Magpie

The origins of the world-class thief known as Magpie are a mystery, despite the best efforts of Interpol, UNISON, and the Raven II to uncover them. He speaks several languages with no trace of an accent, and first made a name for himself in Europe with a series of daring and “impossible” robberies where he left his calling card: a black bird silhouette, often printed on an actual calling card.
The second Raven was the first to ever catch Magpie in the act and thwart one of his robberies. She also discovered that at least part of his reputation was due to the superhuman power to teleport, allowing him to access and escape from otherwise impregnable locations. He implied that his powers came from an early theft of a rare gemstone with magical properties, but that may be a fabrication intended to throw others off the trail of his true origins, whatever they might be.
Raven became both Magpie’s greatest adversary and an object of his attentions. The charming rogue made several attempts to seduce the dark-clad heroine. Although Raven found herself flattered by his attention, even somewhat tempted, she never allowed it to stand in the way of her efforts to bring him in. For some time, the cunning criminal remained at large, continuing to play his game with the police and his lovely pursuer.
The Raven eventually managed to bring Magpie to justice, arranging a trap from which even he could not escape. Unfortunately, after a showy and lengthy trial for his many crimes, where Magpie spent considerable time on the stand recounting events to a rapt audience, he staged an escape and disappeared, leaving only one of his calling cards behind. Some speculate Magpie allowed himself to be captured in the first place in order to play out the trial for his own aggrandizement, others that he was merely stalling for time until he figured out a means of escape. Whatever the case, the vanishing thief has not been incarcerated since.
Magpie’s criminal activities have expanded somewhat over the years, from daring robberies of rarities to more mercenary work for noted crime-lords and other wealthy patrons in North America, Europe, and elsewhere. So long as the task is challenging and carries the thrill of risk, there’s a chance he’ll consider it. The Magpie follows a code, however, and it is widely known that he will not kill unless he feels he must, and he does not take jobs involving kidnapping, murder, or other criminal activities he finds unsavory.
More recently, Magpie “honored” the retirement of his old foe the Raven by undertaking the task of breaking into Nevermore, the other-dimensional headquarters of her successor, the third Raven. He left only his distinctive calling card with a hand-written note: “The game is on. – M.” There’s less flirtation between the dashing Magpie and the third Raven, and Magpie has been delighted to exploit his new foe’s sometimes barely-restrained temper.
Investigating a series of crimes with the Magpie’s distinctive calling card, the Raven has discovered that not all of them have been personally committed by the teleporting thief. It appears Magpie has taken on one or more apprentices to his craft, introducing them to the arts of thievery and arranging various tests of their skills that also carry out some useful jobs. Certainly there are those interested in training with the very best in the world. If so, the Magpie might be preparing for his eventual retirement, if a rogue such as he can truly ever give up the thrill of the chase and the challenge of just one more job.
Magpie has hinted in the past that he has a number of “roosts”—safe houses whose locations he has committed to memory—so he can teleport to them virtually at will when he is within range. None of these has even been uncovered by the authorities or his heroic foes, and no doubt a great many of the treasures he has plundered over the years can be found there, kept as trophies and mementoes.

Physical Description

Special abilities

Magpie has the power to teleport, apparently to any place he can see or knows reasonably well. This allows him to overcome many barriers to both entry and exit and to escape from almost any situation in an instant, since he’s usually careful to have a bolt-hole to retreat to from any given target. Generally, Magpie prefers to accomplish his jobs “the old-fashioned way,” if he can, reserving his teleportation ability for a last-minute escape when he needs it, but he does not consider it cheating to teleport around obstacles when circumstances demand.

Specialized Equipment

Magpie is a skilled acrobat, athlete, contortionist, and escape artist; a master burglar able to overcome the most sophisticated locks and security systems in the world in record time; and a master manipulator, lying with such skill that a great deal of the truth about him and his past remains obscured.

Mental characteristics

Intellectual Characteristics

Magpie is a thorough rogue who steals simply because he can, and because it is exciting. A true romantic at heart, he lives for danger and challenge. He deliberately takes on the most difficult jobs and does so in a fashion that lets everyone know who was responsible, since there’s no point in the achievement if it goes unknown. In some cases, he has even forewarned a target by either sending them one of his calling cards or leaving it where it will be found, daring his target, the authorities, and various heroes to try and stop him.
Magpie claims to be an admirer of beauty in all its forms. He’s a connoisseur with a taste for the finer things, and at least part of his larceny is to keep him in the style and comfort to which he has become accustomed. He’s a charmer and a flirt, willing to use banter, wit, and seduction to fluster and distract his opponents while he remains cool, calm, and always prepared.
Ever the “gentleman,” Magpie holds true to a personal code: He’s more than willing to steal from the rich and powerful, from governments, corporations, or public institutions like museums, but he does not steal from those who have very little, nor does he engage in kidnapping, murder, drug-running, or other such activities. He has even been known to dispense vigilante justice to “criminal scum” that offend his sensibilities, and there are stories in the underworld of those who have crossed Magpie literally disappearing, never to be seen again.