The Mists of Eternity

Kid Eternity was one of Quality’s big names. Though nowadays he’s probably more obscure than the likes of Phantom Lady and Human Bomb, back in the 40’s he was big enough to have his own book, something rare in those days. He definitely earned his popularity. Kid Eternity is one of the most unique superheroes of all time. Kid Eternity, in case you don’t know, has the power to summon any historical figure from out of “Eternity” to fight for him, and in early issues could even turn into these figures. All the young men in superhero fiction that either turn into other characters, summon them, or do both like Ben 10, Maxwell from Scribblenauts, and Robby Reed from DC’s Dial H for Hero all owe a debt to Kid Eternity.

If Kid Eternity just had the power to summon historic figures, he would have earned his spot in Eternity, but he was even more unique than that. You see, he’s part ghost. So add Danny Phantom to the list as well.

Kid Eternity’s origin was that he was a boy who died before his time. His death was a cosmic accident that broke the records up in “Eternity,” a metaphysical cloudscape above the Earth where the dead go before they’re judged. To make up for this mistake, he was not only restored to his body (though with the twist that he could at will switch to an intangible and invisible ghost body) but given the power to summon the best and brightest of Eternity to help him on adventures.

The Mists of Eternity represents my attempt at to position Eternity within the Eternal Universe shared universe. It features not only the Kid Eternity cosmology (the gates of Heaven, the clouds that overlook the Earth, the Beacon of Eternity. etc) but other cloudy Heaven-like locations from other Quality stories. They’re all in mists, you see, which is why I call them collectively the Mists of Eternity.

Through most of Kid Eternity’s stories, “Eternity” just refers to the metaphysical clouds that Kid Eternity and his guardian angel Mr. Keeper hang out between adventures, but early stories show that “Eternity” is a little more complicated than that. There’s the common cloudscape through which the dead and deities such as Father Time drift by on clouds, a little administrative hall where the “Keeper of Records” hears disputes, the gates to the true afterlife, and “the Beacon of Eternity,” a land hidden by flames in which the best and brightest hang out, though this seems separate from  the Heaven beyond the big door. Do only normal, non-famous people get to move on to the afterlife proper in this setting? And later on in the series we see famous people walking around the general cloudscape of the setting outside the Beacon of Eternity. What’s the deal here?

The deal here is that it’s a comic book, but my no-prize solution is that the ghosts Kid Eternity summons are specifically the reputational manifestations of those ghosts. They’re how the ghosts are remembered. The rest of their spiritual components, the parts of the ghosts that represent the ghosts as they actually were, are through the gate. If you’re familiar with my Ernst, Morton, and Glass: Manesologists series (here’s where I plug my work!), the concept of ghosts having reputational components is explored in the story A Woman of Reputation.Of course, “reputational component” is a rather dry term for a comic book universe, so in the world of the Eternal Universe, they’re called Eternalizations. These Eternalizations cluster around the Beacon of Eternity which is the nexus point of all reputations, all history, but they can certainly travel around where they please. Because Eternalizations exist outside the proper afterlife, most hauntings in the Eternal Universe are Eternalizations.

And here’s one more nugget of worldbuilding: the weird green bat people that enter reality through a hole in the sky are Vril-ya (as in the subterranean race invented by Edward Bulwer-Lytton) that left Earth in the time of Pangea and tried to create their own afterlife and got trapped in it. This ties Kid Eternity with the backstory I got cooking for Neon the Unknown.

All cards in the SOTM deck come from Kid Eternity stories from Kid Eternity and Hit, even the one about the extradimensional bat people (Kid Eternity was such a fun read, I probably had the most fun reading him out of any Quality character) with the exception of three. The Domain of Mars is from the first Merlin story published in National 1 in which Merlin, as his first act as a superhero, travels up through the clouds to beat up Mars in order to stop a war and bring peace on Earth. It was essentially a more cosmic and abstract version of Superman’s first big feat. Mt. Olympus and the Greek gods are likewise from National, from an Uncle Sam story in which the Olympians get the bright idea to send Hector and Achilles down to Earth to fight on different sides of WW2. The gods were a good fit for the Mists of Eternity as Kid Eternity could summon gods as well as historical figures. Hermes was his favorite to summon.

The Land of Lost Ideals is from Uncle Sam Quarterly 1. Uncle Sam gets sent there after the people of Everytown lose faith in him. It was only by going through the Swamp of Ignorance and Forest of Hate that Sam was able to return to Earth. Those locations, though not part of the deck, are part of the Mists of Eternity and represent the forces that keep an Eternalization in the Land of Lost Ideals–ignorance because it keeps them from being remembered and hate because it keeps them from being loved. I see the Land of Lost Ideals as working like a limbo for Eternalizations. Eternalizations that lose their celebrity and fade to obscurity wind up in the Land of Lost Ideals and can no longer be summoned through the Beacon of Eternity.

Sentinels of the Multiverse Deck

The deck is mostly hero-sided, though there’s a few nasty surprises for player sprinkled throughout. It’s not another Everytown, but its not Hell, either, in fact, the Mists of Eternity are as far from Hell as you can get.

