Persephone

Persephone Aella Alexandra (born June 19th, 1991) known as Persephone is a Greek superheroine.

Persephone is the founder, and leader of a unique group of Heroines and Anti Heroines called The Riot Pack, an unsanctioned group that works out of UNITY and UNTIL's jurisdiction. If anything the group could be seen more as a gang or "sisterhood".

Originally known as a menace to the people, she has since somewhat reformed her ways, but is very harsh on criminals. Her rogue gallery consists of people like the amazon Andrasteia, the Greek goddess Hera, and currently the Egyptian Goddess Sekhmet.

=Character History=

Birth In The Shadows
Hercules, the hero of many Greek fables, including his very famous “labors” had started to slow down in his exploits, for he always felt somewhat bored with the challenges that always laid in front of him. But if there was anyone...anyone who was a challenge to him, in any way, shape form or aspect, it was his half brother, Ares. The two always competed, whether it was in a test of battle, or other events, they were rivals in every sense of the word. So it was odd, when one day Ares brought up a wager, very confident that he would succeed. There was an amazon warrior, by the name of Antianara, who had caught both of their eyes, but neither went after her, because they knew the other would move also. But when the wager was brought up, it was simple. Both men would try to wow the warrior, in hopes that she would fall in love with them, without telling her who they really were. Whoever won, got the girl.

The contest was on, over the affection of the muscular, feminine, but fierce woman, each hoping that it would work in their favor. The days turned to weeks, and when three months had gone by, Antianara had made her choice. She chose Hercules. As much as she respected and felt somewhat a kindred spirit about Ares, she couldn't shake the darkness about him... and the fact that Herc was a ladies man did make it a bit easier. Several months later, the two were married, and roughly a year later, the two had consummated their relationship. Young Helena was born 10 months later. Born with her mother's hair color, but her fathers eyes and some form of both of their strength, Helena was a unique child of her own sorts.

Ares was drenched in failure...or he felt that way as he was defeated in a contest for the love of a woman he saw as the perfect mate. In anger...and in retribution, he had arraigned to have several amazons who were very loyal to him to have a contest, to determine who would be suitable for his mate. A young, very devote follower of his, named Andrasteia, had gone into battle, with high hopes of impressing her lord. With an almost demonic aura about her, she used her great strength, skill and abilities to defeat, and kill every single opponent she was put up against. Ares could feel her tenacity, and her wish to be at his side at all costs. He liked that..so he took her in. Although he always felt she was like a second place prize, over time he would somewhat respect her.

Things between the man and woman worked fine, until he had caught word that Hercules had a daughter... once again bringing his hatred for what had happened to the surface. He felt in retaliation, he should have a child, one who would be far stronger than whatever Hercules could make. That, ended up with Persephone being born... nearly 2 years after Helena was born. Andrasteia was somewhat proud...and content with what they had made, as she looked so much like her and had such a strong spirit, but shortly after the girl was a toddler, Ares showed great distaste and dislike for the girl who knew no better. Andrasteia felt she had failed her lord...and she began to slowly sever ties to the child she somewhat treated decently since birth. Persephone's happy, joyous side slowly began to slowly disappear, hidden under a pained, hurt exterior. Ares could tell Persephone was different, for she was emitting such a powerful aura even for her age...he knew if anything the girl had potential to even best Zeus and Hera, but he had to darken her heart, to ensure she would not end up being as weak hearted as she felt many others were.

The Hidden Beast
The two physically and verbally abused the girl, causing her to become more and more of a recluse, even amongst the kids she had gone to school with. Once at the age of 7, Persephone was being insulted and was heckled by her classmates, and despite the girl's threats of hurting them, they didn't back off. Losing control for a moment, the girl let out a devilish howl, as her clothes were torn from her form, the young girl, became somewhat of a hulking form of her normal very athletic build, as her eyes turned from their pink shade, to a bright, hellish red. The girl had destroyed two cities, before Ares and a few others intervened stopping her, and leaving her in a sleep state. He couldn’t believe what he saw and felt... he saw the power she had...he wanted her to be like this. This beast that he saw lay waste to many others...even though Persephone didn't have memory over what happened, Ares did. Her felt though...he first needed to find an outlet for that anger.

