CROSSFIRE
PERSONAL DATA
- Alter Ego: Adrian Cross
- Occupation: Corporate Headhunter
- Group Affiliation: Guardians
- Known Relatives: none
- Base of Operations: Empire City
HISTORY
Adrian Cross grew up in Star City, California, hometown of the hero Green Arrow. As an adolescent Adrian idolized Green Arrow and took archery lessons to be just like him. Then Adrian grew up, went to college, and slowly made a name for himself in the business world as a freelance corporate troubleshooter, the man to have on your side when a deal is being made.
When the Green Arrow died saving Metropolis it brought back all of Adrian's teenage dreams of being a hero. Using his newfound wealth Adrian designed a bow and a set of trick arrows like his hero used to use and designed a costume. It may have just been a way to work through the loss of a childhood hero, or maybe part of Adrian wanted to play the good guy for once. Whatever the reason, Adrian kept the costume and equipment with him in a specially modified briefcase but could never convince himself to actually put it on. Adrian was in Empire City on business when fate took a hand.
Adrian was attending an event put on by the Ultimate Wrestling Federation when agents working for the Crime Cartel attacked and attempted to kidnap some of the wrestlers. Adrian quickly snuck away, changed into his costume, and made a very public debut as Crossfire. Along with a couple of other would-be heroes who happened to be in the audience as well, Crossfire chased off the kidnappers. Together the group was able to expose the Cartel's entire Empire City operation. Afterward the heroes, including Crossfire, banded together to form the team called the Guardians.
As Crossfire, Adrian enjoyed the spotlight. Whenever the Guardians appeared in public, Crossfire was often the first to talk to the press, unless fellow member Rift got their before him. Crossfire was with the Guardians for their first "official" mission, which involved uncovering the secret government conspiracy that was later revealed to be part of the larger scheme of the enigmatic Omega. It was shortly after this that Adrian's real job forced him to choose between staying in Empire playing hero with the Guardians or keeping his job as freelance troubleshooter. Finally Adrian decided that, fun as playing hero was, he wasn't ready to make it his life and he left the team and city behind. Crossfire briefly rejoined the Guardians for part of the Revelations crisis, but still didn't want to make a full-time commitment.
These days Adrian Cross still travels the country, a predatory shark amidst the corporate seas, but every now and then, when the mood strikes, he dons his costume and Crossfire lives again, if only for a few nights at a time.
POWERS & WEAPONS
Adrian Cross is a natural athlete with a keen eye. As a teenager he focused much of his training on his archery skills. As an adult, after he decided to become a hero, he resumed his archery training, honing his marksmanship to near-perfection and augmented his skills with acrobatic training. As Crossfire, Adrian uses a custom-designed bow and several specially-designed "trick" arrows reminiscent of those used by Green Arrow early in his career. During combat, Crossfire preferred to be center-stage. He would always use flashy moves, including making shots while flipping through the air, or firing multiple arrows in rapid succession, or even simultaneously at multiple targets. If there was a difficult but spectacular-looking way to make a shot, Crossfire would always try it, and more often than not would succeed, especially if he had an audience.
