Miles Morales - Phase 1

PHASE 1

Miles Morales
Portrayed by Khylin Rhambo
Codename:	Spider-Man
Affiliations:	New Mutants
Birthdate:	August 3, 1999
Journal:	Miles Morales
Player:	Ben

Inspired by the movie of a superhero who swung through Manhattan after being empowered by the bite of a radioactive spider, 15-year-old Miles Morales adopted the codename Spider-Man to fight crime and injustice in his home borough of Brooklyn.

Details

Character Journal: Miles Morales

Real Name: Miles Morales

Codename: Spider-Man

Aliases: N/A

First Appearance: 16 September, 2014

Date of Birth: August 3, 1999

Place of Birth: New York City, NY

Citizenship: American

Relatives: Jefferson and Río Morales (parents), Aaron Davis Morales (paternal uncle), other aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents.

Education: Beginning sophomore year of high school as of fall 2014

Relationship Status: Single

Occupation: Student, vigilante

Team Affiliation: New Mutants

Biography

Childhood

Miles Morales is the only son of Jefferson and Río Morales, themselves the children of Afro-Puerto Rican immigrants to Spanish Harlem. Jefferson and his brother Aaron were little hellions as children and ran with gangs as they entered their teenage years. Aaron turned to theft while Jefferson dealt drugs. The latter eventually met and fell in love with Río Ortíz, and at her insistence and help, he cleaned up his act and abandoned crime. They moved out of Spanish Harlem and into Brooklyn shortly after Miles’ birth. The Morales family was not particularly well off, but they were never wanting, and Jefferson and Río indulged Miles whenever they could.

Miles was always a fast learner and gifted student. Grade school passed uneventfully (excepting Day Zero, which the Morales family thankfully mostly avoided because they were in Brooklyn), but he and his best friend Ganke Lee became a troublesome duo in middle school. Bored with what they perceived to be a slow pace in school, they became disruptive. But fortunately for them, they both entered a lottery and won acceptance to a prestigious charter school that was better able to challenge them. Miles’s and Ganke's behavior quickly improved, and the pair soon became star students.

Jefferson and Aaron didn’t get on particularly well as kids, and their animosity only grew when Jefferson reformed and started a family. An argument between the brothers that nearly turned physical when Miles was 12 resulted in Jefferson forbidding Aaron from any contact with Rio or Miles. Miles didn’t understand this order, nor did Jefferson attempt to explain anything, so it went ignored, and Miles continued to secretly visit his uncle.

Spider-Man

Miles’s powers manifested in early 2014 during one such visit, when Miles suffered an allergic reaction to a spider bite at Aaron’s apartment. Aaron’s TV short circuited and nearly exploded at Miles’s touch, and he broke several glasses and nearly ripped a door off its hinges with his intense strength. Miles fled under the pretense that he wasn’t feeling well and had homework to do, and ran straight to Ganke, who is the only person in whom Miles has confided. Ganke initially showed much more enthusiasm at the idea of having powers than Miles did. But the more Miles thought about it after he chanced across a burning building and rescued a trapped little girl, the more he came to like the idea of being a superhero. Inspired by the Spider-Man movie in the early 2000s, the two designed a makeshift costume and Miles set out to become New York’s own costumed crime fighter.

The new Spider-Man spent his nights running around Brooklyn, stopping muggers and chasing down robbers. He gained some real notoriety in the borough, though, when in the late spring of 2014, he interfered in the arrest of a trio of black youths. Maybe it was because of Uncle Aaron’s anti-authoritarian (particularly anti-police) screeds, but the sight of white policemen roughing up people who looked and talked like Miles incited him to action. If he was going to protect his city from injustice, then that had to include even those with the legal power to exercise that injustice.

So Spider-Man now faces hostility on two fronts: from the criminals and crime organizations that plague Brooklyn, and from the NYPD who refuse to let some black mutant kid flaunt his disregard for the system. The Daily Bugle calls Spider-Man a threat and a menace. But there is also a strong community of Spider-Fans who subscribe to his Instagram and Vine, and who think of him as a modern-day Robin Hood, and that's more than enough for Miles.

