Player: Mark
Sing On Used to Post for Him: Puma
Player E-mail: upanishad@tiscali.co.uk

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PERSONAL INFORMATION

Character Name: Thomas Fireheart

Current Alias: Puma

Previous Alias: Luther Concolor, numerous other temporary aliases used for professional purposes.

Age: 34

Height: 6' 2"

Build: Burly and athletic.

Hair: Black, as Thomas; Red-gold with tan fur, as Puma

Eyes: Green, as Thomas; Amber, as Puma

Relatives: Jason Fireheart (father-deceased), Tara Danvers (mother), Three-trees Fireheart (uncle-tribal shaman)

Current Occupation: CEO of Fireheart Enterprises, mercenary.

INSTITUTE INFORMATION

School Attending: Resident at Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters.

Advisor/Advisee: N/A

Squad Group: The Carded Thieves, Senior X-Men

Room Number: TFA-14

Classes Taught: N/A, for now.

Curriculum: Masters Degree in Business Administration

Non-Curriculum: Thomas possesses a genius level of intelligence. Holding a Masters Degree in Business Administration, he's a highly skilled and ruthless businessman. With nearly thirty years of intense training he's highly skilled in the martial arts, a lethal unarmed fighter and an expert in many types of weapons. A highly skilled assassin he possesses skills in 'covert operations' and extensive underworld contacts. Finally as Puma he's an exceptional tracker and possesses good knowledge of survival in wilderness situations.

Education: University graduate

Resources: A multi-millionaire, he possesses the wealth and resources of his multi-national corporation Fireheart Enterprises. He has a well-appointed New York apartment and a mansion in Hartsdale, New Mexico.

X-GENE MUTATION

Mutant Powers: Thomas Fireheart possesses the ability to shapeshift into a feline/humanoid form possessing heightened physical abilities. In addition he possesses low-level psionic abilities. Though his tribe believes these abilities to be of a mystical origin, he is in fact a mutant.

Metamorphism: His ability to transform is partially psionic in nature, his telepathic abilities assisting him in achieving the correct mental state. The process of transformation requires intense will and mental concentration and is excruciatingly painful. Transformation takes around ten seconds and renders him completely vulnerable while this is taking place. He does however have complete control over his transformation and won't transform involuntarily. Shifting back to human form is instantaneous and can be done at will.

In his transformed state Thomas has a far more bestial appearance, bearing an uncanny resemblance to a bipedal, anthromorphised mountain lion. His entire body is covered by a fine coating of tan fur. His face has a somewhat feline cast, his ears pointed and elongated, his canines prominent and his eyes amber with slit-like pupils. His hair is a reddish gold colour and in addition his jaw is framed by mutton-chop style sideburns. Thomas's digits are also tipped by razor-sharp retractable claws

The abilities possessed by the Puma form are as follows:

Strength: He possesses superhuman strength enabling him to lift up to 12 tons under optimal conditions.

Agility and Reflexes: His reflexes are about eighteen times than those of a normal human. His agility far exceeds that of a typical humans and slightly likes of Spider-man, Nightcrawler and Beast. He is thus capable of feats of agility and acrobatic prowess far beyond those of Olympic records.

Speed: He can run up to speeds of fifty miles per hour for around thirty minutes before tiring.

Invulnerability: He has great resistance to kinetic and penetration damage. A normal-strength punch or knife will simply deflect off him, while a bullet could severely bruise but likely inflict no other injury.

Healing: He has slightly heightened healing, at around three times the rate of a normal human.

Claws and Fangs: His claws and teeth are capable of rending substances as durable as steel.

Visual and Auditory Senses: His senses of hearing and sight are around twelve times as acute as a normal humans. He can also see in near total darkness.

Olfactory Sense: His sense of smell is phenomally acute, capable of detecting a scent as low as 2 parts per million. He is capable of picking out one individual scent from amongst millions, or tracking a scent almost a month old or from a distance of fifty miles. At close ranges (fifty feet or less), he can pick up from an individual scent a persons, emotions, current physical condition and even predict their immediate intentions.

Control: He has total control over his shape-shifting. The abilities possessed in this form are physical and so control is automatic.

Weaknesses: As stated transformation requires total concentration which will leave him completely vulnerable to attack. He can also be vulnerable to sensory overload on occasion.

