Miracles of Arx Nubibus Characters: Prime

I'm back! Sorry about missing a month there. January just sucked in general, so to make up for it February will get two Mimi's Diary entries. Life was...fun.

So I guess that makes this the first diary entry of 2026! And since in the last one, I decided to spite my editor by writing an entire post on Light Master, this time I'll be writing a post on the other guy I was supposed to not have enough material to write a single post on.

Say hi to Brennan Zavala everyone! Or, you'd probably know him better as Prime. Prime the Forever Young, who joined Achilles' Legion and never actually left.

Well, as of the story right now, he's a bit stuck. But that only serves to further showcase his strength!

The inspiration for Prime was fairly simple. At the point he was introduced in the story, I already knew that Joey and Courtney would have a falling out with Achilles and ditch the Legion, so I needed someone other than Tanner to join up so there would actually be people on Achilles' team. My editor likes Prime as a levelheaded counterbalance to the more hotheaded Achilles and Light Master, and I think he makes a great second-in-command.

As for where he came from, well, Prime is a wrestler who's been aged out of the system. As much as he loves the sport, his body just can't keep up with the younger ones. Sports are intensive, and Brennan's already in his mid-thirties or so. He's one of the older hero characters in the story (though Bruce and Jo are still older than him) but still fairly young when you consider the expected human lifespan.

I suppose he's a 'tragic' story of a man removed from his place when he still had so much more to offer. At least, that's probably how our friend in purple saw it, which would be why Brennan got a Miracle when he did.

Each Miracle is informed by the situation and desires of the person who receives it, though most of the time Purple chooses an extreme situation for a problem. Joey fell off a bridge, so Purple made sure he'd never take fall damage again (can you tell I'm a gamer?). Achilles wanted to be an invincible hero, so he became invincible. Cleo was missing her dad, so she got an overkill solution in the ability to teleport to him whenever she wanted.

As for Prime, he was expelled for his waning physical abilities, so Purple gave him a Miracle that made sure those abilities would never fade.

Purple will eventually get their own entry, but for now I need to leave them a bit of a mystery, so let's get back to Prime.

He's one of the more subdued heroes in that his abilities don't come from his Miracle. The Miracle simply keeps him from suffering the effects that aging can have on deteriorating tissues. Everything he does as a hero is the result of his own hard-won strength. The skills he employed as a wrestler are what make him able to fight off bad guys. Not his Miracle. In that way, he's unique and similar to Courtney (though she does get her super speed which puts her at a completely different level than everyone else).

Even if all Miracles disappeared tomorrow, Prime would still be more or less the same. He'd probably do well in the military in that case. He'd just have to learn how to use the military equipment, learn the rules and he'd be good to go. Physical fitness-wise, he's at the top.

Prime's story also reflects to a certain extent the obsession our culture seems to have with youth. People want to look younger, and I keep hearing that getting old sucks. But if it sucks so much, why do people keep doing it? Age brings with it certain benefits. You generally have a better perspective on life, and more confidence in yourself. Your expertise gives you an advantage over more inexperienced youths. There's a reason we appreciate 'old masters' of a craft.

Brennan doesn't yet realize just how valuable he still is, even if he was 'cast aside for being too old'. His levelheadedness is something that I think came from being one of the oldest members of the Legion, and it makes him extremely valuable. Just look at what happens when he gets taken out of the Legion - everything falls apart!

Anyway, I think that might be all I have to say on Prime. Editor's Challenge # 2: Complete! Next Mimi's Diary will be up on Feb 20 or so. I'll see you then.

Editors note: I feel that talking about Purple as much as she did proves my point about Prime not having a lot going for him. So I'll accept a draw.