The Challengers

Name: Seong-Han “Adam” Lee-Webster

Aliases: None

Place of Birth: San Francisco, CA

Current Residence: San Francisco, CA

Relatives: Seong-Jin Lee (Father, SF Police Officer), Olivia Webster (Mother, Physician)

Occupation: None

Affiliations: The Challengers

Age: 15

Race: Human (Korean and English descent)

Gender: Male (he/him)

Sexuality: Asexual

Height: 5’5”

Build: Lean

Hair: Brown, medium-short length, spiky

Eyes: Blue-Gray

Distinguishing features: None

Conditions: Astigmatism

Speech/Voice: Controlled, matter-of-fact

Preferred Outfit: Blue T-Shirt with hummingbird design, faded jeans, canvas sneakers, denim jacket (optional)

Accessories: Long white scarf, glasses (when not fighting), sports tape wrapped around left arm and right leg

Traits: Righteous, Pensive, Calm, Determined, Pacifistic

Flaws: Grandiose, Quixotic, Angstful, Perfectionistic

MBTI Type: INFJ

Likes: High vantage points/views, sunsets, video games, tabletop/board games, books, alternative rock

Dislikes: Firearms, rain/storms, unnecessary violence, selfishness, apathy

Kinetic Energy Manipulation: Adam’s heart houses the God Particle “Kinein” which grants him the superhuman ability to alter, amplify, and nullify the kinetic energy in his body.

Flight: Adam can amplify his kinetic energy to propel himself in any direction, and nullify the kinetic energy that gravity would otherwise normally apply to him. This allows him to fly at potentially light speed, although G-forces, atmospheric drag, aerodynamic heating, and the inability to breathe severely hinder this.

Strengthened Combat Strikes: Adam can amplify the speed of his punches and kicks by amplifying the kinetic energy in his arms and legs. This does not affect his muscular strength.

Enhanced Durability: Adam can disperse kinetic energy directed at his body to shield himself from impacts and blunt force trauma. He can use this to protect his hands and feet during his amplified combat strikes.

Taekwondo: Adam is a 1st-dan black belt in Taekwondo, and regularly participates in junior competitions in the Bay Area.

Tactician: Adam is an accomplished tactician, constantly assessing threats and situations, and quickly devising battle strategies on the fly.

Leadership: Adam acts as de facto leader of the Challengers, and has shown exceptional ability to rally, inspire, and command his allies.

Bilingual: Adam is fluent in English and Korean, and has some knowledge of Japanese and Tagalog.

• Adam must be fully conscious and aware to use his powers.
• Adam’s powers are limited to his own body.
• Adam’s powers, mechanically speaking, are not a force or thrust, and must follow Newton’s Laws of Motion. Mass, inertia, and any opposing forces are not affected. Therefore forces exerted by Adam’s body are limited to momentum and collisions.
• Because of his inability to produce force, Adam is particularly susceptible to being pinned or restrained.
• Adam’s reaction time and mental processes are no faster than a normal unpowered human.

Name: Hector MacMillan

Aliases: None

Place of birth: Berkeley, CA

Current Residence: San Francisco, CA

Relatives: Carolyn MacMillan (grandmother), Kimberly MacMillan (mother), Troy MacMillan (father)

Occupation: None

Affiliations: The Challengers

Age: 14

Race: Human (Scottish and German descent)

Gender: Male (he/him)

Sexuality: Heterosexual

Height: 5’0”

Build: Stocky

Hair: Red, short, messy

Eyes: Green

Distinguishing features: None

Conditions: High-Functioning Autism, ADHD

Speech/Voice: Youthful, loud, penetrating

Preferred Outfit: Orange T-Shirt w/ white trim/sleeves, Brown cargo shorts, white tennis shoes

Accessories: Gray one-strap backpack, chain chomp keychain, 1-Up button

Traits: Hotheaded, Daring, Energetic, Loyal, Eccentric

Flaws: Cocky, Impulsive, Boisterous, Erratic

MBTI Type: ESTP

Likes: Thrillseeking, comic books, video games, DIY, maker culture, cosplay, engineering, industrial rock, electronica

Dislikes: Injustice, being alone, waiting, people who speak in “code” or metaphors, enclosed spaces, geese (it’s a long story)

Genius Intelligence: Hector possesses an extraordinary intellect that rivals most leading scientists in the world. Particularly he has shown to possess exceptional spatial ability, hypercalculia, and an eidetic memory. It is unknown whether or not this ability is superhuman in nature, or possibly a result of savant syndrome.

Engineering: Hector has prodigious knowledge of aeronautics, ballistics, and robotics, and regularly designs technological gadgets and equipment.

