Poncho

A second student made his way towards Lawrence, Consuelo, and the new girl as if he was drawn by Consuelo's voice. Which he actually rather had, though he had been on his way to meet them anyway. He was adjusting his school sweater over his uniform, a similar one to Lawrence with darker slacks, a dark blue dress shirt under an argyle cardigan he was just finishing buttoning up. His hair was artfully cut high and tight. Underneath the careful clothing and hair choices was the body of an American Football quarterback, with a lantern jaw and a long frame with a strong core and arms. The only thing that interrupted this entire look was that he had a cut that seemed fresh on his right cheek, something that looked like he'd gotten it within the last hour. He walked with confidence and speed up to meet the three and had the same smile he had on his face that he always met new people with. When he looked at Consuelo he even managed to not lash out like he did last time; he thought about it, thought about telling her to land and act more proper around the new student, but instead he just smiled. "Good Morning Consuelo. You're looking exceptionally festive. Thanks for cleaning up the snow...I was going to build a Snowman a little later though, so can you save me some?" he asked nicely, Then he turned to the other two. "Lawrence, I'm sorry I'm late, there was an incident in the city, it held me up for quite a bit. Cost me thirty minutes, actually." Then he turned to the new girl and held out a hand with a bright green card in it. "And finally..." he paused as he got a good look at her. His smile got a little wider and he inclined his head a little before straightening to his full height. "It is a pleasure to meet you, I am Michael Adon. I'm a relatively new student, like you." he explained. "I asked Lawrence if I could come along and he agreed that I could meet up with you both a little after the tour started and come say hello." he never lost that smile and his voice was constantly modulated; he had a friendly tone and an open look about him from being a person who was used to finding and talking to new people. "That card will give you a discount at my work, I'd be glad to take you there myself one day after school." His smile never wavered through his entire speech, open, inviting, and unflinchingly polite.

Golden Star "There are benefits to being modest, I can agree. Self-confidence and modesty are not necessarily opposed, and one can be confident without being prideful, I think. I can appreciate your modesty though. " He was beginning to understand that navigating the use of your powers and how you presented yourself in using them was a significant part of social interaction in this school, an additional layer to any interaction that he would have to be aware of whenever he interacted with anyone. Which meant he would have to be paying attention at all times to see what other students could do and how they felt about what they could do. It would be interesting, and probably fun in some respects, and good practice for his future life in others. Then another boy showed up on a magic horse and that sort of took his attention for a moment, including when it disappeared. He was still paying attention to Lawrence and Parker though, since it seemed like Parker was about to talk about his powers. Michael gave the new boy a quite friendly smile and offered his hand with one of those cards that was actively becoming a bit of a signature for him. "Owain, I'm Michael Adon. I happen to be brand new. And you have a disappearing horse and that is...quite impressive. I don't have anything near as impressive, but I do have a discount card for where I work." He really hoped this boy did not think that summoning a magic horse was a negative.

Golden Star "I respect it, Lawerence. I'll be on the look out for signups. And maybe we can get some signups of our own or let people know about volunteering. Stuff like that looks good on college applications too, though I suppose just the fact you have this school on your transcript probably helps just as much. Help from a student who actually knows what's going on around here could be a great help since I'm clearly out if my depth." As Parker talked, he turned to him, then back at Lawrence, a frown creasing his brow again. "Controlling time?" His face stayed even and his tone didn't waver as he appraised Lawrence. "That is definitely a tremendous power. I can see it being...difficult." he looked at Buzz again, then thought about his interaction with the green haired girl, then looked at Neko in the tree. He voice took a serious and somber tone as he judged his words carefully. He'd been directly confronted with some people who were going to have mich rougher experiences then he had, and probably would have, and he paused and gathered his thoughts, sweeping his eyes further across the quad and looking at the other students. "I understand." He finally said, nodding. "You don't need to tell me anything more if you'd rather not. I don't want to pressure you into sharing something you'd rather not." He said to Lawerence but also in a way that indicated he meant it to everyone.

Golden Star "He does that often? That's a fun way to make friends. Though I have to admit, shooting lasers out of your eyes? That's incredibly cool as well. Can you see when you do it or does it just turn everything green?" He was getting back to asking a lot of questions again. "North Bay, huh? Your family must be up there...though I guess trips across the ocean a few times a year shows that too. I'm hoping to eventually travel a bit myself. And right here in Bayview huh, I guess you didn't have to travel far to get here." "As for clubs, Science and board games are great, but what about a debate club? Or a classic book club maybe?" He thought about it for a bit. "Actually, with it getting closer to the holidays, we're getting near the time where a lot of toy drives start up. I usually volunteer at one of the fire stations in town, helping sort packages and track bicycles for people, so they'reready to be handed out to needy families. It may not be a 'real' club, but I guess a sort of 'Volunteer Activism' group is something I'd like to either join or get something set up." "What about the powers you two have? Do you shoot laser beams from your eyes?"

Golden Star "Bernadette and Neko were showing me around, yeah. There's a surprising amount to see in this place, I'm still getting my bearings around this place. I've never actually been so close to so many people with powers before, I generally only see them from a distance, excluding one major time." Which gave him a chance to segue into Neko's question. "I grew up here in Freedom City, actually. In Lantern Hill. So I'm about as local as you can get." He said to her, then changed to talking to Baz, not having an issue handling questions from multiple people, like he was used to interviews. He took the antennae with surprising reverence and placed them in his front pocket "That is incredible. I'm going to put these in a nice wooden box with a glass case as my first memento from you. I have the perfect one in mind, actually. When you're a world famous superhero I can hang them in my office and tell people I knew you before you were a household name the world over." He said to Baz with an absolute sincerity. "So, where do you and Parker come from? And what sort of clubs of pastimes do you all do? I know Neko mentioned hers to me."

“...Are you calmed down now, sir?” he panted, really hoping this guy was not going to get up and cause more trouble. But he seemed weaker now; maybe the drug was starting to wear off, slowly. “You broke my arm!” he yelled in anguish, grabbing his shoulder. “I’m very sorry, sir. I don’t think it’s broken, but it’s probably hurt. You’ll need to be careful with it for a little while until it’s better.” He said sympathetically. He was pretty sure his own ribs were bruised, and he was probably going to have a black eye and a nasty bruise on his arm, but he didn’t hold it against the man. “What are you even on?” “It was Max. The guy said I could use it to get my money.” “I see. Well...it...may be harder to get your money now that you’ve done this, but I’ll see what I can do.” Michael said. By this point, now that the fighting had ended, Terrance had gotten to the site, and was running in, flanked by Franklin and the rest of his work crew. There was shouting as soon as the condition of the steel beam was seen, crews yelling, but with the ease of someone used to superhero issues, Terrance raised his voice over the clamor and was quickly giving orders. “Franklin, get supports on that beam. It’s beat to heck and we need to replace it. We’ll have to get support structures in place on this whole side of the building to stabilize it, then we’ll get that bent beam out and replace it. Doc Metropolis might come by and fix it, but we’re gonna assume he’s not, so let’s get it fixed our way. Check that second beam there to see how damaged it is. Someone, call into the depot and tell them we'll need some extra material. If you're okay working overtime we'll get this fixed up and still be right on track by the end of the day.” He barked orders to each crew as he made his way to where Michael and the man who had almost destroyed the building were sitting, grabbing the backpack and rummaging through it. “All the paychecks are here, so we’re clear on that front.” he called, heading towards Michael as he moved the man who had been on a rampage away from where Franklin was ordering crews around. “Tony! What the heck man, I was gonna send you your check.” Terrance said angrily. “Now I gotta call the cops, get an incident report, all this crap. You’ve brought it down on your head!” “You shouldn’t have fired me!” “Tony you missed work for 4 days, we were falling behind. I couldn’t do nothing about it.” Terrance responded, and Michael could see this was building into an argument that wasn’t going anywhere good. “Hang on, hang on. Both of you, please.” Golden Star said, raising his hands at both of them. Terrance looked at him; he clearly wanted to tell his son to be quiet, that this was his business. But Golden Star wasn’t his son, and he couldn’t tell him what to do, so instead he bit his lip and was quiet, waiting. Toney continued to glare. Michael took another breath and steadied himself- he still felt pretty winded. “Look. Tony did something bad. But it sounds like he was in a bad situation, and no one really got hurt.” Just ignore the drying blood on his nose. “He got some drugs from a dealer, maybe they made him more aggressive or prone to anger. He lashed out because you were away and he was drugged up, not thinking straight. You were going to pay him his last check anyway, right? Maybe you just pay him his last check, he apologizes for the trouble, promises not to come back, and we just let bygones be bygones. He’s already hurt, he’s gonna need some time to recuperate anyway before he can get back to work. Putting him in jail doesn’t help anyone.” he said soothingly. Terrance glared at him. Michael smiled at him. “...Alright. Fine. Tony, you can take your check and go. But if you wanna come back to work for me you’re gonna have to bring a certificate from a clinic that says you're detoxed. I can’t have drug users on my team; the reason we’re such a good crew is because we all pitch in together.” “Ok.” Tony said, clenching his teeth. “...Thanks, Top.” he said, struggling to his feet. Without the adrenaline of the drugs, he was having some difficulty, but he put on a brave face, kept his chin up, took his check and walked out of the construction site with only a small limp, leaving Golden Star and Terrance alone. “Thanks for your help, Golden Star.” Terrance said. “You’re welcome, Sir. I’m sorry about the damages.” “It woulda been worse if you hadn’t done anything, and my crew is experienced in dealing with Superhero Fights. We’ll get it handled. Won’t even set us back a day.” he said with pride- pride in his son and pride in his work crew-. “I won’t mention any of this; I got a friend on the force who’ll come pick up these drugs, no questions asked.” “Yes sir, make sure you do that. Those things are dangerous.” “I know, I always tell my son to stay away from them.” Terrance said to the Hero, smiling a little. “Alright. I gotta get back to work. Thanks again.” He said before heading off, leaving Golden Star to smile and fly off. Later, Michael met his dad at the construction site again, a few hours after he left; enough time for his dad and his crew to catch up on the work. His dad was just leaving, pulling his winter jacket closed against the growing evening chill; the sun was going down fast and he’d need to get home soon before it got too cold. But Michael had been mulling over his discussion with his dad for the entire time, so as they started walking to Terrance’s car, he finally spoke up. “...Dad, do you think that Tony is actually going to stay off the drugs?” The big man was quiet for a bit- something Alex also did when he was thinking, staring off into space without saying anything-, before he finally sighed. “I don’t think so, son. Like I said before; some people you just can’t help. I’ll be willing to hire him back if he does stay clean, but I don’t think he will. And I can’t help every person in the world, or even all the guys that work for me. Sometimes people have to help themselves, have to make it up to themselves. Tony will try to get better. He might even get clean enough to get his certificate and come back. But in a few weeks, a few months, but sometime next year, he’ll be back to doing drugs, he’ll miss a day of work here or there because he’s too high or too crashed to go in, then he’ll start needing it to go to work. He’ll make a mistake, and I’ll have to suspend him, or fire him. Or he’ll just stop coming in. It happens over and over again and for me, at least, there’s only so much I can do about it.” Terrance said it with an air of resignation but also one of acceptance; that was the way the world worked to him, and he couldn’t do anything about it, so he didn’t lose any sleep over it. That was the moment where Michael realized that while he loved and respected his dad, he disagreed fundamentally on that point. No one was too far gone to help, especially for him, especially now. Now that he had powers. But at the same time, he didn’t need powers to do this. He floated next to the window in the middle of the night, looking at the man who he had had a knockdown, drag out brawl just a few hours ago. The man was nursing a nasty bruise on his shoulder, watching TV in a one room apartment in a bad part of town. Michael didn’t want to stay long; he was pretty sure this was an established Hero’s neighborhood, and he had no interest in annoying someone for barging into their territory. He landed on the fire escape and tried the window. It opened easily, and he slid under the window and inside. “Excuse me.” He cleared his throat and the man jumped up in surprise. “Wait, wait.” he said as the man snarled. “Didn’t have enough fun beating me up earlier, huh? Wanted to come back and finish the job!?” Tony yelled. “No, sir. I promise. I just wanted to give you something.” Michael said, raising his hands in surrender. It didn’t really matter that he was unarmed, he knew, but maybe the gesture would be well regarded. “I felt bad after the fight...I know it’s not much, but I wanted to try and give you a hand.” he said. He reached into his pocket and brushed the watch his grandfather had given him. He wondered if Grandpa Max would be proud. He hoped so. He withdrew a wad of twenty dollar bills and offered them to the man. “...It’s not much, I don’t exactly make money for heroing. But I don’t need it, and...well, let me pay you back for hurting you today. You deserve it.” It was a decent chunk of a month’s work at Sampson’s, but he didn’t really need it at the moment, and this guy probably did. “You think I want your pity?” “I don’t pity you at all, Sir. I’m paying you to avoid getting my butt whipped again.” he said with a cheerful smile. The man looked angry for a moment, but then he smiled despite himself, stepping forward and taking the money. “...Yeah, that’s right. I’ll beat you again if you don’t pay up.” Tony said. Michael just smiled, he didn’t want to stretch this, but he hoped the guy wasn’t getting any foolish ideas about what he could or couldn’t do; Michael wouldn’t do anything to hurt him, but it was possible someone else might get a little offended at how he acted if he wasn’t careful. But he assumed it was all in good fun. “...I’ll be hoping you can get over this.” Michael said sincerely, shaking the man’s hand. “Good luck.” Then he stepped back out of the window and flew off. He was going to have to skip a few lunches to make up for that, maybe call Sandra and get another shift or two at the store to try and recoup a little bit, but if the money was used to help someone else, it didn’t really cost him anything in the grand scheme of things. So when he got back to Claremont, he had to skip the debate team going out for pizza to stay at his dorm and eat a sandwich instead, but that wasn’t a big deal to him, it meant he could study for his math test next week.

