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G. W.
CDC Entry: Wildfire
Real Name: Henry Victor
Age: 15
Hometown: Chicago, IL
Powers: Fireproof, can throw fireballs, can turn all or part of body into pure flame, super speed/strength/endurance when in flame mode.
Weakness: The longer he stays in flame mode, and the more of his body in flame mode, Henry loses more and more control over himself.
When Henry was 8 years old, his parents died in a tragic car accident, and he was sent to live with his uncle. Unfortunately, his uncle hated him, and was verbally and physically abusive. One day, when Henry was 15, his uncle tried to rid himself of Henry once and for all. He pretended to leave for work, when in fact he actually just went outside the house and started a fire in an attempt to kill Henry. As he was about to die, Henry saw a strange, glowing being in the flame (the truth behind the being is still unknown). He was strangely drawn toward it, and reached out to touch it. He passed out, but was otherwise completely unharmed when firefighters found him buried beneath the rubble of his uncle’s house.
In the hospital room, after he had awoken, his uncle came in feigning sympathy. In that moment, Henry realized exactly what had happened, and in a fit of rage, confronted his uncle. To his surprise, he reached his hand toward his uncle, and his hand burst into flame, setting his uncle on fire. Panicking, and realizing that he was entirely engulfed in flame, Henry ran through the hospital, accidentally killing many people in the process. He ran as far as he could, eventually jumping into lake Michigan in an attempt to extinguish himself. When he returned to himself, he went into hiding.
Penniless and alone, Henry was living in the streets of Chicago, stealing what he could and avoiding the cops and other authorities best he could. He planned to get away from the city as soon as he could to avoid arrest. It was December. In a dark alley, Henry held his arm ablaze in an attempt both to warm himself and to heat up a couple of hot dogs he had stolen. Suddenly, He was approached by the strangest group he had ever seen: Two beings, one seemingly made of smoke, the other of glass, a giant lizard man, a robotic spider, a woman who appeared to be a stripper of some sort, a young man who seemed at most a few years older than himself, and, somehow both the most normal and the most peculiar of all, a man in a crudely made Egyptian mask.
As soon as he first saw the young man, Seth knew he was seeing someone who was very powerful, very dangerous, and, if he acted quickly, very easy to manipulate. He put on an act of sympathy, listening to Henry’s story, dubbing him “Wildfire,” and bringing him into the team. Although his sympathy began as a ruse, Seth grew to develop a soft spot for the young man, as did many other members of the team.
As for Henry, he was just glad to feel accepted for the first time in years. He didn’t realize or even really care that he was being manipulated, or that he was with the bad guys. Although Guanlong still creeped him out.
I chose the backstory that I did after realizing that all but one of the villain team members thus far is in it for personal gain, with Seth being in it to promote a political ideology. Even Smoke and Mirrors, who have a bit of a vengeance story, are still in it at least partially for the money. For that reason, I wanted to introduce a character to the team who would be at least somewhat sympathetic.
