[El_Roy_1999]

Thanks a lot everybody.

[El_Roy_1999]

I used Photoshop and traced it by hand. The original had a rather crappy resolution, so this was the easy way out.

[El_Roy_1999]

The question could be: Can he lift her?
About the Frank Miller bit, that's the sharp contrasts, I think.
Thank you!

[El_Roy_1999]

I'm glad you like it. The Growth is approaching. IT'S COMING!

Confessions

The old man stared at him for a second, then smiled.
“Well, no. But you are well informed. What you see here is the product of the Stachanov project. You see, after the Great Patriotic War, that’s World War II for Americans, several researchers and scientists were given the order to create a kind of super-worker training programme to provide the Soviet Union with a manpower advantage. I guess the idea came from comic books, since this was what we were given as inspiration. We were even allowed to learn English to read them.” The woman snickered. “Work progressed very slowly. I was a junior researcher at the beginning and spent most of my active life around here. Anyway, for reasons best left unknown, the facility was named after Georgy Zhukov. When Brezhnev came to power, we had a bit of a struggle. One of those personal things which people from the West cannot understand. Still, we were shut down to reduce the amount of things named for Zhukov.” He coughed. “Which was tragic, since we were about to achieve success. When the area was evicted, we hadn’t managed to make any human testing. We only contributed to the “modification” of local wildlife. Hence the bear.” He took a sip from his cup. The woman continued:
“I was a lab assistant at the time, and we had plans to flee the Union together, so we wanted to take some of the research with us. Out of desperation, we finally did some human testing.” She casually flexed her arm, causing the seams of her shirt to creak. “In the end, I was way too noticeable to leave the country. We settled down around here, keeping to ourselves.”
Calvin had been listening attentively all the time. Michelle asked:
“That’s all very nice. But surely, the beasts you tested your procedure on must have died long ago. So, where did the monster-bear come from?”
“The method must have changed the recipients DNA: I mean, have you noticed how some Russian heavy athletes have, well, begun to look more human recently? You know, less hormonally imbalanced?” Michelle nodded. “I’m proud of my kids.”
Calvin looked rather distraught for a moment. After a second, he asked:
“Do you have any remaining information on the procedure? Do you remember how you did it?”
The old man laughed. He shook his head:
“I’m sorry. All this happened decades ago, and trust me, all the relevant information has disappeared years ago. I wouldn’t be surprised if some American multi-millionaire businessman bought the archives after the Fall.”
“That’s too bad.” Calvin pondered the answer. Ekaterina asked:
“What are you looking for and why are you here?”
The Asian woman explained the situation. Her massive interlocutor merely shrugged. The old man put down his cup and said:
“I am very sorry that you have travelled so far to no avail, but it is best for us to go to sleep now. It has been a rather tiresome day for all of us. If you do not mind, young man, you should sleep on the sofa, I’ll make myself comfortable on the chairs. I do not need much sleep, besides, it is only courteous to leave the bed to the women.”
Calvin looked crestfallen, but conceded. They went to bed. Michelle climbed into the bed. Moments later, the old man’s wife got in. The bed sunk in a little. At first, she wondered if she would be beaten to death if the woman were to flail her arms while sleeping. When the room was dark, she finally found the courage to ask:
“How does it feel?”
The massive woman turned over, lying on her side. Her enormous body bunched together, but still her head seemed to lie much higher than Michelle’s. Ekaterina whispered her answer:
“It feels great. At first, it was awful. No way to find any clothes at all. After a while, I got used to it. You know, this place used to be really rough on me. Most of the men around here were desperate to the point of committing a crime and I was almost raped when I came here in the 70s. After the “test”, the men’s interest declined. Which wasn’t bad.” Michelle could almost hear the woman smirk. “Let’s put it this way: I’m still the area’s arm-wrestling champion. Anyway, Anatolij likes it, and it’s fine by me…”
All of a sudden, Calvin shouted:
“You’re lying, the both of you! Zhukov was a military man. They wouldn’t name it for him if there was no military interest. Besides, I doubt there are comic books about super-workers in the US!”

