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"I am so alone. I don't have anything anymore. All I do is sit and look at my phone and think of all the terrible things that I've done, and then I go to work, and then I drink and then I come home to no one, and I sit and think about all the terrible things I've done again and again."
Yelena Belova (Russian: Елена Белова) is the adoptive younger sister of Natasha Romanoff, a Red Room operative who worked for General Dreykov as a Black Widow and a founding member of the New Avengers. Following Romanoff's defection from the Red Room, Belova and other Black Widows were put through a mind-control program and turned into Dreykov's obedient subordinates. When she was freed from the Red Room's control, Belova joined forces with Romanoff, as well as their adoptive parents Red Guardian and Melina Vostokoff, to bring down the Red Room once and for all. They eventually succeeded and liberated all Black Widows, with Belova directly killing Dreykov. After parting ways with Romanoff, Belova spent two years freeing many of the remaining brainwashed Black Widows before she was killed by Thanos' Snap.
Upon her resurrection in the Blip in 2023, Belova attempted to seek out Romanoff, but was informed that she had died. While visiting Romanoff's grave, Belova was given an assignment by Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, who claimed that Clint Barton was responsible for Romanoff's death and that she was to eliminate him. In December 2024, Belova came into conflict with Barton and his protégé Kate Bishop. Belova held back against hurting Bishop, and though she came close to killing Barton, Barton managed to get through to Belova and explain that Romanoff's death was of her own choice to save Belova and the world. Coming to terms with Barton and accepting Romanoff's death, Belova abandoned her mission and departed.
Years later, a depressed Belova was still under the employment of de Fontaine until she sent her, along with other operatives, on a mission to kill each other in an attempt to get rid of any incriminating evidence while facing impeachment. Belova learned the truth and teamed up with U.S. Agent, Ghost and Red Guardian to escape getting assassinated by de Fontaine's forces, then they were recruited by Winter Soldier to help bring down de Fontaine and stop her plans to use Bob Reynolds as her own weapon. Belova and her team eventually saved both Manhattan and Reynolds from Void, and when they tried to apprehend de Fontaine, they were publicly declared by de Fontaine as the New Avengers instead.
Yelena Belova was born in Moscow, Soviet Union between 1988 and 1989. When she was three years old, she was assigned by Dreykov to play the role as the younger daughter of Alexei Shostakov and Melina Vostokoff, with Natasha Romanoff playing her older sister. They then moved to the United States of America to Mount Vernon, Ohio on Soviet espionage assignment, although due to her young age, Belova was unaware of the assignment and believed them to be her real family.[9]
Belova being forced to leave her home
Three years later, in 1995, while playing in the backyard with Romanoff, she scraped her knee and called for her mother. Vostokoff came and helped her up and the three went inside. After dinner, Shostakov came and delivered news that the family had to leave within the hour. As they drove away, S.H.I.E.L.D. attempted to arrest them with help from the local police, but Shostakov resisted them with a gun. Vostokoff, Romanoff, and Belova boarded a plane while Shostakov rode on the outside.
The family flew to Cuba and with their mission over, the family was separated. As soldiers attempted to pull them apart, Belova clung to Romanoff while her older sister held the soldiers at gunpoint after taking one’s weapon. Shostakov then came and comforted them telling them that they were tough and that everything would be alright. The two were then sedated and brought to the Red Room. There, Belova was separated from Romanoff and trained to become a Black Widow, going on multiple assignments.[3]
During one of her workouts in the Red Room, Belova had to put together a gun in less time than the other Black Widows, getting it and seeing how all the other girls had their hands whipped. For her first mission, Belova had to kill Anya, her friend from the Red Room. Waiting for her hidden in the snowy forest, Belova introduced herself and apologized to Anya for what was going to happen, making appear the man who was going to murder her from behind Belova, completing her first mission.[2] Belova since then would continue to do missions for Red Room.[3]
In 2016, Belova was sent to Morocco on an assignment with a team of Widows to retrieve the substance known as Red Dust: a substance that could break the mind control that kept the widows all under Dreykov's orders and rule. The team managed to locate the target holding the cure: a former Widow named Oksana. Oksana managed to evade them but Belova caught up to her. Oksana caught Belova's hand when she attempted to stab her, only for her to drop the knife, catch it with her other hand, and stab her in the stomach, then twisting the knife — but not before Oksana managed to free Belova by spraying her with the dust.
