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History

Early Life[]

Much of Captain America's early life matches that of his Earth-616 counterpart.

Universe X Cap Vol 1 1 Cap WWIII

Captain America during WWII

Steve Rogers began his life in poverty, though with a family that loved him. When World War II broke out, Steve enlisted in the army and volunteered for an experiment run by Dr. Abraham Erskine that gave him superhuman strength, speed and stamina. He took the name "Captain America" and became a super-soldier. Steve fought alongside James "Bucky" Barnes, a young man who threatened to reveal Steve's secret identity to his superiors unless he allowed the young Barnes to join him and the Invaders in the fight against the Axis powers. Bucky died in an explosion that led Steve to become frozen in ice for decades. Steve would always blame himself for Bucky's death.[1]

Steve's frozen body washed up in the arctic, where it was worshipped by a tribe of Inuit, before being discovered by his erstwhile World War II companion Namor the Submariner, and eventually, the superhuman heroes known as the Avengers. The Avengers thawed Steve out from the block of ice, and he quickly went on to join and soon lead the team.[2]

Steven Rogers (Earth-9997) from Universe X Cap Vol 1 1 002

Rescued by the Avengers

At some point in his past, Cap was held prisoner by the Red Skull; during this encounter, the Red Skull revealed that Dr. Abraham Erskine was secretly a member of the Nazi Party. The Red Skull went on to explain that Adolf Hitler had used the scientific apparatus of Allied countries to fund Nazi experiments, through the use of agents like Erskine. The secret plan of the Nazis for the super-soldier project was to create a perfect Aryan race, and as such, they picked Steve Rogers, a scrawny young man with blond hair and blue eyes. Red Skull also went on to explain that the assassin that killed Erskine was originally meant to kill Rogers after his birth, and that Erskine's death was not intended.[3]

At some point, Cap was asked to run for president of the United States but declined, believing he needed to represent the American dream as a concept, and not a specific generation of citizens.[4][3] He also had a falling out with his former lover Sharon Carter, leading the two to become enemies.[4]

World Wide Mutation[]

Due to what was at the time unknown circumstances, the entire world's population began to rapidly mutate and anarchy spread across the world. Cap and other heroes tried their best to help those affected.[5]

After his revelation to Steve, the Red Skull had decided to abandon his attempts to destroy him, having realized that he was all that the Fuhrer had dreamt of. Instead, he attempted to make certain that Rogers lived up to his master's dream. He began stalking him, and targeting those around him whom he deemed "impure". After murdering Bernie Rosenthal, a Jewish girl Cap had briefly dated years earlier, Cap brutally murdered the Red Skull. After these traumatic events, he swore to never take a life again. Believing he was no longer worthy of being an Avenger, he left the team, despite his old friends' protests. Not long after, all the Avengers (except the Vision) were murdered by the Absorbing Man in Washington, D.C.[3]

Universe X- Cap Vol 1 1 Red Skull Death

Killing the Red Skull

After killing the Red Skull, Cap took the Cosmic Cube from him. Knowing that he would be too tempted to use it, he turned it over to the only person he knew could resist this temptation, and who would never return it to Cap no matter how much he begged for it: the Black Panther.[6]

Cap joined up with S.H.I.E.L.D. to restore order to New York City, after meat shortages lead to widespread famine. While they succeeded, their crackdown on desperate people seeking to feed themselves would alienate much of the public.[7]

Shortly thereafter, the parasitic Hydra emerged. Believed to be an alien invasion, the Hydra began attacking S.H.I.E.L.D. and assimilating many top S.H.I.E.L.D. agents and heroes, among them Cap's longtime partner the Falcon and his lover-turned-foe Sharon Carter.[7][4] Using the chaos of the mutation of humanity and the Hydra to rally the scattered heroes and villains of America, former supervillain Norman Osborn became the new president of the United States.[7] Captain America refused to serve under him, opting to go his own way. Shortly thereafter, S.H.I.E.L.D. was completely destroyed and Nick Fury was killed.[7]

