Svartalfheim
Svartalfheim is one of the Nine Realms, located in a solar system that is made up almost entirely of Dark Matter. In the Asgardian cosmology, it is considered to occupy the middle region of Yggdrasill, alongside Midgard and Jotunheim.
While it is referred to as Svartalfheim (literally 'the realm of the Dark Elves') in official documents, after the disappearance of the Dark Elves following the First Dark Elf War it became colloquially referred to as the 'Dark World' by Asgardians. The Dark Elves themselves call it Harundheen, meaning 'child of Darkness'.
Although the planet's native plant life was destroyed following the First Dark Elf War, the last remaining Dark Elves have begun repopulating the planet, with assistance from the Light Elves.
Geography
The planet is very seismically active, resulting in many mountain ranges and deep interconnected cave systems. Vocanos are common.
Due to the rich volcanic soil, the planet was previously densely forested, with trees so huge and ancient that the Asgardians compared entering the forest to facing the void of space.
There are no oceans, and water on the planet is primarily swamps and small streams, fed from underground reservoirs. Despite the amount of fresh water, the cold sun means there is little to no rain, and the entire planet meets the Earth standard of a desert.
Following the widespread destruction during the First Dark Elf War, as well as the slow progress of the system's star into a black hole, lead to the death of all but a very few species of plants, leaving a desolate landscape of black soil.
Since the Second Dark Elf War, work has begun to repopulate the surface with species transplanted from Alfheim and Nidavellir, though growth is heavily dependant on magic.
There is now one town, Eastern Spires, and five tribal villages.
History
In 2988 BCE, Svartalfheim was the location of a destructive battle waged between an Asgardian army led by Bor against the Dark Elf forces under the command of Malekith. The battle ended in the Asgardians' favor, and the Dark Elves were driven nearly extinct with the exception of Malekith and several dozen warriors, who entered a 5,000-year-long hibernation, biding their time before their next attempt at total conquest. In the intervening time, Svartalfheim became a desolate wasteland, the landscape dotted with wreckage from the Dark Elf fleet which Malekith had dropped onto both armies ahead of his escape.
In 2013, Malekith and his soldiers reawakened when Jane Foster discovered the Aether, and the realm became a battleground again when Malekith fought with Thor and Loki over the Aether.
During the Battle of Greenwich, Thor and Malekith fought on Svartalheim briefly after being transported there via Convergence. Malekith was later teleported there by Eric Selvig using a transportation device, followed shortly by Malekith's spaceship, which crushed him to death.
In the wake of the war, the Black Bile Clan lost a leadership contest to the Snake Face Clan, who's Clan-Chief Alflyse was crowned Queen. She formed alliances with the Light Elves and Dwarves, and began the work of rebuilding and repopulating the planet.
Queen Alfhyse is in talks with the sapient plant species the Cotati to secure their assistance in regrowing the forests.
Parent Location
The Nine Realms
Residents
Queen Alflyse
Scumtongue
Waziria
Former Residents
Algrim
Malekith the Accursed
The Nine Realms
Alternative Name(s)
Harudheen | The Dark World
Type
Planet
Vehicles Present
Included Organizations
Ruling/Owning Rank
Inhabiting Species
Related Plots
Queen Alflyse
Scumtongue
Waziria
Former Residents
Algrim
Malekith the Accursed