captain cosmos Captain Cosmos

[Supercape]

Reputation Table

Hell Q

20 Q

Origin Story

Edited March 30, 2019 by Supercape

[Supercape]

Hell Q

 

Who are you? Sum yourself up in one sentence.

Captain Cosmos, defender of the omniverse!

 

Do you have any nicknames, street names, titles, or nom de plume?

No

 

What is your full birth name?

Buddy Brand

 

Where do you live?

Freedom City, Parkside

 

How old are you? What year were you born (if applicable)?

44 (Born 1975)

 

What is your gender? If not applicable, please explain.

Male

 

How would you describe your heritage?

Mainly Caucasian

 

How tall are you?

5’11”

 

What is your body type?

Fairly average but do work out four times a week at the gym.

 

Do you have any particular weaknesses, such as allergies or physical disabilities?

Not physically

 

How do you carry yourself? Are you graceful, or heavy on your feet? Can you be stealthy, do you walk with confidence?

Confident, but not stealthy or graceful (although not a klutz either)

 

Describe your skin, eye, and hair color.

Fairly tanned (thanks to tanning machines and make up), blue eyes, brown hair (salt and pepper)

 

How do you wear your hair, if applicable? Do you have facial hair?

Fairly close cut, well groomed, clean shaven.

 

Do you consider yourself attractive? Do others?

More of an honest open face than stunningly handsome.

 

Do you have any scars, tattoos, piercings, or birthmarks?

Nasty scar down my right leg after a childhood boating accident.

 

Do you resemble anyone famous?

I am famous!

 

Do you have a dominant hand?

Right

 

What kind of clothing do you wear?

Suit and tie

 

Do you wear makeup?

Yes, on the days I am on in front of the camera.

 

What is your vocal range? Is your voice distinctive in some way?

Normal range, good elocution and projection.

Do you have any distinctive habits, nervous tics, or mannerisms? Where did they come from, and what causes them? Do other people notice and remark on these habits? Do they annoy you or other people?

I can fiddle with my tie before going on camera. Drum my fingers when thinking.

 

Where do you come from?

Freedom City

 

Have you made any major moves, or do you live in your hometown?

None

 

Do you feel loyal to your country of citizenship? Do you consider yourself patriotic? How do you feel about the government of your country?

I feel loyal and patriotic to my country, but not my government. The government is there to serve the people, and I aim to hold them to account.

 

How do you feel about the place you come from?

I love the energy.

 

Where is your home town? What was/is it like?

Freedom City. It’s a lively, energetic, and exciting place!

 

Growing up, were most of the people you knew similar to you, or were you somehow a minority? How did that affect you?

Pretty similar. I went to regular school, had regular friends.

 

Is there something you’ve always been really good at or really bad at? How has that affected your life?

I have always been good at talking, putting people at ease. That’s why I ended up in my career.

 

Were there any traumatic experiences in your early years (death of a family member, abandonment, orphaned at an early age)?

My dad was a brute, really pushed me and tried to “make me a man”. It came to a head when I was twelve, he took me rafting down a river, and I ended up nearly drowning (and breaking my leg).  

 

Briefly describe a defining moment in your childhood and how it influenced your life.

Graduating, so I could leave my dad!

 

What stupid things did you do when you were younger?

I didn’t do anything stupid. My dad made me do stupid things, like fighting bullies and doing stupid sports.

 

Where did you go to school? How much school did you have, and did you enjoy it?

High Forest High School. Why did they call it Forest when its in a city? No idea. I went to school, was a good kid, and enjoyed it for the most part.

 

Do you have any mementos of your childhood? What are they, and why did you keep them? If you have none, why not?

Aside from my scar (And metal in my femur), I kept some of my school reports and yearbook. I liked school. It was going home to my dad I didn’t…

 

When did you decide to become a hero? Why? Did anyone influence you one way or another in the decision?

I like to think I was always a hero. Most of us are, helping others in some way or another. As for becoming a superhero, well, when I got super powers!

 

Is the reason you give people for becoming a hero different than your real reason? If so, why?

No, its genuine.

 

Do you have any deep, dark secrets in the past that may come back to haunt you?

No, I’m clean!

 

Do you represent yourself as being different from who you really are? Why?

I suppose I present myself as more cheerful, confident, and balanced than I am. It goes with my job. And maybe that’s just how I am.

 

Do you have any sort of criminal record? If so, is it public knowledge?

