Harald Jaekelsson (Earth-21399)

Harald Jaekelsson was a Viking raider from Norway. After he forsook the gods and betrayed his people, Jaekelsson was cursed to never find his way to the afterlife and became an undead draugr.

History
The only information that can be discerned about Harald Jaekelsson's life is that which is recounted in his saga, which was recovered from the ruins of an old Norse town near his burial mound by a team of American researchers, under the direction of Dr. Donald Blake.

11th Century
According to the saga, Harald Jaekelsson was once the leader of a powerful Viking warband called the Wolves of Lakstad, which conducted numerous raids on Christian monasteries in the British Isles – motivated in part by Harald's fanatical devotion to the pagan gods of the North, borne from the need for a purpose and an outlet following the death of his family to Christian soldiers.

So fanatical was he that when the Jarl of Lakstad converted to Christianity, Harald and his band of warriors decided the only way to avenge this dishonor was to destroy their own hometown. The saga described the warband's savagery in abhorrent detail – they slaughtered all the livestock, stole many barrels of mead, murdered the men and children, and had their way with the women before murdering them in turn. The Jarl himself was executed in a “blood eagle” ritual before Harald burned down his longhouse.

After a lengthy celebration of their victory, Harald and his crew intended to set sail once again for the British Isles, only to be stopped by Thormar, the Jarl's son and the only survivor of the raid, who arrived with a warband of his own. The young man, seeking vengeance, engaged Harald's warriors in battle and, unexpectedly, came out victorious. But as Harald bled out, he vowed he would return from death to destroy the weakling Christians. Thormar attempted to prevent this by giving Harald a proper burial that appealed to the Aesir for his soul to find rest.

What the saga failed to mention was that Thormar's efforts, the result of a pitiful lack of knowledge of pagan burial practice, were to no avail. Because of his heinous crimes against his own people, Harald was ignored by the Valkyries as a candidate for residence in Valhalla. Having been denied his eternal reward, Harald's hatred only grew then, and he resisted the pull of Hel, remaining on Earth as a dormant undead.

21st Century
To be added...

Powers

 * Draugr Physiology: Harald Jaekelsson is a Draugr, an undead creature created when a Norseman is somehow barred from the afterlife and thus bound to his physical corpse. Their condition affords the draugr many nebulous superhuman abilities.
 * Superhuman Strength: Under optimal conditions, Harald Jaekelsson can press about 100 tons worth of mass. His strength only increases when he assumes a larger size.
 * Invulnerability: Nearly all manmade weapons have no effect on Harald Jaekelsson. He also effectively feels no pain.
 * Limited Shapeshifting: Harald Jaekelsson can assume a number of hideous animal forms with which to fight his enemies. Among these forms are: a leopard seal, a flayed bull, an earless and tailless gray horse, a black eagle and a bloodied bobcat.
 * Growth: Harald Jaekelsson can
 * Minor Reality Warping: Wherever Harald Jaekelsson goes, black clouds blot out the sun, birds fall dead from the sky, and larger animals become erratic, panicked and, in some cases, violent.

Abilities

 * Combat Skill: Harald Jaekelsson is a highly skilled warrior, being equally proficient with sword, axe and bow alike.

Trivia

 * Harald Jaekelsson was originally created by Garth Ennis and Glenn Fabry for their five-issue Marvel MAX miniseries Thor: Vikings.