Origin
Vendetta was originally a Venus-8 Gene Doll. An artifical organism created in a genetic lab of the Alchemax to serve as slave worker and pleasure doll for space colonists. While many industries in 2099 manufactures Gene Dolls, their sales are limited to the off-world market to avoid legal problems with the Women’s Movement and other civil rights organizations.
Due to the repeated abuse and blows from her owner Polly – as her owner had come to call her – experienced a malfunction in her neural blocks. Her IQ increased from the standard 74 (barely enough to know how to work) to 94 (close to the human average score). As a result she started to develop free will and she raised a and in self-defense. Her owner sent her back to Earth for recalibration.
During the pre-recalibration exams another Venus-8 malfunctioned, giving Polly enough time to reset her strength parameter to 300% the human maximum. After ripping out of her restrains she proceded to alter her other parameters as well. This was the final result:
- Strength: 300% (Metahuman)
- Intelligence: Genius (likely over I.Q. 160)
- Reflexes: 300% (Metahuman)
- Aggression: Psychotic
- Obedience: None
Using her newly acquired abilities she killed the lab personnel and used their computers to absorb all the information about New York. She was particulary fascinated by the exploits of the Punisher (Jake Gallows), considering him the only person trying to make a difference in the corrupted world of 2099, but she also deemed him as weak and ineffectual. In her own words: “It’s Time he was Replaced by a Woman!”
Creation
Vendetta was created by Pat Mills, Tony Skinner (writers) and Tom Morgan (artist).
Morgan drew only the first issue with Vendetta (#19) before going on hiatus for healt reasons, he was replaced by Simon Coleby. Later Morgan penciled a short story on Vendetta that appeared as appendix to Punisher 2099 #25.
Major Story Arcs
A New Punisher
After her rebirth Vendetta (as she now called herself) started to track down and kill notorious criminals that avoided justice thanks to their black cards. She concentrated upon those people who had killed, mistreated or abused women in any way. She was as brutal as Gallows, but she also took a sadistic pleasure in her doing, usually including some gender related remarks.
For different reasons both Vendetta and Gallows infiltrated the same medical compound on the same day. Gallows was after an aging criminal, who was about to do a body-hop – a mind transfer in a younger body. Vendetta was looking for Sidwell Wilson, her previous owner, who was about to do a body-hop as well. Despite their differences they worked together for a moment, until Vendetta enacted her own brand of punishement on Wilson, roasting him with a flamethrower. Gallows gave wilson a mercy bullet. Vendetta laughed at him, saying that Gallow’s ‘a man’s gotta do what a man’s gotta do’ attitude was making her gag.
The situation esclated in an all-out brawl as Gallows stopped Vendetta for killing a cop that had spotted us. While Vendetta was clearly superior in terms of strength and speed, Gallows had more experience and a better training. The fight was still on when the police arrived and Vendetta was shot.
Gallows took her away and mended her wounds. They were about to argue again, when Gallows did something unexpected and “resigned” as Punisher. He showed Vendetta his HQ, espcially the prison and the Death Chair. just for the sake of demonstration he put one of his prisoners on the Death Chair and asked Vendetta to push the button. She couldn’t, while she had no problem shooting and killing on the run, Gallows calculated style of brutality and punishement made her reconsider. In the end they decided to part ways, Gallows stayed in New York, while Vendetta left Earth and went back to mining camps of Titan.
Rig World
After leaving Earth, Vendetta kept in touch with Gallows for a while. She hijacked a ship and went back to hte mining camp. There she discovered that the working conditions of the Gene Dolls had grown even worst. Infiltrating a working shift she managed to free a group of dolls and used the local recalibrating facility to give all the Gene Dolls abilities equal to her own.
After destroying the mining camp she headed back to Titan.
The Final Gun
On her route to Titan, Vendetta found a old spaceship hidden in the asteroid belt. The scan revealed it was a gunship form the terraforming of Mars, a little something left behind from Earth space forces. Vendetta started to use it to destroy other mining camps before going back to Earth.
Meanwhile on Earth, Doom had seized control of the U.S.A. and made Gallows head of the new S.H.I.E.L.D. – or the Punisher Police as it became known. As Gallows struggled between his new role and the hostility of his former partner Matt Axel, the Earth ecosystem began to collapse. Those who had the money started to leave Earth and Gallows manages to infiltrate on one of the ships.
Vendetta’s path cross that same ship and she blows it away, but the gunship got damaged in the battle. Gallows managed to escape and reach the gunship. A fight begin as Gallows is running out of air and doesn’t recognize Vendetta, but in the end they both survive.
After modifying the gunship the two punishers left Earth, looking for new crimes to punsih among the stars.
Character Evolution
Vendetta didn’t change much between her appearences, if anything she became progressivly more calculating and methodical. In her first story arc she enjoyed killing and did it with much gusto. Later she retained a sadistic streak, but started to favour a more stealthy approach. She usually kept a low profile until she could cause the maximum destruction with the minimal effort.
Powers and Weapons
Vendetta is pretty much a paragon in terms of both physical and mental abilities. Her genetic matric was created with the potential to exceed a human one. By removing all her neural blocks she managed to access her full potential.
Based on the parameters of Steve Rogers – still considered the peak of human potential in 2099 – Vendetta should be able to benchpress around 3600 pounds and run a mile in about 20 seconds. Her intellect is similarly enhanced, allowing her to learn – not just assimilating informations – at accelrated speed and improvise technical solution on a moment notice.
She uses a bulletproof armor similar to Jake Gallows’s, but without the high energy absorbing equipment. She also maintain a small arsenal of firearms, with a particular preference for submachine guns and flamethrowers. Thanks to her enhanced strength she rarely needs close combat weapons.