MURMUR III

BIOGRAPHY

Arlette Truffaut spent much of her life growing up in Hull House, an orphanage in Orloo, Ontario which somehow had a connection to Department H. She was abandoned there by her mother, a house cleaner who went in search of Arlette's apparent father, a famous film director named Francois Truffaut. Arlette's mother never returned to collect Arlette, and Francois Truffaut is reported to be deceased. [Alpha Flight (2nd series) #7] At some point in her childhood, Arlette suffered a traumatic experience of being locked in a box with insects and a strange, tentacled creature. [Alpha Flight (2nd series) #9]

When Department H and Alpha Flight, Canada's premiere super hero team, was restarted after a previous clampdown on paranormals in Canada, Arlette, along with fellow Hull House “Legacies” Jared and Adrian Corbo, was inducted into the new Alpha Flight and code-named Murmur. During one of the early training sessions of this new Alpha Flight, Murmur demonstrated her power – the ability to touch someone and control their actions – by putting veteran Alphan Puck to sleep. However, moments later, she found herself struck in the face by Jared Corbo, who was called Radius. Extremely vain, Murmur was not happy about having her face potentially harmed and dramatically accused Radius of breaking her nose.

During the training exercise, Murmur was also able to use her power in an extemely helpful manner, controlling the savage Sasquatch. At the time, Alpha Flight believed this Sasquatch to be their old teammate, reverted to a beastial state, unaware that this was in fact a real sasquatch. Unfortunately for her, Murmur also rubbed longtime Alpha Flight member Vindicator the wrong way, which would begin a contentous relationship between the two women.

It wasn't long before the heroes had to embark on their first mission: to stop a terrorist organization that was working with a new Zodiac team. Murmur was instructed to control Sasquatch and protect the terrorists, who in truth were just pawns of the Zodiac. Murmur, however, didn't like the orders she was given, as she wanted to participate in the battle. So, after locking the terrorists away, Murmur entered the battle herself. Unfortunately, losing concentration of her power controlling Sasquatch during the battle caused the creature to go on a rampage. While other members of Alpha Flight contended with their out of control teammate, Murmur displayed her cleverness, touching Virgo and compelling the villainess to teleport to Paris and thus out of the fray. [Alpha Flight (2nd series) #1]

When a priority alarm went off at Department H at 5 am, Murmur didn't rush into action. Instead, she demonstrated her vanity by pausing to examine her appearance before rushing off to possibly risk her life. The fact that Murmur was wearing make-up so early in the morning was not lost on Vindicator. When Alpha Flight discovered their old foe, the Master of the World within their headquarters, Murmur was instructed to go and get back up. Once again, the young heroine disobeyed the orders of senior Alpha Flight members, who were surprised to find her soon after directly attacking the Master. She boasted that she shouldn't have been sent for backup because she was capable of getting the Master under control herself. She came to Alpha Flight to win, she declared. In fact, however, the Master was playing at Murmur's suggestion, as she hadn't put him under her control at all. When he casually tossed her away, Vindicator had to come to Murmur's rescue.

After the battle, Murmur attempted to flirt with the handsome Radius. He appeared uninterested, preferring to wax his snowboard, so Murmur threatened to touch him and force him to do what she wanted. To her surprise, Radius told her that no one could get past his force field.

Shortly later, Alpha Flight found themselves each up against individual Masters of the World, each of which had counter-measures to the powers of each Alphan. Murmur had no way to put her opponent under her control, so the new Alpha Flight team worked together, switching opponents and ultimately winning the battle. In the aftermath, they discovered they were never up against the Master at all – only “semi-organic synthoids” programmed specifically to counter Alpha Flight's individual members. [Alpha Flight (2nd series) #2]

When Alpha Flight learned of a crisis in Orloo, Murmur, Radius and Flex all wanted to go and assist, as in many ways it was the only home they’d ever known. However, Vindicator refused to go into another combat situation with the untrained new recruits, leaving Murmur and a few others at Department H. Still, Murmur made the best of her time and spent some time with Radius in his quarters. Though physical contact was impossible, Radius was clearly annoyed his brother arrived, interrupting the two. He also evaded questions as to what they were doing.

Bored, the new Alphans explored the Department facility and soon discovered former X-Man, Sunfire, within a laboratory. Intent on taking him on a joy ride for fun, they attempted to break Sunfire out, only to learn he wasn't interested in leaving. Undeterred, Murmur used her power on Sunfire to force him out of the lab and into a car, which they stole and drove to a diner. By unlucky happenstance, they found one of the diner’s customers to be Mesmero, an old enemy of Alpha Flight. Murmur attempted to put him to sleep, but Mesmero was the more experienced and powerful mind-controller, and Murmur fell under his control.