[El_Roy_1999]

Enjoy…

There stood a cabin of earth and wood…

After a few minutes of sprinting, Michelle being half dragged, half carried, they arrived at a small cabin. They had followed the fence for several minutes, but had then turned back into the forest. The building appeared to be half sunken, only it’s roof was visible above the snow. Their leader opened a small door at the structure’s front and ushered them in. As they climbed in, a muffled roar could be heard from the deeper woods.
Climbing down a short ladder, the pair found themselves to be in a single roomed house. It’s centre was dominated by a large stove, several comfortable chairs and a very large bed. The structure’s base seemed to be made of dry earth, the walls were made of concrete, but decorated with wall-carpets.
They waited, catching their breath. Suddenly, the hunch lifted itself and revealed a very short man. He must have been some five feet tall. He climbed down, saying a few short words to his carrier. Meanwhile, the woman removed her heavy fur coat and stretched. Underneath, she wore military fatigues and a simple t-shirt. As she stretched, large muscles erupted under her skin. At first, she had appeared overweight, but now, her massive frame was revealed. She had enormously broad shoulders, easily a yard across and a strong neck, framed by bulging trapezii. Her arms hung lazily from her side after she finished stretching. Her massive biceps and triceps gave her an appearance similar to that of a football line player. The picture, however, was spoiled by the fact that she also had large, round but slightly sagging breasts.
After a few seconds, Michelle looked at the woman’s face. It had taken some time to get past the tremendous bulk her host was exhibiting. Even her legs were ridiculously large, her calves easily visible from the front, stretching the fabric of her trousers. The woman was rather nice to look at, her short blonde hair framing her heart-shaped face nicely. Her soft brown eyes had visible crow’s feet but shone brightly and youthfully. All in all, she seemed to have reached the age of gorgeousness and had chosen to remain there.
The man, on the other hand, was rather frail, grey-haired and quite simply, old. He ushered his guests to take off their jackets and boots and to make themselves comfortable. In perfect English, he asked them:
“Would you like some tea to warm you?” Calvin and Michelle nodded eagerly. Meanwhile, the large woman had busied herself with the stove, had added a few pieces of wood and bade them to sit down.
“Do take a seat. Whatever drove you to go out in this weather?” Her voice, carrying the merest hint of an accent, was rather deep and sultry. Scrambling on the sofa-like seat, which seemed to be home-made, the pair slowly overcame their surprise. At last, Michelle answered:
“We were looking for the ruins of a military facility in this area. We thought it would be alright, the guy whom we rented our car from even encouraged us to visit the area. He never told us anything about this storm, and he should know…” After a short pause, she added: “Thank you for the rescue. I have never seen a beast like that one. What happened?”
The old man returned with a steaming tea kettle. He prepared the tea quickly, then replied:
“Ah yes, this is the local idea of a joke. You see, we do not get many tourists around here, so there’s no need to be courteous. Or civil for that matter.” He turned to the woman, who had sat down meanwhile: “Some tea for you, Ekaterina?” She nodded. He finished serving drinks, then added with the faintest of smiles: “Indeed, the local wildlife has much improved over the years. You are welcome to stay here for tonight. Tomorrow, when the storm has settled, we will fix the radio antenna and call for help. I’m quite sure that people in town will be worried about your disappearance. Make yourself comfortable.”
Calvin had remained calm during the conversation. He had looked at Ekaterina, fascinated by the woman’s sheer massiveness. Michelle could barely help staring, but he seemed to be completely mesmerised. At last, he asked:
“How did you become so, uh, large? Is this the super-soldier formula?”

[El_Roy_1999]

Excellent! Do continue, please!

[El_Roy_1999]

Well, this is the first action scene. I hope you like it. Be aware that there is a little bit of swearing. The horror!

