Red Lotus



"I am Red Lotus! You killed my grandfather! Prepare to die!"

- Paul Hark

History
Red Lotus was born in New Zealand, to American parents (Mother; Chinese-American, Father; Chicago native), and is the heir apparent to the Sydney Chinese Triad, which was run by his maternal grandfather, who was known as Father Gow. His parents had been sent to New Zealand due to his fathers job, working for an electric company with a keen interest in renewable sources of power, opening up a new branch of the company overseas that needed someone they could send over for a while to help get the new branch set up and running smoothly.

Paul was born in New Zealand, and grew up there with his parents and grandfather. His father was named the new head of the New Zealand branch, so they remained in the country longer than originally expected. His mother remained a stay at home mother, while his father worked. His maternal grandfather came from Sidney to live with them, as Jade was his only child, and greatly influenced Paul's childhood. Paul's parents were able to file for dual citizenship for their son, giving him the option of living in either New Zealand or America.

When Paul was in his late teens, his grandfather was murdered and Paul swore he would not rest until those responsible had answered for it. Tracking his way back through the chain of hired thugs, Paul found himself heading to America, Chicago Illinois to be exact, as he kept on the trail of his grandfather's killers. The irony wasn't lost on him, as Chicago would have been his birthplace if his father hadn't taken the company's offer to go to New Zealand.

While tracking down the mysterious mutant known as 'the Examiner', Paul met up with a couple of associates of Professor Charles Xavier who were tracking the same mutant as he was wanted for other crimes. Working together they not only found the evidence to link the Examiner to his crimes, but they tracked him down to a few hideouts in the city. Unwilling to wait, Paul rushed on, tracking down the Examiner and challenging him to a deadly duel to restore his families honor.

In the end, he couldn't bring himself to kill, instead beating the Examiner to the point of unconsciousness and dragging him to the police along with all the evidence needed to link the mutant criminal to his many crimes. Not wanting to be directly linked to his actions, Paul gave the cops the codename 'Red Lotus', so chosen because of it's meaning in Buddhism and the fact that it had been his grandfather's favorite flower of all the flowers in their large garden.

Red Lotus was offered a official place among the X-Men. Paul spent a few days in meditation, searching his mind, heart, and soul for what he should do. Not getting anywhere sitting out in the vast gardens surrounding Professor Xavier's school, Paul went into town. While in town he managed to stop some small time thugs from stealing a old ladies purse. It was in that moment Paul's choice was made.

While he believed in Xavier's dream, believed that the world needed more men and women willing to stand up for what was right and protect the world. He realized while they were out taking care of the large troubles nobody was actually looking out for the 'little guy'. Paul decided the best use of his gifts would be to look out for the 'little guy'.

It was with resolve in his heart that Paul returned to Xavier's school to give his reply. To his surprise Xavier wasn't disappointed or shocked by Paul's choice, only telling the young man that there would always be a place for him with the X-Men if he ever decided to change his mind.

Paul made good use of his families wealth, becoming a known philanthropist who sponsored programs for underprivileged youth while keeping his identity as Red Lotus a secret. As Red Lotus he continued to fight against crime, working tirelessly to protect the 'little guy' and ensure the youth his programs reached out to could have the best possible chances to thrive without worry of taking up arms just to defend their homes from the criminals and drug dealers that had become so prevalent in the big cities.

With the recent world-changing events during the rise to power of ex-Senator and now President Kelly and the continuing enforcement of extreme actions (The District X Program, mutant 'branding', testing for the mutated X gene at birth, and placing legal restrictions on the places and situations when mutants are allowed to use their powers) under the umbrella of the MRA, Paul has decided that New York City is in greater need of him than his much beloved adopted hometown of Chicago. Still uncertain if he's ready to reveal himself as a mutant to the world, as he knows it will condemn him to a life of being a second-class citizen and probably damage the reputation of his youth organization, Paul has put into place a secure trust fund for his charity works in the hope that it will be able to continue on without him if necessary.

His personal honor and pride will no longer allow him to sit on the sidelines, since Xavier aided him in the discovery and eventual prosecution of his grandfather's murderer, Paul feels honor bound to come to the aid of the X-Men now. Even if it is at the cost of his own reputation.

(Discovery of his powers/his youth/early grooming for a place in the Triad)

The traditions of respect, honor, and discipline that had gone as unspoken rules in his home ever since he could remember gave him something to rebel against as a teenager. Paul's parents viewed his rebellion with a quiet indulgence, hoping that he'd quickly work past it and return to the honorable dignified son they loved. Only his grandfather took his teenage rebellion seriously, not only allowing but encouraging Paul to speak his mind on anything that was troubling him.

