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Everyone has their baggage. [...] But this is a fresh start, understand? I’m pretty mellow, believe it or not, but I’m going to be upset if I hear that anyone’s holding any of that stuff against a teammate, or if you’re letting it hold you back. Understand? This is a second chance for everyone. You’re here to support one another.

—Hero to Chevalier, Reed, and Mouse Protector, Interlude 24.x

Hero was one of the founding members of the Protectorate.

Personality[]

Hero was a genial, encouraging man who secretly supplied the first Wards team with video games and movies so that they could have an enjoyable pastime between their work as heroes and after school.[5][6]

Riddled with health problems from an early age, Hero considered Cauldron heroes after the formula they gave him cured his illnesses.[2]

He had a leadership position in the early Protectorate, even though he believed that he would not be suited to one.[7]

Appearance[]

Hero had blond hair.[2] He wore a golden helmet and body armor with blue chain mesh,[8][9] or blue body armor with gold detailing, depending on the year. The PRT emblem was worked into one shoulder, with wings drawing attention to it.[10]

His helmet had a golden, heavily tinted visor, and could be removed while leaving the visor in place.[10]

Abilities and Powers[]

Hero was considered to be the preeminent Tinker of his day. Hero's specialization was not known because he lived before Tinker specializations were considered, but Legend correctly theorized that Hero specialized in wavelength manipulation,[3] similar to the stilling powers that Zion and Eden employed, with broad applications stemming from few restrictions on his shard.[11] His creations included a helmet-camera, a disintegration gun, a jetpack, sonic weapons, small, surprisingly effective power sources and explosives,[7] a raygun, and jet boots.[10]

History[]

Background[]

For much of his early life, he was beset with terminal health problems such as organ problems, diabetes, tremors, and chronic headaches until an unmitigated Cauldron formula cured him of his illnesses. He developed diabetes at 22. He was one of the earliest Cauldron capes, shortly after Scion's first sightings in 1982.[2]

Career[]

Hero was said to have been the first real tinker.[7]

In 1988, Hero was introduced to Alexandria and agreed to her idea of forming a government-regulated superhero team with Cauldron's backing.

Hero was present when Behemoth emerged for the first time in 1992.

In 1993, he was sworn in alongside Alexandria, Legend, and Eidolon as one of the founding members of the Protectorate.

On September 15, 2000, Siberian bisected him in a confrontation between her and the core Protectorate. Eidolon attempted to heal Hero, but he ultimately died.[12]

Legacy[]

His loss splintered the Triumvirate, resulting in the members going their separate ways.[13]

Hero remained in the public eye even after his death, recognized as both the first Tinker and one of the best. Because of this, other Tinkers, such as Kid Win, strive to emulate his model.[7]

Chapter Appearances[]

Worm Chapter Appearances
Snare
1. Snare 13.1 Absent
2. Snare 13.2 Absent
x. Interlude 13.5 (Donation Bonus) Absent
3. Snare 13.3 Absent
4. Snare 13.4 Absent
5. Snare 13.5 Absent
6. Snare 13.6 Absent
7. Snare 13.7 Absent
8. Snare 13.8 Absent
9. Snare 13.9 Absent
10. Snare 13.10 Absent
y. Interlude 13 Screen
Prey
1. Prey 14.1 Absent
2. Prey 14.2 Absent
3. Prey 14.3 Absent
4. Prey 14.4 Absent
5. Prey 14.5 Absent
6. Prey 14.6 Absent
7. Prey 14.7 Absent
8. Prey 14.8 Absent
9. Prey 14.9 Absent
10. Prey 14.10 Absent
11. Prey 14.11 Absent
x. Interlude 14.x Absent
y. Interlude 14.y Mentioned
Colony
1. Colony 15.1 Absent
x. Interlude 15.x Absent
2. Colony 15.2 Absent
3. Colony 15.3 Absent
y. Interlude 15.y Absent
4. Colony 15.4 Absent
5. Colony 15.5 Absent
6. Colony 15.6 Absent
7. Colony 15.7 Absent
z. Interlude 15.z Appears
8. Colony 15.8 Absent
9. Colony 15.9 Absent
10. Colony 15.10 Absent
i. Interlude 15 Absent
Imago
1. Imago 21.1 Absent
2. Imago 21.2 Absent
3. Imago 21.3 Absent
4. Imago 21.4 Absent
5. Imago 21.5 Absent
6. Imago 21.6 Absent
7. Imago 21.7 Absent
x. Interlude 21.x Mentioned
y. Interlude 21.y Absent
Cell
1. Cell 22.1 Absent
2. Cell 22.2 Absent
3. Cell 22.3 Absent
4. Cell 22.4 Mentioned
5. Cell 22.5 Absent
6. Cell 22.6 Absent
x. Interlude 22.x Absent
y. Interlude 22.y Absent
Crushed
1. Crushed 24.1 Absent
2. Crushed 24.2 Absent
3. Crushed 24.3 Absent
4. Crushed 24.4 Absent
5. Crushed 24.5 Absent
x. Interlude 24.x Flashback
y. Interlude 24.y Absent
Extinction
1. Extinction 27.1 Absent
2. Extinction 27.2 Absent
3. Extinction 27.3 Absent
4. Extinction 27.4 Absent
5. Extinction 27.5 Absent
x. Interlude 27.x Mentioned
y. Interlude 27.y Absent
Venom
1. Venom 29.1 Absent
2. Venom 29.2 Absent
3. Venom 29.3 Absent
4. Venom 29.4 Absent
5. Venom 29.5 Absent
6. Venom 29.6 Absent
7. Venom 29.7 Absent
8. Venom 29.8 Absent
9. Venom 29.9 Absent
x. Interlude 29 Appears

