The real girl-well, no one cares about her. Let's talk about the image, the legend.
Cynthia's a starlet-wavy auburn hair that tends to hang over her left eye and part of her face, a dazzling set of pearly whites, and the pale complexion of someone who's spent too many years hunched over a piano and not enough sprawled out in the sun. She's pretty-most people could be, if they had access to the resources that she does. She stands at around 5'6-so she's not dwarfed by everyone, but neither is she the most domineering physical presence, and has worked for the bombshell physique envied at the time. While she hasn't entirely succeeded in this regard-Cynthia remains a little too skinny for her (or her agent's) liking, there's sure to be a few enlisted men with Cynthia Summer pin-ups in their barracks. Her posture is excellent-her instructor hammered sitting up-right at the piano into her at a formative age, and it transitioned into the way she walks. She seems to glide moreso than walking-she moves casually and at total ease with herself, all unyielding smiles and perfect poise. Her voice is fluid and melodic, and very soothing to listen to-her laughs are infectious, her whimpers heartwrenching, her shouts commanding.
The real Cynthia-whose name is something far harder to spell and far more annoying to pronounce, hence a more Anglicized pseudonym, is different. Off-camera, off-stage, Cynthia's the sort who finds a chair, curls up into a ball, and sleeps at every opportunity. While she's living her dreams, it's certainly a taxing experience. With the makeup washed off, with the endless bobby pins taken from her hair, she doesn't put much effort into her appearance, and is scarcely recognizable. Without a fitted dress and two hours' worth of prep time, Cynthia's a different girl to behold, her brown Scandinavian eyes wide and tired. She has a small button nose and thin pink lips which are usually pretty chapped-she's not fond of them. Outside of the spotlight, her posture does tend to slouch a bit, and she will occasionally indulge in purely unladylike actions (yawning, stretching, scratching herself) just because she can. After a while, every actor gets tired of playing the part.
Name: Cynthia Summers is her stage name. Her real name is Finnish and of no concern to her audiences. She'll be going by Cynthia primarily. Age: Cynthia is 29. Nationality: She is originally Finnish, however she has spent a considerable amount of time in Great Britain and the US, as well as some time in the USSR.
Three random facts about your character:
-She is generally regarded as the top soprano performer in the world currently-as a result of her mutation, Cynthia's musical abilities are unparalleled. It is akin to trying to run a race against Quicksilver. -She is relatively recognizable, but as an experienced actress, she's able to lower how recognizable she is for missions. Her status as a lesser celebrity (she's somewhat more well-known in Europe than the US) may prove useful on missions. -Cynthia's not very well trained with weaponry, but is attempting to learn. She carries a German issue pistol-the Mauser HSc-she's evidently sunk a bit of money into it, as ornate calligraphy on the side of the slide reads "Show Stopper" in Finnish. One would generally not count her as a markswoman, however, and Cynthia's strengths are better suited to work outside of direct combat.
Mutant Power:
You're going to have to indulge me in a bit of rambling before I explain her power directly-my apologies. Think of any object-let's say, your heart. Whether it's the visible muscle contractions (lub-dub) or the infinitesimal electrons whirling around it, every object has some degree of movement, of a rhythm, of a pattern. The natural laws that govern it, how it functions, how it operates, they simply determine that rhythm, measure out beats and rests like any sheet music would. To Cynthia, everything in the universe is an instrument, and they're all adding to one cosmic symphony. Cynthia interprets this information musically-as a clairvoyant can see auras and visions, she hears the world around her, the people, the animals, the trees and water. This information is all represented musically, hidden in code-as the reality around her changes, the music does accordingly. To give an example, let's say that Cynthia was in a bar-a packed one. The Symphony would be loud and frenzied, a cacophony of drunk people all going in different directions emotionally. It would be hard for her to listen to any one song in particular, because there would be such a whirlwind of energy. But let's say that the bar clears out except for two people, both of whom are looking to fight. Now the music shifts to an Ennio Morricone piece, a quiet buildup that you'd hear in the movies when a Mexican standoff happens.
