The Leader
Professor Samuel Sterns, otherwise known as the Leader, is a supporting antagonist in the Kingdom Hearts Unlimited Saga, first appearing in "The Journey" in a minor role for the events of the Gamma Earth campaign.
In that first installment, he is a Grayburn College professor of Cellular Bilogy going by the internet username of "Mr. Blue". Sterns was initially hired by Bruce Banner to try and help cure him of the Hulk, but the crooked biologist instead collected specimen vials of Banner's gamma-irradiated blood to use for his experiments, injecting one such vial into Emil Blonsky in order to mutate him into the Abomination. He ended up getting a cut on his forehead and a drop of Hulk blood into that wound during the ensuing scuffle, and was subsequently mutated into the super-genius yet power-hungry mutate, the Leader. He was originally captured by Black Widow before her "defection" to HYDRA and kept under wraps by S.H.I.E.L.D. for some amount of time until he is freed during the events of the third Traverse Town campaign by the machinations of HYDRA's secret agents, helping Loki begin the Chitauri invasion on Earth in exchange for investigating the mystical properties of the Tesseract.
Story[]
Origins[]
The intellect of the human mind is difficult to comprehend even by standards of a self-proclaimed genius. Furthermore, it can be tarnished by one's personal ambitions and desires, leading it to further exposed damage. Such was the case for the scientist Samuel Sterns who thirsted for the world's knowledge, only to succumb into an arrogant position of power, which would lead him to his new christened title: The Leader, a title in which he would assume commanding position.
Born in Boise, Idaho, Samuel was alienated from his family, as they scorned his intellect, being a slow-witted individual himself from a young age, compared to his successful older brother, Phillip Sterns. Still, his desire for learning kept him motivated, as he studied hard to qualify for a job in the academic field, eventually landing a job as a professor at Grayburn College. However, the university caught him plagiarizing confidential document information from the U.S. Military for his thesis statement, which led to his expellement and subsequent demotion to lab assistant at the Department of Cellular Biology, the only position they would let him in that didn't require any college education, a fitting punishment for the lazy Sterns. Furious, Sterns vowed to improve upon his learning habits even further to regain his standing within the college and his academic reputation. In the meantime, he began experimenting with samples drafted from radioactive cellular bodies and the effects of gamma-radiation behind his employers' back to fully understand their capabilities.
During his time at Grayburn College, Sterns met with noted scientist Dr. Bruce Banner, who was inflicted from gamma-radiation test experiments brought by General Thaddeus Ross on purpose to enhance his prowess. Nonetheless, Bruce was committed to find an antidote to cure him of his condition as the repeated incidents of the "other guy" coming out in anger had left him a wanted fugitive in danger to himself and everyone around him. Growing interested in Dr. Banner's capabilities, Sterns offered assistance in his research to find an antidote to stop the experiment. As the two formed friendly contact, they decided to establish a form of secret online communication where they addressed themselves as Mr. Blue and Mr. Green.
The Journey[]
In the aftermath of a black ops mission from Rio de Janeiro, Sterns asked Banner to send him a sample of his blood so he could engineer an antidote for himself, knowing Banner's monstrous transformation into the Hulk from his latest developments. However, Sterns kept his true intentions secret from Banner, as he had desired to use the antidote to create cures to various illnesses, motivated by the goal of making humans practically immune to any genetic disease. However, Sterns' plan was flawed, as he had underestimated the blood toxicity of Banner's blood.
Some time later, he was confronted by Professor Elizabeth Ross of Culver University, whom Sterns recognized as one of Bruce's friends and associates, bringing her into their circle. Together, the three discussed their plans on curing Banner, although there were disagreements between its members. Sterns hoped he could display the discovery of the antidote to the public, hoping that it would gain him prestigious fame and reward, while Banner and Betty decided to destroy the evidence, explaining that it would be too dangerous to fall into the hands of the U.S. military.
Their suspicions were confirmed when a U.S. special force headed by Emil Blonsky arrived to apprehend the three scientists, taking Banner into custody. More than that, the power-hungry Blonsky threatened Sterns with injecting Banner's blood into his body so that he would challenge Banner in his gamma-irradiated form. Sterns opened up on his experiment with Banner, but also noticed that Blonsky was enhanced already. Sterns came to terms with Blonsky's demands, transforming him into Abomination, a mighty beast powerful enough to challenge the Hulk. As soon as he embraced his newfound powers, Blonsky staggered Sterns, leaving him unconscious. In the confusion, Sterns was accidentally infected with Banner's blood via an open wound on his forehead; the mutation resulted in his brain expanding in size. Additionally, a magic crystal was exuded from Stern's body, transforming him into a lean, pale-green-skinned creature with a large cranium yearning for knowledge and power. As they regained consciousness, the newly reborn Gamma Mutates were found by the mysterious Jafar Muhijuno, who watched the events from the shadows, who revealed himself to the pair, promising to exact their endowed powers against their adversaries; thus, both of them were thus put under Jafar's guidance, who directed them towards the town of Harlem in New York City to demonstrate who the rightful rulers of the world were to all in their path, with Jafar promising Sterns that he would become the new leader of the newly born Gamma monster race.
