Strobe (Jeremy Grunert)
Contents
Appearance
Jeremy is five foot eleven inches and a very fit, athletic looking 185 lbs. He has blonde hair, blue eyes, fair skin and perfect teeth. Jeremy is a man conscious of appearance and goes to the trouble to keep himself well groomed and clean shaven.
In civilian roles, he's usually found in jeans and a nice polo shirt. He favors unpatterned shirts in red, blue, or green. He has a favorite black leather jacket, and if the circumstances allow, he might have his guitar with him. Hats are a rarity.
As Strobe he has a number of different outfits to wear as his mood and the occasion dictate. A few outfits are in the Silver Guard's colors of Blue and Silver, but most of the costumes and armor he's worn through the years have been in his own signature red and white. Additionally he has a black and red uniform.
Strobe's personal symbol is an eight pointed star.
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Origin
Jeremy grew up the son of lighthouse attendants in the small community of Port Clyde Maine, and continued living at home upon graduation from high-school. The unvoiced assumption was that Jeremy would take on the work of maintaining the lighthouse after his father retired. Plans have changed since then.
In August of 2009 the 23 year-old Jeremy was heading up to the beacon light for it's daily cleaning. It was on the way up the spiraling staircase that he found the odd necklace. It was lying upon a small windowsill, nestled in the curving wall. A pendant shaped somewhat like a wedge with its point replaced by a concave curve hung from a metal chain. The pendant itself was made from a stone like material that Jeremy did not recognize. Flawlessly embedded into it's surface was a stylized starburst made from a ruby-like material.
A compulsion came over the young man to try on the jewelry, and as soon as he slipped it around his neck, the entire stairwell flashed with a bright red light, nearly toppling him from his height.
When he was able to regain his equilibrium he noticed a "voice" inside his head, telling him that he needed to travel to Millennium City as soon as possible. Jeremy was afraid he was going crazy when three days later he was still hearing the voice. Not wanting to alarm his family, he decided to travel to Millennium City and find out for himself if there was something behind this.
Waiting there at the bus stop was an elderly man dressed in a nice suit. He met Jeremy as he stepped off the bus and introduced himself as Viran.
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The Shon-Khar
Viran led Jeremy across the water to a small detached home in the nearby city of Windsor Canada where he met five young people about his own age. Kelly, Troy, Michelle, Sarah, and Kevin had all had similar experiences and had arrived in response to Viran's summoning.
The older man then assembled them all in the living room and began to explain to them about the Shon-Khar and why they were here.
Shon-Khar translates roughly as Six Foundations, or principles. It refers to the school of thought that divides the underpinnings of reality into six primal forces. While this division is a human construct, and the dividing lines between one Foundation and the next are somewhat arbitrary, it does help the human mind come to grips with the very nature of our shared reality.
Mages of the Shon-Khar share the philosophical belief in these forces and more-over, have the aural capacity to manipulate them. It is not enough to learn the tenets of the philosophy, or to understand the workings of magic. A person is either born with this capacity or she is not.
The Six Foundations are:
Lyahvi - Lyahvi is the power of air, of the insubstantial, the invisible, the ethereal, and the illusory. Lyahvi mages manipulate reflection, refraction, confusion, light and sound. Their effects are swift and ambiguous. The essence of Lyahvi is bright, sterile, unliving. It's symbolic color is Red
Peleahn - This foundation concerns itself with speed, heat, and fire. It's symbolic color is Orange
Jmorvi - Jmorvi holds sway over artifice and is represented by metal. It's symbolic color is Yellow/Gold
Fyvria - Fyvria is earth, but it is more than that. It is life, animals, plants, things organic. Fyvira's color is Green
Odivshe - Odivshe is darkess, cold, slowness, and water. It's color is Blue.
Savorya - is knowledge, thought, spirit, the ethereal. It's color is Purple.