No

 

What are your biological parents' names?

Bernard and Vera Brand

 

Were you raised by them? If not, please explain and describe who raised you.

Yes

 

What was their standing in the community? What did/do they do for a living?

Bernard was a businessman. Vera was a housewife.

 

Where are your parents now?

I have little contact with my father. He is retired in California. My mother died when I was twenty two.

 

Did your family stay in one area or move around a lot?

We stayed in Freedom City. Although we went on holiday a lot, particularly Europe.

 

How did you get along with their parents? How do you get along with them now (if applicable).

Very badly. I hardly see my father now.

 

How do your parents view you now, or how would they?

I don’t know and I don’t care about my father. My mother would be proud. Maybe worried too.

 

Do you have any siblings? If so how many and what are their names? Describe your relationship with them.

Violet Brand, my sister. She is a Lawyer. A business lawyer. I think Dad’s malign influence drove her to succeed like me.

 

What was your birth order in the family?

Younger

 

Where are your siblings now (if applicable)? Do they have families of their own? What do they do?

Violet works twenty four seven. She holds down a relationship with a Mr. Rupert Flint, another cold hearted lawyer. I don’t know how they make it work. No children.

 

Do you stay in touch with them or have you become estranged?

Yes I do. Not often, maybe once a month.

 

Do you love or hate one member of the family in particular?

I hate my dad!

 

Is any member of the family special to you in any way (perhaps, as a confidant, mentor, or arch-rival)?

No

 

Are there any black (or white) sheep in the family (including you)? If so, please explain.

No

 

Do you have a notorious or celebrated ancestor? If so, please explain, including how it has affected your life.

No

 

Do you have a partner and children currently? If so, please describe them.

No

 

If you do not have a partner or children, do you want them someday? How firm are you in your opinion on this, and what might change your mind?

I’m getting a bit old for children. Maybe, but I’m not driven to it, and I have other responsibilities. I would really like to get married. To the right woman.

 

What type of person would be your ideal mate?

Smart, relaxed.

 

 

 

Do you have any close friends? If so, please describe them, and how you came to be close to them.

Doctor Linda LaBelle, my physician, who attended to me after I became infused with the Captain Cosmos power. She is the only one who knows my identity, and she is now a trusted friend. I am also friendly with Jen Locksley, the weathergirl at Channel 7 News, who everyone gossips about. But its nothing like that (she is too young for me!)

 

Do you have a best friend? If so, how did they become your best friend? How close are you to your best friend?

Tina Glassfeather, who was our next door neighbour growing up. She is an author of crime books, and kind of protected me from my dad. I lived wither for a year whilst at college. Nicer woman, you could not meet (in contrast to her grim tales!)

 

If you were to go missing, who would worry about you?

My station first! Media never sleeps!

 

Have you lost any loves? If so, how did it happen, and what did you do?

I’ve had plenty of loves, but none of them were what I would call “true love”

 

Do you have any bitter enemies? If so, please describe them and their history with you.

Several, at work. Its media. And several others out of work. That’s media, too.

 

If you have enemies, how do you think they might attempt to work against you in the future?

Discredit me. Humiliate me. Possibly even shoot me!

 

What is the worst thing someone has done to you?

My dad parenting me.

 

Where do your loyalties lie? In what order?

Liberty, my country, journalism integrity.

 

Who or what do you trust the most? Why?

Doctor LaBelle. Because she has quite clearly demonstrated her complete trustworthiness!

 

Who or what do you despise? Why?

Corruption and lies? Tyrants.

 

What qualities do you admire most in other people? Are these qualities you possess?

Humility. I think I have some, but nowhere near as much as I should!

 

What qualities do you hate most in other people? Do you have any of those qualities?

Hubris. Same reasoning.

 

Do you have a secret identity? If so, who knows it? Do you hide it from people who are close to you? Why?

I do, as Buddy Brand. I keep that very secret, which is hard. Only Doctor LaBelle knows of it (So far!)

 

Do you work well on teams and in groups? Are you a leader or a follower?

Bit of both.

 

Are you on a super team? If so, how do you get along with your comrades? Do you trust them, or do you have secrets from them?

No

 

Are you a member of any church, fraternal organization, club, committee, political party, or other group? How much time do you spend on that?

