Physique Charlotte is 5’6 and weighs 123lbs. Her hair is long and thick and is a mixture of brown and auburn. Her skin has a rosy glow and she has a few freckles on her face. Her eyes are an interesting mixture of green blue and orange and ALWAYS have winged eyeliner on them. Large white feathered wings protrude from her back. She is just above average strength. On the back of her neck, she has a tattoo of a Viceroy butterfly. Butterflies are her favourite animal.
Blood type AB-
Occupation Cashier in a local store. Hated it with a passion
Side Charlotte is neutral are the moment, there’s good in her but at the moment she doesn’t really care for people all that much.
Affiliation No one really. She’s a free spirit and answers to everyone but herself most of the time.
Tier B
Personality Lottie portrays herself as a bad bitch, needing no one to boss her about. Confident and independent she enjoys CONSTANTLY playing devils advocate with everyone and is unnecessary obnoxious just to get on peoples nerves. She enjoys the irony of looking like an angel but in reality, being far from it... or so she likes to make people think.
Beneath the facade is perhaps a person that even she doesn’t know much about. One that is extremely emotional and caring with a strong ability to motivate others (despite not being able to motivate herself at all). Her angelic looks may eventually ring true to their prejudice if you really really work into her.
A passion of hers is fashion and she always makes a big effort to wear the most beautiful clothes possible. The majority of her income is spent on either clothes from the high street or on fabric that she uses to make her own outfits. She smokes (EXCLUSIVELY VICEROY CIGARETTES)... quite a bit, making her voice a little less high than most women but it makes her unique. She also LOVES flowers and often wears them in her hair. As well as her butterfly tattoo she also has a white rose on her upper thigh. Backstory Lottie was born in a small apartment to her mother, a 45-year-old factory worker. Her mother had accidentally gotten herself pregnant, thinking she was too old. Unfortunately, she technically was as due to an odd complication involving a pair of wings on her baby she passed whilst giving birth.
Lottie was raised by her 3 older brothers, the youngest being 20 at the time. None of them had wings as she did. Whoever her father was he must’ve had the power. Being the only girl in the house wasn’t much of a struggle. She enjoyed roughhousing with her older siblings and she eventually ended up becoming an auntie, with her oldest brother having a child also.
Growing up with wings wasn't the easiest thing in the world. They don't make clothes for winged people funnily enough so the majority of her clothes have crudely cut holes in the back to allow them to extrude out. At full growth, they're pretty heavy so her back muscles are surprisingly strong. Despite being bullied at the start of high school she soon taught the bullies not to mess with them, ultimately gaining her respect. Growing up with all her brothers did have advantages
As she grew older and matured it was also obvious that her father must’ve been attractive as Charlotte was far pretty than her mother and other family members. In school she mainly hung out with the skateboarders because she enjoyed riding and their company felt more meaningful. They did it because they had crushes on her but she looked beyond that. She had her first cigarette when she was 15 when causing trouble in a nearby skatepark. That was when she discovered the first full development of her powers. As she exhaled the smoke she was able to move it using her mind, manipulating it into all sorts of shapes and sizes. Upon further practice she began to understand that she had control of most of the particles in the air around her. She could create wind, pull water from the air and condense it. Though she hasn’t killed anyone she came close too when she got into an argument with her first and last boyfriend (for now) when she was 18. Using her powers she pulled the air from his lungs, causing him to suffocate. She stopped just before any major damage could be caused and felt awful, realising she didn’t really know the full extent of her powers and that she would never use them again in public.
Since then she's kept a low profile, working as a cashier in a local grocery store. She doesn't really keep in touch with her old friends as they think she's messed up. She gave up making an effort to be quite frank.
Powers
Air Manipulation: Lottie can control all of the particles in the air as far as she can see. This has many uses in combat. 1. Creating large wind gusts, tornadoes etc 2. Filling someone’s lungs with smoke and suffocating them 3. Taking all the air out of someone’s lungs 4. Using pollution to make people ill 5. And a whole array of random shit 6. Condensing water particles from the air. If you want a drink just ask! She does however not want to kill anyone even though her powers do facilitate that use
Weaknesses: Can only control one type of particle at a time, using the power is quite taxing on energy and overuse can cause awful migraines.
The following information is H.E.R.O. Classified Intel. Any unauthorized personel found in possession of this document will be prosecuted.
Vinnie "the Vet" Gugliano is the leader of Watervale's Gugliano crime family, one of the most notorious crime families in the entire city.
The Gugliano crime family already existed before Vinnie took the reigns, having been started under Sicilian immigrant Luciano "Wiseman" Gugliano and expanded further under Gianluigi "Five Fingers" Gugliano. Vinnie, the grandson of Luciano and a veteran himself, took the reigns at the humble age of 23, having returned from combat in Afghanistan alongside others including the legendary Hugo Powers. "The Veteran" Gugliano wanted more than what was in front of him, and so he began bringing his military discipline and ruthless attitude into the family business of crime. It worked. Before Vinnie, the Guglianos were the third strongest family behind the warring Petruchio family and Colombo family. Vinnie organized an ambush on the Colombo family and then single-handedly took out all the Petruchios. In the span of one week, the Guglianos went from a relatively small group of criminals to the strongest criminal enterprise in all of Watervale.
Vinnie continued to expand his family's influence, though. With the help of his consigliere and trusted advisor Emilio "The Gent" Ranucci, Vinnie controlled a massive extortion racket that ran throughout all of Watervale. Any business that wanted to stay open had to pay up to the Guglianos, or they would strangely find their entire residence torched. Vinnie then moved to other lucrative enterprises, beginning a massive illegal market for weapons and drugs that runs across the entire city. If you're taking a part in any sort of illegal activity, odds are, Vinnie is getting a fraction of the proceeds.
Of course, H.E.R.O. has tried to stop Vinnie, but Vinnie is smart enough to know how to deal with heroes, and has quite a large amount of blood on his ledger. He knows that for his business to keep afloat, he has to spend a pretty penny on protection. This strategy has thus far worked very effectively, with Vinnie employing some of the top mercenaries and bodyguards in the business and even other villains to help keep the Guglianos at the top spot. Worse comes to worse, Vinnie deals with things himself. Vinnie has a long list of feats to his name, including-
-He fought rhino in the Brookside Zoo with a baseball bat. And won. -He raided the Petrucio crime family's Watervale hideout alone, armed with nothing but a hatchet and two pizza boxes taped together to create a crude shield. If you're wondering who the Petrucio crime family is, that's because he killed them all. -He keeps multiple Man's Worst Enemies as pets. -He keeps a Swampjaws as a pet. -He once executed an enemy with a paintbrush. -He once executed another enemy with a pair of safety scissors. -He traveled to Japan to learn the art of swordsmanship from a band of villainous ninjas, got bored, and promptly killed them all with their own sword after only 20 minutes of actual training. -Despite having eaten a massive steak for 4 and having been drugged with barbiturates and stabbed in the back, he managed to defeat an entire room of 6 professional assassins -He defeated a total of 32 heroes, more than half of them B+ or above, in one-on-one combat alone. -He defeated Hugo Powers in a 1v1 fistfight atop a tightrope in Watervale, though unlike the other 32 heroes, he managed to survive.
Vinnie's power has been titled Rejuvenate. Vinnie is capable of repairing damage to any part of his body outside of the essential organs with mild ease. Outside of this low-tier power, though, Vinnie is also inhumanly strong, insanely resilient, and perhaps most importantly, just plain crazy.
Vinnie Gugliano himself is classified as an A tier threat. His immense strength and ability to generate makes him a formidable foe in one-on-one combat. However, Vinnie Gugliano has no powers that make him effective in distance combat, though the Guglianos possess a load of firearms in their possession. Gugliano also has no formal martial-arts training, relying heavily on the brawling techniques he was raised on, along with pure strength. Lastly, stolen doctor's exams suggest that Vinnie Gugliano has severe anaphylaxis towards bee stings; however, to provide a tough-guy image of himself, reports suggest he does not carry an epi-pen with him. His manor grounds are regularly pruned for any sort of bees to prevent a severe allergic reaction from taking place
Vinnie Gugliano has a wife named Alessandra Gugliano (nee Petruchio) that is believed to have some sort of healing-based power. All reports indicate she is not an actual participant in the Gugliano crime ring and simply serves as a trophy wife for Vinnie Gugliano.
Vinnie Gugliano has three sons. His eldest son, Salvatore "Sal" "Gunman" Alberto Gugliano, works as his underboss and is Vinnie's best enforcer. Sal is believed to have a version of Vinnie's regenerative powers, and although it is to a lesser extent than his father's, he is still a formidable hand-to-hand combatant and is ranked at a B+ tier. His second son, Thomas "Tommy" "Pretty Boy" Matteo Gugliano, serves as Vinnie's head of finances as well as his top infiltrator. His power is believed to be revolved around lip contact, through which he can do a myriad of activities, such as mind-reading, healing, and minor emotional manipulation. While Tommy is not as brutal in hand-to-hand as Vinnie or Sal, he is believed to be trained in martial arts and is a more than capable fighter. He is ranked at a C- Tier. His last son, Bruno Fabrizio Gugliano, was tested at birth to have no powers, and so Vinnie threw him into the buffalo enclosure at a local zoo. The third son's body was never recovered as was presumed by authorities to have been maimed to death.
Vinnie's consigliere and top advisor is a man named Emilio "The Gent" Ranucci. Emilio Ranucci had a power based on hypnosis through speech, but a run-in with Blade led to his entire tongue being cut out, which destroyed his ability to use his power. While rarely working in combat any more, Ranucci was fitted for a silver prosthetic tongue that allows him to use his power to a weaker extent. Though in his 60s, he is still well-suited for hand-to-hand, having trained under several martial arts teachers, and is a capable fighter. While prior to the incident he was ranked at a B+, he has since been re-evaluated to a D+ tier.
Vinnie's Brookside caporegime and regional enforcer there is a man named Martino Gaetano Bernadino, Vinnie's brother-in-law. Martino has some sort of geokinetic powers that rank at a B+, and he is known as a very capable combatant for heroes, but phone tap conversations reveal that while Martino is very loyal, he is also very reckless and irresponsible. Reports indicate that he frequently patronizes bars, strip clubs, and most commonly, gambling hotspots, where he tries his luck in poker, though he is also a notably big loser.
Vinnie is believed to be working with a teenage girl with black hair and red eyes. This girl is dangerous. Do not get close to her. She will kill you.
In the past week, Vinnie has abducted 2 3 heroes as of yet. Their names are:
Polar Bear Cub, C- Tier, went missing on patrol in Watervale
The Titanic, C+ Tier, abducted after patronizing a bar in Watervale
Whispering Thunder, B- Tier, vanished after patronizing a cafe in Brookside, near Watervale
Their locations are unknown.
The Gugliano Family Mansion is a large villa located on the edge of Watervale in one of its less urban, less populated areas, not too far off the beaten road but not too close as to where it would be easily seen by those not looking at it. The mansion is a large compound surrounded by tall iron fences, with four tall guard towers overlooking the massive grounds, which included plenty of open space for Vinnie's unique choices of pets. Across the open area are scores of guards, all patrolling the area, armed to the teeth and prepared to engage with any threat. Those in the business know that the odds of being able to take five steps onto Vinnie Gugliano's property without an invitation at the front gate is impossible, let alone actually getting through the front doors.
5'4" Chestnut Brown Hair. Blue Eyes. Ashkenazi Jewish Decent. Average weight. Sometimes she puts on a few extra pounds as eating is a coping skill for her, but she leads and active enough life to burn it off once she gets out of a depressive funk.
Blood Type
O-
Occupation Hero. Professor of History
Side Hero
Affiliation H.E.R.O.
Tier B
Personality Vivien Valis an analytical powerhouse. She is constantly synthesizing her experiences and can seem a little detached socially, despite the fact that she is usually talking through her brainstorms. She can be a very hard person to get to know, as one of her biggest flaws is that she prioritizes her work with H.E.R.O. before all else, and her research just after that - doesn't really give her much time for a social life.
If you happen to break down those walls she is incredibly bright and idealistic. Vivien truly believes that learning from the past and teaching the current generation can help us forge a better future. Otherwise interactions with her tend to range from pleasant to informative. Occasionally she will come to a new conclusion or learn something new and rush to the next person to gush about it, whether they care or not. She does it with a smile on her face because she is passionate and does not intend to be as annoying as she can sometimes come off, especially to more standoffish individuals. She is definitely not the typical stoic academic. Though she keeps her inner self close to herself, she wears her enthusiasm on her sleeve. She's a bubbly optimistic person to have on your team, even though you might not have any idea what she is talking about.
Backstory Vivien had a pretty ordinary childhood. She was introverted and intellectual, but never bullied. Her power is what gave her a strong interest in history at a young age. She began reading historical non-fiction and biographies of major figures when she was 10. It was clear she was a bright student, so when the opportunity to go to university at the age of 15 appeared she took it without hesitation. By the time she was 22 she graduated with a Ph.D in History and began working on research into the impact of Superpowers on World Politics and Culture. This is how she first started working with H.E.R.O. Eventually she disclosed her own ability and registered as a Hero with the organization. She continues her research and assists with matters of Global Diplomacy.
Power Temporal Vision: Vivien can view Temporal Imprints on a location. To do this she must spend time in the location. There is typically a location where an imprint is the strongest and when she finds it she will enter a trance like state. In this state she observes a moment in time that either happened recently enough that the imprint hasn't faded or affected the time stream in a major way that it is fixed in place.
OTHER Sexual Orientation: Bisexual She would never tell anyone this, but she is learning Swing Dancing in her spare time.
Physique Kat stands at around 5'5" and weighs about 124 pounds. Well-built and fit, Kat's build has clearly been bolstered by some sort of athletic training, but is also definitely feminine. She had wavy, dark hair, almost black in color, that fell in waves down to about her chest area. She has very fair skin, not quite pale white, but far from robust in color. Overall, in terms of appearance, Kat isn't too far detached from an average high school-aged teenage girl.
What is most notably different about her are her eyes- they have very rare, scary crimson color, unnaturally red and watchful. She could've been considered quite pretty under normal circumstances, but most would agree there is something odd and unnerving, about her that was rather offputting to the normal person. And they'd be right.
Blood Type A-
Occupation Professional Villain
Side Villain
Affiliation Zero Seven Seals
Tier A+
Personality On a surface level, Kat could for all the world be your average teenage girl. She's giddy and easily excitable, nearly childlike in behavior, with endless excitement and spunk. Naturally very giggly and easily excited, Kat often acts immature and heavily juvenile, as if she's never had the chance to grow up. She's remarkably ignorant about many very basic facets of life and many social clues fly over her head. She can come across as awkward and perplexing, even, as even though she is bubbly and eager to learn, she is clearly inexperienced with socialization.
Under that layer, though, it's quick to see that Kat is not just a happy-go-lucky, animated young girl. Outside of her naivety and socially benighted view, Kat is incredibly astute and a remarkably fast learner. Though she often is socially awkward and uninformed about much of the world, she is naturally very clever and scarily capable of interpreting scenes around her. This ingenuity is coupled with a slew of negative traits, however. Kat is clearly delusional, sadistic, and overall deranged. Years of abuse and conditioning to be a villain as allowed her to overcome normal stigmas and become nearly de-sensitized to violence, bloodshed, and death. She holds no qualms when it comes to barbarity and torture, finding it commonplace and almost enjoyable in a sense. Her moral compass and sense of justice have been twisted into some sort of nonsensical view of the world, where she views her own clearly nefarious organization, one that vies for domination and murder, as a righteous paragon, with the ends justifying the means, and with heroism being a pesky obstacle in the way of that goal that must be eradicated.
Kat's cold-blooded nature is not natural nor is it incorrigible. In truth, deep down, Kat longs for friendship and camaraderie, to look for somebody to have a mutual relationship with, one that's not centered around violence and villainy. Kat is a very clingy, emotional person, one that is really dependent on having somebody else to explore her feelings with, and through her entire life, she was never able to find that connection. Her deepest aspiration is to find somebody that likes her, and yet her upbringing and past make that nigh-impossible. Her father would never allow that of her, anyway.
Backstory Katharine Persephone Graves was born on May Day a fateful 17 years ago. She never knew her mother, never saw her face or heard her voice, and never knew where she had ever been. From the limited investigation she's done on the matter, she believed that her name was, in fact, Katharine as well, Katharine Dawson-Graves, and that she died shortly after childbirth, but she was never able to corroborate that, nor find her mother's grave. The parent that she did know, though, and the parent that raised her was her father, one of the most immensely powerful villains of all time, Menaced Mr Orzo. Menaced Mr Orzo was a secretive but highly powerful villain and one of the leading figures in the taciturn evil organization, Zero. It is debatable as to what Menaced Mr Orzo's goals were with young Kathy. Whether or not he truly cared for his only daughter or saw her as just another weapon for Zero is still in question. But what is most definitely certain is that Menaced Mr Orzo made use of his daughter for the organization.
Kat was trained as early as 5 years old to become an asset for Zero. As a result of grueling training regiments that were borderline torture, she was eventually able to unlock her powers at the tender age of 7, a younger age than a vast majority of superpowered kids discover their abilities. From there, she was forced to practice her powers non-stop, expanding her abilities for much of the hours of the day. She did not go to school and was educated on the essentials by her father. She did not speak to anybody other than her dad's coworkers, certainly not anybody her age. By the time she was 12, in fact, she had only left her father's large estate maybe twice in her entire life. She was, in essence, a prisoner inside her father's house. Her father showed her some affection, true, but said affection was tapered by her dad's yearning to "surpass him in strength."
At age 12, her dad bought her a pet, though this pet wasn't like any of the bunnies that lived in the yard that she used to care for. This pet was a winged creature with blue skin, bat wings and a single golden eye. A Leftover, a Spectator, that the girl named Bellatrix. Two more of the creatures would follow- Rodolphus and Rabastan. Slowly, the presence of these creatures began to drive the young girl more and more insane. What was once a caring young girl became a psychotic young woman who alternated between bouts of magnanimity and madness. The final straw, the end of the transformation, occurred when she stalked outside and killed the family of bunnies she had sheltered her whole life. Kat was buried, and Malady was born.
At 15 she became one of the Seven Seals, an elite team of villains that served the leader of Zero. Of the Seals, she grew closest to Wildebeest, the next-youngest of the Seven Seals and the only one that respected her as an equal. She has since become a valued asset for Zero, having gone on multiple covert operations for the entity. Her confirmed kill count to date has encompassed 15 civilians and 4 heroes, and her power has led to HERO sealing her file from public access by a majority of heroes. However, in a recent pang of sympathy, she gave pity to a hero she had defeated and allowed him to escape with his life. As punishment for this show of empathy, Kat was assigned to assist the Guglianos, a new recruit into Zero, in their plans, despite the fact that Kat hated the entire organization with a passion. How that will all turn out is still in the air.
Power Contagion Malady's power is called Contagion, and it in essence allows her to control and spread disease. Malady's body, in essence, is capable of producing a customized disease and spread it to another person, either through direct contact with them, or by releasing a miasmic fog from her body that carries the disease. Once infected by the disease, Malady can cause a variety of symptoms to emerge, including nausea and vomiting, high fever, insomnia, paranoia, hyper sensitivity, skin lesions, cysts, rash, and abscesses with ease. Malady also has the power to increase the severity of the disease, which can cause pulmonary fibrosis, haemorrhaging, and eventually systemic infection.
While the disease on the surface seems unstoppably powerful, there are two key limits on the disease. First, the more people she infects, the less severe the symptoms are. Currently, Malady can infect two or three people with severe symptoms but upon spreading to more people the disease goes from being potentially life-threatening to a painful nuisance like the flu. Secondly, causing the more severe and potentially fatal symptoms requires Malady to exert more energy. While she has killed with this ability in the past (see her kill count), in order to conserve her own energy, she prefers to simply incapacitate the victim with cripplingly debilitating symptoms that allow her to capture them.
Malady has mastered the use of miasmic fog to contract the Contagion to her victims. She can spread the fog very quickly and in all manner of directions, able to plume it outwards to all around her, direct it towards individuals, or, more dangerously, spread it through ventilation ducts. Strangely, the miasmic fog also seems to have limited defensive applications, with the smog thick enough to be able to block against weak blunt force and the like.
The final weakness of Contagion is that it is a disease, and as such medicine is able to treat it and alleviate the symptoms. While due to the ever-evolving nature of the disease a cure is not able to be created for it, a vast number of antiviral and antibiotic medications have proven effective in lowering the symptoms of the disease from upper-level, more dire phases to less threatening, more benign levels. Lastly, Malady herself is weak to these diseases as her body is a factory for the Contagion, and as such when she gets sick from outside diseases, she often suffers immensely. She is immune to her own disease, but to other, natural diseases, she is just as vulnerable as you and I, if not more so.
Physique Alpha stands around 6'2" and looks to be in tip top shape. Orange hair and brown eyes. While he does wear normal civilian clothing, he also wears uniforms similar to the one in the picture above as well as SWAT uniforms in case he needs to suddenly deploy.
Blood Type A+
Occupation Government trained now turned Hero.
Side Hero
Affiliation H.E.R.O.
Tier C
Personality Because of his experiences, Alpha is the quiet type. While he tends to keep to himself, his work and anything he's doing during his downtime, he does speak when addressed by superiors and those who outrank him or anyone he's used to being around for a bit. He actually communicates a lot during jobs, missions and similar physical activities.
