INHUMANS VS. X-MEN: WHY ARE THESE TWO MARVEL TEAMS FIGHTING? 

Inhumans vs. X-Men: Why Are These Two Marvel Teams Fighting?

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You\'d think Marvel\'s heroes would have their fill of fighting each other for a while, what with all the fresh battle scars from Civil War II. But that\'s not stopping the X-Men and Inhumans from going to war in Marvel\'s latest crossover event. That war gets underway this week with the release of Inhumans vs. X-Men #1.

To help get you prepared for this crossover, we\'ve broken down the essential things all readers need to know before reading IvX #1. Why are these two teams fighting? What\'s the difference between a mutant and an Inhuman anyway? Read on to find out.

On the surface, the X-Men and Inhumans sound like pretty similar groups. They\'re both superhero teams comprised of genetically abnormal heroes who battle against fear and intolerance. The fact that both concepts were created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in the mid-1960\'s doesn\'t necessarily help. But there are distinct differences between the two, and it\'s those differences that are really at the heart of of IvX.

Both mutants and Inhumans are evolutionary offshoots of Homo sapiens, though they have far different origins. Mutants spontaneously occur among the human population, with their population growing exponentially over the centuries. Inhumans, by contrast, were the result of genetic experimentation by the Kree Empire many thousands of years ago. Mutants receive their superhuman powers from their latent mutant gene, which usually first expresses itself during puberty or time of great stress. Inhumans only gain their powers after undergoing Terrigenesis, a sacred ritual where they\'re exposed to the mists of a rare mineral and undergo a process of physical rebirth. In either case, though, the person in question winds up wielding fantastical and often unpredictable powers.

Traditionally, because mutants appear at random while Inhumans have to undergo special rituals to be reborn, the population of the former has greatly outnumbered the latter. But that balance of power has shifted greatly in recent years. Mutants numbered in the millions prior to the events of 2005\'s House of M. Unfortunately, the end result of that storyline was that Scarlet Witch eliminated the mutant gene and shrunk the world\'s mutant population to a mere 198. The gene was reborn thanks to the intervention of the Phoenix Force in the 2012 Avengers vs. X-Men crossover, but mutants still remain a small and very endangered species.

Conversely, the Inhuman population has exploded in the last few years. Where once it was believed that all the world\'s Inhumans lived in the hidden city of Attilan, the truth is that there are several cities scattered across the globe, with many more un-transformed Inhumans living in secret among humanity. Those Inhumans all experienced Terrigenesis at once when Black Bolt detonated a Terrigen Bomb during the course of Infinity. The bomb created a cloud that even now circles the globe, transforming any Inhumans who happen to be exposed to its mists. Not only are there more Inhumans than ever, but their leader, Queen Medusa, has made it her mission to ensure they have a greater role on the world stage.

The problem is that the resurgence of the Inhuman race comes at the expense of mutants. The X-Men have discovered the hard way that exposure to the mists, while harmless for ordinary humans, is often fatal to mutants. That\'s forced the team to retreat from their usual home in Westchester, NY to the relative safety that is the demonic realm of Limbo. Both teams have made it a priority to monitor the cloud\'s path and rescue any mutants that might be killed. And while the X-Men and Inhumans have done a decent job so far of working together (with Beast even switching teams in order to research a cure), mutant/Inhuman tensions are at an all-time high. And there are some on both sides who feel war is inevitable.

While that war is only just now unfolding, it\'s not as though there haven\'t already been skirmishes. The recent mini-series Death of X flashed back eight months to explore what happened when Cyclops and his band of X-Men first discovered the dangers the mists pose.

At that time, the Terrigen cloud had divided into two halves, posing double the risk for mutants. And that risk was made terribly clear when one cloud passed over Muir Island, killing Jamie Madrox and every other mutant living there. Even Cyclops fell ill after surveying the aftermath. Knowing that his death was imminent, Cyclops decided that his final act in defense of his people would be to eliminate this latest threat to their survival.

Cyclops and his team managed to destroy one of the two clouds, but not without attracting the wrath of Black Bolt and Medusa. Cyclops was promptly obliterated by Black Bolt\'s sonic scream, ending the long and storied career of the world\'s most infamous mutant freedom fighter. Storm and Medusa managed to restore peace between their two teams, and a fragile truce has existed ever since.

Black Bolt kills Cyclops. Art by Javier Garron. (Marvel Comics)

However, very few know the true story behind that conflict. The final issue of Death of X revealed that Cyclops actually died as soon as he was exposed to the Terrigen cloud on Muir Island. The Cyclops seen in the rest of the story was nothing more than a psychic illusion created by Emma Frost. She wanted to give Scott Summers a noble death, one that would allow him to live on as a symbol for the mutant race. And having done that, she\'s now eager for a little revenge against the Inhumans. She\'s already formed an alliance with Magneto, and more X-Men are sure to join them.

As for what finally breaks the truce for good? That\'ll be revealed in IvX #1, but the solicitation teases, "When Beast discovers that the mutants have only two weeks before the planet is uninhabitable for them, an Inhuman/mutant war is unavoidable." It seems the X-Men no longer have the luxury of playing nice, as their feud with the Inhumans is now a life-and-death struggle.

Keep reading for more details concerning Civil War II, how to read it, and what\'s coming in 2017 for the X-Men and Inhumans!