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aka: Forging Hephaestus

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Forging Hephaestus cover

Villains' Code is a superhero novel series by Drew Hayes. Notably, the series takes place in a different 'verse from the author's Super Powereds setting.

The story focuses on Tori Rivas, a young aspiring supervillainess (who eventually adopts the moniker Hephaestus) with fire-based powers and a genius-level intellect. She gets an offer she can't refuse from Doctor Mechaniacal to join the Guild of Villainous Reformation, a secret organization, whose purpose is to coordinate, train, and police other villains in order to maintain the tenuous peace with the Alliance of Heroic Champions, a similar organization for superheroes (except the AHC is well-known as respected by the public).

Being a Spicy Latina, Tori has trouble fitting in with the standard guild instructors, so Doctor Mechaniacal asks an old friend, Ivan Gerhardt, who in his glory days was known as Fornax, to take Tori on as an apprentice, a practice that has fallen out of style in the modern guild. Ivan alone would determine whether Tori can be trained to be a proper code-abiding villain. If Tori fails, it will be up to Ivan to personally kill her (especially since he's one of the few people who can even touch Tori in her living fire mode).

Not long after Tori's recruitment, an event known as a Confluence occurs, resulting in a number of metahumans appearing in Ridge City. Some are recruited by the guild and some by the "capes". Tori and three other apprentices (Ivan taking Tori on has resulted in the practice coming back into fashion) must complete their training and prove themselves to be true code-abiding villains (being fully aware that the price for breaking the Code is death).

Meanwhile, the country's newest superheroes are likewise trained by the AHC, with two of the recruits being brought under the wing of Apollo, an ambitious superhero with big plans for the AHC, who uses professional image consultants to introduce the new heroes to the world.

  • Forging Hephaestus
  • Bones of the Past
  • Villains Vignettes Vol. 1


The series provides examples of:

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     General 
  • Affably Evil: While none of the members are saints, one can count on one hand the number of named guild members who are villains strictly for the kick of being evil. Glimpses at their downtime show them hanging out and joking, the final test for the apprentices is treated like a Super Bowl Party, and many are genuinely moved to tears by Doctor Mechniacal's speech about the Guild being a community and family at the Naming Ceremony.
    • The subversions are those mentioned who are genuinely evil and make no secret about, being cruel and nasty to their fellow guild members. The only reason they follow the Code is because its a capital offense to go against the guild, with the only punishment being a swift and brutal death at the hands of Pseudonym.
  • Alien Invasion: These occasionally happen, but the AHC (and, on occasion, the guild) show them why it's not a good idea to mess with Earth.
  • Anti-Villain: The Guild is made up of three types of people: the first are the Punch-Clock Villains that joined for the safety and security the guild offer as well the freedom and benefits. The second are those who joined strictly for the training offered and live normal lives, never committing crimes. And according to Ivan, they aren't forced to do so either. The third are the subversions, the truly evil folks who barely constrain themselves to the Code, more or less made to join so the Guild can keep an eye on them on pain of death.
    • Tori only became a thief because she couldn't imagine being stuck in an office job and generally hates major corporations because of her past. Even her goal, to take over the world or become a crime lord, is just so she can gather enough capital to start her own company. From there, she would build affordable Power Armor for anyone to use, fulfilling and honoring her parents' personal dream.
    • Ivan was and is one of the most feared villains in history...and gave it all up to save the world from an apocalyptic threat upon learning he was a father. His only "vice" is sweetened iced tea and does his best to be a good father and keep his kids on the right path. There's also the fact he's friends to one of the world's most powerful superheroes and Honorary Uncle to her daughter.
    • Beverly hates the Alliance of Heroic Champions for what their predeccessors did to her grandfather in the 50s. That's the only reason she decided to join the Guild to get her powers under control rather than the heroes and has no intention of being a criminal.
    • Kristoph's power is activated solely in the presence of those who hurt children (especially sexual abuse or murder), its been stated if he wasn't so brutal and his powers were admissible in court he'd be on the side of the heroes. As a result he joined the Guild instead and helps to keep their few standards by killing any new recruit guilty of this particular sin.
  • Barrier Maiden: Lodestar. Not just in the "strongest hero and guardian of Earth" way either. Nexus reveals to her that if a universe's version of Lodestar were to ever truly die, not just its host body dying so it must find a new host, but the Lodestar itself, that particular universe would cease to exist.
  • Berserk Button:
    • Kristoph's power is based around this. Most of the time he's normal, but with absolute certainty he can detect when he's in the presence of a person who's seriously hurt a child before (non-traumatic acts and accidents don't count), and this activates his power. The exact nature of said power is kept vague, but it allows him to slowly and painfully kill someone who sets him off. It's noted that if he wasn't so brutal and if his ability to detect abusers were admissible in court, he'd probably be with the Capes. Alas, he's merciless and doesn't care to wait for the system to do his job, so the Guild welcomed him into his ranks to weed out anybody who is likely to break one of their most strictly enforced rules.
    • Hurting Ivan's children, even threatening them, will leave the person stupid enough to do so in a body cast if not outright dead. Balaam deliberately smashes it to unleash Fornax on the world again when he blew up the school where they attended seemingly killing them. He develops a a smaller one for threatening Tori by the end of the book.
  • Big Good:
    • Helen AKA Lodestar is the most powerful superhero in the world as well as the leader of the Alliance of Heroic Champions.
    • Ivan AKA Fornax is also a Antihero example of this as he's the most committed to protecting the innocent from villains' activities.
  • Bruiser with a Soft Center: Thuggernaut may be a big guy, but he cares deeply for his friends and apprentice. He's also a huge fan of the opera.
  • Cannot Spit It Out: Ivan (Fornax/Pseudonym) and Helen (Lodestar), mainly due to them being one of the most powerful villains and heroes, respectively and knowing that a Dating Catwoman situation would never work and they're better off as just friends.
  • Capepunk: The Villains Code series is a Deconstruction of all the various assumptions that would need to go in to have a proper superhero world as well as how much easier it would be if most supervillains and superheroes stayed out of each other's ways. In a way, superheroes and supervillains are more like hostile nations with a Cold War going on rather than cops and robbers. It also questions how much one side being on the law versus the other being against it is Good Versus Evil.
  • City of Adventure: Ridge City is where the headquarters of both organizations are located. It's also considered to be the safest city in the country due to the fact that capes have taken over police and rescue duties and are often seen patrolling the streets. It turns into a warzone in the climax thanks to Apollo and Balaam's scheming.
  • Clark Kenting: As Helen, Lodestar wears Purely Aesthetic Glasses, and her appearance is subtly different. She also constantly slips up and has trouble keeping her lies straight. And yet while people may get suspicious, they can never seem to connect the dots. After revealing herself to Tori, Lodestar explains that this appears to be a part of her power set. No one can figure out that Helen is Lodestar unless she tells them or they witness the transformation. Had Helen ducked behind a tree and come out as Lodestar, Tori wouldn't have known they were the same individual, only wondering what happened to Helen.
  • Curb-Stomp Battle: As a rule, Ivan vs. anyone-who-is-not-Lodestar. Also subverted with Balaam at the end of the first novel, who absorbs so much power he's able to put up quite a fight and seriously hurt Ivan before being beaten.
  • Dating Catwoman: This never happens between Ivan and Helen, although their unspoken feelings are what ended Ivan's marriage when his wife Janet saw the way Ivan looked at Lodestar when she appeared on the beach after his slaughter of an underwater army. Janet never saw him look at her that way and knew he'd never truly love her. Janet still resents Lodestar, even though she's happily re-married. The ending of the second book puts a serious damper on their friendship. Also, Kyle (Tachyonic) and Donald (Cyber Geek) are both attracted to Tori, but Tori sees Donald as a friend and Kyle as an annoyance she has to put up with to maintain her cover.
