AVENGER X
Real Name: Cressida (last name unrevealed)
Identity/Class: Human mutate? (see comments)
Occupation: Super villain
Group Membership: Infiltrated the Avengers (Captain America/Steve Rogers, Hawkeye/Clint Barton, Quicksilver/Pietro Maximoff, Scarlet Witch/Wanda Maximoff)
Affiliations: The Acrobat (Carl Zante);
formerly The Avengers (Captain
America/Steve Rogers, Hawkeye/Clint Barton, Quicksilver/Pietro
Maximoff, Scarlet Witch/Wanda Maximoff), Edwin Jarvis, Sandman (William
Baker);
secretly Ox (Raymond Bloch)
Enemies: The Avengers (Captain America/Sam Wilson, Captain
America/Steve Rogers, Giant-Man/Hank Pym, Hawkeye/Clint Barton, Hercules/Heracles, Iron
Man/Tony Stark, Quicksilver/Pietro
Maximoff, Scarlet Witch/Wanda Maximoff, Spider-Man/Peter Parker, Thor/Thor Odinson, Thor/Jane Foster, Wasp/Janet
Van Dyne, Wasp/Nadia), the Frightful Four (Medusa/Medusalith Amaquelin,
Sandman/William Baker, Trapster/Peter Petruski, Wizard/Bentley
Wittman), Iron Man (Victor von Doom), Edwin Jarvis, the Stranger
Known Relatives: None
Aliases: "Cassandra" (called by Vision), "X-Factor" (suggested codename from Captain America)
Base of Operations: The Microverse; formerly Avengers Mansion, New York City, New York, USA; a village in northern Thailand
First Appearance: Avengers VI#2.1 (February, 2017)
Powers/Abilities: Avenger X could absorb the
life energies of others within a certain range, which she could use for
a variety of effects including boosting the natural abilities of
others, including superhuman beings. The temporary boosts grant not
only enhanced physical attributes but it also enhanced whatever
superhuman powers the boosted individual possessed. For example, the
boosted Scarlet Witch had greater control of her powers, Quicksilver
could move faster than he had ever been able to and Sandman grew so
large that he could have potentially covered the entirety of New York
City in sand. While her powers could boost anyone she chose, the
draining of life energy from her victims would cause their bodies to
rapidly decay and, in most cases, die. If she boosted someone using
life energy drained from a particularly skilled individual, the skills
would also be transferred into the person she boosted, such as
transferring Hawkeye's archery skills into the Acrobat after she
drained a small portion of Hawkeye's life energy.
When charged with life energy from superhuman victims, Avenger X
could utilize the victim's superhuman powers herself, such as when she
was able to use Scarlet Witch's hex powers after draining the Witch's
life energy. She could also use the charged life energy to power up
electronics such as a video screen or the synthezoid Vision and could even use the energy to
open portals in space through she could reach through.
Height: 5'8" (by approximation)
Weight: 140 lbs. (by approximation)
Eyes: Brown (blue when charged with life energy)
Hair: Black
History: (Avengers VI#5.1 (fb) - BTS) - Born
with the ability to drain the life force of others, the young Cressida
grew up feeding off of others.
(Avengers VI#2.1 (fb) - BTS) - As she developed her powers, Cressida realized she could use her powers to make others better, faster and stronger, boosting their natural abilities.
(Avengers VI#4.1 (fb) - BTS) - Cressida sought to break the Avengers in secret from within.
(Avengers VI#2.1) - When the cosmic Stranger
sought out young Thailand woman Cressida for study, who fearfully asked
who the Stranger was and what he wanted from her. The Stranger was
interrupted by the Avengers, whose members Quicksilver and Scarlet
Witch had previously encountered the Stranger and sensed his return to
Earth. When Stranger accused Cressida of feigning ignorance of him,
remarking that she too sensed the re-emergence of mutant power on
Earth, Cressida yelled "no!" as the Avengers prepared to battle the
Stranger. Unfortunately, the Stranger easily swatted aside the Avengers
and Captain America asked Cressida why the Stranger was after her and
Cressida claimed she didn't know then used her own inherent powers to
boost the Avengers, remarking that she did not intend to use this
power. Sufficiently boosted, the Avengers drew blood against the
Stranger and during the battle, Scarlet Witch asked Cressida what she
had done to them and Cressida claimed she didn't know and apologized,
but Scarlet Witch commended her, informing her that Cressida's boosting
of their powers helped even the odds against the Stranger. Forced to
retreat, the Stranger proclaimed that he had intended to capture
Cressida for study but now realized it would have been pointless, as
whatever she was, she was no mutant. Once the Stranger had departed,
Captain America asked who and what Cressida was and she replied that
she had the ability to boost the natural abilities of others since she
was a child but did not understand it. Scarlet Witch explained that she
barely understood her own powers and suggested that Cressida fight
alongside the Avengers instead of others who might be less
well-intentioned. Captain America agreed and invited Cressida to join
the Avengers, to which Cressida replied that she would be honored, as
the Avengers' reputation had spread to her Thailand village.