The person currently in the midst of ransacking the construction site was a thin, tanned man in a tank top and ripped jeans. His hair was dirty and messy, and he had slammed the door of the trailer off it’s hinges as he entered, leaving it dangling by one hinge as he tore the inside of the trailer apart. Golden Star landed in front of the trailer and made his way inside, clearing his throat. “Excuse me.” he called calmly, raising his hand as the man stuffed checks and envelopes of cash into a backpack. The man didn’t even look back. “Sir, I said excuse me.” he said a bit firmer as he walked a little closer. “Get back or I’ll knock you out.” the man said in a rough, gravely voice as he turned, zipping up his backpack. “You ain’t no big time hero, you barely look like a kid, so you aren’t even worth talking to. I’m just here to collect the money I was owed. I worked here until I was fired for no reason. I deserve my last paycheck.” “Yes, sir. You do deserve that, but that wasn’t all your paycheck; that was everyone’s paycheck.” Golden Star said logically. “I’m sure if you just take your check and leave everyone else’s, everyone will be fine with this.” he offered with a compassionate smile. The man looked at him like he was stupid. “No. I’m taking all of this. And you sure as heck can’t stop me, kid.” he spat with venom as he walked towards Michael, then stepped to the left, to go down the steps. Michael reached out and put his hand on the man’s shoulder softly, making him pause. “Sir, I really can’t let you go, you need to stop and return the excess money you’re taking.” he repeated. He felt the tensing under the man’s skin. His eye caught the shift of weight as the older man turned slightly. He could see, like it was slow motion, the way the man’s muscles, weight, and bones shifted. He knew what was coming, and he wasn’t too concerned. The man’s fist came up in a sweeping haymaker and Michael prepared to give just enough so as to not break the poor man’s hand when it impacted his face. Then it crashed into his face with the force of a truck and he sank into the side of the metal trailer, warping it around him as he registered what just happened. He registered what he had seen a second before the impact, the puncture mark on the man’s shoulder, where he’d injected himself with something. “Yeah. That’s what I thought. Little punk. I’m all jacked up now, you think I’d come back here without some way to make this fair?” the older man said as he raised his leg and stomped Michael with a booted foot, pushing him through the thin sheet metal and out, rolling across the dusty ground. Michael tasted blood as he got to his hands and knees and then stood up, shaking his head. The man kept on the offensive, forcing his way through the trailer like it was paper, then leapt at Michael, much further than a human would, and Michael raised his hands up to protect his face, causing the ground under him to crack as he stopped the man from stomping him into the ground. Michael pushed him away, but the older man landed on his feet with surprising quickness. “Yeah. I figured some Superhero would show up to stop me. I wanted to be gone before that happened but I guess you’re one of the fast ones. So I’ll have to beat you down before I get out of here.” he said, dropping his bag and raising his fists. He advanced on the still somewhat dazed Michael, throwing a left hook that the young hero stepped back to avoid. But the older man advanced forward and caught him with a back elbow to the nose, making Michael raise his hand to his nose at the sudden shock and feel liquid between his fingers. Michael swung out with a kick but the older man stepped away, more experienced at street fightss and backroom brawls than Michael was. “You’re so young you have no idea how to fight, all you’ve got going on are your powers, so if the playing field’s even, you’re just gonna lose, twerp.” the man said smugly as stepped back in, taking advantage of the gap between the kick to punch Michael in the stomach, then grab him by the arm and, twisting, hurl him into one of the metal beams of the still under construction structure. It bent as he crashed into it, and Michael sighed, breathing out slowly to avoid yelling in pain. “You really don’t have to do this, Sir. If you want your money you can have it, you just can’t take anyone else’s.” he said in a calm voice. He wasn’t exactly calm, but he knew panicking wouldn’t help here. Stay calm, assess the situation, take what advantage you can, don’t let things get out of control. His Grandfather and Father both had preached that to him. That there was no need to get frustrated, agitated, or lash out; that the best thing to do was stay calm and consider the best solution, and talking to the man might make him slow down enough for him to take advantage of it. “No, no. I think I do need to do this.” the older man said- fully on a warpath and agitated from the effects of the Max in his system- as he looked around and grabbed another metal beam. It was as thick around as a man’s waist but he hefted it up like a battering ram and charged at Michael, ramming him in the stomach with one end of it, smashing the young hero between the two metal beams. Michael groaned and stumbled forward as the man took a step back and changed his grip, holding the beam like a baseball bat and swung hard enough that it sliced the air, catching Michael on the forearm with the sound of a car crash as the battered hero raised his arm to defend himself, knocking the younger man across the hard packed dirt. This time, Michael didn’t fall over, he caught himself as he was sent soaring to the side, using his ability to fly to right himself and plant his feet down on the ground. “See, I’m sick of being bullied by people who think they’re better than me. My boss, my Mom, the Wife, the Cops. Superheroes like you. And when someone finally gets some power of their own, you all want to take it away. How gross is that. Do anything to keep a good man down.” The former construction worker said in a rage, slamming the pillar into the ground to release his pent up fury. That was the moment Michael had been waiting for; when he got too angry to keep his focus, ranting while distracting himself by slamming the pillar into the ground. Knowing that was his moment, Michael ignored his pain and shot across the ground at a run, as fast as he could- which was about as fast as a car at a highway speed- and slammed into the man like he was trying to break through a defensive lineman’s tackle, knocking him into the same pillar Michael had previously been slammed into. The man grunted and raised his hands, bringing a double axe handle down on Michael’s back and staggered him, but as he raised his hands again, Michael straightened up quickly and punched him in his unprotected face, then stepped back as the man brought his hands down, making him swing at nothing and stumble forward off balance. Michael grabbed him by the back of his shirt as he stumbled, then swept his legs out from under him, his other hand latching around the back of the man’s belt. With him fully in the air and in Michael’s grasp, the young hero spun, building up extra force as he rammed the man shoulder first into the metal beam, leaving a warped indent as the man yelled in pain before Michael put him down carefully. Bleeding from the nose and mouth, Michael sat down next to him and breathed slowly through his nose, wiping it on his cape and making sure nothing was broken as he thought about what to say to the man; he didn’t want to rile him back up.

Just another IC Short Story Early December, 2023, Construction site in Greenbank Michael got out of class on Friday and immediately went back to his room. He dumped his school supplies, changed into a generic polo, and by 3:30 he was on a bus headed into the city proper, reading a book of poetry by William Blake. It was part of an assignment, but he had an interest in the poet’s most popular and well known poem The Tyger; it was perhaps a bit generic to say it was one of his favorites, but he did rank it quite highly as poetry. He annotated some stuff in the book with his own writings, but read accompanying discussions on the poem that were included in the book as well. He flipped the pages and scribbled for several stops, until he saw the skeletal frame of the building above a chain-link fence with a big plastic sign advertising DeCosta Construction on it, and he got out at the next stop, putting the book in his pocket. He crossed the street and wandered up to the gate, then into the site proper. A heavy-set man minding a concrete mixer saw him and intercepted him a few steps in with a frown. “Kid, you can’t be in here.” He said sternly. Michael inclined his head to the side curiously and extended his hand. The man shook his hand reflexively, a natural reaction a lot of people had to someone casually extending their hand to them. “I’m Michael, I’m Terrance’s son.” Michael explained, smiling. The older man seemed doubtful and was about to say something but a whistle from two stories up made them both look up at a muscular, dark skinned man working on setting rivets. “Hey Mike!” “Hello Mister Franklin!” Michael responded with a wave. Franklin Bird was one of his dad’s best workers and had been with him for a decade on every job. “He’s in the trailer. Joe, Mike’s fine.” Franklin called before going back to his work. Joe looked at Michael, who shrugged and offered a genuine smile again. “Just go straight to the trailer and get a hard hat if you’re going to be wandering around.” Joe said in annoyance. “Yes, Sir.” Michael said demurely to avoid bruising an ego as he stepped around and moved with purpose directly to the management trailer, where his father was sitting at what passed for a fancy desk on a construction site; a white plastic folding table and a lawn chair. Terrance Thomas Adon was the reason Michael had a tall frame, but he was not the reason for Michael’s full head of hair. His belly had gone a bit slack recently as he had been doing less work out on the sites and moved to supervisory positions, but he was a large man with arms made strong from work, with calloused hands. His hair was more salt than pepper, and was thinning at the top. He had a carefully trimmed mustache that was exactly within regulations for construction works, and in his slacks and polo he looked the part of an educated foreman. He was currently going over figures in his chair, but he looked up and grinned at Michael as his son entered. “Ah, if it ain’t a stranger!” he said cheerfully. “Where you been? Busy at your school, I ‘spect?” He asked as Michael pulled up his own chair. “Yeah. It’s...well moving to a new school partway through the year is rough. I’m trying to find some clubs and stuff, and all the other students and faculty are really welcoming, but it’s always going to be an adjustment.” Michael said honestly, scratching his chin. “If we hadn’ta thought it was necessary, we wouldn’ta moved ya to the new school to begin with. But it was what was best for you, you know?” Terrance said with a frown, putting his pen down and clasping his large hands together on his desk as he looked at Michael. “I understand. And I’m not upset about it. But It takes time to do any sort of changes. You know that, don’t you?” “Of course I do; And I’ve got plenty of experience with eggheads who have to have things changed at the last minute too. And if I know anything about you, and I feel like I do, you can handle any of that stuff without much issue.” he looked around quickly and his voice dropped to a whisper. “No matter what them powers are doing to you.” he whispered it but his voice was confident, enough to embolden Michael into a smile of confidence of his own, then his voice rose again. “It’s Sam I’m worried about, if anything, she’s not taking it as well as you, I’ve heard from her parents.” “Yeah. I’m trying to help her along but I can only do so much, and sometimes she just doesn’t really want help. And it’s not like I’m gonna force her to do anything.” His father nodded along and maintained the tone of offering advice. “Look, sometimes the best thing you can do is to do your best, and let other people follow along in your example; sometimes people aren’t looking for a hand up, they’re looking for the road, and Michael, you can carve that road for them.” He didn’t say anything else, but Michael studied him carefully. The pinch of those dark brown eyes, the twitch of his lip. The unspoken statement his father left there, that he probably didn’t even want to admit he thought, was that sometimes people wouldn’t follow the path even if you gave them the road, and that you had to cut them loose. Michael knew his dad would have followed that same advice himself; with problematic workers, he could only give them so many chances. “Carve the road, huh?” “Or light the way, or hurl the boulders out of the way, or direct the traffic. However you want to present it as.” he said with a grin. “Just, doing something to make it easier for other people.” “I get it.” Michael responded with a wave of his hand. “Help myself first, and others can come after, because they’ll have an easier time going where I’ve already been.” “And because if you’re stable and got your head put on straight, you aren’t going to be distracted, you can put all your effort into helping other people.” Terrance said as he stood up. “Come on, I had to work through lunch getting payroll ready, so I wanna go get something to eat.” So father and son left the worksite for a bit, heading three blocks down the street to a Mexican place where Michael ordered some tacos and his dad got a steaming plate of fajitas. “So how’s school?” “Not bad...I’m working on a book report, they really threw me right in and I just had to catch up, so it’s been challenging, but I’m managing. The library is full of books so there’s plenty of help with studying and the like.” “Any sports?” “Nothing official, we’re too small for anything like that. But the students play sports together sometimes, you know, just for fun. So it keeps me up to date.” “A shame you can’t compete anymore.” It was an odd thing to say; they both had their frustrations about the situation. Michael liked sports, and he liked playing with others. His father liked watching Michael win, but also liked Michael having fun. There’d be no point to it if Michael wasn’t enjoying sports, or at least that was how his dad always acted, so as long as he was having fun, it should be fine, right? “Isn’t it just enough to be having fun?” Michael asked his dad, wanting to poke at the discussion a bit more with his dad, who frowned at the question. “It is enough to be having fun, Michael. But you enjoyed competition. I can look at you and tell you you’re missing the feeling of competing in some way. Now sure, it’s probably some level of being uncomfortable in new surroundings, but I get the feeling you’re going to be jonesing for a genuine contest before too long; that having fun with friends throwing the ball around isn’t going to fix your desire for a little competition.” “...That makes it sound like I’m gonna cause trouble looking for fights.” He thought about his interaction with the green-haired student he had earlier. “...You know...maybe you’re right. But I don’t intend to.” “Only if you let it happen. It’s just about keeping control of yourself. I only mention it because I know you’re better than your worst traits.” His father said frankly, his voice even. It did actually bring some level of frustration to Michael, to be informed of- and have to recognize- his own failures and shortcomings. He would eventually miss competition, he’d miss challenging himself. But that was only if he didn’t change his perceptions. “...I’m going through a lot of changes aren’t I.” he said after a long time spent thinking about it. “You are. And with those changes come benefits. The Chinese Character for Crisis contains the characters for both ‘Danger’ and ‘Opportunity’. John F. Kennedy said that.” “He was paraphrasing Lewis Mumford from 1944, and it’s not correct, the second character means something different.” Michael noted. “I learned that in a linguistics class I’m taking; it was an example of how things that aren’t exactly correct can be warped to provide a more positive message and how those messages often stick around despite the incorrectness due to people’s desire to have positive messaging.” Terrance laughed gruffly. “Well, then, even if it’s not right, it’s a good thought to have, right? You’re in Crisis, and it’s dangerous, but there’s also opportunity.” Michael laughed at that in response, at his father's skillful handling of new information; his work, his body, that all belied that he had always had a sharp mind that he was willing to exercise with the use of a quick word or jib.. “You’re right. I suppose that’s true. Maybe I should just start saying it too. ‘You know, people like to say that the Chinese character for crisis contains the words “danger” and “opportunity”, but that’s not actually true, but it shows that people want it to be true’, or something like that.” The two shared a familial grin and chuckle together before it was interrupted by Terrance’s phone ringing he picked it up and answered. “Yeah Frank?” His happy face slowly dripped into a serious scowl. “...Crap, you’re serious? Alright, I’ll be there as soon as I can. Get everyone out the back while he’s distracted.” He said, hanging up. He looked at his son with a severe look. “Michael. A guy I fired last week came back to the site. I had been going to send out his last check but it seems like he wants more than that. And he’s juiced himself up.” he said the next part very seriously. “I don’t think you should come back there, just wait here until I get back.” Michael looked at him probingly for a moment, then nodded as he understood what was being said. “You got it. I won’t go anywhere near the site, I’ll wait here until you get back.” he said politely, a son obeying his father. Terrance got up, left the money on the table, and headed out the door at a jog. as he was in the middle of the first crosswalk, the roar of wind overcame the sound of cars for a moment and a corona of red and gold shot over the buildings, heading back towards the construction site.

