Case 53

Case 53s, known to Cauldron as Deviants<ref name ="I28">Interlude 28</ref> or Subjects,<ref name="11.7"/> were amnesiac parahumans with severe physical alterations, branded with a "C". They were so-called because their origin was the 53rd anomalous case investigated by the PRT.<ref name ="I28">Interlude 28</ref>

Image from user darchiasq on spacebattles

Details

Case 53s were found in out of the way locations in urban areas across North America. They all had retrograde amnesia, with their first memories being waking up in a strange city.<ref name="5.x">Interlude 5</ref>

All Case 53s were marked with the same brand, tattoo, or mark; resembling variously a stylized 'C', 'u' or Omega.

All Case 53s were monstrous in appearance, though exceptions like Shamrock exist. As the years passed Case 53's were increasingly less "monstrous" as time went on. Faultline estimated that four out of five monstrous parahumans were Case 53s.<ref name="5.x">Interlude 5</ref>

Examples


Gregor the Snail Gentle Giant Gully Matryoshka Newter Nyx Sveta Sanguine Shamrock Trainwreck Weld

Origin

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Case 53s were the results of experiments by Cauldron, successful in creating parahumans who did not immediately die from their physical mutations. They had their memories erased by the Slug to prevent them from sharing Cauldron's secrets, and Cauldron's symbol (a "C" drawn to resemble a stylized cauldron) branded or tattooed onto them with a microscopic ID number.<ref name="SB1">Comment by Wildbow on Spacebattles</ref>

Case 53s were usually taken from situations where they were about to die, their injuries healed or compensated for by their powers.<ref name="15.z">Interlude 15.z</ref> Cauldron would experiment on these "subjects" by giving them doses of formula to test the results.<ref name="11.7"/><ref name ="I28"/> Only two in five survived.<ref name="11.7"/> Those who were physically transformed, becoming monsters, were known as "deviations" or "deviant cases" regardless of whether they were test subjects or customers. This possibility could be reduced using the balance formula, but it also reduced the strength of the resulting powers.<ref name ="I28">Interlude 28</ref>

Only about two-thirds of Case 53s are monstrous.<ref name="15.z"/> Some Case 53s were put towards the "Nemesis program", released with their memories erased<ref name="11.7"/> and key weaknesses inserted into their psyches.<ref name="15.z"/> Having noticed that Scion reacted aversively to some Cauldron capes, Cauldron deliberately spread Case 53s in areas where they were active, in order to distract him.<ref name="29.6">Venom 29.6</ref> Less than a hundred "deviants" were released onto Earth Bet.<ref name ="I28"/> The vast majority were kept as prisoners in the Cauldron Compound.<ref name="15.z"/> Some of them became Cauldron operatives.<ref name="11.7"/>

Case 53's are harder to predict with prescient powers than other capes.^{[citation needed]} Like all Cauldron capes, they had a far lesser tendency toward conflict than natural triggers.<ref name="SB2">Comment by Wildbow on Spacebattles</ref><ref name="R1">Comment by Wildbow on Would You Take a Drink? on Reddit</ref><ref name="R2">Comment by Wildbow on Did Canary's shard...? on Reddit</ref>

References