Origin
This being is outside of The Presence’s creation. A complete absence of divine light. This being is in every way equal to the power of the Presence, but his opposite who existed before Creation. When God said the words “Let There Be Light”, the Original Darkness retreated and stayed inactive for eons.
Crisis on Infinite Earths
During the earth-shaking event, a clan known as the Brujeria attempted a ritual to waken the Great Darkness, in order to destroy God and re-shape the universe. Instead, it went haywire and they awoke an enraged beast, unknowing of its power and confused of its existence. Several heroes tried to battle it, but were effortlessly defeated and drawn into it. Others who encountered the beast taught of its existence. Etrigan told the Darkness that it was Evil. Doctor Fate (Kent Nelson) explained that Evil was hateful, wretched. Spectre taught it revenge. All the encounters unwillingly Infuriated the entity and it launched an assault on Heaven itself to demand answers from the Presence as to its existence. It decimated anything that got in its way and this power was so huge that it caused Hell’s main three figures – Lucifer, Azazel and Beelzebub – to form a coherence to defend themselves if it also decided to attack Hell itself. Ironically, another band of demons led by the Demons Three, banded together and followed the Great Darkness, whom they saw as the ultimate sin and evil.
However, before the Great Darkness reached the gates of Heaven, it encountered Swamp Thing. Swamp Thing taught it the concept of good and evil, life and death, where one could not survive without the other. The Great Darkness then extended its hand towards Heaven, and to everyone’s surprise, God reached out his hand as well. When both Hands touched, both embraced and merged, forming the perfect balance. The Darkness became part of God’s own being. Good and Evil would still exist, and will forever as the Yin and Yang. Unseparable.
The realm of the Great Darkness, a land of complete and utter darkness, became known as the Shadowlands or Sunless Sea. It became a power source for shadow-manipulating characters such as Shade, Culp, Shadow-Thief, Nightshade, Ian Karkull, and Obsidian.
The Great Darkness is also connected to the realm of the Darkworld, a realm associated with ancient Atlantean deities and the earliest Lord of Chaos and Order. The realm is a mystical power source for Atlantean-related deities such as Calculha, Arion, Garn Daanuth, Chaon, Deedra, Gemimn, Tynan, and the Weaver.
Powers and Abilities
The Great Evil Beast was near omnipotent due to the fact that the only being higher than it was the The Presence (God). IT was implied that the Great Evil Beast was God’s darker half. It is not known whether the Great Evil Beast still exists or not after merging with the Presence. But as for all omnipotent-types the answer is likely beyond our understanding.
Aliases
- Great Darkness.
- Primal Darkness.
- The Primordial Darkness.
- The Ultimate Darkness/Evil.
- The Shadow Creature.
- The Greatest Darkness.