Snapping Turtle

Snapping Turtle is a cyborg hero and member of the Tiger Squad.

## Biography

Snapping Turtle, born Zhou Guiying, was once a martial artist who fought crime under the name Mighty Kick. A minor hero operating independently (and therefore always hiding from the government's "recruiters"), Mighty Kick focused mostly on battling corruption and low-level gangsters in his home city of Wuhan.

Mighty Kick's solo career came to an abrupt halt, however, when China was invaded by the forces of the Warlord in 2007. The brutal supervillain had paved the path for his invasion through a secret campaign of sabotage, leaving the Chinese military helplessly crippled on the day of his assault. When his Shadow Army forces rolled into a dozen major cities, Wuhan included, they were almost completely unopposed by the Chinese army.

Mighty Kick stepped out of the shadows to fight back and help buy time for the army to regroup and for Tiger Squad to send reinforcements. He dispatched two platoons of the invading Shadow Army soldiers before finding himself cornered by Warhead, one of the Warlord's lieutenants. A brief duel ensued, which Mighty Kick lost. Not satisfied with just defeating him, Warhead grabbed the unconscious hero, flew him up above the skyline, and unceremoniously dropped him to the street below.

Zhou miraculously survived the fall, but his injuries were extensive. Taken to a military hospital in the aftermath of the Warlord's withdrawal, his spine was found to be pulverized, leaving him with near-total paralysis. The Chinese government was willing to overlook his vigilantism, given his heroic sacrifice in defense of Wuhan, and so they gave him a choice: live out his days as a quadriplegic on welfare, or undergo cybernetic augmentation to recover his physical abilities and join the Tiger Squad. Unable to bear the thought of spending his remaining years paralyzed, Zhou chose the latter option, and after a year of surgery and grueling physical therapy, he was on his feet and ready to fight once more. He needed a new pseudonym, as his old identity had been sanctioned, so he chose the name Snapping Turtle to reflect his new armored body and immediately joined the Tiger Squad in the field.

## Personality

Snapping Turtle was once an optimistic young hero, but the circumstances of his transformation into a cyborg have left him disillusioned and bitter. His body is so heavily mechanized that he no longer really thinks of himself as a human, but rather as a freakish monster, and his resentment shows in his hostile attitude and violent temper.

Snapping Turtle once resented the Tiger Squad's role as the enforcers of a corrupt Party's agenda, but after his transformation he has whole-heartedly embraced even the most grim missions. He not only executes state-sponsored violence, he *celebrates* it, and regards some of his teammates (such as Equilibrium) as hypocrites for acting as the people's champions while simultaneously oppressing them. Ironically, this attitude has made Snapping Turtle nearly as disliked by his superiors as the outright dissidents on the Tiger Squad; his inability to quietly toe the party line and engage in double-speak are often seen as mockery of the State by his handlers. Still, his willingness to carry out any assignment without complaint makes him extremely useful, so he is in no danger of being decommissioned for his bad attitude.

## Powers

Snapping Turtle was an exceptional martial artist before his transformation; now his abilities are further enhanced by synthetic muscles, titanium joints, thick armor and a few choice combat gadgets. Able to leap great distances thanks to his artificially enhanced legs, he often closes the gap instantly with a target, typically choosing any martial artists as his primary focus.

Snapping Turtle fights with a pair of batons as his primary weapons. These cover his hands, allowing him to deliver a variety of punches and strikes, and augment his attacks with painful bursts of electricity. Unlike many martial artist heroes, Snapping Turtle has genuine super strength as well, and will often surprise a foe by hurling heavy objects or bursting straight through walls.

Snapping Turtle's most notable enhancement is his armored suit. While out of his suit, he looks mostly human, though he has obvious connection points on his scarred body. These points slot into his suit, providing him with a 'second skin' that further enhances his abilities in combat. The most unusual component is the large armored plate on his back, which is even more well-protected than the rest of him. This "shell" houses a generator that gives him the ability to fight for hours without tiring, and can briefly supercharge his electric attacks to wound even the most resilient foes. Further, Snapping Turtle has altered his fighting style to utilize his armored back, always presenting his strongest defense at the last second and then whirling around to deliver a painful blow.

Lastly, Snapping Turtle's senses have been greatly enhanced by his cybernetic modifications, and he has effective vision in 360 degrees. Along with his impressive martial prowess, this allows him to fight effectively and react to blows even when surrounded.

## Weaknesses

Snapping Turtle is both man and machine, and he has the weaknesses of both. His machine parts are sophisticated, but the computer that runs them is not, and he is vulnerable to 'hacking' from any tech-savvy opponent who can manage to access his systems. Further, powerful magnetic fields disorient him due to the interference with his electronic nervous system and can render him weak and clumsy.

Like many fighters with anger issues, Snapping Turtle can be easily goaded. Although he is an experienced and intelligent fighter, he cares more about venting his frustrations than efficiently carrying out his missions. As a result, he frequently bends or outright ignores his orders to pursue his own objectives, which clever opponents can exploit to lead him into trouble.