Anthem
Contents
Background
Young Angela Collins was born in February of 1990, to military research specialist Simon and T.V. personality Paula Collins. Between her mother's television career and the nature of her father's work, she's frequently away from her parents, instead mostly being raised by Aricela Munoz, her stern but loving nanny, who is forced to take on the difficult task of effectively being Angela's only parental figure. Despite rarely seeing them growing up, Angela loves her parents, and treasures the few moments where they can all be together as a family, mostly during federal holidays.
At an early age, Angela showed both an interest in music and a talent for singing, both of which were fostered by her various music teachers throughout school and by Aricela; the two of them often sung old songs together while they were taking care of chores around the house, and were a common sight around Christmas, going door to door singing carols throughout the neighborhood. Alongside a desire to be famous, just like her mother, Angela's lifelong dream was formed - to become a pop star, singing across the world and making enough money that her parents would never have to work another day in their life.
She knew she wouldn't be able to do that without making some sort of name for herself, though. Angela started to keep an eye out for any opportunity she could get to put her voice out there - radio jingles, television commercials, if someone needed a singer, she would try out for the spot. She tended to audition well, with her talent oftentimes making up for her nervousness, though some found that she didn't quite have the confidence that they were looking for to take the role. It was almost two years before she'd built up a resumé that she was happy with, and the force of personality that she would need to actually be somebody.
It was initially difficult for Angela to break into the industry; a lot of musicians were seeing quick rises and falls, and it wasn't often that labels were willing to put money on the line on the off-chance that they've stumbled on the next big thing, only for them to crash and burn just a few short months later. She went from record label to record label, hoping someone would be willing to take her on and give her a chance, but she was frequently turned down, much to her disappointment. It was months before, finally, she was able to sign on with a small, relatively unknown label. She released her first album, "Rising Star", not long afterwards.
Fittingly enough, the sales from the album were enough to launch her into celebrity status. Though it didn't hit platinum or even gold status, it brought in enough that Angela was soon a name that people were starting to recognize, and take note of. She was offered small gigs, opening for far more famous celebrities who were touring the globe, and even landed herself a few interviews talking about her newfound success.
While Angela certainly enjoyed the fame and attention, and was thrilled to travel all over the world, one offer in particular stood out in her mind, and she immediately accepted: she was going to perform for members of the United States Military, at the base her father was stationed at. She would finally be getting to perform live in front of her dad, somewhere that wasn't in their living room and, due to how much it meant to her, it proved to be the greatest performance of her life.
The night after the performance, her father approached her with an offer: to take part in an experiment to replicate the powers of a dead superheroine, codenamed Project: Mockingbird.
Project: Mockingbird
The original Anthem operated from the mid-Eighties to the early Nineties, patrolling throughout the United States to protect it and its people from those that would do harm to either of them. She was relatively unknown during the first few years of her career, though she quickly skyrocketed in popularity after a battle against the nefarious Professor Calamity, a mad scientist who had created a machine to generate natural disasters such as earthquakes and tornadoes, prevented an entire city from being decimated at Calamity's hands. Soon Anthem was being invited to attend formal affairs, asking to appear on television for interviews, and receiving letters in the mail from admirers. She remained humble during it all, almost to the point of appearing shy, but no matter what, she couldn't stop her fame from making her a household name.
It was a national tragedy when another confrontation with Professor Calamity resulted in Anthem's death. Calamity had struck out against the heroine in an attempt to distract her so he could make his escape. The damage caused by the earthquake caved in a portion of the street that they were fighting on, with one building threatening to collapse and sink into the hole, no doubt signaling the end of whoever might have been inside. In her last act of heroism, Anthem helped the residents in escaping, but a combination of a gas leak and the spark that ignited it triggered an explosion, catching the heroine and her charge in the blast. She managed to shield the child with her own body, saving his life; she herself survived long enough to be rushed to a hospital, before finally succumbing to her wounds. A funeral was held in Washington, D.C., at the Oak Hill Cemetery.
Project: Mockingbird, greenlighted in mid-2010, was an ambitious project with a simple goal: create a superheroine with powers identical to Anthem, and even improve upon them, if a way was discovered to do so. Research began almost immediately, with Michael Collins heading the project. First, studies into the various origins of publicly-known superheroes were started, in an attempt to track down and isolate which incidents most commonly lead to the awakening or developing of superhuman characteristics in otherwise normal civilians. Next, samples of Anthem's DNA were gathered and shipped to the labs for extensive research, before being subjected to a battery of tests, recreating the accidents that had a hand in creating superheroes in the past. Finally, subjects meeting a set of parameters suitable for continuing Anthem's legacy (good-natured, loved by the people, loyal to their country) are gathered and given a psychiatric evaluation to see who is the most suitable for the next phase. Michael Collins, however, fixed the results of the tests, so that his daughter Angela was selected.
With their potential super soldier selected, the researchers proceeded to the next phase of Project: Mockingbird. After signing a waiver, Angela was exposed to the various treated samples of Anthem's DNA and monitored for any positive or negative reactions. Though she showed signs of slightly increased physical aptitude, there were no signs of superpowers being developed. Though disappointed, the researchers were unsurprised, and moved the testing to the next, and final, phase. A small, incredibly expensive sound chamber was created, the walls covered in advanced acoustic mirrors designed to reflect and amplify sound, except for four speakers placed in the center of each wall. After signing another waiver, Angela was strapped to a table in the middle of the room, and the speakers were turned on, exposing Angela to incredibly high-frequency sound waves.
Angela survived the test, despite the pain she suffered; unfortunately, the expensive equipment did not, the speakers having eventually busted and the sound having eaten away at the walls of the chamber itself. The unconscious Angela was rushed to the medical bay immediately, and monitored around the clock until she eventually woke up days later. When her father, who had been at her bedside the entire time, asked Angela if she could hear him, her response ripped through the room, temporarily deafening everyone inside and ripping out a chunk in the ceiling.
Project: Mockingbird was a success; a new Anthem was born.
Appearance And Personality
Allies And Enemies
National Assembly
Project: Mockingbird
Powers And Abilities
Skills and Equipment
Miscellaneous
Trivia
- Anthem knows conversational Spanish, taught to her by her nanny Aricela.
