GILGAMESH

 

GILGAMESH

Real Name: Unknown

First Appearance: Eternals (Vol. 1) #13, July 1977

Powers: Gilgamesh is a member of the Earth-born Eternals (Homo Sapiens Immortalis), an evolutionary offshoot of humanity created by the extraterrestrial cosmic beings known as the Celestials. Eternals possess long lifespans and vast physical and cosmic energy-manipulation powers.

Since his life-force and molecular structure are both reinforced by cosmic energy, Gilgamesh is virtually immortal and indestructible, capable of withstanding nearly anything. With complete control of his body’s molecular structure (even when he is asleep or unconscious), he is immune to disease, aging, and extreme temperatures. There are only two known means by which Earth Eternals can die: One is through an injury that disperses a significant portion of the Eternal's body molecules; the other involves overwhelming and breaking the Eternal's mental hold over his or her own body. Once this hold is broken, then the Eternal can be injured or killed through conventional means. So, Gilgamesh’s control over his body allows him to appear at whatever age he wishes. Hence, although he has lived for at least several thousand years, he appears to be in his thirties.

He has Class 100 strength and superhuman endurance. He possesses a number of powers including illusion casting and the projection of cosmic energy as light, heat, or concussive force. He levitates by manipulating gravitons to propel himself and others at speeds up to 600 miles per hour. He has the ability to rearrange the molecular structure of matter and the ability, but seldom uses it, leaving it a minor skill. He handcrafts his own battle armor, and Sprite created space armor enabling him to function in a vacuum.

DEVIANTS

 

DEVIANTS

First Appearance: Eternals (Vol. 1) #1, July 1976

History: The Deviants are an evolutionary offshoot of humanity that was brought into being approximately one million years ago through genetic experimentation by the extraterrestrial Celestials. The Celestials altered the structure of the DNA complexes of the proto-humans whom they genetically transformed into the first Deviants so that physical characteristics, beyond bilateral symmetry, radically changed with each generation. Thus a Deviant child will greatly differ in appearance from either of his or her parents. Experiments conducted by the Celestials at the same time resulted in the creation of the Eternals and humanity having the potential for benevolent mutations.

Unlike the Eternals, the Deviants are not virtually immortal or indestructible. The sole known exception is the Warlord Kro, who, despite being vulnerable to injury, has lived for untold centuries, although he has concealed this fact from his fellow Deviants. Many Deviants possess superhuman abilities. The most common superhuman power among the Deviants is superhuman strength.

The genetic instability of the Deviants is the most important factor underlying the structure of their society. Although the Deviants are ruled by a hereditary monarchy and governed by a class of nobility, a great deal of power in Deviant society is held by the priesthood. The priests attempt to weed out those Deviants who are born with the most extreme and grotesque genetic differences from the others by consigning these Deviants to death in the flame pits at "Purity Time." Through such measure, the priests hope to keep variation with the Deviant race's genetic makeup within certain limits.

Because there is no standard physical appearance for Deviants, and because their race produces such grotesqueries, Deviant culture lacks the concept of physical beauty. However, perhaps due to envy, almost all Deviants regard humans and Eternals as physically repellent. Since Deviant children do not resemble their parents, and indeed may look physically repellent even to them, Deviant parents take no joy in childbearing. Indeed, Deviants look upon sexual activity merely as a necessary means of propagating the race, and take no pleasure in it. The sexes are segregated from each other in most public places in Deviant cities.

The Deviants were the first natives of Earth to develop technology, and even thousands of years ago had already become highly advanced in the study of genetics. It was the Deviants who created the Subterreneans as their slaves, and it has been speculated that it was the Deviants who genetically transformed ordinary humans into the water-breathing Atlantean race.

Originally the Deviants built their cities on the Earth's surface. They used their advanced technology to conquer the nations of humans, and eventually conquered the entire known world except for the empire of Atlantis. The center of the Deviants' empire was the island continent of Lemuria in what is now the Pacific Ocean. The Deviants treated the humans they conquered as slaves, and forced many of them to serve in armies that the Deviants sent to conquer other human nations. Finally, the Deviants sent a human army from the Lemurian Isles to attack Atlantis itself. To rout the invaders, Atlantis's King Kamuu opened the magma pits which were the capital city's means of heating. The Lemurian invaders were destroyed by the molten lava, but Its release triggered seismological upheavals.

