Avril Kincaid

Avril Kincaid was a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent stationed in Pleasant Hill. She was the leader of "plainclothes surveillance," the agents on the town posing as citizens. She was also in charge of the daycare for imaginary children and Kobik.

When Pleasant Hill was attacked from the inside by several inmates, she was assaulted by the Blood Brothers. Captain America and the Winter Soldier, two of the heroes on the scene, protected her, not aware that she was planning on getting caught so she could be taken to the location of the break-out's leader Baron Zemo.

She later directed Cap and the Winter Soldier in shutting down the security of the Pleasant Hill Museum, where Avril wanted to go to retrieve a powerful weapon that could potentially turn the tide of the conflict. After making her way through super villains looting the museum, Avril encountered the curator, who gave Avril the set of items she was looking for, the Quantum Bands. Additionally, the curator revealed himself to be Wendell Vaughn, a.k.a. Quasar, the bands' former owner.

Using the power of the Quantum Bands, Avril played a key role in Baron Zemo's defeat. Once the conflict was resolved and the dust settled, Vaughn began tutoring her in using the bands, training her to become the new Quasar. Because of this, she didn't get to spend much time with her girlfriend, Joy, who had no idea what the training really was about.

S.H.I.E.L.D. director Maria Hill went on trial for Pleasant Hill, and had a team of experts develop a Planetary Defense Shield to use as leverage in her favor. When she lost, she fled and handed over the Shield's plans to the Alpha Flight space initiative. The construction of the Shield's generator began shortly afterwards, and Quasar was asked by Captain America to test it when it finished development.

SECRET EMPIRE

When the Chitauri invasion arrived, heavy-hitter superheroes prepared to hold the line while Iron Man and Ironheart fixed the Planetary Defense Shield. Meanwhile, it was revealed the Shield's malfunctions were actually purposefully caused by Captain America, with superficial damage of Hydra's attack covering that up. Rogers activated the Shield, leaving Avril and the rest of the heroes on Earth's orbit exiled on the other side. The heroes were slowly being overpowered by the Chitauri and, without noticing, a Leviathan approached her and ate her. At first, she was believed dead, but it was later revealed she had survived and was in a coma.

Quasar eventually awakened from her coma and offered to destroy the Defense Shield after an attempt to breach it by crashing an Alpha Flight module into it failed. After much effort, Quasar sacrificed herself to destroy the Defense Shield, allowing Captain Marvel to fly down to Earth and destroy the Chitauri queen eggs that were luring the Chitauri to Earth.

RETURN

When Vaughn, Beta Ray Bill, and the Silver Surfer, among others, found themselves trapped a black hole, Vaughn used another set of Quantum Bands to assist the Surfer in escaping. In doing so, their combined powers, and the gravity of the black hole, revealed the presence of Kincaid, who had survived her sacrifice, but was trapped in the black void of outer space.

After months of trying to work it out, Wendell and Avril found that by striking the Bands against each other they could exchange places, similarly to Rick Jones and Mar-Vell years before. With this new possibility on the table, the Guardians of the Galaxy could now count on both Quasars, using whichever was better for the mission at hand.