Marvel: The Journey

Get access to 15+ chapters on patreon.

patreon.com/aidenusmani 

**********

As the cool breeze swept through the rows of gravestones, a somber figure stood tall amidst the solemnity of the cemetery. He was a man of imposing height, with a lean and angular face that exuded a sense of refinement and elegance. His sharp features and high cheekbones were accentuated by wire-rimmed glasses, framing his striking blue-gray eyes that seemed to hold within them a deep sense of sorrow and loss.

The man's neatly slicked-back dark brown hair complemented his sharp suit, complete with a vest and tie. He stood solemnly in front of a grave bearing the same last name as his which was Johann Fennhoff. His gaze was fixed intently on the name etched into the cold stone, his expression one of profound melancholy and heartbreak.

While standing there in the quiet of the cemetery, memories flooded back to him. Memories of a loved one lost, of a life forever changed. The man stood motionless, lost in his thoughts and grief, a poignant reminder of the power of love and the enduring pain of loss.

While the man stood before the grave, lost in his thoughts, he felt a sudden vibration in his pocket. Retrieving his pager, he scanned the message and a faint smile slowly crept onto his face.

His attention returned to the grave, and a fiery intensity ignited within him. With a fierce determination in his voice, he muttered, "Good. Very good." He looked upon the name etched into the cold stone, a glint of hatred in his eyes. "We will have our revenge soon, brother."

As he spoke these words, a sense of purpose and resolve overtook him. The memory of his brother's untimely demise, and the anguish it had caused him, burned fiercely within him. He vowed to seek justice and retribution, to avenge the wrongs that had been inflicted upon his family.

The man placed a delicate bouquet on the grave. His heart heavy with emotion, he took a moment to pay his respects to the departed, before turning to leave the cemetery behind.

While making his way toward the exit, his eyes were drawn to a figure in the distance. A man, seemingly lost in thought, was opening his car door. Without hesitation, the man strode confidently towards him, his body upright and his gait smooth and controlled.

As the man turned around to face him, Johann's eyes turned grey and locked onto his, and his voice rang out with authority. "As my driver, I command you to take me to my desired location," he declared with unwavering certainty.

The man's eyes briefly lost focus, clearly affected by Johann's power. But in the next moment, a look of respect and dutifulness replaced his initial confusion. With a deep sense of reverence for him, the man opened the car door for Johann and spoke with a tone that carried a hint of deference. "As you wish, Sir," he replied with a sense of purpose, ready to carry out Johann's wishes without question.

A small smile played across Johann's lips as he settled into the plush leather seat of his car. With a sense of comfort and familiarity, he allowed himself to relax and let go of the tension that had been gripping him.

The man entered the car and started the engine, and with a gentle hum, they pulled away from the cemetery, leaving the quiet stillness of the night behind.

As the car drove through the city streets, Johann's gaze wandered over the passing buildings and the familiar sights that surrounded him. His thoughts began to drift back to the past, memories of bygone days flooding his mind.

Johann Fennhoff and his brother both enlisted in the Soviet Armed Forces during World War II, each determined to do their part in the fight against Nazi aggression. Johann chose to serve as a medic, driven by a desire to help those who had been wounded in battle. His brother, on the other hand, became a soldier, eager to take up arms and defend his homeland.

Together, the brothers were deployed to the front lines, their courage, and dedication to the cause unwavering. They fought with valor and determination, facing the brutal realities of war with a sense of duty that inspired those around them.

Their unit was assigned to participate in the campaign to push the Nazi forces back from the German town of Finow. 

In World War II, Howard Stark found himself faced with an unusual request from the United States Army: to design a gas that would keep soldiers awake for days on end. Despite his best efforts, however, his experiments failed to yield the desired results.

What Stark did create, however, was a substance that he dubbed "Midnight Oil." While it did have some stimulant effects, it also caused a host of troubling side effects, including sleep deprivation, anger, hallucinations, and even full-blown psychosis.

Recognizing the potential dangers of his creation, Stark made the decision not to hand it over to the military. But General John McGinnis, the man who had ordered the development of the Midnight Oil, had other plans.

In the year 1944, the fates of two men collided in a manner that would alter the course of history. John McGinnis, a powerful military leader, had long been obsessed with finding a way to gain an edge in the ongoing conflict of World War II. And Howard Stark, a brilliant inventor, had been tasked with creating a new weapon to turn the tide of battle in favor of the Allied forces.

But as with many great inventions, things did not go exactly as planned. When McGinnis and his troops raided Stark's laboratories and stole his prized creation, the Midnight Oil, they believed that they had finally found the key to victory. They loaded the gas onto the United States Air Force planes and set out for the battlefield on the Eastern Front, hoping to unleash its power against the German defenses in the area.

But as the planes soared over the countryside, something went wrong. The gas had a different effect on the Soviet soldiers than they had anticipated. Instead of gaining strength and power, hundreds of soldiers were driven mad by the gas, their minds consumed by a single thought: to kill everyone around them. As the chaos and violence spread, it quickly became clear that the Midnight Oil was not the weapon that McGinnis had hoped for, and that the consequences of his actions would be far-reaching and catastrophic.

The aftermath of the gas attack was horrific. The once-disciplined Soviet soldiers began to act like savage beasts, tearing at each other's flesh with their teeth and using whatever weapons they had at hand to inflict brutal injuries. 

Blood flowed freely as the soldiers turned on each other, blinded by the violent impulses that the Midnight Oil had unleashed within them. 

When the chaos finally subsided, the field was littered with dozens of corpses, the ground slick with their blood. The lucky few who had managed to survive the onslaught did so at a great cost; many were left permanently mute, unable to speak after the traumatic events they had endured. 

Johann Fennhoff was among the fortunate survivors, thanks to his quick thinking in donning a gas mask before the attack. But his brother was not so lucky; like so many others, he had fallen victim to the deadly effects of the Midnight Oil, leaving Johann to mourn his loss and grapple with the trauma of what he had witnessed.

Following the deadly aftermath of the Midnight Oil gas release, the area was investigated by a group of Wehrmacht soldiers led by Ernst Mueller. They discovered the horrifying sight of corpses, some of whom were Soviet soldiers that had slaughtered each other. 

A day later, Howard Stark arrived and witnessed the gruesome scene while John McGinnis attempted to cover up the incident. In the aftermath, a few survivors, including Johann Fennhoff, Sasha Demidov, and Leet Brannis, were approached and recruited by the shadowy organization known as Leviathan.

As Johann sat in his car, his mind filled with the gruesome memory of his brother's lifeless body, his teeth clenched in anger and his voice laced with obsessive hatred, he vowed, "Howard Stark, you will pay for what you did to my brother. I won't rest until you do."