Iridium (Callie Bradford)

[iridium] Night notes her IQ is over 160.

Iridium is one of the creators of the Canary Code.

Iridium was born c. 2090 to Lester and Valerie Bradford.

#### Year 2

Two weeks after Iridium turned fourteen, she was allowed the opportunity to visit her father in Blackbird Prison. She immediately accepted, despite Night's warning that it would further damage her image. Thereafter, she visited regularly.

While studying for mid-year exams, Iridium, Jet, Samson, and Frostbite overdose on caffeine.

#### Year 3

In her third year, Iridium was partnered with Jet.

For their first outing, Iridium and Jet are dropped off in Little Shinjuku.

For their second outing, Iridium and Jet are assigned to patrol Looptown.

#### Year 5

For their final outing, Iridium and Jet are sent to Grid 23. [-Paul Collins-]

### Rabid and Wreck City

[post-academy] She acquires a neural inhibitor from Baron Nightmare. The neural inhibitor blocks Corp-Co from tracking her.

#### Dr. Teschi Sampson

Dr. Teschi Sampson is the fake ID Iridium uses to visit her father in Blackbird Prison. Sampson is apparently hired by Corp-Co to minister psychiatric help to Arclight. She works for Medico Society as a psychiatrist, is in her early 30s, and an incurable flirt. Iridium uses a blond wig, purple contacts, and glasses as disguise.

### Wrigley Field Squadron

Iridium initially aids the Wrigley Field Squadron in an effort to avoid Arclight and his team of Blackbird inmates.

### Protectors

Iridium is one of the founders of the Protectors.

## Abilities

Iridium is a Lighter. She describes her powers as generating radiant light-heat. She can see in spectrum and generate light anywhere on the spectrum. She can use her powers as a blinding flash, a projectile attack, or, with concentration, to melt through materials. Light attacks in the visible spectrum are non-crippling. Her main attacks are strobes--bright orbs of light that can be over 1000 BTUs of heat.

Iridium can use her powers in the nonvisible spectrum, however it's more difficult and draining to do so.

## Appearance

[physiology] She is nearly six feet tall and sports several scars and refuses removal surgeries. Known scars include a two-inch scar on her breastbone from her third year, a scar from a Talon cutter on her lower back, and lines across her knuckles from falling off a hover as a child.

### Academy Costume

Iridium's Academy-issued costume is a white unikilt with a black belt and collar. It is the mirror of Jet's Academy costume.

### Rabid Costume

After leaving the Academy, Iridium's costume consists of a white unikilt with black stockings, gloves, and boots.

### Protectors Costume

Iridium's Protectors costume is the same as her costume post-Academy, except she adds a white cape formerly owned by her father.

## Notes and Trivia

* Iridium's point of view is written by Caitlin Kittredge.
* Caitlin Kittredge once explained her inspiration for Iridium's character:

> “I knew immediately that I wanted to play the villain–Iridium popped into my head all at once, looks and attitude and backstory. I wanted to give her a traditionally 'good' power (the power to control light and light-heat) and invert all of the thematic implications of such a power into a supervillain character. Villains become villains for a lot of reasons, and I gave Iridium what I consider the most powerful motivator–family. She’s trying very hard to carry on a legacy that’s deeply ingrained in who she is, but at the same time she struggles, because nobody is all good or all 'evil'. Iridium didn’t really have her own identity when the series started, apart from her supervillain dad, and her finding out who she is and what she’s capable of was the crux of her personal story. Iridium demonstrates that being a villain can sometimes simply mean having a moral code that differs from the majority–but sometimes she does things because she thinks she’s unstoppable and bad-ass, and in the series I knew she’d have to meet the consequences of those actions. Sooner or later, all villains do.”
>
>

> --Caitlin Kittredge, July 2010
>
>

* Iridium once participated in an interview with Jet and authors Jackie Kessler and Caitlin Kittredge--reminiscent of the early fanfiction.net author/character interactions within fics.

## References

1. ↑ dates from interpolated data
2. ↑ Pomerico, David (2010). *25 Years of Spectra: BLACK AND WHITE (2009) by Jackie Kessler and Caitlin Kittredge*. Unbound Worlds. http://www.unboundworlds.com/2010/07/25-years-of-spectra-black-and-white-2009-by-jackie-kessler-and-caitlin-kittredge/
3. ↑ Admin (2010). *Super Heroines Jet and Iridium Interviewed by Jackie Kessler and Caitlin Kittredge*. Unbound Worlds. http://www.unboundworlds.com/2010/07/super-heroines-jet-and-iridium-interviewed-by-jackie-kessler-and-caitlin-kittredge/