James Avalon
NPCs
Constance Dumas
Terrance Cromwell
(Killroy)
c r e a t e d b y B e n B e l l o t
Real Name: James Avalon
First Appearance: Forte 2000 #140
Base of Operations: Seattle, WA
Occupation: Defense Attorney for the law firm of Archibold, Tanner & Creighton (SVD Division)
Marital Status: Single
Known Relatives: Margaret Avalon (mother, deceased), Terrance Cromwell (father, presumed deceased)
Hair: Not much
Eyes: Brown
Height: 6'0
History: James Avalon’s true name is James Avalon Cromwell. He is the son of Margaret Avalon and Terrance Cromwell AKA the “Supervillian” (at least by London standards) Killroy. When his father was brought to justice and sentenced to life in prison, James was able to visit his father one last time. The one thing that stuck with James after their conversation is that his father claimed that his own attorney put up a “token” defense against the British Anti-Super law and the other charges.
Margaret left England and settled in Seattle, Washington. She dropped the last name of Cromwell, and had herself and her son obtain US citizenship with the last name of Avalon. James never saw his father again, and heard rumors that his father died in prison. Margaret was excited when James earned a scholarship to Stanford (the Harvard of the West Coast). Unfortunately, Margaret never got to see her son graduate from law school as she died of lung cancer a year before he finished.
James was able to secure a defense attorney job at a law firm in Seattle, and found a mentor in elder Attorney Sebastian Chambers. Like James, Sebastian was a London native who migrated to Seattle. He offered James a position in the firm’s new legal branch that specialized in defending the super criminals. The SVD (Super Villain Defense) branch, as it is known among the co-workers, will always defend the not so common criminals but will “almost” never take the case of a World Destroying Megalomaniac.
It is at the law firm that James met Constance Dumas, a well meaning but very clumsy legal secretary. James immediately took a liking to her and arranged to have her moved to the SVD branch. She now serves as his personal secretary and confidant. For five years, James worked non-stop in the SVD branch as Sebastian Chambers’ legal assistant. One day, James was called into a private meeting with some of the firm’s partners. He was informed that Sebastian, having just returned from a trip to London, had passed away in his sleep. The coroner had determined the cause of death to have been heart failure due to a genetically weak heart muscle.
The partners asked James to act as lead attorney in Sebastian’s outstanding cases, and that he would find all the paperwork in his former bosses’ office. As James was going through the mounds of paperwork—Constance offered to help but James politely refused—he discovered that Sebastian had left a large package addressed to James (apparently Sebastian had been very aware of the limited time he had on earth) because it was dated the day of his arrival back from England.
James opened the package and found a silver mask in the shape of a spider. There were also several handwritten notes from Sebastian all addressed to James. They went into great detail about the mask and its abilities. Sebastian had set up the SVD to be a vast wealth of information about the criminal element. Secret information that in the right hands could be put to good use. Sebastian had chosen James to be the one to decide on how that information could be used and what action could be taken without violating the trust between the client and their defense attorney.
Moonspider was born that night.
Two years later, Moonspider found himself teaming up with members of Forte 2000 in a search for an escaped client of his, and became part of the “second wave” of the new incarnation of Forte.
Powers and Abilities: All of Moonspider’s abilities come from the mysterious mask that he inherited. Its origins and workings are still unknown to him. The mask imbues him with heightened strength, speed and toughness, making him extremely agile, strong, and an extraordinary fighter. The mask also shoots a beam of energy that can wreak havoc on unsuspecting prey. Moonspider uses this in conjunction with his extensive knowledge of villains and the law to be a formidable force for justice.
Personality: James is a pragmatic man who believes in the law...and
knows how to use it. A firm believer in the rights of the accused, he
uses all his legal knowledge in the defense of his clients...even if some
on the "right" side of the law find it distasteful or infuriating.
He's a sharp and creative thinker, and is passionate about what he does.
While he doesn't see things in terms as black and white as some in the
hero field, he does believe, above all, in what is fair, just and right...even
if that opinion doesn't always agree with the majority. His profession,
and especially his particular specialty within it, has given him a vast
body of contacts on both sides of the law. The duality of his profession
(villain lawyer) and his calling (super-hero) is not lost on him, and
has created something of a dual life, if not personality, for him. As
a lawyer, he's often maligned by the very super-heroes that he works with
when he dons the mask, but as Moonspider, he's a trusted hero known for
his dedication to keeping the city safe and bringing criminals to justice.
James Avalon