VILLAIN
Years Old
Male
56 Posts
The Green Goblin
Heterosexual
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The bad guys always win.
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Post by Norman Osborn on May 16, 2014 11:17:51 GMT -5
A gust of cool wind brushed over Norman as he stepped out of his car, eyeing the unkempt apartment building in front of him as he closed the passenger door. He turned back and nodded to his driver, a bald man in a crisp black suit, who returned the gesture, acknowledging that everything was a go. The car pulled off and Norman walked towards the building, checking the vicinity for anyone who may be able to recognize him. After all, being spotted in the Bronx was sure to raise some questions, especially since he was becoming such a high profile figure. Which was the reason Norman was here - it had become incredibly difficult to keep his good public standing and progress his plans from the shadows at the same time. Sure, he had met with Loki, Doom, and even Cletus Kasady - but they all had their own agendas, a factor that could derail any sort of allegiance that was crafted. Norman didn't have a choice but to trust them, but he needed an ace up his sleeve - someone he could control completely, who would follows his instructions without fail.
And that brought James 'Bucky' Barnes to his attention.
Well, not the Bucky from his world at least. The Winter Soldier from his dimension was a reformed criminal who had once taken up the Captain America mantle. A victim of Department X brainwashing, his Bucky had overcome that to become a hero - what a waste. But Norman's intelligence network had pinpointed that the Bucky here may have been under HYDRA brainwashing. Reports of him fighting against both Captain America and that female Hawkeye had been brought to Norman's attention, and some of the transcripts of the events led Norman to some interesting conclusions. From what he gathered, Bucky was still under some sort of HYDRA mind control, and hardly recognized the people that had once been his friends. But Norman knew HYDRA was all but inactive currently, the current invisible wall related predicament leaving them with no leader and cut off from their global resources. So naturally, this was the perfect opportunity for Norman to take the reigns and give Bucky a new purpose.
"Spare change?" A ragged looking man with an eye patch looked up at Norman at the entrance to the apartment, breaking his chain of thoughts. Norman scowled down at the man and pushed through the graffiti ridden front door, entering into a grimy lobby area with an 'Out of Order sign' posted over a cramped elevator. Norman waltzed towards the shoddy staircase and begun his ascent. Norman had to admit that Bucky definitely picked a pretty discreet spot to lay low - it took longer than Nomran would have liked to get any intel on this location, though he finally got word that Buck had been seen leaving apartment 310 one night via the balcony. Norman reached the door and adjusted his suit jacket, his tie suddenly becoming uncomfortable.He knew the place could have been rigged with some sort of booby trap, but he didn't have time to care, and turned the doorknob slowly, the lock already broken - most likely by Bucky. Inside, Norman found a fully furnished cramped apartment with a splintered wooden door leading tot he balcony. For peasant living, Norman had to admit it was better than he had anticipated.
Norman closed the door behind him and took a seat in a ripped couch, finding it a lot less cushioned than it appeared. Norman ran over his plan once more in his head. He was here to give Bucky a new purpose, following Norman's orders - it shouldn't be that hard for a man that was now cut off from his formerleaders. He had followed blueprints of some aged HYDRA and Department X tech to create a new modernized brainwashing machine that was hopefully going to mimic (if not outclass) whatever HYDRA had been using with Bucky already. Norman knew that the revival process had damaged Bucky's physiology, and that regular reprogramming sessions would need to take place to keep him in a stable and obedient frame of mind. However, Norman would need to adjust the machine to sync with Barnes' brainwaves first, before he could calculate how often the sessions would need to occur. He was also going to have to do this as discreetly as possible. He had a small team of men working on the project, Oscorp employees and former HAMMER agents he knew he could trust, and had a small underground section of Oscorp dedicated to the project.
Norman leaned back in the couch, trying to get comfy. Hopefully his host would arrive soon.
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Post by Deleted on May 16, 2014 22:23:18 GMT -5
The intelligence agencies called him a ghost.
For all intents and purposes he was.
