Dr. Edison Mills

**Dr. Edison 'Eddie' Mills**, or **Compound**, is a hero character in Villainy and Virtue, created and portrayed by NathanielCoran.

A genius chemist who shut himself away to develop a secret weapon for five years, Edison wields the powerful drug he calls *'The Compound'* to turn his flesh nigh-indestructible.

## Biography

While growing up, Edison was introduced to the injustice of the world when his mother was kidnapped and murdered by gangsters whom she had inadvertently offended. As she was the main source of income for their family, Edison and his father lived in near-poverty (his father, crippled by the loss of his right leg in a construction accident, was unable to work for anything more than minimum wage). However, his father dedicated every penny to ensuring Edison had a healthy upbringing and strong education. In his teenage years, Edison discovered a talent for chemistry, sitting comfortably at the top of his class. As soon as he graduated he put this talent to use in a medical lab, earning a large salary for his contributions towards various miracle vaccines that allowed him to study at the most acclaimed universities, as well as ensure a comfortable retirement for his father.

However, during an incident five years before the present in which a minor super-villain was fought and defeated by an equally unknown hero, his father was mortally injured as collateral damage. While working through his grief over the man who had sacrificed everything he had to ensure Edison would succeed, the man's resolve turned to bettering himself so that he could become more than just a doctor - he aimed to use his skill as a chemist to turn himself into a hero that would not only protect humanity as a whole, but every single individual life that whole contained.

For five years he shut himself in his personal laboratory, slaving over his work in order to find some way to fulfill this quest. Now, he has developed his masterpiece - a body-altering drug that he calls 'the Compound' that makes him ridiculously difficult to harm ('Compound' is also the name he uses for the form he takes on while under the drug's influence). He now searches for a way to make himself relevant in the worldwide war between heroes and villains…

## Appearance

In his natural form, Edison stands at 5"11', and is fairly scrawny. His messy copper-brown hair falls in large curls, and he often finds himself accidentally & sometimes disturbingly neglecting to blink his piercing green eyes, most likely due to years of built-up sleep deprivation. He stands with a slight hunch, and wears brightly coloured clothing; either a typical white labcoat over blue jeans, or colourful tee-shirts and sweaters.

When transformed by/into the Compound, Edison grows to a hulking 6'5", and his lean build becomes significantly more muscular. His eyes, already creepy enough, glow slightly, and his voice becomes deeper and more growl-like. His skin appears slightly metallic. His labcoat and most of his casual clothing are specially designed (by an old lab partner-turned-tailor) to stretch with him.

## Personality

Introverted and meek, Edison Mills prefers to spend time either alone, or with a very small group of people. He feels uncomfortable in crowds, preferring to stay well away from any large gathering of people unless the need to join them arises. Although shy, Edison sees beauty in all natural things, and feels almost personally offended by the destruction that is wrought by the wrong-doers in the world, motivating him to use his own ability as a chemist to try to right some of the wrongs around him; this lead to the development of the Compound.

He is skittish and on-edge most of the time, but while transformed he maintains a state of unnerving calm, as if unaffected by anything except whatever circumstance required him to transform. Although resolute in his quest to protect humanity from the darkest parts of itself, his sanity slips ever so slightly away from him every time he uses the Compound...

## Abilities

### **Chemical Mastermind**

Edison is naturally gifted and professionally trained in the ways of advanced chemistry, and has committed his life to the study of drugs & medicine and their effects on living beings. This knowledge allowed him to develop...

### ***'The Compound'***

The ambiguously named drug that Edison developed in secret allows him to expand his body significantly, and turns his flesh nigh-indestructable to all but the most extreme of forces. However, as well as being in short supply due to Edison having to manufacture the chemical himself, extensive use has seriously detrimental effects on both his physical & mental health, so Edison dares not inject more than enough to remain in his incredibly durable state for more than approximately ten minutes at a time.

## Paraphernalia

### **Compound Administration Apparatus ('COMA')**

A specially designed device that Edison wears on his wrist in order to administer more controlled doses of *The Compound* than a standard syringe. The main feature is the switch and dial operating system, allowing Edison to specify a length of time to remain transformed prior to the dosage (anywhere up to his limit of ten minutes), then inject himself when the time is right. It hold three canisters of *The Compound*, allowing for approximately an hour of transformation time before needing to be refilled.

### **Hephaestus Technologies Pulse-Emitting Crowd Control Device**

A weapon given to Edison by Athena during the City in Chaos crisis, the PECCD (commonly referred to as just the 'Pulse Gun') charges up a small orb of electromagnetic energy, then launches it at high speed to non-lethally incapacitate targets. Edison uses the Pulse Gun as his signature weapon when transforming using *The Compound* is not a viable option.

## Relationships

### **Nimbus**

Edison's partner since coming to the Tower, he and Nimbus have fought side-by-side in almost every one of their struggles since they met. Unified in their undying passion to protect the innocent, Compound and Nimbus form a powerful duo that has handled many a crisis, such as the Wastelander raid during City in Chaos, and the sewer rescue of Argent Mind.

### **Shadow Fixer**

Adrian Cooper is, to Edison, a person who represents everything he fears about himself. Both of them coming from very similar origins and finding some way to augment themselves following a tragedy, Edison sees Cooper as a mirror, warning him of the darker path that he could fall to should he allow his resolve to falter. Nonetheless, Edison treats the misguided doctor as a friend, believing that if he can help somebody as far fallen as the Shadow Fixer find the light, he can save anyone.

### **Starlass**

Having basically lived under a rock for the past few years, Edison only heard of Starlass at the beginning of her superheroine career. However, since emerging with *Compound* in tow, he has watched the young woman's exploits both from afar and as close as by her side in some of the more climactic fights Heartania has seen in recent times. He treats Grace as something to be nurtured into the truly legendary hero she has the potential to become, and as such was one of the first to offer his aid following her recent fall from grace.

### **Argent Mind**

Argent Mind is a legend and idol to Edison, a protector of the people that he can only hope to one day get close to matching. Since coming to the Tower, however, Edison has seen the more personal side of the old hero's life, leading him to respect the man not as a figure of legend but as a true veteran and leader. Although he may disagree with the occasional administrative approach Argent takes, Edison is and always will be a loyal ally to the hero.

## Trivia

* Edison is strongly based on other transforming characters such as The Incredible Hulk and Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde. Compound's calm demeanour and Edison's mixed trust and fear of the power is inspired by *Dragon Age* characters Anders & Justice.
* There is a running gag among V&V members that Edison's only achievement is being one hell of a taxi driver, given that many of his interactions have taken place while driving an ally to somewhere important.
* Fluffpound is a crack ship that really you probably shouldn't think too hard about. Please.