The following story and photos are from Giant Panda King's book,
Gotham 1919-1939 by Russall S. Beattie, available from www.giantpandaking.com.
Viewer discretion is advised.
Onyx was born in Liberia on the continent of Africa.
The village that she and her family lived in was a smaller one, often plagued by bandits
and slave traders. As a small girl, a bandit attack left most of her village destroyed,
its occupants dead. She was the only survivor; her parents had also been killed in the attack.
She lived on her own in the village for a few days until some slave traders happened upon it.
The slavers took Onyx from her home, sailing towards the Middle East. Their treatment of her
was abominable, and Onyx’s hatred for them grew with each passing day. Upon arriving in the Middle
East, she was auctioned off to the highest bidder. A man named Endymion placed the highest bid, and
Onyx left with him. She soon learned that Endymion was involved with the League of Assassins,
the deadliest warriors in the world under one banner. Her job was to serve them on a
daily basis as they trained, commiserated, and went about their day-to-day duties.
During this time, Onyx’s anger never abated,
and Endymion saw that she had an underlying strength to her. He began training her in
the ways of the League, teaching her combat, stealth, and espionage. For the longest time,
Onyx knew this man only as Endymion. She knew that the other members of the League answered to him,
but did not know why. Upon completing her training with the League, she became a full fledged member.
Endymion granted her her freedom, though he fully expected her to remain with the League.
He revealed his true name to her: Ra’s al Ghul, the Demon’s Head. Onyx remained with the League
of Assassins, going on numerous missions for them and proving her effectiveness. She gained the
trust of many other members of the League; David Cain, Lady Shiva, Slade Wilson, and others. When
the time came for her first long-term assignment, she was considered one of the best in the League.
Her assignment was to go to America, namely Gotham City, NJ, and to scout it out for the League. They
were looking to move their operations there and were considering sending Shiva to spearhead it,
but Onyx’s goal was to see what the state of the city was; economically, culturally,
and criminally. The League wanted to move in on any pre-existing criminal operations in order to
establish their presence in Gotham. This would be the first of many steps towards establishing
the League in America. No one was quite sure why Ra’s al Ghul had his eyes set on Gotham,
though some suspected it had to do with his former pupil,
the Bat-Man of Gotham. Onyx was indifferent towards the assignment; she had been programmed by
the League to follow orders unquestioningly. Upon arriving in Gotham, she immediately set to work.
It did not take long for her to encounter the “Dark Knight,” as he had been dubbed by various
media outlets. Onyx witnessed firsthand the Bat’s war against the underworld of Gotham.
She admired his methods, and those of the Bat-Team;
they fought with fire and vigor, but refrained from killing the criminals that they fought.
The concepts of mercy and compassion were not ones she had been taught in the League,
but she saw them practiced by the masked vigilantes in Gotham.
They fought to protect those who could not protect themselves
rather than for personal gain. This inspired her to turn her back on the League, instead joining
the Bat-Team’s ever-growing list of allies. During this time, she made a new life for herself,
changing her name to Onyx Adams and doing her part to defend Gotham City where she could.
A large factor in Onyx switching to the Bat’s side was the vigilante known as Orpheus.
Grace King had been a vaudeville star billed as an exotic Amazon warrior. During Gotham’s
Battle for Chinatown, she had seen the Bat-Man fight the Ghost Dragons.
During this skirmish, she jumped into the fray, assisting the Bat without even thinking.
She was an inexperienced fighter, but held her own nonetheless. The Bat-Man told her off, not wanting
another inexperienced vigilante to become involved in the Battle for Chinatown. Grace didn’t listen.
She had felt alive fighting; more than she ever had dancing. Acquiring equipment and weaponry,
she became Orpheus. The Bat - while never officially making her a member of the Bat
Team - allowed her to operate in Gotham, and was grateful for her help in the coming conflict.
Orpheus would go on to befriend Onyx, and the two became inseparable.
The day of reckoning was coming; the war between the Bat-Man and the League of Assassins was on
the horizon. But when that time came, Onyx knew which side she would be on. Her new personal
philosophies were mercy and compassion. Her new life in Gotham had given her a better perspective.
She had never truly been free in the League, even upon earning her freedom.
Now, she was free to be whoever she wanted to be, and to stand for whatever she wanted to stand for.
When the time came for her to defend her new home,
she would do so; with all the ferocity and anger she had felt at being taken from her home,
and turned into a weapon by the League. Onyx would fight for Gotham.