Manga Imprint/Penny Black

A character in Manga Imprint played by OldKentuckyShark

Yumi Saito

Penny Black

Penny Black

Real name: Saito Yumi
Age: 17
Mentor: Raven, from the Teen Titans. Yumi and the daughter of Trigon get along well by speaking to each other as little as possible.
Mentor's Enemy: Deathstroke. (possibly also Solomon Grundy: it could be interesting for Yumi to have a semi-adversarial connection to Grundy through their shared powers, with Grundy treating her like twisted offspring.)
Motivations: Try as hard as possible to maintain a "normal" life while protecting her friends and family from extraordinary threats. And to actually speak to the cute boy in Form 4 instead of just muttering under her breath when he walks by.

Biography

Before the exobytes, Yumi was an unexceptional child, or at least that's what her parents constantly told her. Her grades were mediocre, her after-school interests non-existent, and her friends... what friends? And then, one day, she got hit by a bus: this was her first inkling that she'd gained powers from the exobyte virus. Waking in the morgue was bad. Waking in the morgue surrounded by ghosts was worse. And then they started shouting.... And then, of course, Braniac destroyed the hospital, which only made things worse. Since then she's fought side-by-side with the Teen titans and survived re-entry after getting punched off the surface of the moon a HIVE android. Some of that was okay, she guesses, but she's still not sure she likes this superhero thing. (In fact, Yumi really loves her newfound ability to hurl buses at people -- who wouldn't? -- but she's one of nature's complainers)

Powers

Through the exobytes, Yumi gained some of the powers of Solomon Grundy, although hers manifest in different ways (and I'm ignoring the Alan Moore plant elemental stuff). The exobytes gave Yumi some of the digitized powers of Solomon Grundy. She has many of the positive and negative aspects of zombie-hood: superhuman strength and stamina, a preternatural resistance to most injuries, and immunity to most mundane effects: she doesn't need to eat, sleep, or breathe. Yumi also possesses functional near-immortality: she can regenerate from anything short of obliterating head injuries, although her body only regenerates when the head is attached. Being half-dead, Yumi has one foot in the material world and one foot in the spirit realm: she can see, talk to, and sometimes punch ghosts. Oh boy, does she like punching ghosts. Stupid, annoying ghosts. She can also fashion ghosts into weapons and armor.

On the other hand, the powers also have drawbacks; she has no discernible pulse or body temperature: that's why the school nurse is one of Yumi's greatest enemies, and she has to hide in the broom closet during Measuring Day.

Personality

Yumi is a misanthrope with a conscience. Considering herself an icon of sanity in a world of shallowness, stupidity, and hypocrisy, Yumi tends to keep others at a distance, often responding with sarcasm. Most of this is a front she maintains to protect her feelings from potential ridicule; especially now that she's afraid of being mocked or ostracized for being a weird half-zombie girl. Her cynicism is tempered by the fact that, deep down, she really does care about others: this is most easily seen in her spectral retinue. As much as she complains about them, she realizes that they are just people who couldn't move on. And since she's one of only a handful of people who can see or hear them, she feels responsible for them: along with her superhero gig, most of her other free time is spent trying solve ghostly problems and bring them closure so that they can move on to... whatever.

Appearance

Yumi is 5'4" with an average build that doesn't show her unnatural strength. She has long black hair which she often ties back into braids. She wears thick red spectacles, which she no longer technically needs: half-dying has done wonders for her eyesight. Her skin is extremely pallid, with a faint gray cast, and her lips are tinged just slightly blue: shes' tried to cover this up in the past, but she's not very good with makeup. Her eyes are normally blue, but ever since the Exobytes they have displayed strange qualities: they change color according to her mood, or begin to glow when she is angry. She wears as much black as the school uniform will allow, along with oversized black combat boots when outdoors.

While she doesn't have a superhero uniform per se, she does have a selection of black gothic dresses that she wears when she's Penny Black, just because it makes her feel better about herself. Fortunately, she can always just take her glasses off to maintain her secret identity: that always works, right?

Relationships

Hitomi

(younger sister, 15 yrs old): Hitomi is bubbly, friendly, and irrepressibly nice: everything Yumi is not. Yumi loves her little sister, but being around her makes Yumi weary.

