After the murder of the original Cyclone in the “Bar With No Name” massacre, the designs of his costume fell in the hands of a European-based family of the Maggia. Maggia technicians managed to duplicate Cyclone's costume, and the Maggia leaders decided to give it to their member Pierre Fresson. However, instead of simply serving his masters, Fresson stole the suit so that he could embark on a criminal career of his own making.

Cyclone committed several crimes in association with Justin Hammer before being approached by the new Crimson Cowl to join her incarnation of the Masters of Evil. (Whether or not the Crimson Cowl knew of Fresson's Maggia connections remains unknown.) That group soon came into conflict with the Thunderbolts, members of the former Masters of Evil who were, at the time, only pretending to be heroes. Since then, the two groups had clashed repeatedly, and Cyclone in particular was used to spy on the Thunderbolts when the team truly decided to become heroes. Eventually, the Masters of Evil were summarily defeated by the Thunderbolts during a worldwide blackmail scheme, and although many of the Masters were arrested, Cyclone escaped.

Through unrevealed circumstances, Pierre Fresson was later seen among the Maggia leaders assembled by the Grim Reaper who tried to claim leadership of the scattered, fractious families on behalf of Count Nefaria. Fresson was present as speaker for the European families, but when the Avengers invaded the meeting place, Fresson used his Cyclone-powers to escape.

Fresson next appeared once more in the Crimson Cowl's employ. The Masters of Evil were confronted by Hawkeye and his allies Songbird and Plantman (then, Blackheath) who were searching for the legacy of criminal industrialist Justin Hammer. Their search ended with Hammer's daughter, Justine, who turned out to be the Crimson Cowl. Hawkeye convinced Fresson and other members of the Masters of Evil to side with him against Crimson Cowl and their former allies, pointing out the dangers of the super-weapon, a biological toxin that had been ingested by every single villain, including Cyclone, and would instantly kill them anywhere on the Earth. Hoping to throw off suspicion, Hawkeye made the villains reinvent their costumed identities, although Fresson refused to abandon his name and costume of Cyclone.

The group ultimately defeated the Cowl and her Masters of Evil, and Plantman managed to release an antidote into the atmosphere instead. The Thunderbolts immediately fought against the Elite Agents of SHIELD who caught up with them and wanted the remains of Plantman’s body, although he soon revived himself. The Thunderbolts were aided by the arrival of the true Citizen V, who needed the team's immediate help with his agency's ship-- the engines of which were made of alien technology that had began distorting, threatening to suck the Earth into the null space of a white hole. Fresson refused, as Hawkeye claimed that no one would have to help if they chose not to. Of course, anyone opted out meant that he or she chose to retain their villainous status quo, so Fresson was immediately remanded to S.H.I.E.L.D. custody.