CODEX OMNIVERSA

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9000 years ago, a young shepherd named Jedediah returned home to find his parents dead… murdered by thieving nomads. On a hillside in Canaan, he screamed to the heavens…

Why? Why?

Fearing their wrath for summoning them frivolously, Jedediah asked of each of them a bequest — a portion of their own special attributes.

I see within you beats a hear pure and strong.

Lumino (Patron of Wisdom)

With that, the gods made their gifts, each discarded in a blinding flash of lightning.

The gods also developed a magic word, Vlarem, formed from the first initial of their respective names.

Touched by the hands of gods, Vlarem laid down laws and enforced them vigorously. Word of his exploits spread. A permanent settlement was soon formed and its inhabitants left him wanting for nothing. 

However, he let himself be blinded by lust and after union with a demon in disguise, had two offspring: Blaze and Satanus. Vlarem’s mate and her cubs were banished back to the netherworld that spawned them. (It isn’t the last we’ll see of them, though.)

Everything Vlarem did as a champion paled in comparison to the task of stopping the “Three Faces of Evil,” terror, sin, and wickedness. He needed the assistance of the gods to imprison the beast.

The gods opened a portal into eternity where the beast was deposited onto a flat section of rock from Hades itself…

Alternate History

In other versions of the story, it was 6000 years ago when Jebediah of Canaan was but a young wizard hungry for as much knowledge as his mind could hold. He heard of a wise king of Israel who guided his kingdom through years of peace and prosperity.

On that day in Jerusalem, a nomadic wizard was granted audience with King Solomon the Wise.

As Solomon later laid on his death bed, Jedediah performed the greatest act of wizardry he had ever attempted. He shattered to his bosom but a small fraction of his essence, his wisdom —

—and left Israel, never to return. Solomon once spoke of a champion for all mankind. The lightning that escorted him signature his destiny.

With the wisdom of Solomon, Jedediah drew the essence of fearless Achilles from the River Styx. At the edge of the world, he implored the great Atlas for an infinitesimal bit of his legendary stamina. In Thebes, the Greek Olympian was inaccessible, but the Roman Hercules was more than happy to grant his success. The Roman Mercury granted him the right to bequeath his great speed. Zeus imparted a portion of his power and the means to call it forth.

The legend of Shazam was born…

Next

Both versions of Shazam’s origin place him exactly where he needs to be for his next chapter…

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