Arcella Teraeux

* Biography
* Threat Assessment
* Trivia and Notes
* Gallery

## Maxima

* Maxima
* Alice Thoreau

### Background

Much like the Kryptonians and Humans, the people of the distant alien world of Almerac have a common ancestry derived from Kheran colonization and breeding experiments. Similar to the case with Earthlings and Kryptonians, the Almeracians lost contact with the Kheran Empire long ago as a result of frequent wars. Left to fend for themselves, the local Kheran governor of Almerac declared herself "Maxima" and took her own brother to wed. This began a long tradition of in-breeding among the royal house of Almerac in an effort to prevent the royal bloodline from losing the potency of the Kheran genes.

All of the Great Houses of Almerac were offshoots of the royal family. When the royal family began to show signs of faltering genetic structure due to their practice of inbreeding, they began to breed with their noble cousins, but that only delayed the inevitable. By the time of the reign of Grand Maximo Roggur, the marriage of Roggur to his cousin Jeora was considered risky by Almeracians.

### Arcella Teraeux: 1365 - 1380

Arcella of the Great Royal Almeracian House Teraeux was born approximately six hundred and forty-five years before her arrival on Earth. She was the first of her parents' children to be deemed 'fit' for succession by the planets' eugenists. This caused a great deal of contention among her older siblings who constantly bullied Arcella, forcing her to prove her worth. As she grew older, her siblings became more deliberately violent in their tests for their younger sister, eventually escalating to outright attempts on Arcella's life.

As punishment for attempting to murder the heir to the crown, Grand Maximo Roggur ordered all of Arcella's siblings executed. Witnessing the death of each of her older siblings was a traumatic event for Arcella. On one hand, she was relieved to no longer be subjected to their violent games, but she also lost those closest to her with several swoops of the executioner's blade.

### Arcella Teraeux: 1380 - 1989

With the death of her siblings, Arcella felt the royal palace was empty. There were hundreds of guards, servants, and political advisors, not to mention her tutors and handmaidens, but she had no personal connection with any of them. Arcella was even distant from her parents as they gave her little time and attention. She was little more than an heir to them, a way to ensure the future of the system of governance. Arcella began to fill her time by taking lovers from among all walks of life, finding some comfort and validation in these carnal displays of intimacy.

When she came of age, Arcella was properly named as the official heir and given the title of Maxima. As was the custom of Almerac, a nobleman of good noble stock was selected for her to wed, but the eugenists of Almerac were able to convince the young Maxima that it would be better for the people of Almerac if the Maxima were to find a mate from outside the gene pool of Almeracian nobility.

Arcella set out on her spaceship to find her ideal mate. Almeracian technology lacked FTL capability so for 300 years, Arcella was kept in cryostasis to pass the time while three generations of Almerac crew lived and died manning the ship that brought her to the first inhabitable planet. While Arcella's ship was retrofitted with FTL ability, the Maxima spent her time cajoling the upper-class figures of the planet. She eventually decided that the people of this planet were not well-suited to producing offspring with Almeracian mates, so the Maxima moved on.

This would become a frequent pattern. Planets visited by her ship were deemed to be inhabited by beings not sapient enough, not intelligent enough, or lacking powers equal to her own. Eventually, after screening over nearly four hundred species and over three dozen short cryo naps, the Maxima came upon a Daxamite fleet.

Arcella's onboard eugenist considered the Daxamites the ideal candidate and encouraged her to take one as a potential mate. Arcella was in the process of wooing the single Daxamite males when the Daxamites took up battle stations due to their sensors detecting the nearing presence of an enemy threat they called Brainiac.

### Maxima: 1989 - 2010

While the Maxima was playing "The Bachelorette - Intergalactic Edition" with the Daxamite Fleet, Brainiac, and his menagerie fleet crashed the party. After an intense space battle, the Daxamite Fleet was destroyed as was the Almeracian starship. However, during the battle, the Maxima was several Daxamites were captured and brought before Brainiac. Out of a dozen or so prisoners, Brainiac selected a few choice candidates to add to his genetic collection. Due to her genetic similarities, as well as her biological differences from Kryptonians, Arcella Terauex was chosen to be added to Brainiac's menagerie.

Naturally, being raised with the expectation of being a proud warrior queen, Arcella was not a model prisoner. She continually resisted Brainiac's commands and expectations for her cooperation with his research. This left Brainiac little choice but to put her on ice: storing her in a cryostasis chamber. It was here that the Maxima was kept for decades. Arcella was likely still kept chilled as JLA fended off Brainiac's invasion, aboard one of his collection ships.

