Firefight

The Prologue serves as both a reminder of the events of Steelheart and a way to foreshadow the revelations at the heart of Firefight. By depicting the day that Calamity rose in the sky, Sanderson establishes the importance of this baleful presence in the world, even if no one knows exactly what Calamity is or where it came from. The screams that the young David hears are the sound of people becoming Epics as Calamity distributes various superpowers. This moment foreshadows David’s search for answers about the Epics’ powers, weaknesses, and treacherously shifting mental states. The Prologue also sets the stage for the novel’s broader exploration of The Burden of Power and The Ambiguous Line Between Heroes and Villains.

To this end, the opening conflict with Sourcefield shows the difficulties that the Reckoners face in their quest to defeat the Epics. Without superpowers of their own, the Reckoners rely on old-fashioned weapons and intel to outsmart marauding Epics, but the damage that Sourcefield causes before her demise indicates that the Reckoners are still at a severe disadvantage in this fight. Because David applies meticulous research to better understand his opponents, he saves the group when he realizes that Sourcefield must drink the Kool-Aid to be completely neutralized. This moment sets the stage for David’s later revelation that the Epics’ susceptibility to corruption stems from their specific traumas. 

On a more practical level, the initial battle with Sourcefield also allows Sanderson to reveal crucial world-building details. For example, although Sourcefield only has the power to control electricity, she uses his talent in creative ways, as when she conducts herself through the steel buildings of the city, using her power as a unique form of teleportation. Since Newcago is completely made of steel as a result of Steelheart’s rise to power, Sourcefield is surrounded by a material that complements her powers. In a similar fashion, the Reckoners will later exploit critical loopholes in the Epics’ powers to put them into vulnerable situations, and this strategy serves the Reckoners well when they travel to Babilar.

While Sourcefield demonstrates how destructive Epics can be if they let their powers consume them, Prof’s character shows that Epics do not have to be so venomously destructive. In Steelheart, David’s team learned that the powers actively corrupt Epics, making them selfish and uncaring. By refraining from using their powers, Epics can stave off this corruption, but the longer an Epic goes without engaging their powers, the greater the temptation becomes. In these early chapters, Prof therefore exemplifies the moral high ground in choosing not to exercise his power. As a gifter (one who can share his powers) and a High Epic (an Epic who cannot be killed through conventional means unless he is utterly neutralized), Prof decided long ago not to use his powers because he feared the damage he could do if he were to succumb to corruption. Because gifting his powers does not trigger the corruption, Prof has built technology that allows the Reckoners to utilize his powers, and he does not endanger himself in the process. Only David and the other members of the Newcago Reckoners know that Prof is an Epic, and this secret becomes a source of strife among the Newcago group, as well as between the Newcago and Babilar factions of Reckoners. Prof’s fear of risking corruption also foreshadows David’s later discovery that Epic abilities are powered by fear itself. 

These early chapters also deliver key reminders about Megan’s uncertain loyalties and her alternate identity as Firefight. As the titular character of the novel, she accentuates the novel’s thematic focus on the ambiguous line between heroes and villains, and dissenting opinions about her nature become the primary source of conflict for the Newcago Reckoners, especially since David still refuses to believe that she is the enemy. Like Prof, she rarely used her powers during Steelheart, and because David is also influenced by his own romantic feelings for her, Megan becomes David’s motivation to learn more about the Epics. Ultimately, he hopes to save her from herself if he can manage to learn the secret to overcoming the Epics’ inherent weaknesses and suppressing the corruption. 

In Steelheart, Megan and Prof both played important roles in David’s character arc, helping him to realize that not all Epics are inherently corrupt. This idea is further developed in Firefight as David comes to see Epics as people who need help, rather than as vile monsters who remain bent on destruction. With this shift in mindset, David comes to see Understanding as a Bridge to Empathy, and his more compassionate approach leads to yet another disagreement with Prof, who believes that corrupted Epics cannot be redeemed. (This belief is largely fueled by Prof’s own struggle to keep the corruption at bay.)