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in: Secret Invasion (Event), Comics, Avengers: The Initiative Annual Vol 1,
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Avengers: The Initiative Annual Vol 1 1

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Quote1 It's not like it spoke to me or anything. But somehow I understood what it was. A weapon, from... somewhere else.. that could become whatever its wearer needed the most. And what I needed most in my personal battle.. was a reason for being. Quote2
—Armory

Appearing in "Second Best"

Featured Characters:

Supporting Characters:

Antagonists:

  • Hydra (Only in flashback)

Other Characters:

Locations:

Items:

  • Gauntlet Armor (Only in flashback) (Dispersion)
    • Sword (Only in flashback) (Origin revealed)
    • Right Arm (Only in flashback) (Origin revealed)
  • Tactigon (Only in flashback) (Origin revealed)

Synopsis for "Second Best"

Secretary Gyrich is giving a briefing to Congressman Woodman about the origins of the Initiative's alien armor parts, the Gauntlet Armor and the Tactigon.

Flashback: Two extremely powerful aliens were detected fighting in Earth orbit, who seemingly disabled each other and plummeted to Earth in pieces. Satellites tracked the most powerful piece to the Sudan Desert, and US Army Sergeant Joseph Green was sent to retrieve it. Arriving on-site, Green's platoon found Hydra also there, and scrambled in a firefight to retrieve the item. Green and a Hydra agent reached the site at the same time, and discovered two pieces: a sword and a gauntlet. The Hydra agent immediately grabs for the sword, but can't pick it up. Green picks up the gauntlet, puts it over his right arm, and instinctively uses it to smash the Hydra agent. With the dust settled, Green finds he can't take the gauntlet off, and reflects that it's a heck of a price to pay for being there second.

Forward to the briefing: Sergeant Green is in a coma,[1] and Congressman Woodman asks if the Gauntlet can be removed. Gyrich recommends against it, reminding him that since the Tactigon was similarly removed from Armory,[2] the Initiative scientists haven't been able to make it work.[3] Woodman ponders the connection between these two weapons.

Appearing in "Reason for Being"

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Synopsis for "Reason for Being"

Violet Lightner (Armory) is back in San Francisco - without the Tactigon - getting counseling from her caregiver Dr. Burke. Burke asks if Violet has been cutting on herself again, and Violet says no, the new cuts on her arm were done to her...

Flashback: Violet tells a passerby that she can't fix her life just before she jumps from the Golden Gate Bridge. She doesn't feel any regret during the fall; only emptiness. But something in the Bay responds to that emptiness: the Tactigon. It flies up out of the water to her, fastens around her arm, and fashions a grappling hook to save her. The Tactigon immediately gives her that which Violet needed most: a reason for being. In short order, Violet uses her new power to make a difference in people's lives, stopping various super-villains. This culminates in Ultimo's attack on San Francisco, stopped when Armory shoots it down and asks the gathered Avengers where she can sign up for the Initiative.[2]

Forward again: Dr. Burke asks Violet what happened after that, and Violet thinks about the Initiative team, the training room accident, and the forced removal of the Tactigon from her arm... then tells Dr. Burke nothing happened. Burke urges her to say something, but she won't, giving Burke no choice but to hold her in Burke's halfway house until she's willing to be more forthright. After Violet leaves, Burke calls Secretary Gyrich and assures him that Violet can definitely keep a secret.

Appearing in "Be All That You Can Be"

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Synopsis for "Be All That You Can Be"

Congressman Woodman steps into a New-age Healing shop, gives a code word and passes through to a secret Hydra base. He's there to give a briefing on Roger Brokeridge: Hardball.

Flashback: Roger Brokeridge's family is dealing with facts. Roger's brother Paul used the services of Power Broker Inc. to gain super-powers for employment in the UCWF, but suffered permanent injuries. Roger pulls a pistol and offers to shoot Paul dead, but can't pull the trigger. Instead, Roger decides to exact vengeance on Power Broker.

