Name: Christopher Randolph Donnelly |
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Background:
After graduating with honors in English, Classics and History, Chris went for two years of teacher's college, and got his teacher's license. He had come to like San Francisco in the years he had been there, and he was eager to start working. Unfortunately, teachers weren't in high demand, and he was unable to obtain full-time teacher's work. Undaunted, he put his name in as a substitute, and continued to study on his own.
After a year of this, he returned to Montana for the summer, where he was reunited with Stephanie, who had just completed her Masters in Biophysics. She had landed a position with the San Francisco branch of Duchess Industries, and Chris was ecstatic that she would be joining him there. They spent a weekend in the mountains away from their families, and on the second night, Chris proposed to Stephanie.
Before she could reply, she noticed something falling from the sky. It was a shooting star...or was it? It seemed to be getting larger, almost like a meteor...and it was coming toward them...
Chris reacted first, grabbing Stephanie and pulling her along. They ran as fast as they could, but when Chris turned to see where it was, he saw that somehow it had changed direction; it was still falling right at them!
He never knew what caused him to say what he said next. "Split up!" he shouted, and shoved Stephanie toward some heavy boulders. He turned and ran the other way, but there was only open terrain. He saw the meteorite falling at a point between the two of them. As he pondered the utter impossibility of it, the meteorite struck and exploded.
Chris was bathed in energies that wracked his body with pain. He fell, and felt himself bathed in flames. He rolled around, trying to put out the fire-
But he wasn't burning. The flames didn't hurt. In fact, he felt energized by them. He felt better than he ever had before. He watched his body transform, growing more massive and muscular, and he could feel himself getting taller. Standing, he felt an incredible surge of power, and he had to release it! A jet of flame shot into the sky, reaching like a beacon for the stars.
Staggered, he couldn't comprehend the magnitude of what had happened. Somehow, the meteor had given him super-powers! He had never even dreamed about what he would do if he ever got powers. But what had it done to Stephanie?
Running over to her, he didn't question how he was able to move so fast. He found her hunched down behind a boulder, whimpering in terror. "It's okay, Steph. It's over."
She didn't recognize him. He was so different! He had gained at least eight inches in height, and was built like a body builder. It took several minutes for him to convince her of who he was.
"I want my Chris back," she said plaintively, "not you."
Chris agreed; he wanted his regular body, much as he liked the obvious advantages of this one. As he thought about it, he felt himself change again. The pain returned, though not as intensely as when it first happened. After about ten seconds, he collapsed, back to his normal size.
They began testing his new abilities as soon as possible. The scientist in Stephanie couldn't resist the opportunity to study a paranormal of such obvious power. They discovered his strength quite quickly, as well as his invulnerability, when a boulder that had been dislodged in the initial impact finally rolled. It ran right at him, but he stopped it easily and hurled it over two hills.
Soon he discovered his powers over fire, including the ability to absorb the flames into himself; a most effective fire extinguisher. He also found he could fly, and there was nothing he enjoyed more. He took Stephanie flying several times, loving every second of it.
They sat down to consider what Chris should do with his powers. Chris had always admired heroes, comparing them to the mythological heroes of old. He felt that his powers were a gift, perhaps even a sign from God. Stephanie agreed that he should use them for good, although she was concerned about his identity remaining a secret.
"After all," she said, "if you're going to be a hero, you don't want the bad guys coming after your wife, do you?"
They moved to San Francisco in August, and rented a house as close to Stephanie's job as they could afford. Chris continued looking for full-time teaching work, but realized that if he were to become a superhero, he would have a hard time holding down a regular job. But Stephanie's income wasn't enough for two people, and he had to work. He continued substituting, but the money wasn't what they had hoped for. Dreams of steak or lamb dinners had to wait while they subsisted on chicken and spaghetti meals, but they kept their spirits up; there were a lot of people in worse straits than they.
Personality: Chris Donnelly is a good man, raised in a strong Christian family held together by a lot of love. He and Stephanie care about each other with greater feeling every day. They hope to have children, but Chris has concerns about how his altered body chemistry would affect them. Stephanie is studying his powers as much as she can, hoping to find some answers. They would also like to buy their own house, but a junior research scientist's salary doesn't meet the mortgage requirements.
Chris has a strong sense of morality, and takes the responsibility of his powers seriously. He tries to look beyond the usual activities of supers, where they spend a lot of time beating on each other. He has made it known that he supports several charities in the city, and has appeared at two functions. He has also offered his services to the SF Fire Department, but they have yet to respond to the offer. He did, however, lecture an elementary school on the dangers of fire and fire safety, with the permission of both the school board and the fire department.
Chris respects law enforcement, and will not step outside the law if he can avoid it. He rarely even bends the rules. He has conservative tendencies, and voted Republican in the last election, but doesn't announce his political views or show any hint of support when he operates as the Comet.
Chris is very aware of the dangers of fire, and can't stand villains who use it as a weapon. He will always try to take them down quickly, and will put out any fires they start. Other villains who use destructive energy are also prime targets.
Powers/Tactics: Chris Donnelly is a normal guy with a great deal of knowledge about literature and mythology. He can control an unruly class of students, and with extreme effort can even get them to hand in homework assignments on time.
The Comet, on the other hand, is a human furnace. Stephanie has measured his internal temperature at over 200 degrees F. It takes some time (about 10 seconds) to set off the reaction, however, as the heat builds up inside his body before completely transforming him into a powerhouse.
The Comet is strong enough to withstand just about any impact, and return it with interest. He can also fly at speeds over one hundred miles per hour, and is capable of flying outside the atmosphere.
He can project his internal heat in two ways, as a jet of flame or as a blast of superheated air surrounding his target. He can also absorb flames into himself (Suppress). He will rarely use his flame blast against living targets, saving it for those who are too tough for the NND. He prefers to use his strength, however, as it reduces the risk of burning people. Of course, being hit with enough force to shatter steel isn't much better than being barbecued. The choices we make...
The Comet will try to protect any innocents caught in the crossfire of a super battle, even if it means allowing villains to escape. If he can, he'll try to track them down afterwards, but innocent lives are most important.
Against really powerful opponents, Comet will use whatever attack is most likely to succeed, based on any prior knowledge. He knows that Firewing has a finer control of fire than he does, but Comet can pound him into hamburger better. He would like to find Firewing again, and put him away for good.
Appearance: Chris Donnelly is an average looking man in his mid-twenties with a scholarly attitude. He prefers comfortable clothes in various shades of blue, and wears styles that seem out of date. The first impression people seem to have is "failed yuppie." Stephanie jokes about how he should get with the times so his students will identify better with him, but it doesn't concern him. He is rarely seen without a book, usually a classic.
As the Comet, he stands over six feet tall of solid muscle. His costume is yellow with red trunks, boots, gloves, and long cape. He wears a half face mask, also yellow, and there is a large red 'C' on his chest. He tends to stand in heroic poses, since they are attention-grabbing and quite unlike his normal tendencies. People standing near him can feel the heat radiating from his body; he can't turn this off unless he changes back to his normal form.
Quote: "Playing with fire will get you burned, especially when I'm around."