Alicia

Real Name: Marcia Guzman;
    possibly legally changed to Alicia (surname unrevealed)

Identity/Class: Human mutate and technology (exoskeleton) user

Occupation: Unrevealed;
    former law student at Great Northern University

Group Membership: Power Broker Inc. mutates from Dr. Forrest's research trials

Affiliations: Millie Collins, Hanover Modeling Agency, Hawkeye (Clint Barton), Emi Ishida, Jake (formerly Nita Young), Melanie, Toni Turner;
    allegedly Black Cat (Felicia Hardy) and others

Enemies: Chance (Nicholas Powell), Power Broker Inc. (Angela Golden, Dr. Seth Forrest), Dr. Forrest's mutates, Trapster (Peter Petruski)
    formerly Hawkeye (Clint Barton)

Known Relatives: Tulio "Tuli" Guzman (brother, deceased)

Aliases: Trace;
    it is uncertain whether Alicia was just an alias she used, or if she legally changed her name, and/or whether she maintained the name after Power Broker's defeat

Base of Operations: Unrevealed;
    formerly "Jake's friend's place," New York City (accessible via the Number Three subway/train);
    formerly an unidentified base in an abandoned building in New York City

First Appearance: (Named, pictured) Avengers: Solo#1 (December, 2011);
    (full; named as Alicia) Avengers: Solo#2 (January, 2012)

Powers/Abilities: Alicia had some degree of superhuman strength. Even unarmored, she was seen to be punching out some of Forrest's super-strong mutates. She also knocked down a door and fought off a trio of male Power Broker agents (mutated or not) before ever donning the Trace armor. According to Forrest, the upper limit of strength in those empowered in this study was lifting 1400 lbs.

    Wearing the armor, she pushed Dr. Golden's car up on its side and picked up Hawkeye's skycycle and used it like a bat. Hawkeye described the Alicia-Trace as "maybe as strong as Cap" (but a lot of writers think Cap is super-strong; maybe they were thinking that was the case)).

    The Trace armor seemed to grant protection from injury.

    The Trace armor may have granted flight. She seemed to swoop out of the air, grab Hawkeye's skycycle, and swing it like a bat to strike Chance during a rooftop fight; however, she may have been present cloaked/camouflaged.
    Neither Jake nor Emi seemed to be able to fly in the Trace armor.

    The Trace allowed apparent hologram projection (or possibly actual physical transformation) to make the wearer seem larger and more maculine in build; this latter ability could be used even with the helmet off and could apparently be controlled at will. While Emi did not change forms, she did appear large and masculine in the armor. Jake was already masculine, so this ability was not needed.

Height: Unrevealed; approximately 5'6"; (as Trace): approximately 6'4" (though the armor could shift to a smaller size, perhaps 5'8" to 5'10")
Weight: Unrevealed; approximately 120 lbs.; (augmented): (exoskeleton weight): Approximately 47 lbs. (for a total of 167 lbs.)
Eyes: Brown
Hair: Brown

History: 

(Avengers: Solo#1-5 (fb) - BTS) - Marcia Guzman was a law student at Great Northern University.

(Avengers: Solo#1-5 (fb) - BTS) - Power Broker Inc. employed Dr. Seth Forrest at Great Northern University to pay test subjects in a seemingly benign study involving calcium treatments in; however, the study actually treated the subjects with four different formulae designed to cause the women's children to have one of four superhuman powers (strength, metabolism control, telekineses/energy field manipulation, incendiary power). Instead, however, a percentage of the women began developing powers themselves (by accident or design on the part of Forrest).

(Avengers: Solo#3 (fb) - BTS) - When test subject Marcia Guzman began to feel sick, as if she had a bad flu, for over a week, her brother, Tulio, came down to care for her.

(Avengers: Solo#3 (fb)) - Not having a regular doctor, unable to afford the emergency room, and realizing there were other cases like her, Marcia went back to the facility that had given her the initial treatment. She was taken to a back room, where she saw pictures of Captain America all over the facility. A Power Broker agent told her to wait, and a clinican would be right in to see her. When she saw a number of large, threatening men approaching the facility, she broke out and escaped. 

