Real Name: Michelle Balters
Aliases: None
Identity: Secret
Occupation: Adventurer, former enforcer
Citizenship: American Citizen, with no criminal record.
Place of Birth: Chicago, Illinois
Known Relatives: Unnamed Mother (Comatose), Unnamed Father (Comatose)
Group Affiliation: Formerly employee of Martin Strong
First Appearance: X-Force Annual #2
History: Michelle grew up in Chicago and had led a normal life, until her teenage years, where she had begun to develop a migraine that would leave her incapacitated, due to the pain. At the age of 16, the source of her migraines made themselves known as her mutant powers suddenly emerged. Her mutant powers work through eye contact; and when eye contact is made she’s able to send a surge of energy through the person’s body.
The type of energy that she sends is unknown; but at the time of her mutant powers manifesting, she’d pleaded with her parents to help her; making eye contact with each of them, and unknowingly sending surges of uncontrolled energy through each of them, which rendered them both comatose.
She ran away from home, and eventually came to Denver, where she found a flying for “people with extraordinary powers.” This led to a facility called Strong Industries, led by Martin Strong. Martin Strong was an intelligent scientist and doctor who was seeking to put an end to the “X” gene that triggered mutations. In hopes of finding a “cure” for her powers, Michelle stayed with Martin Strong, which resulted on her being experimented on, in order to determine what triggers the “X” gene. It’s here she meets Adam-X, whom she becomes romantically involved with, as she learns to control her powers.
One day, she decides to run away from Strong Industries, and Martin Strong, who had used Adam to find, track and take down other mutants, sends Adam to find and bring back Michelle. This leads to an encounter with X-Force. After Adam fights X-Force, who come to Michelle’s rescue, Michelle flees with X-Force, but is tracked down again by Adam. Another fight breaks out between a few members of X-Force and Adam, before things are settled. Michelle explains to them what Martin Strong intends to do, and X-Force agrees that Martin Strong needs to be stopped. Traveling back to Strong Industries and using a ruse to get inside, Michelle betrays Adam and the rest of X-Force, explaining that Strong Industries needed more mutants to run tests on, and this had all been a ruse to capture more mutants. Adam is furious and takes her down, before Martin Strong appears and begins putting up a fight.
Martin Strong is defeated, and revealed to also be a mutant himself, who has aquatic appendages. Martin Strong explains that he had hoped to cure the “X” gene for people, like himself, whose mutant manifestations prevented him from leading a normal life (and led to his wife, fleeing, and taking their two kids). Adam decides to leave Martin Strong, but declines Cable’s offer to join X-Force. Michelle returns to Martin Strong in hopes of one day finding a cure for her powers.
After the events of M-Day, Michelle was seen as one of the mutants who retained their powers. She was also considered as a potential candidate during the Initiative.
Height: 5’4″
Weight: 120 lbs.
Eyes: Purple (Brown before mutation)
Hair: Black
Powers: Upon eye contact, Michelle is able to sense, control and generate electrical energy pulses through the nerve fibers within organisms. It’s been shown, however, that full eye contact is not needed in order to emit the energy pulse through an individual’s nerve fibers.
The effect of these nerve energy pulses she creates can cause people to fall unconscious, experience tremendous pain, become paralyzed, loss of memory, senses, reflects, and completely disable their nervous system, putting someone into a completely catatonic state.
