“Inevitably,” Silent Continued.  “We’ll need to disarm any explosive devices that Sister Nature might have.  That’s where SteelStar comes in.”

            SteelStar blinked, “Me?”

            “Yes, you,” said Silent.  “I have word from your father that you can absorb electricity from electronic devices.”

            “Yeah, but it’s limited,” said SteelStar nervously.  “If I pull from, say, a power socket, I might pull from that room or sometimes the house, depending on the wiring, but that won’t be much.  I’d need to draw directly from a huge power source to restore all my energy if it comes to that, and I never have one available.”

            “That’s fine,” said Silent.  “All we need you to do is absorb the electricity from the batteries in the detonators, and you can effectively defuse the bomb without even opening it up.  Trust me.  Your powers will be crucial for this mission.”

            SteelStar felt nervous and then felt more nervous when he realized that everyone in the room was looking at him.

            No pressure, he thought.

###

SteelStar, still at U.H.E. headquarters, knocked on an office labeled, “Garret Stone.”

            “Come in!”

            SteelStar entered to find attorney Garret Stone sitting at his desk.

            “SteelStar,” said Garret, surprised.  “Is there something I can help you with?”

            “Yeah,” said SteelStar.  “I submitted the paperwork for my half of the bounty reward on Draego a few weeks ago.”

            Garret frowned, “Surely they didn’t deny your claim?”

            “No,” said SteelStar.  “I haven’t heard anything from them at all.”

            Garrett sighed, “All right, I’ll make a few calls.  Before I do that, where did you submit the application?”

            “The bounty office in my city.”

            Garrett nodded, “Yeah, that bounty office probably has to file paperwork through the E.H.O.D..”

            SteelStar grimaced and looked away, “Of course it does.”

            “Don’t worry,” said Garrett.  “As a superhero who assisted in the capture of a dangerous supervillain, you are legally entitled to half the financial reward for his capture.  Since you passed your review, they have no standing to deny it.  The E.H.O.D. is probably just dragging its heels, prolonging the paperwork as long as it can.  As I said, I’ll make a few calls and try to get that expedited.  The next time you submit bounty paperwork, do it with the U.H.E. office in your city.”

            SteelStar felt stupid, “Why didn’t I think of that?”

            “You’d be surprised how few people do think of it,” said Garrett.  “Don’t beat yourself up.”

            SteelStar felt he couldn’t help but beat himself up.

            “Say,” said SteelStar.  “What are the requirements for official U.H.E. membership?”

            “Thinking about a U.H.E. salary?”

            SteelStar sighed, “I mean, I’ve always wanted to join anyway.  I wouldn’t even ask about the salary if I wasn’t having so much trouble on my own.”

            Garrett nodded, “Well, the first step is a joint mission with one or more official members.  You’ve got that covered already.  If that goes well, then there’s a three month probationary period where you continue to take missions with us, and at the end of that, if one or more members vouch for you, then the U.H.E. Board will deliberate and decide if you get a full membership.”

            SteelStar felt exhausted listening to all of that, “Seriously?  Why is membership so strict?”

            “It started years ago,” said Garrett.  “Paramount and later the U.H.E. were originally funded directly by the U.S. Government and allowed anyone with superpowers to join.  However, over time, many politicians and superheroes started to grow corrupt, attracted by the power and influence the U.H.E. offered.  Politicians and big businesses offered bribes to support certain political positions, and some heroes made more effort to appear heroic rather than be heroic, crafting a heroic public image even as they outright ignored problems they were meant to address.  Over time, Paramount was forced to clear the ranks and install stricter requirements for U.H.E. membership.”

            “I’ll bet those politicians didn’t like that,” said SteelStar dryly.

            “No, they didn’t,” said Garrett.  “And a lot of them threatened to get the votes to reduce U.H.E. funding.  Paramount responded by looking for alternatives.  Paramount had already seen how heroes act with corporate sponsorships, and while some were innocuous enough, there were enough superheroes pushing bad products for a paycheck that the whole idea left a bitter taste in his mouth.  That’s why the U.H.E. is funded entirely by donations, and all donations are required to be anonymous.  If we don’t know who is donating, they don’t get the opportunity to push us in any direction.  Of course, we do still get government funding, especially during emergency situations, and some donations are big enough that they obviously come from the rich, but most of our donations these days come from ordinary people.”

            Garrett looked apologetic, “I hope all of this helps you understand why this is all so strict.  I like you, kid, and I’m pretty sure Paramount likes you, but the U.H.E. can’t afford to make exceptions.”

