The Origin of the Universe

Book of Genesis: The Lantern & The Paragons
In the beginning, there was only the "Presence". From the Presence came the first being, Volthoom. In his hand, lies the White Lantern, which he uses to bestow light upon the void.

Darkseid is transported to the dawn and attacks Volthoom, taking the white lantern. Darkseid's contact with the lantern is the catalyst for all evil in existence. Therefore Darkseid is the very first, and very last threat reality will ever encounter. All evil stems from Darkseid. However, Superman grabs the Lantern, and instills all good onto reality. This creates a balance in existence; where superman is the ultimate good, Darkseid is the ultimate evil.

On the first day, Volthoom bestows light upon the void.

On the second day, Volthoom creates the first world, Earth, instilling the planet's life force with the power of nature known as the green.

On the third day, Volthoom unleashes possibility, creating the boundaries of the universe. A rainbow of worlds are formed across the galaxy, each with their own stories.

On the fourth day, Volthoom creates the Endless - manifestations of the universal constants such as order and chaos, life & death, entropy & progress.

On the fifth day, Volthoom births the ultimate inheritors of Earth: humanity. They are the true source of story, possibility; the shot in the dark that pulls and warps the random chaos of existence.

On the sixth day, Volthoom decides that there must be someone to protect this fledgling creation in case of another evil. He creates the Monitors, led by Mobius, the first monitor.

On the seventh Day of Creation, Volthoom becomes one with the Lantern, as it lies on Earth. The Monitors safeguard the Lantern.

The Book of Creation: The Prime Earth & The Cosmos
Mobius eventually crafts his two artifacts: the Mobius Chair, and the Mobius Sword.

The Monitors manufacture a world outside of known reality, hidden in the void so to prevent further interference and corruption of the ultimate experiment. This world is known as Nil.

Humans are born on earth, the first intelligent life in the universe. They are proto humans.

The woman Hecate is the first being to discover magic, and is unleashed upon creation. She comes into contact with the Endless, and they transform her. This creates the Sphere of the Gods, an endless domain of magic and gods. The Endless exist in their pocket worlds concentrated in the realm of Dream.

The endless touch many worlds with their influence, and beings come to know the cosmic flow of chaos and order; garnering power from the fountains of universal constants. Nabu of earth takes on fate, while the titan Typhon becomes the avatar of chaos. These avatars use artifacts to channel the everlasting power of chaos & order.

Urgrund births a brutal race of warrior gods locked in constant conflict. They succeed in tapping into the source itself, the presence. The next generation of new gods is prophesied to transcend boundaries of physical godhood; becoming proto-ideas with legends of ultra-concepts like life and anti-life equations. These new gods would exist in a platonic epic projecting their avatars into lower dimensions.

Rao goes into heavy meditation inside a newborn sun, emerging a god. He has two children, Nightwing & Flamebird, powerful solar dragons.

The Book of Magick: Gods & Mortals
In Canaan, the Wizard Mamaragan siphons power from the Sphere of the Gods, becoming the guardian of the Living Lightning, the power of SHAZAM.

In what will be known as Greece, descendants of the sky god Ouranos and the Green life force of Earth itself come to be known as Olympians. A powerful young god named Zeus unites his brethren in a crusade for dominance over the pantheons of earth. Establishing their authority, Zeus leads his Olympians against the rival Titans, banishing them to a pocket dimension purgatory. Zeus challenges Shazam over control of the Sinai, but loses; pledging a portion of his pantheon to the Wizard.

Hecate is scorned by the prince of darkness, Hades, and goes into self imposed exile on the moon. Their spawn, Eclipso, becomes a maleovolent entity and seeks power across the universe.

A satellite in the higher dimensions becomes known as Heaven; the perceived final resting place for souls before reunion with the source. It is populated by divine angels, separated into the four hosts (bull,eagle,lion,adam). Two envoys of the Presence would take form to oversee heaven's order upon creation: the spirit of judgement (Phantom Stranger), and the Spirit of Vengeance (Spectre).

These envoys would eventually keep Zeus in check as to not allow him to usurp the other earth gods.

The Book of Darkness: The Monitors & the Void
In the void, time does not exist. The void is made of the unknown; an endless singularity spewing power and beings of living entropy. Anything is possible in the Void, with life and death out of reach of even the Endless and Heaven. Only the Monitors on their high castle of Nil hold back the unknown forces in this cosmic no man's land.

Many worlds exist in the void: the dead world Ryut (home to Nekron), Qward (prison of Mobius), Limbo (where the forgotten go, the ultimate purgatory), Nil (Monitor World).

Where it was believed there was only one original monitor, mobius, there were actually millions of monitors who inhabited the satellite world of Nil. It was they who sculptured the universe and gave life across the cosmos. However, from the hand of evil that raised the white lantern, a beast crawled from the netherpit in the endless void, embodying entropy and destruction. That being was known as Mandrakk, an entity of pure dark matter. Mandrakk corrupted the Monitor race, and Mobius was forced to destroy his brethren to save creation. Mobius then became super depressed and suicidal, trapped in the House of Heroes.

