A Beachport Reader's Guide

The only other major bit that is common knowledge among the Beachport ladies is that, when not on duty, Black Cicada had a reputation of going through all the men on her team like she was trying on clothes - sometimes going back and forth repeatedly between the same two as if seeing who was a 'better fit' before apparently deciding 'neither' and moving on to try on more. Whether this went any further than dating is not known, but since Chinese attitudes towards romantically-promiscuous women are if anything even harsher than Western ones she has picked up quite a few public epithets - which you can hear Lady Luna happily throwing at her any time they meet. She claims not to care about what people say about her in the slightest, though the slight twitching in her eye does tend to put the lie to that.

But no matter how many bad words get muttered behind her back, given the sizes printed on her bra she always has plenty more super-dudes lined up and waiting patiently for their chance. She has pretty much repeated her previous performance on coming to Beachport: she is never without a super-boyfriend, and seemingly has a different one every time she appears. These boyfriends definitely get as far as making out with her in-costume; whether she lets them get any further is as yet undisclosed (so probably no, because very few post-dumping super-dudes wouldn't be crowing about that to the winds; in particular if any one of them had so much as one shot of her jugs outside that costume you can bet it would be fucking everywhere by now).

Special: Black Cicada's Codename: I think I probably screwed this one up so I'm going to put in a quick explanatory note. It's supposed to be a Diaochan reference, which translates directly as 'Sable Cicada' but I believe in this case Sable refers specifically to the animal, not the color, so that may not work. If so, I'm just going to go ahead and say somebody made the same mistake translating her codename over in-universe and now it's famous enough that she's stuck with it.

For anyone who doesn't know why that might be appropriate; might as well spell it out since this is a guide: Diaochan is one of the canonical 'Four Great Beauties of Ancient China'. Of the four she's the one non-Chinese-speakers are most likely to have heard of since she's in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, so she shows up in video games and the like. She's Lu Bu's girlfriend, who tricks him into murdering his adopted father the warlord Dong Zhao. In a common folk legend, she later falls into the hands of Shu Han (aka 'the good guys'), and it quickly becomes apparent that she's so hot all of the greatest generals of Shu Han are going to start murdering each other over who gets to marry her, so to prevent that the war god Guan Yu picks up his magic halberd and immediately murders her. (The Four Great Beauties don't tend to have very happy lives, it must be said.)

On why she would pick that codename to fight Lady Luna: the four great beauties each have an epithet, which collectively are memetic for 'beautiful woman' in Chinese culture; think roughly the equivalent of saying a woman 'has a face that could launch a thousand ships' for a Westerner. The four epithets are as follows (I'm going to put them out of customary order for reasons); Xi Shi makes fish drown, Wang Zhaojun makes birds fall; Yang Guifei makes flowers hide in shame; Diaochan eclipses the moon.

Appearances to Date: Valiant Valkyrie in the Zoo Ch. 4 and 8

CRANE DANCER

Concept: high-swinging Chinese-American tech geek with a wrist-mounted grappling gun

Public Name: Julie Zhao

Public Identity: technical theater intern employed by Fiona Fierce

Character Notes: orphaned, overachiever, graduated high school three years early, is a junior in college, tech geek and theater geek at the same time; despite being a 'geek' she is still very fond of dressing up and hitting the club with her friends

Sexual Notes: although socially forward is still a little scared of sex and tends to not let things go past 'making out' stage. Thus, although she is not a virgin she has had very few sexual partners and is still relatively inexperienced.

Age: 19

Hair: Black, long, straight

Eyes: Dark

Race: Asian (American-born Chinese; of Fujianese-Taiwanese parents)

Body: small slim and slender; extremely fit; long legs for her build

Color Theme: Hot Pink and Purple

Heraldry: Purple Hook and Chain descending, upon a field of hot pink

Costume: bikini bottom and halter top of hot pink, with logo on front and back of panties. Bottoms resemble those worn in athletic competitions in cut, with a high leg but significant fabric over hips. Knee-length matching boots, arm-length matching gloves; hot pink mask with logo between and above eyes. Wears custom pink grapple-gun attached to the right forearm. Carries few to no other gadgets, to save weight.

