Aspen Matthews
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Aspen Matthews is the main character of Fathom, a comic book series created by Michael Turner.
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[edit] Lost childhood and teenage years
Aspen Matthews is caught between two worlds. During her early adolescence, she could remember nothing from her early childhood. In her earliest memories she is on the cruise ship Paradise, thought to have been lost for ten years. She was adopted by Captain Matthews, a captain of the US Navy, and soon developed a passion for water. She actively pursued this passion and joined the US Olympic Swimming Team. She competed in the Olympics, but was later stripped of her medals as she tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs (see Fathom: Prelude #1 for more details). This effectively ended Aspen's professional swimming career, but she pursued marine biology.
More recently, Aspen has begun to remember bits of her early childhood, including a memory with her mother talking to a mysterious Black.
[edit] Killian and the Blue
Aspen continued to study marine biology well into adulthood. Eventually, she was invited to participate in an underwater research station called Deep Marine Discovery (DMD), located deep underwater. The primary goal of the DMD is studying a strange alien ship that seems to have a symbiotic relationship with the surrounding water. Aspen also learns that the DMD was holding a strange alien man named Killian, who had voluntarily surendered himself for observation. Unfortunately, Aspen did not have much time to study the specimen, as the DMD was mistakenly torpedoed. Killian freed himself, and attempted to abduct Aspen. However, a strange figure intervened and saved Aspen. This was only the beginning...
After the event at the DMD (from which she was one of the few survivors), Aspen's life began to grow much more complicated. admiral Maylander discovered that her anatomy was post-human. Aspen also encountered Chance Calloway, naval aviator and shooter of the torpedo. Although she was mad at him at first, they soon developed mutual respect. Aspen was also encountered once again by Killian who told her that she was one of the Blue, a race of underwater people living in secret from Humanity. Aspen was also an Elite Blue, meaning she could not only breathe underwater, but also manipulate it to her will. She was persuaded to help set up a number of battle stations in a plan to conquer the human race. The battle stations eventually activated the Blue Sun, a massive beam of energy that was made to penetrate the ocean floor.
Eventually, the enigmatic Cannon Hawke swept Aspen away from Killian and his dissidents, who were molding her into their weapon of hatred. He informed Aspen of the true largely peaceful Blue culture, and the importance to stop Killian's Blue Sun. With the help of Cannon and Chance, she did thwart Killian's plan, and in the process tapped into her deeper powers, which were far more powerful than anyone could have imagined.
[edit] Kidnapped by the Black
Although Aspen did experience some well-deserved down time after the events surrounding the Blue Sun, she was soon abducted by yet another enigmatic race of underwater people, the Black. They took her to the bottom of the ocean, where she meets her biological father, Ragher, himself a Black. This explained her extraordinary ability to manipulate water. Rahger tried to sway Aspen towards the Black and their own plans for Humanity. However, Aspen rejects his efforts, leaves the Black, and returns to the surface.
[edit] Love and War
Upon Aspen's return, she discovers that Humanity has learned of the Blue's existance, and that a major war threatens to oppose Humanity versus the Blue. Unsure, she tracks down Chance Calloway, and the two outsmart the US government. The two also realize that they have feelings towards each other. Now, Aspen intends to rejoin Cannon Hawke and the rest of the Blue.
[edit] Brother Found
Aspen also found her biological brother, Finn. He was the one who saved Aspen from the clutches of Killian back at the DMD.