H.I.V.E.

H.I.V.E., also known as the Hierarchy of International Vengeance and Eliminations, is a fictional criminal organization featured in comic books published by DC Comics. They are part of the mainstream DC Universe and were first introduced in the company's Pre-Crisis publishing history in the pages of New Teen Titans #2. They are usually associated with stories involving the Teen Titans. A version of H.I.V.E. also appeared in season four of the CW Network television series Arrow, where they were led by a former member of the League of Assassins named Damien Darhk.

History
The original H.I.V.E. was a mysterious organization that specialized in high-level contract assassinations and mercenary acts of terrorism. The original leader of the H.I.V.E. was an unidentified individual who once discovered an alien and used the being's technology to build his empire. The H.I.V.E. Master took a mistress and established an inner circle of seven hooded administrators known as the Council of Seven. The identities of the Council of Seven were likewise unknown, save that they were a coalition of important underworld figures. To date, the only Inner Circle member who has ever been identified is Professor Torgo, an old foe of |Wonder Woman. Like many secret organizations, the H.I.V.E. used its power and influence in a bid to acquire complete global domination. In order to strengthen their reputation amidst the underworld, they decided to make a name for themselves by eliminating members of the super-hero community. The H.I.V.E. Master felt that they were not strong enough to take on the Justice League so they instead decided to focus their attention on destroying the Teen Titans.

The H.I.V.E. attempted to hire Slade Wilson, the Terminator, to eliminate the then recently revived Teen Titans. Slade demanded payment in advance, but the H.I.V.E. refused. Unwilling to compromise his business practices, Slade turned his back on them. Undeterred, H.I.V.E. then turned to Slade's son, Grant.

Grant Wilson had already experienced an unfavorable altercation with the Teen Titans - one that cost him his girlfriend Carol Sladky. Grant agreed to undergo a biological enhancement process that would enable him to utilize 100% of his brain, making him the equal of the Terminator. After the process was complete, the H.I.V.E. provided him the costume and code name of the Ravager and sent him after the Titans. What they failed to tell him however, was that the more he used his enhanced strength and reflexes, the greater toll it would ultimately take on his body. Ravager attacked the Titans in New York and as predicted, the excessive energy quickly ate away at him, prematurely aging him to the point of death. The Terminator arrived on the scene just in time to cradle his son in his arms. Grant never knew that the Terminator was also his father.

Slade recognized that Grant's contract for the H.I.V.E. was unfulfilled and agreed to honor his son's responsibility by killing the Titans. Slade attempted this several times over the next few years, and even enlisted a troubled young teenager named Terra to assist him, but he never succeeded in stopping the Titans once and for all. In Slade's last attempt to fulfill the contract, he briefly succeeded in capturing the Titans and brought them to the organization's undersea base.

At some point in time, the H.I.V.E. Mistress murdered her husband and took control of his organization. Although clearly insane, she nevertheless garnered the same obedience from her underlings as her husband once did. She initiated an ambitious scheme called Operation: Waterworks wherein she attempted to destroy the underwater city of Atlantis. This was meant to be little more than a display of power which she would then use to blackmail world leaders into surrendering to the H.I.V.E. The Mistress' plan alerted the attention of former Titans members Aqualad and Aquagirl who in turn sought assistance from the Titans. The Teen Titans journeyed to the H.I.V.E.'s undersea base for one final confrontation. They succeeded in staving off the attack against Atlantis and also crippled the H.I.V.E.'s station. Knowing that defeat was near, the H.I.V.E. Mistress refused to be taken alive. She murdered her Inner Circle then took her own life. With he demise, this incarnation of the H.I.V.E. was gone forever.

Some agents of the original H.I.V.E. survived however, and returned to the United States to pursue alternate avenues of the criminal lifestyle. Many became members of the Wildebeest Society.

Animated
The H.I.V.E. was a recurring antagonist on the 2003-06 Teen Titans animated series. The animated version of the H.I.V.E. departed greatly from comic book continuity however and were patterned more in keeping with the Fearsome Five than that of the original H.I.V.E. They were introduced as a training academy for young super-villain in the series premiere "Final Exam" and its membership included characters such as Gizmo, Jinx and Mammoth. Later members included Angel, Billy Numerous, Private H.I.V.E., Kyd Wykkyd, See-More and XL Terrestrial.

One similarity with the comic book version that was maintained however was the H.I.V.E.'s relationship with Deathstroke (known only as Slade in the series). Slade never worked directly for the H.I.V.E., but often labored on their behalf to destroy the H.I.V.E.'s arch-foes the Teen Titans. After several battles between the Teen Titans and the students of the H.I.V.E. Academy, Robin eventually decided that their best course of action was to disrupt the organization from within. In the episode "Deception", Robin's teammate Cyborg went undercover using the alias Stone and began to earn the trust of the other cadets. Cyborg discovered that the H.I.V.E. was now being secretly run by a villain named Brother Blood. Blood learned of Cyborg's deception and attempted to brainwash him into truly serving the H.I.V.E. As Stone, Cyborg led the H.I.V.E. academy in a battle against the Titans, but this was actually a ploy to turn the tables on Brother Blood. Blood's brainwashing technique actually failed and Cyborg rejoined the Titans to beat back the H.I.V.E. Later missions proved unfulfilling and the H.I.V.E. members attempted to earn the respect of super-villain Madame Rouge as well as membership in the Brotherhood of Evil.

Members

 * Adeline Wilson
 * Damien Darhk