While he does avoid socializing, it's said that he knows how to hold a normal conversation. His problem though is his lack of emotion when doing so. Some would say that he "sounds" indifferent in terms of his voice. Some say he sounds bored, depressed or just like a robot following the rules or protocol. His body language also sometimes shows military-like behavior: he always salutes those of high rank even in Hero circles like Hugo and Christina for instance if they just happen to walk by him or addressing him. He also holds a lot of respect to those without superpowers but still do dangerous work like police, SWAT, medics, etc, stating that they are real heroes.
He also prefers passive approaches to problems if they are available to him. While he's not the best tactician, he does agree to a well-laid plan over just blindly rushing in. If the opportunity presents itself, he'd rather outsmart opponents rather than overpowering them or preparing a plan of attack rather than "going all in". In other words, he prefers brains over brawn.
Alpha, for a better or lack of a term, is a stiff person but means well in the long run. He just has trouble showing his emotions where it counts.
Backstory Much is classified of the government trained hero named Alpha or K Nine in law enforcement circles. Why a super such as him was placed in a government trained program over, say, Hero One, is also a mystery in itself. It's said, though, that Alpha had come from a normal mother and father but both had jobs with the military. The father being a soldier and the mother a medic.
But for those who dig a bit into it, they would discover these general details.
Back in the day, a drug cartel was starting to make it's rounds in some of the major cities. It's said that this cartel was smuggling some new stuff to super villains and it was so bad that Alpha's father was helping lead a squad at the time and they had tracked a shipment of the stuff to an abandoned building somewhere in New York. His team raided the place and secured both the drugs as well as the criminals guarding it. But what they didn't know about was that said criminals were being led by a secret super villain behind the scene's.
And said super villain wasn't happy.
The super villain soon got information about Alpha's dad which led him to his home...at the time the super villain showed, a young Alpha was with a babysitter. And when the super villain was about to send a deadly message at his expense...he awakened to his powers. It's said that Alpha had launched an explosive wave of energy from his own body that did little structural damage to the home but badly injured the babysitter.
But it killed the super villain. Records aren't clear but it's rumored that Alpha was only six years old at the time of that event and it traumatized him for life.
Afterwards, it's said that Alpha's parents did their best to help their son recover using their military connections. Soon, it led to him being transferred to private schools while growing up. But as the parents feared, the incident took it's toll on him. Sure, he got excellent grades and still managed to advance in his education but it left him isolated. Anti-social. It seemed as if he was afraid of others but in truth, he was afraid of hurting others...or worse.
And that's how it pretty much went till his high school years. It was then that Alpha had made a request to train using his powers. His parents did note the lack of feeling he had when he made that request but saw in his eyes that he couldn't keep living his life like this. So, during whatever free time during his four years there, he trained with an unidentified military trainer to help manage his educational studies along with his powers.
But then, things took a turn when Alpha was "recruited" to be apart of a new team of superheros after his senior year graduation. The US Government wanted to have their own team under their command in case of "extreme circumstances" as they put it. Of course, Alpha's parents protested but Alpha had willingly agreed. Of course, due to the lack of trust between between the government and hero groups like H.E.R.O. and I.C.O.S.A., such a team would most likely be flagged and disbanded. So the group was field tested in secret.
It started off simple enough. Alpha was always sent within US borders to various cities to assist "normal" law enforcers like police and SWAT with any problems they may have. But everything took a bad turn one day when he and his team were sent to resolve a hostage crisis. A bank robbery had gone bad and a group of four masked gunmen had managed to force their way into a subway station. One of the criminals had managed to start up a subway train and got it moving till it was somewhere in between two subways stops in some random dark tunnel. Since it was reported that the criminals themselves were non-super powered but had an unknown number of hostages, Alpha and his team were sent in as "SWAT" operators to help resolve the matter. It went smoothly till one of the four managed to escape the train after the team had secured the train and the other three gunmen with all the hostages alive and not harmed, literally running for it down the dark tunnel. Alpha responded first and pursued and, to his surprise, the gunmen revealed himself to be a low level super villain that was later I.D.ed as "Third Rail". An electricity user, he literally lived up to his name and fought Alpha by manipulating the electrical energy from the third track rail and firing them at Alpha. Thanks to his aura though, Alpha was able to resist the attacks and was able to defeat him. Unfortunately, local hero's had just managed to catch up to Alpha and had just witnessed the fight.
They immediately reported Alpha and his team. While I.C.O.S.A. immediately blew the whistle, they did appreciate the professional work they had done. They were, however, detained until further notice as punishment for accepting a position on a unauthorized superhero team. Even the US Government denied any involvement with the team and the case was immediately dismissed. After some time, the other team members were released but Alpha refused to leave.
"...I messed up again...", he simply said.
That's when Alpha was then released but sent to Castleburg. Apparently, Alpha was just accepted into the H.E.R.O. team by special recommendation from his parents. Perhaps understanding that it was to help him rather than punish him, Alpha accepted and joined Hero One.
Power "Ki Control" - A rather bland superpower, Alpha has the ability to "weaponize" or "manipulate" his own bodies energy like you may see in cartoons and anime. He's still currently learning on the various ways he can use it but at the moment, he can use it to generally power himself up slightly with an aura around his body to "super soldier" like levels. He can also use it for defense to help block attacks. Even bullets bounce off him if he prepares for it. He can also heighten his senses: his vision, hearing and smell can be enhanced. Plus, he learned how to heal himself with his power. He's also been training to heal others with his power but he hasn't perfected that technique yet. And while some say he could even do an actual "fireball" attack from video games, Alpha had said that it was "a waste of energy compared to firearms". He's still learning so other abilities may present itself along the way.
OTHER Despite most of the info being classified, vague or lacking many details, it's rumored that Hugo Powers and Christina are fully aware of Alpha's history and might even know his parents. It's said that Alpha was transferred to Hero One to learn how to be a more "normal" person when not on duty. Since joining, he's actually developed hobbies with playing video games and listening to music. Hence you usually see him with a headset in the picture above sometimes when listening to any sort of music.
Name Terra (Doesn't know her real name if any.)
Hero Name Alien Angel
Gender Female
Age 18 (Or so she guesses.)
Date of Birth Doesn't know.
Physique Terra stands 5'8" and while she doesn't talk about her weight, she looks incredibly slim and has green eyes. She has blonde hair but often dye's it green as a cover. Because she's always on the move, she'd wear just about any sort of female clothing or even some male's for a tomboy appearance. Her alter ego state has her with pink colored skin and hair with red eyes with not too much of a physical appearance in sizes.
Blood Type Doesn't know.
Occupation Vigilante
Side Hero
Affiliation Infinite (Vigilante group she works for)
Tier B
Personality Once a shy individual, Terra is now quite outspoken. She's not afraid to speak her mind which has caused her to get into trouble in certain cases. Sometimes in the heat of combat, she also shows signs of anger if she's pushed too far due to her upbringing and horrible experiences which are explained below.
She also has trouble with authority. Hence the reason for her occupation. Terra's experiences had led her to believe that the rules are there just for the bad guys to take advantage of. So she works behind the scene's most of the time. She doesn't do the job for the glory or recognition but to keep others from going through the same fate she went through like any superhero with a tragic past. But it's because of this that she has trouble working with those that have to be "control freaks" as she puts it.
Despite the above, she can be cooperative in terms of observation. Because of the group she now works for, she has learned to follow orders to some extent. And because of her abilites, she tends to do "Recon" in city limits to report on anything happening within said city to keep others informed about any recent events. While she may not listen to those from official super hero organizations like H.E.R.O. and I.C.O.S.A., she mysteriously follows her group's orders.
To sum it up, Terra is a big mouth and a rarely-shown temper but with a heart of gold. She will stick up for the little people who get bullied regardless of who the bully is.
Backstory For Terra, life was the ultimate joke. At least, that's how she saw it since even she can't recall much before being stuck in a random lab being experimented on.
Similar to perhaps another H.E.R.O., Terra was one of perhaps many test subjects done to splice "Leftovers" with human DNA to create a new lifeform. Terra was, sadly, one of those test subjects. The pain...the experimentation...it was so much that her mind was shattered until accepting the fact that she was no longer normal even when compared to others with superpowers.
Even if she still "looked" human.
There, in that hidden lab, she was subject to countless routines. Running till absolute exaustion. Training against detained Leftovers that the scientists there somehow caught and preserved for combat tests. All of which she was brutalized but still lived despite the injuries taken. She had wished it had all ended at many points. That her life would just end.
But for some reason, it was replaced with anger...a "silent" anger.
Eventually, she had kept her wits about her. For one, she had heard a scientist say that she was a "successful" experiment but weren't sure in what way. Other than perhaps a minor healing factor, no other powers or physical changes in apperance were present. But that her blood and the other "Leftover" one had mergered perfectly. Hence why she didn't need to be on constant life support like others have. Still, they continued their routines with her. Hoping for perhaps some sort of breakthrough.
And they sure as hell got one.
One day, she was drugged up with some new experimental drug at the time called Isolene and put on many restrains. One of which was a straight jacket and handcuffs of all things on both her hands and feet. Pretending to be doped up from the amount of Isolene used, she heard them saying that they were abandoning the lab, stating that the "main lab" had been compromised and they were moving all "vital" test subjects to new locations till further notice. Terra was mostly isolated so she didn't know how many other "vitals" there were. But now, it seemed things were falling apart for her captors. Sad as it was, she had to worry about herself.
Then, during one night two or so years ago in New York, many reports were being called in to 911 operators that citizens had heard an inhuman scream and something flying through the air in the night sky of New York. Some time later, a random group of Hero's had found an unmarked dark van completely knocked over on it's side. Around it were injured and armed criminals with fracture injuries and two badly injured scientists that were suspects in illegal experimentations. All of them scared out of their minds. There was also a torn up straight jacket along with pairs of broken handcuffs.
Terra had gotten lucky that night in more than one way. Because just has she made her move for an escape attempt, she was actually rescued by a vigilante group simply called "Infinite". Unlike the police and other hero's, they were bending the rules when trying to track down these hidden labs and experimentations. At first, Terra didn't want anything to do with them since it took them so long to find her and whatever was possibly left of the lab.
But it turns out, Infinite had a few members who were also subject to such experiments. They even apologized to her for taking so long to find the lab she was in. Despite the mistrust, she decided to go with the group since she didn't have a plan past just escaping from the lab.
Then, stories were being told around New York about a pink monster that preyed on anyone who saw it. But at the same time, how majestic it looked. Due to the sheer number of sights and cases that came forward involving it, both criminals and even law enforcement gave it a name.
"Alien Angel" was born.
Powers Transformation - It took some time but Terra has learned to control her appearance between her human self and her "Leftover" self. Though when in human form, she still retains her now higher level healing factor as well as increased resistances to harmful drugs and diseases.
But when she transforms, she gains the ability of flight and becomes slightly stronger and tougher than a normal human. However, she becomes incredibly quick. Both her running and flight speed have her going around 80 mph. Her senses of smell, sight and hearing go up as well as gaining sharp claws on both her hands and feet.
Other Terra isn't the only vigilante. As stated above, she works for a group simply called "Infinite" as their on-site recon operative. Similar to perhaps the Zero Organization, it's motives, most of it's members and even their leader are a mystery but unlike Zero, they are actually helping with any troublemakers in todays society. But there are stories that they have "killed" high level supervillain and, as such, are also wanted criminals by other organizations from H.E.R.O. to the I.C.O.S.A. Despite this, the few members that make up their organization have so far eluded capture. It's even said that wherever Zero has a presence, you can expect to see "Alien Angel" not too far behind.
Hero Name The Bullet (or THE BULLET, depending on who's asking).
Nicknames CQC, Bullet Train.
Gender Male
Age 18
Date of Birth November 12th
Physique 6'2 and 210 lbs, Chad is incredibly muscular from years of sports and intense weight lifting since childhood. He has caused several questions due to the contrast between his incredibly dark skin tone compared to his parent's ghostly pale. He usually laughs these questions off, however. He has many scars across his body, a result of immense amounts of training and being too curious around sharp objects. Chad is most easily identified by his dyed hair and his face tattoo that many people have described as 'tacky'.
Prior to actually joining H.E.R.O, he uses a homemade suit that was cobbled together using thrift store clothes and his Highschool football gear. He continues to use this after joining H.E.R.O, albeit only for missions requiring stealth since it is darker than his other suit. He refers to it as THE BULLET: SILENCER.
Chad's outfit after Joining H.E.R.O, this gear is both aesthetically appealing as well as being actually useful. The armor is actually fairly heavy since heavier weight does not impact Chad's speed much and it provides both protection as well as extra weight behind his attacks. The entire costume is resistant to friction burns caused by high-speed movement, with the shoes being especially resistant to the negative effects of speed. He refers to it as THE SILVER BULLET
Blood Type AB
Occupation Chad works full time as a Hero, but also works as a part-time Pizza Delivery Man due to the frequent pay cuts he receives from H.E.R.O
Side Hero.
Affiliation H.E.R.O
Tier C+. Could be a Low to High A if he actually used his power effectively, but his personality prevents him from doing so.
Personality Chad could best be described as paradoxical. He abhors killing others, yet jumps to violence and assaulting others for the weakest reasons. He constantly idolizes heroes and tries to portray himself as a pillar of justice, yet he will almost always run away when presented with a moderate chance of injury. And despite his incredibly crude appearance and mannerisms, he spends his free time reading, sewing, and practicing calligraphy.
Chad often speaks loudly and informally with everyone he meets regardless of the situation, and is surprisingly charismatic with most people he talks to. He enjoys learning about other people's lives and understanding them, and despite his more bombastic nature, he is a surprisingly good team player. He portrays a constantly upbeat and excitable demeanor, becoming incredibly invested in the most mundane of topics. Like his namesake, however, his attention can shift incredibly quickly if not constantly encouraged. Chad appears to be very self-confident, and he offers advice to anyone who asks... and sometimes people who don't ask.
His happy-go-lucky attitude however hides an incredibly insecure person, with his Self-confidence merely being a mask he wears around others. Ever since he dropped out of high school and left his parents, Chad has been struggling to reclaim the excitement and attention he had so much of in his youth. He became a hero almost solely because he needed some form of positive interaction, and he feels that his power is his only interesting attribute.
Backstory Chad lived what most would call a pampered life - he was adopted at a young age by an upper middle-class family, supplied with all the love he could ever need, and grew up to be a very extroverted child. Chad's father is a well-respected professor of physics at UNCA, while his mother is a somewhat well-known politician in the Castleburg Republican Party. Chad never experienced some of the things that other children did in their youth, such as learning proper money management skills and setting appropriate expectations. His family was extremely protective over him, and encouraged his development as best they knew how.
At the age of 10, Chad began to grow interested in physical sports. Baseball, basketball, track and field, nearly anything that could be remotely called a sport would interest Chad. This eventually culminated in him joining a youth football team, and he continued to train for the rest of his educational career. This was also the time that Chad became interested in the concept of Heroes.
The thought of becoming a person that could shoot lightning or withstand a hail of bullets was incredibly appealing to Chad, and he spent a large portion of his free time on building an 'alter ego' for his superhero persona. This persona would shift whenever he had a new idea for a superhero or thought of new power, with his current alias being the latest in a long line of these names. Chad's parents, however, were much less thrilled about heroes in general. Chad's father simply believed they were unnecessary, and should only serve as an elite force when faced with a Villain or Leftover immune to firearms. Chad's mother, however, believed all people with powers were a threat to the unpowered population - she advocated for several anti-hero groups and even had been planning to run for Mayor when the current term is over.
While neither parent was supportive of their son's hobby, they both wanted to help their child grow and develop his creativity. They were more concerned about his fascination with sports, which could very easily end with him getting injured. It took a few years of pleading before he was allowed to join his Highschool football team in his junior year. He rapidly rose his Highschool to prominence thanks to his speed as a Running Back, to the point that Chad had a full-ride football scholarship at UNCA, with his father promising to pay for lodging and other expenses that would arise as long as Chad actually tried to get a degree. Chad was very lucky.
In his senior year, Chad achieved a lifelong dream in the worst way possible. It was the final game of the season, and Chad was attempting to score a hat-trick to close his high school career. As he ran, he desperately tried to move as fast as possible and score, and the mixture of chemicals in his body and the cheering of fans caused something to awaken in him. He quickly passed the goalposts and didn't stop for nearly half a mile. At first, Chad was beyond ecstatic - he had developed Super Speed!
Chad would not be happy for very long. His scholarship was specifically for people without powers, so he lost it very fast. And while they tried to hide it, Chad could tell his parents acted differently towards him than they used to. They were careful and treated him like a time bomb, and the sense of comfort and familiarity that had been built over nearly two decades was gone. Chad tried to keep a positive demeanor and outlook, but one month after gaining powers, Chad's mother held a knife between her and Chad, terrified after he ran into the kitchen. Feeling betrayed, Chad immediately packed his things and left his home, dropping out of high school shortly after.
Chad relied on the mercy of his boss, Percy Porter. Porter allowed Chad to sleep in a backroom in exchange for very little money and a promise to ignore anything suspicious he saw in the restaurant. Chad has lived there ever since, spending most of his time training his abilities or searching for his biological parents.
Now, only a few weeks after leaving his parents, Chad is desperate to become a full-time Hero. With so much of his life falling apart, any way to get people to appreciate and respect him is worth following. He repurposed parts of his football gear and anything he could find at a thrift store into an impromptu costume, and he sought out the H.E.R.O organization.
Power: Like A Bullet Short Version: Chad is very fast. He also sucks at running.
Long Version: Chad might be one of the fastest Superhumans when it comes to raw speed, and not things like teleportation. He is capable of moving more than Mach 1 in short bursts, although this can really aggravate his weaknesses.
He achieves his incredible speeds because his power is really the "Conversion of Potential Energy" - if he was aware of this and decided to capitalize on it, he would be able to train and develop abilities like slowing people down (albeit at a massively less potent scale than someone like Winterfall), launching ball bearings like bullets with touch-based telekinesis, and even preventing objects from falling by stealing their Potential Energy, effectively creating a floating platform. It would also allow him to reach much faster speeds by siphoning potential energy from others.
It is unlikely he ever will, however, since he believes he only possesses Superhuman Speed and some minor side abilities. These side abilities include Heat Resistance and Durability that scale with his speed (He is usually durable enough to tough through friction burns and crashing into walls regardless of speed... usually).
Chad's weaknesses are proportional to his speed at any moment in time - he could move 100 mph with a relatively minor impact. He rarely compromises and goes this slow, however, despite the fact he would be far more effective if he moved this fast and used firearms or other forms of equipment.
Techniques SPECIAL SHOTS!: Rubber Bullet: A punch designed to nonlethally knock out opponents. Chad actually uses restraint with this one and tries to manage the power in relation to his opponent. Even with him purposefully trying to manage his speed, this ability can seriously injure a normal person if he hits them in the wrong location.
Ironically, this technique is more dangerous than some of Chad's others since he isn't as impacted by his weaknesses and is more likely to actually land it.
12 Guage: Similar to the Rubber Bullet technique in that it's a (relatively) light punch, the 12 Guage is a rapid burst of 12 punches rather than a single nonlethal punch. This can cause a lot of damage, especially if Chad is lucky and most of his blows actually connect, but Chad is usually stuck in place while performing it and can be attacked while punching.
9 mm: A quick punch, which Chad usually aims at the groin or liver. Faster than Rubber Bullets and more accurate than 12 Guage, this is Chad's go-to move against opponents that can survive Rubber Bullets. 9mm's have very few weaknesses, other than being very predictable.
.22 Caliber: The only kick Chad has, despite him thinking his power is running really fast. 22 Caliber is faster than a 9mm punch, but it also has additional force behind it due to being a kick rather than a punch. Chad most often uses it in order to trip opponents, and it is very effective at doing so.
.50 Caliber: When he has a straight shot to an enemy over a distance of around 1 mile, Chad is able to achieve his maximum speed of Mach 1 and punch them after 10 seconds of running blind. Considering he is a man weighing 210 pounds running at the speed of sound, this is usually strong enough to instantly defeat all but the most durable of opponents. Actually pulling it off is pretty much impossible, since it requires a mile-long shot that has no potholes and is relatively smooth, and he is effectively blind due to his power's weaknesses. Even landing the punch could seriously injure Chad's arm, possibly tearing it off entirely if he is fighting someone durable enough to survive the blow.
Blank Shot: Not a real technique that Chad has named, rather it is a term that has been coined by fans and detractors alike. Chad runs straight past the opponent, relying on his raw speed and temporary durability to escape as far as he can run. Chad is quick to lean on this ability when presented with even moderately difficult opponents, and will only avoid using it when people are in clear danger.
Weaknesses: Chad has several weaknesses - most of which are self-inflicted, whether from his mentality or his perception of his powers.
The primary weakness of Chad's power is his method of using it - his conversions of Potential Energy into Kinetic Energy for his speed places great stress on his brain and musculature. As Chad runs faster, he progressively loses his precision and senses. When moving at 100 mph he may no longer be able to smell, and his hearing might be somewhat weaker. At his maximum speed of Mach 1, he wouldn't be able to do anything more dextrous than forming a fist, and he would be blind, deaf, and barely feel the wind on his face or his feet hit the ground. This does come with immunity to sensory manipulation at high speeds, so... there's that. If Chad learned the nature of his power, he might one day learn how to lessen the effects of this weakness by performing less stressful conversions.
One of the problems H.E.R.O has with Chad is his inability to stop quickly. He either has to slow down over the course of several seconds or run into a wall to stop himself. In high-speed chases, Chad is surprisingly worthless unless it's on a highway or property damage is acceptable. Due to the pay cuts he receives because of this limitation, he has continued his job as a Pizza Delivery Boy.
