He is the second of the three known sons of Christopher Summers, a United States Air Force Major and test pilot, and his wife Katherine Anne.

When Alex was a boy growing up in Anchorage, Alaska, United States, his father took the family for a flight in their airplane, which came under attack by a Shi'ar spaceship.

Mister Sinister, an evil geneticist who was obsessed with the Summers bloodline, appeared eager yet surprised that Alex's potential exceeded Scott's – despite the fact that he seemed to lack control over his gift.

They alternated between doing graduate work and earning a postgraduate degree in the American Southwest – where they occasionally encountered the Hulk – and helping out Moira MacTaggert at her facility for genetic research on Muir Island, off the coast of Scotland.

Wolverine arrived and prevented a full disaster by battling with Meltdown, while Havok continued to absorb energy from the reactor, still on the verge of explosion.

[17] During a pitched battle with Cyclops, Havok's memory returned, but he kept it a secret hoping to catch the Genoshan leader, Cameron Hodge, off guard.

[18] He succeeded and delivered the killing blow to Hodge, yet he and Wolfsbane decided to remain in Genosha, as they wanted to help in rebuilding the once proud nation.

He dealt with the unwilling, unwitting affections of Wolfsbane, the physical problems of Strong Guy and various public relations disasters, such as the destruction of the Washington Monument.

While Havok was attempting to reform X-Factor,[41] one of his time-traveling team members, Greystone, created an experimental time travel device to return him to the future.

[50] With Annie and Carter now gone, Havok's mind seems to be mending, since he expressed interest in resuming his relationship with Polaris, who moved on after being rejected and was dating her former boyfriend Iceman.

[51] However, after he and Polaris encountered the creature called "Daap", during which Lorna was abducted,[52] Havok returned to the X-Mansion to see a sphinx bearing the face of Apocalypse.

[55] Havok was recruited by Professor X,[56] along with Marvel Girl (Rachel Summers), Nightcrawler, Warpath, Darwin, and Polaris to participate in a space mission to stop Vulcan from unleashing his powers on the Shi'ar empire.

Polaris seems to finally show concrete signs of forgiving Havok, telling him to "just shut up and kiss" her after the team won their first battle against the entire regiment of Shi'ar soldiers in their beginning struggle against D'Ken and in support of Lilandra.

[57] Although Havok initially rebuffs her advances, hesitant to "start up again after" everything that happened between them, Lorna says that he needs to "blow off some steam" and the scene ends with them kissing.

[58] Havok, along with Polaris, Rachel, Korvus, Ch'od, and Raza form a new team of Starjammers after the death of Corsair, dedicated to defeating Vulcan and restoring Lilandra to the throne.

[volume & issue needed] Alex and Lorna, along with the other captured Starjammers, are kept in a deep underwater prison 20 miles (32 km) below a planet's surface.

Vulcan informs Havok of the events of Messiah Complex and that the baby is gone, Charles Xavier is dead, and the X-Men are no more (not knowing the full truth of the result).

[68] Frenzy, Magneto, Gambit, and Rogue help de-brainwash Polaris and Havok from the mental control of the insect-like alien "Friendless".

[70] Shortly after they arrived back on Earth,[71][72] the duo is encouraged by Wolverine to lead X-Factor Investigations after Jamie Madrox's death.

[75] He is asked to lead the Avengers Unity Squad by Captain America, reasoning that the mutant race needs a new 'spokesperson' with Xavier dead and Cyclops imprisoned, although Havok doubts his ability to fulfill such a role.

[78] Although Alex is left disfigured after the battle, he and Janet remain together,[79] and are contacted by Immortus, who informs them that he can return their daughter to them if they take action at the right time and place to conceive her, but also warns them about the imminent threat posed by the Red Skull.

She used a telepathic projection of him to rally mutant attempts to destroy a Terrigenesis cloud, subsequently faking his death in a final confrontation with Black Bolt.

[84] Havok then began working with the White Queen, Bastion, and Miss Sinister to infect the world’s population with the Mothervine virus, thereby making mutants the dominant species on the planet until he was eventually inverted back to his normal self by Emma Frost and Lorna Dane, and Elixir soon afterward cured his scars.

[87] Later, he joins a loose group of outcast mutants, operating under Mister Sinister: the Hellions, which also comprise Wild Child, Kwannon, Empath, John Greycrow, Nanny, and Orphan Maker.

Havok is well-educated in the field of geophysical science, where he has earned a master's degree and completed some doctoral work, and he has been trained in hand-to-hand combat and martial arts by Wolverine.

It was also revealed in the Mutant X and Exiles books that his body and mind were a nexus for all other Alex Summers in other realities and his very existence is sort of a "back door" to the others.

Raised together as the cream of the new mutant aristocracy in Apocalypse's America, the brothers, under the rank of Prelate, work to oversee their foster father's interests.

[98] In the four-issue series Mys-Tech Wars, an alternate universe version of Havok, along with the rest of X-Factor, appear in order to assist the mainstream heroes in their battles.

[volume & issue needed] On the world of the Sons of Iron and Daughters of the Dragon, the New Exiles face a squad of alternate 'core X-Men' who are loyal to Lilandra.

[100] Alex is later revealed not only to be alive but also a patient in Kennerman Acres mental institute;[101] he suffers from amnesia but has recollections of an explosion and his only company is an imaginary version of his brother Scott.