Keiko "Kitsune" Ishimura
Gender: Female
Age: 21
Height: 5' 5"
Weight: 114lbs
Hair: Dark brown, short
Eyes: Dark brown
Nationality: Japanese
Ethnicity: Asian
Tradeoffs: None
[sblock=Description]
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[sblock=Personality]At the age of 21, Keiko has grown up with a debilitating condition, super powers, has been a celebrity of sorts, and has been to jail for a fairly lengthy term. She feels, and acts, like someone who's seen it all. She has lived a double life for so long that to some extent it's second nature to her now. There's always an undertone of duplicity with her, a sense that there's something she's not telling. Similarly, she's had many friendly acquaintances, but no real friends or people she's felt close enough to trust. She deals with it by being convinced that she doesn't need anyone else, that she's a loner. From this she is often very sarcastic or cutting in dealing with people, though just as often she pretends to be gracious and polite, especially when she wants something. In the end, she is still very self-centered, making an effort to seem otherwise just for a more sympathetic public image.
Under everything else, Keiko is defined by anger. Anger over her blindness, even if her powers corrected that. Anger over her difference. Anger about the dismissal of her family, and more recently over the rejection of her father. Anger over not being respected, and about feeling helpless. It is this anger that fuels her lashing out, her disrespect for laws, and of people in general.[/sblock]
[sblock=Background]Keiko was born with a degenerative condition in her optic nerves that led to permanent, incurable blindness by the time she turned ten. The youngest of three children, she was already the 'baby' of her well-off family, and her condition ensured that she would be kept in a gilded cage; pampered but kept out of public view for fear of embarrassment.
But even as her eyesight faded, Keiko began to realize other senses. While she could see she read stories about people who could do almost as well with hearing as with sight. She worked hard to try to develop this for herself, but with mixed results. You couldn't 'see' with sound, not unless you were a bat, and running around screeching at as high a pitch as possible was not greeted with approval by the others in the house. Then Keiko reasoned that her eyes were still working, really. It was just that the signals weren't reaching her brain right. Maybe, she thought, she could find some way to get those signals flowing again. She spent days just sitting still and concentrating, trying to find the light. Perhaps it is inevitable that her diligence was rewarded. At first Keiko thought she was just imagining things. The 'feeling' of light in her head was just wishful thinking. But experimentation rapidly proved that she could sense the presence or absense of light, despite the nonfunctioning status of her eyes.
Things progressed quickly after that initial breakthrough. She learned to distinguish between intensities of light, then colors. Then, with time, she learned to use her ability to "see" again; to mentally construct images from light just as she had before she'd gone blind. Only now the information was coming from her psionic power rather than from her eyes. This had advantages. She could 'see' in any direction without turning her head, and her mind was potentially much more sensitive to light than her eyes, letting her see in relative darkness. It went farther than that though. She could not just sense light, but change it. Shape it. Control it.
At first Keiko was overjoyed and told her parents and siblings about the breakthrough, back when she first learned she could still sense light. They didn't believe her, and told her it was all in her head. After a couple of depressing talking-tos from her father, Keiko stopped coming to them about it. Even after she learned to see again...for by then she'd realized that there were advantages to this arrangement.
She began to sneak out of the house to experience the world that her family tried to shield her from. With clever use of images of sculpted light, and blanking out her own image, she found it easy to get away and back with none the wiser. It being a large house helped. Reveling in her newfound freedom, she quickly got into trouble on the streets of Tokyo, and her latent telekinetic ability manifested to protect her. Though it was originally channeled through her body, Keiko learned to project it as well...though it was much weaker when externally focused.
Now in her late teens, Keiko found herself in a perfect position to express all the frustrations she'd endured, along with the everyday angsts of any teenager. She put on a black bodysuit and a kitsune mask with the intention of becoming a sort of 'silent ninja avenger.' More often than not though she wound up playing petty pranks on kids that annoyed her, or teachers that gave her bad marks. From this she graduated to petty thefts as she learned to 'cloak' herself, by changing light reflecting from her to match light hitting her on the other side. It was effectively perfect transparency. It didn't come easily or quickly, but when she mastered the trick, it gave her a free hand to do as she pleased.
Keiko did not only commit petty crimes with her powers though. In fact, she spent a great deal of time doing things she couldn't normally do as herself. Even innocent things like taking Akkido lessons that would be inappropriate for a blind girl to do, or less innocent things like learning to pick locks.
After a while, her nightly outings were more about thrills and excitement than a need for money...though she found ways to spend what she stole, making a secret stash that was just hers, not her family's. Her first 'big time' job was a jewelry store, and it was very nearly a disaster. The store used ultrasonic sensors, not infrared, and was easily able to detect her moving in. The police were nearby and responded quickly. And when they realized they had her cornered inside, but couldn't see her, they used tear gas to flush her out. The smoky gas made her invisibility less useful, and blocked her own sight. The coughing gave her away too. Just before they found her, Keiko managed to make an image of herself running away as she held her breath, luring the police to chase the decoy. She escaped.
