WARNING: The following contains spoilers for King in Black #1 by Donny Cates, Ryan Stegman, JP Mayer, Frank Martin, & VC's Clayton Cowles, on sale now.
Knull, the King in Black, has finally reached Earth with his army of symbiote dragons. After knocking out the defenses set up by Tony Stark almost immediately, Knull made his way to the surface and wreaked havoc as his symbiotes flowed over everyone and everything in their path.
And just when this massive assault began to overwhelm the assembled heroes, the X-Men arrived on the scene. Storm, along with other people with electrical powers, took to the sky trying to shock the invading creatures. Things seemed to be going well for the heroes until Knull started to wrap the entire planet in his black goo. The heroes watched the lights from the celestial bodies become blocked at Knull's command, a fear must have been growing in Storm. As she faltered from the sight of it, Knull trapped Storm in the same way, giving Storm's worst fear life.
As an X-Men leader for many years, Storm has had to face tough opponents and proved to be cool under pressure countless times. However, Storm has had a long history of claustrophobia -- a fear of enclosed spaces -- and Knull's attack perfectly takes advantage of her fears.
When Storm was a little girl, an airplane crashed into her home killing both of her parents and trapping her in the rubble. Finally, she dug her way out but the feeling of it stayed with her, shaping her for the rest of her life. After joining the X-Men team, Storm decided to live in the attic and not a regular room. In the attic space, she could be closer to the sky and open-air, whereas one of the many bedrooms on the lower floors felt too confining.
Also in her attic room, Storm kept many plants, giving it a jungle-like appearance. Storm's mutant power may be controlling the weather but she derives that from the earth itself. Instead of creating weather, she coaxes and bends the existing elements to her will. Keeping the plants nearby helped her keep a connection to Mother Nature and kept her in tune with all of the planet's elements.
In Uncanny X-Men #147, by Chris Claremont, Dave Cockrum, and Josef Rubinstein, Storm was encased by Doctor Doom. While she was trapped, Storm's connection to the earth became stronger due to her fear and will to live. During those events, Storm was unconscious yet her fear was still so strong to reach out to the planet for help. For Storm, seeing her home and source of power being enclosed would be terrifying and throw her off of her attack plan. Then to become trapped herself would be horrible, especially because this time around it seemed she was fully conscious.
Although this attack from Knull will probably leave a lasting impression on Storm, it may prove to hurt Knull as well. It may appear that Storm was easily defeated, but this fight was only Storm's first encounter with Knull.
Faced with her greatest fear on multiple fronts, Storm and her connection to Earth could push her powers to a new level, and it may only be a matter of time until she shows the symbiote god what an Omega-Level mutant can really do.