Less a weakness and more of a limitation, Chad's speed is purely physical - he cannot react to things faster than a normal human, so a bullet is just as dangerous to him as it is for anyone else, and a surprise attack can quickly incapacitate him. This also makes it much easier for him to trip or fall than other speedsters.
A very situational weakness is his various 'Vulnerabilities.' Chad himself is unaware of why he is especially vulnerable to certain types of damage and powers, but it is usually because it directly interferes with his power over Potential Energy. These Vulnerabilities include: Gravity: Weightlessness can effectively render Chad powerless since he has no Potential Energy to draw on. On the flip side, he is just as fast when gravity is heavier, as long as he is strong enough to stand. Cold: Lower temperatures can cause Chad's molecules to rapidly slow down, and in turn heavily impact his speed. Even without slowing him down, cold temperatures can cause the ground to become slippery, which is especially dangerous to Chad when he is moving at high speeds. Heat: While moderate amounts of heat actually improve Chad's speed, very hot temperatures can forcefully activate his speed, resulting in him being unable to slow down. At high enough temperatures he may die from exhaustion from the constant running if he doesn't first die from the heat. This can be 'fixed' by simply not moving in the first place and waiting to cool down, but that generally makes someone an easy target.
While not a weakness of his power, Chad is incredibly poor at using his ability. Even with his misconception about the nature of his power, it is extremely rare for Chad to use any application of his abilities other than 'run away' or 'punch FASTER!' He would be able to warrant a B tier if he was willing to use firearms and move slower, but he refuses to do so since he believes it would be 'too lethal'.
Chad is very skilled at certain skills that are not traditionally seen as very masculine. This includes Sewing, Calligraphy, and Baking. He is also trying his hand at making poems, but he is average at best at that.
Starbright is easily Chad's favorite hero, due to his flashy abilities and personality. Chad owns several posters of the hero.
Chad does not like most animals. He adores children and babies, however.
Chad is proficient at Boxing, but he is not incredible at it. This is where his Highschool nickname 'CQC' comes from. He mostly relied on his impressive size and musculature to deal with opponents. Now he relies on his speed.
Chad adores public speaking but despises things that require knowledge since it makes him feel stupid. He was very quiet in classes and has never been in a spelling bee (despite being pretty good at spelling).
Porter's Pizza, the restaurant that Chad works and lives at, pays a very large amount of money to the Bratva gang for 'protection' every month. Chad doesn't know this, but he does notice Percy is always more snappy on certain days of the month.
Name of Person Hugo Powers
Relationship Status Authority Figure (Greatly Respected)
Quick Quote "Powers might be a god, I'm not sure. After all, he was the one who let THE BULLET into H.E.R.O! Not to mention I ran into him one time and he didn't even flinch!
...He still owes me an Invincible Warmonger Poster, though."
Relationship Description Chad does not currently know any high authority in H.E.R.O. This, combined with the fact that Powers was the person who invited Chad into the organization, and he was once a famous Hero himself, causes Chad to hold him in very high regard and take the man's advice. This respect is not mutual.
Name of Person Noah Bell
Relationship Status Adoring Fan
Quick Quote "Starbright's done more for me than almost anyone else in my life. I hope I can pay him back one day... I'd probably need a raise to do that though."
Relationship Description Chad respects Starbright immensely. This is a combination of Starbright's incredible popularity, as well as his flashy powers and persona. Chad hasn't had the opportunity to see any of Starbright's more negative qualities and currently believes that people in HERO are just rude to him for no reason. Due to the support Starbright offered during Chad's fledgling career as a Hero, however, convincing him that Starbright has any faults would take an incredible amount of evidence.
Name of Person Pandora
Relationship Status Apprehensive Acquaintance
Quick Quote "She definitely seems cool, and digging through the ground and turning things to rocks is an interesting power... It might be me, but she seems a little mean though, right? Hopefully she's not a bully..."
Relationship Description Chad is doing his best to retain a positive relationship with everyone in HERO, but he is uncomfortable around Pandora due to her abrasive personality. He finds her pessimism 'needlessly depressing,' and Chad's inherent optimism makes it hard to interact with her. His opinion of her would probably change if he discovered how versatile and potent her power really was.
Name of Person Patricia Donnelly
Relationship Status Stranger
Quick Quote "I haven't really had the chance to talk with her, and my rescue mission to save her and her friends kinda failed... You think she's mad about that?"
Relationship Description Chad has barely interacted with Patricia in any way, but wants to try and establish a friendship with her like the rest of HERO. Chad does think she is a bit rude to Starbright for no reason, however. Her power has made her one of the few Heroes that Chad doesn't really find interesting since it is stereotypically evil.
Name of Person Jamie Stewart
Relationship Status Acquaintance (Fan)
Quick Quote "Can you believe that I know an S-tier Hero!? I mean, other than Starbright of course. She seems cool, and her friends say some pretty nice things about her. We've only really talked once though, so I can't say too much."
Relationship Description Chad would describe himself as a fan of Quake, but his opinions on Jamie the person are harder to figure out. Due to her extreme power, Chad idolizes Quake in a similar manner as Starbright (albeit to a much lesser extent), but just like with Starbright, he is unable to recognize her more negative qualities.
Name of Person J-Something Joseph Moore
Relationship Status Acquaintance
Quick Quote "He's fun to hangout with, and he's one of the few people I know here, but I wish he'd call me by my name. Or at least a cool nickname, y'know? I also wish he drank a little less, cause the smell of alcohol reminds me of the time my cousins dared me to drink some hand sanitizer and I vomited... What were we talking about?"
Relationship Description Considering popular Heroes like Starbright, Seraph, and Quake are held in high regard by Chad, lesser-known ones like Joseph struggle to get Chad's attention. Considering they only interacted once, Chad isn't really sure how to feel about Joseph, but like everyone else in HERO, is trying to keep a positive outlook on their relationship.
Name of Person Peni C. Illin
Relationship Status Friend (They're not friends)
Quick Quote "She acts mean sometimes, but she really means well, y'know? She said that she has a doctorate in Superhuman Genomics - I wish I could have asked for her help when I nearly flunked Biology..."
Relationship Description Chad views their relationship as a friendship, and feels indebted to her simply because she is staff for HERO and she acted as his Inspector. After the EAGLES incident, he has begun to view her as a source of information, and he uses her to learn more about HERO and its actions. From Peni's point of view, he is an especially annoying greenhorn that keeps popping into her office to ask stupid questions.
Chad "Bullet" "THE BULLET" Connors HERO Entrance Exam Results Chief Proctor: Peni C. Illin
Test #1 (Physical) Score 81 Subject displays consistent, incredible results in the physical examination. Even after being exposed to power suppressants and being monitored constantly during examination, Subject is comparable to some of the top applicants in all of HERO's history when it comes to the 1500-meter run and the 5k run. All other tests in the physical examination were consistently high scoring, except for the swim. Halfway through the swimming portion, Subject exclaimed "Oh god help me, I'm drowning!". One of the Proctors, Dr. Phine, provided aid to the subject, ending the examination. (Results: Subject is very physically fit. Avoid deployment in areas near water, especially if there is a possibility of Power Negation.) (Proctor Notes: THIS LOSER CAN'T SWIM! HAHAHA!!!)
Test #2 (Intelligence) Score 40 Subject displayed consistently low performances in the Mathematics portion of the exam, and seems to be incapable of even simple division without being provided a calculator. Similar results can be seen in areas of geography and most sciences. The subject did perform very well on the English section of the exam, as well as possessing a firm grasp on history and mythology. The Subject finished reading their exam in record time, even with power suppressants still leftover in their system. (Results: Subject has very poor scores in most areas of academia, outside of English and History. All questions related to Language Arts were answered correctly, even those that were written for applicants with post-secondary educations. Chief Proctor, Dr. Illin, suggests this was based on guessing and flaws in the scoring structure - several of the Psychological Proctors believe it may be a form of Savant Syndrome.) (Proctor Notes: I still think he only scored this high cause he guessed and got lucky.)
Test #3 (Potential Power) Score 44 Subject appeared to struggle at destroying the larger structures present in the Examination. Subject successfully destroyed a wooden door by running through it, and also caused significant damage to a cement roadblock by kicking it at high speeds. After doing so, Subject fell to the ground and assumed a fetal position for most of the examination, cradling a seemingly injured foot. Several minutes later, when warned that they only had a few minutes left, the Subject punched a slab of drywall and voluntarily ended the exam. (Results: Subject appears able to destroy structures composed of materials such as wood with relative ease. Cement and similar materials can be destroyed, but with significant pain to the Subject.) (Proctor Notes: I checked his foot later, it wasn't injured. Not even a bruise, big baby...)
Test #4 (Non-Power Combat) Score 33 Subject appeared to be extremely confident when entering the examination room - they were recorded as saying "Watch out guys, they called me CQC back in high school". Subject defeated only a single opponent before being defeated. Subject lasted a very long period of time against assailants, breaking several holds thanks to their physical strength. Displays intermediate knowledge of Boxing, but appears to not have practiced in at least several weeks. (Results: Defeats one opponent. Impressive Endurance and Strength, familiar with Boxing techniques. Overestimates own martial prowess.) (Proctor Notes: He ran around the ring for 5 minutes straight before someone tripped him. I told you assholes we need a time limit on these things.)
Test #5 (Power Combat) Score 72 Subject paired against the A-Tier Shapeshifter 'Cytomancer'. Examination put on hold when Subject requests for a poster of Cytomancer - when provided this, Subject immediately asks the hero for an autograph. Request for a second poster and autograph was denied, and examination was resumed. Examination ended within 6 seconds, when Subject ran through three glass pillars and kicked Cytomancer in the leg, breaking the limb instantly and causing Cytomancer to surrender. Despite being aware that Cytomancer was capable of high-speed regeneration, Subject expresses immense amounts of regret for brutality. Points were deducted due to collateral damage. (Results: Extremely fast takedown and no damage sustained contribute to a high score, but Subject has blatant disregard for collateral damage during examination.) (Proctor Notes: Do you know how hard it was to find a poster of a Hero whos power is moving his tissues around? Seriously, I feel bad for PR.)
Test #6 (Field Aptitude Combat) Score 39 Subject caused impressive damage to the entrance of Factory, but struggled to deal with guards. Tasered three times before being captured. Subject displayed exemplary skill for Hostage Negotiation. After negotiating his release and incapacitating the villain, subject claimed that he would then contact HERO for instructions on disabling the WMD via an IDD. When informed from Proctor Phine that it is assumed he has no access to a communication device, Subject proceeded to say 'Always cut the red wire.' The fake WMD did not possess any external wiring, instead utilizing a keypad. Instead of checking the villain's body for any clues or waiting for them to wake up, Subject inputs the combination '6969'. (Results: Difficulties combating unpowered opponents. Impressive ability to interact, compromise and befriend villain in examination. Poor quick-decision making and awareness of surroundings.) (Proctor Notes: The code was 6969, but we didn't give him the points for guessing it. I mean, it was literally in the villain's pocket.}
Test #7 (Psych Eval) Score 17 Subject possesses a childish mindset of HERO and it's activities. When confronted with poor interactions with unpowered combatants during 6th examination, Subject claims that they did not want to accidentally hurt them. This was followed by Subject claiming "THE BULLET doesn't kill!". Subject provided large amounts of information on their life unprompted, including handing the Proctor a web address for a 'Blog' that the Subject wrote. When asked about their family life, Subject either remained silent, attempted to shift the subject, or shook violently. Investigation of familial life is recommended. Subject displays a disturbing amount of what Dr. Illin referred to as 'Hero Worship,' mentioning various heroes often (Over the course of all examinations, the Hero Starbright alone was mentioned exactly 13 times, usually unprovoked). When informed that death and permanent injuries are common in this line of work, Subject responded 'I know that, duh.' When asked to mention any friend outside of his boss, Subject struggled greatly and eventually chose to 'pass' on that question. (Results: Subject can distinguish right and wrong, but has a tenuous grasp on reality. Disposition towards violence and fear of killing might lead to difficulties in the future, or even a mental breakdown. Subject displays numerous coping strategies (Humor, Overworking, and Isolation) that may hint at difficulties in home life or mental and emotional state.) (Proctor Notes: He's delusional. But what dumbass that decided to dress in spandex for a living isn't a bit crazy?)
Cumulative Score 326
Edit 1 (7/26/2020) - Added Powers to Relationship sheet.
Edit 2 (8/22/2020) - Added Test Scores
Edit 3 (9/7/2020) - Added more people to Relationship Sheet.
Edit 4 (1/11/2021) - Added more people to Relationship Sheet.
Brooke has dark skin, with black, curly hair, and rich brown eyes. Her hair is short on the left side, and longer on the right. She has full lips that smile, purse, and frown easily, and when parted, show her front right tooth is a little chipped. She has a slender, agile frame, the type of person that could do a standing backflip. (She can, by the way.)
She's always seen wearing a pair of thin-rimmed, large, circle-lens glasses.
When she isn't wearing her glasses, what will immediately become obvious is her lazy eye, or rather, amblyopia. Her right eye, when, not corrected by her lenses, drifts towards the center of her face, looking towards her nose. This is called esotropia. It limits her depth perception and in her opinion, makes her look very silly. So she likes to keep her glasses on.
Blood Type B-
Occupation Professional Hero
Side Hero
Affiliation HERO
Tier A
Personality Brooke Everette is a bubbly, easily excitable, high energy goofball of a woman. She wears her heart and her emotions on her sleeve. She is extremely passionate about philosophy, history, as well as nerdy garbage. When talking about her favorite subjects, she tends to raise her voice and gesticulate wildly. In social situations she can be easily flustered, and often stumbles over her own words and misspeaks. She isn't very self-aware, but she is just self-aware enough to be embarassed by the mistakes she makes. Good friends make her calmer and a bit more collected.
Brooke is very empathetic to everyone around her, and this extends to her enemies as well. Unless proven otherwise, she assumes the best of others. Needless to say, she cares a lot, about everyone, and everything. When she does something, she throws herself into it entirely. She can be surprisingly objective driven and can cut through the crap, after figuring out what it is and figuring out how to speak properly. Her feelings can be easily hurt by people she respects. In summary; she cares. A lot.
She is a dork for superheroes; simply put, a fangirl. She is totally into it. The costumes, the performance. Old school heroism, the kind that most consider sentimental and cheesy, is her favorite kind. Optimistic and kind, she wants to help others. She has zero tolerance for bullies and evil-doers. When an injustice occurs, she is right there to stop it, no matter who it is being done too. In justice, she is not naive. Experience has taught her when to bring the hammer down. Literally, in some cases.
The heroic streak runs deeper than that, though. Brooke doesn't just worship heroes, she truly is one herself. She loves it. She lives for it. When in a high stakes situation, the bluster melts away. The corny one liners, the heroic poses, the act- it becomes real. Brooke performs poorly under pressure, until lives are on the line. Then, you could never ask for a better ally in a fight. She cares so deeply about this Silver Age guff it stops being embarassing and instead becomes inspiring to others. Brooke doesn't change in a fight, but rather, things become clear, and she can become the person she wants to be. The greater the challenge, the greater Brooke can rise to meet it. Her resolve is remarkable. Perhaps it is some as of now inexplicable part of her power, but it seems that no matter how hard Victory gets hit, she always stands back to her feet. Probably with a genuine, honest to God battle cry. In the 21st Century. Most people just don't do it like Brooke anymore.
If there is one downside to all of this, is that she becomes antsy in peace time. She's always looking for something to do. Brooke becomes bored easily. She hates being bored. Absolutely despises it. She has literally been bored to tears in the past. This alludes to a deeper problem of hers. Without a crusade to fight, a war to wage, souls to save, she becomes uncomfortable. She hasn't thought about it much. Were ever she to live to see a day where she could contribute no more, she may very well not know what to do with herself. What happens if she gets to the top of the tallest mountain? Is it wrong if she hopes to never find out?
Fortunately in this broken world she fights to protect, there is no shortage of adventures to go on. Goals to be won. Milestones to be reached! Perserverance under pressure, resilience and resolve. She truly is a knight in shining armor. As long as nobody behind her in line looks at her disapprovingly while she's in a grocery store countirng change. She might have a panic attack. Or she shows someone a youtube video she thinks is hilarious and they don't laugh once. Then she'll die. But start shooting at her and she's good to go! Got it?
Last, and most likely least, she doesn't understand romance. Or anything about it. At all. Euphemisms will fly right over her head 100% of the time. Many a poor man has attempted to hit on her only for her to cheerily engage them in platonic conversation. Only to be chided by her friends later, or be utterly confused when the man takes offense. Somehow her parents failed to educate her on the subject entirely. Having always been a bit of a doofus not even Brooke has put it together that she's asexual. Her grandma told her she was a late bloomer when it came to her looking for a boyfriend and she just kept waiting, and now she's almost thirty.
Backstory Born in the knotted streets of downtown Los Angeles, Brooke and her family made do among the "lower" rungs of society. Growing up poor wasn't easy, but she had three loving little brothers and two wonderful parents. From a young age, she learned the value of human connection. Her little brothes were also dorks, in their own different ways. In her teenager years she ended up in scraps often. The youngest two were easily picked on, the eldest brother always got himself into trouble by running his big mouth. Often she found herself having to stick up for them. Quickly, those at her school learned not to mess with the Everette family, lest they summon the wrath of Brooke Everette!
If only that were true. Usually Brooke got beat up, too. But she never stopped trying. Broken glasses meant her lazy eye was usually visible often. Eventually her brothers were inspired by her to stick up for themselves, or stop getting into trouble. Probably because they felt bad their older sister kept getting whooped on their behalf. Brooke didn't learn to fight, but she did learn to get hit. That toughness has stuck with her since then, despite her lithe frame.
Brooke may not have been a dork, but she was certainly a nerd. She would snatch up whatever comic books were available. She was fascinated by heroes who stuck up for the little guy. As a child she fantasied about having powers of her own. Posing dramatically in the mirror, coming up with her own superhero name, imagining what powers she would have. What she would do. What villains she could defeat (all of them) and what heroes she would team up with (the coolest ones). Naturally, her annoying brothers would tease her about this. Or just slobber all over her fake costumes because they were like, two at the time. This passion was contagious and exponential, as her father used his power to communicate with birds to interrupt an assault in progress. Nobody has time for mugging when they are getting pooped on and pecked at. From that day on, her biggest hero was always her dad. Her obsession only intesified, but her little brothers weren't teasing her anymore.
It was around this time that the oldest little brother got arrested for petty thievery. It was minor pick-pocketing, but the police saw fit to treat him unfairly. Apparently, he was upset that Brooke's glasses had broke in yet another fight he caused and wanted to pay her back. Thankfully, it worked out in the end, but this shook her of her previously childish view on crime, and the bullies she so often 'battled'. Maybe, she thought, there is a reason people do bad things. The thought only grew. The compassion she held towards the victims spread into a tentative pity for villains. Redemption was always better than retribution. It also made her more wary of unjust systems.
As she matured into middle school, she realised she probably wasn't going to get her own powers. Instead, she would focus on making changes in the community through policy. Perhaps she could help prevent crime from happening in the first place?
She discovered her powers when she was 17 and that went out the window. Poof! She wanted to kick some serious ass. She had matured, but she hadn't matured that much. One day, when explaining a particularly complicated comic, the light shining through the window began to dance with her flailing arms. That may have been one of the best moments of her life. Finally- her life long ambition- her childhood dream- could come true. Victory was at hand! All the costume designs and catchphrases and special moves- they could all be real! Everyone in the family was happy for her. Brooke was never one to conceal her emotions. But she was shining with joy throughout the summer vacation of her junior year of high school, and constantly practiced at her ability.
Grades were up, friends were up. Fights, too, were up. Brooke constantly overestimated herself and challenged people she really shouldn't have challenged. Indeed, in her righteous vigor, she may have escalated a few fights that perhaps could have been left at words. After almost going to juvie for a particularly foolish endeavor, she learned that violence wasn't always the answer. Words, too, carried weight. If only she could get them out without tripping over her own clumsy tongue.
When she turned 18, she realised that she had pretty much had a perfect childhood. At least in her mind. Sure, her right front tooth is always going to be a little smaller than her left front tooth, but that was small potatoes. She had a perfect family, in her view. Brooke was grateful.
The next obvious step was completing her college degree. Being as her mother would describe, a "smart cookie", she was able to transfer to a university after a two year stay in a community college. However the quaint and plucky community college (The Orange County Raiders, Go Team!) stole her heart and she ended up staying there instead. An entirely sentimental choice for an entirely sentimental young woman. Public Administration was her major. That way she could always fall back on making those changes she thought about earlier. If her hands got cut off or something. Anything could happen to a brave hero.
Now twenty two years old and the first woman to earn a bachelor's degree in her family, the choice was obvious. Brooke joined LATCH at 22, and her power and reputation has only grown in strength since then. There have been a few close calls, but Brooke has been having the time of her life. She's been looking into ways to prevent supervillains from existing in the first place, and has participated in charities aswell as political efforts. But mainly, just whooping butt. Her time as Victory on the Western Coast has been an absolute joy.
Brooke is an ideal superheroine for organizations like ICOSA, given her careful fighting nature and inspirational ability. She personally oversaw programs within LATCH to assist with the reformation of reoccuring villains, with limited success due to resistance to the idea. Out of necessity she mainly focused on reducing non-powered crime instead. Punitive measures, she believes, aren't the way to go.