(Avengers: Solo#1 (fb) - BTS / Avengers: Solo#3 (fb) - BTS) - After Power Broker agents tried to capture Marcia, she went into hiding, changing her name to Alicia (it would seem likely that she changed her last name as well).; she joined with other test subjects Melanie, Jake (formerly Nita Young, who had been secretly undergoing hormone therapy as part of a planned gender reassignment), and Emi Ishida to investigate the research and find other victims. As what Alicia had learned made it seem that Captain America was involved with the research, Alicia and her allies distrusted super-heroes in general, and Captain America and the Avengers specifically.

(Avengers: Solo#5 (fb) - BTS) <6 months prior to the main story> - Emi Ishida, Alicia, Jake, and Melanie arranged -- perhaps via someone owing a friend a favor -- for the Black Cat (although the thief's identity is not confirmed) to steal a suit of armor from a private research facility in Estonia. 

(Avengers: Solo#3 (fb) - BTS / Avengers: Solo#3 (fb) - BTS) - The armor not only granted them its powers, but also allowed the wearer to appear to be male, since Power Broker Inc. was only looking for women. They wore the armor as needed as Trace.

(Avengers: Solo#2 (fb) - BTS) - With Power Broker Inc. after them for over 6 months, Trace helped the group investigate their pursuants and push them back. 

(Avengers: Solo#3 (fb) - BTS) - Alicia and the others discovered that the project involved five clinics, each with approximately 400 subjects; that at least 15 women died, while over a hundred women...had unspecified issues; and that it had involved four formulae meant to produce specific traits in the subject's future children. They planned to find any information connecting subjects from each of the four formulae to the subjects' names, and to locate the other subjects showing enhancements from the processes, but they found the clinics had all been stripped by the time they could investigate them. The New York office lacked the information they sought, but referred to a central lab, but they couldn't find any hint of where the central lab might be.

(Avengers: Solo#3 (fb) - BTS) - Alicia and the others learned that only Nita Young was confirmed to have received the incendiary formula. 

(Avengers: Solo#3 (fb) - BTS) - Alicia, Emi, Melanie, and Jake suspected that Power Broker Inc. had framed "Nita Young" (Power Broker Inc. had no idea Nita was now Jake) for setting fire to researcher Seth Forrest's home in hopes of drawing out "Nita" , as they really wanted the subject with the incendiary power.

(Avengers: Solo#3 (fb) - BTS) <1 week before the main story> - Alica, Emi, Jake, and Mel stoles files stating that 6% of the test subjects developed some sort of enhancement. 

(Avengers: Solo#1 (fb) - BTS) - Tulio somehow became associated with Melanie, knowing she was working with "Marcia."

(Avengers: Solo#1 (fb) - BTS) - Tulio compiled a computer disc of all the information he had on the research project, as well as a photograph of "Marcia."

(Avengers: Solo#1 - BTS) - Tuli gave Hawkeye his disc on the research investigation.

(Avengers: Solo#1 - BTS) - After discovering Tuli's death and meeting with the Crimes Scenes Investigation unit, Hawkeye agreed to avoid the crime scene and provide a copy of the disc to the authorities. He then left to check for further clues. Hawkeye was then ambushed by Power Broker agent Chance.

(Avengers: Solo#1) - Chance was, in turn, assaulted by Trace (Alicia) who grabbed Hawkeye's skycycle and used it like a bat to swat Chance across the roof of a building. When Hawkeye confronted and blamed Trace for the killing, Trace denied the allegations and shoved Hawkeye away. While Hawkeye subdued the attacking Chance, Trace escaped.

(Avengers: Solo#2 (fb) - BTS) - Trapster and a group of armored Power Broker agents were instructed to monitor their primary target (Trace and/or the Power Broker augmentees Emi Ishida, Alicia, Jake (they did not know Jake was formerly Nita, so they would have only been after him if they knew he was associated with this group, like Tulio), and Melanie).

(Avengers: Solo#2) - Having defeated Trapster (who had ambushed him as he approached a meeting with Melanie and the others), Hawkeye observed Trace entering an apartment window, closely followed by multiple ski mask-wearing Power Broker agents. Alicia changed back into her civilian garb upon meeting with the others, and she chastised Melanie for bringing in an outsider. As they tried to escape, they swiftly realized their foes were entering from both ends of the building. Alicia warned the others that they weren't getting out this time if they weren't willing to kill their attackers. As the Power Broker agents entered the room, Hawkeye broke in through a window and began taking out the agents. 

(Avengers: Solo#2 (fb) - BTS) - Hawkeye placed a tracer on one of Power Broker's agents.

