Agent Wax was a field agent working for the National Park Service (NPS), a secret US government sponsored-group that monitored and responded to the activities of Super Powered Beings (SPB's).
History
From an early age Agent Wax was a very introspective individual with a keen mind for deduction and stoicism, eventually going onto become an proficient member of the National Park Service's field agents. Unbeknownst to the organization or his primary operator, Agent Downs, Wax was actually a Super Powered Being with mental suggestion capabilities, a power he uncovered at the age of fifteen. According to Wax, he inherited his abilities from his parents who kept their own extranormal proclivities a secret from the world. However, he also revealed that they possessed great animosity towards one another, with prominent destructive capacity to match. They ended up murdering each other as a result.[1]
Wax was a very prolific individual with great proficiency for detective work and following up on leads. But neither his work nor social life were without tribulations. His crooked, self-serving boss often made his job more difficult than necessary such as slating him with a partner he never asked for due to being a better solo worker.[2] And whilst he was once engaged long ago, Wax found himself estranged from his opposite number whom had since remarried.[3]
He first met the Wildcats when he was hunting a serial killing Superhuman named Sammy "Slaughterhouse" Smith, whom was seducing and killing young women with the surname "Marlowe" for the sake of hunting and trying to kill Jack Marlowe the C.E.O of the Halo Corporation and inheritor of Jacob Marlowe's will.[4] After the subsequent murder of his partner Agent Mohr, Wax would take leave of the NPS due to finding himself disillusioned with his current work ethic given the egregarious manner in which a fellow agent had expired.[5]
But he could never let go of the chance encounter he'd had with Marlowe & Grifter after the Smith case had been absolved, the private investigator in him wouldn't let him live it down. Wax would spend weeks tracking down Marlowe's associates, monitoring their habits and haunts until deciding to approach them at his leisure.[6] After a while of scoping out Dr. Stone's civilian I.D. Wax lures him in with a bupkis computer debugging job offer in order to squeeze information out of him about Marlowe and their little outfit. Using his hypnosis to lull Jeremy into a more compliant state, he opted to learn everything he can about Jack a.k.a Spartan and Grifter; whom Wax later found that had the former kill the SPB they were all after.[7]
Just before a confrontation broke out, Marlowe; now boasting the power of the Void entity, would port in to interrupt open hostilities. He then offered former Agent Wax a job opportunity in which he would keep a close eye on the National Park Service, making sure they didn't investigate the billion dollar mogul's company nor delve too deeply into his personal affairs.[8][9] After a lengthily inspirational speech by his new contact about the future and HALOs place in it, Wax would go back to work at the Service after having quit due to the death of his partner at the end of their shared assignment, returning to active duty as a pencil pusher in the NPS due to receiving a demotion by his condescending employer. In actuality however Wax was operating undercover in the agency under the supervision of Spartan.[10] A task which would keep the service out of the offices of HALO and enlisted Wax as a trusted confidante within Hadrian's coaxing.
His superior officer, Agent Downs, prevented him from doing his job properly due to longstanding resentment and so he consigned the returning abettor to a desk jockey position, then eventually a chauffeur for his overbearing wife. As payback, Wax used his hypnotic powers to rape Down's spouse (not just once but on a regular basis) after she'd worked his last nerve one too many times.[11] Eventually, his boss found out about the affair and tried to kill him and Mrs. Downs for the forced infidelity, but Wax made Downs kill himself instead and then used his unique asset to make everyone at the Service think he was their boss.[12]
This act allowed him to run the National Park Service and still work with HALO's company holder by using his persuasion abilities to convince everyone that he was his own director (and also keep sleeping with boss' wife who he grew to have an affection for).[13]
Director Wax started having a crisis of conscience when word came in from up on high that the U.S. Government was none too happy with Hadrian's powerplays shaking the sociopolitical landscaping of American industry. And were doing everything in their power to derail the Halo Corporation brand's rise to prominence.[14] They've even enlisted the aid of SPB assassins to do Jack in behind closed doors; but he is somewhat dismayed, albeit somewhat relieved, that his associate is taking this news in stride. Whom in turn thanks Wax for his loyalty to their cause.
