Celestial Bane

## Character information

### Personality

malevolent, sadistic, cruel, egotistical, immoral, malignant, megalomaniacal, hateful, anarchistic, psychopathic, ruthless, wild, violent, entitled, remorseless, overconfident, cocky, arrogant, androgynous

### Goal

To resurrect Quake and then help him destroy the New Order and the Northern Administration (failed)

### Relatives

* Unnamed Thaltin father
* Unnamed human mother

### Likes

anything chaotic, evil, villainy, destruction, sin, hatred, despair, torture, injustice, dominating his followers, abusing children and experimenting on them, maltreating Superquack

### Dislikes

anything peaceful, righteousness, heroism, virtue, love, joy, prosperity, justice, incompetence, things not going his way, being second-best, being humiliated, whenever Superquack is happy

### Powers and abilities

High intelligence
High-level fighting skills
Weapons expertise
Charisma

### Type of Character

Chaotic Supervillain

"*I know you shouldn't cry over spilled Popsicle pulp, but it's just so sad!*"
―The Celestial Bane lamenting his sullied Popsicle over the children dying in his experiments - his most infamous quote.[src]
**Hethnir Heard**, also known as the **Celestial Bane**, is an evil operative of Nebula Prime and a Thaltin-human hybrid of indeterminate gender, who is the main antagonist in *Superquack: Focal Point* and the secondary antagonist in *D.I.T. One-Shot: Legacy of the Light*. Resolving to unite the Circle of Judgment after his role model, the long deceased Godslayer, he expanded his clique to include Kristy. After recruiting thousands of renegade demons from Glabrous Mountain, he kidnapped the children of New Quackville to lure Superquack to him at the Membrane Sphere so he could beat and kill him due to seeing him as a symbol of anti-evil fervor. But his plans came to naught, and he spent six decades unconscious, out of commission in a state of suspended animation, before he was eventually found by the Ruby Eidolon, whom he successfully manipulated into freeing him.

Finding himself in a relatively futuristic climate he hardly recognized, he recruited Helena Austin and set himself upon the task of resurrecting the ancient cultist Quake. During Matthew's search for the cult, he turned Ross Padmore, one of Annabeth Black's apprentices and a student at the New Order Praxeum, to the Darkness. Annabeth and her apprentice Jaden Korn encountered and confronted him, and Padmore at New Delhi. Following this, the Celestial Bane journeyed to the extra-dimensional Obsidian Cult tomb city of Gorravan to resurrect Quake; Korn was sent to stop him, and he defeated him after a fierce duel. Enraged, the Celestial Bane let the spirit of Quake fill him, and he guided his body in combat. He was killed after Korn defeated Quake, his body unable to withstand the ordeal.

## Biography

### Early life

Hethnir Heard was born in 2011, in Panama to a Thaltin mother and a human father, making him a humanoid, although he only had two or three noticeable features, and his gender is actually indeterminate. At a very early age, it was clear that Hethnir displayed a desire to be different and set apart from others. For most of his life, he believed that there was no such thing as spirituality.

### Circle of Judgment

#### The rise of a new leader

 File:Godslayer hoodie-FP.png
The Celestial Bane tried to finish the Godslayer's mission of assembling the Circle of Judgment. He came to idolize the Godslayer, harboring a powerful wish to emulate him, and kept his idol's burned hoodie as a shrine to his haunting legacy, hoping to destroy the systems of political power as the Godslayer had once intended and stamp out the last remnants of hegemony. He eventually met the extremely powerful Iron Godking and although he was aware of the dictator's reputation, the haughty Celestial Bane initially had little interest in conversing with the powerful humanoid. However, his interest was picqued when the Iron Godking told him of the Lumiking and the Umbralord and how they were separated following the Anarchy in New York, doubly confirming to the non-believer that spirituality and divine influence were very much reality. The Celestial Bane came to believe that the Umbralord's confinement in the Cage of Eras within the Membrane Sphere disrupted the cosmic balance which according to the Circle of Judgment, had only strengthened by dividing the physical and spiritual planes. Together, they pooled their vast resources and planned to free the Umbralord themselves. Though the Celestial Bane relented to most of the Iron Godking's subtle and cunning methods, he and the Iron Godking always clashed over the intended style and tone of their agenda, as the Iron Godking believed freeing the Umbralord would be the right thing to do whereas the Celestial Bane sadistically relished his mostly unfounded belief that freeing the eldritch being would cause untold chaos, grief, and anguish, all of which he malevolently cherished. He and his friends were in an alternate universe when the Earthly Plane was destroyed, and hence, was unaffected by its complete annihilation. Like Exogale, he spent a lot of time looking for his Mutantry-2050 counterpart, but he never found him.

