Difference between revisions of "Tom Harriman"

For most of his life, Harriman was a keen scientist and astronomer, and ultimately chose to study Astrophysics at university. Far from an academic bookworm however, Harriman was also an enthusiastic athlete; a fan of cycling, swimming and running, he competed at junior level in a number of local triathlon events, though chose not to pursue the sport any further. He was also an enthusiastic martial artist, spending several years studying kung fu at a local club before university.

Emblem of 4 PARA

As an officer - eventually achieving the rank of Captain - Harriman served with distinction. However, with terrorist activity on the rise, and growing concerns over the threat posed by mutants, Harriman found himself identified by genetic screening as posessing the mutant X gene. Citing the mutation as a genetic defect, the Army quietly discharged him on medical grounds.

Harriman also threw himself into the extra-curricular side of university life. Among other things, he enrolled at a local martial arts academy, where he studied Ninjitsu; mainly because - despite his military service - he still percieved ninjas as the epitomy of cool, along with motorcycles, leather jackets, and objects that transform into robots for various plot-related reasons. With experience of kung fu from back in England as well, his military training, and with his understanding of his mutant abilities beginning to unfold, he realised that he could combine his background in order to model himself as one of the costumed vigilantes that had become common in New York City.

Harriman continued his new extra-vocational activities for two years, augmenting his arsenal with all manner of scientifically-inspired weaponry to accent his powers. He routinely spent most of his nights patrolling the city; fortunately, the reputation he had managed to cultivate at the university allowed him to conveniently pass off his sleep deprevation as the result of excessive partying. He managed to keep his identities and activities a secret, up until his encounter with the mutant thief Hotshot. Harriman encountered him while fleeing from the scene of a heist, and attempted to stop him. Unfortunately, Hotshot had little in the way of control over his abilities, and managed to use his pyrokinesis to set Harriman alight. He managed to subdue the flames, but not before Harriman had suffered extensive injuries. Doubting he would recover - and that his life would be worth living even if he did - Hotshot decided to shoot Harriman with his 9mm, as a mercy killing. However, Harriman managed to summon enough focus to enact his abilities, deflecting the bullet enough to prevent it from doing fatal damage.

Crossing the continent to Los Angeles, Harriman managed to secure himself a position as a substitute teacher at a local High School, ironically covering for a staff member who was taking somewhat longer to recover from his injuries than Harriman had. Disillusioned with the vigilante lifestyle that he had wasted his time in New York on, he attempted to live a normal life. However, exposure to the imagination and enthusiasm of his teenage students managed to recindle his optimism for the lifestyle, and he eventually chose to reinvent himself as a new hero.

Jace has been around on the site since January 2007. He knows all the things, including board lore, random trivia, and really really terrible jokes and puns.