Mutantkind are not a race, anymore. They need a different kind of protector now. A different kind of crusade. We must all of us consider what that might be. Strive to be the knights our lost tribes need -- whatever that striving might cost us. And in the meantime -- turn our back on the ways that can no longer help us. 
- —Exodus[src]
History
Origins and early years: 12th century
Born in the 12th century, Bennet du Paris had always felt different, as if he had a deep hidden power. As an adult he was a Crusader and became best friends with Eobar Garrington, the Black Knight of that era. The two had set out on a quest to find the Tower of Power, the domain of the mythic "Eternal Pharaoh" in Akkaba when Dane Whitman (the 20th century Black Knight) and Sersi had been transported back to the 12th century, Whitman transported into Eobar's body.[3]
Eobar retained control, but felt something was wrong. When he came into contact with Sersi he abandoned the quest, angering Paris. Paris left to find the tower alone. Traveling for hours through violent sandstorms, when he finally collapsed a voice spoke to him, asking him if he was willing to risk everything to become one of the strong. Paris was then tested, and his mutant powers manifested for the first time.[3]
Proving himself strong, he disappeared from the spot. Meanwhile Sersi had awakened Dane's mind and he now had control of his body as Eobar passed on. While searching for Paris, the two were captured by Apocalypse. When they awoke they found Bennet du Paris had been transformed into Exodus, recognizing him as the same Exodus from the 20th century. Apocalypse commanded Exodus to destroy the Black Knight.[3]
When Dane refused to kill Exodus Sersi intervened, though her attack proved useless. Apocalypse again commanded Exodus to kill Sersi and Dane, though this time Exodus refused. He turned on Apocalypse calling him a "false god".[3]
However, Exodus was no match for him. Apocalypse stripped Exodus of his power and sealed him away in a crypt in the Swiss Alps. Six months later Dane found the crypt in which Exodus was trapped in a coma like state. He found there was a curse preventing Exodus from leaving, yet others were allowed to come and go as they pleased. Dane left guards who had sworn to look after the crypt for generations to come, and he and Sersi returned to their time.[3]
20th century
Sometime later, in the 20th century, Magneto found and freed Exodus, taking him back to Avalon. Exodus became Magneto's right hand man, replacing Fabian Cortez who had betrayed Magneto. Exodus appeared before the government sanctioned team X-Factor[4]. It seemed as though Exodus wanted to tell them something, but he refrained and left. Exodus then appeared before the mutant team X-Force to retrieve Cannonball and Sunspot and take them back to Avalon. They weren't going to come quietly, but the team proved no match for Exodus.
Exodus was followed back, and X-Force invaded Avalon to rescue their teammates. X-Force fled the station, but not before Cable was mortally wounded by Magneto. When Charles Xavier wiped Magneto's mind clean in an attack by the X-Men on Avalon, Exodus assumed leadership of the Acolytes. Exodus would converse with the mindless Magneto, believing he could hear Magneto's voice.
Soon after, Fabian Cortez had resurfaced in Genosha, where he had taken Magneto's granddaughter Luna prisoner. The tension between the mutants and humans had erupted and Genosha was in a state of war. When Luna's mother, Crystal realized Luna had been taken, she and the Avengers left for Genosha.
Meanwhile Quicksilver and the X-Men had also gone to Genosha to save Luna. Exodus arrived in Genosha to save the mutate people and destroy the humans. He quickly came to blows with the Avengers, defeating both War Machine and Sersi before leaving. Exodus then found Fabian Cortez in the sewers of Genosha, using the baby Luna as a human shield. Cortez tried his best to escape, telling Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch, Crystal and Jean Grey they must kill Exodus if Luna was to survive.
They were no match for Exodus, and he took control of Cortez making him hand over Luna, then seemingly killed him. Exodus then appeared to the mutates of Genosha, telling them to kill all humans or the entire island will be crushed under his force field. The Avengers and X-Men teamed up and took the fight to Exodus, but it proved futile.
It wasn't until Professor Xavier unleashed a powerful psionic attack on Exodus, which allowed the Black Knight to sneak up on Exodus cutting through him with his energy blade. Exodus, weakened and defeated, left for Avalon, but not before unleashing a powerful attack on Quicksilver, almost killing him. Black Knight remembered Exodus, but couldn't figure out how. It turned out that Black Knight had not gone back in time yet to meet him.
The Acolytes discovered a cocoon of ice with a living being inside floating near the space-station Avalon. Despite some Acolyte's objections, Exodus ordered the cocoon to be brought on board, believing it to be a sign of things to come. This, along with his insistence that he heard Magneto's voice and his refusal to show Magneto's body, was making some Acolyte's doubt his sanity more and more.
