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Aqua-Mariner
(Aquaman + Namor)
Name: Arthur McKenzie/Namorin
Biography: Once upon a time, there was a sailor lost at sea. His ship was torn asunder by a terrible storm and he found himself desperately trying to stay above water. Despite his best efforts, he sank further and further into the abyss and would have drowned were it not for a beautiful mermaid who pulled him to dry land and saved his life.
For the two of them, it was love at first sight and in just a year they had a beautiful baby boy. During their time together, the sailor's new wife revealed that she wasn't just any mermaid, but the princess of the undersea kingdom of Atlantis. This inspired the sailor to name the boy after mankind's most famous king, Arthur.
Just like his mother, Arthur was stronger and faster than any human alive. He could breathe underwater as if he were on dry land and speak with the creatures of the depths. But more incredible than that were the tiny wings on his feet that gave him the gift of flight.
Sadly, their happiness could not last forever. At just six years of age, Arthur screamed as strange men in armor stormed through his family's door. They were Atlantis' royal guards, ordered by the king to bring the princess back. Not only did they take her away, they also took Arthur from the only home he had ever known.
Arthur was forced to grow up in Atlantis and learn all of their culture and history. And though he grew up as Atlantis' prince alongside his new half-brother, his subjects were not happy. Looking and behaving so differently from an average Atlantean made Arthur an outcast even as royalty. While he did manage to find love and companionship in the city beneath the waves, he held no love for Atlantis itself. After all, it was them that took him from his home despite not wanting him there any more than he did. They even took away his name. In Atlantis, he was not Arthur; he was Namorin, "the Avenging Son."
So when the opportunity came to return to the surface world, he took it. That opportunity came in the form of a great and terrible war between the forces of good and evil. When Arthur was made aware of this war, he quickly joined the side of good and fought alongside many great heroes who stood for truth and justice. This would be his first step from becoming the prince that nearly no one in Atlantis wanted, to the greatest king Atlantis has ever known.
This is not a fairy tale. Rather it's the beginning of the story of Arthur McKenzie, son of Thomas McKenzie (Tom Curry + Leonard McKenzie) and Princess Fenlanna (Fen + Atlanna), Ruler of the Seven Seas, Avenging Son of Atlantis. But everybody in the surface world knows him better as the Aqua-Mariner.
In 1942, a German submarine fired its missiles at Atlantis. Seeing that his kingdom was under attack, Arthur immediately charged at the submarine. With nothing but his bare hands, he lifted it away from Atlantis and out of the ocean, into an intense naval battlefield. It was there that he met America's Sentinel of Steel, the Super-Soldier (Superman + Captain America) who told him about the Axis and their campaign of genocide and world conquest. Arthur agreed to help the Allies and he and Super-Soldier became good friends.
So when the Star-Spangled Man of Tomorrow disappeared into the parallel dimension known as the Phantom Zone, he spent years looking for KOBRA's (HYDRA + Kobra Cult) Phantom Zone Projector to bring him back. Unfortunately, all that time away from water warped his mind. He became more volatile, paranoid and prone to intense mood shifts. His memory faded more and more to the point he could not remember his own name, let alone his Atlantean heritage. Eventually, he was reduced to an amnesiac derelict living at an old New York City flophouse. Arthur would stay here for decades, never growing old or realizing how odd that was.
It's likely he'd stay that way if it weren't for that flophouse's most unusual visitor yet, Magnesium (Mercury + Human Torch), the literal hothead of the Magnificent Men (Fantastic Four + Metal Men). Magnesium felt bad for the homeless man and tried to get him on his feet. He shaved off his beard with his flame, revealing the face of a man Magnesium instantly recognized from countless comic books, the Aqua-Mariner. Magnesium took the amnesiac superhero to a nearby river and threw him into the water.
Finally in contact with water after so long, Namorin remembered that he was an Atlantean. However, he was still unbalanced from not having enough water. So his first decision was to return to Atlantis only to find the city in ruins and the population completely missing. He blamed the surface world for this and tried to attack New York City with a giant sea monster called Gigantopo (Giganto + Topo).
This time, Aqua-Mariner met the entirety of the Magnificent Men, not just Magnesium. The Magnificent Men managed to stop Gigantopo and Aqua-Mariner, with the latter deciding to focus on finding his kingdom. As Namor searched, the water slowly returned his mind back to normal and his memory came back fully. When he did find Atlantis, it was under the rule of his half-brother, Atorma (Attuma + Ocean Master).
Atorma explained that the original city of Atlantis was indeed destroyed by the surface world due to them testing an atomic bomb. Since then, Arthur's half-brother had taken the throne and put the Atlanteans to work building weapons of mass destruction so they could get their revenge. With his senses restored, Arthur could see the madness of this plan and tried to stop him. The end result was a civil war in Atlantis that ended with Arthur overthrowing his brother and taking his place as king.
After that and reuniting with his first love, Dormera (Dorma + Mera), Aqua-Mariner returned to his mission to bring the Super-Soldier back home. After apologizing to the Magnificent Men for his actions, they agreed to help him. Their leader, Mr. Magnificent (Mr. Fantastic + Will Magnus) built his own Phantom Zone Projector and used it to save the Super-Soldier. The old friends were reunited at last.
Ever since then, Arthur has struggled to maintain a peaceful relationship between the surface world and his new kingdom. Even though he never wished to rule Atlantis, Arthur knows that he's the best man for the job. No matter who or what comes for him, the Avenging Son of Atlantis will always stand strong, protecting the oceans as its king and the surface world as Aqua-Mariner.
Powers & Abilities: Aqua-Mariner isn't just an Atlantean or a human. He's also a metamutant, and this unique physiology grants him all sorts of superpowers.
As an Atlantean, Arthur can breathe underwater and swim faster that a fighter jet. He also possesses superhuman strength and can telepathically communicate with all forms of sea life and bend them to his will.
And his status as Atlantean royalty grants him even more power, such as the ability to not just command sea life but all animals on Earth. He can even mentally influence intelligent creatures like humans, although the most he can do is induce a seizure. He can also mimic the abilities of certain sea creatures like absorbing energy and firing it back as bio-electricity ala an electric eel. He also has access to the Clear, the primordial force behind all aquatic and oceanic life. He can use the Clear to increase the strength of all sea creatures under his control.
Lastly, his metamutant genes grant him small wings attached to his ankles. Despite their diminutive size, they allow Arthur to fly through the air as swiftly and gracefully as he swims through water.
While that may be all of Aqua-Mariner's natural abilities, it's far from what he's fully capable of. After taking his place as King of Atlantis, Arthur was granted his new kingdom's most powerful relic: the Trident of Neptune. The Trident is able to shoot mystic blasts of energy, create forcefield, control water, summon storms, and bring inanimate objects to life to fight alongside him.
Appearance: Aqua-Mariner has black hair, blue eyes, and a Caucasian skin tone. His most notable feature is the tiny white, bird wings on his ankles.
He wears an orange, armored top designed to look like fish scales. He wears gold armbands over his forearms and a gold belt with a seashell symbol on it. His pants are green, also resemble fish scales, and are cut off at the knee.