From Unofficial Handbook of the Virtue Universe

Cabal by Poison
Cabal
Player: @Bladedancer13
Origin:	Magic
Archetype:	Tanker
Security Level:	unknown
Personal Data
Real Name:	Darthaman Arsteele
Known Aliases:	none
Species:	Undead Human
Age:	1264
Height:	5' 9"
Weight:	180 lbs
Eye Color:	White (no pupils) / Red (powers in use)
Hair Color:	Black
Biographical Data
Nationality:	English
Occupation:	Founding Member of the Justice Force
Place of Birth:	York, england
Base of Operations:	Paragon City
Marital Status:	Single
Known Relatives:	none
Known Powers
Super Agility, Strength, Stamina; Invulnerability, enhanced vision, regeneration, Paralysis. Cabal’s paralysis power is caused by a side effect that he gained from the loss of his soul, which he calls his “Soul Gaze”
Known Abilities
Over the centuries, Cabal has accumulated many skills and abilities that he draws upon. Among them are: Martial Arts (Shinjorki Kempo), various “thieving” skills, fencing, art and gem appraisal, and several languages,
Equipment
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No additional information available.

Story

Cabal was a "prince among thieves" in the 8th century. He was one of the best, and everyone knew it. One day an extremely prosperous, yet, desperate individual contacted him. This individual wanted him to steal a book known as the Necronomicon, from a religious sect, known as the Order of the Dark Circle. Knowing that the followers of this religion often killed anyone stupid enough to cross them, Cabal replied,

"Ok I'll do it for 1 billion gold crowns", not expecting the man to accept.

Immediately the man agreed, much to Cabal's dismay.

Being a man of honor, more concerned about his reputation than his word, he prepared for the biggest heist of his life, not knowing how it was going to change his life forever.

Arriving at the temple, he cased the area, noting the patrols, weaknesses in the security, and any escape routes that he might have to use. He planned for nearly a month, and on the night of the new moon, he entered the temple. Getting into the temple seemed far too easy, even for him. He came upon the podium holding the Necronomicon but it was surrounded by a moat of a blood. Human blood. He knew that the podium would be booby-trapped, so he decided to swing and grab the item, so that he would not be in the area of effect of any traps that may go off.

It took him only a few minutes to rig up a rope with a grapple hook, and throw it up into the rafters of the temple. After testing the strength of the rope's purchase, it was time to try for the book. Cabal swung out over the podium, and grabbed the book. Unfortunately, the Necronomicon didn’t move, even though he had a solid grip on it. He found himself hanging over the platform with the podium, hands around the Necronomicon. Not good

He felt the ground under his feet begin to move, and looked down. The platform had begun to sink. Frantically he tried to get the book out of its bindings. He got it out just as his feet were touched by the first of the blood from the moat. He decided to try and jump for it but in the very last second before his feet left the ground a tentacle reached out of the blood and entangled his leg. Now he thought he was in serious trouble. He was being dragged into the blood mote. He looked around frantically for something to grab on to. The rope was the only thing close but it was out of reach. As he found himself being dragged down further into the blood he noticed that the mouth on the cover of the Necronomicon was opening up. That was the last thing he would see before he would be dragged completely into the blood moat. Having but only the most insane chance of survival in mind, he placed his mouth over the mouth of the book. Hoping that the small amount of air inside the mouth of the book would be enough to keep him from drowning.

He awoke, surrounded by several priests in blood red cloaks. Seeing that they had the book in their possession, Cabal figured that his fate was sealed.

Surprisingly, one of the priests spoke,

"You have been chosen by the Necronomicon! You have been blessed by its power. Now rise and join us brother."

Still believing that he was a dead man, he decided to try and finish the job. He grabbed the Necronomicon and ran. Fully expecting to be stabbed in the back or turned into a frog or some other terrible fate he ran and ran. Nothing happened and for three days straight he ran nonstop. After about a week he finally found his employer, and was given his payment. He handed the book over to his employer, never wanting to see it ever again.

At once his employer tried to open the book, but when he tried, the book began to change him. And change him it did. It started to burn him from the inside out. Within seconds the man was nothing more than dust on the floor. With the Necronomicon lying on the floor in front of him Cabal decided to try and get rid of the book forever. Later that night, he took the book out into the Sea and threw it overboard praying that no one would ever find it again.

Cabal would spend the next 3 months transporting money and fortune to his home in the islands of northern Britain. During the last transport of the gold, the ship ran into a storm and with all of the added weight of the gold the ship was taking on too much water because it was sitting too deep in the water. The ship sunk with the final load of treasure, and all hands.

As the years passed, Cabal realized that he wasn't aging like other people. This concerned him so he decided to try and find out what all had been changed about him. He started testing his physical abilities and noticed that he could lift more than any human could. In fact he could lift more than several men. He also found out that he much more agile than before. That was saying a lot, because he had always been very quick before, due to his training as a thief. He also seemed to be completely unharmed by all but the most extreme damage. He also realized that he could react faster to surprises than normal people.

About this time in his life, he noticed that people were always nervous except those who were constantly around him. So he watched people and he realized they were almost always afraid to be near him. He realized that this was part of the curse that was his new life.

Cabal spent several years debating on his situation. He became a hermit of sorts, and never really interacted with other people. It was during this time when he found out he could alter his appearance, at will. This would allow him to go out into the world, incognito so that he wouldn't be hunted down for being a witch or warlock. Because of this new development, he decided to travel to see the world.

During his 28th year in his travels he come across a land known as China. He would visit the land for many years and would spend several years in training, learning Shinjorki Kempo. Learning a discipline such as this forced him to reconsider his place in the world. He decided that he would mend his tarnished ways, and become an upstanding person, and try to bring justice and peace to the world. His studies would be a major factor in keeping him “in line” over the next millennium. He would return to his home in Northern England after many years, a master of the martial arts.

One day while sitting in his home, a visitor arrived, claiming to have found his lost treasure, the lost treasures that had been thrown overboard, in a vain attempt to keep the ship afloat, during it's trip to England, so many years ago. The visitor was dressed as a priest of the modern Dark Circle cult. He was told that many have been instructed to watch over him, as he is the chosen one, and his life will be pivotal in the end days. Cabal realized that he would always be watched until the day he dies, if that day ever comes.

In the late 9th century, he sought out a being that was known around the world as a master of magic, and keeper of obscure and ancient secrets Merlin, the Magician. He spent years searching for a name, or a contact that could gain him an audience with Merlin. His search went on for about 2 years, when he found a man who introduced himself as Lancelot of the Lake. This knight introduced him to Merlin, who, after intense arcane studies, would explain to Cabal, of all the changes that he had been going through. The most shocking would be the fact that he no longer had a soul and that is why he had not aged or died. The true motive of the curse finally hit him, and he returned to his home, to ponder his fate.

In the early years of the 20th century Cabal realized that the world was changing rapidly around him. He decided to become active in the world’s economy, and with the billions that he had acquired over the centuries; he could become a major player. Since then he has become one of the most renowned art collectors in the free world.

Deciding that he would like to move into the city, he purchased a large estate to be closer to his expanding business. After purchasing the estate, he asked to see the mansion, and it was during the tour that he found out that it was the home of a local superhero group. They hadn’t been told about the changes, and were very surprised that their old benefactor had sold the property. Cabal was very shocked, and upset that this was now his problem. After much debate, he decided to allow the team to continue as usual, and joined them as a costumed crime fighter, known only as Cabal.