[The Power Posse!] Issue 1: First Contact

Annette frowns at Agent White.

"Sure, White. Two reasons. One," she gestures at the dead Anne-Tibodies off-camera, "I'd argue the last thing you'd want is remains from a superhuman who can duplicate herself to get into the wrong hands. Fighting Man-tis was hard enough, could you imagine a swarm of Man... -tii? Whatever the plural of Man-tis is. And two, how secure do you think the city morgue is? I know a person who can teleport through dimensions."

She shakes her head, "No, my bodies need to be incinerated. Immediately. And I recommend having this protocol in place whenever the Power Posse have to battle a superhuman. In fact... what are you going to do with Man-tis' remains?"

Annette doesn't tell her about the tissue sample of Man-tis she has in her lab coat.

Annette hands the Hazmat Man's phone back.

They're bringing her to the GDA Facility? She stares at the two silent Hazmat Men sitting across from her who were staring back at her.

She wasn't sure how to feel about their destination.

After a moment of thought, Annette shrugs. She didn't have Showstopper's teleportation power anymore even if she wanted to leave. Her power to copy powers only lasted a few minutes and she was too far away from Showstopper to copy it again.

The GDA protected Earth from all kinds of crises. Maybe she'd tell them about the Institute and the Anti-Superhuman virus in her that she'd naively helped create.

If the GDA didn't already know.

Annette takes out her own phone and sends a message to the Power Posse's Group Chat:

With GDA, heading to GDA Facility to incinerate my bodies. Might be a while.

"Please, fellow drinker of distinction, call us the Brawnies-"
"-ooooor that works too." The armored figure feigns both a state of disappointment, as well as the act of playing it off, drooping their head and quickly snapping back to attention.

"There's nothing more we can ask of you than your continued vigilance, officer. Except perhaps, a case or two of Brawndo to help the boys in blue stay awake behind the desk. But worry not! We of the Power Posse will be doing our part to squash bugs like this before they can show up to menace good folk like the passengers of that bus again! Or at least, make sure the next one is nowhere near as huge! Or human."

Inkredible looked at his arm as if to confer with it over permissions to unveil classified intelligence. More so he was debating if the name he thought up on a whim was cool enough to begin spreading it around.

"Call me..uh..Ink..redible. Yeah, that works. Inkredible."

He nodded as if to seal the decision further. Yep, confidence truly befitting a hero. But besides all that, seemed the officer didn't have the info on what went on. Big bugs dont make themselves spontaneously. There had to be a source. If the officer hadn't seen anything. Maybe someone else had.

"Think you could get me a few questions with the bus driver? Maybe they saw the drop off. If there's someone shipping in problems. Might be something we can check in on."

Annette watches the Techs transport her bodies to the primary furnaces. The GDA seemed very professional and efficient.

She turns back to Agent White and gives a small relieved smile. She didn't feel the need to follow the Techs.

"I'd be glad to help in any way I can with the examination of the creature's remains. And 'Dr Tibody' is fine, thank you for that."

Annette was a superhero but the professional acknowledgement that Agent White had extended for the expertise she'd worked hard to earn felt good. She'd do the same.

"Lead the way, Agent White."

"Listen-" The bombastic demeanor of Brawndo Man falls away for a moment, though the mask stays as inscrutable as ever. "-you said it was inert, like in a trance, was it?" They tilt their head towards the bus driver. "If there's anything or anyone you might have noticed that might have been holding the reins so to speak...don't hesitate to let us know. But you've already done a lot to help us."

With that said, they puff up their chest again, volume increasing once more. "Ahh, a mastermind was behind this attack, no doubt!" They nod to Showstopper. "Listen here, cowpoke! If you don't mind letting the smokin' Dr. Tibody know (because I've yet to be patched into your comms), tell her to keep an extra sharp eye out for any electronic devices or narcotic substances in the remains of the Man-tis! That might give us a lead to whoever's been controlling it! See, that's what happens when you try to get your fix with anything other than the healthiest beverage on the market!"

As this conversation with the bus driver was happening, Showstopper had heard bits and pieces, but spent her time orbiting the bus and looking at her surroundings.

"Yeah, yeah, I’ve gotcha covered partner, I’ll relay the important stuff."

She says this nonchalantly, as she takes out her phone to text Annette. She sends the first text lightning quick, but sends the next more slowly as her focus largely returns to her investigation.

just heard Brawndo Man call you "smokin’", followed by an obnoxiously long string of winking and eyes emojis.

About 3 minutes later

oh bt dubs, let us know if you find any weird shit in those Man-tis remains, like electronics or something. We think it might’ve been controlled, punctuated with a few thinking emojis.

With Brawndo Man’s message relayed, she puts her phone back into her pocket, puts her hands on her hips, and starts thinking aloud and mumbling to herself.

"Landed right in front of the bus… hmm I wonder if there’s any chance of some kinda clue dropping with it. Or maybe, if it was controlled, the controller was nearby and left some kinda evidence? Or what if…"

She continues investigating the area around the bus, mumbling semi-coherent theories to herself as she continues to think aloud.

Annette flinches at Showstopper's message on her phone. "Smokin'?!" she says incredulously.

Then Annette looks up at Agent White, realising she said that part outloud.

"Smokin'..." she remembers the rest of Showstopper's message, "...electronics! Be sure to have your team also look for any damaged electronic components that could indicate Man-tis was being remotely controlled in some way. Yeah, that."

Annette sits back from the microscope, her eyes wide with horror in realisation.

The Institute...

