In his mind, Nova finds his father, Charles Rider, who blaming him for his recent legal and financial troubles. He then hears his brother, Robert Rider, telling him he has abandoned his family. His brother's voice becomes the crying sobs of his mother, Gloria Rider, as she wonders why Rich has abandoned them. The voices stop and the images turn black. Out of the blackness comes the face of his ex-girlfriend, Ginger Jaye! With pure hatred, she tells Nova how everyone wishes he was dead. The shock of Ginger's hatred shakes Nova free of the Yellow Claw's influence! Unable to believe Nova has broken his influence, Yellow Claw finds himself knocked across the room! Nova turns his attention to Yellow Claw's henchman, Karl Von Horstbaden, who flees from the young hero. Von Horstbaden forgets he is on an airship and accidentally falls to his death.

Meanwhile, Nick Fury and his SHIELD soldiers continue to battle Yellow Claw's tidal wave. With their hydronic rays, they are beginning to win! Suddenly, Fury is knocked off of his flying platform into the ocean! The SHIELD leader is able to safely dive into the water and surfaces to see the tidal wave collapse!

Back on the villain's airship, Yellow Claw and Nova face each other for their final battle. Claw quickly blasts Nova with a stunning mind-control blast! Using every last bit of his willpower, Nova fights the mind-control and punches Yellow Claw to the ground! Nova hits the villain again but suddenly finds his body on fire! Not realizing Yellow Claw has created another illusion, the young hero crashes through the airship and into the ocean. After realizing Yellow Claw's trick, Nova surfaces to see his foe's ship explode! The Human Rocket made sure to blast through the control panel when he left the ship. After a quick search, Nova concludes that Yellow Claw must have been destroyed. Fury doesn't believe their foe is dead but decides to worry about that another day.

Meanwhile, back in Nassau County Criminal Court, Charles Rider is released on no bail until his trial. His family is overjoyed but Robert wonders if Rich even cares. Rich arrives to tell them that he does care, probably more than they can know. He asks for his family's forgiveness for his recent behavior. They accept his apology and the family is happily reunited! Back at the Rider's home, Ginger shows up wanting to talk to Rich. She heard about his father's troubles and wonders why he didn't tell her about them before. The two decide to talk out their problems.

At Uncle Fudge's Ice Cream Parlor, Rich tries to tell her why he's been acting strange lately. Without revealing his Nova identity, Rich explains he's no longer the person he was before. His inability to cope with his changes had caused him to act irrational. Rich feels he has come to terms with who he is now but won't hesitate to give up everything if it causes his loved one's pain. Rich wants Ginger to know he is willing to work hard at mending their relationship if she'll give him the chance. She agrees.

A few minutes later, Rich's former friends, Bernie Dillon and Roger "Caps" Cooper, arrive at their table. After some good-humored teasing and apologies, the four are reunited as friends!

Back at the Rider house, Robert goes to the basement to inspect his latest project. Rich's brother is determined to discover the reason behind Rich's recent behavior. His project is draped in a green cover and Robert will only refers to it as "Factor X". However, Robert is convinced he will learn Rich's secret!