Silver Speed
From Unofficial Handbook of the Virtue Universe
Silver Speed (born Taylor Dylan Lambert, 26 February 1989) is an American intermediate hero and mutant. He arrived in Paragon City, Rhode Island on approximately 22 September 2011 on blind faith that he would get help with his powers. He currently lives by himself in a studio apartment in Atlas Park and works for the grocery chain, Mighty Mart.
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Early Life
Silver Speed was born as Taylor Dylan Lambert on 26 February 1989. He is the third of five children to mother Amanda Jane Lambert (neé Richardson), a homemaker and cosmetologist, and to father Timothy Ray Lambert, a sales consultant for Cooper Tire & Rubber Company. He has four siblings, two of which are older than himself: Larry Roy (25) and Josie Rose (23); and two of which are younger than himself: Frederick John (18), and Barbara Jean (16).
Taylor graduated Arkansas High School on 1 June 2007. While having no plans to actually attend college, Taylor decided to stay living at home while saving money so he can one day move out and live on his own. He became a horse caretaker for a private ranch owner to the southeast in the small town of Fouke. This is where he gets his experience with taking care and riding horses. Of course, he was nothing more than a grocery bagger and stocker at the local Albertson's back in the city.
Mutation
On the night of 14 August 2011, Taylor came home late one night from work. Upon arriving home, he found himself not feeling well so he immediately went to his room to rest. After not being able to sleep, he went back downstairs to get something to drink. Unfortunately, he wouldn't make it all the way to the kitchen. He would be in serious pain and would find himself collapsing on the floor. His younger brother, Frederick John, would hear the commotion and come downstairs to see what was going on. Immediately he called his parents and dialed 911. Frederick John would be too late, however.
Taylor's body emitted a pulse of a faint white light and everyone in the near vicinity would be hurt by it. This meant pretty much everyone in the house. They all then started to be in pain as well. Taylor tried to get up and go to their backyard so that if he pulsated again, it wouldn't hurt his family further. His body would once again pulsate. But this time, it was a surge of electromagnetic shock which would kill the two horses they kept. Immediately after that, Taylor collapsed in the middle of the backyard and the paramedics arrived a few moments later. This event would gain local and, in part, regional media attention.
All seven members of the family (mother, father, all 5 kids) would be taken to Wadley Regional Medical Center. Due to the nature of their condition, however, they would then be transferred to Dallas Medical Center in Dallas, Texas.
Recovery
Recovery from this incident was something that Taylor would not take very well. In actuality, these pulses of radiation have been happening for well over a year. He had just done a very good job of hiding it and never thought it would ever get this bad. Because he had hidden all of this from his family, he felt absolutely guilty and took all responsibility for putting his entire family in this situation in the first place. He came clean to his family that all of this was his fault their third day in the hospital in Dallas. Surprisingly, none of the family would ever truly blame him for causing it. This was a gesture that he was absolutely surprised with.
Miraculously, the entire family would have a very speedy recovery and would be released from the Dallas hospital in as little as a week. Considering that they were all exposed to fairly lethal levels of radiation, this was something that struck doctors and experts as rather odd. While the family attempted to put this behind them, they could not return to their home in Arkansas for another week to see if anything had happened. When it was finally deemed safe, the Lamberts were finally allowed back into their home.
The next few weeks would be fairly difficult for the family, but difficult to Taylor most of all. They would do all they can to go back to their normal lives but Taylor had a difficult time from doing so. On 13 September 2011, he received a phone call from the doctor that attended to him at Wadley Regional to ask him how he was doing, if he had been emitting radiation randomly and what not. He then asked him to see him in the hospital for a follow-up visit. Little did he know, this would be a little more than just a follow-up.
Discovery
Taylor saw this doctor the next day and he had more information for him that he had bargained for. More than half of their discussion, Taylor was just sitting there nodding his head, most of the terminology the doctor was using was something way beyond Taylor's league. But once the doctor explained it to him in its simplest terms, his cells have changed. His anatomy on a cellular level has changed. Mutated, in other words. However this change had occurred, it allowed him to emit harmful radiation. In any case, Taylor was made aware that no one in the southern region of the US had the expertise on these kinds of cases and could not tell Taylor how to better handle himself with this discovery.