Powers: Normal human, but possesses a custom grapple gun which she can use to swing about and off of nearby features. Trained extensively in Fujian White Crane style under her mother, who studied it in secret. Or at least so she claims - in practice her 'fighting style' seems to consist mostly of hurtling in on her cable to kick an enemy in the face and then flying back away to do it again. Also, as a tech prodigy specifically focused on technical theater, she has an extensive knowledge of cables and pulleys, camera systems, theater lighting, pyrotechnics, and a wide range of similar potentially-useful topics.

Weakness: She's a normal human and not a big one at that, punching her works fine - as long as you can catch her. Depriving her of her grapple gun starkly limits her; her fighting styles on foot are elegant and traditional but bluntly not very practical. By the same token, highly enclosed environments where she can't use the grapple also put her in a very weak position.

Aegis Host Status: Shield Maiden (mentor: Daring Diva)

Aegis Host Rank: Assault Squad, Rank 5

Aegis Host Clique: the Total Divas (Daring Diva); although she also gets along very well with the Exotic Nerds (Tiger Queen), to the point of being effectively a member of both cliques.

Relations: Daring Diva (mentor and employer); Daring Diva sees her as a surrogate daughter and is very close to and protective of her both in and out of costume.

Backstory: Julie Zhao was an only child who lived with her parents and grandparents. Growing up they were always obsessed with making sure she studied. They wanted her to study everything. They had her study martial arts, gymnastics, and dance to keep herself fit. They had her study robotics, chemistry, and programming from a very early age. With all that studying, Julie barely had time for normal friends or a normal life - but it paid off. Graduating high school at fifteen, she was soon attending Beachport University as an early adolescent.

And here, things took a turn. First, while her parents insisted she go into either engineering or finance, Julie found herself getting drawn to technical theater instead - mostly because she discovered they seemed to throw way better parties. She started taking courses in that, and falsifying her documents for her parents. When she got an internship with the famous Fiona Fierce, she lied again - saying she was working with her financial office, instead of admitting she was helping run her stage show. She knew she was going to have to come clean as to her actual life path eventually - but wasn't sure how.

Then, fate intervened. Her family were all suddenly gunned down under mysterious circumstances. Fiona's alter-ego, Daring Diva, arrived just too late to stop it. When she discovered that her own intern had been orphaned as a result, Fiona made a fateful decision. Having just gotten through a nasty divorce herself, and thus feeling a sudden urge to create a surrogate family some other way, Fiona quickly and formally adopted the talented Julie, then sixteen, as her own daughter. The two became completely inseparable, working on every detail of the pop-icon's performances.

It was only a matter of time before Julie discovered her new mother's deepest secret. Rather than push her away, Fiona went ahead and shared that last aspect with her new daughter as well - inducting the extremely agile and talented young lady as her new sidekick. Eager to get revenge on the sort of criminals who killed her parents, the newly christened Crane Dancer adapted some special stage gadgets she'd been working on as her new crime-fighting gear. The two are now inseparable, in and out of costume... but Daring Diva has still never told Julie her deepest darkest secret - how close she came to stopping her from losing her parents, and the burning guilt she still feels as a result to this very day.

Special: the 'Crane' in Crane Dancer refers to the construction-machinery sort of crane, and not the animal - hence her logo. People getting this wrong is a pet peeve for her and will get an exasperated sigh out of her at best - or, if you're trying to hit on her, guarantees you'll strike out.

Appearances to Date: Valiant Valkyrie in the Zoo Ch. 6 and 8

DARING DIVA

Concept: pop icon who is secretly also a superheroine

Public Name: Fiona Fierce (stage name, but this is what 99% of people know her as)

Public Identity: Pop Star, Wealthy Celebrity and Activist

Character Notes: controlled, bossy, workaholic, performative, sharp-tongued, quick-witted, loves to dance, a little tired of being the center of attention yet also demands it when she wants it, from poor beginnings, wants to give back, supports vaguely leftist causes but is in no way a revolutionary

Sexual Notes: was married, and was very active prior to that, so she's had plenty. That said, since her divorce has had a 'dry spell' simply because it is very hard to juggle dating with everything else she has going on, and she has the attitude that she sure as fuck doesn't want to 'give it away for free.'