To a certain degree, Cynthia is capable of listening to individual songs. These fluctuate to represent the person, and what state they're in-someone who's euphoric would have a subsequently happy piece, someone who's dying would have a slow and mournful requiem. So on and so forth. To this degree, Cynthia's power is something of a jack-of-all-trades-she can't read minds, but she can gauge the emotional and physical state of someone by listening closely to their song (something easier said than done when you consider how many people are around, etc-it's hard for her to pinpoint an indivudal's leitmotif unless she can really stop and focus, and in the chaos of a battlefield or a crowded party, it would be very difficult).
Where this gets interesting is Cynthia's ability to alter the song-like a conductor amidst an orchestra the size of the universe, Cynthia is capable of nudging the Symphony in one direction or another. By singing (or playing an instrument), Cynthia can alter individual songs or the Symphony as a whole. This requires a considerable amount of energy-she can't simply start humming and bring a dead man back to life. Think of martial arts where the focus is not throwing haymakers, but rather redirecting where someone's punch goes-Cynthia can bend the music, but she could never sing something into existence or fundamentally alter the world around her. If someone was bleeding out, she could sing something slow and sweet, making their heart drowsy and their blood clot a little more. If an enraged mother bear stumbled across our team, she could lull it to a calmer state. Likewise, an energetic doo-wop from Cynthia might boost morale, revitalizing everyone from the brink of defeat. As you can see, given her lack of proficiency in combat and power, she's best suited for a support role-she won't be securing the Western Front on her own, but her power lets her augment those around her, scouting the battlefield for her allies and supporting them wherever they need it most (or hindering their enemies where they expect it least).
On a more mundane level, Cynthia's ability translates to a mastery of musical theory and music general-she was picked up by record companies at a very young age, and has been in the spotlight ever since. Her gifts are quite literally superhuman, and after learning to sing along to the cosmos, going off sheet music was pretty simple. She has an intuitive understanding of music and, subsequently, may be able to help our characters infiltrate a high-profile event. What's that? Cynthia Summers wants to give the Nazi High Command a private concert at the Reichstag? You can see the utility of plain ol' star power when it comes to operating a group like ours. Additionally, her voice is naturally very beautiful-while it taxes her somewhat, she is capable of tapping into her powers while she talks, of speech-singing in-time with the universe. This can make her a very persuasive speaker, and tends to command the attention of those she's talking to. Coupled with her electrifying musical abilities, Cynthia's an excellent performer and a natural onstage.
Biography:
When Cynthia was matching pitch before she could walk, her parents knew they'd struck a goldmine.
As far back as Cynthia can remember, she was taking lessons of all sorts-violin, vocals, cello, piano, trumpets, flutes. There seemed to be an initial lull, as if she was testing the waters-but then she threw herself into it entirely. By about age nine or ten, there were very few instructors in Finland who could offer her any real assistance-the little girl just absorbed everything she was taught, and at the expense of her normal education, her parents, agents, and coaches started breeding her into a starlet. She learned manners and poise, took years of acting lessons, and before she'd had the chances to flesh out a normal life (as normal as life in the shadow of a war-hungry Soviet Union, as normal as life in the brutal winters and scarce opportunities of 1940s Finland could be) she was whisked away. Stockholm and Copenhagen at first, and in time Cynthia forgot the look of her bedroom, remembering just hotel rooms. She had trouble differentiating between her persona and herself, and the normal teenage coming of age, of figuring out who and what you are, was tumultuous for her. She still isn't entirely sure, and those who get to know Cynthia more closely can see the confusion behind the endless smiles and mascara.
By her late teens Cynthia was a household name in Scandinavia, and she was beginning to pick up steam in other countries. Her familiarity with operas and classical pieces lent itself to learning other languages, and she became proficient in German and French. By the time of the RP, she'd be passable in Italian and English, at the cost of having a rather poor understanding of the other core subjects. As I said, her childhood experience was anything but normal. While the musical elites of Europe were fascinated by the girl who could literally record entire symphonies by herself, it was going to take something a little more to break into the American market-and with the Weimar Republic's stellar financial state to the south and Britain's doldrum economy to the near west, her agent and manager agreed it was the only real shot to success. Airports and hotels and visas blurred together, and over the years they began to develop "Cynthia Summers", the starlet that could sing. Without ever having real ones of her own, she blew kisses at the crowd, rattled off any song request with total ease. Cynthia picked up a few niche hobbies, mostly musically related-she learned Mongolian throat singing in a few days and is currently trying her hand at painting.