#### Constructing the *Looming Trio*

In the following years, Hethnir sought other allies besides the Twins to join the group he intended to become a symbol of fear. He did so by training himself beyond the heights of mental and physical perfection, adding new martial arts skills to his arsenal, furthering his skills in deception and strategy, and became more educated in the cultural arts, among many other disciplines.

Enjoying his time on the streets, he attended a casino game with a group of aristocrats, winning a floating platform with anti-gravitational propulsion with a tower atop it. He eventually stole forty million dollars and used the gargantuan sum of loot to funnel the construction of two more towers, which he made his home in, using the extensive landscape to carry out his devious machinations. Hethnir named his base of operations the *Looming Trio*, as a tribute to the *Floating Triad*. Dozens of underage gangsters came to live there with him. Despite enjoying his time in his bizarre home, he was still confused. He was eventually captured, and for several months the *Floating Triad* was deserted, with few knowing of its very existence and even fewer knowing of its whereabouts. He moved to finish what he had started with Vincent Organa, who had recently attempted to sabotage Lavaback Research Park, a station owned by the Circle of Judgment and paid for by Nebula Prime. To this end, Kristy was sent to New Quackville with the mission to capture Superquack and Morgan. However, during the encounter, Macroburst intervened and inflicted a severe stab wound on Kristy, causing him significant injuries and leading to the failure of his mission.

#### Negotiations with Superquack

"*You're an interesting man, Superquack. I have observed you from afar for many years now. Meeting you face-to-face, it's not something I can really put into words.*"
―The Celestial Bane[src]
As he approached them at the prison cell, the Celestial Bane spoke to Superquack and remarked that he is an interesting man. He told him that they could potentially help each other. He declared that soon, man would only be affiliated with what he genuinely loved. He admitted to him that he had been observing him from afar for years due to bitterly loathing him for representing the fervor that repels evil itself.

#### Meeting with Kristy

"*You should have informed me of the mission's futile conclusion sooner. I would just kill you now if it wouldn't add unnecessary complications to my life. As it is, I want you out of here.*"
―The Celestial Bane to Kristy[src]
The Celestial Bane, having long experimented on a series of projects he was gradually developing, operated on a group of children hovering in glass tanks as he awaited word from Kristy, despite already knowing what Superquack and Morgan were doing at the time. He watched as the children morphed incongruently, but then melted into green goo, shocking him and causing him to drop the orange Popsicle he was licking. Kristy approached him, but then a series of liquid explosions spurted out of the tubes and assailed them. By saving himself, he inadvertently saved Kristy's life as well. He lamented the loss of his Popsicle as it lay mundanely on the floor and proceeded to reprimand Kristy for his recklessness and his failure in abducting either of his targets; Kristy responded by mocking the Celestial Bane for his temper and efforts to emulate the Godslayer. Enraged, the Celestial Bane strangled Kristy and chastised him for not informing him of the mission's futile conclusion sooner.

As he left the room with his men, one of them questioned the Celestial Bane's trust in Kristy. The Celestial Bane dismissed them, revealing that Kristy was merely a contingency plan. He had anticipated Superquack's moves and calculated his response accordingly.