Age: 34

Hair: Black, mid-length, in a weave

Eyes: Dark

Race: Black (African-American)

Body: tall, extremely fit yet very curvy, breasts are 'well above double-D' despite her logo, long dancer's legs, famously large and yet perfectly-toned ass

Color Theme: Purple and Pink

Heraldry: interlocking Double-Ds in pink, on purple

Costume: thong panty and bustier in purple, with interlocked pink Double-D logo printed on front of panty and on each cup of bustier. Utility belt, from which her techno-whip hangs, clasped with a golden Double-D buckle. Purple thighboots, purple gauntlets, purple mask.

Powers: normal human, but exceptionally trained in athletics, dance, gymnastics, and martial arts. Has multiple personal trainers and spends several hours a day keeping in peak form, both for her performances and (secretly) for her alter-ego. Wears a utility belt with numerous gadgets, and carries a techno-whip that she can use to shock her foes, extend or retract at will, and often uses to swing about in a shorter-ranged version of her sidekick's grapple-gun.

Weakness: Is a normal human; punching her works fine, though unlike her sidekick it's generally going to take quite a few before she's really had it. Taking her belt removes her gadgets.

Vehicles: the Divamobile: a high-powered convertible pink-and-purple sports car bearing her logo upon the hood. Seats four, though given superheroine proportions the ones in back won't be too comfortable. Bulletproof, contains numerous special weapons and gadgets concealed within.

Base: the 'Diva's Den' - a hidden underground base buried beneath her mansion. Also, secondarily, 'Club Diva' (you may by now be noticing a theme), a trendy downtown nightspot owned by her alter ego. Club Diva has become well known for having superheroines often hanging around in-costume when taking a break from their duties; usually in a special private room overlooking the main floor which Fiona Fierce has generously set aside 'just for them'. Note that both of these locations are also the main 'clique hangout' spots for the Total Divas.

Aegis Host Status: Shield Matron (sidekick: Crane Dancer)

Aegis Host Rank: Assault Squad, Rank 2

Aegis Host Clique: the Total Divas (Clique Leader)

Relations: has been married before but is now divorced; her husband was also a superhero; it ended when he cheated on her. Julie Zhao is her adopted daughter. Fiona, while a little more lenient than most super-mentors, is still quite protective of her both in and out of costume.

Backstory: Fionna Fierce rose from relatively humble beginnings, in one of the poorer sections of Beachport, to be one of the most successful pop stars in the world. With her singing career taking off in her late teens, she had had a string of hit singles and albums, and traveled the world performing to sold-out crowds. Her songs are noted for their empowering messages, and her live performances for the extreme athleticism and obsessive artistry she brings to her dancing as well as to her vocals.

If that had been it, her life would already have been a fairy-tale story. But then, one night, things took a turn. Wishing to evade the crowds, she and her then-boyfriend, a fellow musician, went to a theater performance incognito. Unfortunately, they did not manage to go entirely undetected. After the show, the couple realized that a large crowd of paparazzi had grown outside the main entrance to the theater, eager to swarm them. Desiring to evade this attention, the couple instead slipped out the back, and tried to sneak away down a dark empty alley.

However, it turned out the alley wasn't so empty. Midway through the dark passage, the wealthy couple found themselves confronted by a gang of three thugs. Fiona's boyfriend, whose own songs consistently portrayed himself as a tough figure who settled all his disputes with either his fists or a gun, knew exactly what to do - he promptly fled as fast as his feet could carry him, leaving Fiona surrounded.

Ignoring him, the thugs rapidly closed in, chortling that they would be taking her pearl necklace - and a whole lot else. Then, suddenly, something snapped inside Fiona. Her leg - which she spent hours training and honing to perfection every day - suddenly streaked up and slammed one thug across his jaw. He dropped like a sack of potatoes. The others were so surprised, they didn't know how to react. Whirling, Fiona attacked them too. The rest all happened so fast, even after it had become routine, she would never remember exactly what happened. But seconds later, she found herself panting, holding the gun they had used to threaten her - which turned out to be fully loaded, but never got off a shot - and standing over three battered forms surrounding her.