Dax Novu the science-monitor ventured to charter and catalog the endless void. It was he who was corrupted by the spawn of omega, primordial evil, Mandrakk. In his last moments of sanity, Novu split himself in two: becoming a vessel for the plague while leaving a hyperweapon as a final hope to save reality. Mandrakk's storm descended on Nil like the great flood. The monitors succumbed to primitive savagery, tearing each other apart. Only Mobius the radiant one resisted defending the White Lantern with his life, escaping with the mobius chair.

Mobius is saved by a being known as the Paragon, who wields Novu's gift. Mandrakk leads his new army to the Presence itself, where Spectre, Phantom Stranger, Quintessence, and the hosts of Pax Dei are forced to defend Heaven. Paradise Falls, but Mobius arrives with the final weapon left by Novu: Geh-Jedollah, the Genesis Box, the Miracle Machine. Operated by the Paragon, the Monitor race is eradicated and Mandrakk defeated (as evil can never die), while the universe is cleansed of this parasitic story. He is chained in the Sepulchre on Nil. The Paragon leaves, while Mobius is left devastated after having to destroy his brethren, having to carry the burden of memory (everyone involved in the event loses their memory; story is erased).

The great darkness was the first shadow cast by the all-seeing light. It was tamed by the four hosts of the presence. The first to interact was Lucifer, corrupted and forced to betray his brothers. Michael the Archangel, with the help of the endless themselves, struck down the darkness and fractured it in three: Lucifer (the bane, the traitor), Trigon (the rage, the raw power), and Neron (the cunning, the dealmaker). The darkness made its dormant kingdom, Hell, and its purpose to harbor the worst in the pit of the demons itself spawned.

The Book of War: The Angel & The Tower
Millennia passes, and Mobius becomes a recluse, remaining in his Tower. Without his guidance, the universe descends into anarchy, as various Pantheons clash for control of the Earth.

On the faraway world of Urgrund, the old god Yuga Khan gathers his forces in search of the fabled Anti-Life Equation, which would allow its possessor to dominate the wills of any sentient race. Legend tells of its existence on Earth, the center of the universe.

On Earth, a Lord of Chaos named Eclipso becomes an apostle of Nekron, the God of Death. Eclipso amasses an army to storm the House of Heroes, where he will attempt to destroy the indestructible White Lantern. Destruction of the Lantern would "potentially" allow Nekron to pass into the mortal world, as well as the extinction of all life in the universe.

News of the upcoming invasions are spread, and a force is assembled to halt the two powers. The group gathers at the Rock of Eternity, comprised of: the Wizard Shazam, the Sun God Rao, and the Pantheons of Olympus. The Presence sends two envoys to meet the group: the Spirit of Vengeance, the Spectre, and the Spirit of Judgement, the Phantom Stranger.

Nabu, a Lord of Order, confronts Eclipso in an attempt to stop him. The two are evenly matched, but the scales have been tipped. Imbued with the powers of Nekron, Eclipso is able to gain the upper hand, mortally wounding Nabu. Before being killed, Nabu teleports himself to the Rock, warning the group of Eclipso's power. As he dies, Nabu transfers his soul and power into his Helmet, leaving fate to decide a worthy successor to wield his power.

The forces of Yuga Khan and Eclipso meet on Earth, battling for control of the tower. The Wizard leads the charge against both groups, blocking their path. As the war rages on, the conflict begins to destabilize the universe, ravaging all of creation. Phantom Stranger makes his way into the House of Heroes, confronting Mobius. The Stranger persuades Mobius to return, to guide existence back into stability. Mobius however knows the true reason the Presence sent the Spectre and Stranger: to kill Mobius. Mobius stands over the White Lantern, unsheathing his blade. He says,

"If I can't have it, no one can."

Mobius drives his blade into the Lantern, and white light engulfs the Tower.

The Book of Revelation: The Blade & The Lantern
As Mobius drives his sword into the Lantern, the Earth duplicates itself 52 times. The Lantern splits, releasing three energies from inside: Will, Fear, and Rage. The ensuing blast sends a wave across creation:

The world of Olympus, the Rock of Eternity, and the House of Heroes become unhinged from reality. Eclipso is reduced to a purple diamond, while Rao implodes, becoming a red sun. Yuga Khan's world of Urgrund splits in two, eventually becoming the twin worlds of New Genesis and Apokolips. The Spectre is caught in the blast; transforming him into an incorporeal being.

The Presence intervenes, vaporizing Mobius, and banishing him to the void of creation, the Antimatter Universe. The Presence stabilizes the conflict, creating a barrier around the Earths, dubbed the Source Wall. All 52 alternate universes, or Earths, exist in the same space, but vibrate at different frequencies.

At the center of this "Multiverse" lies the abandoned House of Heroes, with the Mobius Sword still planted in the tower's center.

The newly formed Guardians of the Universe arrive on Earth to assist in the fallout from the war. Led by Appa Ali Apsa, the Guardians succeed in imprisoning Yuga Khan in the Source Wall, where he would remain for millennia.

Timeline

 * This event is followed by The Betrayal of Krona

Links

 * Full Reading Order