When investigating the wreckage of the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier, Cap discovered a video message from Nick Fury, warning him that the Hydra had in fact been created by Norman Osborn. Realizing his friends had died because he had refused to be Osborn's soldier affected Steve deeply. Despite struggling with the will to live, Steve travelled to New York with his partner Wyatt Wingfoot, ready to cast aside his promise to himself and kill Osborn.[3]

Rise of the Skull[]

While fighting the Hydra in New York, Steve discovered a torn cloth emblem; the old Punisher skull-symbol dyed red. Cap took this as a sign that his old foe the Red Skull had returned.[4] Soon, Cap and Red Wing traveled to the fallen S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier to see if its computers could locate any other sign of this red skull insignia and found a large concentration of the symbol on the west coast.[8]

In California, they found a large group of people (one of whom was Cap's old ally Texas Jack) working under the banner of this red skull, collecting fish from the ocean. This pillaging of the sea caught the attention of Namor, who attacked them. To Cap's surprise, Namor suddenly stopped and bowed down to their leader, a teenage boy who went by the name of the Skull. Using his powers to compel the obedience of anyone he came across, the Skull was creating an army of superhuman slaves, which he planned to use to conquer America.[2]

The two were discovered, prompting Cap to confront the child and demanding he release those under his control. The Skull only laughed at him, seizing control of Wyatt and forcing him to beat Cap into the ground. Skull decided he would let Cap go, leaving him the only person in America with his own free will while the Skull seized control of everyone else. Cap was driven out of the camp as the enslaved superhumans cried out for him to save them, while being compelled by the Skull to throw rocks at him.[9]

With his will all but broken, Cap remained among the endless horde of enslaved superhumans, admitting defeat. Here he was discovered by the stuntman calling himself Daredevil. Having been robbed of his audience, Daredevil wished to stop the Skull as Cap's new partner, being sure that Cap would lose and thus allow the immortal Daredevil the chance to die.[10] The two rode along with the Skull's army towards New York, while Cap sent Daredevil's fellow circus performers ahead to New York City to find Cyclops and ask him to train them to be the new X-Men.[11]

Upon arriving in New York City, Cap and Daredevil located The Thing, asking him to aid them in rallying an army to stop the Skull from taking over the world. Using the tuning fork once belonging to the Inhuman royal pet Lockjaw, Cap began teleporting around the world to find aid. He first approached his old Avengers teammate Tony Stark, who refused him, believing that his Iron Avengers could dispatch the Skull.[12]

From Japan, he recruited Lord Sunfire and his Red Ronin army; Ka-Zar and Shanna the She-Devil from the Savage Land; from Russia, he recruited Czar Colossus, the Black Widow, the Crimson Dynamo and an army of Red Guardians; from Great Britain, King Britain, the Black Knight, Dragon Man, and an army of Union Jacks, and finally Guardian and Sasquatch from Canada.[6]

He even travelled to Wakanda seeking aid from the Black Panther, and asked him for the Cosmic Cube for use against the Skull. Just as he had promised years before, the Black Panther refused to give Cap the cube, and refused to aid him altogether, stating that should the Skull's army make their way to Wakanda, he would deal with the invaders on his own.[6]

With his own army now assembled, Cap returned to New York to face the Skull. His efforts proved futile however, as the Skull merely used his powers to seize control of Cap's entire army. Realizing that he had now doomed the entire world in order to save his own country, Cap made a desperate lunge for the Skull after he once more refused to kill or control him. Under the Skull's command, Texas Jack nearly killed Cap, only for him to be rescued by the long retired Spider-Man.[13]

The two heroes returned to the Thing's loft where they regrouped with the Thing, and the X-Men, and formulated a plan. After their previous battle with the Skull, Cap had noticed that the Skull was unable to take control of the Hulk, and could only control the beast once he took control of Bruce Banner. Cap also realized that the Skull had destroyed the Iron Avengers as opposed to taking control of them and realized that the Skull could not use his powers on those without minds of their own. They decided to make use the Marvels (life-sized clay sculptures of many of Earth's heroes in their prime that were created and given life by Alicia Masters.

