Cerebra's Files

Joseph


Real Name: Unknown
Affiliation: None
Previous Affiliations: X-Men
Aliases: Magneto III
Status: Deceased
Alternate-X Versions: None
Codename Etymology: Pronounced jōz'əf [From Hebrew yosef "he will add" (Gen. 30:24)].
Powers & History: Control of magnetism, exactly like Magneto, but more powerful. Joseph was able to deflect entire asteroids with his talent, and repair the magnetosphere of the entire Earth. The man called "Joseph" woke up one day in South America with no memories. He was taken in by a nun, Sister Maria, and worked on her orphanage's land. He soon realized that he had special powers that allowed him to control metallic things. After killing the men who had threatened the orphans, Joseph left, to find the X-Men so he could better understand himself. Upon his return to the U.S. he infiltrated the group known as Humanity's Last Stand, where he met Rogue. Rogue immediately recognized Joseph as being (a somewhat younger) Magneto, the Master of Magnetism, once the X-Men's greatest ally and also their deadliest foe, and also a former love interest of hers. The two made their way back to New York just in time to help fight Onslaught, whereupon Joseph remained with the X-Men. While they have been reluctant to fully expose him to the deeds of the man he once was, fearing a regression, the team has started to help Joseph come to terms with himself and his past. In the meantime, Joseph investigated his past when he sought out the Acolytes, and actually assumed the role of Magneto to protect them from Humanity's Last Stand. However, he denied them when he discovered that they were planning on attacking humans again. However, when Magneto resurfaced as an independent entity, Joseph's entire identity was called into question, and he joined Sabra on a quest for answers. While in Israel, he was approached by Astra II, a villainess who revealed that she had created "Joseph" from Magneto's cells. She had hoped to use him to destroy and replace Magneto, but although Joseph was more powerful, he had failed to kill Magneto once Astra left him on his own. During that battle, Magneto hit his clone in the head with a rock, leading to his amnesia. Unfortunately, Joseph was soon captured by Astra and placed under her control, and had no choice but to fight his template again. Astra also revealed that Joseph had none of Magnus's self-preservation instinct, making him more powerful, but also able to burn himself out. When Magneto unleashed his magnetic pulse from the North Pole, Astra brought Joseph to stop him. Joseph again engaged his template in battle, but when the X-Men arrived and removed Astra, Joseph was free to act on his own to try and repair the damage done to the magnetosphere. The effort was staggering, and only the mental support of Professor X kept him from losing his humanity and merging into the Earth's magnetic field. Colossus acted as a lightning rod for the furious magnetic energies, which Storm then gathered and channeled into Joseph, who released them into the magnetosphere. Unfortunately, the effort burned out Joseph's body, and he aged to about 70-80 years old. Rather than stop, he elected to sacrifice himself to destroy Magneto's machines, and ensure that the world would not suffer a similar attack again. He expended all of his energy in one final blast, and disintegrated.
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