Immortus

• Core Identity: Immortus is the enigmatic, time-manipulating future self of the temporal warlord Kang the Conqueror, who serves the cosmic Time-Keepers as the master of the dimension of Limbo and the self-proclaimed guardian of the established timeline.
• Key Takeaways:
• Role in the Universe: As the final, seemingly inevitable incarnation of Nathaniel Richards, Immortus acts as a custodian of time. He prunes divergent timelines and manipulates historical events to ensure a specific, pre-ordained future comes to pass, often placing him in direct conflict with his younger, more ambitious self, kang_the_conqueror.
• Primary Impact: His most profound impact has been the long-term, subtle manipulation of key magical and nexus beings, most notably the scarlet_witch and the vision. His machinations during the Celestial Madonna Saga and Vision Quest storylines have had devastating, decades-long repercussions for the Avengers.
• Key Incarnations: In the comics, he is explicitly the man Kang is destined to become after growing weary of conquest. In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, his role as a timeline manager who seeks to prevent multiversal war is conceptually merged with the character He Who Remains, the creator of the Time Variance Authority (TVA).

Immortus first appeared in Avengers #10, published in November 1964. He was co-created by the legendary writer Stan Lee and artist Don Heck. Initially, he was presented as a distinct and mysterious master of time, a powerful and cerebral threat for Earth's Mightiest Heroes who stood in stark contrast to the more physically aggressive villains of the era. He was a manipulator who summoned historical figures to fight for him, showcasing a different kind of power. For nearly a decade, Immortus and the previously introduced villain Kang the Conqueror were treated as separate characters. The true genius of their connection was architected by writer Steve Englehart during his seminal run on The Avengers in the 1970s. In the sprawling epic known as the Celestial Madonna Saga, Englehart masterfully retconned the histories of Immortus, Kang the Conqueror, the Egyptian pharaoh Rama-Tut, and even another villain called the Scarlet Centurion. He revealed that all of them were, in fact, different chronological stages or divergent versions of a single man from the 31st century: Nathaniel Richards. This single retcon transformed Immortus from a standalone villain into a tragic, fascinating figure representing the end-point of Kang's violent journey—a future of weary servitude that Kang himself desperately fights to avoid. This narrative thread became one of the most enduring and complex character arcs in Marvel Comics.

The origin of Immortus is inextricably linked to the life story of his past self, a journey that spans millennia and encompasses multiple identities. To understand the master of Limbo, one must first understand the man he used to be.

The man who would become Immortus began his life as Nathaniel Richards, a brilliant scholar and descendant of Reed Richards' father, born in the 31st century of Earth-6311, a peaceful alternate reality. Bored by his utopian society, Richards discovered the time travel technology of one of his ancestors, believed to be either doctor_doom or Reed Richards himself. Filled with a thirst for adventure and conquest, he traveled back to ancient Egypt on Earth-616. Adopting the persona of Rama-Tut, he used his futuristic technology to install himself as a pharaoh. His reign was cut short by the intervention of the time-displaced fantastic_four. After his defeat, a turbulent trip through the timestream led him to an encounter with Doctor Doom, who inspired him to create a new, armor-clad identity: the Scarlet Centurion. As the Centurion, he attempted to conquer an alternate Earth by manipulating its mightiest heroes, but was again defeated. Cast back into the timestream, he overshot his own century and landed in the war-torn 40th century. Here, armed with the most advanced weaponry in history, he finally found his calling. He forged a new identity, one that would echo across history: Kang the Conqueror. For centuries, Kang carved out an empire, battling the avengers repeatedly and falling in love with the princess of one of his conquered kingdoms, Ravonna Renslayer. The turning point in his life came after immense loss and endless war. Having seen Ravonna die and be resurrected multiple times, and having grown profoundly weary of the cycle of conquest and defeat, the aging Kang sought an escape. He retreated to the timeless dimension of Limbo. It was there that he was approached by three powerful beings from the end of time: the Time-Keepers. The Time-Keepers saw Kang's vast knowledge of history and his unparalleled experience with temporal mechanics as a valuable asset. They offered him a deal: in exchange for becoming their agent and preserving their chosen timeline by pruning any dangerous divergent realities, they would grant him true immortality and absolute mastery over a vast swath of time from his throne in Limbo. Broken and exhausted, seeing this as a path to a higher purpose and an end to his painful cycle, Kang accepted. He shed the last vestiges of his conquering identity and was reborn as Immortus, the Master of Time and Lord of Limbo. His primary mission became the maintenance of the status quo, a goal that often put him in direct opposition to the chaotic, timeline-shattering ambitions of his younger self.

