Paul Mann

"*I wanted to live up to Grant's memory and just...I tried too hard. I didn't want him to remember me as a failure.*"
―Paul Mann to Harrison Root and Winston Cahill[src]
Who?

## Biography

### Background

Paul Roman Mann was born in the Northern city of Redstone to Max and Olivia Mann. As a child he was renowned for quickly developing his wind powers from an early age, and typically being an earnest, precocious student. He was teased fairly frequently for this but he didn't altogether mind too much until his teenage years, when things got much worse.

After completing high school and college, Paul basically married the first girl he dated for more than six months, and divorced her after another three months after she proved to be unfaithful and emotionally abusive. He remained in Redstone for much of his adult life, growing increasingly bored with his life as a pencil-pushing desk jockey.

Paul started doing mercenary work, using his relative anonymity to his advantage. He ended up leaving Redstone after one of his assignments put his mother and father in danger, and traveled south, where he eventually found himself in the city-state of Alter.

There, Paul met Grant Talon, leader of a local gang known as the Talons. The two hit it off and Paul became close with him and his wife before her untimely demise. Common gossip mocked Paul for seeming in love with Grant. Although he wasn't in a romantic sense, Grant ended up becoming a critical person in Paul's life.

Paul took control of the Talons as Grant tried to raise his son Carter to the best of his ability. Paul found the work was too his liking but that people would not take him seriously. Grant took control of the organization again after a while and Paul resumed serving his superior.

### Arc I

After Carter was killed, Grant sent Paul to apprehend his murderer, Cameron Lark. Paul succeeded in this task and brought him back to see Grant before throwing him in a dungeon with Malcolm Truman.

Later, Paul attempted to coerce Travis Cooledge to give up his stockpile of weapons by using Laura, a former lover of his. This attempt ended in failure, and he was chastised by his boss. He then offered to send assassins to kill Cameron and Malcolm. This failed as well.

Paul met in Phil Thornton's bar and met up with the assassin Aaron Wilson. Cameron put a knife to his throat during the encounter. Paul blew him back with a gust of wind and slit Wilson's throat. As he attempted to gloat during battle, Malcolm flung a table at his head, knocking him unconscious.

Cameron and Malcolm then attempted to use him as a bargaining chip to get the Talons off their backs. As the fighting began, Cameron kicked Paul onto the concrete and was forgotten about. He managed to escape during the chaos.

After Grant Talon's death at the hands of Quinn Hayes, Paul took control of the Talons, and aimed to return them to their former glory and take revenge on those who'd done wrong to them.

Later, Paul attacked a Red Ant base and decimated them easily. The leader of the base mouthed off to him, showing him no respect before Paul killed him. He was then approached by Winston Cahill and Catalina Luna, who represented the Crested. They offered to form a temporary alliance against Hayes and the Red Ants, and gave him an address to go to.

Paul and his men attacked the Signal nightclub, only to find a force led by Eugene Watt waiting for them. Eugene's men quickly beat him back, but not before Taylor Cooledge was misled to help Eugene out. Paul retreated before she arrived.

Paul then went off on Winston for using him and his men as bait. Winston mocked him one too many times, and just as Paul grabbed his throat, Harrison Root walked into the room, calmly ordering Paul to back off. Paul did so, terrified.

Root claimed that he'd originally planned to give Paul money for his trouble, but that after choking Winston his only compensation was to live. Paul apologized, realizing that he'd been trying too hard to honor Grant's memory. He left without a struggle.

Paul later returned to Phil's bar, where he began drinking heavily along with a lot of his men. After one of his men Jerry insulted him, Paul blasted him on his ass and made an increasingly impassioned speech about returning the Talons to their former glory. This speech was tragically cut short when an invisible Lace Jensen slit his throat.

## Appearances

* *City of Alter*
	+ *Chronicles of Ceres: Volume I*
		- *Long Live the King, Part I*
		- *Burden*
		- *A Talon-ted Dude*
	+ *Arc I*
		- *I. Out of the Frying Pan*
		- *III. Thicker than Water*
		- *IV. Cold Heat*(mentioned)
		- *V. Confrontation*(mentioned)
		- *VI. The Anchor*(mentioned)
		- *VII. Turning Gears*
		- *VIII. Cloak and Dagger*(mentioned)
		- *IX. Check*
		- *X. Checkmate*(mentioned)
	+ *Arc II*
		- *XI. Fork in the Road*(mentioned)
		- *XIII. Parasite*(mentioned)
		- *XVI. Of Those Left Behind*(mentioned)
	+ *Arc III*
		- *XXIII. Brothers in Arms*(mentioned)
	+ *Arc V*
		- *XLVII. Beginning of the End*(mentioned)
	+ *LI. Remnants*(mentioned)