I’m on a charity board for disadvantaged kids, and do a bit of other charity board. I avoid any political affiliation (in public) to make sure I am seen as impartial. I am a member of Media Unions, and also the local arthouse film club. I have a busy life!

 

Who are your heroes?

Political heroes, mainly, who maintained integrity. Mandela, Ghandi, Roosevelt, King…the list goes on and on!

 

Did you ever become disillusioned with former heroes or idols? If so, why and what were the circumstances?

No, because I accept nobodies perfect.

 

 

Do you like being a hero? If so, what is the most rewarding part? If not, what makes you keep doing it?

Sometimes. But it takes a strain on my life. Still, its an honor to serve!

 

Is there anything that would make you give up hero work, or even switch sides?

Poor health would. I cant see myself switching sides.

 

What are your short term goals (what would you like to be doing within a year)?

Explore the limits of my power.

 

What are your long term goals (what would you like to be doing twenty years from now)?

Retired on a beach.

 

What is your greatest fear? Why? What do you do when something triggers this fear?

Being submerged. Not actually being underwater, but that moment when you go under. I have to really steel myself.

 

Is there anything you would give you life for?

Liberty and democracy.

 

How do you feel about money and material wealth? Do you desire it or disdain it? Are you miserly with what you have, or do you like to share? Is it a mark of success, or a means to an end?

I desire it, but its not my major motivation. I’m reasonably generous (I think!)

 

How do you generally treat others?

I like to think fairly. I try to see their point of view, but also like to challenge them.

 

Are you a trusting person? Has your trust ever been abused?

Fairly trusting, but not at work. Media.

 

 

Are you introverted (shy and withdrawn) or extroverted (outgoing)? Do you have a lot of self-confidence?

I appear self confident and relaxed, extroverted. Inside, I always feel I am not good enough.

 

How do you act around attractive, available members of your preferred sex?

Relaxed, and interested. I take my time with romance.

 

What are your most annoying habits?

Drumming my fingers when thinking.

 

Do you feel contempt for any general category of people? Who are they, and why?

Corrupt officials really get me down. Absolute filth.

 

 

What is your favorite food? Do you prefer any particular type of food? Do you take the time to enjoy your food, or do you eat as fast as you can?

French cuisine. I take my time, and like to have a good wine with a meal.

 

What is your favorite drink (alcoholic or otherwise)?

Red wine. Old world.

 

 

What is your favorite treat (dessert)?

Crème Brule

 

Are there any specific foodstuffs that you find disgusting or refuse to eat?

Fast food.

 

What is your favorite color? Are there any colors you dislike?

Purple.

 

 

What sort of music do you like? Is there any that you hate?

Seventies rock. Hendrix, Zepplin, Ffloyd, Early Queen.

 

If you have a favorite scent, what is it?

No

 

Do you have a favorite animal?

No

 

What is your most treasured possession? Why?

My first paycheck. It represented independence.

 

Do you enjoy “roughing it”, or do you prefer your creature comforts?

Creature comforts.

 

Is there a job or a task you would absolutely refuse to do?

No

 

Do you consider yourself a spiritual person? If so, how do your beliefs affect your life?How important is it to you?

I’m a philosophical person, not a spiritual person.

 

Could you kill? Have you killed?

I haven’t. I believe anyone could, in the right circumstance.

 

 

Are there circumstances under which you believe it is permissible to kill? What are they?

To save lives.

 

How would you react to watching someone kill another person? Would your reaction be different if the killer was a friend or an enemy of yours?

I’d be sad. But, sorry to say, reporting on the news has made me a bit numb to death and war.

 

How would you react if something important was stolen from you?

Pretty angry.

 

How would you react to public humiliation?

Terribly! I would try to rectify it as soon as possible! Get a spin doctor!

 

How would you react if a good friend or relative were purposely or accidentally killed? Has it happened to you?

It hasn’t happened. Again, I would be sad, but I have heard lots of terrible stories.

 

What do you consider to be the worst crime someone could commit and why?

Murder. Its final.

 

If your life were to end in 24 hours, what five things would you do in those remaining hours?

Report on it!

 

 

Do you have any special training in your hero skills? If so, where and how did you get it?

No

 

Do you have any particularly unusual skills? How did you acquire them?

TV presenting. I got them by practice!

 

Do you do something besides hero work for a living? Have you ever done anything else, or do you plan to?

I’m a newsman for Channel 7 News. All I have done. Never thought about anything else.

 

What is your preferred combat style?

