A spaceship carrying a race of alien Parasites crash lands outside of Metropolis, and the six of them argue about how they should interact with the Earth, where they intend on feeding on the 'juices' of Earthlings. They attack and eat a Biker Gang, and then one of the six, Gemir, heads off to Metropolis to seek prey while the others disperse.

While Gemir is feeding on the derelict of Metropolis, she comes upon Tom O'Brien, a friend of John Henry Irons and an active member of the community fighting against gang influence on children, and feeds on his spinal fluids like the others. When Tom wakes up, with amnesia, he finds himself in a pile of dead bodies, and covered in razor-sharp blades all over himself, sprouting out of his skin; having gained special powers when the feeding Alien activated his dormant metagene.

At first, Tom believes himself responsible for the pile of dead bodies, but is quickly brought to his senses by Steel (his friend John Henry in disguise), who encourages him to call his mother before the two go off to fight Gemir. Although Steel had failed in a previous fight against the alien, their combined might is enough to drive her away from the city in pain, and save Tom's younger brother Petey, though at first Tom doesn't remember him. For the creases all over his knife-embedded body, Petey decides to dub Tom "Edge" as his new superhero name.