Eli King
Name Eli King
Position Teacher
Character Information
| Gender | Male | |
| Age | 29 |
Physical Appearance
| Height | 6'3" | |
| Weight | 208LBS | |
| Hair Color | Black | |
| Eye Color | Brown | |
| Physical Description | Eli is a tall, handsome man. His looks have been described as more feminine than masculine, which made him uncomfortable as an adolescent. He is not particularly muscular. |
Family
| Father | Roland King | |
| Mother | Zhu Shao | |
| Brother(s) | Roland Jr. | |
| Sister(s) | Sharon | |
| Other Family | His chosen family of friends in New Orleans |
Personality & Traits
| General Overview | Eli is an outgoing, funny, and friendly guy. He can adapt to just about any social situation with ease. | |
| Strengths & Weaknesses | Eli is not a combat specialist by any means. He can defend himself but has no real technique . |
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| Ambitions | To continue living honestly and openly. | |
| Hobbies & Interests | Eli is an avid thespian, beginning his theatrical journey at a young age. He is also a devoted reader. In his spare time, and with the help of his abilities, Eli performs as his drag persona, Eliza Doeslittle. |
Powers
| Alias | Skinwalker | |
| Mutant Registration Status | un | |
| Primary Power | Shapeshifting. He’s able to mimic a person or animal on sight. However his power is limited to looks and does not extend to ability, or even voice. | |
| Secondary/Travel Power | Stealth,the innate power to be inconspicuous at will. | |
| Training/Skillset | He has a high school education, and then only practical skills from life experience. | |
| Mission Team Specialty | His role is typically in infiltration and intelligence gathering, but he can sometimes act as the distraction. |
History
| Personal History | Eli was born in Chicago in 1963 to Roland King ,an Indigenous Canadian immigrant, and Zhu Shao, a second generation Chinese-American. Eli is the couple's third child and the only one with mutant abilities. His early life was unremarkable. Growing up on the south side of Chicago, Eli attended a public school. Because of his looks being perceived as feminine, Eli was bullied in school. This made him withdraw into himself and find solace in the theater. Growing up on the stage didn’t make his life any easier, but it did give him a place to express himself. As he reached puberty his powers began to surface. At first, he would change his appearance to that of his siblings in order to tease them. This got him in trouble with his parents. His father told him indigenous stories about skinwalkers. Despite the stories typically scaring children, Eli found comfort in it. After getting in trouble for using his abilities, Eli began spending hours alone in his room replicating the men’s faces he saw in magazines or in newspapers. For years he would shapeshift in the quiet of his room and admire his handiwork in the mirror. He discovered his abilities extended to animals as well after his sister brought home a stray cat and he was able to take its shape almost perfectly. This discovery gave him the idea to use animal shapes in order to be able to sneak out of the house. As he turned 16 he began to understand his sexuality but needed to search for acceptance elsewhere. He began shifting into a squirrel form and sneaking out. He’d make his way downtown and then shift into the form of an older man in order to get into gay bars. Once inside he would resume his normal shape and enjoy the sense of community. There he felt he was around people like him. It became a regular occurrence for him for the next couple years. One night his brother, Roland Jr, noticed Eli wasn’t in his room when he was meant to be, he told his parents. When Eli came home he was interrogated by his family. This confrontation turned into an argument and ended with Eli telling his parents he was gay. His father told him that he had already struggled to accept his mutation, but he couldn’t accept this as well. Eli was asked to leave by his parents. They gave him a couple of days to get his belongings together. Eli heard about a traveling acting company from a friend, and called her to ask if they had space for another performer. He left with them the next day without a word to his family. While on the road the group was putting together a production of Shakespeare’s Hamlet. They asked Eli to read for the titular character. He obliged, using the role to express the emotions he was overcome with having been thrown out by his family. Life on the road was just what Eli needed to start to feel better. The group became a new family to him. They accepted him for who he was. But Eli didn’t want to complicate things by revealing his mutant status to them. The summer of his 18th year was spent with the acting group, going from city to city and putting on performances in parks, rec centers, and small clubs. He began a relationship with a boy that joined their troupe in Fort Wayne, Joseph. Joseph listened and understood what Eli had experienced in his life. Eli felt so comfortable with him that he told him about his abilities. Joseph seemed scared and became very distant. A few days later Joseph told the other members of the troupe and they asked Eli to leave the tour. Eli was left in New Orleans with only $200 to his name and a suitcase of clothes in his hand. At only 18 he found himself alone for the second time. But now he was in an unfamiliar place. The club that the acting troupe had performed in before Eli was expelled from their tour was in an area of the city that also featured a drag bar. In fact, the group had gone to a show together the night Eli told Joseph about his mutation. That first night alone in New Orleans Eli went back to that drag bar and asked for a job. The manager all but laughed at him. Feeling defeated he left the bar and sat on the curb outside. Soon enough, a gaggle of drag queens exited the bar and found him, clearly upset. They sat with him and let him tell them his story. Eli didn’t hold back any details, not even his mutant status. To his surprise, they didn’t run in disgust or fear, they embraced him and brought him inside. They went on his behalf and spoke to the manager. Before the night was done Eli had a job as a barback. One of the queens found him as the bar was closing, to Eli’s surprise she admitted to him that she was a mutant as well. The two hugged and then she asked if Eli had anywhere to stay. He, of course, didn’t. She told him that he was going to come stay with her and the other queens who shared a loft not far from the bar. Eli accepted. Though he still felt abandoned, he felt the compassion they had for him. Eli’s life really began to settle. He had a job that kept him within his community. He had friends who loved, accepted, and understood him. He was really beginning to live his life. Spending so much time around drag queens he found himself bitten by the bug, and itching to try it for himself. His friends were more than happy to help, and encouraged him to use his abilities , or his Gift as they called it, to become Eliza Doeslittle. But dressing in drag was only part of the experience. With the help of his friends, Eli found some performance slots and absolutely came alive.Finally it seemed that things were going great for Eli. The years rolled on and things stayed on the up and up for Eli. But everything changed when he learned that his dear friend, and fellow mutant was killed by anti-mutant protestors as she walked home from work. This made Eli feel angry, but also scared.He felt it best to only walk the streets in a group, and keep his identity as a mutant secret from anyone new. During this time he also heard whispers of mutant gangs rising up to defend their own, and Eli even considered seeking them out to join their ranks, if only to feel safer and possibly avenge his friend. Ultimately this didn’t happen, but Eli did decide that the best way to avenge his friend was to be an out and proud mutant. Eli, along with another mutant friend, began to seek out other mutant performers of all types and also secret locations for a floating speakeasy of sorts. Their plan was to create a safe space for mutants to celebrate mutants. It was here that he was found and asked to teach at a new school being established for mutant kids. |