During the night, the being inhabiting the cocoon awoke, absorbing several Acolytes and killing them in the process. The being turned out to be Holocaust, one of the survivors of the altered reality the Age of Apocalypse. Holocaust confused Exodus with his AoA counterpart, not knowing that that reality was gone. Holocaust knew that he was among enemies when he heard of Magneto's presence. Exodus and Holocaust battled without regard for anything around them, destroying Avalon in the process and fighting through the ship's re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere.
Severely weakened from his battle with Holocaust, Exodus made his way back to the crypt in the Swiss Alps where Apocalypse had originally locked him away. There Exodus hoped to rest and regain his powers, but discovered that his powers had somehow changed. Exodus became a kind of psychic vampire, needing to absorb the psionic energy of others; when he sensed the energies of Cable and X-Man nearby, he was delighted at the sheer wealth of power they possessed. Exodus battled X-Man, becoming more powerful every time X-Man used his power.
It looked as though Exodus would be victorious until X-Man discovered Exodus' link to Apocalypse. Enraged, X-Man let loose the full extent of his power, which proved to be too much for Exodus, and sealed him in a rapidly closing crevasse.
Exodus survived, his powers reverted to normal, and he returned to leading the Acolytes. Seeing the High Evolutionary's experiments as crimes against nature, Exodus sent an army of Mutates and a team of Acolytes, in an attack against the Evolutionary's base, Wundagore mountain.
Despite opposition from Quicksilver and the Knights of Wundagore, Exodus successfully gained control of the citadel, while the High Evolutionary escaped. Exodus considered it his "holy mission" to rid the world of impure and artificial mutants such as the High Evolutionary and his creations, the beings known as the Inhumans and those infected with the Legacy Virus. He sent a team consisting of Pyro, Avalanche, Omega Red and Feral among others to find the High Evolutionary promising the infected members a cure to the legacy virus, though never intending to cure them. He also sent Fabian Cortez on a mission to destroy the Terrigen Mists in the Inhuman city of Attilan; however in the end, Cortez failed.
The High Evolutionary decided it was time to regain control of Mount Wundagore, and set off with a team towards the citadel. There he was betrayed by Man-Beast who stole the scepter housing Isotope E, greatly empowering him. Exodus and his Acolyte's appeared and Exodus demanded the isotope be handed over. Man-Beast refused to comply.
After a horrific battle between Exodus and Man-Beast, the two came to the conclusion that they had much in common and decided to share the isotope and together took Quicksilver, the Knights of Wundagore, and the Heroes For Hire prisoner. Quicksilver eventually escaped, gained control of Isotope E himself, turned the isotope on himself, and became more powerful than he had ever been before. Exodus apparently proved no match for the super-charged Quicksilver and was soundly defeated. Just as Pietro began to celebrate however, the High Evolutionary, now 20 feet tall and thoroughly insane, smashed through the wall behind them. The Acolytes refused to help in the battle against the High Evolutionary, prompting Exodus to call them cowards; the mutant announced that the High Evolutionary was an abomination and that Exodus would defeat him by any means necessary. Thena and Exodus' subsequent proved ineffective, until Man-Beast appeared and suggested that the three of them unite their psionic power.
This tactic worked and the High Evolutionary began to shrink back down as a result of their combined assault, however Quicksilver intervened and convinced them to stop before they could kill the High Evolutionary. In the aftermath of the battle (with the High Evolutionary de-powered, Quicksilver reverted back to normal, and Thena incapacitated) Exodus attempted once more to destroy the High Evolutionary, but was once more halted in his attempt--this time by the voice of the Black Knight. The Knight allowed Exodus into his mind where the mutant discovered that this Black Knight was his friend from centuries ago. The two then engaged in combat where the Black Knight defeated Exodus, and once again sealed him in the crypt Apocalypse had created.
Later on, Exodus escaped from his prison yet again, this time emerging as a changed man. Disguising himself as Magneto, Exodus used his psionic power (boosted by technological means) to bring peace to the island nation of Genosha, forcing humans and mutants to coexist. When he was eventually unmasked by the X-Men, Exodus proclaimed himself a penitent trying desperately to atone for his bigoted past. Without his control however, Genosha descended into civil war once more, leaving Exodus emotionally devastated.
This experience apparently led him to renew his conviction that mutants were superior and that they were intended to inherit the earth. Having formed a new Brotherhood (consisting of Avalanche, Nocturne, Sabretooth, Mammomax and Black Tom), Exodus led an attack on a group of humans but was thwarted by the X-Men. After escaping, this new Brotherhood decided to attack the X-Men in their home. The attack proved a complete disaster, and resulted in most of the Brotherhood, Exodus included, being sucked into the mutant Xorn's head. It is not known how he freed himself from that state.
