Kaldur'ahm

**Secondary:**
Poseidonis, Atlantis

## Background

### 1987 -2002: Calvin Durham

Calvin Durham was raised in the desert of Silver City, Mexico by his mother Lucia. At a young age, he was told that his mother hailed from Atlantis, a long lost underwater civilization where residents can live & breathe underwater. His heritage allowed him to do the same & gave him other abilities, especially when in contactg with water. For years, Calvin kept this secret hidden from all his friends & lied to them by saying he was afraid of drowning or unable to swim.

While walking home alone one day, Cal was caught in a freakish rainstorm. As he reached the outside of his house, his eyes & mysterious tattoos began to glow. As his mother ran out to get him, his gills manifested & his fingers became webbed. His mother brought him inside, believing the activation of his powers have alerted his biological father. But instead they were visited by two other people, those introduced to as friends of his mother: Orin & Mera. It was clear to Calvin that Mera knew of him prior to this, as he overheard asking her questions about his adjustments & abilities to his mother.

Getting annoyed by being kept in the dark, Calvin demanded that everything he explained to him. His mother then told him that Mera was the one that set them up on the surface land years prior. She asked her to keep Calvin away from his father, knowing he would use him for their own personal gain. Just as his mother explained this to him, their house was attacked by the mercenary Black Manta. But he was not match for Calvin's mother, Orin & Mera, who defeated Manta then took the young teenager to Atlantis.

### 2002 - 2003: Kaldur'ahm

In Atlantis, Calvin was given a wake up call on everything he had been missing. His real name was Kaldur'ahm, his mother was called Sha'lain'a & his father was the man who had just attacked them. To help Kaldur get adjusted to his new life, he was given a proper education while also learning how to control his enhanced physiology. For the next few months, he excelled at his work & impressed his advisors on a daily basis with his multiple skills. Though he didn't have a knack for it, Kaldur desired to learn sorcery & trained with Mera whenever he wasn't in school. Realizing the boy had a gift, she asked for him to be enrolled at the Conservatory of Sorcery so she could properly teach him.

Upon enrolling at the school, Kaldur became quite the popular student. He became good friends with the younger Garth, Tula, Topo & Lori Lemaris. He did not much care for Ronal or his friends as they frequently bullied the Atlanteans who had inhuman attributes. They would refer to the students (i.e. Topo) as "fish-heads." Kaldur & his friends were the main ones to stick up for the others, leading to many heated arguments between the two. Outside of these personal relationships, Kaldur became a model student & quickly rose to the top of his class using what he had learned from school, his mother & the Queen.

While at the Royal Palace one night, the mysterious Ocean Master attacked the throne & attempted to assassinate the Queen. Orin immediately engaged in a battle with him as he forced Mera to evacuate. During the fight, Ocean Master managed to subdue Aquaman & was about to stab him with his scepter when Garth & Kaldur swung in to lend a helping hand. Using a combination of Garth's sorcery skills & Kaldur's fighting abilities, the two attacked Ocean Master. Though they would lose the battle, their fight allowed for Aquaman to recuperate & defeat Ocean Master himself. Amazed by their abilities, he offered both of them the opportunity to study underneath him a battle & to take on the role of his partner. Garth declined the offer, rather returning to his studies at the Conservatory with Mera but Kaldur jumped at the opportunity, becoming Aqualad.

## Romantic Relationships

* Raquel Ervin: Dated (2010)
* Wyynde: Boyfriend (*Unknown*)

## Personality

Kaldur is a very calm person, a trait unshared by the rest of his teammates. Soft-spoken & clear-headed, he has a tendency to think things through & formulate plans before taking any sort of action. He tries to see the good in all people & often acts as the voice of reason amongst his teammates, who were rarely as cool-headed as he was. He always speaks in a formal manner, with an air of respect to all people & demonstrates the utmost respect to all of the adult heroes of the Justice League, even when he disagrees with them. Despite his calm behavior, Kaldur did behave impulsively as a teenager.

