Wrecker Wren
From Unofficial Handbook of the Virtue Universe
Wrecker Wren is a villain of mine who combines my favourite villainous attributes of Heath Ledger's portrayal of the Joker, and 'evil' Faith from Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
Contents |
The Early Years
Wren's early childhood set the tone for much of her early life. As Louisiana State Police would discover during their investigation into the murder of Wren's parents, her childhood was a nightmare.
A is for Abandonment
Carl Simmons was a respected preacher. Alice Jones was a college student and activist. They may have been from very different worlds, but they fell in love immediately. A whirlwind romance followed and the two were married just three months later. Wren was born nine months later.
But Carl had become a different man. Gone was the kind young man Alice had fallen in love with, replaced by a stern, abusive husband who treated her as little more than property. She endured the violence, believing she could get him to change, but in the end she knew he would not.
Shortly after Wren's third birthday Alice vanished in the night, abandoning her husband and the child that was a constant reminder of him.
B is for Beatings
Carl was furious at his wife's betrayal and he took out his anger on his daughter. To the community he was still a respected and well-liked spiritual leader and no one questioned the stories about his 'accident prone' daughter.
It was during her early years that Wren's mutation began to show. She exhibited extraordinary strength and speed and could sometimes escape her father's grasp, infuriating him even more. His voice would ring out in the night demonizing his daughter as a spawn of the devil. She would hide from him, tears rolling down her cheek, fearing for her life.
Things continued this way for years. The young girl became a young woman, and soon her father's appetites turned towards more than just physical abuse. Wren was slowly being destroyed, the will to live leaving the young woman with each day.
The Incident
C is for Carnage
It was a few days before her sixteenth birthday when her mother returned. A tap at the window in the dark of night woke young Wren. She knew instantly who the woman who stood there was. She opened the window and simply stared at Alice.
"Mom?"
"Yes dear, it's me. I've come back for you."
The words ignited something inside of Wren. Seeing her mother brought back all manner of repressed memories. Abuse at the hands of her father. Abuse that happened because of her mother abandoned them.
"You... you left me. With him."
"I'm sorry, I..."
Her words were cut short as Wren's hand grabbed her by the throat and hauled her in through the window. Holding her mother at arms length, feet dangling above the ground. Wren's eyes burned with hatred.
Her mother struggled to speak, "I came... to... save you."
Wren went dead still for a moment before speaking, "I don't need to be saved. Not anymore."
With a heave she threw Alice through the bedroom wall and into the hallway. As plaster dust filled the air, Carl Simmons came storming out of his bedroom, twelve-gauge in hand.
"What's going on out her!?" As the dust settled, and his eyes adjusted to the darkness, he recognized the woman on the floor. "You!"
He levelled the shotgun, aiming to kill Alice where she lay. Before he could squeeze the trigger, Wren was there violently wrenching the gun from his hands.
"No Daddy. I want to play." Her voice was cold, and sent chills through both parents. Lightning fast she lashed out at her father, slamming him into a wall. As he struggled back to his feet, he could only watch as she bent the gun in her hands into a twisted piece of scrap. "Let's have some fun."
D is for Destruction
By the time the police and fire crews arrived at the Simmons' secluded farmhouse there was nothing but smoking wreckage remaining. The sight on the lawn turned the stomachs of even the most veteran of the officers. The bodies of Alice Jones and Carl Simmons were beaten beyond recognition. Bones broken, limbs wrenched from sockets, skin torn, teeth pulled; the sheer violence of the attackers was not lost on the men surveying the gruesome scene.
A statewide bulletin was put out for Wren, but by then she was long gone.
The New Life
With her parents dead and her life beginning anew, Wren set out for the Rogue Isles. She had heard tales of the Islands, haven for the unwanted, a place where you could make your own destiny.
E is for Evil
While only sixteen years old, Wren soon found her way in the dirty streets of Mercy Island. Performing simple 'muscle' jobs for local gangs, she was soon making decent money. The details of the jobs never really mattered much to Wren; one day it was collecting debts from deadbeat gangsters, the next it was burning down a school. The abuse and turmoil over the years hadn't just twisted her moral compass, it had torn it out and thrown it away.
Wren has shown a particular fondness for destroying 'good' things and people. People thought her father a good man, but he was a monster. It was the same with her mother. The teachers at school ignored the truth and let her suffer. To Wren there is no such thing as 'good'. While many villains are content to simply war amongst themselves, Wren delights in destroying do-gooders and heroes.
Wren lives without remorse, and without hesitation. She has quickly garnered a reputation as a solid choice for 'hired muscle' and a number of organizations have approached Wren since she arrived in the Rogue Isles. Some are looking to procure her services, some are looking to bring her into the fold, and some, like Arachnos, believe she may have an important destiny before her. They call her the 'Wrecker', for the trail of destruction and carnage she leaves in her wake.
Superpowers and the Girl
Wren's mutation is not visually apparent, nor impressive. She's strong and she's fast, that's all. Sometimes the simplest solution is the best one, and that is what Wren brings to the table.
F is for Fighting
Wren's mutation is two-part. The first is her incredible strength. While she is not in the same class as the likes of Statesman or the Silver Sledge, Wren is much stronger than a normal human. In recent months she was able to fully lift a car off the ground before throwing it into a hospital waiting area. Despite her great strength, Wren chooses not to fight with her bare hands, instead preferring the intimidation and destructive power of the sledgehammer.
The second part of Wren's mutation is speed. Wren moves and thinks much quicker than any normal human being, able to outrun a horse over a short distance. Studying surveillance footage of the young mutant, Longbow researchers have determined that she is able to move and react 5 to 10 times faster than a normal human. Combined with her strength, this makes her a particularly deadly combatant.
G is for the Girl no more
Wren has learned much from her days in rural Louisiana. No longer the shy, reserved, tom-boy, she has learned to harness her burgeoning womanhood. Using her 'feminine wiles' she has been able to infiltrate many a private party, and get close to targets. While Wren has learned to use her natural talents, she has little interest in an actual relationship, and sees her new assets as merely tools to cause more mayhem.
H is for Hammer
The Sledgehammer. From the moment she saw a screening of Misery at a drive-in theater outside of Atlanta she knew it would be her weapon of choice. Awkward and cumbersome in the hands of even strong men, in hers it becomes a thing of destructive beauty. Specially made for her, and paid for with her 'ill-gotten' gains, the hammer is a titanium-impervium alloy. It weighs almost a hundred pounds and is nigh indestructible.
Her strength allows her to wield it effortlessly, and her speed turns it into a terrifying weapon. Whirling about in combat she is able to strike deadly blows that even skilled fighters are unable to detect, much less block. Her speed or strength separately would not do the weapon justice, but combined make her formidable agent of destruction.