Karl Brennan
Karl Brennan is in his mid-twenties (26), a fit, well-groomed, well-dressed up-and-comer at the consulting firm he works at, traveling around helping other companies get new locations open, transition to new processes or other projects. Some things he can get done in Chicago where he lives, but sometimes is away for weeks at a time, racking up frequent flier miles and hotel points.He speaks Spanish and French, and when he takes vacation sometimes goes to Europe but more frequently goes to various National/State Parks for outdoor activities, trading his suits and fancy shoes for shorts and hiking boots.
At least, that's what someone could find out about him with a little digging before his change.
Now Karl is an incredibly buff 6'6" flying powerhouse, the 'flying man' of Chicago. His first public appearance exhibiting powers was when he helped a stricken commuter jet land safely at O'Hare. There are a lot of cell-phone videos of the incident from various angles and times as the plane came in to land and afterwards both from passengers and other witnesses. For the final descent Karl was seen under the nose of the plane, seemingly pushing back against it. After the plane touched down Karl was still in mid-air until he lowered the front of the plane to rest on its landing gear and detached himself.
At the time he was shirtless, pants attached but torn as though burst from within, stitches giving way to swelling leg muscles. Though the temperature was freezing the cold didn't seem to register with the shirtless man, talking a little with people around but without much detail. He retrieved a carry-on bag from inside the plane along with a stuffed dog he returned to a little girl who had been a passenger before flying off with the bag.
Later that day he was interviewed on Fox32 TV:
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TV: Fox 32 reporter Katie Allen, after having played a few videos of the rescue and the aftermath, is mentioning how the "flying man," Karl Brennan, has quickly become the talk of Chicago. She then segues into the interview, stressing that Fox 32 has obtained the first official interview with Mr. Brennan.
When the interview begins, Katie and Karl are seated in a casual setting. Karl is wearing the Rockefeller Center sweatshirt he was seen in earlier.
Katie begins speaking, "Thank you for your willingness to talk to me Mr. Brennan, Karl... Before we get into what happened this morning, can you tell me and the viewers a little bit about yourself? Who are you?"
"Thanks for having me," Karl says. "That's... Well, the simple questions are the toughest right? Who are we, why are we here," he gestures. "What's the meaning of it all? We're all layered, complex aren't we? I'm a man, a son, a friend, a coworker. I'm a native Chicagoan and love it but I enjoy traveling, both for work and on vacation. I love the city but enjoy nature, getting out and hiking, climbing, rafting, and the like. I live a pretty normal life I think. Well, I did. But that change is why you're talking to me today."
"Indeed, it is," Katie says with a nod. "Can you tell me about that change? When did you first notice it? And what exactly does it entail?"
I really dont know much about it myself. It just happened. Karl shrugs. I know thats not very satisfying as an answer. Its not to me either. I was just on the plane, that engine exploded and tore a hole in the plane and I got sucked out of that hole, along with one of the crew, apparently. God, I hope it was just us. Theyve accounted for everyone, right? Somewhere along the way, I passed out. I dont know how long but it couldnt have been too long since I didnt hit the ground. When I came to, I was flying. Crazy, I know. I cant explain it but there it is. Doing it wasnt complicated, in fact, the less I thought about it the better it seemed. Once I realized I wasnt dead, I saw the plane and the flight attendant who had gotten pulled out. I got to her and we caught up to the plane, which looked like it was having trouble, made sense with an engine out, damaged wing, and a hole in it - about the only thing here that does make sense.
Anyways once she was inside again I went back out to see if I could do something, find some way to help the pilot put it down safely. I felt--still feel--full of energy, thought maybe I could use that with this flying and be some kind of extra engine or something. I tried to help what they seemed to need to do, like I knew we needed to slow down at the end so I was pushing back against it. I dont know how much what I did helped but it seemed to work.
So I dont know what happened to me, but Im glad it did. It kept me alive. And if it let me have the ability to help the others on that flight, Im grateful for that too. I dont know the how or why, but Im very glad for the what and the when.
"Yes, everyone is accounted for and safe," Katie says with a smile. "Thanks to you...
"So you didn't know you could fly until this morning when you were pulled out of the plane? Do you know if there are any other, um, amazing things you can do?"
"I don't really know. Until earlier today I didn't know I could do that, don't think I was able to before. I certainly never did before today. I haven't tested anything out, I wouldn't know how to really find out.
"Um, I do feel kind of strong, but I don't know how much. I mean, I worked out before and did some active things, but not like this. I guess we could demonstrate a little..." Karl looks into the camera "Can you get a wider shot or something?" he asks as he stands up and steps over next to Katie.
"Hold on, I'm going to try to pick you up..." He kneels down and lifts up the chair she is sitting in one-handed, standing back up as he does so, then keeps going up another foot or so, hovering in mid-air holding the chair off to the side.
He slowly descends to touch the ground again and lowers the chair back down. "You're pretty light of course. I feel like I could do more, but I don't know how much more." he explains as he returned to his own seat.
"Oh, my, that's impressive," Ms. Allen says, adjusting her clothing and hair as Karl sets her chair back down. She looks at the camera and adds, "I assure our viewers that no studio magic was involved." She gathers her thoughts for a moment, then looks back to Karl.