Using the Marvels as a distraction, they succeeded in throwing the Skull off long enough for Cap (covered in clay shaped like himself in his prime) to sneak up behind the Skull. The Skull realized too late that the clay figure was the real Cap, and could not seize control over him before Cap snapped his neck.[13]

Earth X Vol 1 11 Skull Death

Killing the Skull

With the death of the Skull, all those possessed by him were free; at that moment, the Celestials arrived on Earth to eradicate all life on Earth. While the Celestials first battled Tony Stark and later Galactus, Cap left the battle in order to bury and provide a eulogy for the Skull, whom he dubbed "James" (after James Barnes, his first partner, Bucky) as he had not known the boy's name.[13]

Sometime after the Celestials' defeat in New York harbor, Reed Richards had reconfigured most of the world's Vibranium beacons into "Human Torches" to burn the Terrigen Mists out of the Earth's atmosphere as the first step in attempting to reverse the world's mutation. Cap was selected to light the first of these torches in New York City.[14]

Once again passing over leadership of America, Cap oversaw the appointment of Texas Jack as the Marshall and lawman of New America.[15]

All was not well however. The destruction of the Celestial Embryo in the center of the Earth caused the world's magnetic poles to shift, causing great ecological disasters. The mutated populace of Earth blamed the Torches and resented those trying to take away their powers. The artificial beings, Him and Her, gave birth to the reincarnation of Kree hero Mar-Vell, and while Her was kidnapped, Reed Richards managed to get away with the infant Mar-Vell, placing him in the care of Namor and Agatha Harkness.[15]

Three Years Later[]

Three years later, Captain America was called on to assist Mar-Vell in a quest to gather several artifacts of great power. Mar-Vell wished to prevent these weapons of mass destruction from falling into the hands of the masses, and to use them to create a paradise for everyone to defeat Death, reconstruct the Cosmic Consciousness he once possessed, and create a paradise for the deceased to dwell within.[16]

Cap and Mar-Vell first located former superhero Dagger and relieved her of the cloak once belonging to her partner Tyrone Johnson. Granting the ability of instant teleportation, the cloak would help them in their quest. After retrieving it, Cap began seeing the specter of Death, and initially believed that it was coming for Mar-Vell.[16]

They next traveled to Dr. Strange's former Sanctum Sanctorum, searching for the Orb of Agamotto, and the books of the Darkhold and Vishanti. They found the manor overrun by Mindless Ones and encountered Loki, who was in the process of redefining himself after learning that he wasn't really a god, but an alien manipulated by the Celestials. Loki informed them that they would find the books within the Siege Perilous in Britain and would learn the location of the Orb once they got there.[16]

Arriving in Britain, they were aided by Captain Britain, Medusa and the Black Knight in entering the Siege Perilous. There they met Psylocke, Roma, and Merlin, who gave Mar-Vell the Books of Vishanti and Darkhold. Merlin also gave Mar-Vell a piece of the Cosmic Consciousness. Merlin informed them that the Orb of Agamotto was in Japan.[17]

Guided by Ka-Zar, Cap and Mar-Vell then traveled to Sentinel City in the Savage Land to collect Anti-Metal. Expecting to deal with Sentinel City's ruler Magneto, they were shocked to find Magneto a slave of his former servant Toad. The shifting of Earth's poles had caused the two to switch powers, allowing Toad to enslave Magneto. Requiring Toad's aid to grant them access to the portal to Limbo, Steve reluctantly agreed to leave Magneto to his fate. The three heroes traveled through the portal into Limbo, where they were attacked by an army of Dire Wraiths. During the battle, they were aided by Rom the Space-Knight, who for reasons unknown, had traveled to Limbo to battle his arch-nemeses.[17]

During the battle, the Wraiths backed off as Mephisto appeared, and the group noticed that Belasco (the supposed ruler of Limbo) was once again trapped in ice. Mephisto offered Captain America a deal: a glowing orb that would allow Cap to access Limbo and travel to any point in history or even to hide from Death, who could not follow into Limbo. Cap refused the offer and swatted the glowing globe out of Mephisto's hand, striking the frozen Belasco and sending him back in time. With his apparent goal achieved, Mephisto left them and Mar-Vell and Cap collected the Anti-Metal they needed. Before they left, Rom offered Cap his blaster, which would send any enemies they faced to Limbo.[18]