As the mood of Europe darkened, however, Cynthia began to mature. With unnerving talk of supremacy coming from the Reichstag, men in black shirts escorting her to her Italian opera performances, Cynthia felt...ill at ease. The Symphony, now, had a permanent darkness to it, a quiet discord that seemed permanently off. It was an ominous feeling, one she could never fully escape from and never truly get rid of. Seeing her home country invaded by the Soviet Union was the final straw-throwing in her weight with the Finnish government (who are officially aligned with the Axis powers), Cynthia put herself at the disposal of any and every means of ending the war (which, presumably, is how this mutant squad got into contact with her). She has already participated in a small handful of resistance efforts-her concerts were used as a front for smuggling Jews from Denmark, to help supply the Finnish with weapons from Great Britain (who couldn't overtly help their war against the Soviets). She's not as familiar with the American side of things, but as one of the few individuals who can travel more or less openly through the Nazi checkpoints of occupied Europe and is welcomed equally amongst the Axis and Allies, Cynthia is certainly a valuable asset. She's embraced her role as a spy, learning from Finnish intelligence and MI6 wherever she can, and having to figure out the rest on her own. She's not a full-fledged operative, but has been receiving training and working to improve. She surreptitiously supplies the Finns with information and occasionally works with Britain-she's leery of cooperating with too many foreign governments, and her status (on paper) as a vassal of an Axis power has drawn suspicion from other nations.
The real girl-well, no one cares about her. Let's talk about the image, the legend.
Cynthia's a starlet-wavy auburn hair that tends to hang over her left eye and part of her face, a dazzling set of pearly whites, and the pale complexion of someone who's spent too many years hunched over a piano and not enough sprawled out in the sun. She's pretty-most people could be, if they had access to the resources that she does. She stands at around 5'6-so she's not dwarfed by everyone, but neither is she the most domineering physical presence, and has worked for the bombshell physique envied at the time. While she hasn't entirely succeeded in this regard-Cynthia remains a little too skinny for her (or her agent's) liking, there's sure to be a few enlisted men with Cynthia Summer pin-ups in their barracks. Her posture is excellent-her instructor hammered sitting up-right at the piano into her at a formative age, and it transitioned into the way she walks. She seems to glide moreso than walking-she moves casually and at total ease with herself, all unyielding smiles and perfect poise. Her voice is fluid and melodic, and very soothing to listen to-her laughs are infectious, her whimpers heartwrenching, her shouts commanding.
The real Cynthia-whose name is something far harder to spell and far more annoying to pronounce, hence a more Anglicized pseudonym, is different. Off-camera, off-stage, Cynthia's the sort who finds a chair, curls up into a ball, and sleeps at every opportunity. While she's living her dreams, it's certainly a taxing experience. With the makeup washed off, with the endless bobby pins taken from her hair, she doesn't put much effort into her appearance, and is scarcely recognizable. Without a fitted dress and two hours' worth of prep time, Cynthia's a different girl to behold, her brown Scandinavian eyes wide and tired. She has a small button nose and thin pink lips which are usually pretty chapped-she's not fond of them. Outside of the spotlight, her posture does tend to slouch a bit, and she will occasionally indulge in purely unladylike actions (yawning, stretching, scratching herself) just because she can. After a while, every actor gets tired of playing the part.
Name: Cynthia Summers is her stage name. Her real name is Finnish and of no concern to her audiences. She'll be going by Cynthia primarily. Age: Cynthia is 29. Nationality: She is originally Finnish, however she has spent a considerable amount of time in Great Britain and the US, as well as some time in the USSR.
