The Eternals are an evolutionary offshoot of humanity gifted with amazing powers and abilities to look after the human race throughout the ages.[15][2][16] One million years ago, the mysterious, epic beings known as Celestials created 100 Eternals plus 100 Deviants and left.[16] Since then, the Eternals have lived secluded on Earth, rarely interfering with humanity,[17] and being reborn whenever they perish.[16]
After two devastating civil wars, the remaining Eternals of Earth chose a path of peace and dedicated their lives to bettering themselves and their society.[14][18][19] The best example of what they can accomplish when working together is the power of the Uni-Mind, which is created when several Eternals join their will and intelligence together to temporarily become one powerful entity.[20]
Throughout the millennia, the Eternals built great cities, including their current home, Olympia,[16][21] which provided the setting for their meeting with the Olympians, the gods of Ancient Greece. After noticing the similarities between both species, they formed an alliance and the Eternals acted as the gods' representatives on Earth for a while.[22] Recently, the Eternals went mad and turned against each other, while some committed suicide.[23] They have since been revived and are slowly beginning to return to their peaceful ways.[16]
History
Origins: The First Host[]
About one million years ago,[2] the "evolutionary borderline between apes and humans" emerged:[24] Homo erectus.[11]
The Celestials, intrigued by the versatility of human genes, sent their First Host to perform genetic tests and experiment on this species.[25][26]
When the First Host got to the Earth, the Celestial Gammenon the Gatherer collected a few specimens, which Ziran the Tester mutated to create 100 grotesque Deviants (Homo descendus). After Ziran was done with its brood, Nezarr the Calculator performed his own tests and created 100 superior Eternals (Homo immortalis).[10][16] The Celestial known as Tiamut the Communicator also helped design a few specimens, including the Eternal Makkari.[27]
As these creations were released back on Earth, the Eternals were given three principles:[16]
- Protect Celestials.
- Protect the Machine.
- Correct excess deviation.
With this in mind, the Eternals, led by Kronos secluded themselves to secretly protect the Earth. While the Deviants established an empire in the Kingdom of Lemuria.[26]
Uranos War[]
Starting out as nomadic people,[21] the Eternals eventually established themselves, creating the city of Titanos[28] in North America.[16][note 1]
Around 600,000 years ago,[19] a civil war erupted between two factions of the Eternals: the side of Kronos, who cherished peace and non-interference, and the side of his brother Uranos, who wanted to use their powers to dominate the planet.[28] Kronos' side prevailed, with the help of Oceanus, and Uranos and his followers were banished.[3][28]
When the two dozen exiles landed on Planet Uranus, they conquered the Kree outpost there to make of it their new home.[29] As Uranos built a spaceship to return to Earth, Astron refused to follow his ways any longer and, along with three sympathizers, remained on Uranus,[30] where they created their own colony.[31][note 2]
The spaceship was then destroyed by a Kree fleet investigating the invasion of their outpost, thus leaving only seven Eternals alive. Those that survived decided to abandon their plans for revenge and, instead, created a colony on Saturn's moon Titan.[32]
Meanwhile, the surviving Eternals on Uranus encountered the native Uranians. Recognizing them as exiles, the Uranians allowed the remaining Eternals to live with them, under the condition that, if they ever left their enclosed environment, they would face destruction.[13]
At some point, the Titanians fell to warlike tendencies once more.[33] As a result, the colony of Titan was ravaged by yet another civil war, thereby causing the death of all its residents save for the woman Sui-San, who lived in isolation.[3]
Death of Kronos[]
Around 500,000 years ago[19] Kronos managed to isolate the cosmic energy that empowered the Eternals, but the volatile containment tube shattered and exploded. The explosion transformed Kronos into a cosmic entity, but also killed all the other Eternals and brought the city of Titanos to the ground, almost destroying The Machine, the artificial intelligence that serves the Eternals.[28][16]
After being reborn in the Activation Chamber,[16] the Eternals contained the anomaly generated by the explosion[16] and discovered that Kronos' experiment had increased their powers.[34] With their new abilities, the Eternals then discovered they could join their will and intelligence into one powerful entity, which they called the Uni-Mind.[14]
Titan Schism[]
Despite being more unified than ever before, the Eternals still disagreed on the core goals of their society. The majority of the Eternals, led by one of Kronos' sons, Zuras, believed that they shouldn't tinker with their cosmic potential and no new Eternals should be created. Another son of Kronos, A'Lars, and a small fraction of their numbers believed they should keep expanding The Machine and create new Eternals, via biological and technological methods.[26][18]
Around 200,000 years ago war erupted once more, but eventually an agreement was reached: one solitary Llarsite was allowed to found a colony as an experiment. A'Lars was chosen and adopted the name "Mentor", before settling on the lost colony of Titan.[19]
There, he located Sui-San, and together they used technology to found a new species of Eternal-derived beings, the Titans. They developed Titan into a wonder of science, building the supercomputer ISAAC to help them run the environment. As they flourished, some Eternals of Earth started believing that the Zurasian faction had been overly conservative. Little did they know that Sui-San had just given birth to Thanos, who would one day become one of the Universe's greatest menaces.[34][26][18]