Meanwhile, the Celestials' second expedition to Earth was sighted over Lemuria itself. The Deviants launched an attack on the Celestials, who retaliated by using an immensely powerful nuclear weapon on Lemuria. The weapon's shock waves combined with the disturbances beneath Atlantis to trigger the Great Cataclysm that devastated much of the planet. Lemuria and Atlantis both sank, and most of the Deviant population was destroyed.

The Deviants who survived did so by escaping to the small number of underground cities they had previously established. They built more subterranean cities, but eventually abandoned most of them for their new subterranean capital city on the sunken Lemurian continent, the so-called "City of Toads."

Since the sinking of Lemuria, Earth's Deviant population has been greatly reduced from what it was. Because of the Deviants' distaste for childbearing, they have felt no need to increase their numbers by a considerable degree, and today there are only about two thousand Deviants in the world, most of whom are sequestered underground. The Deviants have had various contacts with humane over the centuries, and their grotesque appearances may hive inspired many tales of devils, demons, and monsters. Some of the monsters of legend may actually be mutates bred by the Deviants. Even today some Deviants have infiltrated human society; a number have even become professional wrestlers.

In recant years, under the leadership of the Deviant monarch Tode, the Deviants attacked New York City, but were repulsed by Eternals. Hoping to learn the secret of the Eternals' immortality, Tode led most of the Deviant ruling class and a good number of their warriors in an attack on the Eternals' principal city, Olympia. Tode and his forces captured all the Eternals who were present, who, however, broke free as a result of the intervention of the second Iron Man. The Eternals captured the invading Deviants, whose atoms the Eternals melded into a giant stone-like block and cast into space.

With Tode and most of the ruling class thus eliminated, Warlord Kro and Tode's son Ranar both attempted to claim the throne. However, it was the priest-lord Ghaur who instead became the true ruler of the Deviants, and he remained so since.

THENA

 

THENA

Real Name: Thena (royally changed from Azura)

First Appearance: Eternals (Vol. 1) #5, November 1976

Powers: Thena is a member of the Earth-born Eternals (Homo Sapiens Immortalis), an evolutionary offshoot of humanity created by the extraterrestrial cosmic beings known as the Celestials. Eternals possess long lifespans and vast physical and cosmic energy-manipulation powers.

Since her life-force and molecular structure are both reinforced by cosmic energy, Thena is virtually immortal and indestructible, capable of withstanding anything. With complete control of her body’s molecular structure (even when she is asleep or unconscious), she is immune to disease, aging, and extreme temperatures. There are only two known means by which Earth Eternals can die: One is through an injury that disperses a significant portion of the Eternal's body molecules; the other involves overwhelming and breaking the Eternal's mental hold over his or her own body. Once this hold is broken, then the Eternal can be injured or killed through conventional means. So, Thena’s control over her body allows her to appear at whatever age she wishes. Hence, although she has lived for at least several thousand years, she appears to be in their twenties.

She has Class 25 strength and superhuman endurance. She possesses a number of powers including telepathy and the projection of cosmic energy as light, heat, or concussive force. She levitates by manipulating gravitons to propel herself and others at speeds up to 850 miles per hour. She has the ability to rearrange the molecular structure of matter and the ability to teleport herself and others, but seldom uses the latter due to the discomfort it causes her.

As the Prime Eternal, Thena could manifest the Blue Flame, a unique energy required to reshape the physical forms of Eternals, humans, and/or Deviants into a Uni-Mind, a composite being with the collective knowledge and experience of all of its constituent beings. Losing the Prime Eternal status to Ikaris caused her to lose this ability as well.

One ability unique to Thena as an Eternal has been portrayed as intuitive tactical analysis, the talent for processing data at an accelerated and refined rate, computing probable outcomes to any given situation, and so forth. This gift magnifies her reflexes and targeting accuracy, while giving her split-second hyper-intelligence when it comes to planning and implementing battle strategies.

