"Talk about a shocking development, huh?....Too soon?"H I - V O L T
| N A M E: | Jenna Beltran aka The Electrifying, Awe-Inspiring Hi-Volt! (...Just call her Hi-Volt)
Straight (in theory; she's never really dated before)
■ 2002-2020 | Big City, Bigger Dreams
The early life of Jenna Beltran was nothing remarkable, though she wouldn't have changed it for the world. Her parents, Jemina and River Beltran, worked as members of the Research and Development Wing of the famous (or infamous, depending on who you ask) STARK Industries in none other than the Big Apple; New York City. While they weren't exactly high-stationed, they did good work, and even more importantly, enjoyed what they did. Even if they were mostly a middle-class family, they were happy with that.
Even in her youth, it was clear little Jenna inherited a lot of the traits of her parents; she was quick-witted, inquisitive, and never settled for less than her best. Not exactly a super-genius per se, but she knew how to apply herself well, and pushed hard to become someone her parents could be proud of. She was always inspired by their work, and how they could put their hearts and souls into what they believed in, honestly wanting to help better the world for others. She wanted to be just like them!
So, in that vein, excelling in academics was a natural course for her; it got rocky sometimes, but she always managed to pull through, and graduated from Brooklyn Technical High School as Valedictorian of her class. Not long after, the innovate young woman moved on to even bigger and brighter things, seeking to see her dreams realized as she got accepted into the prestigious Empire State University, and what's more? She even began an internship at STARK Industries, following in her parents' footsteps! Talk about moving up in the world, huh?
For a time, things were...Well, to call them great would be an overstatement (though Jenna would try to convince you otherwise); though she thoroughly enjoyed her studies at the University and getting to do more practical work at STARK, it was slowly wearing her down. She rarely left any spare time to herself between prepping for school work, interning at STARK, and working on her own pet projects. Beyond her mom sending some care packages her way, she pretty much ate out of a microwave. No time to cook...Or learn to cook, even. Not to mention how brutally she was pushing herself; without others to really keep an eye on her, beyond a slightly concerned roommate, she was left to her own devices, steadily destroying herself without even realizing it.
Day-in and day-out, she kept this routine going, rarely sneaking in more than a few winks before the new day dawned on the sleep-deprived Jenna. Her social life was effectively nonexistent (not that she seemed to mind), and she was growingly steadily unhealthy with each passing night. It doesn't make it surprising that an incident would occur eventually...
For once, Jenna found herself with some spare time, so of course she chose to....Work on a project of hers! What, were you expecting anything less? She was working on a new invention of hers, uncreatively dubbed the Smarthelm (hey, she was never a namer, alright?). It was designed for those who work in unsafe environments, like electricians or fire fighters, possessing a heads-up display that can highlight and point out environmental dangers to either avoid or control. It was also built sturdy, and could take a serious beating if it came to it. At the same time, she was also doing some last-minute bug-fixing on another of her designs, the Chargeband (...Again, she ain't a namer); a portable device designed to safely fit around ones wrist, it's able to store impressive amounts of energy, and could be used to either charge devices or safely deprive something of energy. It even has a taser function for practical defense! Jenna's a big fan of multi-use items.
Her mistake was one that should have been laughably easy to avoid, but the sleep-deprived college student had her mind wandering as she idly tinkered. Of course, she used her very own Chargeband to power up the current prototype of the Smarthelm, but as she began to don the helmet, she made a fatal error, as did one of her own machines. The failure on her part was the fact that she placed the Smarthelm on her while it was still connected to the band. The other? In a freak bug, the band had begun a strange cycle of simultaneously giving and taking electricity out from the helmet...With her head inside.
It was hours before her roommate found the unconscious and seemingly dying Jenna on the floor, stuck in a perpetual loop of having her skull electrocuted. They called 911, and she was rushed to the hospital. Things were looking bleak...
■ 2022-Present | An Electrifying Origin Story!
Five months in a coma.
That's what they told her afterwards, at least. After the incident, she'd been stuck in the hospital for months on end, with seemingly no signs of improvement. In fact, apparently the doctors had told her parents that it was likely she'd never recover. Even then, they clung to hope that their daughter could persevere, against the odds. Then, something strange happened; a miracle to others...An awakening for Jenna. By accident on one of their visits, her dad had dropped his phone, briefly grazing Jenna for but a moment.
A moment was all she needed.
Like a jolt to the heart, Jenna awoke that day to the shock of her family and the medical community as a whole. By all rights, there should have been no chance she recovered...And yet, here she was. Of course, even with this miraculously recovery, they had her go through some rehab to ensure there were no lasting damages, but to the increasing confusion of the hospital staff, it seemed as if the young woman had made an absolutely full recovery. It wasn't long before they simply had to admit she was fit as a fiddle, and was released to put her nose back to the grindstone (though she was admonished by her parents the whole way back; even beyond this incident, the doctors caught on to her poor nutrition and general health, much to her embarrassment).
