CULLEN BLOODSTONE

Real Name: Cullen Bloodstone

Identity/Class: Human mutate/magic item user;
   UK citizen

Occupation: Monster hunter;
    former student

Group Membership: Braddock Academy (Anachronism/Aiden Gillispie, Apex/Tim and Katy Bashir, Captain Britain/Brian Braddock, Kid Briton/Brian Braddock of Earth-13022, Meggan/Meggan Braddock, Nara, Spitfire/Jacqueline Falsworth, Union Jack/Joseph Chapman)

Affiliations: Avengers (Black Widow/Natasha Romanoff, Captain Marvel/Carol Danvers, Giant-Man/Hank Pym, Hyperion/"Marc Milton" of Earth-13034, Spider-Woman/Jessica Drew, Tigra/Greer Nelson), Cammi Benally, Darkhawk (Chris Powell), Deathlocket (Rebecca Ryker), Eel (Edward Lavell), Hazmat (Jennifer Takeda), Lascivious (Davida DeVito), Letha (Hellen Feliciano), Masters of Evil (Baron Zemo/Helmut Zemo, Madame Masque/Whitney Frost, Son of Satan/Daimon Hellstrom), Mettle (Ken Mack), Nico Minoru, MI13, Porcupine (Roger Gocking), Red Raven (Dania), Reptil (Humberto Ramos), Satannish, Sentinel, Juston Seyfert, Chase Stein, Alex Wilder, Pete Wisdom, Wrecking Crew (Bulldozer/Henry Camp, Piledriver/Brian Calusky, Thunderball/Elliot Franklin, Wrecker/Dirk Garthwaite), X-23 ("Laura Kinney"), Young Masters (Black Knight, Coat of Arms/Lisa Molinari, Egghead, Enchantress/Sylvie Lushton, Excavator/Ricky Calusky, Melter/Christopher Colchiss, Mudbug/Ledbetter, Snot)

Enemies: Arcade, Miss Coriander, Excalibur (Captain Britain/Betsy Braddock, Gambit/Remy LeBeau, Jubilee/Jubilation Lee, Rictor/Julio Richter, Rogue/Anna Marie), Krakkan, S.H.I.E.L.D. Necromancers, Warwolves

Known Relatives: Ulysses Bloodstone (father, deceased), Elsa Bloodstone (sister), Lyra Bloodstone (half-sister)

Aliases: Glartrox

Base of Operations: Bloodstone Summer Lodge and Preserve in County Durham, England;
   formerly Braddock Academy;
   formerly Klimtor

First Appearance: (Seen, last name revealed) Avengers Arena#1 (February, 2013);
    (first name revealed) Avengers Arena#2 (February, 2013);
    (as Glartrox) Avengers Arena#5 (June, 2013)

Powers/Abilities: Cullen Bloodstone is the son of Ulysses Bloodstone, a monster hunter who was bonded with the Bloodstone for thousands of years, prolonging Ulysses' life and giving him some enhanced abilities, though it is unrevealed if any of those abilities passed on to Cullen or his sister Elsa (who is now bonded to the Bloodstone). At a young age, Cullen was stranded in the dimension Klimtor where he ended up bonding with the monster Glartrox, which feeds on fear and anger to survive, growing as it consumes those feelings. In order to survive, Cullen bonded with the creature, letting it feed on his soul, and the Glartrox took over his form for months, during which Cullen had no memory of the time the Glartrox was in control. Cullen was given the Bloodstone Ring, which allowed him to maintain control of his form and the Glartrox within so long as he kept the ring on. The touch of the Bloodstone Ring to the Glartrox's form triggers its transformation back into Cullen.

    Due to the influence of the Glartrox (or more likely the Bloodstone ring), Cullen sometimes shows superhuman strength, agility, and reflexes while in his mortal form, and he tends to heal from wounds more quickly. 

    When he changes into the Glartrox, Cullen adopts the form of a giant green monster with massive fanged jaws and huge green tendrils, and he grows larger in size depending on how much fear and anger he consumes. More recently, Cullen has learned how to control his transformations more, allowing him to use parts of the Glartrox without fully shifting, generally sprouting tentacles from his form to grab or restrain others with. The Son of Satan is able to control Cullen and the Glartrox and their transformations by using the Hellfire Crown.