The last few weeks had shaken him down to his very core, even though he would never admit it, and he sure as well wasn't going to go out seeking help for it. He'd deal with it on his own, just like he had for decades. He was still the Soldier, but there was a part of him that he still didn't understand, a part of him that called out for that blonde man and the red-headed woman. He knew them and the feelings that they had stirred made him feel lost and confused. There was no direction in his life. He hadn't heard from Pierce or anyone else in HYDRA since he had arrived, although at first he had brushed it off as being mission-focused. They had tasked him and they just hadn't checked in. It had happened before with handlers. But now?
After being in this city, watching and following people, listening to what everyone was saying, he was convinced that the archer girl had been telling him the truth when he had first arrived. He didn't claim to understand it, it was far past anything he had ever had to deal with, but he had come to accept that they were trapped here for the moment. Now it was just a question of what he was going to do about it. In all honesty, if he had orders and had work, that would have once been enough for him. But now...now with all these confusing images and feelings and names that were rattling around within his head, he wasn't sure what he wanted anymore. He had failed his missions. He was compromised. The only difference was, he had no handlers who had come looking for him, to take him back to that room, to cleanse and re-program him. Oh yes, he was remembering more of that now, more than just echoes. He had no idea how long they had been doing it, but it was how they had shaped him, kept him in line, and now that he was starting to think on his own, it could be very dangerous indeed.
Except he wasn't used to thinking on his own. He wasn't used to wanting things or needing things. It wasn't necessary for tools. For Weapons. He found himself wandering, alone, unsure, and struggling to deal with his shattered mind. He desperately needed answers but he wasn't sure where to go. He had set about getting a roof over his head, as it was always one of the first thing he had had to do on prolonged missions, and he now stood at the base of the small, brick-faced apartment building. His tactical gear and most of his weapons were in the apartment he had commandeered. The former inhabitants wouldn't need it anymore. They were long dead with two clean shots from his 357. Needing to somewhat blend in, not sure who was really the enemy or ally at this point, but not wanting to bring attending to himself, he had dressed in dark-washed jeans, black combat boots, a dark gray shirt and a black leather jacket, taken from a donation bin he had discovered a few days back. With a black cap pulled down over his eyes, he blended in with the crowd of people in New York.
He reached the dimly lit hallway that the apartment was on, stepping over someone who had collapsed drunk or overdosed in front of their door, but paused a few feet from the door of the apartment. Someone had been here. Frowning, he examined the very slight shift in the dirt that had become ingrained in the thinning green carpet. Not taking any chances, he decided to go an alternate route, and made his way to the roof. Pulling his P220 from the back of his pants where he had it hidden, he made his way down the fire escapes before pausing right above the window of the apartment that would lead into the living room. In one fluid motion, he slipped through the opening and set foot silently in the apartment, immediately spotting the figure on the couch. A quick scan revealed that there was only the one man. In an instant, he had the barrel of his gun pointed at the back of the man's head, only a few inches away. If he took the shot, it would definitely be messy, but it wasn't something he was unaccustomed to. "Dayte mne khot' odnu prichinu ne strelyat' vam pryamo seychas," (Give me one good reason not to shoot you right now) he said darkly, his finger resting on the trigger.
 tag Norman
word count 832 notes He's not very trusting XD lyrics Dance with the Devil by Breaking Benjamin credit Rae of Sunshine! of Caution 2.0 made this temp! |
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VILLAIN
Years Old
Male
56 Posts
The Green Goblin
Heterosexual
Single
The bad guys always win.
|
Post by Norman Osborn on May 17, 2014 0:36:26 GMT -5
Norman felt the cold barrel of a gun press against the base of his skull, and smiled. He expected nothing less from the elite Winter Soldier. Hell, Norman hadn't even heard the man enter the apartment. He heard the man's deep voice speak in another language, and Norman could make out some of it as Russian, a language he wasn't fluent in. After all, why would he need to be? That's what his technology was for. Norman raised his hands in an act of surrender and slowly turned his head around to face the man. Bucky's hair was long and his clothes ragged, but Norman could see all the training in the man's cold eyes, staring into Norman not as a fellow human, but as a target. The Winter Soldier was as frigid as his name implied, and Norman knew he was willing to pull the trigger as soon as there was an inkling of a reason to do so. And he would do it with no remorse, as well. Just another job, another obstacle in his way. Norman grinned - The Winter Soldier was an even better fit for his plans than he had assumed. Inside his head, the Goblin laughed manically in anticipation.