She carries swords, edged spears, and more exotic weapons such as energy lances, fire-casters, and crossbows which fired explosive bolts.

KRONOS

 

KRONOS

Real Name: Kronos

First Appearance: Iron Man (Vol. 1) #55, February 1973

Powers: Kronos began as a member of the Earth-born Eternals (Homo Sapiens Immortalis), an evolutionary offshoot of humanity created by the extraterrestrial cosmic beings known as the Celestials. Eternals possess long lifespans and vast physical and cosmic energy-manipulation powers which remained dormant for a long period. Centuries ago, Kronos was working in his laboratory in the Earth Eternals' city of Titanos on an experiment with cosmic energy when he accidentally caused an explosion that demolished Titanos and subjected the Eternals to a cosmic particle bombardment. This irradiation activated the latent genes in the Eternals that gave them their long lifespans and virtual invulnerability, and enabled them to pass these active genes down to the children produced by any mated couple of Earth Eternals.

Because Kronos was caught at the center of the blast, his body was destroyed. The same blast strengthened his cosmic life force, however, to the point where it continued to survive without a physical body, and was exponentially magnified to godlike proportions. He possesses cosmic power on a level incomprehensible to human beings. He has been observed to have the power to create artificial beings from inanimate matter and to have power over the disembodied life essences ("souls") of mortals. He is shown to have cosmic senses and perceptions far beyond those of any mortal being. Due to his inexhaustible life force, Kronos is immortal and cannot be physically harmed. His mental abilities have yet to be fully catalogued, but he has demonstrated telepathy, telekinesis, and non-human cosmic perceptions.

MENTOR

 

MENTOR

Real Name: A'Lars

First Appearance: Iron Man (Vol. 1) #55, February 1973

Powers: Mentor is a member of the Earth-born Eternals (Homo Sapiens Immortalis), an evolutionary offshoot of humanity created by the extraterrestrial cosmic beings known as the Celestials. Eternals possess long lifespans and vast physical and cosmic energy-manipulation powers.

Since his life-force and molecular structure are reinforced by cosmic energy, Mentor is virtually immortal, immune to disease and the debilitating effects of aging and able to regenerate injured or missing organic tissue. Only an injury that disperses a significant portion of his bodily molecules could cause him to die. Cosmic energy bolsters his metabolism so that Mentor does not tire from any physical exertion. Like all Eternals, Mentor can levitate by mentally manipulating gravitons (subatomic particles that carry the force of gravitational attraction) around him. He can fly at approximately 500 miles per hour, a rate of speed slightly below average for his kind. he possesses an enhanced-human strength level enabling him to lift (press) approximately 1 ton under optimal conditions. This is slightly subnormal for an Eternal of his age, height, and build who engages in minimal regular exercise beyond his procreative responsibilities. His endurance, stamina, and durability are godlike, however.

Like all Eternals of Earth, Mentor can project his natural cosmic energies from his body as waves of light, heat,or concussive force. These waves, which he usually directs from his hands, have a maximum concussive force equivalent to 50 tons of TNT, sufficient to level a 12-story steel-frame building. He has also displayed telepathic abilities and the power of molecular manipulation of matter.

A'Lars is a gifted intellect with knowledge of science and technology far in advance of present-day Earth. As ruler of the Saturn moon of Titan, Mentor has access to and full use of a wide range of advanced technology.

STARFOX

 

STARFOX

Real Name: Eros

First Appearance: Iron Man (Vol. 1) #55, February 1973

Powers: Eros is a Titanian Eternal, a genetic splintering of the Eternals of Earth (Homo Sapiens Immortalis). Eros' father and mother, Mentor and Sui-San, are both Eternals. However, only Mentor possesses the full potential of an Earth-born Eternal. Since Sui-San had no access to her cosmic energy, her and Mentor's children were stronger and longer-lived than the Eternals previously living on Titan, but not as powerful or long-lived as the Eternals of Earth.