Wax would soon get a call to meet with the shared directive board of the NPS. A higher governmental echelon would send an anonymous phone call of key phrases to greenlight a clandestine operation to remove Mr. Marlowe from the corporate financial circuit. Unfortunately for him, Wax's Downs guise ended up playing the patsy for the operations go ahead.[15]
After asking around about an Operation: Nameless; Wax would request a leave of station due to realizing he'd just sent a demented super killer after his secret partner in running his sector of the National Park Service. He would make it just in the nick of time for Spartan to meet the assailant head on, only to find his power doesn't work on the psychic scumbag corrupt vested interests sent to do away with Marlowe. But the company C.E.O defuses tensions by taking everyone present to the heart and soul of Halo's operation. After a much heated debate about veracity & ethics.[16] Wax grows nervous as Spartan reminds his would-be murderer he'd recently killed 7 children just to hide his identity. Stating to the clandestine felon that his reinforcing a status quo for debauched interests whom want nothing to tie themselves to him makes the killer no more worthy to judge Jack's character before warping him into the unforgiving domain of Null Space, Wax finds himself stunned by what he'd just discovered but was thanked by Marlowe for his un-needed assistance in dealing with yet another attempt to derail his bettering the world. Just as the two begin to settle in with their accounts. A incoming call from Cole alerts the two that the small outfit he'd put together ran into some interference whilst assaulting the Coda's main stronghold in Themyscira.
At first Wax is held aghast with Jack's seeming indifference with the current conflagration their shared associate finds himself in. The latter stating that they made their beds and will distinctly lay in them respectively. But when the agent brings up how he was moved by the loyalty shown within this ad hoc family he'd been ingratiated into. His new partner & employer steadily makes subtle moves which helps out their shared acquaintances. Enlisting the irregular FBI sanction Agent Orange to free Zealot via computer interface and teleporting behind enemy lines whilst Wax watches on in shock & surprise.[17]
Wax is pleasantly surprised at himself with the return of Spartan not long afterward. Finding solace in his partnership with the man with the plan whose strong sense of solidarity and unblemished honesty moved him from the cloak & dagger cynicism that makes up his life and career while getting onboard. Even if he question if the rest of the world will want to follow suit. But Yohn only reassures him that endings merely pave the way to new beginnings; finishing with change being the only real constant in life.[18]
It is unknown what happened to him after the World's End event that decimated most of the Earth's population, but considering he wasn't listed as one of the Earth's surviving superhumans by Spartan, it is assumed he perished.
Powers and Abilities
Powers
- Hypnosis: Wax can mentally exert commands onto others temporarily and make them follow his orders.
- Mind Control
- Illusion Casting: Thanks to his hypnotic powers, Wax can project illusions into the minds of others, like appearing as another individual.[12]
- Memory Manipulation
Weaknesses
- Power Limitation: The mental pushes are temporary along with the fact those affected can remember they've been hypnotized and must be constantly exerted to have long-term effects. However, they are ineffective on robotic entities or other mentalists.[19]
Related
- 30 Appearances of Agent Wax (Wildstorm Universe)
- 3 Images featuring Agent Wax (Wildstorm Universe)
- Quotations by or about Agent Wax (Wildstorm Universe)
- Character Gallery: Agent Wax (Wildstorm Universe)
Footnotes
- ↑ Wildcats #19
- ↑ Wildcats Version 3.0 #17
- ↑ Wildcats Version 3.0 #8
- ↑ Wildcats #17
- ↑ Wildcats #23
- ↑ Wildcats #27
- ↑ Wildcats #28
- ↑ Wildcats #28
- ↑ Wildcats Version 3.0 17
- ↑ Wildcats Version 3.0 #17
- ↑ Wildcats Version 3.0 #7
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Wildcats Version 3.0 #15
- ↑ Wildcats Version 3.0 #16-Wildcats Version 3.0 Vol 1 17
- ↑ Wildcats Version 3.0 #18
- ↑ Wildcats Version 3.0 #21
- ↑ Wildcats Version 3.0 #22
- ↑ Wildcats Version 3.0 #23
- ↑ Wildcats Version 3.0 #24
- ↑ Wildcats Version 3.0 #17-Wildcats Version 3.0 Vol 1 22