Weld

Weld is a Case 53 and member of the Boston Wards. He was brought in to lead the Brockton Bay Wards after Leviathan's attack and later moved on to lead the Irregulars after the Battle against Echidna.

Personality
Possibly influenced by his own experiences Weld is an accepting and trusting individual, generally being respectful, honest, and kind to just about everyone barring Cauldron, the Slaughterhouse Nine, and the rest on the far end of villainous spectrum. Weld speaks with a noticeable Boston accent.

While his size and strength lend many to view him as a simple front-line combatant. Weld has a keen intelligence with analytical and tactical insight. Socially he has been known to misstep, sometimes greatly but always memorably.

He struggles with the changes his body has gone through having lost much of his ability to taste, feel pressure, and smell. It is unknown to the full extent that his sensorium has been affected. He is highly reliant on music as a coping mechanism as a result, with his quarters among the Wards having wall to wall stacks of CDs.

He does not strictly need to eat and functions on less sleep than normal for humans. In fact he used some of his Wards food stipend to buy music. His emotional range is also affected. He states that he does not have adrenaline or really feel fear because his body does not produce the chemicals for it.

Sveta Karelia
Originally Sveta idolized Weld. then she became his teammate and a fervent supporter. They eventually started a relationship together, moving into the same apartment and sleeping in the same bed together. He talks about everything with Sveta including things she is not supposed to know.

Director Armstrong
The two are never seen interacting together in story. However, Weld explicitly references Armstrong as a father figure when defending him to Director Piggot, who was saying that Armstrong prioritized research over trying to integrate capes and deviants into society. Weld elaborates he will be visiting Armstrong over the summer. Armstrong is also one of the only PRT Directors who was not hostile to Weaver after the Battle of New Delhi.

He survived Gold Morning and now works as in The City under the new title of "Chief".

Taylor Hebert
Weld was genial to Skitter at their first meeting though neither of them had been introduced at the time and were about to face an Endbringer under the Truce. While professional in his obligation to place her in custody as a PRT sponsored hero, Weld was willing to listen to Taylor when the situation called for it.

Weld is described by Taylor as being "one of the only decent ones out there..." Weld admitted to her that he did not see himself as a hero and was worried about being isolated without any music. She did save him when he came closest to death.

PRT
Weld was promoted to leader of the Brockton Bay Wards to be the ‘face’ for the more "deviant" members of the Protectorate. Hopefully with his success leading the Brockton Bay Wards team he will eventually go on to lead a city’s Protectorate team.

He was able to secure funding from the PRT when he started his own team of 'ethical mercenaries'.

The Wards
Despite initial difficulties, Weld was able to become a competent leader of the wards and successfully lead them in many perilous confrontations.

Appearance
Weld's body is "from skin to hair to bone, was all metal and alloys of varying types". He is described as being mostly a textured dusky dark grey though whether this is his natural or "default" coloring or because he absorbed a large amount of such metal is unknown. Of note is the silver tracery, this defines his very prominent musculature. His eyes are also silver, two lines come from the outer corners of his eyes down his cheekbones and to the sides of his jaw. He is still recognizably a teenager.


 * Excerpt from Extermination 8.1: "...a shirtless, muscled boy with metal skin, eyes and hair and a strange texture to his shoulders and spine.  Among other things, I noticed ... his metal body was exceedingly detailed and refined.  His ‘skin’ was a dusky dark gray metal with the slightest of swirls of lighter metals in it, and his ‘adonis’ musculature was perfectly etched out in the metal, with silver lines tracing his muscle definition like veins of metal in raw ore.  His eyes, too, were silver, and two lines ran from the corners of them down his cheekbones and to the sides of his jaw."

It is not unknown for him to have a random collection of metal objects fused to his skin, at various stages of absorption.

After creating the Irregulars he is described as having reformatted his overall appearance, forming scales and small horns throughout his body. He also took to wearing a compatriot. His style years after this was a mid point between his appearance in the wards and the irregulars. After the powers shifted Weld's apprence underwent a change, gaining a strange vermiculation.

