Egghead later kidnapped his niece, Patricia "Trish" Starr, in order to test a device which allowed him to steal other people's intelligence, and wound up battling Pym as Ant-Man again. He would later cause her car to explode, causing her to lose an arm. He then formed the second Emissaries of Evil in an attempt to gain possession of the mystic ruby called the Star of Capistan. This team consisted of himself, the Rhino, Solarr and the Cobalt Man. Egghead and the Emissaries battled the Defenders. Egghead also fought Spider-Man on several occasions.