At an unknown date and time, Brainiac moved the Maxima to a secret chamber he had constructed beneath the Star City installment of STAR Labs. Brainiac, in the guise of Milton Fine, began conducting experiments on Arcella.

### Maxima: 2010 - 2013

Arcella's cryostasis chamber suffered a mechanical failure late at night — likely due to a power surge in late January. 24 hours later, a dazed and naked Arcella woke up and stumbled out of Brainiac's lab. In the middle of the night, the Maxima navigated her way out of STAR Labs and into the streets of Brainerd. Due to the hour and her lack of attire, it was not long before she was harassed by some members of the Hard Knocks street gang. After defeating the thugs, the Maxima became enraged by the cruelty of these "lesser creatures" and went on a rampage. Green Arrow reached out to the Watchtower to help subdue the clearly powerful female.

While Green Arrow and others helped evacuate the area, Superman swept in to take on the Maxima. Arcella did not like being told to "stand down" by this flying man and a fight broke out between the two alien powerhouses. During the resulting melee, the Maxima decided that the Man of Steel was quite the match for her — both as a worthy opponent and a potential mate. The Maxima stopped fighting to declare her intent to marry Superman.

Moments later, a Nth metal mace struck the Maxima off-guard, subduing her. While the Justice League would tease Superman about the encounter for the next few weeks, the Maxima was mostly forgotten about. After being arrested, Arcella was sent to Stryker's Island where an experimental super-max security containment facility was being tested. While there, Arcella was questioned, but her story did not seem plausible enough to be further investigated.

With the outing of Milton Fine, Brainiac's secret lab was discovered, including a lock where the Maxima's raiment and sword were kept. With this news, the Maxima was released. OF course, she took this as proof of Superman's affection for her. She tried to woo him, but he continually rebuffed her advances.

With Almerac being beyond contact and no clear way for her to return home, the Maxima was given refugee status by the United Nations who put her up in a luxury penthouse in Gateway City. The UN was interested in establishing diplomatic relations with Almerac. However, when she wasn't being hounded by ambassadors and heads of state, the Maxima was often crashing the Hall of Justice, the Watchtower, or Justice League missions intent on seducing Kal-El or his kin.

### Maxima: 2013- Present

Arcella was nominated to join the Justice League by the Martian Manhunter. She was a controversial choice. She likely would not have been admitted if she had not been sponsored by J'onn J'onzz. However, since joining, Arcella has proven herself to be a capable champion of Earth. Though, at times, she can be a rather irritating teammate, she's definitely one you want on your side when the battle begins.

## Threat Assessment

### Resources

* **Royal Almeracian Physiology:** Arcella's genetic structure is much more resilient and effective than human tissue. While she appears human, Arcella also possesses organs whose functions are not yet understood but are likely closer to Kryptonian or Kherubim biology.
	+ ***Enhanced Resilience:*** Arcella's body is nigh-invulnerable due to her dense cellular and anatomical structure as well as her telekinetic aura. Arcella is highly resistant or immune to most lacerations, blunt force trauma, energy-base assaults, falls from great heights, explosions, the cold void of space, and most diseases on Earth. Her "aura" acts as an invisible "force field" radiating within a few millimeters from her skin while also integrated with her cellular tissues.
	+ ***Enhanced Strength:*** Arcella has Class VIII Enhanced Strength, putting on the same level of strength as the likes of Superman and Knockout of the Secret Six. This strength is likely partially powered by her telekinetic ability and would likely be less but still considerable if her psionic abilities were somehow dampened. However, exactly how much this would impair her is unknown as Arcella insists that "The Maxima does not allow herself to be weakened to sate lessers' curiosities!"
	+ ***Flight:*** Arcella can use her telekinesis to levitate herself and propel her through the air at great speeds. She can break the sound barrier and become supersonic, though she is somewhat slower than Kryptonians. Her top speed that has been recorded to date is approximately Mach 3 (2300 MPH || 3700 km/h).
	+ ***Telekinesis:*** Arcella has the ability to create powerful constructs with ambient intrinsic energy, molding them with her will. This allows her to create defensive force fields, pull objects to her hands, or propel objects in a telekinetic maelstrom. She has been known to catch thrown automobiles with this power, but the exact strength of this ability is unknown. She claims to have the power to tear humans apart at a molecular level with nothing but a thought, but has never displayed such an ability (she claims that would be "too easy" and "hardly a challenge).
	+ ***Teleportation:*** Through some means of intrinsic manipulation, Arcella is able to teleport herself along the intrinsic paths (ley lines) of a planetary body. The exact method she uses to conduct this is unknown. She divulging this information is against the laws of Almerac as this ability is unique to the Royal Family of Almerac.
* **Weaponry:** Arcella might not have the martial ability of Wonder Woman, but she can give the Amazonian Princess a run for her money. The two often spar and every time they do they push the Hall of Justice's training arena's safeguards to its limits.
	+ ***Starbreaker:*** Arcella has a large sword she has named Starbreaker. As per Almerac custom, the weapon's name was taken from the life of an enemy Arcella slew. She will rename the blade if she ever takes the life of a more worthy enemy. The blade is made from an alloy that has shown the ability to cut Kryptonians and Apokalyptans alike. Wonder Woman has tried to convince Arcella not to carry the weapon into battle as it could potentially be used against her but Arcella dismisses such notions, claiming "I'd like to see a lesser being try to use the Maxima's blade against her. They will surely die for such folly!"

