Caliban

If you’re a mutant and you’re with a 25-mile radius of Caliban, he will sense you. However, you might not see him much because he spends most of his life underground, living with the Morlocks—failed experiments by the Dark Beast who established their own outcast society in the tunnels beneath New York City.

A Solitary Start

The albino mutant known as Caliban was recruited by Callisto, who used Caliban’s mutant-tracking ability to assemble the underground mutant community later known as the Morlocks. Callisto became leader of the Morlocks and named by Caliban after the grotesque being in William Shakespeare’s play “The Tempest.”

Living in the sewers and abandoned subway tunnels beneath Manhattan’s streets with the Morlocks, the naïve Caliban found a renewed sense of family with the Morlocks, but still felt lonely among his fellow outcasts. One evening, Caliban sensed the presence of mutants in a New York City nightclub and entered to find the Dazzler (Alison Blaire) performing. Caliban’s presence created a panic, which X-Men members Storm and Kitty Pryde attempted to quell alongside Spider-Woman (Jessica Drew). During the chaos, Caliban kidnapped Pryde and fled. Intercepted by the heroes, Caliban explained that he only wanted a friend who was like himself. After being invited to join the X-Men, Caliban chose to return to the Morlocks.

When Callisto abducted Angel (Warren Worthington III) and brought the Morlocks into conflict with the X-Men, Pryde was infected by the Morlock named Plague and found by Caliban. While caring for her, Caliban realized he could not cure her and panicked over what to do. Pryde promised to remain with him forever if he helped her and the X-Men. Unsure of what to do, Caliban sought help from Callisto. However, Callisto refused to allow the X-Men to leave, and only after she was defeated by Storm in ritual combat were the X-Men free to go.

Storm offered the Morlocks a home and sanctuary with the X-Men, but Caliban, speaking for the group, declined the offer. When Pryde failed to make good on her promise, Callisto ordered her capture and attempted to force her to marry Caliban. But, he knew that Pryde did not truly love him, so he released her from her promise.

When the sorcerer Kulan Gath warped reality in Manhattan, transforming it to resemble his native era (circa 10,000 BC), Caliban was merged with the X-Men’s founder Charles Xavier and forced to serve as Kulan Gath’s familiar.

Psionic Skills

Caliban can psionically sense other mutants within a 25-mile radius. Originally, as Caliban’s adrenaline levels rose, his strength would increase to slightly super human levels and he could absorb fear-generated psionic energy from others and redirect that energy against them, overwhelming them.

Now, Apocalypse’s genetic manipulation enhances Caliban’s strength, speed, stamina, durability, agility, and reflexes to super human levels, and allow him to use his fear-casting powers at any time. Apocalypse subsequently alters Caliban’s powers to allow him to generate a psychoactive virus that attacks from within on the highest planes of the psyche. After many years underground, Caliban’s eyes were once sensitive to even the smallest amount of light, but that no longer seems to be the case.

Ruthless Rogues

Despite their (mostly) quiet life underground, Caliban and the Morlocks have their own share of enemies. The Marauders, organized by the ruthless geneticist Mister Sinister, slaughter many Morlocks in what becomes known as the Mutant Massacre. Mikhail Rasputin, the brother of Colossus, transports most of the survivors to the alternate dimension of the Hill, where a second generation grows to adulthood. One of their number, named Marrow, founds the terrorist group Gene Nation. Other Morlocks resettle in Africa, where D’Gard leads them until Marrow kills him.

Mutant Compatriots

Caliban first discovers true friends and family with the Morlocks, who, like him, are societal outcasts. Nevertheless, his membership among them still leaves Caliban yearning for something else.

After the Xavier Institute is destroyed by Sentinels, Caliban joins Wolverine’s X-Force. This iteration of the group includes Caliban, Hepzibah, Warpath, Wolfsbane, Wolverine, and X-23. They search for Cable and the mutant baby he has in his possession.

Caliban is moved to go to Angel’s funeral upon hearing of his fellow mutant’s death. He also joins X-Factor on a mission to battle the Right and rescue Rictor. Caliban receives an official uniform and is invited to be a member of X-Factor's mutant X-Terminators team.

A Quest for a Family

The Morlocks were attacked by the Marauders, who began slaughtering the community. Injured in the massacre, Caliban was saved by his fellow Morlock, Leech, and the pair were rescued from the Marauders by Power Pack and X-Factor (Angel, Beast, Cyclops, Iceman, and Marvel Girl). Caliban subsequently resided at X-Factor’s headquarters, briefly leaving to accompany the surviving Morlocks back underground, before returning to join X-Factor in opposing anti-mutant organization the Right.

