March, Part Three
Today we’ll meet our third member of the original 1978 group of queer heroes empowered by the symbol of the original Pride Flag, March Orange. If you don’t know the story of the Blood Sisters, do check it out, as March Orange—or, as she later begins calling herself, Blood Sister—is inspired by those true events.
March Orange (later, Blood Sister)Among the colours of the original pride flag, orange represented healing. Mariana Moreno marched in the 1978 parade despite the risk of losing her job as a nurse, and when the flare of light that transformed eight of the people walking in the parade into powered individuals, she found herself in possession of an inner life force, something she’d eventually call her “font of life,” that she could share with others by touch, or—with greater effort—everyone within a short range of her, in a kind of “burst” of healing energy. Her first use of her abilities happened almost the moment she was given them, as thrown objects had struck several of those marching, and when she touched one of the wounded and immediately knew the full extend of the injury on an instinctual level the power spilled out of her and healed the cut. When the fighting was over, her work began, and she wasted no time moving from injured to injured and marvelling at her newfound ability to heal.
In time, Moreno learned her font of life had all but ceased her aging, and even to this day she appears to be a woman in her early thirties, much as she was in 1978. Similarly, her own body heals itself, rejects poison and disease, and she doesn’t even need to sleep, eat, or drink, though she can do all three if she chooses to. At first, this all seemed like a blessing, though as time passed—and especially as she lost other members of March—she realized this aspect of her gift also left her with a greater opportunity for loss.
Of all the members of March, March Orange was the most involved “on the street,” moving through many communities in San Francisco and elsewhere where she could help others. Her healing ability for others is limited to physical trauma such as cuts, breaks, and bruises—she cannot heal disease, though she can often limit or reduce the effects of such on the body of the suffering—and this limitation was particularly painful during the worst of the AIDS crisis. In 1983, Moreno officially took off her mask and publicly took the moniker Blood Sister, in honour of the work being done in San Diego.
The 1988 death of March Red, and the many failures of the government to care for its most vulnerable people, was a turning point for Moreno, who shifted her focus thereafter, using her influence and declaring she would raise money to open up a free clinic in San Francisco, as well as her plans to return to medical school, this time studying to be a doctor. While it would take many years for both dreams to come to pass, she did achieve her plans, and by early 1997, March Tower—and the ground level free clinic—was already fully operational, with Doctor Moreno as the medical lead.
March Orange, 1978 (PL 8)
Identity: Mariana Moreno (At first secret, eventually public)
Cis Female, 32, 1.62m, 65kg, brown eyes, dark brown hair
Group Affiliation: March, Base of Operations: San Francisco, Later: March Tower
Attributes: Str 2, Sta 2, Agi 2, Dex 2, Fgt 2, Int 4, Awe 4, Pre 2 (40 points)
Powers: Font of Life: Immunity 5 (Aging, Disease, Poison, Sleep, Starvation & Thirst) (5 points); Healing Aura: Regeneration 8 linked to Toughness 8; AE: Healing Burst: Healing 4, Burst Area, Stabilize; AE: Healing Hands: Healing 5, Precise, Stabilize (18 points); Life Sense: Senses 2 (Mental Detect Life 2) (2 points); Quick Change: Feature 1 (Transform into costume as a free action) (1 point); Touch Diagnosis: Senses 3 (Detect Health, Acute, Analytical) (3 points)
Advantages: Attractive, Contacts, Great Endurance, Languages 2 (English, Mandarin, Spanish), Skill Mastery—Treatment, Well-Informed (7 points)
Skills: Expertise—Charitable Organizations 4 (+8), Expertise—Medicine 4 (+8), Expertise—Nursing 6 (+10), Insight 2 (+6), Intimidation 6 (+8), Investigation 2 (+6), Perception 4 (+8), Persuasion 6 (+8), Technology 2 (+4), Treatment 12 (+16), Vehicles 4 (+6) (22 points)
Offense:
Initiative +2
Unarmed +2 (Close, Damage 2)
Defense: Dodge +4, Parry +4, Fortitude +8, Toughness +10, Will +8 (18 points)
Power Point Totals: Attributes 40 + Powers 29 + Advantages 7 + Skills 26 + Defenses 18 = 120.
Complications:
Motivation—Acceptance: Even before she was empowered, March Orange was a force for activism, especially within the health-care system, where she knows full well how the system falls short. Now she’s got powers, she works all the harder to make a difference in ways only she can. Prejudice: All the members of March are targeted as openly queer, and March Orange also bears the brunt of misogyny and racism, especially within the health-care profession. Motivation—Doing Good: March Orange has a strongly developed sense of morality, and her ability to quite literally heal the hurt of the world drives her to do the right thing whenever she can. Of the team, she is by far the most likely to be found active among “regular folk,” finding ways to use her abilities on behalf of anyone who needs them, and she knows people throughout San Francisco in many communities—many of whom know they can call on her for help in her non-heroic persona as well, which can lead to her being overextended, or easily drawn out into the crosshairs of a villan willing to use her compassion against her.
