Huntress

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The **Huntress** is a vigilante who operates out of Gotham City, and is a member of Batman's Family. She is also a devout Catholic, and is very in touch with her Italian heritage. Her career is inspired by a personal vendetta against organized crime, responsible for killing her entire family. At first, her ruthless methods and willingness to kill made her an outcast from other heroes, but in time she learned to temper her methods and became accepted by her peers. She has also been apart of Batgirl's Birds of Prey.

## Biography

### Early Life

Maria Bertinelli, the wife of Franco Bertinelli of the Bertinelli crime family in Gotham City, was the subject of frequent beatings from her husband, though he was careful never to hit her in the face. Maria began an affair with a man named Santo Cassamento and eventually became pregnant by him. Knowing the unborn child wasn't his, Franco continued to beat his wife throughout her pregnancy. When Maria gave birth to this child of her illicit union, she chose the name **Helena Rosa**. During the first eight years of Helena's life, she lived in the household of a Mafioso without ever being aware of the criminal dealing which took place there.

### Tragedy and Relocation

When Helena was eight years old, a man barged in to the Bertinelli household during dinner and shot Franco, Maria and Pino Bertinelli, but sparing Helena. The hit came from Mandragora who wished for no vendettas against him. Helena's biological father passed the order along with a modification that "the sister" be spared. Santo was referring to Maria. But the gunman confused Maria with Helena and so Helena was spared, though she was not supposed to be.

Helena was placed under the care of her Uncle Tomasso's nephew, Salvatore Asaro. She was taken back to the old country, Sicily, where she would be kept safe and where the family was still strong. When arriving, she was terrified. Helena remained there for a number of years. Watching her cousin and uncle train and practice with weapons and hand-to-hand combat. However, the nightmares stayed with her. One night, her cousin showed her that only she could stop the nightmare by putting an end to those who murdered her family: blood cries for blood.

### Gotham City Vigilantes

When taken into the barn, she asked her cousin to teach her how, picking up a crossbow on the wall. She trained until the age of fifteen when she was sent to a boarding school in Switzerland to protect her from the Italian authorities who were cracking down on the Mafia. When reading and seeing what was happening, she realized that everything she had been told was a lie about the Mafia. She realized that the Mafia was a force of corruption and evil for a hundred years, and it had been headed by her own family in Gotham City. At age sixteen, she finally returned to Gotham City to spend Christmas with her uncle. However, she hated everyone there. During the party, Helena witnessed her family transition into a state of fear at the sight of Batman whom crashed the party while working to take down the Bertinelli crime family. Helena realized that she could fight them too.

Helena returned to Switzerland for school where she plotted her vengeance. She went to her old house in Sicily (which had since been abandoned as a result of her uncle and cousin being arrested), and took a crossbow and a number of items for her crusade. Enrolling at the university in Palermo, she learned all about the Mafia. She constructed her suit and a number of weapons. She thought herself as a nun, totally devoted to her quest. She returned to Gotham in pursuit of vengeance as the **Huntress**. Shortly after beginning her days as a Gotham vigilante, she busted some of Riddler's former henchmen after they stole a large amount of money. As the Huntress, Helena ended the lives of Mandragora and the assassin who murdered her family.

### Equipped Huntress

Wanting to re-expand Gotham City's number of vigilantes, Batman eventually funded Helena's crusade in terms of an upgraded suit, weapons, and a motorcycle. She would later return the favor by assisting him on a number of cases revolving around the mafia, and backing him up at firefights, resulting in her one time saving Batman's life. The Huntress soon found herself allied with Oracle and Black Canary and continued to fight crime in both Gotham City and Metropolis as a member of the Birds of Prey network.

## Abilities

* **Peak Human Condition**: Huntress works hard to keep her body in peak physical condition. She stated her costume change to include more skin was a result of her 300 ab crunches a day.
* **Archery**: Huntress carries her trademark crossbows on her at all times. Whether they're dual mounted mini-crossbows or one large crossbow is up to her as she has proficiency to use both. She's once used a single bolt to split a bullet in two.
* **Criminology**: Huntress grew up in a criminal environment and later spent a few years surrounded by gangs and criminals. If there ever was a street-wise hero who stayed on the straight and narrow it would be the Huntress.
* **Driving**: Huntress is an effective driver, able to pilot the Batmobile in high stress and combat situations as well as her own motorcycle at varying degrees of above-average driving situations (being shot at, accelerating to high speeds and over semi-separated bridges).
* **Firearms**: Over the years Huntress realized that firing and reloading bolts at armed individuals may not be the most effective even if they were the most non-lethal. She's adapted her arsenal over time to include various firearms.
* **Hand-to-Hand Combat (Advanced)**: Huntress is very much a street fighter, before honing her skills in martial arts and kung fu she spent many years getting into intentional fights just to prove and test her mettle. She has since fine-tuned her skill after years of work with Black Canary.
* **Investigation**: Batman, himself, has mentioned Huntress's prowess during investigation situations. She is credited as the "Batman" of the Birds of Prey and regularly spends her free-time solving cold cases especially when the Mafia is involved.
* **Martial Arts**: One of the first steps on her adventuring career was to learn and enhance her fighting style. She learned various disciplines of martial arts, enough to challenge some of the most skilled adversaries.
	+ **Dragon Style Kung Fu**: One of the many disciplines she has learned is Dragon Style Kung Fu.
	+ **Stick Fighting**: Although she prefers to use her martial arts and hand-to-hand combat when it comes to close quarters there has been many occasions where Huntress has used her Battle-Staff to taken on multiple enemies.
* **Multilingualism**: She can speak both English and Italian fluently.
* **Pedagogy**: Before and sometimes during her career she has taught at various schools and varying people the complicated language of English. She has cited her skill as a teacher on a few occasions but prefers to leave her civilian life out of sight.
* **Stealth**: Huntress can be very stealthy when she needs to. With her specially outfitted suit and various toys in her utility belt she can sneak into a facility and learn whatever information she desires although she sometimes prefers to fight her way in.

## Paraphernalia

### Weapons

* **Huntress' Crossbow**: A small sized crossbow mounted on either or both of her forearms.
* **Huntress Battle-Staff**: A collapsible, combat metallic staff that she has used since the very beginning of her adventures.
* **Utility Belt**