Chapter Summaries

Mark visited the safehouse to assess the Mutants and recruited the disciplined Flint Brothers to protect Payne Bank. After learning Thomas had been associating with gangs and committing crimes, Mark fired him and ordered Alice to show the others evidence of his behavior.

• Mark brought Lina to the safehouse, where Sean presented the five Mutants; Brian Hall, Thomas Wright, and Ivy Valentine introduced their abilities.
• Mark hired the Flint Brothers as Payne Security employees and sent them to protect Payne Bank.
• Alice reported that Thomas had been neglecting training, using his ability around gang members, and participating in gang fights, marijuana use, and theft.
• Lina said Thomas had a gray spirit form, while Sean confirmed that Thomas had been difficult to control and had clashed with the Flint Brothers.
• Mark fired Thomas, and when Thomas challenged the decision, Mark ordered Alice to show the group evidence of his recent conduct.

Mark stopped Thomas from attacking him, then agreed to help Brian and Ivy pursue acting by acquiring a film company. The chapter left Thomas contacting Brian and Ivy after Mark sent a Fly Monitor to watch him.

• Thomas attacked Mark in anger, but Mark caught his punch, crushed his fist, and slammed him into the ground, breaking several bones.
• Mark sent a neurotoxin-carrying Fly Monitor after Thomas and ordered Alice to watch what he did.
• Brian and Ivy told Mark they wanted to become stars rather than train for combat, and he agreed to protect them and find them work at a film company.
• Mark hired Jones Financial Law Firm, through Yamila, to acquire a film company within a week.
• After Mark returned to Payne Manor, Thomas contacted Brian and Ivy by phone.

Mark saw Thomas join the Blood Axe Gang and plot a robbery of Payne Bank, so he decided to wait and eliminate the gang with him. After collecting Sunlight Value in space, Mark upgraded Heat Vision to LV10, preparing for the gang’s planned attack in three days.

• Thomas failed to persuade Brian and Ivy to leave with him, and they refused to abandon their chance to become stars.
• Mark had Alice monitor Thomas, then flew into space for three days to gather Sunlight Value and strengthen Heat Vision.
• Thomas joined the Blood Axe Gang as its second-in-command and proposed robbing Payne Bank to boss Colin Fernan.
• Mark heard Thomas and Colin plan to attack Payne Bank in three days and decided to take out the gang rather than kill Thomas immediately.
• Mark accumulated 610,000 Sunlight Value and upgraded Heat Vision from LV9 to LV10.

Mark tested Heat Vision and upgraded Super Breath before responding to the Blood Axe Gang’s attack on Payne Bank. He watched the gang breach the bank’s gate, and Nathan arrived to help the security personnel.

• Mark tested Heat Vision, discovered it could burn metal but not Vibranium, and injured his eyes after prolonged use.
• Mark unlocked Super Breath, tested its wind and frost modes, and raised it to level 7 after collecting more Sunlight Value in outer space.
• Alice warned Mark that the Blood Axe Gang was approaching Payne Bank, and he flew there to observe the bank’s response.
• The gang blocked nearby streets, triggered the bank alarm, rammed through the blast-proof gate, and exchanged fire with the outnumbered security personnel.
• Nathan arrived and fired a stream of flame at the gang members from over a hundred meters away.

Kieran and Nathan attacked the Blood Axe Gang at Payne Bank, but specially equipped gang members neutralized their abilities while Thomas charged the security guards. Mark stopped Thomas and killed him, then defeated Colin and the rest of the gang.

• Kieran and Nathan attacked the gang, but ten members in insulated suits used melting and freeze guns to counter their powers.
• Thomas charged Payne Bank behind a massive shield as the security guards opened fire on him.
• Mark leaped from the rooftop, sent Thomas flying, and killed him with Heat Vision despite Thomas's self-healing ability.
• Colin ordered his men to fire and tried to escape, but Mark blocked the bullets with his Biological Force Field and scattered the attackers with a gust of wind.
• Mark killed the gang members with Heat Vision, including the ten suited fighters after their protective gear was destroyed.

