History

Matthew Smith (born 1931) grew up in a slum neighborhood on the north side of St. Louis, Missouri. In 1944 he was recruited for the Army as part of a "child hero" program. He trained as one of the Tuskegee airmen, and piloted a prototype mini-fighter airplane. It was intended that he avoid combat, but he often slipped away from his handlers and flew missions over occupied France, including one to rescue Private Danger. He acquired the nickname "Stonewater" then, for his slipperiness and for how hard he struck.

After the war, Stonewater Smith was one of the first cadets in the U.S. astronaut program. But the most important advances in space rocketry were occurring outside that program: Stonewater's colleague S.O.S. had built his own atomic-powered rocket, and conducted a Moon landing with the Powernaut in 1961. Stonewater Smith and Paula Power joined the S.O.S. / Powernaut team, forming the Power Patrol. They successfully landed on Mars in 1962.

After the Mars landing, the Power Patrol drifted apart. S.O.S. pursued teleportal technology; Stonewater associated with the civil rights movement; Paula became a hippie; and the Powernaut became a secret agent - and disappeared on mission in Laos. S.O.S. briefly reformed the Patrol to search for him, without success. At that time, Paula became pregnant with Stonewater's son. They both felt they'd betrayed the Powernaut. Paula took sanctuary in Hypergaard, while Stonewater raised their son (Matthew Ron Smith Jr., generally called "Ron") and took a long motorcycle trip across America with the PowerRider.

By 1988 Ron had gone to college. Stonewater lived quietly and aged normally after that, surfacing only to fight Nazis in 2006. He died then, but was brought back from Hell as part of a scheme to summon the Devil. He accepted some speaking engagements after that, but mostly he worried about going back to Hell.

In 2015, Stonewater Smith visited Cuba to make peace with Fidel Castro. There, aspects of Death and the Devil approached them. The Death-agent transported them to the Powernaut's world, with the Devil's blessing. Stonewater now resides there, has regained a vigorous middle age, and is a gym teacher at the Power School.

Personality

Stonewater Smith has always been eager to learn, and ready to fight for a good cause. But he never forgave himself for that dalliance with Paula Power. He's probably the nicest guy ever to go to Hell.

Powers and Abilities

At the height of his prowess, Stonewater Smith had maximum human reflexes and was a highly trained hand-to-hand fighter. He has held his own in combat against superhumans. At his oldest, he had near-maximum physical fitness for an octogenarian. On the Powernauts' Earth, he has reverted to about 50 years old, with the fitness level of a martial artist.

Appearance

Whenever he was in the military or on a team, Stonewater Smith wore an appropriate uniform. Otherwise he dresses in street clothes appropriate to the era. He is nearsighted, and requires glasses or special goggles to correct his vision.

Publications

• Earliest Appearance: Power Stars 1944 #7
• First Published: "Predecessors", 2010
• Most Recent Publication: Powernaut 1976 #1
• Latest Appearance: Superhuman World 2015 Annual

Author's Notes

Like many of my characters, Stonewater Smith is inadvertent. He was created to be disposable, but he was in the right place when the Powernaut needed teammates. So he is now central to his universe.

(signed) Scott Eiler, 23 July 2015.