Sep

Ultimate One Universe: Emergence

Subscribed before I went on holiday and oh my a lot of activity.
Unsure on character but definitly interested and will get something up either while travelling or when I get home.

@Ezekiel

There are posts of things, excitement, and activity

Ultimate One Universe: Emergence

Unlikely to do a post at work today have an instructor

Ultimate One Universe: Emergence

FORMER SOVIET PRISON // UNKNOWN LOCATION

1030HRS was yard time. Or rather, what used to be yard time. Steve hadn't been allowed in the yard since the summer of '85. As such at 1030HRS while everyone else went outside to enjoy the weather, Steve had the choice of retreating into the library or the gym. He and Alexei liked to alternate their days, technically speaking Alexei hadn't been banned from the yard. At this point, the guards couldn't be bothered to separate the two ageing super-soldiers. Walking into the empty gym Steve nodded at one of the guards, speaking in his broken attempt at Russian. <Good Afternoon Viktor. How are the mushrooms?>

The two guards looked at each other with a confused look on their faces, Alexei shrugged as Steve ran the words through his head again. Добрый день, Сержи. Как грибы? No, that wasn't right. He held up a finger to indicate to give him a second while he worked it out. <How are the kids? He put extra emphasis on the last word.

Viktor nodded. "They are well, thanking you Mister Rogers." Steve nodded, guiding Alexei deeper into the gym.

"I do not see why you feel the need to do that." The old man croaked as he sat on the bench beside Steves. Steve merely smiled as he walked around the bench setting up the weights. An easy 1000lbs to warm up.

"Viktor, and many of the guards here now have only ever been good to me-" Alexei nodded.

"Many of the old resentments and prejudices seem to be gone."

Steve lay down on the cold hard bench, a familiar sensation. He pushed the bar off its rest, lowering it slowly allowing the blood to start pumping. "And yet-" he grunted as he pushed the bar back up into the air, holding it for a couple of seconds before letting it come back towards his chest. "-new ones seem to rise to replace them."

Alexei watched on, his head bobbing up and down with the bar to count the reps. "Do you really think our two countries could become allies. Resentment runs deep."

Steve smirked as he finished his set and put the bar back at rest, swinging his legs around till he was seated on the stool. "The two of us managed it, old friend."

Alexei chuckled. "I do not think our shared experiences are exchangeable."

That was probably true, Steves expression went distant as he thought back to the cold nights. To the torture, and the experimentation. He had been tested before, but what he was subjected too here -

Steve shook his head bringing himself back to the present. "How is your French Alexei?"

Alexei raised an eyebrow, then replied in French. <About as good as it was last time.>

How is your French was a code the two of them had developed for when they wanted to talk without anyone else knowing what they were saying. Yes, they ran the risk of anything they said being translated however for the very rare occasions where Steve and Alexei spoke in French to keep secrets, they spoke in French twice as often to discuss mundane things like the weather and the food. <Excellent. It is lovely weather we're having today, it's a shame I won't get to go out into the yard.>

<I am looking forward to it later while on work-duty.>

Steve nodded as he lay back down for another set. <You are cutting logs, correct?>

Alexei nodded. <Yes, we stack them in the North West corner to dry out in time for winter.> Steve nodded. <Five more reps.> Steve could feel the heat rising as his body started to work, he could easily handle more weight. The issue was the bar didn't have the space for much more.

<You do a good job with the logs, plenty to keep us warm in the harshest winter.>

<So why now?

Steve sat up after his last rep and raised an eyebrow. <What do you mean?>

<You know exactly what I mean. Why, now?>

Steve merely shrugged. <I see an opportunity.>

<And the fire?>

A boyish grin crossed the old soldier's face. <Promise you won't call me mad?>

<No.>

Steve laughed and then shrugged his shoulders. <I have tried breaking out myself several times->

<Many times.>

He nodded at the correction. <Fine. Many times, but I'm still here.> He leaned in closer to Alexei. <It's time to think outside of the box.>

They both looked up as they heard a commotion at the door. The guards saluted as a man in a red outfit walked in. White belt around his waist, a white star in his chest and his cowl had three white stripes atop it. In his left hand was a red shield. Very little while in prison angered Steve as much as seeing his shield repainted, and carried around by his captors.

Steve stood up, standing as tall as he possibly could. Alexei stayed seated, his back to his younger replacement. "Greetings comrades! I am Nikolai Krylenko, the Red Guardian."

"For now...

Both Steve and Nikolai snapped too the old man sat atop his bench. "Excuse me?"

Alexei stood up and turned to the young Red Guardian. "How long did they give you?"

"I do not understand what you mean-"

"Don't pay any attention to-"

"How long did they tell you the serum would last for?" He indicated to himself, and his frail old bones. "I am not so old as you think." Without another word, the former Red Guardian barged his way passed. When the guards attempted to step in his way to prevent his escape, Nikolai just waved them off. Trying to appear unphased, and unrattled by Alexeis comment.

