The Crash Pad

Normally, the headquarters of the New Warriors is bustling with activity. But this time, the grounds were eerily silent. And the Crash Pad’s sole occupant, Eddie McDonough, was unconscious.

The group known as Psionex, led by the former Warrior Patriot, broke into the Crash Pad and attacked the New Warriors. They were defeated, leaving Eddie behind.

A hand gently shook his prone body.

“Eddie. Eddie wake up.”

Eddie’s eyes slowly opened and he saw the face of Dwayne Taylor looking down at him with concern. Dwayne held Eddie’s purple-tinted glasses in his hand. He gave them to Eddie who put them on before allowing Dwayne to help him to his feet.

“What happened here?” asked Dwayne.

“It was Patriot, he broke in with some other guys,” said Eddie.

“What other guys?” asked Dwayne.

“There were about five of them with him, one of them was all black with a gold mask, another looked like he was made out of crystal. One dressed in white, some guy with a bad haircut and a girl wearing almost nothing.”

Dwayne grimaced. In his mind, he pictured each of the people Eddie briefly described. “Psionex,” he said.

“What?” asked Eddie.

Dwayne sat at the computer and accessed the Warriors’ files. The one he opened showed images of each of the five people whom Eddie saw. “These guys?” asked Dwayne.

Eddie nodded. “Yeah, that’s them. And Patriot was with them. What’s going on here?”

Dwayne sighed. “Psionex is a team of genetically-engineered superhumans. These five were given powers by a corporation called GeneTech. The goal was to create a team of superheroes, except the members of Psionex were a bit unstable. And if Patriot is now with him, I think it’s safe to assume that GeneTech is the mysterious benefactor he’s kept quiet about.”

“But I don’t get it,” said Eddie. “What would GeneTech want with the Warriors?”

“An even better question is why did they have Patriot form this team,” said Dwayne. He stood and walked over to a small door with a keypad beside it. “And that’s something I intend to find out.”

“What do we do?” asked Eddie.

Dwayne punched in a code on the pad and the door slid open with a hiss. Behind it was a suit of sleek, black body armor that he had never planned to wear again. He looked at the black mask with its red trim.

“Bring up the files on former Warriors,” said Dwayne. “I have some calls to make.”

GeneTech

“Ritchie Gilmore,” said Ricochet.

“You know him?” asked Speedball.

The New Warriors were restrained in a room at GeneTech with Psionex standing before them. Also with Psionex was the Warriors’ former leader, Patriot. Whose mask was now removed at the behest of his employer—Walter Rosen, head of GeneTech.

“Yeah, but he used to call himself Prodigy, back when Eddie and I ran with the Slingers,” said Ricochet. “Looks like GeneTech gave him a new identity with real powers instead of that suit he used to rely on.”

Patriot punched Ricochet in the jaw. The young mutant tasted blood in his mouth and turned his head to look at his old teammate. “Same old Ritchie. Just punch your way to being a hero, huh?”

“Go to hell,” said Patriot.

“Alright, so Patriot’s been working for these guys the whole time,” said Gravity. “Now why do they want us?”

“We have our reasons, Gravity,” said Rosen. “Our last attempt to procure a team of replacements for Psionex unfortunately didn’t end well. But with Prodigy working for us, we were able to give him a new identity, new powers and have him organize a team for us. You New Warriors were created to serve GeneTech. Unfortunately, we met with some… setbacks.”

“Setbacks like former Warriors taking interest,” said Joystick.

“Did you think we’d just kick back and let a new team of Warriors pop up without saying a word?” asked Speedball. “I’ve been trying to get the Warriors back together ever since we split up. No way I was gonna sit this one out.”

“Yes, we underestimated you, as well as Taylor,” said Rosen.

“So you want us to replace Psionex. What if we refuse?” asked Joystick.

“We have ways of helping you change your mind,” said Rosen. “The interests we represent are very interested in the next generation of superheroes. And they’ve contracted us to help see that the next generation is controlled.”

“What interests?” asked Rage.

“Unfortunately I can’t tell you that,” said Rosen. “Now, let’s get started and I’ll show you what you have to gain by joining with GeneTech—and what you have to lose if you refuse us.”

Manhattan

Michiko “Mickey” Muashi had spent the past week working in her off-hours to repair the damage done to Manhattan during a battle between the Thing of the Fantastic Four and the Incredible Hulk. As an intern at Damage Control, it was unfortunately one of her duties.