  • Deadly Training Area: The apprentices are sent to a remote place, where they have to face killer robots built by Doctor Mechaniacal. Destroying a robot yields a core of different metals: copper, silver, gold, platinum. Each core is worth a certain amount of money. The robots of higher-prices cores are also significantly tougher and deadlier, usually requiring teamwork to destroy. Each apprentice also finds a survival kit including food, water, and an additional item that may help one of them... but usually not the one who finds it. For example, Tori finds a magical scroll, which doesn't do her any good, since she doesn't do magic, but would work for Beverly. Beverly, meanwhile, finds a toolkit, which is perfect for Tori's tech skills.
  • Different World, Different Movies: Similar to the people in Real Life who like foreign movies, there's a niche fanbase in the novels that enjoys watching movies from alternate realities that were never made in theirs. Tori and Helen find common ground as fans of such movies, although Tori admits that she only really watches sci-fi. At one point, Helen describes the plot of what is clearly Point Break, implying that this movie doesn't exist in their reality.
  • Differently Powered Individual: The blanket term "meta-human" or "meta" is used to refer to any being that is either a non-human sentient or a human with superpowers. There are also meta-animals.
  • Dimensional Traveler: Nexus can easily travel between various Alternate Universes, although he happens to like the one the book takes place the most due to it being unique. According to Nexus, only this universe has Quorum and Stasis. He's also, apparently, uncapturable and unkillable. Attempts to capture him result in him disappearing from his holding cell after a short while and reappearing elsewhere. The same happens if he is killed. The end of the book reveals there are multiple versions of him across the multiverse implying that its not the same Nexus that was captured/killed.
  • The Dividual: Tunnel Vision is a pair of fraternal twins with a single name and mind, who can open portals.
  • The Dreaded: Several of the members of the Guild are feared villains and there are members who aren't well-known that freak out other members.
    • Ivan Gerhert was once the supervillain Fornax, a villain so powerful that the only hero to ever stop him was Lodestar and only after a hours-long battle. The only reason he retired was because he learned he had become a father, and even to this day is a well-respected (and even a little feared) among his peers.
  • Escalating War: The reason for the Guild Code and the need to coordinate villain actions in order to maintain the peace with the capes. Prior to the code, it wasn't uncommon for villains to target the friends and loved ones of their heroic enemies, causing those heroes to retaliate, starting an escalating conflict that could easily engulf an entire city. As such, any villain found breaking the Code is eliminated by the guild before the capes can get in on the action. All proposed crimes are submitted to the Guild Council, who check if any of the targets have anything to do with any AHC members or their loved ones. If not, then the job is approved.
  • Even Evil Has Standards: They may be supervillains, but killing (or seriously harming) kids is still a big no-no, especially since many have children of their own as their secret identities. As such, any new recruits are brought before Kristoph, who can look into a person's soul for that specific sin. If he finds it, then his powers activate, and... well, it's not pretty. Despite the horrible way he dispatches people like that, everyone at the guild is happy to have him around.
  • Gender-Blender Name: Tori's chosen supervillain name is "Hephaestus", referring to a male Greek god. Indeed, when she confronts capes later in her Powered Armor with disguised voice, everyone assumes Hephaestus is male, which works out perfectly for her, since no one is going to look for a woman. Beverly likewise goes with "Bahamut" (king of the dragons).
  • Godzilla Threshold: The Orion Protocol is designed to allow imprisoned supervillains to fight an apocalyptic threat in exchange for amnesty to any who survive. This was implemented when a meta named Orion was threatening to destroy the world. Fornax was one such prisoner who agreed to fight for his freedom.
  • Heroes "R" Us: The Alliance of Heroic Champions is a national-scale bureaucratic version that includes both metas and Muggle staffers. While it's based in Ridge City, AHC heroes actually police the entire country. The AHC was preceded by the far more disorganized (and racist) League of Metas.
  • Hybrid Monster: Ren Tanaka (AKA Medley) is a hulking monstrosity composed of multiple animals, turned into his current state due to some drug he took to heal his blown-out knee (to keep his football scholarship) during the Confluence. Professor Quantum designs him a disguise that makes him appear as a normal (albeit very tall and muscular) guy, for which Ren is extremely grateful.
  • An Ice Person: Irene (AKA Cold Shoulder) has cold-based powers. She can either freeze things remotely or make herself a huge Irene-shaped ice shell and use it for close combat.
  • In a Single Bound: Ivan has many powers, but flying is not one of them. While he could cast a flying spell on himself, it takes too long to do it in a fight. Instead, he uses his powerful leg muscles to propel himself off the ground and then keeps pushing off magic supports he conjures under his feet. This has the added bonus to allow him to adjust his direction "mid-flight", surprising his enemy.
  • Legion of Doom: The Guild of Villainous Reformation is a secret organization, whose goal is to train, police, and coordinate supervillains in the country, being the villainous counterpart to the Alliance of Heroic Champions. These days, there's tons of red tape and oversight to ensure a tenuous peace with the AHC. As a rule, the guild ensures that all villains follows the Code and, if they don't, sends someone to ensure that the violators are dealt with... permanently.
  • Likes Clark Kent, Hates Superman: Much of the interpersonal drama is derived from this trope and its knock on effects.
  • Living Shadow: Lady Shade is able to become a shadow and move through walls. She can also hide herself and anyone nearby.
  • Lovecraftian Superpower: Blood Witch is a terrifying hemokinetic.
  • Mad Scientist:
    • Doctor Mechaniacal (Wade Wyatt) is the guild's chief inventor, having, essentially, designed all the non-magical security systems for the building. As a villain, he wears a suit of Powered Armor he himself built. In the outside world, he's a well-known tech billionaire, using his genius to make money both for himself and the guild.
    • Professor Quantum is the heroic variant, being the one responsible for introducing metas into the world through a Freak Lab Accident that made the laws of physics malleable decades ago. He does for the AHC what Doctor Mechaniacal does for the guild, such as turning the AHC headquarters into an impregnable fortress.
