The following contains spoilers for Marvel Voices: X-Men #1, on sale now from Marvel Comics.
From the moment mutantkind first made waves in Marvel Comics, they have been at the center of some of the most unforgettable stories of all time. As complicated as things are for the mutants of today, their early eras were much easier to navigate largely thanks to the presence of two clearly defined sides in nearly every single conflict. This makes it all the more surprising that the longtime mutant villain Destiny never crossed that line, and she has just revealed the reasoning behind her actions (or lack thereof).
“Evil Mutants” (by Jay Edidin, Nina Vakueva, KJ D?az, and VC’s Travis Lanham, from Marvel Voices: X-Men #1) travels back decades to the height of Mystique’s Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. Unfortunately, their glory days were anything but, leaving the shape-shifting mutant to wonder why she ever embarked on this particular venture. This isn’t just an existential question for Mystique, but a very literal one that she can actually have answered, thanks to her teammate and longtime romantic interest, Destiny. With Destiny’s ability to peer into the future, Mystique simply doesn’t understand why she hasn’t ever decided to change sides in their ongoing war against the X-Men, and Destiny explains that being at her lover’s side is infinitely more important than winning any rote bouts of superpowered combat.
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Destiny’s History in Marvel Comics
Upon her introduction in 1980’s X-Men #141 (by Chris Claremont and John Byrne), Irene Adler, aka Destiny, was working alongside Mystique’s Brotherhood in an attempt to assassinate Senator Robert Kelly, who had made a career off of espousing the purported threat posed by mutantkind. While Kelly’s death was the impetus for one of the darkest futures the X-Men have ever known, it was also ultimately prevented thanks to the timely intervention of Kitty Pryde. Of course, this like so many other history defining events was one that Destiny saw coming from decades away thanks to her precognitive powers, but that didn’t keep her from following through with the plan.
As questionable as Destiny’s decision might have been, it was just the latest in a long line of similar choices, each of which was made in the name of love. Nearly a century prior to her exploits with the Brotherhood, Irene was struggling to comprehend the contents of her diaries detailing the future. To that end, Irene enlisted the help of Raven Darkh?lme, aka Mystique. Along the way, the two fell deeply in love, and while their adventures only brought them closer together, they were unable to remain a couple for any extended period of time.
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Destiny’s Return was the X-Men’s Biggest Concern
Although Destiny and Mystique drifted apart from time to time, it was the former’s death at the hands of Legion and her fellow mutants’ subsequent hesitance to resurrect her on Krakoa that proved to be the couple’s most harrowing chapter. With full knowledge of Krakoa’s emergence and the tragedies that would befall it, Destiny left explicit instructions for Mystique before her death. Just as Destiny predicted, Krakoa rose to prominence as a home for mutantkind on Earth, one led by a council too afraid of her powers to resurrect her as it had so many other once deceased mutants. Destiny still had Mystique ensure her return in secret, but all the trouble they went through to get to that point makes it easy to wonder why the former never took an easier path when so many were available to her.
At any point, Destiny could have peered into the future and used that foresight to avoid every single devastating confrontation and personal tragedy that befell her over her multiple lifetimes. However, If she had done so, Destiny never would have had the opportunity to spend time with the woman she loved. As Destiny explains to Mystique in “Evil Mutants,” the choices she makes are a matter of principle, though not the sort that determines someone’s ethics or morals. Instead, Destiny is only concerned with securing a home for herself and the person she wants to spend the rest of her life with.
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Destiny’s Relationship with Mystique Transcends Good and Evil
Destiny is simply unwilling to compromise her relationship with Mystique no matter how much misery she must endure because of it. Their relationship may suffer because of the life they have chosen, but Destiny has never wavered in her dedication. If anything, the worst times that she and Mystique have endured have served to reinforce Destiny’s belief in that ideal, especially when the world she inhabits considers the nuances of their relationship to be entirely inconsequential.
With this in mind, it makes perfect sense that Destiny would choose to label herself as “Evil” or follow what she knows to be is a failing plan if it means getting to regroup and recuperate alongside Mystique. This might keep her from being labeled as a hero, and it has certainly made her into a pariah in the eyes of her own people, but those aspects of her life aren’t worth worrying about in the long run. Making difficult decisions is always easier while standing beside a lifelong partner, and there is no one who understands that better than Destiny.
A powerful Marvel mutant always knew the X-Men’s future, and her reason for avoiding it had nothing to do with winning or losing. Read More