During her time as a superhero, she never really respected how much work went into cleaning up after a big brawl between marvels as the public had labeled those in the superhuman community.

A helicopter lowered from the skies, with the logo of the Taylor Foundation printed on the side. Mickey’s fellow interns, Davis Cameron and Sally Blevins looked on with her.

“What’s this all about?” asked Davis, with the Australian accent his co-workers had come to recognize him by.

Mickey immediately recognized the man who stepped out of the chopper as Dwayne Taylor. “Good question,” she said. She walked past Davis and Sally, towards the chopper.

Dwayne was speaking to one of the supervisors, who pointed at Mickey. Now her curiosity was really piqued—what did Dwayne want with her? They both approached each other.

“Mickey, is there somewhere we can talk?” asked Dwayne.

“Sure, follow me,” said Mickey. She led him to one of the trailers. Inside was a small office and she motioned to the coffee machine. “Coffee?”

“No thanks,” said Dwayne.

“What’s going on?” asked Mickey. “I’m guessing it has something to do with Robbie and Elvin.”

“You guessed right,” said Dwayne. “The Warriors have been captured, Mickey. By GeneTech. And I need to mount a rescue attempt.”

“And you want me to join in?” asked Mickey. Dwayne nodded. “I’m sorry Dwayne, but I put all that behind me.”

“Even to save your friends?” asked Dwayne.

“Being a hero was always Mike’s deal, never mine,” said Mickey.

“Wouldn’t he want you to help us?” asked Dwayne. Mickey sighed. “Listen, I’m not asking you to rejoin the Warriors. Just help us out with this mission. Then you can return to your life.”

Mickey looked up at him. “Fine,” she said. “But just this time.”

Oracle, Inc.

Dwayne Taylor sat in the office belonging to the CEO of Oracle, Inc. Several years back, the Sub-Mariner had took over the company but since then, he has taken a step back from the corporation while he focused on his kingdom in Atlantis. In his place was someone with a bit of a better temperament.

She was dressed in a dark skirt with a matching blazer and white blouse. It was an interesting contrast to her light blue skin, white facial markings, and platinum hair. She walked into the office and Dwayne rose and the two embraced in a hug.

“Good to see you again, Nita,” said Dwayne.

“You too, Dwayne.” Namorita Prentiss. Namor’s cousin and herself a superhero who has served as a member of various teams, including the Defenders and the New Warriors.

Namorita took her seat behind the desk and allowed herself to relax slightly.

“I see you’ve gone through some changes,” said Dwayne, referring to Namorita’s current appearance.

“Yeah, so it goes,” said Namorita. “But I’m guessing you didn’t come to talk about cosmetic changes.”

“I didn’t. I’m sure you’ve heard about the latest team of Warriors,” said Dwayne.

“Yeah, I got an e-mail from Rich when he found out. I saw Robbie and Elvin in footage of the Thing’s rampage, as well as some other people I didn’t recognize.”

“Most of them are new to the team, but now we’ve got a problem. They’ve been captured by GeneTech.”

“GeneTech?” asked Namorita. “What do they want?”

“That’s what I want to know,” said Dwayne. “But first, I need to get my kids out of GeneTech. And for that I need your help.”

“You know I’m always willing to help,” said Namorita. “Although… Rich may be a different story.”

“Why?” asked Dwayne.

“He’s… been through some tough times.”

Los Angeles

The Avengers West Compound was located in a small area of Los Angeles tucked away from the rest of the city. The Compound had recently faced some trials of its own after an attack from the Psycho-Man. A new team of West Coast Avengers had formed, and Richard Rider was still present at the Compound.

The man called Nova sat at the computer terminal, and the image of Dwayne Taylor was on the screen. “I dunno Thrash, a lot’s happened lately,” he said.

{I know, Nita filled me in.}

“I saw Rina, she was under Psycho-Man’s control,” said Rich.

{I know, and I’m sorry. And I wish I could have more time to talk with you about what you’ve been through, but this is a matter of life or death and I need your answer. Time is not on our side, Rich.}

“You’re right,” said Rich. “I’ll do it.”

{Good. Meet us at the Crash Pad.}

New York

The apartment was rented out by a pair of New York University students, Vance Astrovik and Angelica Jones. The couple had an intertwined history. Both were members of the New Warriors were they met and later joined the Avengers together.