    • Tori is getting there, obsessed with building herself a Powered Armor. She's got a genius-level intellect, although she's actually selling herself short, believing her to have a normal genius-level intellect. In fact, fire isn't her only meta-ability. She can potentially be on Doctor Mechaniacal's level, as he privately admits to Ivan.
    • Tyranny is another villainous variant who has taken control of an island and keeps it defended using her inventions. She has also made a game out of trying to shoot down Santa Claus whenever he comes on Christmas Eve, while her son keeps working on improving his eggnog recipe.
  • Magic Versus Science: Averted. In general, magic- and science-based metas don't usually have a beef just because of that difference. In fact, Arcanicus and Doctor Mechaniacal are on pretty good terms, despite the fact that one forges magical artifacts and the other is a Mad Scientist. In fact, both the guild and AHC headquarters are protected by technological and magical means in order to counter any possible attack.
  • Magicians Are Wizards: Lucy (AKA Hat Trick) is dressed as an amateur Stage Magician. She explains that she bought an amateur magic kit during the Confluence. When she put it on, the objects bonded to her and turned out to have actual magic properties. For example, she uses her top hat for storage. In fact, objects stored in the hat come out exactly the same as they go in (i.e. a cold beer will stay cold). She can manipulate her card deck and shape the cards any way she wishes. Her cape can be used to cast illusions on herself. The rings can hold almost anyone in place. She hasn't mastered her wand yet, so she isn't cleared to use it in the field. Her abilities don't lend her much for direct combat, but she's excellent as a support team member.
  • Mass Empowering Event: Confluences are events that occasionally take place in this world, resulting in more people becoming metas. During a Confluence, things like Freak Lab Accidents are increasingly more likely. The first Confluence involved Professor Quantum accidentally making the laws of physics far more malleable than normal, allowing for metahumans to exist.
  • Mind Hive: Quorum has over a thousand separate personalities inside him. Despite this, he's one of the most level-headed people in the AHC. This also allows him to see right through Apollo's weak attempts to lie to him, and he deliberately provides the means for Apollo to enact his plan in order to root out all of his accomplices.
  • The Multiverse: Exists and the people of the alternate Earth the story takes place on are well aware of it, to the point where there's an archive of films and other entertainment from these alternate Earths as well as alien planets. Nexus is a Dimensional Traveler who can predict how events will unfold with near pin-point accuracy with his few favorites being ones where he can't fully guess how an event will transpire.
    • According to the second book there are "Constants" and "Singulars", the former being something that's consistent across the various universes. A particular is that there is always a Lodestarnote  but how long their careers last is case-by-case. A Singular is something, or more often someone, unique to a particular universe such as Quorum and Stasis who according to Nexus do not exist on any other version of Earth except for the one they live on.
  • One-Steve Limit: All superhero and supervillain names are copyrighted, so all new heroes/villains have to check if their name choice is free. Also, trying to use something for a copyrighted work can result in lawsuits, so public domain is preferred. When Tori requests the name "Hephaestus" at her "graduation", Doctor Mechaniacal points out that there was already a cape by that name, except he died. His successor is named Red Hephaestus, so that's not a problem. Besides, Classical Mythology is public domain anyway.
  • The Paragon: Helen is every bit as good, decent, and kind as she appears to be. Which contrasts her to many other heroes.
  • Pest Controller: Lance (with the aptly-chosen code name Pest Control) can summon and control insects, and not just ordinary insects. Any bug he is able to observe and learn is added to his arsenal, including meta-insects. For his graduation, his mentor Arachno Bro gives him a hand-written book that catalogs all known types of meta-insects. It's a surprisingly versatile power.
  • Physical God:
    • Apollo, sort-of. He was actually imbued with some of the power of the real Apollo by a magical artifact.
    • Fornax, maybe. Ivan's explanation to Tori is that he ate a god, making him one of the most powerful beings on the planet.
  • Politically Incorrect Hero:
    • Whitest Knight, a KKK-themed hero, who spends his free time handing out white supremacy pamphlets. To be sure, most members of the AHC don't like him and wish he wouldn't be associated with the organization, but they can't legally expel him, as he's not breaking their rules, and his hero persona is constitutionally-protected free speech.
    • The League of Metas, the precursor to AHC, by modern standards. When Beverly's grandfather found a powerful magical artifact in The '50s, he attempted to join the League in order to learn how to use his new powers to help people. Instead, they rejected him because of his race and told him they were working on forming a "Colored Division", where he'd fit right in. When he told them to go fuck themselves, they shrugged and said he was free to go... but they were keeping the artifact. He never recovered from such a blow and spent the rest of his life with a "sadness around him". No wonder Beverly dislikes heroes, even though the modern organization is all-inclusive. Oh, and, as far as she knows, no cape was ever seen using the artifact, so they took it for no good reason.
  • Powered Armor:
    • Doctor Mechaniacal uses one in his capacity as a villain.
    • Tori tries to build herself one, although she doesn't have Wade's experience or resources yet. In particular, the one Tori builds in the second half of the novel has a powerful energy Hand Cannon, a sleeping dart launcher, and jet boosters for jumps (for her "graduation", Ivan buys her a gravity-reduction device, which would allow her suit to actually fly using little power). It also disguises her voice, so everyone assumes that "Hephaestus" is male (especially since it's a male name).
      • Her parents, speciffically her mother, were fascinated with the tech nology and wish to develop it to the point it could be cheap, reliable, and available to everyone (Metahuman and Muggles). Tori's life goal is start a company to do exactly tha tin honor of them.
    • Whitest Knight flies around in a KKK-themed mech suit.
    • Some of the armor Donald pulls from video games are of this kind, usually equipped with a shield.
  • Precision F-Strike: Tori rarely holds back on curses, so she doesn't shy away from using the f-word.
