Ten years ago, Calamity came. It was a burst in the sky that gave ordinary people extraordinary powers. The awed public started calling them Epics. Epics are no friends of man. An astonishingly powerful Epic named Steelheart has installed himself as emperor. When Steelheart came to Chicago, he killed David's father. David has been studying, and planning, and he has something they need. Not an object, but an experience. He has seen Steelheart bleed. And he wants revenge.