Triton, a member of the Royal Family of the Inhumans, is an amphibious member of his hidden race. Growing up as the only one of his kind with a need to live in water most of the time, he feels the burden of isolation. Later, he comes to breathe outside water with the help of an artificial breathing apparatus.
As cousin to Black Bolt, King of the Inhumans, he dutifully carries out his role as an undersea scout and supports the Royal Family against foes like his cousin Maximus the Mad and the sorceress Morgan Le Fay.
Amphibious Inhuman
Triton is a member of the Inhumans, a sub-species of humanity from the city Attilan that was diverged through Kree experiments. Early in the 20th century, the philosopher priest Mander and his biologist wife, Azur, members of the Royal Family, broke tradition and put their one-year-old son, Triton, through Terrigenesis to unlock his super powered potential.
The Inhumans were unaware that their new forms sometimes resembled aliens the Kree had encountered, as their creators had hoped to better infiltrate those races. Post exposure, Triton’s form adapted for an aquatic existence—with a piscine appearance matching the alien Pelagians, and no longer able to breathe air. He must wear a cumbersome breathing apparatus that allows him to survive out of water.
To better care for him, Triton’s mother, Azur, retrained in marine biology to live underwater in a specially designed alcove on Attilan’s shore, an island off Atlantis’ coast. When Triton’s brother Karnak was born, he was spared Terrigenesis to avoid similarly detrimental results. Azur died in an undersea mishap with Triton when he was at the tumultuous age of fourteen.
As the only amphibious Inhuman at this time, Triton grew up feeling isolated, emotionally and physically, but drawn to the oceans. But he also needed to be around his people. To service this duality, at age eighteen, Triton became an undersea scout, monitoring human oceangoing traffic nearby.
Triton was the first Inhuman to leave Attilan, and when he did so he encountered humans for the first time. He unwittingly disrupted an underwater movie shoot, was captured, and taken to Manhattan where he broke free and received a fearful reception from every human he met. Returning to Attilan, he warned his king and cousin, Black Bolt, about humanity’s paranoia, prompting the silent monarch to relocate the entire island to The Great Refuge, located in a more isolated area of the Himalayas.