ic Lessons to Learn

[Nerdzul]

 

“I bet you are.” Luke grinned at the dark haired boy. “Anyone els-” 

 

“Ok. I can bring it back Prof.” He chuckled, closed his eyes again for just a moment and there they were, back in the classroom. “Like we never left.”

 

“And my bet is… All your powers are awesome.” He gave the class a wide smile before his attention could shift back to Mr. Parker. 

 

“Well, I’m kinda new to Claremont, but sure thing” He shrugged. Whatever. 

 

“As for a typical day… Well… Wake up early. Do mornin jog. Breakfast. Play a light prank to certain dorm mate…” The young man explained playfully. “Ups maybe I shouldn’t have said that.”

 

“Anyway, then Class… That by the way is great, feels  like we are really learning somethin’ useful there. If you know what I mean.” 

 

“And PE is definitely somethin’” He smirked again. “That leaves the evening for superhero stuff and the night for some fun.”

[Heritage]

Shift resumed her earlier female form, and listened with amusement as Luke described his day, which was not entirely normal as far as the robot could tell. "Another important part of our day is doing homework, just like you! Once our homework is done, then we have time to ourselves. Homework isn't always fun, but it's important for learning."

 

Shift's Claremont uniform rippled and reconfigured into a lab coat, complete with wraparound safety goggles and gloves. "My favorite subject is science! I like to learn how things work and what makes things go."

Edited October 12, 2020 by Heritage

[Nerdzul]

"Oh yeah right and homework too." Luke lowered his eyes 'innocently' a smirk still on his lips. "They are super important." Yeah... maybe? He would have to admit that despite the change of school his grades hadn't exactly improved... 

 

"Mine is..." Well, he couldn't say PE right? They were there to give the kids a good impression to the kids after all. "Well it's history I think, if we are speaking about normal, non superhero kind of stuff." Yeah that would do.

[RocketLord]

GM

 

"Science and history? Booooring!" one of the kids called out from the back of the class. "I thought you were cool! You're a robot and a dragon, and you're talking about science and history classes? That's just boring."

 

One would be forgiven for not having noticed the kid before, with everyone else having reached the two young heroes in record times, but then again, it was like he had just arrived. He was short, wore a three blue t-shirt with yellow stars and pants in the same opposite pattern. His hair was stark white on one side, black on the other, split equally in the middle of his face.

 

"C'mon, you guys are supposed to be cool! Tell us about the really cool things at Claremont! C'mon!"

[Heritage]

Shift frowned slightly as she gave quick, uncertain looks at Luke and Mr. Powers as her school uniform returned. "Well, Claremont is still a school, so we still have to do homework. But it's true, that's not all we do. We practice using our powers, both on our own and working together." She swallowed, a truly unnecessary gesture she'd picked up living among humans. "Do you not like doing your homework?"

[EternalPhoenix]

This was strange. Lucas did not remember this kid. This was very strange, as Lucas had his mother’s perfect memory. He remember being born. Though he still didn’t understand what all the hubbub was about then. He’d been having the single worst day of his short life at the time. It took over a year for him to adjust to…you know, gravity, hunger, pain, sleepiness...the stuff of life. It was probably best to be subtle about this. His teacher knew about his memory, so a subtle question would get his point across very effectively. “Mr. Powers?” He said, raising his hand. “Who is that?” He pointed to the boy who had just spoken.

[Nerdzul]

“You do?” Luke gave Shift an incredulous chuckle. “I mean, yeah of course, you need that stuff. Obviously.” 

 

“But come on, it’s a superhero school, of course we train for hero stuff too. Dunno we learn how to fight.”

 

“Without causing any collateral damage.” He added shortly thereafter in a much less triumphant tone. Then again, yeah he was there mostly to learn how to do that so…

 

“We have like this super cool training room with like solid holograms you can do some pretty crazy shit in….”

[RocketLord]

Spaceman

 

Who was that kid? 

 

Parked was distracted from the class for the moment. He hadn't even noticed until Lucas brought up the point. The kids hadn't noticed anything unusual, but why would they? They didn't know the class. But Parker hadn't seen the kid around either, and why would he be here in the first place? 

 

"I'm sorry, but I don't think I've seen you around here before. Are you sure you're in the right class? What's your name, son?"

[RocketLord]

GM

 

The boy stood up straight.

 

"Sir, yes, sir!"  He made a quick salute, then approached, marching down towards the young heroes.

 

He smiled. The stars on his shirt slowly shifted, twisting and turning until they instead showed a big Q.

 

"My name is Quirk, and we're going to have some fun!"

[Nerdzul]

“Hey that’s a cool power man.” Luke smiled at the kid. His words though? They did sound kinda threatening didn’t they?

 

"Quirk?" He raised his eyebrows. Was he expected to know him or something?

 

“And of course we are.” His tone though, wasn’t as enthusiastic as before. Yeah, plus the teacher didn’t know him. That was definitely weird. What the hell was going on? The kid didn’t look like much, but then again, neither did he look like a 12ft tall lizard and yet… In this world of theirs, anything was possible.