"I don't speak Russian." Norman told the man. He wasn't sure if Bucky spoke English, but he wasn't going to let a language barrier ruin his plans. "Watch: Translate - Russian to English." Norman spoke aloud, his eyes straight on Bucky. He knew that is he made any reactionary movement, Bucky could pull the trigger. Norman wasn't scared of the scenario he found himself in - after all, it wasn't the first time a gun had been pointed at him, and it wouldn't be the last. After conquering death once, Norman found it to be more of an inconvenience than anything else. Norman's wristwatch lit up, the screen glowing blue with a small book icon displayed. Oscorp had developed the technology for the watch years ago and sold it to the highest bidder. Since then, the firmware and technology had been improving at a rapid rate, the watch capable of now intelligently translating to and from 23 different languages almost flawlessly.
'Translating...Russian to English...' A woman's electronic voice spoke as the book icon animated to look like it was flipping open. 'Give me one good reason not to shoot you right now. Translation complete.' The watch presented in a neutral tone. Norman flashed Bucky a knowing smirk. He could give Bucky a hundred reasons not to shoot him. There were thousands. But really, Bucky wouldn't understand or care about the majority of them.
"Watch: Add Translate - English to Russian." Norman spoke aloud, the watch again glowing blue.
'Translating ready: Russian to English and English to Russian.' The watch beeped in confirmation.
"Because I'm here to give you some new orders, Winter Soldier." Norman spoke, the smirk spreading on his face.
'Potomu chto ya zdes', chtoby dat' vam nekotoryye novyye zakazy, zima soldata.'
"You don't need to work for HYDRA anymore. I'm here to take their place - to give you direction, orders, and purpose. My name is Norman Osborn, and I'm here to save the world from itself, and from the so-called 'heroes' that want you to think what you've been doing is wrong." Norman kept speaking. The watch lagged behind his words a little bit, but after a second it chimed out the words in Russian. "Will you put the gun down now?" Norman asked impatiently. He was getting tired of looking at the thing, and wanted to put his hands down. The watch echoed his statement in Russian. Norman eyed The Winter Soldier carefully, giving the man a chance to react to everything.
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Post by Deleted on May 17, 2014 9:23:46 GMT -5
He knew that he was a wanted man after what had happened at the museum. Killing security guards and destroying a cherished exhibit apparently weren't highly looked upon and he knew they would be looking for him. He knew that man, Rogers, he would be looking for him too, but he didn't want to be found. The Soldier was uncertain about a great many things and he knew Rogers would want him to be someone he wasn't, he'd call him by that name again, and that he couldn't deal with. Staying within the shadows, keeping himself away from the public eye, that was what he needed to do right now until he figured out what was going on and why this was happening. None of it made any sense and he was beyond frustrated.
So having a stranger show up in his living room, of all places, was not something that pleased him in the least. He didn't know what this man wanted but he was two seconds from pulling the trigger and not caring. The Soldier watched the man intently as he stood, raising his hands in surrender, and turned to face him. He didn't know the face but that mattered little in the long run. He would be dead soon enough. His gaze was cold, hard, and unwavering as the man spoke. Honestly, he wasn't sure why he hadn't pulled the trigger yet but part of him wanted to know why this man was here and that was the part that caused him to hesitate. If the man tried anything, or made any kind of movement towards a weapon, the Soldier wouldn't hesitate to end his life.
He heard the voice come from what looked to be a watch on the man's wrist, his gaze only flicking towards it once before returning to the man's face. The Soldier listened as the man talked of new orders, of essentially offering him a job to work for him but still didn't lower the gun, keeping himself at a fair distance from the other. There was a part of him that needed to hear those words, that what he was doing mattered, and that it was something that someone was looking to him to accomplish. All of these images and names that were filling his mind made it a living hell to try and focus, but maybe this was what he needed. Pierce wasn't there, this city was cut off from the outside, and the more time he spent alone with his thoughts, the more he felt himself beginning to collapse. He needed a purpose, and this man seemed to desire to give him just that.
