The Shield

Designation
Public designation: The 'Shield'

Real Name: Private Franklin Salmon

Known Nicknames: 'Fish'

Public acknowledgement level
Growing.

Though lacking any official representation, the Shield is one of the first rumoured 'Extraordinaries' that came out of the shuttle disaster at Croydon in 2056. As several of his earlier operations were witnessed by several onlookers, including military and security personnel, he has garnered significant interest in the local area. Given that most of his activity appears to be confined to central and Northern London, public interest has been especially high due to his proximity to the Capitals inner workings.

Despite his relative and growing fame, he remains a largely enigmatic figure, with no confirmed base of operation and little confirmed agenda.

Known powers and abilities
Shield has exhibited a number of skills formed largely from his ability to alter gravitational pulls - not merely upon objects, but also from them. By lowering the effects of gravity upon himself he has shown to be capable of jumping great distances and even to levitate temporarily. By creating pockets of iheavy gravity he has also deflected or outright halted incoming attacks - creating the namesake 'Shield'.

The abilities appear to be largely self taught and in some cases instinctual, with the effects varying quite dramatically and the reliability of these powers shown to be far from constant. The limits of his power are difficult to judge, as it would appear that he himself does not know them. They also appear to be quite short ranged - able to only effect himself or objects in the immediate vicinity in most instances.Further, these abilities appear to be largely defensive in nature - with no known instances of him being able to exert gravitational force over another living being at distance. Whether this is a limitation of his powers or simply his knowledge of them remains to be seen.

Though his ability to deflect incoming attacks has become his signature ability to the public at large, it his another exhibited power that has gathered the most attention - and often from several unwanted sources. Shield has shown the ability to bend light around him, rendering himself invisible to normal human eyesight. It is suggested but not confirmed that this is related to his ability to alter gravitational pull. Regardless of its source, the ability to cloak himself from sight has gathered great interest from several groups eager to unlock the secrets of this rare ability. Notable among them are the British Imperial Assembly, the Solarus Enterprises group, The Russian Consortium and the Unshiri Corporation.

Aside from these signature abilities, Shield has also exhibited other symptoms more classically associated to the Afflicted including rapid healing, enhanced resilience and enhanced strength.

As a trained soldier - he has also basic military training and tactics knowledge.

Appearance
Shield is commonly seen to be wearing a battered and heavily modified suit of X-XV space combat armour - a lightweight polymer alloy of interlocked armour plates over a toughened environment suit. The original suit appears to have been heavily modified with extra armour plating and additional communication equipment, however it has also clearly been through a number of patchwork repairs utilising salvaged items. Shield is often, but not always seen with a cloak made from tattered cloth and is rarely seen without his full visored helmet.

Though his early appearances were recorded to be unarmed, he is often seen now using a modified DCA19 Rail rifle and a long sword.

His military profile prior to his affliction shows him to have been an adult caucasian male with dark hair and medium build. It is not known if his personal appearance has altered since his affliction.

Affiliations
Shield is notoriously difficult to pin to any cause, and has no known affiliations to any group. Though appearing to operate as a lone vigilante, it has been noted that much of his activity appears to be against groups such as Solarus and the Unshiri Corp, putting him in good company with several similar groups. It is not known if a shared enemy has given them any common ground, but it is known that Shield famously snubbed the invitation to work alongside the Extraordinaries program.

Franklin Salmon did have a wife and daughter living in upper West London, but became estranged from them following their divorce in the wake of his forced conscription.

Enemies of Note
Much of Shield's early activity was against the Unshiri corp, who took a particular interest in tracking him down. For similar reasons, Shield was regularly brought into conflict against Solarus Enterprises, who were keen to recruit him into their Wolf Pack special ops team. Shield reacted angrily to threats made against his former family and on the attempts made on his life as the two factions pursued him. The Unshiri in particular have earned his ire, with several of their operations being disrupted by his activities.

Threat Level
Though his abilities make him especially dangerous as a potential threat to public safety, Shield has few resources and no known affiliated groups willing to provide him assistance - severely limiting the scope of his actions.

STOCKADE analysts have rated Shield as a Beta level threat, with particularly note that such a high rating is indicative of his 'potential' for greater damage from his - as yet - unmeasured abilities. It is also a reflection of the lengths some of his enemies have been willing to go in order to try and capture him.

History
Franklin Salmon was born in 2029 in rural Northwest England. Away from the worst of the Petroleum conflicts he was not subject to evacuation and instead was host to several children moved from cities further South. It is suggested that he came to resent these newcomers and became reclusive from others. As he grew older he graduated from Sheffield university in 2050, but swiftly fell victim to the recessions that plagued the economic upheavals upon the arrival of Sedis 9. It is not known for certain what caused his initial forays into criminal activity, but he was caught and convicted of...

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