Born and raised in Harlem, New York, Carl Lucas spent his youth in a gang called The Rivals. With his best friend Willis Stryker, he fought the rival gang the Diablos and committed various petty thefts, often on behalf of deformed crimelord Sonny Caputo, a.k.a. Hammer. In and out of juvenile homes throughout his childhood, Lucas dreamed of becoming a major New York racketeer until he finally realized how his actions were hurting his family. He then sought to better himself as he got older, and find legitimate employment. Meanwhile, Stryker rose through the ranks of crime, but the two men remained friends.
When Stryker’s activities angered an organized crime group referred to simply as The Syndicate, he was badly beaten in a mob hit, saved only by Lucas’s intervention. When Stryker’s girlfriend, broke up with him in distress of his violent work, she sought solace from Lucas. Convinced that Lucas was responsible for the breakup, Stryker planted in Lucas’ apartment and tipped off the police. Lucas was then arrested and sent to prison; contact with his family was sparse due to the resentment of his brother who intercepted Lucas’s letters to their father James, still bitter at his brother’s previous dealings.
In prison, Lucas was consumed by rage over Stryker’s betrayal and his brother’s spite, engaging in frequent brawls and escape attempts. After one such attempt, research scientist Dr. Noah Burstein recruited Lucas as a volunteer for experimental cell regeneration based on a variant of the Super-Soldier process he had been perfecting. During his treatment, Burstein miscalculated. Lucas’s treatment was accelerated past its intent, inducing body-wide enhancement that gave him superhuman strength and durability. Shortly after, Lucas used his newfound abilities to escape prison and not long after, he witnessed an armed bank robbery. Shortly after, Lucas quickly intervened, incapacitating the criminals. Several agents, who had been tailing him since leaving the prison, found themselves impressed with his heroics, and as opposed to arresting him, offered him a second chance at Novus Academy. Agreeing to their terms, Lucas left with him, under the stipulation he can take on a new alias, going by Luke Cage.
CHARACTER TRAITS: Crude, brave, heroic, brash, aggressive
