Name: Doug Ramsey

Gender: Male

Age: 26

Aliases: Formerly Cypher, recently Blackeye the Pirate

Appearance: Doug is a blonde human, about 5'9" and weighing 135 lbs.  He's lean and muscular, with a number of scars acquired over the years since Earth was taken.  His left eye, in addition, is solid black with faint gold lines running through it, with a spiderweb of black lines radiating out from it.  He wears a black armored suit with red designs on it that are martial slogans in a wide range of languages, finished with a bright red sash. There's a metallic collar around his neck that automatically extends a hood over his head in hostile environments, and he has heavy metallic forearm bracers and boots that contain various weapons that extend when needed.

Powers:

Language Comprehension: Doug can quickly decipher any language that he encounters, no matter the type or nature of it.  This power has only increased with the Phalanx technovirus infection in his body.

** Body Language Reading:  An outgrowth of Doug's linguistic powers, Doug instinctively reads the body language of people he encounters, giving him insights into their psychology and thoughts, but also letting him predict and anticipate their moves in combat, making him an extremely dangerous combatant, especially in melee combat.

Technology Link:  Doug was infected with a low viral load of the Phalanx technovirus; it activated during his travels, but advanced medicine stopped it from transforming his entire body.  However, his linguistic powers enabled him to comprehend the programming code of the virus, letting him use the alterations to his body to take control of technology that he touches, aided by his ability to decode the programming of whatever he touches.

Cybernetic Implants: The technovirus modified Doug's body before it was stopped; injuries have also lead him to have certain implants installed in his body.  These aren't overt, but they enhance his physical strength to the point where he can lift approximately 1000 lbs of weight, improve his overall toughness and durability considerably, and contain a 4 hour emergency life support reserve.

Skills:

Xenosociologist: Doug's journeys have exposed him to a truly stunning range of alien species and cultures; he's familiar with their technology, cultures, physiology, and, of course, languages.

Star Pilot: Doug has learned how to pilot a wide range of high-tech vehicles, including navigating faster-than-light spacecraft, but also how to fly smaller hovercraft, shuttles and the like; he's also very skilled with flying them in combat.

Technology Master:  Doug has had to learn how to use a very wide range of technology in his piratical career; he's also had to learn how to repair it.  His ability to link with technology, and his ability to decode alien technical specs, have assisted him greatly.

Master Combatant:  Doug is a refugee in galactic society, an outlaw and a space pirate. He's had to fight constantly to survive for years, and has acquired great skill in unarmed combat, with close-combat weapons, with personal firearms and even with mounted energy and projectile weapons.

Equipment:

Pirate's War-suit: Doug's clothing is armored, built to disperse energy attacks and absorb kinetic energy.  He still prefers to avoid attacks, however-- the suit won't stop the most dangerous weapons in his environment for long.

Space Collar: Doug's collar is both a communications suite and life support device, extending over his head at any threat to provide life support as well as extra protection for his head.

Weapon Bracers:  Doug's bracers are advanced weapon systems; they use solid "Quantum energy" to create various weapons and tools as Doug needs them.  Very common uses include making shields and blades of nearly indestructible energy, but also creating semi-solid projectile weapons or variable-focus-and-frequency photon generators capable of creating powerful lasers or simple floodlights.

Gravity Boots:  Doug's boots contain highly-variable artificial gravity controls with many uses.  They let him walk on any surface, treating it as "down" wherever the soles of his feet are.  They can likewise protect him from excess gravity or acceleration.  Finally, they can produce gravity "pulses," letting him fly short distances, or, in an emergency, work as a weapon to kick-push an enemy away.

History:

Rock Musician Lila Cheney, using her natural teleportation power and the advanced technology of her Dyson Sphere headquarters, was involved in an ambitious and dangerous plan-- to steal the entire planet Earth and sell its inhabitants into slavery!  Her plan was complicated by her decision to take the New Mutants with her separately, as well as the treachery of her Vrakanin allies.  In the chaos that unfolded, Earth was stolen, but the fighting that followed ruined both Lila and the Vrakanin's attempts to enslave the Earth, instead scattering the surviving humans across the cosmos and destroying both the actual planet Earth and Lila's Dyson Sphere base.

The New Mutants, however, were able to escape the chaos, and found their own ways in this strange new world... to a greater or lesser degree.  Separated from the others, Doug's normally minor mutant power was vital to his survival, letting him understand the languages of the various alien cultures around him, and determine how to best use the technology that he found.  But he was surrounded by hostile aliens, cultures that viewed slavery of those too weak to defend themselves as normal and accepted, and with no friends or allies, except those that he could make himself.

Under this pressure, a new strength bloomed in him.  He realized quickly how to use his powers to win fights, and won himself a place among a collection of space pirates, all escaped slaves who now raided their former captors for revenge and loot.  It was a hard, dangerous life, and Doug nearly died many times both from injuries and from the activation of the Phalanx virus whose traces remained in his system after his contact with Warlock.  But advanced medicine, mutant stamina and reliable allies enabled Doug to survive despite the worst the galaxy had to offer... but he still searched, endlessly, for his old friends, and for the survivors of humanity, wherever they could be found.