Born to Atlanna (Queen of
Poseidonis) and Atlan (a long-lived warrior-mage), a young child was born with blond hair.
Blond hair in a member of the royal family was believed to be a mark of the Curse of
Kordax, an ancient evil wizard. Abandoned on a coral reef by his mother’s husband,
who knew the child was not his, this young child did not die, for the curse had given him
the ability to breathe air as well as water. He also gained the ability to communicate
with sea creature. It was this ability that save the young infant, as a mother dolphin
heard his cries and adopted him into her family. He grew into his teens with the dolphins
and was eventually told that he was a human. Isolating himself and becoming more and more
the loner, the boy left the dolphins that raised him. He began to watch humans, eventually
following a ship to a lighthouse. It was here he met the a solitary lighthouse keeper
named Arthur Curry, who all but adopted the young man, teaching him English and about the
surface world. The young man took up the name Arthur Jr in honor of his father and lived
with him for a few years. He left Arthur Curry to find his dolphin family and returned to
the lighthouse to find it destroyed. Angry at the surface world that killed his father and
feeling lonlier than ever, Arthur spent the next few years in solotude, swimming the
waves. Arthur eventually came upon a domed city where he was captured and imprisoned. It
was there, as a slave in the salt mines, where Arthur met a scientist named Vulko who
spoke English and taught Arthur the language and customsof the Atlanteans. Arthur later
escaped the prison and fled the domed city, deciding that the people who lived under the
seas were no better than the surface dwellers. Arthur spent another few years in solitude,
living with the animals and acting as their guardian. He became a legend among the
fisherman whose nets he destroyed. It was then that Arthur met another air-breather, who
like his adopted father, would change his life: Barry Allen, the second Flash. After
helping the Flash to stop a criminal, he was dubbed Aquaman by the media. He then became a
founder of the first incarnation of the JLA.
He later returned to Poseidonsis, finding things had changed greatly. Arthur’s escape
had spurred a revolt against the tyrant who ruled, led by Vulko who had been jailed for
his loyalty to the old king. Arthur’s suprise was increasted when Vulko told him that
his mother had been queen and he was rightful heir to the throne! Shortly after becoming
king, Arthur adopted Garth; a wanderer who in time became Aqualad. He also married Mera,
queen of the Waterworld of another deminsion. The two eventually had a son, Arthur III,
who was the spitting image of his father. Arthur balanced his time between being a king
and being a hero until the later began to destroy the former. One of Aquaman’s
enemies, the Black Manta, killed Arthur III. Blaming his life as Aquaman for the death,
Mera left Arthur and a melancholy king abandoned his throne and went away for a time.
Finally, the sea king was captured by the madman Charybdis and lost his right hand to a
horde of piranah as the villian tried to absorb Aquaman’s powers. Procuring a
prosthetic harpoon hand from STAR Labs, Aquaman reclaimed his throne and resolved to focus
upon ruling his kingdom. Arthur has since then rejoined the JLA, making it clear that his
main priority is protecting his kingdom from larger threats. Still, he has confessed to
Zauriel that another reason for his presence on the new team is a desire to get closer to
Wonder Woman.
Born to Atlanna (Queen of
Poseidonis) and Atlan (a long-lived warrior-mage), a young child was born with blond hair.
Blond hair in a member of the royal family was believed to be a mark of the Curse of
Kordax, an ancient evil wizard. Abandoned on a coral reef by his mother’s husband,
who knew the child was not his, this young child did not die, for the curse had given him
the ability to breathe air as well as water. He also gained the ability to communicate
with sea creature. It was this ability that save the young infant, as a mother dolphin
heard his cries and adopted him into her family. He grew into his teens with the dolphins
and was eventually told that he was a human. Isolating himself and becoming more and more
the loner, the boy left the dolphins that raised him. He began to watch humans, eventually
following a ship to a lighthouse. It was here he met the a solitary lighthouse keeper
named Arthur Curry, who all but adopted the young man, teaching him English and about the
surface world. The young man took up the name Arthur Jr in honor of his father and lived
with him for a few years. He left Arthur Curry to find his dolphin family and returned to
the lighthouse to find it destroyed. Angry at the surface world that killed his father and
feeling lonlier than ever, Arthur spent the next few years in solotude, swimming the
waves. Arthur eventually came upon a domed city where he was captured and imprisoned. It
was there, as a slave in the salt mines, where Arthur met a scientist named Vulko who
spoke English and taught Arthur the language and customsof the Atlanteans. Arthur later
escaped the prison and fled the domed city, deciding that the people who lived under the
seas were no better than the surface dwellers. Arthur spent another few years in solitude,
living with the animals and acting as their guardian. He became a legend among the
fisherman whose nets he destroyed. It was then that Arthur met another air-breather, who
like his adopted father, would change his life: Barry Allen, the second Flash. After
helping the Flash to stop a criminal, he was dubbed Aquaman by the media. He then became a
founder of the first incarnation of the JLA.