Wind Banshee

Player: @ImpaledDragoon
Archetype: Corrupter
Origin: Magic/Mutant (innate "mutation" skills that are enhanced by the magical arts and training.)
Level: 50
Real name: Helena Taylor
Alias: Wind Banshee
Species: Human
Age: 27
Eye color: Solid white
Hair color: Vibrant blue-gray
Skin color: Light gray
Other: She has scars of varying degrees across her face and body; one of which is a scar that begins above the far right side of her lips, trails across her lips at a downward slant, and ends on the left side of her chin. Her ears are long and slightly pointed due to her mutations, but she is human.
Nationality: American
Occupation: former bartender; villain
Birthplace: Steel Canyon
Hometown: St. Martial
Marital status: Single, never married
Relatives: Father; Sergeant Spectacular. Mother: Brave Belle. Brother: Ethereal Sentinel. Sister(s): Arctic Archangel; Molly Taylor.
Power types: Electricity, wind, some ice
Known abilities: Can control the air around her to fly.

The Wind Banshee was born as Helena Taylor; it never occurred to her that one day she'd relinquish her given name for a media-created moniker, but, then again, she never expected to be a villain. Helena, you see, was born to a family of heroes.

When Helena and her sister, Charlotte, were both six years old (they are ten months apart, Charlotte being the elder of the two) their parents sat them down and explained to them that they had been deceiving them. While they were told that her father was a used car salesman and her mother was a secretary, those positions were simply what they called their “secret identities”. In reality, they were super heroes, something that, because of their own blossoming powers, their daughters suspected all along.

Apparently her parents enjoyed a bit of fame, for once their parents disclosed their second-lives to them, they were subjected to various scrap books that were packed full of newspaper clippings, magazine articles and thank you notes. The two were also members of a fairly well-known super group, though Helena has always suspected that this may have been due to the fact that their super group had names very similar to at least five other super groups. The League of Super Citizens, the Super Citizens League, the Super League of Citizens, the Citizens Super League... She found that it was incredibly likely people thought they were all one and the same. Along with learning about her parents true identities, the Brave Belle and Sergeant Spectacular, her parents stressed that the two keep their own powers and their ties to the hero world a secret. It became very apparent that this was going to be difficult for the girls, as their once pale skin was slowly becoming tinted with color. While Helena's skin became a light gray, her sister became a very rich blue. Helena's once blonde hair became a vibrant blue-gray, while her sister's became snow white. As she grew older Helena's blue eyes steadily became lighter and lighter, and by the time she was twenty they were solidly white.

Shortly after they were informed of their parents second-lives, they began “training” for their future in the hero world. What first began as light stretches and power walking gradually morphed into an almost-literal boot camp. As the girls grew older they were expected to do hundreds of push-ups, sit-ups, and to be able to run multiple miles with at least fifty pounds of weights on their backs – just as if they were soldiers in training. They were sent to teachers who taught them to control any powers they possessed. It was during this training that Helena discovered that she harnessed the power of storms; electricity, wind, and a minimal amount of ice. Charlotte, on the other hand, was very proficient with ice alone. Helena really enjoyed the training: she still enjoys being in shape and working out, and continues to follow the regiments set by her trainers even after she left the nest.

As she grew older, she became more and more disenchanted at the prospect of being a hero. This wasn't because of the strict training or the silly costumes... It was because the more she saw of her parents work, the more uneasy it made her. It began with the disdain in her parents' and elder brother's voices as they spoke of “criminals” and “villains.” Even if it was righteous anger, the hate... the animosity... she always thought there was something a little off about it; a little calloused. Afraid of her family's reaction, however, she always kept her opinions about “criminals” and how they spoke of them to herself.

When the girls were preteens, they watched as their brother was invited to join his parents in the fight against crime. It was during this initiation that Helena realized how little control she really had over her own future, because her parents “invitation” made it very clear that it was expected of him – and of all of their children. Helena watched as her father sat across the table from his son suggesting names for him, each one sillier than the one before it. In the end Jason chose what Helena considered to be a very pretentious name: the Ethereal Sentinel.

That evening, Helena's mother encouraged the girls to consider what they wanted their own “super hero” names to be, and to start thinking of costume ideas. Shortly thereafter, the two became more active in their parents super-hero lives. They spent most days after school in the super group base, where they were often exposed to the true nature of hero work. Helena was exposed to countless “criminals” and “villains” being tortured and/or murdered at the hands of her parents, her brother, or other members of the super group. Under their guise of justice, they felt they were justified in their actions. After all, they were criminals – the scum of the earth.

When Helena was a young teenager – thirteen or fourteen - her parents began visiting the office of Dr. Donisthorpe, a powerful mentalist whom they persuaded to assist them in their hero work. Helena was astonished by these corrupt visits, because when they would drag a suspected villain to the doctor they would explain that the man was pleading his innocence, and they simply wanted the doctor (or, more often, his apprentice, Viera Rosseau) to confirm or deny his claims. Thinking that the criminals would be subjected to a proper trial, Rosseau was willing to search the person's mind for memories of crimes he or she committed, which should would then write into testimonies that the heroes could use in court. What they did not know was that once the person's crimes were revealed, the super group took it upon themselves to exact justice.

Her parents scoffed at the doctor's work. In their opinion the doctor spent far too much time trying to “correct problems” and not enough time using their powers to exact justice on criminals. “He needs to stop worrying about the criminals and focus on protecting the victims.”

