The New Mutants return to the scene of Cypher's death, only to confront a familiar evil reanimated into a terrifying new form of horror! Now, trapped on an island consumed by a super virus, the New Mutants fall one by one - and begin to change. Only Cypher and Warlock remain, but can they stop the Animator's virulent mutation before it engulfs the whole world?

Guest-starring the Defenders! Dr. Strange's team protects humanity from the impossible - so what does this uber-powerful group want with the New Mutants? Then, Cannonball and Karma return! But why are they suddenly years older? And what's up with the Warlock tech they're wearing? The New Mutants soon learn a terrible event has changed the course of their history - and the more they try to fix it, the worse it gets! The team thought they'd defeated...