Desperate to avenge the slaughter of his people, Caliban became colder and harder during his brief stint with X-Factor. After a battle against the Horsemen of Apocalypse, Caliban became increasingly frustrated with his passive power’s inability to grant him the revenge he sought. When X-Factor subsequently encountered Apocalypse, Caliban swore to serve him as his Hellhound in exchange for power enough to exact revenge. Apocalypse genetically altered Caliban to increase his size and strength. After Caliban proved his worth against Archangel, Sabretooth, and Cable’s New Mutants, Apocalypse granted Caliban a place in his Horsemen as Death. With the Horsemen, Caliban fought the X-Men, but was defeated, unaware that the Apocalypse he and his fellow Horsemen were serving at the time was Mr. Sinister in disguise.

Now separated from Apocalypse’s influence, Caliban’s intelligence began diminishing. He kidnapped Jubilee, holding her hostage in exchange for Sabretooth, an ex-Marauder whom Xavier was trying to rehabilitate. Kitty Pryde, now Shadowcat, accompanied Sabretooth into the Morlock tunnels. There, she was left to die by the villain after they encountered a giant subterranean squid. After rescuing Pryde, Caliban faced Sabretooth in a brief but ferocious fight, which resulted in his face being scarred, and he fled. Later, Caliban was hunted by the Dark Riders, Apocalypse’s replacements for the Horsemen. Saved by Cable, Domino, and Storm, Caliban helped them to track the Riders back to their base in Egypt and confront their new leader, Genesis. As his intelligence continued to degrade and he began reverting to his original, nonviolent personality, Caliban was recruited by Cable into X-Force. With that team, Caliban faced opponents such as Mimic, Barrachus the Kalinator, Sabretooth, Holocaust, the Externals, S.H.I.E.L.D., Mr. Sinister, an other-worldly foursome, the alien android Pulse, Mojo, and Asgardian rock trolls and goblins. For a brief time, Caliban and X-Force fell under the control of Sebastian Shaw, Black King of the Hellfire Club, and were mentally coerced into attacking Cable.

Caliban started having crippling seizures that couldn’t be explained. After aiding Cable against an assault on the Xavier Institute by Bastion’s Operation: Zero Tolerance forces, Caliban was taken by Ozymandias, the immortal indentured servant of Apocalypse, who revealed that the seizures were a result of Caliban’s past alteration. When he returned to Apocalypse, Caliban took on the form of the Horseman Pestilence. At Apocalypse’s behest, Caliban successfully captured both Cable and his alternate reality counterpart Nate Grey. All the Horsemen were bested by the X-Men when Mikhail Rasputin teleported them to safety. Subsequently, Caliban tracked down Cyclops, who had merged with Apocalypse. During a period when Apocalypse’s psyche became dominant, he released Caliban from his service. By that time, Caliban had once more begun reverting to his original naïve self, and his intelligence faded until he possessed only a simple, animal-like mind.

Caliban later became a prisoner of the Watchtower, an anti-mutant research facility that wanted to use him to find the demonic predator Skornn. He was rescued by Cable, X-Force, Wolverine, Deadpool, and the Mutant Liberation Front, and returned to X-Force to help fight the Skornn.

Following the restoration of reality after it was warped by the Scarlet Witch, Caliban was among those of Earth’s mutants who retained their powers. Banding together with other surviving mutants as the 198, Caliban and his newfound allies escaped government persecution only to be targeted by the mutant-hating General Lazer of the Office of National Emergency (O*N*E). They were ultimately saved thanks to the combined efforts of the X-Men, X-Force, and Bishop’s O*N*E squad. Returning to the Morlock tunnels, Caliban was seriously wounded by Masque and sought the X-Men’s help.

He later led a squad of X-Men into the Morlock tunnels to confront Masque, who he sought vengeance against, forcing Storm to stop him from beating Masque to death. Caliban was later recruited by Cyclops into the X-Men’s new black ops team, X-Force. After X-Force were dispatched to locate Cable, they encountered Lady Deathstrike and her Reavers. During the ensuing clash, Caliban was apparently slain by the Reavers.

During Caliban’s tenure on the X-Force, the group arrived in Coopers Town Alaska, where they caught up with Cable and the Reavers, which were being led by Lady Deathstrike. While Hepzibah, Wolfsbane, and X-23 took on the Reavers, Caliban, Warpath, and Wolverine pursued Cable. While trying to shield Warpath from a bullet, Caliban jumped in the way, taking the bullet himself, and dying.

Caliban was brought back to life with a techno-organic virus by Eli Bard, a worshipper of the mutant Super Villain Selene. With an intent to set up a new home in the biggest concentration of dead mutants, Selene used Caliban as a tool to find the location and resurrect the dead. The X-Men thwarted her plans and killed her, after which Caliban and the other undead mutants returned to their graves.