ZARATHUSTRA

Real Name: Unrevealed

Identity/Class: Human technology user

Occupation: Adventurer; former warrior/agent of Lord Moses

Group Membership: Formerly the Havenites

Affiliations: Go-Devil, Lord Moses, Mateo and his family

Enemies: Fantastic Force (Black Panther, Devlor, Human Torch, Huntara, Psi-Lord, Vibraxas), staff of undefined Arctic (?) U.S. military base

Known Relatives: Lord Moses (adoptive father)

Aliases: None

Base of Operations: Haven, eight miles from the Arctic Circle

First Appearance: Fantastic Force#2 (December, 1994)

Powers/Abilities: Zarathustra apparently poses peak human physical abilities (strength, speed, reflexes, stamina, etc.). She is a master combatant, skilled in hand-to-hand combat, as well as with spears, swords, battleaxes, energy-blasters, etc. Her long pony-tail is tightly wound and can be used as a whip or to strange others. She is willingly to kill to serve her mission.
    She formerly had access to Haven's communications equipment and their ability to open portals in space to transport her to and from Haven. Her gauntlets and shoulder pads contained the technology needed for these features, as well as energy-blasting weapons.

    Zarathustra speaks English, Spanish, Japanese, and presumably many other languages fluently.

 

History:
(Fantastic Force#2 (fb) - BTS) - Zarathustra was bred to exemplify the absolute pinnacle of human perfection.

(Fantastic Force#16 (fb) - BTS) - Spanish is the tongue of Zarathustra's birth.

(Fantastic Force#2 (fb) - BTS) - Lord Moses briefed Zarathustra on the parameters for a mission he would have her perform, but first she had to pass a certain challenge.

(Fantastic Force#2) - Zarathustra bested six of Lord Moses' Battle Elite without the need for lethal force, succeeding in the challenge to prove her readiness to venture forth into the outer worlds. She vowed not to fail him on this upcoming mission. Shortly thereafter, a portal was opened into the Empire State University laboratory of Professor Isaac Sandor, and Zarathustra emerged, warning none from deterring her in her quest for the Omnivirus. Incapacitating those who blocked her path, Zarathustra confronted and threatened Prof. Sandor. Zarathustra's actions were detected by Psi-Lord and Huntara of the Fantastic Force, and Huntara transported Psi-Lord and Devlor to Sandor's lab. When Psi-Lord commanded Zarathustra to stop, she mocked him and struck him down with an energy blast. She then drop-kicked Devlor and summoned reinforcements from Haven. Huntara shattered his wrist-communicator, but reinforcements arrived through another portal. Zarathustra took advantage of the distraction to try to escape, but Huntara followed her, and their battle carried them through a wall and into the outside streets where Vibraxis was walking. Huntara told Vibraxis to stay out of the fight, but the fact that Huntara knew Vibraxis marked him as an enemy to Zarathusta, who attacked him with an electrified whip. Vibraxis shattered the whip, but Zarathustra suddenly attacked Huntara, knocking her battleaxe from her grasp. As Huntara reached to reclaim her weapon, Zarathustra pulled out an axe to finish her off, but Devlor then leapt to her rescue. Zarathustra dodged his attack, but then Psi-Lord telekinetically blasted her axe from her hand. Zarathustra launched herself at Psi-Lord and then shot him with her wrist-blaster at close range. Stating she had enjoyed the challenge but had to leave, Zarathustra had a portal opened to Haven and vanished through it before the others could stop her.
    Back in Haven, Zarathustra presented the Omnivirus technology to Lord Moses, noting that she had had to abandon full complement of his Battle Elite to ensure her success, but Lord Moses approved of her decision and vowed that those fallen would be returned to them.

(Fantastic Force#3 (fb) - BTS) - Psi-Lord made arrangements with the police to interrogate the Battle Elite left behind by Zarathustra.