Michael felt a small amount of concern at Bernadette having another obligation. It wasn't like he was scared, it was more he was pretty sure he had made a bad impression on Neko and he was being left alone with her. But entering the quad full of students actually helped put him more at ease then rile him up; a crowd, he could deal with, probably. He adjusted the sleeves of his navy suit and ran a hand through his brown hair as they entered the Quad, putting a charming enough smile back on. When new people came up to meet him, he greeted then graciously, clasping hands with the one in front with ease and returning a firm handshake. "A pleasure, Lawrence. I'm Michael Adon. This is my first day, so if we've met it wasn't here. Please, take this card. It's a coupon for where I work. I always like to give them out to people I'm meeting for the first time." He said calmly. His gaze stopped on the insectoid student for a moment longer than the other two but his smile didn't waver, and he quickly held out his hand to each of the new students in turn along with cards of their own. "Wow. Do those antenna work? Can you feel sounds and stuff with them?" He asked with a restrained curiosity; he wanted to ask a million questions but he kept it to one to start with.

He didn't need more warning, really, but he also acknowledged to himself that he deserved to be chastised for that poor behavior, so he didn't even raise a voice of dissent. Instead, he agreed. "You're correct, of course. I should be in better control of myself, it's inappropriate for someone like me to get angry and do something like that, and I will strive to do better in the future. If I fail, I deserve any punishment given to me." he said, absolutely serious and deferential to the more experienced student; he inclined his head down, lowered his eyes, and shrunk his shoulders as he did so, all the appropriate markers of someone expressing genuine regret at his failure to live up to an example he held himself to. "I will make sure to hold myself to a higher standard in the future." His tone was somber after that; appropriately contrite for his actions. "I will devote myself to using those libraries to better myself, especially in learning better self-control." he stated seriously. Sometimes he just said things that seemed like they could be sarcastic or ridiculous, but he was saying them with the complete sincerity of someone who either was a great actor or actually genuinely believed them. "If you have any recommendations, I will start there." "As for my powers, I can fly, I've got super strength, super speed, that sort of stuff. I'm still learning how to use them perfectly though. That's what the watch is for. When my hair and eyes change, and when you hear that buzzing, that means I'm using all my strength, and I can only do that for about an hour. I'm about ten times as good at everything when I do that; ten times as strong, ten times as fast, I'm immune to small bullets, even my senses get sharper. After that I go back to about where I am now, or lose all my powers for awhile, kinda depends. It makes me really tired too." He explained freely. "I know Bernadette's powers. What are yours, if you don't mind me asking?"

Golden Star [2x bonus on IC posts due to New Player Bonus, Month 1/3] A Silver Medal Start [2] A Steel Resolve [3] Golden Student [12] 20 Questions Origin Story (>1000 Words) HellQ Reputation So I think this is ([12 + 2 + 3] * 2 = 34, then checking the counts should be 3+ 1 + 2 + 2 + 1? for 9?

"T...thanks?" He said, very clearly confused at everything that had just happened in such a short period. He didn't feel like he should he being complimented for the fact he almost attacked a random person. Especially not by the person he just almost attacked. He rubbed the back of his watch again. It took a moment after to process what happened to the card he handed her. "Don't worry, Uh...just. Just tell them I sent you if you make your way there some time. They know I give those things out like candy, I'm sure they'll believe you if you tell them I gave it to you and you lost it." Or would they? Would they just suddenly get mad like him, for what felt like no reason? That troubled him a little, but he felt pretty embarrassed now, feeling like he'd made a bad impression to these three students, and on his first day no less, and the back of his neck flushed momentarily before he got himself back under control. "It's nice to meet you..." he looked at Bernadette for a second but went with what she had said "Suelo. Don't let me get you in any more trouble please, tell them I was bothering you if they get on your case." He offered before turning back to the other two. "I will have to remember about starting clubs. I may have a few ideas of my own." He said as cheerfully as he could, like being relentlessly positive was going to chase away the image of him advancing on her.

It was the first time he put on his costume, and he wanted there to be some sort of reverence to it, but there wasn’t really any of that; he was standing on the roof of the mall, changing into it. But he tried to at least take a little effort to enjoy the feeling off the cloth between his fingers and the design of the costume, his ideas taken and produced by an official costume maker. A white bodysuit with a golden star on the chest, a red belt buckled to separate the white suit. Red Boots, and a cape that hung partially over his shoulders, attached to a metal clasp on his pectoral muscle. It felt good. He swished the cape experimentally a few times and then focused. He wasn’t exactly great at this part. But he kicked off the ground and didn’t fall, instead he shot into the air. He wasn’t very fast yet; apparently at his fastest he was only about as fast as a car on the highway- one that was following speed limits-, but he didn’t have to deal with traffic and he could fly over buildings. His first action was up. Above all the buildings, until he had an unobstructed view of all the surrounding areas and could spot the flashing red and blue lights. His next action was to go that way; cutting off the fleeing car at an angle- he wasn’t fast enough to catch up to a full speed car and that meant he needed to approach it awkwardly-. The Car was, at least, a fairly old beater, not a brand new sports car. It weaved through streets that were far too packed with people far too fast, leaving specks of paint and side mirrors knocked into the ground. As the car twisted in an intersection, trying to pull a hairpin turn to shift the other way, Michael sliced through the air and his fingers sunk into the back of the car before it could get away from him, his fingers sinking into steel as the car’s wheels squealed on pavement and kicked up smoke and steam, dragging Michael along slowly before he flexed his muscles harder, pulling the rear of the car up off the ground and depriving it of most of its power. He held the car up until someone swore and leaned out of the car. The gleam of steel flashed in his eye as he turned to look followed by the sound of a miniature explosion. He saw it in slow motion and raised his hand to protect his eye, turning the car slightly lopsided. The bullet didn’t pierce his hand, but it felt like a pinch or pressure, a needle poking into the palm of his hand. It hurt enough that he shook his hand and the bullet fell to the ground...then several more went into his arm and hand, each leaving a pinprick of pain as they bruised his skin under his costume before falling to the ground, otherwise harmless. But the shocks numbed his arm and he lost his grip, causing the car to bounce on the ground and the wheels to start to find traction. With a growl, he lashed out again, smashing his hands down on the trunk. The car went straight up, then fell backwards, and he caught it before it hit him or the ground, balancing it on the back wheels and bumper as he held it straight up. Then he slowly pushed it back down and it landed on all four wheels with a thud. The car didn’t move this time and he walked to the driver’s side door, opening it. The man at the wheel looked dazed. “Uh, hello. Are you okay?” he asked as he unbuckled the man and helped him out of the car. He might have been a criminal who stole some jewelry, but Michael helped him stand up and then sit down on the pavement next to the car. “Here. Just sit here and wait. You might have banged your head, so it’s better to not move.” The shellshocked criminal didn’t even try to respond, just stared in confusion as Michael went to the passenger in the front seat and helped them out as well, unhooking the seat belt, helping them out of the car, walking them over to the other man and having him sit down. “There there, deep breaths. This is why you should wear your seatbelt, you know?” He said soothingly to the criminals as he went back into the car and retrieved the stolen jewels and put them on the hood of the car, then the gun that had been used to shoot him. At this point the cops had intervened to arrest the two larcenists, and Michael happily backed off rather than stand over them or get in their way, rubbing his sore arm as he did so. The first reporter on him was a blonde haired woman who pointed a microphone at his face. “You’re new, right? What’s your name?” He smiled and waved to the camera without too much concern, keeping himself calm and not worrying over much; he had had to talk in mock debates before so this wasn’t that much of a strain to keep himself focused on this. “I’m Golden Star, and yes, I’m new. I hope to be useful to everyone without getting too much in other’s ways as I learn the ropes.” he said pleasantly, resting his hands behind his back. “I hope to help those in need, so if you’re in need, I’ll try and help you.” he inclined his head a small amount and offered a bright smile. “But right now I have to get back to other occupations, so please excuse me. I promise I’ll have more time later.” he finished as he floated up into the air and flew off. His phone was ringing as soon as he got back to the mall, and he already knew who it was. “Hello.” Sandra clearly sounded like she wanted to sigh. “I thought you were bulletproof.” “I...guess I’m not. I mean, I wasn’t sure.” he admitted with some level of confusion and uncertainty, he hadn’t exactly wanted people to shoot guns at him. “They didn’t really penetrate me. They just kind of...pinched. I have some bruises.” “Maybe you need to toughen up a little still. You had some difficulties with the car, and catching up to them." A frank assessment of his capabilities was fair, but it did also make him a little frustrated at his own weaknesses; being watched over by someone who was very carefully monitoring him and expecting specific things from him who was also a stiff taskmaster meant that he had to constantly deal with her observations. “You need to keep working on your training.” “Yes M’am.” he mumbled. “I’ll keep practicing. The school is helping a lot.” “Then keep working on it, we’ll see where you end up. Over all, your first outing could be called a...mild success. So not too bad.” “Yes Ma'am.” He said again as she hung up. He put his phone back in his pocket and sighed as he walked back to pick up Kenny, rubbing his arm where five purple bruises were visible. When he got back to his brother sitting and watching Catgirl Reacts on his phone, he slid into the booth and sighed again, resting his head on his hand and propping his elbow up on the table. “You look tired.” Kenny noted. “Did you get in a fight over my present?” “Yeah, something like that.” Michael agreed. “But your present is all sorted, so don’t you worry about that.” he said with a grin as he looked at the screen. “What’d you get me?” “I’m not telling.” “That’s not fair. You don’t like surprises so why do I have to deal with them?” “It’s not like I know what I’m getting either, they just don’t have surprise parties for me.” he noted as he closed his eyes. “Now I’m gonna just rest my eyes, alright?” In his mind, he mulled over if he had done something exceptionally wrong by leaving his brother like that. Arguably he had. He had abandoned his little brother in the middle of a crowded mall to handle something else. He had disrespected the trust his mother put in him, been a poor big brother besides. Was it even really arguable? He frowned to himself even though his eyes were closed, until his phone rang again. He didn’t look at who it was as he picked it up. “Hello?” “Michael, I can tell you’re struggling. Put your mind at ease. I would not have asked you to go do that if I did not have someone making sure your brother was safe. You can rely on the fact I will never make you choose between your duties as a hero and the safety of your family.” He thought about that deeply for a long time. He thought about how weird it was that she knew what he was thinking, thought about how those words were so specific. Thought about what that meant for him and his family. Then he nodded his head again. “Yes, Ma’am. I understand. Thank you.” He said simply. “You are very generous.” Then she hung up, and he hung up after her. It made him feel a little better, but also a little concerned. END

