I still had my telekinesis, but still held the threat of Lady Thunder close to my heart. Once I was sure she was safe, I reasoned, I would use my mental power to escape.

Unfortunately, the best laid plans oft go awry.

The police car took me to a familiar jail called Maitland Penitentiary where they kept many supervillains of St. Newton, and that gave me concern. I had hoped to be taken to jail where I could find my way out easily.

When the car passed through the prison gates, a team of men and women in riot gear marched up to the rear doors. They surrounded the door as the police opened it, their guns trained on me.

A short man in a gray suit approached me with a smile on his face and a blanket in his hands. "Welcome, Mastermind." I saw you on the news and thought you could use this." He held out the blanket.

I took the blanket with caution and wrapped it around myself. "Thank you. You're very kind."

He chuckled. "Don't mistake caution for kindness, Mastermind. I'm Bishop, the warden here at Maitland, and it's my job to make sure you stay healthy enough to stand trial. No sense in your freezing to death before we put you on Death Row. Doctor?"

A doctor came up behind him with a needle. When he brought it towards me, I used my TK to stop his hand.

"What is that?" I asked.

"You're not the first or the last psychic to enter these gates, sir." The warden pointed. "That is a healthy dose of trethuvalanamine, a mild sedative that will dampen your telekinetic powers."

"Never heard of it."

"And that's the way we like it. It's our little surprise for you brain folks who come here."

"Is it legal to give this to me without my consent?"

"Maybe, maybe not. You can take that up with the courts and file your little complaints but in the meantime, you're in my house and you follow my rules. You have two choices: let us inject you with this small dose every day or we'll beat you unconscious, strap you down, and give you a megadose that will keep you unconscious for the next week."

I considered my options and decided I had no choice. He truly had power over me until I found another way.

I let the doctor go, and allowed him to swab my arm and inject it. As it made its way into me, I felt my mind growing slower as it took effect. With my mental control went my hopes for an easy way to escape from this place.

Once injected, the team of guards escorted me through the front door of the prison. I could do nothing but shuffle along with them in my handcuffs and ankle ties.

From there, I was processed quickly. The first thing someone did is rip the goggles and wig from my face. They photographed and fingerprinted me, and I knew it wouldn't take long before my identity was known. I was shoved into an empty interview room, cuffed to a pipe on the table, and left to wait.

Once alone, I tried using my telekinesis to bend my handcuffs. They didn't even move. It seemed the drug worked, after all.

Within minutes, two police detectives walked in. One who held a thick file in one hand chewed on gum while the other detective just glared at me.

The one with the tablet sat down, and held up the file for me to see my mugshot on it. "I'm Detective Graves, that's Detective Harrow, and this ugly fellow is Carter Cain. That's you, isn't it?"

I shrugged. "No point in denying it."

He grunted and chewed while flipping through the pages. "Quite an extensive rap sheet, but there's a couple problems. One is that you're supposed to be dead."

"I faked my death."

"I figured. Also, all these are petty crimes. No indication of enhanced mental abilities or telekinesis. I'm guessing you just got these powers, right?"

I nodded.

Graves held up his hand. "Wait, wait. Harrow and me like to bet on this. What you say, buddy? Ten bucks on a lab accident?"

Harrow narrowed his eyes at me while pulling out his wallet. "Yeah, I'd say he looks more like a mutation thing."

Graves slapped a ten dollar bill on the table while Harrow did the same. "Okay, I love this. How'd it happen, Mastermind?"

"Lab accident."

Graves chuckled while picking up the cash. "Man, the way these labs keep cranking out supervillains, they oughtta charge admission. All right, so you had an accident and became a supervillain. You had quite a collection of gear. You could've stayed under the radar and done really well. What made you dumb enough to mess with Captain Maximum?"

Before I could open my mouth, he looked down at my file and held up a hand. "Oh, I see. Your parents got killed by Cap. This some sort of revenge thing?"

I bowed my head. "In a manner of speaking."

Harrow shook his head. "Man, picking a fight with Captain Maximum. That's just suicidal."

I leaned over the table. "But you have to understand, he's a menace. Did you see the video I released?"

Graves and Harrow burst out laughing.

When I just stared at them, Graves held up a hand. "Sorry, sorry. It's just, you're preaching to the choir. Me and Harrow handle supervillain cases all the time, and we've had to clean up our share of the ones he kills. We didn't know about the alien tentacles, but we knew he wasn't the saint everybody thinks he is."

I felt a surge of hope. "Then you have to understand why I did this. He has to be stopped."

Graves raised his eyebrows. "Stopped? Why would we want him to stop? He gets rid of the worst of the worst, and makes our job easier. If it was up to me, I'd let him clean out the streets."

"He's not just killing supervillains. He's killing normal humans like you and I."

His smile vanished. "Don't you go comparing me to you ever again. I'm a normal human. You're a freak who kills women and kids and deserves everything he gets. I wouldn't be surprised if Cap shows up in your cell tonight and beats your brains in, and I hope he does. If I could, I'd leave your cell door unlocked and invite him in with a plate of milk and cookies. Captain Maximum is taking out the trash, and he can't do it soon enough for me."

I clenched my fists. "This isn't about crime. He wants to take over the world."

Graves stood up and shook his head. "If that was true, and that's a big 'if,' I wouldn't mind if he did. Get somebody decent in charge. I think we're done here. You're charged with multiple counts of murder in the first degree. See you in court."

He smirked. "Or maybe not."

He and his partner walked out, and I didn't bother to protest.

Harrow paused at the door. "Oh, and your lawyer's here."

Before I could insist I didn't need or want a lawyer, my brother walked into the room.

I shall never forget the look on his face as he saw me. It carried such despair and disappointment that I had to look away.

