Sharing a name with the hellish Marvel crossover of the same name, Inferno is set to be one of the biggest events to hit the X-Men in the modern era. Now, there are multiple characters barreling towards a possibly hellish conflict, with villains waiting in the wings to strike.
Now, here are all the plot threads from across Dawn of X and Reign of X that echo the original "Inferno" even or could set the stage for the upcoming Inferno.
Madelyne Prior's Resurrection
Madelyne Pryor was the first wife of Cyclops, the mother of Nathan Summers and secretly a clone of Jean Grey, who was created by Mister Sinister. After a series of tragedies (including the revelation that Scott had fallen back into the arms of a returned Jean), Pryor gave into temptation and became the Goblyn Queen -- working with the demonic likes of Sym and N'astarith to empower herself. Pryor has been a recurring enemy of the X-Men since and even attempted to attack Krakoa in Hellions. But despite Havok's attempts to save her, Greycrow was forced to kill her. The Quiet Council has since refused to revive Pryor -- something that has enraged Havok, and set discord across Krakoa. It's possible Havok -- whose instability landed him with the Hellions -- could try to do something desperate to revive her.
Stryfe's Baby Stealing Plan
In the pages of Cable, the demented clone of the original Nathan Summers, Stryfe, has been operating in secret and kidnapping mutant infants. Cable has been hard at work trying to catch him -- with teases from a distant future suggesting a demonic hellscape for a far older Cable. Nathan, then still an infant himself, was a major element of the original Inferno storyline. His mother, as part of her pact with the demons of Limbo, intended to sacrifice him to complete the gate between the hellish dimension and the Earth. Ultimately, Pryor was stopped by the X-Men, and Nathan was saved. Shortly thereafter he was lost to the future to become Cable. It's possible Stryfe has become more like the mother he never knew and is trying something similar with the captured mutant babies for some unknown purpose.
Magik's Dark Fate
Magik is a powerful member of the X-Men, a New Mutants veteran and one of the Great Captains of Krakoa. She's also the ruler of Limbo, the hellish dimension that was featured heavily in the original Inferno. N'astirh, one of the demons who corrupted Pryor, has been imprisoned in the realm by Magik. Meanwhile, Belasco's deal with Man-Thing just ended poorly for the demon in Curse of the Man-Thing. But on top of potentially helping Mephisto by accident, it may have left the door open for Sym or other demons to make a play for power. It's also entirely possible that Magik -- a character with a dark side and often fated to become a villain in other realities -- could be connected to Inferno, as she and her demonic Darkchylde persona were important figures in the original storyline as well.
The Beast's Vengeance
During X of Swords, Wolverine was chosen as one of the Swordbearers of Krakoa, and tasked with recovering a Muramasa Blade -- a mystical sword capable of negating healing factors. For this, he was forced to venture into the underworld and team up with Solem of Arakko who'd been given the same mission. The pair worked together to steal the twin swords from the wedding of the Beast's Daughter and another unnamed denizen of hell -- who was killed in the ensuing conflict. The Beast -- a powerful demon who'd previously possessed Daredevil -- swore vengeance alongside his daughter, earning Krakoa another enemy. It's possible that Inferno will finally allow these enemies to make their revenge known -- possibly as one of the sources of demonic power targeting Krakoa.
Mystique vs. Krakoa
One of the great secrets of Krakoa has been hidden, and Charles Xavier and Magneto are the only other two people aware of the truth Moira X knows: that in all of her previous lives, the mutants always ultimately fail. Hoping to avoid any precogs -- i.e. mutants who can see the future -- from discovering this and revealing it (potentially shattering the resolve of Krakoa as a nation), the pair agreed to never revive a precog. This includes Destiny, enraging her widow Mystique -- who had been warned of such a fate by Destiny years earlier and vowed to destroy Krakoa if that came to be. Notably, Mystique seems to be on the path towards carrying out that mission --- while Moira X reads Destiny's diaries, potentially setting off a conflict that could burn Krakoa down in an inferno.
Is Nightcrawler Krakoa's Savior?
If Inferno is going to be a battle for the soul of Krakoa, then there might not be anyone as prepared to help save the mutant nation as Nightcrawler. The classic X-Man has been trying to pinpoint a mutant religion and the keys to creating a true mutant culture that won't erode into inner conflict and violence. It's already proven a difficult task, but he's also found himself some unlikely allies, such as Doctor Nemesis and Legion. With his own reasons to be wary of the precog ban, Legion could drag Nightcrawler into the Inferno conflict -- as well as the attempt to stave off corruption at the psychic hands of Onslaught. If damnation is coming for Krakoa, then perhaps the most spiritual mutant's attempts to discover the heart of a mutant faith might be a crucial figure in saving Krakoa.