This is just a little IC solo thread/story, only two posts, I've written about the first time Golden Star does some Superheroics. Nothing major, no mechanics, no other characters or anything, so there's no need for an OOC thread I think. Black Friday, 2023, Midtown, Millennium Mall The Mall was absolutely, ludicrously packed. There would be more space in a sardine can then there would be in the inside of the mall. Accompanying Michael’s mother, him and Kenny had had to amuse themselves while their mother spent most of the year’s surplus- the money saved by Thomas repairing the garage by himself, the money saved by Michael getting a free ride to Claremont, and the money quietly deposited into their account to make up for Michael’s hospital stay- on a variety of bright, shiny presents that Michael and Kenny were mostly here to carry when needed. She had shooed them aware a little after lunch, which likely meant she was shopping for them, and left the two without any real direction on what to do. Michael had already gotten most of his presents, but Stella liked the feeling of buying presents in person instead of over the internet, so it meant trips to the malls, the shops, and the stores. It wasn’t that much of a bother, but it was difficult to get some air when crammed onto the small walkways of the three story building. Currently the two were hanging over the balcony of the food court, legs dangling over a three story drop as they sat on the raised barrier, watching people scurry below them. “You see her?” Michael asked. “Hrmmm...no.” Kenny responded. Michael leaned over conspiratorially and pointed. It was a bit easier for him than his brother; ever since he got his powers, his senses seemed a little sharper. He unerringly identified his mother’s red curls as she walked into a toy store amidst a throng of 20 or 30 other parents. Kenny followed his finger and made a sound. “Oh! I see her. You’ve got good eyes!” “Well that happens when you play a bunch of sports. If you put in the effort to train something you get better at it. I have to be able to pick out receivers in a crowd and track the puck on the ice, you know?” The little brother hmmed again and took a sip of his drink. “How come you aren’t playing sports at your new school? They ain’t even got no sports teams, so why are you there?” He asked with the innocence of a child. Michael sighed and stretched. “Come on, we’ve been over this. I can’t play sports anymore because I got hurt in my accident, remember?” “You don’t look hurt.” “It’s an inside hurt. The kind you can’t see but you always have to walk around with.” “Like mom? She doesn’t act like it hurts but she always gets scared when there’s a supervillain on TV.” Michael frowned at his brother’s casual innocence to ask such biting questions. “Yeah. A hurt like that. It means I can’t play anymore because I might get hurt, or something bad might happen. And the people at my new school are helping me, even if I might not ever get to play sports again. Like how Miss Cooper helped Mom; she still gets scared but she goes out and does despite it, right?” “Yeah.” “So that’s how it is with me. I might not ever play professionally or anything, but I’ll eventually get to the point where I’m okay.” he said easily. “So anyway, what are you getting mom?” He directed the conversation away from his issues smoothly. Kenny wasn’t actually going to get a present, it was just going to be whatever their Dad got and put his name on it. “Me and Dad are getting her a spa treatment. And we’re making little pots for flowers at school and I’m gonna give mine to her.” “I bet she’d like that.” Kenny nodded along and they returned to silence for a while, watching people while the bustle of the mall came over them, until Michael’s phone rang and he pulled it out to check it. The number on it was for his boss, Sandra Sampson. Maybe wanting him to take another shift or something. He answered without much concern. “Yes M’am.” The voice that responded was the same as always with Sandra; gruff, clipped, and expecting obedience. “Michael, you’re at the Millennium Mall.” That was not a question. “That would be correct.” he keep his voice even and what he was responding with vague; Kenny was watching and he didn’t want to give him any kind of idea. Let the little brother think he was just discussing getting put on a new shift or something. “There are a couple of low rent thugs who have stolen a car and some jewelry and are trying to evade police in the local area. I know you aren’t fully trained, but there shouldn’t be any problem with you stopping them. I’ve asked for you to get the first shot, and people are quite busy today for obvious reasons, so the ball is in your court.” “Do you think I’m ready for that?” “...” she was quiet. Which indicated she was doubtful. “I do not think there will be any harm in you trying.” which meant that there was someone who was going to be watching to make sure he didn’t mess up. “I get it. I’ll be there soon.” he said evenly. She hung up before he did and he put his phone back in his pocket. “Kenny, I gotta go take care of something. Can you sit on that bench until I get back?” “Are you buying me a present?” “...Yeah. I’m gonna go get your present. So you need to go sit over there and wait. Here’s twenty bucks to get a snack.” He said as he turned and slid off the railing, then helped Kenny down. He deposited Kenny in a booth and wandered off, heading towards a maintenance corridor and then up towards the roof.

He frowned at the new person. Something about her felt...off. Like the hairs on the back of his neck were standing up in anger. This person was...evil? Bad? he ground his teeth under his clenched lips, his fingers flexed behind his back. He took a step forward, but his mind started racing; what was he doing? Why was he feeling like this. Parse his thoughts, even them out. Why is he reacting this way? His right hand went into his pocket. He felt the familiar watch. He clicked it, hearing the familiar sound of gears clicking, of the hands of the watch ticking across the face of it. This person was not bad. Not overtly bad. A troublemaker, maybe? No one to be hostile to. Be calm. Count the ticks. One. Two. Three. Four. Five. He slowed his breathing, slowed his thinking. Suppress the anger and be better. It was hard. He fought it down only at the barest chance, but he managed to swallow it To the outside, Michael had taken several purposeful steps forward, and his hair had start to shimmer. What had been brown hair was changed to a crimson gold, a color that had also taken over his formerly brown eyes. The sound of the watch ticking was audible in his pocket. But as he neared her, he turned his attention to the cup, lifted it up, and offered it to her. A vein was still pulsing in his neck, his hair was still miscolored, but he was under control. When he got to the girl, he bent down, picked up the cup, and offered it to her. "My name is Michael. Michael Adon. It is a pleasure to meet you. I work at Sampson's Soda, and here's a discount card." His voice was almost robotic; fighting against an instinct he didn't understand, but he held the card out with the cup. He continued forcing his breathing under control, and his hair and eyes reverted to normal, leaving him looking a little worse for wear. "I'm sorry...I don't know what came over me." But he still took a step back afterwards, trying to keep his mind clear. "An anime club? And Future Farmers? I'd love to attend both." He said to Neko, but he paused again, shaking his head roughly, trying to get the remaining feelings of anger out of it. He wondered if she had some sort of psychic power. He pulled his watch out of his pocket and clicked it, letting it continue to run, soothing him with the clicking sounds and his memories of his Grandfather's voice. "I'm sorry...I'm...a little lightheaded suddenly." Rot Distaste: 1d20+9 26