Eros is suffused with cosmic energy, though, and his reinforced physiology makes him virtually invulnerable to all forms of physical harm. He can still feel pain and be knocked senseless by a certain level of force, however. He has superhuman strength, speed, endurance, and reaction time. Starfox has levitation powers, allowing him to lift and maneuver objects from a distance telekinetically, or produce a gravitational aura around his body, enabling him to fly and propel himself through atmosphere, space, or underwater. Eros has a limited ability to tap the molecule rearranging and energy casting powers of his father's genotype, but rarely employs them at all.

He possesses the ability to manipulate the pleasure center of other sentient beings, a power other Eternals do not possess. Starfox naturally causes others to feel good and cheerful in his presence, and it increases his natural charisma and sex appeal. With slight concentration, Eros can compel people to instinctively trust everything he says and make them willing to do what he suggests, within reason. An overdose of his pleasure principle can send people into a euphoric state, causing them to "bliss out" and become virtually senseless for a time.

ETERNALS

 

ETERNALS

First Appearance: Eternals (Vol. 1) #1, July 1976

History: The Eternals are an evolutionary offshoot of humanity living on Earth who possess greater powers and longer lifespans than the mainstream human race. The Eternals first came into being about a million years ago when the extraterrestrial Celestials arrived on Earth to perform genetic experiments on the nascent human race. To test the adaptability of the human gene, the Celestials accelerated the evolution of a handful of subjects and gave them the genetic potential to mentally manipulate limited quantities of cosmic energy, as well as other superhuman traits. Thus, the Celestials created the race of Eternals. The Celestials also performed experiments on Earth that led to the creation of the genetically unstable Deviants, and to the implantation of latent genetic material in the general run of humanity's ancestors that would one day permit benevolent mutations in human beings.

At first, the Eternals' genetic potential for extraordinarily long lifespans and virtual invulnerability due to cosmic energy lay dormant (though they possessed enhanced physical prowess and semi-longevity). A devastating civil war eventually broke out among the first known generation of Eternals. The two opposing factions, one led by Kronos (whose name is also spelled "Chronos") and one by his brother Uranos, clashed in a conflict of ideologies over their people's destiny. Kronos's side prevailed, and the warlike Uranos and his surviving band of followers were exiled into outer space. The exiles found an abandoned military outpost left by the alien Kree on the planet now known as Uranus and used it to construct a spaceship in which they attempted to return to Earth and renew their war with their brethren. Four Eternals stayed on Uranus and gave rise to colonies of Uranian Eternals. However, the native Uranians (called Aboriginoids) had allowed the Uranian Eternals to colonize the planet under strict conditions. The Aboriginoids would feed off by-products of the Uranus colonies and the Eternals swore never to leave the planet, making them penal colonies. Feeling trapped, the Eternals eventually believed they found a loophole in the agreement that would allow them to leave Uranus if they were invited elsewhere. Longing to return to the world of their forefathers, during the 20th century, the Eternals welcomed German scientist Horace Grayson and his infant son Bob as part of a long-term plan to return to Earth. Bob grew up in the colonies and was sent to Earth as their ambassador Marvel Boy to pave the way for Earth inviting them home and freeing them from Uranus. Unfortunately for the Eternals, the Aboriginoids didn't appreciate the subtle loophole in their agreement. They destroyed the colonies from within, leading to the death of most Uranian Eternals just as Marvel Boy was returning home to Uranus.

While the four Eternals remained behind on Uranus to colonize it, Uranos and his followers were attacked by a Kree armada before reaching Earth. The survivors among Uranos's band crash-landed on Saturn's moon Titan and built a civilization of Titanian Eternals. One of Uranos's followers, Aflok, was taken by the Kree for vivisection. Learning that the being had derived from Earth, the Kree determined to perform genetic experiments on Earth's pre-humans themselves. Their experiments would result in the Inhumans.

Later, Kronos was working in his laboratory in the Earth Eternals' city of Titanos on an experiment with cosmic energy when he accidentally caused an explosion that demolished Titanos and subjected the Eternals to a cosmic particle bombardment. This irradiation activated the latent genes in the Earth Eternals that gave them their long lifespans, virtual invulnerability, manipulation of the cosmic energy bolstering their life force, and enabled them to pass these active genes down to the children produced by any mated couple of Earth Eternals. There is as yet no known example of an Eternal and a human mate together producing a child with Eternal superhuman traits. Kronos's atoms were scattered, but his astral form expanded to godlike proportions and survives on this plane of reality.