In the Marvel Cinematic Universe (designated as Earth-199999), the character of Immortus has not yet appeared by name. However, his core concepts—a future variant of Kang who manages the timeline to prevent a catastrophic war—are embodied by the character known as He Who Remains, introduced in the season one finale of the Disney+ series, Loki. As He Who Remains explains to Loki and Sylvie, he was originally a 31st-century scientist from one of infinite Earths. He discovered the existence of the multiverse, as did countless other variants of himself from other realities. Initially, these variants shared knowledge and technology, leading to an era of enlightenment. However, some of his variants, who were more akin to Kang the Conqueror, saw the other universes not as places to learn from, but as new lands to conquer. The result was a devastating Multiversal War, where timelines were weaponized and entire realities were annihilated. To end the war, this “original” variant learned to control a trans-temporal entity named Alioth, a creature that consumes time and space. He used Alioth to destroy all the other variants and their timelines. To prevent such a war from ever happening again, he isolated a single collection of realities into what he called the “Sacred Timeline” and created the Time Variance Authority (TVA) to monitor it. The TVA's entire purpose was to identify and “prune” any branch reality that deviated from his pre-written script, as any significant deviation could lead to the birth of a new, dangerous Kang variant. Comparative Analysis: The MCU's He Who Remains is a brilliant streamlining of Immortus's complex comic book history. Instead of being the end-point of a long character arc we have yet to see, he is presented as the starting point—the victor of the first war who established the order that the MCU films and series (up to that point) existed within. His motivation is also framed more sympathetically; he is not a servant to higher beings like the Time-Keepers but a weary guardian trying to prevent a cosmic holocaust, presenting his dictatorial control as the “lesser of two evils.” His death at the hands of Sylvie effectively shatters the Sacred Timeline and unleashes the multiverse, setting the stage for the arrival of the very Kang variants he sought to prevent.

Immortus's power is not one of physical might, but of absolute, near-unlimited control over the fourth dimension: time itself.

• Abilities:
• Chronokinesis (Time Manipulation): Immortus's command over time is godlike. He can:
  • Summon any being from any point in the past or future to serve him.
  • Create “Tempus” duplicates, temporal copies of individuals that he can command.
  • Freeze time in a localized area or across an entire planet.
  • Age or de-age beings or objects to dust in seconds.
  • Create temporal paradoxes and complex causal loops to entrap his enemies.
  • View the past, present, and future of any timeline, and perceive divergent realities.
• Immortality & Longevity: A gift from the Time-Keepers. So long as he remains within his domain of Limbo, he is functionally immortal and does not age. Outside of Limbo, he ages at an incredibly slow rate.
• Genius-Level Intellect: He retains the intellect of Nathaniel Richards, enhanced by eons of study. His knowledge of history, temporal mechanics, and future technology is arguably unrivaled in the universe. He is a master strategist who plays chess across millennia.
• Psychic Resistance: His non-linear existence and unique temporal nature make him exceptionally resistant to telepathic probes or attacks.
• Equipment:
• Limbo: This is not merely a base of operations; it is the source of his power. Limbo is a dimension outside of the normal flow of time, which Immortus can shape and control at will. From his palace within Limbo, he can observe and influence the entire timestream.¹⁾
• Advanced Chronal Technology: While he often manipulates time through sheer force of will within Limbo, he commands technology far more advanced than even Kang's. His time-ships and devices are subtle, precise, and virtually undetectable.
• Personality:
• Immortus is the antithesis of Kang. Where Kang is arrogant, passionate, and impulsive, Immortus is calm, patient, and melancholic. He carries the weight of eons and sees the “long view” with a sense of cosmic resignation. He is a scholar, a librarian, and a gardener of time, pruning its branches with the cold precision of a surgeon. He often speaks in philosophical or cryptic terms, viewing most conflicts as temporary annoyances in a game that was decided long ago.

