"Eblis O'Shaughnessy: you were created and gifted by five of the Endless, but you can neither dream nor, ultimately, destroy, and that shall be your triumph and that shall be your tragedy." ― Destiny
Destiny is the first and oldest of the seven Endless, powerful beings who are older than gods and exist throughout creation as conceptual ideas given physical form. To the ancient Greeks, he was known as Potmos.
Destiny is the anthropomorphic personification of the inevitable course of fate and all that's meant to be. In the Beginning was the Word, and it was traced by hand on the first page of his book, before ever it was spoken aloud. Since each of the Endless is also their own opposite, Destiny is also the embodiment of freedom.
Destiny's realm is The Garden of Forking Ways, a hedge maze that can be reached through all mazes. Destiny walks its paths, representing life's journey and the choices made along the way and where those choices lead. At its center is his castle, complete with silent "fluttering" attendants.
Each of the Endless possesses an object which serves as their sigil. Destiny's sigil is the Book of Souls he keeps chained to his wrist, within which is written all that is and all that ever will be.
History[]
Origins[]
The firstborn "child" of Night and Time,[1] as this universe came into being, Destiny came with it, alone in the darkness.[2] When the universe finally comes to an end his sister Death will come to claim him.
Death of Despair[]
Destiny is usually more of an observer of creation rather than a participant. One exception to this occurred 100,000 years ago, when Despair became the first of the Endless to die.[3] After she was murdered, Destiny and the other Endless went to put her body to rest in the Necropolis (a city devoted to caring for any corpses assigned to them). The Necropolitans had long lost their passion for their job, didn't know about the city's arrangement with the Endless, and laughed when they were asked for Despair's remnants and the Book of Rituals. Responding in an uncharacteristic show of emotion, Destiny revoked the city's charter, going on to say "This is no longer a city. It is over. It is ended."
A great wind came down and the first Necropolis was completely destroyed, not one of its stones left laying on another. Litharge became its replacement.
17th Century[]
Some time around the turn of the 17th century CE, Destruction called a family meeting where he announced to the other Endless that he would be abandoning his responsibilities and his realm. Though Destruction called the meeting, Destiny hosted it in his realm (which seems to be customary). In Brief Lives, Destiny remembered the event when the wind caught the pages in his book; flipping to where the family meeting was written. As is generally the case, Destiny responded to the news calmly and without surprise.
1915[]
In 1915, after an aspect of Dream dies in flame, Dream embarked on a journey to understand and correct a wrongness in the universe that was caused by mishandling a past vortex. In Overture. during the events of the journey, Dream was flung into a blackhole by his mother, Night. While trapped in the blackhole, a dream ship appeared in Destiny's realm.
The ship appearing in his realm caused three things that were unprecedented: Destiny was surprised, something imaginary was in his garden, and he observed something that was not otherwise in his book. The three phenomena angered Destiny to such an extent that he forcibly summoned Dream out of the blackhole and into The Garden of Forking Ways to collect the ship.
Modern Era[]
In Preludes and Nocturnes, during the battle between Dream and John Dee, Destiny showed hesitation for the first time. As John Dee attacked Dream with his ruby, Destiny paused before turning the page in his book to see the events play out.
In Season of Mists, The Three appeared to Destiny in his garden. Despite telling them that nothing begins in The Garden of Forking Ways, the ladies insisted that a series of events would have their genesis there. Once they left, he confirmed in his book that he must call another family meeting. It's at the meeting that Desire taunted Dream for condemning a former lover, Nada, to Hell. Death agreed that Dream had been unfair, prompting Dream to leave and free Nada from imprisonment. As soon as Dream left, Destiny declared the meeting over.
In Brief Lives, Dream and Delirium asked for Destiny's advice during their quest to find Destruction. Another instance where he's strangely emotive, Destiny told Dream to go home and "stop this foolishness." Explaining his behavior, he said that he was both everything that must happen ''and'' Morpheus' brother. As both of those things, he told Morpheus he would not shoulder his responsibilities, and would only tell him things he didn't want to know (but needed to know). First, Destiny informed Dream that he would see Thessaly one more time (in a way that neither would find satisfactory), and then he informed him that Orpheus was the only other way for Dream to find the answer he sought.