With Titanos destroyed, Zuras led his Eternals to create new cities: their capital, Olympia, in the mountains of Greece; Oceana, in the Pacific Ocean; and Polaria, in Siberia.[34][16]
Second Host[]
Back on Earth, unlike the Eternals, the Deviants had "bred like rabbits", and took over the world, enslaving humanity. The Eternals fought against them, but, when they realized their numbers couldn't compare to the millions of Deviants, they had no alternative but to call the Celestials.[35]
When the Second Host of Celestials finally arrived on Earth, they were attacked by the Deviants, led by Emperor Phraug. Seeing a world fallen into chaos, the Celestials soon delivered their judgment and wiped out most of the Deviants. In the process, they caused Lemuria and Atlantis to sink all the way to the bottom of the ocean floor.[36] In a general way, all of civilization, both Deviant and Human, had been wiped off the face of the Earth.[37][note 3]
The Eternal Utnapishtim built an ark in order to save some human beings as well as animals from the flooding. Later, Ikaris came to guide them to a mountain top, where the survivors could disembark to restart society.[36][38]
When the second host departed, they punished one of their own, Tiamut, by trapping its essence and leaving it in the care of Valkin beneath the Pyramid of the Four Winds. From then on, that Celestial became known only as the Dreaming Celestial, as he laid to rest for thousands of years.[39][27]
Antiquity[]
As Humanity began to develop new civilizations, the Eternals started to mingle with their genetic cousins. They taught them to plant grain, showed them how to work metal and introduced them to writing.[35]
At the end of the Hyborian Age, the Olympian gods sought worshippers. Zeus lay Mount Olympus near the Eternals' city of Olympia, thereby deciding that the Olympians would be worshipped by the people of the land now known as Greece.[22]
While meeting with the Eternals, the Olympians soon noticed the physical similarities between them, as seen with the comparison of Zuras with Zeus and of Athena with Azura. As a result, they decided to form a pact: the Eternals themselves would act as the gods' representatives on Earth (and Azura herself took on the name of Thena in order to seal the pact). However, an unintended consequence of this treaty was that, over the years, many humans would come to think that the Eternals were the real Olympian gods.[22]
Mayas, Inca, and Aztecs Empires[]
Around 1000 AD,[34] Virako and a group of Polar Eternals traveled through America in order to bring civilization to its inhabitants while posing as gods to the ancestors of the Aztec, Incas, and Mayas. Virako assumed the roles of Quetzalcoatl and Kukulcan, while his fellow Eternals remained in each empire in order to watch over them and push them forward to progress.[37] In South America, a new Eternal city was founded and given the name Celestia.[16]
Around that time, the Eternals were also involved in a clash with the Deviants and mutates Dromedan, Tutinax, Thunder, and the World-Devouring Worm, while gaining the assistance of the Asgardian thunder god Thor Odinson. The battle ended in the death of the Eternal Virako, who would be remembered as Viracocha. In order to safeguard themselves and the Celestials' goals, the Eternals erased Thor's memory of the encounter, resulting in the thunder god not having his memories restored until many centuries later.[37][note 4]
At some point in the century that followed, there was also a conflict known as the Eternals/Inhumans War (or the legendary War of Eterninhuma), during which the Eternals created the Time Sword, later destroyed by the Inhumans in retaliation.[40]
Third Host and Deviant-Eternal Truce[]
Soon after, the Celestials came to Earth for the Third Host. The Eternals all left the Inca land, save for Ajak, who was left to deal with the Celestials.[37] With the arrival of the Third Host, the Eternals worked with the Celestials in their cultivation process, while making the final preparations for their next scheduled visit. To this end, the Polarian Eternal Ajak was assigned to be the communicator for the Celestials and was then placed in suspended animation within the Temple of the Space Gods, and Ikaris was charged with attuning his senses to detect the Celestials upon their next arrival on Earth.[15][34]
Following these events, the Deviants made a truce with the Eternals, with both sides agreeing to not interfere with humanity until the Fourth Host arrived.[41][42]
20th century[]
In 1906, during San Francisco Earthquake, the Dreaming Celestial's chamber was damaged. The Eternals arrived and formed a Uni-Mind to fix it. The eternally 11-year-old Sprite, apparently affected by the Mahd Wy'ry, then realized he could use the Celestials powers to change his Eternal life allowing him to finally grow up. To accomplish this, one of his first steps was to make the Eternals forget about the Reactivation Chamber.[43][44]
In the 1930s, with the outbreak of World War II, Earth scientist Matthew Grayson made contact with the Uranian Eternals,[45] who provided him with the knowledge to build a rocket to escape Nazi Germany with his infant son Robert. The Eternals on Uranus then welcomed the Grayson family with open arms, raising Robert as one of their own. The Uranian Eternals were secretly plotting to re-establish ties with the planet Earth in an attempt to be reunited with their planet of origin and influence the society into what they viewed as a utopia. Monitoring the progress of the war on Earth, the Uranian Eternals waited for the ideal opportunity to begin their agenda, and upon witnessing the activities of Earth's super-soldier Captain America decided to groom Robert into the image of a super-hero the people of Earth could relate to; in other words, their ambassador to Earth.[46]
Activity by the earthbound Eternals during this period was at first minimal in the 1940s until the Deviant warlord Kro began involving himself in the affairs of humans by posing as Pluto. He initially interacted with the Nazis during the War, prompting Zuras to send Makkari to deal with him as Mercury.[47][48] Makkari later renamed himself Hurricane and continued to battle Kro and other menaces during the war.[49][50][51][48]