As He Who Remains is the MCU's analogue, his abilities and resources are analyzed here. His power is less personal and more systematic.

• Abilities:
• Functional Omniscience (within the Sacred Timeline): Having lived through and scripted the entire flow of the Sacred Timeline, He Who Remains knows everything that has happened and everything that will happen up to a certain point he calls “The Threshold.” Beyond this point, his knowledge ends, leaving the future truly unwritten.
• Genius-Level Intellect: As a 31st-century scientist, he possessed the intellect to discover the multiverse and create technology capable of managing it. He is a master engineer, physicist, and strategist of the highest order.
• Equipment:
• The Citadel at the End of Time: His lonely fortress, analogous to Limbo. It sits in a void at the end of time, granting him a perfect vantage point from which to manage the timeline.
• The Time Variance Authority (TVA): His ultimate creation and most powerful weapon. The entire organization, its agents, its “pruning” technology (Reset Charges), and its ability to negate powers are all extensions of his will.
• TemPad: A sophisticated handheld device that allows for travel through time and space, as well as communication. His personal version is significantly more advanced than those used by the TVA agents.
• Alioth: While not equipment in the traditional sense, he weaponized this massive, reality-devouring entity to win the Multiversal War and now uses it to guard his Citadel.
• Personality:
• The MCU's version is far more eccentric and outwardly manic than his comic counterpart. After eons of isolation, he is lonely, bored, and exhausted by his “glorious purpose.” He is simultaneously playful and terrifying, flippantly discussing genocide while snacking on an apple. He presents himself as a weary dictator who genuinely wants to retire, offering his throne to Loki and Sylvie. This makes his character arc a tragic one—a man who saved reality by destroying free will, only to be killed by the very freedom he suppressed, thereby unleashing the chaos he feared.

• The Time-Keepers: They are Immortus's masters, creators, and handlers. They tasked him with preserving the timeline to prevent the rise of their corrupted future selves, the Time-Twisters. However, this relationship is fraught with tension. The Time-Keepers are often shown to be ruthless, genocidal, and far more villainous than Immortus himself, and he has at times subtly rebelled against their more extreme commands.
• Space Phantoms: These ethereal beings from Limbo are Immortus's most loyal servants. They can assume the physical form and abilities of any creature, making them perfect spies, infiltrators, and soldiers. He frequently dispatches them to manipulate events on his behalf.
• The Vision: Immortus's relationship with the Vision is one of pure manipulation. Seeing the synthezoid as a key pawn in his temporal chess game, Immortus secretly orchestrated the dismantling of the Vision during the Vision Quest arc. He later revealed that he had split the original Human Torch (from whom the Vision's body was derived) into two temporal duplicates, meaning the Vision could never truly be “whole,” all to control the future potential of the Scarlet Witch's children.

• Kang the Conqueror: Immortus's greatest enemy is, and always will be, his own past self. Kang represents everything Immortus has abandoned: unchecked ambition, fiery passion, and a belief in free will and conquest. Kang fights with all his might to avoid the “fate” of becoming the subdued, scholarly Immortus. Their conflict is the ultimate temporal paradox—a man at war with his own destiny, fighting across the whole of time.
• The Avengers: As the greatest champions of their era, the Avengers are the heroes who most often disrupt the timeline Immortus is sworn to protect. Their unpredictable nature and heroic impulses make them a constant variable in his calculations. He has fought them directly, but more often, he manipulates them into serving his own ends without their knowledge, making him one of their most insidious and personal foes.
• Doctor Doom: The rivalry between their respective bloodlines (Richards and Von Doom) extends through time. Kang was inspired by Doom, and Immortus sees him as a temporal rival. Both are supreme geniuses who wield advanced technology and have attempted to control history, leading to a complex relationship built on a foundation of begrudging respect and utter contempt.