What style? Punch them!

 

 

Have you ever received any awards or honours?

A few low level media awards, for “the Brand Report”

 

What skill areas would you like most to improve in? Is there anything you can't do that you wish desperately you could?

Id like to know a bit more about the cosmos.

 

How do you act around people who are more skilled than you in areas you’d like to improve? Are you jealous, or do you try and learn?

Try and learn, of course!

 

What is a normal day for you? How do you feel when something interrupts this routine?

Up early, work, work, work, work, come back late.

 

Do you have any hobbies, or interests outside hero work? What are they, and where did you pick them up?

Film and cinema.

 

What do you do for fun?

Socialise.

 

Do you have a costume? What does it look like?

A grey, black, and gold costume made of unstable molecules. Complete with mask and cape!

 

How do you normally dress when not in costume?

I’m usually in a suit and tie!

 

Do you wear any special jewelry? What is it, and what does it look like?

No

 

 

Do you have a special place where you keep your valuables?

My study desk in my apartment.

 

What's your preferred means of local travel? How about long distance?

Flying!

 

Have you ever made a will, or tried to make arrangements for your death? What provisions did you make?

Yes. I’m leaving 1/2 to charity, the rest to my sister.

 

If your features were to be destroyed beyond recognition, is there any other way of identifying your body?

The metal in my right femur.

 

What would you like to be remembered for after your death?

A pretty decent guy.

 

Do you believe you pose a threat to the public? Why or why not?

Yes, possibly. If the strain of gaining dimensions gets to much, it can have a terrible effect on my mental health. Not violent, but certainly confused.

 

What do you perceive as your greatest strength?

Decency and, well, my strength!

 

What do you perceive as your greatest weakness?

Poor mental health.

 

As a player, if you could, what advice would you give your character? Speak as if he/she were sitting right here in front of you. Use proper tone so they might heed your advice...Top of Form

Reduced dimensions at night, Hero’s delight. Multiple dimensions in the morning, Hero’s warning.

[Supercape]

20 Questions

Buddy Brand Interviews Captain Cosmos for Channel 7 News!

But HOW???

By the power of time travel! And stuff!

1.       Where are you from?

Freedom City, good old U S of A!

2.       How would you describe yourself?

Strong, dependable, and multi-dimensional!

3.       Do you have distinguishing speech characteristics or recurring mannerisms?

No sir!

4.       What is your motivation?

Liberty and democracy! Fight for our universal rights!

5.       What is your greatest strength?

I guess its my strength! I can lift a truck!

6.       What is your greatest Weakness?

That would be telling! (Winks) How about my good hearted nature?

7.       What does you love the most?

My job! Defending liberty, exposing corruption!

8.       How would you describe you mental and emotional state?

That…depends. Pretty relaxed usually. I can get pretty…tense….if I use my powers too much. It extracts a price on my head!

9.       What do you fear the most?

Going underwater. It’s a phobia.

10.   What is your greatest ambition?

To be a great superhero. One of the greats. Nothing wrong with a bit of fame, as long as its deserved! And a pullitzer!

11.   How does you feel about the state of the world and your place in it?

Depends where you are in the world. I’m positive about the free world. But there a plenty of dangerous, even hellish places elsewhere.

12.   Does you have any prejudices? How do you get along with others?

No sir!

13.   Where do your loyalties lie? In what order?

To my country, but more than that, to the institutions that protect our liberty and democracy.

14.   Do you have a lover or partner?

Why you asking? (wink). No, not at the moment.

15.   How would the people closest to you describe you?

A decent, friendly guy. Got his heart in the right place.

16.   Are you a role model?

I like to think so

17.   How spiritual are you? Do you follow a religious tradition?

I keep an open mind about these things, but I can’t say I follow a particular religion.

18.   Are you part of a team?

No. Freedom League, keep that seat warm!

19.   How do you feel about the place of metahumans and aliens on Earth?

It sure makes the world more interesting! More dangerous, but more safe too.

20.   If you could give one piece of advice to your hero, what would it be?

Make sure the camera gets your best side!

[Supercape]

Origin Story....

 

Beware the Collapse!

 

It was late into November, 2018, on a surprisingly cool morning with clear skies and browning leaves. Buddy Brand was home for Thankgiving.

