Castle Zemo

Moments ago, a battle had raged between the Masters of Evil and the Thunderbolts on one side and forces working for Hydra and Justin Hammer on the other. But all of that suddenly came to a swift end once Moonstone arrived, armed with nuclear warheads she’d hidden away months ago.

“So let me get this straight,” said the Speed Demon. “Moonstone, one of the craziest bitches on the planet, had a stockpile of nukes hidden away. And you Thunderbolts did jack?”

“Don’t start, Sanders,” said the Fixer. “Finger-pointing’s not gonna mean a whole lot once those things strike.”

“Then let’s make sure they don’t strike,” said Lodestone, hovering off the ground. She held her arms out in front of her as magnetic waves of energy pulsed from her fingertips. The magnetic fields she generated began slowing the missiles. But as impressive as her powers were, they were nowhere near the level of Magneto. And even he would struggle with such a feat. For Lodestone, the best she could manage was to temporarily slow the missiles. Even now, however, she felt the strain as she gritted her teeth, blood beginning to trickle from her nose.

“We don’t have a lot of time, we’ve got to disable those missiles!” shouted the Fixer. “Chen, can you absorb the cores of those missiles?”

“In theory, but I can’t jump that high,” said the Radioactive Man a moment before an invisible force raised him off the ground.

“I have you,” said Graviton, using his control over gravity to launch the Radioactive Man at the missiles.

“Thought you and Moonstone were in cahoots,” said Mentallo.

“I may be insane, but that doesn’t mean I have any desire to die in a mushroom cloud,” said Graviton.

“In that case, perhaps you should add your abilities to Lodestone’s to hold those weapons back long enough for Dr. Chen to complete his work,” said the Abomination.

Graviton didn’t like being told what to do, but there was no denying Blonsky’s logic. He hovered beside Lodestone, using his gravitational powers to aid her magnetic ones in keeping the missiles at bay.

The Radioactive Man landed on one of the stationary missiles. It was vibrating as it tried to fight against the abilities of the two villains. Chen Lu worked as fast as he could, gripping the missile and draining the nuclear energy from the core. Once he was confident the warhead was inert, he leapt to the next and continued the process.

Below, the three groups of villains could do nothing other than watch, hoping that the Radioactive Man could disable all the warheads before the strain became too much for Lodestone and Graviton.

As the others watched, the Fixer noticed several conspicuous absences. After launching the missiles at them, Moonstone was gone. So too was Zemo, who had left the field almost immediately after killing Half-Life upon his arrival. 

ALL HAIL THE KING

Part III

By Dino Pollard

Baron Zemo moved through the halls of his castle, seeking out his foe. He was unaware of Moonstone’s sudden arrival, nor did he know of the weapons she unleashed on the combined forces. Had he known, he would have done something to stop it. But at that moment, the one thing on Zemo’s mind was taking the Swordsman off the board.

“Come now, Andreas. Haven’t we done this dance long enough?” he asked.

A figure stepped from the shadows, clad in purple armor and with a drawn sword held at his side. The Swordsman regarded Zemo from behind the blank visage of his helmet.

“What’s the meaning of all this, Andreas?” asked Zemo. “You took control of Hydra, you avenged your sister’s death, but it wasn’t enough, was it? You had to come for me. Was it because you feared my power? Or was it simply to one-up your father? He always felt inferior to mine, and now his son feels inferior to me.”

“Spare me the armchair psychoanalysis, Helmut,” said the Swordsman. “If anyone is a slave to their family legacy, it is you.”

Zemo gestured with his hand and the moonstone appeared above his open palm. “I could kill you quickly with this.”

The Swordsman’s blade began sparking with the power of Fenris. “That goes for me as well.”

“But I’m more interested in seeing just how good the Swordsman is. So what do you say? No powers?”

The Swordsman rested the tip of his blade on the ground. He peeled the tanned skin of his sister off the hilt, which allowed him to use his Fenris powers. Zemo gestured again and the moonstone’s glow dimmed to nothing before falling to the ground. 

The Swordsman brought his sword to the ready and lunged. Zemo parried his first strike, and delivered a kick to knock Andreas back. Zemo swung wide, but Andreas leapt over the swing. He bounced off the wall and came flying at the Baron, bringing down the sword. Zemo just barely evaded by bending backwards. 

Their swords clashed once. Twice. Zemo pulled back and then thrust his blade forward. The Swordsman twisted to evade it, but the blade still scraped against his armor. Swordsman spun and ended up behind Zemo, wrapping his arm around his throat. The Swordsman brought his sword, positioning it by Zemo’s side. 

Zemo shoved back, slamming the Swordsman against the wall. Andreas groaned at the pain of being crushed against the wall and his grip loosened. Zemo pulled away and turned. He brought his sword down and Andreas just barely brought up his blade to deflect. But then another strike and Zemo had the upper hand. He swung again, striking at Andreas’ sword and this time, knocked it away.

