Four Years Ago.

Andy, Brian, Rick, Cathy, and Erica followed Carl through the woods. The Valtarian children wore their human forms just in case they ran into someone, though luckily their only company were the various woodland creatures fleeing or giving them curious looks.

“So, I get Coppershot,” said Brian. “And I get Silverwing. I kind of get Ironmind but… Goldarms? Why Goldarms?”

Carl looked back with a grin, raised his arm, and flexed his large bicep as he walked.

“Ooooooooooh!” said Brian. “I get it now.”

“Hey,” said Andy. “I’ve been working out too. Look!”

Andy flexed his own bicep, and though it was considerably smaller than Carl’s, Andy beamed with pride.

“I think you still have ways to go, buddy,” said Rick.

The others chuckled, and Andy crossed his arms grumpily.

Finally, after a few minutes of walking, Carl stopped to uncover fake patch of grass that covered a metal door. Turning the wheel on the metal door to unseal it, the metal groaned and then opened with a clang. Leading them down stone stairs, their footsteps echoing on the way, Carl pressed a button on the wall and lit up a giant room where the Iron Eagle rested, a collection of tools resting against the wall. Most of the ship was just the frame, with a few metal sheets serving as the beginnings of the hull, but the ship was coming along nicely.

“Wow!” said Andy. “It looks amazing!”

“I can’t believe you’re actually building a ship!” said Brian.

“Well,” said Carl, blushing. “Rick and Erica helped.”

“Don’t sell yourself short,” said Ironmind, turning to the others. “Most of it is his design, and he was working with secondhand materials.”

“Only thing it won’t have is a stardrive,” said Erica. “Sad they still can’t make the fuel for that on earth, but even so. You did good, Carl. It’s gonna be great.”

“A compliment?” said Cathy teasingly. “From you, Erica? Enjoy that, Carl. You’ll probably never get another one.”

“Oh, shut up,” said Erica.

The others just giggled.

“So,” said Andy. “How long before it’s finished, do you think?

“Probably another year,” said Carl, looking up at it. “I can’t wait.”

Ironmind walked up and put his hand on Carl’s shoulder. “Neither can I.”

The six children looked up at the ship, beaming.

###

Present Day.

The next hour was a bit of a blur for SteelStar. The Sons of Purity had finished evacuating, leaving the base to the power users. The first thing they did was load Goldarm’s body onto the Iron Eagle, and then they spent some time scouring the base for anything valuable. Ironmind contacted the military and sent them their location, and once they arrived, they would take custody of the base. A few E.H.O.D. agents showed up to recover the wreckage of the cerberon, and they didn’t look happy about it. SteelStar did his best to avoid them.

Sometime in the confusion Beetle Brute had escaped, the chair he’d been restrained in empty and the restraints broken. Upon discovering it, Blacksting had shouted something in Spanish, his tone quite furious. Apparently when SteelStar had drained the power from that generator, it had affected certain systems, including the one pumping that drug into Beetle Brute’s system. Seemed Beetle Brute had been given just enough time to recover his strength and escape before the power users thought to look for him.

Members of the Peacekeepers arrived in helicopters to pick up Green Angel. She didn’t exclusively use power users in her group, and in fact most of her subordinates were ordinary men wearing green uniforms. As she prepared to board a helicopter to leave, she took a moment to walk up to SteelStar, who looked down at the floor, not even meeting her eyes.

“I’m sorry about your friend,” she said.

SteelStar looked up curiously.

“I mean it,” she said. “I… I wish I could have saved him.”

SteelStar looked away. “Yeah, me too.”

Green Angel looked like she was about to say something but thought better of it and walked away. SteelStar watched her go, uncertain of what he should think.

Once the military determined that the base was free of threats, the remaining power users boarded the Iron Eagle and left, soaring swiftly over the landscape. SteelStar was grateful to be away from that horrible place, and he lay in a bed in spare quarters, just staring at the ceiling in his organic form. He just couldn’t get what happened out of his head. Carl had been his friend ever since they were children, and it had been so long since they’d seen each other. How could their first meeting in years have ended like this?

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

He only had one answer. Goldarms wouldn’t have been there if SteelStar hadn’t been captured. If only he’d been stronger…

A knock at the open door alerted SteelStar to Ironmind’s presence. Behind him stood Coppershot, Silverwing, and Goldarms. SteelStar realized he must have been really deep in thought. He hadn’t even sensed the other Valtarians’ energy.

“How are you feeling?” asked Ironmind.

SteelStar looked back at the ceiling. “Terrible,” he said, his voice quivering. “It…it’s my fault.”

“No!” said Silverwing. “The Sons of Purity did this. This wouldn’t have happened if they hadn’t kidnapped you.”

She clenched her fists upon mentioning them, but SteelStar looked away.

“You can’t beat yourself up over is,” said Coppershot. “Believe me. Goldarms was always going to be the first person in.” she looked away dejectedly. “That’s just the kind of man he was.”

“I’m…” said Ironmind before correcting himself. “I was… his commanding officer. It was my call to send him in there. If anyone on this ship has responsibility for his death, it’s me. But even knowing that, Goldarms knew what he was doing. He chose to put himself there.”

SteelStar didn’t answer. A part of him know that they were right, but he still couldn’t shake the feeling that he was responsible.

“Alright,” said Goldshift. “I think what SteelStar needs right now is rest. Come on, let’s get back to our stations.”

Reluctantly, the others began to leave. Ironmind, however, paused at the door.

“Just remember,” he said. “Goldarms wouldn’t want you to blame yourself. You know that, right?”

SteelStar didn’t answer. Ironmind, seeing no progress, almost turned to leave until SteelStar thought of something.

