Ghost Dance

Ghost Dance is a mystic hero and the newest member of the Contenders.

## Biography

Ghost Dance's origin is shrouded in mystery due to his near-total amnesia. He does not know where he comes from or how he came to be in Chicago. He has deduced that he is Native American by descent but knows little else about his background.

His earliest memories stretch back only a handful of weeks to the events of the Blackout. He found himself wandering the city's chaotic streets, wearing a mysterious amulet of unknown origin. He was struggling to survive as the alien invaders rampaged around him. Worse, his mind was awash with a powerful, unceasing rage-- a supernatural bloodlust that he could barely keep in check. When attacked by the aliens, he instinctively defended himself with his powers, killing scores of the fungal brutes.

In this state, he was discovered by agents of John Wolf, who was desperately in need of new talent for the Temeraire Club. Coaxing Ghost Dance into the club, he offered him shelter, food, and employment as muscle. With the help of some hypnotic suggestion, Ghost Dance eventually agreed to John's terms and was soon helping commit heists during the Blackout alongside other Temeraire villains.

During an assault on an UNTIL facility in Lake Michigan, where he was providing transport and backup for the Midnight Crew, he first encountered the Contenders. During the ensuing battle, Justicar assaulted Ghost Dance's mind with a spell that forced him to relive his worst crimes. This potent psychic assault caused enough strain to break the hypnotic suggestion on Ghost Dance, allowing him to assert his free will and he immediately switched sides. Although the Midnight Crew escaped, they left the "traitor" Ghost Dance behind, and the rest of the Contenders took him in-- as much to keep an eye on him as to help him.

With the help of Witchcraft, Ghost Dance eventually learned that his violent rage and susceptible mental state were the result of a potent curse laid on him by a third party. The Contenders tracked this spell to the Spirit Realm, where they confronted the powerful shaman who was its originator. During the battle, the shaman revealed that Ghost Dance's amulet had been created by a sect of Native American wizards with the intent of imprisoning powerful spirits-- a plan that he himself had opposed. Although he was defeated, his last words ominously implied that Ghost Dance's terrible rage would eventually return on its own, and it would inevitably result in his total collapse into a bloodthirsty monster.

## Personality

Ghost Dance has little patience for the strange situations and bizarre confrontations that come with being a superhero. Although he goes out of his way to help others-- even spending his free time magically creating food for the needy of Chicago-- he has little restraint when it comes to confronting villains. He tends to use his powers to overwhelming effect and shows no mercy to those who threaten himself, his allies, or the innocent.

Although he still struggles to resist the supernatural anger radiating from his amulet, Ghost Dance is already an angry person by nature. Although heroic in some ways, his brutal methods of dealing with his enemies are often shocking to his allies, and he thinks nothing of breaking the law if it provides an expedient solution to a problem.

## Powers

Ghost Dance's powers come from his mystic amulet, in which two incredibly powerful spirits are bound. Although he can tap only a fraction of their power for himself, even that small portion is enough to make him an extremely potent fighter.

The first spirit is that of the Thunder Bird, the rain-maker and bringer of change. From this spirit he gains the power to fire lightning bolts from his hands, summon devastating whirlwinds, and grant the gift of flight to himself and his allies. He can change the weather and invoke flashes of blinding light from the sky. Ghost Dance can also use the Thunderbird's gifts to conjure food, growing an instant harvest from even the most barren soil.

The second, darker spirit bound in the amulet is the Wendigo, incarnation of hunger, madness, and bloodthirst. This spirit gives Ghost Dance incredible strength, speed, and resilience. It also gives him the strange but potent ability to invoke feelings of starvation in his foes, rendering them weak and helpless. He can also use the Wendigo's power to siphon blood from his foes, feasting on their essence to heal himself, though he is hesitant to call on this loathsome power.

Finally, the amulet itself allows Ghost Dance to move freely between the Earth and the Spirit Realm, a strange and dangerous alternate reality where the world is almost entirely overgrown by primeval forest and mythical bodies of water. Although it is unwise to spend long in the Spirit Realm, a quick jaunt between worlds can provide a surprising tactical advantage and allow Ghost Dance to get the drop on his foes.

## Weaknesses

Ghost Dance's powers come almost entirely from his mystic amulet. Although it has potent magic defenses built in, if he were to lose the amulet or if it were destroyed he would be rendered nearly helpless.

Ghost Dance also suffers from mental influence from the spirits locked within the amulet's mystic binding; the more power that he draws from the amulet, the more "interference" leaks out. Although the Thunderbird is benevolent and doesn't seek to control him, the Wendigo wants to transform him into a twisted reflection of itself, and its all-consuming rage can occasionally take over Ghost Dance when he witnesses the spilling of blood. In this state, he is driven into a berserk frenzy and can barely tell friend from foe.