Johnny Arkens

Set 1,182 years after the Fall of Pantheons (1066 CE) in 2248 AD. Sorcerers are a thing of the past; reduced only to legends remembered by just over a thousand living Ancients across the world. Magic is a science, no longer a philosophy or theory, and even scarcer a practice anymore. Through science, magic has been identified as an element. An invisible binding force that ties matter itself together, and at its utmost, the basis of reality. It is as common as oxygen, and is something exclusive, thus far at least, to Earth. Just as water is something that all life needs, so is magic. Within certain organisms it has transformed them. Humans are not an exception. Those who could innately manipulate the magic in the air possessed rare genetic mutations that allowed them to do so. Based on the color and its vibrancy when it is manipulated, it determines the specific branch and strength of the magic. In the case of modern times, this rare mutation has evolved into a retained, innate ability to control water, earth, heat, and air, within the descendants of magic practitioners. For numerous decades this has sparked a resurgence of political and societal imbalance not unlike the Arcana Wars that broke out shortly preceding the Fall of Pantheons, where the ethical implications of magic produced war, extensive imperialism, and the extinction of countless magical races in the name of conquest and a desperate yearning for power magic alone couldn't buy.

Technically homeless, not in school, and squatting in an abandoned garage, Johnny's lifestyle isn't what most people would consider "ideal" for a young man of his age. Johnny was born into prestige under the Arkens, high-end antiquarians and tech-brokers who operate a cutthroat trading business centered around the repairing of old, magical artifacts, and upscaling them for modern military use. Naturally, the wealth warranted Johnny's advanced education in robotics, engineering, and chemistry, which built upon already present natural gifts. Among them, like many others, they developed Johnny's own understanding of his innate ability to produce high-voltage electricity from his fingertips. Which years later he would refine by creating specifically made gloves using his knowledge of technology and chemistry to produce plasma. Despite this however, Johnny's personal relationship with his family underwent a fallout when Johnny could no longer find use in going to the schools available to him, or living the life he wanted away from a destiny paved for him. So, he left in favor of a less luxurious, but "freer" livelihood, unburdened by responsibly, and finally, without anyone to tell him what he should do regarding his inheritance of the family business. As time progresses, Johnny considers regretting this decision. But a better way to ignore this is by creating and experimenting with his genius works. Johnny has proven that using his plasma-producing gloves he can indeed shoot sharp, concentrated bolts of plasma capable of ionizing practically anything for the first three seconds it's around. Despite this short window, it is still immensely effective. The mechanism behind the plasma's production lies deep within his gloves that transmit his electricity into a thermal heat system until enough energy is added to the neutral gas to strip away at its atoms. The result is fine, and is limited to short bursts without immediately overheating and searing Johnny's hand - which is something that can happen anyway if he uses his finger guns too frequently. Initially, the thought process behind designing the gloves involved producing plasma from the palm, but the surface was too uneven and wide, which made it difficult to generate heat quickly using neutral gases. It was also harder to trigger, produce consistent results, and operate efficiently while actively battling against Johnny's innate ability to concentrate electricity into his fingertips. On top of all of that, finding precision amidst the present imbalance was neigh impossible when the mechanism itself worked against the conduit. That aside, Johnny can freely choose when to activate his gloves and creatively use the plasma to manifest brief "swipes" across the air, which function more like melee combat, expect with ionizing energy. Johnny's Matchstick title is directly from his signature wrist flick that mimics the gesture of lighting a match when he activated his gloves' mechanisms. This, combined occasionally against the surface of something, helps sell the illusion. All careful, very intentional craft by Johnny under the rule of cool. Johnny's Skywalkers are something he found floating on the internet, couldn't afford, so secretly stole them. A practice he isn't above doing, but doesn't make a habit of. Since obtaining the shoes, he's augmented them to work alongside his abilities by enhancing their already present systems. Skywalkers in 2242 were famous online not only for their style, but their hovering capability. Hence, their name. Despite that, weight distribution and the power the shoes themselves produced were not sufficient enough to actually "walk". Johnny has sought to fix this and remain as on-brand with the original commercials he's been obsessed with since he was a teenager. Now, his pair of Skywalkers are directly tied to the electricity he produces from his body. Despite his power being uniquely expressed in the fingertips, biologically, there is a complex reason as to how the electricity conjures in the first at such high voltages. Unlike previous iterations of his gloves, the surface area of the shoes' soles are easier to work with. Johnny has found he can't transmit a lot of electricity from his body into the shoes themselves, so has constructed a built-in enhancer within the shoes themselves that strengthens the voltage as it strikes into the soles. The product allows for him to now fly in quick bursts using compressed expulsions of plasma. Though yet again, there is still a limit for how many bursts Johnny can use until the shoes begin to overheat, and he's forced to land. A frequent problem he's run into when doing this is having the automatic enhancer fail, so he's built a manual override if such a thing is to transpire. Johnny's visors are something he actually made himself, but they don't serve any functional purpose. The rule of cool applies. Beneath their flashy exterior, Johnny possesses hooded hazel-brown eyes. Since growing into being Matchstick, Johnny has enjoyed adventuring the city using his Skywalkers, occasionally blasting things with his finger guns, and performing acrobatic stunts by breakdancing mid-air, which he takes pictures of with his phone for "research purposes". As mercenary (sometimes), Johnny has proven himself immensely capable with all his gear. Though his lack of regard for others, especially without concern he is over his own spotlight, has led to even his own employers questioning some of his methods, and probably him in retrospect.