TAO

A heroic fusion of two mortal enemies

“When we get out of this, we are so arresting us”

The hero known as TAO is seemingly an individual. In reality, they’re a fusion of two ordinary people: popular district attorney Amy Chen and powerful crime lord Ken Miyamoto.

Chen was confronting Miyamoto in an abandoned office, just above a laboratory where - unbeknownst to either of them - a rogue scientist was performing a dangerous experiment. The machinery blew up, bathing the pair in mysterious energies. When they came to, they discovered they had been combined into a single body. The fusion was a glowing humanoid entity, with a powerful physique and the ability to emit and absorb energy.

The duo could mentally communicate with each other. At first they feared the combination was permanent. Several hours later, they emerged from the combination, naked, staring fearfully at each other. What did it mean? What was to happen next?

They learned that the combination wasn’t a one-time deal the hard way. When a future confrontation took place, the stress of the situation forced them into a fusion. This time, they were able to separate of their own volition once things had calmed down.

Now, cop and criminal have come to a delicate understanding. They are, as Chen put it, “total absolute opposites”, and from that, Miyamoto dubbed the fusion, “TAO”. But both want a city at peace, just for different reasons. When a big enough threat emergies, they put away their differences and fight for that city.

Playing TAO

TAO is a take on DC’s Firestorm character. As a composite being, TAO’s motivation is to bring order out of chaos. They exist when two mortal enemies decide that a large enough danger is worth the cost of cooperating. As such, they’ll have plenty of internal conflict, even when it’s obvious what needs to be done to save the city. Outside of such a crisis, their human components will not get along well.

Plots

Some critical danger threatens the city
A villain appears, that both Miyamoto and Chen want taken down
An energy source needs TAO to suppress or absorb it

Dialogue

“We’ve got to rescue - but the monster - no, it can wait, there are citizens in need”
“We have to stop you, before you destroy the city!”
“If we can endure working together, we can endure this!”
“When we get out of this, we are so arresting us”

Comic Book Panels

Two people look angrily at each other, but nod in pained mutual understanding. They clasp hands, fingers interlacing, until a bright light shines and TAO emerges!

TAO flies through the sky, leaving a trail of radiant energy behind. They fling energy blasts at distant targets, absorbing attacks in return.

TAO stands defiantly as a shield, blocking civilians or other heroes from some incredible eruption - a nuclear power plant’s radiation, a kaiju’s breath attack, or something similar.

Variations

Animosity

Chen and Miyamoto are professional enemies: one wants to arrest the other, the other doesn’t want to be arrested.
They might have a past that mixed the professional and personal. Did Miyamoto hurt one of Chen’s friends or family? Did Chen arrest or hurt one of Miyamoto’s?
Alternatively, the animosity might be imposed from outside. Does Miyamoto have a rival crime lord that wants him taken down, and helps Chen, for example?

Working Relationship

Both members of the fusion have agreed to work together when the circumstances call for it. The assumption is that they both want the city intact and at peace for their own purposes.
Have they forged some other kind of working relationship? For example, do they have someone they both value and want to protect?
Does the closeness of the fusion create an opportunity for other kinds of relationships (grudging rivalry, friendship, or even romance) to emerge?