Simon Maddicks, a military man turned mercenary was selected by the Roxxon Oil Company to be a special agent in covert operations. Sent to the Mutagenics Laboratory of Roxxon's subsidiary Brand Corporation, Maddicks underwent extensive conditioning to increase his strength and endurance, and surgery to implant a miniature anti-gravity generator in the base of his spine. Given a special baffle-suit with electrical offensive weaponry, Maddicks was assigned the code name Killer Shrike. For his first mission, he was sent to infiltrate the subversive organization called the Conspiracy, which Roxxon learned about through major purchases of technology from the Brand Corporation.