Brooke is now a well respected superhero within LATCH, having served 6 years as a full time, professional hero. Her brothers have matured and gotten jobs, most of them having moved out of Los Angeles to seek opportunities elsewhere. Their parents couldn't be prouder. Eventually, Brooke herself felt an itch to seek greener pastures, if only for a little bit. She felt she had done all she could do in Los Angeles for now. So she signed up for a program that would allow her to be transferred to other super hero organizations. One of the ones she was most interested in was Castleburg. Mainly due to Coldwater prison, and VIPI, the protest group that seemed to have formed in direct defiance to atrocities happening within. So she set that as her highest priority place to explore and get to know. If there is some kind of highly abusive prison for convicted powered criminals, then that is the exact type of problem Brooke likes to solve.
She got her excuse when LATCH was contacted by ICOSA on HERO's behalf. Apparently, HERO had almost been subverted entirely by corrupt "heroes". They would need reinforcements and additional supervision. Just someone to help them get back on their feet...and make sure they didn't miss anything. It's not every day a super hero organization as a civil war. So, she packed her bags, waved goodbye-for-now to her family, and flew off to the East Coast.
Power: Hard Light
Brooke Everette has the ability to Harden light itsel, fortifying it into constructs of her desire. In order to do this, she must see the light, and there must be a light source nearby.
The simpler the construct, the faster she can summon. The easiest things are walls and rods, followed by domes and more complex shapes, and then finally, complicated "mechanical" constructs. The brighter the light source, the more power she can draw from it. There is an upper limit to it. Brooke suffers from weaker light sources more than she benefits from strong ones.
The Hard Light can be instilled with high durability, or be used for feats of strength. It can be damaged by powerful blows or many smaller strikes over time. If not disturbed, Brooke can repear the damage to her Hard Light constructs.
Brooke needs eye contact with a light source in order to create Hard Light. The simplest way to nullify her powers is to blind her. Her irises turn from brown to a glowing white when she was using her ability. Brooke uses her body to assist in the creation of her ability, as well as increase their strength. However, she can make them and control them with only her eyes. Once a construct is created, it will persist from a few seconds to ten minutes without her looking at it or "re-upping" it. Depending on how complicated. The less complicated, the longer it can last on it's own.
If Brooke creates too many things, they lose power. More complex constructs drain other constructs of their power more quickly. Most things take less than ten seconds to create. The process can be interrupted easily by enemy interference. It is easier to alter a Hard Light construct into another one than it is to create a new construct from scratch.
Hard Light Constructs
Starting at the easiest to do, towards the most complicated. Brooke also needs more light available the higher up they are.
The constructs can float on their own, and move on their own. They are semi-effective in this way. They are more effective when Brooke uses her hands and body in synchronized gestures. They are the most effective when being directly held by her.
The color and temperature of the light is dependant on what source/sources she draws it from. Complicated constructs become opaque, but simple structures are translucent. She cannot actually produce light on her own, only use what is around her.
Shield: The simplest, easiest thing for her to do. Clench a fist, and create a small heater shield. Can be created in extremely low light. At maximum power, this simple construct becomes almost invincible. A Victory staple. The very first ability she mastered as a kid. Almost always included in fan art.
Wall: Brooke points her palm upward, lowers her hand and then raises it quickly. She can create small walls as fast as she raises her hand. But the biggest one she can create takes a few seconds to materialize, and is 16 feet wide and 9 feet tall.
Push: Brooke pushes a previously created wall forward by pushing the air with her hands. If no wall is available, she can summon two cylinders, one next to each arm, and use those, instead.
Dome: Brooke raises her hands to the sky. A sixteen feet diamter, 9 foot tall protective dome appears.
Simple Shapes: Brooke manifests various simple shapes for utility purposes.
Melee Weapon: She enhances her own fighting ability by granting herself a melee weapon of almost any kind. They strike with more power than she can produce on her own, and can be larger than real weapons due to their being under Brooke's mental control.
Throwing Weapon: Much more powerful and accurate than regular throwing weapons. Guided by her mental power, these Throwing Weapons usually hit home, whatever form they take. Brooke likes using spears and knives.
Detonate: Brookes explodes her construct. The more complicated or powerful the constructs are, the longer they take to detonate, but the more powerful the explosion.
Numbing Strikes: Brooke reduces the effectiveness of her constructs, costing more energy and reducing the amount she can create. Her strikes do less damage. Now, they do temporary damage, instead numbing the effected areas. This allows her to finish off weakened enemies without risking permanent injury to their health. She could also use it to numb pain in general. Most effective with sharp weapons, allowing her to cut at the enemies throat. This causes the enemy to struggle to breathe and lose control over the rest of their bodies. They fall over and are easy to capture, then. She can also strike at fingers, hands, and legs, and simply cause them to go limp instead of falling off or bleeding everywhere. These attacks are worse in every way, but this purposeful limitation of her powers is one of her proudest innovations.
Armor: This one takes a large chunk of her Hard Light focus away from her. Brooke generates a suit of armor around herself that greatly protects herself from blows and greatly increases her physical strength. Her constructs become weaker as she focuses on this, and she can only create one at a time. Usually she summons a weapon. The design of the armor has changed over the years. Sometimes it's a badass motorcycle racer's suit. Most of the time, it's a suit of renaissance era knight armor. Moving it with her own body uses concentration. She also has to spend more energy to re-up it, considering she cannot see a vast majority of the armor when she is in it.
Bow: Brooke began experimenting with non-rigid constructs. The first thing she did was create herself a bow and arrow. It's much easier to use one of her own Bows, made of Hard Light, than it is to be a real archer with a real bow. Either way the fired arrows have good range, travel quickly, and hit hard.
Sling: A follow up to the Bow. Easier to create, Brooke spins this sucker around and then yeets something hard at her enemies. Less range and accuracy but makes up for it with being able to knock enemies around.
Crossbow: The heaviest hitting, most accurate one of all. Takes a few seconds to be created. Can be altered into less powerful, less accurate version that very quickly fires a volley spread of small bolts.
Bolas: Can be fired from the crossbow. Two heavy weights attatched by a heavy rope. Flung forward they wrap around the target, inhibiting them wherever they hit. Prime target is wrapping around the target's knees.
Bicycle/Motorcycle: Thats right. When in doubt, take a few seconds to make a high tech, durable bicycle. Take about ten seconds, and this can be changed into a motorcycle. Downgrade the effectiveness of the motorcycle and she can give herself a downgraded version of Armor, aswell. Bigger jumps, more stability, finer control, than a regular vehicle. If she gets off it, it vanishes almost immediately.
SUV: Like the Motorcycle, except it's an SUV. Takes about one minute to be created, and she can't do anything else while she's driving it.
Gun: Brooke creates a fucking gun. Takes a full minute. Can be of any kind, more effective and accurate than regular guns. Utilizes complex constructs and the detonation ability to fire her Hard Light at high speeds. She has never used this ability without utilizing Numbing Strikes as well.
Programmed Constructs: The most experimental of all. No successful prototypes yet. However Brooke is currently attempting to create Constructs that act without her direct influence. The dream is to summon more complicated constructs and then set them loose without having to directly concentrate on them. Her first major goal post is summong an Armor without her in it, and then programming it to battle her enemies for her. So far the best she has done is a ball that moves towards the back of her head, but only when she isn't looking. Currently called "Boo ball".
Martial Arts: Brooke is a trained mixed martial artist. She's not half bad.
Gymnast: Brooke is a gymnast. All there is to it, really.
Resolve: Something in Brooke's soul refuses to back down. The source of her powers is her very willpower. This determination has been abnormally bolstered and enhanced by her ability, like a tamper-proof battery. A secondary, as of yet developing mutation that increases her perserverance. Her body can be pushed beyond the limts of most others, be it pain or injury. She is resistant to mind altering effects.
Weaknesses have been mentioned here and there, but now they will be gathered in one place. These are all the weaknesses she knows about, new ones may be revealed by clever enemies.
Darkness: Brooke struggles to manifest light in dark places. Many enemies assume this to mean she cannot operate at night, but usually the moonlight or lights of the city grant her enough to work with. However dark interiors like dense buildings, caves, or cramped closets can truly deprive her of power. If she can see light, she can use it.
Blacklight- Adding onto this, concentrated Black Light nullifies her powers entirely. It makes her feel dizzy and even faint. Safe to say she won't be going to any raves.
Line of Sight- She needs line of sight to generate constructs. A thick blindfold removes her powers- full stop.
Tunnel Vision- Everything she does requires deliberate focus, intention, and willpower. If she is distracted her powers may falter. On the other side of the coin when she is concentrating hard on her abilities she has little brain power for much else. Her powers weaken significantly if she is emotionally conflicted.
** OTHER- Fun fact: Left handed. Fun fact 2: loves fun facts.
Favorite music genres: Rock, Electric, Rap, Classical. Whacky crossover genres. Favorite animal: Dog. Allergies: Shrimp. Sexualty: Aromantic asexual.
Name Jane Smith
Hero Name Pandora
Nicknames Pandora
Gender Cis-Female
Age 338
Date of Birth January 5th
Physique Pandora is fair skinned, with bright auburn hair and sparkling orange eyes. At 5'6, 137 lbs, she is toned and athletically built. Not ripped, like a body builder, but certainly buff. Her face is suspiciously beautiful, with flawless skin and divine features. Combined with eye and hair color, she basically looks like a Greek war goddess. It's kind of unfair. She looks to be about 25 years old.
Her choice of cloth varies from "lightly-clothed" to "scantily clad". She is always barefoot, no matter what. Usually her arms, abs, and legs are uncovered, whether it by sportswear or cropped tops of many varieties. Her outfits project infinite body confidence at all times. She seems like a fake woman some man in a book wrote, who is informal, doesn't wear makeup, and is effortlessly, "naturally", beautiful. Only she's real. Apparently.
Occasionally, one will spot a purplish tint to her body. When she blushes or sweat, it will have a very slight purple hue.
Blood Type P for Pandora. Her blood is thin like water, and is a disturbingly eye-catching shade of purple, like paint. Whenever it touches something it slightly regenerates it to how it once was, be it damage to structure or to organic lifeforms.
Occupation H.E.R.O, ex florist.
Side Hero
Affiliation H.E.R.O
Tier S
Personality
Pandora is flippant, dismissive, arrogant, sarcastic, pretentious, and rude, though she claims everyone else is without manners. She acts disinterested, and believes most people are not interesting. Below her, common...boring. To her the masses are little more than amusing baffoons who wallow in their own mediocrity. Often she goes out of her way to push other people's buttons and make their days worse to improve her own.
Pandora is a perfectionist. Everything must be in order, all must be in it's right place. Especially if it's her stuff. The belongings of her enemies, however, a free reign to destroy. She can be cruel, sadistic even, in inflicting punishment on those who oppose her. The more poetic the vengeance, the better. Her sense of humor is unfunny and bitter.
The redhead is disconnected from her humanity. Cynical and pessimistic to the bone. Not in the interest of making friends. Morality is relative, and no matter what "heroes" do, humankind is just going to tear itself apart eventually. She dislikes the poor, the rich, and the middle class for various reasons. Villains are obviously reprehensible in her mind but the moronic goons sent after them are hardly better, and half the villains of tomorrow are yesterdays heroes, anyway. Pandora finds few reasons to care.
There is one thing, though, that Pandora cannot be flippant about. It's a small thing, one most people could go their entire lives without noticing. She is a woman of her word. She never breaks a promise. Ever. If there is one thing that keeps this long-lived woman anchored to this indifferent world, it's that when Pandora says she'll do something, she will do it. She also really likes plants. They are simple, easy to understand, and are uncomplaining in their casual resilience.
Backstory
Pandora was born in York, England, in 1695. Her name was Mary Madison, and she was a peasant girl who worked in farms and factories. She got married to a guy named Steven Silverstone and had some kids, who had grandkids, and so on. She lived a pretty normal life, retired, and when her husband died she was pretty ready to go, too. But then, the X-200 meteor event happened, and she regenerated to her lost youth and was granted extraordinary power.
Not wanting to go back to the factory, but wanting to support her now extended family, Mary created a pre superhero organization to protect the community from villains and leftovers. SAt that time in York, all superheroes were called Blokes, all villains were called Mugs, and leftovers were called Barmies. She and the Blokes protected 18th England for about twenty years. Eventually it was dissolved as ROYAL came into influence. Everyone joined that, instead, but the Blokes still protected York for free as they always had. They gave her a superhero name, "The Changer".
At this point, Mary Silverstone was starting to outlive people. Including her own children. People generally had kids young in those days, so it didn't take long before they started to pass. This, as one might imagine, was pretty depressing as the full ramifications of being a lone immortal in a family full of mortals began to set in.
Since she didn't need to eat or sleep, or even breathe, because of her new powers, she had plenty of time on her hands and could go wherever she wanted. In her free time, when she isn't working out, she's usually patrolling or travelling, occasionally spending large amounts of time in her hometown of York with her family. The paychecks ROYAL gives her are pretty handy, and since she doesn't really need it for anything most of it goes towards her family.
Since hanging around the house with all the people she knows she's going to outlive is kind of a downer, she decides she wants to travel the world and joins the military. Plus, the extra money will help her family. She fights in some of the wars from the 1800's some people know about, and a lot of the ones people don't really know about. Most of the time, though, she's using her powers to heal, or to safely sink enemy ships. She gets hurt really badly one time, but recovers thanks to her healing powers. Inbetween wars, she patrols England and the countries England has positive relationships with and battles villains.
When one of her grandchildren is killed in a war, Mary Silverstone is hit with a first wave of existential dread and anger. In order to compensate, she dives very deeply into her military role and focuses heavily on her career. She becomes an imperialist. She gets the nickname "The Shark of Crimea" because in against the Russians she used her powers to turn the dirt to water and pull enemy soldiers underneath. For the next half century she goes full warmonger. In the end though it doesn't really make her feel better because her grandkids are just going to keep dying.
She briefly retires from military service to spend more time with her family, which makes her happy. She also returns to hero work with ROYAL defending the homeland. A new global heroing initiative gives her an excuse to travel without having to be in the army anymore. But when the first World War comes knocking, Mary feels guilty and goes to help her country fight the war. World War One really sucks, and is bad for her mental health. Especially since, in retrospect, it was the inevitable result of all that imperialism she was doing a while ago.
World War One is over, and she's glad to hear it's the war to end all wars since war kinda really sucks. More children are born and die. The Great Depression hits the entire world and her family needs money. In order to support them and get away as she so often wants to do, she tries her hand at MI6. She discovers that even though her body is heavily resistance to her Alteration, it's not immune. So she can actually change her face and body a little bit, over time. She assumes the identity Mia Becker and is sent into Germany in the 1930's.
World War Two starts and Mary is a spy in Nazi Germany. She does her best. Unfortunately, her family is killed in the Battle of Britain back home. All of them except a little baby girl named Jessica. If Mary wasn't so afraid of being home all the time and hadn't run off to be an exciting spy, maybe they'd still be alive. That sucks. Also, Mary is discovered as a spy and is shot in the back of the head, but because of her weird goo body she manages to escape anyway. She kind of disappears into her role as Mia to escape from her grief and kills a load of fascists. She loses a lot of faith in the government and everything. So far all this warring she's been doing has just lead to more war. The people in charge are clueless and the people not in charge are sheep. So she kind of hates everyone except her family and probably has PTSD. She changes her face back to normal.
Post war she still is technically a part of ROYAL and contract and consults for them part time. You know, when some loon wants to blow up the whole island of England she pitches in, or if someone is in York, she pitches in. She travels the world still, helping where she can. Again, she doesn't really have much else to do in her mind. As much as she wants to be there for Jessica, she just reminds her of all her loss and the loss that is yet to come.
In the 60's she becomes kind of a weirdo public figure as she embraces her nihilism and becomes a publicly bisexual weirdo hippy sexy girl who talks about how meaningless everything is and makes fun of everyone. Also casually lending her support to civil rights, because even if it will all eventually fall apart at least people could die in vain trying to do good things rather than bad things. Or something like that.
In the 70's she kind of puts her act together for the sake of Jessica's new family. She has a son named Todd. At this point she's still travelling the world and heroing it up in some of the worse off places in the world, but she knows that she can't really make that much of a difference. No matter how many houses she Alters into existence or how much water she cleans or how many publicity photos she takes, these places aren't going to get much better. They can't. Nothing can get better. Ever. But still, if she's going to do anything, it might aswell be nice, and finding new places of the world and learning new things is still kind of interesting.
This continues into the 80's. She's still technically an active member of ROYAL. Between travelling and visiting home, there isn't much to say about this decade besides the slow decrease of her heroing activity.
It's the 90's. Eventually Mary gives up entirely and resigns from ROYAL officially, being it's longest serving member in history. But everything ends. She spends time with her family, and still travels, and still helps, but she doesn't really fight anymore unless someone is literally trying to blow up the area she's currently in. There's plenty of heroes to fight for this stuff, let the new blood take care of it or die trying.
2000's. Jessica's son Todd marries someone named Cynthia, and they have a kid named Rose. Things are looking up for her little family, and Mary still kind of hangs around. Cynthia is kind of a superhero geek and gets Rose into that sort of thing.
2010. Jessica passes away. At this point Mary is a full on cynic and only really cares about her family. The rest of humanity doesn't really matter anymore.
2011. It's been a little bit since Mary saw a Silverstone child die, but it looks like that was about to happen with Rose. She has a particularly bad form of leukemia, and there isn't much on Earth that can stop that. Her Alter powers can't fix it. It's an intrinsic disease to her body.
2012. Todd and Cynthia die in a car crash. Mary wonders if her family is cursed.
2014. Rose passes away from her disease. She asks Mary to become a superhero again. The kind that battle bad guys, put out fires, and stop car crashes. Pinky promise. Mary wonders if she can keep that promise. She wonders if she's worthy of it.
2021. With the Silverstone bloodline coming to an end, Mary decides to finish the job in a way. She needs to get away from it all and start fresh. Maybe then she could keep her promise. Mary fakes her suicide. It's a symbolic and internal gesture to herself, and she really wanted to put a pin on the entire story of her life. In her mind, Mary Silverstone didn't really deserve to live. So she did the face changing trick again, and created a new identity; Jane Smith, using her skills she picked up in World War Two as a spy. She asks, though, that people call her Pandora.
2033. She spent a few years building a life for herself in America. Cheating a little bit using her abilities secretly to get more money. But she really wants to keep ICOSA off her back until she makes the decision to get back to it, to keep her promise. Eventually she moves to Castleburg and open's up a flower shop named Pandora's Potts. Now all that's left is to actually get back to it, but she's not really sure if she has that kind of willpower anymore. Ten years pass easily when you live as long as Pandora. Eventually, though, she will be drawn back into the HERO life one way or another. It's only a matter of time.
No, seriously, the reading time is 50 minutes according to Word Counter.net. It's not even that good of a read. Really it's just for me to get into the mindset of this character and court a general path through her life. You know, instead of leaving it blank. But since this is supposed an omniscient retelling so it would be bad if I just, you know, didn't include it.
Mary Madison was born January 5th, 1695, in York, England. Her mother, Maud, was a house wife as most were at the time, though her timid attempts at cottage industry almost made her more than that. Her father, Paul, was a farmer in her early life. She had three brothers and two sisters. Only the eldest sister, Susan, remained alive by the time Mary turned 16. They were a lower class family, living on the outskirts of York on a small farm. Eventually, her farm failed. The Industrial Revolution was right around the corner, though the big cities were already beginning to industrialized. Living so close to York, Paul and Maud decided to move the family into the big city so he could find a job. Unfortunately, neither of them were quite away that their children would have to get jobs aswell, ones more dangerous and grueling than subsistence farming or sharecropping. Mary and Susan were 14 and 16 respectively, and her 12 year old brother Mark was still alive at the time aswell. Together, Mary, Susan, Mark, and Paul, all went to work at the big textile mill. That was when Mark died, the only Madison child to die in his childhood not from disease but from hazards in the workplace. This was simply how life was. Mary was expected to be accustomed to loss, and she was. As much as one could be.
Social mobility was virtually non-existant. A born peasant w expect to die a peasant. There were few misconceptions about becoming rich with a stroke of luck at that time. Mary was used to it. It was fine. She enjoyed playing games with her siblings, and though she missed them dearly the memories they gave her during her formative youth were not easily forgotten. Mary and Susan would forge a bond that would last the rest of their lives. Mary was an upbeat young woman who counterbalanced Susan's more sardonic tendencies. They made a fine pair and would joke with each other often. Susan particularly enjoyed picking on Mary for her obsession with keeping flowers. Any old flower or weed, Mary would try to capture and keep alive. It failed more often than not, but Mary would keep trying until eventually she got it right. Mary dreamed of selling flowers to people in the big city, but a textile worker like her would never own a business.
1711. Mary met an older boy named Lao Peng when she was 16. He was 17, and on vacation in England from his homeland of China. One of the first of his people to ever visit England. He was rebellious, and was exploring one of the textile mills when they came upon each other. He was chased away when the master of the mill caught on to his lies of being a "foreign health inspector" but he promised they would meet again, and he would take her to Beijing. They never saw each other again, but that was a fond, mysterious memory Mary reflected on often. It was strange to see someone so different from somewhere so far away. Exhilarating, in a way.
1716. After a long youth of labouring, crafting, and dreaming, it was time for the 21 year old to get married. Children had to grow up fast in those days, and though she maintained some of her happiness, the spark of innocence had long been crushed within her by the toil and suffering of her life up until that point. A poor woman, lowest on the totem pole except for the imprisoned slaves brought over from other lands. Mary was far too focused on her own survival to even worry about the atrocities of her mother nation. Like most people of her class she was proud of being English and had little choice other than to believe the upper class that the pillaging of other nations really was for the best for everyone involved. She could hardly even read.