Unlike other Case 53s Weld's mark is branded into his heel rather than tattooed, it manifests even if Weld were to reform the foot.

Abilities and Powers
Weld, as a Case 53, possesses a completely metallic physiology, and can willfully alter his shape and composition. His entire body is composed of various metals, down to his inner organs. This includes having silver bones as well as copper and gold internal organs. Due to his unique physiology, he is stronger and more durable than most - in his own words, 'practically untouchable in a fight'. His malleable physiology allows him to survive what would fatal injuries to a baseline human. He states he does not really have a heart. The Director took the hand of a uniform inside the helicopter, stepping inside, and Weld followed her up, refusing a helping hand. The helicopter shifted slightly with the addition of his six hundred pounds of weight. [...] Weld looked down at his hands. His body, from skin to hair to bone, was all metal and alloys of varying types. “I’ve dealt with it before, I’ll manage.” [...]  “It’s fine. I don’t have to sleep much, anyways, so it’s good to keep busy.” [...]  “Yes,” he answered her, bending the truth. While he did eat, it was a negligible amount. As he saw it, there was no real harm done if he pocketed some of that extra money and said he spent it on food. Given that his tongue was made of an alloy and the pleasures of food were a shadow of what they should be, it was only fair that he enjoy himself in some other way. He knew that some staff back in Boston had caught on, but they hadn’t said anything. Director Piggot here gave him the vibe that maybe she wouldn’t be so cool with it. He’d be more careful until he knew for sure. [...] “I appreciate the thought,” he told her. His physiology had the unfortunate drawback that he couldn’t help but attach to and absorb metal he touched. While it had been crippling when he’d first been found, dumped in a junkyard, he had learned ways around it. He could rearrange the metals that formed his body, separate them into their composite elements, and he extended this particular trick to push all the impurities in the metals out to his ‘skin’. The impurities, unlike the metal that composed the rest of him, didn’t bond, giving him the ability to handle things with his hands and teeth if he needed to. It didn’t always work – at least once a week there was one embarrassing moments where he bonded with someone’s wedding ring during a handshake or bumped into a shelf display – but it helped. Clothes helped as well. In a more serious situation, such as when he was out on patrol, he could force parts of himself to melt and drop off, leaving a piece of himself behind, but it made him distinctly uncomfortable – pain wasn’t the right word – until he replaced the tissue he’d lost. More often, he preferred to just tear the offending piece of metal from whatever surface it rested on, whether it was a segment of chain link fence or a hubcap. Whenever he did it, he’d have to spend as much as an hour dissolving the metal and absorbing it into his body. Either way, they were only emergency measures. Which wasn’t to say he was weak. Being made of materials and alloys as strong or stronger than steel from head to toe made him practically untouchable in a fight. In addition, his biology fell into some optimal middle ground between organic and inorganic. For those whose powers affected only living things, he counted as inorganic. The opposite was also true. - Excerpt from Sentinel 9.1

Weld can rearrange the metals that form his body, separate them into their composite elements, and push the impurities to the surface of his skin. This allows him to handle metallic objects with his hands and teeth, as normally he bonds to metals he touches on contact. This assimilation effect is largely how he repairs damage to his body. He can also force parts of himself to melt and drop off, leaving a part of himself behind. This makes him distinctly uncomfortable until he replaces the tissue he's lost. A further ability of his is to shift parts of his anatomy. He has been known to turn his arms into spears and hooks for combat. He is also able to shape his body to repair any damage he suffers. This shifting extends to his entire body, allowing him to tweak his appearance if he wants to look more imposing or wear a compatriot, at one point even changing his apparent gender.

Lastly, his powers are subject to a highly-favorable Manton Effect; powers that only affected organic beings tend to not affect him, and powers that only affect inorganic material also tend to not affect him.

