The Rock

Real Name: Rickard

Identity/Class: Human mutate (magically empowered)

Occupation: Cosmic force, formerly superhero

Affiliations: Forge, Deathwish, Trippany, Lilith; former Niteside

Enemies: Professor Heisenburg, Niteside

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: Captain Stoneman

Base of Operations: formerly Australia, later The Moon

First Appearance: Niteside and the Rock (Fly by Night Graphics, 1988)

Powers/Abilities: The Rock has superhuman strength and is all but indestructible. Sufficient force can damage his rocky form, but he swiftly regenerates. He can move through the ground, creating new bodies when he emerges to replace the one left behind - as long as he is near a planet, he cannot die. He is ageless and immortal - billions of years of existence do not change him in any way.

History: Rickard and Astria were a couple deeply in love. In 1984 they ran away from home so they could be together, planning to set up new lives in Perth. However at an oasis on the road to that city, they encountered a mysterious woman, Lilith, who somehow granted them both incredible powers. Astria gained powers of darkness and the name Niteside, while Rickard became a living statue, the Rock. Lilith told the couple to use these powers to help mankind.

At Astria's insistence, the two decided to become superheroes. They became public darlings, and allied themselves with other heroes, in particular Forge, a young girl able to control machinery. For five years they helped humanity, without ever encountering a genuine supervillain. That changed when Professor Heisenburg showed up, kidnapping Forge and threatening the lives of an entire town, Mount Yabba. Niteside and Rock managed to save their ally, but Mount Yabba and its thousands of citizens died.

Rock and Forge were devastated by this, but Niteside seemed unbothered...which worried her lover. The first two of those heroes both retired and dropped out of sight of the public, but Niteside continued to operate openly, with her power growing constantly. For nearly twenty five more years Niteside grew increasingly powerful and increasingly inhuman and callous. Finally in 2028 she went on a public rampage, slaughtering the few remaining superheroes and anyone else who crossed her path. Forge came out of retirement to face her, and tried to convince Rock to do the same. While she faced off against Niteside, who by this time had slaughtered several major cities, Rock used an invention of Forge's to travel back to 1984 to kill Niteside after she gained her powers, but before she became too powerful or corrupted. He slew his former girlfriend, still ignorant of her future crimes, only to be confronted by Lilith, who told him that he had only succeeded in creating a second timeline, one where his other self would awaken from his initial hibernation to become Captain Stoneman. Unfortunately the Rock's Niteside was still on a rampage in 2028, and had now murdered Forge.

The Rock returned to his own time, further empowered by Lilith. He arrived to find himself dwarfing his homeworld, standing in space looking down on the Earth. Niteside, equally large, confronted him. Unable to do real harm to one another, the Rock was forced to watch as Niteside destroyed the Earth, then sent the sun itself supernova. This explosion, enhanced by Niteside's powers, rippled out into the universe, causing a chain reaction which destroyed everything it touched.

Billions of years later new planets had formed and new life had evolved. On the remains of what had once been the Moon, which had miraculously survived much of the destruction long past, the Rock reformed, aware suddenly of the return of Niteside. Both now effectively cosmic forces, the bored Niteside tried to lure the Rock to become heroes or aliens or gods on a new world, covered in insectoid lifeforms. He declined, and as she flew off, he returned to the ground from which he had arisen.

Comments: Created by Bodine Amerikah.

CLARIFICATIONS: Not to be confused with

Any Additions/Corrections? Please let me know.

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