In his private quarters, the Celestial Bane spoke alone to himself whilst probing the old, weathered hoodie of the Godslayer, searching for guidance and hoping that the legacy of the anarchist could remind him of the inherent power of chaos. He swore that if the Godslayer could somehow show him that dark power, then the Celestial Bane would finish what he had started all those years ago and destroy the very concept of politics.

#### Kidnapped by Superquack

The Celestial Bane was kidnapped by Superquack and his new allies. The Celestial Bane spoke with Macroburst, who sent him to Glabrous Mountain. Suspecting that the Celestial Bane *wanted* to be sent there, Xochitl locked up Macroburst and Captain Obvious.

#### Enlisting Glabrous Mountain

"*We all want one thing. And to get that one thing, there's no other way to go save for me. That's why I came here!*"
―The Celestial Bane[src]
The Celestial Bane happily descended into the depths of Glabrous Mountain. He met a legion of demons and recruited them to join him and the Circle of Judgment, declaring that the entities would have to break a few rules and manipulatively convincing them that it would be completely worth it.

While the rest of the plan was going underway, the Circle of Judgment, who had recently infiltrated C.R.E.E.D., freed the Celestial Bane, allowing him to return with thousands of demonic renegades. He proceeded to enter the Membrane Sphere as the renegades guided him safely inside. As most of them waited in the Membrane Sphere, the Celestial Bane took Kristy and dozens of demons to New Quackville, where they promptly attacked the city. He approached in person and saw that the demons had already caused a good deal of destruction and proceeded to order them to kidnap the children of New Quackville, including those of visiting tourists, and he and Kristy shoved them into a cage together. Now the Celestial Bane had a bargaining chip against Superquack.

#### Awaiting his enemies

 File:The Celestial Bane holding Epll.png

"*As you have just seen, children, all things die and cease to be, just like Epll here. I'm about to prove this is a godless cosmos with no afterlife."
"Just wait. Superquack's smarter than you. He's gonna find us!"
"What do you think you're doing here in the first place, dummy? I'm counting on getting to see him again.*"
―The Celestial Bane and Erica[src]
As Kristy flew the cage to the Membrane Sphere, he overheard Erica telling them that Superquack had been in the Multiverse before. Wanting to intimidate the children, the Celestial Bane slid into their cage suddenly, startling them. He told them what a nice story that was, before introducing the children to Epll. He asked what it likes to do, before biting off its head and sucking on it, frightening the children. As Kristy watched passively, the Celestial Bane then threw Epll's head at them. When he stated they were alone, not just in their captivity but in the Multiverse herself, Erica reassured the children that Superquack would find them, which the Celestial Bane told them that he was counting on it before leaving the kids by themselves.

#### Showdown in the Membrane Sphere

"*Oh, guys. Dues always find ways of being paid. You can thank me later.*"
―The Celestial Bane[src]
The Celestial Bane, knowing that eventually Superquack would come to attempt to rescue the children. On his orders, Kristy prepared a trap for Superquack by hiding the kids elsewhere. Superquack arrived in the Membrane Sphere. In return, the Celestial Bane summoned many different demonic renegades to distract them, with the Celestial Bane eventually facing off Superquack himself. Declaring the children were of no further use to him, he threw a grenade at them, but Superquack lunged forward and caught it before throwing it at several of the Celestial Bane's followers, killing them. During the battle over the Membrane Sphere, the Celestial Bane attempted to finish off the children by throwing small glass balls of extremely painful crisimine at them. In retaliation, Morgan briefly imbued the kids with her superpowers to take down the demonic renegades while she dealt with the Celestial Bane. Finally, the Circle of Judgment was effectively routed. Realizing he was no match for Morgan, and with Pom and Sarah approaching him in a threatening manner, the Celestial Bane cryptically promised dues found ways of being paid, then plummeted to his apparent death, becoming trapped and entombed in stasis, to remain out of commission for many years.

