International Operations

### Current Members

Nicole Callahan, Matthew Callahan, Gregory Corben, Francesca Taylor, Douglas Hertzog, Kimata Saburo, Madame Jocelyn

SHOCs: Killjoy, Buzzcut, Ace of Blades, Misery, Warbuk, Shields

### Past Members

Jim McArest, John Colt, Saul Baxter, Isaiah King, Lucy Blaze, Reggie Mason, Henry Bendix, Billy Miller, Samuel Saito, Austen Blanchad, Chester Brophy, Eric Collins, Andrzej Taszycki, John Lynch, Cole Cash, Kurt Lance, Marc Slayton, Michael Cray, Stephen Callahan, Phil Chang, Jackson Dane, Lucius Morgan, Rachel Rhodes, Maritza Blackbird, Ab-Death, Sabina Ashe, Clayton Maure, Salvador Joel Alonday, Joseph Mendoza, Dexter LeMoyne, Dominique Thiebaut, Cassandra Taylor, Dylan Cruise, Boomer O'Shea, Robert Berresford, Morgan Stryker, Carin Taylor, Ellis Baker,Reno Bryce, Aphrodite IX, Wanda Blake, Ben Santini, Khalid Tefibi

### Enemies

Stormwatch, Team 7, Gen¹³, Wetworks, Cyberforce, DEO

## Background

International Operations is speculated to have began in the 1950s as a classified American intelligence organization. The organization was founded by the CIA as a means of safeguarding the interests of the United States. Most recently before its demise, International Operations was under the leadership of Executive Director Miles Craven. Craven reorganized I.O. to an independent organization focusing on researching superhumans.

After discovering the Gen-Factor on a test subject in the early 90s, the I.O. started Project Genesis. They would manufacture the chemical so that they could develop their own superheroes. Craven picked his team, Team 7 to be the test subjects unbeknownst to them. During a black ops mission in the Middle East, the team was bombed with Gen-Factor resulting in them gaining superpowers. Initially it was blamed on enemy countries but it soon came to light that it was Craven himself. The team disbanded following that mission.

Members of Team 7 would go on to have children & inherit their fathers' & new powers. Once the I.O. realized this, they decided to try again with their super powered team by getting to Team 7's children & the children of their other test subjects.

Following the revelation of their true mission, International Operations was "shut down" publicly. Among the superhero & supervillain community, it is highly speculated they are still functioning just at a lower level.

## Trivia

* The military black ops unit Wetworks also operated under IO. They were sent on a suicide mission by Craven to enter a terrorist enclave & extract a biological agent. Someone had beat them to it (IO) & as they investigated, they found several tubes containing golden fluid. Then the explosives they were carrying were activated by remote, displaying a 20 second countdown. When the explosions went off, the team was bonded to the various symbiotes.
* The mission involving Team 7 & Gen-Factor was on a need to know basis. So when Craven was "fired," no one else knew why. Craven would still be working behind the scenes with select groups, like Wetworks.
* The IO created a fake government internship to capture the offspring of Team 7 but their plan was foiled with the teens escaped & the DEO raiding one of their headquarters.
* In the aftermath of Team 7's exposure to Gen-Factor, they were under the impression that Craven had been taken care of when in reality, he was still heavily involved in the organization.
* To keep a low profile, Project: Genesis took place at two separate locations:
	+ Death Valley, CA: Miles Craven, Caitlin Fairchild, Bobby Lane, Roxanne Spaulding, Sarah Rainmaker, Rebecca Rainmaker, Wanda Blake
	+ Unknown location: Ivana Baiul, Nicole Callahan, Matthew Callahan, Rachel Goldman, Gem Antonelli, Jocelyn Davis & Leon Carver
* Marc Slayton has been a member of their covert teams since the beginning.
* IO has a subdivision that is run by brilliant scientists who create advanced cybernetics technology. They employed this technology on captured metahumans to create "Special Hazardous Operations Cyborg" (aka SHOCs). The captured metahumans had their abilities enhanced with cybernetic implants & brainwashed using a "brain box" that robbed them of their memories.
* After some SHOCs broke free of their mind restraints, they formed Cyberforce. Since their formation, they have deciated themselves to shutting down IO.
* They created a series of synthetic female humanoid assassins, naming them Aphrodite I to Aphrodite IX. Aphrodite IX, the latest in the series, eventually became self-aware, surpassing her programming & rebelling against those using her.
* John Lynch, Ben Santini & Khalid Tefibi left I.O. in 2009 & joined the DEO. Lynch was their unit commander during their time with I.O. & discovered some shady dealings. Knowing he could trust them two, he recruited them to leave with him. Upon joining the DEO, they worked with Agent Blake Coleman to investigate I.O.

## Notes

* It is a composite with Cyberdata, from Top Cow Productions.