Bete Noir

Bete Noir's History

The entity that became known as le Bete Noir is an ancient energy creature, having allegedly warred with the Phoenix Force since before the current universe existed. The Phoenix Force eventually somehow trapped its enemy within Earth's still cooling molten core such that it could only escape in immature form via taking a host able to survive its massive energies; it could then incubate to maturity before breaking free and returning to the universe, destroying its host in the process.[1]

Since the dawn of life on Earth, many different cultures sought and failed to free the entity from its tomb (presumably wishing to serve it or use its power for their own ends), and it sought a host in which it could grow and develop to escape its prison. To different cultures, it was believed to be demonic beings such as Beelzebub, Mephistopheles, or Satan, and it was eventually named le Bete Noir, after the French Bête noire, literally meaning "black beast" but generally referring to an object of aversion, the bane of one's existence.