Description:
An African American male in his early 40's. When he joined the expedition into the Bleed, he was clean cut and conservative -- a model minority. After years of great adversity, The Pathfinder has become more comfortable living in his own skin. He has long dreadlocks, with pastel metallic bead rings. The Pathfinder's chest and limbs are scarred. He wears a necklace of velociraptor claws around his neck. The Pathfinder wears little else except for sturdy military issue boots and a long irridescent green loincloth made of raptor skin. He carries a large wooden wizard's staff, which is wrapped with juju beads and trinkets at the "top" end.
Education and Experience:
Nova Powers & Abilities:
Over the 16 years of the Bleed Ordeal, the following Nova powers became apparent:
Played by: JohnT
Appeared in:
EXODUS
In a few short hours, we will be departing for unknown lands. We will be crossing a new Red Sea, one called The Bleed, and it is uncertain whether we are headed for the Promised Land, or a bondage in a new Egypt.
As always, I will represent my family well, and do my part to help my fellow man.
I have a great deal of confidence in my own faculties, because I am a member of the Padmore family line. Since before Emancipation, and ever since then, we have done great things. My family is rightfully proud of its great heritage and of the fact that in both Trinadad and the United States, we have maintained our dignity and sense of purpose in the face of oppresssion, discrimination, war and other hardships. Even during the worst days of slavery in this country, followed by the heartbreaking betrayal of Reconstruction by our government and the establishment of Jim Crow, the Padmores have always done our part to make things better.
My great-great grandfather, Moses Padmore, and his brother, my great-great uncle Aaron Padmore, were known as "The Pathfinder Brothers" on the Underground Railroad. These two men, educated in the North, went clandestinely to south, and helped hundreds of men, women, and children find their way to freedom. Hopefully we will be able to do the same for our lost comrades in The Bleed.
My grandfather fought in one of the Black batallions in WW I, and went on to organize Black workers in some of the key labor battles of the 20s and 30s. My father served in the Army in the WW II, and after the war went to college and eventually taught science and math in some of Boston's roughest high schools. My mother was a social worker in NYC at Women's Prison Association before she married Dad, and when they married and moved to Boston, she worked for Child Protective Services.
No, my parents didn't march with King (they seem to be about the only professionals their age who haven't made that claim) but nevertheless they did their part for the community.
I am proud to have followed in their footsteps. In my case, that has been working to keep our nation safe. I work for our nation's intelligence and national security apparatus. My day job is as a research fellow with the Center for Strategic and International Studies in DC. My real job is with the NSA, where is am a lead analyst on terrorism issues, as well as serving as a field interrogator and linguistic expert.
Some have asked me what my "powers" are and how I got them. Sorry, but I'd have to kill you if I told you (ha-ha). Let's just say that I have a gift for getting inside the bad guys' heads and am pretty good at getting them to spill the beans.
I came by my true gifts in a rather strange way. I was interrogating a rather dangerous subject, and suddenly, we switched heads. It turned out that HE had an "extra something" in the special ability department that the profilers didn't catch-onto before his capture.
Shortly into the interrogation, my mind was suddenly in his body -- a body which was strapped onto an interrogation table! Then the "interrogator" (my skin, someone else's mind) began to work over the interrogation subject. Lucky me, to be in the subject's body at the time. The pain was unbearable. Maybe it was the pain, but something awakened in me, and I lashed out at my interrogator -- somehow. I got my own body back, and moved swiftly to cut the interrogation short -- permanently short.
Keeping the world safe from monsters like these is what I'm good at now.
EARTH, YEAR 16, THE REFUGE NEAR JUNO
After 16 years, I have finally seen my son again. Kwame, still age 14 (a mere 6 weeks subjective time for him), with no idea Dad was away for 16 years. I guess I should be happy with all the horrible shit we have endured that my family is still there waiting for me to return from a "government job".
Kwame plainly thought my idea of him staying here with us was another of Dad's bad ideas. I wish I could take it at face value that Kwame would be bored here (even with Grond???), and I am trying to make the best of his decision to go home, trying not to blame myself for not being cool or interesting enough to keep him here.
At least we haven't lost years together.
I was very proud of how Kwame carried comported himself during his visit to The Refuge. Kwame is becoming a true gentleman, even if he thinks Dad is hopelessly square.
Of course, 16 years ago (just 6 weeks' ago to Kwame), I was pretty square! But the Pathfinder is Square No More.
Kwame was surprised by my appearance, but at least didn't guffaw at my story of "being in disguise" and "under deep cover on an ongoing mission" at face value. He had to, since here was Dad living with a bunch of freaky weird nova (novae?) playing house and social worker to Grond, a 14 year old orphan nova with Down's Syndrome.
Speaking of Grond, it's good that Lucas was away when Grond hit Juno, or I'm sure that poor boy would have been sold to the highest bidder for research or had his organs harvested and auctioned off on the OpNet. It's possible that Rupert can figure out a way to help the poor boy evolve out of his current state. I asked Rupert if he could create a device to augment or increase Grond's intelligence, and Booster -- I mean "John", interjected that Rupert probably could create a construct to do this. I hope he remembers my suggestion and tries to implement it.
I have done my part in recruiting a developmental psychologist and erruption expert to work with Grond.
I also requested a private meeting with her to discuss my personal struggles and my discomfort with the prospect of a permanent return to my family. I am beginning to suspect that the experience of becoming a nova makes participating in a normal, loving family life nearly impossible. I suppose this is the burden of being exceptional, a burden that none in my group asked for, but that we nevertheless have to accept.
My recent experiences with Boris at The Refuge confirm that he may be the most authentic human being I have ever met. He has built a connection with Grond on the most human level possible (and, no, I am not talking about those embarrassing OpNet Ironside/Grond slashporn fanfic videos). I imagine Boris must have been a good father. It must be very painful for him to be cut off from those he loves.
Oh yes, and one more thing-- I thought of a possible name for our group: The Corrective, our group as our answer to both Utopia and The Directive. We shall see if this name prevails.
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