| Name:
Steven Edwards Affiliation: Formerly of an unnamed clan (living in the Missouri Mountains, now a member of the Manhattan Clan of Wyvern Sex: Male Age: 26 Height: 6' 8" Weight: 270 lb. Hair: Reddish-Blonde Eyes: Blue Likes: Writing, Reading, Playing Music/Singing |
 |
Physical Brief:
Steven Edwards is true Hybrid - Half Gargoyle/Half Human. He mostly resembles for the most part a normal looking Human, with the exception that he has greater stamina, reflexes, and a sense of balance that is more inherent with Gargoyles than Humans. He does show some Gargoyle physical markings; slightly pointed ears, a faint brow ridge, etc. He also has a set of finger and toe talons that are retractable, which are just as strong as a regular Gargoyle's.
His musculature is more highly developed, especially in the chest, abdomen
and back muscles, mostly those used in flight, along with a pair of white,
glider-type wings that have a single digit over 14 feet across. (larger
than Goliath's wingspan). He doesn't always glide like a normal Gargoyle,
rather he uses his powerful muscles to flap them, so he can fly like a
large bird of prey. He taught himself how to fly by watching Eagles
and Hawks, adapting their methods to create a unique flying style that
makes him a strong endurance flyer, as well as one of the fastest when
he "stoop-dives", allowing him to reach incredible airspeeds when he has
a lot of height to dive from (he's know to reach speeds of 80mph from the
top of the Aerie Building).
Psychological Profile:
Steven is a jovial personality; quick to laugh and make friends. He is also very easy-going person, very good to work with and be with. He's somewhat good at "reading" a person - meaning that once he meets you, he has an uncanny way of knowing your intentions and direction. However, if he is under emotional stress (such as when he was trying to rescue Deliah from the Pack) this can be suppressed.
He does tend to be secretive concerning his past, often adapting a half-truth in the face of those who might be curious. He is however fiercely loyal, and if forced to, he will fight tooth and claw to defend his friends and family. He also has a good sense of right and wrong, including a strong conviction against those who are prejudiced against people who have differences (i.e. - those who are racists, or hate Gargoyles).
History :
Steven Edwards has a history that began several years
ago, with a loner named Jacob Edwards. Jacob was a former Veteran of the
military, who left society after he was honorably discharged from service
to lead a more quiet life in the Ozark Mountains of Missouri. There, he
put his former survivalist skills he learned from
the Military to become a tracker and hunter's guide for hire.
Jacob was tracking for food in the hills one day, in preparation for his seasonal sabbatical in his cabin, when he happened upon a cave where the remnants of a clan of gargoyles lay smashed into rubble. Thinking the cave to be a safe place to shelter in when a sudden storm arose, he was shocked to find out that a single female gargoyle was still alive; having been hid deeper in the cave, she survived the cave in that had killed her clan while they slept in their stone sleep.
Meeting her distrust with calm and reasoning, he managed to get her to allow him to stay in the cave until the storm had passed. During which time, Jacob learned that the female's name was (translated from Native Indian) White Cloud, and that her Clan had lived in the mountains for ages, until the encroachment of Man had forced them to retreat further into the mountains. Since the deaths of her fellow clan members, she had lived on her own, hunting food and doing all she could to survive. Since she couldn't bear to leave the remains of her deceased brethren, she had never left to find other gargoyles or seek better hunting grounds.
Touched by her story, Jacob offered her a place at his cabin, some distance away further north, where she could find better hunting and could be protected by sleeping in his cabin during the day. White Cloud rejected the idea at first, her distrust coming back as she told him of several encounters her clan had with humans before; in each instance, one of her fellow gargoyles was either injured or killed. Jacob replied that his intentions were honorable, since - to him - it would be a shame if something were to happen to her, being the last of her race. (Since both had lived in seclusion for a while, they knew nothing about the other clans that existed around the world.)
When the storm abated an hour or so before dawn, Jacob parted company from White Cloud, who remained in the cave, considering the hunters offer.
Jacob didn't see White Cloud for many months, until
one night in the deep winter when she showed up at his cabin - half-frozen
and nearly starved. He managed to get her to eat, and put her up by a fire
to get her warm. After a few days and nights under his care, and several
sessions of stone-slipped, White Cloud regained most of her strength and
health. After a couple of weeks, she was even strong enough to go out at
night to hunt. Grateful for his help, White Cloud decided that Jacob
could be trusted, so she agreed to stay at his cabin during the remaining
winter months. During the long winter at the cabin, Jacob and White Cloud
got to know one another, telling each other of their family and Clan, and
getting to know more about Humans and Gargoyles by telling each other stories
about their kind. She often helped him by hunting for them both, and by
protecting him while he slept. She even saved his life from a enraged bear
that had been wounded by a trap set by another trapper.
It wasn't until after that winter that Jacob decided to stay on in the cabin, so that White Cloud would have someone to protect her from any strangers that might come to the cabin. Two more years followed, and Jacob and White Cloud grew closer together. After all this time, the lone female found herself falling in love with the rugged hunter. One night she professed her love openly to Jacob, not believing that a Human could love her in return. To her surprise and joy, Jacob had also fallen in love with her over the time they had spent together, and on that spring night - the night of the Spring Equinox - the two of them pledged their unending devotion to each other that night. Later, they consummated their love near an ancient burial ground that was once used by the Native Indians of the Kickapoo Nation, which was a factor in allowing White Cloud to become pregnant with Jacob's child.
