Plasmic Phase
From Unofficial Handbook of the Virtue Universe
| File:PlasmicPhaseShot.JPG | |
| Plasmic Phase's first costume. | |
| Plasmic Phase | |
| Player: @ LockeMurdock | |
| Origin: | Mutant |
|---|---|
| Archetype: | Blaster |
| Security Level: | 23 |
| Personal Data | |
| Real Name: | William Archer |
| Known Aliases: | Will |
| Species: | Human (Mutant) |
| Age: | 27 |
| Height: | 6'2" |
| Weight: | 173lbs |
| Eye Color: | Fully white, with a dull purple shading around them |
| Hair Color: | Dark red |
| Biographical Data | |
| Nationality: | American |
| Occupation: | Freelance Writer |
| Place of Birth: | Chicago, IL |
| Base of Operations: | Chicago, IL |
| Marital Status: | Single |
| Known Relatives: | Mother, father, two older sisters and a younger brother |
| Known Powers | |
| Confidential | |
| Known Abilities | |
| Energy blasts, psychic blasts/control, flight, enhanced regeneration and stamina. | |
| Equipment | |
| None. | |
| No additional information available. | |
Plasmic Phase is a generally optimistic (if a bit cynical) hero. He strive to be idealistic despite the constant stream of criminals, murderers and villains he encounters. With a witty comment or an overly-philosophical monologue, Plasmic calmly works to clean up Paragon City.
Contents |
Appearance
Plasmic's build is athletic, showing the results of a lot of running, fighting and jumping. His face is hard-edged, with sharp features highlighting his bone structure. His eyes, the most notable feature, are completely white and lack an iris. The skin around his eyes is tinged purple, making him constantly look masked. For this reason, Plasmic nearly always wears dark sunglasses when out of his costume. Though he'll often joke about it or wave it off, the inability to look someone in the eyes is the one thing he truly resents about his mutant heritage.
History
Will Archer was born in Chicago, Illinois. His father taught art and his mother was a writer, providing Will with two very creative and attentive parents. With three siblings, Will was also constantly surrounded by people and reacting to events, which inspired him to be very outgoing. With no signs of mutation in his family, Will's childhood was perfectly normal and enjoyable. Will, however, had a knack for "reading" people- sensing motives, emotions and finishing sentences often. At the time it was simply thought to be "good luck."
As he progressed through schooling, Will took to books and stories with great interest, having a reading level well above other students his age. He scored very highly on his testing, earning him praise and recognition. Studying literature was a passion of his, and he entered college hoping to one day become a professor of world literature. It was around this time when his mutant genes began to develop.
First Mutation
Will's talent with guessing peoples' thoughts had always been something he was aware of. It wasn't until one night studying in the library that it became obvious he was more than a standard human. While re-reading a favorite novel of his, Will began to zone out as the paragraphs began to blend together. He was aware suddenly of someone speaking, the voice muffled and broken, despite the quiet of the library. Assuming someone was reading out loud, Will looked up to find another man seated across from him. He stared as the man's voice echoed in his head while his lips never moved. Conscious then of other voices in the library, Will walked around to explore. Each person's surface thoughts were tiny whispers which he could make out if he focused hard enough.
Confused and excited, Will continued to experiment with his new found abilities. Over the next three months, he was able to get full clarity when he tried to read another person's mind. At one point he even managed to push his own thoughts into the minds of others, even going as far as to make someone's arm move with a thought. Somewhat guilty at the action, Will rarely ever controlled another person. He found it useful for self-defense or helping other people by moving them out of harm's way, though. Each time he found himself reading a mind, he would memorize something new about the person. While he only ever intended to pick up surface thoughts, he would suddenly find that he'd absorbed some of their memories or skills. After one quick mind-read of a culinary student, he suddenly knew how to cook a really fantastic dessert. Amused at all the interesting things he could learn from people, Will began to dig a little deeper each time.
Never intending to harm someone with his powers, Will moved through college largely as a spectator. After graduating with honors, he moved to New York to work in a publishing house. He enjoyed life there, but had grown somewhat addicted to his mutant powers. Heading to parks, coffee shops and stores, Will would wander around and learn about people. Not everything was enjoyable, of course, and he would find that a few people carried bitter, hateful or even evil thoughts around. Reading the mind of one man in a gas station, he realized there would shortly be a robbery. In something of a panic, Will lashed out with his thoughts and froze the man in place, taking his gun and throwing it into the trash.
A year passed with no real incidents. Small heroics here and there, always running before anyone could figure out who had helped out. While not the most satisfying, Will was happy to be helping out here and there.
Second Mutation
Unaware of how much it would change his life, Will left a bookstore and headed down the street to his apartment. There was a bright flash of light and the sound of heavy impact around the corner. Rushing to join the quickly-growing crowd, Will witnessed the end of a battle between a hero and a villain. The villain, though heavily damaged, had the hero beaten. As she lie there breathing weakly, the villain took the opportunity to flee from the scene. In the midst of police sirens blaring and the crowd chattering, Will closed his eyes and reached out to the dying woman. He tried to push good thoughts into her mind; help her forget how things had turned out. He dug deeper and deeper, blocking out anything but the woman's thoughts. As the woman slipped from life seeing images of beautiful paintings from his father's collection, Will's connection to her absorbed more than he'd ever done before. Sensing her death, Will opened his eyes and felt a massive change in his body. He was aware of the energy around him- every small speck of it seemed to be malleable. He'd stolen the hero's powers over plasma, as well as a lifetime of memories. With the rush of power and memories came a tremendous pain as his body and mind adapted to the overload of information. Collapsing to the ground, he felt his eyes burn and his muscles ache as he began to pass out. The next time he opened his eyes would be in a hospital several days later, to find his reflection unfamiliar. The purple rings and pale white eyes made him a stranger to himself.
The doctors were familiar with mutants, explaining to Will that he'd gone through a dramatic and sudden mutation. Untreatable and nonlethal, Will's new condition was permanent. Though now deformed, his eyesight was sharpened and enhanced, as well as his general health. His mind carried two sets of education and experiences, giving him new skills and views on things. With all of this shaking his life apart, Will left his job and New York, deciding to continue the path the hero had started. He'd taken something that didn't belong to him, after all, and knew the woman would want to keep fighting on.
Start of a Hero
Will, now calling himself Plasmic Phase, began his crimefighting career slowly. He purchased tough leather to wear as a sort of armor, as his body was still easily damaged. Hardly a heroic-looking figure, Plasmic attempted to work more subtly when he could. He traveled around the United States, training his powers and body more and more each day. Meeting new friends along the road and joining them on the journey to Paragon City, Plasmic felt a sense of purpose again. His mutations continued on, enhancing his powers over energy and psychic forces as well as granting him flight and an incredibly powerful metabolism. Supplementing these natural mutations with gene splices, Plasmic has become adept with his abilities. No longer confused and worried, he now has a clear direction: cleaning up Paragon City.