(Fantastic Force#3 - BTS) - When Psi-Lord attempted to scan the Battle Elite's minds, he found them all to be protected by some mental mantra, and he received only images of Mount Arrarat in Turkey, the supposed final resting place of Noah's ark.

(Fantastic Force#4 - BTS) - Captain America, at the time suffering from episodic weakness and paralysis due to the breakdown of the super-soldier serum, sought out Dr. Sandor in hopes that his Omnivirus might help him, only to learn that the Omnivirus had been stolen.

(Fantastic Force#10 (fb) - BTS) - From the Omnivirus, the technicians of Haven created the Omni-Toxin, fatal to outworlders, but ineffectual against the genetically-recoded immunologies of the residents of Haven.

(Fantastic Force#10) - Zarathustra led a squad of Battle Elite in using the Omni-Toxin to take out the guards at an unidentified frigid American military base and to claim the citadel in the name of Lord Moses.

(Fantastic Force#10 - BTS) - Lord Moses led his Battle Elite and other agents to this new base.

(Fantastic Force#10) - Ego-Spawn--a fragmented aspect of Franklin Richards--psychically located the largest concentration of the Mount Arrarat mental image at Latitude 167'14", Longitude 68'56", and Huntara transported Fantastic Force (now including the Human Torch, Black Panther, and minus Psi-Lord and his various psychic fragments) there. Huntara and the Black Panther--with the element of surprise on their side--dropped Zarathustra, but then Lord Moses himself joined the battle and took out the entire Fantastic Force.

(Fantastic Force#11 (fb) - BTS) - Lord Moses had the Fantastic Force imprisoned.

(Fantastic Force#11) - Lord Moses explained his origins and motivations to Fantastic Force, and he divulged his plans to fire Havenite stealth-pods containing the Omni-Toxin across Earth, so that all save the Havenites would be exterminated; and the Havenites could rebuild a newer and better world. Lord Moses praised Zarathustra for her work, though he dismissed her concerns about not being able to bring Psi-Lord over to their cause. Not long after, however, Huntara broke free from her restraints and freed the rest of the Fantastic Force. While Huntara engaged Zarathustra, Lord Moses attempted to strike down the rest of the heroes, but the Black Panther resisted his attacks. Lord Moses fired the main missile (apparently containing the stealth-pods), but the Human Torch destroyed it. Zarathustra told Lord Moses to take his leave while she covered his retreat, and she soon fell before Huntara, and the rest of the Battle Elite were defeated by the Fantastic Force.

(Fantastic Force#11 - BTS) - Zarathustra and the Battle Elite were imprisoned.

(Fantastic Force#16) - The coordinates of Haven were removed from Zarathustra's mind by Lord Moses, presumably so others could not learn its location from her.

(Fantastic Force#16) - The day before Zarathustra was scheduled to be transferred to the Vault, she used her ponytail like a whip, wrapping it around a guard's neck and forcing him to free her, and she then took his uniform and escaped. Taking civilian clothes to blend in until she could make her way back to Haven. Seeking an escape from the perceived evil of humanity, Zarathustra scaled a building where she saw a young child dying in an apartment. She crashed through the window and used a Havenite accupuncture technique to stimulate Mateo's lungs, after which she criticized Mateo's mother for raising her children in such squalor, but the mother explained how she was working two jobs just to provide food and housing for the children at all.  Departing, Zarathustra was surprised at how she had been moved by outworlders.
    Zarathustra began to realize that there was not simple good and evil in the world, but many shades of grey. She considered spending more time in the outside world to search for further evidence of Lord Moses' doctrines. She then met the the Japanese superhuman Go-Devil, and she accepted his offer for a ride, telling him to take her wherever caprice should carry them.

Comments: Created by Tom Brevoort and Mike Kanterovich (writers), Dante Bastianoni (pencils), Cabrera/Florea (inks), and Mike Rockwitz (inks).

