History
The Eternity Mask was a magical item created by a group of renegade occultists from Eternity's own substance to make peasants the equals of Arthur's Knights.
It travelled to the United States of America, where it is said that Ben Franklin himself harnessed its magic to help win the American Revolutionary War.[1] The Mask has since then, been passed on from individual to individual. One of the first known users of the mask was Masked Raider (Jim Gardley), the legendary champion of the poor and oppressed. After an armed confrontation, he was badly wounded and left to die while bleeding out. Matt Masters found him lying on the floor and tried to help by removing his mask. Masters inadvertently killed the vigilante. After seriously reflecting on the situation, Masters decided to put on the mask and carry on its legacy.
He wore it for fifty years until, during his eighties, he decided to pass it to Dennis Piper, a young avenger of the poor during the Great Depression, telling him that true believers would eventually come for it.
When the The Three Xs approached Piper, claiming they needed it to fight Nazis, he immediately gave it to them. Piper claimed that he never felt its powers. Unbeknownst to him, the Three Xs were part of Project Thunderer. Jerry Carstairs was subjected to the Project in order to create The Thunderer, A.K.A. the Dark Avenger.[2]
The mask eventually fell into the possession of the Enclave, an organization dedicated to the creation of life. Decades passed and the Enclave had mostly forgotten about its existence. Working together, the Enclave scientists, that included the Three Xs (blessed with longevity treatments),[2] created a number of scientific breakthroughs. They were planning to create a vastly powerful new race of human beings, under their own control. They further planned to subjugate the rest of humanity, by using their creations as an army. When their prototype reached maturity, it escaped its incubation chamber before the Enclave could set it free. Due to its rapid maturation, they were unable to place within the creature's mind the proper safeguards enabling them to control it. The creature, referred to only as "Him", manifested its various energy-manipulating powers, causing its creators to flee before they could even learn what it looked like. Using the teleportation machine, Jerome Hamilton kidnapped noted sculptor Alicia Masters and brought her to the Beehive to sculpt Him's likeness. After he persuaded her to do as they ask, Hamilton was conscience-stricken and insisted to accompany her into the chamber where Him was. When Him lashed out at them, Hamilton fired back. Hamilton was apparently killed in a rockslide caused by one of Him's energy discharges.[3]
Abandoned by everyone in the debris, Hamilton crawled blindly with his last bit of strength. He found the Eternity Mask, which revitalized its first user in a long while. Donning a costume, Hamilton started calling himself Blind Justice, guided by his wishes of revenge towards the Enclave until his ultimate demise.
The current bearer of the mask has not yet been identified.[2]
Properties
Cosmic Equity: Whomever wears the mask is given power equal to anyone they may face, unless they are below the natural ability of the mask's user. This allowed an untrained peasant to be on equal grounds with the Black Knight and fight him for three days straight, for example. If the would-be user's intent was to commit acts of evil, the mask had no effect on them. So far the upper limits of this ability have yet to be established.[2]
Cosmic Awareness: The mask is also capable of granting an awareness to the user that guides them or drive them to lead others to specific places so that an incoming crisis can be resolved.[4]
Notes
- The Eternity Mask has been implied to have taken a role in the most important events in human history.
See Also
- 24 appearance(s) of Eternity Mask
- 3 minor appearance(s) of Eternity Mask
- 1 mention(s) of Eternity Mask
- 30 image(s) of Eternity Mask
Links and References
Footnotes
- ↑ Marvel Comics #1000; Rebels and Judges
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Marvel Comics #1000
- ↑ Fantastic Four #66-67
- ↑ Incoming #1