(Avengers VI#5.1 (fb) - BTS) - Since the Avengers
were willing to take care to a city of eight million people whose life
force she could feed off of, Cressida accepted Captain America's offer
to join the Avengers.
(Avengers VI#2.1) - Before leaving Thailand, Captain America asked where the other villagers were and Cressida claimed that they had fled at the sight of the Stranger as she boarded the Avengers' aircraft and left with the team, leaving behind an entire village full of corpses that went unnoticed by the other Avengers.
(Avengers VI#3.1) - Following an Avengers mission
against the Mad Thinker and his Awesome Androids, the Avengers returned
to Avengers Mansion, where Captain America suggested the codename
"X-Factor" for Cressida, based on the Mad Thinker's rantings about how
the Avengers seemed powered up by some unknown x-factor. Hawkeye
disagreed, suggesting "Avenger X" instead and Cressida herself claimed
to be impressed by Avengers Mansion and asked what it was. The Avengers
explained Avengers Mansion and how it was loaned out by Tony Stark and
Hawkeye introduced Cressida to Edwin Jarvis, the Avengers' butler.
Feigning ignorance, Cressida asked what a butler was and the arrogant
Hawkeye explained by ordering Jarvis to clean and wax the fifty
bowstrings under his bed. The Avengers later took the newly-dubbed
Avenger X out on the town to introduce her to New York City, where
Captain America suggested they not draw public attention to Avenger X
so as to not paint her a target. When Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch
were stopped and asked for autographs, Hawkeye took Avenger X on his
own, telling Captain America that he wanted to keep his distance from
Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch while in his civilian identity so that
people wouldn't figure his secret identity out. As they walked off,
Cressida remarked that Captain America seemed accustomed to giving
orders and preyed on Hawkeye's arrogance by commenting that, in her
village, leadership fell not to the eldest but to the most clever.
Hawkeye responded by saying that was food for thought within the
Avengers before suggesting they both get something to eat. A short time
later, Cressida visited Captain America in the Avengers Mansion
training area and claimed she had read up on Hawkeye's past,
questioning whether Hawkeye was truly still a criminal at heart and
remarking how, in her village, people tended not to change. Captain
America promised Avenger X that Hawkeye would have her back and
Cressida manipulatively admitted that she would hate for Hawkeye to
betray that trust, inciting Captain America's own suspicions. Avenger X
then visited Scarlet Witch, where she suggested Quicksilver was
stifling her to keep her dependent on his protection, and Quicksilver,
whom Cressida told that she felt fame might be seducing Scarlet Witch
away from her brother. Inciting Quicksilver into a rage, Avenger X
smiled as Quicksilver rushed off before using her absorbed energies to
power on a video screen, which she used to monitor Quicksilver's
location. Watching as Quicksilver encountered the Enforcers, Avenger X
reached through the video screen itself using her energies and boosted
the abilities of the Enforcers' Ox. After the boosted Ox broke
Quicksilver's legs, Avenger X smiled and muttered to herself: "One
down...three to go."
(Avengers VI#4.1) - When the seriously injured
Quicksilver insisted on being brought to Avengers Mansion with his two
broken legs, Cressida feigned helpfulness and asked Scarlet Witch to
let her see if she could help. Moments later, Cressida emerged from
Quicksilver's room and told the other Avengers that she was able to
boost his metabolism and healing, stabilizing Quicksilver, but warned
that there might ultimately be permanent damage. She then watched as an
angry Quicksilver hurled a lamp at Hawkeye at super speed when Hawkeye
mentioned not giving up despite his broken legs. As Quicksilver ordered
Hawkeye to get out of the room, Cressida suggested to Hawkeye that he
get out of the Mansion and make a night of it to give Quicksilver time
to feel better. As Captain America left to leave Scarlet Witch and
Quicksilver alone, Cressida secretly waited outside Quicksilver's room
and overheard as Quicksilver, prompted by Cressida's earlier remarks,
accused Scarlet Witch of seeking only fame. When Scarlet Witch ran out
of the room crying, Cressida smiled and went the other direction,
departing the Mansion. Later that evening, Cressida donned an
identity-protecting costume and met with the villainous Acrobat, hiring
him to impersonate Hawkeye despite the Acrobat's lack of knowledge
about archery. Having absorbed the life energies from a nearby homeless
man, Cressida assured the Acrobat by boosting his abilities using the
stolen life energy. The next morning, Cressida watched as Captain
America accused Hawkeye of betraying the Avengers' trust, having read
the newspaper stories involving Hawkeye apparently robbing a jewelry
store. Hawkeye's insistence that he was framed sparked a fierce
argument between Captain America and Hawkeye as Cressida slyly smiled
while watching Hawkeye storm out to find a way to prove his innocence.