[Heritage]

This all seemed very off to Shift, though she couldn't put her finger on why. Of course, once it was confirmed that the strange boy didn't even belong there, several alarms went off in her head. She took a step toward the odd child, hands on her hips.

 

"Well Quirk, can you tell us what your idea of fun is? Maybe it's something we can all do together."

[RocketLord]

Spaceman

 

"Quirk, you say?" Mr. Powers seemed hesitant, now. He took a slight step forward, his eyes fixed directly at Quirk. "What class did you come from, son? I'm pretty sure you're not supposed to be here."

 

He motioned with his head towards the other teacher. 

 

"How about we go outside to talk and then we'll find your teacher?"

[RocketLord]

GM

 

"Oh, yes, yes! We can have fun together! We can all do it together! What a splendid idea!" Quirk was practically clapping his hands now, as he started to float off the ground, the image on his shirt shifting and turning all the while, never staying still for long.

 

His expression quickly turned sour, as he looked at the teachers.

 

"Kids and fun people only! That means no teachers!"

 

And then there were gone, reappearing in different locations across the city.

 

"I think its time for a game! How about a race?"

[Nerdzul]

That was, a bit too enthusiastic maybe? Maybe even vaguely threatening… Yet, this guy hasn’t done anything that looked too dangerous so far. So sure, ok, let’s play along and see what happens right. 

 

“I can agree to that.” He grinned, but found himself lowering his eyes, when he noticed a disapproving glare coming from the actual teacher. Turns out he should have perhaps tried to give a good example, but well… 

 

“Woah… How did you? You have freakin’ cool powers you know?” Yeah, teleporting was pretty neat, yet, there was no way that this guy was a normal student wasn’t it? Yep… Luke looked around to see who has actually been teleported around, now he had nothing against having to show off on the field a bit more, but he didn't want to put any of the other kids in danger...

 

“A race? What do have in mind?”

[Heritage]

The vanishing of the teachers horrified Shift; were they still alive, or did he just send them somewhere? This Quirk was no ordinary child, if he was a child at all! But there will still children present, and as the closest thing to responsible adults in the room, it was her and Luke's duty to keep them safe.

 

She folded her arms and looked sternly at the floating child. "I'd be happy participate in a race with you, Quirk, but only if you show me that the teachers are all safe."

Edited November 13, 2020 by Heritage

[RocketLord]

SPACEMAN

 

He should have noticed. Quirk. Of course it was Quirk. But why here, why now? Did Quirk even know that he was back? 

 

It didn't matter right this moment. He could figure out the why later, right now, the kids needed him. Parker Powers might not be able to get back in time for whatever Quirk was planning. Parker Powers couldn't do anything to stop someone like Quirk.

 

But Spaceman could.

 

Racing across the city, a blur of black, white and gold appearing and reappearing, until he arrived in the middle of the classroom, white uniform, black cape with stars and the golden armbands, belt and stylized S on his chest.

 

He doubted anyone here would recognize him. Maybe the Claremont kids? It didn't matter. The kids needed him.

 

"Leave them alone, Quirk."

[RocketLord]

GM

 

"They're fine, they're fine. See?" An image appeared in the air before them. Mr. Powers stood on top of a building, looking around confused, then the image shifted to the teacher's aide standing in the middle of a crowded street. "See? See? They're not fun people! Why would I care about boring people?"

 

He looked Luke dead in the eye, the smile never leaving his lips. "Oh, you have no idea, Dragonboy! No idea at all! But, let us wait a moment! I think the last contestant is just about to arrive!"

 

When Spaceman appeared from out of nowhere, Quirk clapped his hands together and laughed. "Perfect! This will be great! All the pieces are here!"

 

And then they were all gone. Heroes, students, teens, children, all of them. Before they knew what was happening, they found themselves in a featureless void. Well, featureless, except for the winding path that were visible in front of them, divided into numbered colored squares. Shift, Nightscale and Spaceman stood on a big red square marked with a 0. The students were all standing to the side on a small platform, right next to three giant six sided red dice.

 

"Here's the rules, players! Roll the dice and move your players! First to the victory line wins! But watch out, there's trouble along the way!" 

[Nerdzul]

Luke held Quirk’s gaze, but there was definitely a puzzled look in his eyes. What the hell?

 

“Uh… Ok.” He ruffled the hair on the back of his neck, when his attention suddenly shifted to the newcomer. The guy looked like a real superhero didn’t him?

 

Dices? Colored tiles? That looked complicated and well, a bit boardgamey? Whatever. He could get to the end of the path in no time and be done with it. The ending didn’t look that far. The young man dashed past the border of his tile, or at least, he tried…

[RocketLord]

GM

 

The moment Luke tried to move past the starting tile, it felt like he ran face first into a wall. If he tried to feel, he would find an invisible field that just stopped him from moving past it. Any attempts at moving past it, be it flight, passing through the wall, running at it, teleportation or anything else would just result in them ending up with their face smacking into an invisible wall.

 

Quirk laughed, standing upside down now, looking down at the Claremont students and Spaceman.

