ALMOST RENO
Classification: Small town in New Mexico
Creator: Aguilar Institute
Users/Possessors: Children included Selena Ciscernos, Lewis Hammond, Mary, Jonathan McFee, Zachary
First Appearance: X-Force I#77 (May, 1998)
Powers/Abilities/Functions: Almost Reno was an ordinary New Mexico town, set up by the Aguilar Institute for monitoring from special stations. The entire population of Almost Reno was once sterile, but were corrected by the Damocles Foundation using Deviant and mutant chromosomes. This resulted in an entire generation of superhuman children being born in Almost Reno.
History: (X-Force I#86 (fb)) - Atomic tests near the town of Almost Reno, New Mexico, resulted in the locals becoming sterile. To assist them, the Damocles Foundation gave the townspeople a combination of mutant and Deviant chromosomes. This resulted in the next generation of children born there to develop superhuman powers, manifesting similarly to that of mutants.
(X-Force I#77) - When Jonathan McFee's power went out of control and killed him, members of X-Force came to Almost Reno to investigate. They were confronted by Agent Briggs, who claimed to be an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D., and that the atomic tests had caused the mutations. Briggs and his men attempted to abduct Mary, a psychic girl, but her powers drove them off, and she became friends with Meltdown before X-Force left town.
(X-Force I#86 (fb)) - One day during math class, Lewis Hammond's powers went out of control. Before long, Agent Briggs and his men had quarantined the town and began relocating the entire population to find out what had gone wrong, as virtually every child had destabilized. Only Mary showed no signs of destabilization, and she evaded capture alongside her friend Zachary.
(X-Force I#85) - Selena Ciscernos, a child from Almost Reno, was orphaned when her parents were killed in a car accident. She wound up in the custody of Dr. Leonard, who had to keep the Aguilar Institute from claiming her. Knowing of Domino's interest in the Institute, he showed Selena to her, alerting Domino to the Institute's involvement in Almost Reno.
(X-Force I#86 (fb) - BTS) - Selena died not long after Domino met her.
(X-Force I#86) - X-Force returned to Almost Reno to discover what the Aguilar Institute had done. They were attacked by a child with flaming powers, and Warpath accidentally killed him in a struggle. They found Mary and Zachary, and prevented Briggs from claiming them. Odysseus Indigo, head of the Damocles Foundation then met with X-Force and revealed the true history of the town to them. He did not want any further violence, but promised that he would have Mary and Zachary eventually. When X-Force left Almost Reno with the two children, it was now completely abandoned.
Comments: Created by Joseph Harris, Adam Pollina and Mark Morales.
by
CLARIFICATIONS:
Almost Reno should not be confused with:
Selena was one of the children born in Almost Reno, and obtained the superhuman ability to shapeshift due to tampering with her genetic code. When she was eight years old, her parents were killed in a car accident, and she was sent to a hospital. Dr. Leonard treated her, and kept the Aguilar Institute from claiming her. He displayed her to Domino to set her on the path to finding the Aguilar Institute's role in Almost Reno. She died not long after Domino met her.
--X-Force I#85 ([86]
Lewis Hammond was one of the children of Almost Reno. He was a classmate of Mary. One day during math class, his powers caused him to glow brighter and brighter until no one could look at him. Lewis' out-of-control abilities were the first sign that the children of Almost Reno were a failed project.
--X-Force I#86 (fb)
Mary is a psychic child from Almost Reno who lived there with her mother. She was of particular interest to the Damocles Foundation because she was the only child who showed no sign of detstabilization. Mary befriended Meltdown when X-Force first visited Almost Reno. When the other children began to destabilize, Mary and Zachary went into hiding together, and were the last children left in the town. X-Force helped keep the Damocles Foundation from claiming her, although Odysseus Indigo promised that he would have her eventually.
Mary possesses telepathy, and can fire mental bolts at enemies.
--X-Force I#77, 86
Jonathan McFee was one of the children of Almost Reno, and had the ability to generate fire by snapping his fingers. He was a friend of Mary's, and revealed his power to her. One week later, he destabilized and was killed by his own powers. His death caught the attention of X-Force, who came to investigate the children.
--X-Force I#77
Zachary or "Zak" was one of the children of Almost Reno. His body mutated into a rock-like form, similar to the Thing. Zachary lost some of his capacity for speech as he mutated. He and Mary were the only two children who evaded capture by the Damocles Foundation. He was wounded protecting Mary from the Foundation, but X-Force brought him medical attention. Odysseus Indigo promised to reclaim Zachary eventually.
--X-Force I#86
Images taken from:
X-Force I#86, last page, panel 5
Selena- X-Force I#85, page 22, panel 6 (not counting ads)
Hammond- X-Force I#86, page 13, panel 4 (not counting ads)
Mary- X-Force I#86, cover
McFee- X-Force I#77, page 2
Zak- X-Force I#86, page 9, panel 1
Last updated: 04/25/06
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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