She quickly leaves her station, going through the decontamination process, before finally exiting the airlocks.

She messages the Power Posse's Group Chat:

I've examined Man-tis' remains. The Institute created Man-tis, transforming a man using insect DNA, with a virus. I'll be here at the GDA for a few more days or weeks.

Then she finds Agent White to tell her what she'd already told the Power Posse about the origin of her superpowers when they'd first become a superhero team.

"Agent White, my real identity is Dr Annette Brody. Six months ago, I was hired to assist an organisation called The Institute to create a powerful virus that would be a universal cure for all diseases. Unfortunately, I discovered too late that the virus could also be used to kill anyone with superpowers. I injected the only copy of the incompleted virus into myself, then fled, so I could personally research a cure to this virus, because I knew it would only delay the Institute's own continued research to recreate this virus, not stop them."

Annette gestures at her station where that sample of Man-tis was still under her microscope.

"Man-tis has a retrovirus that is rewriting DNA, inserting insect genetic material into its... his human genome. He was a man before he became... that monster. This retrovirus bears the same signature markers as the virus I developed for the Institute. Different, but related."

She takes a breath.

"Agent White, my powers come from the interaction of my immune system and antibodies to the virus I'm still infected with. That's why my dead Anne-Tibodies must always be incinerated. I must stay here and continue researching this related virus to find out everything I can about this new virus, every little detail is important, however long it takes. It could help me with the cure."

She looks pleadingly at Agent White. "The GDA must find and stop The Institute."

Running back over to the present members of the Posse, Showstopper regales them with information on the clue she found and her theory that someone used it to lure the Man-its here.

"Still not really sure who the culprit may be, I don’t see any identifiers on this thing, but it’s a start! By the way, any of y’all carry around sanitizer or alcohol wipes? The place I found the clue was kind of- oh? Hold on a minute…"

It’s at this time that she received Annette’s message. She hesitates for a moment, clearly not eager to touch her phone right after digging through trash, but quickly grabs the phone anyways with a sigh.

"Woah… y’all get this? Sounds like Anne-Tibody’s made a huge discovery too! Here, I’ll send her our findings while I’m at it."

Showstopper then takes a few moments to send a new message to the group chat, detailing the bait station, pheromones, and its clear purpose in bringing Man-tis here. After putting her phone away, she claps her hands with a plan in mind.

"Alright buckaroos, how ‘bout this? I’m mighty curious about what sidewinder planted this thing, or if it were originally somewhere else and someone threw it out? We got a lead on who made it, but I wanna see who exactly placed it. I reckon we oughta see if there’s security cam footage we could review. After that, rendezvousing with Anne-Tibody and her peers could be nice to go over all our findings. How do y’all feel about that? Suggestions? Objections? And Officer uhh… Miller, right? Any chance you could help us with the security footage, if there is any?"

"An excellent plan, gunslinger! I was just about to suggest that myself! Ha!" Hand on their hip nonchalantly, Brawndo Man lets out an exaggerated laugh. "Why, just hook us up to the computer and-" They take a moment to look around conspicuously. "-anyone bring a computer? We aren't supposed to work on something like that with our phones, are we? Wait, hold on..."

Raising the index finger of their left hand dramatically, an interface port pops out of the tip with a shnk. "Of course! How could I forget! The processing capabilities of my suit are more than enough to analyze the data! That skittering little bug lover won't elude us now! Probably. Lead on, Officer Miller!"

"Ah! A member of the Brawndo Squad! Fuel your brawn!" Brawndo Man nods approvingly at the cans of Brawndo included in the coolers of the convenience store, striking a thumbs-up pose and uttering the catchphrase that matches a poster on the wall. Unbeknownst to anyone, the armor looks identical, but the person within it is very different...

"I'm always hyped to keep members of the Squad safe so we can all get cranked up in peace! All the people of this city are under my protection, but especially the Squaddies. Now, let's see if we can't find any traces of our little litterbug..."

Holding their palm down, they jab their index finger into the interface port of the computer that holds the footage...

"..." They flip their hand palm up, inserting the plug in properly this time.

"Curses! This little tin can is a little more sneaky than I thought! Even my intensive analytical algorithm is having trouble keeping track of them! I assure you, this time I'll get it..." Clearly, getting an ID on the suspect in a timely manner is a lost cause, but Brawndo Man isn't quite persuaded of that.

GDA Facility

Annette nods to Agent White, thinking back.

"I was approached by a woman calling herself Ms Masters. She said she represented a group called The Institute who were researching a universal cure for any disease. I accepted. Maybe I was naive, but... I thought I was going to be part of something that would change the world. For the better."

She focuses again on what Agent White wants to know.

"I lived in their underground lab. I didn't know it was underground, until I escaped. They brought me in sedated so I wouldn't know where it was. I worked with their head scientist, a Dr Appelquist. When I escaped, I discovered I was somewhere in the Ozarks. That's all I can give you, Agent White. Ms Masters, Dr Appelquist, and the Ozarks."

She shakes her head. What a fool she was, well-meaning or not.

"The virus I developed was what they were calling Stage 2. It was incomplete when I took it, but no less potent. I have to take regular doses of an Anti-Viral Booster I developed to temporarily help my immune system combat it, but the virus is still inside me. I do not know what Stage 1 was, or how many other Stages the Institute had planned. Man-tis could be a part of this design or a parallel project."

Annette's eyes light up. "Perhaps check for other missing scientists? Any who've disappeared or who've told their families they're on extended work projects off the grid!"