After that close call, Keiko kept a low profile. She used some of her ill-gotten goods to upgrade her gear, making a new mask that was actually a filter mask disguised to look like a kitsune. Her new bodysuit was padded and made of ballistic nylon...a special order that cost her most of what she had. She practiced using these projected holograms more, even working out how to use her telekinesis to move the air to make sounds.
The setbacks she'd suffered only made Keiko more determined than ever to show the world what she could do. When she graduated from high school, she finally had more freedom in time and obligations. While she pretended to go to a private school specializing in education for blinded individuals, in reality 'The Kitsune' was born.
With a couple of small anonymous thefts at first to rebuild capital, Keiko flew across to Hong Kong. Her first crimes which were publicly under the name Kitsune were committed there and in China. Later she pulled off a string of heists in South Korea that made headlines in Asian newspapers. One of her hallmarks was her love of taunting law enforcement...sometimes even waiting for them to arrive, then calling out to them as she ran to make sure they could see her. Of course, these were all mirages to mislead them, but her sheer apparent audacity struck a chord among young, rebellious kids in Japan especially. Each crime was like a show, carefully planned, meticulously plotted, and then performed in full view of a live audience. The Kitsune relished being seen, and did most of her heists in daylight in crowded areas. She also became known for how she never actually hurt anyone in her crimes. Scaring them, sure, but never actually fighting. This eventually made her life a lot more difficult as policemen stopped taking her 'fake attacks' seriously.
Another difficulty she encountered was gaining the notice of superheroes. Though she started too small to register, eventually her flamboyance made her a target, especially for up-and-coming new supers wanting a supervillain's feather in their cap. Kitsune was adept at evading them, but they were far more capable and dangerous than local police. This all culminated in what was to be her masterwork. An American collector was showcasing his World War II relics, among which was an Okinawan sword which had been an heirloom. The family of the soldier it had belonged to had made several overtures to the collector to buy it back, but he refused. Keiko decided that Kitsune would take it back, then donate it to that family. Unfortunately, things didn't go according to plan. She managed to get the sword, but in the process was injured by American superhero, Captain Superior. She made it to a safe place and rested to recuperate. As she did, the Japanese hero Taicho Sugoi, on loan for this very high-profile case, was able to track her down. She might have escaped again, but Sugoi's powers of emotional persuasion crippled her with guilt, causing her to surrender.
The Kitsune was unmasked. The reaction of the public was schizophrenic. Her family was unspeakably shamed, and her father especially refused to speak with her. Her 'fans' found the fact that she was blind merely to add to her appeal, and even in jail people sent letters of support. Of course, officially, the Japanese government and public denounced her, and she was sentenced to a lengthy prison sentence, though they did not allow her to be tried in any of the other countries she'd committed crimes in.
After two years she managed to secure parole. Still cut off from family though, and with such a blot on her record, it was hard to understand what she could do besides return to old habits. And then she got a call from one of Japan's top talent agents, Hakama "Inazuma" Takeo. It seemed old "Lightning" had a little proposal for her...[/sblock]
[sblock=Powers]Keiko is a psion with photokinetic and telekinetic abilities. Though she is not of great power in terms of the raw energy she can wield, she has extraordinary finesse and ability to coordinate multiple powers at once to create complex effects.
Invisibility: Keiko's mind interacts with light that comes within approximately 3 inches of her skin, detecting its precise direction and wavelength with a resolution far surpassing unaugmented human vision. She has learned to simultaneously alter light reflected from her body to conform exactly to light striking her on the opposite side. Most of this processing takes place subconsciously, similarly to hand-eye coordination. The result is that of perfect camouflage. Because incoming light is not altered, it doesn't interfere with her vision at all while making her, and anything that doesn't extend out more than 3 inches from her skin, effectively invisible to all wavelengths of light, including infrared and ultraviolet.
Super Senses: Keiko 'sees' by psionically detecting and decoding incoming light. This is omnidirectional, and much more sensitive to intensity than normal for human vision. Though she's learned to point her eyes at people when she's talking to them, or to signal that she's paying attention to them, this is purely optional on her part. It's quite possible for her to 'look' at someone but in fact be watching the TV behind her.
Illusions: Keiko can alter the direction and wavelength of light even at a distance from herself. This works very similarly to her invisibility in terms of what she does. She can create visual images of whatever she chooses, make them move as she wills. The "space" she can work within is about twenty feet across...but within that area she can make any number of individual images. The working area can move as well, allowing an image to move over a large area. She's learned to use telekinesis simultaneously as well, to either move objects in tandem with images (letting an image appear to interact with real objects) or to create perturbations in the air that cause sound waves to form. Similarly to her invisibility, these illusions do not require much conscious concentration to function, operating on psionically enhanced levels of her subconscious.
