Sebastian Faust
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Sebastian Faust | |
 Cover to Outsiders (vol. 2) #1 Alpha, the first appearance of Sebastian Faust. Art by Travis Charest |
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| Publication information | |
|---|---|
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | Outsiders (vol. 2) #1 Alpha |
| Created by | Mike Barr and Paul Pelletier |
| In story information | |
| Team affiliations | Checkmate Outsiders Sentinels of Magic |
| Notable aliases | Faust |
| Abilities | Magic |
Sebastian Faust, codenamed Faust, is a fictional character, a comic book superhero from DC Comics, loosely based on the character of the same name from Faustian myth. He was introduced in the 1993 Outsiders comic book series.
Sebastian Faust is the son of the evil magician Felix Faust. His soul was sold by his father to a demon named Nebiros in exchange for power, but the demon cheats and grants the power to Sebastian instead of his father.
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[edit] Fictional Character Biography
Faust works with the Outsiders for some time. He originally assists the team when they reformed under the threat of a vampire invasion of the country of Markovia. When Technocrat's bodyguard Charlie Wylde was attacked by a bear, Faust saves the man's life by merging the bear and guard together. This does not go well, as the bear's violent side would result in the deaths of innocent Markovian soldiers, who believed they were simply arresting assassins. Wylde would go on to fight and lose against his bestial half, eventually ending up in a zoo, tormented by Sebastian's sister, Fauna.
The Outsiders are on the run for some time, having been framed by the head vampire, Roderick, for the murder of the traitorous Queen Ilona. It is not known at the time that Ilona is guilty of tring to kill the Outsiders. Eventually the team clears their names.
Faust is not trusted by many of his teammates. Despite this, he develops a romantic relationship with the innocent Halo. Soon, Felix, along with Sebastian's sister, attacks the team, drawing them into a different dimension. The team suffers various extreme tortures, surviving only due to the flexible laws of reality in this realm. Faust leads an escape attempt that culminates when Halo, who had not been captured, neutralizes Felix's power objects. This freezes Faust's realm, allowing everyone to go home. After the team breaks up, Faust tries to pursue a solo career.
[edit] Day of Judgement
During the 1999 DC Comics crossover event called Day of Judgement, Faust joins with other magical characters of the DC Universe to form the Sentinels of Magic. The denziens of Hell had invaded Earth, led by Asmodel with the power of Spectre. Faust then teams up with a varied group of superheroes, including Atom, Superman, Firestorm and Enchantress. They travel to Hell itself and eventually, to the City of Dis, Hell's center of power, in order to relight its fires. During the trip, the heroes are temporarily trapped under the frozen River Styx. Faust manages to rescue Enchantress first, as since he has no soul, he was not tormented by the river's waters. The two discuss the situation and then get to work on the others.
During the trip to Dis, Faust reveals he was a good friend of Dante, from Dante's Inferno. Inside the city, the heroes discover the demon Nebiros, who has stayed behind the guard the frozen fires. In battle, Faust releases Blue Devil whose bones he had apparently bought from a mysterious marketplace. Nebiros is slain, due to Firestorm changing the water in his body to cement. Faust regains his soul.
The combined forces of the superheros were not enough to relight the fires. Faust and the powerful Enchantress realize what must be done. Faust swiftly murders the Enchantress, losing his soul, restarting the fires and saving the Earth all at once.
[edit] Black Baptism
Faust next appears during the Black Baptism event. Over the course of the story, he works both with and against the Justice League, before ultimately tapping the souls of the JLA in order to stop the mighty sorcerer Hermes Trismesgustus. Faust, living in the old Detroit headquarters of the Justice League of America, came to realize his newfound friend, Blue Devil, was only staying with him because of the magical nature of his revival. Not willing to risk Blue Devil's safety, he eliminates the magical connection by plunging the last of Blue Devil's bones into his back. Following the battles, wherein he even tapped the soul of the insane Joker, Faust fakes the death of both himself and his father, although Batman suspects as much. Blue Devil soon does die in battle against Hermes but does come back.
Faust and Felix have begun to repair their relationship, but there is still the fundamental problem that Sebastian is a hero and Felix is a villain.
[edit] Checkmate
Though Sebastian does not appear, in Checkmate #17, Carl Draper mentions that he was brought in as a consultant to lay down magical safeguards to help defend Checkmate's HQ, the Castle. In #24 of the same series, Faust is revealed as one of the organization's "Rooks."
[edit] Powers and abilities
Sebastian Faust possesses magical powers of an unclear nature. He is often reluctant to use them as experience has taught him that power always demands a price. In addition to his vast magical power, he's also able to steal the souls of others, granting him their abilities and powers, as well as recharging his magical mana.
Faust has applied his magic in a wide variety of ways, including but not limited to: healing, regeneration, matter transformation, teleportation, scrying, and polymorphing.