    Cullen is very accustomed to using guns and other weapons to hunt monsters, and he is a great marksman. Cullen also has the financial resources of his father Ulysses and he lives in a large mansion once owned by his father. Cullen has recently dedicated himself to hunting or preserving animals on a game preserve.

Height: 5'7" (by approximation)
Weight: 135 lbs. (by approximation)
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Brown

History:
(Avengers Arena#13 (fb) - BTS) - Cullen Bloodstone was born to Ulysses Bloodstone, the famous monster hunter who had lived over ten thousand years, due to his use of the mystical Bloodstone Gem.

(Avengers Undercover#1 (fb) - BTS) - When Cullen turned six, he received a massive energy rifle named Brimstone.

(Avengers Arena#13 (fb) ) - On Cullen's tenth birthday, Ulysses armed Cullen with guns and took him through a mirror portal to the realm of Klimtor, where Ulysses killed Zimbumblers before teaching Cullen how to cut through a Greediblix, on which they then feasted. That night, the Soul Beasts attacked, and Ulysses left Cullen in Klimtor. Cullen assumed that he'd only be there overnight, but Ulysses never returned, having been distracted on Earth and then dying.

(Avengers Arena#14 (fb) - BTS) - Cullen bonded with a Glartrox, an extradimensional parasite that feeds off of fear and anger. It bonded with Cullen, feeding off of his emotions and taking over his form at times as it grew stronger, helping Cullen to survive.

(Avengers Arena#13 (fb) ) - 27 months later, Elsa found Cullen in Klimtor, and was shocked to see him.

(Avengers Arena#13 (fb) ) - Cullen woke with new awareness, realizing he could only remember his first six months in Klimtor, and Elsa said she'd fought to save him. She gave Cullen a Bloodstone Ring that would keep his "darkness" in check, and Cullen lacked a full awareness of the monster within him. Elsa delivered Cullen to the Braddock Academy for training and education, though he was hesitant to go.

(Avengers Arena#2 (fb) - BTS) - At Braddock Academy, Cullen put a lot of effort into keeping distance from the other kids, who considered him very unpopular.

(Avengers Arena#6 (fb) - BTS) - One of the few kids Cullen befriended was Aiden, who Cullen later saw turn into Anachronism, his soul inhabiting the body of a Celtic warlord. Cullen saw Aiden hit on Nara and fight with Kid Briton.

(Avengers Arena#14 (fb) - BTS) - Cullen opened up to Aiden about the Glartrox. He made Aiden promise that he'd kill Cullen if the Glartrox ever took him over.

(Avengers Arena#13 (fb) - BTS) - Cullen removed his ring, releasing the monster within him.

(Avengers Arena#5 (fb) ) - Elsa joined Meggan, Spitfire, Union Jack, and Captain Britain in battling Cullen in his Glartrox form.

(Avengers Arena#1) - Cullen was teleported against his will with Kid Briton, Anachronism, Nara, and Apex into Arcade's Arena alongside Deathlocket, Cammi Benally, Red Raven, Darkhawk, Nico Minoru, Chase Stein, Mettle, Reptil, Juston Seyfort (with his Sentinel), X-23, and Hazmat. Arcade revealed his involvement, telling them he was locking the students in and that only one of them would leave alive. The heroes initially tried attacking Arcade, but he easily repelled them, then, to show his power, he killed Mettle.

(Avengers Arena#2) - Red Raven broke her neck trying to escape. After an accidental fight with Deathlocket (who briefly lost control of her programming) broke out, Bloodstone went with the other students from Braddock Academy and built a camp. When Deathlocket approached, Cullen didn't trust her.

(Avengers Arena#3) - Cullen stayed at camp with the others.

(Avengers Arena#5) - Arcade hit the area with earthquakes, and Cullen helped Anachronism find his missing axe. When he tossed it to Anachronism, Kid Briton felt threatened and punched Cullen, but Anachronism stood up for him. Soon, a cliff gave way, and Cullen and Anachronism fell into a river and were washed away.