Freed, Belova was horrified at what she had done, but Oksana told her that it was too late for her and begs her to free the other Widows before bleeding to death. Determined to keep her promise, Belova cut out the tracker in her leg and went dark. However, realizing this would only last so long, she came up with the idea to send the vials of Red Dust to Natasha Romanoff who was now an Avenger, figuring she would have the resources to keep the Red Dust safe.[3]
Laying low, Belova hid out in a safe house in Budapest, Hungary provided by Rick Mason, only to be reunited with Natasha Romanoff. The two confronted each other at gunpoint, which led to a brutal confrontation, as the two of them fought throughout the apartment. The brawl concluded with the sisters choking each other with a curtain, so they call for a truce.
Romanoff enquired as to why Belova sent her the Red Dust, so she explained what it was and how she thought Romanoff would have gotten her fellow Avengers to use them to bring down the Red Room. This shocked Romanoff, as she believed the Red Room, and in addition Dreykov, were no more. Belova asked Romanoff to recount her mission in Budapest to kill Dreykov, so she did, but when Antonia Dreykov was brought up, Romanoff went silent.
At that moment, Black Widows surrounded the apartment, and Belova and Romanoff were forced to escape by way of the rooftops to the other side of the complex, where Belova's motorbike was. They pushed a pipe over the side of the building to escape. A Widow also jumped on, but lost her grip and fell into the alley below. Belova ended up crashing through a window while Romanoff landed in the alley next to the Widow, who committed suicide in front of Romanoff against her will. After recovering, Belova reconvened with Romanoff. Romanoff asked her how many Widows were out there, and Belova replied enough and went to the motorcycle. Romanoff drove it while Belova jumped on behind her and the two tried to escape from the Widows.
However, they soon crashed and were thrown off the motorcycle. In order to keep escaping, Belova hijacked a car, forcing a Hungarian man out by gunpoint, to Romanoff's displeasure, and jumped inside. As Romanoff drove them through the city, Belova asked what plan Romanoff had to evade the Widows, but Romanoff replies that her plan was just to drive them away. In order to get rid of a Widow pursuing them, Belova opened her car door, causing it to hit a pole and fly into the Widow, knocking her out.
They were then pursued by Taskmaster, who shot an explosive arrow at the car, causing it to topple over and land in a subway station. Belova and Romanoff got out of the wreckage, with Belova injuring her arm, but Romanoff told her not to bandage it so that they could create a fake blood trail to lure Taskmaster away. The two sisters hid in a vent, and waited for Taskmaster to lose track of them, with Romanoff explaining what happened on her mission in Budapest.[3]
"Well, then you were fooling yourself because pain and suffering is every day and we are both still a trained killer. Except I'm not the one that's on the cover of a magazine. I'm not the killer that little girls call their hero."
Once they were in the clear, Belova and Romanoff went to a gas station to get medical supplies. While they were there, Romanoff asked if Belova knew where the Red Room was, but she didn't know, as Dreykov moved locations constantly.
Belova questioned Romanoff on why she never attempted to contact or find her, which Romanoff replied was because she thought Belova was living a normal life and didn't want to see her. But Belova didn't believe this, as she saw it as Romanoff just not wanting to her to tag along as she saved the world with the Avengers. Belova then asked about Romanoff's posing during fights, which she defended was done during her attempt to do some good, but Belova called them both out for being still trained killers, only that Romanoff was viewed as a hero.
As they shared drinks, Romanoff stitched up Belova's arm as she explained more about the Red Dust and her time with the Red Room, expressing her infuriation at being made to kill with no independence and Dreykov still being able to abduct and brainwash young girls like them with no consequences. They then talked about their real parents, with Belova expressing her fantasy backstory she made for herself and Romanoff, and that she wanted to get a dog. With nowhere to go, Belova decided to help Romanoff kill Dreykov and end the Red Room together.
Belova also got a vest, which was the first thing she's ever bought, as she wanted to do things now that she was free. Belova told Romanoff this as they drove, with Romanoff, knowing that Belova was just vying for her approval, initially teased her about the vest, but later admitted that it was cool. Belova and Romanoff arrived in Norway, where they were met by Rick Mason who supplied them with a helicopter, instead of a jet, so Belova teased him. Belova boarded the aircraft, and she and Romanoff changed into the white suits provided by Mason as they went to rescue their adopted father.[3]
Flying to the Seventh Circle Prison in Russia co-piloted the helicopter, as Natasha Romanoff instructed Alexei Shostakov in escaping from the prison. Belova stayed in the helicopter as Romanoff went down to assist Shostakov, but soon came under fire, so she used a missile launcher, which caused an avalanche. Now with time running out, Belova quickly picked up Romanoff and Shostakov before they were killed in the avalanche, successfully escaping from the prison.