Captain America quickly stopped Hawkeye and admitted he had approached
the situation wrong, suggesting something within the team was out of
whack and causing the team to fall apart. When Cap asked Cressida's
opinion, Cressida replied that sometimes, people didn't get along for
good reasons. After meeting with the other Avengers, Captain America
decided to regain public favor by taking down the escaped Frightful
Four and before confronting the foursome, Cap had Cressida (in her
Avenger X guise) boosted their abilities. The boosted Avengers easily
began to overcome the Frightful Four but when Captain America remarked
that only one member was still standing, Avenger X whispered that it
wasn't over yet and used her powers to boost Sandman's. After the
Avengers defeated Sandman by prodding Quicksilver to work through his
pain and return to the team, Captain America, recognizing Sandman's
sudden boost in power as Cressida's work, hurled his shield and
narrowly missed hitting Avenger X in the head to stop her escape. When
asked why Avenger X had boosted Sandman and whether Cressida thought
the Avengers were too stupid to notice, Avenger X replied that frankly,
she did think they wouldn't notice, and that just because they
discovered her true villainous nature, they were not exempt from what
she claimed they owed them. Claiming that she wanted to destroy the
Avengers in secret for reasons the team couldn't imagine, Avenger X
then announced that she was more than happy to destroy them in public
now that she had been exposed as an infiltrator and used her powers to
drain the life energies from the Avengers, leaving their bodies
decaying at her feet.
(Avengers VI#5.1) - Standing over the decaying
Avengers, Avenger X announced that the team would finally pay and she
would have her revenge but she was soon interrupted by the founding
Avengers, who revealed that they knew how her powers worked. The
founders then attacked Avenger X, who attempted to absorb energies from
the Wasp until Giant-Man hit her from behind. Avenger X then turned her
absorption powers against Thor, who scoffed at her attack, claiming
that it would be ineffective against one whose lifespan was greater
than she could imagine. Knocked aside by Iron Man, Avenger X used the
life energy of Scarlet Witch to cast a hex that pinned Iron Man and
Thor's feet to the pavement then she flew off, boasting that she
defeated the founding Avengers with the power of three Avengers.
Promising to find a way to drain the life energy of Thor, Avenger X
remarked that she had chosen not to use Hawkeye's life energy against
the founders, feeling that he was useless on a team of powerhouses.
Forty-eight hours later, the founding Avengers held a mock funeral for
the fallen Captain America, Hawkeye, Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver,
flushing out Avenger X, who secretly viewed the funeral from behind a
tree. Wasp quickly exposed the hiding Avenger X and the seemingly
fallen Avengers renewed their battle, revealing that Giant-Man had
discovered a way to rejuvenate and immunize them against Avenger X's
powers. Before Avenger X could act, Scarlet Witch used her hex powers
to animate the tree Avenger X was hiding behind to entrap her and when
Hawkeye admitted that he knew Avenger X couldn't stay away from their
funeral, Avenger X burst free from the tree and warned Hawkeye not to
mock her. When Captain America hurled his shield at Avenger X, she
easily caught it and hurled it back at Captain America's neck but it
was stopped in mid-air by Quicksilver. Unsure how Avenger X could still
be powered up after they had been immunized and the founding Avengers
had gotten all civilians out of the area, the Avengers soon realized
Avenger X must be draining life energy from Edwin Jarvis within
Avengers Mansion. The Avengers fled inside the Mansion and had
Quicksilver run Jarvis to the farthest hospital possible to keep him
out of Avenger X's range as Avenger X blasted her way into the Mansion.