Several ages ago, the Wizard Genin created a great artifact, a disc no more than a hand's span in width, divided into six equal segments with a seventh segment as the "hub" of the wheel. Each was imbued with the essence of one of the six Foundations while the hub held the focused power of all six combined. Genin then separated each segment from the whole to create seven unique amulets. What Genin's reasons for doing this were, or what became of the amulets after their creation is unknown.
Thirty years ago, the Wizard Viran showed up in the United Kingdom with the grey hub of the Shon Kar Wheel around his neck. He spoke of the coming of Klyss the Necromancer and the need to locate and utilize the full disc in order to combat this threat. In August of 2009, Viran succeeded in his quest to complete the wheel.
Viran cast a seeking spell, an enchantment designed to locate those of the appropriate nature and suitability to wield the powers of the Foundations and work together in the coming fight against Klyss. Each amulet selected an individual, bestowed upon them a portion of it's power, and brought them together in Millennium City.
With his newly formed Champions of the Shon-Khar training together and learning how to use their powers, Viran began evaluating the character of each member. It was his estimation that while Jeremy had an inspiringly heroic spirit, he lacked the desired level of responsibility. Coupled with the knowledge that his group of six could be used to expand his own influence, the wizard set about the creation of a new superhero group.
The Silver Guard
Strings were pulled, suggestions whispered in the right ears, projects suddenly funded. Through various background maneuverings, Viran assisted in the creation of the Silver Guard and placed Jeremy into it as one of it's founding officers. His efforts were rewarded as Jeremy found himself with more and more responsibility, eventually taking on a leadership role. Today, nearly four years later, Strobe is the leader of the group and the only one of the original founding members to be considered active.
The Silver Guard is a collection of people that believe that they can, through the use of their own extraordinary abilities, protect society from the many threats that it would not otherwise be able to handle. To do this they work within society, partnering with UNTIL, PRIMUS, and other like minded organizations and individuals. Their motto reflects this purpose and mindset.
Protection, Respect, Unity, and Trust.
The need to protect society is the reason the Silver Guard exists. To do so, the Guard must earn and keep society's trust. Mankind is right to be wary of the immensely powerful individuals walking and flying through their midst, and Jeremy preaches that the Guard must always strive to offset this tendency if it is to do it's job. To earn that trust the Silver Guard must respect the society that it serves, obey their laws, and remain themselves respectable. They must be unified and consistent in this effort.
Recently the Silver Guard has formed two new wings, the Silver Crew, and the Silver Corps. The Crew are a small group of metahumans trained and dedicated to disaster response with heroes such as Hardhat, Riverbend, and Powerline. The Corps are a Search and Rescue team. Included in their ranks are Eco and Dakota Rayne.
For Jeremy, officership in and then leadership of the Silver Guard has profoundly changed him. Gone are the days of living for the moment and focusing on fun. Today he takes his responsibilities seriously. lives and reputations depend on it.
Personality
Jeremy started off his heroing career as a carefree, fun loving everybody's friend sort of guy. Circumstances led to responsibilities, and responsibilities to a much more serious attitude. Today Jeremy tries to live up to the role model image that he believes he owes society. He knows he represents himself, the Champions of the Shon-Khar, the Silver Guard, and metahumans in general. As a result, Jeremy's personality has taken on a more professional and considered aspect. In short, he's grown up.
Jeremy had dreams of becoming a professional singer/songwriter/guitarist before his transformation into Strobe. His love of music hasn't subsided and he still pursues it as a hobby as he is able. His other recreational passtime is ice hockey.
Powers
Strobe's superhuman abilities are based upon the Lyhavi foundational force, meaning, his powers are centered on air, light, and sound.
- Flight - Subsonic flight in mid to low atmosphere is nearly effortless for Strobe. Supersonic flight is possible but does tire him out. His longest supersonic trip to date has been 3400 miles. Stratospheric flight has been proven possible, but difficult for him.
- Laser Beams - Strobe is able to project high energy concentrated light beams from his eyes and hands.
- Sonic Blasts - A cone of sonic energy can be directed and sustained, pummeling his target with vibrational waves.