With Shostakov onboard, Belova punched him in the face, which made him ask if she was on her period, so Belova corrected him by telling him how she no longer had any reproductive organs due to the Red Room giving involuntary hysterectomies. When they asked Shostakov about the Red Room, he did not where it was, so he suggested they ask Melina Vostokoff, who could be found outside of St. Petersburg. Belova noted that they were low on fuel, but Shostakov told her they could make it.[3]
Upon landing somewhat roughly due to the helicopter having run out of fuel, Belova and Natasha Romanoff were hugged by Alexei Shostakov who voiced how proud he was of his daughters for their respective achievements. A disgusted and angered Romanoff quickly broke from his grasp as Shostakov held Belova, patted her, and gave her a kiss on the forehead. However, Belova remarked on how bad he smelled, due to having been in prison and broke the embrace as well.
Eventually the three arrived at Melina Vostokoff’s farm, where the reunited “family” sat at a table for dinner. Belova sat down with Romanoff, Vostokoff, and Shostakov, who had changed into his Red Guardian suit. They then discussed Vostokoff’s involvement in the Red Room as she revealed that their successful mission in Ohio twenty-one years ago was to achieve the ability to effectively mind control a person and take their free will from them, with Vostokoff demonstrating this on one of her pigs, Alexei, by commanding it to stop breathing before reviving it.
Belova gets upset with her family
As the conversation became more heated, Romanoff bluntly denied the significance of their family and claimed that it wasn’t real. A heartbroken Belova, however, voiced how she believed their family was real even though she knew the history behind it, and vented her anger at Vostokoff and Shostakov for their part in her becoming a killer with no free will in the Red Room and Romanoff for doing nothing to help her once she managed to escape and stormed off.
While in a bedroom, Shostakov joined her and despite insisting she did not want to talk he stayed anyway in silence with her for a little while. However he ended up telling her a story of a fishing incident with his father that had gone wrong and ended with his father having to urinate in his hands to prevent frostbite from taking over, much to Belova’s annoyance and disgust as she stopped him and questioned the relevance of the story. Shostakov attempted to explain to her that fathers will try to do their best for their children, but Belova scoffed at this, reminding him that since they freed him, he had done nothing but essentially complain about how bored and annoyed he was with the assignment of having to act as her father despite the fact that to her he had meant everything and she loved him like a father before telling him to get out.
Belova smiles at the "American Pie" song
Shostakov seemed to comply before stopping and began singing “American Pie.” This was Belova's favorite song as a child and she smiled upon hearing it, delighted to bond with her father. Together the two sang the song. However this moment of bonding was interrupted when the Black Widows located the farm and subdued Shostakov with numerous tranquilizer darts. Belova ran out of the room, only to be shocked unconscious shortly after by "Vostokoff," Romanoff in disguise, and taken hostage upon the Widows' helicopter.[3]
Arriving at the Red Room Academy, Belova, still unconscious, was taken to be operated on so that Dreykov would know how the Red Dust altered the chemicals in her brain. Belova was contacted by Melina Vostokoff, who had put a communication device in her ear, informing her of a blade hidden in her suit. Belova used the blade to cut herself free and kill the surgeons, and then went to retrieve the vials to free the Black Widows.
Belova strikes a pose
Making her way through the ceiling vents to cold storage, Belova dropped down, making a fighting pose like Natasha Romanoff, much to her disgust. Belova swiftly eliminated a guard, located the vials of the Red Dust, and began making her way to the Widows, all while being updated by Vostokoff on her progress. After learning that the Red Room was falling from the sky, Belova entered the training room, only to find it empty.
Belova eventually found all the Widows, who were in Dreykov's office brutally attacking Romanoff. Having wrapped the vials around a grenade, Belova threw it over the Widows, causing the Red Dust to burst, ultimately freeing them from Dreykov's control. Belova helped her sister up and removed a knife from her back, and began to evacuate with the other Widows, as Romanoff stayed to collect the data on the other Widows.
Seeing Dreykov escaping in his helicopter, Belova ran after them on the runway while the Red Room exploded behind her. She climbed on top of the helicopter next to a propeller and started to put together her baton, intending to stick it in the propeller and break the helicopter, preventing Dreykov's escape in a self-sacrificing move.
Belova breaks the helicopter's propeller
As Dreykov ordered his men to shoot at her, Romanoff ran out of the Red Room and saw her on the helicopter. She begged Belova not to do it, but she instead yelled out about how their adventure was fun before plunging her baton into the propeller, destroying the helicopter and throwing her over the edge of the ship.