"You're not my lawyer," I growled.

"Carter," he said, "what happened?"

I kept my eyes on the table. "Why are you asking a question you already know the answer to?"

I heard his feet shuffle into the room, and the creak of the chair as he sat down across from me but I kept my eyes down.

After a moment of silence, he spoke again. "I don't understand this, Carter. I thought you were dead. We had a funeral. Then I got word from a friend in the precinct you were here, but I thought he was joking. Now I find out you're alive? And you're Mastermind? Why? How?"

I raised my eyes to glare at him. "I was in an accident at the lab where I worked. It gave me enhanced intelligence and telekinesis. I decided to use my new abilities to better myself, as you always suggested."

"Let's back up, Carter. How could you let me think you were dead?"

"Perhaps I thought you wouldn't care."

He leaned back in his chair. "That's-That's not fair. You're my brother. Of course, I'd care."

"Then perhaps I thought I needed to start over. And I did."

"As a supervillain." He shook his head. "I don't even know where to go with that. Why would you do something like this?"

"Because I needed to. I needed to matter. And I needed to stop Captain Maximum. Did you see the video I released?"

"I saw a video. I thought it was fake. Are you saying it's real?"

"Absolutely. He's not human. And he plans to take over our planet and enslave us."

He tapped his fingers on the desk between us. "I don't know if I believe that, but I know what this is really about. This is about our parents. You never let that go."

I stood up, but the handcuffs held me back. "Of course this is about our parents. You should never have let it go. And I was right. He needs to be stopped."

He leaned forward. "Okay, look. I don't have time to get into this. I had to call in a lot of favors but pretty soon, they'll figure out I'm your brother and I can't be your lawyer. I just wanted to talk to you, and try to help you. Carter, I read the reports. You-You killed people. At the bank, at the school. You were never a killer before this accident. You can plead insanity. Say the accident changed you. Made you do this."

"Never. I'm not insane. I'm saner than I've ever been."

My brother stood up, and took a deep breath. "I don't believe that. I don't believe this is you. But it's good to see you again. I'll keep in touch."

He walked out of the interview room.

Shortly after that, I was taken to the prison where I went through a search and was given prison clothes. I limped through the halls to the general population area, trying to think of a way out. I kept trying my telekinesis but it wouldn't respond. I kept my eyes open for opportunities, but I quickly noted that escape would be difficult.

Warden Bishop met me at the end of the hall. "Mister Cain, I take pride in the facility we've built here so I like to give the grand tour."

He nodded at a guard who turned a key, and opened the door. It swung open to show an open exercise yard with other prisoners roaming the grounds. Some of them I recognized as other villains like Razor Mage who still had metal claws on his hands, despite his uniform. Others betrayed their abilities by glowing or with tentacles instead of arms.

"There's a reason Saint Newton trusts us to hold its supervillains," the warden said. "Just like we took away your telekinesis, we have safety guidelines for all the prisoners we have here, no matter what their abilities. We've got the usual security as well with bars made of hypertanium, and also have a few guards with powers. For instance, Jimmy over there has superspeed. I know you're smart and you're probably already trying to figure out a way to escape. I think you'll find it's not possible."

He led me through the exercise yard to another set of doors, leading to the cell blocks. He walked me to a cell, and held out his hand. "This is your cell, Carter. Enjoy your stay."

I stepped inside the small cell with just enough room for a single bed and a toilet. The cell door slammed shut behind me, leaving me alone.

Once alone, the crushing failure fell over me. I felt utterly defeated. More than that, I realized how I had lost the one thing that should have mattered, that made me more than just another supervillain: Lady Thunder.

Without her, I probably would have been killed by the Kindred or caught by the police long ago. She gave me hope, guided me through my life and crime, and stayed with me through everything.

I realized she was the flaw in any escape plan I might have made. Even if I escaped, Captain Maximum would surely kill her, and I still wouldn't have the Omega Anti-Matter Phaser I needed to stop him. Knowing my freedom meant her death put a halt to any plans because if she died, nothing else mattered. As long as she was in danger, I could do nothing.

I remembered that moment she had asked me if she wasn't enough for me. Now I felt ashamed for choosing revenge over her. If I escaped and somehow managed to kill the captain, I could see only an empty life lying ahead of me.

At the time, I couldn't imagine life without my revenge on Captain Maximum. In that prison cell without her, I knew I was nothing without her. Roxanne was what I really wanted and needed all along.

A prisoner with gray metal skin walking past my cell stopped to do a double-take at me. "Hey, I know you. Are you Carter Cain?"

I didn't feel like saying anything, but had to admit to being surprised by his recognition. "Yes. What of it?"

His metal face lit up with a smile. "You're Mastermind. I just saw you on the TV in the break room. You're the one who tried to kill Captain Maximum."

"Yes, and failed."

The metal prisoner ignored me as he turned to yell at the others in the cell block. "Hey, everybody, Mastermind is here!"

I heard yelling and someone started to clap. The applause grew until it seemed like the building would shake apart. I looked out at other cells where I could see the men cheering and clapping.

The metal man laughed while clapping his hands. "We've all wanted to get a piece of Captain Maximum. Nobody's ever come as close as you have."

As I looked out at the prison praising me, I felt a feeling I have not felt in a long time: acceptance. These were my peers, not the foolish insects who roamed the Earth. To them, I was a murderer and a thug, and Captain Maximum was a hero. Here, I was the hero, and Captain Maximum the true enemy. This was where I belonged.

I also saw something that changed everything: the Mechanical Menace. The Menace stood on the second level, smiling and applauding me as well.

He was a cyborg, which meant he had the resonator I needed. The final component of my weapon lay within my grasp.

I saw a way to escape and a way to kill Captain Maximum, and rescue Lady Thunder, once and for all.