Theory:Claude Rains

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The following fan theories are about Claude Rains.

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Theories

Theory	Citations	Notes
Claude was part of a former generation of heroes from the seventies and eighties. Because of this, he has trained or been trained by members of the last generation.	None	+ His comment "Oh, one of those" may indicate that he has experience hunting down and training someone who has empathic power absorption - and as a possible former hunter, knows what's at stake if Peter doesn't control his power. - Claude worked for the Company, recieving experience with other evolved humans, most likely a few empaths as well.
Claude trained the Haitian in how to use his abilities better.	None	+ It appears Claude may have trained other evolved humans in how to use their powers. - Training Peter, who is related to a former boss, was stated to have been due to his induced radioactivity getting out of control (Distractions). It does not suggest he has previous experience in training others. + Claude's history with the Company is confirmed in Company Man.
Claude removed the tissue containing the tracking mechanism that was planted in his back by the Company.	None	+ Claude may have had an "old school" device rather than a radioactive isotope. Technology has bound to have changed. The radioactive isotope used to track could be a relatively new method adopted after Claude dropped off the grid. + His scar looked like a crater, as if something had been burned out of his body. + Claude says that Peter led them straight to him. - It would be hard to spot somebody who is invisible, even if you could track their location. + Ian Michaels is listed as having been implanted with a GPS microchip in 2004. If the 1988 tracking gun, which predates that, used something along those lines, Claude would have had something to remove.
Claude was protecting a young Sylar.	Claude was shot for allegedly protecting an evolved human. (Company Man)	- It seems unlikely that Gabriel Gray's initial ability would have been detected so early, especially when Chandra could not detect it using modern medical equipment that can detect telepathy (such as the equipment measuring the resting rates of Matt Parkman). - Sylar appears to have been oblivious to other evolved humans until Chandra's arrival in Six Months Ago. Had Claude been protecting him, he would have most likely been informed of the situation.
Claude was protecting Meredith.	None	+ Tim Kring said Claude and Meredith would have a connection, and it's possible that he found her later after the fire or was even him who suggested Meredith to create the fire and play dead. • Tim Kring also had to rewrite much of his script due to the writer's strike. This might have been an idea that was scratched. + It has been stated by the writers that the person he was protecting is "...someone we know". - Claude was sent to bag and tag Meredith (Trial By Fire). + Bennet was sent to bring Claire in to the Company, and arranged to have the Haitian stage a attempted murder and kidnapping. This does not rule out that Claude could have Meredith do the same thing.
Claude trained Maury Parkman.	None	+ We know Claude trained someone who he considered dangerous. - Maury was in the group of twelve, and likely honed his powers before Claude.
Claude Rains was protecting Claire Bennet.	None	+ When Noah Bennet asks Claude the identity of the person he is protecting, Claude says, "What if it is your little girl?", implying that the child is the one he is protecting. • Claude was known to be sarcastic. This was most likely just a quip. + Bennet tells the Haitian to shoot him in one specific spot so it wouldn't kill him; he shoots Claude Rains in the same spot, right after Claude tells Mr. Bennet he might be protecting his daughter. - Mr. Bennet is protecting Claire. + Claude was Bennet's partner. + Claude could have been protecting a future Claire that time traveled into the past.
Claude was protecting Rollo Fusor's accomplice.	None	- The accomplice died in 1990. Claude is ordered to be killed in 1999 for protecting an evolved human. - Claude was one of the woman's victims and has no perceivable reason for protecting her. • In Interview:Golden Handshake, the writers have confirmed that the depicted events were from Claude's report, and that the report was falsified.
Claude is going to be killed by Sylar at some point and have his power taken.	After Peter became invisible in .07%, Sylar said that he "couldn't wait to try that one". Sylar usually goes after the people with powers he wants.	- Sylar was referring to the fact that he planned to shortly kill Peter and take all his powers. - Sylar is yet unaware of Claude's existence, and Claude is reported to be dead.
Claude was protecting Victoria Pratt.	Pratt was in hiding and Angela kept Pratt's whereabouts a secret. (Cautionary Tales)	• This would imply further that Pratt had an ability. - Pratt already had a hiding place. - Most of the Company appeared to be on her side; the only assailant was Adam, who was locked up in the first place.
Peter was the first empathic mimic that Claude had met, but he mistook Peter's empathic mimicry for another ability that allows the copying of powers.	Claude says to Peter, "Fantastic, one of those." (The Fix)	+ Claude tried to convince Peter that he needed to forget his benefactors instead of remembering them to access their individual powers. + It is likely that Linda's ability was to steal the abilities of others. This may be the ability referred to. + It's probable that Claude had met Arthur before, therefore he could have been referring to Arthur's power. + He could have witnessed Arthur's attack on Hiro at the rooftop. + Claude worked for the company during the time Arthur was in control.
