And You Will Believe That A Man Can Fly [M lf F, Superheroes, Plot-Heavy]

[TheVillain]

As we mourn the dead of our fair city, we remember the fallen mystery man who got us this far. We don't know where they come from, we don't know where they go, and when they die none but god know their true measure as they stand before heaven's gates.

Tonight, on the eve of casting off our Nationalist Socialist oppressors - it is with a heavy heart that I confirm the thought that crossed our minds and the rumor that spread from our lips. Footage recovered from the scene of battle confirms that at approximate 9:30 AM on June 17th of the year 1944, their attempts to interrogate the Skymaster at the Empire Movie Theater ended with his murder at the hands of his Nazi captors. His body reduced to its component atoms, government representatives say that they have been aware of the identity of the man under the helmet for some time and plan to have a ceremony and a marker for the man in Arlington National Cemetary but out of respect for his privacy and the safety of his loved ones he will be buried as the man with his alter ego forever kept secret.

The skies seem a little darker tonight for it. This is WIQN, signing off.

---



Time passes, because that is what time does. Days pass to weeks, weeks to months, months to years, and years to decades. Soon the Skymaster isn't forgotten exactly, but considered a relic of an older time. Occasionally something got the public's interest - especially in the late 70's in Skymaster's case when a retired reporter named Angela Kincaid-McArthur stepped forward with the claim that in 1944 she was his lover and fiancée and as such was in on his secrets and the secrets of many other mystery men and mystery women of the 40's. According to the book she ended up writing, Skymaster was in his civilian identity Second Lieutenant Charles "Kit" Scranton, an army fighter pilot given access to an experimental jetpack-and-flight-suit combination by a reclusive engineering genius so that his talents could still be used to defend the home front after he assaulted a commanding officer. The officer in question was later proven to be a Nazi spy, but by the time this was publicly acknowledged "Kit" was already dead.

The Pentagon has confirmed that they did posthumously promote Charles "Kit" Scranton to the rank of Captain, put up a marker for him in Arlington National Cemetery, and are even too this day tightlipped as to why exactly the promotion and honor of being buried in Arlington was given to a fighter jock that was dishonorably discharged in 1942 - which in the public's eye was as good as a confirmation that Angela was telling the truth.

But appearances can be deceiving. The recovered footage recorded by the retinue of the nazi villains "Der Schwarze Baron" and "Zeithexe" - the Black Baron and the Time Witch respectably - does show what looks like Skymaster being interrogated, tortured, then vaporized by the Time Witch but if looks can be deceiving for anybody it could be her. Its known in some circles that its possible that what she really did was push him outside of the time stream to be recovered and studied later, she was killed by a lucky bomb blast not long after. And with the Empire Movie Theater slated for demolition this week its possible that in the process they'll break certain spells and wards keeping a prison outside of time in place. . .

Second Lieutenant Charles "Kit" Scranton, Posthumously promoted to Captain, was a fighter pilot back when they were considered part of the army and not the air force. Discovering that his CO was a nazi spy, Charles beat him badly and was discharged for it - but Professor Aristotle "Tot" Marchend didn't see any wisdom in letting such talents going to waste. Giving Charles access to an experimental, and at that point apparently undublicatable, jetpack-and-flight-suit combo the Skymaster was born - and for 2 years was considered one of America's first superheroes.

Charles has no innate powers of his own, though his skill as a fighter pilot and his reflexes are both near peak human. With 41 confirmed kills during his short military career, he may be just a baseline human but he Ace'd multiple times over. Wearing the suit protects him from extremes in tempurature and rapid changes in air pressure, with a moderate degree of protection from bullets as well. With the accompanying jetpack, Charles can fly as well though slow speeds are advised. With both things worn together, "Kit" can fly up to the speed of sound safely and in theory fly multiple times the speed of sound - if he doesn't mind the risk of exploding in mid-air. Beyond that he is just a man- if one with a keen wit, sharp reflexes, a solid right hook, a trusty service pistol, and two years of experience with the craziest job in the world. Back in the 40's, these things were enough for a very successful superhero career - time will tell if that's enough now.

His secret identity having been considered a piece of pop trivia that's been available for decades, the legend of the Skymaster is well known by many. Believed to have been dead for about 70 years now, "Kit" is soon to be released from his prison outside of time with no knowledge of any time having passed since 1944. In his mind, it's still June 17th of the year 1944 and his beloved city has been conquered by Nazi metahumans - unaware that his very "death" inspired another round of rebellion against the overlords that proved successful at the very liberation he seeks and the end of the war was decades ago. Skymaster is set to collide with the 21st century head on at this rate.