Shade Mantis

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Shade Mantis
Player:
Origin: Technology
Archetype: Scrapper
Security Level: 11
Personal Data
Real Name: Nafeeza Talibot
Known Aliases: None
Species: Human/Esper
Age: 33
Height: N/A
Weight: N/A
Eye Color: Violet
Hair Color: Dark Brown
Biographical Data
Nationality: American (of Arabic descent)
Occupation: Forensics scientist/super hero
Place of Birth: N/A
Base of Operations: N/A
Marital Status: Single
Known Relatives: Hadi Talibot (Father), Noya Talibot (Mother, deceased), Qadir Salman (son)
Known Powers
Dense skeleton and a dark energy field
Known Abilities
Nafeeza is trained in several forms of hand to hand combat, as well as forensic science.
Equipment
A protective suit designed to look like an insect
No additional information available.


Contents

Origin

Nafeeza developed with a very dense skeleton, which was the only thing that saved her life when her mother was killed in a car crash before she was born. The doctors managed to save her life, and her father considered her a miracle, naming her "Nafeeza" or "Precious Thing". Her father doted on her, and Nafeeza grew up somewhat spoiled from her father's attention. It wasn't until she reached the age of sixteen that her powers were discovered though. Nafeeza had been a late blooming esper, her powers and growth spurt not happening until her sixteenth birthday. Unfortunately, that entailed her bones growing and expanding out of her skin to strike a would be attacker, as well as a dark aura surrounding her to protect her from harm, and reseal the wounds she recieved from combat. Her belief in her life shaken, it wouldn't be until a chance encounter with General Amazing that her life would find direction once more. She adopted the guise of Shade Mantis, and would eventually become General Amazing's closes triend. After he was diagnosed with a brain tumor, she helped his daughter care for him until his death.

Personality

Nafeeza was once a very outspoken and fun loving girl, though a bit selfish from the pampering she recieved from her father. After her powers awakened, and everyone looked at her like she was a monster in human form, Nafeeza became very sullen and repressed. If it hadn't been for General Amazing's friendship, she would have likely killed herself before the age of seventeen. Now, she is a bit reserved still, measuring every action and reaction, as the scientist she grew into has taken over a good portion of her personality. Her mind is constantly working on strategies and tactics, a left over remnant as General Amazing's partner. She has a very soft spot in her heart for Josephine Ramsey, the daughter of General Amazing. It's a soft side she tries not to show. Every once in a while though, usually while Josephine is around, Nafeeza's old personality shines through.

Powers

Spines

Nafeeza's skeleton is not only harder than most rock, she can also form spiked projections through her skin to defend herself. While this does cause some pain, and often looks of disgust from those who are unprepared for it, Nafeeza has learned to withstand both the physical and emotional discomfort her powers bring.

Dark Armor

Nafeeza's body, when her bones protrude through her skin, releases a dark energy into the air that both heals her wounds back, and prevents blood loss, and also can weaken her enemies while shielding her from harm.

Stealth

By skillfully manipulating her Dark Armor, Nafeeza can also cloak herself in darkness, and bend the light around her, giving her the ability to go unseen.

History

Nafeeza's world came crashing down that fateful day when her powers first activated. Some boys attacked her because of her Arabic heritage, and her powers activated to defend her without her knowledge of how to control them. One of her attackers was crippled when a bone spine ripped through his stomach and severed his spinal column. Another lost an arm as he swung a baseball bat down to crush Nafeeza's head. A third was killed instantly when a barb punctured his thorax, and exited out of the top of his skull. The police ruled it self defense, and no charges were pressed against Nafeeza, but her father called her a demon, and cast her out of the house. Alone, with no where to go, nor anywhere to turn, Nafeeza teetered on the abyss. She looked out over a bridge, and seriously wondered if her bones would finally break when she hit bottom if she were to throw herself off, or if she'd just heal back. Her thoughts were interupted by General Amazing, who had heard the story on the news. He talked her back from the ledge, and gave her hope by offering her a position in the Government sponsored team he was forming. He made her two promises: That she would never be called a freak in this program, as most of them were espers themselves, and that he'd be there for her if she ever needed to talk. In the end, he gave her back the things she had lost, a sense of purpose, a life, and family.

The training was tough and grueling. Amazing worked with her daily, as her barbed skeleton couldn't cut his indestructable skin. She learned how to control and adapt her power as need be, and started training in other fields she might need in the field. Strategy, tactics, investigative and forensic science... All these things gave her a focus she never knew she could have. While she still remained reserved around the others, General Amazing became her closest friend. They were so close that Amazing's wife, Marcy, became jealous. She sensed what Nafeeza was denying, even to herself. Nafeeza had grown to love General Amazing, as the only man who'd ever accepted her as she was. Nafeeza and Marcy had a long talk, and Nafeeza transfered to the lab to appease Marcy, knowing that it wasn't what General Amazing had wanted. Once more, Nafeeza went back into her emotional shell, focusing entirely on her work. Then, Marcy filed for a divorce from Amazing. Nafeeza went to General Amazing, and helped him through the troubled times after the divorce, and also helped out with taking care of Josephine, the daughter Amazing had gotten custody of.

Nafeeza never told Amazing what she felt, knowing that it would be a serious breech of protocol that could get them both court martialed. Then, during a fight with a super villain, General Amazing lost control of his strength and killed the villain they were trying to apprehend. It was discovered that he had a brain tumor that was interferring with his ability to regulate how much strength he put into his everyday actions. Nafeeza moved in with General Amazing and Josephine, helping to take care of him after he recieved his medical discharge. She finally admitted her heart to him, and the two became lovers, though they were only with one another when Josephine wasn't there.

A few months later, he was gone, and Josephine asked Nafeeza to look after the team while she took some time for herself. Upon coming back, Nafeeza found that Patriotic Fire was attempting to take over the leadership role. Nafeeza had been General Amazing's second in command, and argued for the position, but the September 11th attacks had come and gone, and despite her years of loyal service, Nafeeza found herself forced out of field work by kneejerk reactions by her superiors. Outraged, she resigned her commission, though she told her compatriots, in a meeting that excluded Patriotic Fire, that she would always be there if they needed her. Patriotic Fire showed up anyway, and a heated debate began between the two, which resulted in a few more members leaving the team as well. Nafeeza's last words to Patriotic Fire were, "General Amazing built this team in the ideals he fought for all his life. That each of us would be equal, regardless of whether we be of different skin colored humans or espers. These same ideals are the backbone of the country you claim to defend, yet you ignore them while claiming it's in defense of them? Better this team be disbanded now, than for General Amazing's legacy to be tarnished so horribly."

Nafeeza soon found that it was for the best that she ended her career with the team there, as a pregnancy test showed that she was with child. She hid this fact from her former allies, and even from Josephine, not wanting to tarnish her father's memory. A few months later, she gave birth to a baby boy, Qadir Salman, in honor of his father. She still has not let Josephine know that she has a brother, and has worked to keep his existance a secret from the government as well. She does occassionally moonlight as a super hero, but has greatly slowed down since the pregnancy. For now, she is focusing on raising him, and has promised herself that she won't abandon him as she was abandoned by her own family.

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