(Avengers Arena#6) - Nara, having been blasted by Deathlocket, landed near Cullen and Aiden, and Cullen was annoyed that Aiden was so attracted to Nara, even after the three survived a flashflood. Cullen helped Nara realize that Apex was behind Deathlocket's attack. They soon found supplies, but Kid Briton, Apex, and Deathlocket were already there. A fight broke out, but Cullen grabbed a cake and a large gun and knocked Deathlocket aside. As a fight escalated, Anachronism beheaded Kid Briton.

(Avengers Arena#8) - Aiden and Nara made out over Kid Briton's corpse as Cullen held a gun on the approaching Chase Stein, Nico Minoru, and Cammi Benally. Cullen offered to share their food cache if they helped bury the body. Cammi questioned Cullen and guessed successfully that he was gay and hiding big secrets, including feelings for Anachronism. They saw a battle forming over the horizon.

(Avengers Arena#9) - As Cullen watched, Chase Stein, wielding the Darkhawk amulet, battled the Sentinel until Tim Bashir shut all tech in the area down, including Deathlocket and the Sentinel. The students gathered and learned that Tim was the brother of Katy, with whom he shared his body and powers, but that she'd kept him locked away for years. The students voted and chose to keep Tim alive, despite the risks posed by Katy regaining control of her body, and they agreed to take turns keeping watch over him.

(Avengers Arena#10) - When Cullen woke the next morning, he discovered Katy had taken control again and, commandeering Deathlocket, killed Juston Seyfert and attacked Nico Minoru, resulting in her arm being severed. Later, Apex attacked with both the Sentinel and Deathlocket, and Cullen and the others narrowly escaped while Nico used a spell to cover them. Nico then cast a spell that took Cullen and others to safety.

(Avengers Arena#11) - Cullen, Aiden, Nara, X-23, and Cammi landed on a beach near Reptil and Hazmat, and Cullen found himself annoyed with Hazmat's forced happy attitude, and the heroes argued about how to survive Murderworld. The group agreed to take action and go look for Nico.

(Avengers Arena#14) - After seeing Reptil fly away for recon but then disappear, Cullen and Cammi realized that Arcade was controlling their environment, even moving the sun at different angles as they moved to disorient them. After Hazmat and X-23 went running into the woods, the others arrived back on the beach, and Cullen punched Aiden, frustrated with his obsession with Nara. After Aiden punched Cullen back, Aiden and Nara walked away, and Cullen found himself opening up to Cammi about his past. When her trigger scent drove X-23 into a rage, Cullen removed his ring, releasing the Glartrox.

(Avengers Arena#15) - The Glartrox savagely battled X-23, who managed to sever one of its claws before it was attacked by Chase Stein (using the Darkhawk amulet), Nico Minoru, and Reptil. The Glartrox savagely attacked the heroes, and Anachronism leapt forward, prepared to kill Cullen in order to defeat the Glartrox, but Nara managed to touch the Bloodstone Ring to the monster's skin, turning him back to Cullen, though she was killed in the process.

(Avengers Arena#16) - Anachronism sliced into Cullen's abdomen with his axe while kicking him in the head, and Cullen felt like he deserved it. Cammi attacked Aiden, then she helped Cullen stand, but Nico knocked her aside and grabbed Cullen, rushing to drown him to avoid him turning into the monster again.

(Avengers Arena#17) - Nico was shocked when Cullen survived the drowning, and he revealed that he was nearly impervious to harm while wearing the Bloodstone Ring. Nico threw Cullen to the ground and kept fighting him, and she told him she had no choice but to kill him, but Cammi, as Darkhawk, intervened, telling Nico not to kill Cullen.

(Avengers Arena#18) - When the shields on the island were finally reduced, the mentors and leaders of the student teams came rushing in to aid them, with Captain Britain making sure that the badly wounded Cullen got medical treatment. Later, the videos from the arena were uploaded by Arcade for the general public to view.

(Avengers Undercover#1 (fb) - BTS) - As the arena videos made him world famous as a gay hero, Cullen tried returning to Braddock Academy, complaining consistently about Arcade, but he left quietly one day and returned to Bloodstone Manor, his family estate. He began obsessing over revenge against Arcade, turning a room in his house as a home base where he wrote down all of Arcade's assets and allies, focusing in on a new Masters of Evil team in Bagalia. Cullen began destroying all homes in association with Arcade, even as he gained more control over the Glartrox in his form, allowing him to achieve partial transformations, staying mostly human and turning parts of himself into a monster.