She caught the attention of a man named Steven Silverstone. The grandson of a failed noble family, thus the extravagant name but ratty red shirt. Or, so he said, anyway. He was a storyteller, and could read very well, so Mary was inclined to believe him, naive and starry-eyed as she was. Oh, how he waxed poetic about her youthful charm and natural beauty. Susan, of course, didn't buy into it for a second. Her second husband (the first had died from influenza in 1712), Clyde, was a plump butcher who worked in the meat factory. Everyone worked in the meat factory. He was gruff, stoic, and worked to support Susan and her incoming children. Not a dandie like Mr. Silverstone. But Mary believed Susan was just jealous because her husband wasn't as handsome or as interesting as hers.
Truth be told, it was a facade. Steven just wanted to impress someone, and this inner city brown haired girl with dust on her face and a twinkle in her eye was just the right person to do it. So he lied, and they got married.
He tried to do right by her. He was the one that taught her how to read, when he wasn't getting frustrated and hitting her. Mary had expected this. Her dad hit her mom, and Susan's husband hit her. It was just the thing to do. The cultural norm. No reason to get too upset about it. Steven was nice most of the time, and the love there was real, even if the naive wonderment of this silver-tongued bard had long since worn off.
1720. When Mary Silverstone was 25, she and Steven had their first child, Charlotte. A sweet little girl with a bad habbit of lying. Two years later, she had Robert, one year after that, James, who died. It was normal. It was expected. But even back then, Mary's soul knew it wasn't right. That her living situation shouldn't be this bad. But there was nothing to be done, no solution presented. Grin it and bear it. Her soul was always slowly withering, but Mary could still try to find peace and joy. Three wonderful children, two of which survived to adulthood. Mischevious children. Mary quits her job at the factory and becomes a stay at home mom. Steven continues his work in manufacturing, making enough money to support all of them and their little house. Just enough. The factory helps to support their family with loans that keep the Silverstones in their debt, but no matter. It's either that or starvation.
1726. Mary's parents pass away. Paul from an accident in a factory. Maud from disease, or a broken heart. Susan's second husband dies the year after that, and she remarries the year after that to a man named Gregory, who is bland and safe and sturdy. When they meet, he brings bread. Mary and Susan still swap stories and catch up, they both live in the same town and are now both stay at home mothers.
1736. Mary is 41, her eldest is 16. Everything is the same. She's content, if bored. Safe, if drained. Happy, but...sad. In a way that's hard to put into words. In a way that was universal then, and much too common now. The feeling of making do whilst underneath a stone ceiling so low, one has to be prone. To smash it would be to just break one's knuckles. Best to just warm herself by the fire.
1746. Mary is 51. Grandchildren. Cute little babies her daughter and son bring to visit, with their son-in-law and daughter-in-law respectively. The family grows. Innocent and curious, the joy of new life invigorates everyone. Steven and Mary are proud. How can they not be? Their lineage is passed down. The lineage of their forebearers before them. Robert's son is named Paul, after her grandfather, and Charlotte's daughter is named Maudette, after her grandmother. It's enough to bring someone to tears. None of Susan's children have children, be it by choice or by simply not living long enough to do so.
1756. 61. Time flies. Susan passes away. Her only living child moves to America. Mary has never missed anyone as badly as she did her older sister. Gregory still brings his bread, and visits her grandchildren. Gregory is a good man, though he and Steven don't seem to get along very well. Usually Gregory and Mary talk, and Steven and Mary talk, and Gregory and Steven talk about Mary, but they never talk to each other. Maybe they're just too different, Mary wonders.
1766. Whatever happened to the florist? Mary sometimes thinks she's a different person than she was before. 71 years old. She has great grand children now. Maudette with Dave and Charles, and Paul with Maggie. It's a beautiful thing. Mary Silverstone can only imagine how far they will go. If she can be content with anything, it's that she fulfilled her duties as a wife and grandmother. She raised them right. Charlotte and Robert, her little girl and her little boy, liars and schemers both, clearly taking after their father. In a good way. The kind of lies you could never stay mad at. Now, all grown up, grandparents themselves. They were more successful than Mary was and their children mroe successful than them. One advantage of everyone having children so young is seeing the family tree grow and blossom in one's lifetime. It was a blessing.
When Steven died that year, she was at peace. She would miss him, but she knew she would reunite with him soon, in the next life. The great grandmother knew she would pass peacefully in a house full of people that love her. She never knew her own grandparents, but she was able to be there for her own children, their children, and now, the little babies.
The year is 1769. It will soon be seen that one flower on the family tree will refuse to wither. Mary Silverstone will have to try to find the value of an apple that does not fall from the tree at all.
1769. The year that everything changed. The year that, more and more as time has gone on, Pandora wished she never lived long enough to see. Pandora does not wish for death, but sometimes, she wishes she had died.
Where she lived, nobody knew about the meteor. Mary Silverstone wouldn't find out about it until later. Whoever was in charge decided it was best nobody knew about the end of the world, lest looting and disruption of the peace occur.
So when the coughing started, Mary assumed that it would be the illness that killed her. She didn't plan on fighitng it. She was old, and grey, and frail, and had lived a good life. So she closed her tired eyes and waited for the end. But the coughing didn't stop. She became less frail, finding the energy to not slowly stagger out of bed but rather climb out of it as if she was 60 again. The coughing got worse. Things began to get more strength. A week past. Now, it wasn't as if she was 60 again, she looked like it, too.
The nature of her transformation was an unpleasant one, and thus will be ommitted from this biography. Let's just say the children had to be kept out of the room, and Mary needed to make room for her new anatomy somehow.
But within a matter of months, when Mary looked herself in the mirror, she did not see the gray, thinning hair of a proudly resigned matriarch, but the full, brown, shoulder length hair of a young woman in her twenties. Full of life vigor. She could walk freely, even healthier than her own children. It was a miracle. It took long time for the implications to set in.
News of superpowered heroes had become commonplace, and Mary Silverstone assumed her vigorous health was the extent of her powers. She used them to the fullest, playing with her great grandchildren in the yard. Throwing them up in the air. How was it not natural for her to enjoy her renewed youth? It certainly was a change of pace. It was enough to make the grumpy old woman a starry-eyed girl again. Mary Silverstone didn't need to eat, sleep, or drink. She was full of...emotion! A spirited persona that had long since been crushed out of her, and it was contagious to the rest of the family.
Only one problem. She would have to come out of retirement. She was of prime working age again, and there was still a family to support. Even though she tried to argue that since she doesn't need food or water or sleep that she's basically the perfect roomate, her children guilt-tripped her into finding a job. It was the right thing to do, after all. Mary dreaded returning to the factories more than she realised, but fortunately, that wasn't to be the case. For she discovered that reverting to her early twenties in perfect health was only the beginning of her abilities. When she accidentally turned a wooden spoon into a floppy, gooey stick. Dropping it in surprise, it hit the ground only to shatter, as the now freezing cold wooden floor consumed and broke the spoon instantly.
It took one year for her to get her powers under control. The ability to Alter. As more and more powered people revealed themselves, it became quite clear that she was extraordinarily powerful. Some people could bend a single element, like water or fire, or could even generate it from their bare hands. Others still could fly, or teleport. But Mary could touch anything, anything at all, and bend it to her will. She practiced day in and day out, hopeing to use it to avoid going back to the factory. She had wasted away her entire first youth in those damn things. God forbid she would waste her second youth, too.
1770. 75 years old, but with the body of a 25 year old. A healthy 25 year old, too, not one who had labored in the heat in the sun and of factories all her life. With hindsight, all the insecurities she may have had about her appearance back in the day completely vanished. She looked good. Her gaunt cheeks had filled out, so had her abdomen. She was still a bit lanky-short. Her strength had returned, though, even greater than before because there was no malnutrition.
The question is, what to do now? Having this much power was cathartic. It made her angrier at all she had lost, and grateful for what she still had. All she knew was, she wasn't going back to the factory. She would find a new job, a better job, and hopefully lift her family out of poverty.
The first thing she did was go around repairing people's damaged houses. It was very easy and safe to do. Sometimes she made mistakes and the building collapsed, but she could repair even that, too. Every time she did it, she got better at it until it was second nature. Cleaning up people's houses was nice, and though she usually refused payment, occasionally she accepted it. Her family was happy to just let her do her thing, but she really wanted to start making money for them, somehow.
She discovered her ability to heal when a factory worker had his arm chopped off by machinery. It took a bit of doing, but she managed to re-attatch it good as new. It was her first use of the Restoration ability, and the manager of the factory paid her a pittance for her duty. This made her angry for reasons she couldn't quite explain, but at the time she had to leave because she needed to go throw up due to the sight of a dismembered arm. Despite all the death and horror she had seen in her life, stuff like that would still take some getting used too. That was when she discovered she only threw up purple space goo, now, though slightly transluscent. When she exerted herself, she still sweats, and it's mostly see through, but sometimes it's a little bit purple.Very weird. So, apparently she still needs to maintain some kind of body temperature, though she has much more resistance and stamina than before. This discovery prompted her to begin working out. She wanted to do something in the long night hours, instead of just forcing herself to go to sleep anywhere (the best superpower of all by the way, sleeping on command). So working out would have to do. She would have to consume more energy to do so, so that was when she discovered she could eat grass now, or even just plain old dirt, if she Altered it and consumed it directly via her abilities.
She was naive and wide-eyed, ready to take on the whole world. The florist was back. A superhero. One of the first ever. Mary Silverstone was a generation one superheroine. So early, they didn't even have superhero names back then. People just called her "Mary Silverstone", since Mary didn't even think about concealing her identity. It was also pre-hero organization of any kind. It took fifteen years for them to have any kind of influence over the people of York and the surrounding population.
Leftovers and villains were abound, so Mary, being the most powerful hero around, and the oldest and the wisest, put together a loose coalition of powered individuals. One kid who could control water suggested naming it "Blokes Wot Protect York Town" as a joke and it kind of stuck. The Blokes were created, and Mary was the leader. Two years into her career, Mary took down and defeated her first supervillain, who ended up being named Craig Brindley. He didn't have a villain name, he just put on a mask and started mugging people. His power was a simple one, super strength and super durablity. Fortunately, he was no match for Mary's power. She just ended up burying him up to his neck in the street by turning it to cobble stone. Then she softened up his skin and muscles to get rid of his powers and the coppers took him away.
Back in those early York days, it wasn't Heroes, Villains, or Leftovers. It was Blokes, Mugs, and Barmies. Even though Bloke usually meant men, in this case it adopted a gender-neutral meaning. Like calling someone 'dude' or 'man' today.
The first ten years of her career as a member of the Blokes went well. Those were the golden days. They improved living conditions for everyone in York, protected the innocent from Mugs and Barmies. Unfortunately, there were many systemic issues that even superpowered people could solve. At the time, though, Mary was mostly blinded to those injustices and the Blokes settled for maintaining the status quo. History may judge them harshly (Pandora certainly does), but at the time a greater moral perspective was hard to grasp.
Twenty years past. 1790. At this point, the implication of her agelessness had finally, finally set in. Her children were almost the same age that she was, now. Charlotte's husband had passed away from old age. There was a lot of grieving, a lot of bitter tears, as Mary Silverstone realised she was going to watch her children die. The extra years granted to her by her powers was going to come at a terrible cost. She had great, great grandchildren now, cute little babies. Richard, Timothy, Agatha.
In the superheroing world, ROYAL, a government initiative to help maintain and manage superheroes on behalf of the King, spread it's influence from London and took over York. After twenty years of protecting York, the Blokes were disbanded. Some retired, but most, like Mary, joined up with ROYAL to continue the work they did. With it, they brought ranks and new terminology. Mugs and Blokes were no more, now it was Heroes, Villains, and Abnormalities.
There was talk of using ROYAL to take back the colonies, but it was nixxed. During the American Revolution, soldiers who had powers were just kind of stuck in with the rank and file and expected to use their powers when appropriate. No one was really sure what to do with them. Now, though, everyting was sorted, and superhuman based warfare was starting to really kick off. However, since the Yanks also had their own powered individiuals, and had already entrenched themselves as a new nation, it still wouldn't be worth the effort to take back the Colonies. They could take back the Colonies, of course, but the Yanks fought dirty and it would be too expensive in lives and money to do so. So, they'd let it go.
1800. The dawn of a new century. Charlotte is the first Silverstone child to die, but she wouldn't be the last. Looking back now, Pandora knows she should have seen it coming. She should have seen it all coming, but at the time, Mary didn't want to think about it at all.
Mary had thirty years of superheroing experience under her belt, and quickly garnered respect in the ranks of ROYAL. Most people with that many years were on the way out of frontline combat, but Mary was 100 years old and looked like she wasn't a day above 21. At this point, Mary stopped keeping track of how old she was. It didn't matter anymore, anyway. They say age is just a number, but for Mary it really was true.
Mary was given her first hero code name by ROYAL: The Changer. Entirely original, for sure, but back then one didn't have to be that creative to come up with an original superhero name. Mary preferred still being called Mary, since that was what she was used too. So the higher ups called her The Changer but her friends just called her Mary. This habit of not really liking superhero names would be one that stuck.
Mary's home life was becoming uncomfortable. She spent more and more time away from the house and her children after the loss of Charlotte, and eventually, Robert. It was too sad to think about. Her grandchildren moved out eventually, so whenever Mary was home, she only had memories to keep her company.
So, she left. She signed up with ROYAL's global heroing initiative and became a hero ambassador.
Mostly she travelled up and down the entirety of England. It struck her that up until that point she had never even left York. She travelled from the countryside and into York, and never left. She'd never been 10 miles away from her birthplace. So this was an exciting opportunity. The world was her oyster.
Mary's first brush with military experience was the Napoleonic War, specifically the first coalition of 1805. It was different from protecting the homeland from domestic threats, but that time under pressure had given her the composure to fight in battle. The Changer was especially useful in Navy combat. Manipulating the ocean currents she could travel under the surface quite quickly. Latching onto the bottom of the ship, she would simply carve away the hull until it was full of holes and leave it to sink.
The first time she ever killed anyone was during these naval battles. Simply put, some of the Yankee sailors drowned because of her efforts. It was an inevitability, and it shook her emotionally when she realised she had killed someone without even thinking about it. Only realising after the fact what she had done. Still, the soldiers thought she was a hero, and the sailors were immensely grateful for making their lives easier, and for saving their lives when they wounded. That much it much easier to accept absolvement. She was a soldier. Still, she preferred saving people with her powers rather than killing them.
Mary Silverstone had her first near death experience during the Battle of Trafalgar. It was the largest naval battle of the Napoleonic War, with Britain battling to maintain control of the seas against a Franco-Spanish alliance. After sinking three ships, she was put out of the battle. Under the hull of the fourth ship, a French hero ambushed her and put a hole through her belly with a narrow beam of energy. The british sailors went to recover what they thought was her dead body, following the trail of purple blood left behind in the ocean. But when they pulled her corpse onboard to find it still alive, they sent her on a medical ship back home to England.
That wound was her first brush with her own mortality since becoming ageless, and it occured to her that the peaceful apathy she felt towards death when she was an old woman had faded. Once again, she was not ready to die. She was afraid of it. She remembered feeling hole appear in her belly, looking down with wide eyes as the inky violet substance inside her flowed out into the water, and she remembed seeing the hero that had ambushed her deaming her no longer a threat as she closed her eyes and went limp before floating back up to the surface. She remembered the fear, and the pain, and the cool ocean water turing warm with her life force. It was a bad moment. One to keep in mind as she went forward into battle. Unfortunately, she didn't get a medal or a stripe for the wound since that wasn't a thing yet.
Anyone else would have died, but it was impossible for Mary to drown. Some of her blood came in contact with a sailors cut hand, and healed it. Mary didn't wake up for six months because of the large amount of blood loss, but eventually the wound sealed itself up. It was a miracle recovery. Afterwards, Mary agreed for ROYAL to draw some of her blood to use as medical supplies, but even drawing a little bit left her woozy, and a useable amount would cause her to pass out for an entire day or even more. Hypotetically it could work, and Mary agreed to some blood drawing anyway, but they could only draw an extremely limited amount before putting her into another coma. Despite her durability, Mary is vulnerable to blood loss. There also seemed to be diminishing returns, where the blood would lose it's healing property if too much was drawn over the course of a few days.
Mary was sent over to fight the Americans in the War of 1812. She helped burn the White House down. That was a strange day. The reasons behind the war are lost to her now, but Mary was mainly there to help the wounded troops, and to do her ship sinking trick.
In 1813, she participated in the Napoleonic Wars. Fortunately, England's involvement ended soon after. The Battle of Trafalgar had secured the British homeland's safety for the forseeable future. Since defense was no longer a concern, and that was the main reason Britain was fighting Napoleon in the first place, Britain decided to let the mainlanders of Europe duke that one out amongst themselves. For the next decade or so she patrolled England, battling Mugs- er, "supervillains", and spending time with her family.
1830. Maudette passes away from heart complications. Mary is crushed. She has been spending more time with her grandchildren, her great grandchildren, her great great grandchildren. There are good times had with her and her adult children. Christmas of 1828 is one she always looks back on, where she discovered her Alteration ability allows her to make excellent food. So delicious, it made Richard cry.
Richard and Agatha with their respective partners worry about the future of their children. Richard Jr. is about 10, and Lilly is 8. Neither of them want their children to work in the factories, not so young. At this point, Mary decided to do right by her great great grand children. Using the influence she has built up over the years as The Changer, she decided to become the poster girl of the abolishment of child factory labor. It was a movement that had long been in the making, but having one of England's most well known heroes lend her name and support to the cause was a boon. She was guilty she hadn't thought of it sooner. It was strange to feel so behind when it came to moral thinking. She hadn't even noticed the abolishinist movement, even though right now it was mostly for economic reasons. Mary decided to focus on doing what good she could do more feasibly, and thus focused her efforts on disbanding child labor.
In 1833, she succeeded. Children were banned from working in factories until they turned 16. The labor rights movement carried over into that of slavery. Mary hopped on the bandwagon and slavery was abolished in the British Empire in 1834. But not entirely gone. Britis human rights abuses in the Caribbean and Africa still continued, but Mary didn't very much care about that. It's difficult to care about terrible things happening on the other side of the world. It's impossible to fight for every single righteous cause at once. There are simply too many. One would go insane. Mary wasn't thinking about that, though. She simply thinking about doing good in the area around her, a mission most superheroes aim to uphold in the modern day.
Superheroing around in England was fun. Something to take her mind off things.
1840. Everyone knew of The Changer at this point. Britain's longest operating superhero of ROYAL. Some were still alive from the old days but almost all of them had retired or taken up office jobs.
1841. Paul dies. Both of her grandchildren are dead. Mary finally beings to reckon with the nature of her immortality and is stuck with a deep depression that lasts for five years. She battles evil much less often.
1842. Richard dies in war. Perhaps instead of directing the blame towards rampant British imperialism creating wars all around the world, she grows angry at the rest of the world. Her depression and exisential dread turns to misdirected rage. No longer is The Changer a reserve troop, a volunteer, an auxillery force only used situationally. No longer does she prefer to do tricks and stay on the backlines. Infact, The Changer is no more. For the rest of her life, Mary Silverstone will be better known as The Shark of Crimea.
The next fifty years are somewhat of a blur. Pandora regrets most of her life. The naivete of her past self. How she did not see what was obvious for so long, and when she did, she resorted to rage and nationalism. When she tried to reconcile for her deeds, the vilest parts of humanity revealed itself. When Mary broke and loathed humanity, and herself.
That is ahead of us still. Now, Mary Silverstone runs from her feelings and herself, seeking comfort in the throes of nationalism and war. A comforting cause to fight for. No worrying about morality or action. Where there is only two teams- the enemy, and the British Empire.
Until 1853 Mary travelled around the world on trading ships, protecting the British East India Company's poisonous trade routes. There were many wars to be fought. Mary was relegated to healing roles, but she desired more.
Mary was also given official military training. She had gone to bootcamp in the past, but her training was outdated. Now that she was going into more traditional combat scenarios, she would need to prove herself. Normally, women were not allowed on the field, but even the sexist culture of the day recognized the value of powered individuals, regardless of their gender. It would be foolish to deny them. However they were not permitted to take on leadership roles. But an exception was made for Mary. She was incredibly demanding, leveraging her clout and experience in order to get what she wanted. Mary wanted to be in charge. She wanted to lead charges. She wanted respect, and power. She wanted to serve her country, to get revenge on the world for Richard. Also, soldiering paid more than ROYAL work. Significantly more. Be it salary or rewards from stolen goods. That money would entirely go towards funding her family and increasing their social status. To give them a good and happy life of luxury. It's possible for greed to come from love.
Mary wanted fulfillment. She needed something to fight for, something real and tangible. Even if it was only as tangible as invisible borders drawn on maps. Maybe this would actually accomplish something. No more fighting crime, only for another villain to pop up later. No more worrying about whether or not she was doing the right thing, or if she should focus her do-gooding elsewhere. Now, she could recieve and execute orders as she saw fit.
Mary learned how to fight. She learned how to shoot, how to lead, how to fight with a blade and read a map and ride a horse. It came naturally, she was determined. In few years she became a true blooded officer of the British Empire. Captain Silverstone, leader of the 24th Cavalry Platoon. Her soldiers loved her. She was one of them, a hero of the British people before even joining the army. Any time they recieved a mortal wound, as long as they could hold out long enough for Silverstone to arrive, all would be well. Silverstone always lead the charge, never commanded it from behind. She was kind, but authoritative.