Fanart Gallery[]

References[]

  1. September 15th, 2000 - Interlude 15.z
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 “Hey,” the blond guy said, “I spent my entire life with this heart problem, you know? Heart going a little too fast, reedy, thin heartbeat. Reminding me it could pop at any moment. Organs are garbage, diabetes at twenty-two, liver problems turn me yellow if I’m not careful, throwing up bile every morning and every night. Every moment of every day, there’s something making me miserable. Except, right now, I’m sort of feeling every part of my body, and the heart’s good, no headache, nothing in my throat, nothing in my gut. No tremor in my hand…” - Excerpt from Interlude 29
  3. 3.0 3.1 “He was the first real tinker, you know.”

    “Before we knew tinkers have specializations,” Kid Win added.

    “I’ve thought about it.  The disintegration gun, the jetpack, the sonic weapons, the power sources and explosives that were surprisingly effective for their size.  I suspect his specialty tied into manipulating and enhancing wavelengths and frequencies.” - Excerpt from Interlude 14.y 
  4. Ridtoria: Since the original group has been disbanded/killed, if you would mind bow, how did the Triumvirate+Hero (I guess just Protectorate) function as a team in the early days? Did they stick to their singular cities and occasionally team up for big events, or did they travel around the nation with Cauldron's help to promote themselves in heroics?

    Wildbow: One city as HQ, traveling to sites as situations demanded. - Conversation with Wildbow on IRC, archived on Spacebattles
  5. Interlude 24.x
  6. Wildbow: I think Hero was a genuinely good guy. He was genuinely interested in doing good and addressing problems, and his particular stance and focus could have put Cauldron on a different tilt, more focused on improving things than on surviving.

    Wildbow: He was angry when we see him because he was starting to plant his feet and get ready to push for better things. Not happy with the direction things were taking, and savvy enough to see hints of the problems in Cauldron's approach. - Wildbow on the IRC, archived on Spacebattles
  7. 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Interlude 14.y
  8. Kid Win smiled a little.

    “You remind me of Hero.”

    [...]

    “I sort of modeled myself after him.”

    Legend studied the boy.  Red and gold body armor and a red-tinted visor.  There were additions that seemed to be more recent, judging by the lack of wear and tear, but if he looked past those, if he imagined the boy with a helmet covering that brown wavy hair, replaced the red with blue chain mesh, he could see the resemblance. - Excerpt from Interlude 14.y
  9. The Protectorate had been smaller, then. The lead group had consisted of four members. Legend, Alexandria, Eidolon and Hero. Hero had been the first tinker to take the spotlight, so early to the game that he could get away with taking a name that basic and iconic. He’d sported golden armor, a jetpack, and a tool for every occasion. His career had been cut short when Siberian tore him limb from limb in a sudden frenzy of blood and savagery. He’d been scooped up by Eidolon, who tried to heal him, who continued to hold the man as he joined in the ensuing conflict. - Excerpt from 13.x (Interlude; Piggot)
  10. 10.0 10.1 10.2 Hero has body armor in blue with gold detailing or vice versa, depending on the year, with a jetpack, ray guns, jet boots, etc. Lighter than Iron Man armor, but more in that direction than power armor (which would be more like you might see a WH40k space marine wearing).
    Visor, gold & heavily tinted, built into a helmet, which can be removed while leaving the visor in place.
    PRT emblem would be worked in via. gold, with wings peeling off of the sides of the logo & drawing attention to it, at one shoulder. - Wildbow on Reddit
  11. Keep in mind that wavelengths are reference specifically by Scion in relation to Jack and Jack's secondary power. They're also mentioned frequently in the context of Scion - ripples and waves. Finally, it's also suggested that they didn't even really realize he had a focus at all - he was broad in what he could do.
    Do you see how these ideas connect?
    Eden was the scholar, Scion the soldier. They had the same tools, but empathized different ones. So picture Eden taking the primary tools that Scion had and giving them to a tinker so the human could use human ingenuity to explore those tools. Naturally it would be paced out by needing to design and tinker and find materials, using those materials in a sorta kludgy way (ie. have to carry the items, pull triggers, type stuff in), and would have some limitations she tacked on. Except she broke down before she could tailor the restriction part, leading to a vial giving some Scion Lite tools to an otherwise unrestricted tinker, who then joined/helped form an organization that gave him endless materials. That's Hero. - Reddit comment by Wildbow
  12. Interlude 15.z
  13. Around the time that they were a group, they were simply 'the Protectorate' or 'the guys at the top'. You could say, perhaps, that the loss of Hero splintered the team. They didn't hate each other or resent each other, but it was about time, and served as the catalyst to the group each going to their own individual cities - New York, LA, & Houston. - Wildbow on Reddit

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