Helena, however, was very impressed by Donisthorpe's work. She agreed with their ideals: nobody was beyond saving, and that heroes should not be considered judges, juries, and executioners. There were still laws, and everybody deserved the chance to stand at trial before their peers. She began spending as much time as she could around the two; the more time she spent with them, the more she began to loathe the work her family took part in. Encouraged by Donisthorpe and Rosseau, when it came time that she was expected to join the super group she informed her parents that she was not interested in hiding behind their mask of hypocrisy. Her parents, of course, were furious. “If you aren't a hero,” they told her, “you're a villain.”

Instead she worked odd jobs for the next few years, living paycheck to paycheck until she got a stable job as a bartender, despite the fact that she was clearly under aged. She worked there for several years in relative peace. Though her relationship with her family was strained, her parents were starting to come to terms with the fact that one of their children wasn't going to become a hero.

During this time she visited Donisthorpe and Rosseau on a regular basis, for she admired them greatly and thought of them as friends. When she was just about to turn twenty she learned that Viera was in critical condition at the hospital, and upon visiting her she learned the details of the attack. Apparently it was Donisthorpe who inflicted the injuries that put her into a coma. She was hesitant to believe that he would do such a thing, but she did not want to risk her already strained relationship with her family to track him down and speak with him about it.

At twenty-two, her entire life changed. One evening the bar she worked at was held up by some small time crooks. Helena easily subdued the robbers, but before she could call the police some members of her parents super group stepped in to assist her. Though the robbers were obviously no longer a threat, the heroes insisted on “taking out the trash.” Helena, who was very much aware that most “criminals” who left with heroes didn't survive, refused to let them leave with the robbers. Perhaps her parents' friends held a grudge against Helena for “abandoning” her family, or perhaps they were annoyed that she insisted on protecting the criminals; regardless of the reason, they decided that they were going to take the robbers, despite the fact that she had taken a moment to call the police. Angry and frightened for the welfare of the crooks, Helena thoroughly lost her temper. A short and brutal fight ensued, and by the end of it she was the only one left standing. Frightened, she fled the scene and went into hiding, abandoning her apartment, her belongings, and the remnants of the peaceful life she had grown accustomed to.

It was then that she decided to track down Dr. Donisthorpe, who was now known as the villain Dr. Discombobulation. It took her some time to find him, but she hoped to learn the truth about what happened that fateful evening that put Rosseau in the hospital. When she found him, he obviously wasn't the same man she had admired for so many years. Due to the circumstances and her strong feelings for the doctor, however, she decided to stick with him, if only because he was a familiar face.

Helena has recently been working in Paragon City, as directed by Dr. Discombobulation. During this time she is slowly trying to rebuild her image as a "hero," though it is obvious that she still does not trust "heroes" and she tends to keep to herself in their presence. Much of her time spent in hero-dominated zones is spent in hiding (as she hopes to stay out of her family's cross hairs), and for the most part she only associates with people that Dr. Discombobulation has arranged for her to do so.

She has been slowly regaining confidence in the hero community, arranging meetings with former allies (who seem more than willing to keep their meetings from her family) and gathering intelligence on various heroes and hero groups. Through rumors and hearsay she's been learning about the shady individuals associated with her brother, Jason, the Ethereal Sentinel, and his apparent descent into what many heroes call "vigilantism." While he still may being doing "good," he isn't making as much of an effort to hide his somewhat shady deeds from the public. Because she has seen how brash and ruthless her brother can be, she is, without a doubt, terrified of him - rumors suggesting that he has his sights set on herself and the Doctor have put her on edge.

Personality wise, the Wind Banshee is fairly easy-going. She generally keeps to herself, and she has a quiet anger that tends to build up over time but is very rarely unleashed. If she is angry, a little time alone will generally be all it takes to calm her down. If she doesn't like something that is said, she generally just clams up until the tension passes.

She is incredibly diplomatic, and is friendly to those who approach her. She seems cheerful and lighthearted; though she is quiet she is certainly not shy. It isn't very often that she isn't excessively polite, a trait that has brought her much grief in the Rogue Isles. She has no qualms with apologizing and little interest in holding grudges.

However, it is rare that she isn't skeptical of people having ulterior motives, and her time in the Rogue Isles has only hardened her towards other people. The only people she feels she can trust are those the Doctor trusts, and even then she is very suspicious of many people he holds the utmost confidence.

The only person she explicitly trusts in the Doctor himself, and he seems to be the only person she really considers a friend. Though she occasionally questions him, it takes very little effort on his part to persuade her that he knows what's best. No matter what he does, he always manages to make it seem justified in Helena's eyes. Little does she know that he is very subtly using his mind manipulation powers to control her, though he obviously isn't using them in a fashion that makes her completely lose her free will. For the most part she follows him (more or less) blindly. If one were to suggest that her loyalty is due to mind control, she would become very defensive. This, however, probably isn't obvious to the casual observer, as most their conversations (especially about sensitive or important matters) are held in private.

The Wind Banshee spends much of her free time working out and following training regiments she's been doing since she was a child. She is very conscious of her health; though she occasionally drinks alcohol, she abhors smoking, and partaking in things that may be considered detrimental to her health (such as soda and "junk food"). While she doesn't consider herself a strict vegetarian, she only eats meat on very rare occasions, and even then she generally eats fish. Because of this she is confident in her body and proud to show off her figure, though she seems rather disinterested when it comes to being romanced. She hasn't "dated" in a number of years, and doesn't seem eager to get back into the game.

As one can imagine, she loves stormy, rainy days; not only because it soothes her, but because natural storms enhance her powers. She spends as much time as she can outdoors; generally lounging on skyscrapers or somewhere she can be close to the sky.

Occasionally the doctor will make her look "normal" so that she can easier slip into a crowd or work with heroes. She will only look this way when Dr. Discombobulation is present, and those whose minds are protected may not be fooled.