In 1950, the Uranian Eternals dispatched Robert to Earth to establish himself as a super-hero. This was fraught with complications due to the rise of the Cold War, but thanks to some publicity from Timely Comics and the new name Marvel Boy, the Uranian soon became a renowned super-hero.[46]
Marvel Boy also came to the defense of his adopted people, such as when Uranus was invaded by the Satanians, who attempted to sow dissent among the masses,[52] or when fighting corruption among the Uranian police force,[53] and even preventing a plot from Uranian dissidents to steal a new atomic formula.[54] However, these stories were adapted by Timely Comics into comic books about Marvel Boy's exploits and may be false.[46]
Eventually, Marvel Boy determined that the human race needed to find its own way, with no tampering by the Uranian Eternals. Unbowed, the Uranian Eternals planned for the return of Marvel Boy and began grooming the Eternal Thelius to be their Marvel Boy replacement.[55][56] Soon, the native Uranians learned of this plan and, after considering it to be in violation of their pact with the Eternals, wiped them all out. The dying Eternals sent a distress call to Marvel Boy, who came in answer to it, while learning the truth of his adopted people along the way. He arrived too late to save them and was absorbed into the Uranian hive mind, which resulted in his biology being adapted into a hybrid form. Meanwhile, his doppelganger, Thelis — with an incomplete transfer of his memories — was rushed to completion and was released. Marvel Boy, being bonded to the Uranians, was unable to stop Thelis as he flew to Earth, which he would not reach until the modern age.[13]
In the meantime, the human race finally split the atom. A concerned group of Eternals, Humans, and Deviants then formed the secret Damocles Foundation to study the next dominant species on Earth, and determined this to be the Mutants.[57]
By the 1960s the Eternal Pixie had joined the superhero team, First Line,[58] and she also convinced Makkari to join for a while.[59] In addition to them, other members of the Eternals continued to infiltrated the world of normal humans. Sersi and Kingo Sunen got into show business[60][61] while Valkin, Druig, Aginar, and Zarin joined the KGB.[61]
At some point, the Eternals also helped the Inhuman King Black Bolt, who was worried that his city Attilan would be discovered by Humans and attacked. Zuras, who had been monitoring Black Bolt for decades, took the Eternals to the Himalayas and made them use their transmutation powers to created the foundations for a whole city away from the humans' sight. With this work done, the Eternals bid farewell to Black Bolt and told him that building the city was now up to him.[62]
Modern Age[]
Fourth Host[]
When the Fourth Host of Celestials was approaching Earth, Ikaris (under the guise of cameraman Ike Harris) led archaeologist Daniel Damian and his daughter Margo to the Celestials' beacon and revealed the true history of Earth to them. They were then attacked by a force of Deviants led by Kro.[15] Ikaris fought them off and reawakened Ajak, who activated the beacon.[63] When the Deviants reacted by attacking New York City, capturing Ikaris and Sersi, Zuras ordered Makkari and Thena to defend the city.[64] Thena then reached a truce with Kro, and together they decided to reveal their races' existence to humanity via Samuel Holden, an anthropology Professor at City College.[65]
Odin of Asgard, who feared the Celestials, got the combined Pantheons of Earth to lent him their power so he could attack the Fourth Host. Empowered by the Skyfathers and the united life essence of the Asgardian people, Odin possessed the Destroyer armor and grew to the size of the Celestials, wielding the Odinsword in defense of Earth. Despite some initial reluctance, The Eternals, led by Zuras, formed the Uni-Mind and joined the Destroyer in confronting the Fourth Host. During the battle, the Celestials struck the Uni-Mind, causing it to dismantle back into individual Eternals.[66]
In the aftermath of the confrontation, the Celestials judged in Earth's favor and departed, but Zuras, who had deliberately taken the brunt of the Celestials' assault, perished as a result of the Uni-Mind's dissolution.[67]
Sprite's Plan[]
Years later, Sprite's plans finally came to fruition, as he tapped into the power of the Dreaming Celestial and wiped the memories of his fellow Eternals to give them new lives as human beings, so that no one would interfere with his plans.[43] Sprite pretended to be a child actor named Colin in a show called It's Just So Sprite.[35]
Eventually, the other Eternals saw through the illusion and discovered that Sprite was responsible for rewriting everyone's lives. After his plan was thwarted, Sprite was murdered by the revived Zuras for what he had done to his fellow Eternals. Nonetheless, the Dreaming Celestial had been awakened and now stood in San Francisco unmovable, judging the Human Race, with Makkari being the only one capable of communicating with him.[68]
As Sersi and Makkari rekindled their relationship, Makkari's recurring sessions with the Dreaming Celestial became a source of constant worry for Sersi, who felt her loved one slowly fading away.[69] After having enough of it, she finally decided to confront the Celestial, determined to find the reason for this deadly bond. And, despite almost getting killed, the Celestial revealed that Makkari had been chosen as his link to humanity before the arrival of The Horde, and she too was part of its grand plan: She was the one who had to protect Makkari.[70]
Unfortunately, Sersi failed in her mission and Makkari was killed, with no way of being revived thanks to the destruction of the Reactivation Chamber. Makkari's death triggered a countdown to global annihilation and, with no other alternative presenting itself, Sersi then pushed her powers to the limit by transmuting her own body into a perfect replica of Makkari and then replacing his conscious with her own.[71]
