Chapter Summaries

Pete was kidnapped and confronted by a silent man who pressured him to correct his public statements about Homelander. The chapter ended with Pete agreeing to record a video, while privately planning to retaliate against his captor and Vought International.

• Pete woke tied to a chair in a dark room and realized someone had kidnapped him.
• A silent man sharpened a katana while Pete tried to bargain and guessed that Vought or a political rival had sent him.
• The man showed Pete a television clip of Pete speaking about Homelander, then revealed himself as a comedian Pete recognized.
• The man handed Pete a note demanding that he record a video and set the record straight.
• Pete agreed to make the video, then vowed to deal with the man and Vought International after he escaped.

Black Noir forced Pete to record a confession about Carl’s death and left him at home, then tried to deliver the video to Vought. Soldier Boy caught him and brought him to his room, where they discussed Pete and Black Noir’s reluctance to face Homelander.

• Black Noir made Pete record a confession, knocked him unconscious, and left him at home with a note naming Black Noir.
• Soldier Boy noticed Pete’s confession video on a phone thrown into his office and chased the fleeing Black Noir.
• Soldier Boy caught Black Noir, who said he had sent Pete home and wanted to give the video to Homelander.
• Soldier Boy brought Black Noir to his room and asked about his acting career and why he had not gone to Homelander himself.
• Black Noir admitted he did not know how to face Homelander, and Soldier Boy took out a note that said, “I’m sorry.”

Homelander faced mounting fallout over killing Carl as Vought and The Seven suffered losses in public approval, business, and political support. Soldier Boy brought Black Noir to the conference room, where he and Homelander silently regarded each other.

• Ashley reported Vought’s falling share price, lost brand contracts, declining approval ratings, and the suspension of its expansion and superhero plans.
• Homelander demanded ideas for responding to the crisis, and Ashley said Pete was using public opinion and government resources against Vought.
• Homelander grew furious over the backlash for killing Carl and considered making a speech to the public.
• Soldier Boy entered The Seven’s conference room with Black Noir, whose appearance Homelander recognized.
• Homelander and Black Noir stared at each other in silence until Soldier Boy mocked their awkward reunion.

Homelander confronted Black Noir over his years of deception, but Black Noir’s confession video of Pete helped Vought and eased Homelander’s doubts. Soldier Boy persuaded Homelander to let Black Noir return to the Seven, while Frenchie searched Soldier Boy’s room with Kimiko keeping watch.

• Homelander accused Black Noir of lying to him for years, but Soldier Boy explained that he had knocked Black Noir stupid and Black Noir said he had always regarded Homelander as his nephew.
• Black Noir gave Homelander a video of Pete confessing, and Ashley said she could use it to address Vought’s problems and improve Homelander’s approval ratings.
• Black Noir told Homelander he had captured Pete and his daughter and would take the daughter to school to prevent any risk.
• After Soldier Boy recounted how Black Noir had delivered the video, Homelander accepted that Black Noir had been trying to help him.
• Soldier Boy urged Homelander to reinstate Black Noir in the Seven, and Homelander agreed before leaving the conference room.
• Frenchie searched Soldier Boy’s room while Kimiko anxiously watched the door.

Frenchie, Kimiko, and Kenji stole Soldier Boy’s whiskey and cigars, and he discovered them partying with the loot. Soldier Boy attacked Frenchie and Kenji, then turned on Kimiko.

• Frenchie and Kimiko sneaked supplies from Soldier Boy’s room and ran into Homelander in the hallway.
• Black Noir returned to The Seven, and Soldier Boy let him keep acting while rejoining the team when missions required it.
• Soldier Boy found his whiskey and cigars missing, checked the room, and asked Anika to review the surveillance footage.
• Anika identified Frenchie, Kimiko, and Kenji as the thieves while they drank and celebrated with the stolen goods.
• Soldier Boy burst into their room, kicked Frenchie and Kenji, and ordered Kimiko to face him next.