Didn't matter if Paul came bursting into his grandfather's study without knocking, or if Paul suddenly got agitated at the dinner table. Years had passed before Paul finally realized what his grandfather had been really doing, giving him a pressure valve of sorts to stop his hormone-driven anger from boiling over.

This also created a stronger bond between Paul and his grandfather which allowed his grandfather to begin grooming him to take a place in the Triad far earlier than most others would. As his grandfather had no children other than Paul's mother, Paul was the de-facto direct male descendant of the Gow line. For this reason his grandfather was keen to meld Paul into a fitting heir to the Sidney Triad. This also meant that his grandfather was the only person Paul told everything to. Including the day he had to pull a friend out of harms way as they were walking back into campus from having left for lunch.

His friend didn't see the truck barreling around the corner towards the back parking lot until it was too late, without thinking Paul had dashed forward, grabbed his friend Scotty around the waist, and ran with him out of harms way before he realized what he'd done. Frightened by the discovery of his powers, he took his grandfather's advice and hid them from everyone.

Paul continued to hide his status as a mutant out of fear, until the discovery of the truth behind his grandfather's murder motivated him to take steps to avenge his families honor. With the help of some associates of Charles Xavier, Paul was able to get the proof he needed that the Examiner had been the one responsible for his grandfather's death.

Challenging the Examiner to a duel of honor to the death, Paul defeated the Examiner yet left him alive. As he believed that his grandfather wouldn't want any blood to be on his hands, no matter how strong the guilt. Going against the wishes of his family in the Triad, Paul handed the Examiner over to the nearest police detectives, along with the evidence to prove his guilt in the murders of multiple high ranking crime lords.

This action caused Paul to be publicly disowned from his family that still had ties to the Triad, while privately remaining accepted by them. While he no longer has any place in the crime organization, there are many 'sympathetic ears' still within the crime syndicate who are willing to lend him a covert hand in times of need.

Personality
Intense. Focused. Disciplined. Driven. Four words that are an apt description of the man.

Paul was a scrawny wiry child that would always manage to get himself into a fight with the bullies at school for sticking up for his friends. Most of his teachers thought he was a punk, so did the principal of his school, who got tired of sending Paul home with a note for his parents about his latest brawl.

Quickly realizing that their son needed to be taught control and discipline, his parents decided to enroll him in a local martial arts school. This changed Paul's outlook on life, as he learned other ways of standing up for what was right beyond physical violence. Paul took to the life lessons and philosophy as much as he took to the physical training, by the time he graduated high school he'd become a junior black belt and assistant teacher.

Paul still looks for ways to stand up for the 'little guy', even if it means he must use his training and mutation to physically defend them.

He tries to be the best role model for kids that he can be, choosing to live his life in adherence with the straight edge lifestyle ever since he started his martial arts training, he now encourages the youth in his foundation to live above the bad influences of drugs and alcohol.

He's an atheist, in that he chooses not to believe in a supreme being always looking over his shoulder and judging his every action or in any extreme forms of good or evil. Instead he believes in everyone there is potential for both, and your actions dictate which of the two tigers in your soul you feed the most. This will determine how the universe responds to your actions.

He does his best to act from a place of honor in his belief that his good works will only grow to help more who need the help.

Likes

 * Working with youth via his foundation
 * Spending time with friends
 * Cooking
 * Pretty girls, although he believes that any pretty girl that admits to liking him has either got to be drunk/high or insane because he views his own appearance as average at best
 * Video Games

Dislikes

 * Criminals
 * Murderers
 * Parents who abuse their children
 * Idiots who refuse to lean anything from their mistakes/stupid people
 * Corrupt Cops

Skills
Paul is a very skilled martial artist, having studied Muay Thai since his early childhood (around age 8 or 9). He's been granted an instructors certification in the sport, and continually practices even now to improve his fighting technique.

Paul loves music, and can be coaxed into preforming karaoke with his friends, although he doesn't believe he's anything special when it comes to singing. He also loves to cook and is a good chef when it comes to preparing simple homemade meals.

Powers
Red Lotus is a superhuman martial artist who possesses enhanced strength, speed, reflexes, agility, dexterity, coordination, balance, and endurance.

What does this mean? Basically he's Jet Li on crack and Chuck Norris' worst nightmare in mutant form. He is the very definition of the term 'Human Weapon', able to leave you hurting before you even realize he's there.

