The New Mutants #79

The kids get resourceful when trying to escape Asgard’s most hellish realms. Mirage becomes Hela’s puppet of death.

Boom-Boom complained about how much she hated it, as Moonstar and Brightwind attacked the New Mutants with their mystical fire. Wolfsbane begged her soul-mate to fight the possession, but Mirage was gaunt and tainted in body & soul. When Wolfsbane transformed into a wolf to communicate telepathically with her, Moonstar punished her with a prolonged blast of fire.

Hela panicked. Temporarily she was unable to track Moonstar and was surprised to discover that she had appeared on Asgard. Initially Hela was dismayed since Moonstar could not bring her souls from Midgard, but ultimately she was pleased at the prospect of owning the New Mutants' souls.

After her attack on Wolfsbane, Moonstar flew off to join her Valkyrior sisters. Cannonball picked Wolfsbane up. She wasn't burnt, but he realised how it must hurt her to see her best friend possessed and warped. Boom-Boom continued to complain about being stuck on Asgard, but Sunspot recalled how much fun he had in Asgard the last time (see the New Mutants Special Edition # 1 & Uncanny X-Men Giant-Sized Annual # 9). He demonstrated how much more powerful he was under the Asgard sun by triwling around a huge boulder and casually throwing it over his shoulder. However the boulder crashed through the grass and someone screamed. When the New Mutants went to investigate they were grabbed by a mob of marauding dwarves who pulled them underground. The New Mutants fought to protect themselves, except for Boom-Boom who curled up and freaked out. Sunspot, Warlock and Rictor physically defended themselves, but the grotesque appearance of the dwarves scared her to the point that she created a giant time-bomb that demolished more of the tunnel's roof. The dwarves were angry that her bomb would signal their presence to the Valkyrior. Cannonball realised that the dwarves knew his old friend Eitri. Therefore commanded the New Mutants to surrender themselves and demanded that the dwarves alert Eitri to their presence.

In Hel, Hela could still sense Moonstar fighting the possession. She then ordered the Valkyrior to capture the New Mutants and kidnap Eitri and his master forgers.

Underground, the dwarves had chained up the New Mutants and carried them to their cell. As soon as the door slammed shut Sunspot broke free from his chains, while Warlock shape-shifted his fingers into keys to free the others. Sunspot's strength was unable to break open the cell door and he blamed Cannonball for their current situation, claiming that Moonstar would have come up with a better plan. Cannonball was full of self-doubts. Warlock failed to pick the lock to the door since it was sealed with Magik. Boom-Boom continued to complain about being stuck there. Wolfsbane tried to pick Warlock's shocked remains off the floor.

Rictor tried to lighten Boom-Boom's mood with a tale of when he & his father were in prison, but she snapped back that she'd had her own nasty experiences of being in jail. She was angry that ever since they'd me the New Mutants they'd been in trouble, that X-Factor had abandoned them, and they were meant to treat their captors as allies. Upset, Boom-Boom pushed Rictor away. Cannonball re-assured Rictor to give her some space, but Rictor recalled how Boom-Boom had saved his life and turned his life around. He desperately wanted to take care of her. Warlock poured his heart out to Wolfsbane, saying that he didn't want any more of his friends to die like Cypher had. Wolfsbane hugged him and confessed how much faith she had in Cannonball's plan. Cannonball re-assessed how they often mistook Wolfsbane for a weak link in the team, but her compassion had convinced Darkchilde to save them all during the Inferno.

In an attempt to cheer Warlock and Wolfsbane, Sunspot began to juggle broken chain links and dance. Unfortunately he lost his balance and fall over. Warlock boasted he could do better as it was a past-time among his race. Rictor and Cannonball threw in extra pieces for him to juggle, and Boom-Boomo added a time-bomb to the mix. The others panicked and Cannonball grabbed her around the arm. Warlock shielded the others but the bomb fizzled away. Boom-Boom fell into a deeper depression as she'd created a dud bomb for them to play with. She was hurt that Cannonball hadn't understood that she just wanted to join in the fun & games.

The moment was suddenly interrupted when the cell door flung open and Eitri the dwarf kind greeted Cannonball. Cannonball introduced the newer members of the New Mutants and soon they were all enjoying a roasted meal around an open fire. Boom-Boom as still uncomfortable around the dwarves, while Wolfsbane enquired about the fate of Hrimhari her wolf prince. Eitri admitted that the dwarves didn't have time to notice the whereabouts of the wolves, and Boom-Boom was shocked at the idea of a wolf-prince.

Eitri consoled Cannonball over the loss of Moonstar, but admitted he was glad to see the New Mutants again. They talked about the fighting that was due to come, which depressed Boom-Boom even more. However, the revelry ended when the fiery possessed Valkyrior appeared. They had come to collect their souls for Hela. Boom-Boom began to freak out even more.