Shaman

Real Name: Michael Twoyoungmen
Code Name: Shaman
Affiliation: Alpha Flight

Michael Twoyoungmen was born to the Sacree nation of Canada's indigenous peoples. He however left his people to become one of Canada's greatest surgeons. He married a woman named Kathryn and they had a daughter named Elizabeth. It came to pass that he lived next to the McNeil family and so met the young Heather McNeil. It also came to pass that Michael's wife developed cancer but being the leading surgeon that he was he promised his daughter that he could save her. Unfortunately she died and Michael's daughter blamed him for her mother's death. Young Elizabeth moved in with the McNeils and grew up with Heather. Michael went on to become a recluse and for years lived this way until finally he opened the gift that his grandfather had left for him. What he found was the skull of his grandfather (morbid eh?) and a magical medicine bag. His grandfathers spirit was kept on the earthly plain through this skull and went on to train Michael Twoyoungmen in the arts and disciplines of being a shaman of his tribe.

His training came to the test when he was summoned by the ancient Inuit gods to birth the young godling Narya and bond her to the land. Being successful in his task he then raised the shapeshifter who grew at an accelerated rate. When his old friend Heather McNeil Hudson dropped by with her husband Narya's secret was discovered and both were convinced to join Department H.

When the funding for Department H was cut Shaman stayed with the team and helped in the battles with the great beasts and then even inducted his own daughter in the team as the Talisman. His daughter and he were distant though and the conflict between them remained largely unresolved. This led to the possesion of Snowbird's baby and the eventual death of Snowbird's entire family. There was a point in the run of the comic wher Shaman himself actually possesed the Talisman powers but that was short lived and they were returned to Liz not being meant for him. The guilt over putting his daughter into the role of Talisman is always foremost in Michael's mind even though it was her destiny. This guilt will make him at times very distant from the rest of the team and even moody and brooding.

Recently Shaman has not rejoined the ranks of the new Alpha Flight though he has made a brief appearance. Rumor has it that mystics and mysticism is not going to be a part of the new title so don't look for him to be joining up anytime soon. Of course now the new title is gone and the old team is back together, go figure.

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