Winter Maiden
From Unofficial Handbook of the Virtue Universe
| |
| Comet Woman - "I hope you've winterized your pipes!" | |
| Winter Maiden | |
| Player: @TalonedOwl | |
| Origin: | Science |
|---|---|
| Archetype: | Corruptor |
| Threat Level: | 41 |
| Personal Data | |
| Real Name: | Dr. Neve Thompson-James |
| Known Aliases: | Lassteroid |
| Species: | Human |
| Age: | Confidential |
| Height: | 5' 11" |
| Weight: | 130lbs |
| Eye Color: | Crystal Blue |
| Hair Color: | Blond |
| Biographical Data | |
| Nationality: | British-American |
| Occupation: | Thug for Hire |
| Place of Birth: | Boston, Massachusetts |
| Base of Operations: | Confidential |
| Marital Status: | Single |
| Known Relatives: | Eve Thompson (Mother; deceased), Adam Thompson (Father; Deceased), Amora Thompson (Grandmother; Deceased) |
| Known Powers | |
| Ice Blast, Cold Domination | |
| Known Abilities | |
| Confidential | |
| Equipment | |
| Confidential | |
| No additional information available. | |
Winter Maiden is the Main Villain of player, Taloned Owl. She was originally created without a back story so that the creator could get away from his Mastermind, and has since grown into a developed character in her own right.
Contents |
Character History
Neve Thompson was assured that she would never rise above poverty since the day she was born, December 22, 1982. Her father, Adam Thompson, owned his own semi-trailer truck company. Her mother, Eve Thompson, was a young house wife who squandered her husband’s meager fortune away on drugs. The family resided in a small two bedroom apartment in the seedy, dark neighborhood of North Berkshire, a low-income area in Boston.
At the age of five, Neve witnessed her mother overdose on drugs. The burial and funeral costs caused the small family to descend further into debt. For this, Neve began to resent her mother, often blaming her for the family’s misfortune with her long-time drug addiction.
When Neve started school with Boston’s Public School system, she was considered a child prodigy, skipping grades left and right. It was because of this that she was often taunted and teased. Neve’s Auburn hair was always braided in pig-tails, which the young boys pulled frequently. Her wardrobe only consisted of three shirts and two blue jeans. Not to mention, she had a few freckles on each cheek and was quite portly.
The only person at school which Neve could rely on to protect her was her elderly Science teacher, Mr. Humbert. Not only did he fend off her peers, but he introduced her to the vast world of science; Specifically, Cryogenic research. He introduced this to her with a simple experiment he had his class do.
At the beginning of class, he presented his students with flies which had been placed in the freezer. He then instructed his students to hold the flies in the palm of their hand. Shortly after, the flies had seemingly come to life and flew out of the window. It was then that Neve knew she wanted to study Cryogenic research.
Over the years, Neve had also developed a deep relationship with her father. It seemed that with the sudden arrival of the Russo Crime Syndicate in Boston, her father’s semi-trailer tractor business was beginning to flourish. In an ironic twist of fate, Adam Thompson used his tractors to aid the LsRusso with delivering the Mafia’s vast drug supply to various cities in the North Eastern United States. However, things took a dramatic turn for the worst when Adam decided that he no longer wanted to work for the LaRusso's.
Adam threatened the head of the LaRusso Crime Syndicate with going to the legal authorities if he wouldn’t cut all ties with Adam’s business. Adam was never seen again after that night.
12-year-old Neve was devastated at her father's sudden dissappearance. Just when things seemed like they couldn’t get worse, oddly enough, Adam’s will left his entire estate to The LaRusso Family. Poor Neve Thompson was left without a dime to her name as the LaRusso Syndicate seized control of her father’s trucking business.
Fortunately for Neve, a relative had been named her new legal guardian. Adam left the guardianship of his daughter to his mother, Amara Thompson. Neve found it quite odd that her father never mentioned her grandmother before, but quickly realized that she should just be grateful to still have family living.
Living with her grandmother was tough. Amara was a very harsh woman whose fits were often very hard to bear for young Neve. No matter how hard she tried, Neve was unable to figure out what had been chewing at the core of her grandmother. Amara Thompson had suffered a spinal injury which confined her to a walker, leaving Neve responsible for taking care of many of the major responsibilities in the household. Neve cooked, cleaned, and worked after school and late-nights to support her grandmother all while balancing college level academics.
There were only a few things that comforted Neve; her studies and her personal hero, Comet Girl, a young woman who donned a mask and fought crime in Boston. While her grandmother despised the sight of Comet Girl, Neve idolized her. She owned Comet Girl Posters, Barbie Dolls, and Lunchboxes. To Neve, Comet Girl was everything she wanted to be: Popular, beautiful, and most of all, super-powered. Neve’s obsession caused her to become ridiculed even more by her peers and more than twice put her at odds with her grandmother.