- Wind Gusts - Strobe can create anything from a gentle breeze to a small tornado able to lift hundreds of pounds. It's an excellent non lethal attack for him.
- Illusion - Visual and audible illusions can be created and controlled by Strobe. He's even able to render himself invisible using this ability, but it all requires serious concentration. A luxury he can not often afford.
When push comes to shove, Strobe combines concentrated air, light, and sound into a powerful ranged blast.
Facilities & Equipment
The Chantry
The SilverTower
The SilverTower is the public headquarters of the SilverGuard and is situated in Millenium City's city center.
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The SilverJet
As leader of the SilverGuard, Strobe has access to the team's supersonic transport jet. Jason Ingram, the team's professional pilot lives at the SilverTower and is a moment's notice away should the jet be needed.
The jet seats 14 and has cargo room and a holding cell aboard.
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Silver Guard space suit
Strobe abilities are severely limited in the vacuum of space. With the aid of his Silver Guard space suit, he is able to function if only at a reduced capacity. The suit is hardened for combat and has an ingenious mechanism for converting expended CO2 back into oxygen. The estimated supply of air works out to about three years. It does not have a food supply however.
Combat Armor
Friends
There are simply too many friends and allies made throughout his years as a hero to list them all here. Below are a highlighted few.
Blaze
"A Firecracker in every sense of the word."
Blaze is one of Strobe's five teammates in the Champions of the Shon-Khar. She's like family to him. She has been teammate, housemate, and romantic insterest. Today she's simply one of his closest friends. Strobe's time in the Silver Guard has led him to assume a leadership role in the Shon-Khar as well. Blaze is the teamate quickest to remind him that she is not his subordinate.
She's also reminds him how to have fun. He sometimes envies the fiery speedster as she's still able to seize the day and fully embrace the enjoyment of the moment. More than one night has Kelly O'Duff dragged a protesting Jeremy out on the town, only to prove it's just what he needed. He values her more than she knows.
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Forge
"An inspiration on how to not sweat the small stuff."
Forge, a teammate in the Champions of the Shon-Khar, is Strobe's buddy. There's not a guy that's easier to hang with, nor as relaxing when Jeremy needs to unwind from a stressful day. Forge is steady, calm, and perhaps even a bit lazy. When the a job truly needs to be done though, he's there, dependable, and strong.
Forge isn't much good for advice or answers to questions, but he's invaluable as a companion to kick back with and forget about life for awhile. So long as you don't mind the football and beer.
Strobe's combat armor was a gift from Forge.
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Eco
"As down to earth as they come."
Eco is the no fuss no muss member of the Champions of the Shon-Khar. She has a practicality about her that Strobe admires and tries to emulate as often as he can.
Of the six Champions of the Shon-Khar, Eco is the most distant from Strobe. She is quiet, introverted, and spends much of her time alone, hiking in the woods. This is not to say that Strobe and Eco are not very close friends. They are, and share a deep affection for one another.
Jeremy cannot count the amount of injuries, near fatal and otherwise, that Eco has taken care of for him.
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Fathom
"Peace like a river."
Fathom stuff
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Wraith
"My Compass."
Wraith stuff
Viran
"Out of my league."
Viran
Aenigma
"Resilient"
Caelestis
"Our knight in glowing armor"
Captain Alabama
"Pay your Taxes!"
Druidess
"What would I do without her?"
Elinor
"She helps me find the light in the darkness."
Estelle
"Estelle is the happy ending that gives me hope."
HocusPocus
"How can you not smile when Hocus is around?"
LadySteelGuard
"Hard as Steel, and Soft as Silk"
Nightstar
"Her loyalty is my affirmation."
Shaylee
Shift
"Wild and Sharp"
Comments
Got something to say about him?
Druidess: "What can I say about Strobe? He was one of the first people I met when I got here and has become one of my best friends and the best camping partner I have ever had, he is always professional I am proud to work with him and even prouder to call him my friend."
Project Echo: "A leader through and through. He's always there making things right when things are out of control. I rely on his advice a lot."
