She first met Lt. Rashard Bonds (aka Lou), while he was on a solo mission, away from his Alpha Initiative Unit. He was ordered to locate a secret terrorist base in northern Nigeria, where it was suspected the notorious and dangerous war criminal, Ramses “The Pharaoh” Hondo was holding weapons of mass destruction. It was a covert mission, meaning Lou needed to get in and out without a trace. Nobody could know the US was operating in that area, as it would’ve meant a political and military nightmare would follow, due to the base’s location being so close to a separate warlord’s headquarters. The CIA could not risk starting a war, but they couldn’t allow Ramses to possess WMDs either. So, Lou was sent in.

The bushes were thick surrounding The Pharaoh’s base, making it easy for Lou to infiltrate the compound, once he figured out the pattern of the land mines and traps set throughout the wilderness. Once inside, he stealthily maneuvered his way in and out of rooms and corridors, until he made visual confirmation of the WMDs. After recording a video for his superiors, he strategically placed C4 explosives with modified detonation units: they contained small vials of Lou’s specialized blood, which is riddled with nanocells, allowing him to telepathically communicate with them to self-destruct, which would cause the C4 to explode. This way, he was not under a time limit to get to safety away from the compound, and he did not have to use a frequency to detonate them remotely, which could possibly be detected by the terrorists. Therefore, as soon as he placed the last explosive, Lou carefully moved to exit the building to level it to the ground. However, a discovery curbed that plan.

On his way out, Lou came across a US government issued Ebb-cell. How Ramses got a hold of one of thee power-muting devices was beyond the lieutenant. Nevertheless, it was there, and it was authentic. So, he had no choice but to detour from his escape route to investigate further. When he looked inside, he saw a young girl about 12 years old. It was Chineke. She was shaking – visibly terrified. Lou did not know who she was. What he did know, though, was he could not allow her to die when he blew up the building. So, he opened the Ebb-cell and freed the girl.

Chineke immediately clung to him, and thanked God for answering her prayers and bringing her an angel. Then she placed her hands on his face, and told Lou how her gift would allow him to never have to fear losing himself. Through her psionic hyper-abilities she read his mind, and learned all about him instantly. She also sensed the foreign telepathic nanocells that riddled Lou’s body. Chineke recognized that the nanocells actually put him in danger of one day being controlled by telepathic beings with potentially evil plans. She felt obligated to help him, so she used her powers to flood Lou’s anatomy with psionic energy, linked to a virtually unbreakable barrier surrounding his brain.

The process was excruciating, leaving Lou writhing on the ground in pain as her psionic energy erupted all over the inside of his body like fireworks. His physical was pushed to extreme limits. However, when the process was complete, he physically felt more powerful, and was mentally more in-tune with the nanotechnology. Chineke’s gift not only protected him from all telepathy, telekinesis and psionic powers, but it also upgraded his anatomical abilities.

Feeling refreshed, Lou took Chineke under his protection, and led her to safety outside of the compound. Then, with his upgraded powers, he telepathically detonated the C4 explosives, leveling Ramses’ compound. Chineke hugged Lou again like a niece would her uncle, thanking him for saving her life. It was an incredible moment in her life. However, their bonding was soon interrupted. Someone survived the explosion, and that person was the traitorous former member of the Sista Clique, Shanga!

The battle was brutal, and Shanga was able to gain the upper hand. In fact, Shanga was on the verge of reacquiring Chineke, if not for the arrival of African superheroes, Makeda and The Big Five. Together they were able to survive Shanga’s onslaught, and save Chineke.

That was Chineke’s first encounter with Lt. Rashard Bonds. Now, just a couple years later, she was about to have another encounter with him. Lt. Rashard Bonds was on a mission to build a team of superheros, which would first set out to rescue his friend and colleague, Captain Noble, who had been missing ever since he’d engaged in a battle with Fata Morgana, and then come together to prepare for an apparent impending danger, that would soon threaten the Earth and the universe at at large. Bonds had traveled to Platinum City to recruit heroes for the team, but when he met with members of the famed Platinum City Knights (Black Jag, Night Bird and Metro), he was told the story of Gary Allen – a man who apparently had undergone the same nanotech procedure he had.

The Knights told Bonds how Gary had suddenly lost control of his body, and went rogue. The same thing had recently happened to Lou’s fellow Alpha Initiative members. Lou always wondered why he was never affected in the same way. He strongly believed his friend in Nigeria was the key, but it never fully clicked until he heard the Knights recount the tale of their confrontation with Gary. A behavioral tick they mentioned matched a very specific detail each member of the Alpha Initiative also displayed: each one scratched at their heads to stop “the voices”, before losing autonomy over themselves.

Furthermore, he remembered when Chineke imparted her “gift” upon the lieutenant, she told him that he would never have to worry about losing himself. The psionic barrier she gave him prevented his mind and body from being remotely controlled by whatever entity possessed Gary and the Alpha Initiative. Thus, Lou knew he had to go back to Nigeria and find Chineke in order to help Gary.

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