Ichiro Yamashita
: Pilot Ichiro Yamashita
Age: 33
Gender: Male
Project: Colossus, Formerly Myrmidon
Occupation: Primary Pilot for HY-X-Odyssey
Personality:
"No matter what, we can't get complacent. We won't always have Hyper Man to defend us. Humanity has to get stronger, strong enough to face the universe without fear."
A believer in humanity and their potential, Ichiro has believed that he had to personally get stronger, due to being one of those present when Shigeru Kawakami gave his life for Hyper Man. A boisterous man who works hard, lives hard, and has tempered himself through numerous encounters with kaiju, sometimes to buy time for Hyper Man, and other times to weaken a foe that the Hyperian wasn't able to defeat alone. He bears a great sense of responsibility and duty, and values human life above anything else on the battlefield.
A patient and tough man, he's long since come to know how much punishment the Odyssey can take, and will actively leverage its toughness to protect Meta-Tokyo at all costs.
History:
At the age of 13 while visiting his mother's lab, Ichiro's life would change once the alien Vega was unleashed from its prison. The exact details were terrifying, but he clearly remembered one thing: Someone telling him to not give up hope, even if everything was going wrong. Ichiro would become the first confidant of Hyper Man's human identity as he watched man and alien become one being. While Shigeru flew off to fight Vega, Ichiro gathered his courage to help evacuate everyone else from that lab.
Growing up, Ichiro wanted to fight to protect people the same way Hyper Man was doing, and so would join Myrmidon as soon as he turned 18, quickly proving himself in the anti-kaiju corps as a heavy machinery specialist. Project Colossus was in its infancy, finally producing the first prototype shell for the Odyssey, with rigorous internal testing being conducted in Myrmidon to find suitable pilots. Wanting to prove himself and to defeat the alien threats assaulting Earth like Hyper Man, Ichiro was one of the first to sign up.
Despite his mother's wishes, Ichiro was one of the most compatible with the Hyper Core's energy signature, making his ability to synchronize with the Prototype HY-0-Odyssey exceptionally high. However, unproven as he was, he was passed over by Dr. Helen McCulloch, who insisted that an undisciplined loose cannon like Ichiro would only contaminate the research data for the prototype. Within a day of his rejection, the Kaiju known as "Betelgeuse" would descend upon Sydney Australia, becoming known as the Destro-Machine by the public for its immense size and completely devastating level of ballistic firepower. Uniquely outfitted to repel Hyper Man's attacks, the kaiju would push Hyper Man to his limits while the aerial forces of Myrmidon sortied to assist. Seeing Hyper Man on the verge of defeat, Ichiro would accept any consequences that came as he forced his way to the Odyssey and deployed with it, clumsily assisting Hyper Man against the Betelgeuse he'd struggled against. Despite his lack of initial skill, the Odyssey would resonate strongly with his fighting spirit, helping Hyper Man secure victory while protecting Sydney.
Afterwards, Ichiro was court martialed, but his sentence was eliminated thanks to Hyper Man acknowledging his capacity as Odyssey's pilot, despite the continued protests of Dr. McCulloch. Ever since, Ichiro has deployed numerous times to assist Hyper Man, more than eager to assist his friend. The two have formed a bond of comradery and friendship, with Ichiro becoming something like an uncle to Shigeru's son. With the arrival of Hyper Man X however, Ichiro isn't sure what happened to Shigeru, and aims to find out the truth by investigating the planet's new protector.
HY-X-Odyssey
: HY-X-Odyssey
Combat Focus: Bruiser-type, focusing on close range combat, protection, and redirecting threats.
Origin:
Creation centered on Hyper Man's ship, as well as replicating its defensive barrier that had allowed it to survive re-entry, and remain intact after Vega's rampage.
Abilities:
- Hyperian Barrier - Equipped with Hyper Man's ship core as its power source, the Odyssey is protected by a powerful barrier that minimizes the damage that it takes.
- Piston Driver - Pneumatic fists that are equipped with inner mechanisms designed to deliver maximized impact even while grappling kaiju-sized threats.
- Extend Bunker - Small studs around the arms, chest, and head unit of the Odyssey are equipped with miniaturized conductive rods, designed to more effectively distribute the Hyper Core's barrier along three points in the form of a triangular shield. More effective against beam-based attacks, or to stop physical blows that would crush the machine beneath the barrier.
- Overburn - Pushing the Hyper Core's energy towards core systems and not the barrier, Ichiro is able to overclock the machine to greatly increase its response times and strength, at the cost of a lack of protection, and likely sucking the power dry.
- Protector Edge - Despite the protection the Hyper Core provides, the Odyssey itself lacks direct killing power to take down kaiju. As such it has been equipped with a large sword designed to be supported by two extending brackets from the forearms, allowing the Odyssey to utilize the sword to deal finishing blows.
- Signal Fire - A utility function of the Odyssey, which allows for it to produce an extremely bright flash of light from its optic visor. Most often used for night battles or for low-visibility environments, but Ichiro has used it to blind kaiju temporarily before.
Future developments:
