The 53rd Card is an occult speakeasy where Shadu the Shady performed on many occasions. One night, while using his mystic abilities to scan the auras of the attending audience, Shadu’s eyes fell upon absolute nothingness that was shaped like a man. As a whirl of green smoke enveloped him, Shadu blacked out. Once he told his account to his trusted ally, Orson Randall, Randall knew the Prince of Orphans had come for him. Knowing his friends were in grave danger, Orson asked Shadu if there was a secret way out of the club. Shadu explained there were many ways out to many different dimensions, but in his dressing room, there was a bookcase which led to a secret passage that would take them out of the 53rd Card. No sooner did he open the doorway than John Aman, Prince of Orphans, attacked. The Confederates of the Curious made a narrow escape, and John Aman was left temporarily stranded inside the occult theatre.