A grizzly encounter

The creature approached. It was very large, some two yards tall and almost as wide. It walked at a brisk pace, swaying from side to side. Calvin stared at it, since it came from the driver’s side, he could perceive the sheer size of it sooner.
“It’s a fucking bear. A huge bear! Shit!” He fumbled for the starter key, turned it, the engine roared, he put the reverse gear in, and hit the gas. The car drove back, groaning as it left the trench. The enormous bear promptly reacted and ran towards the car. It was on all fours, lounged forward and grabbed the car. It’s enormous bulk smashed against the window, denting the car door and breaking the window pane. Calvin screamed.
The monster tore at the car door, eager to get inside.
“Out! Out! Quick, get out of the car!” Calvin urged Michelle to get out. She pushed open the door, fell out, got up and started to run. Her friend was after her seconds later. The beast pushed it’s head inside the car. They ran as quick as they could. Around them, trees flashed by, the snowstorm roared, all hell had broken lose. The bear had finished dismembering the car and began looking for them.
Michelle felt her heartbeat drum against her forehead, sweat was pouring out of her body, her windpipe was aching. She ran as fast as she could, slipping on loose snow, barely evading low branches. She heard Calvin run behind her. Deep in the roaring storm, the savage growl of the monstrous bear could be heard. It had taken up the pursuit. Needlessly wondering how fast a bear could run if it were twice as large as normal, Michelle ran on.
Suddenly, a fence appeared out of nowhere. She smashed into it, the thick wires gave a metallic rattle. Calvin arrived seconds later and instantly started climbing. She grabbed the wires firmly and proceeded to follow his example.
The bear emerged from the forest, roared and threw himself at the fugitives. It jumped, grabbed Michelle’s leg and started to pull. She felt as if the creature would rip her leg out. She clung to the fence with her dear life, howling in pain. Calvin tried to repel the monster by kicking at it’s arm, but it seemed impervious to his attacks.
All of a sudden, the beast stopped. It threw his head around, letting his prey go. A stunted figure with a visible hunch had appeared and had grabbed the beast’s rear paw. As the bear turned around to strike it’s aggressor, the opponent pulled the creature’s hind leg back and smashed it’s fist into the bear’s genitals. The creature looked very surprised. Using this moment of astonishment, the assailant flipped it’s huge opponent over, jumped on it’s belly and proceeded to beat it unconscious with it’s fists. Seconds later, the stunned monster lay quiet.
Their saviour made a sign for the two observers to come down. They complied. The hunch-backed fighter urged them to follow. As they paused to examine the bear as it slowly disappeared under the still falling snow, the figure pulled of it’s scarf, revealing herself to be a woman in her forties. She cursed at her hunch, bellowed at the pair to follow her, grabbed Michelle by the hand and started to run. Calvin instantly followed.

[El_Roy_1999]

Sorry for the delay.

Days of winter

They woke up to the sound of Michelle’s cell phone. The deeply annoying alarm signal allowed them to get out of the bed early. Opening the curtains, they saw complete darkness outside, broken occasionally by the lights of stores and cars. Taking a quick shower to wake up, Michelle explained today’s schedule: They should get a car, drive to the facility, examine it quickly and return before nightfall, which had to be around 3:30pm at this time of the year.
She also noted that it would be better not to let anybody follow them. They still should inform the concierge so that he could send for help if they did not return in time. This was Russia after all.
Putting on their thermal-isolated coats, they went to the car rental. There, they were welcomed by a huge man, all beard and hair, broad-shouldered and barely able to fit into his miniscule office. Roaring a greeting in broken English, the man asked what he could do to help them. Calvin examined the paper sheets on the walls detailing the various available cars.
“We’d like to go hunting, so we’d need a robust car. You know, for off-road driving.”
The man laughed, smiled, pulled his sleeve and almost carried Calvin into the yard. Minutes later, the two Americans were on their way in their newly rented Niva. Although operating the manual gear shift took a bit of practice, they were on the road. The giant had also given them a box of ammunition, a very strong flashlight and a photocopied map with little drawings of animals on it. The “hunt” story must have been very authentic.
They soon left the city and soon drove westward to the forest area. Even though the research facility was not marked on the map, Tartakin had been as nice as to provide them with two pages of typed directions. Tracing them on their road-map, Michelle soon found out that the area was probably populated by bears. There also appeared to be no trace of civilisation around for miles.
The car hit another pothole, jerking it’s passengers around. Trees on both sides blocked out the sunlight slowly creeping across the snowy landscape. After a while, the sky grew dark again. Looking outside, Michelle realised that a storm was coming.
“Calvin, I think we should turn around. The sky doesn’t look good at all. I wonder why the big guy didn’t warn us?”
The driver looked at the clouds, smiled and answered:
“I guess he knew it would be alright. I checked the weather forecast last night. There’s no storm on the schedule. Don’t worry. We’re almost there.”
Michelle felt strange at his sudden enthusiasm. What was going on? Had he spoken to someone while she was asleep? She gave him a sideway look. He definitely seemed to be very eager to reach the area as soon as possible. Outside, the trees began to sway in the wind.
“Are you sure you got the forecast right? Look at the trees.” The car started shaking again. Was it the awful road, or was the wind picking up seriously?
“It’s going to be alright. Look! We go right on this path, follow it, and we’ll be there in no time.”
He drove the car on a narrow, tree-lined, snow-covered path into the deeper forest. Instantly the car’s engine started howling, Calvin shifted the gear and drove through a low snow-drift.

