Lady Blackhawk

DC/Marvel: Age of Infinite Heroes
Name Zinda Blake Codename Lady Blackhawk Species Human Age 25 Affiliation Birds of Prey Powers/Abilities Piloting Marksmanship Tactics

Zinda Blake is a skilled private pilot without much of a known past.

Lady Blackhawk is connected to the Birds of Prey and rumored to have been around in the late 1950s...but sure doesn't look it. Ahem.

Background

Zinda was a military brat. Her father saw action as an aviator in World War II, and she grew up determined to follow in his footsteps. Both of her parents tried to let her down easy multiple times. There was no way the budding United States Air Force would take a woman as anything but a desk clerk...and a desk clerk, clearly, would not satisfy a tough child who grew into a fiery young woman. Despite this, she applied to join...and was told by the recruiting officer that they had a very nice office job for her.

This...was not good enough. With some quiet support from a father who understood the need to fly, but dared not encourage her openly, she decided she was going to prove that a woman could fly a fighter as well as any man. Very rapidly, she realized she would have to be not twice as good, but even better than that.

She taught herself to fly a number of different planes, demonstrating her skill as an aviator and an adventurer. By the time she was nineteen she had a name for herself...but it was combat she wanted. And the military would not budge. Yes, Miss Blake was talented, but the rules were the rules and a dogfight was no place for a lady. Not that she was growing into anything anyone would call a lady...hard drinking and hard partying. But this was when she gave up on trying to convince the Air Force. Instead, she set her sights on something else.

The Blackhawks. They were the elite, they were the very best in the world...and they were not bound to rules set by politicians. Unfortunately, they were no more willing to accept a woman into their ranks. She knew that she was going to have to be beyond exceptional, prove that they would be fools not to take her.

Eventually, she proved herself, rescuing several members of the squadron from trouble on an island. But they treated her more as a mascot than a full member of the team, even, as she put it, 'using her legs as a recruitment tool'. After a year or so, she took an extended leave of absence and attempted a career as an actress. This move proved to be about as sensible as it sounds. Hollywood was not a place she stayed long, and before too long she was back in the cockpit.

Proving herself over and over again, she became as much one of the guys as she could without turning into an out and out butch tomboy. She had learned one lesson; people would never take her seriously because she was a pretty girl. All she could do was her best...and her best was very good indeed.

Then, in the late 1950s, Lady Blackhawk and her plane vanished. Eventually the search was given up, and the world assumed that she was dead. They were wrong. A rift in time had cast her forward. She would not admit that she crashed...if you walk away, it counts as a landing...but now she was isolated in the start of the twenty-first century, a world in which she did not know the customs, or the slang, or anything. Guy Gardner helped her out, hiring her as a waitress until she got her wings back. Then she met Oracle.

Now, she has more or less adapted, knowing there is no way back to her own time and rather appreciating this decade's rather different attitude to women...although the Air Force still won't get with it, dang it. She works as a private pilot and chauffeur...and supports the Birds of Prey as their pilot, driver, and, yes, gets into the odd fight at their side. It's a life and a living...and one she has grown to care for a lot, along with her friends.

Personality

Zinda grew up in an era when men were men and women were women. Men were heroes...and women kept the home fires burning. She was not content with this. Nor would she settle for flying a desk, or even a transport. She was good, and determined to prove it. In that time, women did not just need to be twice as good to get half as far...a female fighter pilot was unheard of. In some ways, she was in the position of the man who integrates a sports league...out in front and way ahead of her time.

It is perhaps because of this that she is hard drinking, hard partying, and hard fighting. Zinda is 'one of the guys'. She likes beer and bar fights, preferably together. Whiskey's good to add to the mix too. Fighting is part of how she proves that she can keep up with any male ever born in her chosen profession. So is being driven and pushing herself to the limits. In no part of her life will Zinda Blake settle for second best.

Despite all of that, Zinda is not a tomboy. She dresses like a woman, she wears her hair like a woman. She might be accused of seeking the best of both worlds...to be both a 'girl' and 'one of the guys', except that she doesn't like being seen *only* as a woman. She still regrets the decision to pose for a recruiting poster, after the military basically used her legs as a sales point. She is aware that she has looks and appreciates them, but really would rather be seen as a person, not a pin-up.

Also, Zinda is a fighter pilot. It takes a certain kind of personality to do that particular 'job', and she has it in spades. Arrogant? Check. 'I don't have superpowers. I don't need them'. Cocky? Definitely. Reckless? Oh, most certainly, and having to be rescued after going in over her head...oh, what an embarrassment. But it tends to happen. Her reach sometimes does exceed her grasp in a world where she is a normal human amongst those with powers that at times approach 'god-like'.

Lady Blackhawk is always loyal to her friends, demonstrating a deep caring for them. If she were to let them down, she would be miserable for days...and anyone who mentions any brainwashing episodes that might have occurred will get a scowl and a face made at them. Yeah. She doesn't want to remember that. Finally, she is rather notorious for having the worst 'gaydar' ever. If a girl is going to go straight for the guy in the room who is taken AND gay...it'll be her.

Logs

2011 Logs

• 2011-07-23 - Fly-Girls - Kara helps Lady Blackhawk when her plane is sabotaged mid-flight. Zinda invites the girl to help on the reconnaissance mission.
• 2011-07-23 - Slobocop - Slobo decides to get to San Francisco to meet the Titans pronto. By ripping off car thieves. Mr. Unknown decides to make a splash. And Hawkgirl and Lady Blackhawk breaks up a fight between boys.
• 2011-07-26 - The Bat, the Bastich, His Friends, and Those Legs - Batman monitors gun runners. People show up.
• 2011-10-09 - Museum of Unnatural History - Clark's interviewing at the museum. Zinda's there too. Kara visits. Then, of course... robot dinosaur attack.