Accessing Personnel Files....Enter Username and Password Password accepted...Welcome, Sandra Sampson Attempting to access locked report...please provide retinal scan. Retinal Scan completed...accessing. Presenting Log of All obtained information on ‘Michael Adon’ Introduction Who is he? Sum him up in one sentence. Michael Adon is a student at Claremont High, a Superhero imbued with powers based from the manaka root, who has designs on future political power and superheroics. Does he have any nicknames, street names, titles, or nom de plume? Michael Adon is sometimes called ‘Mikey’ ‘M.T.’, or ‘Mr. Mike’ by his friends. The third is used jokingly when he is extremely ‘in-character’ as trying to be a mature, serious adult. What is his full birth name? His full birth name is Michael Terrance Adon, his middle name is taken from his Grandfather. For further information on “Grandpa Max” Terrance Adon, please see the relevant log. Where does he live? Michael resides at 3040 Persimmon Boulevard, Lantern Hill, Freedom City, New Jersey, and has a form room at Claremont Academy How old is he? What year was he born (if applicable)? Michael is 17 years old. He was born March 25th, 2006. This makes him an Aries in the Astrological signs and a Fire Dog in the Chinese Zodiac. Physical Traits What is his gender? If not applicable, please explain. Michael is a male and presents as a male at this time. How would you describe his heritage? Michael’s primary heritage is a variety of Caucasian ethnicities, without a primary ‘foreign’ ethnicity; he and his family have treated themselves as proud Americans and proud New Jerseyians for the past three generations. How tall is he? Michael is currently 6 feet tall. Estimates believe he will reach a height of six foot two to six foot four when he is fully grown. What is his body type? Michael’s form is lean and muscular, appropriate for the two sports he participates in; high school football as a quarterback and ice hockey as a forward. Does he have any particular weaknesses, such as allergies or physical disabilities? Michael’s body has no allergies or physical deformities. He was allergic to cucumbers- but not pickles- before being dumped in the manaka root treatment, but this has been observed to no longer be the case. Instead, he has developed a weakness to strong vibrations. How does he carry himself? Is he graceful, or heavy on his feet? Can he be stealthy, do his walk with confidence? Michael walks confidently but is not stealthy. He is not prone to random bits of clumsiness, but he is not perfectly in control of his body at all times either. His capabilities with his new powers have led to some level of clumsiness when using them as he is not used to his own strength, but it is believed this will change in time. Describe his skin, eye, and hair color. Michael has brown eyes and brown hair, within standard deviations for someone of his racial background. His skin is pale but he enjoys playing outdoors so he often has a tan. When he uses more of his manaka root powers, his hair and eye color begin to change to red. Right now this is just a highlighting effect How does he wear his hair, if applicable? Does he have facial hair? Michael wears his hair with a left part at a standard length cut. He keeps himself well-shaven. Does he consider himself attractive? Do others? Michael will be attractive enough in a few more years, but for now this is not relevant to most considerations. Several of his classmates do consider him attractive, but there does not seem to be any significant issues with this. Does he have any scars, tattoos, piercings, or birthmarks? Michael has a birthmark on his right hip in the shape of a star. For more information on possible origins of this birthmark, please see the relevant link. Does he resemble anyone famous? Michael bears a resemblance in some ways to Patrick Schwarzenegger, though he is significantly younger. Does he have a dominant hand? Michael is left handed. What kind of clothing does he wear? Michael almost never wears less than ‘business casual’ clothing, including polos and slacks. These outfits are usually tailored, rather than being off the rack, but he can’t afford the highest brand clothes; he makes up for the lower budget with a trusted tailor named Jane Trudgel, who makes the clothes look good on him Does he wear makeup? Michael will at times wear make-up for mock debates or meetings when he wants to impress, particularly concealer to improve his looks and correct any blemishes. What is his vocal range? Is his voice distinctive in some way? Michael has a slightly deeper voice than usual for a man of his age, which lends a trusting timbre quality to his voice. He has absolutely no ability to carry a tune, and will not sing even at birthday parties or other events unless he can simply mouth the words. Does he have any distinctive habits, nervous tics, or mannerisms? Where did they come from, and what causes them? Do other people notice and remark on these habits? Do they annoy him or other people? Michael relies on an old stopwatch given to him by his grandfather when he becomes nervous or uncertain or bored. The watch is broken, and can only keep time for exactly one hour when wound. This is a trait his Grandfather also had, and he learned it from him. Though he often hides the watch in his pocket, he can at times be seen winding the clock while in thought. His friend Samantha finds this habit silly, but doesn’t press him on it. Others may find these habits distracting. History Where does he come from? Michael comes from Freedom City. Has he made any major moves, or does he live in his hometown? Michael has never lived outside of Freedom City, and indeed has never even moved from his home in his entire life, outside of moments of summer camp or the like. His change to the Claremont Dorms will be his first time living outside of his ancestral house. Does he feel loyal to his country of citizenship? Does he consider himself patriotic? How does he feel about the government of his country? Michael’s desire to participate in Government indicates a loyalty to at least the ideals of America. He is not overly patriotic. Despite his ironclad belief that he wants to be a politician, he seems to have put no further thought, yet, into how he feels about the government as a whole. This will likely change quite rapidly given his new situation. How does he feel about the place he comes from? Michael has expressed a joy in coming from Lantern Hill, specifically being under the protection of Lantern Jack, who, even though he has been missing for many years, Michael still believes protects his neighborhood. He loves Freedom City and his actual house, and has no complaints about his father’s stated job. Where is his home town? What was/is it like? Michael is a ‘born and bred’ New Jerseyian from Freedom City’s Lantern Hill district. Growing up, were most of the people he knew similar to him, or was he somehow a minority? How did that affect him? Michael was not unique in his upbringing, he fits into the social and racial majorities of his living situation. However, his stern desire to follow his goals was significantly different from many of his peers, who continue to be uncertain about their futures. This has led some to mistrust or dislike him. Is there something he's always been really good at or really bad at? How has that affected his life? Michael is traditionally good at sports, speaking, and studies. He is not extremely intelligent but he is good at studying and works hard to make up for it. He is better at being convincing and engaging socially with others. In comparison, he is quite bad at singing, and refuses whenever he can. He also is quite bad at taking leisure time, which can result in him being woefully unprepared for things like fair games, board games, or video games. Were there any traumatic experiences in his early years (death of a family member, abandonment, orphaned at an early age)? Michael was the individual who found his Grandfather Max when he died. Michael was 10 years old at that time. He was around 12 when his mother was severely injured during a supervillain attack at Pyramid Plaza. In both these situations, he received counseling but showed no permanent psychological trauma. Briefly describe a defining moment in his childhood and how it influenced his life. The most defining moments in Michael’s childhood are the incident in 2012 involving The Freedom League and his meeting with President Michael O’Connor Jr.- when he was still Mayor- in 2017. In 2012, minions from Hades, possessing various children’s Halloween costumes and Jack-O-Lanterns began a plot to kidnap children to have them cast a magic spell to invoke the Lord of the Dead. The Freedom League, aided by Eldrich, drove out these underworld invaders and saved many children, including Michael and Sam themselves. This sparked Michael’s true appreciation of Superheroes, to be saved by them, and is where he was first informed by his Grandfather to stay calm and not cause trouble, and how that is the best way to help a Superhero. In 2017, then Mayor Michael O’Connor Jr. met the representatives of the Model UN at Michael’s grade school, which included Michael himself. Emboldened at the time, Michael directly asked O’Connor how to help Superheroes the most. His advice mirrored the information Michael got from his grandfather, and he added that he, the Mayor, helped Superheroes by always being on their side when the government needed them for something. These two events catalyzed Michael’s current ambitions. Warning Notice; Given Michael's family history- such as his mother's crippling in 2019- and these events in his personal history, along with his psychological profile, it is highly likely any versions of Michael from alternate dimensions have the potential to be evil or villainous. These individuals, hypothetically referred to as Black Stars, would likely have similar strengths and weaknesses to Michael and could be subdued the same way. Addendum; The Black Star Phenomenon is not confirmed; it is only a hypothetical model based on psychological data from Michael. Alternate versions of Michael could just as easily not have suffered from any of the listed traumas at all, much less all of them turning evil; the chances are likely no higher than any other hero turning evil, as noted in the Anti-Earth Phenomenon. In my opinion, preparing for evil versions of Michael at this point is unnecessary. What stupid things did he do when he was younger? Michael had several warnings for shoplifting with Sam when he was younger, and has been caught doing underage drinking before, but has always gotten off with warnings. These incidents imply that there are moments where Michael winds himself too tight, and must blow off steam, and should be monitored closely. In unrelated issues, he, like many kids, did several dangerous stunts as a child to try and ‘force’ any latent superpowers to activate. Where did he go to school? How much school does he have, and did he enjoy it? Michael is a current student of Claremont Academy, in order to control his superhero powers. He was previously at Franklin D. Roosevelt High, where he spent two years and was a star athlete and participated in various extracurricular activities. He maintains a high GPA and works hard to keep his place. It is likely he will earn a Scholarship to FCU or Freedom College, most likely with academics, as his sports career has been cut short for the foreseeable future. He, by all accounts, enjoys his schooling. Does he have any mementos of his childhood? What are they, and why did he keep them? If he have none, why not? Michael's most important memento is his Grandfather's watch. He will do whatever he can to keep it safe, as it provides him with an anchor to his respected grandparent and produces a calming effect when he becomes stressed out. When did he decide to become a hero? Why? Did anyone influence him one way or another in the decision? Michael wanted to become a hero as soon as his first encounter with The Freedom League, but did not have any powers and did not develop any. However, his refocus towards assisting heroes as a government official could be considered a continuation of wanting to be a hero in his own way. His meetings with President- then Mayor- O'Connell continued his desires to work in politics, and after the manaka root formula gave him powers, he immediately wanted to become a Superhero Is the reason he gives people for becoming a hero different than his real reason? If so, why? Michael has never been less than honest about his desires, which has at times been to his detriment. He knows not to explain how he obtained his powers or to reveal his superpowers for no reason, but his overarching desire to help people is consistent from his younger days. Does he have any deep, dark secrets in the past that may come back to haunt him? Michael's relationship with Sam can be a weak point depending on how Sam deals with her own growing powers. A poor reaction to them from her could drag Michael down with her. Does he represent himself as being different from who he really is? Why? Michael hides only his superpowers and the way he got them from others. In any other way. He acts the exact same as he ‘truly’ is. If he does have these secrets, what does he fear would happen if the truth became known? How far would he go to protect those secrets? Michael's major secret that he knows of is his combination of powers and secret identity. He would do his best to protect his identity and try to swear others to secrecy Does he have any sort of criminal record? If so, is it public knowledge? Michael does not have an official criminal record but has received several warnings for infractions done with Sam. This has mostly resulted in negative reactions to Sam instead of Michael, but he has always steadfastly defended her as being a good person who means no harm Family What are his biological parents' names? His father's full name is Terrance Thomas Adon, referred to as “T.T.” or “Top” and his mother's full name is Stella Leslie Simmons Adon, known as “Stells”. Was heraised by them? If not, please explain and describe who raised him. He was raised by his parents and his Paternal Grandfather “Grandpa Max” Terrance Adon What was their standing in the community? What did/do they do for a living? Terrance Thomas Adon is a high ranking foreman for DeCosta construction, well respected in his community for being generous and finishing work ahead of schedule, and well liked by the neighborhood kids for giving out full sized candy bars on Halloween. Stella was a marketing manager in Scarab Plaza until 2019, where a Supervillain attack by Gamma the Atom Smasher crippled her legs. She was healed by the Freedom League and has full function in her body but sometimes suffers moments of weakness- believed to be psychological instead of physiological- and decided to take an offer to retire on disability instead of continuing to work. She works on her neighborhood beautification committee and is active in many social groups in their neighborhood. Where are his parents now? They still reside at 3040 Persimmon Boulevard. Does his family stay in one area or move around a lot? Michael has never lived anywhere besides his childhood home for any extended period of time. How does he get along with their parents? How does he get along with them now (if applicable). Michael's relationship with his parents is fine, but sometimes strained by his mother feeling that Sam is a bad influence on him. His relationship with his father is equally good, but is now instead being strained by Michael moving to a new school and developing Superpowers. This is likely due to issues involving Terrance's own background, see relevant files. How do his parents view him now, or how would they? While Michael and his parents are both adjusting to the changes in his life that are coming rapidly as they do for all teenagers, their familial bond is extremely strong and will likely not be broken. They are still proud of their son and this will, with 95% certainty, continue to be accurate. Does he have any siblings? If so, how many and what are their names? Describe his relationship with them. Roderick Jackson “RJ” Adon is his Older brother, a student in his second year at Freesa for the Culinary Arts. See personal file. Roderick and Michael are close in age and have had a competitive but friendly brotherly relationship. They've had fights but also back each other up. Kenny Terrance Adon is his younger brother and was a surprise pregnancy, which is why he is significantly younger than his siblings. He trusts his brothers but is too young for any meaningful relationship. What was his birth order in the family? RJ, Michael, then Kenny Where are his siblings now (if applicable)? Do they have families of their own? What do they do? RJ is in his second year at HIT, living on campus. He is in a steady relationship but is not married and has no children. He is majoring in Biophysics. Kenny is in grade school and lives with Michael and his parents. Does he stay in touch with them or has he become estranged? His family is all close, but with their two oldest children moving out, it’s possible that this relationship will begin to suffer stress as their parents adapt to a much more empty Does he love or hate one member of the family in particular? Michael had a very close relationship with his Grandfather, though he died when Michael was young. This relationship forms the basis of several of Michael's core traits, beliefs, and actions. Is any member of the family special to him in any way (perhaps, as a confidant, mentor, or arch-rival)? Michael still reveres his Grandfather and keeps a diary with letters addressed to him that he writes in when he is struggling. Are there any black (or white) sheep in the family (including him)? If so, please explain. Michael's family does not have any active black sheep, however his relationship with Sam creates a ‘pseudo’ black sheep; she occupies a similar position in the family and causes concern that Michael spends so much time with her Does he have a notorious or celebrated ancestor? If so, please explain, including how it has affected his life. Michael is unaware of his family histories, but our information of his family tree indicates that on his Father's side, he is a descendant of the Minuteman from the Revolutionary War, while his Mother has a distant blood relationship to Jack Simmon, also known as The Patriot, the original one. This likely explains his reaction to the Manaka Root formula that granted him his powers. His father's family line has used manaka root for generations, but most are not well known. Does he have a partner and children currently? If so, please describe them. His closest partner is Samantha “Sam” Carmen Durado. She is not a romantic partner at this time, but instead an extremely good friend. And he has no kids. If he does not have a partner or children, does he want them someday? How firm is he in his opinion on this, and what might change his mind? Current information suggests that Michael does eventually want a partner and children, and he likely dreams of living in the same house as his parents do and raising his kids in that house. What type of person would be his ideal mate? Michael is likely to seek out a Superpowered individual as a mate, someone who has a personal code of ethics that is close to his own. Due to his nature and the way that he behaves, it is equally possible or likely that he will end up falling for a supervillain and end up trying to bring them to the ‘right side’, which would be a significant weakness for him. Relationships Does he have any close friends? If so, please describe them, and how he came to be close to them. Michael is often popular in school; he had many friends and was close to several of them, like Jack Gardner the star running back, Chuck Yaeger the hockey goalie, and Farah Fox, the Student Council Vice President. However, he has lost these friends now that he’s moved to Claremont, which has limited how much time he can spend with them and has removed some of his most common socializing time with them, which was his sports and extracurricular times. While they’re still friends, Michael is pretty much newly afloat in his new school, with only Sam to back him up. Does he have a best friend? If so, how did they become his best friend? How close is he to his best friend? Sam is Michael’s closest friend, a hispanic woman his age who went to the same school as him. Sam’s father works as a car salesman in Freedom City, and managed to get a new house on Lantern Hill just in time to welcome his first daughter into the world. Sam and Michael aren’t exactly neighbors but their houses are only a street away, and they met each other on the same Halloween that The Freedom League saved several children of Lantern Hill. They both managed to avoid being hypnotized by the underworld specters and escape together, which bound them together and they have been inseparable ever since. The two share everything to each other, even though their paths have, at times, diverged. Sam is even more intelligent than Michael is, but doesn’t try as hard in school which results in lower grades. She’s a tan-skinned woman with dark brown eyes and dark golden hair that she dyes the underside in green and reds. She has the same powers as Michael, from the same basis. For more information on Samantha Durado, see her own file. Notably, unlike Michael, she does not currently seem to have any desire to engage in Superheroics. If he were to go missing, who would worry about him? If Michael went completely missing, almost everyone in his extended circle would be concerned and try to organize some sort of search party. To the judge of those around him, he just isn’t the kind of kid to do that, and he’s made positive impressions on many of the people around him; the idea of the High School Quarterback going missing suddenly would be in the newspaper, if not on the front page. Despite this, we have records of Michael spending nights away from his house with Sam or other friends without telling his parents and causing them to worry, though he would always return by morning. Has he lost any loves? If so, how did it happen, and what did he do? Michael lost his grandfather, but only due to old age. He clearly still remembers him and has bittersweet feelings about him, and keeps a photo of him so he can never forget what he looks like, in addition to keeping his diary full of letters that he would send his grandfather if he could to ask for his advice. Does he have any bitter enemies? If so, please describe them and their history with him. Michael holds a severe grudge against Gamma the Atom Smasher for crippling his mother, but the Supervillain would have no idea who Michael is. He would be hard pressed to keep himself in check if he happened to meet the Supervillain during a crime; but the Atom Smasher is significantly more powerful than Michael at this point, so the fight would probably not go very well for Michael. This bitter enemies relationship is thus extremely one sided. If he has enemies, how does he think they might attempt to work against him in the future? In comparison, Michael does have an actual threat from the Powerhouse. The underground human enhancement program was the reason Michael fell into the vat that gave him his powers in the first place. It will not take much time of Michael being active as a Superhero for them to become aware that he is using the formula that they attempted to capture the night he was empowered, and it’s much greater effects will make them very greedy to capture Golden Star and see what exactly made his formula so much better than theirs, no matter what happens to Michael himself. What is the worst thing someone has done to him? Michael is a middle-class kid whose ‘worst day ever’- excluding the death of his grandfather and the injury to his mother- were things like bad school picture days or someone stealing his bike. This is a possible weakness; his compassion comes from never experiencing significant hardship himself, and he has never had to deal with significant, permanent tragedy on a personal scale. This will be a test when such things do happen, to see how he will react. Where do his loyalties lie? In what order? Michael is only loyal to the State in a broad concept, which could be a problem for our future goals. He is instead loyal to what he sees as ‘the common people’ and to Superheroes in general. He wants to make their lives easier and is self-sacrificing to do so. While his beliefs have not fully crystallized into how that looks, he will absolutely be attempting to do whatever he determines as ‘right’ to the best of his ability and with the best intentions. However, it would be poor form to not acknowledge that his family and Samantha could both ruin these plans. If Michael knew about his Father’s history (See relevant history), he would become very shocked, and this could significantly change his loyalties (see the Black Star phenomenon located here [X]). Similarly, Michael would go to any lengths to protect Samantha, even from her own decisions. It is not impossible that he would falter in heroic actions in order to stand up for Samantha, and this should be monitored extremely carefully. Who or what does he trust the most? Why? Michael has absolute trust in Samantha, as she is going through the same issues he is and they have been best friends for the majority of their lives. There are likely no secrets between the two and never will be. Who or what does he despise? Why? Michael holds special dislike for Gamma, but does not overtly despise any individual or group. He is prone to thinking the best even of villains or criminals, and will work with them for peaceful resolutions as best he can. However, he has no tolerance for bullies or abusers, and dislikes those who pick on those weaker than them. He was never bullied himself, but Sam was at times and as a friendly individual he has always tried to engender cooperation between others. What qualities does he admire most in other people? Are these qualities he possess? Michael highly values responsibility, loyalty, honesty and integrity. He tries to hold these principles himself, being responsible for Sam and his younger brother, loyal to his Father and Grandfather’s beliefs, honest when dealing with others, and not being easily swayed. He is still young enough that sometimes he makes mistakes or fails to live up to his goals, as any individual does, but he strives to be someone other people can look up to. What qualities does he hate most in other people? Does he have any of those qualities? Michael dislikes people who are flighty or smug about being better than others. However, these are qualities he himself can sometimes demonstrate; his multiple commitments can at times cause him to have to leave in the middle of other commitments when they overlap, or miss out on some in favor of others, while he can, at times, be quite confident or even superior acting when he’s trying to help someone out or do something for them; it does not seem to be out of an intentional desire to put others down, but rather that his nature as someone who is supremely confident in what he wants to do can make other people feel like he’s looking down on others. Does he have a secret identity? If so, who knows it? Does he hide it from people who are close to him? Why? Michael’s identity as Golden Star is a secret and attempts are being made to keep this a secret. While we at Sampson’s know it, and his teachers at Claremont and his parents and Sam know it, it is otherwise kept extremely quiet. Neither of his brothers have been told out of concern of them sharing it unwisely, and none of his previous school friends have been told why Michael