(Avengers Undercover#1 (fb) - BTS) - Cullen recorded himself using Brimstone to blow up one of Arcade's homes, then released the video online. Cullen then went to Bagalia, recording himself as he descended into the pit entrance to the city, transforming partially into a Glartrox to do so.

(Avengers Undercover#2 (fb) - BTS) - Cullen unexpectedly found himself comfortable in Bagalia among the criminals, finding he could be himself without judgment. He began working with Baron Zemo, Madame Masque, and Son of Satan on various criminal enterprises. Son of Satan worked with Cullen on controlling and using the Glartrox.

(Avengers Undercover#5 (fb) - BTS) - Son of Satan summoned a Demon Cage to contain the Glartrox, which kept it pliable enough for Cullen to summon parts of it without the Glartrox taking him over. Cullen found himself experiencing joy with his monstrous nature.

(Avengers Undercover#3 (fb) - BTS) - Cullen worked with Son of Satan to track Arcade, who'd set up a new version of Murderworld. Son of Satan took weeks to put together a spell that would allow Cullen access to confront Arcade.

(Avengers Undercover#1) - Baron Zemo, Madame Masque, and Son of Satan used the Glartrox to destroy a S.H.I.E.L.D. facility in Brazil.

(Avengers Undercover#2) - Cullen was dancing at a club among many criminals, including Letha, Lascivious, Satannish, Porcupine, the Wrecking Crew, and Eel, when Aiden arrived with Cammi, Deathlocket, Hazmat, Chase, and Nico. Aiden explained that they were there to help Cullen, but he reminded Aiden how he'd brutally attacked Cullen in Murderworld. Cullen casually told Nico that he'd always been destined to be a super-villain, then introduced her to Son of Satan and Satannish. Cullen then had Son of Satan conjure fancy clothing for them all before they were transported to see Arcade.

(Avengers Undercover#3) - Arcade set a group of billionaires at war with each other, the rich having paid to play in this new Murderworld. Nico was furious with Cullen for taking them there, but he emphasized that this was their chance for revenge. While Hazmat fell into shock, Cullen and the others confronted Arcade and his assistant Miss Coriander, but they proved unable to touch him. After Arcade ranted about his history and motivations, the others shut off his powers and badly beat him, then Hazmat seemingly killed Arcade with her powers.

(Avengers Undercover#4) - Cullen and the others, fled, realizing they could be implicated in murder now, but S.H.I.E.L.D. descended on them, with necromancers blocking Nico's spells. Cullen released the Glartrox, who ate a few of the necromancers before he was defeated with offensive weaponry. Cullen woke up in a cell, and Elsa visited, yelling at him. Son of Satan teleported them back to Tower Zemo in Bagalia, where the villain offered them food and the opportunity to join with him.

(Avengers Undercover#5) - Zemo gave the adolescents time to consider his offer. Hellstrom took Cullen and Nico to Mephisticuffs (a restaurant) and then to Hellstrom Manor, where Cullen showed Nico the Demon Cage. Cullen convinced Nico to join him in fighting demons in an arena as criminals cheered them on, but Nico soon rushed away, disgusted. The next day, they all met with Zemo and accepted his offer, except for Cammi, who rushed away.

(Avengers Undercover#6) - Cullen, in his Glartrox form, went with his allies and the Young Masters to attack A.I.M. Island on Zemo's orders. Chase ended up shot in the battle.

(Avengers Undercover#7) - Cullen saw Chase get medical help as the team finished their mission on A.I.M. Island.

(Avengers Undercover#8 (fb) ) - For the next few months, Cullen went on several missions with Zemo's allies, fighting S.H.I.E.L.D. once as the Glartrox.

(Avengers Undercover#9 (fb) - BTS) - Son of Satan discovered how to control the Glartrox by summoning a Hellfire Crown over his head.

(Avengers Undercover#8) - Anachronism went to visit Cullen to bid him farewell and make peace, but he found Son of Satan manipulating Cullen into attacking Anachronism with the Glartrox.

