Caleb is the anti-hero protagonist of the 1997 video game Blood. Formerly a member of the Cabal, a cult dedicated to the dark god Tchernobog, and one of their elite Chosen, Caleb found himself opposing the Cabal following a betrayal by their god and His top lieutenants. Cold-hearted, ruthless and amoral, Caleb is a nihilistic killer motivated only by his personal desires, often spouting sarcastic witticisms at victims, whether his own or the Cabal's.
History[]
Born in Western Texas in 1847, Caleb quickly rose to prominence as a merciless gunslinger, gaining a bloody reputation by the age of 17. At the age of 24, he would first encounter the Cabal, through one of it's members, Ophelia Price. This deranged madwoman in her burnt-out homestead and her husband were both members, but when her husband wanted to leave, the Cabal burnt their home down, killing him and their young son. Ophelia blamed her husband, and Caleb, taken by her beauty, took her under his protection, nursing her back to sanity and using her as a gateway into the Cabal. The two would eventually form a romantic connection, whilst rising together through the ranks of the Cabal, each becoming one of the four Chosen. They, along with Ishmael and Gabriel, would serve the dark god Tchernobog, patron of the Cabal, preparing for His eventual conquest of the world, though they'd also earn the ire of His lieutenants during this time.
The Disavowing and Caleb's Revenge[]
An unknown number of years after meeting Ophelia, Caleb and the Chosen would be summoned to the Hall of the Epiphany, the dark god's temple. Thinking that they were to be rewarded, the Chosen were instead told that they had failed Tchernobog, and He disavowed them. As they stood stunned by the news, Tchernobog's lieutenants proceeded to take them out one by one: Shial descended on a thread of silk and dragged Gabriel into the darkness, Cerberus burnt Ishmael alive and consumed him, Cheogh swooped down and kidnapped Ophelia, and finally, Tchernobog himself cast Caleb into a bottomless pit, telling him to "consider [His] power, in a hollow grave".
Caleb would awaken in a mausoleum in the Morningside Cemetary, in the year 1924. Armed initially with only a pitchfork, he would set off on a quest to reunite with his fellow Chosen and discover why Tchernobog disavowed them. During this quest, he'd avenge each of the Chosen, slaying the lieutenant responsible for their death. He'd also find the corpses of Ophelia and Gabriel, cremating the former and consuming the latter's heart for more power, apologising to his "old friend" in advance. However, after slaying Cerberus, he is unable to find any trace of Ishmael's corpse.
Finally, he returns to the Hall of the Epiphany, where he asks Tchernobog the one question that had plagued him since the dark god disavowed the Chosen - "Why did you cast us down? How did we fail you?" To Caleb's surprise, the Chosen never failed Tchernobog and truly served the dark god loyally. The reason they were killed was because Tchernobog knew Caleb would return, and the sacrifice Caleb's return would offer up would make the now-undead gunslinger stronger than his god could ever wish. Tchernobog hoped to use Caleb's newfound power to finally "throw open the doors between the worlds and inherit the Earth". However, after He betrayed the Chosen, Caleb would be unwilling to help Tchernobog in His conquest, and would eventually succeed in slaying not just the dark god, but also the resurrected forms of His lieutenants.
1928 to 2028[]
Not much is known of the period of time between the events of Blood and Blood 2: The Chosen. Most information of this period comes from the Bloodexpansion packs, Cryptic Passage and Plasma Pak. According to Gideon, the primary antagonist of Blood 2, he spent his time doing very little, drinking, smoking and getting into barroom brawls over dubious women. Meanwhile, according to the Blood 2 instruction manual, Caleb continued striving for leadership of the Cabal, and the resurrection of Ophelia.
During the events of Cryptic Passage, Caleb would learn of an ancient scroll that was taken from him, which is said to be capable of upsetting the balance of power in the otherworld. Traveling through the Carpathian Mountains, Caleb's search is soon interrupted by the Cabal. Fighting through them, he finds himself inside a castle which houses a teleporter to the otherworld. Here, he finds the scroll, slaying the Lord of all Nightmares in the process.
During the events of Plasma Pak, Caleb would discover that the Cabal was training a new rank of Chosen. Starting in a shopping mall, Caleb would travel through several temples, murdering the cultists where he found them and interrupting some kind of unearthly ceremony. He soon finds a large area, intended for use as a training ground, full of several red-robed cultists, the Chosen-in-training. He then proceeds to destroy the Chosen-in-training and their stone beast forms.
