| “ | Wearing someone else’s skin, living their life. Yes, well, that was always going to be your fate, wasn’t it? |
” |
—Pretender and Satyr, Interlude 24.y | ||
Pretender was a parahuman and a former leader[2] of the Las Vegas Protectorate.
Appearance[]
Pretender wore a purple velvet costume covering most of his albino skin, had dark pink eyes, no hair, and did not wear a mask[3].
Abilities and Powers[]
Pretender had the ability to take over the bodies of others, with their powers still intact. He could not take over corpses.[4]
When he took over Alexandria, his dark pink eye could be seen in her empty eye socket, where her own eye was missing. Her existing eye looked normal.
It is unknown if Pretender can possess one of Satyrical's duplicates. If he can then it opens up many possibilities for their relationship.
History[]
Background[]
Received his powers from Cauldron.[5]
Post-Echidna[]
As with many Cauldron-made capes Pretender's loyalties got under suspicion after Echidna crisis. Except his fortune dived even lower after he killed a government thinker (likely, to cover his tracks or as favor to Cauldron) and got arrested.
He hired Bambina, August Prince, and Starlet to free him as he was moved by the Protectorate to a more secure location. While they provided distraction, he was retrieved by Contessa.[3]
During the fight with Behemoth in New Delhi, he took control over Alexandria's braindead body to fight the Endbringer.[5]
Gold Morning[]
During mayhem in Cauldron Compound, Pretender used Alexandria's body to guard Doctor Mother,[6] and later helped Taylor's team to annoy Scion[7] and evacuate.[8]
Alexandria's body was eventually destroyed in a fight with Scion, presumably killing Pretender.[9]
Chapter Appearances[]
References[]
- ↑ “We stay in touch,” Pretender said. “I’m sure my new group can use you, and you can draw on our resources, I’m sure. Our goals are more or less aligned. Only difference is scale.”
“Well then. Good luck with saving the world.”
“And good luck with saving civilization from itself,” Pretender answered. He looked skyward for a moment. “Close the door.”
The portal closed. - Interlude 24.y - ↑ Nix interrupted, “We’ll still fight Endbringers. But the Protectorate was going to take Pretender from us because of how he got his powers. It’s ridiculous.”
“He was still going to be on the team,” Arbiter said. “Just… we can’t let him be leader if he’s beholden to a group like that.” - Excerpt from Drone 23.2 - ↑ 3.0 3.1 Drone 23.2
- ↑ There were murmurs as Alexandria advanced from within the temple. Unlike so many of us, she didn’t flinch as Behemoth struck out with lightning, the barriers holding this time. Golem had raised lightning rods on either side of the road, fingers splayed as if he could gesture for Behemoth to stop.
Alexandria found her way to the end of the crowd opposite Eidolon, to our far left. Satyrical and the other Vegas capes followed her. Only a small fraction of them remained. Others had apparently been injured or killed in battle.
Alexandria glanced over our ranks, and her eyes moved right past me, not even recognizing me. For the briefest instant, I met her eyes behind that steel helmet of hers, and I saw that one had a pink iris.
Pretender couldn’t take over a corpse, but there was no reason for him to take over Alexandria if she was alive and well. Cauldron had collected Pretender, and they had him controlling her because she was no longer of any use to them on her own. - Excerpt from Crushed 24.5. - ↑ 5.0 5.1 Interlude 24.y
- ↑ Venom 29.7
- ↑ Venom 29.8
- ↑ Venom 29.9
- ↑ Speck 30.5
[]
| Founders | Alexandria † • Eidolon † • Hero † • Legend |
|---|---|
| Leaders | Legend • Alexandria (Second-in-command) • Chevalier • Rime (Second-in-command) |
| Anchorage | Cask • Horizon • Lightslinger • Rail • Snaptrap |
| Atlanta | Cinereal |
| Baltimore | Mayday • Turtleshell • Aerobat |
| Boston | Bastion |
| Brockton Bay | Adamant • Assault • Armsmaster • Battery • Challenger • Clockblocker • Dauntless • Dovetail • Miss Militia • Sere • Triumph • Velocity |
| Chicago | Anomaly • Brazier • Campanile • Gauss • Myrddin † • Revel • Shuffle • Stardust |
| Detroit | Horizon |
| Houston | Dispatch • Eidolon † • Exalt |
| Las Vegas | Blowout ‡ • Floret ‡ • Leonid ‡ • Nix ‡ • Pretender ‡ • Ravine ‡ • Satyrical ‡ • Spur ‡ |
| Los Angeles | Alexandria † • Arbiter • Rime • Usher |
| Louisiana | Fidelis |
| New York | Astrologer • Cache • Clay • Legend • Prism • Ursa Aurora |
| Philadelphia | Chevalier |
| Raleigh | Cask |
| San Diego | Prefab |
| Seattle | Fume • Gasconade • Snubnose |
| Toronto | Grumman • Narwhal |
| Unknown Location | Albatross • Chubster † • Leister • Pinpoint • Scroll • Tomcat |
| Leaders | Satyrical ‡ |
|---|---|
| Members | Blowout ‡ • Floret ‡ • Leonid ‡ • Nix ‡ • Pretender ‡ • Ravine ‡ • Spur ‡ |
| Leader | Doctor Mother † |
|---|---|
| Members | Alexandria † • Balminder ‡ • Contessa ‡ • The Clairvoyant ‡ • The Custodian ‡ • Doormaker † • Eidolon † • Harbinger Clones ‡ (Harbinger I ‡ • Harbinger II ‡ • Harbinger III ‡ • Harbinger IV ‡ • Harbinger V ‡) • Hero † • Legend ‡ • William Manton ‡ • The Number Man ‡ • Pretender † • The Slug † |