EE Arc 1: Enter Walker High

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Grey Star

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"Every story starts somewhere.
Funny how a little place like Walker High can end up dragging someone so far away."

Planning/Preview Thread
Character Registration

Rules
  1. The GM, by nature of the game, is exempt from character limits
  2. Fun is paramount: The point of playing games is to have fun, and this RP, while story focused, is more about fun than anything else
  3. Don't stress details: Minor issues don't matter too much, characters don't need to be too complex, etc
  4. Keep characters reasonable: No one's successfully handling three jobs, school, and an acting career
  5. Creativity is encouraged: Most adaptations of Spider-Man tell the same old story with slight variations that range from making them very memorable to making them very forgettable, but here there's no corporate restrictions so anyone can go beyond the norm
  6. Death is possible: By no means am I a killer GM, but this is a Spider-Man story, and Spider-Man isn't complete without the risk of death. Your character won't die unless you choose to have that happen (Spider-Man's survived a lot of really bad injuries), but they will be thrown into perilous situations
  7. Meta-gaming is forbidden: Don't meta-game, don't mix IC knowledge with OCC knowledge, ask someone if you don't know what those words mean

First day of a new school year, in boring high school, in a bustling city. Pretty far from going somewhere exciting, like the Ends of the Earth. No, this is a place that's pretty average. Sure, it's New York and a dozen super heroes are outside in the city beating up muggers and purse snatchers for whatever reason at any given time, but sadly this place is pretty normal.

Through the morning slough of classes though, at least there's something to look forward to between all the long explanations of new classes and rules and guidelines. Before lunch, to help get things motivated, a renowned innovator is coming into this school for some reason to show off his latest project. Ash Petronov, innovator under the Blackford Industries label, leader of United Kingdom clean energy research, one time SpaceX genetics researcher, and Youtube martial artist has been invited by Principle Walker into the high school. Ash's current project is code named: Solar Re-director, and has been mostly unknown to the public, but a favor between friends is nothing. At the very least, it'll be more entertaining than classes. After all, Ash's fliers handed out to everyone as they walked into the door had a nice little message at the end.

"Learn for the start of the day, and then get a show as a treat after morning classes. A demonstration of a new technology capable of completely changing the American energy market. With the pinnacle of terrestrial technology, I'll bring you to the Ends of the Earth."

- - -

Walker High is a public specialty high school located in Brooklyn, New York City, New York state. First erected as a public education institution in 1929 following the start of the Great Depression, it was a donation by local resident S. Walker, who owned the building and ran the entirety of it out of his own funding, providing a place of learning and safety for children for parents who couldn't afford private schools and a decimated public education budget. Following the Great Depression, through WW2 and onwards, Principle Walker retained his position as a matter of tradition from the gratitude of the borough. Though he accepted funding and policies from the New York Board of Education, he himself returned all his paychecks as donations to the public schools. This continued until the 1970s when S. Walker was struck by a car and died. His nephew, also S. Walker, requested to take up his uncle's position as principle and has maintained it into the present day of 2019, avoiding retirement. Following remodels in the 2010s, the high school holds 4 classes of 8th through 12th grade, with a class size of 50 for each grade at maximum capacity. The coursework here is noted for usual flexibility, intending to help assist students considered to have particularly unusual or more often difficult lives, though there's plenty of normal students here who just happened to live in the area.

- - -

A small room, currently host to a small number of students. A teacher giving a lecture on the start of the school year. Warm, earth colored walls with pretty glass windows on both the exterior and interior of the building, letting the early sun come in. Here Draven was sitting, trying to pay attention to the rules and guidelines of this next year of high school, but boredom was preventing him from doing much other than shifting between looking at the teacher and staring at the clock. Three hours until Doctor Petronov's demonstration. This could take awhile.

The grey haired youth pulled off his black gloves and put them inside his fedora sitting underneath his desk, and he quietly wondered what kind of relationship an old American principle had with a famous Scottish-Russian scientist. And maybe, he hoped, not everything would be as boring for everyone else here.
 
Imani was vigorously scribbling down her notes near the front of the class she was in. Her mind seemed more distracted on the demonstration that Petronov was expected to give. She began to have a wild imagination about what kind of amazing technology the man would bring up and show to the students while she twirled a lock of hair with her pen. For a brief moment, there was a small break and Imani took this chance to unfold the flyer she was given earlier today as she walked into school. She read over it with glee.

New technology? I wonder what it could be? Mr. Petronov said it will change the energy market! This is gonna be so cool! It's like a brand new superpower or something!

Imani wiggled in her seat, glancing at the clock, awaiting the presentation with much anticipation.
 
