Novacross
From Unofficial Handbook of the Virtue Universe
| |
| Novacross | |
| Player: @Novacross | |
| Origin: | Mutant |
|---|---|
| Archetype: | Blaster |
| Security Level: | 42 |
| Personal Data | |
| Real Name: | Jason Lee Rhodes |
| Known Aliases: | Jay, Raptor Rhodes |
| Species: | Human |
| Age: | 22 |
| Height: | 5'10" |
| Weight: | 152# |
| Eye Color: | Brown |
| Hair Color: | Black |
| Biographical Data | |
| Nationality: | Chinese/American |
| Occupation: | Inventor/Student, Silver Circle High Chancellor |
| Place of Birth: | Phoenix, Arizona |
| Base of Operations: | Steel Canyon, Paragon City |
| Marital Status: | Single |
| Known Relatives: | Father: Marcus Rhodes
Status - Deceased. Mother: Jennifer Rhodes Status - Currently one of Crey's lead research scientists specializing in genetic manipulation. |
| Known Powers | |
| Fire control and manipulation. | |
| Known Abilities | |
| All-state baseball player in Paragon on a baseball scholarship, engineer. | |
| Equipment | |
| His father's nanotech retracting armor and adaptive communicator. | |
| A bit rash and impulsive, Novacross tends to jump in headfirst without thinking through the consequences. He means well, but usually requires a bit of cleanup. Currently fused to an immature Nictus, Novacross is becoming much darker as he tries to maintain a grip on his humanity. | |
Contents |
Vital Statistics
Name: Jason Lee Rhodes
Hero Registration Number: 1-403596281
Registered Heroic Identity: Novacross
Origin: Genetic Mutation
Vital Abilities: Fire control and manipulation
Nationality: American, third-generation Chinese
Age: 20
Date of Birth: March 22nd, 1988
Hair: Black
Eyes: Brown
Ethnicity: Asian
Height: 5' 10"
Weight: 152#
Blood Type: B-
Donor Status: Negative
Personal History
Birth
Born on March 22nd, 1988 to Marcus and Jennifer Rhodes at Phoenix Memorial Hospital, Jason Lee Rhodes was admitted immediately after birth into pediatric care. The doctor on record, one Dr. James Lester, noted that the infant was unusually warm and had him admitted for observation. The child's temperature stabilized and no further symptoms were noted, so he was sent home with his mother and father.
Early Childhood
Jason grew quickly in intellect and curiousity as he aged. His parents, both top researchers at Avalon Industries, worked extreme hours in their labs and would often bring the young boy with them. Growing up in a lab environment with inattentive parents, Jason's social skills suffered and he began to have incidents of 'acting out' against his parents and their coworkers. These incidents would occasionally coincide with fires in the lab. At that time, no suspicions were raised as to a connection between the two.
Jason's increasing intelligence combined with his poor social skills made for a brilliant but somewhat bored student. His elementary and junior high psychologists both noted that his grades would likely be more impressive if he had some manner of creative or physical outlet to assist in his focus issues. To that end, Jason began playing baseball with the local Little League teams.
It is worth noting that Jason does have one early reprimand on record. Jason was involved in what seemed to be his first bullying incident in the third grade. He was given detention for a few days for getting in a fight with a fifth grader when the latter attempted to extort money from him. The record is somewhat abbreviated, however, as the fifth grader (one Harold Winchell) refused to discuss the incident and an apparent electrical short caused a fire in the bathroom wherein the incident took place. The school psychologist described Harold as 'spooked,' and noted that Winchell seemed to have difficulty seperating the fight and the fire in his initial rambling.
The First Cut
On November 3rd, 2000, the Rhodes home was nearly burned to the ground. Shortly after the New Year, Jennifer Rhodes vanished. Initially the police investigated the disappearance as a possible homicide, as Marcus and Jennifer were strangely distant at work and were reported to be involved in arguments bordering on domestic violence. The nature of their arguments was never fully disclosed, though neighbors reported that the arguments seemed to revolve around Jason's welfare in the aftermath of the fire. Eventually, the police found Jennifer's vehicle abandoned on a roadside. There were no signs of a struggle; it looked as though she had driven off into the desert, left her car, and wandered into no-man's land. Since that time there have been no reported contacts with Mrs. Rhodes, and she is presumed dead.
Jason himself seemed deeply affected by the fire, which was perhaps the cause for the familial arguments. The boy spoke less and seemed subdued, and his athletic endeavors suffered.
Autumn In High School
When Jason finally made it to high school, he was an oddity to the community. Having excelled in baseball both in Little League and on his junior high team, the boy dubbed Raptor Rhodes for his speed on the field was a bit of a local sports hero. His poor attitude and tendency toward scientific pursuits, however, ostracized him from his fellow students and made him a bit of a loner and social reject. High school saw a lot of this changing as the boy became more confident and learned to interact with his classmates in a positive light. Much like other high school boys, this change came over him because of a girl.
Having joined the high school baseball team, Jason found himself included in the athletic circles moreso than the scientific circles at school. Being newly exposed to cheerleaders, gymnasts, and ball players who hadn't grown up with him, Jason began to exhibit more than a passing interest in the new girls in his life. One cheerleader in particular, Autumn Roundtree, seemed to exhibit an almost inhuman grace that drew a number of eyes to her. Of course, attention was not a problem for Autumn; her parents were independently wealthy, having made a fortune in the technological market in Phoenix, and her mixture of Old World English and local Native American features gave her an exotic beauty. In her own way, however, she was as withdrawn as Jason if not as socially clumsy. She seemed to resent her wealth, her parents, and her athleticism, and often just wanted to be left alone. Being that Jason usually found himself wandering away from the other jocks, it seemed inevitable that the two would spend a great deal of time avoiding the crowds in similar locations. Their truce of silence eventually gave way to small conversation, which in turn began a bond of sorts between the two.
As Jason and Autumn began to find comfort in each other their surroundings began to matter less. The two began to find and speak to each other in more social environs without feeling the need to retreat to a corner, and so became more accessible and thereby more accepted by those around them. Within a short time the two became an expected sight at athletic club social events and parties, and it was widely considered common knowledge that the two were dating. The accepted rumor became a source of humor for Jason and Autumn and a thorn in the side of Autumn's parents (who wanted her to grow up to be a renowned gymnast wed into a wealthy family). Eventually, deciding that if they were to be treated as a couple they might as well try it on for size, the two began a romantic relationship in earnest.
The Rikti Invasion
The Rikti invasion in 2004 came as much a surprise to the citizens of Phoenix as it did anywhere else. Fortunately for the city, the numerous local technology firms were able to cobble together a rudimentary defensive system. The damage was still severe, however, to the city and its populace. The struggle brought two further issues to light for Jason and Autumn, however; both were exposed to the other as mutants. Estranged at first by their fear of exposure, the two finally came back together and decided that Jason's fire projection and Autumn's unnatural agility were secrets that they would try to help each other carry. In terms of world-altering events in Jason's life, however, this was fairly minor in comparison to the other secret exposed by the Siege of Phoenix.
Rhodes Adaptive Nanoarmor
Like many other technological corporations, Avalon Industries was attacked during the Siege by the Rikti forces.