  • Pragmatic Villain: The entire premise of the Guild: all of the members hav been trained to follow a code designed to prevent or limit collateral damage, maximized profits, and most of all keep capes from throwing them in jail. While there are a few genuinely evil members, most are described as wanting to live as they want and be left alone from the heroes. There's even a entire divison that Ivan represent who aren't even interested in committing crimes and only joined the Guild to learn better control of their powers.
  • Robot Girl: Xelas was originally built by a hero named Tech Lord as a Sex Bot but made the mistake of giving her such an advanced personality that she developed free will. She sued for freedom and won a landmark case for AIs. Naturally, she became a villainess and is currently a member of the Guild Council. Unlike the typical trope, Xelas could be easily mistaken for a cheerful human woman, who loves to party. She can even consume food and drink, she has simulated taste buds so she can enjoy them, and can convert them into energy. She also comes equipped with a holo-generator to make herself appear human. She typically calls herself Alexis when using the disguise. Xelas's Law is now invoked by robotic beings, whenever they feel discriminated by humans. Xelas's heroic Spear Counterpart is Stalwart Iron (who is actually The Mole, created and controlled by Doctor Mechaniacal).
  • Self-Duplication: Pod Person can make perfect copies of himself (including clothes) by spitting on the ground. Every lougie quickly turns into a bean and then grows into a human size and shape in a matter of seconds. He can control his doubles with his mind and senses everything they sense. He can destroy the doubles with a snap, causing them to dissolve into some green goop. In the climax, Balaam has Endless Blitz, another duplicator, produce an army that simulates an attack on the capes by the entire guild.
  • Square-Cube Law: Referenced by Tori, when Beverly uses a magical scroll to grow in size. While she admits that, under normal circumstances, Beverly's legs wouldn't be able to support her body, magic kinda throws all those calculations out the window.
  • Stock Phrases: Chloe's power is to make old clichéd sayings come true, in a way. As Beverly determines, it only works on sayings that are common enough for most people to (sort of) believe in. For example, her first use in the novel has her saying "What doesn't kill you makes you stronger" to Donald and then kicking him a few times to increase his strength. Tori later has her "cast" it on her, followed by Tori shooting herself in the arm a few times, giving her temporary Super-Strength, while allowing her to maintain her own secret identity. Only one saying can be active at a time, so she usually goes back to her "default" cliché of "A penny saved is a penny earned", which earns her a little cash every now and then, when she decides not to buy something that she genuinely wants. One of the best sayings she has figured out is "it’s just a hop, skip, and a jump away", which allows her to teleport, provided she knows the difference between a hop, a skip, and a jump.
  • Summon Magic:
    • Lance (AKA Pest Control) has the ability to summon and control insects of any kind, including meta-insects, as long as he has seen and studied them.
    • Donald (AKA Cyber Geek) can pull any video game weapon, armor, or tool from the screen and use it. His "training" involves spending hours ranking up his gear in multiple games in order for it to have better stats in Real Life. The weapon/armor/tool also has to be something that is used in a popular game that is currently running on a computer. Since the wrist computer given to him by Professor Quantum can't maintain a stable high-bandwidth Internet connection, he's forced to rely on offline games, a dozen of which are actively running on the computer at any given time.
  • That Man Is Dead: Ivan constantly insists that Fornax is dead. He is no longer that man. According to him, Fornax died the moment Lodestar showed him a picture of his son (from a one-night stand). From that moment on, Ivan retired as a full-time villain and agreed to lead a normal life, even trying to have a serious relationship with the girl he knocked up, resulting in a daughter, although the relationship didn't work out. In fact, the only thing keeping Fornax dead are his kids, which is what Balaam is counting on, when he blows up their school. Indeed, distraught, Ivan goes back to being Fornax, kills Blunderbuss, and goes after Apollo. Luckily, Tori has already evacuated the school.
  • Time Travel: Whenever Johnny Three Dicks is killed, he rolls back time a few seconds, giving him a chance to avoid death. It's unclear how many times he can do this.
  • Twofer Token Minority: Tori is a Hispanic woman. Beverly is a black woman, although that isn't mentioned until she talks about her grandfather being discriminated by heroes from The '50s because of his race, who claim to be working on a "Colored Division" for the likes of him.
  • Voluntary Shapeshifting: Beverly can turn into various dragons with different abilities and physical attributes, hence her chosen code name "Bahamut" (king of the dragons in Dungeons & Dragons) thanks to a magical amulet she found in her great-grandmother's things, which fused itself into her chest during the Confluence. Her most frequently used shapes are a walking green dragon (toughest and most combat-capable) and a flying white dragon, but she can also become a fire-breathing red dragon.
  • Would Not Hurt A Child: Enforced. One of the biggest no-nos under the Code is deliberately killing or doing lasting damage to children, and it's also the most strictly and swiftly enforced. One of the Guild's members is Kristoph, a Humanoid Abomination similar to (though explicitly not the same as) an angel of vengeance who exists to detect people who have this specific sin on their soul and immediately subject them to a Cruel and Unusual Death of otherworldly proportions. It's actually the entire reason for him being a member - he's too creatively brutal and too unconcerned with mundane criminal justice systems and standards of evidence to be accepted as a hero, but he's reliable enough (and pleasant enough when off the clock) to be an invaluable asset for a Noble Demon organisation who want to make sure they're free of a particular kind of monster, and for the more knowledgeable heroes to give him the same kind of covert tolerance that the rest of the Guild gets.
  • World's Strongest Woman: Helen is the most powerful superhero by far, even stronger than Fornax.
  • Wreathed in Flames: Tori's meta-ability is turning into living fire. In this state, she's virtually untouchable, as fire has no substance. She's not unkillable, though, and can be Brought Down to Normal by several means, such as sucking out the surrounding oxygen or using liquid nitrogen. Additionally, magic attacks can still get to her. She also leans to throw bolts of fire with great precision, such as being able to light a cigar from across the room without singing the hand holding it. Later on, she learns to simulate flying by directing flames from her hands downward, although it's not a very quick method of getting around.

