Jillian "Shadow Woman" Woods - The Secret Defender

[jacobcarson877 2,075]

Jillian Woods was born in California, and was raised by a single mother. She had always excelled academically, and poured her hours into bettering herself in any way. Sometimes as a distraction, sometimes in an obsessive and unhealthy manner, but always in a way that pushed herself to her limits. She was not afraid to join clubs at school, she was often the last one out of school every day, either coming from the gym, or the library or just wandering the halls. School was her home and her peace.

 

She would graduate high school at the top of her class. With a resume boasting several club leadership positions, hundreds of volunteer hours, an array of awards and of course near perfect grades. She was superhuman in all meanings of the word. She didn’t opt to go to an Ivy League school, instead going to her local University of San Francisco.

 

She moved into a residence on campus and began her rituals again, joining clubs, studying hard and taking her chances to get the most out of her education as possible. She was often coming home late to her room, not having been partying but instead cramming her body with as much productive energy as possible.

 

She began to have an obsession with King Arthur and the legends surrounding his reign. She spent a ton of time with one of the professors, Anthony Ludgate. She spent more and more of her time researching this era with him, and they became a dynamic duo of knowledge and secrecy. It was him that first introduced her to hockey, his escape from academia. He taught her to skate, and her smooth stride earned her the nickname “Shadow Woman” amongst his amateur league.

She never knew how to do anything any less than obsessively, and quickly began to grow her game. She studied the archetypes of the game and compared them to Arthurian legend, using the tricks and talents of her interests to twist and change through playstyles. You never knew what player you were getting that game.

 

She also trained her teammates with the same vigor as she trained herself. They slowly began to grow into more than an amateur team and found themselves seeking higher competition. They became a team called the “Shock Troop”, known for their unorthodox and shocking styles of play, and their uniform nature. They had an enforcer called Skull the Slayer, and a goalie called the Living Mummy, able to come back from any sort of shooting onslaught. Shadow Woman found herself on the back end, retrieving the pucks dumped in and sweeping through the offensive lines into their zone.

 

She was often labelled as a Secret Defender, more of a midfielder than a true defender, flying around the ice picking pockets and slinking back into a scoring position. Teams never really knew what to make of her, and with her style changing all the time, there was never enough video to truly understand what she might do next. She was an offensive coordinator, a running back and a quarterback, all in one small frame.

 

She had a few truly dominant performances, particularly in Chicago outside of the Museum of Art, she was able to use her teammates to great success against the “Sorceress on the Ice” Malachi and her D partner Korahn. They hunted mercilessly for what they called the Moebius Stone, some inside joke about the puck.

 

She also bailed out her team against the Swarm, a team led by Fritz Von Meyer, who resorted to playing in alternative leagues in South America after a controversy involving hate speech in his native Germany. His team was known for being nearly identical, and swarming the puck. With how slippery Woods is however, she often found her way through the crowd, scoring several breakaway goals to secure the win.

 

Soon her time with Ludgate and the Shock Troop would come to an end, as she was set to graduate, and was no longer eligible for the program. She had to turn her eyes to other places to play. She had watched a few San Diego Marlins games as a child with her mother, and saw this opportunity to reconnect with her childhood and find new meaning in the troubles she faced. The local fanbase is excited to see where her career goes from here as she enters a new level of competition she has never faced before, and what form she will ultimately take for the rest of her career.

 

She has been contacted by several talent agencies and hopes to remain independent, although players of her potential often find themselves better opportunities overseas, with more security. She has taken offers from the Brand Corporation, and she may have no choice but to allow them to manage her career from here.

[LucyXpher 575]

Great biography!  I liked how you kept the story progressing forward, touching on important elements, but not getting stuck in the weeds anywhere.  It made for a smooth, entertaining, and engaging read.  I like the way you went with your player story, which is a little different than most.  Your player finds the game later in life after being committed to academics and studies first.  It's an interesting road with lots of potential for further story development throughout your player's career.  I also quite like the "Shadow Woman" nickname and the playstyle you described for her, being a smooth skater that skulks around the ice like a shadow, slipping through defenders almost like they're not there.  Again, it's something that you can continue to play with as your player develops and progresses and gives your player a bit more character, a nickname to remember instead of just a name-- very fun!  I also liked the incorporation of Arthurian lore and the creativity you approached the story with in that respect.  Well done on this biography and best of luck to your player! I look forward to seeing where the Shadow Woman lands in a few seasons!  For now, though, the Marlins are a rival so I'll see you on the ice! 

 

Rating: 9/10

02/11/24