Dwayne Taylor sat on a chair facing the couple, who were on a couch with Vance’s arm around Angel. “You sure we can’t offer you anything?” asked Vance.

“No, I’m fine, I just came to get to the point,” said Dwayne. “I need both of you to help me out.”

“No time for reminiscing, huh?” asked Angel.

“I wish there was,” said Dwayne.

Vance stood from the couch and walked over to the bookcase. “I’ve been following this new team you’ve got,” he said. He pulled out a binder and handed it to Dwayne. The founder of the Warriors looked to Angel, who just offered a half-smile.

“He obsesses sometimes,” she said.

“You always were driven, Vance,” said Dwayne. He looked through the binder and found various news clippings featuring the latest incarnation of the Warriors.

“I had some free time on my hands,” said Vance. “So who are these new guys? I recognized some of them from different superhero websites. And you’ve got a former villain on the team?”

“Yes, but she’s proven valuable,” said Dwayne. “We’ve got a bigger concern. Patriot, who brought together this new team, turned on them.”

“What happened?” asked Angel, the concern apparent in her voice.

“Are Robbie and Elvin okay?” asked Vance.

“I’m not sure, and I don’t intend to wait to find out. Patriot led Psionex into the Crash Pad and captured the Warriors,” said Dwayne.

“Psionex? What’s their angle?” asked Vance.

“I think GeneTech may be involved,” said Dwayne. “It explains a lot of the questions I’ve had about Patriot.”

“You want our help, don’t you?” asked Angel.

“I need a team to come into GeneTech with me,” said Dwayne.

“We’ll call in the Avengers, I’m sure they’d help out,” said Vance.

“No, I want people I’ve worked with, people I can trust,” said Dwayne.

“Who do you have so far?” asked Vance.

“Nita, Rich and Mickey.”

“Then you’ve got two more,” said Angel. “But I think it might help to have a seventh.”

“Who did you have in mind?” asked Dwayne.

Chris Powell soared through the skies of New York, his body clad in the armor of the Darkhawk. Although at first, the young hero simply switched places with the alien android via a special amulet. But now, he had merged with it.

Darkhawk spied a helicopter overhead, but thought nothing of it. That was until he spotted another figure hovering in the air before him.

“Whoa!” he shouted as he swerved to avoid the fellow flier. He glided to a nearby rooftop and the other man, wearing a gold helmet with a red star on it hovered right towards him.

“Hey Nova, almost didn’t see you there,” said Darkhawk.

“Yeah, I could tell,” said Nova.

“So what’s up? Thought I heard something about you being out west?”

“Yeah, I’m a reserve Avenger.”

“Not bad, buckethead,” said Darkhawk.

“Look ‘Hawk, we’ve got a problem—the Warriors need you back,” said Nova.

“Me?” asked Darkhawk. “Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate the offer. But it’s not like I was a mainstay or anything. Besides, I thought you weren’t with the Warriors anymore?”

“I’ll explain on the way to the Crash Pad,” said Nova.

GeneTech

Security alarms at the GeneTech facility blared. Walter Rosen, CEO of the company, walked calmly towards the area. He had already made a call to security and told them to let his team handle the intruders.

Once he reached the source of the security breach, he found the intruders. Seven individuals dressed in bright costumes. Except for the man who led them, who wore sleek, black armor with red trim. The man held a pair of battle staves in his hands.

“Interesting, let me see if I can remember all of you,” said Rosen. “Namorita, Justice, Firestar, Nova, Turbo, Darkhawk and, of course, your stalwart leader. I heard you’d retired, Night Thrasher.”

“Sorry to disappoint,” said Night Thrasher. He pointed one of the staves at Rosen. “We’re here for our friends, Rosen.”

“Well, I’m sorry to disappoint you,” said Rosen. Seven other individuals dressed in costumes came to Rosen’s back. Upon seeing them, the older Warriors felt a sense of dread.

“They’re my friends now, Taylor,” said Rosen with a smile.

“I guess it’s time for the stereotypical superhero misunderstanding, huh?” asked Gravity.

“More or less,” said Patriot. “Warriors, attack!”

NEXT: It’s old versus new as the Warriors, past and present, square off against each other! But why are the Warriors working with GeneTech? And just what is Rosen’s goal? Find out in the next issue!