M-Day
Exodus was one of the few mutants who retained his powers after the events of the M-Day, being listed as a severe danger in the 198 files.
After Professor Xavier was shot by Bishop, Exodus tried to repair his damaged brain. He was unable to make Xavier's mind take its memories back and he was then forced to seek the aid of Magneto. Magneto was able to restore some of the Professor's memories but Exodus got angry when Magneto harmed the Acolyte known as Frenzy. He began to choke Magneto but then, Xavier challenged him on the astral plane. Xavier won the battle and threatened to shut off Exodus' powers permanently if he attacked again. Exodus then stated that he did not want to battle him but to offer him the chance to lead the Acolytes. Xavier refused, calling Exodus a fool for making such an offer, given how much pain and suffering had befallen those who had been entrusted to Xavier's care in the past.[5]
After another meeting with Xavier he disbanded the Acolytes, denounced his name Exodus, and went out on a pilgrimage as to find another way to serve mutants.
Schism aftermaths
He reappeared once again after the events of Schism. He arrived in the Jean Grey School in order to unite the divided Mutants either by making them see the error of their ways or force them back Utopia. A battle broke out between Exodus and Wolverine's X-Men, during which Rogue and Wolverine opened their minds to Exodus so he could see why they left. Once he read their minds he put the blame on Cyclops and left to go kill Cyclops. Wolverine and his team realized they sent Exodus after Cyclops so they rushed off to stop Him.
They engaged him in battle but Rogue realized that they weren't strong enough to defeat him by themselves, and sent a distress call to Utopia - hoping that Cyclops's Extinction Team would aid them - despite Wolverine's objections. The Extinction Team was otherwise occupied however, and the call was answered by Hope Summers and her team. Together the two teams managed to incapacitate Exodus and he was taken to Utopia where he was put in jail. After the destruction of Utopia, Exodus was released from the X-Brig by Danger.
Exodus reappeared some time later under SHIELD's employment as a member of SHIELD's Psychic Division when they needed a psychic to deal with an omega-level mutant, Matthew Malloy. He was called in to psychically scan and possibly shut down Matthew Malloy. However, Exodus was killed from the psychic strain and contact.[6] This death was eventually undone when Cyclops' former student, Tempus, went back in time to prevent the omega-level mutant from being born.[7]
Someday Enterprises
In light of the M-Pox crisis, Exodus took over the operations of Someday Enterprises, a shady oraganization that promised to protect mutants by placing them in stasis but had been weaponizing them instead. Exodus intended to use Someday's Sleepers to attack an anti-mutant rally in Washington, D.C. to stoke the fires of fear towards mutants.[8]
He was confronted by Magneto and his team of X-Men who were trying to free the mutants under his control, and Exodus claimed he had been trying to build Magneto an army to consolidate mutant power in the wake of the Terrigen threat through terrorism. Magneto defeated him and had him sealed up in Xorn's temple to be used as a fail-safe in case the threat towards mutants reached its peak.[9] When Magneto returned to his ruthless methodology to ensure mutantkind's survival, he established a new Brotherhood of Mutants, and Exodus was one of its members.[10]
House of X
Exodus was eventually welcomed to the new mutant island of Krakoa, created by Xavier, Magneto, and Moira X. He entered through the teleportation gateway alongside other villainous and fractious mutants, who had been invited to join the nation in order to heal mutantdom and start over as a whole species together.[11]
He was later asked to join the Quiet Council as part of the Winter section. The Winter section consisted of himself, Mister Sinister, and Mystique, representing the more zealous, criminal, and/or morally ambiguous elements of mutant society. Exodus did not particularly like Sinister, threatening Sinister with harm if he spoke to him directly again.[12]
Exodus was seen telling stories to mutant children around a bonfire during the celebration following the recognition of Krakoa as a sovereign nation by the United Nations and the first meeting of the Quiet Council.[12]Attributes
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Powers
Exodus is one of the most powerful mutants. He was described as a Psionic of Highest Order.[13] He possesses vast superhuman powers, including telepathy, telekinesis, teleportation, and durability. His high power levels are inexplicably linked to tampering by Apocalypse.
Confidence Empowerment: Exodus's mutant abilities are enhanced when others around him or he himself, have faith in him and his abilities.
Telekinesis: Exodus has vast telekinetic powers. He is able to telekinetically lift at least 100 tons of weight. His ability to manipulate and control objects and himself include:
- Intuitive Aptitude: He can disassemble complex devices explosively (separating every last component, such as screws, nuts, circuit boards, etc.) and, just as quickly, easily assemble complex devices.
- Force Field: Exodus is able to create protective force shields that could deflect even the most powerful of attacks, makes him nearly invulnerable, as well as crush objects within them.