The heroes' next stop was in Japan, where they arrived just as the Xen had fought off an army sent by the Tong of Creel. Cap was given the Orb of Agamotto by Wong, who had relocated here, bringing with him the body of his master.[19]

Next, Cap and Mar-Vell traveled to the base of the Hydra, in search of Mar-Vell's old Nega-Bands. Rick Jones, the last person to have possessed them was a member of the Hydra; however, when they arrived, they noticed that Rick Jones only possessed one arm and that the Nega-Bands no longer contained any of their former power. Puzzled that the Hydra had survived the Skull's attack, Mar-Vell revealed that the Hydra killed their "hosts" upon assimilation, and merely used their bodies as puppets. Having believed that his friends had found peace within the Hydra, and having even desired to join them, this revelation nearly broke Cap. Angered, he used the blaster given to him by Rom to send them to Limbo.[19]

Escaping Death, the two heroes traveled to Washington, D.C.; Cap was beginning to be affected by the cloak they used for travel and began having visions of his past whenever he traveled into it. Mar-Vell was searching for Mason Harding to find the location of his Dimensional Doorway. Finding Harding in D.C., he informed them that it could be found near Mount Rushmore.[3]

Traveling there, they found a village at the top which was home to a number of inmates who had been subjected to Harding's mad-bomb and believed themselves to be colonial Americans. Cap had aided these people in the past and helped them battle creatures that traveled out of the Dimensional Doorway that the inmates dubbed "The Night People." Cap and Mar-Vell found that the people were still plagued by these creatures and had taken to impaling them and putting them on display in the town proper.[3]

Steven Rogers (Earth-9997) from Universe X Cap Vol 1 1 001

Cap sacrifices himself

The group of inmates found Cap and Mar-Vell and threatened them, accusing Cap of not making sure they were safe, and merely leaving them to their own devices. Refusing his excuses, they were attacked and forced to flee.[3]

They located the Dimensional Doorway, but were captured while in the process of collecting it. Cap himself was shackled to cuffs that had razors in them. Cap freed himself even at the risk of cutting his wrists open and attacked his captors. He and Mar-Vell sought refuge in an old school house where they planned their next course of action. Mar-Vell used an emergency beacon given to him by Reed Richards to summon help, but the help would not arrive in time. Cap suggested they make a run for it, but before he could, Mar-Vell asked Cap to look into his eyes. Witnessing Mar-Vell's vision for paradise through his cosmic awareness, Cap decided that he needed to ensure Mar-Vell's survival. Carrying a doll resembling Mar-Vell, he made a break for it, causing the crowd to pursue him, while the real Mar-Vell stayed hidden with Cap's shield.[3]

Cap led the mob away from the town long enough for reinforcements to arrive; but was shot to death in the process. After Cap's death, he awoke in the Realm of the Dead. Finally reunited with his dead loved ones, Cap, like the other denizens of the realm, believed he was still alive and gave himself over to a never-ending war.[3][20]

After Death[]

In the aftermath of his death, Cap's body was buried in New York City, Mar-Vell took to wearing Cap's shield, and he continued his quest with the aid of Venom, the X-Men, the Hulk, Bruce Banner, and Thor.

Sometime later in the Realm of the Dead, while Mar-Vell's army of heroes were fighting against Death's armies, the entire group was convinced by Death that they were once more alive. This was instrumental to Mephisto and Death's victory over Mar-Vell as with one last item required (the Silver Surfer's Power Cosmic, which Mar-Vell was unable to collect as his counterpart in the land of the living was intangible at that moment), Captain America rallied all the heroes and villains in the Realm of the Dead in one final attack against Death and her armies to buy Mar-Vell more time.[21]

As it turns out, before his death, Cap was given the knowledge he needed to remember that he was dead in the Realm of the Dead, and he was Mar-Vell's ace in the hole should anything go wrong. Cap's final attack gave Mar-Vell enough time to merge with the Power Cosmic, which revived him in the land of the dead. He then used the Cosmic Consciousness to reveal to Thanos that he was being manipulated by Death all this time and convinced him to use the Ultimate Nullifier to kill Death.[21]

With Death destroyed, Mar-Vell began constructing his Paradise for all those in the Realm of the Dead who would admit the fact that they are dead and give them a Paradise world to live out their dreams in. Paradise was located in the heart of the Negative Zone's Anti-Matter sun.