This was the structure Mary needed. The immediacy of an objective. To ride into a battle where those you call friends may die at any moment is a relief, opposed to watching your children age and die while you remain the same. Mary was resolved of moral responsibility by her uniform. Once again she could focus on helping those around her- her platoon. Unlike the endless crusade against evil the Blokes had undertaken, Mary would know victory when the British flag rose on the enemies capital. She would know love when she returned home to an adoring public. How could she be wrong, when so many people believed she was right? This is what she was born to do. Richard's death had been the wake up call she needed. Not to serve some fake, ethereal ideal of "goodness" or "justice". Not to parce out what was right and wrong from some made up morality or the pages of religious text. But from orders, commands, and from her country. Black and white, good and evil, winning and losing. That was all that mattered.
The Shark of Crimea was born in the Crimean war, one of many Ottoman Wars. The sparks were lit over religious conflicts and border skirmishes. It was time for the imperial powers to set things right with glorious, beautiful war.
This was when Mary discovered her most powerful technique. The full implications of being able to turn the ground she walks on into water. She could provide her platoon with cover on the spot, raising the ground infront of her lines as they reloaded. Wounded troops could be brought back into the fight on the spot. Enemy super heroes hardly stood a chance. Enemy cannonballs would freeze in midair and be tossed back at the enemy at high velocity. She and her platoon marched across the Crimean landscape, winnig victorys and capturing and killing their foes. Around her horse a high pressure wind would deflect bullets before they could hit her, or her magnetized blade would snap to the bullets coming her way instantly and slice them out of midair.
Her superheated sword would cut clean through any enemy super attempting to take her on in 1 on 1.
Perhaps there was a mistake in the orders. It looked like suicide. Her and several other cavalry platoons were ordered to charge across a valley while enemy artillery were pointed right at them. It didn't make sense. But she planned on completing her mission. In what is known as the Charge of the Light Brigade in our universe, became the birthing place of the Shark of Crimea instead, an event in which songs were sung and ballads were created. There's a statue of her still up in her hometown of York to this day.
Captain Silverstone decided to tell all her troops to hold back, and convinced her fellow captains to do the same. She was going to do the charge on the enemy position on her own. She assured them she was confident in her ability to do it by herself. She knew how to get there.
As her soldiers looked on, Mary Silverstone waded into the grass as if it was an ocean shore and vanished under the surface. She didn't need to breathe. Turning the dirt and rock into water was easy. She could manipulate the newly created water's ocean currents like she did in the naval battles to speed her up. If she traded permanance and range for speed and control, the technique was doable. Mary was travelling in a bubble of water, a one woman marsh that travelled through the valley in a 50 foot radius. It was invisible until it was too late, when she had already surpassed the minimal range of the gatling guns and cannons.
On the other side of the valley, captains watched through telescopes as cannons and gatling guns were swallowed by the watery earth. The Russian troops saw friends and allies fall beneath the ground. Their musketballs and rifleshots shattered upon the surface tension of the water. Once they were pulled underneath there was nothing to do except drown or be cut into pieces by a superheated sword. Bodies bubbled to the surface, bobbing in the waves of wet grass. Men were trapped underground as they left the radius of her marsh, embedded in dirt and stone.
Mary could make out the murky shapes of her enemies through the water above her, but the enemy could not see her. Even if they could, it wouldn't matter. Survivors of the attack and spectators from British forces remarked her shimmering, white hot blade breaking the grass-water as she occasionally went closer to ground level to slice a cannon in half or buckle the knees of an enemy horse. The curved white sabre was compared by a particularly poetic captain to a shark's fin. A terrifying warning of impending doom, that was horrifying when you saw it, but even worse when you couldn't.
It was a massacre. There was an enemy hero who could fly. When he realised what was going on, he tried to save his allies by pulling them away, but he didn't have super strength. He was a scout and a bomber. He made a mistake when he tried to rescue his commander, who Mary had pulled only halfway under as bait. Made it look like the panicking horse was somehow resisting the pull of her marsh, even though she could easily pull it under. Afterall, no one knew the true nature of her ability. So when the flying Russian hero went to save his commander, the muddy earth swelled and swallowed him, and he was gone. The rest were easy pickings, it was a massacre. The British cavalry took the strategic foothold. Mary herself wasn't sure how many men she killed the day. A muddy red blur. Given the average size of a platoon, and how many were holding that position, she estimates it to be well into the triple digits.
When she emerged, there wasn't a speck of dirt or dust on her. Clean as a whistle, as if she had just done her laundry and was getting dressed to recieve the medal that honored her services.
Queen Victoria remarked that Mary had personally killed more people that day than she had lived in her long life. Almost two hundred years later, that still holds true.
1860. Life expetancy has gone up, but the inevitable finally occurs. Another one of her great great grandchildren, Timothy, passes away from a stroke. Hopefully him not having to worry about the financial future of his family spared him stress in the end. Hopefully she had given him something to be proud of, and the safety in the knowledge that Mary was protecting his family. Lilly is a beautiful 28 year old woman and Richard Jr. is growing up to a handsome young man. Both of them are waiting to have children longer than usual, which is good.
1861. The American Civil War starts. While initially she was under the impression that it had nothing to do with England, Mary travelled to Liverpool to help build shapes for the navy. One of her many low-effort activites has a member of ROYAL, putting her abilities to good use in a low stress environment. But someone let it slip that these ships were actually headed to Georgia to support the Confederate slave state currently rebelling against the North. Mary watched as the ships she helped constructed sail away to fight for an evil cause because the cotton trade was worth more than human lives. Mary put it out of her mind, not sure what to think. She simply quietl withdrew from that assignment. When President Lincoln emancipated the slaves, the assignment stopped being available anyway. Britain supported the good side when the money wasn't in it anymore. The risk of upsetting the populace outweighing the potential gains of purchasing forced labor cotton.
1865. Agatha passes away. Was the money worth it? Mary believes so. She has too. Otherwise she would have no good excuse for spending so much time away. Lilly has her child. Lydia. Great, great, great, grandchild.
1866. Richard Jr's wife has a child. Richard the third. Cute little babies. Mary will see them lowered into the ground. It's inevitable. It's all she can think about when she looks at them.
1870. The passion that the Shark of Crimea once posessed faded over time, as even this attempt at finding purpose withered away. Down into Africa, to the East and across the Atlantic she fought war upon war. Victory after victory. More and more indigenous peoples crushed underfoot for money. Little english boys sent to die for no good reason. Proud, distinguished officers gaining fame and glory for their victories. Of which she was one. One could tell just by looking at her that the spark had gone out in her eyes. The Shark grew quiet and sullen. Inspiring via her stoicism and front line presence, but certainly not her charisma. Not anymore.
1880. Boer war. Another british colony lost. Even when Mary first got her powers, despite everything she has fought for, the empire is in decay. Not like she much cares about that anymore. In her off time her patrols around England, Europe, North Africa and China grow dull and dissatisfying. The ROYAL global heroing initiative is growing ever more popular, with collaborations between ROYAL and HERO, a North American organization. Everyone is battling super villains everywhere. Somehow, we still find time to murder each other on a grander scale while defending our cities from powered maniacs with ludicrous agendas.
1881. Richard Jr. dies in his middle age, the second Richard to die too young. Mary Silverstone retires from the army entirely, and sinks away from ROYAL as a whole. ICOSA, the ever present survellience force that has been watching her for a majority of her life, notices this and begins to keep track. She's learned almost all their tricks at this point and just lets them do it. If they're afraid this jaded general will go mad and become a supervillain, good. That's kind of funny. Let them be afraid.
1882. At this point Mary forgoes traditional clothing in her attire, beginning her long habit of wearing crop tops. A woman exposing her belly was not technically illegal but it was looked down upon. The Shark of Crimea and the Changer were long gone. It was just Mary Silverstone again, but a weird Mary who on her 5th midlife crisis. Silverstone was odd. It was odd to read, and to see. That the name of a man one century dead was still tacked onto hers. Mary realises how sexually deprived she has been and begins to sleep around. Not like she has to worry about disease. Around this time she discovers she's into girls, too, not just boys. So there's that. Mary very occasionally still heroes around, but rarely solo. Usually she tacks herself onto ROYAL endeavors. They still let her know when particularly bad bad guys are running around, but the general public's adoration and respect has lost her interest. She only fights when all of England, and thus her family, is at stake. Let the new blood sort out the little guys. Her family grows increasingly worried about her. But retirement checks from almost a century of crime fighting is a healthy supplement to their income and allows them more time to better themselves and be granted marketable skills. After all, Mary thinks bitterly, their punishment for not being given the opportunity for bettering themselves should be not being able to better themselves.
1884. This new strange phase of Mary's life lasts a long time. Normally, war heroes are supposed to die of old age or retire in dignity, not hover around and become the weird aunt of England. Mary is still on ROYAL's payroll. Though as more of a consultant and contractor, a part timer. Like before, she shows up to help with major threats, rebuilding, or if there happens to be a supervillain nearby she'll go over and give it a try. Her heart isn't in it, anymore, though. Hasn't been for a long time.
1900. The beginning of a new century. Mary doesn't show up to the family party. Instead she discovers how to use her powers to get drunk again and passes out in a forest for three days straight. When she wakes, she contemplates her life for another day in the forest, not even getting up and hardly opening her eyes. Just staring at the back of her eyelids. People aren't supposed to live this long. She's a wreck, and she knows it. If she doesn't know what to do with herself, how can she expect people to find something for her to do? The forest is pretty, but it's one of the few left in England. Most of them have been cleared out for one reason or another. "Progress" and what not. What a scam that turned out to be.
1901. Mary becomes a lighthouse keeper for a couple years. She visits her family on holidays. They're increasingly worried about her but she's emotionally distant and aloof. None of them know the Mary Silverstone that grew old. As far as they are concerned, Mary has always been there, the perpetual 20 something brunette that pops in and out of their lives and keeps the money flowing. The one who used to make jokes, and was likeable, and wise, or was proud and heroic and stoic, or both, or neither. Now she was just kind of there. There, but not really. She has trouble looking people in the eye. Still she wanders around the world, with no limit to where she can go given her biology. It would only take a normal person 100-200 days to walk from Berlin to Beijing with no sleeps or breaks, which Mary didn't need. She could also travel much faster than the average person's walking speed. Very often, she wasn't even walking, but travelling by train, carriage, horse, or boat. All depending on where she wanted to go.
1905 Lydia has a baby named Juniper. Mary meets and tangentially gets to know the husbands and wives of her various children but she has trouble keeping it all sorted. Nothing more awkward than when your great great great great grandmother in law calls you by the name of a man who's been dead 50 years.
1910. Richard III has a child he named Richard the Fourth. Cute little baby. Despite herself, Mary finds herself playing and warming up around the child. She's always had a soft spot for the children. Even when she wishes she didn't. This baby will be grown up in the blink of an eye.
1912. Mary begins to recover from her depression, feeling better. Reserved, quiet, but not perpetually miserable. She's found peace in wandering, and even stops some minor crimes again. Some people chastise her for abandoning her duties as a hero, but others still say that if anyone is deserving of a rest, it's Mary Silverstone. Besides, Mary thinks, everything's gone well without me. Mostly. There was probably a fire or disease or villain she could have stopped faster but that's true for the rest of the Blokes, and they've been dead for over a century and nobody's angry at them.
1914. She felt up to heroing again just in time, though. Just in time for the big one. The war to end all wars. The Great War. The World War. She regained herself just in time to feel bad at the sight of millions of british lads put on their helmets. For thousands of men and women with their little nicknames and their powers to perk up and seek glory in the army. But she knows it won't be glory. She's seen the signs. She saw them along time ago. There are planes, now. Guns, bombs, and machineguns that make gatling guns look slow. The imperial powers have been at peace for a long time, since after the Crimean war. But it's about to end, and it will end badly. Someone has to look out for them. Someone has to look out for these kids and these old men who don't know any better.
It was time to rejoin the army. It was time to fight in the Great War. Maybe this time, it really will be the last.
Saying goodbye to her family once more, Mary takes up position. The Royal Army and ROYAL both give her permission to retake her leadership role as Captain Silverstone, but she declines. Even then, she recognized the bad place that she was in, but she failed to realise that it didn't really matter if she was in charge or not. Especially not for this war. This "Great" War.
Quickly she was dragged into the vortex of mud and blood. There were so, so many soldiers. British and French alike. No man's land. Mass charges resulting in dying people so far out she couldn't reach them without dragging them under the surface of the ground and dragging them yards and yards back. Wounded people could die from being submerged in muddy waters. The wounds could get infected, which is something her Alteration had trouble dealing with without removing the infected part completely, and how does one remove the infected part of gut wounds? Diseases of all sorts. Chemical warfare. The other ROYAL members brought back wounded troops for her to heal, and the triage did their best. But it was overwhelming. The Great War was a terrible one. It was supposed to be over by Christmas, but she could read the writing on the wall. Either way, Mary Silverstone was a beacon of hope on the battlefield for allied forces. The idea that someone, somewhere, could make all there hurt go away, and could protect them. She ended up caring for these little soldiers boy, only trying to march home. Like she did so long ago. These soldiers were all the same. In their faces she saw the reflections of comrades long old, grey, or dead. The banter, the bravery, the...naivete. Just kids, really. She couldn't stop the war, but she would stop as many as possible from dying. Maybe this was what she was meant to do.
It was hard not to give into cynicism. For every soldier she saved, hundreds more were dead somewhere else. So hard, it was impossible, and she did. It didn't take very long at all for whatever crackling, ashy fire of spirit burning in her heart to be put out once more by the sheer vastness of human suffering on display. How nothing, nothing at all had changed. It had been this way her entire life. The recognition of old friends in the faces of these new soldiers wasn't comforting, it was depressing. It was losing them all over again, and she knew she would lose again, and again, and again. Just like her children. Dave had his great grandfather's eyes.
Mary Silverstone stayed in the auxillery of the war for it's duration. Staying just back behind the frontlines. In a particularly dire situation where the officers could not be dissuaded that charging was suicide, she swam underneath no man's land and disabled the enemy position, drowning the Germans in their trenches. The Shark of Crimea returned to the cheering of the platoon she was apart of, and her gracious smile was hollow and dead. When that officer shook her hand she wanted to grab him by the throat and seal it shut, watch him choke. She hated him. She hated, hated, hated him, for making kill those men. She hated him, and everyone he worked for. The dominoes fell, and a blasphemous traitor was born that day in Mary Silvertstone's heart. That this officer who had the loyalty of his men would send them to die, that the King would sign off on this for reasons beyond anyone's comprehension. She hated herself for practically being that person herself not so long ago. She hated the soldiers for not shooting him in the back and going home, for not shooting her in the back. She hate, hate, hated everything and everyone, and this misanthropic loathing for humankind only worsened overtime.
Still, she stayed. But she was bitter and cold and make cruel jokes at the soldiers expense when they came to her crying. Oh, bay, oh wail, ye poor dogs. But talk. Keep talking about how much you hate the Germans for doing this to you when you are all doing it to yourselves. Your real enemy is in Buckingham Palace, in Parliament. Your real enemy is each other, your infantile machismo pushing each other further and further into action. Shaming one another for not performing the Imperialistic duties. Your terrible mothers raised terrible children. Everything, everyone, is rotten and useless to the core, only causing pain and suffering. There is no difference between England and Germany besides the color of their uniforms and the language they speak, yet they tear, tear, tear each other apart. Mary Silverstone loathed everyone and herself. The only ones spared her bitterness was her family, for base human reasons of love and compassion that Mary knew was hypocritical that only made her hate herself more.
1918. The war is over, and nothing has changed, except millions of people are dead. Soldiers and civilians alike. Everyone go home. Mary returned home even more broken than before, though aggressive and angry rather than apathetic and resigned. Irritable. Only softening around her family, and even then she had to take frequent breaks before she went on some childish tirade about the futility of it all. Like she was the only one to ever have these thoughts. Stupid, stupid, stupid Mary who lived this long only come to this realisation now, and seflish, selfish, selfish Mary who is causing her sweet family to suffer for it but she can't, can't, CAN'T MOVE ON! Because it's going to happen again. Mary spent many days and nights in this loop of negative feedback. Of all the wars, and all the things she had experienced, the Great War seemed to harm her mental health the most.
So, she spent the next years trying to relax. She still had plenty of leftover fortune from her plundering and ROYAL work days. Her successful and long heroing career had granted her that much. Between spending time with her family, she once again began global heroing work. Despite everything, it was what she was good at. It was what she knew. Without it, she was lost entirely. She travelled to impoverished countries and took solace in using her powers for restoration, rebuilding, and creation only. She was tired of fighting for "good" and "noble" causes.
1920. Lilly passes away. Mary and her family grieve and mourn. It never gets easier. It shouldn't get easier. Richard IV and Juniper are cute kids still. Even Juniper, the grumpy teenager, who insists she isn't and is infact, very "cool", which is a thing kids say now, apparently. Juniper seems to both respect and dislike Mary for various reasons. Being a soldier is bad, but wearing crop tops is "cool". Mary likes Juniper a lot.
1930. The Great Slump, or Great Depression, hits England. Suddenly all that money Mary made so long ago doesn't seem to add up to much. Mary tries to find more work with ROYAL, who, after all these fucking years, is of course, still happy to oblige. They have a great deal of respect for Mary Silverstone. The Changer. The Shark of Crimea. But it's what she is good at. Her family desperately needs money. Like everyone else in England, they verge on homelessness. The real money was in espionage. Mary had proven her adaptability in the past. She had the strengths and weaknesses of any young woman hero looking to serve her country at the time. So, she was put in with the other recruits and trained to become a spy. Mary recruited her earnings from this dangerous job were funneled directly into her family's bank account.
1931. After completing her training, Mary discovers a new use for her Alteration ability. People know Mary Silverstone's face, at least enough people it would be a risk. Using Alteration on herself is dangerous, and her body has a very strong resistance to it. However, she can still do it. Thus, she began making changes to her body to aid in her espionage. She started out with something small, something not that big of a deal, like changing the shape of her belly button over the course of a week and then changing it right back to how it was. Somewhere in MI6 head quarters there are precise measurements of her navel in various moments of her changing it, which is a weird thing to think about. Either way, this proved that she could make changes to her body slowly, over time, and restore them afterwards. Thus, she got to work on making herself a new face.
First, she changed her hair color to blonde, which was easy enough. By only slightly uptilting her nose, removing the mole on her neck, plumping out her lips and shifting her eyebrows, she looked like a totally different person. Mia Becker, german native, was born. She learned how to speak German, though she had already picked up a significant deal over the years. Had even read books about it. Plenty of things to do when one didn't need to sleep. She could even alter her vocal cords to assist in her accent and delivery. She was a perfect spy. Of course, that's not exactly true, as one man was a shapeshifter who could change his entire appearance over the course of a few seconds instead of a few weeks or months. So he was better at in than she was, but still.
So, into Germany she went. In disguise as a young woman looking to apply her healing powers. British intelligence was particularly curious about the goings on on a new political power rising in Germany- the National Socialist Party. The god damn Nazis.
Turns out, Mia learned, they were evil. Really, really evil. It took a year to see past all what they were doing to find out they were an authoritarian hate group bent on taking over Germany and then all of mainland Europe. Mia had seen this kind of thing before, though she hadn't recognized it at the time. They were going to start a genocide. Like what happened to the Armenians in the Great War under the Ottoman Empire. This time, against the Jews, Slavs, disabled people, gypsies...everyone. It made her sick. She hadn't confronted something like this before. It was an insidious poison. Somehow even worse than what the empires of the past had done. The things that she regretted. Maybe, Mia thought, she could redeem herself. By stopping this new power from rising, she could balance out the harm she had done to the world with her many conquests. Then, she might have to go after Britain. Somehow. More civil rights stuff, more protesting and activism. She might be more extreme than that, but with her family and identity public, she couldn't put her loved ones in danger like that.
1935. Mia Becker is entrenched in the Nazi political party. Oh, the Heil Hitlers this, the Heil Hitlers that. It was disgusting how much these Nazis reminded her of her younger self. Of the Shark of Crimea. All nationalism and conquering. The racial element never really came into it with Mary, but it certainly did with these people. She slept with some, men and women both. Anything. She wanted, needed, to stop this. Somehow. At least help stop it. Otherwise...another World War. Mary wasn't sure she could handle another World War, so Mia was going to do her part to stop it. She fed intel the best she could in all the ways that she could. Deadrops and secret messages and ferrying people out of Germany and into France and vice versa.
1939. The war kicks off. Richard IV has a kid he names Jessica. Unknown to Mary, he runs off to join the army. Dread fills Mia's heart. It's happening again. Even worse, this time. Humanity learned nothing. She hates the Nazis. When she attends speeches how she just wants to drown everyone. But the Nazis have their own heroes and she would be defeated before being able to do any real damage. She needs to attack them from within. Her time will come.
1940. The Battle of Britain. Her hometown is being bombed. She and many other spies went tried to get word back home as fast as they could...she just hoped she was fast enough to save her family. She wasn't. Juniper, Lydia, and Richard III are all killed in the bombings. Only little Jessica survives, miraculously. In order to not comprimise Mia Becker's value as an asset, MI6 decides not to inform her of these events. Not like they get much of a chance to communicate with her, anyway.
1941. Mia Becker's most successful year of spying. She even pulled off a few high ranking officials without being discovered. It took weeks of planning both times. All she needed to do, though, was find a spot where a german official was, and nobody know that she had been there. Then, she just Altered the officer and the wall, combined the two together, and the body and person vanished without a trace. Being able to walk through any surface made her quite the assassin. Co-ordinating with French resistance also helps massively, with Mia spreading disinformation among German intelligence while giving the French the real deal. She feels very good about herself. Her efforts are making a real difference, she knows it.
