Play as Spider-Man as he tries cleaning up New York...and his conscience. Using the Mutants and Masterminds system, we will go through a decade of Spider-Man's life, triumphs and troubles both of fate and his own making.
Can he make New York a better place? Can he find what he's looking for? Is he going to get married and have a normal life, devote himself to the cause utterly, or sell his soul to the devil?
Frankly, you were kicking yourself for even thinking it; it was unfair and frankly just gloomy. Even after expenses you had a few hundred extra bucks in your pocket, even after expenses. You shouldn't be kicking yourself over the ol' Parker Luck. Most guys and gals in New York would consider that one hell of a payday for only a couple hours of work a night, and Stan the Booker had started paying up front since last month….
Gotham Pro Wrestling only ran shows every other week, between school and not having a car you couldn't exactly chase down the other small wrestling promotions. Even if you could, as popular as you were getting, there was no guarantee you'd actually get hired. Heck, they might even dig deeper into that fake ID and realize you were only 15! You might lose the sweet gig you had going right now! And this wasn't such a sweet gig, you know Stannie was ripping you off, paying you early and consistently be damned, even forgetting the dumb "75 to 25" merchandising deal you agreed to like a sucker, they were buying shirts and posters of the logo and art of you and that you designed, all he was doing was yelling your name in a bullhorn and printing them out. Nah, even on that bum deal, you were getting screwed and hard; for almost three months now half the malls and high school gyms were swamped with people wearing stuff with that Spider symbol on it.
Dollars to donuts you were only going to get an extra sixty or eighty bucks at the end of the month. You were a math whiz, but it didn't take one to realize you would be making triple that even with that dumb handshake agreement having you over the proverbial barrel. This stinks, total BS! Damn Parker Luck!
Kicking a beer can cleanly across the hallway and into a trashcan, you laugh. At least this American Legion Hall had a locker room for the waiting staff and at least it was spotless; they were usually pretty clean if worn down like a nub if they had them, but that was a rare get. And hey, it was decently sized too! You weren't accidentally elbowing someone or kicking one of those huge tanks on the toilet when changing out of or into your tights. Fans and faculty were also cordoned off to the dining and foyer section of the dining hall, meaning the only thing between you and the subway back home was this yellow dingy hallway filled free of the American flags, pictures of various wars, and glass containers containing medals or patches from local armed divisions, outside of your fellow wrestlers (who beat you out of there some time ago or were signing merchandise and talking to the crowd)...and those two guys in all black with Pantyhose over their head from the back office.
Hey!
Stan was waddling out after them, big belly jiggling and normally ghost white face, red and fiery. "Hey, stop those guys! They're running away with my money and the VA fundraising!"
Sure enough one of them was carrying a small safe and the other was carrying a small lock-box the size of a purse, but he was also carrying a handgun that looked like a miniature cannon in his other hand.
Stepping out of the way, you hold up your arms and shrug. "Sorry Stan, you don't pay me enough to get shot…or tackle them and accidentally break something."
The taller of the two, who was built like a bull and carrying the safe, laughs as they bolt out the cheap metal door, busting it hard enough that it has dented and refusing to close automatically . "Smart kid, latter!"
Stan comes to a stop, a little before he manages to even reach you, hands on his knees and wheezing for air. You sigh and head over, patting him on the back. "You okay, sir?"
"You…you…could have stopped them. You're stronger than Bonesaw! We…we don't fake…those strength stunts for you. Plus…you're fast…"
Shaking your head, you look out the door. "Sure, but what was it you were telling me? I ain't running a charity either, you know that. Besides from the looks of it, they just grabbed your ticket sales, not concession or the merch sales. Peanuts to you."
"But not the VA. There was a lot of money they were holding over from last night."
That…that gave you pause for a moment. Second thoughts. That maybe, just maybe, you could and should have done something. But only briefly, again one of them had a gun. You planned on becoming a chemist or an engineer in the future, not a cop. It wasn't your job to risk your life over a few bucks and frankly it shouldn't be theirs either. Not worth the risk to their and innocent lives
It isn't until you got home later that night you realized just how badly you messed up by not doing the right thing then and there. Something that will haunt you until the end of your days and maybe even longer….