Being forced to visit his son overwhelmed Dream with emotion. It was at this point that Delirium became clear-headed (despite the pain it caused her) to guarantee her quest with Dream would continue. She confronted Destiny and reminded him that there were things not in his book and paths outside his garden, including the reason behind why she stopped being Delight. Destiny retreated from Delirium's dispute, confirming her claims.
Appearance[]
Like Death and the other siblings Dream, Desire, Despair, Destruction, and Delirium, Destiny adopts human form when dealing with people. He appears as a tall, hooded man, believed by some to be blinding by others to have evolved beyond sight. The tallest of the Endless, he smells of dust and the libraries of night, leaves no footprints, and casts no shadow.
The Book of Destiny[]
Chained to his right wrist is The Book of Destiny. In Overture, the book is described as containing everything that ever was, is, and will be. There is nothing that exists that is not within the book, and (in a way) it is the omniverse. Even Destiny himself is in the book, though he's featured rarely. The book is said to be heavy and bound in leather made from a beast that never existed. To Destiny, there is only darkness and his book.
In Lucifer, Destiny meets with Lucifer Morningstar, Michael (the archangel), and Elaine Belloc. Destiny explained to them that reading aloud from the book made it an element in its own story (which is dangerous). He told them, however, that they were at a turning point where the script the book is written in would change from that point forward.
Personality[]
Destiny is usually more of an observer to reality (through the pages of his book). Occasionally, he is a more active participant in his book's narration. When this happens, it is generally because the book calls for his involvement to set up a series of events that will follow. Even in the rare instances where Destiny reacts emotionally, he may be doing so because it's what the book dictates.
Destiny rarely displays any strong emotions; he is mostly shown to be stoic and unmoved. Destiny focuses solely on his purpose, and is bothered when he is confronted with anything imaginary. There are isolated instances (such as in Brief Lives) when Destiny appears to allow his personal preferences to affect his behavior and he refrains from providing his siblings with information he has access to. Overture (when he summons Dream) and Worlds' End (during Petrefax' story) are the only two times Destiny is shown displaying strong emotion.
Powers and Abilities[]
Powers[]
- Personification of Destiny: One of the seven Endless, inconceivably powerful beings, Destiny is both lord and personification of all destiny and freedom, an all-seeing entity who carries a book containing the history of every event in the universe. He has absolute power over his realm, a garden containing all possible destinies of present, past and future. Destiny has power over predetermined course of events, as well as the absence of necessity and constraint in choice.
- Immortality: Destiny was ageless and virtually immortal.
- Vast Knowledge: Destiny knows all there is of the past, present and future, which is all written in his book. Destiny's Book of Souls is essentially constantly changing and being rewritten, as the book itself is not actually predetermined, but rather is continuously changing as the book follows the choices of the beings written within it (All living/sentient life in the universe) and records them as it writes down the subsequent consequences and after effects of the choices made and how it will effect the destiny and future of the universe.
- Magic
- Divination: Destiny was blind but could see the tiniest details throughout the cosmos and see the patterns living beings made on their paths through life
- Metamorphosis: Destiny could change his appearance and clothing.
Weaknesses[]
- Ancient Rules: Despite his great powers, Destiny, like the rest of the Endless, was bound to a complex set of rules and customs.
- He cannot spill the blood of family, or he is no longer protected as the personification of Destiny from the other Endless.
- He cannot fall in love with a mortal, or the mortal's downfall is assured.
- Challengers of the Unknown: The challengers exist outside of Destiny's control. They do not appear in the Book of Souls and are capable of changing predestined events.
Gallery[]
Behind the Scenes[]
- Destiny is the only member of the Endless that is not created by Neil Gaiman, first appearing in Weird Mystery Tales #1 (1972) as the narrator of an anthology of horror stories.
- His sigil in the galleries of the other Endless is a book.
References[]
- ↑ The Sandman: Overture
- ↑ Sandman 49
- ↑ Gaiman, Neil and Klinger, Leslie S. (2014). Annotated Sandman Vol. 3: The Sandman #40-56. New York: DC Comics.