Initial Investigation Report

Filed by: Armsmaster

Date: 04/10/11

Details of the Incident: During routine patrol, I heard what sounded like gunfire. I drove towards the sound, where I found a woman in a black skinsuit, with a mask (attempted reproduction at end of report).I ascertained the following.

- If she was in search of an altercation. This question was mostly asked in response to her choice of costume – As it is, it appears of the kind a villain would wear. She answered that she was not.

- She claimed not to need medical assistance, though she seemed shocked.

- She claimed to have a power that controls insects and arachnids.

- According to her, the following transpired. She went out to patrol in an attempt to be a hero, when she saw men with guns wearing ABB colors, lead by a man in a dragon mask. When their leader instructed them to shoot children, she sent bees and spiders to attack them. While the men fired blindly into the air in panic, their leader began to heal quickly, transforming. At this point, she claims, there was a flash of light and a "monster" appeared. She describes it as eight feet tall, with a hammer. It immediately set to beating the man with it, creating what she described as "Electric and fiery explosions". It was at this point she fled the scene in fear, and met me.

- When asked about joining the Wards, she seemed unsure. I explained that being in the Wards would help prevent her being caught in altercations like the one she witnessed, but she remained unsure. I felt pressing her would create a negative image, so I stopped asking her any more.

- Nothing she said registered as a lie to my lie detector.

At this point, I went to the scene of the crime. Pictures are also included at the end of the report. I did not interfere with it. Note the depressions the bodies are in, and the blood trails indicating they flew a distance.

Conclusions -

1. New cape is a girl, approximately high school age. May be amenable to joining Wards. Tentatively assigned a Master 2 ranking for her power to control bugs. I recommend to keep an eye out for her in future patrols. As this was after midnight on a school night and it was her first night out, I would also recommend keeping an eye out for absent students.

2. The leader of the gang is obviously Lung, as he is the only ABB cape with a Brute rating. This was also the conclusion of the girl.

3. The children to which he referred are probably the Wards. Recommend reducing their patrol schedule, especially in areas with a large ABB presence. Other options are children of other gang leaders, but as that would go against cape etiquette, it is unlikely – Lung has generally followed those rules, preferring not to draw undue attention to himself.

4. The "monster" is likely another cape. I believe he is a high level Brute. From the girl's description, it would resemble a Case 53. However, it could also be the product of a traumatized mind. Comparisons to other local Brutes and Masters make it unlikely that it is a local – As it is only one, it is likely not Fenja or Menja of Empire 88. Trainwreck is a possibility, but unlikely as he does not wield weaponry, and doesn't have a body count. I do not believe he would throw caution to the wind in this way. Hellhound has killed in the past, but none of the damage correlates to her dogs. The new cape may be a vigilante, or a new villain trying to create a reputation for themselves. I recommend extreme caution when encountering him – the body count in the alley, and the force with which the men were hit, shows an extreme lack of restraint. If sighted and identified, I recommend calling only capes who have a Brute rating or can fight high level Brutes – Either myself, Assault, Battery, or Dauntless.

5. It is uncertain what exactly happened in that alley. The lack of the body of either Lung or the new cape suggests the loser was taken away, or that they parted amicably. A sighting of one or the other is therefore of utmost importance – We do not want to be in the dark. The brevity of the fight indicates Lung had not reached an upper potential. I highly recommend increasing surveillance in the areas he is known to frequent.