A few seconds later, with a squeal of tires, a strange supercar pulled up to the entrance to the alley. A towering blonde figure in a bikini got out, and strutted down it. When Valiant Valkyrie arrived at the center of the alley, her jaw dropped to see what she found there. Then, coming forward, she comforted Fiona as best she could. She apologized, saying that she had been just a little too late. And then, giving her a strange look, she retrieved a card from her car and gave it to her, with a phone number on it - to call, if she should feel the need to talk about anything - anything at all. Staying just long enough to help the police take the three would-be assailants into custody, Valkyrie drove away.

On getting back to her mansion, Fiona was still in deep thought. But then, she made three snap decisions. First, she contacted her assistant, and told her to break up with her boyfriend for her. Second, she contacted her chief trainer, and asked him to scale back her usual dance and yoga a bit, and add several hours a day of MMA instruction in their place. And then, finally, having gotten a good drink, she settled in, picked up the phone, and called Valkyrie - and began a long, long talk.

And shortly thereafter, a new superheroine hit the streets of Beachport - ready to strike fear into the hearts of evildoers, no matter where they lurked.

Appearances to Date: Valiant Valkyrie vs the Boarman (multiple chapters); Valiant Valkyrie in the Zoo Ch. 6 and 8.

DIXIE GIRL

Concept: the classic 'stuck-up blonde cheerleader' archetype in super-sidekick form

Public Name: Clarabelle Weiss

Public Identity: high school senior, debutante, cheerleader

Character Notes: a Stacy and a budding Karen; one of the popular girls, thinks people should stick to their own kind; only wants to date the right kind of boy; status-obsessed, extremely judgmental especially about fashion choices; a basic bitch, assumes all stereotypes are true.

Sexual Notes: is quite sexually active, but exclusively with men of the how shall we say 'right culture fit'. None of them have been very impressive at all 'down there' - and you can take that in a few different ways and they are all equally true.

Age: 18

Hair: Blonde

Eyes: Green

Race: White (German-American)

Body: classic cheerleader: athletic, lithe, still has big tits

Color Theme: Red White & Blue (pastel)

Heraldry: Confederate Flag (pastel)

Costume: has a few different variations, but they all boil down to 'Confederate-Themed Cheerleading Outfit'. Most typically, a short pleated skirt reaching just a few inches down her thighs that alternates two red pleats and one blue one, with the blue ones having white stars, and white between pleats. On top has a shell vest with the Confederate Flag on it, and the Shard of Virtue mounted at its center. Beneath a panty and halter top, with a pastel Confederate Flag pattern on each. White athletic shoes and knee-high socks; short white gloves; pastel Confederate Flag mask.

Powers: Flight, Invulnerability, Superstrength; second two weaker than her mentor. The tugging of the Shard of Virtue leads her towards danger, just like her mentor (see below), but given where it is placed she feels these much less strongly so is more likely to miss them.

Weakness: Gets her powers from the Shard of Virtue, a sliver of red glowing jewel sewn into the center of her vest. If it is taken from her, she loses all of them. See the relevant section in Rebel Belle's entry for more information on the jewel and its properties.

Aegis Host Status: Shield Maiden (mentor: Rebel Belle)

Aegis Host Rank: Flying Squad, Rank 5

Aegis Host Clique: the Proper Ladies (Rebel Belle)

Relations: younger sister to Rebel Belle.

Backstory: Clarabelle was originally utterly oblivious to her older sister's super-activities, absorbed instead in her continuous quest to be the most popular and adored girl in her school. But then, as fate would have it, she both stumbled across her sister in costume at around the same time a sliver got broken off the Jewel of Virtue in battle. Taking this as fate - and needing to make sure she kept her mouth shut - Rebel Belle gave the shard to her sister and inducted her as her new sidekick.