He didn’t like being back in San Fransisco. Not that he had anything against San Fransisco personally. In fact, if he stood back and considered the city, he found it rather pleasing. But he happened to grow up in San Fransisco, and he didn’t really like thinking about that part of his life. It was bittersweet, if he was being generous.

 

He pushed his father out of his head as he knocked on the door. He was not entirely successful in doing so. Every time he came to see his sister, Violet, he had a little clench in his chest, as if some part of his heart – or perhaps soul – was necrosing. He could never completely clench the fear that his father had somehow managed to persuade Violet to invite him.

 

Violet answered the door with a smile. It never quite matched her severe face, her severe clothing, her severe hair, or her severe eyes. She was smarter than Bernard, more driven too. But she had never quite grasped the art of charm. For all that, she did have a genuine smile on her face.

The two siblings shared a smile that had some painful splinters embedded in the love they shared.

 

“Come in”

 

Violet was short on words. Maybe, as a lawyer, she used them up in her job. Buddy thought that she used them with spartan efficiency. She spoke with all dressings and obscuration stripped away. He, on the other hand, spoke slowly and with art, his voice like oil, smoothing over pains and woes. It was no less effective in getting to the truth, but it was a different style.

 

He reassured himself that his father was not at the dinner table, or in the garden, or lurking behind some door. Only when satisfied did he sit down.

 

But Violet, sighing at her brothers nerves that followed the same tired pattern every year, did not sit down. In truth, she was not much of a sitter, but today she was in a rush.

 

“Sorry, Buddy, I have to go. Not long. Job”

 

Brutal efficiency, but Buddy got the meaning, because he got Violet. She was a lawyer, always busy, always stressed, always in a rush. He supressed the urge to protest, for he knew it would serve no function other than to pour fuel on a fire.

 

“Sorry to hear that” he said, acknowledging her circumstance. “I’ll just make myself at home” he said “Don’t sweat it!”

 

“Sure?” she asked, although she knew Buddy was pretty sure.

 

“Sure. I’ll go take a walk, I think. Looks like a great day, and I could do with the exercise. They force feed me Danish every evening in the studio!”

“Mph” mumbled Violet, taking a little look at his midriff. Buddy was in pretty good shape, but Violet was a thin as a pencil, and didn’t have enough body fat to fry an egg.

 

Later…

 

Buddy walked through the inclines of the streets that were half remembered. It had been thirty, forty years since he walked them as a child, trying to get away from his father. There was some fondness to those memories, even if they were peppered with black spots he spent a lot of energy not expending energy on. But times change, and they were not the same streets. Just echoes.

 

He was feeling rather tired, his legs sore from the inclines, when it happened.

 

A bolt from the sky. Blue. Or Yellow. Or something else. It was hard to look at. It wobbled. It changed. It seemed to be faint and hyper real and all sorts of other things. And it was moving fast.

 

Almost too late, Buddy realised that whatever it was, it was heading straight for him. And it might have been small (although its maddeningly odd realness seemed to make even that estimation uncertain), but anything travelling at that speed would kill him.

 

And so, ignoring his tired legs, he ran and dove. A fraction of a second later, something hit the pavement. And hit it hard. He could feel the impact through the road, and the sound of tinkling glass from the nearby homes.

 

He found himself stunned. Something was pressing on him, from all directions. A sense of himself that both expanded and compressed. It was an unpleasant sensation that unravelled his brain. He felt himself slipping into lunacy.

 

Like a moth to a flame, he turned around to assess the damage. To himself, none. At least, not physically. His legs still seemed to be there, and seemed to work.

 

But on the ground, he saw himself.

 

This was not a reflection. He saw a perfect copy of himself, only dressed in some stylish costume, crumpled up, fading.

 

“Beware….”

 

Buddy shook himself back to intention. What was he seeing? What was he hearing? Was this mad reflection of himself talking to him?

It appeared he was. The crumpled figure looked directly at Buddy.

 

“…the collapse?”

 

What the hell did that mean?

 

Alas, Buddy could not ask for clarification. His doppelganger was dying. And now, he was dead.

 

But even more strange, as the figure closed his eyes a final time, as he drew his final breath, he vanished. Not even dust. Simply disappeared.

And a wobbling field of hyperdimensional energy that Buddy couldn’t understand. Even looking at it sent his mind into psychosis, hearing piping flutes from idiot gods and spinning dervishes at the centre of infinite nothingness. And then, the energy hit him.

