Smokemeister
From Unofficial Handbook of the Virtue Universe
| |
| Smoke in costume | |
| The Smokemeister | |
| Player: Wildwind | |
| Origin: | Mutant |
|---|---|
| Archetype: | Scrapper |
| Security Level: | 50 |
| Personal Data | |
| Real Name: | Daniel McQuarrie |
| Known Aliases: | None |
| Species: | Human (mutant) |
| Age: | 18 |
| Height: | 5'9" |
| Weight: | 165 lbs. |
| Eye Color: | Hazel |
| Hair Color: | Brown |
| Biographical Data | |
| Nationality: | USA |
| Occupation: | Hero/High School Student |
| Place of Birth: | Paragon City, RI, USA |
| Base of Operations: | Paragon City, RI, USA |
| Marital Status: | Single, Unattached |
| Known Relatives: | Thomas and Jennifer McQuarrie (parents), Sarah McQuarrie (annoying little sister) |
| Known Powers | |
| Generates negative energy in the form of a thick black smoke. Manipulates negative energy in his surrounding environment, including drawing it out of other living beings. Able to use the negative energy generated to add additional force to physical attacks. Able to create simple constructs out of his "smoke". Flight. | |
| Known Abilities | |
| High school education, some basic hero training. Skilled at computer use and programming. Basic hacking skills. Developing skills in hand-to-hand combat. | |
| Equipment | |
| Modified (read: de-bugged) Crey HeroComm III comm system and linked data-shades. | |
| After the initial manifestation of his powers led to the evacuation of his high school, Daniel was rescued by the reformed archvillainess known as Shadow Ruby. As he has demonstrated remarkable improvement in the control of his powers since that time, it is believed she has provided him with some tutoring on the subject. | |
'Smoke' came into being because I wanted to experiment with the dark powersets, but I had no desire to make another broody, angsty antihero stereotype. I originally wanted to name him Kid Smoke, but as i was drawing him up I told one of my friends that with his personality he'd have to be talked out of naming himself "The Smokemeister". Well, Kid Smoke turned out to be taken, and I decided that maybe nobody'd managed to talk him out of it after all.
As it turns out, the name is pretty much perfectly suited to Smoke's personality. He's not nearly as cool as he thinks he is...
Contents |
History
Daniel McQuarrie was born in Paragon City to middle-class parents, and his childhood was pretty typical. He developed an interest in computers and other geeky pursuits at an early age, and by his teenage years had become something of a technological wizard. Having a penchant for mischief and being a bit of a prankster, he found himself dabbling in hacking, and might have gone far enough with it to get himself in trouble if circumstances had not directed him on another path.
While something of an outsider due to his geekish tendencies, Daniel's extroverted nature ensured he was always able to maintain a circle of friends who shared at least some of his interests. His reputation as a jokester kept most other students from taking him seriously, but Daniel was never overly concerned with being serious anyway, and he was enjoying his high school life.
By his junior year in high school, he was pretty confident in where he was going; while he was never the most attentive student, his grades were nonetheless sufficient to get him into a top university. His standardized test scores went well beyond that, showing signs of the remarkable but unfocused intellect behind the class-clown demeanor. While he enjoyed his high school life, he was all too aware of the limitations it brought with it, and he was looking forward to breaking out into a larger world.
It took but a single day to turn all his big ideas upside down. Daniel's parents, while not poor, had certainly been unable to afford the kind of genetic screening that might have detected their son's latent mutation; as such, he was blissfully unaware of his hidden potential until it made itself suddenly manifest. It only took a small spark--a sudden, unexpected slap on the back from one of his friends--to set off the chain reaction; a cloud of black smoke began to form around his hands. His own panic, and that of his classmates, accelerated the defensive reaction of his body, and in a matter of moments the cloud was growing. Fortunately, his classmates had the sense to flee before any of them could be harmed by the out-of-control energy... but in so doing, they left him alone in the midst of a room quickly thickening with the dark power.
By the time the police arrived to evaluate the situation, the entire school building was full of "smoke", and it had begun pouring out the windows. The first officer who tried to enter the building passed out almost immediately; fortunately, the other officers were able to drag him away before any real damage could be done. At this point, the call was put out for a registered hero with a tolerance for negative energy to help resolve the situation.
Shadow Ruby was hardly the first person the officer on scene wanted to see; being a reformed archvillainess, she was not exactly the kind of person he wanted to trust to help a panicked teenager who'd lost control of his powers. On the other hand, her transformed state allowed her to move freely through the clouds of dark energy, and it was an ability nobody else who answered the call could replicate. Finally, he allowed her to go in after him.
Ruby found Daniel huddled up in a corner, trying to hide out from the black cloud that he himself was still generating. The first sight of her demonic-looking form through the blackness did little to reassure him that she intended to help, but there was a kindness and sympathy in her voice that appealed to him. Eventually, she was able to calm him, and with calm came control; he stopped generating the clouds, and realized as he talked with her that he could reclaim the spent energy. With her help, he was able to absorb some of the cloud. Once the dark energy thinned and began to dissipate, Ruby walked him out of the building.
In the wake of the incident, it took some time for Daniel's classmates to accept him back into their midst. Still, with the training he was receiving from Shadow Ruby on the side, his control improved quickly; before long, he was doing stunts with his powers for the amusement of his peers, turning what had been a source of fear into one of fun. He dubbed himself "The Smokemeister"; everyone else simply rolled their eyes and called him "Smoke".
