John Lynch

## Background

### 1962 - 1991: John Lynch

John Lynch is a military man, through & through. He joined the Navy after graduating from the United States Naval Academy then worked his way up the ranks of America's most secret intelligence organization the hard way. As a Lieutenant, he was one of the few tapped by the Navy SEALs. His record of confirmed kills coupled with his accuracy & usefulness of his intelligence reports brought him to the attention of the various government agencies. Transferred stateside, he spent time at Langley before being hand-picked to join the own covert operations bureau called International Operations.

Over time, his sterling record attracted the attention of his superiors & he was recruited into Team 7, a team of the finest & best operatives that all the various government forces could offer. As the team's leader, Lynch was codenamed "Topkick." While he was given that role, he had difficulty getting the respect of his teammates, due in part to his unquestioning following of orders & his strict adherence to the rules. He naively believed the government would always act with the best intentions but he was soon brought back to reality.

## Powers & Abilities

* **Metahuman Physiology:** Exposure to the GEN Factor Formula has gifted as well as cursed him with supernatural abilities both mental & physical. These powers have fluctuated in potency over the coarse of his life.
	+ ***Accelerated Healing*:** John can heal & recover damaged bodily tissue structure at phenomenal rates. When shot in the head, his brain was able to replicate new tissue. However, the effectiveness of which varies wildly between uses.
	+ ***Longevity***: It has been nearly three decades since he was exposed to Gen-Factor yet he still maintains the appearance from then as well as vitality of that time.
	+ ***Telepathy*:** He possesses the power to control & scan someone's mind.
	+ ***Telekinesis*:** He can create force fields & project varying waves of energy from his body
* **Firearms**
* **Hand to Hand Combat**
* **Leadership**
* **Tactical Analysis**
* **Cybernetic Eye**: This is unknown to most people but within his eye is a small laser. He once used it to cut himself free after being captured.

### Weaknesses

* **The Rush**: The side effects of using this power are sometimes terrible. The team referred to it as The Rush due to the effect that the use of it is likened to a drug.
	+ ***Physical Strain***: Using the powers can put a terrible strain on him & trying to keep them under control would often cause blood vessels to rupture.
	+ ***Affect Mind***: Prolonged use would threaten his sanity & outside forces.

### Ratings

* **Intelligence:** Unknown
* **Strength:** Unknown
* **Speed:** Unknown
* **Occult:** Unknown
* **Weapons:** Unknown
* **Range:** Unknown
* **Strategy:** Unknown
* **Combat:** Unknown
* **TOTAL:** Unknown

## Trivia

* He has massive scarring across his face from an uncontrollable demonstration of his powers.
* John was once shot in the head but his accelerated healing allowed his brain to replicate new tissue.
* He previously had an affair with Christine Blaze while he was married. The relationship continued even after he divorced his wife, who then died the next year.
* When Ben Santini joined I.O., he was placed in Lynch's unit. The two got along very well with Lynch become a mentor to him.
* He joined the DEO in 2009 after realizing something fishy was going on with the I.O. He brought Ben with him & the two began investigating them alongside Blake Coleman.
	+ The "something fishy" was Ivana Baiul asked Stormwatch Agent Khalid Tefibi to run a check on computer security at the DEO under a false name. Becayse of the false name, Tefibi could never prove that a superior asked him to do it. When the DEO found out about the breach, Tefibi was sent to prison & Baiul was never implicated.
* Lynch & Santini were approached by Henry Bendix, the founder & leader of Stormwatch. He not only offered his help in the matter but also positions for them in his organizations. While they appreicated the help, none of them wanted to leave the DEO. It wouldn't be until Coleman was killed in what was a obvious hit that Ben decided to make the switch, feeling that Stormwatch had more resources that allowed him to bring an end to I.O. Ben's joining of Stormwatch allowed him to gather more intel, leading to Lynch sending Christine Blaze undercover at I.O.
* When the DEO & Stormwatch shut down International Operations, John Lynch recognized that many of the captives were children of his former teammates. After the compound was cleared, the former captives were given an option to be escorted home or trained on their newfound abilities. Five picked the latter & Lynch was chosen to become their handler.