That year, she is discovered by the Nazis. The enemy sneaks into her room and puts a bullet into the back of her head, splattering purple blood all over the table. It's heavily disorienting, and she knows her time is running out, but she still manages to escape anyway. She turns the wooden floor of her room into water, causing her and the assassin to plummet to the floor below. Only for that floor to be turned to water, and then the floor after that. Upon reaching the ground floor she narrowed the liquidification effect to only affect herself, so the assassin would hit hard ground while she would splash safely under the surface. Mia Becker vanishes underneath the surface of the wooden floor. With the limited amount of time she had left, she used her powers to find a place to hide that was impossible to find by anyone without omniscient powers. Then there was nothing left to do but wait for her consciousness to fade, feeling the purple blood pour down her face, into her eyes, spitting it out as it dribbled into her lips and drenched her shirt. The exit wound must have been hideous, and she felt it was large. Eventually she slumped over in her little hole. Six months later, she woke up.
Since Mia Becker was ousted, and there was no way to go back undercover, the blonde german girl who was secretly a brunette british girl over 200 years old, fled west into France.
She was put into contact with MI6, where they informed her of the death of her family. They also informed her they had placed Jessica in protective custody. Mary went into a dark place. The telegraph she recieved the news on bubbled into boiling lava. When it was done meltig, Mary was gone. She disassociated. When she looked herself in the mirror, she saw Mia, still. She liked it that way. Sorry, Mary wasn't home right now. Only Mia.
She became a member of the French resistance. There are many stories from this time. Earning trust, assassinating officials, bombing places that neede to be bombed, protecting civilians from retaliation. At the very least, Mary knew her war was just. Despite the evils of all of humanity, including the nations she fought for, the Nazis were the greatest evil of all. With her ability she could travel across all of Europe freely. Mary discovered and liberated one of the more minor concentration camps. True, despicable evil. Finally, she had a chance to stop it. Not support it, as she had in the past. Stop the evilest form of humanity from spreading, corrupting, and destroying. Whoever these people were, they were not worthy of sympathy or understanding as the grey uniformed kids she battled in World War One. None of them deserved to live. Her rage was overwhelming, and as much as she hates to admit it, she took pleasure in their suffering. Seeing the fear in their eyes made her feel good, like it was justice. She discovered a technique where she could grant people immortality on one condition- she combined their form with an inanimate object.
Tying their life forces together, so they would live as long as the boulder or ground existed. But all they could was sit there, as new beings, trapped inside rocks and the mud. Some of them, she assumes, are still alive to this day. Some of them may have been fortunate enough to be destroyed. Without her personally travelling their and restoring them, they would never be free. Even then the process of transforming someone into a rock in the first place must be immensely traumatizing, so they would never be the same. Might aswell just leave them there. This dark, sadistic part of herself once awakened, was impossible to subdue. There is no moral excuse for sadism. Yet, she found herself enjoying inflicting pain on others. Eventually she just accepted it as a new part of herself and moved on, because she was too furious to care.
Mia/Mary spent four years carving a bloody swathe across wartorn Europe, challenging Nazi villains and killing or combining them with the wartorn buildings. Making horrible things of their bodies and leaving them was warnings to their fellows. This extended to the French Police aswell, who had been easily co-opted by Nazi Germany into their tools of oppression once they had taken over. She wondered if the same would happen to Britain had they been easily defeated, and her conclusion was 'yes'. Mary also felt personally betrayed, because she didn't find out about her family's death for almost an entire year. She felt betrayed that they weren't put somewhere safer. She felt betrayed that the only reason she wasn't home, protecting them, was that she needed the money, and this was her only skillset that would allow her to be paid enough money to support them. To fight. To be in ROYAL. It was all she knew. Maybe she should have just gone back to the factory.
The World Wars had broken her faith in systems and made her despise herself and her past actions even more. She wondered if she even wanted to go back. Just let Jessica live her life in England with the family she found, the Browns. Mary would stay Mia, the defecting Nazi, and travel the world killing people who did bad things she didn't like.
1945. Mia found herself liking the ragtag group of people called the French Resistance. They came from all over the world. They died for France, a country that hated most of them and cared for little of them. They were selfless and brave. It was stupid, Mia thought. They should be selfish. They should run and hide, not stay and fight. They don't owe anyone anything. Half of these people would risk their lives for this country that had betrayed them. She hated them for their bravery. They were too good for this world, and that's why she couldn't save all of them.
The war in Europe was over. Hitler had killed himself in his bunker. It was up to the Americans to finish off the Japanese. Mia disappeared over the next few months, Mary restoring herself to her previous form. She returned to York, and would never fight a war again. She visited Jessica in her new home. While technically it was only temporary foster care since the entire extended Silverstone tree had been wiped out by the Germans, and Mary could become Jessica's guardian, she decided it best to leave her with the Browns. Mary wasn't sure she could raise a child again. Jessica could barely remember Mary, anyway. Might aswell let her be happy.
1950. The Cold War is on. The Yanks and the Ruskies are eyeing each other with their big bombs, and at any moment the world could go up in flames like Hiroshima and Nagasaki did. It was strange to think those cities which she had visited long ago were now nothing but craters. Such loss of life was inevitable though, given the twisted nature of man. Mary didn't so much have a contempt for individuals as she much did the very idea of life itself. She tried to put on a brave and happy face for Jessica and the Browns, but Jessica was a baby when the attack happened. Mary was absolutely crushed, whatever pieces of her soul she had tried to maintain was gone. There was a huge family plot of Silverstones that Mary had protected and maintained over the years, and three bloody tombstones had the same date, and the graves were empty because her beloved family had been blown to pieces. Mary fell into the worse depression of her life, which was saying something. The few times she felt better was when she was around Jessica, but even that could make her feel worse. She felt like a fake person.
1960. Over the last decade, her depression has evolved. Her existential dread changed. The civil rights movement and general public awakening to the ideas of morality, ethics, battling against the system has awakened her spirit. She's feeling something again. Even though it's usually just contempt, disdain, and mild amusement. It's one thing to not be able to care, it's another entirely to choose not to care. There was power in that choice. Mary embraced the nihilism of her life, and in turn acquired some kind of spiritual enlightment. She walked around in bikini tops and bell bottoms, with ridiculous sunglasses. Casually battling villains and humiliating them. The 60's was the last decade that Mary Silverstone participated in the public eye. She liked the idea of people looking at and ogling her body. Mary had never stopped working out, and her natural regeneration prevented blemishes. She genuinely looked perfectly beautiful at all times. It made her feel good. She enjoyed being pretty. Perhaps, in some ways, this was Mary refusing to come to grips with her internal struggles. But it was a life. It was something. It was better than nothing. She went around the world, participating in civil rights movements. She walked from Beijing to Berlin, which was apparently a "statement" about race issues, it didn't matter. It was fun, it was casual, and she could still do some good. There was nothing more annoying to Mary at this point than her tendency to do good. She just, did it. If she was going to do anything, it had to be "good" somehow. It was a bad habit, almost.
Somehow, the good-natured girl who just wanted to stay out of the factories and stop people from suffering the way she so often saw people suffer was still in there. Annoying little brat.
1970. Jessica has a son named Todd. Cute little baby. Mary comes over more regularly to visit. During the 70's, Mary settles down and decides to retire from hero work all together. The fun she had in the 60's is over. Hundreds of thousands of Americans are being sent to Vietnam to kill people for some (no?) reason. People are protesting and rioting and occasionally being squashed by the boot of the upper class and she has entirely lost faith. As far as she is concerned, the good fight is over. It's lost. Nothing will ever get better. Every old problem is replaced with a new one. Places like China murder millions for something, famine is everywhere. Many parts of the so-called "Third world" are still in shambles after being ravaged by imperialist powers for centuries. Plague sweeps through various parts of the world. It's all the same. Some places have gotten better, others have gotten worse. There seems to be a total amount of human suffering that never changes. What's the point? Supervillains and heroes smashing into each other, forever. For all time. She's sick of it. Burnt out. Nothing is getting better.
1980. Mary is trying to be a family woman again, but the loss of everyone except Jessica is still fresh. Todd is a smart know-it-all of a ten year old. He's probably going to grow up to be someone. Still no sign of powers. Mary spends travelling the world like she always does, since she has an infinite amount of free time. Battling the odd villain here and there. Just enough to keep Mary Silverstone in the public consciousness, if only barely. Just enough to make it so when she gets mentioned in textbooks that only get updated every ten years, it says "Active" instead of retired. She just can't seem to stay away.
1990. After many years of no contact at all with ROYAL as a contractor and consultant, she officially sends in her resignation form. Hire year- 1781. Resigned-1991. Time flies. A weight is lifted. Finally, she's done. Let the world sort itself out.
2000's. Todd is growing up to be a fine young man. Not much happens this decade except the slow degradation of hard earned liberties. Not like anyone ever put them to much use, anyway, or that they were ever really real. She's surprised America is even still going. Of course it had also been one of the big imperial powers on the block despite apparently having face oppression itself. She reads the news only to be amused by the predictable suffering human life inevitably entails, and to make sure Todd, Jessica, her husband, and the Browns aren't in any immediate danger.
2010. Jessica passes away of a heart attack. Her husband follows soon after. 71 years already? Where had the time gone? Todd marries a woman named Cynthia. They have a sweet little girl called Rose. Cynthia is an annoyingly optimistic young woman who loves superheroes. Mary doesn't spend much time with Cynthia, but Rose is an absolute joy to be around.
2011. Rose is diagnosed with Leukemia. Mary is powerless to stop it.
2012. Cynthia and Todd die in a car accident. Mary takes care of Rose by herself, never leaving her side.
2014. Rose passes away. Before she goes, she asks Mary to become a superhero again, like she used to be. The kind of superhero that fights bad guys, puts out fires, and stops car accidents. Pinky promise? Pinky promise.
With Rose Brown gone, so is Mary Silverstone. There isn't much light left. Nothing except the promise to a little girl.
2021. She decides to make it official. Some of her spycraft from the second world war still works. Crafting a perfect look alike of herself using her Alteration powers, Mary stages her suicide. It was easy to fake her own death. The only way to get a corpse to convincingly die by impact, so she would have to hurl it off a high enough bridge, which she did. Using her powerset, doing the bait and switch was easy enough. She did it when no one was around, because witnessing that kind of thing can be quite traumatizing. She would have preferred to do it some cleaner way but any coroner worth their salt, even with her utterly bizarre biology, would be able to tell if she just shoved some poison in it's mouth or whatever. Her 'body' washed up along shore a few days later, was discovered, and her death was made official.
To the world, the tale of Mary Silverstone is an interesting one. One of the world's first ever superheroes who lived into the modern age. Long enough to see herself become the villain, and then become the hero again. Her actions, heroic at the time, had to become villified as moral thinking evolved. A conflicted and troubled woman who lived a long life. Always acting in accordance to what a hero is according to the status quo. Her old house in York was turned into a museum. Some people left flowers outside it.
A note was left inside her bedroon. "I kindly beg your leave."
Her fake body is buried in the family Silverstone plot. Some members of the public attend her funeral. It is a historic moment after all. On her gravestone it is engraved thus:
Mary Silverstone
January 5th, 1695 - March 3rd, 2021
At Ease
Someone picked the epitaph for her, and she supposed it was pretty good as celebrity epitaphs go. Short, simple, to the point. It contrasts nicely with the bizarrely long life span. It would have been inappropriate to write something like "Taken from us too soon", after all. Her life accomplishments wouldn't be succinct at all, and half of her great deeds were warmongery in retrospect. So, at ease. We understand why you left, and we give you permission. Also a reference to her long history in the military. She thought about that epitaph alot, since it's a new experience that a rare few people get to have.
Forging a new identity, Mary changes her face, fingerprints, and hair follicles over the course of a few months whilst in hiding. Her new legal name is Jane Smith, but she asks everyone call her Pandora. She moves to America. She's sick of ROYAL. She's going to be apart of the aptly named HERO. Maybe. Pandora makes a little living for herself and opens up a florists shop in Castleburg.
2033. Pandora never joined with HERO. She was content being a florist. Happy to just...be alone. Forever. Mary Silverstone is dead, long live Jane 'Pandora' Smith. The beautiful, enigmatic, cynical florist who lives in a two storey townhouse in Passenger Island. She owns a floral shop called 'Pandora's Potts'. Get it? Like Pandora's Box? As much as she hates to admit it, she's scared. Scared to be a hero again. Scared to start making connections. Scared to come to terms with her promise and what it means for her future. Maybe it would be best just to...fade away into obscurity. Wait from some electrical accident to take her out, or for this agelessness to suddenly stop working. Just take care of flowers for all time.
Power: Alteration
Pandora possesses the abiliy to alter the matter her body comes in contact with. She can use this power on herself, although it is extremely limited, as in it takes months or years for the changes to materialize.
Her ability works on solids, liquids, and gasses, organic and inorganic things. The greater or more precise the change, the more energy required. The effects of her Alteration can transfer from one object too another within limited range, about 50 feet maximum. The farther away the changes are from her physical body, the longer and less effective the changes are. She works best with solids and liquids with gasses nebulous nature making it more difficult to Alter.
Alteration works with almost infinite precision. If Pandora sets her mind to it, there is very little she cannot accomplish inregards to matter manipulation. It comes naturally to her, as if the world itself has become an extension of her will. Changes she makes to things with direct contact of herself happen instantly, and with total precision.
These powers can effect anything her body touches, but they are channeled out of her hands and feet. If she wasn't able to touch anything with those appendages, she wouldn't be able to Alter. This is why she always barefoot and without gloves.
The more types of Alteration she wishes to do, the less effecient is the use of her energy. If she wanted to turn stone into water with one hand, and freeze the dirt around her left foot, that would be difficult.
Sub-Ability: Restoration
Being intune with everything she touches, Pandora can "feel" how things should be. When touching something directly with her hands, she can manipulate the matter of the item into how it once was, and know when it is correct, like the last piece of a jigsaw puzzle clicking into place. This allows her to heal wounds without making mistakes, and know when a damaged building has been repaired to the fullest.
Alien Biology:
Pandora's body was changed a great deal by the X-200 event. She no longer needs eat, sleep, drink, or breathe, and she doesn't age. She now draws energy directly from the sun, and can transfer nutrients directly into herself via her Alteration power should she need too. Because of this she could alter inedible objects into having caloric value and then consume it should there be no other source of energy available.
Pandora also bleeds purple because of her strange new anatomy, her internal structure unrecognizable to that of humans. Her blood carries a natural property to restore whatever it comes into contact with, excluding herself. Pandora generates this blood slowly overtime, sped up by consuming nutrients or absorbing energy from the sun. Unlike most humans, who can live without 14% of their blood without even feeling dizzy, Pandora feels woozy and can pass out at only 1% blood loss. 10% blood loss and she is in a coma, and 25% blood loss and she will die. This makes Pandora more durable in some ways, but more fragile in others. One could fire a bullet directly into her brain and she could survive, but a cut to the back of the leg is extremely dangerous.
Pandora passively regenerates from any damage done to her, but only when she is sleeping. Loss of her blood results in a loss of energy, which forces her body to shutdown to restore the damage. She doesn't know this, but Pandora can regenerate from any damage, even from death. However, whatever aspect of what makes Pandora Pandora would be lost from this return from death, and she would essentially be comatose forever.
This protects her from decay, and is why she is ageless as the damage done to her by age was restored a longtime ago and never came back due to the permanent nature of her Alterations.
OTHER- Sexuality: Yes
Favorite Animal: Butterfly
Favorite thing: Plants. Temporary, fleeting, beautiful. All of them are the same. They don't care very much if they live or die and they never talk back to her. They are simple things who understand their place in the universe.
Motivation: Desperation
Pandora can sleep on command and doesn't need to sleep. She doesn't sleep for she has nightmares. Spends most of her time trying to distract herself. Pandora cannot self medicate with alcohol, she is a Sad Drunk. Other drugs affect her in unpredictable ways that make her feel sick. This all said, her hobbies include excercise, being a florist, and choosing clothes that make her look good.
Name of Person Chad Connors, THE BULLET
Relationship Status Mild Annoyance
Relationship Description I know the type of person that he is. I meant plenty of them, in every war and in every country I've been. Though I doubt I've met one was sickeningly enthusiastic and ignorant before. Kids like him either grow out of this phase or die early. I predict the latter for Mr. Connors- probably by impaling himself on something sharp. I don't even think his power is super speed at all. I've never met a true speedster who couldn't stop on a time. --- Name of Person Christina Lavender Relationship Status Enemy
Relationship Description Even worse than Chad. She's a zealot and thinks she knows everything about right and wrong. She judges me? My flowers alone are better than anything she's ever done in her miserable little life. She doesn't have any respect for me, absolutely no manners. People like her lick boots until it's their turn to put it one and step on someone else's face. Makes me sick.
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Name of Person
Relationship Status
Relationship Description
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Name of Person Hugo Powers Relationship Status Work Colleague
Relationship Description Someone I can actually respect- because he respects me. He called me Pandora when I asked him too. Even though he keeps people like Christina and Chad and the rest of his band of goons onboard...at least he's a man self-determination. Ideologically consistent, aswell. He's not going to be a Great Man of history but he'll be one of those sub-tier Adequate Men who have more influence than people give them credit for. A fate as good as anyone could ask for, I suppose.
Well, he's probably dead now, anyway. Or at least not running nearly a tight a ship as I thought he was. I didn't think I'd have to put up with this much shit this quickly. I just came out of retirement for Christ sake, now I'm having to manage this band of children he calls HERO One. I wouldn't be surprised if he offed himself and Seraph just took his spot.
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Name of Person Grace something Relationship Status Disappointment
Relationship Description Don't know much about her other than she has a hard time keeping her cool. She also almost knocked over one of my flowers. I'm so sick of dealing with crying people. Wah wah wah, whine whine whine. Goodness. I thought someone at HERO might be actually able to take charge. I was looking forward to not having to give the orders for once. So that's disappointing. Not sure what else I could bloody expect, though.
Why can't she be more like me? I haven't cried in two hundred years. It's not that hard. ---------------------------------------------------------
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Name of Person Patricia Aria Whatever Relationship Status Mild Annoyance
Relationship Description Just a scared little girl with powers far too powerful for her. I'd have thought she'd be used to people demonizing her inherently evil ability but no, I guess not. She also offered me cake. Cake! Like I'd want her fucking cake at a time like this. Or ever, actually. It's probably shit cake. I've never met a child who could make a good cake. Cake is terrible, anyway. Why did she even take the cake through the bloody portal?
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Name of Person Bleehhh everyone else Relationship Status Bleh
Relationship Description Too many to count. I can't remember all of their names, the others haven't really talked to me. Bunch of misfits, outcasts, and pyschopaths far as I can tell. Just pawns in other people's games, really. I can't wait to get to know how annoying they all are, in their own special little ways.
Test #1 (Physical) Score 100 Subject is exceptionally fit and athletic. Far and away she surpasses her peers. Subject show a strong affinity toward excercise. Prevailing theory is that without the aid of her unique biology, she would earn an 80. Common power suppressants do not effect her biology. Finding other ways to reduce the effectiveness of her biology would be essentially poisoning Pandora so she couldn't function.
Test #2 (Intelligence) Score 11 Subject expressed irritation at the nature of this test. Despite initial projections, subject did poorly on the history and social studies portion of the test. Subject also did very poorly on the mathematics section of the exams, becoming frustrated quickly. Subject's estimated education level seems to be 1st grade or lower, with the exception of her handwriting and her partial knowledge of geography. On the english portion of the test, Pandora either didn't attempt the questions at all, or when she did, her syntax was outdated by several hundred years. Wanted to forfeit the test, and upon being asked to complete it filled in whatever was remaining with guesses and crude comments. A full re-education of modern school curriculum is recommended.
Test #3 (Potential Power) Score 100 Subject simply approached every object and turned it into water with ease. Armored guard was subdued instantly as the joints of his armor became rigid and subject pushed him onto his back. Subject moved with fast mobility through and above the terrain. Zero damage at all to any object she was not commanded to destroy.
Test #4 (Non-Power Combat) Score 88 Subject completed the physical evaulation by incapacitating all of her opponents. Subject expressed capability in various types of martial arts and combat theory. Subject didn't allow her opponents to overwhelm her or overpower her. Was struck a few times. Towards the end of the examination, two opponents managed to briefly restrain her which seemed to greatly anger the subject. Subject gouged out a martial artists eye in order escape. Upon the return of her powers she fixed the practioner's eyes, claiming she accidentally went 'backstreet' on him.
Points were considered being reduced due to Pandora's use of pyschological warfare during the test, intimidating her opponents. Many fighters were hesitant to approach due the implication that subject could hurt them greatly and then heal them later.
Test #5 (Power Combat) Score 95 Pandora was put against an S-tier hero, Shining Marble. Shining Marble was unable to react in time as Pandora submerged into the ground and sucked him underneath up to his head, restrained instantly.
Pandora was placed against a flying Leftover hornet like enemy. After considering her strategy she pushed herself and a considerable amount of liquified concrete into the air in a large vertical splash. Subject, horner, and liquified concrete met contact with the ground shortly thereafter with all damage repaired and enemy subdued.
Test #6 (Field Aptitude Combat) Score 92 Once again subject's ability to alter anything she comes into contact with proves very effective. After a brief period of scouting from stealth, subject swam underneath the terrain and stealthy disabled the simulated WMD from within. Upon discovery of the villain she pulled her under the ground and deposited her outside. She picked off the remaining henchmen one by one.
