January 5's Inferno #4 marks writer Jonathan Hickman's swansong from the franchise, resolving the first major plot point of his run, involving the secret of Moira X, whose reincarnation power is one of the biggest secrets of Krakoa.
Hickman, alongside artists Valerio Schiti and Stefano Caselli, sets the stage for 'Destiny of X' with some shocking developments for Moira X and for the Quiet Council, Krakoa's leadership - which may shake the mutant island to its core in the near future.
Spoilers ahead for Inferno #4
Inferno #4 picks up where the previous issue left off, with Xavier and Magneto storming the Orchis facility where Moira X was kidnapped by Mystique and Destiny before they secreted her away back to her secret room in Krakoa's null space.
As it turns out, Moira and Destiny previously severed Moira's arm, which contained the device that allowed Xavier and Magneto to track her. They discover that Moira, Mystique, and Destiny are nowhere to be found, with only Moira's arm left behind - and Nimrod, Omega Sentinel, and a host of Orchis soldiers waiting for them.
As Xavier and Magneto face off with the Orchis forces, Omega Sentinel kills all her own human henchmen, confessing that she, Nimrod, and their machine culture hate humans as much as mutants, and plan to destroy them too.
The battle begins in Xavier and Magneto's favor, however, the tides quickly turn and they are both killed by Omega Sentinel and Nimrod, who manage to survive the encounter despite Xavier and Magneto unleashing their full might. As Magneto dies, he vows that he will see the villains again.
Meanwhile, back on Krakoa, Mystique and Destiny reveal their plan for Moira X. As it turns out, they've discovered a way around activating her mutant power and resetting the timeline if they kill her - the mutant negation gun Forge built years and years ago, given to them by none other than Emma Frost, who previously revealed Moira's secret to Mystique and Destiny.
Using the gun, they negate Moira's powers entirely, turning her human. As they gloat over this, Moira confesses that her plan has never been to preserve mutantkind, but to eliminate mutants by bringing them all together and using an invention that will negate their X-genes and mutant powers, even before they can manifest - which would effectively end mutantkind.
But before Mystique and Destiny can take the final step and kill Moira, they're interrupted by Cypher, whose connection to Krakoa allows him to be aware of what's going on in Moira's null space. He agrees with Mystique and Destiny that Moira X must be condemned - but they've made the mistake of turning her human, so killing her would be against Krakoan law.
Destiny senses three possible outcomes of their actions. If they kill Moira, they'll be exiled and both will die. If they try to kill Cypher, they'll both lose, and Destiny will never be resurrected again. However, if they let Moira go, they'll maintain their places on the Quiet Council and have a chance to keep guiding mutantkind.
Reluctantly settling on the final option, Mystique and Destiny agree to let Moira live, with Cypher sending Moira through a Krakoa gate for the last time - with Mystique and Destiny vowing that Moira will be hunted by numerous forces.
Back on Krakoa, Xavier and Magneto are resurrected by Emma Frost in a scene that mimics one of the opening scenes of Inferno #1, with Emma telling Xavier and Magneto that she has revealed the secret of Moira X to the Quiet Council, all of whom will bear the secret of Krakoa's founding.
With the weight of the secret weighing on them, it seems the Quiet Council may further break into ideological factions as the new 'Destiny of X' era kicks off in March and April. All of that drama will likely play out in one of the 'Destiny of X' flagship titles, March 30's Immortal X-Men, which focuses on Magneto and the Quiet Council.
Inferno is making a bid to be counted among the best X-Men stories of all time.
