Origin: The Original Marked Alliance

We were the first. Dr. Mistry tracked us down because she saw our ‘illnesses’ – our Marks – for what they were: great gifts. She took us in, helped us harness these gifts; her first students at Ingestre Hall.

Dias was the first to be brought here, and for many months it was just them and Dr. Mistry. They formed a special bond. Then Dr. Mistry brought McDonald and Ruan to stay. They were thick as thieves after several months locked up together in a secure hospital. Last to arrive was Watson; Dr. Mistry got to them before the biological researchers could, so they were spared being subjected to the tests and treatments the rest had experienced.

We fought alongside Dr. Mistry for many years. Small stuff mostly – stopping gangs from terrorizing hard-working communities – but we made an impact. Our crowning achievement was preventing the invasion of the extraterrestrial threat of the Sh’vaal who were intent on subjugating humanity for their own ends. Not all our jobs were so successful – like the time we teamed up with Romanian superhero Dumitru Staicu, codename Silverwing, to fight supervillain Deathray who wanted to blow up a power plant to “teach a lesson to basic humans”, only for Silverwing to betray us. Deathray got away but Silverwing is now serving a sentence at a high security EUROPOL-affiliated facility in Switzerland.

No-one seems to remember that stuff now though. It has been a while and success, keeping people safe, soon fades from public memory. What people remember are the failures. Their only collective memory of us is the time when that bridge collapsed near the academy and three non-Marked kids, part of an anti-Marked gang, were injured. The finger was pointed at Dias and the papers asked ‘Can These “Heroes” Be Trusted?’. Years protecting and helping people and they only remember us for that f*cking bridge.

Soon after we hung up our capes, one after the other. Some of us felt we were getting too old for this sh*t. For others, we felt jaded after the press tore us apart. We decided we couldn’t continue as the Alliance, so we drifted apart. McDonald and Watson left Ingestre Hall, each for their own reason; Ruan and Dias stayed to support the Academy. When Dr. Mistry called on us to fight Beacon it was the first time we had all been together since the original Alliance was dissolved. We pushed back the Beacons of Purity, and Beacon died, but we lost Dr Mistry too. We couldn’t leave the school after that tragedy, so we all stayed on to help.

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49: S. McDonald // Network

Age: Staff, Origin: The Original Marked Alliance, Training Team: Sunburst /

Subject: Combined Power Use
Power: Link Perceptions

You were working as an intern in multinational company when you developed your Mark. You could feel other people’s minds and even found you could hack into them, making people aware of each other’s sensations: you kind of knew this was wrong, but found it thrilling. Your secret was discovered and you were committed to a hospital, where you met Ruan. When Dr. Mistry brought you to the Academy you appreciated the training, but you didn’t like the rules she laid down. You value absolute freedom above all else, so long as it doesn’t restrict another’s freedom. On the other hand you also crave power. You don’t care if that power comes with peace or with war; for you it is not a means to an end – you don’t really mind if society accepts the Marked or not, you just want authority because it feels good. All you want is to come out on top. If the hero thing’s working for you, you’ll be a hero. If it’s not, you’ll be a villain. It wasn’t a difficult decision for you to leave when the time came. But when Dr. Mistry unexpectedly contacted you and asked you to fight against the Beacons of Purity you saw an opportunity to protect freedom and perhaps to gain back some of the authority you had before. Despite your differences, Dr. Mistry’s death was a great tragedy and you mourn her. But at the same time it leaves an opportunity for change – a chance to do things differently in the Academy. That’s why you agreed to stay on and teach ‘Combined Power Use’. You will make your presence felt, and lead the Academy in a new direction.

49: S. McDonald // Network Read More »

52: O. Watson // Guise

Age: Staff, Origin: The Original Marked Alliance, Training Team: Blizzard /

Subject: Marked Biology
Power: Chameleon

You were always good at hiding. All you had to do was change your skin to blend in with your surroundings. This was good, because your Mark developed early and the kids at school were relentless in their teasing. It was also why the agents never found you when they came for you at your university halls. You were in the first year of your Biochemistry degree when that happened. But you couldn’t hide from Dr. Mistry when she sought you out. She convinced you to go with her only by promising to teach you biochemistry. And she taught you a lot – enough to fill a dozen PhDs. You only ever used your gift when absolutely necessary, and you never much liked the fighting aspect of the Alliance. When McDonald left following the bridge incident, the time seemed right to reassess your prospects. You decided to make your own path too. You have a family now with a non-Marked spouse, and you hold a prestigious research position at a top university. When you got the call recently from Dr. Mistry saying that she needed you in the fight against Beacon, you did not want to join. Only when she said that Dias would be fighting too did you know that you couldn’t refuse – they are like a younger sibling to you and you would do anything to protect them. In the devastating aftermath of that battle, you agreed to step in to teach ‘Marked Biology’ temporarily.

Content warning: Bullying

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55: H. Ruan // Remembrance

Age: Staff, Origin: The Original Marked Alliance, Training Team: Heatwave /

Subject: De-escalation and No-powers Self Defence
Power: Unlock Memories

You were an aspiring actor training at drama school. When doing emotion memory exercises you discovered that you were able to see people’s memories and will them to remember more. When you explained this, your friends just thought you meant you were particularly empathetic. It wasn’t until you caused a classmate to have a nervous breakdown by unlocking their past trauma that anyone thought you were dangerous. All the classmate would say was “Ruan was inside my head!” You were committed to a hospital close to where your family lived, where you met McDonald. Dr. Mistry tracked you down and brought you both to live with her and the strange, brooding teenager Dias. You respected Dr. Mistry, but you would always get drawn into mischief with McDonald – they were your best friend after all, plus it was fun! Fighting crime as part of the Alliance was an important duty, and one which you would have continued if it was deemed necessary. But you were relieved when Dr. Mistry said that it was no longer an option. Your new duty was to train a new generation, to make sure the same mistakes didn’t happen again and for you this is a better way to succeed in shaping a future for the Marked. That’s why you stayed on at the Academy to teach ‘De-escalation and No-Powers Self Defense’. You enjoy teaching, but sometimes you long for the old days, especially getting up to mischief with McDonald. In Dr. Mistry you have lost a mentor and a close friend, and you know that now more than ever it is important to uphold the ideals she taught you.

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58: F. Dias // Tremor

Age: Staff, Origin: The Original Marked Alliance, Other Staff /

Position: Groundskeeper
Power: Earthquakes

They say that you were too aggressive, that you didn’t know how to control your gift properly. Perhaps it was your childhood, neglected and tumultuous, or perhaps it is the rush you feel when you see the ground shake at your command. Dr. Mistry found you when you were just a teenager. Your Mark had only recently appeared but a moment of frustration and anger left half the family home in a sinkhole. Your rich, neglectful parents were only too happy to commit you to that centre for wayward youth, to wash their hands of you. It was Dr. Mistry who saved you, and cared for you in a way you had never known. She nurtured your talents and calmed you when things got too much to bear. You enjoyed fighting as part of the Alliance, though you felt that you weren’t always treated as an equal member, even though you were there first. You didn’t want to retire, but Dr. Mistry convinced you it was for the best. She cared for you and gave you the responsibility of maintaining the grounds of the Academy, in charge of defenses and security. And you loved and trusted her perhaps more than anyone. You don’t know what might happen now she is gone – now that those Beacons of Purity have taken her away from you.

Content warning: Childhood neglect

58: F. Dias // Tremor Read More »