Thanks to Sersi, the connection with the Celestial was restored, which eventually led to the Horde's defeat by intervention of The Fulcrum, a cosmic entity above even the Celestials themselves.[72]
Dark Celestials[]
When the countless bodies of Celestials rained down on the Earth to herald the arrival of the Dark Celestials, the Eternals learned a dark truth that drove them mad: that the true purpose of their kind was to cultivate humankind, since the First Host of Celestials allowed humanity to thrive because they saw in their genetic makeup the potential to act as antibodies against the Horde. In their madness, the Eternals either turned against each other or committed suicide.[23]
Only Death is Eternal[]
The Eternals were eventually once again reborn in the Reactivation Chamber. Sprite was resurrected as a female and, due to her crimes, she was imprisoned in the Exclusion and was only restored to her last safe backup. By the time Ikaris was resurrected, the other Eternals had decided that Sprite was to be freed and Zuras appointed Ikaris to look after the trickster.[16]
Phastos was the first to be resurrected. While looking through the Resurrection Machines, he discovered a shocking truth: every time an Eternal was resurrected, one human life was taken in return. Shocked by this revelation, Phastos vowed to end it by ending the Eternals. So, he rescued Thanos from a black hole and blackmailed the Mad Titan into helping him with his scheme.[73] Phastos then sabotaged the Resurrection Machines so Eternals could no longer come back to life and had Thanos began killing Eternals including the Prime Eternal Zuras to frame Thanos for the sabotage.[74]
Phastos' plan started falling apart when his treachery was uncovered, and his sabotage of the Resurrection Machines threatened to make Earth uninhabitable for humans. Phastos tried repairing the Resurrection Machines but failed. The machines were eventually repaired when Ikaris sacrificed himself to do so. When confronted with his treachery, Phastos revealed what he learned about the Eternals' resurrection process. When the issue was debated with the Prime Eternal Zuras after his resurrection, it was determined that most Eternals would never agree to change it as Eternals didn't care about the lives of individual humans. So, several Eternals met with the Deviants of Lemuria, asking them how to become like them.[73]
Death to the Mutants[]
After Thanos was deposed from his position as Prime Eternal, Druig managed to succeed him. Aspiring to a hundred thousand year reign such as Zuras had held, Druig searched for a war, a cause with which to rally the Eternals behind his leadership. Aware of the fact that Deviant genes had filtered into the general population of Earth, he searched for the highest concentration of them. Viewing the mutant nation of Krakoa, Druig spied an opportunity. He declared mutants to be deviants, and that Krakoa – and especially it's sister nation of Arakko on the planet formerly known as Mars – constituted Excess Deviation. Druig had found his war.[75]
When Druig discovered that Krakoa itself was an essential part of the Machine, and thus could not be destroyed outright, he resigned himself to a more classic invasion of the island.[76] Using information from ex-mutant turncoat Moira MacTaggert, Druig order the Uni-Mind to occupy the psychic forces of the mutants while Jack of Knives ended the Resurrection Protocols. The plan failed, leading Druig to activate the Hex.[77] Meanwhile, he gave Uranos one hour to decimate Arakko.[78]
Biology[]
While being resurrected via the Activation Chamber, Eternals can take advantage of the process to switch appearance (including sex). According to Ikaris, this is common every twenty or twenty-five thousand years.[16]
Reproduction[]
For the original 100 Eternals, their family relations were set when they were created by the Celestials and added to the Machine that is Earth. "True" Eternals (Eternals connected to the Machine) cannot procreate among themselves, but they can breed with other species,[19] like humans and Deviants.[17][79] The offspring of these, sometimes referred to as "Nephilites," may possess Eternal traits; however, they are not part of the Machine that is Earth and thus are not considered "true" Eternals. The Eternals of Titan are examples.[19]
On Titan, Sui-San and Mentor managed to reproduce two "true" Eternals (that can be added to the Machine) with the aid of the Quantum Bands.[19] However, Thanos could not be fully added;[75] only Eros was a success and was added to the Machine, increasing the number of "true" Eternals to 101.[80][81]
Diseases[]
Deviant Syndrome[]
There exists a genetic predisposition among the Eternals known as Deviant Syndrome, where an Eternal possesses some Deviant genes.[82][83] This is considered a mutation.[83]
Mahd Wy'ry[]
The Mahd Wy'ry, also known as the Eternal madness, was an illness caused by extreme longevity of the Eternals. Despite their nigh-indestructible bodies, the Eternals still possessed a human mind, which after years of accumulating knowledge would sometimes drive the affected Eternal mad, much like old age senility in humans.[44][84]
The only "cure" for the Mahd Wy'ry was to kill the affected Eternal and revive them with the last safe backup.[84][16] The disease itself usually takes centuries in order to drive an Eternal mad, but the process can be accelerated, which was the case for Sersi, where it occurred within a few months.[85]
It was postulated that the Uni-Mind's purpose was to wash away those anxieties and fears of the Eternals regarding the overweight of experience on their soul.[84]
Principles[]
Eternals that are part of the Machine that is Earth have principles ingrained into their being.[16] These do not apply to Eternals that are not part of the Machine (e.g. Thanos). When Thanos sought to be added to the Machine, Uranos warned the Mad Titan that it would mean he would be restrained by the principles,[86] since they induce an involuntary response if they are not followed.[76]
- Protect Celestials.