### Weaknesses

* **Vice — Lust:** Arcella seeks out romantic and sexual partners with regularity. Though she claims the ultimate goal is to find a mate to produce offspring with to secure her claim to the Throne of Almerac, she also seeks comfort from such intimacy. Until recently, Arcella struggled with overcoming the Almeracian custom of 'claiming love' which is almost as rapey as it sounds. Even still, she tends to be quite persistent.
* **Vice — Pride:** Arcella is the epitome of a vain, privileged noblewoman. She believes that she is entitled to every luxury and consideration. Though her time on Earth has humbled her somewhat, she is still quick to remind others that she is Maxima for a reason. She often touts her superiority over others and refers to most people as "lesser creatures". However, that said, she does consider the people of Earth to be under her protection now and threats against its people cannot be tolerated.

### Analytics

* **Physicality:** 7 — Legendary
* **Occult:** 6 — World-Class / Superb
* **Weaponry:** 7 — Legendary
* **Expertise:** 2 — Basic / Typical
* **Range:** 6 — World-Class / Superb
* **Strategy:** 4 — Expert / Enhanced
	+ **TOTAL:** 162
	+ **RANKING:** Severe Threat

## Trivia and Notes

### Trivia

#### General

* Maxima quit trying to seduce Superman (though she still carries a torch for him) upon learning he was married, had children, and was decidedly monogamous.
* She then turned her attention to Kon-El. Superboy was definitely flattered, but Arcella lost interest when she learned that Kon-El was genetically engineered (Almeracians are all about selective breeding, but prefer the old-fashioned method).
* Then Arcella came onto Power Girl. Maxima was not looking for a traditional mate at this point and just wanted someone intimate, fun relationship with. She was making an effort to acclimate to Earth as she was losing hope of seeing Almerac again. However, nothing more than a drunken kiss resulted from this.
* After being rebuffed by three Kryptonians, Maxima looked for worthy candidates among the Earthlings. She found Captain Atom worthy, but the relationship didn't have any longevity, fizzling out shortly after Captain Atom was seen having a walk of shame from Maxima's cabin on the Watchtower.
* Arcella doesn't seem interested in pursuing actual relationships at the moment. Instead, she mostly cavorts with free-loving teammates, like Requiem and Zatanna.

#### Expanded Personal Details

* **Blood Type:** Almeracian Royal Blood
* **Spiritual Paradigm:** Eldritch
* **Religion:** Runon
* **Denomination:** Cult of Zolicus
* **Ancestry:** Almeracian Royal Line

#### Personal Preferences

* **Earth Dessert:** Chocolate Brownies
* **Earth TV Program:** Dr. Sexy
* **Earth Song:** Animal Sex War
* **Earth Singer:** Kara Valentine

### Notes

* In the comics, Maxima was her actual name.
* Her looks are based on her appearance in the *New Earth* continuity.
* Her romantic interests are nods to various comic runs.
	+ Her pursuits after Superman happened in the main continuity.
	+ Interest in Power Girl is a nod to her appearance in *Supergirl Vol. 6*.
	+ Interest in Captain Atom is a nod to *Extreme Justice Vol. 1*.

## Network Files

Network Files: Arcella Teraeux 1Network Files: Maxima 2

## Links and References

* Appearances of Arcella Teraeux

1. ↑ Network Files: Arcella Teraeux 1
2. ↑ Network Files: Maxima 2