(Avengers Undercover#9) - Hazmat and Anachronism battled Son of Satan and the Glartrox before dislodging the Hellfire Crown, freeing the Glartrox from Son of Satan's control. The Glartrox nearly consumed Anachronism, who taunted Cullen until he asserted control over the beast. Cullen, happy to be back in control of his own form, kissed Anachronism on the mouth to thank him, and then he laughed and told his friend to deal with it. They rejoined with Nico Minoru and her ally Alex Wilder just as the Avengers, S.H.I.E.L.D. necromancers, Captain Britain, and Meggan arrived. A brief fight broke out with the Young Masters and the Masters of Evil before Zemo teleported the villains away.

(Avengers Undercover#10) - Cammi defeated Zemo's plot to hack into S.H.I.E.L.D., then revealed that Arcade was alive after she beat him up. Cammi stated to the public that the kids, including Cullen, had only been pretending to be villains, and Maria Hill agreed to pardon the kids. Cullen joined the others in relaxing by a lake.

(Marvel's Voices#1/5) - Cullen attended a gathering of LGBT heroes to celebrate gay icons.

(Excalibur IV#7 (fb) - BTS) - Cullen put his fortune into establishing the Bloodstone Summer Lodge and Preserve, where he could embrace his interests in both conservationism and hunting. He began purchasing and bringing rare animals to the estate, including the five Warwolves that had previously been housed at the London Zoo. Knowing the Warwolves had to die before they began killing humans, he started planning out ways to hunt them down for sport.

(Excalibur IV#7) - Cullen sang karaoke in London before he was approached by Pete Wisdom and the new Captain Britain (Betsy Braddock). They wanted access to the Warwolves, but Cullen stated he'd require them to hunt them at his estate. Later, Cullen greeted the members of Excalibur (Captain Britain, Jubilee, Gambit, Rictor, Rogue) at his estate, and they prepared for the Warwolf hunt, with Cullen on the back of a fire-breathing horse surrounded by hairless hunting cats. When he saw the mutants using their powers to hunt the Warwolves, Cullen stood back and watched as Rogue killed one. He then decided to change his mission and hunt the mutants, and he used tendrils to ensnare Jubilee.

(Excalibur IV#8) - Cullen briefly sparred with Rictor before he deescalated the conflict, and he instead invited Excalibur to a civilized meal and tea, during which he challenged them to a proper hunt for the Warwolves with no super-powers. Cullen called MI13 to ask for back-up in case anything happened to him, then he flirted with Rictor, kissing him, but Rictor pulled away. While Cullen poured himself a drink, he suddenly realized that the mutants were using powers to hunt the Warwolves outside, and he rushed out, furious. Cullen transformed into the full Glartrox to fight the mutants, but Rogue easily defeated him, using the powers of a Warwolf that she had absorbed. Excalibur gathered the Warwolf skulls and departed, leaving Cullen behind unconscious.

(Death of Doctor Strange: Bloodstone#1 (fb) - BTS) - After Doctor Strange seemingly died, many magical problems started happening around Bloodstone Manor, and Cullen activated the manor's defenses then hid within.

(Death of Doctor Strange: Bloodstone#1) - Elsa visited Bloodstone Manor and complained about how dirty it was, and Cullen and she briefly sparred. A small asteroid had crashed into the house, and it briefly attacked them with tentacles before their Bloodstone Gems calmed the rock, which then opened to reveal Lyra Bloodstone inside, and they realized Lyra was their sister right away due to her resemblance to their father. Lyra told about being thousands of years old and having been sacrificed by Ulysses years before to defeat the Krakkan, and she now had a Null Gem implanted in her chest. Lyra revealed that Dr. Strange had kept her in stasis and kept her fed, and she tried feeding on many of the artifacts in the manor, and Cullen changed to the Glartrox to fight her, but Lyra drained his energy to change him back and Cullen went to sleep. When Cullen woke, he discovered that he now could control the Glartrox, summoning it and dismissing it at will, and he tested his new abilities while fighting Krakkan and his disciples when the entity attacked. Cullen blew up his defenses and Lyra and Elsa helped defeat the creature. Lyra then helped Cullen expel the Glartrox from himself, and he banished it back to his own dimension.

Comments: Created by Dennis Hallum and Kev Walker.