has suddenly liked Franklin D. Roosevelt High School and moved on to Claremont, instead being told that he suffered some sort of injury that requires more specialized schooling. This is ideal for our purposes at this time, and we will be continuing to ensure that his name does not get out. Does he work well on teams and in groups? Is he a leader or a follower? Michael is a natural leader who does well in teams. He is excellent at inspiring others, but he is not a tactician or a planner, relying on others to handle that. He will almost certainly try to surround himself with new friends and allies whenever he enters a new situation, which could give him a chance to be a member of a new young super team that could help train and prepare him for new situations. Is he on a super team? If so, how does he get along with his comrades? Does he trust them, or does he have secrets from them? Michael is not part of a Super Team at this time, but this will likely not be the case for long. It will be beneficial to him to join a team and learn how to co-exist with other superhumans, especially those more comfortable with their powers, but these individuals should be vetted by us. Is he a member of any church, fraternal organization, club, committee, political Roderparty, or other group? How much time does he spend on that? Michael maintains an extreme amount of clubs, committees, and similar groups for secondary activities. A small sampling includes being a member of the Hockey Team, Football Team, taking Boxing lessons, participating in Model U.N. and Student Council, managing food and toy drives in the winter, working a part time job at Sampson’s Sodas, helping with Craft Fairs and being a Tutor after school, and having small, recurring commitments to a variety of clubs he joins and helps out with but eventually leaves due to not being interested in them, as he will try anything once. This makes Michael exceptionally busy at almost all times. This makes it likely that he will fray at the edges and burn out, if not carefully monitored. Personality & Beliefs Who are his heroes? While Michael has great respect for most Superheroes, the two individuals he holds the highest respect for are The Freedom League and President Michael O'Connell Jr. He is unaware of O'Connell's family history, but has great respect for how the President continuously stands as an ardent supporter of Heroes. Did he ever become disillusioned with former heroes or idols? If so, why and what were the circumstances? Michael would likely become quite disillusioned and disappointed if he found out more information about his father, but so far most of his life has been free of these sorts of difficult situations. This is a prime reason for why his emotional state must be carefully monitored. Does he like being a hero? If so, what is the most rewarding part? If not, what makes him keep doing it? Michael enjoys the idea that he will be a superhero, as it will help him live up to the ideals that he has been trying to follow since he was young. However, he has limited experience actually doing heroics, and he may find it far more challenging than he thinks it will be. If he overcomes these difficulties he will likely continue to be a hero for as long as he is able to. Is there anything that would make him give up hero work, or even switch sides? Michael has yet to face any serious challenges in being a superhero, which could indicate his resolve might falter when tested and result in him quickly abandoning the idea. In addition, with his negative histories, it is possible that he would falter and engage in a Black Star phenomenon, particularly if Samantha or his family suffer either due to his heroics or due to the actions of Supervillains as a whole. Addendum: While we can not state this with certainty, the prior statement is simply the assumption of computer models, which can be known to be faulty considering the irregularity of humans, especially Superheroes or those with powers. Michael has not expressed anything that would make him give up hero work, and it is just as possible that such tragedies would empower or embolden him to greater heights instead of damage his desire to do so. What are his short term goals (what would he like to be doing within a year)? Michael keeps a firm plan, short and long term. His short term goals include becoming Class President at Claremont, finishing his High School degree, and moving onto College. He wants to become a more renowned Superhero with a clearer grasp on his powers and grow more comfortable with his strength, and make new friends at his new school. What are his long term goals (what would he like to be doing twenty years from now)? Michael’s long term plans are kept in the same diary he writes his letters to his grandfather in. It notes his goal of getting into FCU or Freedom University, graduating with degrees in Economics and Political Science, and joining Committees and becoming an aide to a Councilman or the Mayor, with the goal of becoming one of those himself. Eventually after that, he still wants to try and become President. What is his greatest fear? Why? What does he do when something triggers this fear? Michael’s greatest fear is seeing his future goals falling apart; significant disciplinary punishment, failing to graduate, arrests or ostracization. While he wouldn’t want to see his family hurt or injured or in danger for him, he has put so much focus onto his future that something causing his plans to fall apart could significantly damage his mental state, making a feeling that he has wasted his life and all the years spent working towards his goals was completely useless. When he has these fears, he usually writes more letters to his Grandfather, asking him for help. Is there anything he would give his life for? While Michael’s goal as a Superhero involves being willing to sacrifice his life for others, he has not had to test his commitment. However, examination of his previous actions and stances suggest he would very easily sacrifice his life for his Family or Samantha How does he feel about money and material wealth? Does he desire it or disdain it? Is he miserly with what he has, or does he like to share? Is it a mark of success, or a means to an end? Michael has not had to stress about money for most of his life due to the comfortable salaries obtained by his parents, which has given him a poor understanding of others who need money or have issues obtaining it. It is not to say he does not value money; he understands he needs it and tries to be thrifty, but he also has caring parents who would pay for something if he needed it and didn’t have the money to do so. He enjoys sharing what he does have and is free to offer help with clothing drives or paying for parties when he can. He also enjoys handing out the discount cards that come with his part-time job. When he stops being able to rely on his parents, Michael will find out the value of money quite quickly. How does he generally treat others? Arguably Michael’s most heroic quality is that he treats everyone he meets as nice and politely as possible. He never raises his voice first, and even villains have to strike him first before he’ll raise hands against them. He is unflinchingly polite, and unflinchingly compassionate. If someone needs help, he will help them, and if someone asks for something, he will try to get it for them. Is he a trusting person? Has his trust ever been abused? While others have used Michael’s nature to their benefit, he has always brushed it off. He continues to be trusting even afterwards; while some may have used him just for benefits, such as coupons or benefits, or have pretended to be nice to get benefits from hanging around with him, he never lets such things keep him from trusting other people. Is he introverted (shy and withdrawn) or extroverted (outgoing)? Does he have a lot of self-confidence? Michael is an extroverted individual with a lot of self-confidence, almost too much. He does not have issues starting conversations and tries to be friendly with everyone he meets. How does he act around attractive, available members of his preferred sex? Michael isn’t afraid of telling people he thinks are attractive that they are attractive, and doesn’t think too much about it if he gets turned down and isn’t pushy. But he’s also very capable of just being friendly with people who don’t like him that way and won’t concern himself with it. What are his most annoying habits? Michael’s insistence on being polite, his aggressively friendly nature, and his rubbing of his grandfather’s watch could all be considered highly annoying habits to people who don’t think well of him. The fact he is often over-dressed for casual social events can also make people find him annoying or stuck up. Does he feel contempt for any general category of people? Who are they, and why? Michael does his best not to feel contempt for anyone, believing most people are good on the insides. This does not mean he simply accepts unacceptable behavior, but instead he would try to explain why it is unacceptable and convince them to cease doing it What is his favorite food? Does he prefer any particular type of food? Does he take the time to enjoy his food, or does he eat as fast as he can? Michael is a fan of the classic All-American Cheeseburger. Extra cheese, grilled onions, pickles, mayo, mustard, ketchup, tomato and lettuce. With a good burger, he’ll savor every bite, and he generally tries to at least taste his food before he eats it. What is his favorite drink (alcoholic or otherwise)? Michael likes Soda, which led to him getting the job at Sampson’s in the first place. He’s always willing to try their new formulas out, and wants to eventually learn how to make the stuff on his own, maybe come up with his own recipes. What is his favorite treat (dessert)? Michael has had the exact same cake at his birthday ever since his 8th birthday; a white cake with chocolate icing. Are there any specific foodstuffs that he find disgusting or refuse to eat? Michael still won’t eat Cucumbers, even though he’s no longer allergic to them. He doesn’t particularly like chewy or sticky foods, because they tend to get caught in his teeth or make his hands sticky, and he doesn’t like that sensation. What is his favorite color? Are there any colors he dislikes? Michael’s favorite colors are Gold and Red. He finds Green a bit of an ugly color, though he has not said this to Samantha and does not comment when she dyes her hair green. What sort of music does he like? Is there anything that he hates? Michael is a fan of older country music, along with current rock, and pop music. He generally cares more about the beat and the music than the lyrics of a song, and favors music that is fast and up-tempo, finding down-tempo or slow music to be boring and not engaging enough for him. If he has a favorite scent, what is it? Michael likes Lavender and the scent of ‘Champagne toast’ candle from Bath and Body Works. Does he have a favorite animal? Michael’s favorite animals are hawks for flying animals and rhinoceroses for terrestrial ones. Now that he can fly, he has finally gotten to see what flying is all about and is jealous of birds for keeping it all to themselves. His enjoyment of rhinos for their generally peaceful nature and cooperative spirit but still being willing to fight almost led to him picking the Superhero name ‘The Rhino’, before deciding it didn’t feel right since he had no animal based powers. What is his most treasured possession? Why? Michael’s most treasured possession is his Grandfather’s Watch. Does he enjoy "roughing it", or does he prefer his creature comforts? Michael has been camping before, and while he does not mind it, he also wouldn’t want to do it for an extended period of time, or have to live for an extended period of time without a roof over his head and preferably a heater during the winter months. Is there a job or a task he would absolutely refuse to do? Michael hates cleaning the bathrooms at work, as he finds it very disgusting, and similar ‘dirty’ jobs involving sewage or waste, he would find extraordinarily distasteful and be unwilling to do unless heavily pressed. Does he consider himself a spiritual person? If so, how do his beliefs affect his life?How important is it to him? Michael’s mother is a Protestant, and while he does not actively practice the faith, he does go to church on Christmas and Easter. He would describe himself as ‘vaguely spiritual’; he has spiritual beliefs but hasn’t really pinned them down distinctly or confirmed what they really are enough to find a faith that aligns with him. He has no problems believing in Spirits, Demons, and the Underworld or the like; his encounter with the Freedom League and Hades’ minions long made it clear that there are forces that are beyond mortal standards in this world. Was his faith influenced or molded by anyone special? Michael’s spirituality was mostly brought up by his mother, but his continued belief even if he’s not really sure what he 100% believes in is bolstered through his sincere belief of Lantern Jack as the guardian spirit of his neighborhood even if it’s been a long, long time since he was last seen.. If he belongs to a religious organization, how often does he attend? Does he have a specific place of worship, or friends within the organization? How much does he agree with the beliefs of his organization? He’s a C&E Church goer. He isn’t against going to church functions or helping out with them, but only in the context of him being willing to help out and volunteer for almost anything when people bring it up. Could he kill? Has he killed? Michael has never been forced to consider this question. It seems unlikely that he will kill when he is forced to acknowledge it, but it’s not a complete impossibility. What circumstances led to him forming that conviction, or taking that action? N/A at this time. Are there circumstances under which he believe it is permissible to kill? What are they? Michael does not think that it’s a particularly bad thing to kill those who commit terrible crimes against humanity specifically, but he doesn’t believe in permission to kill in anything less than genocidal dictators or the like. For lesser crimes- even individual murder-, he’d be less willing to let someone die, since he thinks almost everyone can be good when they put their mind to it. How would he react to watching someone kill another person? Would his reaction be different if the killer was a friend or an enemy of his? Michael would be horrified at seeing another person be killed, and would likely immediately attempt to apprehend the individual. However, it’s highly likely if a family member, Sam, or another friend were the killer, he would be more likely to let them get away, as his first instinct would be to question why and try to make them calm down instead of subduing them immediately. How would he react if something important was stolen from him? If it is possible, Michael would go through the proper channels to try to regain his stolen object, however, he would likely attempt to use his powers to figure out who stole it and where it is himself. He would not try to steal it back, but he may try to argue for it back under a promise he wouldn’t press charges or tell the police if he could just have it back. How would he react to public humiliation? Michael puts a heavy emphasis on his public face; he wants to be well respected, well regarded, and his plans for his life involve a significant amount of public facing existence. A severe public humiliation could damage his plans, which would send him into a burst of anger. He would not likely physically lash out, but he would almost certainly nurse a grudge for an extended period of time, especially if it does eventually become extremely damaging to his career. How would he react if a good friend or relative were purposely or accidentally killed? Has it happened to him? While none of Michael’s family has been purposely or accidentally killed, his Mother’s injury by Gamma, which he still holds anger at the villain for, indicates that Michael would likely react very harshly to such a situation. His self-control would be highly tested in such a situation, especially if it was by an individual he is physically stronger than. What does he consider to be the worst crime someone could commit and why? For Michael, corruption, abuse of power, and the oppression of others is a terrible crime. The idea of using your own power to oppress others or to subjugate or exploit them is against all of Michael's beliefs or feelings, and something he feels very strongly about stopping whenever he sees it. To him, doing those things infringes on the basic rights of sentient beings. If his life were to end in 24 hours, what five things would he do in those remaining hours? Michael finding out his life is going to end so suddenly would likely be highly traumatizing and cause him to rethink his entire existence; finding out that his long term plans are doomed to not come to fruition would cause a severe psychological episode. If he could shake himself out of those doldrums, he would likely attempt to spend as much time with Sam and his family as he could, likely abandoning being a hero entirely for that last day since he is not fully established. Career & Training Does he have any special training in his hero skills? If so, where and how did he get it? Michael does not have specific training in being a hero, but he has a broad amount of training from spending most of his young life exploring a variety of hobbies and clubs. While he isn't a trained hostage negotiator, for instance, he has been part of the debate club and the student council. While he may not have been trained to fight Supervillains, he has experience in sports and boxing. Etc. Who taught him the most about his heroing abilities? What was his relationship with that person? Michael derives his concept of Heroing from his relationship with his Grandfather primarily. Teaching him to always do his best to help heroes made him want to assist them as a politician. He continued to take this lesson to heart once he gained his powers. In regards to gaining and using his powers, Michael will have to develop a relationship once he gets to Claremont about how to make the best use of his powers, but we the staff of Sampson’s Sodas may also be of assistance, as we are aware of his history and power source. Does he have any particularly unusual skills? How did he acquire them? Michael has a very broad set of skills that are somewhat out of the ordinary for a high school student. He is well versed in the intricacies of government and reading legalese, obtained by studying the law as part of his continuing education. Does he do something besides hero work for a living? Has he ever done anything else, or does he plan to? Michael maintains his part time job at Sampson’s Soda, a micro-soda company that produces a variety of unique, carefully designed sodas for limited time runs excluding their most popular brands, selling them to kids and adults alike. Some of their most popular seasonal flavors include Dragon Fruit Honey, Caramel Strawberry, and Melon Grape. What is his preferred combat style? Michael’s combat style is primarily based on the things he picked up in his sports activities; he uses football tackles and shoulder-checks to try and take opponents down. He can also pick up objects and hurl them with impressive force and accuracy. He knows how to throw a punch from small amounts of boxing training, and is fairly light on his feet. Has he ever received any awards or honours? Owing to his vast array of extracurricular activities, Michael has a variety of honors. The most promising is the State Championship football trophy that he obtained last school year. He has additional trophies for participation in things such as Junior Debate Club, placing-but not winning- in Chess Clubs, reading competitions and spelling bees. What skill areas would he like most to improve in? Is there anything he can't do that he desperately wishes he could? Michael wants to improve himself in all aspects of his life. As he grows, he will be attempting to master his new powers along with increasing his ability to work with and for others. He wishes he could shoot energy beams, that he could fly into outer space, but these effects will require effort on his part. As a human, he wants to improve his ability to talk to others, to gain their respect and trust. How does he act around people who are more skilled than him in areas he'd like to improve? Is he jealous, or does he try and learn? Michael is always interested in learning from people better than him, but if someone shows skills that completely eclipse him in an area he thinks he’s good at, he’s likely to become a little concerned. He is still growing out of being the biggest fish in his little pond, and harsh reminders of how he is in a much larger, much stronger world would make him, if not jealous, a little self-conscious, but with an attempt to try and learn what he’s lacking. He is well aware that in the Super Powers department he may be a little outgunned, but if he was socially outmatched it would likely be more concerning to him. Lifestyle & Hobbies What is a normal day for him? How does he feel when something interrupts this routine? Michael’s normal day is an early wake up followed by getting to school on time. If he has prior commitments before school he handles those. Often his school day is spent between classes and preparation for whatever groups or events he’s helping out with that week. When school ends, he inevitably either has practice, an event, or work at Sampson’s to get to as soon as possible. He will almost always be busy from when school lets out until he goes home for dinner. Samantha will usually join him at some point, being a ‘bother’ and a companion. After eating dinner with his family, he will study for a little bit, complete all his homework, and prepare for the next day. His weekends are usually more free, and he enjoys going to arcades, the movies, or just hanging out on the beach when he gets the chance, if he isn’t working an event or doing practice or a game. He can find interruptions frustrating because it often causes a cascading lateness; if he’s 5 minutes late for one thing, he’ll be 6 minutes late for the next, then 7, and so on, until his schedule is completely out of focus and he’s late for everything. Since this often delays more than just him, he considers it a personal failure when delays damage other people’s plans in such a way. Does he have any hobbies, or interests outside hero work? What are they, and where did him pick them up? Michael’s hobbies and interests involve his desire to explore new things and spending time with others. His adventurous spirit to always want to see something new gives him a wide array of things he’s messed with or done for a month or two. He’s stayed with football and Hockey, he likes his job at Sampson’s Sodas, and he enjoys movies and swimming as his primary hobbies that aren’t related to an increasing list of extracurricular activities . What does he do for fun? For fun, Michael hangs out with Sam, doing one of their hobbies or interests; movies, swimming, or going on small hikes in the forest. Does he have a costume? What does it look like? Michael’s costume is a white bodysuit with red boots, a gold belt, and a golden cape. He has a golden star on his chest. How does he normally dress when not in costume? Michael’s dress code tends towards Business Casual or higher. He has a variety of slacks, polos, and button up shirts he wears, along with sport coats, jackets, and ties. A lot of his fancy clothing isn’t top brands, but rather second or third tier stuff that is exceptionally tailored to make up the difference. He also keeps it very clean and free of wrinkles. What does he wear to bed most nights? Sweat Pants. Does he wear any special jewelry? What is it, and what does it look like? Michael’s most obvious jewelry is his watch. It’s golden in color but tarnished with age, and is smooth from fingers rubbing over it’s back over the course of dozens of years. It has a small inscription with the letters MTA on it. The watch’s face is perfectly clean, and it’s attached to a silver chain. It has a distinctly loud clicking noise when it runs; the spring is broken and it can only be wound for one hour, making it useless for telling time. It is quite fortuitous that this does, however, exactly time how long Michael can use his upper limit of his powers. Does he have a special place where he keeps his valuables? Michael has a piggybank he keeps in his brother Kevin’s closet. He also has a savings account at his family’s primary bank. For non-monetary objects, the family has a shared bank box that they keep all their important records in. What's his preferred means of local travel? How about long distance? Michael has a bus pass, but he can drive. He does not have his own car, so he has to borrow one of his parents’ if he wants to drive somewhere that isn’t on the bus routes. He can now fly around under his own power, but he has not begun using that for extended travel yet. Miscellaneous Has he ever made a will, or tried to make arrangements for his death? What provisions did he make? Michael does not have a will. If his features were to be destroyed beyond recognition, is there any other way of identifying his body? Michael has a microchip implanted in his hip that will allow us to know it’s him if his corpse is significantly maimed. What would he like to be remembered for after his death? Michael wants to be remembered for being helpful. If he completes his goals and becomes Mayor, he wants to be remembered for being fair, just, and helping the city. But he knows he hasn’t done anything to be worth that at this moment, so he would just like to be remembered, right now, as helpful, kind to his friends, and a benefit to his community. Does he believe he poses a threat to the public? Why or why not? Michael does not believe he poses a threat to the public, as he would never willingly hurt an innocent person. It is unlikely he actually is a threat to the public currently, but that does not mean he will never be a threat to the public. What does he perceive as his greatest strength? Michael’s greatest strength isn’t his powers but his social adaptability; his ability to make friends, help them, and get along with others is significantly more rare than his suite of physical powers. He’s a ‘good kid’, and his honest nature will help him significantly more than his powers. What does he perceive as his greatest weakness? Michael’s greatest weakness is Sam. He would do anything for her, and that means he has an easily exploitable weakness for any villain or any person who wants to get him to do something. He also has no idea what his dream actual entails; he has goals, but until he figures out why he wants to do what he does, what his desires and his own personal beliefs are, he can be swayed by people who can convince him that they’re trying to do the ‘Right Thing’, because that’s what he wants to do. As an observer, if you could, what advice would you give to him? Speak as if he/she were sitting right here in front of you. Use proper tone so they might heed your advice... Michael needs to figure out what he stands for, not just what he wants to do. Why does he want to do what he wants to do, what he supports, what he thinks ‘helping Superheroes’ really is. These are important questions that Michael really needs to figure out his answers to, and until he figures those out, he’ll never accomplish what he wants. Log of Michael Adon finished. Relevant Further Reading: Samantha Durado, Max Terrance Adon, Terrance Thomas Adon, Sampson’s Sodas, Manaka Root, Black Star Phenomenon Closing Program

