Marazel
From Unofficial Handbook of the Virtue Universe
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| Marazel | |
| Player: | |
| Origin: | Natural (RP'd as Mutation) |
|---|---|
| Archetype: | Scrapper |
| Security Level: | 50 |
| Personal Data | |
| Real Name: | Mara Zekel |
| Known Aliases: | Mara |
| Species: | Human (mutant) |
| Age: | ' |
| Height: | 5'4" (approx) |
| Weight: | ' |
| Eye Color: | Blue |
| Hair Color: | Brown |
| Biographical Data | |
| Nationality: | ' |
| Occupation: | Hero |
| Place of Birth: | Unknown |
| Base of Operations: | Currently living in the Supergroup base |
| Marital Status: | Unwed, but in a relationship |
| Known Relatives: | birth family is unknown, raised in foster care |
| Known Powers | |
| ' | |
| Known Abilities | |
| ' | |
| Equipment | |
| ' | |
| ' | |
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Contents |
Character History
Mara was a foundling, having been left at a hospital in the dead of night. Her place of birth and parents are unknown. She grew up in a small town about 100 miles outside of Paragon City, housed with two foster families for most of her childhood. Of the first family she has only pleasant memories. It was due to the poor health of these 'parents' that she was moved to the second house when she was 11. The man of the house, Peter Thompson, became verbally and physically abusive after about a year, but only when they were alone. Her foster mother Sandra was never aware of her husband's actions and Mara was too terrified of him to risk telling her or the State, fearing retribution. Peter single-handedly shattered Mara's confidence in herself over the years that she lived there.
The final blow to her emotions came not long after she turned 16. Mara was going to see a concert with friends and thought she was alone in the house while she got ready. Peter appeared suddenly and slammed her against the wall before she could react. He repeatedly struck her, calling her "whore" and "little bitch" and insisted he would "teach her proper respect" as he forced her to the floor and tore at her clothes. Dazed by the attack, she didn't realize his intent until it was too late. As she struggled desperately to push him off of her, she suddenly heard him scream at the same time a near blinding pain shot through her. To her amazement, many thin, bone-like spines had erupted from her body and had sunk deeply into her attacker.
Peter had to be hospitalized due to the severity of his injuries. Although the spines had saved her, Mara was at first horrified by them and the damage they could inflict upon another person. When Peter was well enough, he stood trial for his assault and it was then that Mara was finally able to reveal the details of her years of abuse. Peter was convicted and sent to prison. Mara became a ward of the state until she turned 18.
Finally free to live her life, Mara found she had no idea what she wanted to do. The years of counseling after her attack had helped her cope somewhat with the years of abuse and her new, strange powers. She drifted towards Paragon City, hoping that there'd be greater opportunities there. Finally, she gathered her courage and registered as a Hero. Although she hadn't completely accepted her powers, she wanted to use them positively to protect whomever she could as well as she could.
The next stage of her life began when trying to find a spot to wait out a thunderstorm. Although she had lived in Paragon for some time, she had no permanent residence and moved from place to place. As she wandered one day, a sudden, violent thunderstorm forced her to seek shelter in what she thought was an abandoned warehouse. When she opened the door, however, she found herself in a strange set of seemingly abandoned stone rooms. Mara turned around in confusion and found that the door through which she'd entered was no longer there.
Thinking herself to be trapped and alone in this new place, Mara started to explore and stumbled across an unusual, glowing table. Curious, she approached and it was then that Jonas revealed himself, scaring her terribly at the time.
Personality
Mara is fairly shy, but she will open up once she gets comfortable with someone. Large males make her skittish and tense, a holdover from her years of abuse at the hands of her foster father. She tends to dress in ways that might be an attempt to look unapproachable, such as various combinations of leather clothes and spikes; but she is a kind, caring soul and will often worry and fuss over her friends.
Although shy, she has a stubborn streak. She will never complain about being tired or in pain and is determined to keep up with teammates as best she can.
Affiliations
Seekers of Luster-supergroup effectively led by Jonas Sahandra
Jonas Sahandra - Her close friend and mentor
Ragen Sahandra - Friend and occasional visitor
Hyruutenken - Another close friend, and partner in crime-fighting, when she isn't with Jonas.
Powers
Spines
Her main mutant power is the ability to create sharp, bony spines from her own body. Primarily they will appear on her arms and torso but she can create them almost anywhere. These spines also produce a slight toxin which serves to slow anyone she jabs. Mara's exhaustive pace of training has led to greatly improved control of these spines; she is now able to throw a small cluster at a distant opponent as well as 'launching' a close range area volley, or a single spine at a chosen target.
These spines also have the added "bonus" of destroying much of her clothing if she uses them too often. She is constantly repairing her costume. Due to the violent event surrounding this power's manifestation, she is somewhat uncertain in her ability to control them, but under Jonas's tutelage, she is gaining confidence.
Regeneration
Mara heals very quickly which is useful for one who creates sharp spines from her own bone and flesh. This power manifested not long after she made her way to Paragon City and she is gradually increasing control over it. Most injuries heal within minutes, more extensive damage might take an hour or two to heal. The only scars she still has are from the first time her spines appeared, for some reason they've never healed completely.
She is also fairly resistant to diseases and toxins, however she did briefly catch the Vahzilok sickness, but was cured shortly after.
Additional Powers
Abilities
Weaknesses and Limitations
Her greatest weakness so far is her lack of confidence in herself. This not only hampers her emotionally, but it also drives her to over-extend herself to the point of exhaustion. She has already had several close calls during the recent Rikti invasions, and also almost fell victim to a group of Circle of Thorns mages.
She also tends to dismiss any injuries she may acquire (though her accelerated healing usually takes care of them quickly enough).
Equipment
-Is occasionally seen with a katana (usually this occurs only when she is in the company of Jonas)
Roleplay Notes
-The spines she manifests are not as large as they appear in game.
-In addition to her normal training, she is now learning swordplay from Jonas. (When on as the character Apprentice Marazel, she will only fight using her sword, a wicked-looking magical katana. ICly she still has her spines, but will not manifest them unless her control slips. When on as Marazel, she will not fight with the sword, but may reference it.)
