Who's Who in the BC Universe

ARSENAL

Artwork by Dave Menard

Personal Data
Alter Ego: Susan "Cissie" Jones
Occupation: Professional adventurer
Marital Status: Single
Group Affiliation: Partner of the Scarlet Sentinel
Base of Operations: New Avalon, Zeta Cygni
First Appearance: IMPULSE #28 (DC, 1997)
Height: 5'7" Weight: 116 lbs.
Eyes: Blue Hair: Blonde

History
Cissie King-Jones never really wanted to be a super-hero; it was her mother, Bonnie King, an Olympic archery medalist, Green Arrow fan-girl, and general super-hero wanna-be, whose career had been sidetracked by a repetitive stress injury, who insisted that her daughter would be the hero she never managed to become. She trained Cissie relentlessly throughout her childhood, foisted the name "Arrowette" on her, then dropped her like a bomb on the super-heroic scene, nearly getting her killed in the process.

Mother and daughter were separated by child welfare authorities after Cissie's disastrous debut, but Cissie had the bug by then, and found herself unwilling to hang up her bow. Fortunately, she fell in with a good crowd, ending up as a member of a teen hero group called Young Justice. Having friends "in the game", so to speak, helped to stabilize her life and also gave her solid backup in the field.

As a member of Young Justice, Cissie became friendly with the Scarlet Sentinel, one of the youngest members of the previous generation of super-heroes and one of the only "grown-up" heroes who not only approved of Young Justice but preferred hanging with them to dealing with the more mature teams. Arrowette and the Scarlet Sentinel worked together off and on, but didn't officially team up until an adventure that involved rescuing Arrowette's mother from a deranged scientist who had taken over the mental hospital where she was a patient.

Aghast that her daughter had been seen in public working with what she considered a "B-list" super-hero, Bonnie King declared that "no daughter of mine is going to be labeled the sidekick to this two-bit knockoff." In response, Cissie dropped the "King" from her name and severed all remaining connection with her mother. Shortly thereafter, to distance herself further from her mother's influence, she expanded her weapons skills beyond archery and reinvented herself as Arsenal.

About a year after they teamed up, the Scarlet Sentinel and Arsenal were caught in a massive temporal displacement during the "Neo Hour" incident and found themselves flung into the twenty-fifth century. Undaunted, they settled in New Avalon and continue to battle crime and injustice today.

Powers & Weapons
Arsenal has no super-powers, instead relying on her near-supreme skill. She is a master martial artist, possibly the greatest archer in the galaxy, and well-versed with many other ranged and melee weapons as well. She has an uncanny sense of aim, which makes her capable of hitting targets normal people would consider impossible - put simply, she never misses what she aims at.

As her name implies, Arsenal is a walking arsenal. Her bulletproof, blaster-resistant costume features holsters, pouches, and hidden compartments for a myriad of weapons, from her signature collapsible compound bow to grapple guns, darts, throwing irons, shuriken, knives, mini-grenades, a wrist crossbow, billy clubs, and even a small blaster. Her boots feature retractable spikes for climbing or extra damage in combat, and the knuckles of her gloves are weighted. She carries a wide selection of arrows, which range from hunting broadheads to various trick arrows, which she is constantly refining and redeveloping.

Arsenal is also an accomplished acrobat with an excellent sense of balance and body position, and has no apparent fear of heights.

Arrowette created by Tom Peyer and developed into Arsenal by Benjamin D. Hutchins (after Peter David and Devin Grayson)