Luckily for the young Alphans, Vindicator and Guardian (a de-aged clone of the original) arrived to retrieve their missing teammates, having tracked them via their stolen vehicle. To their surprise, they discovered Murmur acting as a waitress. Murmur showed them to a table and asked if they were mother and son, angering Vindicator who wondered if Murmur was trying to provoke her. Realizing the pretense was up, Mesmero commanded Murmur and the others under his control to attack the other Alphans. Murmur’s attack had the intention of being deadly, as she reached out for Vindicator, giving her the command “Die!” Luckily for her, Vindicator not only avoided the touch, but turned the battle by grabbing Murmur's hand and pushing it towards her own face, forcing Murmur to say “remember” and thus freeing Murmur from Mesmero's control.

Now free herself, Murmur was able to free the other new Alpha Flight members. Ironically, Mesmero had simultaneously forced the veteran members under his control, resulting in a battle between new and old Alphas. At first, Murmur seemed helpless, as her power had no effect on Sasquatch. However, she ended up turning the tide by using her power on Flex, giving him the courage he needed to fight back, and then touching the civilians who were under Mesmero's control, freeing them and removing them from danger. The battle ended when Murmur took another chance at freeing Vindicator, this time being successful. With Alpha Flight no longer under his control, Mesmero promptly disappeared. Though Alpha Flight may not have been able to apprehend their foe, Murmur had gotten the chance she wanted to be a hero. [Alpha Flight (2nd series) #3-5]

Murmur’s flirtatious attention to Radius continued when she attempted to give him a massage while he was working out in the gymnasium. Radius, however, seemed not to reciprocate and even extended his force field around himself, pushing Murmur away. By the time Vindicator walked into the gym, they were arguing and Radius accused Murmur of being lovesick towards him. Vindicator offered Murmur some advice, cautioning her against getting involved relationships with teammates. To this, Murmur coldly replied that she had heard Vindicator had been involved with many of the old Alpha Flight, her unkind words further aggravating the animosity between the two women. [Alpha Flight (2nd series) #6]

Murmur’s defiant attitude continued when she interrupted Vindicator and Guardian when they were in the middle of an important discussion, all while wearing incredibly skimpy bathing attire. She blatantly asked Guardian to have a look at her form from one of the training exercises they did earlier. When Guardian didn't take the bait and flew away with Vindicator, Murmur whimsically decided there was time later for that. Guardian and Vindicator were not the only ones who had been affected by Murmur’s words or actions. When she met up with Radius and Flex, who was searching a computer database for information on his father, she boasted of her own father, the famous film director. At first, Radius flatly doubted that she was telling the truth and used backhanded, black humor to point out that it would be easy for Flex to look her father up, since he had been dead for years. Though she called his remarks cruel, Murmur didn’t use it as an opportunity for self-reflection. Instead, some hours later, she continued with her selfish behavior by once again making a pass at Guardian. Before he could rebuff her again, she kissed him, which Vindicator happened to see. [Alpha Flight (2nd series) #7]

Shortly after, General Clarke manipulated footage of Wolverine, implicating him in the murder of an ally and ordered the team to bring him in for justice. Murmur went along on the mission, once again using her power mainly to control Sasquatch. Not unexpectedly, the operation brought Alpha Flight into conflict with the X-Men. During the ensuing battle, Murmur found herself confronted by Maggott, who sent his matter-eating maggotts towards her. Murmur was frozen in fear and would have fallen easily to them, but the creatures for some reason passed her by. However, when Sasquatch then knocked Maggott over, Murmur attempted to put him to sleep. Unfortunately for her, her apparent phobia against bugs erupted again when she touched Maggot, Murmur finding herself overcome with the memory of being trapped in a small box with insects and tentacled creatures. [Alpha Flight (2nd series) #8-9, Uncanny X-Men (1st series) #355] In the end, Wolverine was cleared of charges and the two teams went their separate ways as allies again.

