The Zen Mutant
Name: Cole Marshall
Aliases: Levelhead, the Stoic Sentinel, the Zen Mutant
Age: 30 Standard Years
Occupation: None
Alignment: Serene
National Origin: American
Ethnicity: Caucasian
Hair Color: Blonde
Eye Color: Variable
Species: Human Mutant
City of Birth: San Francisco
Education: Martial Arts. That's about it.
Origin
A child when his powers first began to manifest without explanation, young Cole was sent away from his home country in order to escape potential persecution at the hands of those who would fear his abilities. His unstable emotion-based abilities threatened both himself and all those around him, and thus, it was suggested that, rather than be sedated through drugs his entire life, he be sent to a school where he could find a way to master his natural instincts and restrain his energies. Thus, Cole Marshall's new guardians became a sect of monks renowned for their ability to harness their own internal struggle and neutralize the so-called Dragon Within. Raised by this group of nomadic outsiders, Cole spent his days practicing martial arts in order to hone his focus. Eventually, however, he resolved to create his own style, based entirely upon his unique powers. Travelling the world honing his skills, the levelheaded Cole Marshall seeks not to survive in the dangerous world surrounding him, but to find true peace.
Of course, those who stand in the way of his peace often end up with a curious mixture of burns and bruises. He's pretty chill.
Most days.
Powers
Chi-based Octarine Manipulation / Tactile Energy Warp: Cole is a mutant with the power to affect and control octarine fields through intense focus, his body functioning as a living battery for the blanket energies outside the electromagnetic spectrum. Like many mutants who tap into the electromagnetic spectrum, Cole can generate and manipulate energy from the so-called anti-EM field, making use of a mixture of power sources with their origins in both psionics and mysticism. It is Cole's inner balance, however, that affects how he uses these energies, with different outcomes based upon whether his determination, serenity, rage, or compassion rules his actions. These energies can be manipulated to influence Cole's environment similar to magic, making use of their psionic-based nature to subtly interface with his surroundings on a sub-molecular scale. For example, Cole can subconsciously enhance his speed, durability, and reflexes to superhuman levels by means of altering the way his body interacts with his surroundings. His powers are similar to the spells of a sorcerer, except they function on a purely subconscious level.
However, these energies can only be expended through Cole's skin, as they cannot be readily sustained in our reality. Like electricity, they require a conductive surface to attach to, but because octarine is not a naturally occurring phenomenon (save for Cole's body), it has nothing to latch to. Like a fire without fuel, Cole's octarine energies will fizzle out soon after making contact with the air through his skin.
Life-Force Mastery: Cole's ability to manipulate energy combined with his absolute physical and mental discipline have granted him complete control over his own "life-force," which is in reality the octarine energy generated by his unique X-Gene. Whereas many serene monks have professed to access a hidden energy within themselves on a spiritual level, Cole has instead found a way to physically tap into this energy in order to change the way his body works. For example, Cole can induce rapid tissue healing throughout his body with a thought, generating excess mystical energies and forcing his body to convert said energies into adenosine triphosphate, also known as ATP. These ATP energies are then immediately put to work reconstructing his body in the most efficient way possible. Through this internal ATP manipulation, it is theoretically possible for Cole to starve off hunger almost indefinitely, so long as he has the will; he can sustain himself without oxygen for extended periods of time, so long as he maintains his focus. Cole can use these energies to purge his own body of external poisons, internally burning away harmful substances and excreting them through his skin in the form of glowing energies.
Cole's life-force mastery also extends, of course, to his martial prowess; his stamina is effectively limitless, the artificial ATP generated by his octarine heart supplanting essential nutrients and physically deleting harmful exhaustion-inducing acids from his body. When he reaches this state, his skeleton begins to glow, the energies replacing his blood as he feeds off his own power in a self-recursive loop.
Monks would refer to this internal energy as qi.
Abilities
Coming soon.
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