Good Job Petie.
--- ---
Welcome to The Astonishing Spider-Man Quest. Inspired by the classic Marvel comic book created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, and by various Superhero quests like Web of Spider-Man, I decided to go the well tred route of running a Spider-Man game. Why? Simply because there is a LOT of stories to tell with him and reading Ultimate Spider-Man got me inspired to do one where time flies and things are kept to a single POV 'on the ground' as it was. Time will fly in this quest; while it will start with Peter in High School, he will quickly end up in college (maybe) and then perhaps the wider world of adult hood. It is amazing how quickly time flew in the Early comics and that is something I want to simulate here.
Spider-Man is all about trauma, work-life-cape balance, dealing with a bunch of normal and crazy people, and of course Great Power coming with Great Responsibility after all!
What is the Superhero and Villain Community situation?
[] Spider-Centric: Rare and mostly going to pop up to fight, annoy or ruin Pete's life. There was a Captain America and Namor a long time ago during World War II; the Fantastic Four are off gallivanting into Space and God Knows Where while Dr Doom rules Latvia with an iron first, but superheroes and their counterparts are vanishingly rare. There isn't a wider super community Spidey has to deal with, he's a unicorn when it comes to crime fighting. Well outside of that crazed vigilante with the skull t-shirt, but no one thinks he's anything but a serial killer, or perhaps the Devil of Hell's Kitchen. Supervillains are going to crop up, but they'll mostly be revolving around Spider-Man, maybe even because of him
[] Little Fish, Big Pond:There are Mutants and they are trying to pass bills in Congress to "fix them" and "protect us" whatever that means, though they are protecting themselves because of it, though so far that means a lot of in-fighting for whatever reason. The Avengers are protecting the world from Alien and Magical threats that can easily destroy it. That means the Daredevil, Punisher, Cloak and Dagger, hell even Heroes for Hire are openly doing the whole caped crusader thing, but it's still pretty rare. Superheroes deal with Big Problems or are Having Epic Adventures for the most part. Supervillains on the other hand need to pay for their crazy projections or ambitions and selling drugs or knocking over banks has proven a very popular method of doing that or funding a fabulous lifestyle they want to enjoy. It's a bunch of worlds Peter has to juggle back and forth in between, though more on the 'gritter' side as a street hero.
[] Marvel Regular Universe: Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man himself, is part of a "large" superhero community; while the Fantastic Four are off exploring other dimensions, the X-Men are dealing with killer robots and time travelers. Most of the rest of of the Superhuman community is bound together in trauma or self righteousness/civic obligation; greed or need. Depending on the era, Doc Ock might be trying to control the heroin trade for it's own sake not just to fund his earthquake machine, or The Hood might be commanding the powers of the devil to not only fight The Avengers and Spider-Man, but to control organized crime throughout the globe. These worlds are one, and the world is both tremendously huge and insignificantly small. You're eventually bound to stumble onto some other hero's business and they're bound to stumble on yours, and it can end up a mess or partnership.
What time frame does this take place? This will affect vibes and the type of subgenre, though I can't help myself a bit of historicity will crop up
[] 60/70s: "Baby Boomer Era"
America is it's peak of power in every category imaginable, as far as most Americans and the West are concerned World War II ended and an era of peace has begun. It's white painted fences, clean streets and prosperity. I mean there is a Cold War going on, but as of right now it's about deescalation, not escalation. Of course there is a lot of tension hidden under that, and a lot more lies swept under the rug. The Mafia and other organized crime groups are at the height of their power; bigotry is all stripes is rampant and dominant...and civil rights activists and feminists are about to challenge it big time head on. And the facade is going to be ripped clean off: war is going to come and hard, government revealing it's corruption and callousness, economic hard times...