Arlette's phobia of bugs became an issue again when Alpha Flight, believing their lives in danger from within Department H, fled to the Microverse. There they encountered the insectivorids, bug-like citizens of Ant Tica, who were fighting against the oppressive tyranny that was controlling them. Alpha Flight soon encountered the Micronauts and worked with the local heroes to help the insectivorids. During the mission, Murmur, never one to turn down an opportunity to rile Vindicator, told the Micronaut Mary that she thought she was a natural leader, and that she found it refreshing. However, Murmur was herself then on the receiving end of overhearing information she didn't like when Vindicator confronted Guardian about him kissing Murmur, to which Guardian declared that Murmur meant nothing to him.  [Alpha Flight (2nd series) #10-11]

Returning to Department H, Alpha Flight found their home and headquarters under attack by the Zodiac. Disorientated from the teleport back from the Microverse and overwhelmed by the twelve-member Zodiac, Murmur was almost instantly taken out in battle when she was caught up in an explosion. Luckily for her, Puck ran to protect her and discovered Murmur was in a critical condition. Still, it was Vindicator who cast aside her rivalry with Murmur and took her to medical assistance. Murmur woke briefly to thank Vindicator but, due to her injuries, was not able to help Alpha Flight during the deadly battle that raged around her. [Alpha Flight (2nd series) #12]

As Arlette was placed into intensive care, her senior teammates worried about her. Vindicator, meanwhile, lamented the fact that this was bound to happen with too many novices on the team. [Alpha Flight (2nd series) #13] A short time later, Murmur had made enough of a recovery to attend the funeral of Sasquatch, who had died in battle against the Zodiac. She and the other members of Alpha Flight remained unaware that this was an actual sasquatch and not Walter Langkowski. Murmur felt that she had more contact with Sasquatch than any other members of the team, given that she had had to control him so often. [Alpha Flight (2nd series) #14]

Sasquatch had not been the only casualty in the battle against the Zodiac. The corrupt General Clarke also died during the conflict and, following Sasquatch's funeral, Murmur and the other members of Alpha Flight met their new coordinator, Mr. Gentry. Murmur was engaged in some physical therapy when Gentry visited her. She appeared to be in some pain, but delighted in falling back into his arms, saying “cooperate” as she touched him. Arlette expressed that she was bored and wanted to return to active duty, but neither Arlette’s words or powers seemed to affect Gentry. Instead, the liaison informed her that he had reviewed her file and was of the view that she wasn't ready for field action. Distraught, Murmur told Gentry that she had nothing but Alpha Flight and that she would do anything to ensure she returned to active status. Gentry offered to help Murmur find better ways that she could help the team but, in the meantime, she was removed from the active roster.

Almost in defiance, Murmur designed herself a new costume, consisting of street-type clothing. When Gentry later discovered Murmur up and walking, he told her that he knew she used her powers on him to make him cooperate with her. He warned her that, if she ever used her powers on him or anyone in Alpha Flight again, she would never rejoin the team. Arlette began to defend it was an accident, but Gentry sidestepped the issue and instead introduced Murmur to another young mutant who she would be training with: Ghost Girl. [Alpha Flight (2nd series) #15-16]

Arlette, wearing her official costume, was soon back in the field, joining Alpha Flight on a rescue mission when a town in Newfoundland was flooded. When Vindicator was washed away, and the team couldn't find her, Arlette made a pass at Guardian, suggesting that they should admit that Vindicator was gone. Guardian, however, refused to give up on his estranged wife and went to find her. [Alpha Flight / Inhumans Annual 1998]

Arlette's return to the field was only temporary, and she continued to recover and spend time with Ghost Girl. Trouble brewed for Alpha Flight and Department H when the surviving original Alpha Flight team made a return, and the devious Dr. Huxley's experiment, a new Weapon X, was on the loose. Murmur joined her teammates on the mission to find Weapon X and proved a valuable asset when she touched Huxley, forcing him to reveal that Weapon X was headed for an atomic incinerator called the Hellpounder. When a battle with the original Alpha Flight broke out, Murmur found herself going up against Aurora, who dropped her from a great height. Fortunately for Murmur, Vindicator was on hand to save her once again. When Guardian attempted to contain a blast from the Hellpounder, he wasn't sure that he would be able to do it. Murmur was at his side and touched him, telling him to “believe” and thus enabling him to contain the blast. [Alpha Flight (2nd series) #18-20]

In the aftermath of the battle against Weapon X and the return of the original Alpha Flight, the team was restructured. Murmur quickly found herself part of a trainee squad, a new Beta Flight, alongside Radius, Ghost Girl and Flex. [Wolverine (2nd series) #142] However, this team was apparently short-lived, with members leaving and being killed in battle, including both of Murmur's potential love interests, Radius and the Guardian clone. When the tragedy known as “M-Day” struck, Murmur was one of the mutants who lost their powers. [New Avengers (1st series) #18] Given Murmur's claim that without Alpha Flight she has nothing, it's unknown what she is doing with a regular life. Perhaps, that, and the origins of her fear of bugs, are to remain a mystery.