Visiting Power Broker HQ, Roger tries to shoot their agent, but the agent easily stops him. The agent points out Roger's desperation and offers other powers to him... in exchange for 70% of his income. Roger agrees.

Roger's first act as Hardball is to use his powers to knock over an armored payroll truck. As luck would have it, the truck was just about to run over a child who had run into its path -- Hardball is an instant super-hero. Wonder Man flies down, commending Roger for his actions, and immediately signing him into the Initiative.

Forward to the briefing: Woodman notes that heroes aren't profitable for Power Broker, so they sold Hardball's contract to Hydra. Woodman is already using him to infiltrate the Initiative,[4] and if his cover is blown... then Hydra will have one more agent.

Appearing in "Born To Serve"

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Supporting Characters:

Antagonists:

Other Characters:

Locations:

  • Camp Hammond (Main story and flashback)
    • Baron von Blitzschlag's Quarters (First appearance)
    • Yellowjacket's Lab (Only in flashback)
  • Kentucky (Only in flashback)

Items:

Synopsis for "Born To Serve"

Baron von Blitzschlag is writing a letter to Secretary Henry Gyrich, compiling what he knows about Michael Van Patrick (MVP). The Baron had spent many years trying to perfect a super-soldier, with little true success. Michael's accidental death was a tragedy, but gave the Baron the material he needed to start a full cloning program from the deceased original.

Flashback: A clone of MVP steps out of the cloning chamber, where the Baron and Yellowjacket greet him and introduce him to his "predecessor". Through a system built by the two scientists with help from Taskmaster, the clone has full knowledge of his past and his physical skills. When asked if it's a bad thing, the scientists respond that it only seems to go awry when trying to clone superhumans... and he is annoyingly - perfectly - human.

The Baron and Yellowjacket take the clone back to MVP's home in Kentucky. They tell Van Patrick's parents that he was washed out of the Initiative program because he didn't have any super-powers, and ask how he achieved that. Van Patrick's parents explain that Michael's great-grandfather Abraham Erskine had designed a full regimen of diet and exercise. Physical perfection was possible, but only through a lifetime of hard work. The government wasn't interested, and had Dr. Erskine work on the Super-Soldier Serum instead.

Forward again: The Baron writes that this clone elected to stay with the Van Patrick family, posing as the original and keeping MVP's death a secret. The Baron comments this is good, since children are our greatest treasure, and - as he is assisted by the Scarlet Spiders - our greatest resource.

Appearing in "State of Readiness"

Featured Characters:

  • Initiative (Main story and flashback)
    • Liberteens (First appearance) (Main story and flashback)
      • Blue Eagle (First appearance) (Only in flashback)
      • Ms. America (First appearance) (Only in flashback)
      • Revolutionary (First appearance) (Main story and flashback)
      • Iceberg (First appearance) (Only in flashback)
      • Whiz Kid (Only in flashback)
      • Hope (First appearance) (Only in flashback)
      • 2-D (First appearance) (Only in flashback)

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Vehicles:

Events:

Synopsis for "State of Readiness"

A new Flag-Smasher shows up in Philadelphia with his mercenary group U.L.T.I.M.A.T.U.M., intent on destroying the Liberty Bell. However, the timely arrival of the Liberteens brings the plan to a halt. 2-D springs Flag-Smasher away from the bell while the rest of the team cleans up the U.L.T.I.M.A.T.U.M. troops. Seeing a chance to escape, Flag-Smasher flees, but runs into Ms. America, who makes short work of him. The Liberteens bask in the glory of a favorable news media.

Back at their base, Liberteen leader Revolutionary is giving a report of the event to someone at Initiative HQ. He says that the day was a resounding success. As long as the home office can produce enough teams for full nationwide coverage, they can look forward to a 50-state infiltration. While he's stating this, Revolutionary and the recipient in the home office change back to their normal form: Skrulls.

Notes

See Also

Links and References

References

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