First Dark Elf Conflict

For other uses, see Dark Elf Conflict (disambiguation)

First Dark Elf Conflict
Concurrent	Ego's Expansion
Next	Subjugation of the Nine Realms
End:	2988 B.C.
Place:	Svartalfheim
Result:	Dark Elves are defeated Most of Asgard's army is killed The Aether is taken from the Dark Elves
Major Events
Battles:	Convergence First Battle of Svartalfheim
Combatants
Asgardians
Dark Elves
Commanders
Bor
Malekith
Casualties
Numerous Asgardians
Numerous Dark Elves

"Long before the birth of light, there was darkness, and from that darkness, came the Dark Elves. Millennia ago, the most ruthless of their kind, Malekith, sought to transform our universe back into one of eternal night. Such evil was possible through the power of the Aether; an ancient force of infinite destruction. The noble armies of Asgard, led by my father, King Bor, waged a mighty war against these creatures."

―Odin^[src]

The Dark Elf conflict is a conflict that lasted for thousands of years. Dating back to 2988 B.C., the crisis was instigated when Malekith, the insane, genocidal leader of the Dark Elves, attempted to use the Infinity Stone known as the Aether, which controls reality, to eradicate the Nine Realms. The Dark Elves were defeated and nearly exterminated by an opposing army of Asgardians led by the then-king Bor, and Malekith and several others of his species went into hibernation and until the next Convergence.

History

Background

The origins of the Aether explained in the Book of Yggdrasil

"There are relics that predate the universe itself. What lies within her appears to be one of them. The Nine Realms are not eternal. They had a dawn as they will have a dusk. But before that dawn the dark forces, the Dark Elves, reigned absolute."

―Odin to Thor and Jane Foster^[src]

Millions of years before the Big Bang, the Dark Elves were the first primordial beings who inhabited the universe. As the universe came into existence, the Cosmic Entities created the Infinity Stones, and the Dark Elves managed to obtain the Reality Stone, which Malekith used with his sorcery skills to create a liquified weapon called the Aether.

The War on Svartalfheim

Malekith and Algrim overlooks the First Battle of Svartalfheim

"Malekith sought to use the Aether's power to return the universe to one of darkness. But after eternities of bloodshed, my father Bor, finally triumphed, ushering in the peace that lasted thousands of years."

―Odin^[src]

In 2988 B.C., the Convergence took place, opening various portals that connected each of the Nine Realms. Malekith, a sorcerer and leader of the Dark Elves from Svartalfheim, attempted to use the Convergence as a means of spreading the Aether. The Aether was one of the six Infinity Stones, possessing the power to convert matter into dark matter; if used at full potential, the Aether could cause the destruction of an entire planet. The Dark Elves came dangerously close to using it to simultaneously destroy the Nine Realms under the belief that they could recreate it in their own image.

Bor fights the Dark Elves

Fortunately, Bor, who was Asgard's king at the time, found out about Malekith's plan and led an army of Asgardian Einherjar warriors to Svartalfheim, and a major battle ensued. While the Dark Elves proved to be worthy foes, the Asgardians were able to push back the Dark Elves, annihilating a good portion of their forces until only a handful of soldiers were left. Malekith then decided that it was a perfect time to unleash the Aether on the Nine Realms, but just before he was going to darken the Realms, a portal made by the Bifrost Bridge took it from him.

Malekith attempts to use the Aether

Seeing that they now did not stand a chance of winning the battle against the Asgardians, Malekith made his armies ships fall from the sky in a desperate attempt to kill the Einherjar soldiers . Ultimately, he ended up killing his own men. By the end of the battle, it was presumed that the Dark Elves were driven to extinction by the battle, and Bor placed the Aether in a secluded area so that no one would ever find it again.

The Aether hidden by Bor

Unknown to him, Malekith was actually alive, having fled the battle with his servant Algrim and various other remaining Dark Elf warriors in the aftermath of the First Battle of Svartalfheim. Escaping aboard the Ark ship, the Dark Elves placed themselves in stasis to await the day where the Aether would reveal itself, and they could put their plans into effect once again.

Aftermath

Jane Foster discovers the Aether

"The Asgardians will suffer as we have suffered. I will reclaim the Aether. I will restore our world... And I will put an end to this poisoned universe."

―Malekith^[src]

Five thousand years later, the Convergence would commence once again. Upon investigating a warehouse with gravitational anomalies, Jane Foster was transported to the Aether's hiding spot, and was possessed by the Infinity Stone, thus awakening Malekith and his army, who plotted their next offensive against the Asgardians in their final attempt to regain the Aether and transform the universe into eternal darkness.

Years following the aftermath of the Second Battle of Svartalfheim, the Avengers plotted the Time Heist in a group discussion, in which Thor mentioned that the Aether was possessed by the Dark Elves prior to the Asgardians' acquisition of the Reality Stone, alluding to Malekith's first attempt to use the Infinity Stone to destroy the entire Nine Realms.