Post by Uatu the Watcher on Feb 12, 2007 18:24:09 GMT -5
The Secret Empire
The Secret Empire is a subversive organization concerned with conquering the U.S.A. through surreptitious means such as forming underground armies and engaging in deeply layered conspiracies. Traditionally, the Secret Empire has been organized by code numbers given to each member which indicates their rank within the organization. The nine highest-ranking members originally comprised the Council of Nine to provide direction for the rest of the organization, while the person who held the rank of Number One served as the supreme leader. The original Secret Empire was funded by the terrorist group Hydra, and its underground branch called THEM made the Empire a branch of Hydra alongside its own scientific division, A.I.M. Later iterations of the Empire were completely self-sufficient.
One of the Empire's earliest known overt actions involved the attempted theft of the U.S. Air Force's Orion Missile, for which they hired the mercenary Boomerang, although he was thwarted by the Hulk. At the same time, S.H.I.E.LD. agent Gabriel Jones had infiltrated the Council of Nine in the guise of Number Nine, and he killed all of the Council except for Number One himself. Later, fleeing the Hulk, Number One's robes caught in the door, keeping him from escaping an explosion he had planned for his enemies, and he was killed. Ironically, his body was rendered unidentifiable by the blast, leaving the man who sought fame to be buried as a "John Doe."
A subsequent Number One, an unidentified U.S. government official, turned the Secret Empire's attention to the Brand Corporation. At the time, the Beast was a Brand employee, and his research made him a target of numerous Secret Empire agents, including the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, the robot Quasimodo and the Griffin. At the same time, Number One plotted to topple the U.S. government. Among their plots, using a front organization called the Committee to Regain America's Principles, they promoted their agent Moonstone (Lloyd Bloch) to the public as a super-hero, framed Captain America (Steve Rogers) for the murder of the Tumbler, and captured mutants of the X-Men and the Brotherhood of Mutants. The cumulating of these plans came when Number One used the captured mutants' mental energy to power his command ship, landing on the White House lawn, and demanding the U.S.'s surrender. Captain America, the Falcon and the X-Men opposed the Secret Empire. Seeing his plans falling to ruin, Number One fled into the White House, pursued by Captain America. Removing Number One's hood as they fought, Captain America was shocked when he recognized Number One's true identity. Number One then committed suicide rather than be imprisoned. Recognizing Number One from his prestigious political position, Captain America became so shaken and disillusion that he temporarily retired his heroic identity to become Nomad.
The Secret Empire is a subversive organization concerned with conquering the U.S.A. through surreptitious means such as forming underground armies and engaging in deeply layered conspiracies. Traditionally, the Secret Empire has been organized by code numbers given to each member which indicates their rank within the organization. The nine highest-ranking members originally comprised the Council of Nine to provide direction for the rest of the organization, while the person who held the rank of Number One served as the supreme leader. The original Secret Empire was funded by the terrorist group Hydra, and its underground branch called THEM made the Empire a branch of Hydra alongside its own scientific division, A.I.M. Later iterations of the Empire were completely self-sufficient.
One of the Empire's earliest known overt actions involved the attempted theft of the U.S. Air Force's Orion Missile, for which they hired the mercenary Boomerang, although he was thwarted by the Hulk. At the same time, S.H.I.E.LD. agent Gabriel Jones had infiltrated the Council of Nine in the guise of Number Nine, and he killed all of the Council except for Number One himself. Later, fleeing the Hulk, Number One's robes caught in the door, keeping him from escaping an explosion he had planned for his enemies, and he was killed. Ironically, his body was rendered unidentifiable by the blast, leaving the man who sought fame to be buried as a "John Doe."
A subsequent Number One, an unidentified U.S. government official, turned the Secret Empire's attention to the Brand Corporation. At the time, the Beast was a Brand employee, and his research made him a target of numerous Secret Empire agents, including the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, the robot Quasimodo and the Griffin. At the same time, Number One plotted to topple the U.S. government. Among their plots, using a front organization called the Committee to Regain America's Principles, they promoted their agent Moonstone (Lloyd Bloch) to the public as a super-hero, framed Captain America (Steve Rogers) for the murder of the Tumbler, and captured mutants of the X-Men and the Brotherhood of Mutants. The cumulating of these plans came when Number One used the captured mutants' mental energy to power his command ship, landing on the White House lawn, and demanding the U.S.'s surrender. Captain America, the Falcon and the X-Men opposed the Secret Empire. Seeing his plans falling to ruin, Number One fled into the White House, pursued by Captain America. Removing Number One's hood as they fought, Captain America was shocked when he recognized Number One's true identity. Number One then committed suicide rather than be imprisoned. Recognizing Number One from his prestigious political position, Captain America became so shaken and disillusion that he temporarily retired his heroic identity to become Nomad.