Unnatural Selection Part Three

Compelled to rescue a political prisoner from Nu Grazi prison in the West African Republic of Kuanga, Death’s Head 3.0 goes on a rampage after the prisoner was killed. As Death’s Head is slaughtering the prison guards General Ral watches from afar and demands answers. When his his adjunct cannot answer any of these questions, the General shoots him in the head. When he asks his captain what he plans to do, Captain Kort wants to pull his men out of harms way since there seems to be nothing to stop this cybernetic invader. However, this is not good enough for General Ral who demands that they send his entire army to destroy this invader.

Meanwhile, at GEIST headquartesr in Geneva, Agent Braccia presents the Death's Head unit’s attack on Nu Grazi as proof that there is a connection between it and AIM’s Varina Goddard since her former colleague Meredith Driscoll is being held there. Her superior admits that this proves a connection between Death’s Head and AIM, he doesn’t think this sanctions a need to invade a independent republic. Her concerns that this is connected to something bigger are ignored, as her commander thinks this is AIM’s mess to sort out. At that same moment, the powers that be at AIM are mobilizing a unit to go into Kuanga and recover the Death’s Head unit, no matter what, as it is considered AIM property. Watching this all from her life support chamber is Varina Goddard, who muses to herself that by the time AIM’s tactical team reaches Kuanga, Death’s Head will be long gone as she is satisfied by what it can do and is already preparing for the next phase of her plan, an assassination of key UN deligates which is part of her bid to seize control of AIM. She then contacts her co-conspirators at a facility in France to report the successful test of the Death’s Head unit and that the next phase will be up to them. She then turns her attention to Raymond Hidalgo, a cybernetics expert hired to help decommission AIM’s former criminal activities, who is now delving into data that she would rather not have known and decides that he needs to be silenced.

Back in Nu Grazi, the slaughter continues as the Death’s Head unit lays waste to the Kuangan army. Deep inside, the alien intelligence — which refers to itself as a child of the cosmos — is trapped within. It has prefared the warmth of the mental cocoon it sealed itself in when it failed to save the life of the political prisoner it decided to free. Deciding that the path to redemption has been closed off forever it has decided to leave the Death’s Head unit follow its original programming.

By this point, Raymond Hidalgo manages to decode and old file recorded by former AIM head, Monica Rappaccini, about the Uni-Power. Rappaccini explains that the Uni-Power is a self-aware energy source that seeks out subjects in a time of crisis. Fast-forwarding ahead, he learns how AIM used a virtual reality simulation in order to trick the Uni-Power in order to capture it. Curious, Raymond begins looking into Monica Rappaccini and learns that her daughter was Carmilla Black, who succeeded her mother. Interestingly her granddaughter turned out to be none other than Varina Goddard.[1] When Raymond makes this discovery, Varina reveals that she has been watching him.

At that moment, in Nu Grazi, the Death’s Head unit has slaughtered the majority of General Ral’s forces. When the other refuse to follow orders, General Ral threatens their lives, but his tyranny ends when Captain Kort shoots him in the head. With no further opposition, the Death’s Head unit returns to its ship. The presence inside is still resigned to allowing its body to follow its pre-programmed directions. It then travels to France where the AIM operatives loyal to Varina Goddard hook up the Death’s Head unit to their computers so Varina can program it’s next objective. However, she is concerned that Raymond is getting close to discovering the secret of the Uni-Alias that resides inside the Death’s Head unit and puts him on her list of targets slated for extermination.

Recurring Characters

Death’s Head 3.0, Raymond Hidalgo, AIM (Varina Goddard, Monica Rappaccini, Meredith Driscoll), GEIST (Agent Braccia)

Continuity Notes

1. This story states that Carmilla Black was Scientist Supreme of AIM from 2019 until 2045. Since this is a possible future of the Earth-616 timeline (Reailty-6216) it too operates on a sliding timescale as well. As the Earth-616 universe slides forward in time so does this possible future as that it remains a possible future of Earth-616. As such, modern readers should interpret Carmilla becoming the head of AIM thirteen years in the future of Earth-616 and holding that position for 39 years of “Marvel Time” instead of 2019 to 2045.

Untold Tales of the New Universe - Mark Hazzard: Merc

Los Angeles, 1987[1]

As their helicopter arrives overtop of a hotel, Louis “Treetop” Barrington tells his employer — Mark Hazzard — that he’s crazy to be jumping out of the chopper. Mark assures Treetop that he is using high-tensile rope and has enough give to pull off this stunt. He then leaps out of the chopper and swings into one of the rooms. There are more gunmen than the intel suggested, forcing Mark to run for cover. That’s when his other friend, Mal Rossi reminds him that there are to be no fatalities on this mission. Since there are too many shooters to take the non-lethal route on his own, Mark tells Mel to give him covering fire. Unfortuantely, the glass of the hotel is reflective, preventing Mal from getting a clear shot through his sniper rifle.

Mal comes up with a different solution and after preparing his rocket launcher he tells Mark to get to cover. Although the rocket stops short of killing everyone, the shooters surrender. This allows Mark to kick in the bedroom door of General Luis Montoya a South American dictator who has been fighting against the United States War on Drugs and had recently illegally come in to the country to see his mistress. However, Mark is distracted by catching Montoya with his lover that he is ambushed by one of his bodyguard who is lurking in the room. However, Hazzard easily knocks him out and gets his gun back on Luis before he can get his gun off the nighttable.

When Montoya tells Mark to go ahead and kill him as he is proud to die for his country. However, Mark isn’t there to kill the dictator, but to serve him divorce papers from his wife. As Hazzard is picked up by Treetop, he muses that everyone assumes that when someone uses the word mercinary they assume that all they do is kill, however that’s not always the case and that some jobs are better than others.

Recurring Characters

Marc, Treetop Barrington, Mal Rossi

Continuity Notes

1. Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Alternate Universes 2005 confirms that events in the New Universe (aka Earth-148611) occurred in the 1980s and that universe does not operate on a Sliding Timescale like Earth-616 does.