First Dark Elf conflict

File:First Dark Elf conflict.png The Dark Elves invade Asgard
First Dark Elf conflict
Beginning	End
November 15, 2988 BC	November 15, 2988 BC
Place
Svartalfheim
Outcome
The Dark Elves are defeated Asgard's army suffers major losses The Aether is taken to Asgard
Battles
First Battle of Svartalfheim
Combatants
Asgardians	Dark Elves
Commanders
Bor	Malekith
Casualties
Numerous Asgardians	All Dark Elves
Next war
Asgard–Jotunheim War
Infobox • Talk page

The first Dark Elf conflict was a major conflict between Asgard and the Dark Elves on Svartalfheim on November 15, 2988 B.C. The conflict arose when the leader of the Dark Elves, the genocidal Malekith, attempted to use the Aether to return the universe to Ginnungagap, the universe's state prior to the Big Bang.

Background

“	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

The Dark Elves are the oldest species in the universe, having existed prior to the Big Bang in a void known as the Ginnungagap to the Asgardians. The Big Bang, however, introduced manifest light, which weakened the Dark Elves. As their power waned, the Dark Elves eventually settled in Svartalfheim, one of the Nine Realms and the darkest known realm capable of keeping the Dark Elves alive.

The Dark Elves are ruled by Malekith, a genocidal warlord and sorcerer who was appointed to return the Dark Elves to their former glory. Malekith would obtain the Reality Stone, one of the six Infinity Stones. Malekith eventually discovered how to liquify the Reality Stone into a substance known as the Aether, which is capable of returning the universe into dark matter.

Conflicts

First Battle of Svartalfheim

In 2988 B.C., the Convergence occurred, a rare celestial event that resulted in the alignment of the Nine Realms. Malekith seized on the newly created wormholes between the Nine Realms and enacted his plan to restore the universe to Ginnungagap.

The Dark Elves on Svartalfheim began to unleash the Aether upon the Nine Realms. However, Malekith's plan was thwarted by Bor, the king of Asgard, who brought the Einherjar to Svartalfheim. The Dark Elves began to battle with the Asgardians. Although the Dark Elves proved to be tough foes, the Asgardians eventually withstood even the Kursed. Bor was able to use the Bifrost to transport the Aether safely back to Asgard.

Realizing that Bor had taken the Aether back to Asgard, Malekith ordered a fleet of airships to descend upon Asgard. The attack took out much of the Dark Elves and the Asgardians. Meanwhile, Malekith, along with his lieutenant Algrim and a few dozen Dark Elf warriors, escaped on an Ark. Believing the Dark Elves to be dead, the remaining Asgardians proclaimed victory. Bor, uneasy about the power held within the Aether, buried the Aether.

Aftermath

The Convergence would occur again 5,000 years later, in 2013. While investigating a warehouse, Jane Foster would be transported to the Aether's burial place, reawakening the Dark Elves and begining the second Dark Elf conflict.