(Avengers: Solo#2) - Melanie alerted Hawkeye to their location, and Emi instructed Alicia to "find Trace" and get Jake and Mel out of there. 

    When Power Broker command reported tracking on "the signal," which was now moving, and ordered all teams to converge on the signal, Hawkeye realized they were tracking Trace and suspected Chance had tagged Trace during the previous night's encounter. Emi went to find Jake and Mel and sent Hawkeye to "Trace and Alicia."

(Avengers: Solo#3 (fb) - BTS) - Hawkeye told Emi that she and the others should get rid of their phones so they could not be tracked by them.

(Avengers: Solo#2) - Hawkeye found Trace (Alicia) enraged, shouting about being sick of running and that she was planning to kill them the Power Broker agents and the Trapster. When Hawkeye asked where Alicia was, Trace noted being busy and instructed Hawkeye to take out Trapster if he wanted to be helpful. Hawkeye confronted Power Broker's Angela Golden in her car, and she told Hawkeye Trace was an industrial saboteur who had last week broken into one of her facilities, destroyed a research lab, and stolen proprietary data worth billions to her competitors.

    Realizing Golden could not coordinate her drugged mercenaries without it, Hawkeye destroyed her laptop. With the mercenaries incoordinated, Trace pushed over Golden's limousine, but when Hawkeye asked about Alicia's location, Trace instructed him to leave Alicia out of it as she was not his problem. After Trace and Hawkeye fought the mercenaries together and he told Trace how the mercenaries had followed a transmitter stuck in the armor's left arm by Chance, Trace calmed down and listened to him. Trace planned to head east to lead the mercenaries away from the others who had headed west, but Hawkeye launched the transmitter east with an arrow, planning to follow and take out the mercenaries when they pursued it.

    Trace then unmasked, telling Hawkeye one of his allies had been involved in her mutation. Hawkeye recognized her from Tulio's picture as Marcia, but she told him she was now called Alicia, and that she had lost her name, her brother, and her whole life because of this experiment, which she stated Captain America to have been behind the project.

    When Hawkeye noted that he could try to get some information from those they had already taken down, Alicia planned to suit up as Trace and go with him; but when Hawkeye explained how it was going to be a high profile meeting with authorities, she resolved to meet up with him afterward. 

    Sympathizing how this group had been constantly on guard, Hawkeye suited up and allowed them to rest while he watched over them.

(Avengers: Solo#3 - BTS) - When Hawkeye returned to Avengers Mansion to restock, Captain America questioned him about the investigation; Hawkeye's refusal to share information or take backup made Captain America suspicious.

(Avengers: Solo#3 - BTS) - At Ryker's Island, Hawkeye learned from Chance about the company employing him ("PBI"), his only contact being Golden and that most of the mercs were paid with a drug. 

(Avengers: Solo#3 - BTS) - When Hawkeye left Ryker's Island he was assaulted by more drug-enhanced monstrosities sent by Golden.

(Avengers: Solo#3 - BTS) - Figuring his longer-than-expected absence indicated problems, Trace (Emi) located and assisted Hawkeye, but eventually allowed the mutates to capture her so she could learn of a cure from Golden.

(Avengers: Solo#4 - BTS) - Hawkeye helped free Trace (Emi) and Dr. Forrest (who was pretending to be Golden's captive in order to gain the sympathy/trust of the investigating research subjects). Hawkeye then arranged for the others to meet them at a cabin he co-owned. 

(Avengers: Solo#4 (fb) - BTS) - Alicia, Jake, and Mel discussed in the car en route that Forrest had to be a plant and that this meeting was certainly a setup. Mel and Jake talked, and as Jake did not trust Forrest and could not trust himself to remain calm in the cabin with him, he would just take a walk while the others met with Forrest.

    After Alicia demanded Forrest tell them everything, Forrest related how he had allegedly been coereced into working for Power Broker when he was only trying to do his innocent research. 

    Alicia noted how Forrest considered the test subjects to not even be people, and she asked how many women Power Broker was holding. Everyone doubted Forrest's story, but Forrest told them that while Golden had sent him to bring her to the former test subjects, he was instead offering to get them to the Power Broker base to take them by surprise.

(Avengers: Solo#4 (fb) - BTS) - Hawkeye figured out a plan that could take down the whole Power Broker operation.

(Avengers: Solo#5 (fb) - BTS) - Iron Man and/or the other Avengers identified Trace's armor as the one stolen from the Estonian research facility.

