Captain Halcyon

Captain Halcyon is a Canadian superhero and a member of the Northern Guard.

## Origin

Nobody suspected Charlie Hoyt had the makings of a hero, least of all Charlie himself. He was an unremarkable young man of average intellect and below-average drive, content to go with life's flow. He was enjoying his job as a low-rung security guard at a DRDC lab, manning his post every day with a flashlight, sack lunch, and a stack of comic books.

But fate pushed Charlie out of his rut when the Slug appeared in Toronto in 2012. There were dozens of guards at the facility when the Slug burst in, intent on recovering a piece of Elder Worm technology that the scientists were studying. As the villain made his way into the facility with ease, transforming men into hideous invertebrates along the way, most of the other guards fled. Charlie happened to be manning a new post that night in a high-energy lab off the main facility; he could have easily ran for safety, as the villain was not heading in his direction. But acting on impulse he instead snatched a heavy table-mounted laser from the lab and gave chase.

When he confronted the Slug deep in the secure research labs below the facility, the villain was briefly confused by Charlie's bravado. The Slug assumed that Charlie must know something that it did not, as Charlie threatened to blow it to pieces if it didn't surrender. The Slug could sense telepathically that Charlie was not bluffing, and he truly believed he could carry out his threat; this was only because Charlie himself didn't realize that the laser he was dragging around was a harmless piece of lab equipment (as an avid comic book reader, Charlie was unaware that most lasers are not weapons).

What followed was a tense standoff, during which several scientists managed to escape the lab. It only took a few brief minutes until the Slug realized that it was in no danger, but that was long enough for UNTIL to scramble help. Enraged at falling for this monkey's "trick," the Slug dosed Charlie with its most powerful devolution ray, transforming him into a worm-like brute of terrible strength and speed. When heroes arrived to confront the Slug, it ordered its new minion to fight and then made its escape in the confusion.

It took great time and effort to reverse Charlie's transformation, but UNTIL was determined to save the man who had so heroically defied the terrifying Slug and thereby stopped its schemes. Eventually they succeeded with the help of Alchemica, a villainess who was then trying to earn time off her 50-year sentence for grand larceny. Her transformative powers slowly purged the Elder Worm DNA from Charlie's system, turning him back into a man. Charlie awoke to find that months had passed, and he laughed to hear himself being hailed as a hero. But something about the process of transforming from man to monstrosity and back had left him with incredible capabilities, and he realized that perhaps heroism was really in his blood after all. Naming himself 'Captain Halcyon' (as all the best comic heroes have 'Captain' in their name) Charlie began a stellar career fighting crime all over Canada, eventually securing an invitation to put his skills to work for the Northern Guard.

## Personality

Captain Halcyon is optimistic and gregarious, slow to anger and quick to forgive. He sees the best in everyone, and is the exact sort of truly humble hero that the public adores. Although he takes his duties seriously, he doesn't share the gloomy outlook of many other superheroes. While some think of Halcyon as naïve, the truth is that he has a rather enlightened perspective on life: he does his best to help others every day, and if he fails then he just has to try harder next time!

## Powers

Captain Halcyon's transformation gifted him with enhanced strength, durability, and the power to flit about at incredible speeds. His senses have also been greatly enhanced and he can see and hear with precision at great distances. His heightened sense of touch allows him to feel subtle vibrations in the air, warning him of incoming attacks and making him nearly impossible to sneak up on.

Halcyon is relatively slow on the ground, so he tends to remain airborne during battle. He has become highly adept at precision flying, even when moving at extreme speeds, and zips in and out of battle at will. Although his powers are relatively simple, he makes good use of his mobility advantages to surprise and outflank his opponents.

## Weaknesses

Halcyon's enhanced senses are vulnerable to any kind of flash effect, and sonic attacks are particularly painful to him. A simple flashbang grenade can send him reeling, and sonic weaponry can blast him unconscious with little effort.

The Slug has not forgotten its humiliation at the hands of Captain Halcyon. Although the creature has much more pressing objectives, if the opportunity to harm the Captain arose it would eagerly do so.