CabalCo and the Ancient One[]
In the year 2028, the Cabal would achieve global power after reorganising themselves as the mega-corporation CabalCo, led by a man known as Gideon. Despite now having near-total economic and political control of the world, Gideon was still unsatisfied at the continued existence of the Great Betrayer (Caleb). Although it is not known whether it was due to pride or a bid to achieve total control over the Cabal, Gideon would use his vast resources to seek out and destroy Caleb, sparking a cat and mouse chase that would eventually lead to the Lafayette Museum of Antiquities. Here, Gideon would use a Singularity Generator to attempt to destroy Caleb. The weapon fails, instead resurrecting Gabriel, now in a female form named Gabriella. Gabriella would disappear through the same vortex that brought her back, and the fabric of reality would begin to unwind, a process that was only possible with the death of Tchernobog, the maintainer of the realities. This also allows creatures like the Shikari and Bone Leech to enter the world.
Caleb's pursuit of Gideon would lead him through New Town, invading several CabalCo buildings. Gideon would use the Singularity Generator on Caleb again, again failing to kill him and resurrecting another of the Chosen, this time bringing Ishmael back. Whilst Gideon would escape again, Ishmael would try to convince Caleb that he has inherited Tchernobog's power and must use it to seal the ever growing rifts, a warning that Caleb ignores. Later on, Ishmael would also inform Caleb that Gideon had resurrected Ophelia first, and was holding her hostage at his temple, located at CabalCo Headquarters.
At CabalCo HQ, Caleb would fight his way through a security checkpoint and a power station, forcing his way into the temple where Ophelia is being held. Gideon would whisk her away before Caleb could rescue her, causing Caleb to become enraged once again and continue the pursuit. Finally, on the rooftops of CabalCo HQ, the two would face each other. Caleb would win their duel, but Gideon would escape through a portal to the other reality before Caleb could kill him. Despite Ophelia advising him against it, Caleb would follow the escaping CabalCo leader through.
In the other reality, Caleb would travel through several ancient tribal structures, eventually cornering Gideon in an abandoned temple. Here, Gideon would transform into a giant spider and engage Caleb in a final battle to the death. Caleb would succeed, before wandering into an ornate arena featuring three tombs each containing one of the Undead Chosen, skeletal forms of his former comrades. These corpses speak for the Ancient One, the invader behind the rifts, and would threaten and attempt to intimidate Caleb.
Caleb would ignore these threats, slaying the Undead Chosen and finding the lair of their master, a large squid-like creature, which he would also defeat in combat. The other Chosen finally catch up to Caleb, and Ishmael would finally succeed in warning him of what will happen if he didn't seal the rifts. What happened next was originally left vague, possibly in the hopes of a Blood 3, although a proper conclusion would be offered with the Nightmare Levels expansion. In the original ending, Caleb would wave his arms, focus power flowing out from inside him, followed by a text epilogue:
"Does Caleb really close the rift? Does Ophelia get her two-minutes of gift? What the heck happened to Gabriel... er, Gabriella? What if Ishmael can't get home? And, where did he get those tattoos? Tune in next time on: As 'It burns, it burns'. Enjoy these answers and more soon... we promise." [1]
The Nightmare[]
Caleb and the other Chosen, still trapped in the other reality, stop their trek to get back home, making a campfire and passing the time with scary stories. This attracts the attention of an ancient psychic monster known as The Nightmare. Caleb's story tells of his time in the frozen north, seeking Shial and Gabriel, before being sucked through a portal that sends him back to the event he was describing. He eventually discovers a blue portal and, begrudgingly, enters it, being transported to similar nightmares of the day Ophelia's sorority was attacked by the Cabal, Jojo the Idiot Circus Boy's murder of his captors and escape from the circus, which would lead to him being reborn as Ishmael, and Gabriella's short time in a spooky mansion.
After Gabriella's story, Caleb wonders where he'll "be whisked off to next", as he is "all out of Chosen to visit". He eventually ends up in an old west ghost town, possibly based on his own past as a gunslinger, prior to meeting Ophelia. In this ghost town, he discovers an old mine shaft that leads to the lair of The Nightmare, which he then slays. This would end his psychic journey, though what would happen after this point remains a mystery.
- ↑ Blood II: The Chosen epilogue