Latveria, isolated as it was, seemed even more abandoned than usual. The castle stood tall and foreboding, silent and dark. While it had remained so for quite some time, usually the lights or sounds of the doctor working could be heard and seen, bringing some form of life to the stony walls. For weeks, months even, Doom had been hard at work. Pouring over old texts written in ancient languages long since forgotten, or piecing together machinery from all over the world, the doctor had been focused solely on his latest project. Many late nights had turned into early mornings before the doctor and ruling lord of the land had, with a final sentence uttered and a brilliant flash of dark blue light, proclaimed the project complete and ready for testing. That was when the castle had fallen silent, Doom having abandoned the fortress in favour of the more populated and hero attraction, New York.<br/><br/>He hadn’t set up some elaborate plan, some dramatic entrance, nor had he figured out a way to bypass security and any other problems he may encounter. Atop the Statue of Liberty, a well known landmark and prime location, Doom had set up his device. Combined with magic, the machine whirred to life, shaking as the gears spun and the lights flickered. At first nothing happened, but then lights all across the city, moving from the water’s edge out, began to flicker before going out, leaving much of the city in darkness. There was a crack of lightning, or so it seemed, and a blue flash emitted from the monument before the lights returned and all returned to normal.<br/><br/>Doom waited. There was no telling if it had worked, not yet anyway, but he would know when it had.