After Kronos's physical death, his eldest sons, Zuras and A’Lars, initiated the first creation of the Uni-Mind, a collective melding of the minds and bodies of the Eternals. While in the form of the Uni-Mind, the Eternals determined that Zuras should be Kronos's successor as their leader. To avoid disunity among the Eternals, A’Lars, who differed with Zuras as to what the Eternals' goals should be, left for outer space. Eventually, A’Lars arrived on Titan, where he mated with Sui-San, the last survivor of a civil war among the Eternals there. Together Alars and Sui-San repopulated Titan. However, since Sui-San was not present on Earth during Kronos's cosmic energy explosion, their children were not as powerful or long-lived as the Eternals of Earth, but they were stronger and longer-lived than the Eternals previously living on Titan. A’Lars renamed himself Mentor, and the race of Titanian Eternals, although recently greatly reduced in number, still exists today.

Zuras directed the construction of the principal city of the Eternals, Olympia, in a mountainous region in Greece. Two other major Eternal cities were founded: Polaria in Siberia and Oceana in the Pacific. Many Eternals have lived among ordinary human beings over the centuries.

Olympia lay near the principal nexus between Earth's dimension and that of the Olympian gods on Mount Olympus. Zuras and Zeus, leader of the Olympian gods, made a mutual non-interference pact between their two races. The people of ancient Greece and Roma often confused the Olympian Eternals with the Olympian gods. Over the centuries the Eternals have continually fought the Deviants' attempts to gain power.

In later years, the Fourth Host of the Celestials arrived on Earth to judge humanity. Fearing that the Celestials would destroy Earth if they judged against its people, Zuras led the Eternals against the Celestials, who retaliated by killing him. The Celestials judged in Earth's favor and left Earth. Zuras's daughter Thena contacted Zuras's spirit before it left this plane reality, and thus learned that the Eternals were to leave Earth to explore space now that the Celestials had departed. Virtually all of Earth's Eternals left for space in the form of the Uni-Mind. However, the Eternals' collective consciousness in the Uni-Mind decreed, that a small number of Eternals who were particularly involved in Earthly matters remain behind. Among the Eternals known to still live on Earth are Thena, their new ruler, Ikaris, Sersi, Makkari; the Forgotten One, Kingo Sunen, Sprite, Cybele, Phastos, Khoryphca, and Interloper.

Powers: The life force of all the Eternals of Earth is augmented by cosmic energy. Moreover, each of the Eternals of Earth maintains a virtually unbreakable mental control over the processes and structure of his or her body, even when he or she is asleep or unconscious. As a result, the Eternals of Earth have lifespans that last for at least thousands of years, are immune to disease and aging, are virtually indestructible, and, if somehow injured, can regenerate injured or missing organic tissue. There are only two known means by which Earth Eternals can actually die. One is through an injury that disperses a significant portion of the Eternal's body molecules; the other involves overwhelming and breaking the Eternal's mental hold over his or her own body. Once this hold is broken, then the Eternal can be injured or killed through conventional means. An Eternal's control over his or her body allows him or her to appear at whatever age he or she wishes. Hence, although many known Eternals have lived for at least several thousand years, they appear to be in their twenties. Cosmic energy bolsters the metabolism of Eternals so they do not tire from physical exertion. Through mental concentration, they can resist temperature extremes.

Eternals are born with the potential for various superhuman abilities. Although an Eternal may be born with less potential for one ability than another, he or she can overcome that difference through training, Eternals develop their superhuman abilities through training and discipline over their long lives. Each Eternal is guided by personal desires in deciding how far to develop a specific ability. Sersi, for example, is acknowledged to have developed her talent for matter rearrangement far more than any other known Eternal has.

