“I am the Inventurion!” cried Maxine Galdar, surrounded in a bubble of yellow energy. “If I can think it, I can make it!”

The three masked gunmen turned their automatic weapons on the middle aged woman. As the bullets roared through the air she clenched her fist and thought of a vacuum cleaner and all the rounds were harmlessly sucked away into the giant energy construct she’d made. With another hand gesture she created a giant two-headed goat and it charged at the men who screamed like girls. Inventurion then made some tweezers and plucked them all up and placed them into a massive yellow jar.

“You’re all going to jail,” Maxine said, using the ring to amplify her voice. “Hopefully you’ll learn a lesson there about not robbing banks.”

The people in the bank began to cheer as the would be robbers banged their hands to the walls of the jar to no avail. Inventurion levitated them up to the ceiling.

“You’re amazing!” said an old woman.

“Can I get a selfie?”

Inventurion smiled. “Sure.”

“Are you San Diego’s newest superhero?”

Inventurion nodded. “It looks like it.”

__

“Look out world, there’s a new superhero in town,” said WSDN news anchor Tiffany Pike to the viewing audience. “And she’s amazing! In seemingly her debut, Inventurion stopped a robbery of the First National Bank right here in San Diego. She used yellow energy, similar to Green Lantern, and saved thousands of dollars and many peoples lives. Her name is a play on the words inventor and centurion.”

Maxine Galdar watched herself on television with awe and bewilderment. It was surreal. Six months ago she found a ring lying on Goat Rock Beach, just lying in surf. She handed it into the local cops because that’s just how she was and when nobody claimed it they sold it to her for the princely sum of five dollars plus tax. Little did they know or she that the ring was essentially magic. She could think of anything and it was created.

Maxine created a dialysis machine for her mother, which fundamentally changed both their lives. It healed her and freed up Maxine to do anything other than looking after her. She thought of a rocking horse and it was there. Force field? Snap!

She created a SCUBA suit and went to the bottom of the sea because she watched a documentary that stuck with her. Maxine saw it for herself. This ring changed her life! And it changed even more so when she was waiting in line of the bank and those three gunmen attacked, because she’d become a superhero.

Maxine checked her mom’s vitals before creating a rocket ship suit around herself. “Let’s go see if the JLA need a new recruit.”

Benny Fitz's Benefits

The Gold Bar, New York City

Benjamin Fitzgerald, aka Benny Fitz, wasn't just an enforcer. He was Goldface's enforcer. Goldface gave him a name, and he went and took care of business, whether that was kicking their ass, or something a little more permanent. Enough times that he kept a shovel and a mattock in the trunk for when he needed it. Whatever the job, he loved to take the person's jewelry when he was done- especially rings, and especially if they fit his fingers. He called them "Benny Fitz's benefits," and he had a pretty decent collection piling up in an old chicken bucket on his kitchen counter.

Fitz had been with Goldface a number of years, and the only thing he was better at than being an enforcer was playing cards. So when that barfly, Kyle, dropped a gold ring into the pot in a last ditch effort to win his money back from Benny, he recognized it immediately. Guy Gardner had used it to toss him and the rest of the guys around once. It's not something he'd forget easily. "Rayner, where'd you get that? It's damn sure not yours."

Kyle almost looked scared. "Ah, crap. It's not yours, is it, Fitzy? I found it out in the alley earlier." A bit sheepishly, he added, "Too much to drink- I had to puke."

Benny laughed. "Nah, kid, it's not mine, but I know the guy it belonged to. Too bad for him. 'Finders keepers,' right? You can cover your bet with it if you want. Call."

"Alright!" exclaimed Kyle as he laid down his cards- two kings, and three jacks. "Full house! Ha, haaa!" he said excitedly, sure of his win.

Benny smirked, and laid down his cards slowly, one-at-a-time. "Let's see... I've got a queen, and one, two, three, oh! Look at that! Four deuces," he said smugly. "And 'losers weepers,' huh, kid?" He reached for the pot, and plucked the ring off the top. Putting it to the middle finger of his right hand, he said, "And lookit that- just my size! Benny Fitz's benefits, yeah?"

Kyle rubbed his hand across the back of his neck, and slumped back in his chair, looking a bit lost. "Yeah, Fitzy, lucky you."

Fitz took a couple of twenties out of the pot, and dropped them in front of Kyle. "Get yourself a cab home, Kyle. I think you've had enough tonight."

Rayner dropped a hand on top of the bills, and dragged them to the edge of the table as he stood up. Pocketing the money, he said, "Thanks, Fitzy. I'll see ya around," and he weaved away towards the bar to ask to use the phone.

Benny turned the ring around on his finger for a minute or so before asking aloud, "Now what am I going to do with you, little ring?"

"Ninety-five percent charge remaining. Awaiting commands," stated the ring.

Benny arched his eyebrows at that. Pursing his lips for a few seconds, he smiled quickly, then said, "Well, then. I think it's time I gave Goldface my notice."

The Gold Bar, New York City, Owner's Office, One Week Later

The "office" was most of the Gold Bar's second floor. It had a large desk at one end, a meeting table next the floor-to-ceiling windows on the industrial side of the building, and a private bar, and large, comfortable couches and chairs near the matching windows on the side of the building with the view of Central Park. There was a fireplace at the other end of the room, and above it, Goldface's helmet was mounted on a large trophy plaque- a neat hole in the back of it, right in line with the one in the faceplate.

Benny was seated on one of the couches, sipping champagne with a couple of ladies, and enjoying the view from his new office when a couple of his guys crashed through the double doors, breaking them down. A few seconds later, in walked a cape he'd never seen before. He was wearing a black-and-white costume with a gaudy, red and orange cape with yellow stars. His head and hands glowed, and he was rubbing a ring on his right hand. "I am Starfinger," the cape declared, "and you have something that I want."

"That so?" asked Benny, as his two companions ran for another door.

Rubbing his ring a little harder, two women appeared next to Starfinger. "Yes. The ring you wear. Starlight and Starbright here will relieve you of it."

Fitz scoffed. "That supposed to impress me? I can do that too," and with a wave of his hand, two yellow women appeared- mirror images of Starfinger's women. Only Benny's 'Starbright' held a shovel, while his 'Starlight' held a mattock. Faster than anyone could react, his constructs lashed out and knocked the real Starlight and Starbright out, making them disappear back to the ring on Starfinger's hand. "Starfinger, meet Starfist," Benny said mockingly.

Starfinger growled, and fired energy blasts at Benny. Without getting up from the couch, a yellow shield appeared around Fitz, and it simply absorbed the energy blasts. "Now at ninety percent charge," said the ring.

"Thanks for that," said Benny, "I've been losing charge all week." A big, yellow hand appeared from the ring, flipped his foe the bird, and then rammed the villain while staying in the form of the rude gesture.. "How's that for a star finger?" Benny said dryly.

Starfinger began crackling with energy, but Benny formed yellow spheres around his face and hands, and waited. Starfinger soon passed out from lack of oxygen. Leaving the spheres in place, Benny got up, walked over, formed a yellow shovel, and put it in Starfinger's neck. Letting all the constructs fade, Fitz looked at his attacker's body for a minute, then bent down, and took the ring off of his finger. "Starfist," he said to himself. "I like it." Placing it on the ring finger of his right hand, right next to his power ring, he rubbed it, summoning Starlight and Starbright. "Benny Fitz's benefits, yeah?" he said with a smile. "Ladies, would you like some champagne?"