- Concussive Blasts: He can project telekinetic energies as powerful blast beams directed from his brain that could apparently affect matter with concussive force.
- Electromagnetic Blasts: He can manipulate the Earth's electromagnetic spectrum so as to release tremendous amounts of heat to incinerate specific targets.
- Telekinetic Flight: By levitating himself, he can “fly” at for very long distances and at speeds of Mach 2.[14]
Healing/Resurrection/Regeneration: He is capable of bringing people back from the dead and healing others, for example Professor X.[15]He is also capable of regenerating damaged organs.[16]
Superhuman Durability: Exodus's skin, bone, and muscle tissues are augmented to levels that are considerably stronger and harder than human and the tissues are impervious to injury to an extraordinary extent. Able to withstand extreme temperatures and pressures. Withstand virtually all toxins, corrosives, punctures, and concussions without sustaining injury.
Immortality: Exodus has lived for hundreds of years without further aging and he can regenerate injured or missing tissue, limbs, organs, and/or brain cells.
Teleportation: Exodus is able to psionically transport himself, his clothing, and additional mass from one location to another.
Empathy: He has the ability to psionically sense, control, alter/manipulate the feelings, sensations and emotions of other people/animals psionically.
Telepathy: Exodus is able to read minds and project his own thoughts into the minds of others. His telepathic powers include:
- Telepathic Tracking: He is able to detect and track other sentient beings by their unique psionic emanations (thought patterns contained in the psionic portion of the spectrum)
- Heightened Awareness: Demonstrated the ability to detect a threat to his well-being in his immediate vicinity before they commit the action and possesses enhanced intuition.
- Telepathic Cloak: He can mask his presence from being detected by others. His abilities can at times go undetected or be counteracted by other more powerful telepaths depending on their level of skill in using their own psi abilities. He can extend these defenses to others around him as well.
- Mind Control: He is capable of controlling the minds of others only if the target is in his physical presence.
- Telepathic Illusions: He has the ability to create illusions to make himself seem to be invisible, look like someone else, or make others experience events that are not truly happening.
- Mind Possession: He has the ability to possess the mind of another, and use that beings body as her own.
- Mind Alteration: Exodus has the ability to alter the minds of others by force of will, changing their personality partially or entirely.
- Psionic Shield: He has the ability to erect a psychic shield for protection of his and of others minds.
- Mental Paralysis: He has the ability to induce temporary mental or physical paralysis.
- Mental Amnesia: He can erase any awareness of particular memories or cause total amnesia.
- Psionic Blasts: Exodus can project psionic force bolts which have no physical effects but which can affect a victim's mind so as to cause the victim pain or unconsciousness and/or turn someone brain-dead..
- Astral Projection: He can project his astral form from his body onto astral planes or the physical planes. In the physical plane he can only travel in astral form over short distances. In the astral plane, he can mentally create psionic objects and manipulate the aspects of his environment.
- Absorb Information: He has the ability to quickly process and store information, by mental transference
- Intuitive Multilingual: He has the ability to intuitively translating new languages.
Paraphernalia
Weapons
Notes
- Has a danger-rating of "severe" by the O*N*E.
- Exodus was classified as a Omega-Level Mutant by Charles Xavier.[18]
See Also
- 156 appearance(s) of Bennet du Paris (Earth-616)
- 10 appearance(s) in handbook(s) of Bennet du Paris (Earth-616)
- 15 minor appearance(s) of Bennet du Paris (Earth-616)
- 8 mention(s) of Bennet du Paris (Earth-616)
- 8 mention(s) in handbook(s) of Bennet du Paris (Earth-616)
- 111 image(s) of Bennet du Paris (Earth-616)
- 16 quotation(s) by or about Bennet du Paris (Earth-616)
- 3 victim(s) killed by Bennet du Paris (Earth-616)
Links and References
References
- ↑ X-Men (Vol. 2) #42
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 X-Men Annual (Vol. 2) #2007
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Black Knight: Exodus #1
- ↑ (his first actual appearance)
- ↑ X-Men: Legacy #208–210
- ↑ Uncanny X-Men (Vol. 3) #25
- ↑ Uncanny X-Men (Vol. 3) #31
- ↑ Uncanny X-Men (Vol. 4) #13
- ↑ Uncanny X-Men (Vol. 4) #14
- ↑ X-Men: Blue #34
- ↑ House of X #5
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 House of X #6
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 X-Man #14
- ↑ X-Men: Legacy #262
- ↑ X-Men: Legacy #208
- ↑ New X-Men (Vol. 2) #46
- ↑ Cable #30–31
- ↑ House of X #1
- ↑ Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z #4
- ↑ Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z Vol 1 4