"My apologies Bernadette." He offered a charming smile at her with his sincere apology. "I didn't mean to cause you any trouble, please tell the Headmistress that any tardiness is entirely my fault." he turned his attention back to the path as they moved on, clasping his hands behind his back. He paused momentarily to see if Neko was following them, not having too much issue splitting his attention between the two different conversations as they moved. "The Cafeteria huh...is there a Stan's there? I love their Velocity Victory sub, it's one of my favorites. And I have to imagine the library is chock full of all sorts of useful texts too." So what about after-school clubs and the like? Student Council, Book Clubs, Debate teams? Maybe Tabletop games or something? I'm not particularly good at that last one but I'm excellent at scheduling and planning events and I'm interested in getting my roots down into some new places. Especially with the holidays coming up, I know canned food drives get popular this time of year. I wouldn't mind participating in stuff like that."

"Young as a Sophomore? You're still a student, right? Or do you just look young? Sorry, I'm not fully up to date on you." he sounded genuinely apologetic about this; he liked to always know something about everyone but here he's finding himself to not have near as much information as he usually does and attempting to keep up. "I'll pay more attention from now on when my brother is watching your show to try and keep up with that sort of stuff. And sure, I guess I can show you some hockey stuff. It was sort of my second sport but I'm not against it. And yes, the Blades are the local team. I've been to a couple of their games, it was fun to be there, people getting excited and cheering, very engaging atmosphere if you're loud and social." he laughs. He pulled out his phone afterward and held it up to the code, then flicked his fingers around a bit and typed on his phone. "...There. I bought him a lunchbox. That should make him happy for Christmas. Can I get you to sign it? He'd be the coolest kid in his class with a signed Catgirl Reacts lunchbox." he slipped his phone back in his pocket as soon as he finished, he didn't want to seem like he wasn't giving this conversation his all. "You're quite good at marketing yourself and keeping a social media presence. I was kind of thinking of trying to be more active on social media myself. As Michael, I mean. Not to like cut in on your business and run a show or anything, but just so locals might be more aware of food drives and stuff that I'm helping. Do you have any tips?"

"He's turning 8 in January. So my parents'll have to take him. Or me I guess. Sometimes I take care of him if my parents are busy. So even if it's just a little thing for you, thanks for keeping him entertained. Sometimes we need the help to keep up with him, to tell you the truth." he said easily, watching her with that same politician's smile that seemed to be his resting face. "As for sports, I play Hockey, but I actually helped win the State Championship with Franklin D. Roosevelt High last year in Football." There was a twinge of pride in that. "I don't blame you for not watching them though, they're not for everyone. Do you have any you watch now? Or participate in, even if it's just for fun? I only know a little bit from catching some of your streams and videos, when exactly did you come over?"

