More productive this day than I've been in a while. Should get even better moving forward. Today I started creating an index of some of the superheroes that existed in my world so that I would have them all ready to pull from when I need them in the story. I've even included titles for potential stories about these heroes. In a perfect world where this novel was popular enough to warrant it, I would love to write a story to match every one of these titles. But I have no expectations of that happening, so for now it's just a fun exercise in writing catchy titles.
Index of Superheroes and Villains
Adventurers
These are heroes in the classic pulp explorer/adventurer style. They may have lives in their home cities, if they have one, but their real excitement comes when they are off exploring in some far of jungle, desert, or other extreme condition and are finding lost civilizations, artifacts, and wealth. The conflict mostly stems from some villainous crew desiring the wealth. They may not have an origin story that specifically gives them superpowers, but they seem to be pretty well capable beyond what a normal human can accomplish.
Dakota Dan
Explored what would eventually become the western United States during the 19th century on his horse, Manifest Destiny. Was raised and taught by an indian hunter and tracker named, Bear Claw. Dealt with parental tragedy twice in his life. First when a raid from a violent indian tribe killed both his mother and father when he was five, and again at 15 when a band soldiers clearing out country for railroads killed Bear Claw, his adopted father. In the intervening 10 years he learned everything Bear Claw had to offer and surpassed the man's ability. Skeptical of white man and native alike, Dan fought against evil on all sides and otherwise preferred to be alone. Some of his best known stories are The Bear and the Raven, A Train Dead West, and The Tribe of the Disappearing River.
Kranza
An African village is slaughtered by an evil warlord. The ancient spirits rescue the only survivor, a baby named Kranza. The protect the child and see to it that he spends time being raised by many of the African creatures in the savannah and the jungle, as well as give him the ability to communicate with the beasts. He has been chosen by the spirits to be the protector of both the jungle creatures and the tribes. When not putting an end to a would-be warlord, or protecting from some external threats, Kranza explores the secrets of the largely uninhabited land. His adventures have been retold in tales like The Hidden City of Ugra, Death From Above, and Mogrund Returns.
General Fero
Nicknamed "Savage Iron", General Fero didn't have any actual military experience, but was called "general" by his father once he recognized both his son's clear leadership abilities and 'general' interest in any subject he could come across. The term stuck as Fero lead a small team of adventurers with their own specialties: Brute, Fours, Kenneth Lester, and McGriffith. Fero, a man deeply devoted to both physical and mental expertise, leads the team on worldwide missions as part of his profitable company. Everything from kidnappings to searching for treasure, which includes a considerable finder's fee, have filled the company's coffers, and the money is primarily used for R&D in technology and medical projects which Fero oversees. Most of the groups' most exciting adventures didn't come out until after disclosure agreements (50 years being the standard) came to term. Even today some are still being unearthed. Among the groups ventures were The Hunt for Prince Thane, The Golden Ostrich of Bangledesh, and Agent H asks a Favor.
Amazon Annie
Annie is one of the smartest people on the planet. Despite that fact, she constantly is getting herself in sticky situations as she explores uncharted territory, and because of it, she finds a way out. The world's leading female physician by trade, she is drawn to the wilds of South America and Africa in search of rare flowers and herbs as new ways to treat rare illnesses. She's comfortable taking on the cannibalistic tribes of the wild, as well as the leaders in the medical field. Some of her more interesting cases/adventures are told in The Vampires of Blood River, A Rash Decision, and The Poison Cure.
Classics
As of right now, I'm only planning on using King Arthur, Hercules, Paul Bunyan, and John Henry in the book. There's a chance I may decide to use more.
Urban Crime Sleuths
These are crime fighters who, though not superpowered, have the ability to appear that way because they are so skilled at making the night work to their advantage. A competitive edge like that, along with a perfectionist's dedication to developing their physical fighting skills, makes these heroes terrifying to any crowded city's underworld. They take on mobster, gansters, racketeers, simple crooks, and even the occasional otherworldly foe. These heroes may leave their city on the occasional case, but are otherwise deeply associated with their cities.
The Fog
This hero is the alter ego of local merchant, Edgar Julian. Though wealthy, Edgar's business interests gave him reason to spend much of his time in one, Dernier City's seediest loactions, the docks. From that location, Edgar was able to learn of a number smuggling, burglary, and mob activities. He would then take on his role as The Fog, and put a stop to them. Many crooks swore that The Fog was a team of heroes because The Fog's ability strike from so many different angles so quickly. But it was just one man trying to keep his city clean. The Fog's work has been recorded in stories such as The Shanghai Shipment, Three Dead - One Deader, and The Light Pierces The Fog.
Mr. Z
Everyone thought Jerry Livingston had died penniless and in tragedy. And Jerry, a billionaire willing to throw away his legacy for the sake of a good cause, wanted them to believe that death. The truth was that Jerry had built a home and base of operations for himself under Barstia City, and transfered his wealth down there. Then with the help of his longtime mentor and friend who went by the name Compass, Jerry faked his death in automobile accident. He spent the rest of his life fighting crime with the aid of Compass, who served as doctor, support staff, and mechanic, and a web of informants. The undead Jerry took on the moniker Mr. Z, the final letter in the fight against crime. The mysterious Mr. Z earned credit for so many apprehensions of criminals and foiling of evil plans that some historians doubt it all could have been the work of one man. But many still consider Mr. Z the most prolific crime fighter ever, including the cases Zora's Zipper, One Diamond Short of a Ring, and The Poker Game in Wendall Station.
The Alphacondor
Jake Harken had discovered a fighting technique while in South America that was unstoppale, but unknown in the rest of the world. A man obsessed with stopping crime since seeing his sister, then 12, accidentally shot and killed in a failed mobster drive-by shooting when he was 6. Coming from a wealthy family, he had gone to law school and planned to work as a prosecutor. But when Jake found the fighting style, he began to conceive of different path. He decided to learn how to fight the Mahri-Per style but even the fast learners took 20 years to master the skill. After just 12, Jake learned that both his parents had dies in what appeared to be a plane accident. Jake returned to Lionella City to oversee the family's fortunes, and the Alphacondor soon saw to it that the mobster responsible for the intentional damage to the Harken's plane was soon held accountable. The Alphacondor would continue fight the city's crime for decades to come. His efforts have been collected in titles like The Dawn of Midnight, The Ship With Three Captains, and Gregory.
Charcoal Charlie
Wilson Remington grew in the part of the city of Partrich that was known as 'Part-poor' because that's where most of its poverty gravitated. While he had worked his way to a steady job overseeing middle-size construction projects. And though he may have moved up in the world, he had never forgotten where he had started from and the crime that held so many down. Charcoal Charlie took on the grimest of the foes and most challenging cases. Charcoal Charlie earned his nickname after using a piece to write a message for the cops. No one has seen has many truly gruesome casess as Charlie has, but you can still read some of them in the pages of Doctor On Call, Douse the Embers, and The Mattress That Sank.