Mark defeated Colin and the Blood Axe Gang members attacking a bank, then learned their weapons had been designed by fugitive scientist Brandon Chandler. He found Brandon at the gang’s headquarters and demanded that he leave with him, ending with Brandon facing Mark’s offer and the gang members outside.

• Mark stopped Colin’s bleeding with icy breath and questioned him about the gang’s sophisticated weapons.
• Colin revealed that Brandon Chandler had designed and modified the gang’s equipment after joining the Blood Axe Gang two years earlier.
• Alice identified Brandon as an FBI fugitive, and Mark found RDX explosives in a van before killing Colin and flying to the gang’s base.
• Mark entered the gang’s laboratory and woke Brandon, who reached for a hidden pistol.
• Mark told Brandon that Colin and his men were dead, then offered him a choice between leaving with Mark or being shot.

Mark rescued Brandon from the Blood Axe Gang headquarters and hired him to build and modify weapons for the Payne Group. After the FBI blamed the James Island massacre on pirates, Mark ordered Alice to gradually release the evidence he had uncovered.

• Mark flew Brandon out of the Blood Axe Gang headquarters and brought him to Payne Manor.
• Mark introduced himself to Brandon, hired him for a monthly salary of twenty thousand dollars, and assigned him to make and modify weapons.
• News of the Blood Axe Gang's failed attack on Payne Bank spread, deterring other underground forces from targeting it.
• The FBI announced that pirates had killed Eric Epstein and forty-three others on James Island and looted the island's assets.
• Mark ordered Alice to release the information they had found online without leaving a trail back to her.

Mark arranged temporary protection documents for Wanda, Pietro, and Dalia, then discovered that Dalia was a Mutant whose ability unconsciously inspired affection and pity in people around her. He decided the effect was limited and planned to send all three children to school.

• Alice uploaded the James Island evidence to foreign Internet networks so the Federation's authorities could not easily suppress it.
• The immigration bureau approved temporary protection for Pietro, Wanda, and Dalia, and Mark sent them to collect their documents.
• Rosalie welcomed Dalia warmly at Payne Manor, prompting Mark to suspect that Dalia influenced people's feelings.
• Mark tested Dalia's hair in his laboratory and confirmed that she was a Mutant with an unconscious ability to affect those around her.
• Mark concluded that Dalia's ability was limited and told Wanda, Pietro, and Dalia that they could attend school now that they had legal identities.

Mark acquired a struggling film company, renamed it Payne Pictures, and began planning a Captain America movie starring Rosalie as Peggy Carter. He continued collecting Sunlight Value and improving his powers as Alice's leaked evidence spread around the world.

• Rosalie enrolled Wanda, Pietro, and Dalia in an elite Beverly Hills school.
• Mark chose Bryce Pictures for acquisition, and the company was renamed Payne Pictures after the deal closed.
• Brian and Ivy joined Payne Pictures as contracted actors, and Rosalie agreed to leave her agency and work for the family company.
• Mark worked with Alice to write a Captain America movie script, removed classified details, and assigned the project to Archer Reece with Rosalie cast as Peggy Carter.
• Mark collected Sunlight Value in space and raised Super Breath to Level 8, while Alice's evidence against Eric and Federation officials spread internationally.

Mark and Alice spread evidence of Eric Epstein’s crimes, triggering protests and forcing the FBI to admit that Eric had committed crimes and promise a new investigation. As authorities and other groups began tracing the leak, Mark focused on the person who had visited Eason Robert’s home after his arrest.

• Mark had Alice distribute fragments of the evidence through a dark-web P2P network, and the information spread across the Federation.
• Citizens tore down Eric’s memorials and protested after learning the truth about his crimes and James Island.
• The FBI admitted that Eric had committed crimes, acknowledged errors in its earlier investigation, and promised to disclose its findings.
• Federation agencies and other groups began investigating who had leaked the evidence, while Alice warned Mark that hackers were tracing the files.
• Mark asked Alice about Eason Robert’s home and learned that a cautious visitor had searched it after Eason’s arrest.