 

It hit him hard, sending tingles down every nerve, and flinging his body across the street. He landed in a mess.

 

But he was still alive, to the amazement of the onlookers who had stopped walking, and stopped their cars, in amazement.

 

“I’m okay! I’m okay! Just a meteor…or something!” he gasped, his spinal cord doing the work his brain could not. His media instinct kicked in like a reflex.

 

Later….

 

He had found himself walking home, shrugging off offers for help or aid. He felt like he was in a daze, like this was not happening. He heard whispers, frightening whispers. People talking about him, talking at him. Why where they looking at him that way? What did that movement mean? That look in the eye? Was what that woman wearing a green scarf? Why was that man wearing that hat? There was meaning in everything, everything was salient. And not in a good way.

 

He collapsed into Violet’s house, feeling like the world was going to collapse into his skull. Maybe that was what the warning was.

He heard whispers in his head. That he was evil, that they would burn him. He felt the CIA beam messages into the implanted microchip in his head. How had they done that? He felt so sure they had. So certain that he contemplated, for one awful moment, microwaving his head to fry the chip.

 

He gritted his teeth and forced himself to write a note to Violet, saying his was not feeling well. He noticed his handwriting was shaky. Someone was obviously transmitting nerve signals into his hand to make it shake.

 

The journey back to Freedom City was all night, fuelled on caffeine. He didn’t dare fly. He constantly checked his mirrors, certain that someone was following him. Hell, he had made enough enemies that someone surely wanted to wipe him out. He had never like guns, but he really wished he was had a pistol in the glove compartment.

 

He didn’t sleep that night. He couldn’t. Even when he covered the radio in tin foil, he could still feel the radio waves in his skull.

 

By the morning, he was a wreck. Unwashed, unshaven, with eyes bloodshot. He phoned the only person he could think of. Doctor Linda LaBelle.

By the time she arrived, he was no better. And no worse. The exhaustion was doubled, however. He was as paranoid as before, but somehow, the pure fatigue of his condition had robbed him of his will to argue. And Dr LaBelle was somebody he trusted.

 

By that afternoon, he was in an MRI scanner, heavily sedated. At least that was some relief. He found himself in her office, half asleep from fatigue and medication, but with the voices at least muted, if not gone.

 

“This is…extraordinary….” She said.

 

Linda LaBelle was a very clever doctor indeed. Acute onset psychosis, symptomatically. But mental illness did not appear overnight. And some of Buddy’s story checked out. The results of his scan, and his blood work, was…impossible. He should be dead. But he was very much alive.

“Your cellular integrity is off the charts. No oxygen in your blood stream, but you appear not to need it any more. Or glucose” she explained. “Whatever happened to you…it doesn’t seem to have hurt you. Physically, at least. How are you feeling?”

 

“Better” said Buddy. This was true. The voice in his head telling him Linda was trying to poison him was certainly much quieter.

 

“Good. I’m guessing you will need those medications for a week at least. But this is outside my experience. It’s outside ordinary medicine. Maybe outside extraordinary medicine Maybe I should call W.E.S.T…” she pondered.

 

“No. NO!” said Buddy, fear cutting through his sedation. “I don’t want anyone to know. I want to keep my life”

 

“I…don’t think you will ever be quite the same” said Dr LaBelle, gently.

 

“I…know…” conceded Buddy, lying back in his chair, pressing his temples. “Whatever happened to me, I can feel it. And that’s not me getting confused, this feels real. Very real. Last night…you wouldn’t believe the things I found out…”

 

“Try me”

 

“I’m strong enough to bend steel. And I can fly” answered Buddy, almost coyly.

 

“…”

“I said you wouldn’t believe me….”

 

“Actually, I do” replied Doctor LaBelle. “It…fits. The energy you absorbed, contained with every cell and mitochondria in your body” she said, contemplating the ramifications.

 

“I’m a damn Superhero!” grunted Buddy. He never wanted to be one, but with this energy in his every fibre, it was the truth.

 

Linda LaBelle nodded.

 

“What are you going to do then?” she asked him.

 

It had crossed Buddy’s mind, but only briefly.

 

“Whoever…whatever….that version of me was, I guess I’ll take a leaf out of his…or my….book” he said. “Put on his cape. Take his name. Try to use his power best I can”

 

“His name?”

 

“He never said it” replied Buddy, smiling the first time in a long couple of days. “But I heard it, in my head. Captain Cosmos!”