C H A R A C T E R P O R T R A I T _________________________________________________________C H A R A C T E R P O R T R A I T  _________________________________________________________ C H A R A C T E R S U M M A R Y _________________________________________________________C H A R A C T E R S U M M A R Y Sarah Marie King/"Stryke" _________________________________________________________ 23 | Female/ENBY _________________________________________________________ 70th Street Gang & Blue Dragons (Adversaries/Occasional Contact); Parkside West Neighborhood; The Pits (Underground Fighting Ring) | USA, Paragon City (Mapleview) N O T A B L E P O W E R S & A B I L I T I E S N O T A B L E P O W E R S & A B I L T I I E S - P O W E R S ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔ ◼ Chi Manipulation Stemming from the circumstances of her birth, Sarah is a natural conduit for the metaphysical force known as "Chi." As a supernatural force, Chi binds and stabilizes the physical while bridging it to the exapans of energies beyond; it is held as the very life force of the universe itself. In the order of beings such as humans and other lifeforms, its a source of power, protection, and wellness. Most who are adept in its practitioning are so through rigorous training, often over decades into old age. Those born with a natural proclivity towards and abundance of Chi are capable of harnessing it at an advanced level capable of manifesting energy and phenomenon external to the human body. - A B I L I T I E S ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔ ◼ Chi-Enhanced Prowess > Sarah is innately gifted physically. Flow of energy through Chi provides stimulus able to condition the physical body beyond the normal limitations of the species. While not always the most gifted in any given sphere of performance, a the Chi-user is balanced and well-rounded, and able to flow through methods and mannerisms as needed for the task before them. > Either through instances of unyielding duress, or intensive focus, the Chi user can temporarily break through their own limitations, sparking bursts of heightened speed or strength. Excessive exercising of such abilities threaten the physical body of the practitioner, making sparing use preferrable, if not necessary. ◼ Chi Projection > Chi is projected from the body into a tanglible form of energy. Often releases as kinetic force, either spreading outward from the body as an epicenter, or condensed into a projectile. > A passive field of Chi hugs Sarah's body. Inperceptible by conventional eyesite and most technology, the field provides cushion against direct harm, dulling the force of physical impacts, and dispersing harmful energies, taking damage until itself. ◼ Sixth Sense > Sarah possesses a feel for ambient energies and disturbances there-in. Presently, she remains limited to feeling, unable to visually percieve the energies she can feel. - O T H E R I N F O R M A T I O N - S K I L L (S) ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔ ◼ Street Fighting ◼ Urban Traversal ◼ Urban Survival- T H E M E S O N G ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔ ◼ Lionheart, by Emancipator - | T H E S T O R Y S O F A R... T H E S T O R Y S O F A R... Sarah’s life began barely clinging to life in the arms of a single mother. Doctors scrambled to assess her condition, but the hospital in Mapleview was ill-equipped to diagnose her properly; in a wealthier district she might have been seen for what she truly was. What little was understood was that one phenomenon or abnormality was causing excessive strain on her infant body. Miraculously, Sarah’s condition stabilized, yielding a full recovery after a few further tests, Sarah was released to her mother’s care. She would grow up and grow tough on the upper-south end of Mapleview, at a crossroads between The 70th Street Gang and Blue Dragon territory. Outbreaks of the gang war were common; despite their proximity, the PCPD rarely intervened, opting to quarter off and clean up the aftermath. Distrust in law enforcement was validly ubiquitous in Sarah’s block; the residents found it best to safeguard themselves and their neighbors as best as possible. Sarah would find security with other youth and young adults from on her street; she came up latch-key style, as her mother held multiple jobs, hoping to one day get them out of Mapleview. Sarah knew through most of her youth that she was different from her clique. Spontaneous feats of strength, and bursts of speed were common when she would get into gang scraps; she wrote it off as adrenaline, while knowing there was more to it, until a run-in with some “Baby” Blue Dragons shed the veil. In her self-defense, a 15-year-old Sarah unleashed a wave of energy, knocking back five assailants, heavily injuring one. An elder contact in Little Asia, perceptive of and witness to the ordeal, explained to her the concept of ‘Chi’ or life energy, and how he could sense hers flowing so freely and powerfully with so little training. After some convincing, Sarah committed herself to better learning to control her “Chi,” employing it as a tool to meet her ends of protection and survival. She spent the intervening years building a reputation as something of an arbiter of order in her part of Mapleview, working both sides of the gang war and putting down fights when they broke out. Her efforts soon earned her a degree of scorn from both the Blue Dragons and 70th Street Gang for standing in the way of their respective expansions -a consequence she was prepared to shoulder.- Little did she know that her endeavors would earn her a side eye from one Veridian Technologies. The Story Continues September 1st, 2060. Sarah awoke late from the aftermath of a night of matches in the city's underground fighting ring. Despite damages, she had walked out of the night the victor, besting the 70th Street Gang enforcer Theresa 'Toro' Torres, The Bull of 70th Street. Shaking off the weariness and bouncing quickly back from the soreness of the prior evening, she made her way to the Lucky Noodle in Little Asia, where her Sensei, Ken Shimazu, made his living. After a lecture of Shimazu's Disapproval of the underground fights, she was set to practice her martial arts in the restaurant's basement storage room. However, her session would be cut short by the arrival of the Blue Dragons, who came with their leader Xiao Feng, and his right hand, the pyromancer Zhang Taiwu. Sarah entered the dining room in time to assist Shimazu, her friend Madelyne Crane, and newcomer Kenzo Yamamoto, in driving away the Blue Dragons, herself landing a hard blow against Zhang Taiwu. Before they could regroup, the arrival of Julia Kray, coming in search of Maddie, also heralded the coming of large and powerful monster (unbeknownst to them, "The Weeping" from the Melting Pot on the other end of the city). The monster kidnapped Maddie, shrugging off all efforts to stop it, but left a clue in the form of an amulet that seemed to point like a compass toward something... But as Sarah made her exit, the order of PCPD officer Micheal Donovan and Detective Steven Donahue, forced her to remain until their preliminary investigation could be satisfied. Sarah, at Ken Shimazu's encouragement, anxiously provided her testimony... P L O T ( S ) & G O A L ( S ) P L O T ( S ) & G O A L ( S ) Sarah’s goals remain as they ever were: to protect her neighborhood and keep herself alive in the process. (Marvel Comics) |