Darkling

Description (as Darkling)
Before you stands a black-clad figure straight from the pages of Soldier of Fortune. A sturdy black coverall swathes her slender form, loose enough to provide generous ease of movement but close-fitting enough to leave you certain the figure within is an athletic young woman of moderate height. Thick padding adorns the elbows, knees, hips, and shoulders but you doubt that it protects against anything more than incidental abrasions and knocks. Impressively sturdy combat boots are tightly laced about her calves, ankles and feet, their tread soft, pliable and noiseless when she moves.

Beyond first impressions your eyes are drawn immediately to the matt black bullpup machine pistol she holds with a familiarity borne of long hours of training, its barrel short but lethal-looking, carefully pointed to the ground at all times. Her gloves are carefully designed to precisely sheath her hands, skilfully crafted to blend fine control with comfort and protection. The leather belt encircling her slender waist carries a series of canvas pouches providing storage for a tools, ammunition and other items. Her head is concealed entirely from view, a loose balaclava of some lightweight material completely shrouding her features. Though obviously slightly thinner over her eyes, mouth and ears it still very effectively conceals the details of her appearance. From her physique and the fluid grace of her movements it is obvious however that she is strikingly athletic.

Description (as Felicia Dunbar)
Flawlessly smooth skin of matte bronze flows across the youthful features of this striking young woman. The clean, well defined curve of her jaw contrasts with high, round cheeks faintly dimpled by the ghost of a smile. A broad, strong nose testifies to her African American heritage and perfectly complements a narrow full-lipped mouth below and a pair of exotically tilted dark brown eyes above. Silky black hair is pulled into a simple, slightly haphazard ponytail that hangs down to her shoulders, stray wisps of hair curling gently against her cheeks. The simplicity of her hair style and her lack of obvious makeup are slightly belied by long, lush lashes, and finely arched brows.

A loose sleeveless white shirt shrouds the slender athleticism of her torso, a tight-fitting black sports bra worn beneath to preserve dignity. Her arms and shoulders show a subtle but unmistakable tracery of muscle as she moves, weaving a fluid, intricate tracery of light and shadow. Her slender waist is clasped by a pair of loose lightweight lavender pants that afford her considerable ease of movement, the light, fluid grace of her gait reinforcing the overall impression of strength, poise and vitality. A pair of brightly detailed black sneakers flash beneath the hem of her pants with each bouncing step.

(Felicia's outfit may vary with circumstances)

Origins
Felicia Dunbar grew up in the Lowtown district of Colonial Bay in a cluster of medium density apartment blocks that served as fortresses for small rival gangs of petty criminals. Her father abandoned his family when she was eight, leaving mother and child at the mercy of local thugs. In her childhood extreme sports seemed like a magical escape, the athletes could almost fly it seemed, and were capable of spectacular death-defying feats just like heroes. As she grew bike riding and bike stunts became a refuge from the grim gang-dominated confines of the Block.

At sixteen Felicia left school and took up work as a bike messenger and sometime competitor in extreme athletic competitions though her over-aggressive approach limited her success. Pedalling through the streets she could see the petty transactions that kept the gangs afloat and she noticed something strange, as a messenger she was hardly ever noticed, she could if she wanted strike and be gone before anyone paid attention. She saw an opportunity to finally redress the injustices that beset the Block and its denizens.

Her early forays proved the concept worked and over time she became bolder, striking bigger targets, gradually acquiring more equipment to make her next strike more successful. She proved a major thorn in the sides of the smaller gangs and was moving on up the chain though with bigger game came bigger risks, which is how she came to be involved in a running gunfight across the warehouse rooftops of the Dockyard district.

Having raided a major drug cache hidden in shipping containers in the dock district. Darkling was hotly pursued by a gang of cartel thugs across the rooftops. Outnumbered and close to being surrounded, Felicia dove blindly through a skylight and into Stygian darkness below.

In the warehouse the desiccated fifth dynasty vizier Sekhemkhare-Ra completed the final preparations for a ritual that had been four millennia in the making. In the dark of a new moon he placed the canopic jar of Narmer, the first pharaoh, under the light of Sothis, the dog star, at its apogee on the eve of its first heliacal rising. As he prepared to shatter the jar and absorb the dead pharaoh's essence, restoring himself to full vitality and immortality, Sekhemkare-Ra paused to give thanks to his dark Master Set. The countless centuries of travail had finally borne fruit, the power of Horus would finally be his!

Without warning a sudden crash over head was followed by the flutter of fabric as a black-clothed figure dropped from above to land with a thud and shatter the jar and its contents, crushing them to dust. Horrified, enraged, the ancient vizier scrambled frantically to recover the energies released but too late, they were gone, destroyed by this clumsy interloper. Taking forth his bronze dagger he slew the girl as she struggled to her feet, before engulfing her pursuers in pillars of sulfuric flame. Immortality had finally been within his grasp! These blundering insects had cost him eternity. He soared into the night sky, rage tearing at his heart. This city would pay for what it had taken from him. On wings of pure hatred he flew off to begin his revenge.

A few minutes later Felicia struggled groggily back to her feet, not really understanding how it was she was still alive... and not just alive... vibrant, like she was overflowing with energy.

In the weeks that followed she would begin to understand the nature of the changes, even as Sekhemkhare-Ra recognised his mistake.

Powers
For the most part Felicia is a reasonably normal human being, she is an unusually talented athlete but not really to a level that might be considered superhuman. Her initial efforts at crime fighting relied heavily on the element of surprise and a collection of weapons liberated from criminals. Her machine pistol (or submachine gun) is capable of firing either standard teflon coated rounds in bursts of three or pellets of a mild skin-absorbed neurotoxin that stuns opponents. The toxin, which is also used in the grenades, quickly disperses and has an instantaneous effect, however it requires access to a significant quantity of permeable skin. Normal cloth, an impermeable skin (of say stone, metal or the like) or an airtight forcefield will render the gas ineffective, as will a resistance to toxins.

Her bandolier of grenades is slung on her hips and may be ripped off by anyone with adequate strength. The grenades come with a number of pre-set functions that may be chosen when the fuse is activated. The foam grenades project a fast-setting foam that hardens on contact with air to encase targets inside the splash radius. The gas, flash, and explosion effects are standard for weapons of this type.

Since interrupting Sekhemkhare-Ra's immortality ritual however Felicia has developed a number of unusual abilities. She has become extremely resistant to the effects of pain and though she can easily be physically harmed recovers quickly from even lethal amounts of damage. She has not yet realised the true extent of the transformation though it is obvious that she does not need to breath or sleep and her need for food is vastly reduced. Without any physical benefit to holding back, her punches are stronger and harder than previously, making her a formidable opponent in hand to hand combat.

Relations
Felicia lives just a few doors away from her mother in a Lowtown apartment block. She holds down a steady job as a bike courier but her closest friends are riders and skateboarders from the skate park closest to the CBSU, a favourite haunt for the local extreme sports crowd.

While delivering a package to Starguard headquarter's in the aftermath of the attack by Dr Scarletti a Next Generation acquisition team attacked. Beating up one of the attackers and taking up his rifle Felicia was able to save a Star Guard agent from helicopter crash and came to the attention of Colonel Abigail Hearns as a potential recruit.

Personality
Felicia is young, confident, brash and impulsive. She is loyal to her friends, protective of innocents and resentful of those who abuse their power and influence. In the heat of battle she has a tendency to navigate by impulse, choosing flashy, spectacular options over conservative cautious ones. She has few stable relationships in her life, and eschews all forms of responsibility except the care of her mother who, while not an invalid, is not anywhere near propserous and reliant on the financial support of her daughter.