(Avengers: Solo#5) - Forrest brought Alicia and Emi by boat to the Power Broker ship, turning them over to Golden and some mutates, with the plan for Hawkeye and Trace (Jake) racing to save them. 

(Avengers: Solo#5 (fb) - BTS) - Alicia and Emi were imprisoned with the other female prisoners of Power Broker Inc.

(Avengers: Solo#5) - Almost immediately after Alicia and Emi had prepped the prisoners to follow their lead to escape upon receiving the signal, Hawkeye fired an arrow that shorted out the Power Broker ship's power. Hawkeye and Trace then arrived and began taking down the guards who were preparing to stop the prisoners from escaping; one of the guards recognized Trace and reported to Forrest his fire-powers. Using her metabolic powers to appear dead, Mel was taken aboard the ship by a pair of presumably enhanced guards.

    As Hawkeye battled Forrest (who revealed his own super-powers), Mel and Emi helped the prisoners aboard their boat, while Trace and Alicia held off the guards. As Mel announced they had everyone, Golden then arrived, ordering them men to go after the women; Emi advised they leave before the ship smashed their small craft, and Alicia agreed, instructing them to get clear while they could. Alicia had Trace go help Hawkeye, and she stayed behind to confront Golden, who turned out to be powerless. Learning Golden had been betrayed by Forrest, Alicia swam with Golden back to the mainland as the ship began to sink.

(Avengers: Solo#5 - BTS) - Ultimately, only Hawkeye, Trace, and a pair of Forrest's mutates were seen to survive the ship's subsequent explosion.

(Avengers: Solo#5) - As a bus took the rescued women to somewhere safe, Hawkeye promised to take Golden and the two mutates to the police. Alicia, Emi, Melanie, and Jake headed to stay with Millie Collins and Toni Turner. The former four planned to help get the women they had rescued back to their lives, after which they would try to find the ones that were still missing; once they knew who had been identified, they planned to go to the police. Hawkeye gave them Forrest's notes (and Golden assured them that Forrest did not have copies).

    Golden planned to tell everything she knew to the authorities because she knew how to survive in the world.

    Alicia, Mel, Emi, and Jake each thanked Hawkeye for his help, and he assured Emi that he was easy to reach and that if any of them ever needed him, they should just call.

Comments: Created by Jen Van Meter and Roger Robinson.

    I'm not sure how Tulio got involved with Mel or with Trace...I had thought it was Alicia in the Trace armor in the initial encounter with Tulio, but Markus explained how/why it was Emi.

    This story is REALLY hard to follow...I've been through it 4 times now to gain the understanding that I now have. And I just skimmed it all again trying to sort out who had what powers, and what powers the Trace armor granted. Nothing was too clear-cut in this series.

    On the subject of the Trace armor's powers, Markus concluded: 

The features of the armor? Flight! Physical protection! It seemed like it could switch between a form fitting mode and an additional body armor mode (making them appear masculine). I doubt holograms were involved. Actual size-changing sounds reasonable.

Profile by Snood.

CLARIFICATIONS:
Alicia (aka Marcia Guzman) should be distinguished from:

•  other Alicia, Marcia, or Guzman characters

images: (without ads)
Avengers: Solo#1, story pg. 14, panel 3 (photo)
    #2, pg. 16, panel 4 (as Trace, full);
        pg. 20, panel 4-5 (unmasked as armor, shifting apparent proportions);
            panel 6 (face, close-up);
    #3, story pg. 1, panel 1 (full body, distant);
    #5, pg. 11, panel 2 (unarmored; punching out one of Forrest's mutates);
        pg. 17, panel 2 (face, full, hair up)

Appearances:
Avengers: Solo#1 (December, 2011) - Jen Van Meter (writer), Roger Robinson (artist), Tom Brennan (editor)
Avengers: Solo#2 (January, 2012) - Jen Van Meter (writer), Roger Robinson (artist), Tom Brennan (editor)
Avengers: Solo#3 (February, 2012) - Jen Van Meter (writer), Al Barrionuevo (pencils), Raul Lopez (inks), Tom Brennan (editor)
Avengers: Solo#4 (March, 2012) - Jen Van Meter (writer), Roger Robinson (artist), Tom Brennan (editor)
Avengers: Solo#5 (April, 2012) - Jen Van Meter (writer), Roger Robinson & Declan Shalvey (artists), Tom Brennan (editor)

Last updated: 02/26/15

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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