After a man who calls himself Captain Iron causes their Rover to crash, Jeremiah and Kurdy come to at his hidden camp. Slightly injured and with a damaged Rover to fix, they can't see much of a hero figure in Captain Iron, although they sympathize when his sister Shelly recounts the story of how her brother John became Captain Iron. Shelly's husband, Mike, on the other hand, scoffs at John's talk of heroism. Still, it is John who warned them of raiders nearby and who may be able to help Jeremiah repair the Rover. John has resurrected an old laptop computer and used it to create a database of supplies in the area. He takes Jeremiah to his secret lair and they track down the needed Rover parts.

Back at Thunder Mountain, Markus is keeping a very dangerous secret. Markus is hiding a woman in a sealed room in an unused sector of the complex. When Erin suggests that the unused section be shut down to conserve dwindling energy supplies, Markus knows that she has been spying on him. She confronts him and they argue over the risk he is taking. Erin tells him she must inform the council.

At Captain Iron's camp, the raiders attack. Mike flees; Kurdy tries to fight but is still too weak after the crash. The raiders take off not only with valuable supplies, but also take a terrified Shelly. When John and Jeremiah return, Mike says the raiders are well armed and rescue is hopeless. Jeremiah and Captain Iron will not accept that verdict and go forth on a rescue mission. They enter the raiders' camp just in time to save Shelly from being raped but, as Jeremiah is about to drive them away to safety, a knife is thrown. John shields his sister but the knife pierces his back, killing the hero. Jeremiah returns to the raiders' camp and finishes Captain Iron's task, defeating the raiders. As Jeremiah and Kurdy depart, one of the children John used to visit quietly dons the Captain Iron goggles and salutes them.

At Thunder Mountain, Erin learns more about Meaghan, the woman who has been hidden in Thunder Mountain for the past sixteen years. With new understanding, she pledges Markus her support but demands his complete trust in return.