- Eternals of the Machine cannot attack a Celestial, even if they want to. This can be circumvented via outside telepathy.[87]
- Protect the Machine.
- Correct Excess Deviation.
- Due to the vague wording, this principle is the most up to interpretation. The Celestials had meant the Eternals to correct the Deviants who are experiencing spontaneous, dangerous mutation,[75] but Eternals like Uranos and Druig have used its ambiguity to justify genocide.[88][86][77] For Uranos, his loose and twisted definition of "deviancy" extends to any non-Eternal life, not just Deviants.[88][86]
- "YOU HAVE 24 HOURS TO JUSTIFY YOURSELVES."
- This is a fourth principle added on Judgment Day by the Progenitor,[89] who judged all life on Earth to determine if they should exist.[90] After Judgment Day, Ajak Celestia reinterpreted this principle as "Every day matters, and we should act like it. We should act where we can, as often as we can."[81]
Gann Josin[]
In the culture of the Eternals, a Gann Josin[84] (or Gan-Josin)[91] is both a title attributed to an Eternal's chosen life-mate and the bond itself.[84]
When comparing this bond to the collective consciousness that makes up an Uni-Mind, the Gann Josin can be seen as an intimate version of it since, like the Uni-Mind, it creates a mental union,[91] but on a much smaller level since it can only be formed between two people. As a result, this bond makes the Eternal and its chosen partner lifelong soulmates while also creating a telepathic/empathic bond between them.[84]
The Eternal known as Sersi took fellow Avenger Dane Whitman as her intended Gann Josin, in the hopes of helping her control her emotion while being affected by the Mahd Wy'ry.[84]
According to Sprite, few Eternals choose humans for the Gann Josin.[84]
The people affected by the Gann Josin have distinctive full-red eyes.[84][85]
For a human to break a Gann Josin is an astounding act.[85]
Uni-Mind[]
The Uni-Mind is a merger of Eternals (and also other species).
Alternate Universe Eternals[]
Earth X (Earth-9997)[]
The past history of the Eternals of Earth-9997 largely mirrors that of their Earth-616 counterparts. However, it's been revealed that, at least on Earth-9997, the Celestials' intentions for the Eternals was not exactly as beneficial as they had thought. The Celestials' method of reproduction is to impregnate a planet with a portion of their energy (or embryo) as well as infuse Vibranium into the planet's core. Eventually, after centuries of gestation, the new Celestial would be born while destroying the planet in the process. In order to protect the Celestial growing within the planet, they would manipulate the DNA of the dominant species to act as unknowing anti-bodies. On Earth, it would be the pre-historic version of man that would be manipulated in such a fashion.[92] [93]
Their first attempt yielded the Deviants, unstable creatures who were born in new and more horrifying forms within each generation. The Deviants were deemed too aggressive and so the Celestials created the Eternals. With their vast superhuman powers and beauty, the Eternals were worshipped as gods by primitive mankind. However, just as the Deviants were too aggressive, the Eternals were too aloof. They grew disinterested in humanity and became reclusive, thereby allowing the Deviants to take control of the Earth. [92]
The history of the Eternals, including their interactions with humanity during the modern age, largely mirror those of Earth-616.
Following the mutation of humanity due to the Terrigen Mist, the Eternals left the Earth for good. They eventually settled on another planet, seemingly unaware that this planet was also host to a Celestial embryo. When the infant Celestial was born, the planet was destroyed, and the Eternals were encased in Vibranium, still alive but left to drift in space.[94]
Their bodies were found by the Inhuman Royal Family, who believed that Vibranium was the cause of the planet's destruction and decided to return to Earth to warn its heroes. The Eternals would seemingly find salvation years later as the Iron Maiden, a hero with the ability to manipulate vibranium, embarked on a quest to free the Eternals, so that the Eternal Sersi could use her abilities to free Cable from his Techno-Organic Virus.[95]
Marvel Cinematic Universe (Earth-199999)[]
In Earth-199999, the Eternals are synthetic beings created by the Celestial Arishem who are made to believe that they come from a planet called Olympia. Arishem would send out groups of Eternals to populated planets to protect the local sentient life from the Deviants and allow the necessary growth of the population that would give energy to the new Celestials gestating within those planets. When enough sentient beings existed, the newborn Celestials would wake, destroying their host planet in the process. The Eternals would then have their memories stored within Arishem's World Forge before being mind-wiped and send on a new assignment.