DIY: Hector is skilled in a variety of “maker” crafts such as electronics, woodworking, and metalworking.

HEAT Mk II: “Hydraulic Exoskeleton, Apparatus, and Transportation”, an exosuit of Hector’s own design, inspired by his parents’ advancements in aeronautical engineering and robotics.

Armor: While the suit is tailored more for utility than protection, its titanium alloy outer casing is strong enough to deflect small arms fire.

Power Source: The suit is powered by diesel fuel, which is stored in a 3 gallon tank on the back of the suit. The suit’s electrical components are powered by a rechargeable battery and diesel generator.

Hydraulics: The suit uses hydraulic cylinders to increase the user’s physical strength, allowing them to lift up to 2 tons. They also work as shock absorbers to cushion landings.

Jet Boots: The suit’s boots are equipped with highly experimental propulsion systems based on microturbine technology, allowing the user to fly at speeds up to Mach 0.8.

Left Arm: Can convert to a particle-beam cannon, capable of concussive and superheated blasts of accelerated ions. Its energy output can be adjusted to less lethal levels.

Right Arm: Contains a retractable mechanical grappling cable, an extendable blade, and miniature laser-guided explosive missiles. 

Goggles: Hector’s goggles contain a head-up display linked to his exosuit. It displays his suit’s current functions and status, fuel levels, flight guidance, targeting system, and activated infrared vision.

• Without his exosuit, Hector is limited to the physical capabilities of a normal unpowered human.
• Although his exosuit is designed for fuel efficiency, its flight time is still limited to about 30 minutes before needing to be refueled, while its electrical power can last up to 8 hours.

Name: Sergio “Surge” Vasquez

Aliases: None

Place of birth: Fremont, CA

Current Residence: San Francisco, CA

Relatives: Jose Vasquez (Brother), Alejandro Vasquez (Father)

Occupation: None

Affiliations: The Challengers

Age: 18

Race: Human (Mexican descent)

Gender: Male (he/him)

Sexuality: Pansexual

Height: 5’10”

Build: Athletic

Hair: Black, blonde highlights, slicked back

Eyes: Brown

Distinguishing features: Sideburns, dyed hair, tribal tattoo on left arm and chest

Conditions: None

Speech/Voice: Low, smooth, monotone

Preferred Outfit: Gray T-Shirt, Leather Jacket, punk trousers, steel-toed boots, fingerless gloves

Accessories: Piercings on left eyebrow and right ear, wallet chain, father’s dog tags

Traits: Stoic, Hardened, Pragmatic, Stern, Protective

Flaws: Blunt, Callous, Apathetic, Stubborn

MBTI Type: ISTJ

Likes: Classic rock, punk aesthetic, sleight of hand tricks (knife spinning, card magic, etc.), urban exploration

Dislikes: Deep water, talkative people, authority figures, superstition, wastefulness

Radiation: Surge’s body produces an isotope of carbon that constantly gives off radiation through nuclear decay. Surge’s body converts and stores this radiation as energy, which can be used to ionize gasses in the air.

Heat Generation: Surge can direct and condense the energy stored in his body, which can generate heat in excess of 2000°F. 

Plasma Generation: Surge can generate fully ionized plasma, which can reach up to 14,000°F and explode on impact.

Electricity Generation: Surge can absorb electrons from ionized particles, and use these to create an electrostatic discharge anywhere up to 1 million volts at full power.

Fire Generation: Surge can use radiation to form hydrogen gas through nuclear electrolysis of water vapor, and use this as a fuel to create flames, ignited by his heat generation.

Light Generation: By generating and condensing energy, Surge can produce light through incandescence. Surge can release light in flashes of up to 7 megacandela, enough to temporarily blind and disorient enemies.

Survival: Surge is knowledgeable in wilderness and urban survival skills, including first aid, navigation, the gathering and preparation of food and water, as well as general “street smarts”.

Parkour: Surge is skilled in traversing urban environments using acrobatic maneuvers, sometimes using his powers as a means of extra propulsion.

Pickpocketing: Surge is experienced in using misdirection and sleight of hand to steal items from people’s pockets, often using a light shock as a distraction.

Bilingual: Surge is fluent in English and Spanish.

Butterfly Knife: Usually resorted to when energy is depleted.

• Surge must recharge his powers after heavy or continuous use. This happens passively and cannot be consciously controlled or accelerated.
• Surge is able to keep himself afloat, but is generally a poor swimmer and prefers to stay away from deep water.

