll on his mind, and he's suffering from minor memory loss.
To make matters worse, he gets word from Cyclops that they need telepathic evacuation protocols put up ASAP because Philadelphia may be done for.
CONCLUSION
This was a nice in-between issue for the DNX storyline. When Quentin showed up in DNX with Cassandra, I was a bit confused as to what was happening. So I'm glad this issue shed some light on the battle he had with her.
Some nice surprises here and there and some genuinely great written dialogue make this a good book. But in the grander scheme of the DNX story, it absolutely is not a must-read. It’s an issue with some fun action but isn't something you need to go and buy immediately and add to your collection.
It's definitely a fun little treat for the people dedicated to either the X-Men book or the DNX story. Even if you read ONLY X-Men and not DNX, it is a solid little side story. The fight scenes in this all look just downright amazing.