Soldier Boy decided to protect his room by forcing Governor Pete to guard its door, and Black Noir brought Pete to him. Pete agreed to the month-long confinement after Soldier Boy threatened his daughter and demanded a suicide note that would end Pete’s governorship.

• Soldier Boy spared Frenchie, Kimiko, and Kenji after they stole his liquor, but ordered them to clean the toilets for a week.
• Soldier Boy decided to chain Pete outside his room and use him as a guard.
• Black Noir found Pete at home, showed him a photograph of his daughter at school, and abducted him.
• Soldier Boy chained Pete to a post beside a small wooden hut and ordered him to guard the door for a month.
• Soldier Boy threatened to have Black Noir take Pete’s daughter and asked Pete to write a suicide note blaming his guilt over framing Homelander.
• Pete agreed to guard Soldier Boy’s door for a month and began writing the note, while Soldier Boy promised to provide food and bathroom assistance.

Soldier Boy had Anika search Vought’s archives for Sage while Homelander’s live apology unraveled after an audience member challenged him about his father. Homelander left the stage, feared the damage to his approval rating, and then received a bizarre call from Soldier Boy.

• Soldier Boy asked Anika to find Sage, a former member of the Vought Young Heroes Squad, in Vought’s archives.
• Ashley urged Homelander to follow the apology script, and Starlight began defending him during the live broadcast.
• An audience member asked why Homelander’s father was not apologizing, and Homelander declared that he and his father never made mistakes before walking offstage.
• Ashley improvised a response to calm the audience while Homelander returned to his room and worried that his approval rating would fall.
• Soldier Boy called Homelander, whose phone played a strange song before he answered.

Homelander received Soldier Boy’s approval for his speech, then learned his approval rating had risen by 24 percent. Meanwhile, Soldier Boy arrived at Sage’s apartment after the system assigned him a mission to eliminate her superpower, and he knocked on her door.

• Soldier Boy praised Homelander’s speech and said he had inherited his tough-guy blood, lifting Homelander’s spirits.
• Ashley told Homelander that his approval rating had risen by 24 percent and that many older male fans supported him.
• Homelander suspected Stormfront had changed his ringtone, then flew off to share the good news with Ryan.
• Soldier Boy reached Sage’s apartment building and received a system mission to eliminate Sage’s superpower for 200 exchange points.
• Soldier Boy agreed to test the system’s theory about Sage and knocked on her door.

Soldier Boy visited Sage to recruit her for Vought and tested her intelligence, while Sage used surveillance and analysis to anticipate his actions. After deciding she had failed his final test, he began charging up his chest beams as Sage watched in surprise.

• Sage used a hidden camera to watch Soldier Boy arrive, then explained that she had predicted he would seek her out.
• Sage inferred Soldier Boy's plans for Vought and described a supposed sensitivity to bright light, while the system told him he was simply ill-mannered.
• Soldier Boy dismissed Sage's analysis as fabricated and gave her one last chance to predict what he would do next.
• Sage predicted that Soldier Boy would offer favorable terms to recruit her, but he called her answer wrong and lit up his chest beams.

Soldier Boy stripped Sage of her superpowers and carried her back to Vought, while Homelander brought Ryan to visit him and discovered Governor Pete locked in a small cabin outside Soldier Boy’s room. The chapter ended with Soldier Boy arriving and tossing Sage onto the floor as Homelander, Ryan, and Pete were gathered in the hallway.

• Soldier Boy used his Nuclear Chest Blast to remove Sage’s Compound V powers, then carried her back to Vought.
• Homelander visited Ryan, encouraged him to give speeches, and took him to Vought despite Becca’s concerns.
• Homelander brought Ryan to Soldier Boy’s room and found Governor Pete sleeping in a cabin outside it.
• Pete explained that Soldier Boy had hired him to guard the room for a month, and Homelander mocked him as his father’s pet.
• Soldier Boy arrived and tossed Sage onto the floor in front of Homelander, Ryan, and Pete.