### One last chance of victory

#### Meeting the Ruby Eidolon

"*Thank you, Ruby Eidolon. You have done a great favor for the Multiverse.*"
―Celestial Bane[src]
The Celestial Bane remained in hyper-sleep for many decades until the Ruby Eidolon found her to miraculously still be alive and proceeded to unwittingly awaken her. She was extremely vulnerable to the temptations of the Celestial Bane, who helped to exacerbate her belief that the people she had spent hundreds of years saving were helpless on their own and that the universe need to be "euthanized". Finding himself in a relatively futuristic climate he hardly recognized, he soon acquired an ancient artifact known as the Scepter of Quake from a merchant on Commenor, who did not survive their meeting.

#### Finding the tomb

"*You silly chemical collections with your mundane delusions! Your Savior lives, and you turn him away! Why do you think he gazes upon you, and speaks to you, here and now?!*"
―The Celestial Bane revealing his true colors to his underlings about his delusions of godhood[src]
After Aurora was slain, the Ruby Eidolon and a team of New Order members then went to Gorravan to stop the Celestial Bane from resurrecting Quake, culminating in an epic battle between the New Order and the Everlasting Ark.

#### Battle of Gorravan

 File:Celestial Banequake.jpg
The Ruby Eidolon made her way to the extra-dimensional Tomb of Quake and confronted the Celestial Bane. The Celestial Bane entered a vicious duel with her, eventually defeating her; but she refused to cower as she did before Annabeth Black. He took the Scepter of Quake and released all of the Scepter's remaining energy into the ancient cultist's remains. Quake's spirit rose, infusing the Celestial Bane's body with his strength, and dueled the Ruby Eidolon again using Quake's ancient sword.

Despite the Celestial Bane fighting with Quake's enhanced abilities; Annabeth Black was able to destroy the Scepter of Quake, forcing Quake's spirit to flee back into his tomb. His departure from the Celestial Bane's body killed him, and all the energy the Knights of the Plague had stolen was returned to its proper place in the Multiverse. When Jaden and the Ruby Eidolon exited from the ancient structure, the latter permanently sealed it shut by placing boulders in front of the exit, forever sealing the Celestial Bane's husk of a body inside the evil tomb.

## Personality and traits

"*Chaos is our default setting. Killing people is our default setting. I mean, after all, taking candy from children may be enjoyable, tearing their gaming remotes in two may make my stony heart flutter, but what killing babies brings is unprecedented ecstasy. Wouldn't you agree, darling?*"
―The Celestial Bane[src]
The Celestial Bane is actually a picture-perfect image of malevolence, being marked prominently by his horrifically unstable ego and low morality, as well as his egoistical nature of pure malignancy and megalomania. His attempts to achieve his anarchistic ends imply psychopathy, as they are extremely immoral and ruthless, with him having little care for the methods he uses, or their impact on others. The Celestial Bane believes the meaning of life is to destroy social order and induce as much suffering as he possibly can. For a long time, he looked up to the Godslayer, frequently convoluting his beliefs and philosophies to justify mass destruction. His admiration of the late Godslayer is matched only by his disgust with Superquack, abhorring his peaceful and virtuous nature, considering it as the symbol of goodness, which he despises above all else, and the example of anti-evil fervor. He has long considered him to be his archenemy, although this is only real for him as Superquack has obviously survived much worse. The Celestial Bane is subject to unexpected and wild mood swings; even his followers, co-conspirators, and sworn brothers are not always free from his random acts of cruelty. He was very quick to respond to slights (both real and imagined) with very disproportionate levels of violence and cruelty, and would brutalize those he claimed brotherhood with if they failed to meet his unpredictable standards. He is entitled to the extreme, refusing to recognize the rights of others.

