Natalia Romanov (Earth-7642)

**Natalia Romanova** (English;*Natasha Romanoff*), (Russian; *Наталья Романова*) aka **Black Widow** (*Черная вдова*) was a former Russian KGB agent. She was trained by the Red Room as part of the Black Widow Ops Program to be the ultimate "Super-Spy". She defected to the United States of America from the Soviet Union to join S.H.I.E.L.D.

Later Black Widow would then become a member of the Justice League of Avengers and has been on the team on multiple occasions. She was a woman with a mysterious past which few know about.

## History

### Early life

The exact year and location for the birth of **Natasha Romanova** is unknown, as are who her parents were. There are varying accounts of Romanova's early life. One account states that in 1928, there was a fire in Stalingrad which burned down the building that infant Natasha and her mother were living in.

According to the account, just before dying in the fire, Natasha's mother threw her out the window to a Russian soldier below. The story goes that the soldier's name was Ivan Petrovitch, and that he watched over Natasha for her entire life.

She grew up the foster daughter of Ivan Petrovich, a controversial expatriate and former secret agent who loved her like a daughter, but made it clear that she was not his daughter by blood. His nickname for her, "Tsarina", fueled rumors about her true lineage that continue to this day.

When she was old enough, Petrovitch was said to have taken her to Department X, with 28 other young female orphans, where she was trained in combat and espionage at the covert "Red Room" facility. There, she was bio-technologically and psycho-technologically enhanced; an account that provides a rationale for her unusually long and youthful lifespan.

### KGB

As a ballerina in her youth, she joined Russia's KGB spy organization and became an elite intelligence operative and assassin due to government enhancements of her natural abilities and her own skill. She eventually was nicknamed the "Black Widow" due to her reputation as an often-wed, often-widowed heartbreaker whose husbands (beginning with test pilot turned intelligence agent Alexi Shostakov) tended to suffer "unfortunate accidents" that lead to their deaths.

Natasha later saved Logan from Hydra assassins when he surfaced in America without any memories of his past. She encountered the man again some time later when she was on a KGB mission to stop three unknown American spies (Logan, Carol Danvers and Ben Grimm) from stealing Russia's Red Storm Project

### Early Clashes with Iron Man

Black Widow was assigned to assist Boris Turgenov in the assassination of Professor Anton Vanko for defecting from their country by infiltrating Stark Industries in America. Tony Stark, the original Iron Man, continually foiled her schemes against Stark Industries. Romanova later met the novice archer Hawkeye and set him against Iron Man, and later helped Hawkeye battle Iron Man.  Unfortunately, Hawkeye's association with Russian spies would label him a criminal in his early career. Black Widow and Hawkeye next clashed against the novice super-hero Spider-Man. They resumed their focus on Tony Stark, clashing with Iron Man twice more - the first being an attempt to raid Tony Stark's munitions plant.

When that mission ended in failure, she was taken back to Russia by her masters and given a new costume that allowed her to scale walls as well as a device that allowed her to fire lines to swing from. She once more attempted to get Hawkeye to help her destroy Iron Man. The pair almost succeeded, but when Black Widow was injured, Hawkeye retreated to get her to safety. During this period, Romanova was attempting to defect from the Soviet Union and began to feel love toward Hawkeye, weakening her loyalty to her country. When her employers learned the truth, they had her gunned down, sending her to a hospital, convincing Hawkeye to go straight and seek membership in the Justice League of Avengers.

### Association with the Justice League of Avengers

Captured by her masters again and brainwashed, Black Widow was forced to hire the Swordsman and Power Man to destroy the Avengers. This plot eventually failed when the Avengers defeated both of the villains and Natasha shook off the effects of the brainwashing. Attempting to make amends with the group, she assisted them against the racist group known as the Sons of the Serpent.

Having been granted amnesty, Natasha made a bid for membership in the JLA, aiding them in their battle against the Ultroids. She threatened to kill their leader Ixar if he did not leave the Earth, winning the victory, however Hawkeye covered up this fact so that she could get membership in the group even though she violated their code of ethics regarding killing. However when Nick Fury hired her to spy on her former master on behalf of S.H.I.E.L.D., she was be forced to decline membership with the JLA and publicly broke off her relationship with Hawkeye. As part of her mission, the press branded her as a traitor, breaking Hawkeye's heart.