            SteelStar sighed.  He understood completely, of course, but that didn’t make this any easier.  Of course, this left another problem, something that might make it impossible for SteelStar to get an official membership.

            Spectramancer’s daughter Passion was on the U.H.E. board.

            “Anything else?” asked Garrett.

            “My Noteline and VidVoyage accounts were suspended,” said SteelStar.  “They accused me of slandering Spectramancer.”

            Garrett grimaced, “Yeah, the terms of service of websites like that usually include provisions that they can suspend accounts for any reason, provisions that you would have clicked ‘I agree’ on when you made the account.”

            SteelStar rubbed his temple and gave an exasperated sigh, “I didn’t bother reading the terms of service.”

            “Few people do,” said Garrett.  “I sometimes wonder if companies make those long and boring on purpose.  We might be able to challenge them on their judgment that you were committing slander, but those terms of service inevitably stack the deck in their favor.  At the very least, Paramount mentioned setting up an interview so you can tell the world what really happened.”

            SteelStar sighed.  At least there was that.

###

The United Heroes of Earth Headquarters had a lounge with a full buffet line.  Paramount had also asked SteelStar to meet him later at the U.H.E. training grounds, though he was vague on the details.  Most of the preparation was being done by Silent, and SteelStar needed something to eat, so he grabbed some fish, beans, and a couple of buttered rolls and found a spot to sit by himself.

            Glancing around, he saw a few other superheroes in brightly colored costumes and occasionally caught some of them glancing in his direction before turning away to avoid eye contact.  He knew he was going to have to get used to that, but that didn’t make it easier in the meantime.  SteelStar felt like he was surrounded by a toxic cloud that everyone else was desperate to avoid.  He doubted anyone would even talk to him now.

            “Hey, is this seat taken?”

            SteelStar looked up in surprise to see Elementus with a friendly smile.

            “Uh,” said SteelStar.  “No, it’s not taken.  But…are you sure you want to be seen hanging out with me?”

            Elementus shrugged as he sat down, “Paramount trusts you.  That’s good enough for me.”

            “Well, thank you,” said SteelStar.

            “So,” said Elementus, “How’s life treating you?”

            SteelStar grimaced, and Elementus realized his mistake immediately.

            “Yeah, sorry,” said Elementus.  “That was probably a stupid question.  Um…What are your thoughts on the upcoming mission?”

            SteelStar and Elementus spent most of their lunch discussing the mission, the logistics of dealing with a hostage situation, and the powers of the various supervillains they were up against.  Elementus had dealt with hostage situations before and found that the hardest part was staying strong.  If you gave in to the hostage taker’s demands, it didn’t guarantee the safety of the hostages.  On the contrary, once the hostage ceased to be useful, that sometimes ensured the hostage would be killed once the villain escaped.

            “It’s not easy,” said Elementus.  “It’s like walking through a minefield.  One wrong move, and everything can blow up in your face.”

            SteelStar sighed and looked away.  He wasn’t keen to have something else blow up in his face.

            “Hey,” said Elementus.  “You’ll be fine.  Paramount, I, and everyone else will be there.  You don’t have to do this alone.  Besides, from what I hear, you’re good under pressure.”

            “That’s not how it feels,” said SteelStar. “I always feel like I’m on the verge of panicking.”

            Elementus grinned, “Let me tell you a secret of the trade,” he leaned in close, whispering.  “We all feel that way.  We just get used to the feeling…and we’re really good at hiding it.”

              SteelStar thought it over and then grinned back.

            “Don’t beat yourself up,” said Elementus.  “You’ll get there.”

            “Thanks,” said SteelStar.  A moment later, he thought of something.  “Hey.  Paramount said that…that Spectramancer was investigating Redwell’s destruction on…that day.” SteelStar cleared his throat.  “And that you got to meet him before…you know…”

            Elementus nodded solemnly.  “Yeah, I did.  I don’t know why everyone thinks I was at Redwell that day, I…” he paused.  “Well, I only met Spectramancer briefly, but he seemed like a good man.” He hesitated.  “I have trouble imagining him going berserk like that.  I can’t imagine what it’s like to have powers like his.  The responsibility of keeping them under control can’t be easy…and it can’t have been easy to be the one dealing with it.”

            Yeah, thought SteelStar, it wasn’t.

