Alexa Atherton grew up in New York City as the daughter in the rich and powerful Atherton Family.  She was educated at the finest schools and expected to be prim and proper all while being raised and taught she was 'superior' to those around her. She was anything but that.

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From age six, Alexa was always getting into trouble. Bullying other kids at the private schools, forcing others to 'steal' for her (sometimes just for a simple kiss), and eventually hanging out with the bad boys in gangs is where Alexa took her natural propensity during her relatively young life. Her parents were beside themselves and did everything (and paid whatever amount of hush money) they could to keep Alexa's dangerous lifestyle from getting out into the press.  Wrought with an economic downfall during Alexa's teenage years, the Atherton's also found themselves practically in financial ruin. Alexa didn't care and instead left home at 15 under her street name of "Spider" and hooked up with any New York gang member she could, learning everything about how to perform thefts, robberies, breaking and enterings and of course graduating to larceny and grand larceny. She began stealing cars and jewels, but that wasn't enough of a rush for her; she discovered she also liked to set fires.

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After hooking up with an arsonist gang member in the gang known as the Malcontents, Alexa learned how to rob places and set them on fire to hide any evidence of her being there. She learned all about the dynamics of chemicals and magnesium that could easily be bought and used for arson. It wasn't long before Alexa became quite the arsonist.

 

In one such crime, her arsonist boyfriend, whom was now of little interest to her since she surpassed him in his arson and theft skills (and he wasn't pleasing her with sex at all), decided to get rid of Alexa to save face and set her up at a secret warehouse robbery wherein he set up timed fire bombs at every exit to prevent her from escaping.  In the midst of the robbery, the timed fire bombs went off and in mere seconds, the warehouse was engulfed in flames with no way out. Alexa hunkered between some crates to escape the heat from the flames.  A burning beam fell down on her spot, cracking open the crates around her and pinning her under the fallen burning beam, burning her skin and face.  In desperation, she clawed at the broken crates to get anything to possibly pry her loose only to find an experimental US Navy dive suit and a bunch of its equipment fall out of one of the broken crates. The crate labeled it as "Suit, Diver, Underwater Welding - EXPERIMENTAL".  Prying herself loose she got to the suit and put in on, hoping it might help protect her long enough so she could escape the cauldron of the warehouse fire. After putting on the suit, she ran and dove into the river water outside the warehouse...

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...and woke up at the bottom of the Hudson River hours later.

 

Alexa was still wearing the experimental dive suit and had been passed out for that last three hours. Oxygen was getting low according to the display on her visor, and swam to an area where there weren't as may police lights flashing across the surface of the water above her.  She emerged under a dock about 400 yards away and saw the warehouse was burned to the ground.  Alexa climbed up the dock's ladder to see her 'arsonist boyfriend' on the same dock, looking across to the burnt down warehouse, talking on his cell phone bragging about how he 'killed that psycho bitch in the best fire trap he'd ever set' and that he hoped she 'burned in Hell'.  Alexa, furious over hearing that, ran up to her boyfriend, while still wearing the experimental dive suit, and knocked him down hard onto the dock.  He came up with a gun and shot her five times, all of which were deflected by the dive suit. She jumped over onto him knocking him back down onto the dock, sat on his chest and said, "You remember me, your little 'Spider', right? Well, let me introduce you to a pissed off new version of her...with fire!" Engaging an arm mounted welding torch, she used the welding flame to 'cook' her now ex-boyfriend (okay, mostly his head...and private parts) to death, leaving a gruesome burnt body for the authorities to find later.

 

Police reports later released about the fire stated they'd found Alexa's DNA at the scene and believed she'd died in the fire (as well as eventually finding the burnt body of her ex-boyfriend), wherein is was deduced both died as a result of a botched robbery-arson they performed.  According to officials, Alexa was dead. The Athertons couldn't pay their way out of this news and scandal, and as a result, the Atherton's businesses soon dried up, leaving them with the 'pittance' of $1.2 million a year from their family's old money inheritance to live off of from thereon.

 

Days later, Alexa, still reeling from the pain of her 3rd-degree skin burns (20% of her body and face), she came across a Russian gangster whom she'd had an eye on recently (love at first sight according to both of them) named Valdi Kilmeade. Valdi was a lieutenant in his gang and had over a dozen others working for him, including an under-the-table paid doctor (who had a drug problem).  Alexa went to Valdi to ask for help, wherein Valdi was overcome at what had happened to her. Alexa basically collapsed into his arms, to which he carried her all the way tot he doc's office to get her treated.