“Ironmind,” said SteelStar, looking over. “Did you get a look at the cerberon?”

Ironmind looked back and nodded.

“It looked like an older model,” said SteelStar.

“Yeah,” said Ironmind. “That was the original model, a mark one.”

“Do you know what model they’re on now?”

Ironmind hesitated, his face grim. “Seven. The current model is mark seven.”

SteelStar closed his eyes.

“Great,” he said sarcastically.

###

Later on, someone else knocked on SteelStar’s door.

“Come in,” said SteelStar, still laying on the bed.

Joseph Kimball entered, and he looked nervous. SteelStar sat up curiously.

“You’re the guy who helped us,” said SteelStar.

“Y… yeah,” said Joseph. “Well… actually, I was considering joining them. The Sons of Purity, I mean.”

“I’m glad you didn’t,” said SteelStar sitting up.

“I’m sure.” Joseph hesitated. “The thing is… there’s something I need to get off my chest.”

SteelStar tilted his head as Joseph hesitated to speak.

“You see,” said Joseph, swallowing nervously. “I… I helped Thornton capture you.”

SteelStar felt every muscle in his body tighten as he clenched his fists. Joseph felt the urge to back away from the young hero’s intense stare.

“How?” asked SteelStar.

Joseph swallowed. “My company made the buildings that housed the mutants, perfectly soundproof so no one noticed them until they were released.

SteelStar felt his entire body clench. “Why?”

“By business was nearly destroyed by a power user,” said Joseph. “I was trying to get reimbursed in court, but they threatened my family unless I dropped it. My… my business was going to go under, and… Thornton promised he could help me.”

SteelStar could feel himself trembling in anger. The only reason Goldarms was dead was to rescue him. This man…

“Why did you help us, then?”

“The trials,” said Joseph. “The whole thing made me uncomfortable from the start and… I didn’t know about Manny Turner. I can’t imagine what that must have been like for you. I… I know it was wrong to help them, now.”

And looked away, still shaking. Part of him knew that a power user victim was exactly the kind of person Andrew Thornton would target. On the other hand…

“I’d like to be alone now,” said SteelStar.

Joseph, just a little dejected, left the room, closing the door behind him. SteelStar sat there, clutching the covers of the bed as another tear fell down his face.

###

Inside the Iron Eagle, Ironmind stood in the ship’s quarters with Blacksting, Nosfeline, and Joseph Kimball.

“We’ll reach Partition City soon,” said Ironmind. “If you need to call for transport once we get there, there’s an intercom in the room.”

“We’ll arrange that later,” said Blacksting. “I’d like to pay my respects to Goldarms before I take off.”

“Same,” said Nosfeline.

Ironmind nodded.

“Any word on my wife and daughter?” asked Joseph.

“They’re fine,” said Ironmind. “They got to the U.H.E. office without trouble.”

Joseph breathed a sigh of relief.

“Any news on Beetle Brute?” asked Blacksting.

Ironmind shook his head.

“Yeah,” said Blacksting. “He always was a slippery one.” He sighed.

“How’s SteelStar?” asked Nosfeline.

Ironmind looked away for a moment. “About as well as can be expected.”

The others nodded.

###

The Iron Eagle eventually reached the outskirts of Partition City. Hovering over the forest, steel doors hidden under the ground began to slide open, dirt falling into the hidden chamber below. Soon the ship lowered itself, its landing shaking the ground, and then the steel doors started closing above it. Within the hidden chamber, most of the Valtarians from that neighborhood stood watching, waiting for the news with bated breath.

Eventually a ramp slid out of the ship as a door opened, and the Valtarian Superheroes stepped out. Ironmind stood in the front, and behind him walked Goldshift, Silverwing, and Coppershot, their faces grim. Behind them, SteelStar carried a coffin over his shoulder, a box large enough to accommodate Goldarm’s final pose.

When they reached the bottom of the ramp, SteelStar put the coffin on the ground and then opened it. As the crowd of Valtarians walked up, many gasped at the sight of Goldarm’s… Carl’s body. Soon, one of them ran up right to the coffin. Carl’s father ran up with wails of lamentation, crying, “No!”

The large man reached in and hugged Carl’s metal corpse, still crying out as his wife came up and joined him. All around them, dejected faces watched the scene unfold. Soon, the parents of these Valtarians arrived. John and Amelia hugged their son, tears streaming down their faces. Cathy’s mother fawned over her, asking if she was okay, and both of Erica’s parents examined her for injuries.

Lastly, Rick found himself standing face to face with Tobias. Father and son stared at each other, frozen for a few moments.

“Hello, Ris,” said Tobias.

“Hey, Dad,” said Ironmind. “It’s been a while.”

“It has. I only wish we could have met under better circumstances.”

Both of them looked towards Carl’s coffin sadly as the dead man’s parents wept over him. A moment later, Andy walked up, turning to his natural form, light skin and white hair. Still wracked with guilt, he turned to the crowd of Valtarians and raised his voice.

“Carl Carrison saved my life,” said Andy. “I wouldn’t be standing here if not for him. He died well. He…” SteelStar’s voice caught for a moment. “He earned the Solid Death!”

Andy then gave the Valtarian salute, crossing his arms across his chest before keeping one there and raising the other into the air. With tears forming under his eyes, Andy watched as the other Valtarians repeated the salute, starting with his mother Amelia. They were followed by the Fullmetal Force, and the last to follow suit were Carl’s parents, their faces filled with a mixture of sadness and pride.

“The solid death!” cried the Valtarians.

Andy stood there trembling with sadness, feeling that his words weren’t enough, but having no more to share. Sympathetically, Andy’s father John walked up behind him and placed his hand on Andy’s shoulder.