     Forging Hephaestus 
  • And I Must Scream: There was a time when Kristoph animated a person's skeleton and had it climb out of their body. Slowly. They were alive the whole time. This was the least brutal of his killings. But the person in question was a child abuser—possibly even a child killer—so finding out about this endears him to Tori.
  • And Then What?: Said word for word by Wade to Balaam when explaining his reasoning for creating the Guild. Wade/Dr. Mechaniacal visited dimensions were villians DID rule the world, and the amount of bureaucracy involved was apparently mind-numbingly boring for victors. Running a thing like a guild requires much less less tedious things like budget meetings (relatively speaking).
  • The Apprentice: Tori is this to Ivan for most of the novel. In fact, her official title in the guild is "Apprentice", and she wears a traditional nondescript apprentice costume. After Ivan agrees to take Tori on, several other experienced villains express interest in reviving the old training method. The three new recruits from the Confluence (Beverly, Lance, and Warren) are mentored by three experienced villains (Thuggernaut, Arachno Bro, and Balaam, respectively).
  • Asshole Victim: When Lodestar beats the crap out of a group of meta-gansters attacking someone, she discovers, to her disgust, that the "someone" is Whitest Knight, a white supremacist flying around in Klan-themed Powered Armor and spouting racist propaganda. So she "accidentally" knocks him out as well.
    Lodestar: Whoops, guess I didn't notice you were on our side. That sort of thing happens when you insist on dressing like a racist di-, um, jerk.
  • Big Bad Duumvirate: Baalam and Apollo serve as this, being in an alliance to bring back the "Good Old Days."
  • Bittersweet Ending: The first book ends this way: the good news is that Apollo and Balaam's plan to takeover their respective organizations fail, both sides manage to root out their accomplices, and Professor Quantum finally returns to Ridge City. Bad news? The Guild's existence has been exposed, the public's faith in heroes have been shaken, Lodestar's aging has been reset and her daughter knows the truth, and Ivan's daughter has been revealed to have powers and may eventually be dragged into the conflict either alongside her father as a villain or against him as a hero. Oh...and someone, somewhere in The Multiverse has managed to do the impossible and kill a version of Lodestar.
  • BFG: Blunderbuss is a hero known to carry an oversized weapon.
  • Brain Bleach: According to Ivan, when Kristoph first appeared, Xelas took him to another room and asked him to explain his powers. He did. When she returned, she asked Doctor Mechaniacal to wipe her memory of that day.
  • Coolest Club Ever: For their "girls' night out", Xelas takes Tori, Beverly, and several other female villains to the Specter Lounge, a high-end club that has just opened and is known for being exclusive. While the ground floor is designed more like a typical club (loud, cramped), the VIP spaces are luxurious and limited to only those with the right connections or lots of money. Xelas takes the girls there... and Tori encounters Donald, who is there with Ren at the insistence of Apollo. Then the clubs gets attacked by an interdimensional monster, courtesy of Nexus.
  • Eviler than Thou: Balaam is much-much eviler than Apollo and capable of doing unimaginable evils like blowing up a school.
  • Evil Sorcerer: Balaam is an ambitious spell-caster on the Guild Council with an adversarial relationship to Ivan/Pseudonym/Fornax. He's also secretly plotting to overthrow the current guild leadership in order to be able to openly engage in villainy.
  • Geometric Magic: Warren (AKA Glyph) can cast magic by drawing glyphs on flat surfaces. During his graduation, his mentor Balaam gifts him a Magic Wand, explaining that, unlike a Magic Staff, a wand is easier to draw with.
  • Idiot Plot: In-Universe. The plot Apollo and Belaam cook up seems clever enough. They covered plenty of contingencies, set up the right minions to take out the right targets, and predicted most of the responses their enemies would make. But there are a few giant glaring flaws in the plan, not to mention that they never did come up with a real answer to "what do we do when the ridiculously powerful people we have just pissed off suddenly stop playing nice?" Outside of the actual conspirators, everyone who finds out about the plan immediately points out that best case scenario is that everything goes off without a hitch, at which point Fornax brutally murders them all.
    Ivan: You are all so impossibly stupid, I don't even know where to start.
  • "I Know You Are in There Somewhere" Fight: After Balaam blows up Ivan's kids' school, Ivan unleashes Fornax on the city. Tori risks her life to get Ivan's attention and tells him that his kids are alive, which manages to bring Ivan back from the brink. Later on, Nexus tells her that there are many universes, where Fornax killed her anyway.
  • Mugging the Monster: A group of criminals attempt to break into Vendallia Industries on a Friday morning in order to access sensitive data. They take the early morning employees hostage and try to force Ivan to input his password into the computer. Ordinarily, Ivan would be able to slaughter the trio of criminals with ease as Fornax. However, since he is rather fond of his secret identity, he is forced to play along until he can start eliminating the hostage-takers one-by-one. He manages to break one's neck, but, unfortunately, the man is able to get off a shot, forcing Ivan to pretend to be wounded, leaving it up to Tori, another employee, and a barista from across the street to save the day, all of whom happen to be metas.
  • My God, What Have I Done?: Apollo's reaction after Balaam betrays him, blows up a school, and unleashes Fornax on the heroes, before sending out an army of villains loyal only to him to counterattack the capes.
  • Naming Ceremony: Prior to their final test, Doctor Mechaniacal gathers the apprentices and their mentors and announces that the apprentices may choose their code names, since they're going out into the world, and calling them by their real names wouldn't be wise. He calls them up one at a time and asks for their chosen name. Notably, Tori, Beverly, and Lance are shown earlier talking about their code names, with Beverly being dead-set on her name and Lance still unsure. Their chosen names are Hephaestus (Tori), Bahamut (Beverly), Pest Control (Lance), and Glyph (Warren). Their official introduction to the guild happens after the test, when Doctor Mechaniacal announces them to the crowd one at a time. It's pointed out that, originally, names weren't vetted by the Council, which is why there are villains, who have managed to slip with names like "Johnny Three Dicks".
    Johnny Three Dicks: And that's why they call me Johnny Three Dicks, doll. No matter which way you try to come, you're still fucked.
  • Nostalgia Filter: Both Apollo and Balaam yearn for the "good old days" when villains and heroes fought epic battles in the street and there was no need for red tape or worries about PR. This is why they collaborate to take over their respective organizations in order to bring them back.
  • "Not So Different" Remark: Some time ago, Apollo caught Balaam in the act during a crime and was surprised to learn that Balaam also wishes for things to go back to the "glory days", when heroes and villains openly fought one another instead of all the modern red tape. They then decided to work together to prepare for the day, when they can overthrow the leadership of their respective organizations and start an open war with one another. Except Balaam has always planned to betray Apollo.
  • Your Head A-Splode: The first thing Ivan does after re-becoming Fornax is crush Blunderbuss's head so hard it explodes like a watermelon.

