Raptors (Race)

The very first Raptor was created when the Gardener first planted a seed within the Darkforce Dimension that sprouted into the Tree of Shadows over the course of millennia. Eventually, the area it grew in would branch out into a separate reality all its own called the Null Space, which became a battleground for the ancestors of the Shi'ar and the Skrulls. After a fruit from the Tree fell into an unsuspecting Shi'ar brutes hands, becoming the very first Raptor Amulet and accommodating one side's airborne features and the shapeshifting capabilities from the other via observational mimicry, this individual became known as Raptor Prime.^[1]

Eventually the Raptor Armors history was modified into that of a shadow sect of forgotten secret police in the service of the Empire known as the Fraternity of Raptors. Said purpose of this brotherhood was to maintain the Shi'ar Empire through nefarious means such as kidnapping, and assassination.^[2][3] By use of the Amulet a host is able to summon a Raptor from the Tree's native dimension to occupy their space within their own. Once summoned the Raptor takes the host's place in the "real world" while the host's body is permanently stored in the Tree as a power source.^[4]

Human teenager Chris Powell found one of these Amulets and used it to become the hero Darkhawk. Because of his Human physiology Chris could exert greater control over his Raptor and access new functions a Raptor A.I. alone cannot.^[5]

Avengers Arena[]

The Amulet was temporarily owned by Chase Stein a member of the Runaways who found the Amulet while trapped in Arcade's Murderworld.^[6] Until Cammi commandeered it for her own purposes before giving it back.^[7]

Marvel Legacy[]

Razor's Raptor Amulet had been rendered inoperable for quite some time leaving Chris Powell unable transform into his superpowered self for a while. When a call went out to his precinct to investigate the same area where he found his object of power, he was the first to answer the call. This was revealed to be a plot by agents of the Raptor Fraternity seeking to access the robotic hive collective his Amulet can access.

After a brief skirmish where one of his two captors commandeered his amulet, Razor quickly sought out his former partner's aid in stopping them from awakening his fellow androids to enslave the galaxy. Having grown a moral center of its own due to their symbiotic bond in the past.^[8]

Consenting to this arrangement, Powell once again dawned the mantel of Darkhawk after Razor explained himself and how he'd been disconnecting his more bloodthirsty other's from the Tree of Shadows at his own expense. Causing the severance of his link to the Raptor Amulet in the first place, through the new merger the two were not only able to recover their damaged anatomical frame but also cause a startling transformation. Setting out to deal with the rogue sect once and for all.

Infinity Countdown[]

In the Fraternity's quest for their android counterparts within Null Space, one of their recent additions. Talon-R had devised a way of breaching into their dimension using the Nega-Bands he'd procured, the raptors would arrive on an abandoned Shi'Ar outpost where the dimension between Null Space and the Marvel Universe was thinnest. Much to his horror however, the robotic race were now autonomous, no longer needing their amulets to swap places with willing amulet bearers to function within their reality. Now seeking to encroach and dominate the universe by first destroying their shared enemies' homeworld.^[9]

The true Raptors first order of business was conscripting the mercenary Death's Head into their services. Ordering him to acquire the Raptor Amulet currently in Chris Powell's possession in order to create a superweapon more powerful than that of the Phoenix Force. To that end they needed a sacrifice to occur on the forgotten world of Arcturus IV, where the pretenders to their title first freed them.^[10]

It was here that Gyre, one of the first raptors to be freed, enacted a ritual on the alter of offering where they could incarnate the god they were fashioned to emulate. The cosmic predator known as Ratha'kon, The Starhawk. Tearing away the Raptor Amulet bonded to Chris than giving it over to Robbie so he in turn would become the Dark Starhawk. From there the Fraternity of Raptor's led by their cosmic albatross would venture to earth, seeking to use a Kree fleet vessel as their main mode of transport across the galaxy.^[1] But they were soon overtaken by a new and improved Darkhawk as a giant mechanoid. A battle would break out between Chris, the Raptors and Nova who had been alerted of current events by Powell earlier on.^[9]

The two heroes initially struggled against the might of Dark Starhawk and the Raptors, Gyre having them both on the ropes until an enlightened Robert gunned down his would be commander. Seeking to subsume the Raptors into his own peace keeping force until Death's Head triggered a core overload in the Kree ship they'd commandeered, in the confusion Chris was able to reacquire his amulet from Robbie in order to return to human form. Ending the threat of the Raptors and the Dark Starhawk for good.^[11]