All Eternals have superhuman strength, and an average Eternal can lift (press) about 15 tons without using his or her mental powers to negate the force of gravity on whatever he or she is lifting. Eternals can levitate themselves by mentally manipulating gravitons (subatomic particles carrying the force of gravitational attraction between atoms) around them. An Eternal can also levitate other persons or objects while simultaneously levitating himself or herself. Eternals can "fly" at great speed through levitation, and the average Eternal can thus travel at 600 miles per hour. Eternals can mentally create illusions so as to disguise themselves. They can also psionically manipulate atoms and molecules so as to manipulate and shape matter. However, this ability is highly limited in most Eternals.

Eternals can project cosmic energy in the form of beams from their eyes or beams or flashes from their hands. This cosmic energy, stored in specialized enclaves of cells in their bodies, can be used as force, heat, light, and possibly other forms of electromagnetic energy. An average Eternal can project a maximum concussive force of at least 200 pounds per square inch and heat reaching a maximum temperature of 2000° Fahrenheit. The maximum effective range for an average Eternal's energy beams seems to be about 176 feet. The expenditure of cosmic energy in this way continually for several hours will temporally deplete an Eternal's physical strength, but not his or her resistance to injury, although it will temporarily increase his or her sensitivity to pain. However, the Eternal will rapidly return to normal after such lengthy energy expenditure is over. Several Eternals are also known to be able to teleport themselves psionically.

The Eternals have an extremely low birthrate among themselves, having one child every millennium or so. However, those Eternals who choose to mate with ordinary human beings often have children much more frequently, although these children will not themselves be Eternals. Hence, the population level of the Eternals has remained very stable over thousands of years.

CELESTIALS

 

CELESTIALS

Roster: Dreaming Celestial, Gammenon the Gatherer, Arishem the Judge, Nezarr the Calculator, Ashema the Listener, Jemiah the Analyzer, Eson the Searcher, One Above All, Exitar the Exterminator, Oneg the Prober, Ziran the Tester, Tefral the Surveyor, Hargen the Measurer, and several unnamed others

First Appearance: Eternals (Vol. 1) #2, August 1976

History & Powers: The Celestials are a race of extraterrestrial beings of humanoid form who possess untold cosmic power. Standing two thousand feet tall in full body armor, no being knows their planet of origin or what they look like without the armor. It has been theorized that the Celestials actually exist in hyperspace and that their armor is actually a channel which allows them to interact on various planes of existence. What is known about the Celestials is that they travel through space and manipulate the genetics of species on various worlds. They came to Earth over 1,000,000 years ago and performed genetic experiments on Earth’s highest lifeform: The nascent human beings. In order to test the adaptability of the human gene, the Celestials created two subspecies of the human race: The Eternals, who possess long lifespans and vast physical and cosmic energy-manipulation powers; and the Deviants, who possess an instability in their genetic code. The Celestials’ sole legacy to the mainstream human race was the implantation of a dormant DNA complex that would one day permit the emergence of superhuman abilities (mutants and altered human mutates). After performing their experiments, they left Earth. 

 

The Second Host of the Celestials arrived on Earth over 25,000 years ago to inspect the results of their first visit. They were sighted over the continent of Lemuria, the center of activity for the Deviants who had made human beings their slaves. The Deviants attacked the Celestials, who retaliated by unleashing a vastly powerful nuclear weapon that affected the earth’s plate tectonics. Repercussions of the explosion resulted in the continents of Lemuria and Atlantis sinking below the ocean and the division of Pangea. This event was referred to as the Great Cataclysm.
 
The Third Celestial Host arrived on Earth over 1,000 years ago. Their landing sight was arranged by the Eternals working in conjunction with the Incas of Peru. Upon their arrival, they were confronted by a contingency of Earth’s mythological gods from extra-dimensional realms. The gods were afraid that the Celestials had returned to judge humanity’s worthiness to survive. If the Celestials ruled against humanity, Earth would be destroyed. Among the gods were Odin of the Asgardian gods, Zeus of the Olympian gods, and Vishnu of the Hindu gods. The gods challenged the Celestials’ right to interfere in human affairs. The Celestials had threatened to permanently seal the gods’ dimensional portals to Earth if they interfered in Celestial matters again. Though the gods were forced to forego their involvement in the destiny of humanity, Odin planned an assault on the Celestials on their next visit.  