Mark diverted the online hunt for him to Bateson District, where Rising Tide hacker Luca Harin was trapped by a police and FBI sweep. As he continued running his company, Mark funded a Captain America film and raised Super Breath to Level 10, then discovered a major change in the Superman image in his mind.

• Mark ordered Alice to disguise his IP and leave a trace leading pursuers to Bateson District, prompting Federation organizations to send police and FBI agents there.
• Luca Harin learned that Bateson District had been sealed off and realized too late that the operation had been kept secret from him.
• Mark stopped following the search, while the online hunt for him subsided and he continued his daily routine and company work.
• Archer told Mark that Payne Pictures had launched the Captain America film project and needed about one hundred million dollars, including military support; Mark agreed to fund it and let the military review the script.
• Mark raised Super Breath to Level 10 and tested its powerful winds and freezing breath, learning that using it also strained his body.
• Mark noticed that the Superman comic image in his mind had changed enormously.

Mark unlocked the ability to transform into Superman, took on an adult appearance, and flew openly over Los Angeles. After an F-15 intercepted him, he evaded its warnings and climbed into the sky, leaving the fighter jet behind.

• Mark chose Superman Transformation, changed into a tall, muscular adult resembling Superman, and discovered the transformation drained Solar Energy without increasing his level 10 powers.
• Mark flew openly over Los Angeles, where a mother and daughter and other bystanders spotted him and reacted with amazement.
• An F-15 intercepted Mark and ordered him to identify himself, but Mark accelerated and maneuvered around the fighter jet.
• After the F-15 fired a warning flare, Mark dodged it and climbed rapidly, outpacing the pursuing jet as it continued to follow him.

Mark tested the United States military’s response to his Superman identity, then began appearing publicly in Los Angeles and intervened in a robbery. The chapter left him being asked for an autograph by the teenager he rescued.

• Mark landed on an F-15, demonstrated his heat vision, and warned the pilot not to follow him before the plane turned back.
• Mark decided to judge the military by its response to Superman and planned to protect the United States if it accepted him.
• Mark entered outer space to build up Sunlight Value for improving Super Physique, then learned that videos of him were spreading online while major news outlets stayed silent.
• The next morning, Mark flew over Los Angeles as Superman and saw two men robbing and threatening a teenager.
• Mark lifted the two men by their necks and threw them into a trash can, then the teenager thanked him and asked for his autograph.

Mark signed an autograph as Clark Kent and rescued a girl named Layla who jumped from a school roof. His actions drew growing attention from S.H.I.E.L.D. and senior Federation officials, who watched footage of the rescue as they assessed whether he posed a threat.

• Mark signed the boy's autograph as Clark Kent, and Coulson bought it from him for three thousand dollars.
• Coulson reported Mark's name and rescue of the boy to Nick Fury, who ordered him to make contact and uncover Mark's identity and purpose.
• Mark noticed drones following him but ignored them as he flew over the city.
• Mark caught Layla after she jumped from a school roof, set her safely on the ground, and flew away.
• Federation officials and specialists watched drone footage of Mark rescuing Layla and assessed whether he threatened the Federation or Earth.

Mark’s Superman persona won public support and eased the Federation’s concerns as he strengthened his powers. The chapter ended with Future Pharmaceuticals running critically low on Dragon Bone Fragments, threatening its treatments and business ties.

• The Federation’s leaders agreed to approach Superman cautiously, while Nick Fury remained suspicious and Coulson failed to locate him.
• Mark approved the start of filming for 'Captain America' after Archer negotiated the military’s objections to the script.
• Mark spent ten days rescuing civilians and fighting crime as Superman, improving safety in Los Angeles and drawing public gratitude.
• Mark spent one million Sunlight Value to raise Super Physique to LV11, then tested his increased strength and durability at Payne Manor.
• Mark raised his other superpowers over the next month, improving their capabilities across the board.
• Killian warned Mark that Future Pharmaceuticals had enough Dragon Bone Fragments to treat only about a hundred more terminally ill patients.

