Deadman - Fictional Character Biography - Brightest Day

In the 2010-2011 miniseries Brightest Day, Deadman discovers that his white power ring can restore the dead to life, and begins to acclimate to living again, including exercising self-preservational habits, though he expresses reservations about being alive again. As he attempts to learn what his mission on Earth is, he teams up with Hawk and Dove. Deadman learns that he will cross paths with the person the Entity's chose to guard the Earth. The Entity also instructs Deadman to embrace life and those around him, as he led a selfish life in his previous one, realizing the value of others only after he died. In learning to appreciate his new life, Deadman realizes that he and Dove have fallen in love, and reconnects with his grandfather.

The Entity also tells Deadman that when Nekron attacked Earth, the contamination of his presence on the planet manifested itself in the form of a "dark avatar" who will try to destroy the Star City Forest, which is key to saving Earth's soul. The Entity reveals that Earth's savior is Alec Holland, and the "dark avatar" is a corrupted Swamp Thing, which once thought that it was Holland, but now believes itself to be Nekron. In the Forest, Captain Boomerang throws one of his deadly boomerangs at Dove, but it impacts Deadman instead. As his dying act, he gives his white power ring to Holland, transforming him into a new Swamp Thing, who destroys the corrupted, original Swamp Thing. Unable to return to life, Deadman and Dove, heartbroken at being denied a happy life, now that he can never again be resurrected, share an emotional farewell.