Cap was among many of the dead who were transmuted into one of the Avenging Host, a league of "angels" selected by Mar-Vell to bring new souls to the realm of Paradise. Among many of the deceased that Cap was charged with bringing to Paradise were his own family (including a brother he never knew he had who passed away before he was even born), as well as Frank Castle (formerly the Punisher) and his family.[22]

Cap couldn't find a way to try and explain to his parents that they were already dead and that Paradise awaited them, so he focused more of his time on convincing Frank Castle. However, when Jigsaw and the Jackal decided to return to the Realm of the Dead, they decided that they would spend their time torturing Frank Castle for killing them in the land of the living. This caused Frank to realize that he was dead and so he went on a shooting spree to try and prove to people (and his family, whom he frightened off from his lethal force used on Jigsaw and Jackal); Cap eventually intervened and took the two villains away.[23]

Although the Avenging Host began to doubt Mar-Vell's omniscience and his goals, Cap was still determined to find a way to convince the people in the Realm of the Dead that they were all dead. He considered using his former foe the Skull and his powers to do so. This got him into a conflict with Thanos, who opposed Mar-Vell's plan. The two battled until Kyle Richmond appeared, casting further doubt on Mar-Vell's plan.[24]

Cap decided that it was best to fight Mar-Vell, and began freeing all those trapped in their own private worlds. The Avenging Host were suddenly summoned by Mar-Vell. They were all forced to confront their failures by Mar-Vell, and subsequently destroyed, just as Paradise was invaded by the Kree.[25][26] When Reed Richards arrived to confront Mar-Vell, the Kree hero revealed that he had orchestrated the chaos erupting on Earth and Paradise as a way of finally breaking the cycle of violence. He resurrected Captain America and the rest of the Avenging Host, and subdued the Kree.

Mar-Vell revealed that his Paradise was a shield, intended to protect the universe from the influence of the Elders of the Universe and the Celestials. He ceded his omniscience to Reed before leaving in search of the first, core reality from which all others had emerged.[27]

Paradise X Vol 1 1 Textless
Cap decided that his ideal paradise was with his family in the Realm of the Dead and returned there to live out the rest of eternity with them in happiness. Cap's place in the Avenging Host was then filled by Hawkeye.[27]

Attributes

Powers

Seemingly those of his Earth-616 counterpart.

As a member of the Avenging Host, Cap was given a number of supernatural powers. His wings enabled him to fly, he could change his shape (Cap always changed his shape into a human version of himself in different uniforms; it is unknown if Cap had the ability to change his form to resemble anyone else other than his former self); additionally, he was able to travel between the dimensions of the Land of the Dead, to Paradise, and from Paradise to the Anti-Matter Sun of the Negative Zone (although he was invisible to the people there). Cap could also awaken the latent memories of those in the Realm of the Dead with a single touch.

Paraphernalia

Weapons

When he was alive, Cap wielded a shield similar to that of his Earth-616 counterpart. In the Realm of the Dead, Cap was armed with a shield similar to the one that he used during World War II. When Cap was transmutated into a member of the Avenging Host, he had an energy sword. The hilt of the sword was in the shape of a star and appeared to be composed of some form of energy. The properties of this sword and any abilities it may have had are unknown as Cap was never forced to use it as a weapon.

Transportation

When he was alive, Cap traveled in a S.H.I.E.L.D. flying car; he later transported himself with the tuning fork that was once attached to the head of the Inhuman dog, Lockjaw. This device would teleport its user to any location they desired.

See Also

Links and References

References

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