The Soldier considered shooting the man, regardless of what he was claiming, but the man was offering him direction and clarity, two things that he was indeed lacking at the moment. His loyalty was to no one. He didn't care who he worked for, whether they were HYDRA or the KGB. In the end, the Soldier had been trained for missions, to be able to go into places where it was either a situation they didn't want traced back to anyone (and having a larger team would make that impossible) or it was something that they needed handled quietly and efficiently. The Soldier had a spotless record and it was something that he valued very highly. "What would you have me do?" he asked finally, switching to English effortlessly and lowering the gun but still keeping it in his hand, prepared to use it if he should need to. tag Norman
word count 639 notes Yay for new orders? XD lyrics Dance with the Devil by Breaking Benjamin credit Rae of Sunshine! of Caution 2.0 made this temp! |
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VILLAIN
Years Old
Male
56 Posts
The Green Goblin
Heterosexual
Single
The bad guys always win.
|
Post by Norman Osborn on May 18, 2014 23:10:15 GMT -5
Norman smiled darkly as the soldier moved the pistol, though Norman could tell the man was still capable of pulling off a snap headshot. Norman expected nothing less from the legendary assassin. 'Chto by vy mne delat' ?' The watch echoed, and Norman touched the screen, holding it until the light faded, indicating it was in sleep mode.
"Glad to see you speak English. I would hate to have to communicate through that watch the whole time." Norman spoke matter-of-factly, adjusting his tie as he looked at The Winter Soldier. Now that there wasn't a gun in his face, Norman examined the man more clearly, surprised at how different he looked than the Bucky Norman had once interacted with. Their faces were the same, but this one's hair was longer, more unkempt. His stance was more tense, ready for anything to happen. This Bucky was still very much shaped by his extreme training and conditioning from HYDRA, whereas the Bucky Norman knew had integrated all of that into his own experiences working with SHIELD and Captain America.
"He is ripe to be molded." The Green Goblin commented in Norman's head, a dark smile poised on the imaginary face. Norman couldn't agree more.
"Anyway, I've got a lot of things that need to be done, Winter Solider - and you're the only one that can do them for me." Norman spoke with a smile, unafraid to look at his 'host' dead in the eye. "I need someone like you - someone that can get things done quickly, get things done right, and get things done without failure. I'm here to give you jobs that suit your training. Assassinations, protection detail, taking out anyone who would try and attack me." Norman gestured towards the man casually. "As you may have noticed, the whole of New York is trapped under some sort of bubble. People are scared, panicked, and unsure of what to do. I mean to help bring order to an otherwise chaotic situation. I'm here to help the people along, give them some direction in their lives now that the status quo has been so altered. And they need your help as well." Norman walked over towards a rickety shelf and looked at an arrangement of curious knick knacks assembled on it.
"You see, there are a lot of impostors coming into this world. So-called heroes who say they are trying to do good and trying to help people, but they aren't. They're doing more harm than good, and can't even see it." Norman turned back to The Winter Solider with a scowl now across his face. Just thinking about those big-headed egotists made him want to punch something. "They're here to baby these people, to try and preserve this meaningless waste of life by keeping things how they've always been. But times have changed and the people are going to need a push to change and adapt with it. I'm here to help do that, with you by my side. Life needs purpose, I think you would agree. I'm here to give it to yours." Norman's grin reappeared. "What do you say?"