Fortunately, this doctor had done a lot of research on where Taylor could possibly get help with these powers and help him overcome it. He advised him of several doctors in a place called Paragon City in Rhode Island that would be able to give him direction. Basically, the doctor told Taylor that he has superpowers. Taylor had only heard of the place on TV and never really paid any attention to the news in the first place. But knowing the nature of the city, he knew that the place was full of strange people. He knew it was full of people who were different from the rest of the world. (At least, most of the world.) And after doing a little bit of reading about it, he was convinced that this city might just help him with his little (or big) problem.
After contemplating on it for about a week, Taylor decided it would best if he left Texarkana to go to this Paragon City to get help. He did not want to put his family in danger like that anymore. And by sticking around, he knew he would be a risk. After a difficult goodbye to his family, he headed northeast to go to the place that is called the City of Heroes.
Arrival in Paragon City
Getting to Paragon City went without a hitch. But when he got here, Taylor was completely and utterly lost and was left in awe at the same time. Here he was getting off a bus coming from and he could see people (in costume, obviously) freely flying, talking to a group of people, saving others from certain danger, it was definitely like a completely different country to Taylor. Needless to say, Taylor would go through a bit of a culture shock.
To no one's surprise, Taylor was completely dumbfounded and lost. He had no idea who to go for help or what to do for that matter. Much to Taylor's surprise, a fellow hero (whose name he didn't catch) told him to talk to someone inside city hall. Feeling that it made most sense to do, Taylor did set foot in city hall and spoke to someone regarding himself, his abilities, and how to manage them. He was put into contact with an Antonio Nash, a Doctor Ann-Marie Engles, and a Doctor Charles Schwarz. All three would keep in constant contact with Taylor regarding his powers in order to better acclimate and control them in his own will.
However, Dr. Engles suggested that Taylor have some sort of outlet for his powers. She is of the belief that Taylor's mutation is not over and they would only continue to grow. After studying his genetic structure, Dr. Schwarz and Antonio Nash agreed to the suggestion and Dr. Engles suggested that Taylor become a hero for Paragon City. Taylor was completely dumbfounded by the idea. A hero? Him? Why would he do such a thing? He was urged to think about it.
Registered Hero
Fortunately, it didn't take Taylor long to think about. While Taylor was out and about trying to find a (normal) job, he witnessed a robbery take place. There seemed to be a hero (whose name he didn't catch) who was trying to save the day but seemed like this was too much for them. His first instinct was, of course, to help. Something triggered inside of him. Before he knew it, he was running really fast. And somehow, with precision. Taylor had helped the hero subdue to robber and helped bring him to the police.
Some sort of an epiphany came over him. He realized that if he could do good with his powers, he would do it. On 11 October 2011, he applied for a hero license under the name, Silver Speed. He would go to have a great track record on helping the innocents and taking on assignments that include villain groups such as The Council, The Warriors, and The Freakshow.
A Few Notes
Some things to keep in mind.
- If it didn't come to your mind by now, Taylor does speak with a southern accent. Particularly with the Hillbilly tone. This is the same tone that's heard in areas in the northern portions of the south like Arkansas, eastern and middle Tennessee (like Nashville), and eastern Kentucky. No, not all southern accents sound the same but most people tend not to care. This is marginally different from a Dixie accent which is usually heard in Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia.
- Taylor is somehow very good at card games. Mainly at poker, crazy eights, and bridge.
- He is usually seen wearing some sort of cowboy hat. However, his favorite (and one he usually wears) is the brown hat that he got from a small shop in northern Arkansas when he was 20.
- In any television media, Taylor would be played by actor Thad Luckinbill.
- Taylor has only ever been to three states in his life. The other two are Texas and now Rhode Island.
Tropes
Trope stuff for this southern dude! Spoilers ahead. Highlight them to reveal.
- Southern Gentleman - Taylor's upbringing makes him a pretty good fit for this trope. While he does not gamble, he does like Coronas and he's somehow very good at gambling games to the point that he could go professional on them if he wanted. Though this mostly applies to card games, especially Poker and its other variants like Texas Hold'em. Otherwise, he's well-dressed, charming, and can be polite to members of either gender.
