Post by Zephyr - Adam Westin on Jul 22, 2009 22:54:30 GMT -5
Character Information
Real Name: Adam Westin
Mutant/Hero/Villain name: Zephyr
Nick Name: Thorn (his sister's pet name for him)
Canon or custom: Custom
Age: 22
Place of Birth: Hawaii
Nationality: USA
Affiliation: SHIELD
Rank/Occupation: Agent
Gender: Male
Height: 5'11"
Weight: 155 lb
Hair: Brown
Eyes: Blue
Build: Extremely lean and athletic
Markings: Scar along both shoulder blades, cutting across back
Known Relatives: Adele Westin (twin sister)
Powers:
Aerokinesis - Zephyr is capable of directly manipulating the air around him, and is able to cause it to perform a wide variety of tasks for him. He is able to impart a vast amount of force on the air, capable of causing instant winds of gale force over a wide area, or much smaller currents of far greater velocity, as well as compressing the gases to an unknown degree, though he has been known in the past to create a burst of air powerful enough to blow holes in armor plating, or compress the air to such an extent that it can serve as a physical barrier against firearms, explosives, and other forms of attack. What he can do with the wind is limited only by his creativity - much like a telekinetic, his power is nonspecific, and the force he can generate may be used in an infinite number of ways depending on the situation, though this ability is, unlike a telekinetic, limited to small particles such as those in a gas, while a telekinetic typically can only focus on much larger objects.
His ability is also far more powerful closer to him - he cannot, for instance, create an area of high enough compression to cut steel or stop bullets more than a few yards away from his body, though by creating a region of very high compression near him and expanding it out in a certain direction, he is more than capable of generating extremely powerful gusts at range.
Zephyr is also capable of using this ability to fly at great speed, well in excess of the speed of sound, though his acceleration is limited by what his human body can take. He does this by forming a sphere of calm air around himself to protect himself from the wind, and then accelerating the sphere that holds him with his ability, keeping it an equal distance from himself as he does so, much in the same way he can lift heavy objects using the wind. The amount he can lift depends entirely on the amount of wind resistance the item can produce - an object with plenty of surface area can be extremely heavy, on the order of tons, and he could lift it easily, but one with less surface area is much more difficult, unless he contains the object within the sphere he creates around him. Of course, he must then somehow be able to keep it within this sphere, so items he can keep with him as he flies are generally limited to what he can physically carry, or can lift easily with his power.
Atmosphere Generation - Perhaps as a side-effect of his power, Zephyr's body is capable of producing its own air, enough that he can go without breathing for a long time, or even generate sufficient air for at least a limited use of his powers in an airless environment. Because his body cannot survive in vacuum, however, in that particular environment, he would need to use the air to maintain proper pressure around his body. This power is limited in volume, however, and at any given time, Zephyr is capable only of producing approximately ten cubic meters of oxygen (at standard temperature and pressure) before needing to rest. The atmosphere produced is slightly high in oxygen content but otherwise closely matches the composition of Earth's atmosphere.
Limited Pyrokinesis - By using the friction of air molecules from his primary ability, Zephyr can generate incredible amounts of heat that he can use to start fires by combusting the air itself, which he can then direct on the wind currents. In truth, the ability is usually not pyrokinesis at all, but the ability to use his aerokinesis to light and direct fires. These can, however, be quite powerful - and generally are, as they are pure burning oxygen.
Limited Electrokinesis - By using a similar method to the one with which he generates flame, Zephyr can also generate regions of extremely high voltage, which he can then arc to an area of opposite charge, in a method similar to how lightning is formed in a thunderstorm. Of his abilities, this is often the most devastating, but due to the need to build up sufficient charge, it is also the slowest - and the most difficult for him to use at any sort of range, unless his target is already electrically charged somehow.