Telepathy: Thomas possesses minor telepathic abilities. As already stated, they help him achieve the mental state and concentration required for the transformation into Puma. He also seems to have the ability to sense the presence of psionic activity in an individual or area. He however won't necessarily be able to sense the strength or type of this activity. Finally he has fairly strong mental shields and is somewhat resistant to telepathic probes and assaults but a strong or skilled telepath can easily breach these defenses.

Control: His telepathy is semi-latent, the sensing and shielding triggered subconsciously. In practical terms Thomas has no conscious control over either ability.

Weakness: No conscious control over either ability means he cannot always rely upon them.

PSYCHOLOGICAL PROFILE

Personality:Thomas is the kind of man who takes life very seriously and presents a stern demeanour to the world. It can be easy to assume that he is entirely emotionless, or to mistake his quiet dignity for aloofness. The truth is that he's simply a disciplined individual, who strives to maintain a high degree of self-control. Still such emotion as he does display is normally restricted to a quirked eyebrow, or a quiet and brief smile. He is however as capable of emotion as anyone else, and on occasion stronger displays of emotion will show themselves, intense flashes of rage or a warm laugh.

Beneath his stern exterior Thomas is actually a surprisingly compassionate and warm-hearted man. He normally maintains a polite and respectful air towards others, capable of showing surprising warmth should he take a liking to them. In speech he displays a keen wit and a dead-pan humour that might not be readily apparent. He doesn't always have much patience for those he views as irresponsible, disrespectful or dishonourable but normally gets along with everyone else. In general he has a sort of benign tolerance with perhaps an unspoken pride. He is very self-confident although not quite to the point of arrogance. He constantly strives to prove himself to others and to further himself, making him extremely competitive. He will subconsciously try to prove to himself that he is superior to others, taking on a more relaxed demeanour when he feels he has achieved this.

Honour though is what lies at the very core of his being and is a concept that he takes extremely seriously. A rigid code of honour binds Thomas and it is one that perhaps only he can truly understand. One thing that may surprise people is that he has no problem with deception, and in fact can be extremely manipulative. However this only applies to the people he views as dishonourable and thus undeserving of being treated with honour. Thomas is extremely strong-willed, surrender being a concept that seems to have no meaning for him, and he will never give up. He is courageous though not to the point of recklessness. He's protective of those weaker than himself and does have a genuine desire to help others. While he has no problem with killing and can be ruthless, he also tries to be merciful when possible.

Like many feral types Thomas does have a more bestial side to his nature but it is one he rigidly controls. On rare occasions he has been known to give in to the feral rage, but it is a source of deep embarrassment. Mainly this feral side to his nature manifests itself in battle. It is best to remember that like the predatory cat he is named for Puma, can be both lethal and ferocious and above all else dangerous.

Demeanour: Disciplined and determined.

Nature: Champion and Protector

Current Affiliation: X-Men, Resident

Previous Affiliation: Fireheart Enterprises.

HISTORY

Centuries ago a Native American tribe prophesised the coming of a being of almost infinite power and malevolence. A champion from their tribe would arise who would confront and destroy this evil and thus save the entire world. Therefore over the coming centuries, a program of selected breeding and mystical ceremonies took place in an attempt to breed this perfect warrior. Many such warriors have been born and each has served as the protector of the tribe. The latest of these to be born has been Thomas Fireheart. He was taught of the prophecy from an early age and of his duties and destiny as a protector of the tribe. Being a highly intelligent and rational man, Thomas has never entirely believed the prophecy but this hasn't prevented him taking his duties seriously.

Sadly Thomas was never really able to have a carefree childhood. From an early age much of his time was taken up by training and preparation for his duties. He also spent his early years learning the tribal lore from his uncle, the tribes shaman. He began his training in the martial arts almost as soon as he could walk instilling in him discipline and a warrior's skills. Leaving the tribal reservation at Hartsdale, New Mexico, he attended the local high school. Here his keen intelligence allowed him to become a quick learner. Even though he didn't believe the prophecy he'd resolved to take his duties seriously. In his mind the tribal protector needed to be more than just a warrior. A good education would help him to gain a successful career thus allowing him to financially support his tribe. So he was a model student, perhaps overly serious but nevertheless generally liked. He continued on into university, graduating from Harvard with a Masters Degree in Business Administration.

By this time he'd been manifesting his ability to achieve the transformation into the Puma form for a number of years. Fortunately his strong discipline had quickly enabled him to learn to control his abilities. His uncle believed Thomas to be a Manitou, a person possessed by an animal spirit. Furthermore he took this as proof that Thomas was indeed the prophesised warrior who would be the 'Chosen Champion'. Thomas himself has never quite accepted this as the truth remaining sceptical on such 'irrational' matters. In recent years he's come to the personal conclusion he is in fact a mutant. This conjecture on his part is as yet unproven.