Soon, it started snowing. A little at first, then more and more. Minutes later, the snowfall had turned into a full-scale blizzard. Michelle gave her driver a horrified look. Calvin was gritting his teeth, desperate to maintain visibility, but the windshield-wipers were getting clogged. He hit the gas again, jerking the car around to let the snow drop off, when Michelle took his hand and firmly told him to stop.
“If we go on like this, you’ll hit a tree. We should try to go back.” Outside, the storm was howling, throwing endless snow at the car and it’s occupants. “If we could get back on the road, we’d see further.”
Calvin stared at her angrily. He slowly loosened his grip. She grasped his arm again. She saw that he was struggling with himself. At last, he stopped the car.
“You’re right. It’s better if we stop and try to get back on the main road.”
Just as he finished the sentence, one of the huge trees behind them gave a pained grown and crashed on the road. In wild panic, Calvin hit the gas. The car jerked forward, the engine stalled and died off. He fumbled for the starter key. Trying to start the car, he screamed angrily as it jumped, only to land in a low trench besides the trail. As they desperately tried to work out what to do, a dark silhouette approached through the snowstorm.

[El_Roy_1999]

Trailer is up!

[El_Roy_1999]

That's exactly what I try to do. Let's hope it works!

Roommates

The hotel room turned out to be every bit as luxurious as the building had led to expect. It was fairly modern, but still felt rather cosy and warm. Outside, first signs of a snowstorm appeared. Michelle took a bath, relaxing in the warm water and examining the numerous samples of expensive cosmetics available in the bathroom. Clearly, Tartakin had friends in high places himself. As she climbed out of the tub, wrapping her long, dark hair into a separate towel, she took a look at herself in the floor length mirror. It appeared to be one of those vanity mirrors that slimmed the observer down a little bit. It’s services were futile in the face of Michelle’s thin, pale and naked body. She examined her pert little breasts, a routine exercise for medical purposes. She also found it quite enjoyable, this being her special “mutant power”. She smiled, put on the bathrobe and returned to the main room.
Calvin was watching TV, cartoons as always. His prime passion were superhero stories, he was also an avid comics collector. Even though she was no expert, their relationship had taught her a thing or two about the “science” of comic books.
Their whole project here had started as a joke. She sat down on the bed. While working late at night, they had seen an interview with a Russian ex-spy who explained that the KGB had spent millions of dollars to develop gadgets from James Bond movies, believing that the US secret services were using the media to conceal the fact that they were developing them.
A complicated story. For no good reason except extreme paranoia, the Soviets had built exploding fountain pens, rocket-launcher briefcases and gas-mask beards. At first, they laughed. But then, Calvin had asked:
“Do you think they tried to make Captain America too?” They had laughed again, imagining the Soviets trying to build super-soldiers. All of a sudden, it started to make sense.
On the next day, they started gathering information on the subject. Using the corporation’s excellent contacts, they managed to get a categorical and total denial of any Soviet super-soldier programme. The person who had issued the relevant data was Tartakin. Two days later, they were on their way to Moscow.
As for the actual reason for their expedition, Michelle could only guess. Calvin was definitely interested as a comic book aficionado. She could also imagine that he’d just wanted to dream of superpowers. For her, it was the sheer oddity of the idea. Besides, this was the perfect occasion to visit Russia.
While she was thinking, Calvin had taken a shower. He returned, a towel wrapped around his waist. He said:
“I’d really like to visit the facility tomorrow. I checked on the map, it’s quite a drive. Through the woods, some 100 miles, next to no civilisation around. We’ll have to get a 4×4 and some snow equipment. You know, thermal tents and so on.”
“Do you actually want to stay out there?”
“Not really. But if exploring the area takes longer, it’s better to make sure that the cold won’t kill us.”
Michelle gave him a questioning look. He certainly had a direct way of putting things. She climbed under her bed-sheets. It was cosy and warm in here. A look at the thermometer outside the window made her shiver with delight. Outside, everything was freezing, the wind was howling, it was dark. She snuggled against the eiderdown and soon fell asleep. As she drifted away, she felt as if Calvin was moving restlessly around in the room.

[Author]

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