Red Meets Blue
The girl's anger manifested itself in the physical training he saw Persephone put herself through. Persephone usually watched other athletes, and warriors train their bodies, while other bodybuilders also hone their physical states. Enamored, Perse began to adapt all of their traits in her training. Minor gymnastics, power lifting, and several other practices helped her hone her body, and Ares had decided it was time. When Persephone was 12, he told her about Hercules, and Helena ...mentioning to her about how much better Helena was compared to her, and that she is nothing, since all she is a reminder of what failure can give...and what a loser can settle for. As the year dragged on...he said more hateful things, that in turn infuriated Persephone, and made her push harder...and harder, so when she had met Helena the following year... Helena held out her hand for a handshake. Persephone's fist shoot Helena's face as she sent her flying, before she beat her to near death before Antianara intervened. Persephone's raw power, her anger, and Helena's reluctance led to the result...and although Persephone saw it as a victory...Ares just scoffed.

Persephone saw Helena on a few more occasions, beating her violently and soundly...thinking every time she completed a battle, she appeased her father. Ares just scoffed, making Persephone at the time that much hungrier for his approval...for she knew once she had his, her mother would gladly jump along. Andrasteia was proud, but like Ares, constantly shunned her, insulted her, and beat her, especially after Andrasteia was given deital like endurance and near longevity due to her servitude, and not only being Ares's wife, but his personal guard to add on to her already naturally gained prodigious strength and fighting ability. But with Antianara and Helena disappearing, Persephone's drive began to wain...with her rival and her main source of practice gone, she began to take her rage out on others who didn’t deserve it...and it justly got her removed from school, when she decided not to go back because “The weaklings cant handle a real woman who can end them if she wanted.” Lost so to speak, she began to refocus her training on her strength, realizing she had been gaining it at such an insane level.

The Pact
One day returning from training, she could overhear Ares in an argument with Hades, speaking about an unfinished deal, that he would have no problem taking Ares soul and dishonoring him if he didn't agree to finish his half. Several millenia ago, Ares had asked Hades for an army to take against an uprising of warriors who were making their move against Olympus. All Hades asked, was for several atrocities to be done, to gain him more souls, and he'd do it. They agreed...and Hades fulfilled his end of the bargain... Ares did very little, then had decided it wasn't worth his time to do so, and stopped. Hades always quietly held it against Ares, and every time the two crossed paths, he had no problem reminding Ares of it. He could tell that it ate at him no matter what he did.

They had parted company, and Persephone felt if this didn't put her in a positive light in his eyes, she didn’t know what would. She went to Hades, and without a second thought, agreed...although she would end up doing things, that she didn’t want to do. Hades knew the young woman's desperation to end her own personal suffering, by attempting to appease the man by finishing what even he couldn't start. Things that still do haunt her to this day. She had started to build a notoriety about her, known for mass destruction in her wake, and hunting down super heroes, killing innocents and others inside. Internally, it tore at her... it stopped her from sleeping well at night, and she suffered. Wanting to get less involved, she knew she had to build a network of other villains who would be willing to do some of the things she personally didn’t want to even consider. Persephone felt it eat at her soul... but she felt whatever she was doing...was for her own greater good.

Vs. Athena, and a Change of Heart
A pleasant suprise awaited her 4 months later, as she headed a heist on the Millenium City museum... as she saw the same young woman she had been praying to fight again. Both were older...stronger, one wiser, one desperate. The only changing factor, was that one brought friends. Going into battle, Persephone started out slightly advantageous, but was forced back by the combined might of Benchpress, Lady Athena, and Titan Lass. That began a myriad of battles, that took place on several different parts of the world...in several different situations.

Persephone hated what she was doing...but she felt she was being closer to making her father proud. But another change was occurring inside her... she couldn't explain it...but she was no longer spiteful, or hateful of Helena. There was a dislike, but above all, she enjoyed battling her more often, feeling she could test herself more and more. Although she had battles against Benchpress, Persephone had somewhat of a respect for the woman... while when it came to Titan Lass, the two had a completely mutual hatred for one another. Usually if their eyes locked... this would most likely ensue. But after Bench had revealed her true identity, an encounter with both her and Helena had Persephone questioning the motives as to why she was doing what she was doing. She was trying so hard to finish something her father started... but Crush had pointed out not only did he not care...but Perse could actually get better practice and training by aiming her rage against the much larger group of villains. With extra “coercing”... Persephone decided to be a hero...but she was bound by Hades' contract, and had to finish. But it was also then Persephone felt...if she could not impress him by that way...she would earn his eternal ire by taking the title he so proudly coveted.