As Belova was in free fall, plummeting towards the ground, Romanoff, also jumping off, caught up to her, having acquired a parachute, and attached it to her as they fell through the sky. Romanoff held onto Belova as they descended, but she soon had to let go when Taskmaster came after them, allowing Belova to land safely, while they fought in the sky.[3]
"Besides, if it can work out with the four of us, you know, there may be some hope for the Avengers. Little bit." "Okay, well if you're leaving, then I guess you should take this. I know how much you like it."
Belova was found on the ground by Natasha Romanoff, who apologized for not coming back for her when she left the Red Room, revealing that their family was real for her, too. This deeply touched Belova, and the two sisters emotionally embraced each other, as they were then rejoined by Melina Vostokoff and Alexei Shostakov.
When Thaddeus Ross and his soldiers were approaching, Romanoff told her family to escape and that she would stay, but they all objected the leaving her behind. However, Romanoff was determined, as after repairing her family, she decided to go fix her Avengers family, so Belova decided to give Romanoff her vest. Romanoff gave her the last vial of Red Dust so she could help the other Black Widows. The freed Widows landed, and Belova, Vostokoff and Shostakov departed with them, saying goodbye to Romanoff.[3]
Belova, alongside Red Guardian and Melina Vostokoff, mounted an effort to search the world for remaining Black Widows to free them from Dreykov's control, and deprogram their chemical-altered mind controls.[3] In 2018, Belova and Sonya tracked down Ana and infiltrated her house where they approached the ex-Black Widow herself.
Ana engaged in a fight with them, with Belova pointing a gun at her face, but Belova did not shoot, so Ana was able to disarm her. Eventually, Belova managed to gain an upper hand and while Sonya pinned Ana to the floor, Belova sprayed her with the Red Dust. However, to Belova's surprise, Ana was revealed to not being brainwashed by Dreykov, as she managed to purchase the house by working as an assassin for a living.
After making a truce, Belova and Ana talked about her mission to save ex-Black Widows and Belova shared her results, saying that although her mission was difficult, it was worth it. Ana then asked Belova about Natasha Romanoff, to which she replied that her sister was doing well. Sonya then jokingly said that after they are done, Belova could reunite with Romanoff and live in New York City together, after which Belova left them to take a bathroom break.[6]
"Ana, I was in there for five seconds, I come out and I've lost five years of my life. Please." "I'm sorry, Yelena. I was just trying to help you." "I know, I... Thank you. Yeah. I need to find Natasha."
In the bathroom, Belova stared at the mirror, slowly collecting herself before turning on the faucet. During this time, Belova found herself disintegrating into dust and could barely react before she found herself instantly rematerializing.
Belova observes her location
Belova became increasingly confused upon noticing the walls beginning to change around her and stepped out of the bathroom to see the house completely renovated along with a man and a little girl in the living room. Belova then raised her weapon, demanding to know what was going on and asked the man who he was, but Ana came in and defused the situation. She told her husband and daughter that Belova was an old friend.
Ana informed Belova that it had been five years since they last met, and that half of the world's population had also been erased from existence as well, during which she married and adopted a daughter. Ana suggested that Belova perform contract work and offered her to stay at her house for a while, but Belova, realizing that the year was now 2023 and that she missed out five years of her life, declined and told her that she needed to contact her sister and let her know that she was okay.[6]
Belova eventually discovered that Natasha Romanoff had died and erected a gravestone for her in Ohio, as well as acquiring a pet dog whom she named Fanny. Abandoning her previous mission of freeing other Black Widows, she instead met Valentina Allegra de Fontaine and worked for her on target operations. In December 2024, Belova paid a visit to Romanoff's grave, straightening out the stuffed animals, cards, and flowers around the grave while mourning the loss of her sister. She whistled the beginning of the tune that Romanoff would usually return, but no one responded, leading Belova to become emotional.
While Belova was mourning, she was interrupted by De Fontaine blowing her nose. Belova promptly told de Fontaine that she was on holiday leave and wanted a raise. De Fontaine said she could earn it with her next assignment and showed her a picture of Clint Barton, claiming that he was responsible for Romanoff's death and indicating him as the next target.[3]
The next day, Belova, sporting a black suit and night vision goggles, traveled to New York City and tracked Clint Barton down. She ambushed him on the roof of a building overlooking an apartment complex and started fighting against him. Barton held her off and threw out an arrow containing a zipline for Kate Bishop.