During that brief lull in Imani's class, a girl with tanned skin, black hair, and red eyes got out of her desk's seat, turned around and reached into her backpack, pulling out some sort of papers and a pencil. Walking to the back of the room, she pretended to sharpen the pencil for a few moments in a rather conspicuous manner. After "sharpening" her pencil, she walked back towards her seat while stretching her arms, and accidentally dropped the papers onto Imani's deks without looking. After dropping them off, she took her seat again and focused back on the lecture.

The papers now sitting on Imani's desk was actually a comic book. On it, a man was depicted in some sort of spandex suit, holding another man as he was flying through the air.

THE AMAZING LIFE TALES OF SPIDER-MAN
VOLUME 1
ISSUE 1
MARVEL PUBLISHING GROUP
REAL LIFE FANTASY IMPRINT
LICENSED BY SPIDER-MAN

What an odd thing to give to someone else, out of the blue.
 
Imani took a look at the papers on her desk before slowly glancing back to the girl. She lowered herself slightly on her desk before finally taking a look at what the papers really were. When she saw her favorite spandex-wearing idol, she nearly gasped out loud. She fumbled with the comic and pulled it under her desk, hiding it from view as best she could. Imani made sure to look over her shoulder and glance around to see if anyone was watching her. It wasn't long before she was completely engrossed with just the front cover of the comic.

No way! Spider-Man! THE Spider-Man! This is one of the originals! Spider-Man himself licensed this! This is so cool! He looks so awesome! I sure wish I can be like him! People may mock little Imani, but they won't ever mock Spider-Imani! ...I should work on my hero name.

Imani barely had time to skip through the pages of the book before forcing herself to scribble some notes down and act as if she paid attention. However, whenever the teacher had her back turned, she read a couple of pages as best she could. Her eyes slowly trailed to the girl who accidentally dropped the comic on her desk and frowned.

I should give this back. Still, it's kinda weird it landed on my desk. I... I should ask to take a picture of the cover. I wonder where she got it...
 
The lecture continued on but the teacher didn't seem to particularly notice Imani's lack of focus, probably on account of either the fact it's the first day back or the morning sun coming into the class room and blinding a student occasionally. The girl who had dropped the comic onto Imani's desk was focused on the lecture with her note writing, and she really didn't seem to notice that she had somehow dropped a comic right out of her hands. Not even so much as a glance around trying to look for her misplaced Real Life Fantasy Imprint.

The comic itself was as the internet would describe it. Timid high-schooler Ben Parker gets bitten by a radioactive spider, has troubles using his new found spider powers, fights Hulk Hogan for wrestling money, and lets his uncle die attempting to stop a robbery, and the ending narration notes that with great power comes great responsibility. Lovingly inked panels showing the edited origin of one of New York's greatest super heroes, told in his own words and brought to life by Marvel comic artists. This particular comic was a recent reprint, seeing as how it's one of the most popular comics of all time. Not insanely expensive, but definitely one that tends to go out of stock every time there's enough young people who want to know who Spider-Man is get their allowance.
 
Woooowie, this is one of the true original editions, reprinted of course. Imani let her focus dip away from the teacher and to the comic on her lap. These panels are soooooo cool and colorful. I wish I can live a life like that, being a mega awesome superhero. I could do without the spider bite, though...  This is one popular comic, but how did it end up on my desk? That girl dropped it and maybe didn't notice it. Well, I'm sure she doesn't mind if I read a couple of pages.

Imani continued to read the comic, ignoring the lecture going on.

His powers are pretty nifty, but if I had them, I would add a twist to them. Then again, I would probably use them for recreational uses. I would love his super strength and spidey-senses! Man, I would do anything to become like Spider-Man for one day. Imani drifted to the famous quote of the comic. With great power comes great responsibility... Huh...
 
"And that concludes your introduction to American Literature. Seeing as we still have half an hour left in the class, you're all free to converse. Especially to catch up on notes that some of us are already failing to take." Said the teacher, turning off her presentation and taking a seat at her desk, before cracking open White Fang. That one's a classic. With freedom to converse, some students pulled out phones, others simply turned around and started to chat to old friends.

While now was the perfect time to read a comic, the black haired girl who dropped it was off staring into space. Seemingly distracted by something that wasn't present. Certainly wasn't talking to anyone, nor looking for her missing comic.
 
Imani used the free time to read the first couple of pages of the comic, even taking a picture of the cover and a few of the panels. She made sure to keep the comic hidden as well as the fact that she is a comic fanatic. However, once she had her fill with the comic and all its glory, Imani turned back to stare at the girl who dropped it in the first place. A part of her didn't want to return the comic, but Spider-Man's infamous quote echoed in her head.