Claude survived the fall and the gunshot wounds he received in Company Man because he had a needle and a supply of either Adam's or Claire's blood.	None	+ It seems impossible that anyone who's only power is invisibility could survive two bullets to the chest and a 40 foot fall by normal means. - He could have clung to the ledge and/or hoisted himself back up onto the bridge. Bennet only assumed he had fallen. + We've seen that the Company keeps their prisoners on special drugs to disable their powers, which would likely disable his bloods healing power. If they were doing this to Adam, they may not have wanted to take him off the drug just to get at his blood for fear of his escape. + Claire's blood may have some properties that Adam's didn't. + Even if he didn't take all of it, Claude still could have taken enough blood to cure any wound he might receive from Bennet after he found out about his execution. + Claude states he saw Noah and Thompson talking about his execution. He may then have taken some of Adam's blood so he would survive. + He just turned invisible at the edge of the bridge, he may not have fallen over at all and just pretended to as we never saw the actual fall. - None of the Company's agents was known to possess a sample of regenerative blood.
Claude once knew Linda Tavara.	None	+ When Peter explained to Claude how his ability works, Claude said "one of those" as if he'd met someone with a similar ability. Linda's ability is probably to steal the abilities of others, making her similar to Peter. - He worked at the company hunting evolved humans under Arthur Petrelli's command. He most likely had experience with other mimics, possibly referring to Arthur's power. - Linda died before the formation of the Company. (War Buddies, Part 7) + If Linda was multipowered, it is entirely possible that she had the ability of replication, rapid cell regeneration, pyrokinesis, or some other ability that allowed her to survive being struck and burned. • Although this theory may prove to be true, power theft and empathy are not the same thing. Peter just has to meet someone to absorb their powers, whereas Linda had to physically touch someone to gain their power. - Linda can tell if a person has abilities, and it's unlikely it's possible to conceal one's aura.
Claude's ability is actually a limited form of illusion, which he can use to hide himself and the objects he touches.	None.	+ Claude obviously can see himself invisible, and so could Peter see him. This suggests the power is less than complete invisiblity. • Peter was also immune to space-time manipulation thanks to empathic mimicry. - Claude never stated he could see himself while invisible. - His ability may allow him to see through the molecular reconstruction that causes him to become invisible.
Claude is Abigail's father.	The introduction in Rebellion	+ Claude appeared to be very concerned of her well being while being attacked by the government. He also silenced her just before she finished the sentence "He's my..." + They are both very protective of one another. (Rebellion, Part 3 and Sum Quod Sum, Part 2) - Abigail appears to be in her 20s or so. If Claude was hiding her in 1999, she would have been a teenager. Claude might have been protecting her due to her age and possible inexperience with her abilities. + Abigail's overreaction to Elle's loss of control in Sum Quod Sum, Part 2 could be paranoia adapted from being raised by Claude, who is notably paranoid himself. + Micah refered to them as a family (Rebellion, Part 3). - The "family" Micah could have been referring to may have just been Abigail and Lee as they are engaged and also the group sent by Building 26 did not have countermeasures for invisibility.
Abigail was the evolved human Claude was protecting when he was an agent.	None	+ If Claude is Abigail's dad, then this would seem likely. + If Claude is Abigail's older brother or uncle this could also be likely. + When Claude asked Noah Bennet what he would have done if "it" were Claire, he could of simply been comparing his fatherly duty to Claire to his with Abigail. - Relation is not neccessary for protective fondness: Claire hid Alex Woolsly in Exposed.
Claude will be back in future episodes.	Shadowboxing	+ Noah was talking about Claude in Shadowboxing, so the writers didn't forget about him. - The writers have mentioned past characters before, they didn't return because of that. + Actually, some characters were mentioned and returned: Virginia, The Haitian... • Some. + Very few old characters were mentioned, but almost all who were returned.
Claude and Sylvia are the parents of Abigail, who is the "it" that Thompson was looking for.	From the Files of Primatech, Part 5	+ Sylvia and Abigail resemble each other. + Sylvia seems surprised that Claude is working with Thompson. She seems more concerned with the danger represented by Thompson to Claude rather than the danger represented by Thomson and Claude. - Sylvia nearly kills Claude in From the Files of Primatech, Part 6. If they did know each other from before, she has no affection from him in the present. + Claude says he once "shagged" a woman named Sylvia. - But neither of them act as if they know each other, and the woman Claude shagged wasn't in Brazil. - The "it" Thompson was looking for is the pneumatic needle used to "tag" specials, as revealed in From the Files of Primatech, Part 6.