The Fifth Horseman

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Fifth Horseman is the 10th episode of the 5th season of the 1992 animated series X-Men.

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

A one shot story, it begins with The Hounds, a band of empowered mutants chasing a child mutant.

After the mutant escapes, Fabian Cortez screams at the Hound Caliban for having let the mutant escape. It is revealed that he wishes to revive Apocalypse through the help of a vessel, powerful enough to contain the essence of Apocalypse.

Meanwhile Beast and Jubilee are seen driving a truck through the jungle. Then they come across a bridge. Beast discovers Mayan writing on a stone, which he says points to a temple "dedicated to the end of the world", but he soon corrects himself. The temple is not dedicated to the end of the world, "It is consecrated... to Apocalypse".

Then the Hounds appear, as Caliban had sensed the young, strong mutant Jubilee from afar.

Caliban was once a morlock, and a friend to Jubilee. Beast and Jubilee are captured and taken before the temple, where they are "greeted" by Cortez. He reveals he wishes to revive Apocalypse and that the temple is a "failsafe, built eons ago, a final insurance, should all other plans fail".

He then uses the powers granted to him by Apocalypse to transform Beast into a hound, but he is un-controllable and flees. Cortez orders the assembly to forget him and prepare evrything for the celestial alignment.

Caliban says he wants to search for another vessel. Cortez flips over the sympathy in his voice towards Jubilee and says, "Nothing must endanger our master's return!"

Beast runs wild and then discovers the truck, which he destroys, but finds a picture of the X-men, influencing him to return and rescue Jubilee.

Beast enters the temple, after Caliban betrays Cortez and tries to save Jubilee and his powers are drained. During the ocurring battle, the weakened Caliban frees Jubilee.

The power of the ritual is meanwhile destroying the Temple. Cortez's leg is caught under a rock and he cannot escape. When Apocalypse comes closer, Cortez apologizes, he no longer possesses the vessel for Apocalypse's return.

Apocalypse replies, "But you have provided me with a vessel Cortez.".

Then Apocalypse takes over Cortez's body, transforming it into his form and banishing Cortez from it.