Blast: Keiko calls this "Kitsune-bi," though it is not actually fire, but a psionically generated laser beam. Like most of her powers, the laser is not of great intensity, but is extraordinarily accurate; aimed directly by her mind. To date she has used the laser primarily for carving kanji into things as a calling card, cutting through barriers and locks, and similar. She hasn't turned it against a living foe.
Dazzle: Similar to the laser, but less focused and not coherent, Keiko can produce a beam that will temporarily blind people. She refers to this as kitsune-bi too...as she does the various 'special effect rays' that she uses illusions to simulate. She's notorious for using this rather freely, ensuring that The Kitsune can escape even the most persistent foe.
Environment Control: Keiko can use ambient light, even invisible wavelengths, and focus it to create an area of bright illumination. The light created appears sourceless, and is too diffuse to blind anyone unless they would normally be blind in daylight-intensity light. She generally uses this at low intensity to see in otherwise dark areas, or as a spotlight for when 'performing.'
Obscure: Alternatively, Keiko can also force light away from an area, and shift visible light into invisible wavelengths, creating an area of absolute darkness. She has used this technique quite often to block lines of sight for police and similar.
Telekinesis: Keiko's telekinetic ability isn't any stronger than she is when projected outside of her body. It has the advantage though of being silent, invisible, and quite adroit. She can use this to flip switches, operate controls, or move things around all at a distance. She most commonly uses it in conjunction with a visual illusion, to make it seem to be able to manipulate its environment and thus seem more real.
Enhanced Strength: Keiko's TK comes into its own when it is channeled through her body. It increases her physical strength by a very large amount. This can be very valuable when she needs to perform a feat of strength, or on rare occasions when she must break a hold on her or punch someone. Unfortunately, her TK is not potent enough to channel through her entire body at once...she must focus it on her upper body, or lower body.
Leap, Speed, Supermovement: When Keiko channels her telekinetic power into her lower body, she becomes much faster and capable of astonishing jumps and leaps. She's even learned to telekinetically 'stick' herself to walls and ceilings, though she's not capable of actual telekinetic levitation or flight.[/sblock]
[sblock=Raw Stats]Name: Keiko "Kitsune" Ishimura
Power Level: 6
Power Points: 100
Experience Points:
Hero Points: 1
ABILITIES 18
STR 10 +0 (0 PP)
DEX 14 +2 (4 PP)
CON 12 +1 (2 PP)
INT 16 +3 (6 PP)
WIS 10 +0 (0 PP)
CHA 16 +3 (6 PP)
SAVES 9
TOUG +5 (1 Con + 1 Feat + 3 equipment)
FORT +4 (3 Base + 1 Con) (3 PP)
REF +4 (2 Base + 2 Dex) (2 PP)
WILL +4 (4 Base + 0 Wis) (4 PP)
COMBAT 10
INIT +2
BASE DEF +2 (4 PP)
DEF 15 (10 + 2 Base + 3 dodge)
FLAT-FOOTED 11
BASE ATT +3 (6 PP)
ATTACK
Unarmed +3 to hit, DC 15 (18 w/str boost) nonlethal bludgeoning
Laser +5 to hit, DC 21 lethal laser, 150' (Precise)
SKILLS 44 SP (11 PP)
Bluff +10 (7 ranks)
Computers +4 (1 rank)
Diplomacy +8 (5 ranks)
Disable Device +8 (5 ranks)
Gather Information +8 (5 ranks)
Notice +7 (7 ranks)
Search +7 (5 ranks)
Stealth +10 (8 ranks)
LANGUAGES (1 Ranks)
Japanese (native)
English
MOVEMENT
SPEED 30/60/120 (10mph when boosted)
FEATS 11
Attractive 1
Connected 1
Contacts 1
Equipment (10) 2
Dodge Focus +3 3
Defensive Roll +1 1
Uncanny Dodge (Hearing) 1
Taunt 1
POWERS 41
Invisibility (Concealment: All Visual, PF Selective +4) 9pp
Super Senses (Radius (Sight) 1, Low Light Vision 1) +2 2pp
Photokinesis Array 20pp
Illusion (Visual + Auditory, Duration: Sustained, PF Area Progression +1) +4 17pp
PF: Blast (PF Accurate, PF Precise, PF Imp Range +1) +6 1pp
PF: Dazzle (PF Accurate, PF Precise, PF Imp Range +1) +6 1pp
PF: Env Control (Light, daylight intensity) +4, Obscure (Dark, visual only) +4 1pp
Telekinetic Array 10
Telekinesis (Perception, PF Subtle, PF Precise) +2 8pp
PF: Enhanced Str +8 1pp
PF: Leap +3, Speed +1, Super Movement: Wallcrawling +2 1pp
EQUIPMENT (10)
Smartphone 2
Laptop Computer 1
Caltrops 1
Masterwork Disable Device Tools 1
Binoculars 1
"Kitsune Costume"
Gas Mask 1
Armored Jumpsuit 3
COST
Abilities [18]
Combat [10]
Saves [9]
Skills [11]
Feats [11]
Powers [41]
Drawbacks [XX]
Total [100]
Unspent [0]
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