Soldier Boy brought the brain-damaged Sage back to Vought and injected her with Compound V to restore her intelligence. Sage regained focus after a painful transformation, while Homelander learned a cruel new way to punish enemies by keeping Pete as a chained guard.

• Soldier Boy carried Sage into the hallway, where Homelander and Ryan greeted him and Homelander mocked Pete for guarding Soldier Boy’s door.
• Homelander proposed charging people to visit Pete, and Soldier Boy approved the idea as Pete cried over his remaining sentence.
• Soldier Boy introduced the disoriented, drooling Sage as a rare intelligence-based supe, but she clung to Homelander and smeared saliva on his clothes.
• Homelander scorched Sage’s cheek with restrained Heat Vision when she reached for his face, and Soldier Boy warned him not to kill his strategist.
• Soldier Boy injected Sage with Compound V, and after more than ten minutes of agony, her eyes refocused and her memories began reconnecting.

Soldier Boy and Homelander chose Hughie to take over a political role so Ashley could continue managing Vought. The next morning, Soldier Boy joined Homelander and Ryan for breakfast, where Homelander struggled to swallow the food he had ordered.

• Soldier Boy welcomed Sage into their group after testing her and sent her to contact Ashley about a room.
• Soldier Boy asked Homelander to find someone at Vought to replace Pete, and Homelander suggested Ashley.
• Homelander proposed that Ashley manage Vought while serving as governor, then recommended Hughie for the role; Soldier Boy agreed to appoint him.
• Homelander woke Soldier Boy the next morning and took him and Ryan to breakfast at Vought, where he revealed he had hired Chinese chefs.
• Soldier Boy offered Homelander West Lake Vinegar Fish and gave Ryan Fish Mint, while Homelander forced himself to swallow the unpleasant fish.

Soldier Boy tricked Homelander and Ryan into tasting fish mint and douzhi, then ordered normal food after laughing at their reactions. Homelander sent Ashley a furious message demanding that Vought sue the Chinese chefs and fire the human resources staff.

• Ryan tried fish mint and forced himself to swallow it after Soldier Boy told him not to waste food.
• Soldier Boy persuaded Homelander to eat fish mint by telling him a story about his mother, and Homelander pretended to enjoy it.
• Soldier Boy served Homelander and Ryan douzhi, and both spat it out after tasting it.
• Soldier Boy laughed, ordered Western food, and watched Homelander and Ryan recover from the meal.
• Homelander messaged Ashley to sue the Chinese chefs for poisoning and fire everyone in human resources, and Ashley followed his orders.

Homelander, Soldier Boy, and Ryan spent the morning capturing wild animals so Ryan could see them up close, enjoying a playful family outing. When Homelander had to leave for work, Ryan reluctantly accepted that they would have more time together later.

• Homelander and Soldier Boy packed the leftover breakfast dishes for Mr. Pete and arranged for A-Train to deliver them.
• Ryan asked to visit a zoo, and Homelander and Soldier Boy offered to catch animals for him instead.
• Homelander captured bears, deer, a bobcat, a moose, and other animals, bringing them to cages in an abandoned industrial area for Ryan to see.
• Soldier Boy tested his toughness by putting his hand in a cougar's mouth, and the cougar could not hurt him.
• Homelander stopped the outing at noon because he had Vought work, and Ryan reluctantly agreed to leave.

Homelander asked Soldier Boy to train Ryan, then left for Vought. Soldier Boy began pushing Ryan into increasingly dangerous falls, and Ryan’s first crash ended the chapter.

• Homelander promised Ryan he would make more time for him and asked Soldier Boy to help train Ryan.
• Soldier Boy agreed, and Homelander flew back to Vought while Ryan watched enviously.
• A system notification told Soldier Boy that helping Ryan awaken superpowers could earn him random rewards.
• Soldier Boy tossed Ryan higher and higher, then stepped aside as Ryan fell toward the ground.
• Ryan slammed face-first into the ground, and his intense fear triggered a sudden change in his body.