###

SteelStar flew to a large grass field with four steel walls surrounding it.  The U.H.E. training grounds stood just outside Washington D.C. and had warehouses nearby filled with training equipment.  When SteelStar arrived, he found Paramount, Silent, and Speedshock waiting for him in the center of the field next to a table.  A few targets stood about twenty feet away, and SteelStar could help but raise a curious eyebrow.

            “Welcome SteelStar,” said Paramount.

            “What’s going on?” asked SteelStar as he landed and transformed into his grey skinned organic form.

            “I’m running a few leads on Sister Nature’s exact location,” said Silent.  “And we can’t make a move until that happens or she chooses to reveal herself.  In the meantime, we’ve come up with a few ways you can improve your skills.”

            SteelStar, intrigued, watched as Silent went to the table and held up a pair of metal gauntlets, not unlike the ones SteelStar wore now.

            “I’ve been in contact with your father,” said Silent.  “And John is concerned that the current design for your gauntlets and bullets isn’t optimal for your powers.”

            SteelStar nodded, “He mentioned that.  My gauntlets were mostly designed like his, but Dad didn’t have to grab the bullets his hands, since he could levitate them directly.”

            “Well, he commissioned me to make new gauntlets,” said Silent, holding them up.  “These have a rotating chamber around the wrists that can house a clip of bullets.  When a bullet is launched from the slot above the wrist, it will automatically slot a new one into place.”

            SteelStar grinned as he slipped off his current gauntlets and tried on this new pair.  He flexed his fingers in them for a moment or two, then looked on the slots above his wrists.  He could see where the bullet would rest, but the bullet seemed sunken into the metal, not ready to release.

            “To load the slot,” said Silent.  “Use magnetism to push on a catch on the underside.”

            Curiously, SteelStar reached down with his index finger to push the underside of the gauntlet with magnetism.  Eventually, he felt something give way, and a bullet snapped into place atop the gauntlet.  To reverse this, SteelStar pulled that same catch, and the bullet receded into the gauntlet.

            “These gauntlets also come with a new belt,” said Silent, lifting it up.  “When you run out of bullets in the gauntlets, you can put them by the belt and use magnetism to pull more bullets in.”

            SteelStar eagerly wore the new belt, then tested the gauntlets some more.  Raising his arm and aiming, he used magnetism to launch a few bullets at the targets.  He didn’t electrify them, but being repelled by magnetism, the bullets penetrated the distant targets easily.  When he was out of bullets in both gauntlets, he attached them to both sides of the belt and pulled new bullets into them, the chambers spinning with a mechanical sound.  He then fired a few more bullets.  Satisfied, SteelStar turned and nodded.

            “Thanks.”

            “No problem, SteelStar,” said Silent.  “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve some scouting to do.  Paramount and SpeedShock can take it from here.”

            With that, Silent walked away, and Paramount stepped up.

            “There are two skills I’d like you to at least begin learning for this mission,” said Paramount.  “The first is how to fist fight midair.”

            SteelStar nodded, “Dad always said he’d like me to train with someone whose powers or more similar to my own, but you were always so busy.” 

            SteelStar recalled his first fight with Draego.  Despite being physically stronger than the half dragon, he hadn’t had the advantage even in the air.

            Paramount sighed, “Believe me, I’m always busy, but no time like the present.  What combat training have you had?”

            “My Uncle Tobias taught me Valtarian Boxing, but that didn’t seem as helpful when flying.”

            Paramount nodded, “Well, then, let’s fly, and I’ll show the ropes.”  He turned to Speedshock. “Can you stand by for a few minutes?”

            “Sure,” said Speedshock, saluting.  “I’ll do my own training down here for a bit.”

            Then Speedshock transformed, his body shifting until it was somewhere between matter and energy, his body glowing blue and arcing electricity.  He then sped off, beginning to run laps around the field.

            “Let’s go,” said Paramount.

            SteelStar turned to metal and followed Paramount into the sky.  Up there, soaring high above the field, they hovered across from each other, and Paramount stretched out his arm, his palm facing outward.

            “First thing’s first,” said Paramount.  “Hit me, and don’t hold back.”

            SteelStar mentally prepared himself, clenching his fists, then in a burst of magnetism, he rushed forward and punched Paramount’s open palm, resulting in an audible thump.  Paramount didn’t even flinch.  A moment later, he smiled.

            “Yeah,” said Paramount.  “I can see one problem already.  You’re focusing your power in your feet.”

            SteelStar’s metal eyes blinked, “Am I?”

