Phalanx
Michael Harris, AKA Phalanx is a child of the Terminus. Born with spectacular powers due to the effects of the Terminus energies unleashed on the world during the 1993 invasion on him while in utero he takes to the skies and streets of Freedom City defending the innocent and stopping those who would exploit and abuse those weaker than themselves. The fel energies of the terminus have granted him amazing resiliency and might as well as speed, the power of flight and enhanced senses. Despite the dark circumstances at the root of his powers Mike is a kind hearted individual with a deep feeling of responsibility to do what he can to improve the world and help others.
History
Mike Harris was born mere months after the Terminus Invasion of 1993, this makes him one of the oldest of this generation of Terminus Babies. His parents discovered his powers when he floated himself out of his crib to continue playing after they had put him down for a nap he was not yet willing to take. They kept it secret for a time but with their good friends the Albrights in much the same situation they soon revealed his nature to a select circle none the less they tried to keep the super kids secret trust in the government had improved with the fall of the Moore regime but not been restored in its entirety. Alex Albright the young telepath daughter of the albright family and Mike became fast friends and in these early years formed a tight bond via the young psychics powers their minds joined almost as one. The pair attended a regular preschool together, Alex already clever enough to mask her abilities and help Mike do the same, it seemed that keeping it all secret might just work though both pairs of parents wondered if the government might be able to help understand what was happening with their children. The choice was however made for them when Mike was around four and got in a schoolyard scuffle with another boy. It was a minor altercation over a ball and mike shoved the smaller boy, who flew across the schoolyard. Panic erupted, authorities were called, the child made a full recovery and Aegis saw to it the family was well taken care of to keep it quiet. They however did not inform the Harris' of this, it was all couched in secrecy but the implication was hte boy had been badly injured possibly killed. The agent in charge of the newly formed Terminus Energy Mutation Syndrome Task Force hoped to keep the Mikes Father and his ties to the media quiet with the threat of mike being revealed as some kind of monster. And for a time it worked.
The Task Force gathered suspected and confirmed T-babies at a special facility at STAR Labs. There the tests for TEMS were perfected and the children's powers and psyches monitored. Some of the best behavioral psychologists available were on hand to see to it the children were raised as normally as possible, the parents visited regularly and schedules were maintained to allow the children the illusion of freedom they lacked, the more precocious students of course were less fooled but most played along at the least. Due to the close quarters in which they were raised most of this generation, at least those born in and around Freedom, are familiar with one another and some cursory knowledge of one another's powers. Over time the threat of the assorted children being outed grew less of a concern and the parents took legal action to have hte kids returned to their homes. for some the adjustment was difficult though not for Mike. From that point until they reached fourteen years of age the children lived at home and could even vacation if they alerted Aegis of their movements. Mike regularly vacationed with his family at his grandparents farm in the countryside, sometimes joined by Alex and her family sometimes on his own. It was a place of peace and relaxation and a place remote enough he could truly test the bounds of his powers without constant worry.
When the TEMS children reached high school age the slow wheels of justice turned another small rotation and they were released if not deemed a high risk case to attend the high school of their parents choice. Both Alex and Mike ended up with invitations to the Claremont Academy which they attended happily. The secret school for supers was an excellent match for the young T-Babies others with similar but different experiences to relate to and adults far more prepared to handle super teens than available elsewhere. Of course it was still high school with all the usual ups and downs, and a few not so regular ones. For the first time Mike really connected and made friends outside of Alex and his family, it was slow going and he had a lot of residual guilt about his youthful loss of control among other issues related to his powers and his fear of them. Erin White a dimensional refugee with some of the same issues though far less angst about them became a friend, helped by her rooming with Alex, as well as the always chipper and good natured Mark Lucas, Mikes own roommate. The four of them as well as several fellow students thwarted a mad scheme at a baseball game field trip and formed Young Freedom who had many assorted adventures, once even stopping their teammate hellion from allowing himself to be used as a gate to bring Hell on Earth. They grew close as a team and dealt with many of hte usual teen issues of romance and break-ups and friendships strained and strengthened by the rigors of school and superheroics. Also the not so usual issues of time displaced offspring, and fighting Anihilists over spring break.
