The mutant population is down to a mere 181 who carry the X-gene, hardly enough to sustain the race. For more than a year, no new mutants were born until Hope came along, a mutant baby girl. She was sent into the future for safekeeping, under the watchful eye of the mutant soldier Cable. But now Cable and Hope have returned. Hope is viewed by many to be the Mutant Messiah, the one who will lead the race into a peaceful and prosperous future. However, the Human League is bent on eradicating the last 181 mutants left on Earth so mankind can evolve. Led by Bastion, a highly evolved mutant-hunting Sentinel robot, the Human Leagne sees the death of Hope as the final nail in the mutants' coffin.

The future of an entire race rests on Hope's shoulders. Will this be the end of mutantkind? Or is it Second Coming?