    I listed Cullen as both a magic user (due to his use of the Bloodstone Ring) and a mutate (due to his merging with the Glartrox. Cullen is a rare character who somehow is both hero and villain, is both a sympathetic and completely unlikable character.

This profile was completed 05/22/2021, but its publication was delayed as it was intended for the Appendix 20th anniversary's celebratory event.

Profile by Chadman.

CLARIFICATIONS:
Cullen Bloodstone has no known connections to:

images: (without ads)
Excalibur IV#9, p18, pan1 (main)
Avengers Arena#5, p5, pan5 (face)
Avengers Arena#5, p15, pan1 (black costume, falling)
Avengers Arena#13, p22, pan3 (Glartrox)
Avengers Arena#14, p20, pan3 (Cullen transforming)
Avengers Undercover#9, p4, pan3 (Hellfire Crown)
Excalibur IV#7, p15, pan1 (on horseback with cats)
Excalibur IV#9, cover (in red)

Appearances:
Avengers Arena#1-3 (February-April, 2013) - Dennis Hallum (writer), Kev Walker (artist), Bill Rosemann (editor)
Avengers Arena#5-6 (June-July, 2013) - Dennis Hallum (writer), Kev Walker (artist), Bill Rosemann (editor)
Avengers Arena#8-9 (June, 2013) - Dennis Hallum (writer), Kev Walker (penciler), Jason Gorder (inker), Bill Rosemann (edtior)
Avengers Arena#10-11 (August-September, 2013) - Dennis Hallum (writer), Riccardo Burchielli (artist), Jon Moisan (editor)
Avengers Arena#13 (October, 2013) - Christos Gage (writer), Kev Walker, Karl Moline (pencilers), Mark Pennington (inker), Jon Moisan (editor)
Avengers Arena#14-15 (October-November, 2013) - Dennis Hallum (writer), Kev Walker (penciler), Jason Gorder (inker), Jon Moisan (editor)
Avengers Arena#16 (December, 2013) - Dennis Hallum (writer), Karl Moline (penciler), Mark Pennington, Rick Magyar (inkers), Jon Moisan (editor)
Avengers Arena#17-18 (January, 2014) - Dennis Hallum (writer), Kev Walker (penciler), Jason Gorder (inker), Jon Moisan (editor)
Avengers Undercover#1-2 (May, 2014) - Dennis Hallum (writer), Kev Walker (artist), Bill Rosemann (editor)
Avengers Undercover#3 (June, 2014) - Dennis Hallum (writer), Timothy Green III (artist), Jon Moisan (editor)
Avengers Undercover#4-5 (July-August, 2014) - Dennis Hallum (writer), Kev Walker (penciler), Jason Gorder (inker), Jon Moisan (editor)
Avengers Undercover#6 (August, 2014) - Dennis Hallum (writer), Timothy Green II (penciler), Jason Gorder (inker), Bill Rosemann (editor)
Avengers Undercover#8 (October, 2014) - Dennis Hallum (writer), Tigh Walker (artist), Bill Rosemann (editor)
Avengers Undercover#9 (October, 2014) - Dennis Hallum (writer), Timothy Green II (artist), Bill Rosemann (editor)
Marvel's Voices#1/5 (April, 2020) - Luciano Vecchio (writer/artist), Chris Robinson (editor)
Excalibur IV#7 (April, 2020) - Tini Howard (writer), Wilton Santos (penciler), Oren Junior (inker), Jordan White (editor)
Excalibur IV#8 (May, 2020) - Tini Howard (writer), Wilton Santos, Marcus To (pencilers), Sean Parsons, Roberto Poggi, Victor Nava (inkers), Jordan White (editor)
Death of Doctor Strange: Bloodstone#1 (March, 2022) - Tini Howard (writer), Ig Guara (artist), Jordan White (editor)

First Posted: 09/28/2021
Last updated: 02/23/2022

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

Non-Marvel Copyright info
All other characters mentioned or pictured are ™  and © 1941-2099 Marvel Characters, Inc. All Rights Reserved. If you like this stuff, you should check out the real thing!
Please visit The Marvel Official Site at: http://www.marvel.com

Special Thanks to www.g-mart.com for hosting the Appendix, Master List, etc.!

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