In this period, supervillains are divided into two groups: 'Masterminds' and 'Soldiers'. Masterminds are egomaniacs who are more concerned with turning everyone into dinosaurs or harnessing the power of the sun into energy form, at the cost of a borough in New York and a million lives or so. They will stoop to organized crime or grand larceny, either to finance their projects or because they are 'visionaries' who are going to steal the gold from Fort Knox or control all criminal gangs in New York. Their are also colorful exceptions like the Kingpin, but again they prove the rule by trying to take over ALL crime and arming mooks with sci fi weaponry. Soldiers are in this for the money, they are glued into Masterminds or The USSR or the Mafia, but will happily take their money. Both will change with the times, forming their own gangs or joining them for 'stability'
70/80s: Dark Times
The start of the Bronze Age of Comics, but forget that terminology here and remember what's going on in America. We lost Nam and kinda realizing maybe we shouldn't have been there in the first place. America's economy is down the toilet, and people are quick to blame each other or certain groups for that. Crime is on the rise and the victories and defeats of the civil rights and feminist movements create an ever changing social reality and norms. The Cold War hasn't gone nuclear hot, but people are finally aware it isn't actually cold. Some people have become total cynics, others are longing for an idealized America of the Past that never existed....and all are sick of the muck they live in now.
Supervillains might still be lofty, but they are practical too. They operate right along traditional organized crime groups like the Mafia, Triads, Bratva, Cartels and other groups even if they are more concerned with their Earthquake machines. Why, they might have been CEOs of major corprations before, but now the major corprations themselves might be entities of evil! Also Drugs have always been big business, but now they are the cornerstones of most criminal operations and bring in obsence amounts of profit. Rather than consoldite anything though under big group, there is so much money to be made, it's opened up the field for smaller criminal groups to suddenly have the manpower and cashflow to fund attempts to 'take over' and this turned the streets into their battlefields.
If you want the Punisher and Captain America this is where they can first pop up and 'fit' (and Yes I know Captain America popped up in the 60s, but work with me here). They are the dual faces of cynicism and optimism in the face of the horrors of the 21st Century, two sides of the same coin
Late 90s/00s: The End of History
"...lately, I'm getting the feeling that I came in at the end. The best is over...". America has won the Cold War, American properity is back baby. Organized Crime is down (though not out like in our world, far from it, but it is reeling) and our social climate has 'stablized', whatever that merans. The good times are back USA USA USA!!!
So why does everyone feel like crap? Something is wrong and while people are mostly enjoying themselves, at least in America, but there is a nagging feeling among those paying attention that this can't and maybe shouoldn't last. 9/11 happens and the War on Terror begins, exposing horror, war and widespread misery. People are too cynical for the go around this time however and also quickly see not just the corruption in the government but also how it more than simply played a passive role. This gets heightened into conspriacy theories to simplify the situation into what they could understand and think they could change, or give up for. This is party because the computer age has arrived. You can do more than play chess online or store records online now, or hack the government with a whistle; you can communciate with others to debate Star Trek captains and then eventually just share everything with family abroad or coworkers, you can shop online, sometimes more easily than in person depending on what you're buying. You can even pirate music and comic books, and eventually movies!!!
Same as before, outside of them being Russian or Communist agents or groups, but now outside of being mad scientists, foreign despots, and super criminals...they can now be super terrorists, evil extreme ideologues or theocrats, or even....dare I say it...working for the United Stated Government?!?!? The later has always been the case, but Spider-Man is much more likely to find out he's not competing against a rogue S.H.I.E.L.D agent but the CIA or FBI themselves. This is also the real era of the information highway and computer obsession, so if you want to deal with women and men with computer powers, this is where it's at.
"Today, marks the first anniversary of the first confirmed sighting of the so-called: "Spider-Man", confirmed to be part of the returning wave of 'super powered persons' phenomena that have reappeared across the globe the past couple of years, one of many, and among the first of New York's costumed crime fighters. Some call him one of our city's cultural icons, as synonymous with New York as a piece of Thin Crust Pizza or the Yankees; a hero trying to help our city. Others are calling him a vigilante and criminal. With us on Sunrise in America are three New Yorkers whose opinions you've probably heard before if you know anything about Spider-Man: Martin Li Founder and CEO of both Journey, an Online Book, Music, and Movie Storefront; and the F.E.A.S.T Project a humanitarian charity taking care of New York and Newark's less fortunate; the Junior Republican Senator from New York Robert Kelley; and the Editor and Chief of the Daily Bugle and President of New World Publishing, J.Jonah Jameson," the voice of April Maye blares from the television in the corner.
