Whoever said that Avengers: Endgame was the greatest crossover in history has clearly not met the Virus Vanguard—the 5-member virus-busting squad that our government has just introduced to the populace via the Gov.sg website. In what appears to be a “Gundam meets Thor meets X-men” situation, these five superheroes have been conjured, in good humour, in an attempt to boost morale during this trying period as everyone fights their personal battles that COVID-19 brings.
Circuit Breaker
The first hero, iconically named Circuit Breaker, boasts a Gundam-esque exterior, lauded as a biomorphic, solar-powered entity piloted by 12-year-old genius, Mini Moh.
Her backstory:
Mini Moh was volunteering at a nursing home as part of school CIP when one of the patients took a particular liking to her. She then gave the 12-year old a tiara which, when worn, will unleash a humanoid machine—Circuit Breaker. Mini Moh is sharp with her words (to hide her insecurities) but has a soft heart.
Her abilities include:
-A hypersonic speed of up to Mach 5 (that’s more than five times the speed of your regular Boeing or Airbus passenger plane, which typically flies at Mach 0.8)
-Controlling any digital equipment with a chip in it within a 50 km radius
-Achieving lossless data compression ratio of up to 1000:1
Her weakness:
Solar power storage of up to 48 hours only.
Fake News Buster
What I like to call Thor’s better-informed half brother, Fake News Buster wields the Mallet of Truth and wears a suit with force enhancing nodes to generate power when knocking sense into people. When he’s not busy saving the world, he’s known as Felix, a corporate cog data cruncher in his late 20s.
His backstory:
Felix was a flat earth believer until he failed his geography in secondary school and could not follow his girlfriend to the same JC. Devastated, he denounced flat earth and all things fake. With his single-minded focus to study and memorise all the world’s information, he became a walking supercomputer, and a literal Fake News Buster to eliminate what he deems to have cost him his ultimate love.
His abilities include:
-Being a walking Wikipedia and Google database combined
-Being able to decipher big data and cull out facts or known truths
His weakness:
Maps or anything resembling a map (including suspicious-looking birthmarks) will render him into a temporary state of catatonia.
MAWA Man
MAWA (which stands for, Must Always Walk Alone) Man enforces safe-distancing measures as he repels people and objects far apart. To his friends, he is Manzoorakkaman (Man Man for short), a sports super agent in his late 30s.
His backstory:
Man Man is a fanatical Manchester United fan who grew up in the 80s when Liverpool kept winning titles and he was constantly taunted by his two Liverpool fan brothers. This made him despise everything Liverpool including their motto You’ll Never Walk Alone (YNWA).
His hatred for Liverpool so far exceeds his love for Man Utd that it manifested as a telekinesis power in MAWA Man to push objects and people through his eyes. Looks like someone’s got serious unresolved Liverpool issues.
His abilities include:
-Repelling power to push objects and people back, aided by a digital distance meter through his eyes
-Using a special helmet he invented to control the magnitude of force and calculate other tech stuff
His weakness:
Cannot stop Man Utd fans from gathering as he will be compelled to join them.
Dr Disinfector
Dr Disinfector can detect the presence of any virus or bacteria and she dons an exoskeleton suit with extended multi-appendages to eradicate and disinfect. Ordinarily, she is Darshita, a microbiologist at Singapore Clinical Research Institute in her mid-20s
Her backstory:
Darshita graduated summa cum laude from MIT with double degrees in chemical science and microbiology at the age of 14. A failed experiment during her doctorate studies caused her to shrink to the size of a microorganism. Her colleague then unwittingly flushed her down the toilet.
She survived the ordeal and returned to normal size. But the trauma caused her to develop extreme Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) towards cleanliness and her senses became ultra amplified which made her the perfect Dr Disinfector.
Her abilities include:
-Ability to detect virus and bacteria through sight, smell and even sound from the vibration of their movement
-Wielding a multifunctional treatment gun with various capsules containing antidotes and boosters
Her weakness:
Cheesecake. Same Dr Disinfector, same.
Care-leh Dee
Care-leh Dee (pronounced Care Lady) uses empathy to absorb all negativity, or to send torrents of powerful emotions to her target. Not ordinary even in person, she is Diyana Amperthee, a female trillionaire philanthropist of unknown age.
Her backstory:
Diyana made her trillions from prudent investments and then decided to go for a year-long meditation experience in the remote mountains of Kathmandu. She got trapped during an avalanche and during the two-month ordeal, which she survived, she attained unusual enlightenment to become Care-leh Dee, having gained the ability to feel exactly what others around her feel.
Her abilities include:
-Ablity to make others feel better, and also understand how others feel through telepathy
-Ability to temporarily absorb negative energy and thoughts
-Levitation
Her weakness:
When she absorbs negative energy, she needs to meditate to purge it from her vessel otherwise it may harm or kill her.
There you have it. Our 5 COVID-19 busters that fight alongside us in a parallel universe. While it’s fun to fantasise about the super humans that might have been, it’s also important to focus on the actual superheroes that walk in our midst. I’m referring to all the frontline workers, food deliverers, cleaners, transport operators, teachers, and everyone else who is working tirelessly on and off screens to battle the virus. They go to work for us, the least we could do, is to stay at home for them.
Virus Vanguard | Website
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