Click here to find out what Heroes fans can do to help the relief efforts in Haiti.
Check out Heroes Wiki's exclusive interview with the creative team behind the webisode series Slow Burn!
Power absorption
From Heroes Wiki
| Power absorption | |
|---|---|
 Arthur steals Peter's abilities. | |
| Held by: | Arthur Petrelli (deceased) |
| Ability to: | Steal other abilities through physical contact |
Power absorption is the ability to steal the abilities of other evolved humans through physical contact, rendering them powerless.
Contents |
Characters
- Arthur Petrelli naturally possessed this ability. (Dying of the Light)
Limits
With this ability, Arthur can remove the ability of another evolved human by touching them. Arthur seems to gain immediate use of the stolen ability such as when he stole Adam's regeneration power and regenerated the damage to his nervous system and the hole in his throat from the tube placed there. Arthur can take multiple abilities at once from someone who has acquired multiple abilities. (Dying of the Light)
Firm physical contact seems to be necessary for this ability to work. Arthur hugged Peter to steal his abilities, and Knox forced Adam to place his hand in Arthur's grasp. However, skin-to-skin contact is apparently not required, as he absorbed Maya's ability through her hospital gown and Hiro's ability through his shirt.
When Arthur stole Adam's ability, Adam rapidly died and decomposed due to the loss of the aging-suppression aspect of his ability—his 400 years of age caught up with him in seconds. Peter suffered no obvious ill effects upon losing his abilities, although the process appeared to cause intense pain.
Arthur's use of this ability requires active concentration. He can choose to not steal abilities from an evolved human. Knox's hand brushed against Arthur's, yet no abilities were lost or gained. (Dying of the Light)
According to Arthur, the removal of abilities from a targeted evolved human is permanent (Eris Quod Sum), but they can, in fact, be at least partially restored. Matt Parkman, Jr. partially restored Hiro's ability, allowing him to stop time but not teleport (Cold Snap), and Peter Petrelli restored part of his ability with the formula. It is not yet known if abilities taken by Arthur can be fully restored to their original state. Hiro has since been able to use all aspects of his ability, though he experiences health issues and has yet to display the same levels of control he had prior to Arthur's attack. (Acceptance)
All of the abilities Arthur stole made him so powerful that even the Haitian was only able to block him for a few minutes before he began to manifest his abilities again. Despite all of the abilities he has at his disposal, however, Arthur's stolen abilities otherwise still have their normal limitations. For example, a bullet through the back of his brain was able to kill him like it would anyone with regeneration.
Arthur seemingly uses his ability to take the catalyst from Hiro Nakamura. He later transfers the catalyst into the formula.
Examples
 ...and drains his ability, causing him to rapidly age... |
 ...until he finally decays and is nothing more than a pile of dust. |
 Arthur can now breathe without the aid of a machine. |
|
Arthur hugs his son, stealing his abilities... |
 ...and then taunts him with his newly-acquired lightning. |
 Arthur takes Maya's ability away from her. (Eris Quod Sum) |
 Arthur takes both the catalyst and space-time manipulation from Hiro. |
Memorable Quotes
"Ah, it feels good to breathe again."
"You don't have your powers anymore, Peter... Because I have them now."
- - Arthur to Peter (Dying of the Light)
"You're telling me all traces of Maya's ability have been removed from her system?"
"I take it all, and leave nothing behind."
- - Mohinder, Arthur (Eris Quod Sum)
"I don't have my powers anymore, Nathan. Dad took 'em."
- - Peter (Eris Quod Sum)
"You took my abilities."
"You gave me no choice, son."
"Are they gone forever?"
"Yes."
- - Peter, Arthur (Eris Quod Sum)
Notes
- In special feature "The Writers Forum" found on the Season 3 DVD, writers Tim Kring, Adam Armus, and Aron Eli Coleite reveal that Arthur's ability is a more developed form of Peter's empathic mimicry and they are actually different versions of the same ability.
See Also
- For the way in which Sylar steals abilities from others, see ability theft.
- For Peter's ability to absorb powers from others, see empathic mimicry or ability replication.
- For Linda Tavara's ability to use the abilities of others after killing them, see aura absorption.
Fan Theories
Please refer to Theory:Power absorption for fan-created theories and other speculation.