After university Thomas started up his company Fireheart Enterprises and it proved to be quite successful. Within five years it grew to become a multi-billion dollar corporation making Thomas an extremely wealthy man. However Thomas saw wealth more as a tool than something to be sought for its own sake. Much of this wealth has gone to ensure the continuing prosperity of his tribe. He has also invested in his native Hartsdale bringing much needed improvements to the town and makes regular and generous donations to deserving charities. For a time Puma left America and moved to Japan to live amongst a culture he greatly admired. He continued his training in the martial arts under a sensei named Muramoto. During this time he fought a battle against the Hand Ninjas, acquiring the scar over his right eye. After two years he had learnt all he could from Muramoto and decided to leave Japan. He parted on good terms with his sensei and they remain friendly to this day.

Returning to America Thomas went back to running Fireheart Enterprises full time becoming a familiar sight in business circles. Still he did feel a certain degree of boredom and a desire to keep himself in practice, just in case the prophecy turned out to be true. Hence as Puma he began hiring out his services as a mercenary and assassin. However he chose to hunt only what he considered deserving prey such as corrupt government officials, drug barons, serial killers, arms dealers, and especially super villains. He's acquired a reputation as one of the best in the business, having rarely failed to hunt down his prey and being respected for his honour. Recently though he's begun to tire of this work, believing he needs to find something more honourable and perhaps a need to atone for past crimes.

Aware of the existence of fellow mutants and some of the dangers they face, he's also become increasingly aware of recent events and the ongoing power struggle between the two main mutant factions. Above all Thomas doesn't want mutants to face the fate of his own people, the Native Americans but he also believes that mutants and humans should co-exist peacefully. So he was fortunate to encounter Charles Xavier as the man requested a meeting with the CEO of Fireheart Enterprises. Finding it surprisingly easy he opened himself up to the man in the wheelchair and a long conversation followed. Determining that Xavier was a man of honour and had a noble dream, Puma has agreed to come to the Xavier School for Gifted Youngsters and perhaps there he will find the noble cause he's searching for.

SAMPLE ROLE PLAY

(An old post from Nexus. SCOTT SUMMERS IS NOT DEAD IN MANA4X2! )

After leaving the living room, Thomas wandered back to his room at a loss for anything else to do at the moment. The others would be leaving now to visit retribution upon the Brotherhood for the slaying of Scott Summers. He wasn't the only one staying behind but right now he felt like being apart from the company of the others. He needed to be alone to deal with his feelings in private, most of all to calm himself. Honour and anger were both screaming at him to rush off immediately and tear something or somebody to shreds. His rational mind told him that this was a foolish course of action and at present he was barely able to listen to it. He was out of balance and before he did anything else, that balance needed to be restored.

Once in his room, Thomas undressed and changed into the costume he normally wore as Puma. He might just end up going on a hunt so there was a need to dress appropriately. The tunic and trousers went on first, followed by the boots, the bracers and finally the necklace of teeth. He really felt like adding a few to that necklace, freshly ripped from Magneto's jaw perhaps. No he wouldn't go on a hunt yet, at least not immediately. First he would meditate, re-asserting control over his baser emotions. A successful hunter and predator didn't allow the anger to control him but instead wielded it as a tool as precise as any surgeon's scalpel.

Quietly, stealthily Thomas walked through the corridors, sniffing the air and avoiding contact with any of the others. He couldn't afford any distractions and stench of grief mixed with anger was rank. He slipped through a door and out into the garden, making his way towards a favoured meditation spot, a tall oak tree. Thomas made his way to the tree, sitting down beneath it, crossing his legs and resting his hands on his knees. He tilted his head downwards, gazing towards the ground and shutting his eyes. His ears remained pricked for the slightest sounds and his nostrils were alert for the slightest scent. He spoke softly, quietly, voice no more than the faintest of whispers.

"Though I am far from the lands of my people, there is one powerful spirit who watches over us all. I am listening to the voices of my ancestors, knowing that their words will guide me. My heart is open to you Great Spirit, to be filled with your wisdom. Let this one, your son come into your presence. I am speaking to you Great Spirit and I know you are listening."

ADDITIONAL IMAGE/S

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