The trials and tribulations of the X-Men are never-ending, but the period of history following M-Day was particularly difficult for mutantkind. One event during this time was the macabre Necrosha, by creators including Craig Kyle, Christopher Yost, Clayton Crain, Zeb Wells, Mike Carey, Clay Mann and more. Diminished, downtrodden and decimated, the majority of Marvel's remaining mutant population took refuge with the X-Men on an island off the coast of San Francisco. However, this proved to be a double-edged sword, as the island consolidated a lot of remaining mutant power while also painting a huge target on the vulnerable people who resided there. Knowing that mutantkind was on the ropes, the island became a target for anti-mutant hate groups and X-Men villains alike.
One particularly sadistic foil for the X-Men, the immortal, vampiric Selene Gallio, decided to wreak havoc by raising an army of undead mutants. She tried to use the X-Men's vulnerable state to settle her old grudge against Emma Frost and to attempt to ascend to godhood. Selene's aim was to resurrect the fallen mutants from the nation of Genosha, along with other prominent figures from the X-Men's past, to then absorb their essence to transcend her mortal form. What followed was a horrific physical and psychological onslaught on the X-Men.
SELENE AND HER ASCENSION
Long before she debuted in Chris Claremont and Sal Buscema's New Mutants #9, Selene began life centuries ago. Even as a child, Selene required the life force of those around her to thrive. Before being unleashed on the world, she absorbed the essence of the entire tribe she had been born into. From there, she sought to become even more powerful, believing that if she absorbed enough essence from living beings, she would become a god. However, this required a huge number of human lives, and her earlier attempts throughout the ages were foiled or folded after betrayal.
Following another, more recent betrayal from Emma Frost and the Hellfire Club, Selene sought to make Emma and Utopia suffer. She assembled a group of mutants and cohorts, either disenfranchised by the X-Men or simply fanatically loyal to her. Her most notable servant was Eli Bard, who had been imbued with the Techno-Organic virus. He was also entrusted with the ceremonial dagger to initiate Selene's ascension, although he lost it in a battle with a spiritual force protecting an Apache burial ground, the same tribe the X-Man Warpath belongs to.
With the virus, he was able to reanimate the dead, including all of the victims of the genocide on Genosha years prior. Given that Genosha once boasted a population of 16 million mutants, this would be more than enough life essence to allow Selene to ascend. Another caveat with the use of the techno-organic virus was that Bard could control those resurrected. In some cases, the resurrected mutants were aware they were being controlled, some even tried to fight it. For the most part, however, Selene had a ready-made army of the undead and set them on the X-Men.
UTOPIA VS. THE UNLIVING
The first attack was on the prison under Utopia, which occupied Danger and began to sew chaos beneath the island. During the attack on the prison by a resurrected Shinobi Shaw, Donald Pierce, was present and relaying information back to the leader of the Sentinels. While this didn't have an immediate bearing on the conflict, it set in motion the events of X-Men: Second Coming, another devastating struggle for the X-Men. The New Mutants were attacked by a revived Cypher, though with the help of Warlock and Magik, they managed to purge him of the virus' controlling aspect.
Next, Selene unleashed a personal attack on Emma Frost. Selene resurrected the Hellions, Emma's first team who perished while under her tutelage. They lured her away from the rest of the X-Men and attempted to kill her. Although Cyclops managed to get to her in time, Frost was left confused and traumatized by the confrontation. After Wolverine tried to dispatch one of the Hellions, the X-Men realized that the resurrected could not be killed. Selene and her reanimated mutants also cut off the X-Men from the mainland, intercepting half of X-Force as they tried to rejoin the X-Men.
During a battle with a resurrected Pyro, Archangel's aggression overtook him, beginning his descent into becoming the heir of Apocalypse later in Uncanny X-Force. He cut the former Brotherhood member in half with his wings, but in a display of unnerving body horror, Pyro's body began to rebuild as he taunted Warren. Banshee and Risque also returned to life, attacking the X-Men. The two former X-Men allies appeared to be fighting the virus, verbally warning their friends to run, as they couldn't control their actions. Warpath. who still had possession of Selene's lost ceremonial dagger, was captured and taken to Genosha.
LOSS AND THE AFTERLIFE
Onyxx, Meld and Diamond Lil perished during the battle on Utopia. Onyxx in particular was killed by former student and ally, Wither, who had joined Selene's entourage after running away from the X-Men. This loss of life also began to escalate tensions between Cyclops and Wolverine, who had recently argued over sending X-23 into dangerous situations. Wovlerine wanted to keep the younger mutants safe whereas Cyclops believed all mutants should fight for their future. This would be the foundation for the Schism event later, which split the X-Men down the middle.
Another figure who perished was an Asgardian wolf-person known as Hrimhari, a descendant of Fenris. The Asgardian had fallen in love with Rahne Sinclair, the mutant Wolfsbane, and had been traveling to Utopia with X-Force to seek help for her. Hoping that the mutant healer Elixir could help, he was dismayed to find the young mutant dead on arrival. As Utopia was under siege, Hrimhari desperately appealed to Hela, the Asgardian Goddess of death. After she offered him the chance to exchange his life for Rahne's, he instead sought to trade his life for Elixir's, knowing that the young man could save Wolfsbane.
The capture of Warpath brings him face-to-face with his resurrected brother, Thunderbird. It's revealed that Warpath's blood is needed for the ascension ritual, and a sigil is drawn with it. Though under Selene's thrall, Thunderbird retains his mind, warning Warpath that Selene will not stop after the ascension and implores his brother to kill him and then Selene. This is because Selene would move from consuming life on Earth to ravaging the spirit world, which would make her unstoppable. He tells Warpath how to kill Selene, before being mercifully ended by his brother.
DEFYING A GOD
While escaping, Warpath comes across X-Force, who were on mission to rescue him and stop Selene. He imparts the knowledge about how to defeat Selene and confronts the villain with their help. Elixir also does battle with Wither, his former friend and classmate, killing him by disintegrating him. In the tumultuous final battle, Warpath stabs the ascending Selene with her own ceremonial dagger, calling on the energies of the spirits protecting his tribe to push her from her course to godhood.
In the aftermath, the X-Men were afforded no rest. Directly after this, X-Men: Second Coming kicked off, which saw the further loss of friends and family, pushing mutantkind closer to extinction. Selene didn't perish in Nerosha either and has caused trouble in the pages of Captain America. Necrosha exposed Utopia as a vulnerable location, and the event set off tensions between Wolverine and Cyclops that the events following only magnified. As both a horrific battle for survival and an omen of things to come, Necrosha was one of the darkest events in recent X-Men history.