"After the plane was safely on the ground, you didn't stick around for long. Rather, you flew away before anyone could ask you any questions. Why? And why are you sitting down with me now?"
"At the airport, no one was really asking me much. I wouldn't have had answers even if they did. With people staring and taking pictures it seemed like I was more of a distraction at that point, so I left so they could get back to treating people and getting things situated, concentrate on other things. And I needed to try to figure things out.
"I haven't gotten very far with that yet. I'm here with you now because you found me so fast." Karl answers with a shrug.
"I know it's news, that people will want to know, and with all the pictures and video at the airport, I knew people would track me down, people would recognize me. I wasn't going to be able to hide from it so why try? I did hope to have some more time to adjust, to think about it, and figure more things out, but you found me pretty fast. I don't have a lot of answers. I don't know how it happened or what's next yet. At some point soon I hope to have more of those answers but not right now."
"Well, when you have some of those answers, you know how to get a hold of me," Katie says with a chuckle. "Is there anything else you'd like to share with our viewers?"
"I do" Karl agrees, nodding. "I'd just like to tell them to be grateful for every day, as you never know what might happen. And if you get some kind of second chance, make the most of it.
"Thanks for having me on."
The program then cuts back to Katie in the studio, who thanks the viewers for tuning in then indicates that analysis will follow after a short commercial break.
He has been spotted out in public in a couple of places, doing mundane things like shopping for clothes and getting dinner, including having coffee with the famous TikTok and YouTube star Bexx who at the time was apparently wearing some sort of pirate costume. Aside from pictures taken by others that can be found there are selfies from both Karl and Bexx on their social media feeds, Karl having recently started ones up with the handle of 'Atlas'.
He has interacted with gatherings out in front of what is allegedly his apartment building, such as:
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various videos: At about twenty feet he angled out and swooped around over the top of the crowd, ending floating a few feet off the ground for a moment in front of the entrance before touching down. He nodded to the police watching the door and checking IDs before letting residents in, "Officers. Heck of a day, huh?"
Karl turned back to address the crowd. "Hi everybody. Yes, I'm real, this is real. No, I don't understand it and can't explain it yet. This is new to me too.
"As I figure things out, and maybe what comes next I'll let you know. I just got back from talking with Katie Allen on Fox 32; when they get that interview up I hope that will answer some of your questions.
"I appreciate you coming out, but we can't keep a crowd like this out here forever. I'll come around, talk to some of you a bit, but then let's go about our day, OK? It's not fair to everyone here" he pointed to the apartment building "or the buildings around to have everything blocked off for too long.
"I appreciate you thinking of me; it's been a crazy day. But I'm going to need some time to do some things, talk to my family. And I'm sure at some point the near-death experience is going to hit me. So I would appreciate a little space and understanding for that. Speaking of, I hope that people will spend a little time thinking of the crew and other passengers of the plane; they've had a rough day too. So think of them, think of your own loved ones, especially at this time of year and be grateful; you never know what life will bring next. Use your time well. Thank you."
After his little speech Karl went to the front of the crowd to start talking to people, reporters and others alike for brief interactions.
and:
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various videos: The crowd is now smaller, probably due to it being later and much colder than when Karl left. They are holding handmade signs with messages like: "We <3 the Flying Man!"; "Karl = Superman!"; and even "Marry me, Karl!"
Karl descended near the crowd.
"Hey everybody! Thanks for coming. Sorry I was out earlier. It's cold, don't stay out here too long, ok? And make sure people can get past. But since you're here, what can I do for you? Well, other than you, sorry, we just met." he joked with the person holding the 'Marry me, Karl!' sign.
Karl's "fans" simply want to see him in person and talk to him and get a picture with him and/or his autograph. They ask for some quick demonstrations of his abilities and ask him all sorts of questions, including questions about the two young women he was seen with the night before: Who are they? Why was he meeting with them? Do they have powers, too? The crowd also asks Karl if he knows about any of the other superpowered people who have been popping up around the US and the world over the weekend and if he has any clue as to why this is all happening.
Karl dutifully posed for pictures and did little demonstrations of his powers, at least the ones he knew about. He picked people up and took them on brief flights, picked up a big stone planter and balanced it on one hand, even twisted a crowbar one person brought.
He was vague about the women he was seen with, instead encouraging people to look up Becca at (handle) on Tik Tok and YouTube. "As for if she has powers, watch some of her videos then you tell me!" As for why, well just like them they had seen him and just wanted to meet.
"No, I don't know why, and I hadn't heard about others outside Chicago yet. I don't even know if it's one cause. That would make sense, but I just don't know. However many there are, wherever they are, I hope they're alright, and that they're careful.
"For me it was all of a sudden, and in the middle of a scary situation. It might be the same for a lot of these others too. Just because the change was fast, doesn't mean you can process it that fast. I hope they give themselves a minute. I know I'm still trying to sort it all out. But you folks, this city, taking me to heart like you have sure helps. Thank you."
He has been spotted talking with an unidentified man and woman in and around Millenial Park who were spotted exhibiting incredible speed, as well as chatting with the resulting crowd.