Belova was surprised that Barton was not alone when Bishop arrived on the zipline and, not wanting another person to get in their way, she slammed Bishop into the ground. Maya Lopez then arrived and joined in on the fight, engaging Belova, and during the fight, Bishop managed to knock her gun out of her hands. Belova immediately attacked Bishop, attaching a grapple to her before flinging her over the side of the roof, causing Barton to run over to save her. As Belova fought off Lopez to get to Barton, Bishop returned on the roof and shot a trick arrow at them, causing a disorienting sonic boom and blinding light that separated them.
Belova grabbed her head to recover from the boom and then used her Widow's Bite and Taser Disk against Lopez, who then fled the scene after Bishop shot an arrow into her. This allowed Barton to get the upper hand on Belova and tear off her disguise. Before Barton could speak to her, Belova stunned him with her Bite, but before she could do anything else, Bishop aimed her down with her bow and arrow. After coming to terms that she was outnumbered, Belova glared at Bishop menacingly, discouraging her from taking the shot, and dropped a grappling hook on the ground, before jumping off the roof to make her escape.[1]
"Why do you risk your life for him, Clint Barton? How has everybody forgiven him for his past?" "He saved the world." "No. My sister saved the world. Natasha Romanoff, she saved the world."
Afterwards, Belova changed into civilian clothes and infiltrated Kate Bishop's apartment through a broken window and prepared mac'n cheese to eat. When Bishop arrived, she remained hidden initially but when she stepped out, Bishop threw a hot sauce bottle at her, in which she caught. She then told Bishop that their fight had made her hungry and asked her to sit down and talk with her.
Bishop, who was defensive, remained at a distance, and remarked that Belova had tried to kill her and she did not want to talk to her. Belova gasped and proclaimed that she did not try to kill Bishop. She stated that she had attached a wire to Bishop and if she really wanted Bishop dead, it would have happened already, presumably as she entered the apartment. Belova then asked why there was only one fork, stating the need for more utensils, but Bishop said she was the only one living there.
Belova brought the food to the table and Bishop reluctantly sat down. Belova ate, while ignoring Bishop's tension and stares, enthusiastically remarking how she was in New York City. She said she wanted to see places of interest such as the newly redesigned Statue of Liberty and the Rockefeller Center. She said she knew Bishop was originally from the city. She then said that she knew about Bishop's parents, her education career, and that she had recently rescued a dog, which she found admirable. Bishop asked her what she was doing there, asking if she was there to speak with Barton, in which she said plainly she was there to kill Barton.
Belova explains her intentions
Bishop defended Barton and protested that he was a hero and an Avenger, having saved the world several times. Belova angrily said that Natasha Romanoff had saved the world and how her death influenced her idea to take out Barton. She recalled that Barton had killed several people during his time as Ronin and asked why Bishop continued to like him. Bishop countered that Romanoff and Barton were friends and Barton was a good person.
Bishop then deduced that someone hired Belova and pointed out that that person may have ulterior motives. At this, Belova decided to end the conversation and proceeded to ask for Barton's location, but got no details. She then went to the window and warned Bishop not to get in her way again before jumping down using her grappler.[6]
The next day, Belova followed Eleanor Bishop to a hotel and witnessed her meeting with Wilson Fisk. Figuring out she was the one who employed her against Barton, she texted Bishop about her discovery and sent a video of the duo as well.[6]
Belova went to the Rockefeller Center and infiltrated the Christmas party held by Eleanor Bishop in order to find and kill Clint Barton. She walked passed Orville, who was stationed at the door working undercover for Barton and Kate Bishop, declining his offer to take her coat but not garnering any suspicion from him. Belova tracked Barton through the party, finding him.
Belova followed Barton to an elevator, where she was intercepted and confronted by Bishop. Belova told Bishop she was only there to kill Barton and tried to stop Bishop from following her into the elevator as she pursued him, but Bishop forced her way in anyways. Bishop tried to press the buttons for other floors on the elevator to delay Belova, so Belova slapped her hand away. The two fought briefly with Bishop slapping Belova across the face, much to Belova's frustration. After Belova tore Bishop's dress off, revealing her archery uniform underneath, Bishop managed to press every button on the elevator. Belova took off her jacket, revealing her own uniform underneath, tossing it at Bishop and running away on the next floor the elevator stopped at.
