BLINK: Page 2 of 2

Publication Date: 18th Sep 2020
Biography

BIOGRAPHY - page 2

Consumed by Selene’s influence, Clarice tried to summon back her mistress using dark magic she had learned from the Black Queen. She was stopped by Emma Frost and the X-Men who had sought Dr. Strange’s help in freeing Blink from Selene’s mystic thrall.  Blink fought back and it was only through Blindfold’s precognition and Pixie’s own teleportation powers that the team was able to overcome her. Dr. Strange was able to purge the black magic from mind and soul. Finally free, Clarice was overwhelmed by the horrors she had committed while serving Selene. Emma tried to convince her that she was not at fault but Blink was not yet able to accept this. Despite Emma’s offer of help and a place among the X-Men, Blink teleported away to face her future on her own. [X-Men: To Serve and Protect #3]

Blink surfaced months later, using her powers to try and help people. Clearly this was her way of working to atone for her crimes as Selene’s follower. She was tracking a punk band called Diskhord whose concerts were somehow connected to unnatural disasters. The X-Men had assigned Dani Moonstar and her former New Mutants’ teammates to track down some “loose ends” from their past. Among their assignments was locating Blink. They found her just as she was finally getting in close to the members of Diskhord as part of her investigation. Clarice reluctantly teamed with Dani’s group of X-Men and together they discovered a way to put an end to the chaos energy being generated by Diskhord. Following this adventure, Dani offered Blink the chance to rejoin the recently divided mutant community. She opted to join Wolverine’s new school in Westchester rather than Cyclops’ Utopia. [New Mutants (3rd series) #34-36]

Despite choosing to join the school, Blink continued to hang out with Dani’s X-Men squad occasionally. She inspired them to celebrate Warlock’s birthday at a festival in Madripoor and later helped them to set the timeline right after a group of future incarnations of the team wrought changes to the timeline. Her friendship with the former New Mutants grew to the point where she was an unofficial member of their squad. It also helped her to return to her true, upbeat, fun-loving personality following years of trauma. Her positive attitude and handy teleportation powers also helped to build a bridge between Dani’s squad and the mutants who chose to join Wolverine in New York. [New Mutants (3rd series) #41, 45-50]

Blink eventually went off on her own, leaving the school behind. During Hydra's takeover of America, she moved out west when mutants formed their own nation called New Tian in what was once known as California. With the mansion and most of the main X-Men trapped in New York, Clarice and the X-Men reservists and allies tried to provide mutantkind with safe haven during the fascist rule of the Supreme Hydra. [Secret Warriors (2nd series) #2-3] Although not an Exile herself, Blink was summoned to the side of her Age of Apocalypse doppelganger along with many Blinks throughout the multiverse during the final battle with the Time-Eater. [Exiles (3rd series) #5] And, with the rise of the mutant nation-state of Krakoa, one or both of these Blinks decided to avail themselves of the new country's amenities. Krakoa hosts a friendly sport of single combat between mutants in the Quarry, and the fight roster shows a draw between Blink and Nightcrawler. With both Blinks in residence on Earth-616 at last count, hopefully Clarice and Clarice have time to get to know each other as Krakoa grows. [Cable (4th series) #1]