Elemental Form - Zephyr has the ability to transform his body into a form made entirely of atmospheric gases, which grants him vastly increased speed, as well as the other advantages to being in a gaseous form - he is almost completely intangible, barely visible, and invulnerable to physical attack. He remains vulnerable, however, to solid objects, and can theoretically be trapped by solid barriers - though the fact that he retains his other powers makes this a difficult proposition. When in this form, he is able to disperse and travel on the wind at extremely high speeds, in the same way he can compress and speed up the air normally, allowing him to travel at speeds far exceeding the speed of sound, though because of his lack of a physical form, his speed is difficult to measure. He can maintain this form only for one hour, and can only transform into it when in physical contact with his twin sister - and with her actively assisting the process. He can revert to his human form at any time, though the process of returning to human form is exhausting, and both siblings require significant rest before they can attempt a transformation again. The process includes whatever clothing or items he might be carrying at the time, and all remain unchanged when he returns to his physical form. It is also important to note that changing into his gaseous form heals any injuries upon his return to human form - entering this form when injured, however, greatly reduces the amount of time he may remain in it.
If, however, he remains close to his sister when she is also in her transmuted form, and stays within her branches, she is capable of providing him with enough energy to maintain his gaseous form almost indefinitely, though it is very difficult for him to fight without damaging her, so he must leave her to be able to fight effectively.
Twin Telepathy - Zephyr and his sister, Dryad, share a constant telepathic link, which links them across any distance, though the intensity of the link usually dims somewhat when the distance is extreme. This link defies many of the rules of ordinary telepathy, and for some reason is, while not impossible to block, far more difficult to block than a normal telepathic connection, Even should the link be blocked by a powerful telepathic or some technology designed for that purpose, a weaker empathic link almost always remains. This link is not broken should one twin or the other be rendered unconscious, though the unconscious one is not able to reply as if they were conscious - the link would then be carried through dreams..
Abilities: Adam is a skilled musician and sculptor, and an accomplished artist in both regards, despite his lack of formal education in fine arts (considering he always saw a degree in something that he believes cannot be taught to be something extraneous and silly). He has sold several pieces of sculpture and played in a few bands, usually smaller ones, playing guitar or singing - or both.
He has a very well trained voice - and happens to be a very good mimic and ventriloquist with a gift for accents, though he knows only a few languages well enough to speak them. He is, however, capable of speaking the ones he does know with virtually no accent at all, and has a very good memory for them, though he simply has not taken the time to learn many. Currently he is fluent in English, Spanish, Japanese, German, and Russian. As this might suggest, he is an excellent actor, and very good at thinking on his feet - a result of grifting to obtain money for food when he and his sister were orphaned.
Adam is also a practitioner of tai chi, which he practices at least an hour a day (barring extenuating circumstances), and often more. This skill often affects the way he uses his power, and is the primary reason for the flowing movements that generally accompany the use of his aerokinesis.
Weakness: Zephyr has no superhuman durability or physical abilities, and is as fragile as any human once his power is penetrated. Also, his greatest level of power can only be achieved when in his gaseous form, which he can only take if he is able to make physical contact with his sister. When in that form, however, he can still be harmed by high-energy attacks that break apart molecular bonds, though he heals quickly from this, damage taken in this form shortens the amount of time he can remain in it, similar to entering the form when injured.
Paraphernalia and Equipment: Zephyr does not carry any specific gear on him, though he generally carries whatever is issued to him as a SHIELD agent at the time. Being one of SHIELD's relatively few superpowered agents, however, means he often has little need for. When off-duty, he usually carries some form of music player, and or his guitar.
Weapons: As above, he rarely feels the need to carry a weapon - his power is generally far more effective.
Uniform: SHIELD-issue, or whatever the current undercover mission might require
Personality: Of the twins, Adam is certainly the more outgoing of the two, generally friendly and quick with a joke when in public, though he tends to be quieter when people aren't paying much attention. He spends a lot of time and attention analyzing people, picking out the ones most likely to be cooperative or most likely to cause a problem, skills that make him effective as a covert agent. He enjoys covert work, seeing it as another form of art, same as anything else he does, and has no problem taking on a different identity at the drop of a hat, or adapting to an unfamiliar situation. As this suggests, however, it is extremely difficult to determine at any given time whether Adam is being Adam, or taking on a different personality to suit the occasion. Like the wind, he can shift direction without warning and at need, though he has never been one to be capricious in his loyalties, should they be honestly held and not part of a con. He considers grifting to have been a necessary act when he was a child, to take care of himself and his sister, and a necessary act in his line of work with SHIELD now, but he is not prone to letting that slip over into his life away from work.
Adam joined SHIELD as a sort of atonement for tricking people as a child, and out of a fairly common sense of responsibility drawn from being born with the power he has. Like any of the art forms he practices, he feels a need to use them, and with the exception of his grifting ability, to use them to somehow make the world better for himself and for others, his sister especially. His nature does occasionally conflict with orders that seem contrary to such goals, and he has little patience for bureaucracy... but what soldier does?