Name: Jeremy “Thorn” Thornton

Aliases: The Rooftop Reptile, Lizard Face

Place of birth: Dublin, CA

Current Residence: San Francisco, CA

Relatives: Mary Thornton (mother), Kol Ameldar (father)

Occupation: None

Affiliations: The Challengers

Age: 16

Race: Draconian/Human Hybrid (Irish descent)

Gender: Male (he/him)

Sexuality: Bisexual

Height: 6’6”

Build: Lean, gangly

Hair: Dirty blonde, curtained

Eyes: Hazel

Distinguishing features: Smooth green snake-like scales, dragon shaped face and snout, pointed teeth and fangs, 12 inch long pointed tongue, large pointed ears, short horns, 3 spikes on either side of jaw, large eyes with slitted pupils, reflective irises, claws on hands and feet, three-toed feet, 5-foot long tail, dragon-like wings

Conditions: Social Anxiety, Stutter, Infertile due to genetic hybridization

Speech/Voice: Nasal, soft, a bit higher pitched than one would expect

Preferred Outfit: Green hoodie with white trim, blue polyester pants with flame design, black sandals

Accessories: Claw Necklace

Traits: Wary, Awkward, Compassionate, Sincere, Loyal

Flaws: Timid, Naive, Meek, Reliant

MBTI Type: ISFJ

Likes: Ice Cream, singing, beaches / the ocean, plants and gardens, prog rock

Dislikes: Crowds, loud noises, arguments, dishonesty

Draconian Physiology: Thorn is a hybrid of Human and Draconian origin, possessing the strengths of both species, including physical attributes that far exceed human standards. He makes use of his claws, teeth, and tail during hand-to-hand combat.

Superhuman Strength: Thorn is capable of lifting at least 2 tons. 

Enhanced Durability: Thorn’s body is resistant to injury, particularly blunt force trauma. He can withstand impacts, falls, and explosions that would normally incapacitate or kill a human.

Enhanced Stamina: Thorn’s blood has a higher oxygen capacity than a human’s, and his muscles produce fewer fatigue toxins. This allows him to physically exert himself for extended periods of time without getting fatigued, as well as hold his breath for upwards of 15 minutes.

Adaptive Metabolism: Thorn’s metabolism offers resistance to toxins, drugs, and disease, and can allow him to go months without food.

Singing: Thorn has an exceptional tenor singing voice.

• Although resistant to poisons and drugs, Thorn is not immune to them, and is susceptible to sedation from very high doses.
• Thorn’s claws are not razor sharp, but have dull, rounded off tips. They are sharp and hard enough to rip through things with applied force, but not sharp enough to scratch or cut.
• As a result of his hybridization, Thorn’s wings are more vestigial than functional, and are too small to sustain flight. He can, however, use them for short bursts of thrust, and to soften falls.

Name: Julia “Jewel” Volkov

Aliases: None

Place of birth: South Lake Tahoe, CA

Current Residence: San Francisco, CA

Relatives: Tracy “Trace” Volkov (Sibling), Dr. Nikolai “Nick” Volkov (Father, biochemist), Dr. Leonid “Leo” Volkov (Uncle, neurophysicist)

Occupation: None

Affiliations: The Challengers

Age: 18

Race: Human (Slavic descent)

Gender: Female (she/her)

Sexuality: Heterosexual

Height: 5’6”

Build: Curvy

Hair: Pale blonde, straight, bangs

Eyes: Turquoise

Distinguishing features: None

Conditions: None

Speech/Voice: Breathy, ethereal

Preferred Outfit: Light Blue T-shirt, white pants, black and white winter coat (usually tied around waist), tall gray furred boots

Accessories: 2 blue bracelets on left wrist, white gem-studded waist belt, silver earrings

Traits: Passionate, Creative, Graceful, Vigilant, Bold

Flaws: Neurotic, Dubious, Sheltered

MBTI Type: ISFP

Likes: Visual arts, cosmetology, animals, nature/landscapes, traveling, new wave

Dislikes: Disorganization, greed, monotony, being coddled

Jewel possesses no inherent powers of her own.

Skilled Artist: Jewel is skilled in drawing and painting, particularly impressionistic pieces done ein plein air.

Winter Sports: Jewel is an experienced ice skater, skier, and snowboarder, and often uses her skills in combination with her powers for transportation.

Krystallos: The quartz crystal in Jewel’s necklace houses the God Particle “Krystallos”, which empowers the user with the ability to create and manipulate crystalline minerals.

Crystallization: At the user’s will, Krystallos can release pulses of energy through a solution, manipulating and gathering atoms into nucleation points from which crystals can form. The forced supersaturation of atoms accelerates crystal growth, forming meters-long crystals in a matter of seconds. Jewel most commonly creates crystals in the form of quartz due to the abundance of silica in the Earth’s crust.

