SUMMARY: Nobody knows that Kevin Connolly, the schlub about to go on his tenth-anniversary vacation with his wife, Stephanie, is secretly superhero M-Pulse... not even Stephanie. Determined not to have his anniversary interrupted, M-Pulse manages to quietly ward off attacking ninjas while Stephanie isn't looking. But when the couple are trapped by supervillain MegaHex, who announces that he's finally caught the world's greatest hero, and the two are surrounded by zombies, M-Pulse realizes he can no longer hide his greatest secret. However, before he can make a move, it's Stephanie who steps forward to answer MegaHex's challenge, and M-Pulse is dumbfounded that his wife is really StarChild, the world's greatest superhero. And he's further stunned to find that she's known his secret all along, because she can read minds. And he's not thrilled to learn he's considered a D-list superhero. As StarChild makes short work of MegaHex, M-Pulse takes care of the zombies (sort of - StarChild needs to finish them off), and MegaHex is upset that StarChild is arguing with her husband throughout the fight rather than paying full attention to him. The foes are fought off for now, but the couple have some talking to do...

Photos by Aaron Francis

SUMMARY: The couple realize they need to trust one another, and Stephanie promises not to use her telepathy on M-Pulse any more. She tells him her epic origin story, when a car accident connected her to the all-powerful "Star Force" that binds the universe - and accidentally killed a group of attacking aliens the first time she used her powers, almost without thinking. The cost of using so much power knocked her out... but when she woke up, the Justice Squad was standing over her, and they offered her membership. (M-Pulse's origin is far less dramatic; he just got struck by lightning.) M-Pulse asks if he can meet the Justice Squad, and Stephanie agrees to introduce him.

Photos by Mandi Moss

SUMMARY: At the Justice Squad's secret headquarters, studious superhero The Owl is annoyed by staightlaced Maximus' constant mis-stating of her superhero name: she's "THE Owl," not just "Owl." StarChild arrives and convinces the Justice Squad to let M-Pulse meet them; however, she's upset when he immediately asks to join the team. Now she's in an awkward position; the team has already been watching M-Pulse for years and have deemed him to be "D-list." However, StarChild claims he saved her life, so the Justice Squad - after some telepathic pleading from StarChild - agree to put him through trials that would prove him worthy of A-list status.

Photos by Mandi Moss

SUMMARY: M-Pulse undergoes his first trials. After an examination of some sort from The Owl, speedster Tweak challenges him to a test of speed. M-Pulse fails at first, but soon gets the hang of it once he's "charged up." Tweak reluctantly admits that M-Pulse has done a good job, but now it's time for his next trial... which will be administered by StarChild.

Photos by Maral Adams