Three random facts about your character:
-She is generally regarded as the top soprano performer in the world currently-as a result of her mutation, Cynthia's musical abilities are unparalleled. It is akin to trying to run a race against Quicksilver. -She is relatively recognizable, but as an experienced actress, she's able to lower how recognizable she is for missions. Her status as a lesser celebrity (she's somewhat more well-known in Europe than the US) may prove useful on missions. -Cynthia's not very well trained with weaponry, but is attempting to learn. She carries a German issue pistol-the Mauser HSc-she's evidently sunk a bit of money into it, as ornate calligraphy on the side of the slide reads "Show Stopper" in Finnish. One would generally not count her as a markswoman, however, and Cynthia's strengths are better suited to work outside of direct combat.
Mutant Power:
You're going to have to indulge me in a bit of rambling before I explain her power directly-my apologies. Think of any object-let's say, your heart. Whether it's the visible muscle contractions (lub-dub) or the infinitesimal electrons whirling around it, every object has some degree of movement, of a rhythm, of a pattern. The natural laws that govern it, how it functions, how it operates, they simply determine that rhythm, measure out beats and rests like any sheet music would. To Cynthia, everything in the universe is an instrument, and they're all adding to one cosmic symphony. Cynthia interprets this information musically-as a clairvoyant can see auras and visions, she hears the world around her, the people, the animals, the trees and water. This information is all represented musically, hidden in code-as the reality around her changes, the music does accordingly. To give an example, let's say that Cynthia was in a bar-a packed one. The Symphony would be loud and frenzied, a cacophony of drunk people all going in different directions emotionally. It would be hard for her to listen to any one song in particular, because there would be such a whirlwind of energy. But let's say that the bar clears out except for two people, both of whom are looking to fight. Now the music shifts to an Ennio Morricone piece, a quiet buildup that you'd hear in the movies when a Mexican standoff happens.
To a certain degree, Cynthia is capable of listening to individual songs. These fluctuate to represent the person, and what state they're in-someone who's euphoric would have a subsequently happy piece, someone who's dying would have a slow and mournful requiem. So on and so forth. To this degree, Cynthia's power is something of a jack-of-all-trades-she can't read minds, but she can gauge the emotional and physical state of someone by listening closely to their song (something easier said than done when you consider how many people are around, etc-it's hard for her to pinpoint an indivudal's leitmotif unless she can really stop and focus, and in the chaos of a battlefield or a crowded party, it would be very difficult).
Where this gets interesting is Cynthia's ability to alter the song-like a conductor amidst an orchestra the size of the universe, Cynthia is capable of nudging the Symphony in one direction or another. By singing (or playing an instrument), Cynthia can alter individual songs or the Symphony as a whole. This requires a considerable amount of energy-she can't simply start humming and bring a dead man back to life. Think of martial arts where the focus is not throwing haymakers, but rather redirecting where someone's punch goes-Cynthia can bend the music, but she could never sing something into existence or fundamentally alter the world around her. If someone was bleeding out, she could sing something slow and sweet, making their heart drowsy and their blood clot a little more. If an enraged mother bear stumbled across our team, she could lull it to a calmer state. Likewise, an energetic doo-wop from Cynthia might boost morale, revitalizing everyone from the brink of defeat. As you can see, given her lack of proficiency in combat and power, she's best suited for a support role-she won't be securing the Western Front on her own, but her power lets her augment those around her, scouting the battlefield for her allies and supporting them wherever they need it most (or hindering their enemies where they expect it least).
On a more mundane level, Cynthia's ability translates to a mastery of musical theory and music general-she was picked up by record companies at a very young age, and has been in the spotlight ever since. Her gifts are quite literally superhuman, and after learning to sing along to the cosmos, going off sheet music was pretty simple. She has an intuitive understanding of music and, subsequently, may be able to help our characters infiltrate a high-profile event. What's that? Cynthia Summers wants to give the Nazi High Command a private concert at the Reichstag? You can see the utility of plain ol' star power when it comes to operating a group like ours. Additionally, her voice is naturally very beautiful-while it taxes her somewhat, she is capable of tapping into her powers while she talks, of speech-singing in-time with the universe. This can make her a very persuasive speaker, and tends to command the attention of those she's talking to. Coupled with her electrifying musical abilities, Cynthia's an excellent performer and a natural onstage.