- Cowboy - While not technically a rancher, Taylor does have the gear to make himself look like he's a cowboy. (And he really is!) He's got a hat, the chaps, the cowboy boots with the spurs, and he knows how to ride horses really well. And he can even teach you how to properly ride one. Also, he was previously a horse caretaker before he arrived in Paragon City.
- Super Speed - While the actual speed hasn't been calculated by any means, he can certain run really really fast. Still, he is still trying to get a good hold of this power.
- I Love Nuclear Power - No, Taylor actually doesn't love nuclear power. Unfortunately, his mutation allowed him to emit harmful nuclear radiation and this was how he put his entire family in the hospital and killed the two family horses. This would be the beginning of a few events that would be the catalyst towards his arrival in Paragon City. Thankfully, the radiation did not kill his family and they are still well, alive, and kicking.
- Shock and Awe - As a result of his mutation, the secondary ability he gained was being able to emit electromagnetic blasts. The same energy emitted when he put his family in the hospital. When he emitted his radiation, he went outside to get some air and then pulsated out shocks which ultimately killed the horses outside. It's questionable whether these blasts are more harmful than the actual radiation emissions themselves.
- Always Second Best - A hurdle that he's had to go through multiple times in his life is feeling like he's second best. In the past, there was a girl in his life that seemed like she had a genuine liking for Taylor. As it turns out, she was just using Taylor so she can get closer to his brother Larry Roy instead. In fact, she even said to Taylor that she would choose him any day if it weren't for his older brother. That would make him a perfect candidate for the next trope. Another time, there was a family camping trip up in the Ozark Mountains and while planning out a hiking trip, Taylor volunteered to be the leader of the expedition because he knew the trail very well but the others thought their eldest brother Larry Roy or eldest sister Josie Rose would be a better leader. Both of them had no sense of direction. And they still don't.
- Romantic Runner Up - See above trope. That happened when Taylor was 16 and his oldest brother was 19. The girl in question was a classmate of Taylor's who he had for two classes. Girl in question met Taylor's older brother Larry Roy in a local carnival that opens up every summer. Of course, through Taylor himself. This would happen several times with Taylor. The moment the interested girl (in Taylor) meets his older brother Larry Roy, it's doomed to favor Larry Roy's side.
- Middle Child Syndrome - Taylor is the third child out of five. This trope is halfway subverted, but the other siblings always favored the older two siblings, Larry Roy and Josie Rose, if there is anything that involved all five of them. The Ozark Mountains camping trip is a prime example. The only exception to this is his youngest brother Frederick John. He was picked on by bullies in school and the only person he could really turn to was Taylor.
- Naïve Newcomer - Halfway averted. When Taylor arrived in Paragon City, he was completely lost. He knew nothing about the place, he was a bit overwhelmed by all the heroes, and basically just came here on blind faith that someone will help him with his powers. Keeping an open mind, he found some people and doctors to help him control his powers and is doing fairly well with keeping them under control. He was urged to have an outlet for his powers to better keep them in control and this is how he becomes a registered hero for Paragon City.
Playlist
Taylor listens to a mixture of genres but mainly, stereotypically, listens to country music (at least, current country music). The following are songs that are currently on his heavy rotation.
- Luke Bryan - I Don't Want This Night To End
- Shania Twain - Ka-Ching!
- Kenny Chesney - Reality
- Lady Antebellum - We Owned The Night
- Foster The People - Pumped Up Kicks
- Blake Shelton feat. Trace Adkins - Hillbilly Bone
- Faith Hill - Breathe
- Rascal Flatts feat. Natasha Beddingfield - Easy
- Gavin DeGraw - Not Over You
- Shania Twain - Up!
- Kelly Clarkson - Breakaway
- Rascall Flatts - What Hurts The Most
- Shania Twain - That Don't Impress Me Much
- Lady Antebellum - Need You Now
- Adele - Chasing Pavements
- Dia Frampton with Blake Shelton - I Will
- Kelly Clarkson - Behind These Hazel Eyes
- Alan Jackson - Small Town Southern Man
- The Band Perry - If I Die Young
Things They Say
If your character has met Taylor and/or Silver Speed and has something to say about him, please do it here!
