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Destiny (Irene Adler) was a Marvel Comics character, known as an adversary of the X-Men. Created by writer Chris Claremont and artist/co-writer John Byrne, she first appeared in Uncanny X-Men #141 (January 1981).
Although blind, Destiny was a mutant precognitive able to accurately predict future events. She filled several diaries with the future history of mankind, the search for which was a main storyline in the 2000s series X-Treme X-Men, years after Destiny died.
Claremont originally intended Destiny to be the lover of Brotherhood of Mutants teammate Mystique but Marvel editors did not allow gay or bisexual characters at that time. Currently, it has been confirmed that the two were lovers.
Character history
Destiny was the long-time lesbian lover of Mystique, and together they raised adopted daughter Rogue.
Mystique and Destiny formed the second Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, a group of ideologically-motivated terrorists and eventually went to work for the United States government as Freedom Force in exchange for a pardon and protection from anti-mutant sentiment.
While on a mission with Freedom Force, Destiny was killed by Legion who was being influenced at the time by the Shadow King. Shortly before her death, she predicted that Mystique would become romantically involved with Forge and although the pair loathed each other at the time, they did develop a brief relationship while both were members of X-Factor. Most recently, the team of X-Treme X-Men spent some time searching for her diaries of future predictions, but these became useless when a prediction in them was prevented from taking place.
Original Intent
Although the identity of Nightcrawler's father was recently revealed, long-time X-Men writer Chris Claremont had originally intended for Destiny and Mystique to be his biological parents with Mystique taking the form of a man for the conception.
Power and abilities
Destiny had the ability to see future probabilities and interpret them to best select or manipulate what was likely to happen. And even though she was blind, she carried a small crossbow with her that she used offensively, and had pretty good aim because she saw where it would land in her precognitive visions.
Trivia
- Destiny's name comes from Irene Adler, a minor Sherlock Holmes character and the only woman to ever get the better of the detective. The character appears in the short story "A Scandal in Bohemia," where it is hinted that she is in the only woman Holmes was ever attracted to.
The first Destiny
Another Marvel character named Destiny (Paul Destine) fought the Sub-Mariner in the 1960s. This Destiny was a pawn of Set who was instrumental in causing the Sub-Mariner's temporary amnesia prior to the Silver Age of Comic Books. He was foreshadowed in Tales to Astonish #101 (March 1968), and introduced in the one-shot Iron Man and Sub-Mariner #1 (April 1968).
The second Destiny
A character intended to be the embodiment of Destiny, in much the way the DC character is, was created by Steve Gerber and Sal Buscema in Marvel Two-in-One #6. This character was presumably (being mystical) killed and has never again appeared in a canonical story, although she appeared in a retelling of the story, in which she did not die, in Tales of the Thing #1. She appeared in the form of a young teenage girl who wielded a powerful harmonica that she insisted Doctor Strange save at her expensse when she was pushed in front of an oncoming subway train. In the Marvel Age retelling, she conitnued to participate in the story's similar events, and befriended the young boy added to the center of the story.
Appearances in other media
Destiny appeared in the X-Men Evolution animated series. In the series she is not part of the Brotherhood and never wore a costume, but Mystique's best friend who took care of Rogue before she joins the X-Men.
More recently, Destiny appeared as an NPC in Rise of Apocalypse. She is depicted as a former Brotherhood member, but quit and relocated to Avalon in the Savage Land after having a vision Apocalypse would attack.
Destiny appeared briefly in Ultimate X-men as a member of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. It is suggested that she was later killed by Sinister
External links
Brotherhood of Evil Mutants members | X-Men villains | LGBT characters in comics | Marvel Comics mutants | Fictional Austrians | Fictional precognitive characters | Fictional blind characters | Destinée (X-Men)
"Destiny (Marvel Comics)"