 

When Alexa awoke, Valdi was in the chair next to her, staying with her the whole time as she recovered; this was something even her parents never did when Alexa was young and got sick and was looking for comfort (and didn't get any). She quickly realized she was no longer pretty anymore either, with bandages covering her burns, she now considered herself a freak and believed Valdi would never accept her in her 'ugly' state. Instead, just the opposite happened; Valdi told Alexa he'd loved her since the first time he saw her and had been following her and getting info on her because he was so in love with all that she was, but respected her time with the 'ex' boyfriend until such time that Valdi would challenge said 'ex' boyfriend for Alexa's heart. Sadly, Valdi was doing a gang job the night Alexa got burnt in the warehouse fire and felt guilty for not being there for her then. Valdi also stated that the burns and whatever 'superficial' looks she was worried about would never keep the two of them apart, if she wanted to be with him.  And thus started one of the craziest romances in the criminal world.

 

Over the next few years, Valdi broke off with his gang and started doing his own crimes, selling his stolen merchandise to CANIS for a fair price. Alexa healed up and thanks to Valdi's 'connections', got Alexa plastic surgery to take care of nearly all the burn scarring, leaving only a faint yet visible burn scar across her cheek and forehead. Alexa used the plastic surgeon to also change her face a bit since Alexa was considered 'dead', she might as well be someone new.  To that degree, Valdi and Alexa got married and she became the new Alexa Kilmeade, complete with that new identity with drivers license, passport and a hefty bank account of her own.  Together, they both ran crimes and arson jobs, all the while Alexa had a couple of tech-heads modify her suit (and steal four other similar suit prototypes from the Navy yard (and the associated support equipment) as well).  After conning a chemistry scientist into building her a special device wherein she could use chemical reactions with and in water as a source of creating a 'flaming' aura and some heated/fiery abilities, she took on the name "Waterfire", which was also the name of an annual event that occurred in Providence, Rhode Island every year (that's where and when they got married). 

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Not long after, Valdi was able to team with a group of river pirates on several heists and obtained another experimental dive suit from the Navy (as well as replacement suits that were made for Alexa's stolen experimental suit), to which he quickly took to. Together, they used their suits to come up underwater to ships, cut a hole either above the waterline in to get at the soon-to-be stolen goods, or cut a hole below the waterline, sink the ship, then readily loot it while submerged (and no one would see them or easily be able to get after them).  In one such raid, Valdi stole a disguised classified government crate that held an ancient and massive glowing metal hammer axe.  The item seemed enchanted and as such, when Valdi picked it up, it seemed to empower and strengthen Valdi and his suit.  With his new weapon, he became even more notorious and labeled by the media as "Waterhammer", along with Alexa, who made sure the media called her "Waterfire". Together, Waterfire and Waterhammer committed more brazen crimes and even fought superheroes.  They even helped save the boss of the river pirates, named "Rivermaster" from getting caught, and as such, they all joined forces and used their skills, knowledge and savvy to pull off even more profitable crimes; crimes that how reached further out than just New York City.

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Eventually, Waterfire, Waterhammer and Rivermaster met up with another powerful pirate called "Captain Akula".  In short time, they all banded together and with others, formed a new powerful pirate gang called the "Maritime Marauders". 

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Today, Waterfire, still deeply in love with Valdi AKA Waterhammer, enjoys the continued thrill of piracy and adventure. Her father died from heart failure, leaving her mother with what was left of the diminished family fortune, to which Alexa cannot claim due to her 'death'. Alexa is still working an 'angle' to somehow obtain what's left of the family fortune (which, truthfully, Alexa obtains more money through her acts of piracy than her parents had left in liquid assets). She's ambivalent of living a luxurious lifestyle, but, at times, enjoys staying in the 5-star hotels or taking over someone's summer mansion in Scarsdale during the winter.  She can be reckless, but not at the expense of the job. She hates superheroes and any other authority figures. She also loves her "Depeche Mode" music and loves to dance and do exciting (and sometimes exotic) things with Valdi. So long as the adventure continues, Alexa will be there.

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