"My mom goes to church every Sunday. I'm not as faithful but I know there's more than what we can see." He said as he tilted his head to indicate the chain. Once they went onto other subjects his serious face turned to a grin again and he chuckled at both the clone explanation and the excitement. "That makes a lot of sense. I'm kinda jealous, imagine being able to study three or four subjects at once without concern." but at the mention of lacrosse he nodded intently. "Sure. I...hrmm. I guess I used to play Hockey, instead of 'I play hockey', so maybe I can rely on that a little. Just don't get too mad if I'm not quite good!" Then someone he actually knew emerged from the garden. Not personally, obviously, but someone he'd definitely seen before. "Oh! I do know you. Neko Musume...you're Catgirl Reacts on the Internet and all the socials. My little brother Kenny is a huge fan of yours." he offered a smile to her and extended his hand, once more holding one of those discount cards. "Like Bernadette said; I'm Michael Adon, just coming in today. I didn't pay as much attention as my brother does but I'm aware of you. " he explained as he looked her up and down, getting a read on her before he spoke further. "I like your eyes." he said, staring at them with interest. If he was bothered by them, it seemed to be combined with a genuine interest. "You must really be able to see pretty deep into a person with those, and probably never bash your knee into the table when you're stumbling around at night, which I find a consistent problem for me." He offered as a joke at his own expense. "Here, I keep these discount cards for whenever I meet someone. I work at Sampson's Sodas, this is good for 50% off a sampler set. Maybe we could set up some kind of meeting with my boss for an endorsement or a sponsored event there? If you're interested."

"Hrmm, I'll have to keep that in mind. Open minds are good for introductions anyway." he mumbled, but his own expression became pretty downcast at the sports references. "Yeah...I was kind of figuring that was the case. I wouldn't want to hurt someone and I can lift a car, so a normal person...well that would be trouble wouldn't it." he agreed, his own tinge of sadness and frustration made him pause and sigh. "I didn't ever play Lacrosse but I'd be willing to learn if you ever need more players." But seeing her summon another duplicate brought back a big smile. "That's an incredible power! Not just being your own lacrosse team, you could be taking classes or working a job while doing this, huh...and using sports to coordinate with your own clones, that's a really neat idea. How about after this we go play some sports?" he spoke appreciatively and with a little excitement; he had someone who had already dealt with some of his problems and had a cool power, so he had a pretty positive impression of Bernadette already. As they walked towards the buildings he took in the garden and the surrounding area before focusing on the building. Meditation huh. Interesting. And I guess the Gym is designed for people like us, so that's helpful. The Chapel is very quaint too, I imagine it's got it's own level of peace and quiet. This entire campus is really beautiful. What's the biggest building there?"

Mid September, 2023 Only a few lights were on in Sampson’s Sodas as Sam transferred the cash from the register to the safety envelope, closing and locking it. She noted down the total from the register in the accounts book and flipped it closed. Michael was finishing up mopping, a necessary task in a place that sold so many sugary beverages. It had been a pretty good day for sales, but that also meant a pretty good day for accidents. “Hey Mike.” “Yeah?” “How much longer are we gonna do this job anyway?” Sam asked. It wasn’t like Michael was the boss or anything; it was just that they did everything together, so neither of them would leave the other high and dry if they had any reason not to do so. She closed the register and went to wipe off any residue from the serving fountains as they talked. “I dunno. I kinda like it. I mean it’s not a permanent job or anything but I don’t see any reason to want to leave it any time soon.” He didn’t mention, and she didn’t bring up, that Sam had missed a few shifts lately; He’d always covered for them, so it wasn’t a big deal, but she had been having other things to do instead of work, and Michael had picked up the slack. “I guess that’s fair, there’s way worse jobs we could have. I’d rather work here than a random fast food joint. Then we wouldn’t even get a discount or coupons.” she mumbled, pulling her hair out of its ponytail. “We’d probably be paid worse too.” He said with a laugh. Done with mopping, he pulled the mopping sheet off the bottom of it and dumped it in the trash bag destined for the dumpster tonight, tying it closed and hefting it over his shoulder as the two locked the front door and headed into the back area. The back area of Sampson’s was much less opening then the front; instead of a trendy looking hangout, the back- which took up more space- was a converted warehouse building with various vats and desks. Coming up with exact recipes for various syrups was a time consuming process that was more art than science; the percentages of individual ingredients, the strength of their taste, the additional chemicals could all result in changes to the taste. The machines were off, but the mixing stations were filled with notes- some on computers, some on paper- of different formulas and ideas. A meeting room in the back with a glass wall showed notes for next spring’s plans for sodas. Even though they didn’t produce industrial amounts of soda, they had some larger containers for their most popular or always available sodas. Cleaning out the smaller tanks- those that were limited run or special editions- was a multi day process to avoid contamination, enough that it was considered a miserable job. Currently, there was only one person in the entire building besides the two of them, and he was carefully watching as his newest concoction of syrup was being poured into a below ground vat. His name, Michael would recall for the rest of his life, was Patrick Cooper. He was a thin faced man who looked far more like a respectable scientist then a Soda maker, and always seemed perpetually worried. As the two younger employees finished their chores, they waved at him, then wandered over to where he was standing on top of the half closed lid of the vat. “Hey Patrick!” Michael said, as cheerful as he always was. “What are you working on now?” The nervous seeming man turned towards him and wrung his fingers a little, looking between the two kids and the vat. “Oh...this? This is uh...we were calling it Hour of Power. It’s got Dragonfruit and Strawberry and the...M...I mean, yeah, Dragonfruit and Strawberry. Making a...a....a super limited run, I think...we’re hoping it sells well as a collector’s item.” he mumbled. He had that way about how he talked; that he was never looking at you so all his words came out almost muffled and you had to strain to hear him. It wasn’t really helped by his stuttering, and he always acted like he had something to hide, which was kind of ridiculous because he worked as a soda engineer. His timid nature annoyed Sam about him- but most things about people annoyed Sam-. “Come on, speak up a bit. You should be proud of it if you made it!” Sam barked, slapping him on the shoulder. “Successful people shouldn’t be embarrassed about being successful, and you make some of the most well liked flavors don’t you?” Patrick stumbled a bit but grinned. “Yeah. You’re right. I do. Thanks Sam.” “No problem. You’re like twice our age anyway, so shouldn’t you be the confident one and we’re the ones who are all nervous about talking to you?” she teased. “Hah..more confidence huh? I guess I really should show some.” he admitted. He took a moment to look at his clipboard, filled with complicated formulas and directions. “I need to finish jotting down the recipe for this, and then I’ll lock up the back. I’ll see you two later alright?” Michael and Sam’s response was drowned out by the sound of the wall exploding into shattered brick and useless plaster as the entire building shook. A vehicle more akin to a tank smashed through half the wall and, acting surprisingly decisively for a mild-mannered scientist, Patrick shoved both Sam and Michael into the vat, throwing his clipboard after them. “Don’t say anything. Be extremely quiet.” He barked at them as they hit the liquid. The syrup was thick and heavy, more like molasses than water, and they started to sink immediately, barely able to keep their heads above the syrup by scrabbling against the mostly smooth sides of the vat. There was an immediate understanding that this was a dangerous situation and that their best hopes of getting away from it unscathed were to do exactly what Patrick had told them to do, so neither said a word as they hung onto the smooth walls of the vat, under the half closed lid where Patrick was standing, fingers trying to find purchase on smooth metal bolts and bands as they kicked their legs hard to stay above the bright red syrup. They could hear heavy steps moving up above them and voices. “You’re one of the scientists huh?” this voice was gruff and hard, no nonsense “Y..yes. Please don’t hurt me.” came Patrick’s reply “Well that depends entirely on what you can do for us. You know we’re in the same business.” This voice was a lot clearer than the previous unknown individual, relaxed and confident. “I just want to compare notes, like all good scientists should.” “Sure, no problem.” Patrick responded. “No need to get rough.” “I quite agree. Why don’t you just let us collect all your work and notes and a few samples and we’ll be on our way.” There were more boots, but the three above the two teens hiding in the vat didn’t move. “Is this your latest experimental batch?” “It is.” “You have the formula for it?” “N..No. I hadn’t written it down yet. We were producing it for testing. You know we don’t test these on kids so the containers have to be sterilized completely both to avoid tainting batches with prior attempts and getting anything into kid’s drinks.” “Well you can finish the formula at our lab. Ours, at least, doesn’t mean you have to make a bunch of soda for kids. Though to be honest, I think kids would make excellent test subjects and you’re really missing out on the possibilities here; their bodies are much more likely to adapt well to the effects.” It was around this time that Michael started feeling the itching all over his body, like ants were crawling across his skin. He cut his eyes towards Sam, and noticed that her eyes seemed to be tinged with red. But it was getting easier to hold onto the side of the wall, easier to stay swimming. But they still didn’t move from their hiding spot. “...I’m not getting a choice am I?” Patrick asked. “Not at all. We’ll be collecting a sample of this as well. Go ahead and dump the rest of this stuff out, we’d prefer to be the only ones with your latest formula.” There was a scuffling sound and the drain activated in the vat, slowly pumping out the syrup. The vat was almost full, so it was going to take awhile, but there were more sounds as people walked. “Alright, come on then, we’ve only got so much time after all.” the unknown leader said as their voice grew dimmer and dimmer. “Oh, and close that hatch and break it. Wouldn’t want any prying ears. Just in case.” The lid of the Vat flipped fully shut, then there was a sound of rending, popping steel as the edges of it were literally punched into twisted shapes, sealing it and leaving the two in complete darkness outside of the sound of the pump slowly sucking away the syrup. Which did absolutely nothing for the amount of air in the tank, which was already suffering from there being two kids in it who were breathing heavily with the exertion of trying to keep their heads above the syrup and the downpull of the drain. Michael slowly felt his thoughts getting further away as he continued to try and swim up, to hang on and breathe slowly, to stay calm, but he could start to see spots in his vision and the darkness was getting very, very heavy. Then he felt very light all of a sudden, and he didn’t remember anything else. Two Weeks Later Michael was exceptionally surprised when his boss entered his hospital room. He had not been expecting Sandra Sampson to do more than send a card- which she had-, but here she was in the flesh, her face, as always, a serious mask. She never seemed to have the appropriate temperament to run a soda store, but appearances could be deceiving, Michael had thought to himself. But now she shut the door behind her and sat in a chair next to his bed, her gray hair framing an extremely stern face. “I’m not getting fired am I?” He broke the silence. She almost smiled. “The opposite. You’re being...highly encouraged to continue your job.” She replied. “I am?” “Let me be very clear.” she straightened up and he felt like he was back in that original interview, and he was completely locked in place. “I am Sandra Sampson, and while I do own Sampson’s Sodas, I am also a government contractor under A.E.G.I.S. researching the manaka root, which has previously granted individuals superhuman powers. The formula you were thrown into has been, so far, our only successful test batch. The scientist that made that batch has been kidnapped, the formula ruined, and we have no notes. You and Samantha are the only remaining confirmations that that batch worked. We want to keep you safe, and help you not hurt yourself with these powers. But all of that means we will be keeping a close eye on you, you will be continuing your job, and we will help you hide your identity. But that means you’re going to Claremont Academy now as well; you need teachers.” That was enough information to make someone's head spin, and way too much to even begin to process while sitting in a hospital bed. He had to stop and mull over most of it, before taking a deep breath and focusing on the part that actually drew the most interest from him. “....That...that was a lot of information.” “There will be time to process it later, and more information given as we get the chance to. For now, your life is suddenly even more on rails than it was before. We can work through this together, your parents, you, and my company. Right now, what I need from you is confirmation that you understand what I just said.” He decided to focus only one the part that had meant the most for him, at the focus that was making his adrenaline pump again. “So...if I have powers...I can become a Superhero right?” This paused her for a moment, trying to figure out how to react to how well he seemed to be taking it. “...Sure. If you finish your training, you can become a Superhero.” “Then I want a costume too.” She was quiet for a while again. “Alright, we’ll make you a costume. You have to pick out your own name though.” “I’ll figure one out.”

Golden Star He was honestly happy it wasn't commented on; he felt frustrated enough it happened without him being aware of it. So he focused his attention on listening and made sure his feet were firmly on the ground and he was putting one foot in front of the other and that it was landing on the ground. "Oh. Well. That's a few hours drive, huh? Do you just go back over the summer?" he asked. "And...yeah...I get what you mean about not having good control causing problems." his agreement was very firm, for what were obvious reasons at this point. He eyed the buildings carefully but took an equal, if not greater, interest in the sprawling greens. "Victorian Architecture is pretty nice...I generally like Art Deco a bit more, but it's not bad either way. What are the faculty like? I've not really gotten the chance to meet too many of them, any that I should look out for, positively or negatively?" He switched focus as soon as he asked his questions; he could politely wait for an answer for any question, but he was also, right now, clearly an endless well of questions, admittedly they were all quite mundane; he was taking as much of an interest in the way Bernadette answered as the answers to the questions themselves- the sort of scrutiny that came from being a dedicated people-pleaser-. The discussion of the greens pushed him to ask more questions as he shaded his eyes with one hand and leaned forward a bit, peering across the greens with interest to try and see the other side. "That's a lot of space. And the field and pool are on the other side? Does this place do sports of any kind, like through the NJSIAA or something smaller? I mean it's pretty small compared to most high schools right, among...other things. So I could imagine there's a bit of difficulty in getting official contests between other schools like set up. And do you do any sports or anything yourself? And sure, I'd be happy to see them after we finish." Then he pauses and takes a breath.

Table Of Contents 20 Questions Origin Story HellQ