The Raptor automatons are mechanized android warparts able to swap places with a willing host in possession of a Raptor Amulet, a high grade Shi'ar technological device that is a mesh of science and mysticism, which allows one to swap their living bodies with a resting mechanoid body while their consciousness supplants that of the drone sitting at the Tree of Shadows in Null Space. These robots have vast adaptability and morphology aspects that enable them to spontaneously adjust and augment both the bionic surrogate and its host psyche allowing them numerous superhuman capabilities.^[12]

They possess vastly superior superhuman strength, speed, agility and all but tireless stamina greater then the finest physical specimens. While in these robot bodies a user can bench several. Able to physically match powerhouses like Venom or Mindless Ones and rip through Shi'ar battle cruisers fighting on physical strength alone.^[5] Lift boulders the size of a man and crush steel and reshape it barehanded.^[13] They boast a high degree of durability being all but bullet proof, rocket proof, resistant to energy and high powered impacts by superhumanly strong adversaries. A Raptor drone is also incredibly agile and reactive to their environment, Powell showing enough speed and reflexes to catch and release Hobgoblin's pumpkin bombs at him with ease.^[14] They can also utilize their own form of inscription magic for practical use. Such as in order to better cement their control over a subject, like the Raptor Talon inscribing what he calls a safety catch onto the Cosmic Control Rod when he presented it to Blastaar as a means of making a controllable alley, seeming to arcanely recalling the item back to his hands with but a few simple words.^[4]

All Raptor bodies possess the inherent appellation of flight capability via retractable glider wing span located underneath the arms. Allowing them to either glide on air currents or soar unaided at vast speeds, which range from Trans-sonic as quoted by Nova to trans-light speed for need of planetary orbit breach or interstellar travel.^[5][15] Darkhawk using it to fly from New York to California in only under two hours.^[16] On top of unaided space traversal able to reach from planet to planet with relative ease, the wings also double as razor sharp blades as well as minor protective shielding.^[3]

Other technological capacities of the robotic vessels include hearty mechanical Self Repair systems enabling it to technomorphically pull together and reintegrate damaged or destroyed bodily functions. The more major injuries to a Darkhawk body can be repaired by switching back and forth between the sentient host and the Raptor in question at will.^[12] Darkhawks possess an advanced sensory array complementing A.I. guidance and navigation systems, such as telescopic, microscopic, and infra-red vision. Being able to see through most camouflage and image induced disguises at a glance. Through the usage of The Datasong Raptors can absorb, process, project and share knowledge and information withheld on their systems, projected directly into their minds as well as those of other beings. Particularly with fellow Raptor androids, using it like a two way radio receiver to communicate with each other, they can also access the memories of others as well as divine multiple possible future outcomes of events undertaken. This feature can also double as a universal translation device for the wielder, Raptors regularly use this feature in order to subvert the conscious minds of Amulet hosts enabling the natural A.I. to overtake the Raptor body with the user acting as a battery, through which the wearer can expunge the persona's controlling the robot from their Tree Pod.^[17][18] This also enables a form of cyberpathy that allows them and their host drivers to link with and control most forms of technology in order to upgrade themselves.^[19][8] Through it Talon could impose his will on even inorganic creatures with but a word, showcasing a form of hypnosis or mind control using the Datasong.^[20][21] There is a special place in a similar dimension to the Null Space within the Datasong called The Perch, it is a cloistered memory zone held within the Raptors own digital mind sharing all the experiences and mental engrams of their host. Encoding a little bit of their swapmates personality onto the robot body they pilot.^[8]

In the event a Raptor is damaged the robot body of a pilot can enter a form of energized healing pod, which is a form of portable medikit which enables rapid physical restoration which repairs the machines damaged systems. Unlike body swapping however, damage repairs take longer to heal and depending on the extent can span up to a days worth of total system reparation.^[22] Powell as Darkhawk has shown they also possess a host of stealth and infiltration applications to their hardware, such as invisibility and holographic disguise projection; taking on the physical appearance of anyone or anything else through hard-light solidification.^[4]

The Raptors most unique quality lies in their ability to manipulate and tap into vast quantities of foreign forces to alternate matter and energy at will. Specifically to enhance their own mechanical performance, I.E. controlling and emitting different forms of energy for offensive and defensive uses. Such as concussive blasts both from the visor and its corresponding crystal on the breast plate. Stemming to heat based or transitional shifting optic beams that destroy most forms of matter or Dark Force concussion blasts from the amulets in they're chest,^[19] said Dark Force can be used as a form of Tractor Beam to move around massive objects through physical force.^[23] Creating protective force fields either in circular wafer-thin form of full-body protective barriers that could shield the drone body from most any assault,^[23] these shields can also act as a sort of detaining force that can pin down anything the Razor focuses on.^[24] Raptors can also utilize this force output to enhanced they're physical melee, adding an energy discharge to a punch that can send an adversary a good distance away.^[5]