While female Gargoyles take ten years to produce an egg, White Cloud gave birth to a live offspring a year later; a robust hatchling that was Human-looking in general, except for his wings and talons, which later proved to be retractable. As the child - which Jacob had named Steven - grew into a curious toddler, White Cloud did wish that she could take her son out into the world to find other gargoyles; despite the fact she had long since stuck to the belief that there was no other Gargoyles left in the world.
Jacob offered to take her and their son out of the mountains to search, but only after he had grown a little to withstand the traveling. However, Jacob and White Star never got the chance to make good on that promise. When Steven was just 3 years old, they were chased by drunken trappers who thought White Cloud was a legendary monster that lived in the mountains of Missouri. With Jacob wounded from a gunshot to his shoulder, White Cloud sacrificed herself by holding them at bay while Jacob got Steven to safety.
After that, Jacob returned after the men left White Cloud's body lying lifeless in a ravine and returned her to the cave where her clan had died years before. Giving her a proper burial, he promised to never let Steven forget his unique heritage, and that someday he would carry out their promise to find other gargoyles. Jacob tried to raise the child alone as best he could over the next couple of years, but a freak accident while climbing a mountain killed him before he could fulfill that promise.
Leaving the now 5 year old Steven alone to fend for himself, the hybrid boy wandered the wilderness for nearly a year alone, only coming into contact with civilization to take food or clothing. It wasn't until he came to the small town of Jovah, Missouri, that his bleak existence changed for the better.
During one attempt to take some food from the town's
only restaurant, he was discovered by one of the local deputies - Robert
Kendall McNabb. Not realizing that Steven was a Hybrid Gargoyle, he took
him back to his family's homestead, where his wife Susan and his only daughter
Sarah made the startling discovery about Steven's true nature (due to the
fact he kept his wings hidden under his clothes). Realizing that the boy
would become someone's experiment, they all agreed to keep Steven a secret
from the rest of the town, until such time as he could pass himself off
as a normal human. To that end, they kept him at their ranch,
fed and clothed him, and also strove to give Steven a Human's education
by tutoring him at home.
For the rest of his childhood, Steven grew closer
to the McNabbs, eventually accepting them as his surrogate family, while
never forgetting his real father and mother. Samantha became his best friend,
and
his staunchest supporter when he decided at age 14 (she was 12 at the
time) to begin to go to a public school. By then, he had learned to hide
the fact that he had wings by teaching himself to fold them up
underneath his clothes, and by wearing his hair long to hide his ears
and brow ridges. He did run into troubles with his Human peers, but he
stuck it out and Managed to graduate in the top 20 percent of his
class.
After this, he turned his attention to writing - something one of his teachers in High School showed him he had a talent for - and, with encouragement from his family, he wrote several stories before he became a published author when he was only 18. This lead to a fulfilling career as a reclusive, yet popular author of Fantasy and Science Fiction, leading after eight years of great selling books to a best-selling double-novel called "A Heart of Stone/ In A City of Steel".
It was then that his agent in New York City demanded that he come out of his "seclusion" to meet his adoring fans at a book writer's convention. His foster family encouraged him to go, and he did so, also offering to perform songs at an impromptu concert during the con, but only if his appearance at the con was the only scheduled one planned.
However, his plan to only show at the con was thrown out, when during the preparations for his book signing and concert, one of the newer members of the Manhattan Clan - Deliah, Matt and Elektra Bluestone's ward - had sneaked in to listen to his music. He kept one of the stage hands from making her go, and allowed her to stay to listen to his music. It was through her that he met David and Jessica DeGuy and Hudson, and made easy friends of the DeGuy Twins and Deliah, while never suspecting that the Twins were actually Hybrids like him.
He was so pleased to have finally met another Gargoyle, he changed his plans and extended his stay in Manhattan, partially so he could further promote his books, but really staying to get to know more about Deliah's Clan. His agent arranged for him to meet David Xanatos, and through him he met the rest of the Clan.
Over the course of the next three weeks, he got to know the Clan better, while at the same time becoming more and more attached to Deliah - the only young, unattached female in the immediate Clan. Deliah also began to become enamored with the tall Hybrid, who still had yet to reveal that he was a Gargoyle to the Clan. He felt that he had to tell them sometime, but he was still conditioned against revealing his secret to anyone. At the same time, the Clan was concerned for the way Deliah was acting, as it was obvious to them that the Gargess was deeply in love with Steven.
All of this came to a head though, when the remaining members of the Pack - Hyena, Jackal, Wolf, and a new Coyote Robot - were hired to go and capture a Gargoyle for their backers. During the raid, Deliah was taken, and Edwards had to reveal his true nature to trash the Pack and save her. Unfortunately, he felt that the Clan would not accept him - since he was a Hybrid - and he mistakenly attacked Goliath and fled when the others confronted him. Not wanting to stay in New York any longer, he packed up, told his agent his remaining appearances were canceled, and let left long after the dawn had fallen.
*****
What's planned for the future:
The main portion of this profile is to take place in a three-part story called "Homecomings". The first, "Springtime In New York", will deal with Stephen's arrival in Manhattan. The part about Steven's parents is to appear in the second chapter, "Stone Roots", where David DeGuy learns about Steven's history by Sheriff McNabb, after he comes to Missouri to look for him. Finally, in the story "Time Has Come", Steven will undergo a journey of self-discovery, which will eventually take him and Puck to Avalon itself, where he will have a chance to learn all about his past, as well as what the Manhattan clan really feels about him.
Steven Edwards will be a recurring character in my new series of stories, depicting the Manhattan Clan's adventures following "The DeGuy Saga"; to be called "Gargoyles :The Future".
