“A Sixteen Step Plan to Supervillainy” in Coast to Coast Stars
When I’m writing in a superhero universe, I generally write heroes and not villains. But for “A Sixteen Step Plan to Supervillainy,” I decided to try out the other side of the fence. After all, villains believe themselves to be the heroes of their stories, so why not write a sympathetic villain story?
“A Sixteen Step Plan to Supervillainy” follows a young researcher as she falls in love with a superhero and eventually realizes that she, too, has super powers. Unfortunately for her, she has the power to steal others’ powers, a little like Rogue from the X-Men. And thus, Doctor Ruthless was born, ultimately leaving behind her husband and young son for fear of hurting them (or being stopped by her husband’s family, who were all superheroes).
Doctor Ruthless is also the reason why there weren’t a lot of superheroes with inborn powers in Cerulean City for a period of time in the ’90s. Heroes who used tech or magic were safe from her thefts, but anyone with inborn powers ran the risk of having her decide to steal them. And it’s difficult to stop someone with a suite of stolen powers.
If you’d like to read about Doctor Ruthless’s origin (plus another story where she shows up as the villain), check out Coast to Coast Stars!
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