She had started doing heroic deeds...but then also when necessary, and was called to do so, she did her dark deeds, with somewhat of a heavy heart. It was because of this, usually when Persephone was occasionally doing runs with Crush and Titan Lass, herself and Titan Lass had come to blows. Hades had messed with Persephone's power levels, allowing her near full access to her current level when she did what he wanted, but left her in a heavily weakened state when she did what she wanted. It took a while, but she did eventually gain the power back. Feeling she fulfilled what she owed Hades, a final fight against Helena as nemesis' took place in a Volcano Lair on Monster Island. Persephone went to battle against Helena who was there with a young man who went by the moniker Smokin Mirrors. Her heart not fully into the fight, she had lost, and had freed herself of her duties. It was like a burden was lifted off her chest... but in actuality, it was the easiest part. Earning the trust of some...that was the harder part.

Personal Demons and Redemption Through Hera
Smokin, who was also known as Max, he had accepted her, and did his best to help guide her, despite her early frustrations. Crush, was also very open, since she knew a bit of the internal struggle that Persephone was dealing with...she just didn't know all of it. Helena was easily the first one to open her arms, and Persephone was very thankful for that. The one she was hoping to try to bury the hatchet the most... was Titan Lass. But both women were incredibly stubborn...so neither were really budging from a moral standpoint. Still haunted by her deeds, her grandmother Hera had utterly defeated Zeus, and had planned on returning the Greek Pantheon to power...by destroying everything else. Frustrated, Persephone focused on that, while she knew Helena was dealing with a young member of the Yaskatani Menryu clan, the group she had as her underlings during her time under Hades. It was during this she found a close friend, and older sister figure in a woman who used the alias Bash, and was a “disciple” of Crush. Persephone had a strong attraction to her, but when finding out about her stance, simply backed off, and saw her as an older sibling. Helena and Persephone had found out about a state that demi gods could attain depending on their bloodline and own personal abilities. Helena had achieved a state that was considered an “Avatar of Battle” where her outfit changed, and her and and eye color returned to their natural birth colors. Not wanting to feel so far behind, Persephone slaved, and did whatever she could to gain her avatar state also. Even though it took Persephone to take longer to gain her “Avatar of War” state, but she gained control over it slightly faster than Helena did. All was falling into place...

What remained though, was Persephone's current situation with Ann. It took a while...but after constant arguments, fights, and one severe peer mediation sitting, Persephone and Annor were able to at least...move on for some sorts. Its slightly clear that there is still some residual tension between the two, but if anything the two are far better friends than they used to be. As Hera's plans were coming faster to fruition, Persephone worked harder, and very diligently to ensure her plans were for naught...and when she defeated the woman who was supposedly the strongest woman in the pantheon...she felt proud, like she had conquered a mountain...only to have the next enemy literally make her feel worse.

Andrasteia, Beginning the Egyptian War, and Competition
Shortly after beating Hera, Ares was easily angered, and felt insulted...so much that he asked Andrasteia to kill Persephone. Deep down inside, she didn't want to, but she couldn’t show that to the man she swore allegiance to, and chose to go after her daughter, to end her life with her own bare hands. The fights between the two got very heated, although Persephone had assistance from Bash, Smokin, Crush, and on occasion Titan Lass against her mother. But before she could finish her business with her, something came up which forced the family together for a temporary alliance. Andrasteia ensured that Persephone should remember that their business wasn’t over, in fact she felt it was only just beginning.

It wasn’t clear who started the conflict, but it was clear that two pantheons were headed for war. On the actions of Isis, Helena, who Persephone had somewhat saw as an older sister figure at this point, was distraught over the illness that came upon her mother. It made the usually calm woman hostile, which if anything made Persephone worried. But she had felt if anything she had to be the rock of support that Helena was for her. It also made Persephone frustrated with their current situation, but she usually turned to others to talk about it, or used spars and fights with others to let out frustration. She mainly did so with Ann and another woman, a green skinned titanness by the name of Berzerkka. Persephone felt a kinship with the woman, so much so that she usually tries to scrap with her whenever she has the chance to, seeing it as something to gauging her own abilities. It took a lot of fights, and persuasion, but with the assistance from some friends of Helena's, after defeating Nariko, they were able to deduce where Isis was hiding from them. But before a move could be made, Isis played her master stroke, killing Antianara. It angered Ares, although he never showed it, it stung deep in Persephone to see not only the woman who was pretty accepting to her dead, but to see Helena in such a distraught state.