• Custodians of the Timestream: This is the formal name for the group of beings who serve the Time-Keepers. Immortus is their most prominent, if not only, agent for the majority of his existence.
• Legion of the Unliving: A tactic Immortus has employed on several occasions. Using his power over time, he plucks deceased or forgotten villains and heroes from the moments before their deaths and forms them into a team to battle the Avengers. This showcases both his power and his morbid, calculating nature.

This is the character-defining epic for Immortus. The story revolves around Mantis, a member of the Avengers revealed to be the “Celestial Madonna,” a woman destined to give birth to a cosmic messiah. Kang the Conqueror seeks to capture her and father this child himself. Immortus intervenes, seemingly to aid the Avengers. The climax reveals Immortus's true identity as the future Kang. He explains that he is manipulating events to guide his younger self towards his destiny, while also attempting to prevent the powerful nexus being, Scarlet Witch, from having children with the Vision. This saga establishes the deep, paradoxical conflict between Kang and Immortus and cements Immortus as a master manipulator playing a game no one else can comprehend.

In this dark and impactful storyline by John Byrne, the Vision is abducted, completely dismantled, and has his mind wiped by a coalition of international government agents. He is eventually rebuilt by Hank Pym, but as a colorless, emotionless synthezoid, his personality gone. Years later, it is revealed that Immortus was the secret mastermind behind the entire plot. He manipulated the agents into action, all as part of his long-term plan to neutralize the threat posed by the reality-altering potential of the Scarlet Witch by emotionally devastating her and severing her deepest connection. This event directly leads to Wanda's mental breakdown and the catastrophic events of Avengers Disassembled.

Written by Kurt Busiek and drawn by Carlos Pacheco, this is widely considered the ultimate Kang/Immortus story. A team of Avengers is pulled from different points in their history by Rick Jones to fight in the “Destiny War.” Immortus is revealed as the primary antagonist, acting on behalf of the Time-Keepers to destroy humanity because they fear its evolutionary potential. The series dives deep into the complex, contradictory history of Nathaniel Richards, explaining retcons and tying together decades of stories. The climax is a philosophical and temporal battle where Kang, with the help of the Avengers, rejects his destiny. The cosmic “Destiny Force” within Rick Jones is used to split Kang and Immortus into separate beings, freeing Kang (for a time) from the future he so dreaded.

• He Who Remains (MCU - Earth-199999): As detailed above, this is the most prominent adaptation. He is not a future version of a Kang we know, but the original variant who won the first Multiversal War and created the TVA to enforce a single, “sacred” timeline. His death at the hands of Sylvie plunged the multiverse back into chaos.
• Iron Lad (Earth-616): The heroic teenage version of Nathaniel Richards. Upon learning of his destiny as Kang, this young Nathaniel travels to the present day and forms the young_avengers to actively fight against his own future. Iron Lad represents the ultimate rebellion against the destiny Immortus embodies—the hope that the cycle can be broken.
• Rama-Tut (Earth-616): The first major temporal identity of Nathaniel Richards. As the Pharaoh Rama-Tut in ancient Egypt, he first tasted power and conquest. This version is a crucial first step on the long road that leads to both Kang's tyranny and Immortus's weary wisdom.
• Scarlet Centurion (Earth-616): The identity Nathaniel Richards adopted after Rama-Tut and before Kang. Inspired directly by Doctor Doom, the Scarlet Centurion was a more traditional, armored super-villain focused on direct conquest. Immortus views this phase as brutish and lacking the subtlety and scope of his later selves.

• kang_the_conqueror
• nathaniel_richards
• time_variance_authority
• scarlet_witch
• vision
• avengers
• limbo

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