Belova ran through the building in an attempt to catch up to Barton as Bishop continuously tried to stop her. Bishop used her body to block off a doorway, asking Belova to stop this and go have a drink with her, which Belova agreed to but only after she killed Barton, kicking Bishop in the stomach. The two kept fighting through multiple offices in the building, and as they reached the farside of the building, Belova tried to use her baton to smash open a window for her to jump out of, but it was knocked out of her hands by Bishop, who threw a set of clackers at her hand. Belova complimented Bishop on her throw and told her that the fight was a lot of fun, and then told Bishop bye as she used her grappling hook to jump out of the window.
As Belova slid down the side of the building, she came across the window that Barton was standing at, and attempted to shoot at him. Barton managed to move out of the way in time thanks to Bishop's warning. Belova tried to shoot at Barton a few more times as she slid down the building until she reached the ground.[11]
Belova waited until Hawkeye was alone and went to the ice skating rink just as Kazi Kazimierczak was about to shoot him. Belova tackled Hawkeye, knocking him onto the ice to fight him herself. Belova asked Hawkeye to tell her what really happened on the day that Natasha Romanoff died. Hawkeye told her that Romanoff had sacrificed herself to save the world, but Belova did not believe him.
Belova attacked Hawkeye, as Barton tried to defend himself and convince her that he was telling the truth. Hawkeye was not fighting back, but eventually managed to put Belova in a hold as he once again tried to plea with her to listen to him, but she still refused to believe him, breaking herself free of his hold. Belova asked Hawkeye why Romanoff would sacrifice herself for Hawkeye, and Hawkeye explained that he tried to fight her for it. Still not satisfied with Hawkeye's answers, Belova began wailing on him with her batons as Hawkeye begged her to stop.
Belova pulled out her gun and approached Hawkeye to finish him off as he laid on the ground. As she walked towards him, Hawkeye began to whistle Belova and Romanoff's secret whistle. As she heard the whistle, Belova stopped in her tracks and began to cry. She asked Hawkeye how he knew the whistle, and Hawkeye answered that Romanoff used to talk about Belova all the time. He told Belova that Romanoff loved her and always wanted her to be safe.
Belova expressed her envy that Hawkeye got to spend so much time with her sister, and her frustration that she was not there to stop her from sacrificing herself, but Hawkeye reminded Belova that there was no stopping Romanoff. Belova put her gun away and reached out her hand to help Hawkeye stand up. Hawkeye told Belova he was sorry and she nodded, before slowly turning around and walking away.[11]
Finding Purpose[]
Becoming Depressed[]
"I thought throwing myself into work was the answer. But I'm not focused and I'm not happy, and I don't have purpose."
Over the next few years, Belova continued to work for Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, despite being deceived into almost killing Clint Barton for her. During this time, Belova fell into a state of depression, which originated from the loss of her sister, but grew into a bigger feeling of emptiness. Belova turned her focus to her work, hoping that would give her purpose, but only felt that she was drifting. When Belova returned home from an assignment, she would think about the bad things she had done and resorted to drinking to cope, often passing out. Belova remained in contact with Alexei Shostakov, who moved to the United States, but he eventually stopped reaching out to her, making her feel even more alone.[2]
"Look, blame the U.S. government for their pesky investigation. Now we have to get rid of all this stuff. Do you think I like taking orders, going from job to job, doing the same thing all the time?"
Belova made her way inside the building and knocked out several of the O.X.E. agents until she arrived at the lab, where she tied up one of the agents, as he was unable to get her access to the evidence. While waiting in the lab, Belova opened up about her lack of purpose to the agent and found a guinea pig in a maze. With no way to get past the facial scanner security system, Belova decided to just blow up the lab instead, so she pulled out an explosive from her top. Belova was stopped when she was found by one of the scientists, Houston, who held her at gunpoint.
Belova successfully completes her mission
Belova slowly approached Houston and ignored him as he tried to warn her about the dangers of Project Sentry. A fight broke out and Houston opened fire, so Belova took cover. Belova snuck up on Houston and attempted to subdue him, which unintentionally caused him to shot himself in the head. Unable to use Houston's face, Belova resorted to destroying the facility, taking the guinea pig with her. As she escaped from the building, Belova reported that she had completed her mission after the lab blew up.[2]
Yelena found herself in the forest she saw in the vault, except it was a repeating memory instead of a one-time memory. After finding out that the forest was not actually a forest, but instead a room painted to look like a forest, she tried to stop the memory from happening, but was subdued by a tree. Yelena then broke free and threw herself at the wall, breaking through and entering another memory of her younger self in the Red Room, where she and the other candidates had to assemble a pistol. Her younger self assembled the pistol the fastest, and was told to stand up and away from the table. Yelena walked over to her younger self, and covered her ears and line of sight, protecting her from the sound of her fellow candidates having their hands whipped.