Biography:
When Cynthia was matching pitch before she could walk, her parents knew they'd struck a goldmine.
As far back as Cynthia can remember, she was taking lessons of all sorts-violin, vocals, cello, piano, trumpets, flutes. There seemed to be an initial lull, as if she was testing the waters-but then she threw herself into it entirely. By about age nine or ten, there were very few instructors in Finland who could offer her any real assistance-the little girl just absorbed everything she was taught, and at the expense of her normal education, her parents, agents, and coaches started breeding her into a starlet. She learned manners and poise, took years of acting lessons, and before she'd had the chances to flesh out a normal life (as normal as life in the shadow of a war-hungry Soviet Union, as normal as life in the brutal winters and scarce opportunities of 1940s Finland could be) she was whisked away. Stockholm and Copenhagen at first, and in time Cynthia forgot the look of her bedroom, remembering just hotel rooms. She had trouble differentiating between her persona and herself, and the normal teenage coming of age, of figuring out who and what you are, was tumultuous for her. She still isn't entirely sure, and those who get to know Cynthia more closely can see the confusion behind the endless smiles and mascara.
By her late teens Cynthia was a household name in Scandinavia, and she was beginning to pick up steam in other countries. Her familiarity with operas and classical pieces lent itself to learning other languages, and she became proficient in German and French. By the time of the RP, she'd be passable in Italian and English, at the cost of having a rather poor understanding of the other core subjects. As I said, her childhood experience was anything but normal. While the musical elites of Europe were fascinated by the girl who could literally record entire symphonies by herself, it was going to take something a little more to break into the American market-and with the Weimar Republic's stellar financial state to the south and Britain's doldrum economy to the near west, her agent and manager agreed it was the only real shot to success. Airports and hotels and visas blurred together, and over the years they began to develop "Cynthia Summers", the starlet that could sing. Without ever having real ones of her own, she blew kisses at the crowd, rattled off any song request with total ease. Cynthia picked up a few niche hobbies, mostly musically related-she learned Mongolian throat singing in a few days and is currently trying her hand at painting.
As the mood of Europe darkened, however, Cynthia began to mature. With unnerving talk of supremacy coming from the Reichstag, men in black shirts escorting her to her Italian opera performances, Cynthia felt...ill at ease. The Symphony, now, had a permanent darkness to it, a quiet discord that seemed permanently off. It was an ominous feeling, one she could never fully escape from and never truly get rid of. Seeing her home country invaded by the Soviet Union was the final straw-throwing in her weight with the Finnish government (who are officially aligned with the Axis powers), Cynthia put herself at the disposal of any and every means of ending the war (which, presumably, is how this mutant squad got into contact with her). She has already participated in a small handful of resistance efforts-her concerts were used as a front for smuggling Jews from Denmark, to help supply the Finnish with weapons from Great Britain (who couldn't overtly help their war against the Soviets). She's not as familiar with the American side of things, but as one of the few individuals who can travel more or less openly through the Nazi checkpoints of occupied Europe and is welcomed equally amongst the Axis and Allies, Cynthia is certainly a valuable asset. She's embraced her role as a spy, learning from Finnish intelligence and MI6 wherever she can, and having to figure out the rest on her own. She's not a full-fledged operative, but has been receiving training and working to improve. She surreptitiously supplies the Finns with information and occasionally works with Britain-she's leery of cooperating with too many foreign governments, and her status (on paper) as a vassal of an Axis power has drawn suspicion from other nations.
---
If this is too close to reality-warping to be kosher, that's fine with me, I'm happy to change it. Or if her character type isn't what we're going for, I can draft up something else-but what's a 1940s RP without a starlet?
Very interested, but I would need to know if a lot of Marvel knowledge would be required? I'm a big superhero RP fan but I don't know very much about the comics.
Evil Ghost Note