Cerebra's Files

Selene


Real Name: Unknown
Affiliation: Hellfire Club, NY
Previous Affiliations: Upstarts (Arbitrator/Founder)
Aliases: Black Queen II
Relatives: Senator Marcus Dominius Gallo ("husband")
Alternate-X Versions: None
Codename Etymology: Pronounced sə-lē'nē [From Greek selene "moon" from selas "light, brightness, flame"]; The Greek moon goddess.
Powers & History: Selene is (supposedly) a mutant immortal with many abilities, including telepathy, telekinesis, control of inanimate objects and elements like fire, plus various magical abilities. Her most deadly ability, however, is energy-draining, which she can do with a simple touch. She created the Brazilian paradise of Nova Roma and forced the minds of those she brought there to worship and sustain her to believe that they were the descendants of a colony of the Roman Empire. Until an agent of the Hellfire Club followed the New Mutants into Nova Roma, Selene was content to play the part of the "Black Priestess" who sacrificed virgins to the molten lava pits and manipulate city politics through her Senator husband. However, having seen the New Mutants, and especially Amara Aquilla (Magma) use their powers, Selene expanded her ambitions and traveled to the United States, where she encountered Rachel Summers and tried to kill her. Rachel was saved by the X-Men, and Selene went on to petition the Inner Circle of the Hellfire Club for membership. Upon sensing both Rachel and Amara again, she possessed them and tried to present them as "gifts" to the Club. Selene lost control of the girls, but gain entry to the Inner Circle, where she often tried to usurp power for her own gain.

Much later, Selene was behind the Upstarts competition, hoping to use it to train the next leaders of mutantkind. However, she was found and tortured by Fitzroy and removed from the game. Selene escaped from the torture by forcing Amanda Sefton to free her, although she did not get out without scars.

Needing to replenish her power, she first attacked and killed the other surviving Externals. Though she was opposed by X-Force, she managed to complete the slaughter and knock out the mutants, until Cable arrived. Selene's attempt to absorb Cable's life backfired when she touched his techno-organic arm and she was forced to flee to maintain her power. Shortly afterwards, she tried to access the power of a mystical convergence using a Runestaff made from the roots of Yggdrasil, the Norse World Tree. She came to the Exploding Colossal Man festival in New Mexico, but was again opposed by X-Force, who managed to wrest the Runestaff away from her and destroy the Colossal Man mannequin it activated. Selene missed her opportunity for ultimate power and vowed vengeance on X-Force.

She next appeared back in Brazil, where she had tracked Sunspot, along with Deviants posing as S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. She lured Sunspot to her defense, and offered him a position of power in the Hellfire Club, which he refused, regardless of the illusions she tempted him with. However, Sunspot went along with Selene to stop the Deviants in the Damocles Foundation from activating a Celestial Gatherer. Selene herself was attacked by the Sword strike team, but she managed to cast a spell that devolved them back to lizards. Along with the rest of X-Force, Selene was able to usurp control of the machinery that activated the Gatherer, but Moonstar and Arcadia destroyed the Celestial artifact before Selene could access its power.

Selene then returned to her post as the Black Queen of the Hellfire Club, after striking a deal with the demon Blackheart and seemingly throwing out the rest of the Inner Circle. She offered Sunspot the position of Black Rook, which he initially refused but then accepted when Selene and Blackheart revealed that his doing so would allow them to resurrect the spirit of Juliana Sandoval, the girl who died saving Sunspot's life when he first joined the New Mutants. Sunspot had no choice to accept and become Selene's protege.

However, with Sebastian Shaw's return to the Hellfire Club, Selene was somehow trapped inside the catacombs under the Club. Recently, when the X-Men, inlcuding Marvel Girl III arrived, Selene plotted to use Rachel to free herself. She somehow followed Rachel to Hong Kong via a transport portal and saved her from being corrupted by a telepathic agent of Courtney Ross II, who was trying to become the next White Queen. This move was only a prelude to Selene taking over Rachel's mind, but Marvel Girl was too strong for Selene and expelled her.
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