    Plots and specific scenarios at Haven were given in biblical verse as their code. The code to summon reinforcement was Exodus 7:3, and the code to open a portal for her to return to Haven was Exodus 15:1.

    According to Rahf Tzeenj, Zarathustra is the topic of the same-titled book by Neitszche or the classical musical piece {the famous theme music from "2001:A Space Odyssey"} "Also Sprach Zarathustra."
    Further, Zoroastrianism (itself sharing a common origin with Hinduism) also features a deity that Conan fans may have familiarity with:
Mitra (aka Mithra and Mithras), whose worship originated in Hinduism, spread to the Zoroastrians and eventually made its way in to ancient Rome, eventually becoming the main rival of Christianity during the Holy Roman Empire days.  Later Mitra myths even show him succeeding Zeus/Jupiter as head of the Roman pantheon.

Background information on the name Zoroaster, courtesy of Per Degaton:
"Zoroaster was a historical Iranian religious leader.
    Zoroastrianism is a small religion with about 140,000 members. Yet its importance to humanity is much greater than its current numbers might suggest, because: Their theology has had a great impact on Judaism, Christianity and other later religions, in the beliefs surrounding God and Satan, the soul, heaven and hell, savior, resurrection, final judgment, etc.
    It is one of the oldest religions still in existence, It may have been the first monotheistic religion.
      Thus, the Zoroaster story influenced the story of Jesus Christ.  In the seventh century AD, Arabs who were Muslims (and thus believed in the virgin birth of Jesus) invaded Persia, and that spelled more or less the end of Zoroastorianism.
    Indeed, much of what later became known as Muslim culture, architecture, writing and other skills, were taken from the Persians into the rest of the Semitic speaking world
    Persia is today a fanatical Muslim nation called Iran.
ZARATHUSTRA AND HIS INFLUENCE ON CHRISTIANITY
    The Persians built vast and very good roads for the efficient administration of their huge empire, but are probably best remembered for their religion called Zoroastrianism. Founded by a prophet named Zarathustra, the basic religious concept of a never ending battle between good and evil supernatural powers, was later adopted by the early Christians (AND BY MARVEL COMICS, FOR THAT MATTER!) and worked into the biblical New Testament."

Zarathustra has a partial entry (with Lord Moses) in the All-New Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Update#2.

Profile by Snood.

CLARIFICATIONS:
No KNOWN connections to:


images: (without ads)
Fantastic Force#2, p2, panel 2 (costumed face)
        p8, panel 3 (full body)
        p18, panel 3 (vs. Huntara)
    #16, p17, panel 1 (civilian garb)


Other Appearances:
Fantastic Force#2 (December, 1994) - by Tom Brevoort and Mike Kanterovich (writers), Dante Bastianoni (pencils), Ralph Cabrera/Florea (inks), and Mike Rockwitz (editor)
Fantastic Force#3 (January, 1995) - by Tom Brevoort and Mike Kanterovich (writers), Dante Bastianoni (pencils), Ralph Cabrera/Hudson (inks), and Mike Rockwitz (editor)
Fantastic Force#4 (February, 1995) - by Tom Brevoort and Mike Kanterovich (writers), Pino Renaldi (pencils), Ralph Cabrera/Florea (inks), and Mike Rockwitz (editor)
Fantastic Force#10 (August, 1995) - by Tom Brevoort and Mike Kanterovich (writers), Dante Bastianoni (pencils), Ralph Cabrera (inks), and Nel Yomtov (editor)
Fantastic Force#11 (September, 1995) - by Tom Brevoort and Mike Kanterovich (writers), Dante Bastianoni & Pino Renaldi (pencils), Ralph Cabrera (inks), and Nel Yomtov (editor)
Fantastic Force#16 (February, 1996) - by Tom Brevoort and Mike Kanterovich (writers), Dante Bastianoni & Pino Renaldi (pencils), Steve Montano (inks), and Nel Yomtov (editor)


First Posted: 07/06/2006
Last updated: 08/07/2006

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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