Soldier Boy pushed Ryan through a dangerous test until Ryan awakened super durability, then helped him discover its limits with a hard punch. Ryan insisted he was fine and begged Soldier Boy not to tell Becca what happened.

• Soldier Boy dropped Ryan from a height to force his powers to awaken, and Ryan survived the fall without injury.
• Ryan's super durability awakened, and Soldier Boy's super speed increased to level 3.
• Ryan celebrated his new ability and asked Soldier Boy to hit him with all his strength.
• Soldier Boy punched Ryan, sending him flying and leaving him in pain despite his durability.
• Ryan got to his feet and begged Soldier Boy not to tell Becca about the incident.

Soldier Boy repeatedly hurled Ryan into the air to force him to awaken flight, while Ryan relied on his durability to survive each fall. After a fall from 1,500 meters, a warm current swept through Ryan and eased his pain as Soldier Boy flew over.

• Soldier Boy mistook Ryan’s guilty expression for an injury, then proposed training him to fly.
• Soldier Boy threw Ryan about 100 meters into the sky, but Ryan fell without awakening flight.
• Soldier Boy launched Ryan from increasingly greater heights, and Ryan survived each impact while pleading for him to stop.
• Soldier Boy found Ryan hiding in a patch of woods and threw him again, sending him to about 1,500 meters.
• After Ryan crashed to the ground, a warm current spread through his body and quickly eased his discomfort.

Ryan awakened super flight after Soldier Boy repeatedly dropped him from great heights, then trained until he could fly freely. He returned to Vought with Soldier Boy and surprised Homelander by flying into the Seven's Meeting Room.

• Ryan's super healing awakened during Soldier Boy's training, earning Soldier Boy 100 Exchange Points.
• After falling from five thousand meters, Ryan awakened super flight and hovered above the ground before flying toward Soldier Boy.
• Soldier Boy decided to postpone training Ryan's other abilities and flew with him back to Vought, guiding him through hours of flight practice.
• Ryan improved his flight and mental resilience during the journey, then followed Soldier Boy through a window into the Seven's Meeting Room.
• Homelander saw Ryan fly in and asked in shock whether his son could fly now.

Ryan showed Homelander that he had awakened flight and super durability, and Soldier Boy revealed that Ryan had also developed super healing. Maeve challenged Soldier Boy over his dangerous training methods, then learned he had raised the stakes gradually and reluctantly accepted his reasoning.

• Ryan flew around the conference room and impressed Homelander, who felt proud that his son shared his abilities.
• Ryan tested his durability with a fruit knife, which broke without harming him, and Homelander told him he might someday become stronger than his father.
• Soldier Boy said Ryan had also gained super healing and offered to demonstrate by punching him, but Ryan fled behind Homelander.
• Homelander asked how Soldier Boy had awakened Ryan's powers, and Soldier Boy admitted he had thrown the boy thousands of meters into the air.
• Maeve rebuked Soldier Boy for risking Ryan's life, then heard that he had increased the height gradually and conceded that his method had some logic.

Homelander and Soldier Boy agreed to train Ryan by sending him into a tropical rainforest without supplies, while Maeve objected. After Ryan left, Homelander showed Soldier Boy footage of Stormfront brutally beating Hank and his two bodyguards.

• Homelander told Soldier Boy that Ryan had awakened super hearing and asked him to help awaken Ryan's other powers.
• Soldier Boy proposed a wilderness survival test, and Ryan agreed despite Maeve's objections.
• Homelander sent Ryan back to his room, then asked Soldier Boy if he remembered Hank.
• Homelander showed Soldier Boy surveillance footage of Stormfront torturing Hank and his two bodyguards while claiming she wanted to question them.