The Swordsman was now pinned against the wall. Zemo held his sword at arm’s length, the tip of the blade resting right near Andreas’ throat. 

“Go on,” said the Swordsman. “Finish it.”

“Why would I do that when there’s so much more we could accomplish together?” asked Zemo.

The Swordsman tilted his head in confusion. Zemo lowered his blade and Andreas removed his helmet, his expression one of complete surprise. 

“What sort of game are you playing now?” asked Andreas.

“I have no designs on Hydra, you are free to keep that organization for yourself,” said Zemo. “But you should know that Justin Hammer cannot be trusted. Control has already turned on him and what little influence he had was quickly waning.”

“You’re lying,” said Andreas.

“Am I?” Zemo reached for one of the pouches on his belt. He produced a voice recorder and hit play. There were two voices. One belonged to him and the other belonged to the Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine. Zemo had recorded his conversation with her and played it for the Swordsman’s benefit.

Just as the recording ended, Andreas’ body was restrained by scarlet strands of cloth. The Crimson Cowl had arrived and now used her capes to hold him stationary. Andreas strained against them, but one of the Cowl’s tendrils wrapped around his neck, tightening to the point that it was difficult to breathe.

“Not so fast, Justine.” Zemo stepped closer and looked the Swordsman in the eye. “Well, Andreas? What do you say?”

Hydra Island

Moonstone appeared from a portal, joining Hammer on the roof of the Hydra facility. Hammer was staring out over the ocean and the horizon and when he saw Sofen, a smile spread on his face.

“It’s done,” she said. “I’ve unleashed the nukes.”

“Good,” said Hammer. “Strucker was a child and being able to eliminate all those ingrates in one fell swoop means the power of Hydra can now fall to me.”

Another portal opened, with Zemo and the Crimson Cowl emerging. Hammer turned and looked at the two new arrivals, his hands clasped behind his back.

“Ah, my wayward daughter returns,” said Hammer. “Aren’t you happy to see me?”

“You should’ve stayed dead, Daddy,” said the Cowl. “This time, I’ll make sure you do.”

“I think not.” Hammer brought his hands forward and fired a blast of concussive energy from his hands, striking the Cowl and blowing her off the roof. 

Zemo noticed that on Hammer’s wrists were the Null-Bands, granting Hammer powers that would put them on equal footing. 

“Come, Helmut. You, I plan to kill slow,” said Hammer.

Moonstone hovered back and watched as Zemo vanished in a portal. He then appeared behind Hammer, but Hammer was quick to turn and caught Zemo’s sword in his hand. With the Null-Bands, Hammer’s strength had increased to superhuman levels, and he was able to easily snap Zemo’s blade in two. Hammer wrapped his hand around Zemo’s neck and raised him off the ground. 

“Now, Zemo. I will show you what real power can do,” said Hammer with a cackle.

Zemo could feel the power of the moonstone draining. Hammer was using the Null-Bands to siphon off his power and there was little he could do about it. Except for one last gambit.

Drawing on what was left of his powers, Zemo opened up a new portal and his newfound ally emerged. The Swordsman entered the field and with a quick swipe, severed Hammer’s hands and the Null-Bands with them. Hammer screamed at the sudden loss of power and the stinging pain. He dropped to his knees, looking at the bloody stumps where his hands once were in horror.

His screams were suddenly silenced by the Crimson Cowl, who returned. The tendrils of her capes wrapped around her father, tightening around his throat and making it so he couldn’t even scream. Hammer’s eyes were filled with terror at once more falling into a dark abyss.

*CRACK*

The Cowl released her father’s corpse. And now, the three turned to face Moonstone. The Swordsman took a step towards her, but Zemo held up his hand and Andreas remained in place.

“So, another shift in alliances,” said Moonstone. “There’s just no honor among villains anymore, is there?”

“You’re one to talk, my dear,” said Zemo.

Moonstone unleashed a powerful energy blast. Zemo stood his ground and held out his hands. The energy blasts struck Zemo’s palms, yet the energy began vanishing inside his hands. And Moonstone realized that as the Cowl was finishing off her father, Zemo had donned the discarded Null-Bands.

“That was nice of you, Karla. Hammer had left my stone’s reserves near-empty. But thanks to these Null-Bands—and yourself—it’s now stronger than ever.”

Zemo propelled himself like a rocket and slammed into Moonstone with the force of a bomb. The two grappled as they soared high into the stratosphere, trading titanic blows that sent shockwaves through the air. But with each strike, Karla felt her power waning while Zemo’s grew stronger. The Null-Bands were slowly draining what she had left.

Hands wrapped around her throat and Karla screamed as Zemo began absorbing the power directly from her. But before it was completely gone, Zemo stopped and simply held her in place.

