Shchyty Ukrayiny

Shchyty Ukrayiny, known in English as the Shields of Ukraine are a group of privately-funded, self-proclaimed "superheroes" from Ukraine who were formed some time in 2014 after Russia annexed Crimea, but saw to an effort to hunt a faction of Ehrenwache known as Redwatch, later defended the nation from Slava Rossii spies and became heavily involved in the 2022 invasion from Russia.

### **History**

The organisation was founded as a private but government-approved counter-terrorism network in 2019 to aid the likes of Rayon hunt various terrorist organisations and superpowered individuals considered a threat to Europe's Eastern borders.

In 2022 the Shields were part of efforts to defend Ukraine from Russian invasion but were themselves hunted by Slava Rossii who wished to "rescue" them from Ukraine and collaborate as a bigger force; the Shields refused and instead helped people during the invasion.

### **Members**

The group functions very much like a paramilitary-style specialist unit but one that has a tighter bond and better knowledge of their country. Members included:

**Bombstar**: known as "Bombazirka" in Ukranian Bohdan Tymoshenko was a young neohuman boy rescued by Elk and Stasis during the invasion of Russia into Ukraine in 2022; he had lost his younger sister and father to shelling as his powers manifested. He could create explosive spheres of unstable blue photons that he can throw and that detonate with explosive force.

**Elk**: Also known as "Losʹ" in Ukrainian, Elk was a mysterious cybrid supposedly of Ukrainian/Russian heritage who was sought by Slava Rossii after they "liberated" from a secret facility in Crimea along with Biven and Norca. He had Elk DNA granting him enormous strength, durability, senses and antlers and according to him, Russian invaders were using the facility and his DNA to replicate and splice humans; he often sawed off his antlers to blend in and he hid in plain sight though they would regrow quickly, working in a logging site, but was taken in by the Shields in 2019 after a member of his group removed his Cossack hat, revealing his shaved antlers and elk-like ears.

**Longeye**: Known as "Dovhooko" in Ukrainian, Andriy Savchuk is Strapfist's younger brother; a genius marksman and brilliant unarmed fighter, strategist and tactician.

**Myslyvtsya**: Daryna Bylyk was an expert spy, assassin hacker and all-round espionage expert known as "The Huntress", she is an ex-Guildmember and spent many years undercover in Russia but has some to attain a more passive role in the Shields hunting through networks and tracking terrorist cells.

**Stasis**: Iryna Kovalenko Neohuman and leader of the Shields, Iryna is a stalwart and serious woman who first founded the group with her cousin Matviy. She had the ability to store objects in a timeless pocket-dimension where they could be then summoned again at will; this allowed her to store massive amounts of weapons, ammunition and food.

**Strapfist**: Ostap Savchuk is an ex-Ukrainian military scientist and solider who was part of the Strappinglad project and who now owns one of the few remaining concepts of the system that he has himself altered as part of his costume, which grants him increased strength and mobility.

**Ruka**: Matviy Kovalenko A Ukrainian neohuman and cousin to Stasis, he was a biomorph able to regenerate his limbs, grow additional arms and alter his arms into different forms such as claws, spines or even wings.