She spotted a mirror, and to her surprise, saw Bob in the mirror, but when she looked around, he was gone. Grabbing a pistol, Yelena shot the mirror and broke through, taking her to a memory of her after drinking herself unconscious in the bathroom. She tried to take the bottle, but was attacked by her seemingly unconscious self, who forced Yelena to drink, restarting the memory. She then noticed Bob in the bathroom mirror, and said that she only wanted to talk. The room then changed to Bob's attic, where he was sitting on the floor.[2]
"There is something wrong with me. An emptiness. I thought it started when my sisterdied, but now it feels like something bigger. Just a... void. Or maybe I'm just bored."
Having spent most of her life in the Red Room, Yelena Belova is a cynical person with a very sarcastic, deadpan sense of humor, with a bit of a bent moral compass as she notably had no problem holding a civilian at gunpoint and stealing his car to evade from pursuers, much to Natasha Romanoff's chagrin. Despite this, Belova does have a strong sense of right and wrong, having no problem with helping Romanoff take down the Red Room and freeing the Black Widows from being held against their will. Having felt abandoned by her family, Belova notably has a strained relationship with her adoptive parents and older sister, telling them outright how betrayed they made her feel when none of them came back for her. Despite this, Belova still cared and loved them, admitting to Melina Vostokoff that to her she will always be her mother, and telling Alexei Shostakov that he meant everything to her as a child.
As she found out that Romanoff sacrificed herself for the sake of the humanity, Belova was blinded by grief and was quick to believe Valentina Allegra de Fontaine that Clint Barton was directly responsible for the death of her sister. Belova made it her goal to get revenge by killing Barton and called him a bloodthirsty murderer, while talking to Kate Bishop about his activities as the Ronin. Although Belova kept her laid-back and upbeat attitude, she was relentless in her resolve to kill Barton, despite helping out Bishop finding out about her mother's connection to Kingpin. In the final confrontation with Barton, Belova accused him of not stopping Romanoff from giving her life away and blamed herself for not being around to stop her. She was incredibly jealous of Barton who spent so much time with her, but Barton reminded her of what kind of person Romanoff was, which stopped Belova from killing him, as they shared their loss together.
Afterwards, Yelena seems to have lost herself as she felt empty inside and a great deal of guilt over the things she did. She even thought about following in her sister's footsteps. When she met the other New Avengers, she started to feel a certain connection with them due to their respective tragic stories. She developed a deep bond with Bob because she understood his pain and specially the void he felt inside himself.
Abilities[]
"Yelena, you went on to become the greatest child assassin the world has ever known. No one can match your efficiency, your ruthlessness."
Belova is an extremely skilled and formidable hand-to-hand combatant and martial artist, having been gone through the training of the Red Room since young age in order to become a Widow, making her one of the most dangerous and best fighters on the planet. She was able to fight Natasha Romanoff evenly, matching her move for move before they had a truce. During the fight, she employed a wide variety of throws and locks. Compared to Romanoff's more acrobatic style of fighting, Belova has a more direct and hands-on way of fighting that seems heavily influenced by Sambo, including combat styles such as Kali, Krav Maga, Vovinam, Judo, Tae kwon do, Karate and Wrestling. Belova is able to quickly use her surroundings to her advantage and use random items as improvised weaponry. She was also able to easily fight off several surgeons at once while escaping the Red Room, and was able to quickly incapacitate a guard by disorientating him and sweeping his legs out from under him. Yelena was able to easily outclass Kate Bishop, while simultaneously being able to keep up with, and sometimes even gain the upper hand against, the extremely skilled and experienced martial artists Clint Barton and Maya Lopez, though Barton was more focused on protecting Bishop than engaging Yelena. Belova is also very physically strong and resilient, as she could flip her sister into a wall with one leg and lift Kate Bishop over her head and throw her off a building. Belova also has very good reflexes, being able to catch a bottle of hot sauce that Bishop threw at her head.
As a Black Widow, Belova is highly skilled at using a knife in combat, being able to use it to quickly kill a former Widow and later use it in her fight against Romanoff. Belova was also able to quickly throw a two-inch blade into a Red Room surgeon's back with great accuracy while making her escape.
Staff Mastery: As a Black Widow, Belova is highly skilled at using a staff in combat.
Master Marksman: Belova is highly skilled and well-trained in firearms, including pistols, sniper rifles and grenade launchers. She could target the tower of the Russian gulag from a long distance.