Mark traveled to New York to obtain the Dragon Bone buried beneath Hell’s Kitchen and settled into a nearby villa. After flying into Hell’s Kitchen at night, he rescued a woman from a robber and left her with her handbag.

• Mark learned that available substitutes could not provide enough life energy for the Extremis virus and decided to retrieve the Dragon Bone in New York.
• Mark informed Rosalie, flew from Los Angeles to Manhattan, and arranged to buy a villa on Lint Street near Hell’s Kitchen.
• Mark completed the purchase and moved into the villa before nightfall.
• Mark transformed into Superman and flew over Hell’s Kitchen, where he heard a woman calling for help.
• Mark kicked the robber into a building, returned the woman’s handbag, and flew away.

Mark infiltrated the Hand’s headquarters beneath the Central Finance building, killing guards as he made his way underground. He reached the second subterranean level and abandoned his plan to kill the sleeping ninjas after discovering their rooms were trapped, deciding to search deeper for the Dragon Bone.

• Mark found the Central Finance building and used Alice to take over its network, but she could not access the disconnected underground area.
• Mark silently killed the building’s outer guards, found the hidden entrance, and froze the two ninjas guarding it.
• Mark descended underground and killed the patrolling ninjas on the first level with his strength and Heat Vision.
• Mark discovered that the sleeping ninjas’ rooms were protected by traps, so he gave up on killing them all and continued deeper to look for the Dragon Bone.

Mark found the Hand trying to excavate a sealed stone gate deep beneath their base, but its golden energy resisted his attacks. After killing the Hand ninjas and failing to break the seal, he fled when the alarm sounded, intending to return after finding another way in.

• Mark descended into the cavern and discovered the Hand trying to break open a massive stone gate with drills and demolition tools.
• Mark killed the Hand ninjas guarding the gate with Heat Vision and stopped their weapons with his biological force field.
• Mark struck the gate, blasted it with Heat Vision, and froze it with cold breath, but its golden energy repaired the cracks and blocked his attacks.
• After the alarm sounded and much of his energy was depleted, Mark flew back up the shaft and killed two approaching ninjas with Heat Vision.

Mark escaped The Hand's headquarters after failing to break the seal protecting the Dragon Bone, prompting Madame Gao to order its defense. After JARVIS told Tony that Mark had arrived in New York, Tony agreed to attend a presidential candidate's charity dinner and asked Pepper to get Mark an invitation.

• Mark fought his way through The Hand's ninjas, escaped the Central Finance Building, and flew away while a subordinate reported the attack to Madame Gao.
• Madame Gao ordered more ninjas to protect the Dragon Bone and suspected that Superman had come to New York for it.
• Mark rested at his new villa, then absorbed sunlight until his energy recovered before flying into space to collect more Sunlight Value.
• JARVIS told Tony that Mark had arrived in New York and tracked his hotel stay and new villa, but had no information about Mark's reasons for coming.
• Pepper told Tony about an invitation to Bush's tsunami-relief charity dinner, and Tony reluctantly agreed to attend.
• Tony remembered Mark was in New York and asked Pepper to obtain an extra invitation for him.

Mark accepted Tony Stark’s invitation to George Bush’s charity banquet and arrived at the Four Seasons Hotel with bodyguards. He entered the crowded banquet hall, where Tony soon drew everyone’s attention and greeted George Bush.

• Tony asked Pepper to prepare a blank invitation and had Happy Hogan deliver it, along with a suit, to Mark.
• Mark decided to attend the banquet and planned to donate to Bush, whom he knew would become president.
• Mark arranged for two bodyguards from Global Security Company and tried on the suit Tony had sent him.
• The next afternoon, Mark traveled to the Four Seasons Hotel and passed security after showing his invitation and confirming his identity.
• Mark entered the banquet hall, where Tony arrived and was greeted by reporters, guests, and George Bush.