Jun

(Mother). Yumi's mom is a hard-nosed corporate tax lawyer, who has little time to spare for either of his daughters. She and her mother communicate largely through systematic emotional blackmail.

Kotori

(Ghost, 16yrs old, subway accident). Kotori was an extremely bright, popular, and fashion-conscious girl in life, before she died (sometime in the 80's). Her role in death has largely been to follow Yumi around and criticize Yumi's looks, attitude, and life-decisions. With her permission, Yumi can shape Kotori's ghost into a scythe that, like Kotori's tongues, can cut through anything.

Mister Endo

(Ghost, mid 40's, aneurysm): Mr. Endo was her former PE teacher, before he died suddenly last year. Only after death did Yumi discover that he was a huge pervert. He invariably tries to possess articles of her clothing, and she invariably ends up punching him right in his ectoplasmic face. She can also fashion him into an icy katana that summons (disturbingly clingy) ice.

Ume

(Ghost, 14 yrs old, murder victim) Yumi didn't know Ume in life, but she has promised to find the person who killed her. Ume is quiet, withdrawn, and easily frightened. She can take the form of a dull grey spear that bleeds grey despair.

Stats

Abilities

Str 10 Agl 0 Fgt 5 Awe 5 Sta 10 Dex 0 Int 0 Pre 0
60 pts.

Defenses

• Dodge 5 (+5)
• Parry 3 (+8)
• Fort +10
• Toughness +10
• Will 3 (+8)

11 pts

Skills

• Athletics 2 (+12)
• Insight 10 (+15)
• Intimidation 5 (+5/+13 Spirits)
• Investigation 3 (+3)
• Perception 10 (+15)

15 pts

Advantages

• Assessment
• Chokehold
• Close Attack 5
• Fast Grab
• Fearless
• Improved Grab
• Minion 2 (Annoying ghost sidekick)

12pts

Powers

61 pts

Ghost Punch!

(Affects Incorporeal 2 with Strength attacks, Enhanced Intimidation 4 (+8, Limited: Spirits)) 6pts

Soul Swords

“Yumi has the ability to grab willing spirits and change them into weapons, attacking her enemies with spectral magic.”

“Frost Wind” Frozen blue katana that freezes opponents in blocks of ice (Cumulative Affliction 10 (DC 20 Fortitude Resists 1st: Hindered, 2nd: Immobile, 3rd: Paralyzed))

• AP: “Taste of Mourning” Dull grey spear that pierces opponents hearts, rendering them vulnerable: (Progressive Affliction, Limited Degree (DC 20 Will resists: 1st: Vulnerable, 2nd: Defenseless, Emotion: Despair))
• AP: “Dust in the Wind” Midnight black scythe, desiccates all it touches: (Weaken Toughness 10 (DC 20 Fort resists, Affects Objects)
• AP "Horror Movie Cliches" By using all her ghosts, Yumi can haunt her environment with flickering lights, cloying shadows, and deadly cold (Environmental Control 4: {Intense Cold, Impede Movement 1, Decreased Visibility -5, Selective, 500ft})

Medium

Comprehend 2 (Spirits, 2-way) 4pts

Leaping

Leaping 4 (120ft)

Gothic Fashion

Yumi has the ability to form temporary clothing out of ectoplasm
Feature: Quick Change 2

Half-Dead

Immortality 5 (1 day, Limited: head must be attached to body), Immunity 13 (Critical hits, Life Support, Sleep) 18pts

Spooky Eyes

Senses 4 (Darkvision, Counters invisibility, Counters Illusion)

Complications

Secret: Half-dead
Relationship: Noisy Ghosts
Relationship: Family

Minion

Annoying Spirit

Yumi has a host of ghosts that follow her around, chattering at her incessantly because she’s the only one who can hear them. This drives her crazy, especially when the ghost of her old perverted gym teacher tries to possess her school swimsuit. Sometimes she convinces them to scout for her because of their ability to fly through walls. (They cannot make attacks or affect the physical world)

• Concealment 5 (All normal senses) 10 pts
• Strength – (permanent, cannot affect physical world) -10 pts
• Fly 0 (fly speed = base speed)
• Insubstantial 4 (Incorporeal, permanent) 20pts
• Immunity 10 (Life Support) 10 pts

Points

PP: 4 HP: 2