Combining the two beams in unison makes both far more powerful in comparison than individually; One such use is projection and utilization of a massive Hawk based energy construct that moves and acts according to the users whim.^[25] More Direct practices include emitting a combined concussive blast with double the power of a simple Optic Beam or Chest blast. The Raptors can also manipulate energy in a way for spontaneous teleportation and dimensional travel, able to open their own Stargates in order to traverse different dimensions as well as shorten the expanse of interstellar distances.^[26]

One of the Raptor Armor Drones most effective and versatile functions is the unique ability of Reconfiguration. It is a form of program systems reordering that enables the host consciousness actively change, morph and reshape the technology of the cybernetic host bodies through the act of concentration. In a resting state a pilot can generate their own weaponry and equipment from the robot's chassis, such as a telescoping length of cable which protracts out pf the right forearm like Wolverine Razor Claws that can shoot out as a whip or grappling hook or even wrist mounted razor claws for CQC (close quarters combat).^[27] The droid can also alternate its forearms to create single digit razor claws if necessary.^[23] The Cable Claw's are standard issue weaponry of the Razor droid's with similar technoshifting capabilities as the armor itself. Being malleable enough to be molded into serviceable spy drones shaped however the user wants them to be, linking they're receptor systems with a mobile unit in order to receive whatever deployed units pick up.^[3] They can even manifest or upload higher grade munitions from the Tree itself,^[22] either conjuring more powerful arsenal from it to their hands or simply morphing the droid's armor into colorful munitions on a whim.^[28][29] The helmets of the machines are removable but revealing the faces of the drone, while not technically a function or weapon, act as a potent source of advancement deterrent due to the drones physical features being too hideous to physically stomach the sight of.^[30]

More pronounced reconfigurations come in the form of different battle modes a Raptor is able to call forth from the Null Source available to the host avatar. Giving and bestowing the Raptor Armor with a host of adaptational combat worthy body armor types wearers or the parasitic intelligence's hosting the mecha wears make use of.^[26][31]

• Strike Suit Mode: Conjures doubled armor guard and reinforcement around the wings and overall mech body. Bestows micro-missiles and blasters within talon shaped boots.
• Warflight Mode: Armor carries more pronounced wingspan and more avian looking armor chassis, ray beams can be discharged from the wings while the boots take on a heavily clawed of prey appearance.
• Full Combat Mode: Adorns a massive laser weapons systems array firing from the forearms, pecks, behind the shoulders & at the waist. Used for full on tactical spray for enclosed spaces. It also serves to increase physical capability to the point where a Razor can take on a physically superior individual backed by Cosmic Forces.
• Heavy Weapons Mode: As implied, the android's limbs and shoulder parts transmorph into a colorful arsenal of alien artillery; enough firepower to stave off an enclave from within the Fault rift.
• Disguise Skin Mode: The function that enables a Darkhawk to become invisible. It also enables them to physically disguise themselves as anyone or anything else they desire.
• Rescue Suit Mode: An enhanced seeking mode which enables tracking down and assisting others through mechanical rigging systems to enable passenger safe space travel. It also boasts powerful searchlights with which to navigate dark & cavernous regions.

The source of a Raptors reconfiguration abilities are actually tied to an adaptive metamorphic aspect that their ancestral progenitor obtained in the ancient past.^[1]

Strength[]

The Armor allows the user to lift in the excess of 25+ tons,^[8] debatable seeing as strength fluctuates with upgrades,^[32] as well as form configurations changing and augmenting the android body.^[33]

• The revelations regarding the Fraternity of Raptors retroactively undo the origins of Evilhawk, Overhawk, The Darkhawk Ship, and Portal. Evilhawk and Osch were explicitly revealed to be hallucinations created by Chris Powell after his mind was unable to cope with the Datasong when he became Darkhawk. Overhawk is presumably another hallucination. Portal is a bit more complicated to explain away as he was introduced as Charles Little Sky before Darkhawk was ever introduced. It's unclear if Portal's armor is a manifestation of Chris's mind, Charles mind or if Charles simply has the armor of a former member of the Fraternity of Raptors.