Dark Elves (Marvel Cinematic Universe)

"Long before the birth of light there was darkness, and from that darkness came the Dark Elves. Millennia ago the most ruthless of their kind, Malekith, sought to transform our universe back into one of eternal night. Such evil was possible through the power of the Aether, an ancient force of infinite destruction."

- Odin on the Dark Elves The Dark Elves or Svartálfar (also less commonly known as Älfeneel or Harudheeniksel) are a hostile species serving as the primary antagonists of ''Thor: The Dark World. ''They are an ancient race from Svartalfheim and are one of the oldest known races in the entire universe and are the sworn enemies of the Asgardians. They seek to acquire the Aether, a red Infinity Stone, and want to return the universe back into its former state of darkness.

History
The Dark Elves are a proud and ancient race having been around centuries before the "Great Beginning" (Big Bang). This however, can be explained by their connection to Dark Energy and the possibility that they came from another universe before making it to the Nine Realms where they reigned absolute. When other races and civilizations began to arise across the Nine Realms, the Dark Elves waged war with the other races and sought to return the universe back into its former state of darkness. It was then that the Dark Elf Leader Malekith, created a superweapon made from the substance that existed in the universe prior to its existance and called it the Aether.

The Asgardians, lead by the then-king Bor, waged a fierce war against the Dark Elves eventually driving them back to their homeoworld of Svartalfheim. In the final battle, Malekith attempted to use the Aether on the eve of the Convergence and the Dark Elves sent out all of their troops from the Kursed Soldiers to their advanced technology to slow down the Asgardian advance. Despite their best efforts however, the Dark Elves were defeated and the Asgardians triumphed and Dark Elf ships were crashed down in a last attempt suicide attack by orders of Malekith after the Aether was taken from him by the Asgardians via the Bilfrost. Malekith, his lieutenant Algrim and many other Dark Elves managed to survive and escaped from the battle heading towards an Ark starship. The Dark Elves went into hibernation as the Asgardians withdrew and the rest of the Dark Elf species was killed in the battle.