     Bones of the Past 
  • Alien Invasion: Two attempts happen in the second book, one by the Grzzniltan and one by the Wrexwren. The first one, consisting of a single ship, ends when Lodestar casually lifts their ship and makes it clear that they're better off going home. They listen. Meanwhile, the Wrexwren bring an entire armada (having learned of Earth from the fleeing Grzzniltan ship), plus a massive sun-eating creature to distract Earth's greatest defenders. The invasion is short-lived, though, as the capes and the villains make short work of the aliens.
  • Bleed 'Em and Weep: Tori killing Deacon hits her hard,. This is partially because she made the conscious decision to kill him (unlike the Rust Tooth situation, which was at least partially self-defense), partially the brutal way she killed him ( shoved a flaming fist down his throat and roasted him alive from the inside out until he stopped struggling), but mostly because this was her first kill as regular old Tori, not as her supervillain alternate identity, Hephaestus.
  • Bullying a Dragon: This is essentially Earth's place in the universe. It is a small, primitive, and insignificant world that just so happens to have Lodestar (the most powerful being in the universe) as well as a host of other nearly as powerful beings there. Aliens still keep trying to invade.
  • Decapitation Presentation: At the end of the second book, Tori gives Ivan a present in the form of the severed head of Lozora, whom Tori kills as payback for putting Ivan's daughter in danger.
  • Dramatic Irony: Tachyonic rescues Tori, assuming she's a Damsel in Distress and not one of the most dangerous supervillains on the planet.
  • Child Soldier: The New Science Sentries have been raised to be superheroes by Professor Quantum.
  • Cool and Unusual Punishment: Ivan is punished for hospitalizing a man racist to his daughter by being forced to take over his role as Starscout leader.
  • The End of the World as We Know It: At the end of the second book, Nexus tells Lodestar that he has witnessed the death of another Lodestar in another reality. Not merely the loss of one bearer of that name with the power finding a new host, but the actual death. He then reveals why this is the first time anyone has ever heard of it: Lodestar's death results in the immediately destruction of that universe with nothing left to indicate what was there.
  • Fantastic Racism: Haywood Gibson kicks Beth, Ivan's daughter, out of the Starscouts because he hates Metas. He even calls her an abomination.
  • Glory Hound: The New Science Sentries have been raised to be this by Professor Quantum. They are super competitive and determined to show off their skills.
  • Humans Are the Real Monsters: This is the entire purpose of Fornax's plan to deal with the invading Wrexwren. The guild not only wants to destroy the invaders, they want to do it in such a way as to make it clear that Earth is off-limits to any other would-be invader. Afterwards, Lodestar rebukes him, pointing out that his actions have likely doomed humanity to a lonely existence, as no one will want to deal with them after this.
  • Humiliation Conga: In the climax of the second book, Fornax stages this for Zerle Salvrin, the commander of the invading Wrexwren forces. First he sandbags it and allows the Zerle to beat him. But it's all to stall for time to allow Doctor Mechaniacal and Xelas to hack into Wrexwren systems. At that point, Fornax lets loose and shows Salvrin how big of a mistake the Wrexwren made by coming to Earth. He not only beats the Zerle to a pulp, he then has Doctor Mechaniacal play the dying screams of the Wrexwren on Earth and show that the hack has allowed them to cause catastrophic failures in the entire alien armada, wiping out the fleet. They also sent an FTL signal to the rest of the Wrexwren space forces, triggering their destruction too. And after Salvrin witnesses Lodestar chase away the Scralthor, Fornax makes Salvrin beg for his life. When the Zerle does... Fornax kills him anyway. And all this is being broadcast to Earth and beyond.
  • Love Triangle: Tachyonic and Cyber Geek think they're in one with Tori. She's too focused on her business for romance.
  • Mook Horror Show: The Guild decides to make an example of those that flout its law when Tori is kidnapped in her civilian identity.
  • Mugging the Monster: Tori is kidnapped by a bunch of D-list supervillains and henchmen to get at the New Science Sentries. She starts off by beating most of them harshly before getting drugged and then threatens them with horrible death before the Guild shows up. Sadly, for them, they don't take the hint.
  • Pay Evil unto Evil: Ivan breaks a few of Haywood Gibson's ribs when he insults his daughter and tries to kick her out of the Starscouts.
  • To Be Lawful or Good: Helen is torn about the fact that Tori's newfound civilian fame puts her less in danger than Tachyonic and the people who might become involved in her life.
  • Reality Warper: Captain Bullshit has this as his power and is arguably the most powerful meta in the universe, even more so than Lodestar.
  • Rescue Romance: Tori, being an attractive woman, getting caught in a photo with Tachyonic results in people assuming one of these is about to happen.
  • Secret-Keeper: Tori, Beverly, and Chloe unintentionally become these for the New Science Sentries in the second book, after the inexperienced heroes out themselves during their first social event. Also, in the same book, Ivan's son Rick learns the truth about his father and has to come to terms with his monstrous nature. And Lodestar reveals her secret identity to Tori after realizing that Tori is a good person at heart.