Background
Weld was what Cauldron called a deviation scenario. After he was ejected from their custody he woke up amnesic in a scrapyard, his body a fragment consisting of his head and a fragment of his chest. There he spent an inordinate amount of time consolidating and separating himself from the metal that had been fused to his body It is unknown if this was in Boston, but he would eventually be recruited to the Boston Wards team by Director Armstrong, who became something of a father figure to Weld.

Weld was a Boston Ward for two years. At some point, Weld was the subject of an internet meme featuring an image of him with various captions. He also had something of an acting career during this period.

Because of his work he was on track to be part of the PRT's push to incorporate more Case 53's into the Protectorate. He was the third monstrous cape to feature as an actor on a television show, the first to make a second appearance on TV, and the first with an onscreen kiss.

Coming to Brockton Bay
Weld was deployed to Brockton Bay as part of the response to the Endbringer incursion. Here he met Skitter in passing and their lives would continue to intersect well into the future. He teamed up with Browbeat as part of the plan B response to stall Leviathan.

The aftermath of the attack on Brockton Bay he would see him transferred to the city as the new leader of the local Wards. He would arrive three weeks after the attack having to wrap up personal affairs in Boston. Though he did not make the best first impression on his new team, Weld rapidly proved to be a capable leader, even pushing for therapy for his teammates given what they had gone through.

Was instrumental in the Protectorates strategy against the Slaughterhouse Nine, defending his fellow heroes against Crawler and Mannequin after a bombing run ordered by Director Piggot.



Post-Slaughterhouse Nine
Weld did not intervene when dragon suits were deployed against the Undersiders.

He was instrumental in repeatedly recovering captured capes out of the new S-Class threat that was released into Brockton Bay. When the extent of Skitter's activities were revealed by Chitter Weld did not let this dissuade him from his mission. He reported it to his boss however.

When Ignis Fatuus revealed dread secrets at the heart of the Protectorate Weld still kept fighting the aberrations created by the S-Class threat.

Post-Echidna
Weld would form The Irregulars following the revelations of Ignis Fatuus. Further he would enter into an alliance with Faultline's crew.

After hearing that an occupant of the Parahuman Asylum had heard and reacted badly to those same revelations Weld visited and recruited her to his fledgling team.

Post-Timeskip
His team was invited to Cauldron meetings where he castigated his former captors.

Gold Morning
Orchestrated one of the only successful invasions of Cauldron's Base, with the aid of some new recruits. Unlike many of his compatriots he had not fallen to despair enough to think all that he had time to do was take revenge on his tormentors before everyone died at the hands of Zion. With a handful of others Weld fought against former friends in defense of both his principles and the time for needed answers to come to light.

Weld was torn apart more fiercely then ever before yet still survived, unable to stand or move due to the horrific damage inflicted on him.

He helped in the final push, showcasing the extent of his shifting abilities while under the influence of Khepri.

Post-Gold Morning
Joined the Wardens and was given his own squad. Took a vacation with Garotte. They started a relationship together.

Post-Fallen fall
Following the damage that The Wardens suffered, Weld is being quite overworked.

Brokered monetary assistance from The Wardens to the Breakthrough.

He was mobilized during the African crisis.

Post-Goddess' Takeover
Returned from the battlefield

Confided in Victoria that he was having problems with his relationship with Sveta.

Post-Time Bubble Pop
He broke up with Sveta in part due to the manipulations of teacher's group.

Post-Attack on Teacher
Weld accompanied Sveta during The Second Shin Crisis.

The Ice Breaks
As the rest of Wardens he was mobilized against the Titans.

Weld helped to arrange emergency testing of Case 53s.

He appeared in the support role during the defense of the Shardspace entry-point, helping other people move around and recover wounded.

Weld attempted to control the Neo-Irregulars group of Case 53s on the benefit of The Wardens. He deployed together with them, Faultline’s Crew, and Breakthrough against Titan Fortuna.