During the days of WW1, Frank Woodruff and Vladimir Farnsworth, both without the use of their legs, were in the US pacific radio corps. They were listening for enemy transmissions when it happened.
The Broadcast, no one knew it’s origin or purpose, only that this signal was heard on every radio in the world simultaneously and it killed everyone who heard it. All except Frank and Vlad.
Having survived the Broadcast, Frank and Vlad found their intelligence had greatly increased, and they could create wonders of technology.
Both set out to use their gifts to help other cripples. Frank invented walking wheelchairs to enable cripples to get out in the world.
Vlad took a different approach, why go out into the world when you can bring the world to you? His invention could transmit moving pictures like radio to devices in people’s homes, so they could see and hear things from all over the would. He called it… Monovision.
But Vlad became obsessed with his creation, to the point of religious zealotry, believing he could improve the world by installing his technology in every corner of it. By force if necessary.
Vlad began creating the Tubes, robots that seemed more monster then machine. And sent them out to conquer the world, destroying the US Army, Navy and Airforce.
But Frank rose to stop him by using his walking tech to create the mobile trench. A walking war machine that could give a man the firepower of a platoon. Along with the U.S.S. McKinley, a walking warship designed to act as a staging area for trenches and launch pre-fabricated automated turrets onto the battle field. A mobile base for his greatest creation. The Mobile Trench Brigade was formed in 1926, an elite fighting force made up of marines from across the world that would peruse Vlad and his Tubes across the world.