Test #7 (Psych Eval) Score 73 DISQUALIFIED- 0
Subject required three evaluations for a clear picture. On the first evaluation, she manipulated the test and attempted to 'optimize' her answers. Upon being challenged on this, she did the opposite and gave what she believed to be the worst answers possible. This final evaluation is believed to be the most accurate.
Subject shows flippancy toward authority. Subject enjoys intimidating, bullying, and otherwise 'messing with' those who commit percieved personal slights against her. Subject does posess a subdued moral understanding of good and evil, hampered by an undervaluing of individual human lives. Individual connections have become difficult for Pandora to maintain due to repeated experiences of loss. She most likely feels isolated from her peers.
Subject has no issue emotionally manipulating people to get what she wants. Subject is extremely reticent at truly expressing her own true personal thoughts, and reacts negatively to attempts to understand her. Pandora seems to be motivated to join HERO due to an extremely personal reason. We theorize she is using HERO as a coping method for her trauma. Subject expressed a genuine interest in coming out of retirement and becoming a HERO again. Given previous experiences, tt is difficult for our evaluators to determine whether or not she is being truthful. Pyschiatrists, experts, specialists and several historians were brought in to pontificate on the subject.
Extremely close moderation of subject is recommended while she is working with HERO. Further study is required.
Cumulative Score (486) Pandora passed the aptitude tests and is ready for active duty. S-tier safety protocol measurements are expected, aswell as additional psychological monitoring.
Edits- September 6th, 2020. Added first drafts of aptitude tests aswell as some relationship charts. Edits- September 7th- cut out some stuff on Pysch Eval for easier reading
Nicknames Anything but "cyborg," "android," et cetera.
Gender Female
Age 24
Date of Birth 12/2 (December 2nd)
Physique At perhaps a passing glance, Cora seems like a fairly normal young lady. She stands at a tall but not insanely tall height of 5'10", skirting well above the norm for a girl, and she has straw-blonde hair coarse hair that she normally keeps in a ponytail. She has fair skin (at least, her face does) and a seemingly muscular, broad-shouldered build.
However, upon closer examination, one would find that Cora is most definitely not a regular human, but rather, at least partially cybernetic. Her body from her chin down is composed of an outer shell of an alloy of titanium and vanadium, and is a shade of dark gray/black in color. Her lower face and neck are always covered in flesh-colored magnetic plates that can be removed to reveal her metallic endoskeleton. She also has similar plates for the rest of her body, but often doesn't wear them, as their purpose is almost entirely cosmetic, and Cora, in her opinion, has nothing to show off anyway. While not visible, her organs, with the exception of her brain, are all entirely either partially or entirely synthetic, and instead of blood, Cora has a vascular system filled with a special type of biofuel that keeps her powered.
Her wardrobe is mostly jackets, long pants, and boots, and while she's not picky in that regard, she very rarely wears any clothing that shows skin, in part because she has no skin to show.
Blood Type WD-40
Occupation Division X operative, H.E.R.O.
Side Heroic
Affiliation Heroes
Tier S-
Personality Division X operatives are known for being much stuffier than their regular anti-crime counterparts, but Cora doesn't quite suit those conditions. She's a respectful, kind, and empathetic person, one that views her colleagues in both Division X and the rest of H.E.R.O. with a great deal of understanding, sympathy, and compassion. Cora gives off "aunt" energy- not so overbearingly tender as one would expect out of a mother, but still a very caring person and a great friend to talk to. Cora, as a member of Division X, is well-accustomed to keeping secrets, and Cora is known to be very resolute in her loyalty to her employer and friends, and reverent of their secrets and personal life details. Cora is not judgemental in the slightest, renowned as a very liberal, open-minded, and accepting person that is amenable to all sorts of different heroes. Unlike most of the higher brass in HERO, Cora does not hold her peers in the AC Unit with any disdain at all and understands that their experience levels and their job requires that they occasionally do some damage.
Cora is friendly and is an expert at keeping her own problems out of the lives of other people. She's very selfless in that way, always offering herself as a shoulder to cry on, or as an omnipresent friend, or a secret-keeper and confidante, but never asking others the same for her. She's very humble and doesn't boast of her abilities. Cora is extremely altruistic and rather noble, always the first to jump into the fray and the last to leave, and she exudes untempered courage and boldness in her path. That being said, Cora is not stupid, nor is she arrogant; she is always understanding of the situation ahead of her and takes what she views as the best steps as to how to proceed. Overall, she's a very excellent HERO for these reasons.
Deeper down, though, Cora has reached an existential crisis in her life that has caused her self-esteem to plummet to an all-time low every single day. She believes that, because of her cybernetic augmentations, her humanity has been compromised, and that as such she sees herself as subpar to the rest of humanity. Bitterly regretful that she will never be able to experience all the typical events in a regular life, such as finding a soulmate, starting a family, and so on, Cora has become splenetically pessimistic and has abysmal confidence in herself. She hides her angst and her lamentations well, but deep down, she believes that the only reason she's still alive is to prevent anybody else from ever wandering down the same path that she has gone down. Because of this, she also tries to keep even her closest colleagues at an arm's length away. For one, she doesn't want to get too attached and feel the pain of losing somebody else close to her, and perhaps more importantly in her mind, she believes that she isn't worthy of being anybody's real friend, and that for her it's best that others aren't weighed down by her emotional state.
Backstory The Blackwell family is full of doctors. Their legacy dates back to Elizabeth Blackwell, the first woman to receive a medical degree in the United States, and the family line traveled down to Richard James Blackwell, a Harvard-educated doctor that would go on to work as an executive in the French NGO Médecins Sans Frontières. As such, the Blackwells moved around a lot, and their three children- older Bryan and younger twins Samantha and Cora- moved around a lot with them as well. The children were homeschooled by their mother as they traveled across the world, and Cora saw both sights that fascinated her and sights that pushed her to make a greater difference in the world. Cora went to 6/7 of the continents in her early years as the family moved for Richard's position. When Bryan was 15 and Sam and Cora were 12, Richard retired from his job and settled down in Hamptonsburg, a very wealthy suburb of Castleburg, for the family to live comfortably. It was around this time that both Samantha and Cora began to demonstrate their superpowers. Samantha had some pretty incredible cryokinetic abilities, while Cora demonstrated high-tier magnokinesis. Their powers blossoming rapidly, it became clear that they were destined to be very powerful individuals indeed.
The Blackwells were more than proud of their daughters and were extremely receptive to their ambitions to become superheroes, and so the twins went together to apply to HERO. They were both accepted, but the day they got their letters was also a day of tragedy, as both their parents passed away in a car crash that morning. It was devastating to the two girls in every way, but they got over their grief together and began working as heroes (Bryan, meanwhile, set off to Johns Hopkins for his MD). The two proved themselves to be excellent heroes, both A-level strength, and they were able to dispatch several villains in only their first two years of membership in the organization. The two sisters became known as "Gemini," and were inseparable in both their crime-fighting. The two became closer to Director Hugo Powers as well, as the Director noticed their work ethic, talent, and altruistic drive to help the city improve, and they were given more and more clearance to higher-level missions.
One day, a fateful 2 years ago, the 22-year-old twins were summoned, along with a few other trusted heroes, for an important mission. A large skyscraper in Castleburg had been invaded by a group called Zero, and the villainous entity was attempting to steal some sensitive information from inside. Samantha and Cora were dispatched to stop them. They fought their way into the building, using impeccable teamwork as always, and defeated several low-level goons as they made their way to the top of the Hinton Tower. There, they encountered a haggard-looking dark-haired man named Commander Zero. There was a fight, but it was entirely one-sided. When Commander Zero walked away, he had left the two girls on the brink of death. Samantha, in a final moment of altruism, was able to freeze Cora’s fatally-wounded body into a block of ice, keeping her barely alive.
When HERO was finally able to extract them, Samantha was long gone and declared dead on the spot, but Cora presented an ethical issue at-hand. On one hand, she was alive, preserved inside the ice, and she could be saved, but on the other hand, she was in such horrendous condition that, in order to save her, drastic measures would have to be taken. Measures that were unprecedented in their scope. Some officials wanted to pull the plug on the experiment, but with Powers’ approval, they decided they would proceed. Recently, a villain named Paradox had confirmed to have been the cybernetically-revived Richard Valentine, Jr. If Zero could be successful, then there would be no reason that HERO could fail, and having their own cyborg would help even the odds a bit. And so, after an intensive surgery, Cora Blackwell was saved, but when she woke up from the coma a week later, she almost died again. She had been turned into a monster, a metal person, almost unrecognizable from her old self. She had once been a beauty pageant queen, and now looked like a Terminator. It all would have been far more bearable had Samantha been with her, but her sister was dead, having given any chance of her own life to save Cora’s. It was that concept, the idea that Samantha had given up her own life for Cora’s, that kept the now-cybernetic hero from giving up entirely. She would live for Samantha, dedicate her life to the city and her legacy.
Cora adjusted to life as a cyborg, which had a couple of perks. Her power was magnokinesis, and her new body was, in fact, iron, which became a useful perk for her power. Cora began working around-the-clock on hero work as soon as she could, her newly-enhanced body allowing her to take much more work than ever as a superhero. She was eventually invited by Director Powers to join Division X at the tender age of 23, the youngest member to join to-date. Though she has since overcome her heaviest period of depression and has become a reliable member of both Division X and the HERO community in general, she still battles personal demons and nightmares that will never go away.
Power
Lodestone
Cora's superpower is magnet manipulation, one that she has possessed prior to her near-death and one that she continues to utilize after her transformation. Cora can subconsciously manipulate the motion of electronic charges, allowing her to heavily manipulate magnetic metals such as iron, nickel, and cobalt. Her powers are not very long-range (Cora cannot control any metals farther than she can see for sure), but they are rather high-power, allowing Cora to tear through nearby metals with ease. Cora's new body is made of an alloy, but being partially steel, Cora can also use her powers to enhance her own abilities significantly.
Heavy Metal: Cora's signature move, she simply uses her magnetic powers and newfound strength to deliver a devastating cross punch with her right hand. Usually, this move is enough to take most villains out with ease, as the devastating force behind it is enough to put most regular humans out of commission for a good while.
Iron Shards: Cora's other signature move, she simply repels small shards of metal (she carries them on her sometimes) with a great deal of force at her target. The amount of force with this strike can easily be fatal if intended to be.
Shrapnel Deluge: Cora uses her magnetism to attract a cluster of metallic shards, bits, and pieces, before releasing them in a powerful blast of shrapnel that can easily tear through flesh.
Custom-System TVS Endoskeleton 4000
Though Cora holds constant disdain for her new condition and her new body, she has to admit that it does have some perks. The outer layer is incredibly tough, making Cora very nearly a human tank in a sense, and she doesn't have to worry about breaking bones anymore thanks to her reinforced endoskeleton. She also doesn't have to worry about "bathroom waste" anymore, as her new synthetic organs do the disposal work for her. While she does have a new (and improved) nervous system connected to her still-very-biological brain, she does have a built-in pain-suppression system that allows her to shoulder more damage, though she still has a certain threshold that will become overwhelming. Instead of blood, her body is nourished through a special biofuel that does have to be replaced weekly to keep her functioning. All of her organs, with the exception of her brain, are either partially or totally synthetic, which includes her liver. Cora has failed to realize that this does not make her immune to chemical changes in her brain, and since becoming partially cybernetic she has unknowingly grown more and more dependent on alcohol.
Physique Max stands a little above average height of 5'10 for his age. He is surprisingly toned and well-built for his frame and height due to training every day in his youth during his 'blank' period. Multiple large, clean and gash-like scars are found all over his body. Other than that he has a darker, chocolate-brown complexion which serve to make his purple eyes stand out.
Blood Type O-
Occupation Hero
Side Hero
Affiliation H.E.R.O.
Tier A-
Personality Max has a near-chronic case of resting bitch face. He can't help it, it's just how his face morphs when not expressing any emotion. Adding to this, he has very little social experience due to his upbringing and tends to be awkward when interacting with others. He has a tendency to speak his mind, even edging on brutal criticism at times. He does this to anyone, irregardless of their ranking or tier. One thing you can always expect from Maxwell is his honesty. Many people end their interactions with him leaving annoyed at best or an open dislike at worst. This trait is likely inherited from his teacher's blunt manner of speaking. However, he does try and befriend those who can put up with his loose tongue. Max actually has a sense of child-like wonder in him and gets annoyed when he isn't able to sate his curiosity. Anyone or anything that can stroke will not be left alone by him until he himself feels satisfied. He is surprisingly observant, able to pick up body language and cues quite easily. Max has a habit of forming a tertiary, surface-level psychological evaluation of anyone he meets. Even if (usually) wrong he finds it fun to do so.
He is fairly introverted, tending to keep to himself and being adverse to areas with large crowds and noises. In general he just likes comfortable silence and being left to his own devices. Despite this and his sharp tongue, he has a genuine desire to help others. He doesn't mind doing others favours, even going out of his way to do so, as long as they're willing to help themselves.
Max has a strong sense of responsibility. Due to caring for his sister for most of his life he is mature for his age. This attitude extends to his heroic responsibilities. He doesn't mind helping against any kind of crime, from petty to high-stakes crimes. Saving a cat from a tree or catching bag thieves, he'll do it all. He did sign up for it after all. Though he tries and follows orders, he usually forgoes them if a civilian is in danger. He'd choose the saving someone over his original mission. Life is the highest priority for him, even willing to take risk his own just to save someone else.
Backstory Maxwell's childhood was, well, lonesome. His parents worked abroad and sent him money for as long as could remember. Max had to practically raise himself; he had to make his own food, clean the house and study by himself. Other than living by himself, it was normal. Well as normal as a kid who spent his childhood by himself could be. The standout during his childhood, after turning 12, he met an oddly familiar man. The man claimed he was the only one he could 'pass' his ability down to. The man didn't mean it literally, he wanted to have someone else learn unique art of aerokinesis. It was like the man knew of his powers before Max did.
Max felt like he knew the man but he couldn't quite place it. Despite this, even he knew of stranger danger and began walking away. All of a sudden the wind began whistling, a unique sound that he had never heard before. He had watched countless heroes with air control powers and he had never heard their powers sounding quite like that. As easily as that, his curiosity was peaked and he deigned to be taught by him.
Max was indeed compatible with aerokinesis, much to his surprise, and he even had some talent in it. However talent wasn't quite enough. The tutelage was harsh and uncaring. He would be left battered and injured after training, his teacher again citing it as 'important' for their 'art'. Max always felt like this was bullshit but didn't say anything. The training was where he earned most of his scars. It would be a year in before he could even produce a sound remotely similar to his teacher. However his teacher would disappear during the fifth year of training, on the day Max turned 17.
Though Max didn't show it, he was distraught. His mentor was his only 'real' parental figure growing up. His own parents were still absentees. Their biggest surprise came in the form of his younger, 10 year-old sister, Juliette Matthews. Apparently she had stayed with his parents abroad. Max didn't even know he had a little sister. They stated that work had left them very busy and that he was to take care of her. His resentment of his parents began to bubble, he couldn't believe that his parents kept this from him and now they dump their expectations on him. Despite this Max still took care of his sister to the best of his abilities. Over time he would enjoy having someone else in the house and he would even grow to dote on his younger sister. In turn she would be very affectionate with her brother.
Over time the money Max's parents sent began to decline. This caused Max to begin to look for part-time jobs alongside his education. This was adequate until his sister got into an accident at 15. He begged his parents to send over more money for her hospitalization but they didn't do so. It isn't easy to piss off Max but his parents managed it. Luckily he still practiced his powers every day, even if lessened due to his part-time job. He would join H.E.R.O., hoping that he would receive a high enough rank to pay for his sister's hospitalization fees.
Powers
Aerokinesis/Wind Manipulation
Short Version: Max can control winds.
Long Version: Max can manipulate and control winds to attack. The winds he controls spin rapidly in place, causing a distinct yet almost melodious whistling when used. Due to the spin, his winds have high cutting power but can prove dangerous as he himself is not 'immune' to his own winds and can cause frequent self-injuries.
Techniques
[Aer's Celeritate] Burst: In combination with air pressure and reduced air resistance Max can propel himself at remarkable speeds, giving him fantastic speeds in short bursts.
[Ventus Carmina] Wind's Dance: Max can form and throw scythe-like wind that he can then throw at enemies from medium distances. The endless gyrations of the wind gives it a deadly sharpness. Though old fashioned, he also can form this wind around any weapon he has on hand, increasing it's cutting power and reducing risk of injury to himself.
[Caeli Murus] Wind Wall: Max can channel a partition of air infront of him. The winds are very turbulent, able to divert and ricochet projectiles. People that try to pass through the walls may suffer cuts due to the nature of his winds.
[Aer Inanis] Vacuum: Max forms a dome-like area around him by forcefully expelling the bulk of the air outside of the dome. Inside the area individuals begun to feel lightheaded due to the finite amount of air left. They begin to lose energy rapidly. Max himself is not averse to the effects, he would also be extremely worn-out due to executing the skill. He is still training himself to get used to the different pressure and the low amounts of oxygen in the dome.
Weaknesses: The risk of injury from his own winds is very high. The endless and quick spins of the wind favour no one and cuts through anything that comes in contact with it. This type of wind control tends to use up alot more stamina/energy compared to the traditional way of using wind. He also can't 'generate' wind and only manipulate existing wind, but that's not much of an issue. But in true 'vacuum-like' areas, he's somewhat of a sitting duck.
Others:
Max can actually tone down the gyrations of his winds and use it more traditionally but does not do so in any serious engagements. Mainly he uses it to not rip up the clothes he's drying or not give himself a nasty haircut, and just cuts, blowing his hair.
Still trains daily as his teacher advised him too but he's unsure of any 'new' techniques since his teachers abrupt exit. He does try and come up with new techniques but most end in failure and alot of cuts.
Believes his training is 'incomplete'.
Self-taught by books in a few different martial arts. If he's good is left to be seen, not many situations where he's unable use his powers.
He has used his powers to mince vegetable before, it was very effective.
Juliet once asked him to teach him how to use wind like him, but he refused to put his sister through the same crap he went through to even get baseline competent.
Despite his powers he was fairly content being an 'average citizen'. He felt like the heroic life was too much for someone like him.
"Why are all our moves in Latin? So weird... and kinda edgy."
Max's mentor is actually his estranged uncle, looking out for his nephew and niece in his own way.
Test #1 (Physical) Score 76 Subject is shown to be incredibly fit. His most impressive physical asset is his stamina. Subject's stamina is remarkably much higher than others in the same physical bracket. Subject seemed to barely break a sweat during the 1500-meter run and only looked slightly winded after the 5k run. Performed well above average for other events. Subject is in top physical form and even showed disappointed at his scores.
Test #2 (Intelligence) Score 60 Subject displayed average performance on most facets of the questionnaires. Subject's knowledge Bio-Engineering and related sciences was notable. Subject was shown to answer related questions at a near PhD level with some difficulty. Otherwise, as stated above, is shown to be average in all fields other than those related to Bio-Engineering.
Test #3 (Potential Power) Score 80 Subject appeared apprehensive at 'destroying H.E.R.O. property' but eventually acquiesced after being reassured. Subject's aerokineses seem much more destructive than other wind-based heroes from H.E.R.O., one proctor stated that it was like a much deadlier sawblade whose blades didn't dull. Subject easily tore through the earlier material quickly. The harder the material got, the longer it would take to cut but eventually it would. Subject eventually gave up when reaching the harder material, stating that hearing it cut that long would damage his ears.
Test #4 (Non-Power Combat) Score 45 Subject seemed to have some grasp of the fundamentals of fighting outnumbered. Subject managed to knock out one assailant with a Brazilian hook kick as soon as the test began. Subject then was able to keep all of them in his view by continuously backing away and never letting any assailant reach behind him. Subject was eventually overwhelmed and while able to break out of a few holds, eventually tapped out after a few more. Subject then stated he needed to work on his fundamentals.
Test #5 (Power Combat) Score 76 Subject paired against A tier hero 'Professor Steel'. Subject was able to cut through the metal plates that Steel formed. Steel soon folded metal to be more thicker, making Subject's powers take longer to cut through. Steel attempts to fling metal objects at Subject which were deflected with a wind wall. Test was about to be ended until Subject used one of his strongest abilities. Steel's precision and power began lowering due to lack of oxygen and soon fainted. Subject also seemed to follow suit two minutes later.
(Proctor note: Subject seemed to hold themselves back in fear of hurting his fellow hero.)
Test #6 (Field Aptitude Combat) Score 25 Subject entered the factory through the roof, using his powers as a jump boost. Subject began fighting the guards with ease, though Subject's power output was noticeable lower than observed earlier. Subject also ceased fighting when one of the guards began threatening the safety of the hostage. Subject shows immense fear for hostage safety and gave up soon after. When asked by the head proctor about his dismal performance, he stated that in a real situation he would've used his powers to maim or lacerate the kidnappers and get the civilians to safety. Due to the nature of his powers, Subject showed fear of hurting H.E.R.O. employees and potentially maiming/dismembering them. Thus Subject chose to give up.
Test #7 (Psych Eval) Score 35 Subject possesses a strong moral center and values civilian safety above all else. Even to the extent where the subject seems willing to be injured and forgo orders to save lives. When asked the trolley problem, Subject avoided the question by stating that he'd used his powers to push the trolley out of the track. When psychologist stated that there were people in the tram subject stopped for a moment and began formulating a plan to somehow cushion blow and have the trolley stop safely. Subject seems incredibly self-sacrificing. Subject needs further therapy on their sense of self-preservation and how important their own life is.
