Vandal Savage

Prehistory

Vandal Savage discovered the Oa-designed Cosmic Cube some forty-thousand odd years ago and used it to attempt to enslave his tribe. Instead, he created the Inhumans and was exiled from the tribe. The Cosmic Cube afforded him immortality and became inert. Savage traveled the world with the Cube for centuries.

He met Merlyn the Magician, and befriended the brilliant young Atlantean. Vandal attempted to use the Terrigen Mists to empower the magician, and created one of the only other immortals in the world. Merlyn then used the Cosmic Cube, still in Vandal's possession, and asked not for power but for wisdom. He banished Vandal from his side, seeing the folly of the barbarian's ambition.

Savage never forgot this slight and made a point of attempting to destroy Atlantis many times over the millennia. His schemes often failed but periodically he dealt them a terrible blow. He learned early on that immortality and patience were his greatest weapons, and set up plans that would take years or decades to reach fruition.

He encountered Morgan le Fay and seduced her away from Merlyn's side. Her ambition and resentment for Atlantis were easy to manipulate, and a long-lived magess such as her would be an indispensable ally over the millennia to come.

Savage was eventually introduced to Hirohito and promised the young Prince that he could be Emperor of not just Japan, but China and the Korean peninsula. An empire to claim the lands of the Khanates and rival ancient Mongolia itself. Hirohito accepted Vandal's offer, unaware that he was subservient to the will of the Harbingers rather than a member of their inner circle.

With the other members of the modern Harbingers, Savage precipitated not just World War I but also World War II. Efforts to collapse global government and emplace a totalitarian regime with Savage at the helm were checked by the Justice Defenders and their allies. With the defeat of the Axis powers, Savage withdrew into the shadows once more.