A group of 10 Eternals was sent to Earth 7,000 years ago, led by Ajak and consisting of Sersi, Ikaris, Kingo, Sprite, Phastos, Makkari, Druig, Gilgamesh and Thena. While helping humanity develop civilization, the Eternals cleared the Earth of Deviants after approximately 6,500 years. With their apparent mission finished, Ajak, who actually knew the truth about their mission, let them go their own ways and live lives among Humans, while keeping their true purpose hidden from everyone except Ikaris. In 2023, the Blip suddenly restored half of the humanity snapped by Thanos back to life, accelerating the awakening of the Celestial Tiamut. By then, Ajak had grown to respect humanity and did not wish to see it die, but was murdered by Ikaris, who remained devoted to Arishem. Ikaris then let the few Deviants (who were revealed to be alive in the previously frozen ice) hunt down and attack the other Eternals, distracting them from the imminent awakening of Tiamut. Ikaris, Sersi, and Sprite spend some time locating the others and informing them of Ajak being killed by the Deviants, who also managed to kill Gilgamesh in the meantime. When the remaining eight Eternals were reunited, Ikaris' deceptions were at last revealed. Sprite chose to follow him, while Kingo believed in the same cause but refused to fight the others and left. The other five Eternals planned to form the Uni-Mind and have Druig put Tiamut back to sleep until they could find a way to awaken him without destroying the Earth. This attempt was violently stopped by Ikaris, negating that option and forcing the Uni-Mind empowered Sersi to turn Tiamut to stone instead. With his mission in failure and his loyalties shattered, Ikaris flew into the Sun, seemingly killing himself. Afterwards, Sersi made Sprite's wishes come true by turning her Human and together, alongside Phastos and Kingo, they planned to resume their lives among humankind, while Druig, Makkari and Thena departed the planet to look for other Eternals. After the three Earth Eternals were abducted by Arishem, who planned to use their memories to judge if humanity was worth saving over the life of a Celestial, the space trio were found by fellow Eternal Eros, who offered his assistance.[96]Powers and Abilities
Powers
The cells inside the body of an Eternal contain cosmic energy which, in combination with their complete mental control over every molecule of their bodies, grants them access to a vast array of superhuman abilities that they develop through training and discipline over the course of their long lives.[2]
- Immortality: The life span of all Eternals is augmented by cosmic energy which in combination with their ability to control the processes and structure of their bodies grants them immunity to aging and disease.[2]
- Invulnerability: The control that Eternals exercise over the molecules of their bodies makes them virtually undestructible.
- Regenerative Healing Factor: Should an Eternal be injured somehow, they could regenerate any injured or missing tissue. An Eternal can only die through an injury that disperses a significant portion of their body molecules, or if they are injured after their mental control over their body is somehow broken.[2]
- Resurrection: If an Eternal connected to the Machine That Is Earth is killed he or she can be reconstituted in the Activation Chamber.[2]
- Superhuman Strength: All Eternals possess superhuman strength, with the average member of the species being able to lift 15 tons without using his or her mental powers to negate the force of gravity.[2]
- Flight: Eternals can levitate themselves by manipulating gravitons. The average speed for an Eternal is of at least 600 mph.[2]
- Illusion Casting: Eternals can mentally create illusions to disguise themselves.[2]
- Molecular Reconstruction: Eternals can psionically manipulate atoms[2] to manipulate organic and inorganic matter.[34]
- Cosmic Energy Manipulation: Eternals can manipulate energy to project from their eyes or hands energy as force, heat, light and other forms of electromagnetic energy.[2]
- Telepathy: All Eternals posses the capacity for telepathy.[34]
- Teleportation: All Eternals possess the ability to teleport but they tend to avoid using it as they find it physically unpleasant.[34]
- Uni-Mind: An Eternal designated as Prime Eternal can generate a blue flame that merges anyone who passes through it into a Uni-Mind.[2] The Uni-Mind is a powerful psychic entity which embodies the collective power of every individual who created it and it takes at least seven Eternals to create one.[34] All Eternals can join the Uni-Mind, even their Titan cousins.[98]
Average Strength Level
Habitat
Habitat
Population
Miscellaneous
Type of Government
Originally, the Eternals were ruled by a triumvirate of Patriarchs—Uranos, Kronos, and Oceanus—during the Age of the Patriarchs. The original 100 Eternals can be grouped into three categories: The Dynasties (3-Gen), the Atomic Families (2-Gen), and the Singularities (1-Gen). A Patriarch has full authority over his entire dynasty; thus, the three Patriarchs had the most voting power over the Eternals.[86]
After the Uranosian War and the destruction of Titanos, which resulted in Uranos' imprisonment and Kronos' ascension, respectively, Oceanus retired, thus ending the Patriarchs' rule.[19] A new system was put into place where the Eternals would periodically vote via a Uni-Mind for a Prime Eternal (usually Zuras) to lead them.[100]
For the new Eternal colony on Titan, it was founded by Mentor (A'Lars) and Sui-San. However, due to their son Thanos, this fell apart.[19]Level of Technology
Cultural Traits
The various "generations of Eternals" are simply large waves of reboots that affected the Eternals' population. There are familial relationships, but they’re static family relationships, since the Eternals of Earth have never procreated between them.[101]
Representatives[]
- See also: Category:Eternals of Earth
- Eternals of Olympia
- Eternals of Polaria
- Eternals of the Exclusion
- Ur-Luciva
- Kharon
- Excluded "K" / Kronos
- Excluded "U" / Uranos
- Excluded "S" / Sui-San
- Excluded "A" / A'Lars
- Excluded "H"
- Excluded "E" / Eros
- Excluded "T"
- The Oceanic Watch
- The Celestian Priests
- Titanos Hermits
- The Lemurian Mission
- The Gaian Sisters
- The Tricks
- The Forgotten
- The Damocles Foundation
- The Hex
- Eternals (Location Unknown)
- Ora of the Pandemonium Box
- 0-XXII
- Luis Three-Fingers
- (All Records Lost)[103]
- Other Eternals
Notes
- As of Eternals (Vol. 5) #1, Kieron Gillen established that there have only ever been 100 Eternals, all of whom were created at once. Also established was the idea that any familial connections were programmed into them by the Celestials rather than being biological in nature, as the Celestials made the Eternals incapable of breeding with each other. For this series, Gillen had to create dozens of new Eternals in order to bring up the total to 100.[101] However, there are some discrepancies with Gillen’s list:
- The roster given to the readers lists 102 names, if the Delphan Brothers are counted as four.[16][76] It has since been revealed that one of those additional names was Eros, listed as Excluded “E”. The other is the mysterious (All Records Lost).[103]
- Though there are 4 Delphan Brothers, whom bring the total up to 100, they were originally one Eternal. The Delphan Mother created the other three by cloning the original some time after the original hundred's own creation, an act which many at the time considered heresy.[80] However, The Machine specifically says that it counts the Delphan Brothers as 4 out of the 100 Eternals.[76] Without the extra Delphan Brothers, the total should be 97.
