FEATTATTOOS (BACK, CENTER, IMG N/A), VARIOUS PIERCINGS
OUTFIT / FASHION
OUTFIT
He dresses casually, without accessories (his earrings don't count). He doesn't really "get" the fashion craze and he's definitely more comfortable in a cotton T-shirt and a trusted hoodie. He likes his pants fitted, but not tight and he doesn't mind the occasional bro-tank. He's not a slob with his appearances; it isn't as if he wakes up, unshaven, and wears last week's unwashed clothes. But he isn't the most fashion-forward dresser either. He likes to look good, but he isn't GQ-ready. And, honestly, chances are, he's never going to be a model prepped for a photo-shoot.
Personality
PERSONALITY
If you asked people what they thought of Daniel Hayashida, they'll give you an assortment of words. Some will say that he's friendly and cheerful, kind and considerate. Others will tell you that he's fun and outgoing, talkative and relaxed. They'll describe him as an upbeat, loyal character who smiles more than he frowns and laughs more than he cries. They'll tell you a myriad of traits, but ask long enough and all of them will—without fail—tell you that Danny is lazy.
It's no secret at Pacifica that Danny has the work ethic of a two-year-old. He's irresponsibly lazy and is frequently seen playing hooky. He says he's allergic to work (which, given the situation, may not be too far off) and that he's got better things to do in life than write a paper about the Steel Trade in colonial America or the many uses of Hydrogen.
And even though he's constantly being lectured (some instructors have slowly begun to sound like a broken recorder, repeating the same things over and over again), being sent to detention and being screamed at by his older brother (who, according to Danny doesn't know the meaning of "chill out"), Danny has yet to change. In fact, some might argue that Danny has made no changes at all. He didn't look fazed when the Principal told him he'll be held back from Pacifica if he kept this up and he certainly didn't look worried when his brother came storming down the hallways, face red and fists ready to kill. It's like he either doesn't understand what's going on around him or he just doesn't care.
His friends are inclined to believe in the latter.
When people ask him why he doesn't try to do better (or why he still insists on cutting classes and avoiding homework), Danny only shrugs and laughs. He shakes his head and, in his usual easy manner, explains that not everyone can aspire for greatness. He tells them that some are meant for mediocrity—that it is their destiny—and to fight against the strain would be pointless. And, to be quite honest, he'd rather not join the struggle of overly ambitious people who are all too high-strung for their own good. Bottom line: Danny gave up from the very start.
He's not ambitious and he doesn't covet the corner office or the billboard splashes. He doesn't dream for the high-profiled career and he, most definitely, does not hunger for celebrity status. He finds expectations to be bothersome and, despite his usually relaxed nature, becomes easily frustrated when people try to force their opinions and thoughts onto him. He hates it when people crowd him and he detests people who are determined to "fix" him. Like he says, frequently and tersely, he doesn't need to be fixed. He's not the one with the problem—it's everyone else who's got the problem.
Prizing his personal freedom above everything else in life, Daniel's dislike for bossy, overbearing people should come as no surprise. If you intend to pigeon-hole him into a certain ideal, he will lash out and when the docile fox is agitated, things get ugly—real fast.
The instructors, who have watched the boy's steady decline from the pedestal, only shake their heads, murmuring their disappointment behind closed doors. They have all resigned themselves to the idea that Daniel Hayashida, talented or not, is most likely going to end up working as a bagging boy or some store-clerk keeping horrible hours. To this comment, Danny just laughs and says it could be worse, he could end up homeless and unemployed.
Like usual, Danny is quick to answer with a joke, brushing away the negativity like raindrops on glass. It's like nothing ever bothers him, but nobody is that strong. Nobody—not even someone like Danny—can hold against all that disappointment without cracking just a little.
Nobody is invincible.
PROTECTORS OF EXISTENCE
REASON: It was either he take up the sweet, sweet deal of playing savior or go work at the local grocery mart. And, well, the grocery mart won't pay dental and that's kind of a deal breaker for Danny. In reality though, if Danny could spare a second's honesty on the matter, he'd say that he'd like the chance to prove he isn't the failure everyone thinks he is.
LIFE PHILOSOPHY: Be good. Have fun. Don't be evil.
Equipment / Abilities
POWERS
ABSOLUTE CONSTANT VELOCITY
PROSPEEDS UP TO MACH 5 (SUPERSONIC)
PROIMMUNE TO INERTIA
CONCAN ONLY BE APPLIED TO HIMSELF
CONEXTREME PHYSICAL EXHAUSTION
CONCAN'T TURN TIGHT CORNERS STILL
Think Flash, but not Flash. Daniel may have superhuman speed (reaching up to Mach 5), but he can't maintain top speeds for more than 5 seconds on a good day. If he trained, he might be able to, eventually, reach half a minute, but Danny doesn't like to push himself and, as he sees it, even if he goes "slow," he's still faster than any car—F1 cars included. He's comfortable with his current skill level (he'll train when someone can beat him in a race). He doesn't care that he's "stunting" his potential because, honestly, when is he ever going to need to run at speeds above Mach 1? In fact, how often will he even need to run at Mach 1 speeds? Plus, whenever he goes transonic (about Mach 1) and above, his muscles always hurt and his head can't seem to stop spinning circles.