The team quickly split up to divide Avenger X's attention and she
focused on Captain America first, tracking him into the Mansion's
training area, where Avenger X admitted she had led the Avengers to
believe that her boosting abilities only worked on others. Revealing
that she had been waiting for the perfect moment to strike, Avenger X
used Scarlet Witch's hex powers and Quicksilver's speed to down Captain
America. Scarlet Witch then attacked by Avenger X avoided Scarlet
Witch's hexes using Quicksilver's speed, prompting Scarlet Witch to ask
what was driving Cressida after the Avengers had taken her in. Kicking
Scarlet Witch using Quicksilver's speed, Avenger X explained how she
readied accepted the Avengers' offer for membership in order to get
close to a city from which she could feed. Hawkeye then entered the
fray, warning Avenger X to stand down and admitting she never should
have went after Jarvis, made Hawkeye feel foolish or said he wasn't
Avengers-worthy. Unafraid, Avenger X boasted that she still had enough
of Quicksilver's speed to stop Hawkeye's arrows mid-flight and prodded
Hawkeye to do his best, announcing herself a god. Hawkeye fired a
volley of arrows at Avenger X, muttering that she still had to breathe
as the gas arrows went off. Choking but still confidant, Avenger X
threatened to kill Hawkeye but a recovered Scarlet Witch used her hex
powers to boost Quicksilver's speed and Quicksilver generated a
super-speed tornado that launched Avenger X miles away. Recovering and
asking for help, Avenger X found herself face-to-face with the
Frightful Four, who refused to assist her, angry that they had been
used as pawns by her against the Avengers before left to rot. Launching
into an attack of revenge against Avenger X, the Frightful Four knocked
her into a hole in the ground and Trapster glued her there before
Wizard plugged the hole with a boulder, creating a makeshift grave for
Avenger X. Sarcastically noting how "brave" Avenger X was when she
begged for help, Wizard burned an epitaph onto the boulder stating
"Avenger X, Bravest of Us All." When they heard the Avengers coming in
search of Avenger X, the Frightful Four fled and the Avengers
ultimately proved unable to locate Avenger X and left the scene,
suspecting they would fight her another day, unaware of the grave
housing her just yards away from where they were standing.
(Avengers VI#3 - BTS) - Years later, when the
M.O.D.O.K.-like Kang
counterpart created by a paradox searched history for more Kang
counterparts to assist against the Avengers, he viewed a window into
the future and witnessed Avenger X's arms emerging from her stone
grave. Momentarily confused at having never known of an "Avenger X,"
the M.O.D.O.K.-like Kang counterpart was hit by Captain America's
shield.
(Avengers VI#6 - BTS) - Following an adventure against the time conqueror Kang, the Avengers returned to the Baxter Building and while they relaxed, Avenger X's grave blinked into the Baxter Building's basements, 32 stories below the Avengers.
(Avengers VI#7) - Following a battle against the Champions of Anamelech and two different Chronosite beings, Wasp (Nadia) and Captain America (Sam Wilson) visited the Baxter Building's lower basements, where Captain America discovered Avenger X's grave. When Captain America admitted he had never seen the grave before, Wasp asked if he thought there was actually someone inside and Cap replied that it was more likely just a super villain prop belonging to someone like the Grim Reaper. As the two Avengers walked off, Avenger X's arms emerged from the front of the gravestone.
(Avengers
VI#8 (fb)) - Avenger X completely emerged from her grave, destroying it
in the process. Confused after emerging from her own grave and unsure
of where she was, Avenger X was sat down in a chair by the Avengers,
who introduced themselves to her. Wondering where Steve Rogers,
Hawkeye, Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch were, Avenger X asked how long
she had been entombed. When Thor asked if she was hungry, Avenger X
admitted she was very hungry before Vision interrupted to inform the
Avengers that Avenger X was one of the Avengers earliest and deadliest
enemies, having infiltrated the group and misled the team into thinking
she was boosting their powers. Vision then explained how Avenger X had
disappeared following her final battle with the team, apparently
entombed until now, but before Vision could continue, Avenger X used
her powers to overheat Vision. Announcing that she had spent years
dreaming of her revenge on the Avengers, Avenger X caused Vision to
expel a massive heat blast that took out the floor of the Baxter
Building as well as Hercules and Vision himself. With Avenger X loose
in the Baxter Building, Captain America had Thor evacuate the east side
of the building while he handled the west and Spider-Man handled the
top floors. Wasp was placed on research and asked to reach out to the
former Avengers who had experience battling Avenger X to see if
Cressida had a weakness. Feigning fear of her powers, Avenger X hid in
a top floor bathroom until Spider-Man arrived. She then tricked
Spider-Man, claiming she wanted help and prompting Spider-Man to web up
her hands to be on the safe side. Once Spider-Man's guard was down,
however, Avenger X used Hercules' strength to rip free of the webs and
pounce on Spider-Man, absorbing his life force and powers. Avenger X
then tracked down Captain America, provoking him into a chase. When his
shield stopped, Captain America learned from Wasp that Avenger X
absorbed the superhuman powers of her victims as he noticed her
crawling on the wall behind him. After Avenger X took down Captain
America, Wasp reunited with Thor as Avenger X set her sights on the two
remaining Avengers, hitting Thor in the face with Cap's shield. Avenger
X then attempted to crush Thor by breaking off part of the stone
staircase and hurling it at Thor, who responded by throwing her hammer
at Avenger X. Cressida blocked the hammer with Cap's shield and managed
to tackle Thor, absorbing her powers as well.