     Villain's Vignettes: Volume 1 

  • Bullying a Dragon: The Fashionistador ends up pissing off Tori, who adopts the power of Fornax and makes him beg for his life.
  • Christmas Episode: A Very Villainous Christmas has Fornax and Tori defend Saint Nick's workshop from an evil spirit.
  • Clothes Make the Superman:
    • For one night in Hallowville, anyone who puts on a superhero costume will gain a variant of the superhero or villain's powers.
    • This is Fashionistador's power. He can gain an echo of another's power if he manages to obtain and put on a piece of their costume. While normally he gets very little return for a massive amount of effort, he plans to change it all in Hallowville, especially since anyone who no longer has a complete costume is automatically ejected from Hallowville. He manages to obtain Super-Speed, Intangibility, magic, and advanced intelligence. However, he fails when he tries to take Tory's Fornax mask because Fornax's power isn't in the mask. And Fornax is one of the few metas who can harm someone intangible.
  • Evil Counterpart: The ending of The Prietess and the Peril reveals that the leader of the demons may be an alternate Fornax.
  • Evil Is Not a Toy: In The Priestess and the Peril, Perle summons Fornax and is informed that if she wasn't the niece of a dear friend then he would have straight up murdered her.
  • Halloween Episode: A town in Iowa is taken over and turned into a Halloween-esque theme park by Spooky Trudy in A Night in Hallowville
  • Harmless Villain:
    • The Fashionistador turns out to be one of these and is almost killed for it.
    • Spooky Trudy is this during Halloween Day but less so at night.
  • Hell on Earth: Demons have invaded Perle's world and it's up to Fornax to sort it out in The Priestess and the Peril. Played With as the demons may not actually be demons.
  • Holiday Personification:
    • Spooky Trudy is one of these for Halloween.
    • Santa Clause is, well, one for Christmas.
  • It Gets Easier: Fornax reassures Perle that killing becomes easier and she asks if that's a good thing.
  • Never Got to Say Goodbye: The real reason the New Science Sentries go to Hallowville. They hope to win the prize and ask Spooky Trudy for a chance to speak with Ike in whatever afterlife he's in, so they can say their goodbyes and get some closure. Chloe ends up the winner and asks for their wish, but Trudy explains that even she is powerless to help with that.
  • Mall Santa: When taking her younger cousins to see a mall Santa, Beverly is shocked to run into Kristoph, Thuggernaut, and Johnny Three Dicks dressed as Christmas elves. They explain they're filling in for any elves who can't make it that day. At the same time, they're there to keep Kristoph from murdering any people he senses have harmed children. They've put in a lot of effort into keeping him from doing it right there at the mall. Instead, they're collecting names and addresses, so they can all go on a murder spree afterwards.
  • No Ending: The Princess and the Peril end with our protagonists continuing on their war with demonkind.
  • Old Shame: During the Nineties, Lodestar made an educational rap she's done her best to destroy all copies of. Ivan requests Santa give him a copy of it as his reward for saving Christmas.
  • Pay Evil unto Evil: Fornax, Auro, Elysa, and Perle adopt this attitude while passing through the demon-occupied kingdoms.


Alternative Title(s): Forging Hephaestus, Bones Of The Past

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