 

The Fourth Celestial Host came to Earth over 50 years ago to finally judge humanity now that the dormant DNA complex had finally emerged in humanity. Odin had created an invincible suit of armor called the Destroyer to battle the Celestials if humanity was judged against. The suit was operable so long as another being’s life force animated it. Odin joined forces with the Eternals, who joined together to create the Uni-Mind. Odin gathered all Asgardians, including himself, to animate the Destroyer. The Destroyer grew to the size of a Celestial and did battle with them. The Celestials obliterated the Destroyer with a single energy blast, dispersing the life forces that animated it. The Uni-Mind tried in vain as Arishem the Judge broke it apart with a wave of his hand, injuring all Eternals but killing only one. Earth’s mythological goddesses had found 12 human beings who represented the pinnacle of human genetic perfection. They showed them to the Elder Earth goddess Gaea, who presented these 12 humans to the Celestials as proof of humanity’s evolution. The Celestials ruled in favor of Earth and departed with the 12 humans who were called the “Young Gods”. The Asgardians were resurrected thanks to the Olympian god Zeus. 

 

20 years ago, the Celestials came to Earth to study the young mutant named Franklin Richards, the son of Mr. Fantastic and the Invisible Woman of the Fantastic Four. Franklin possesses the mutant ability to manipulate and alter reality with his mind and created an entire pocket universe to save his family and the Avengers during a battle with the villain Onslaught. This feat placed him above the Celestials in power levels. The Celestials sent Ashema the Listener to Earth to show Franklin what he had created and force him to destroy either Earth or the universe he created. Franklin destroyed neither and returned the Fantastic Four and the Avengers to Earth. Ashema sacrificed her mind for the preservation of Franklin’s universe, which will exist within her mind forever. This allows the Celestials to get a first hand look into the structure and workings of humanity. Ashema remained in a catatonic state until revived.

No one knows the full extent of the Celestials’ power. They once withstood a full frontal attack from the collective might of the Asgardians and the Eternals. They are not indestructible, however. They once killed one of their brethren for breach of conduct. They have also been shown to resurrect the dead. The Celestials have erased themselves from the memories of most human beings in each of their visits. Only the Eternals, Deviants, the extra-dimensional gods, and a handful of humans remember the Celestials and the nature of each Celestial visitation.

THANOS

 

THANOS

Real Name: Thanos

First Appearance: Iron Man (Vol. 1) #55, February 1973

Powers: Thanos is a Titanian Eternal. Born with greyish-purple skin and red eyes with no pupils, he was considered a mutant by Titanian Eternal standards in that he is markedly different from his parents. By far the most powerful of the Titanian Eternals, his genetic mutation gave him a massive, heavy-bided body with the capacity to synthesize cosmic energy for certain personal uses (This is a trait that Thanos shared with his father, A’Lars, and all Earth-born Eternals, but not with his fellow Titan-born Eternals).

By augmenting his natural powers through cybernetics, mysticism, and even through additional power granted him by Mistress Death herself, Thanos increased his physical strength and resilience to levels surpassing even the strongest of the Earth Eternals, at approximately Class 100. His power was also augmented in other ways, enabling him to tap, transform, and direct vast quantities of cosmic energy for destructive force. His skin is nearly invulnerable, particularly against heat, cold, electricity, radiation, toxins, aging, and disease, and he can survive indefinitely without food or water even before his "curse" from Death left him immortal, unable to die. He is capable of surviving unaided in the vacuum of space. Though not an acrobat by any means, Thanos' speed, agility, and reflexes are much greater than his massive size would indicate.

Besides destructive force, he can also manipulate vast amounts of cosmic energy to produce various levels of heat, light, explosive energy, and disintegration from his hands or eyes, as well as the power to shape fields of protective force. Thanos has also been shown generating a nimbus of energy around his hands which apparently increases the force of his blows even further. He has some limited access to telepathic and molecular rearrangement powers, but has always employed these feats sparingly, if at all. He had occasionally killed a victim by turning them into lifeless stone. His indomitable will gives him great advantage in mental conflicts, even against opponents who possess fully-developed telepathic powers. He usually employed a hovering chair with additional offensive weapons and the ability to teleport fantastic distances.