With great power, comes great responsibility.

"You're right Spider-Man..." Imani whispered to herself. "I gotta return it to the rightful owner."

Imani took a deep breath and stood up to slowly approach the girl, comic in hand. She placed the book on the girl's desk, cheeks red from either shyness or embarrassment, it was hard to tell. The same hand that returned the comic quickly rushed to the back of her neck, rubbing it nervously. She seemed to be a little awkward around new people, but it was quite obvious that it was hard for her to open up.

"Uhm, you dropped this on my desk..." She said in a low voice. "I didn't know you liked Spider-Man."
 
The girl snapped out of her daydream and looked up to Imani, tilting her head in confusion.

"No no, that was intended for you." She replied, putting a hand on the comic and bringing it back up to Imani. "Really. Comics are, something I've never been the biggest fan of." Red eyes and black hair, and a puzzled expression. "I do like Spider-Man though. Well, I think everyone does. He's pretty popular in both media and well, saving the city from itself. Most people like civil servants unless they have a bone to pick with one." A few moments later her eyes went wide.

"Right. My name's Sia. It's nice to meet you."
 
Although the halls should have been empty because the first hours of classes have already been in session, there was the distant sound of someone's footsteps that made a resounding thump with each step until it reached the classroom where other juniors like Draven were.

Jordyn's face appeared in the window of the door before she gave it a brief knock before opening it to step inside the classroom. There were bags under her eyes and her backpack was slung over one shoulder.

"Sorry I'm late." She said quietly.
 
"Oh, uhm, I'm Imani," The timid female nodded to Sia. "It's nice to meet you, Sia."

Imani took the comic back into her hands and skimmed through a few pages before turning back to Sia.

"Spider-Man is such a cool hero, I would love to be in his shoes for a day. Heh, I guess you can say I just really respect the guy. I wouldn't mind being a hero when I grow up. I really appreciate this comic, but I... uhm, I'll hand it over to the comic shop. I'm sure they'll have a better use for it than I will. I, erm, I'm not a huge comic fan. I'll be sure to stop by when I get some stuff for my little garden."
 
"Just find a seat Jordyn. Hope someone took notes that you can get a copy of." The teacher replied with an in-enthused shrug, looking to the clock. "Made it in time before the first class of the day ended at least. That's better than young Sia could attest to. That's a student you might find a lot of similarities to. Anyways -" they stated, getting back to the lecture.

Draven shifted his head from staring out the window to the door on seeing Jordyn walk in. The characteristic fedora he had with him went into the air, signalling there was a spot by him. And if Jordyn was lucky, a spare set of notes.

- - - - -

"Are you sure?" Sia asked, tilting her head in an expressive statement. "Well, it is yours for what you want to do with. It is a nice comic though. Marvel does promise this particular Imprint is based off actual tales from Spider-Man. The Marvel Adventures Imprint is the one that's all fictionalized." She then glanced towards the clock. "That said, a comic is a nice little piece of entertainment. Not too much, not too little. And good to read back on. Even the fictitious ones."
 
Jordyn made a quiet grunt of acknowledgement before scanning the room to scope out a free seat. She caught sight of Draven waving his fedora towards her and took it as an invitation to take that seat. While they weren't too familiar with each other, he was at least someone she could recognize since they were part of the same grade and ended up in a few classes as classmates. 

Jordyn made her way over to the empty seat and sat down in it, giving Draven a nod as thanks before slapping a few pieces of scrap paper and a pen on her desk from her backpack. "How much did I miss?" Jordyn whispered.
 
"Totally, I'll be sure to give this comic to someone who really wants it." Imani nodded, laughing nervously. "I can't wait for whatever today's demonstration is going to be about. I heard it's gonna change the way we use energy. It sounds like a stretch, but interesting, nonetheless. What if Mr. Petronov was inspired by a Superhero?"

Imani caught herself before her imagination took the best of her. She was very quick to fix herself before admitting her love for comics. She cleared her throat and glanced at the clock.

"Regardless of whatever it is, I'm super excited to see what he has to show. I just wish time can fly by faster."
 
"Missed enough to be a problem." Draven replied to Jordyn, keeping his eyes on the lecture but talking to her. He slid over his notebook to her seat and had it open on the class name and date. It seemed it contained all the important information so far. He glanced over to the clock in the room, feeling like the amount of sunlight and the time had to be wrong.

"Still got, some time left." He whispered before turning his head back to the lecture, only to stop and gaze at her face, noticing the bag under her eyes. "You don't look too good."