The deck is simple: you move across domains and as you travel clouds holding various inhabitants of the Mists start watching the battle between the heroes and the villain. You’re going to want to keep most of these clouds from being destroyed, as all of them are helpful and only a few have drawbacks. How can you destroy something in Eternity? Think of it more like dispersal or the character being blasted away over the horizon.

The dead might not be able to die, but that doesn’t mean they can’t be stunned, now does it?

Domains (7)

The Clouds Above

Through the Mists of Eternity: When a domain card is played, destroy this card.

It’s a very peaceful place: That’s it.

Is it really not exciting enough that you’re in a metaphysical space?

–Mr. Keeper

The Gates of St. Peter

Through the Mists of Eternity: When a domain card is played, destroy this card.

It’s not your time yet: At the end of the environment turn, heal all heroes 1. If a hero is defeated, flip them and heal them 5.

I think you’re looking for the other gate: At the end of the environment turn, deal 1 infernal damage to all villain targets.

Say hi to Haziel for me!: If New Arrival is in play, destroy it. All heroes regain 5 HP and draw a card.

It leads to the Eternity beyond Eternity, the grand adventure!

–Kid Eternity

The Beacon of Eternity

Through the Mists of Eternity: When a domain card is played, destroy this card.

Eternity!: At the end of the environment turn, play the bottom card of each non-environment trash.

Don’t overthink how it works. Keep told me it’s quite simple–what’s mortal is immortal inside Eternity.

–Kid Eternity

The Hall of Records

Through the Mists of Eternity: When a domain card is played, destroy this card.

Celestial Bureaucracy: At the end of the environment turn, reveal the top card of any deck and replace it. If it is a…

One-shot: One player may play a card. Play the top card of the environment deck.

Ongoing:  One player may draw a card. Heal all targets 1.

Target: Put it into play.

Equipment, device, or relic: One player may play a card. Play the top card of the villain deck.

Let me guess, it wasn’t your time, right?

–The Keeper of Records

The Land of Lost Ideals

Through the Mists of Eternity: When a domain card is played, destroy this card.

Back through the swamp of ignorance and the forest of hate: At the end of the environment turn, each hero may choose to have the environment deal them 2 psychic and 2 infernal damage. Heroes that take damage this way may put a card from their trash into play.

Whew! That was quite an adventure! One day, I hope to bring all them back, especially the ones with no names.

–Uncle Sam

Mt. Olympus

Through the Mists of Eternity: When a domain card is played, destroy this card.

Halt Mortals! You trespass on Mt. Olympus!: When Mt. Olympus enters play, all heroes may destroy one equipment in their play area. If they do not, the environment deals them H electrical damage.

An offering to the Olympians: At the end of the environment turn, all heroes may destroy up to one 1 equipment in their play area. For each equipment destroyed this way, the environment deals a target H electrical damage.

The Olympians are alright, so long as you mind your P’s and Q’s and don’t eat any strange pomegranates.

–Mr. Keeper

The Domain of Mars

Through the Mists of Eternity: When a domain card is played, destroy this card.

Here! Weapons from throughout the multiverse, use them!: Increase damage dealt by 1. When heroes deal damage, the type of damage may be changed.

Done already? I don’t think so!: The first time each turn that a target would be destroyed, they are not. If a target would be destroyed this way through damage, prevent that damage.

Don’t be surprised he acts more like Ares than Mars. Syncretic drift is natural for beings such as himself.

–Merlin

Passing Clouds (8)

New Arrival (2)

2 HP

Can you please show me around?: At the end of environment turn, play the top card of the environment deck.

Bad day?

–Mr. Keeper

Legends (2)

6 HP

Advice from the Best and Brightest: At the end of the environment turn, one hero may play a card and draw a card.

If you think Socrates was smart when he was alive, you should see how smart he is now!

–Kid Eternity

Myths

8 HP

Awe and Inspiration: At the end of the environment turn, heal all hero targets 1. Then, all heroes may use a power.

There’s nothing like the afterlife to make you appreciate how incredible life is.

–Kid Eternity

Father Time

6 HP

Don’t jostle the time machine, it controls all of time and destiny!: When Father Time is dealt damage, one hero may put a card in their trash into play.

I warned you not to touch it!: When Father Time is destroyed, play the bottom three cards of the villain trash.

Gee, I hate to question divine creation, but the time machine goes on the fritz quite a lot, doesn’t it?

–Kid Eternity

Hole in the Sky

8 HP

The peaceful aliens: At the end of the environment turn, heal the two targets with the lowest HP 1.

And the not-so-peaceful aliens: At the end of the environment turn, deal the two targets with the highest HP 1 energy and 1 melee damage.

Yeah, there’s a cosmic hole in the Mists of Eternity leading to a universe of green bat people. Don’t worry, it’s okay, we made peace with them back in the 40’s, most of them.

–Kid Eternity

Rembrandt

2 HP

Immortal Art: At the end of the environment turn, choose one:

Storm on the Sea of Galilee: Deal all villain targets 1 cold and 1 electrical damage.

The Night Watch: Heal all hero targets 1. Then one hero target heals 1.

The Stoning of Saint Stephen: Until the start of the environment turn, you may redirect all villain damage to one hero.

He likes to travel around the Mists of Eternity. He’s going through another landscape phase, you see.

–Kid Eternity