(The limits of his powers have not yet been officially given in any canon source I could find, so I'm going to take a little creative license with them. Feel free to mention anything that may need tweaking.)

Enhanced Strength: Able to lift up to 800 lbs

Enhanced Speed: His mind exerts a force which propels his body at quicker speeds. Approximately 250 miles per hour under ideal conditions. (This is his max which isn't often used. Most of the time he'll go faster than a human when needed, but typically only pushes himself to max speed if it's a huge emergency.)

Enhanced Reflexes: The presence of a reaction impulse and reaction time beyond that of a normal human. One with this ability can catch flies mid-air and easily react to potentially harmful stimuli in a way that seems almost prescient. If a foe tried to punch the user, for example, he could dodge the hit and retaliate before the foe even lands a blow. In the same way, if he was about to place his hand on the burner of a hot stove unwittingly, his reflexes would make him impulsively retract his hand before he felt or noticed the heat. Because of his superhuman ability to react to stimuli beyond the capability of others, he is capable of making a move and correcting it in nearly one action, making him also adept at dodging and evasion.

He's difficult to hit in melee combat, able to not only react quickly but to move out of your attack, countering it with one of his own as he's thinking of it. This also makes it difficult for telepaths to anticipate his moves in combat.

Enhanced Agility: The ability to quickly go from one motion to another (with an extreme nimbleness and lightness on the feet). One with this ability can jump, cartwheel and back flip with great ease (and quickly). This ability is also useful for effectively dodging attacks, swinging from things easily, sprinting, doing backflips and numerous other gymnastic and athletic implements. Combined with his Enhanced Dexterity his movements are very graceful and fluid, as well.

Enhanced Dexterity: He preforms at the peak of movement adroitness, balance, coordination and equilibrium. This allows one to perform skills like juggling, doing handstands, catching things thrown at himself, and otherwise balancing with extreme ease. It also includes the near-inability to fumble, unbalance or trip by any means short of the ability Tychokinesis (and resistance to disorienting effects, like those encountered with motion sickness, vertigo, the abilities Homeostatic Disruption and Disruption, and the like).

He's got he grace and ability to pull off moves in combat that it would take a trained stuntman on guide wires to recreate.

Enhanced Coordination: His mind is able to react to his current environment/condition and get his body started on the best/proper physical response even before your average person could think of what to do. He is continually aware of his body, and physical environment, always making slight adjustments for changes.

Enhanced Balance: The grace and skill to land on his feet from even a very high fall, quick recovery during a tumble, and the ability to dance on the flat of an opponents sword while in combat? Check. He's capable of orienting himself in all but the most extreme of situations, doesn't suffer from vertigo or any other balance-hindering conditions.

Enhanced Endurance: The ability to resist damage beyond an average person. This can be accomplished by either exceptionally tough skin, or a psychic force covering the skin, so he can perceive sensation, but cannot easily be hurt or stunned from concussive damage (normal weapons don’t easily inflict damage). This also gives him enhanced stamina, which allows him to stay active for far longer before the he even begins to tire.

What does this mean? He can take a beating and stay on his feet ready for more. Is able to 'bounce back' from strenuous activities faster than even a trained Olympic athlete, and could outlast the best non-mutants in any endurance competition with ease.

Weaknesses
The character is mortal, which means he can be shot, stabbed, poisoned, etc. Yep, he's mortal all right, even with his mutant powers he can be taken down by the same things that would take out any other mortal. Illness, yeah he can get sick. Being straight edge means he even hates taking over the counter cold medication and painkillers, preferring to just lie in bed with some hot chicken soup and orange juice while he waits for the cold to run its course. He hates hospitals and avoids doctors office visits like the black plague.

He's also got family ties (second cousins, and others related to him through his mother's side of the family) to the Chinese Triad, which could be both a strength and a weakness depending on who's running things in that organization at any given time and how many family favors Paul may need to call upon at any given moment.

Paul also suffers from insomnia, due to his bodies enhanced endurance/stamina he has difficulty not only getting to sleep but staying asleep. As it takes a lot for him to deplete his own energy enough to get into a state of physical exhaustion, no matter how mentally exhausted he may be. He counts himself lucky to get more than five or six hours of sleep a night. When he's able to, he will engage in something physically strenuous in the hours before bed (ie; hitting the gym for a workout) just so he's able to fall asleep quicker.

While he's learned how to deal with the insomnia, it still takes its toll on his mental state at times, causing the skilled fighter to be less than useful at doing anything complex other than combat until he's had a chance to meditate for a few hours, giving his mind time to rest and 'catch up' to his body.