...Except things would never truly be the same. She was different now, after all. She had noticed a few oddities in rehab, but it only became fully evident to her later on; when she went home for a good week before going back to schooling and internship, the first thing she did was check her phone out, perhaps hoping someone cared enough to message about her. However, what she got instead was a black screen as Jenna felt a strange buzz pass from the phone to herself. For a minute, she wasn't quite sure what had happened, but then the pieces started to click together....
And she just grinned.
She had always known about superheroes and stuff; insane superpowers and unnatural talents put to use defending Earth and whatnot. Heck, Mr. Stark himself was a superhero! Though she'd never personally met the guy...Anyways, the point is, this was her chance! For the next few months, even after returning to her usual shtick, she began focusing on these strange new abilities she possessed. Eventually, she even decided that the best way to put her capabilities to the test would be directly in action, becoming a small-time vigilante in New York City, running with the moniker of Hi-Volt!
Of course, she was far from the subtlest crusader of the Big Apple, and one day, she just kinda...Woke up somewhere she didn't remember? Apparently it was some kind of institution for Mutants (was that was she was? Huh!), helping them train their powers while also keeping them educated. The circumstances were strange, but after she watched her acceptance video, she just took things at face value. Besides, this way
way more exciting than the University! Maybe if she was lucky, she could even scrounge up a friend or two! After all, everyone here's kinda weird like her anyhow...
| S U P E R P O W E R S: |■ Power 1: Electrokinesis
After Jenna's incident awoke her latent Mutant genetics, she obtained the power of Electrokinesis; put simply, when she makes contact with something that has some form of electricity running through it, or by making direct contact with electricity, she can absorb it into her body and utilize it in a variety of ways. Usually frying baddies. She's uncertain exactly how much of a charge she can hold, but estimates it could be several million watts of energy; still untested.
This ability can also have more niche uses when she applies herself (though her ability to use this Power beyond simply absorbing and dishing out electricity are...Shaky as of now), such as manipulating and disrupting electromagnetic waves to tamper or shut down most forms of machinery remotely, using electromagnetic waves to achieve a form of Ferrokinesis (though even when she gets the hang of it, undoubtedly less refined than a certain someone...), or potentially achieving airtime through either timely release of electricity to propel herself, or by floating via electromagnetic waves. These are all still pretty far out of reach for her though, but she's trying to put them into practice when she can.
This ability could also be used to charge devices, but...She usually just ends up frying them instead. Whoops!
■ Power 2:Electro-Metaphysical Improvement
Her Powers also have affected Jenna in another intriguing way, the smallest of which being that her mutation is what caused her hair to change to an almost minty blue; in the past, it was just black. More prominently, perhaps, is that her newly-developed abilities have caused a change in the way her brain functions. Jenna didn't get smarter per se, but she quite literally thinks faster than the average person, and by no small margin. It aids her reaction time and speed of processing information, as well as most mental tasks. However, this came at the cost of her attention span getting shot to hell; if she can't focus on a single thing, she usually ends up disorientated and frazzled, and on the flip side, once she does fully focus on something, almost anything else simply falls into static noise for her.
On a different note, this also has allowed Jenna the ability to funnel the electrical energy she absorbs (and seemingly generates on her own now, though in small amounts) into her body for explosive results. Mainly, she can improve her raw strength or speed, and usually only in short bursts, because keeping them running for long periods is both exhausting to her and taxing on her energy reserves. This means she can take movements in the blink of an eye, or even smash through solid stone, but unlike a proper bruiser-type, she'll run outta gas eventually and become exceptionally helpless. She also hasn't found a way to enhance her own durability using this trait, though she believes the ability might be able to provide enhanced regenerative qualities...Though she's not eager to find that out.
Lastly, Jenna theorizes that, should she receive enough charge, she may be able to transform her body into pure electricity! Completely hypothetical, but definitely exciting! But she's also theorized such a change would be temporary if it occurred. At least, she hopes it would be...
| H A B I L I T I E S: |■ Math ■ Engineering ■ Reading (granted, became a lot less fun when she finishes a book in about two minutes...) | M I S C. N O T E S: |■ Jenna's birthday is on Christmas.
■ Jenna's favorite color is...Orange. You were expecting blue, weren't you?
■ Jenna has her driver's license, though she hasn't really used it since her powers developed; was way more fun roofhopping back in the big city!
■ Jenna didn't know Italian before coming here, but in that short window of time, she's obtained a frightening grasp over the language.
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