Mineral Manipulation: Krystallos can generate energy fields that repel matter through a form of diamagnetism. While these fields technically affect all matter, material with crystal lattice structure is affected strongly enough to levitate. The user of Krystallos is able to generate and alter these energy fields at will, thus manipulating crystalline minerals suspended in them.

Ice Manipulation: Water ice, being a crystalline mineral, is just as viable to crystallization and manipulation by Krystallos as rock crystal.

Other Minerals: Krystallos can theoretically manipulate any form of crystalline matter, including polycrystals such as metal, salt, sugar, sand, or even biominerals such as those found in bone.

• Without Krystallos, Jewel is limited to the physical capabilities of a normal unpowered human.
• Using Krystallos requires adequate control and concentration. Its usability can be hindered by mental fatigue or impairment.
• Purity is a major factor in a mineral’s manipulability by Krystallos. Because of this, it is usually more reliable for Jewel to manipulate crystals formed herself rather than existing ones from the environment.
• While Krystallos can manipulate minerals with a polycrystalline structure, they are generally much more difficult to manipulate than true crystals.

Name: Tracy “Trace” Volkov

Aliases: None

Place of birth: South Lake Tahoe, CA

Current Residence: San Francisco, CA

Relatives: Julia “Jewel” Volkov (Sister), Dr. Nikolai “Nick” Volkov (Father, biochemist), Dr. Leonid “Leo” Volkov (Uncle, neurophysicist)

Occupation: None

Affiliations: The Challengers

Age: 14

Race: Gray Wolf, formally human (Slavic descent)

Gender: Non-Binary (they/them)

Height: 2’9”

Build: Average for a gray wolf

Hair: Grey, side swept

Eyes: Turquoise

Distinguishing features: Styled “haircut”, patterns on face and side drawn with blue dye

Conditions: Selective Amnesia (remembers past events, but does not remember being human)

Speech/Voice: Androgynous, lively, doesn’t like to swear (usually uses “heck” in place of any and all expletives)

Preferred Outfit: None

Accessories: Black collar, Challengers Insignia charm, 2 blue bracelets on left front leg, blue earring on right ear

Personality: Playful, Affectionate, Cheerful, Dutiful, Empathetic

Flaws: Absentminded, Restless, Nosy

MBTI Types: ENFP

Likes: Rocks and seashells, stargazing, poetry, cartoons, jazz, physical affection (pets, scritches, hugs, etc.)

Dislikes: Negativity, being ignored, boredom, doctors and hospitals

Untethered consciousness: As a result of being transferred to a different body, Trace’s consciousness is untethered from their own mind, allowing them to project parts of it into the spacetime of the universe surrounding them. 

Clairvoyance: Trace’s consciousness extending into spacetime makes them subconsciously aware of manifolds and dynamical systems on a quantum level. Perceiving reality as an ongoing system allows Trace to clairvoyantly “predict” future events as visions in their mind.

Remote viewing/listening: By projecting their consciousness further distances, Trace can detect present events in other locations beyond their normal senses.

Mind reading: Trace has the ability to project parts of their consciousness into the very neurons of other beings, allowing them to read others’ thoughts and intentions.

Telepathy: While projecting their consciousness into other’s minds, Trace can allow their own thoughts to be read, allowing Trace to “speak” telepathically.

Writing: Trace is able to write by holding a pen in their mouth. Besides their personal notes, they also enjoy creative writing, particularly poetry.

Empathy: Even without their powers, Trace has exceptionally high levels of emotional intelligence, and is adept at reading and analyzing people’s moods and social cues.

Saddlebag: Trace often carries a saddlebag on their side to make up for not having clothes with pockets. They mostly use it to store collected rocks and seashells, as well as their notebooks.

Notebooks: Trace carries several notebooks for personal journaling, notes, and reminders. Given that they are constantly seeing visions of possible timelines, keeping a record of actual events helps them to stay grounded in present reality.

• Trace’s future visions are not singular 100% certain premonitions, but are laid out as branching potential outcomes. The clearer the vision is in Trace’s mind, the more likely it is to occur.
• Trace’s future visions are not something they can turn on or off, and passively happen constantly in the background of their mind. Because of this, it is easy for Trace to experience sensory overload, dissociation, and cognitive dissonance. 
• Because everyone’s cognitive processes are unique and not always subvocalized, Trace’s ability to read minds is dependent on how well they can “decipher” a person’s thoughts as an outside observer.