Arriving in China, the Black Widow was not easily trusted and subjected to the Psychotron device, a machine that could brainwash anyone. She proved to be too strong willed and had to be gassed and kept locked up. Learning that Natasha was now a prisoner of her former Communist masters, the JLA traveled to China to rescue her, clashing with the Red Guardian, Natasha's ex-husband who was thought to be dead. The JLA with the help of Natasha defeated the Communists plot to use the Psychotron against the western world. During the course of the battle Natasha was injured and the Red Guardian seemingly perished in the battle.

After time recovering in the hospital, Natasha returned to Avengers Mansion and came to the decision to give up her career of costumed adventuring. However this proved to be short lived as she returned to super-heroics shortly thereafter, however her romance with Hawkeye became strained as he was usually too busy with JLA business to pay attention to her.

## Powers and Abilities

### Powers

**Artificially-Enhanced Physiology:** Natasha was biochemically enhanced through the Black Widow Ops Program when she was an infant. She received the Red Room's version of the Super-Soldier Serum that was created by Dr. Lyudmila Kudrin to enhance her immune system, bodily condition, and longevity. Nick Fury's intel classified her as **Power Level 7**,

* **Peak Human Strength:** Natasha's physical strength is enhanced, enabling her to consistently press lift 500 pounds (226 kilograms).
* **Athletic Speed:** Natasha's speed is that of an Olympic athlete, enabling her to run at speeds of 32-36 mph.
* **Enhanced Durability:** Natasha's body is enhanced to withstand greater physical injuries than normal humans. She has also withstood blows from superhumans like Imus Champion, explosions, and managed to continue fighting after being shot.
* **Athletic Reflexes:** Natasha’s reflexes are similar to those of an athlete.
* **Athletic Stamina:** Natasha’s stamina is similar to that of an athlete.
* **Peak Human Healing:** Dr. Kudrin theoretically stated Natasha's wounds heal five times faster than average human rate.
* **Enhanced Immune System:** The Black Widow has been enhanced by biotechnology that has slowed her aging, and augmented her immune system.
* **Enhanced Longevity:** The serum extends Natasha's lifespan and youth, resulting in her maintaining the appearance of a woman in her 30's despite being born in 1928.
* **Peak Human Endurance:** Natasha exhibits extraordinary levels to physical pain. She once resumed functioning in spite of her undergoing unbearable surgery without anesthesia.

### Abilities

* **Master Martial Artist:** Natasha has mastered many fields of hand-to-hand combat including aikido, judo, karate, savate, boxing, and various other martial arts. She fought Wolverine during her training in the Red Room Academy. She was able to hold her own against other dangerous opponents like Winter Soldier, Catwoman, Black Canary, Elektra, Punisher and even Talia al Ghul and Batman.
* **Master Acrobat:** Natasha is an extraordinary skilled gymnast, acrobat, and aerialist.
* **Master Assassin:** Natasha is heavily skilled in assassination techniques. She uses her skills as a martial artist, acrobat, and spy to further enhance her skills as an assassin. She has been sent by S.H.I.E.L.D. and the KGB to eliminate numerous enemies.
* **Weapons Expert:** Natasha is an expert with most weapons.
* **Expert Vehicular Driver:** Natasha is an expert at operating most vehicles.
* **Disguises Expert:** Natasha is an expert with disguises.
* **Multilingual:** Natasha is fluent in Russian, English,  French, German, Chinese, Japanese, and various other languages.
* **Learned Intelligence:** Natasha possesses the ability to quickly process multiple information streams, such as threat assessment, and rapidly respond to changing tactical situations.
* **Graceful Dancer:** Natasha is a profound ballet dancer.
* **Talented Hacker:** Natasha can hack into all computer systems without tripping any firewalls or security with ease.
* **Master Seductress:** She is an expert in the field of seduction. Natasha has been infamously known to bend many different men to her will and sometimes even get them to do her bidding for her. She sometimes continues deceiving certain men through means of acting if she still has a further use for them.
* **Master Spy:** Natasha is a dangerous secret agent trained in espionage, stealth, disguise, infiltration, and demolitions. She is capable of killing in cold blood when the need arises. Her talents and years of experience have enabled her to reach a high ranking position as an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D..