As fun as his powers were to play with, Daniel had gained something else from Ruby's training... an appreciation of the responsibilities of having such power. Once he'd obtained sufficient mastery that he felt he could put his abilities to good use, he registered as a hero; The Smokemeister was in business. Ruby extended to him an offer to join the supergroup that had taken *her* in--Trouble Incorporated. He accepted the offer, and has thrown himself fully into the superhero life.
The fact that he's having the most fun of his life doing it? That's just a bonus.
Personality
"Stop staring at that woman, Smoke. It's not polite."
"But, but... that outfit... hey, how did you know I was staring?"
"You're drooling."
-Sailor Psi and Smoke in Pocket D
Smoke is, above all, a nice guy. Honest, open, and outgoing, he's quick to engage anyone in conversation that he thinks might be interested in talking to him at all. As with many teenagers, he is somewhat lacking in social graces, but at the same time he does try to be polite. In conversation, he can be very enthusiastic, and has a tendency at times to ramble; this may cause him to seem self-absorbed at times, but usually his somewhat self-deprecating sense of humor balances this out and keeps him from being seen as terribly arrogant. He does think he's a pretty cool guy, and tries to act the part... frequently without really succeeding at it. Still, he has proven to be irrepressible; even the social disaster that accompanied the first manifestation of his powers did not keep him down for long.
He can be something of a jokester, and he seems to find ways to have fun in all but the most dire situations. He has been known to grandstand a bit in combat, as well as to exchange witticisms with ally and foe alike. This should not be taken as an indication that he does not take his hero work seriously; he is as committed and determined as most heroes. The fact is, he enjoys being a hero, and doesn't see anything wrong with having his fun while he does his best to save the city. If someone else doesn't like it, as far as he's concerned that's their problem and not his. He wants to be liked, and tries to be likeable, but he's not going to change who he is for someone else. Unless, of course, she happens to be a pretty girl, and then he might bend to accomodate her.
Being as he is teenaged male, Smoke has a weakness for beautiful women. In most cases, he'll simply be on his best behavior, or try to find some way to impress the lady in question. In more extreme cases, he may freeze up or find himself staring. He tries hard not to do this, as he doesn't want to offend anyone by it, but sometimes he just can't help himself. This is especially a problem with some of the skimpy outfits that seem so popular in the hero community. He frequently laments his lack of a girlfriend.
Smoke generally doesn't lie, except possibly to cover for himself in some embarrassing situation (like being caught staring). He enjoys fighting for the challenge and the rush, but doesn't really like to hurt people, and desperately hopes he never finds himself in a situation of having to kill. On the other hand, he knows that if it comes down to an innocent's life or a villain's, he'll do what he has to do. He doesn't like to see people suffering, and he'll go out of his way to help someone in need.
Powers
"Yeah, I know it's not smoke. But 'The Negative-Energy-Meister' would scare off the girls."
-Smoke
Dark Melee/Dark Armor/Darkness Mastery
Smoke's mutation grants him the ability to create and maniuplate negative energy. For the most part, this energy takes on the form of the clouds of black smoke that give him his name. However, he is capable of reshaping this energy to suit his needs, and can form simple constructs (such as tentacles) out of it. These constructs are solid and can be used for physical attacks or restraint without inflicting additional ill effects (unless he chooses to charge them with additional negative energy. He can also imbue his body with negative energy, enhancing his physical attacks and rendering it resistant to attack, or concentrate it for projection as a blast. In addition to its negative energy properties, the smoke is thick and somewhat opaque, making it harder for his enemies to see him (and therefore hit him) in combat.
Flight
By altering the energy state of his body, Smoke is able to fly, attaining burst speeds in excess of 250mph. He is still working on gaining fine control over this ability, however.
Fitness
Smoke is in very good physical condition as the result of his hand-to-hand combat training, and his physical resilience is enhanced by his mutation.
Equipment and Costume
"Why am I wearing an Air Force t-shirt? That's obvious. I fly around and kick butt. I *am* the Air Force."
-Smoke
For quite a while after he registered as a hero, Smoke did not actually have a costume. He was known to show up for missions in a t-shirt, jeans, and his grey trenchcoat. He insisted that as a high school student he didn't have the money for a costume, and his parents weren't going to spring for it, either... and he was quick to point out that once the smoke started rolling, nobody could really tell what he was wearing anyway. Eventually, his Trouble Incorporated teammates pitched in for a trip to Icon to make him a proper costume, complete with the cape he'd long since earned. He opted for grey and black, on the grounds that "If my powers turn me into a scary black cloud, I might as well go for intimidation value. When his powers aren't in use, he admits the outfit looks a little plain, with the black cape and utility harness its only significant features, but he insists the look works very well once he's shrouded in smoke.
Smoke uses a modified Crey Industries HeroComm III comm rig, built into his costume. He as a second rig in the trenchcoat he tends to wear when he's not on patrol, so that if he needs to respond to an emergency he can do so quickly. The original HeroComm units contained a hidden Crey surveillance system which Smoke has removed with the assistance of the resident hardware genius of Trouble Incorporated, Microforge. With that little problem out of the way, the HeroComm unit has proved to be a first-rate system and has become standard Trouble Incorporated gear. Of course, removing the black boxes voided the Crey warranty, but Microforge is more than capable of repairing the units as needed.
Smoke has had his trademark sunglasses retrofitted as dataglasses and fully integrated into the HeroComm system. Not actually sunglasses in the conventional sense, they are equipped for both light suppression by day and amplification by night as needed.
Notes
Smoke still lives with his parents and 12-year-old sister, though he's looking for an apartment.
Rumors
If you've heard anything about Smoke through the Paragon City grapevine, this is your place to put it on the record! I reserve the right to let Smoke respond to any salacious accusations, of course...
