Silence

Silas Moore is college student at Metropolis University. He is unable to speak normally, frequently doing everything from answering questions in class to ordering lunch via the screen of his tablet PC. Seems vaguely familiar to a lot of people, and there are rumors spread by a few who have recognized him. Drives a very nice car, for a college student.

Silence is a relatively unknown metahuman hero, though he has yet to do much to make his name known. He doesnt talk much, and wears a pretty cool helmet.

Background
Silas Moore was born in a Gotham suburb. His father was a sanitation worker, his mother a music teacher. His father was also a drunk, and physically abusive to both Silas and his mother. But his mother provided a refuge for Silas. Music. By the time he was five, it was already clear that he was a bit of a prodigy in that area, and although he had a child's voice, it was a big, beautifully clear voice. He also had that rare musical gift, perfect pitch. Unfortunately, Silas's father would have none of it, insistent that his son wouldn't grow up to be "some sissy performer." He even enrolled Silas in karate classes "to toughen the kid up." Silas would later note in an interview that the only good things he got from his father were his looks and those karate classes.

If you are going to enroll your child in a class that's all about self-confidence and standing up to bullies, it is not a great idea to be a bully yourself. One night an 8 year old Silas decided to do what he could to protect his mother. First he called the cops, then jumped in, got his father's attention with one good punch, and scrambled around keeping the man distracted until the police arrived. When the police hauled him away was the last time he ever saw his father. He has no idea what happened to the man after he was released from jail.

With his father out of the picture, his mother was finally free to focus on, and showcase, the boy's talents. He took to performing quickly, though there were no big developments at first. His break came just after his 12th birthday. There was a contest, with the winner getting to sing the Nation Anthem at an opening day game. Silas won the contest, and proceeded to floor the stadium crowd. Being an opening day game, there were some celebrity baseball fans in the stands, and one particular rocker with his own record label looked at the boy and saw dollar signs.

Things moved quickly, and by the time his thirteenth birthday rolled around, Silas was the lead singer in a new boy band, and in the middle of recording their first album. The other three boys, talented in their own right, soon became Silas's closest friends. The band manager had another surprise though when Silas handed him a handwritten piece of sheet music. It not only ended up on the album, it ended up the band's first hit.

The next two years were a whirlwind, as Silas's group, Dream Big, blew up in popularity. They quickly became the heartthrobs of the moment, the ones that had middle school girls giggling from coast to coast. At 15, he was as well-known as any teen idol, and showed no sign of slowing down. He had his quirks, but he was also developing a reputation for being a big-hearted star that put his best into everything he did, and found time for the people around him. He became very involved with several high profile charities. He was also, unfortunately, developing a pop star ego.

During the setup for a large outdoor concert a large speaker wall failed and exploded just as Silas was crossing in front of it. The speakers blew, the concussion blew him off the stage, and a piece of flying debris almost crushed his throat. He was told by the doctors when he came to that it was a miracle he had survived, and even more so that his hearing was intact. It turned out to be a miracle involving a latent meta-gene. They put him on a lot of pain meds during this time, which set him up for later issues. When he finally got to try his voice again, nothing came out. Just a strange rippling in the air when he tried to scream.

The months that followed were a desperate search for answers, carefully choreographed by his manager, who convinced him that it would be best if the world didn't know about the strange abilities. Finally, he ended up working with a team from S.T.A.R. labs, which ended up helping him discover what his new "voice" could do, and developed the focusing device he would later use as a weapon. It did not, however, manage to give him back his voice.

For a brief while, he performed with his group mates again, though he was shifted to working on the guitar (he was competent, but no virtuoso there), since he was useless for vocals. He went back to writing songs, some of which actually turned into hits for other artist, but the lyrics were too dark for "Dream Big". He soon left the stage for good. He fell into depression and turned to all the excesses of a rich teen looking for trouble.

And then the world changed. The disappearance of the heroes and the movements of various organizations only pierced his fog because he couldn't party. It was the arrival of the insectoid aliens became the turning point in Silas's life. No one was more surprised than Silas when he found himself using his strange abilities to fight back, and to get people out safely. As the invasion raged across the world, Silas found himself among the few fighting back, using an improvised costume and the "failed" device from S.T.A.R. to focus his power

One last personal tragedy hit Silas when the worlds merged. His mother lost out to her childless counterpart. So although his mother is alive, she has no memories of him prior to that day. When the crisis ended, Silas checked into rehab. And not celebrity revolving door rehab, real "I want to change my life" rehab. He emerged clean and sober, started getting his life together, and began planning for his future.

He started working seriously with his tutors again, and finished his GED. He started writing music again, some of which has or will be recorded. He had himself declared legally emancipated due to the situation with his mother. Quietly, he also had a few highly custom items made, and jumped back into his old karate training with gusto. He announced his intention to go to college and get a real degree, something which those around him were both surprised and happy about. He is now in his first semester in Metropolis University, with a major that no one expected, Police Science. Silas is ready to take on the world again. "Silence" has made a few minor appearances, but not enough to really get attention, although people do remember his actions during the Crisis, but only as an unnamed hero.

Personality
Before the event that activated his metagene, he was a rising star in the music industry, and had the warped adolescence that has comes with that. He was getting used to getting what he wanted, when he wanted it, regardless of price, rationality, or in some cases legality. He was also getting used to the spotlight, the adoration of fans, and living under the microscope of the paparazzi. At times, he can still have quite the ego.

When he was at his peak, Silas was known for being surprisingly modest, personable, and generous for a young star. Doing things like spending the whole afternoon with a Make a Wish kid he was supposed to perform for and have lunch with wasn't uncommon. He did everything big. Big voice, big talent, big ambition, and big plans for his future, but he tried to do something good along the way.

However, Silas has also known heartbreaking loss. The ruin of his voice destroyed his dreams, ended his career, and sent him into the kind of spiral of self-destructive behaviors that many young stars get into as their popularity begins to wane. A path he had dead set against going down when he actually was a famous performer. He was depressed, felt isolated from those around him, and trying to numb himself any way he could.

And then came the Crisis. To that day, people had called Silas an idol, a star, a heartthrob, but never a hero. So Silas was not one of the many pulled into the Labyrinth. But in the dark days of the Crisis, Silas discovered a side of himself he never knew was there. Putting his own life at risk repeatedly, throwing his powers in ways he literally didn't know he could, Silas ended up saving a lot of lives. And he found out he liked it.

There are scars, real and emotional, from what he has been through, but on the whole, Silas is a good young man who is trying to make his talents count for something in the world. He drives himself hard, and tends to be a perfectionist in the things he devotes himself to. He has his emotional demons, especially when it comes to his lost voice and being in the spotlight, and still deals with the aftermath of his time spent in debauchery after his accident. (His first stop after the Crisis was rehab).

One of the biggest aspects to Silas's personality is that he is the kind of person that doesn't do anything halfway. When he sets his mind to a task, he is going to do it, and do it well. He wanted to be a performer, and by his 16th birthday he was on the cover of every teen magazine in the country, and a Grammy nomination under his belt. Now he's set on being a hero, and if he has his way, he'll be the kind that makes the Justice League take notice.