Like his personal hero, Hethnir Heard felt the need to prove himself. As the Celestial Bane he saw himself carrying on the tradition embodied by the Godslayer. He would have given anything to meet Santana Larson in person. He kept a shrine to the Godslayer in his personal chambers, with the charred remains of the anarchist's seemingly mundane black hoodie that had been recovered from the mysterious site of his demise. Sitting atop a ceremonial plate that the Celestial Bane covered with the ashes of fallen foes, the site was a monument to the very existence of power. He did not actually believe in spirituality and he had led a completely godless life, causing him to be utterly alarmed to learn that the Gods and cosmic locales such as Glabrous Mountain and the Sovereign Fields were very much reality, and even then he deceitfully chose to use this notion of spiritual doubt to sadistically frighten Erica and the other children he captured. He was absolutely remorseless for any of his actions right up to the end. During the last moments of their duel, with the Ruby Eidolon holding him at her mercy, she could see in his eyes not only fear, but outrage: outrage that someone would *dare* to hold him accountable and punish him for anything. However, his overconfidence led to his death: in his duel with the Ruby Eidolon and Jaden Korn, he tried to use Quake's spirit to kill the cosmic being and young mutant, believing their deaths and Ross Padmore's fall to the Darkness would make Annabeth Black's efforts a failure, turning Annabeth back to the Darkness. Instead, his overconfidence failed him, and he died when Quake's spirit withdrew from his body. While it's debatable if he was ever born male in the first place, Hethnir Heard is openly androgynous, as his gender is very clearly indeterminate.

## Abilities

* **Peak-human condition**: The Celestial Bane, as a highly skilled and experienced warmonger, is in top physical condition though not quite on the level of Superquack until he went through intense training and specialized dieting that represents the pinnacle of human physical prowess, all of which have naturally heightened his abilities to the highest levels of human potential.
	+ **Peak-human strength**: The Celestial Bane possesses above-average, though not superhuman, physical strength.
	+ **Peak-human durability**: The Celestial Bane is exceptionally durable, which only increased in its extremity following his intense training.
	+ **Master knife thrower**: The Celestial Bane is proficient with knives in close combat.
* **Gifted intellect**: Hethnir Heard is a reasonably intelligent man who can think and act quickly at the moment for whatever the situation may require. He possesses innate knowledge and skill in how to perform perfect crimes, running crime organizations and criminal activities. Using this ability, he can perform feats as always getting away with committing crimes and organizing a series of criminal activities to maintain high illegal income to make the right people wealthy and maintain control of areas of his choosing. Erica, however, correctly claimed that his intelligence was noticeably surpassed by his one-sided archenemy Superquack.
	+ **Gifted tactician**: The Celestial Bane is a reasonably skillful tactician, taking many of New Quackville's children hostage to use against Superquack, and being able to infiltrate a castle with only five of his men.
	+ **Gifted manipulator**: Heard was extremely skilled in manipulation, able to convince the Ruby Eidolon to set him free.
	+ **Gifted social intuit**: The Celestial Bane, in spite of his brutal nature, has a noteworthy degree of social confidence and competence at intuitively determining how to interact with others and gain their respect by preying on their insecurities and disenchantment with society, with him being even more skilled at getting his point across with a calm, confident, cold, and calculating attitude. However, dedicating his life to violence impeded his social skills to a limited degree. Hence, he appealed to the moderately irascible and aloof Twins to join his cause.
	+ **Expert leader**: Hethnir Heard is a skilled leader, efficiently leading the Circle of Judgment against Superquack.
* **Master intimidator**: He can intimidate anyone and induce fear without saying a word.
* **Indomitable willpower**: The Celestial Bane had tremendous determination, fearlessness, and strength of will, since he absolutely refuses to ever hunker down and give up, even when placed against seemingly insurmountable odds.

## Possessions

* **Knives**: *The Celestial Bane often carries a blade with him, holstered on his right leg during missions. He also possesses a throwing knife holstered during the War of the Everlasting Ark, although he never used it.*
* ***Looming Trio***: The Celestial Bane has a flagship where he works on most of his nefariously designed projects. It appears as three towers built on a platform kept aloft by anti-gravitational propulsion, much like the *Floating Triad*, a long-destroyed ship that inspired the *Looming Trio*.

## Behind the scenes

On September 16, 2023, the Celestial Bane was announced to appear in *D.I.T. One-Shot: Legacy of the Light*.

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 *Superquack: Focal Point*
2. ↑ *Vault of Ages: Cosmic War*
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 *D.I.T. One-Shot: Legacy of the Light*