- - - -

"There has to be someone there who'll appreciate the comic greatly." Sia agreed with approval in her voice. "Very nice of you to do that. And, maybe." A bit unintentionally, she glanced away at the mention of Petronov before looking back to Imani. "Maybe Doctor Petronov was inspired by a super hero. A lot of people are. Though whatever he has, it does sounds big. I'm not terribly excited to see it, but maybe that's just because I'm not excited for school, no matter what stuff happens to motivate academic success. My dad wishes I would apply myself more to my studies though..." She trailed off in thought, thinking back to something before remembering she was in front of someone else and snapping back to really talking.

"Time does feel so slow when you're waiting." She agreed, looking to the clock. "But it's a lot nicer when you have someone to talk to." She added, turning back to Imani with a reassuring smile. "Don't feel so bad about laughing. The rest of this year is going to be stressful, don't need to make today even more so."
 
"Aww, school isn't that bad," Imani giggled. "My dad always told me that the only thing people can't take from you is education. I guess that's just him looking out for me, but I think he's got a point."

Imani stuffed the comic book in her backpack, very careful not to bend or ruin even a piece of paper on it. She took an empty seat next to Sia and made sure to pack her stuff before anyone took them.

"If you're having a hard time with school, I can help you out. I take a ton of notes, especially during math. But I think you have a point about this being a stressful year... Mid-Terms, Finals, and a bunch of quizzes in between. Maybe it's not as bad when we're Juniors or Seniors. Heh, that's a while away."
 
Jordyn blinked in slight surprise that Draven was willing to share his notes with her, considering how late she showed up to class. Nonetheless, she wouldn't squander the generosity of a classmate. Hunched over in her seat, she scrawled down the notes as fast as her hand would go, making abbreviations here and there and writing down what seemed like the biggest takeaways from the lesson so far. Unbelievable, already starting up a lesson on the first day... figures... guess she breezed by the syllabus pretty quick. She grumbled internally. 

Her attention was caught again by Draven's remark. Jordyn made a slight grimace and subconsciously rubbed at one of her eyelids. "It's nothing. I just covered for someone last night at my job and woke up early to do my morning shift before class. Forgot that it was the last day of summer, but I needed the extra money anyway." But now she can't sleep in anymore, so she has to find a night shift opening soon... maybe if the guy she covered for keeps doing no-shows, she won't have to do much begging.

"I can't even catch a nap in the library cause this science thing is going on..." Jordyn jabbed a finger to the wrinkled up flyer next to her notes. It didn't matter to her if the teachers made their own conclusions about her chronic lateness, but she didn't like being seen as a total slacker to anyone who knew her. She was hard to convince to study, but even if she hated most of her schoolwork, ditching school on purpose was mostly for her own sanity.
 
Draven let out a breath, a form of sadness becoming expressed in his face and body emotion. He placed his hand on her writing hand, the other going to retrieve his black fedora and sliding it over to her.

"Forget the science thing. Take a nap now. I'll just write a copy of my notes for you." He stated, more demanding than a request, but not as demanding as an order. "Seriously, the hat blocks out most school light. I use it to snooze all the time." He whispered. "And no, I don't have lice and I certainly hope you don't either."

- - - - -

"I've got a few things nobody can take from me, other than an education." Sia replied with a shrug, watching Imani take a seat next to her. "That said, I uh..." She paused in her sentence, wanting to say something, before saying something else entirely. "Studying with a friend would be nice." The tone of that last statement was more awkward than her previous, more distracted and casual statements, as if wanting to avoid admitting something. Wonder what.

- - - - -

Draven glanced to the clock and frowned. He was writing a copy of his notes for Jordyn, while also alternating in writing new ones.

Two hours before the demonstration. Ugh. Feels like this morning is going to stretch forever.
 
"Sometimes having a friend to help you out help you understand the material better. Maybe we can study in the Library during our free time." Imani smiled. "I'm a bit of a study freak, errm... a nerd if you will."

Imani dug through her backpack and pulled out a notebook that was full of very detailed notes, the more important ones written in red ink. She slid it over to Sia and let her view at her leisure. Her notes were so organized, one can easily learn more from her notes than the class lecture. 

"I'll let you copy anything you need." Imani gave her a thumbs up. "You mentioned that you got something else that no one can take. What is it, anyway?"
 
Jordyn eyed Draven before hunching her shoulders and nodding. "You're too nice, y'know that?..." She muffled a yawn and tipped the fedora to block out the sun's rays aimed at her. 

"Wake me up when it's time to... do that thing we have to go to..." She said as she dozed off, laying down on her desk with her head resting on her crossed arms.
 
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