Under Jafar's control, Sterns used his super-intellect to build a device that would transform the fleeing citizens of Harlem into Gamma Mutates subservient to his mad whims of global unity, while Blonsky used his super-powers to rampage the city to his heart's content. Unfortunately, the city met resistance by Banner, (now having been transformed into the Hulk), Thaddeus Ross, and the agents Natasha Romanov and Clint Barton. As Sterns persuaded Natasha to join his league in exchange for help in returning her to Stalingrad, Natasha saw through his ruse, apprehending him before he would have the chance to defend himself. No sooner than later, he was brought as an inmate by S.H.I.E.L.D.'s director Nick Fury at the Project Pegasus facility in Nevada, for the purpose of studying his abnormal appearance and skills.
A couple of months later, he was freed by the Asgardian Loki Laufeyson to aid him in his new agenda: to build a massive inter-galactic army, mainly comprised by the fearsome Chitauri, to invade Earth. In doing so, Loki tasked Sterns to study the Tesseract, a crystalline cube-shaped containment vessel containing the Space Stone, one of the six Infinity Stones, so that it would harness its power. When Sterns showed signs of hesitation towards Loki's plan, the god put him under a brainwashing spell through the use of his scepter, which contained the Mind Stone, taking control over the scientist. Since then, Sterns began to grow paranoid, as he began to hear voices in his head, which actually were signs of the Tesseract's extraordinary effects. Additionally, Sterns was introduced to Carl Creel, a fellow inmate Loki had released prior to his rescue. As he studied the Tesseract, constructing a framework based on information supplied through the cube itself, he contacted Loki, explaining that the Tesseract had an incredible power, which could be used to give him knowledge beyond what he could have comprehended. Based on what he learned, Sterns realized that the Cube had the power to manifest a portal to another dimension.
During Loki's invasion on Earth, Sterns took the Tesseract to the highest point of the Stark Tower, and used it to open a portal to the waiting Chitauri invasion army. When the Chitauri attacked Earth under Loki's command, Sterns was confronted by Tony Stark, who attempted to stop the portal from opening. Sterns revealed to him that the force field surrounding the Tesseract was unbreakable, and that nothing could be done to terminate its progress. Nonetheless, he was ultimately beaten up by Starks' advanced weaponry, leaving him badly injured.
A weakened Sterns was approached by Natasha, who found him in the confusion of the battle against Loki's army. With Loki's scepter having been slightly broken in the fall from the Asgardian's hands, Sterns' brainwashing spell wore off, although a part of its effects still resided within Sterns' consciousness. Having previously encountered the scientist, Natasha showed no remorse against Sterns, threatening him to shut down the portal or else she would end him personally. Threatened, Sterns revealed to Natasha and her allies that the force field around the Tesseract could be undone with Loki's scepter. After following Sterns' advice, Natasha used the scepter to close the portal for good. Nonetheless, Sterns was convicted for his involvement with Loki and his minions, with SHIELD deciding to lock him up in a new prison facility in the Raft, where he would be secured for good measure.
A Year of Misery[]
(Is interrogated in prison by Thor on how to stop Malekith and the Convergence during the events of Thor the Dark World, all but replacing the now loony Selvig as the Thunder God's means of scientific information)
An Empire of Dreams[]
(Is among the villains released during the Breakout by Alexander Pierce in his last act of defiance as the Project Insight debacle wraps up; is accompanied by a private regiment of HYDRA soldiers to a holdout where Daniel Whitehall expects for him to assist in unlocking the secrets of the Terrigen Crystal Diviner; is instead accosted and taken back into custody by the Hulk and Hawkeye)
The Fantasmic Dreamtime[]
(Begins receiving tortuous mindrape from his cell, ranting about the coming of Thanos and the 13 Seekers of Darkness; tries to warn Captain America about the danger when he infiltrates the Raft to free his friends, but is ignored since Tony Stark, who would take heed of threats from space, is not there with them)
Return of the Keyblade[]
(All but states "I told you so!" once Thanos's forces arrive on Earth to retrieve the last remaining Infinity Stones; is broken out of prison along with all of the other Earthbound villains to assist Wakanda's royal guard in halting the Outrider invasion; has a few dialogue scenes with Bruce Banner commenting on Hulk's childish fear of Thanos and of their long-denied rivalry; is later taken into the medical bay to work on repairing Vision, but is killed by a sneak attack from Corvus Glaive and Villamax)
Appearance and Personality[]
Abilities[]
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Gallery[]
The Leader in his SHIELD authorized containment uniform - by frame10