NOTE: Ever since he became "acquainted" with his newfound talent, Danny finds himself constantly hungry and in search of food.
NATURAL TALENTS
•PROCRASTINATING
•ABLE TO SLEEP ANYWHERE
•ALWAYS HAS AN EXCUSE ON HAND
•IS A BOSS AT FIFA 13 & 14
AREA OF EXPERTISE
SPORTS: No, he doesn't play (he doesn't even sort-of play unless you count video games), but when it comes to basketball, football, and soccer (excuse me, I mean "futbol"), he's a walking treasure trove of useless trivia information. He will go the extra mile to record games, but he never seems to have the time for studying. Priority check, anyone?
NOTHING: Truthfully speaking, Danny is an expert on nothing—nothing useful, anyway. He barely understands how to use his power (sudden sharp turns? Gets him every time); he isn't going to be giving a lecture on the physics behind it any time soon (or ever). So, no, Danny isn't an expert in any field, but, then again, he's seventeen. He has his whole life to figure out what he wants to be a boss about.
History
UNIVERSE
Earth Prime, or, as Danny prefers, "Earth," is remarkably similar to another universe: horrible traffic during rush hours (hover cars are a thing of the future), doctors still haven't found the cure to cancer (but, for reasons unknown, can create horrific animal-human mutations), and students learn from books (and occasionally the internet). And while the similarities are numerous, the differences are leagues apart. Earth Prime, unlike its cousin, is the home of superheroes.
Masked crime fighters and not-so masked crime fighters!
Most superheroes work with APEX (either by law or by a sense of good conscience), an organization that does a little bit of everything. Think of them as a protection detail for the world; they take in superheroes (train them for combat), take down rogue characters, and guard against extraterrestrial agents who, for one reason or another, seem hell-bent on staking a claim on the world. You can say they're like SHIELD, but nobody from Earth Prime will understand the reference.
Needless to say, Earth Prime blows its cousins out of the water in terms of coolness.
Still, it's not without its drawbacks. For example, living in a large metropolitan city means unusually high taxes because, on any given day of the week at any time of day or night, entire streets will be the battleground between good and evil, right and wrong. If it isn't a street that needs repairing, it's a bridge that's on the verge of collapse. If it isn't a building standing on its last leg, it's the electrical grid that needs to be reset. It's always something—even when it's nothing. So, some kids get "snow days," these kids get "Another Super Villain Is Trying To Destroy The World As We Know It Days." But hey, life goes on.
HISTORY
Everything started when Daniel was five. He was the youngest of three children and the apple of their father's eyes. His father would, frequently, lavish him with expensive toys and fill his mind with wild stories of his travels. He would show a two-year-old Daniel pictures of the places he's visited, the people he's met and the kinds of food he's eaten. His father was a foreign diplomat who worked for America. But when Daniel was five, everything changed.
His father, 39, was diagnosed with Huntington's.
For the next seven years, Daniel would live to see his father's slow degeneration and, ultimately, his father's premature death.
In the beginning, things had been awkward and uncomfortable. Nobody knew what to say or what to do and when he was relieved of his duties as a foreign liaison. Well, there really wasn't anything to say or do. His father loved his job. He loved his experiences. And, in a minute's time, all of it was taken away. Everything he had ever wanted—dreamed of—stripped from his hands.
His father, who always used to smile and laugh, became withdrawn and cold. He kept to himself, spending his days locked inside his study and away from people. He was easily agitated, always annoyed when people offered to help and, at the height of his stress, had shoved Tony, Danny's eldest brother, down a set of stairs in frustration. That was the last time he left his study.
But despite everything—despite the changes in his father, the rising tension in the house—Daniel still loved the man, loved him more than anything else in the world. And it was this love—this idol
adoration—that tore the family apart, creating a rift so wide it could never be bridged.
And when his father died at age 46—suicide—Daniel stopped being the perfect student. He lived in contempt of his mother, who, after her husband's death, had thrown herself into rebuilding everything. She aired out the home (aired out her life), she reapplied for her position at the university, and, perhaps most importantly, she started seeing other men. The more his family tried to move on, the more Daniel resisted—angry that they would forget, angry that they would want to forget. And as the years passed, the chasm deepened until it became so wide it was impossible to ever cross.
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