After graduation Mike grew apart form his friend slowly, he still clung to a dream of a normal life, of the simpler things. While Alex went and built a multibillion dollar institute, Mike pursued Jr. College and the police academy. While his friends went forth to fight all manner of villains he fought with criminal justice exams and not tipping his hand in physical training exercises. He often questioned if it was the right thing, in many ways he could do more as Phalanx than as Mike the Police officer, or Matt as his AEGIS records from his youth followed him requiring a false identity. His former companions and even his fiance did great things and he strived for a normalcy that he ought have known could never be his. His stint as an active duty officer lasted less than a week, He was outed doing what of course he would stepping in front of bullets to save a crowd. It was all over the news and though his identity was kept mostly out of it the gig was up. With his powers he could not serve the FCPD directly, too much risk and liability of breach of civil rights at the least. Now and adult Phalanx steps onto the stage to greater things perhaps, certainly more honest with himself and those around him.
Costume and Appearance
Currently Phalanx wears a variation on his Claremont Academy uniform like many of the original Young Freedom did in the past. His is the standard blue and gold skin tight suit high necked with a deep V of yellow on the chest. A yellow belt, Boots, Bracers and cape finish off the high contrast look. This look of course may soon change as he emerges as an adult hero and attempts to differentiate himself.
Powers
The Terminus energies he was exposed to have wrought many changes upon the young hero granting him many stupendous powers. Phalanx is a physical powerhouse in the main. His titanic strength has outstripped most available methods of testing but is well in excess of a freight train his impervious flesh can accept anti tank fire with out a scratch and even more potent weapons are unlikely to cause him significant harm. He is as well incredibly fast on land or when taking flight able to circumnavigate the globe in under an hour and move at interstellar speeds in vacuum. His senses are enhanced well beyond human norms able to see and hear vast distances and sight that can penetrate even solid surfaces of low enough density. Focusing the energies empowering him allows him as well to project powerful beams of light from his eyes with startling accuracy.
Allies
Phalanx has been close friends since childhood with Psyche, Alexandra Albright, She has as long as he can remember been a constant presence in his life and his mind and they are now engaged. He also maintains friendships with several of his friends from the Claremont Academy, particularly, Edge, Wander, and Midnight. He has been invited to potentially join them on the revived Liberty League though it has yet to be formalized. Mike has recently undertook a somewhat disastrous career in Law Enforcement with the FCPD and though due to his powers and the legal issues that would spring from them he no longer is an officer he maintains friendships with fellow cadets from the academy and veterans he served with if briefly though the upper echelons are less warm he may be able to call upon his police contacts upon occasion.
(Sidekick, HQ, Etc)
Phalanx does not maintain such a location on his own though he does have some access to his fiances resources through AEON and is currently if temporarily staying with Trevor and Erin at the Midnight Manor.
Playlist
Come With Me Now - Kongos - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gz2GVlQkn4Q
Shake it out - Florence and the Machine - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WbN0nX61rIs
I Won't Back Down - Johnny Cash - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8i5NLyXZdc
Shut up and Dance - Walk the Moon - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6JCLY0Rlx6Q (For Mike and Alex)
Timeline
Placement Tests - Phalanx Arrives at Claremont Academy and his abilities are tested.
Take Me Out To The Ballgame - Young Freedoms Inaugural Adventure after which the Team forms!
String and Tin Cans - Alex helps Mike through a rough patch with how to be a hero and not be afraid.
Some Girls - Mike is manipulated by Daisy Gibbons to believe hte worst about Mark and Alex
My Best Friends Girl - Mike and Mark work out most of their differences after Some Girls.
Invasion! - Riverside: Gate - Young Freedom Faces one of its greatest challenges yet when one of their own is used to open a Gate to Hell Itself!
It's a Jungle Out There - Young Freedom face down the sinister Shadivaan Steelgrave and stop Omegas plans... For Now.
Save Tonight - Alex throws a Prom for her friends and classmates and perhaps discovers why Summers does not have an official one...
It's Five O'clock Somewhere - Mike recovers from his disastrous try at the simple life with a little help from his friends