Helena's Crisis
The night before Helena decided to go after Isis, Persephone offered to go in her stead, and was very insistent on going. But she could see, in Helena's glowing eyes, the anger...and desperation she felt to go face the person who was responsible for her ire. Persephone knew that look...it was in her eyes for a long time. Finally deciding to back off, she only hoped her cousin would return. As far as she was concerned, it went off without a hitch...but Helena returned different. She was naturally stuck in her avatar state...she acted slightly differently, and her scent reminded Persephone of the Nephilim she had waged war with on Vibora. Shortly figuring out that it may not be Helena, she decided to investigate on her own in quiet, until she had opened up to Max about it. He agreed, and the two decided to act as if everything was normal around “Helena”. But one thing stood out in her mind...the recently reformed Nariko a.k.a Megami, had brought up the potential fact that Isis had used a doppelganger in the place of Helena, which could mean Helena was still somewhere in between this world and the next. With oncoming pressure from her mother, Persephone felt she had to bring it to a close quickly for her frustration was starting to get her upset...and her words and actions started to alienate her from the people she called friends.

On her word, she had Max and a few others, test the theory of the doppelganger, which came to light that it was true. Once the copy was defeated, and Helena's location was revealed to be in the temple, Persephone, Crush, a friend of Helena's that she met named Protector, Titan Lass, and Fraulein Panzer struck the temple. Things were left in a far greater mess than before...but Persephone found, and freed her cousin, leading to a very warm reunion. Although Helena's appearance changed, the greatest change came from inside... as she was emotionally and mentally distraught. She was quieter, she zoned out whenever they spoke...the joy Persephone felt, was overcome with the raw hatred she also had for Isis. To be honest, Isis wasn’t popular in many of their books, but then something she pushed to the back of her mind, came right back to the forefront. Andrasteia. Mother and daughter clashed on several occasions, as Persephone felt if anything... she had to divert most of her attention to the still somewhat emotionally healing Helena. Although many of the head gods were reconvening on Mount Olympus, Persephone felt maybe that was what Helena needed to get better, so then she could go after Isis with a clear head.

The Inner Devil Returns
The reconvening on Olympus was good for several reasons, for Persephone learned many things. She had learned new styles to fight from Hercules himself, she actually learned she was stronger than him in terms of physical might making her the only one outside of Hera stronger than him, and that Hera, despite being routed by her, had somewhat come to respect the woman the teen was becoming. But if there was one thing she tried her best to do, was to avoid speaking to her father, at all costs, and it worked... until there was 30 minutes left before they were to go. Helena was doing far better, and Persephone felt the trip was a success, but Ares, who had been heckling Persephone the entire trip...finally pushed that last button, that caused her to snap. The anger that Helena thought Persephone always had...wasn’t anger. It was irritation. What Persephone truly felt...was anger at this moment. Her eyes took that familiar red glow, her body, already large, became nearly immense, ripped, and had such incredible vascularity. The only problem? She wasn’t a kid...she was far more powerful than she was then.

The look on Ares face...which confused many...for he looked almost completely joyful by what stood before him. As he laughed, he called out...speaking that this was his child. That when she was like this...he could accept her as his daughter. A living breathing rendition, of the emotions and chaos from war. Despite his joy... moments later, a searing pain would be felt throughout his body, as the thing he praised turned its eyes upon him. A raw, senseless beating of Ares resonated throughout Greece...the force of her blows, were earthquakes felt throughout Europe... it took Hercules and Hera to pry her off for a moment, before she was hit by a hailstorm of Zeus's thunderbolts. If those three didn't intervene, she would have killed him where he stood...or more like where he laid. It was only enough to send her to her senses, and when she asked what had happened, and everyone just told her nothing did, that she just blacked out, she accepted it. She was worried...since she saw the fear, and the color gone from Helena's face, but she tried not to ask about it. All she knew was that they were in a massive crater that the cracks climbed down the entire mountain.

A Heavy Heart, Returning Home, and Final Preperations
The two returned to Millennium, Persephone's first issue, outside of reconnecting with friends, was to finish the business with Andrasteia. She felt after her, she could kill Sekhmet, and then she would be easily ready for Ares, not knowing she was plenty strong enough to kill the man now... although her family and the other gods knew full and well the power and potential the girl held within. She faced Andrasteia where Helena once faced Persephone, and where Persephone faced Hera months before... and at the end of it all, when she stood over the body of the woman she knew as the greatest fighter she knew, confusion hit her face. As she slipped into unconsciousness from her injuries, Andrasteia uttered, with a weak smile, “I'm sorry....Perseephone... I...” The woman Persephone came to hate for so many years... had apologized.

Currently, despite her inner turmoil, she has already started her campaign against Sekhmet, and is geared, hoping for a total victory. Andrasteia has not fully recovered, and Persephone fully intended on asking her mother why the kindness...after so many years. She may not get the answer she seeks, for she knows where her mother is...her father can easily be within earshot, but she feels if she can at least get some form of body language...maybe shell have something to build upon. As she awaits Andrasteia to fully recover, Persephone takes things to mind and to heart about how to tackle the situation.