(Avengers VI#8) - Turning her attention to Wasp as
Wasp attempted to send out a distress call, Avenger X narrowly missed
Wasp's head with Captain America's shield before being confronted by
Iron Man (Victor von Doom), who had been summoned by Wasp's distress
call. Boasting that Iron Man could not harm her when she had the power
of two gods, Avenger X immediately leapt into battle against Iron Man
using the agility and fighting skills of Spider-Man and Captain
America, respectively. Announcing that Avenger X already had more
powers than she had skill to effectively use, Iron Man chased Avenger X
through the halls, quickly grabbing her by the neck until Cap's shield
ricocheted back and opened up Iron Man's faceplate. Before Avenger X
could absorb Iron Man's powers, Wasp attacked, shrinking them both into
the Microverse. When Avenger X realized what had happened, she demanded
that Wasp return them to normal but Wasp admitted she wasn't sure how
to, as she wasn't able to leave behind a homing beacon to lead her back
into the Macroverse. Soon noticing Captain America's shield in the
Macroverse, Wasp used it as a beacon to return to normal, leaving
Avenger X stuck in the Microverse with no way back.
Comments: Created by Mark Waid, Barry Kitson and Mark Farmer.
We see Avenger X's gravestone and hands in Avengers VI#1 (January, 2017) as part of a 1-page preview of upcoming stories/events in the Avengers series but this preview was not part of the actual story and Cressida didn't fully appear until Avengers VI#2.1.
It was unclear how Cressida obtained her superhuman powers. She claimed to have had them since she was a little girl and the Stranger confirmed that she was not a mutant. Perhaps she was experimented on at birth? Or maybe she was an Inhuman but was unaware of it?
Vision called Cressida "Cassandra" in Avengers VI#8
when he related her history to the Avengers but Cressida was charging
him with energy and overheating him so you could likely blame the name
mix-up on Vision malfunctioning.
Profile by Proto-Man.
CLARIFICATIONS:
Avenger X has no KNOWN connections to:
images: (without ads)
Avengers VI#8, p16, pan2 (Avenger X, main image)
Avengers VI#2.1, p14, pan2 (Avenger X, headshot without costume)
Avengers VI#3.1, p18, pan2 (Avenger X using her powers to reach through an electronic screen)
Avengers VI#4.1, p6, pan4 (Avenger X's 1st criminal costume)
Avengers VI#5.1, p1, splash page (Avenger X, standing over decayed Avengers)|
Avengers VI#5.1, p13, pan2 (Avenger X, using Quicksilver's superhuman speed)
Avengers VI#8, p15, pan1 (Avenger X draining lifeforce from Wasp)
Appearances:
Avengers VI#2.1 (February, 2017) - Mark Waid (writer), Barry Kitson (pencils), Mark Farmer (inks), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Avengers VI#3 (March, 2017) - Mark Waid (writer), Mike del Mundo (art), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Avengers VI#3.1 (March, 2017) - Mark Waid (writer), Barry Kitson
(pencils, inks), Mark Farmer, Rafael Fonteriz (inks), Tom Brevoort
(editor)
Avengers VI#4.1 (April, 2017) - Mark Waid (writer), Barry Kitson
(pencils), Mark Farmer, Rafael Fonteriz, Drew Hennessy (inks), Tom
Brevoort (editor)
Avengers VI#5.1 (May, 2017) - Mark Waid (writer), Barry Kitson, Mark
Bagley, Ro Stein (pencils), Sean Izaakse (pencils, inks), Mark Farmer,
Scott Hanna, Mike Perkins, Ted Brandt, Drew Hennessy (inks), Tom
Brevoort (editor)
Avengers VI#6 (June, 2017) - Mark Waid (writer), Mike del Mundo (art), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Avengers VI#7 (July, 2017) - Mark Waid, Jeremy Whitley (writers), Phil Noto (art), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Avengers VI#8 (August, 2017) - Mark Waid, Jeremy Whitley (writers), Phil Noto (art), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Last updated: 03/08/18
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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