Chapter 34: Baron Reiter
Baron Reiter doesn't exist in the DCU. However, his Arrowverse character was not fully developed IMO. They did some background on him, but not a lot. I plan on fixing that. He was in the US Army. He had magic. He deserves a backstory.
ORIGIN:
Baron Reiter was born in Jamaica to a Jamaican mother and an American father. He was born in a small village and learned about magic from the village elders. However, he was torn from his village at a young age to live with his father in America. He despised his new home and how it empowered racists and ostracized magic. However, he was smart enough to pretend to conform to American society.
Reiter used his intelligence to complete a college degree, but he was offended at the types of people he found on his college campus. He commissioned in the US Army to escape from the pitiable children masquerading as adults. None of them had any sense of direction or understood the realities of the world.
In the US Army, Reiter was valued for his intelligence and in completing the mission. There was still racism, but it was more hidden. Reiter resented this hidden objective. He hated how he was used for his skills and his intelligence, but dismissed because he was black. He began to gather like-minded individuals to him. His deployment to Afghanistan provided him with greater access to power and brought him the rumors of Lian Yu. He became obsessed with finding the prison for magical artifacts. He has some small talent for magic that he had cultivated in is tribal village in Jamaica. America gave him access to more knowledge of the occult, even as American's dismissed magic as a fancy story.
After his tour in Afghanistan, Reiter collected the most vicious of his former comrades. The ones who would fail to return to society easily. He formed a plan. Most of his colleagues were war profiteers. They didn't care what he did on the island, as long as they got paid. As long as they got to indulge in their violent fantasies. Reiter made a break through when he found someone to fund his expedition to Lian Yu. HIVE would fund his travel, expenses, and assist him in recruiting additional manpower for his operation. He would have to share his findings. Reiter was fine with that. He hated all governments. HIVE was against all governments.
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FAMILY:
Reiter was estranged from his American father once he joined the military. His Jamaican mother was killed in a gang raid on his village. Their magic didn't help them.
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MOTIVATION:
Reiter wanted to fix the injustice his Jamaican village suffered. He wanted to use magic to hurt and kill those who opposed him and his men. What had started out as a desire to protect (US Army) evolved into a desire for power over his enemies. Reiter learned to use his intelligence to make himself more powerful than his enemies. He gathered intelligence and cultivated allies that served his goals. He used his rank in the US Army the same way. Those military members who protested his morals were transferred out of his command or died in combat. He wasn't above using combat to move a bullet towards his domestic enemies.
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PERSONALITY:
Reiter has a very charismatic personality. He is a natural leader. He is easily able to motivate people into doing what he sees as right. His passion for his goals inspires his followers to become more fanatic in their beliefs.
Reiter has been beat down by life. He was born black in a black country. When he was forced to move in with his father, he was exposed to the rampant racism in America, and he despised how casual it was in America. Combined that with the loss of his home and his mother, Reiter became very bitter at the world, but he was highly intelligent and had a minor gift of magic. His telekinesis was small, but worked to embarrass his bullies as they tripped on air. More useful was his ability to alter minds and thoughts. He was able to use this skill to manipulate his teachers, superiors, and military leaders into giving him what he wanted. He justified his actions by stating that he only wanted what was best for everyone.
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ABILITIES:
Magic: mystical healing, Minor Telekinesis, Skilled Ritual Magic, Skilled Ritual Dark Magic, Minor Mind Alteration (thought editing),
Martial Arts: Reiter is highly skilled in martial arts and hand-to-hand combat. He was trained in the US Army Special Forces. He maintained his skill while operating Shadowspire. Likewise, he felt that violence was often the only form of communication his criminal empire understood.
Small Arms: Reiter is an Expert marksman in most small arms. He specializes in long range small arms and rifles. He is more accurately able to target using his magical skills.
Skills: Occultism, Intelligence, Leadership, Motivation, Persuasion, Hypnosis, Indomitable Will, Intimidation,
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NOTES:
As I said, Baron Reiter deserved a backstory. Since his character was not fleshed out in the Arrowverse and doesn't exist in the DCU, I gave him one. I like to flesh out my villains and turn them into realistic people. Everyone starts as a blank slate. They turn into the adults we know. Their experiences mold them. Their history motivates them. Key villains deserve the same attention as heroes.
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