            Paramount nodded, “On the ground, you learned to fight by planting your feet to maintain leverage.  By the time you started flying, the instinct to plant your feet was probably second nature.  Go ahead and try it again.”

            SteelStar, uncertain, backed away, then flew forward and tried again.  Now that Paramount had pointed it out, he stood out.  He was focusing his magnetism in his feet when he punched.

            “Our powers work in similar ways,” said Paramount.  “My internal telekinesis allows me to run telekinetic energy through my body and reinforce the bonds between my atoms.  You do the same thing, just with a metal body and magnetism, and we both run that energy through our entire bodies when we fly.”

            SteelStar understood, “So, I need to plant my entire body, not just my feet.”

“That’s right.  Gives new meaning to the phrase, ‘throwing your weight around,’ doesn’t it?  Try punching my hand one more time.”

            SteelStar nodded and backed away.  Then he punched one more time, and this time Paramount was pushed back by an impact that could be heard from the ground.  He wasn’t pushed back very far, but it was more than nothing.  The two of them grinned at each other at the success.

            “Not bad,” said Paramount.  “You got some strength behind you.”

            “Thanks,” said SteelStar, pulling away.  “How long did it take you to figure that out?”

            “Not long,” said Paramount.  “But then again, I learned to fly before I learned to fight.  Originally, I had no fighting technique whatsoever, which, let me tell you, puts you at a huge disadvantage against alien warriors.  You should count yourself lucky you have people to show you this stuff.  Believe me.  It’s not fun figuring it all out on your own.”

            Yeah, thought SteelStar, I should be grateful for whatever luck I can get.

            “Another thing you want to be aware of,” said Paramount.  “Is that using your energy to enhance your movements may help you bypass your body’s normal limitations.  Observe.”

            Paramount backed up raised his fists.  A moment later he began punching the air rapidly, and his movements were so fast SteelStar couldn’t even follow him.  SteelStar’s eyes widened as he realized that punched that fast with Paramount’s strength could be devastating.  He knew Paramount was fast, but he’d never seen it in person before.

            Finally, Paramount stopped, “It’s a delicate balance to get right,” said Paramount.  “Your muscles can get out of sync with your energy, throwing you off, so learning to fight this fast will take practice.”

            “Does this technically make you a speedster too?” asked SteelStar, hoping the answer was yes.

            Paramount shook his head, “I can fly and fight fast, but there are a few things that separate true speedsters from the rest of us.  That’s going to be the second lesson of the day.”

            Paramount looked down, and SteelStar followed his gaze to see SpeedShock running laps below them.

            Ah, thought SteelStar, that makes sense.

            “Well,” said Paramount, raising his fists.  “Give me a few more punches.  Show me your technique.  Don’t try to enhance your fighting speed just yet, just practice using your entire body to punch as a first step.”

            “Right.”

            They trained for a few minutes with SteelStar punching Paramount’s open palms.  He didn’t hit as hard as he could, as this was just a training session, but Paramount did get a good read on SteelStar’s fighting style.  Each impact made a loud crack that echoed through the sky, a testament to the amount of strength they were throwing around.  Despite the initial weakness in SteelStar’s mid-air fighting technique, Uncle Tobias had clearly trained him well, and Paramount was impressed.

            “Good,” said Paramount putting his hands up.  “I think you got the hang of it.”

            SteelStar paused, “Hey, I wanted to ask you…about Elementus.”

            Paramount was surprised by the question but nodded and lowered his hands.

            “I met him earlier in the cafeteria,” said SteelStar.  “And he seemed so nice.  Are you sure he had something to do with Redwell City?”

            Paramount sighed, “No, I’m not.  I’ll admit, I’m quite fond of Elementus.  When he first started, he was a bit clumsy and nervous about the job.  I managed to find time to help him out and train him up a bit.  We’ve done plenty of shared missions, and he’s one of the most dedicated superheroes I know.”

            “Then why…”

            “The Sonnelicht Corporation,” said Paramount.  “He has a sponsorship with them, and they have a weapons contract with the government that includes authorization to experiment with Tholatite.”

            “I see,” said SteelStar.  “So, what do we think happened?  Was Elementus involved in some sort of experiment that went wrong?”

            “That’s the theory,” said Paramount.  “I still have trouble believing it, but Elementus has renewed his contract with Sonnelicht multiple times.  It’s the only reason he’s never gotten official U.H.E. status.  Too many members of the board don’t trust corporate sponsorships, myself included.” He looked grim.  “Tholatite, in its current form, is still too unstable for general use, and it wouldn’t be the first time this company had an accident with it.