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Post by Deleted on Aug 21, 2014 1:47:29 GMT -5
He never moved from his position, instead keeping his gaze focused on the other. Osborn. He didn't care about the name. He knew it was just a formality that the other was introducing himself to the Soldier and maybe it was supposed to mean something, or make him appear more powerful, but names were just words in the end. Targets. Missions . Those were the only names that the Soldier cared about. And Steve. That name, where had it come from? There was a faint flicker of something in the Soldier's gaze, a mixture of confusion and emotion but it was gone as quickly as it had come, and his features remained cold and unwavering. No, he didn't know that name. Or at least, he didn't want to think about it. That name brought to the surface too many questions, and all he wanted was clarity. Clarity and focus and a purpose. This man was offering him a purpose and there wasn't much stopping the Soldier from agreeing. Though the man went on and on about some kind of philosophy, the Soldier was more focused on the man's movements, watching him carefully and assessing him. Whatever methods or reasonings behind his handler's actions were of no consequence to him. A weapon didn't need to understand that, didn't need to know it, but it seemed that they all always wanted to explain it to him. Pierce had always done that and now this man was. He recalled faintly someone else explaining to him why they were having him do what they wanted, but it was just a shadow of a thought, something from before his clearer memories. "A purpose ... Steve had a purpose," he murmured, more to himself than to the other man before scowling and clenching his hand into a fist at his side. Eyes closed briefly, he took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. Emotions were weak, emotions got him into trouble, and weapons didn't need emotions. They weren't necessary. Finally, he looked at the other man. "I will follow your orders," he said simply, calmly. There would be more blood on his hands, he knew, but what was just a little more red when he already had decades covering his history? "What is my mission?" With missions came supplies, money - and money meant he could get more of the sleeping pills, the ones that would help keep the nightmares away and would keep him from dreaming. He could steal and survive on what he took for a long time, but not forever. A handler also meant supplies for maintenance, because while the metal arm performed well, there were times when it was beyond his ability to fix it. credit Rae of Sunshine! of Caution 2.0 made this temp! |
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VILLAIN
Years Old
Male
56 Posts
The Green Goblin
Heterosexual
Single
The bad guys always win.
|
Post by Norman Osborn on Sept 18, 2014 12:52:09 GMT -5
Norman watched the Winter Soldier, noticing a vague hint of dilemma in the man's face. It was well-hidden and brief - the man may not have even know it happened - but Norman caught it. He was good at things like that - reading people, profiling them, and using that information to his advantage. Norman heard Bucky breathe a few words quietly and uncertainly, like he had no control over their emergence. Norman slightly narrowed his gaze at the man, trying to dissect the words and his movements to arrive at a truth. He couldn't exactly ask very much of the Winter Soldier - the man's brain was still warped and manipulated by HYDRA's alterations, but he at least gathered that Bucky didn't consciously recollect Steve Rogers' impact on his life. However, the soldier remembered the hero in some vague capacity, and that could prove to be a problem. Norman had done plenty of brainwashing procedures in his time, and he knew it wasn't an exact science yet. The most powerful memories always lingered somewhere, hiding away until they had the strength to come forward. Norman's technology would be able to suppress those memories, but he didn't know for how long. That's why the Winter Solider would probably need to be treated often.
Norman brushed his thoughts away for the time being, confident in his own procedures to not have to worry about such an issue. He smiled wide at Bucky's next statement. "Good! I knew you were a smart guy." He outstretched his arms in excitement. It was hard to tell how this first encounter would go, but it seemed to go smoothly. Norman was glad - he needed a break like this. "I've got plenty for you to work on, Winter Soldier." Norman paced towards the man with his arms now crossed, a smile still stretched on his face. Having pawns was nothing new to Norman, but having them in this new found reality was a relief - after all, it was hard work maintaining his new positive social status while working behind the scenes and monitoring the imbecilic heroes all at once. With the Winter Soldier under his belt, Norman would have much more operational autonomy.
"You're first job is a very simple one. There is a pest that has been a thorn in my side for a little bit, and I need her eliminated." Norman got more serious, his smile fading. "She goes by the alias Hawkeye. I believe you may have tangled with her already if I'm not mistaken." Norman remembered the footage he had at his office, a shaky smartphone filming of The Winter Solider fighting the woman briefly. He needed to review that again when he got back. "She needs to be eliminated. I don't care how, but I need her dead." Norman lifted a finger with a dark look on his face. "My only stipulation is that her lifeless body be left out in the open." Norman wanted the heroes to know they were in danger - he also had a bit of a personal vendetta against the heroine as well.
"Think of this as your trial run." Norman grinned. "I'll give you three days to carry it out." Norman knew that he would need to get Bucky under the microscope soon, but wanted to see what he was capable of first. Besides, he needed to finish some calibrations on his brainwashing device anyway before it was ready.
"Any questions?" Norman asked with a devilish smile.
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