He is also very protective of his sister, though seeing as they both feel protective of the other, he generally acknowledges that she is plenty skilled at taking care of herself - and him on more than one occasion - and, seeing as she has power on par with his to do so, this is not usually so hard for him when on a job, though he finds the protective mentality difficult to shake when they are not working. He loves her deeply, and the two almost never fight - it is, after all, difficult to argue with someone who understands you so well - and has a telepathic link to boot.
History: Adam and Adele Westin were born on the island of Hawaii, to normal parents, a doctor and a painter. For the first eight years of their life, things were fairly normal for the two, with the possible exception of Adam's occasional troublemaking, and the usual problems of lava flows on the island, which cost them their home once, causing something of a scare and an upheaval as they had to find a new home. Just before their ninth birthday, however, considerably early for the average mutant, both of the twins began to slowly manifest their powers. It was very gradual at first - Adele was able to knock rocks over from a distance, and the garden she tended with her mom grew at almost impossible rates, quickly earning them the envy of the other islanders. Winds picked up when Adam was irritated or upset, but nothing to suggest anything strange about the twins... except to themselves.
It didn't take them long to realize something was strange... and that the fact that they shared thoughts freely between one another, and almost always had, was not at all normal, but something as strange as the subtle effects they could have on the environment. Neither one of them were sure exactly when the telepathy between them had started, if they had always had the link or not, but it seemed to be that way, since neither could ever remember lacking it. With that knowledge, it didn't take them long to also realize that their other powers were slowly growing... and outstripping their control. They focused their powers through careful training, drawing off the tai chi their parents practiced for discipline. For self-trained mutants, they did very well for themselves, and had only rare incidents, and none that exposed them to the public... until one of the volcano's eruptions took a turn. It had been a hard day at school for Adele, there had been a bully - one that had hurt her feelings badly before Adam stepped in and put a stop to it... and the volcano's eruption came not long after. The lava flow took a freak turn, and encircled their home, where their parents were sleeping.
Neither of them even knew what was happening before the lava reached them... and the twins, having gone to the beach to relax, didn't learn the news until it was far too late. The twins were barely twelve.
Adele was destroyed by the news, convinced that her power had caused it, despite Adam's efforts to convince her otherwise, and the knowledge that, with their parents gone and no extended family, they would be put into foster care - where Adele was terrified she might endanger another family. To try and alleviate her concern, the two stowed away aboard a freighter, and made their way to the mainland, where they lived for several years, Adam often making money by grifting wealthy adults, and they lived a fairly decent life for 'street rats', even completing their high school equivalency through long hours at the library, often even hiding and sleeping there when they lacked a decent place to stay. By the time they were eighteen, however, Adele had forgiven herself enough that she returned to gardening, and became highly skilled and even sought after by the elite in Los Angeles for landscaping, and Adam managed to sell several sculptures, and was making money playing in a few small bands at night as well. With a steady flow of money, their lives returned to what was almost normal, and they even began experimenting with their powers again - only to find that those powers had become stronger by several orders of magnitude. Where Adele could likely never have caused the volcano eruption before, she certainly could now, and Adam discovered his command of the wind was so powerful that he could even make it do things nature never could manage.
Adele refused for a while to practice, saying there were enough earthquakes in LA and she'd always been afraid she might make one worse, but Adam gradually coaxed her into it, and the two became very, very good with their powers, again relying on their discipline from training. They even began some work as vigilantes, thwarting threats where they felt they needed to, but generally not working as such full or even part time, more content with their current and mostly normal life... though it bothered them sometimes, watching the crises unfolding on the news, and knowing they could help. Finally, Adam made the decision to apply for training with SHIELD, expecting Adele to stay home.
Adele, however, had other ideas. The twins signed up on the same day, and went into training less than a month later... now they're out of training and taking their first missions, putting their powers to work for the world for the first time... and woe to anyone in the way.
Code word: Rebirth (It still is, right?)
Player Information
First Name: Kenneth
Country/State: MI, USA
Age: 21
Have you ever RP’ed on a Forum before?: Yes
Do you play any other characters?: Iron Man, Deadpool, Insight