Coming to Xavier's

Spider-Man came to Kyle's and Laurie's attention in mid-September of 2014 when Kyle found links to Spider-Man's Vine. Concerned that some kid was taking it on himself to be a vigilante superhero, they contacted Doug for help identifying him so they could talk him out of it. It came at a good time, too, because up-and-coming mutant fashionista Jumbo Carnation was murdered in a poor neighborhood in Brooklyn, and Spider-Man took it on himself to bring the murderer to justice. Despite Kyle's plea to drop it, Miles and Ganke continued their investigation, and with the help of some questionably-obtained police documents, determined that the murderer may have been a debt collector and not a bigot as they'd first considered. When Spider-Man broke into Jumbo's home to find more relevant evidence, he was attacked by a mutant named Radian who confirmed the theory. Radian easily overpowered Spider-Man, but Miles was saved by the timely appearance of Kyle and Laurie. With the mystery solved, Miles asked if he could join the X-Men so they could train him. Instead, Kyle and Laurie directed him to the school where he could train and develop his powers, and maybe join the team after time. Miles transferred the following week.

Despite a tad rocky start, Miles's first semester was a good one. He made several friends, including Gabriel Cohuelo and Matt Murdock. Matt's death during the X-Men's mission to repel the Brotherhood at Muir Island hit him hard, but he rallied with Gabriel and the other students to protect the school from interdimensional invaders. Unfortunately, Miles met his end when the Dark Phoenix came by putting himself in the way of Kurt Sefton and an oncoming pickup truck.

Physical Characteristics

Height: 5'5"

Weight: 115 lbs.

Eyes: Brown

Hair: Black

Other Features: None for now.

Powers

Miles is a mutant with a primary and secondary mutation.

Primary Mutation: Enhanced physical traits.

• Superhuman strength and durability: Miles can lift and press a couple of tons and so has to pull his punches and kicks, otherwise his blows would prove critical to a normal human. His physical strength also extends to his legs, enabling him to jump to a height of several meters in a single bound. Miles does not fatigue easily, and his body is capable of withstanding damage that could be debilitating or even fatal to a normal human.
• Superhuman reflexes and flexibility: Miles' agility, balance, and bodily coordination are all enhanced to levels that are far beyond the natural physical limits of the finest human athlete, and his reflexes are similarly enhanced several times over. It should be noted that Miles has no formal combat training, so the advantage granted by his powers is limited, and a skilled warrior could overcome him.
• "Spider Sense": A nearly clairvoyant prediction of immediate danger that manifests as a tingling sensation in the back of Miles' head. It is almost a sixth sense that offers him awareness of his surroundings, and in conjunction with his reflexes, allows him to instinctively dodge or counter attacks. At least sometimes. It’s more of a hindrance than help while he’s in a prolonged combat because he’s in constant danger so it won’t be quiet.

Secondary Mutation: Electrokinesis. Miles possesses the ability to manipulate his bioelectric field and generate current through specialized structures in his cells. While his mutations in combination offer him a great resilience to electricity, he’s not immune and could be felled with extreme current just like anyone else. Additionally, he’s not able to redirect current or throw lightning bolts around like a crazy mage. His abilities are much more limited.

• "Venom Blast": Miles can discharge current through touch. This self-termed "venom blast" is not strong enough to kill a normal human, but it can daze, paralyze, or even knock out a person.
• Wall crawling: Manipulation of his own field attracts him to the fields of other objects, permitting him to adhere to surfaces and climb walls. He can stick to surfaces even through a layer of clothing and footwear.
• Camouflage: Stimulation of his field also allows him to bend light so that it passes through his body, effectively rendering him invisible.

Equipment

Miles and Ganke developed the Spider-Man costume from items in Miles's closet: a knockoff Spider-Man hoodie from Chinatown, a ski mask, polarized ski goggles, Foundation brand touchscreen gloves, jeans, and an old pair of boots.

Trivia

Miles is kind of a closet nerd. He’s fine with people knowing that he plays RPGs and reads genre fiction, but he’d be terribly embarrassed if they knew just how many times he’s played each game in the Dragon Age and Mass Effect series, or that he dressed as Geordi LaForge for Halloween for 5 years straight (and still has the VISOR that he and Ganke crafted). It’s kind of another secret identity to him, and the devastating consequence of losing it is potential loss of social status, which is terrible for a 15-year-old boy.

Plots

2014

Not So Amazing

2015

Reality Coming Down

The Dark Phoenix

Meta

Player: Ben

E-mail:

AIM:

Player Icon Base: Khylin Rhambo

Meta Trivia

Miles's Spider-Man costume is based on the Rosy Higgins redesign (design seen here and cosplay seen here).

A new Miles Morales appears in Phase 2.