- Gillen claims that all previously existing Eternals are present in the current roster, even if by another name, specifically citing Vampiro as one such example.[104] However Vampiro, and fellow Eternals Pixie and William Carmody, are unidentifiable among the roster both times it was shown.[16][76] If the three were not included in the current roster of 97 (excluding the duplicate Delphan Brothers), then the total of Eternals would once again be 100 by including them.
- On June 8, 2023, Gillen revealed on Tumblr that while he cannot remember details about William Carmody, Pixie is one of the Olympian Eternals, while Vampiro is one of the Damocles Foundation. Though he did add that this could be subject to change, depending on what future writers (or he himself) might decide to do.[102] As the only unseen member of the Damocles Foundation is Khonchan, he is the most likely candidate for Vampiro's true identity. Pixie, on the other hand, could be any of the 4 unseen Olympian Eternals created by Gillen; Mabb, Bakkus, Kernnis or Fionnmak.
- With the births of Eros and Thanos, the total of True Eternals rose to 102. While Eros would become part of The Machine, Thanos did not.[105][106]
- On November 9, 2021, Kieron Gillen confirmed on Twitter that the phrase (All Records Lost) at the bottom of the Eternals with Unknown Locations was not referring to the Machine having lost the records of the other three Eternals, but rather referring to a fourth Eternal of whom all records had been lost. Gillen has since deleted this reply.[103] It is possible that All Records Lost is actually Thanos himself, as despite being a True Eternal, he is not part of the Machine.[105]
- Also established during Gillen’s run were the concept of the Nephilites, the offspring of Eternals with other species, such as humans, Deviants and Inhumans. While Nephilites themselves have existed for decades,[107] the term was coined in Eternals: Thanos Rises #1. Nephilites were one way to explain away why the Uranian and Titanian Eternals were not considered True Eternals (other reasons listed included clones and robot duplicates of True Eternals, as well as alien immigrants to both colonies).
See Also
- 511 appearance(s) of Eternals (Homo immortalis)
- 12 appearance(s) in handbook(s) of Eternals (Homo immortalis)
- 51 minor appearance(s) of Eternals (Homo immortalis)
- 52 mention(s) of Eternals (Homo immortalis)
- 16 mention(s) in handbook(s) of Eternals (Homo immortalis)
- 86 image(s) of Eternals (Homo immortalis)
- 251 representative(s) of Eternals (Homo immortalis)
- 3 item(s) used/owned by Eternals (Homo immortalis)
Links and References
References
- ↑ Previously, Kronos' entry in Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z Update #2 had established the city to be in Northern Asia.
- ↑ Titan's entry in Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe #11 had previously established Uranos' exile as taking place around 750,000 years ago, but, with the dates established in Eternals: Thanos Rises #1 that is no longer possible.
- ↑ Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z #4 previously established that Kronos' death took place before the coming of the Second Host, but History of the Marvel Universe (Vol. 2) #1 changed that order, in accordance to the dates established for the Second Host and Kronos' Ascension in Amazing Spider-Man Annual #23 and Quasar #19, respectively. With the retcons of Eternals: Thanos Rises #1, it is not yet known when the Second Host is now meant to have happened.
- ↑ Virako should have been reborn at the time. However, his resurrection is only seen happening in the present, in New Eternals: Apocalypse Now #1. It is unknown if he was reborn and died again after Sprite had erased the Eternals' memory of the reactivation chamber, or if his revival was delayed for any unspecified reasons.