As a Black Widow, Belova is highly skilled in incorporating gymnastics and acrobatics into her fighting style as she battles opponents. She has been very flexible since a young age, as she could already assume the upward bow position at the age of six.
Master Spy: Having trained in the Red Room, Belova is highly skilled in infiltration and spycraft. She created a detailed, extensive background story for her absent family.
"You both have killed so many people. Your ledgers must be dripping, just gushing red."
Master Assassin: As a Black Widow, Belova is a extremely skilled assassin, being able to kill her targets with incredible efficiency. She has killed many people while she was under the control of the Red Room, including Oksana. Belova also attempted to assassinate Clint Barton, as she was instructed to by Valentina Allegra de Fontaine.
Pilot: Belova was capable of copiloting a helicopter with Natasha Romanoff, and piloting the helicopter by herself when Romanoff left to help Red Guardian.
Multilingualism: Belova is fluent in her native Russian, as well as English and Hungarian.
Equipment[]
Weapons[]
Black Widow Batons: Belova briefly utilized Black Widow Batons during the Destruction of the Red Room. Belova combined the batons into a staff and then plunged into the propeller of General Dreykov's helicopter, breaking the propeller and causing the helicopter to explode, killing Dreykov and his remaining soldiers. She later used her own when fighting against Hawkeye.
Black Widow's Bite: Belova utilized her Black Widow's Bite to engage Echo and Hawkeye. Belova used it to immobilize them stunning them both so she would have an advantage, as she was taking on both Lopez and Barton as well as Kate Bishop.
Combat Knife: Yelena used a combat knife to kill a rouge Widow. She later used a karambit style knife to escape and kill the Red Room attendants.
Throwing Knives: Yelena carries serval throwing knives on her left thigh.
Belova's preferred weapon is a subcompact pistol. She aimed it at her sister when they reunited after 21 years, but Romanoff swiftly disarmed her. She continued to use her pistol during her campaign to liberate other Black Widows, notably bringing it to Ana's house, and attempted to shoot Hawkeye with the pistol.
Heckler & Koch P30: Belova disarmed her sister of her pistol when they reunited after 21 years.
Uniform: As a Black Widow, Belova wore a standard issue black catsuit with protective padding on her shoulders, elbows and knees, belts, two weapon holsters, and tall, heeled boots.
Vest: Belova bought a vest shortly after getting released from the Red Room's mental conditioning, primarily attracted to its many pockets and making a few modifications of her own. While she was not wearing it in her reunion with Romanoff, Belova put it on after they escaped Budapest. Given she lent it to Romanoff after taking down the Red Room Academy, she would replace it with another bulletproof vest.
Winter Uniform: Rick Mason provided Belova and Romanoff with white suits that would fit and blend with the snow environment of their upcoming mission in a prison. The costume had shoulder, knee, and elbow pads, as well as a holster on the back for equipment, and a belt with two thigh holsters. It became her primary costume afterwards, with Belova seen wearing it in Ana's house two years later.
Tactical Uniform: In 2024, Belova wore a black tactical suit, complete with full-head mask. It featured a jacket with shoulder pads, and built-in wrist tasers.
Night Vision Goggles: Belova wore night vision goggles atop her mask while attacking Clint Barton, before he overpowered her and took out her disguise.
Green Uniform: In 2027, Belova wore an army green tactical suit when she contacted by Valentina Allegra de Fontaine for another mission.
Vehicles[]
Motorcycle: Belova acquired a motorcycle and used it to get to her sister, Natasha Romanoff.
Solovyov Air Helicopter: Thanks to the efforts of Rick Mason, Belova and Romanoff were able to use a helicopter to free the Red Guardian from prison, though the helicopter ran out of gas, and they had to abandon it.
Facilities[]
Rowley Residence: Before joining the Red Room, Belova lived in Ohio with her "Family", the Rowleys in their home. She was unaware that it was just an assignment from the Red Room however.
Red Room Academy: As a child, Belova trained in the Red Room Academy to eventually become a Black Widow.
In the comics, Yelena Belova is a spy who was trained in the Red Room. Assuming the Black Widow alias, Belova was sent to kill Natasha Romanoff but later became an ally of hers. Belova was eventually killed by Romanoff but was later cloned and became the White Widow.
Belova's favorite food is macaroni and cheese with hot sauce and green beans.
In an earlier idea for Black Widow, Belova and Romanoff were adversaries and Belova tried to dethrone her, but Scarlett Johansson didn't like it and thought it wouldn't work.[13]
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