JEBIDIAH COLE

JEBEDIAH COLE

GENERAL INFO

NAME: jebediah cole
OTHER ALIASES: jeb, cole, sometimes 'the old cole' or 'the big cole' to differentiate him from his brothers in conversations
AGE: fifty four
BIRTH PLACE: odd, west virginia
CURRENT LOCATION: odd, west virgina
GROUP AFFILIATION(S): unaffiliated
FACE CLAIM: chris stapleton 

POWERS & ABILITIES

Enhanced Durability: Jeb possesses a layer of dermal armor, or unusually resilient skin, which means he can withstand significantly more damage than the average person with significantly less of the physical repercussions. Jeb has come out relatively unscathed from mine collapses, small explosions, and more fist fights than he cares to recollect. It is very difficult (though not impossible) to break through his skin, burn him, bruise him, or break his bones.

While he does not technically possess any super-human physical strength, because is body is difficult to damage, he is also immune to the soreness and strains caused by things like athletics and manual labor. Because of this, he is able to lift basically as much weight as humanly possible for a man of his size, and keep up with people who appear more muscular and fit.

Appearance: Though he’s not sure if it’s entirely due to his mutation, good genetics, or pure luck, Jeb’s a big guy- 6’3 and built like a brick house. His skin is thicker, his bones are denser, and he’s always carried a little extra weight despite their relatively meager rations in the mines. Due to its protective  abilities, his skin is much rougher and less malleable than a normal human’s. This is somewhat noticeable to other people, but most would probably attribute it to a lifetime of hard labor before clocking him as a mutant.

Weaknesses: Though he is more difficult to injure, he is still capable of being hurt or killed in pretty much any way a normal human can- it just may take more time for something like fire to burn him or a stronger, more durable weapon to break through his skin. The rest of his organs are, for the most part, completely normal, which means he is susceptible to being drugged, suffocated, or dealing with illnesses like anyone else. His eyes and mouth also do not have any particular protection. And of course there’s a downside to having super strong skin, if he needed a life-saving injection he would probably break the needle unless it was made for a rhinoceros.

Jeb is also not immune to the effects of aging. As everyone gets older, their bones become less dense and their skin loses elasticity. Though Jeb’s starting point is so much higher than normal that the difference is almost imperceptible, he has noticed that he can’t necessarily take the beating he could when he was twenty without feeling it a little.

BRIEF HISTORY

Jeb still remembers the days when Odd wasn’t such a bad place to live. Originally settled by a group of humans with extraordinary abilities, the mutant gene ran strong in their small town. Though ‘mutant’ wasn’t a word even heard of 1910s and 20s to describe them, kids showed of their powers with pride, and adults used them to make living. They didn’t have a lot, but they were happy, right up until the start of The Great Depression.

It didn’t take much to make a poor town poorer. Shops closed down and most of the miners took ill. Anyone who could get out of there did, joined the army or took a factory job, leaving the rest of them to the wolves. Jeb was only sixteen then, and still an only child when the militia moved in. The made it seem like they were doing a good thing, creating work by blowing out new tunnels, building up the economy. It took a while for people to realize they were being cheated out of their jobs and homes.

Young, angry, and stupid, Jeb didn’t let them get away with anything. They couldn’t hurt him, so he didn’t hesitate to fight back, until he realized there were worse things they could do than cause physical pain. He had a little brother now, one more mouth to feed, and yet again, the family found themselves sold like cattle, this time to a man with a German accent who called himself the Baron.

The Baron was the first person Jeb ever heard use the word mutant, and he spat it like a curse. Under his rule, the work days got longer, the treatment crueler, and the town of Odd lost all contact with the outside world. Jeb’s parents had two more kids they were really too old to take care of, and died within a few years beside that.

This time, Jeb played the long game. He and his siblings may have been mutants, but they were useful mutants, and by keeping his head down and keeping himself on The Baron’s good side, his family was afforded better treatment than most of the others. That was the only reason Waylon and his youngest sister even survived to the age their powers started to show and the could fend for themselves. Jeb never openly rebelled like the did, instead he focused on doing what he could to help his siblings and the poor people around him make the situation as bearable as they could.

THE WRITER

NAME: nick
TIME ZONE: pst
AGE: twenty five
PRONOUNS: he/him