- ↑ Eternals (Vol. 3) #7
- ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 Thor & Hercules: Encyclopaedia Mythologica #1
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Captain Marvel #29
- ↑ Incredible Hercules #119
- ↑ Incredible Hercules #120
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe #10 ; Starfox's entry
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Annihilation: The Nova Corps Files #1
- ↑ Captain Marvel #27
- ↑ Quasar #12
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 What If? #23
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Marvel Fact Files #8
- ↑ Marvel Universe #7
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 Agents of Atlas #3
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 What If? #25
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 Eternals #1
- ↑ 16.00 16.01 16.02 16.03 16.04 16.05 16.06 16.07 16.08 16.09 16.10 16.11 16.12 16.13 16.14 16.15 16.16 16.17 16.18 16.19 Eternals (Vol. 5) #1
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 New Eternals: Apocalypse Now #1
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 Eternals (Vol. 5) #2
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 19.2 19.3 19.4 19.5 19.6 19.7 19.8 19.9 Eternals: Thanos Rises #1
- ↑ Eternals #12
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe #4
- ↑ 22.0 22.1 22.2 Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe #12 ; Zeus's entry
- ↑ 23.0 23.1 Avengers (Vol. 8) #4
- ↑ X-Men Annual #13
- ↑ Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe (Vol. 2) #2
- ↑ 26.0 26.1 26.2 26.3 History of the Marvel Universe (Vol. 2) #1
- ↑ 27.0 27.1 Eternals (Vol. 3) #6
- ↑ 28.0 28.1 28.2 28.3 What If? #24
- ↑ What If? #26
- ↑ What If? #27
- ↑ Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe #12 ; Uranians' entry
- ↑ What If? #27–28
- ↑ Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe #11 ; Titan' entry
- ↑ 34.0 34.1 34.2 34.3 34.4 34.5 34.6 34.7 34.8 Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z #4
- ↑ 35.0 35.1 35.2 Eternals (Vol. 3) #1
- ↑ 36.0 36.1 Amazing Spider-Man Annual #23
- ↑ 37.0 37.1 37.2 37.3 Thor Annual #7
- ↑ Captain America Annual #11
- ↑ Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z Update #4
- ↑ Cable (Vol. 3) #3
- ↑ All-New Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z #3 ; Deviants' entry
- ↑ X-Force #97
- ↑ 43.0 43.1 Eternals (Vol. 3) #4
- ↑ 44.0 44.1 Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z Update #1 ; Sprite's entry
- ↑ Marvel Boy #1
- ↑ 46.0 46.1 46.2 Marvel Boy: The Uranian #1
- ↑ Red Raven Comics #1
- ↑ 48.0 48.1 Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Golden Age 2004 #1
- ↑ Captain America Comics #1–11
- ↑ Marvels Project #6
- ↑ Avengers / Invaders #10–12
- ↑ Astonishing #3
- ↑ Astonishing #4
- ↑ Astonishing #5
- ↑ Marvel Boy: The Uranian #3
- ↑ FF: Fifty Fantastic Years #1
- ↑ X-Force #93
- ↑ Marvel: The Lost Generation #3
- ↑ Marvel: The Lost Generation #5
- ↑ Eternals #3
- ↑ 61.0 61.1 Eternals #11
- ↑ What If? #29
- ↑ Eternals #2
- ↑ Eternals #5
- ↑ Eternals #6
- ↑ Thor #300
- ↑ Thor #300–301
- ↑ Eternals (Vol. 3) #6–7
- ↑ Eternals (Vol. 4) #2
- ↑ Eternals (Vol. 4) #4
- ↑ Eternals (Vol. 4) #6
- ↑ Eternals (Vol. 4) #6–9
- ↑ 73.0 73.1 Eternals (Vol. 5) #5–6
- ↑ Eternals (Vol. 5) #1–4
- ↑ 75.0 75.1 75.2 Eternals (Vol. 5) #12
- ↑ 76.0 76.1 76.2 76.3 76.4 76.5 A.X.E.: Eve of Judgment #1
- ↑ 77.0 77.1 A.X.E.: Judgment Day #1
- ↑ X-Men: Red (Vol. 2) #5
- ↑ Eternals: The Herod Factor #1
- ↑ 80.0 80.1 A.X.E.: Death to the Mutants #2
- ↑ 81.0 81.1 81.2 A.X.E.: Judgment Day Omega #1
- ↑ All-New Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z #11
- ↑ 83.0 83.1 Thanos (Vol. 2) #13 ; Marvel Legacy
- ↑ 84.0 84.1 84.2 84.3 84.4 84.5 84.6 84.7 84.8 Avengers #361
- ↑ 85.0 85.1 85.2 Avengers #374
- ↑ 86.0 86.1 86.2 86.3 Eternals: The Heretic #1
- ↑ A.X.E.: Judgment Day #5
- ↑ 88.0 88.1 Free Comic Book Day 2022: Avengers/X-Men #1
- ↑ A.X.E.: Death to the Mutants #1
- ↑ A.X.E.: Judgment Day #2
- ↑ 91.0 91.1 Avengers #371
- ↑ 92.0 92.1 Earth X #0
- ↑ Earth X #8
- ↑ Earth X #3
- ↑ Paradise X #8
- ↑ Eternals
- ↑ Thanos Rising #1–5
- ↑ Avengers #247
- ↑ Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Master Edition #11 ; Gilgamesh's entry
- ↑ Eternals (Vol. 5) #7
- ↑ 101.0 101.1 Richards, Dave (6 October 2020) INTERVIEW: Eternals' Kieron Gillen Hypes the Return of Marvel's Cosmic Angels CBR. Retrieved on 25 May 2021.
- ↑ 102.0 102.1 Another Way To Breathe — Hey I was just wondering the eternals pixie... (tumblr.com).
- ↑ 103.0 103.1 103.2 Merry on Twitter: "@kierongillen Awesome. Thank you so much for clarifying." / Twitter.
- ↑ Another Way To Breathe — I was very impressed by the continuity mining on... (tumblr.com).
- ↑ 105.0 105.1 Eternals (Vol. 5) #6
- ↑ A.X.E.: Starfox #1
- ↑ Eternals (Vol. 2) #5