 

"What do they teach at that fancy school of yours? You really haven't heard about me?" He sounded both amused and disappointed at once. "I'm Quirk, Dragonboy! And I make the rules, so you better play along!"

[Nerdzul]

Awww come on! Luke massaged his nose after his dash face first into the invisible wall. Not before breaking into a tirade of colorful expletives (many of those definitely not appropriate in front of a crowd of children).

 

He threw a kick against the barrier shortly thereafter, no use, but then again he didn’t expect that anything was going happen this time. 

 

I'm so gonna eat him when this wall comes down... 

 

“Ok I guess we are gonna have to play.” He slumped his shoulders. “Do you know this guy?” He turned to Spaceman and Shift.

[Heritage]

"Never heard of him," the robot said with a shake of her head before turning to address Quirk directly.

 

"You can't be mad at us for not playing right if you don't fully explain the rules," Pol said with a scowl, tapping her toe. She was doing her best to look like a disapproving babysitter, in the hope that it might have an effect on the childish being. "Who rolls the dice, us or the children? You just said 'players'. And then we move the number of tiles based on the dice? You used the term player for both."

[RocketLord]

Spaceman

 

"He's probably already told you, but his name is Quirk." Spaceman was crossing his arms in front of his chest now, looking at the amused youngster with an annoyed expression. "He's pretty much omnipotent. Whatever he wants to do, he can do. Like this." He paused to gesture around them, at the large board. "You can't fight him. You have to win the game or outwit him, but at least he plays by his own rules."

 

He looked to Quirk and the kids. "Don't worry kids, we'll get all of us out of here and back where we belong. Its just a big game, Quirk isn't going to hurt you, and we're here to protect you."

 

Finally, he looked at Shift and Nightscale, smiling briefly and nodding to each. "I'm Spaceman. Don't worry if you haven't heard about me, I'm probably from before your time." Another brief pause, while he looked at Quirk, then back to the teens. "We have to work together if we're going to get out of here, but for now, just play along. What can the two of you do?"

[RocketLord]

GM

 

Quirk looked outright offended. "Never heard of me? What do they teach in that fancy super hero school, if nobody teaches you about Quirk?" His face lit up in a grin again at Spaceman's explanation, and he made a quick bow. "And its good to see you again too, Spaceman!"

 

He shook his head, holding his hands up, then pointed at the kids.

 

"They're the players, and you", his finger appeared right in front of Nightscale, before reappearing on his hand "are the pieces! You'll go where the dice tell you to go! So let's get going, winner takes all!"

[Nerdzul]

“Cool…” So they were going to face cosmic being who could warp reality as it pleases. Just an itty-bitty step up from the gangsters and mundane criminals that he had confronted during his short heroic career. Well it was bound to happen wasn’t it? Whatever. “Ok, let’s do this.”

 

“Yeah alright guys, we are gonna get through this! And remember you are all awesome.” He shouted toward the group of trapped kids, wondering if they could actually hear him from behind the invisible wall.

 

The young man ruffled the hair on the back of his neck when Spaceman introduced himself. Yep, he really needed to work on his super-heroes 101 didn’t him?

 

“Glad to have you here sir.” He smiled at the more senior hero, teenage bravado or not it was still somewhat reassuring to know that he had someone who had actual experience on his first confrontation with an omnipotent imp.

 

"Ok got it. Play along until we find a way out.  Guess it's good luck to you both then." He smiled at Shift and Spaceman. That was gonna be a freakin' adventure wasn't it? He wondered for a moment what Quirk might have meant with 'winner takes all' though, not that he had a way of knowing it of course.

 

“As for what I can do… ” Confidence sparked back into his eyes. Why not right? Besides, there was no way he could show off his true nature to the kids while in a class, here though… Well it seemed that the colored tiles would fit him well enough.

 

He closed his eyes, a burning golden light radiated from his chest, a coat of basalt-like scales melted over his flesh. His mouth soon filled with rows upon rows of fangs, sharp claws adorned his powerful paws as he grew to match his reptilian true form. When the change was over the now sixteen feet tall monster eyes stretched his wings and roared proudly. Ready to confront anything the Imp threw at him.

 

Time for the roll, his now solid gold eyes followed the dice as the kids went for the first move of the game.

 

One.

 

Great! Lucky as usual. Yep, games of chances had never exactly been his forte. “One step at a time…” He muttered between breaths as he got ready for the comically short flight that would lead him to his assigned tile.

 

Edited November 24, 2020 by Nerdzul

[Heritage]

"Thanks for your help, sir. We really appreciate it." Pol was good at games, so in theory this was a contest she could do well in. Luke...might have a bit more difficulty. It did seem he wasn't the most academically inclined boy at Claremont; maybe she could help him study? She'd like that.

 

As soon as the die was cast, the robot returned her focus back to the game. "Ooh, a 6! I'm moving ahead!" Shift spun herself around with her arms out, like a figure skater, and twirled herself into a giant black chess piece, only with her head on top, her crown designating her as a queen. The queen hopped six spaces forward, then turned to look scornfully at Quirk.

 

"What's next?"