| Sebastian Faust | |
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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, or simply Faust, is a fictional character, a comic book superhero from DC Comics, loosely based on the protagonist of the German legend who sold his soul to the Devil. He was introduced in the 1993 Outsiders comic book series.
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.
Faust possesses magical powers of an unclear nature. In addition to his vast magical power, he is also able to steal the souls of others, granting him their abilities and powers, as well as recharging his magical powers.
Faust has applied his magic in a wide variety of ways, including healing, regeneration, matter transformation, teleportation, scrying, and polymorphing.
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Faust works with the Outsiders, assisting the team when they reformed under the threat of a vampire invasion of Markovia. When Technocrat's bodyguard Charlie Wylde is attacked by a bear, Faust saves him by merging the bear and guard together. However, the bear's violent side results in the deaths of innocent Markovian soldiers. Wylde goes on to fight and lose against his bestial half, and ends 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 that Ilona is trying 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 Fauna, attacks the team, drawing them into a different dimension. The team suffers various tortures, and survives only due to the flexible laws of reality in this realm. Faust leads an escape attempt. After the team breaks up, Faust tries to pursue a solo career.
During the 1999 DC Comics crossover event, Day of Judgment, Faust joins with other magical characters of the DC Universe to form the Sentinels of Magic. The denizens of Hell have invaded Earth, led by Asmodel with the power of Spectre. Faust 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 is not tormented by the river's waters.
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 superheroes 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.
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 their souls to stop the mighty sorcerer Hermes Trismegistus. Faust comes to realize his newfound friend, Blue Devil, is 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, Faust fakes the death of both himself and his father. Blue Devil soon dies in battle against Hermes but is revived.
Faust and Felix repair their relationship, but it is still plagued by the problem that Faust is a hero and Felix is a villain.
Though Faust 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 issue #24 of the series, Faust is revealed as one of the organization's "Rooks."