If the moment hadn't been so serious, Steve may have smiled. The old dog was cunning he had to give him that, getting in Nikolais head. Filling him with doubts over the serum. Nikolai was well into his eighties now, and while frailty was starting to catch up with him he could probably still take out any single one of the guards here without breaking much of a sweat.

Steve cleared his throat and offered the costumed soldier his hand. "Steve Rogers-" They shook hands, Steve not reacting as Nikolai attempted squeezing his hand as tight as possible. "-shall we get started?"

Ultimate One Universe: Emergence

Powergirl would disagree with you sir.

Ultimate One Universe: Emergence

THE HOME OF JOE WEST // CENTRAL CITY

Iris came to a halt outside the door, allowing herself two deep breathes to get her breathing under control and allowing her hair to settle back down. Knocking on the hard familiar wood, she grabbed the old cold handle and pushed the door open. "Dad, I'm home!" Ever since they had been little, Sunday Nights had always been family dinner nights at the West household. They weren't overly religious, her father just always found it important that they spend time together as a family. "Dad?! Having secured the door, she tossed her keys into the bowl on the nearby shelf. Not even having to look before there was the familiar clink as the keys settled in. It was all just muscle memory.

"Kitchen."

Walking into the kitchen she felt the smile possess her face as she rushed forward, at a normal non-metahuman speed, and grabbed her dad in a great big hug. The smell of the roasting beef and boiling vegetables assaulted her nose, and she could already feel her stomach start to rumble. One of the more interesting side effects of her abilities was the fact she could eat as much as she wanted. She actively needed too.

Barry had said it had something to do with the amount of calories her body was burning with her enhanced metabolism. All she cared about was that she could treat herself to that bucket of ice cream and pizza on a Friday night, and not even have to worry about it. Stepping back she looked through to the dining room as she heard voices, but was surprised to find that other than the old TV playing some TV show in the corner it was completely vacant. "Bar running late?"

Her concern grew as she walked into the dining room to put her coat on the back of her chair, when she noticed that only two seats had been set at the table. "No, he called earlier. Said he's got another commitment."

Iris felt her heart sink slightly. "Oh... work?" She turned back to face her father, hands on the back of her chair.

"Not that I know off. He wrapped up the Condiment King case earlier, I don't think he has anything else pressing-" Iris had to stop herself from audibly wincing at the mention of the Condiment King. Some Superhero she was going to be.

"The Condiment King?"

"Yeah, some costumed freak trying to rob the bank. He was stopped by that woman that has been travelling the city at superspeed helping out."

Iris nodded as she pulled her chair out, looking at the TV she was surprised to see an old conspiracy documentary playing. One that Barry had obsessed over throughout his teen years in the hunt for his mother's true killer, looking for people who could do impossible things. People who could do things even mutants couldn't achieve. "Is that why you're watching this old thing?" she jabbed her thumb towards the television as Joe walked into the room carrying piles of food, sitting it down on the table.

"Well-" He shrugged. "-we always dismissed what Barry said. We knew about mutants sure, but the Justice Society of America? Invaders? Howling Commandos?" Joe just chuckled to himself.

"It always just seemed like propaganda for the war, I mean. I remember growing up with the comics and the old black and white films."

Old grainy black-and-white footage played on the screen, occasionally interrupted by the talking head of a man sitting in an office surrounded by papers. "I mean, it just seems so riidddiiiiccccc-" Time slowed as her brain sped up. On the screen was an old clip of the famed Captain America, with a couple of other soldiers in weird and wonderful costumes.

She had seen it one hundred and one times, what she had never noticed before was the static and the blur that crossed the screen at this exact moment. That which everyone had always attributed to damaged tape. Instead was a man, a man wearing a winged helmet with a lightning bolt embroidered on his chest. A man, who could move as fast as she could. She snapped back to the moment. "-uuuullloous." Joe chuckled to himself, and Iris joined in weakly.

As she piled food onto her plate. "I have a question-"

Joe pointed to her plate heaped with food. "So long as it doesn't lead to me thinking I have my first grandbaby on the way."

"Huh?" She looked at the sheer amount on her plate and brushed slightly. "Oh, no. No, no no. Nothing like that, I've just uh. Had a couple of big days at the gym." She chuckled as she picked up a chunk of meat with her fork, chewing it before continuing with her thought. "What do you think of this hero going around Central City?"

Joe paused for a moment, weighing the question. "I think her hearts in the right place, and I can't argue that she's done some good."

"I sense a but coming-"

[coolor=lightgoldenrodyellow]"I don't worry for her, I think she aims to do good and I respect that. Choosing to be something more, to help normal people. I just worry for the other side of things."[/color]

Iris held her fork at her mouth and lowered it back down to her plate. "What do you mean?"

"You've seen the news. You've got heroes crawling out of the woodwork, all inspired by this-" He swirled his hand around trying to think of the word, the name.

"Superman." She offered.

"That's the one. Since he came out in Metropolis we've seen more and more of them, and now we have this Condiment King. Who, let us be honest was more a nuisance than a threat-" he didn't know the half of it. "-I just worry that the threats are going to get bigger, as a result of that. In a never-ending game of escalation."