            “It’s just a theory, but I think they have something on him that prevents him from severing ties.  I’ve tried to talk Elementus out of renewing his contract, but he always goes through with it.  As much as I personally like Elementus, there are enough red flags with Sonnelicht that I must question his judgment.  Anyone who would misuse a volatile substance like Tholatite is someone you should be suspicious of.”

###

Sister nature strolled through the cavern, illuminated only by neon green mushrooms along the ceiling.  She struck an imposing figure in her green robes and antlered deer skull mask, even as she was flanked by two figures much taller than her.

            Speedclaw strode behind her, his body a slender tangle of fur and muscle and his clothing some sort of black body armor that matched his figure perfectly.  Speedclaw’s pointed ears twitched at every sound, and his slit eyes shimmered in the light of the fungi above.  Next to him walked Black Ash, like a giant black tree in the vague shape of a human, his head resembling a skull.  Behind them marched a squad of men wearing cult robes and skull masks, a few of which carried a large container between them.

            The group marched down the cave until they reached a wall of glowing, green fungus.  The wall parted for them to reveal a cavern housing a laboratory.  Tables lined with various chemicals, equipment, and machines were spread out across the room.  Chemical smells wafted through the room as mist and steam rose from certain beakers.

            In the center of the room stood a man in a green lab coat with a green mask covering his entire head.  His nose and mouth were completely covered, the only sign of a face being the goggles over his eyes.  Beside him stood four wolves that gazed at the newcomer with fierce red eyes.  Sister Nature looked at those wolves suspiciously.  Knowing Biomaster’s reputation, she knew that those were no ordinary wolves.

            Biomaster was currently mixing a few chemicals into a beaker.  He didn’t even seem to notice them arrive as he lifted his mixture and brought it to a device attached to an empty glass chamber large enough to house an elephant.

            “Biomaster,” said Sister Nature.

            He shushed her, and Sister Nature raised an eyebrow under her mask as Biomaster placed the beaker into a slot on his machine.  After pressing a few buttons on the side, a slot closed over the beaker, and after a few seconds, the massive glass cage started filling with a purple mist.

            Finally, Biomaster turned to them, “Sister Nature, so nice to see you.  Did you bring the merchandise?”

            “Of course,” said Sister Nature irritably.

            She waved her men with the container over.  They then set the crate down on the floor and opened the lid.  Within, one could see several nuggets of a strange crystal that glowed with a pale, sickly blue light.   Each nugget was kept in an individual container with a metal cap on the end.  Biomaster stepped up, reached in, and pulled out one of the nuggets to examine it.

            “Tholatite,” he said.  “I’ve been waiting a long time to experiment with this.”

            “Do you remember our agreement?” asked Sister Nature.

            "Yes, yes,” said Biomaster.  “You’ll get your bombs, even if it is the most uncreative possible use for such a substance.”

            “I don’t recall asking your opinion on the subject.”

            “I don’t need your permission to give my opinion,” said Biomaster, still admiring the Tholatite.

            Sister Nature tapped her foot irritably while Speedclaw grimaced.

            “Why are we working with him in the first place?” asked the catlike alien with a silky, smooth voice.  “Isn’t his mad science and manipulation of nature against everything we stand for?”

            “He has his uses,” said Sister Nature, turning to look at Speedclaw.  “I know how to use the tools I’m given, even those that are…flawed.”

            Speedclaw growled.

            “Children,” said Black Ash, his voice deep, gravelly, and booming, “Behave yourselves.”

            Sister Nature and Speedclaw glared at the black tree man.

            “Biomaster,” said Black Ash.  “What yield of bomb do you think you can make?”

            “A big enough bomb to blow up the United Heroes of Earth,” said Biomaster.

            Speedclaw and Biomaster perked up.

            “Are you serious?” asked Speedclaw.  “That’s what we’re doing?  I hope you have a really good plan.”

            “Trust me,” said Sister Nature, picking up a nugget of Tholatite, “Biomaster and I have worked out the details.  He may not share our vision, but we have the same enemy.  We’re going to light up U.H.E. headquarters like a new year’s fireworks show.”

            “I’m sure it will be a pleasure working with you,” said Biomaster, reaching down to pet one of his wolves.

            Beside them, inside the glass chamber, purple mist swirled.  Within, one could barely make out the silhouette of something.  If you looked carefully, you could just make out the movement of an unformed lump of flesh.

            And it was growing.