One of the greatest X-Men of all time is taking the fight for mutantkind's future straight to Apocalypse himself.

Genocide has fallen, but the contest to determine the true heir to Apocalypse's empire continues. As seen in the pages of X-Men: Heir of Apocalypse #3, the titular villain's games aren't the only battle being waged. In fact, Apocalypse himself has come under fire from none other than his own former Horseman, Archangel, who makes the journey all the way to the center of the villain's stronghold in order to put an end to the fight once and for all.

X-Men: Heir of Apocalypse #3

• Written by STEVE FOXE
• Art by NETHO DIAZ
• Inks by SEAN PARSONS & LORENZO RUGGIERO
• Colors by ALEX SINCLAIR
• Letters by VC's CLAYTON COWLES
• Design by JAY BOWEN
• Main cover art by DOTUN AKANDE
• Variant cover art by NIC KLEIN

The ancient mutant En Sabah Nur, better known as Apocalypse, has been one of Marvel's most prominent, not to mention feared mutants since his first full appearance back in the pages of 1986's X-Factor #5 by writer Bob Layton and artist Jackson Guice. Thousands of years old, Apocalypse stands as the firstborn of mutantkind's second generation. He is also one of the strongest of his kind, capable of commanding powerful psychic abilities and manipulating various celestial energies, all on top of his superhuman strength, durability, shape-shifting, and effective immortality.

Over the years, Apocalypse has played key roles in various Marvel storylines, most often as a villain. He has also greatly influenced the lives of others, including Warren Worthington III, aka Angel. Shortly after seemingly losing his life in an attack carried out by Cameron Hodge, Warren was revealed to have survived once harrowing chapter only to be thrust into another. It was in the pages of 1987's X-Factor #19 by Louise and Walter Simonson when Warren was first glimpsed through shadows in his then-new form as Apocalypse's Horseman of Death - Archangel.

After years spent helping lead the mutant nation of Krakoa through some of both its best and worst times, Apocalypse has once again embraced his role as a villain. Now that Apocalypse has taken control of the planet Arakko, formerly Mars, for himself, he has set about finding a proper heir to his empire. To that end, Apocalypse brought twelve unwitting mutants to Arakko before forcing them to compete against one another for his favor, all while setting them up for some of the biggest encounters of their lives along the way.

X-Men: Heir of Apocalypse #3 is on sale July 10 from Marvel Comics.