Neve worked up the courage to meet her super-powered idol. One-Night, A super villain had been terrorizing downtown Boston with a bank robbery and hostage situation. Donning a halloween costume in the likeness of Comet Girl, Neve arrived on the scene as Lassteroid, hoping to form a partnership with her idol. Unfortunately, the partnership of was short lived. Lassteroid’s interference caused the villain to get away with the money and the loss of three innocent lives. Also, Lassteroid’s weak thermo-kinetic abilities managed to negate Comet Girl’s pyro-kinetic abilities. Comet Girl proceeded to beat Lassteroid, breaking the spirit of Neve and crushing many childhood fantasies in the process. Broken, Neve threw out all of her Comet Girl memorabilia, and vowed to devote her time to the thing she loved most, Cryogenic research.
As the years passed on, Neve grew into a brilliant young woman. Her grades excelled and she graduated top of her class. She was accepted to many Universities on full ride scholarships. She enrolled at Paragon University in the fall of year 2000, which offered her only half the tuition.
While a Student during the day, Neve worked as an Intern at a Cryogenic Research Facility. Neve met infamous Cryogenic researcher 81-year-old Dr. Hugh James II, her supervisor and mentor after he realized what great potential Neve had in becoming the future leading Researcher in Cryogenics. Desperate for a friend in her new home, Neve often confided in Dr. James many of her research findings as well as her “super” power.
As his protege, Neve Thompson-James had free access to all of the Doctor’s notes on Cryogenic Research. Her Keen scientific mind coupled with The Doctor’s 62 years of research allowed her the opportunity to help with Dr. Hugh James II’s latest research, creating super powered soldiers who had control over kinetic energy connected with heat loss. Unfortunately for Neve, she was to become her mentor's newest test subject.
One night while Neve worked alone in the facility, she was abducted by armed men and relocated to a hidden lab. It was there that her mentor and his men operated and experimented on her.
Hugh explained to Neve that in the early 1940’s, he was a researcher on a super-soldier project to help the U.S. during WWII against the Nazi Threat. His program enlisted men and women volunteers to become Super Soldiers, however, one of them went Rogue. Her name was Amara Thompson, codename Winter Maiden.
Through science fairly advanced for it’s time, Amara’s DNA was altered so that she could absorb heat and project ice. The gene could only manifest within a female. When Amara went rogue, her genetic blue-print went with her, and billions of dollars in research was lost. Unfortunately, Winter Maiden’s spine was damaged in a major Showdown with the WWII Comet Woman, rendering her useless to the researchers. As time passed on, they awaited a female descendant of Amara Thompson to be born, so that they could pick up the research where they left off.
Just as they commenced with the experiment in front of many mysterious benefactors, The first Rikti Invasion descended upon the planet. The power went out in the middle of the experiment, causing Neve to be trapped in the Cryo-Transformation Chamber longer than expected. When Neve finally emerged, her powers had dramatically increased and had undergone a few physical changes. Her Skin became pale white and her hair color changed from auburn to platinum blond. It should also be noted that the transformation also had affects on her sanity. The events which occurred throughout her life coupled with staying in the chamber longer than planned is no doubt linked to the change of the physical and mental state of Neve. Neve nearly wiped out the entire lab of life. Only a few benefactors survived to tell the story of how Neve Thompson transformed into the hideous creature she had become.
On May 31, 2002, Neve made her first costumed appearance in Paragon City as the villain Winter Maiden. Driven to the brink of insanity, Winter Maiden often seeks to destroy humanity in order to turn the planet into an Icebox, claiming only then would the planet know the pain she's known.
Affiliations
- Schizzy - Winter Maiden's frequent partner in crime and most trusted confidant. Schizzy's brute strength combined with Winter Maiden's intellect and control over ice creates a well balanced deadly duo capable of the vast destruction.
Supergroup: Rogues Gallery
Adversaries
- Comet Woman - Winter Maiden's arch nemesis and frequent rival. While she doesn't seek to kill Comet Woman, she enjoys making her life as difficult as possible.
Personality
Neve often comes across as cold and distant to those who first meet her. She often goes out of her way to make a snide remark and enjoys watching others suffer. She's extremely intelligent and it shows in her work. When in public, she often exudes style and class. She often becomes fanatical over topics such as Global Warming.
Powers & Abilities
She was born with an altered gene in her DNA passed down from her grand mother. Her husband, the leading Cryogenic Research Scientist, enhanced this gene, giving Neve thermo-kinetic abilities. The enhancement allows Neve to absorb heat around her and project it into the form of Ice Blasts. She's able to create snow and sleet storms, raise arctic fogs, and travel around town on ice slides. A single touch from Neve is all it takes to freeze an opponent. A popular move, Neve often delivers the "Kiss of Death" to her victims, leaving them completely frozen.
Trivia
- Winter Maiden is inspired by Mr. Freeze, Killer Frost, and Poison Ivy.
- Winter Maiden and Comet Woman are second cousins.
- Winter Maiden was originally an Ice/Ice Tank named Siren of Winter.