## Powers & Abilities

* **Atlantean-Human Physiology:** He has a number of abilities which is derived from his Atlantean heritage. Atlanteans live at varying pressure levels causing their bodies to be more physically heartier than the average human being.
	+ ***Amphibious Nature*:** He is more suited for life beneath the sea than humans & has no problem breathing under water. He also has a set of gills on the sides of his neck.
	+ ***Enhanced Vision***: A thin invisible membrane cover Aqualad's eyes that allows Jackson to see perfectly in the pitch-blackness of the ocean. His eyes also allow him to pick up energy patterns similar to wearing infrared goggles, he displayed this ability when he tracked Superboy by following his solar energy pattern.
	+ ***Enhanced Hearing*:** His hearing is more acute than a ordinary human.
	+ ***Enhanced Durability***: He is able to survive the crushing depths of the ocean, where 1086 pounds of force per square inch are applied.
	+ ***Enhanced Agility*:** Atlanteans have perfect balance, bodily coordination & perfect equilibrium to a point far in excess to that of a normal human being on Earth. Their bodies being able to coordinate easily while under the pressure of the ocean. He has demonstrated the ability to make vertical leaps of up to two stories.
	+ ***Enhanced Speed*:** His physical abilities increase when he is underwater. He moves, reacts & fights at superhuman speed & swims through the water at roughly 70mph.
	+ ***Enhanced Stamina***: Atlanteans have the ability to maintain continuous physical actions for an undefined period longer than an ordinary human.
	+ ***Enhanced Strength***: He is strong enough to cleave through a steel street light with his water sword. His lifting capacity increases from his "dry" capacity of six tons, to more than ten tons when fully hydrated or underwater.
	+ ***Toxic Resistance*:** Aquaman possesses partial immunity to the poisons of sea creatures, such as jellyfish toxin.
* **Magic:** Before working alongside King Orin, he was highly trained in the mystical arts by Queen Mera. He was once the top of his class before he decided to focus on become a hero.
	+ ***Hydrokinesis*:** He is able to manipulate water to serve any number of uses such as water blasts, whips, waves, shields, or waterspouts to lift him into the air. His water blasts are capable of slicing through metal and other materials.
	+ ***Electrokinesis*:** Like his mother, Kaldur can emit concentrated beams of electricity from his body. His electrical control is not as refine as his control over water, meaning he does not create constructs of electricity. His electric shocks are transmitted either by touch or through his water constructs.
	+ ***Hard Water Constructs*:** Aquaman has the unique ability to solidify water into a myriad of different weapons for physical attacks. So far he has created swords, maces, sledgehammers, a small shield, and a large eel. This ability, like his hydrokinesis & electricity generation, is powered by his eel tattoos.
	+ ***Translation Spell*:** He can cast a spell which makes an individual speak & understand Atlantean.
* **Hand to Hand Combat:** He is extremely skilled in combat, able to hold his own against Cheshire & has taken down Conner with little to no effort before.
* **Leadership:** Kaldur was co-leader of the Titans during his time on the team. He was considered by all his teammates to be the natural choice for team leader. Upon joining the Justice League, he eventually became their co-leader as well.
* **Multilingualism:** He can speak fluent English & Atlantean. He also knows Ancient & Modern Greek.
* **Water Pack:** He wears a backpack that holds an unspecified amount of water for him to use. It also holds his Water-Bearers.
* **Water-Bearers:** He possesses a pair of twin hilts that can hold onto water & be used to create his hard-water weapons. They are also used as a type of water gun to shoot water from his water pack & can be used to help manipulate sources of water.

### Weaknesses

* **Dehydration:** As Atlanteans' natural habitat are underwater, they are weakened when exposed to high temperatures & dry conditions. Atlanteans can only exist outside of water for a limited period of time without submerging themselves in water or else they will dehydrate & ultimately die. Proximity to fire will speed up the rate of dehydration.

### Ratings

* **Intelligence:** 4 - Trained / Learned
* **Strength:** 5 - High / Exceptional
* **Speed:** 5 - High / Exceptional
* **Occult:** 5 - High / Exceptional
* **Weapons:** 5 - High / Exceptional
* **Range:** 5 - High / Exceptional
* **Strategy:** 6 - Expert / Advanced
* **Combat:** 5 - High / Exceptional
* **TOTAL:** 160 - Threat Level 4 / Moderate Threat

## Trivia

* While Kaldur now operates as Aquaman & is the leader the Justice League, King Orin is still the leader of the Atlantis Elite.
* He has been the leader of two teams; the Titans & Justice League.
* He possesses black, eel-like tattoos that run along his back & arms. The visibility of the tattoos is due to the fact that Aqualad dropped out of the Conservatory of Sorcery before progressing to an advanced level as the tattoos of advanced sorcerers are only visible when used.
* Kaldur said that when AJ comes of age, he will pass on the mantle of Aquaman.
* He has developed a love for soccer since residing on the surface world. He's pretty good as a center-midfield.
* Initially, Kaldur did not choose to define his sexuality.

## Notes

* Kaldur'ahm is an original character from *Young Justice* that was later adapted into the comics.
* His parentage is combined from various continuities.
	+ Black Manta is his father is all continuities.
	+ Sha'lain'a is his mother on the show *Young Justice*.
	+ Lucia Hyde is his mother in the *New 52*.
* On *Young Justice*, he is only known as Kaldur'ahm & Calvin Durham is his stepfather. In the comics, he is only known as Jackson Hyde. On Earth-44, Kaldur'ahm & Jackson Hyde are two sperate characters.