---

STAR LABS // CENTRAL CITY

Harrison clambered through the debris of the treadmill. He threw most of it into a pile, heaping it up as it wasn't important. Reaching deeper down he pulled out a battery pack. A smile crossed his face, he could practically feel the energy pulsing within. This right here, this discovery. This is what would lead him to change the world. Stark and Trask were focused on pushing the mutants and the metahumans down. They didn't even realise how much of an asset they could be, how much they could learn about the world they lived in. The advances they could make to science.

Instead, they were blinded by their ego. Their fear. Men were afraid of what they couldn't understand or explain.

Harrison would understand it, and he would be the face that changed the world.

This speed, this power source that Miss West emanated, coursed through her veins. It was the key. Picking up his phone he dialed a number. It rang out, waiting for the beep of the answerphone. "Hey, its Harrison. Are you still looking for a power-source for your project?" He held up the battery in one hand closer to his eyes, he could almost feel the power within it. "Because I think I have something that you might be interested in."

Ultimate One Universe: Emergence

<Snipped quote by Sep>

... Got the costumes mixed up. They're both red. And occasionally yellow.

@Simple Unicycle

The difference is his is red due to blood.

Iris is red due to ketchup

Ultimate One Universe: Emergence

while I wait to do a crossover between Punisher and Daredevil.

@Simple Unicycle

Waaaaaait a minute. That's not The Flash.

Ultimate One Universe: Emergence

POV inside Highballs helmet.

Ultimate One Universe: Emergence

FORMER SOVIET PRISON // UNKNOWN LOCATION

0900HRS was chow time. Steve walked through the halls of the prison, two guards flanked him at a safe distance of four feet. Close enough that if he bolted they could get him with their tasers before he got too far, but far enough away that if he turned on them they had time to react. Things had been so much easier before the invention of the Taser. Most of the other prisoners avoided eye contact with him, staying out of his way. While he had been told that the Cold War was over, there still seemed to be a lot of resentment towards America and Americans.

The same old story, the same old disagreements. He worked his way up the food line, ignoring the slop poured onto his tray. Steve worked his way to the back of the mess hall to the one table he was allowed to sit at without it causing any issues with the other denizens of the prison. He nodded to the ageing, but well-toned, Russian who was already sitting at the table. His hair was long and matted, his eyes starting to grey over. Alexei Shostakov had been the original Red Guardian. The two had formed a tentative friendship while Steve taught Alexei how to use his new abilities as a Super-Soldier.

As Alexei aged, and became disgruntled with the fact the KGB was using him as an assassin rather than a soldier he attempted to break Steve out of prison. They had got pretty far too, but it wasn't meant to be. Alexei had been tortured viciously and Steve wasn't entirely sure what the punishment was for. Alexei for betraying his country, or for Steve trying to escape. He had gone without torture himself, but watching what Alexei had to go through had been torture enough.

Few people in the prison messed with Alexei, as they knew. They could do whatever they wanted to the Former Captain America with no repercussions, but to mess with them was to incite Steve's wrath.

The two soldiers nodded at one another as Steve sat down, and started using his fork to raise the stew into his mouth. The meat was burnt and chewy, with little to no flavour. At times he wondered if the cooks were as old as him, as somehow the quality of the food had never changed. It had never gotten worse, nobody ever suffered food poisoning, but it never got better. Not even slightly.

Heavy footfalls meant that the other member of their little trio had arrived, the bench shifting under his weight slightly. A behemoth of a man, Piotr Rasputin was considerably younger than the two old war dogs. Having been discovered to be a mutant with super strength and durability, he had refused to sign up and become part of Russia's Winter Guard program. As a result, once the scientists had tested and tortured him extensively he had been sent here, wherever here was, as it was the only prison capable of holding him.

The kid didn't deserve to be here, all he had wanted was to live a quiet and peaceful life. Steve could understand why Alexei was here, and why he was here. It was twisted, it was messed up but he could see the logic in it. All Piotr had done to get a one-way ticket was choose to not become a weapon.

Steve tried to look after him as best he could, but he was ashamed to admit he couldn't always be there for the kid. Anti-mutant sentiment in the prison was rife, and while he was built for strength the anti-mutant serum he was constantly dosed with always left him a sickly pale colour with his muscles next to useless. A side effect of his daily doses, a so-called cure for the mutant affliction. Dropping his voice low, he leaned in to make sure they weren't overheard. It was unlikely they would have been given the usual noise and chaos of the mess hall, but you could never be too careful. "Piotr. When are you due your next dose?"

"Tomorrow mornink-" Piotrs control of English was still flawed, which is why Steve spoke slowly, even with the most sensitive of subjects. "-Why are you asking?

Steve leaned in, with only the slightest smile on the corner of his lips. "We've got an opening, time to send a message."

Ultimate One Universe: Emergence

<Snipped quote by Sep>

You already know.

Punisher helps Flash put down Condiment King for good.

@Simple Unicycle

Oooh you wanna do that now(ish). Yeah I'm good for that, keep Iris in central city then (cause it works for our idea)