“This is the end of the line for you, Dr. Soften,” said Zemo.

“At least I won’t have to hear any of your sanctimonious, narcissistic speeches anymore,” said Moonstone. “So just get it over with already.”

Zemo smiled beneath his mask and loosened his grip. “Actually, I was thinking more along the lines of offering you a job.”

Moonstone’s eyes widened. She then phased through Zemo’s hands.

“You must be joking,” she said. “No way am I stupid enough to ever trust you again.”

Using what was left of her power, Moonstone created a portal and teleported away to parts unknown. It wasn’t the ideal closure. He’d prefer killing Sofen or having her under his sway. With her still out in the world, she remained a wild card. One he would have to deal with at some point.

Castle Zemo

The Radioactive Man absorbed the last of the cores and then jumped from the missile into the water below. Now free of any danger, Lodestone and Graviton used their combined powers to crush the missiles into scrap. Once the Radioactive Man returned to shore, the three groups regarded each other with suspicion.

“So…what now?” asked the Beetle. “We gonna go back to throwing down?”

A bright, blinding light drew their attention away. The gathered villains all looked to the source. Zemo emerged from a portal with both the Swordsman and the Crimson Cowl by his side.

“The hell’s goin’ on?” asked the Sandman.

“It’s over,” said the Swordsman. 

“The three of us have come to terms,” said Zemo. “We have declared a truce and entered into new contracts together. Our little supervillain war is at its end for the time being.”

“You gotta be kidding me,” said the Constrictor. “After all that?”

“What about Hammer?” asked Tarantula.

“My father’s dead,” said the Cowl, a statement which caused Hammer’s agents to stiffen and ready to fight again.

“Your contracts will be paid in full,” said the Swordsman, anticipating the dissension. That seemed to relax Hammer’s former agents. “And you will have the opportunity to take part in our new venture, should you so desire.”

There was still some discomfort among the groups, but they more or less agreed to go along with it. With the war now at an end, Zemo used his enhanced powers to open portals for the other groups, leaving just the Thunderbolts.

After the dust had settled and the different groups were gone, Zemo found himself standing on the roof of his castle, looking out over the small pocket dimension that had served as their base. And would continue from now on.

“Penny for ’em,” said the Fixer, joining his leader on the roof.

“A unified group of villains can have a great deal of sway,” said Zemo. “This consolidation brings us one step closer to our goals. But there is still something else left to do.”

“You sure about this, Helmut? There is that whole thing about pride coming before the fall. And your star’s rising pretty high right now.”

“Perhaps, Norbert. But I’m willing to gamble on something greater.”

The Damocles Chamber

Zemo stepped through the portal and viewed the gathered group of individuals. This was the place where Control met. And as Zemo’s eyes traveled over the faces, there were some he recognized but others he had never seen before. The power brokers behind the scenes, who pulled strings and played the various heroes as puppets while continuing to strive for more power.

“Hammer is dead,” said Zemo as a way of an introduction. “And Hydra is under control. Now it is your turn. We had a deal and I expect it to be honored.”

“You’re right, a deal’s a deal.” The Contessa rose from her seat and addressed the organization. “Hammer’s demise has left a vacancy on our council. As his replacement, I would like to nominate Helmut Zemo. All in favor?”

All hands in the room went up. And beneath his mask, Zemo smiled.

One step closer…

The End…for now

LIGHTNING STRIKES

Well, that’s the end of the ride for me on the Thunderbolts train. It’s kind of wild to think of how we got to this point. It started with Curt Fernlund and I planning to wrap up the loose ends after George Cameron launched and then abandoned the title after only two issues. Now it’s thirteen years and thirty-five issues later.

I definitely have to give some words of thanks. First to Meriades Rai. His love for villains and the Supervillain War series he once wrote (I think that was the name, but can’t recall offhand and not sure if it’s even online anywhere anymore) served as an inspiration to do a take on the Thunderbolts that eschewed the redemption angle in favor of villains being villains.

Then, of course I have nothing but thanks for Steve Seinberg. My first solo arc was a bit difficult to get my head around, but as soon as I asked Steve if he’d be interested in helping out, he just ran with the idea. Together we had come up with some very interesting tales and some very cool takes on characters that we both felt weren’t really that well-developed in the comics. Turning Andreas Von Strucker from a minor annoyance into a chessmaster remains one of my proudest achievements on this book and something I hope other writers at MO stick with going forward.

Steve unfortunately made the decision to leave the book with issue #34. He had some family responsibilities to deal with that took priority and of course, I understood. But without Steve around to help steer the ship as expertly as he had been doing, I didn’t feel as comfortable continuing. So I decided to wrap up the book as best as I could, while still leaving things in an interesting place going forward for other people to play with.

That’s all for now. Thanks for reading over the years.