2012 Logs

• 2012-02-29 - Dude, Where's My Kara? Series - A multi-part TP - A reclusive trillionaire has his sights set on the Kryptonians (in particular, Kara) and uses Red Kryptonite slipped into her drink as an experiment. Kara loses any impulse control and inhibitions and hijinx ensue across the west coast!
• 2012-03-02 - Super Bar Fight - The Rumble at Rays - Starfire, Zinda, Huntress, and Hawkman investigate the scene of the Red K drugging... and wind up fighting a killer robot for their lives!
• 2012-03-04 - Follow the Lead! Er... - Lady Blackhawk and Tre follow another lead on who dosed Kara with Red Kryptonite. Gangland violence ensues!
• 2012-04-07 - Nothing to Fear but the Fearsome Five Itself - Cyborg's been captured and some of the Titans, Pilot, and Lady Blackhawk search for him ... and find the Fearsome Five!
• 2012-05-25 - Heroes Crisis: Beware the Jabberwock - Supergirl, Havok, Jellybean, Natasha and Lady Blackhawk find themselves in Wonderland, fighting with card guards, the Jabberwocky, and each other!
• 2012-06-07 - Heroes Crisis: Deathly Mobile of Doom! - The Heroes end up in an amusement park of deathly doom! Can they escape giant robotic gorillas, Nazis on death skiis, and exploding skulls?
• 2012-06-10 - Heroes Crisis: Final Battle, Round 2 - The Crisis comes to a head as a collection of two universe's heroes face off against Time Trapper and the Labyrinth itself!
• 2012-08-17 - The Winter Sheathe - The Black Widow and Lady Blackhawk go to play blasts and ladders at an AIM Base, and clash with the Winter Soldier.
• 2012-09-09 - Invader Skrull: Who Is Driving This Boat? - Fury's first two fresh recruits go to fetch their third one. The Three Stooges anyone?
• 2012-09-15 - Invader Skrull: Off Grid - Who do they trust, and what does it mean to be a Secret Warrior?
• 2012-09-24 - Invader Skrull: Black Team - The curtains begin to open to reveal the a larger picture for the developing Black Team.
• 2012-09-27 - Invader Skrull: Down With The Bodies! - Chaos erupts as C.A.T. leads Lady Blackhawk on a mission, and the bodies drop with the help of Agent 50.
• 2012-11-09 - Invader Skrull: Earth's Mightiest Waitress - Cleaning up Iran used to never include a hidden S.H.I.E.L.D. base.
• 2012-11-15 - Cutscene: Invader Skrull - Black Team's Price - Everything has a price, and so does saving the world.
• 2012-11-16 - Invader Skrull: Taking Back What's Ours - The teams come together, and perform some major kickass on the Skrull for daring to try and settle on their Helicarrier.

2013 Logs

• 2013-01-31 - She's Prettier Than Supergirl! - The Dolls are in Gotham City and get to meet their first (not exactly) heroine!
• 2013-04-03 - Jokerbots Wild - A baseball game is interrupted by the Joker with his new toys - six deadly jokerbots. Birds of Prey to the rescue!
• 2013-05-20 - Sixteen Birds in Five Fighting Rings: Part 2 - Fight for Your Life! (and Ratings) - Catwoman, Zinda, Arsenal and Redtail get a tip from Oracle about where Killer Croc is taking the kidnapped teens. And become part of the show!
• 2013-05-21 - Sixteen Birds in Five Fighting Rings: Part 3 - Showdown in Gotham - It's a major fight when members of the Birds of Prey join up with Commissioner Gordon to take down Roulette and Daggett's underground kidnapping fighting ring!
• 2013-09-20 - Hat Boss - The Birds of Prey follow up on Oracle's hunch about the Falcone Crime Family, and get more than they bargained for!
• 2013-09-27 - Meet Damian! - Bruce Wayne introduces his newfound son, Damian Wayne, to the world - and to shocked friends.
• 2013-10-04 - Chemical Warfare: What is Weakness - Damian is stolen away from Bruce, and Savage has made his move. With no bars hold, Batman throws himself into protecting his family and city, even going so far as to actually ask for help.
• 2013-10-07 - Chemical Warfare: Trust to Live - After saving a dark haired boy from Savage's super soldiers, the Bat Family and Birds of Prey now race to save Gotham City.
• 2013-10-20 - Nerd is the Word - The Birds of Prey go into an ambush by the Cold and Clinical Calculator with their archenemy Prometheus and it all adds fuel to the fire!

2014 Logs

• 2014-01-05 - A Cold Night for Crime - Some Gotham muggers have a very bad night when they try to rob the wrong superheroes.
• 2014-03-04 - Mardi Gras Shenanigans! - The troublesome triplets and others head to New Orleans for some Mardi Gras fun! Too bad Remy's actually been kicked out of the place. Kind of like most bars he frequents.
• 2014-05-02 - Bludhaven Bloodbath - It starts with Starfire's cookies. It ends in a bloodbath. For a change, it's not the fault of Starfire's cookies.
• 2014-11-25 - Fear, Riots and You - Random rioting in Gotham.