To be honest you weren't watching it, and never did, but the sound kept you awake and in rhythm when you did mind numbing tasks like repairing and reloading your web canisters and Spider-Suit. Still, this time you stopped. Li and Kelly were pretty big cheerleaders of you, but Jameson wasn't to put it mildly. He got on your nerves, big time, but hey sometimes you just had to pick at a wound!
:
Sure enough, before Maye could properly lead the conversation, Jameson's rugged, scratchy voice beats everyone to the punch. "He beats people up and ties them up with that goop of us, so what do you mean 'some people call him a vigilante and criminal', what else would you call a person who assaults people and takes the people into his own hands. No, the only question about this so-called 'Spider-Man' is whether he's a threat or menace!'
Martin Li tugs on his tie, giving out a nervous laugh. "Aren't we being a little dramatic here? Him intervening in a gangland shootout and stopping that those bankrobbers from getting away in the car got a lot of airtime, to be sure, but even your magazine has far more photos, blurry as they are, of him saving people from fires, car accidents, and falls by a much wider margin. I actually know the exact numbers, do you Jameson? I mean it's your paper…"
Jameson grumbles about having a general idea and it not mattering, but you can't piece together, even after Li gives him a chance, only to see him scramble instead, continuing after pulling out a paper. "Spider-Man has been confirmed as being involved in the forceful apprehension of two dozen criminals in a total of ten incidents, and suspected involvement in forty one criminals arrests in eighteen incidents. He has been confirmed or suspected at over a hundred rescue operations: everything from helping people to the hospital or at car wrecks to saving people from burning buildings and collapsing bridges. That's a five to one ratio; every sign of a person just doing some community and civic service like the volunteers at my soup kitchens and homeless shelters, just a little more risky."
"Let me add to that: everyone in this country has the right to place a criminal under citizen's arrest," Senator Kelly adds firmly. "Nearly every police report and eye witness says Spider-Man doesn't start with violent force and everyone says he only dishes it out when civilians are already under attack."
"Most is not all," Jameson says, voice now totally clear. "And we have no idea he if he is Mutant American, is using gadgets, or his gifts are the result of nuclear fallout of some kind, but we also might be very well armed when using force. We don't know that; The so-called Spider-Man certainly isn't telling us…"
Kelly glares at Jameson, "I think it's unfair to accuse Spider-Man of being a mutant."
"I think it's bigoted to think Spider-Man being a mutant is the problem with his whole masked vigilante deal. Heck, I'd say Charles Xavier is rightfully righting up a complaint about suggesting mutants might be right wing fanatics…" Jameson starts.
Li raises his hands in surrender, "Let's just say if Spider-Man is a mutant, and while that is a distinct possibility it isn't remotely proven or even suspect at this point, that has nothing to do with his actions. Whether you consider it activism like Senator Kelly and me, him being a Mutant American doesn't really matter to the morality of this."
Jameson nods vigorously, and so does Kelly, but you could see him every so slightly grind his teeth. That would make all the difference in the world to someone like him.
"Peter, it's time for breakfast and then school," an elderly and warm voice says. "Are you still building that computer?"
"....just a minute…" you says, quickly throwing your web-shooters and outfit into your Simpsons book bag shaped like Bart's head. "And it's called a PC if you want to be technical, I just want to be able to play Fallout 2."
The voice laughs, "Well I'm glad you kept active throughout your summer. Young man like you shouldn't be cooped up in his room away from the sun and world, but if he does it should be in the autumn and winter when it's cold…" their voice trails off to themselves.
This was it, September 6th of 1998, your senior year at Midtown Magnet High School. Your first year here was terrible, your second and final (yeah scholarships and skipping a couple years) was going to be great. The Old Peter Parker was dead; Long Live the Spider-Man! No more bullying, no "Puny Parker" or "Kiddo"; you'd make Flash and Hobbie Brown stuff it, and even get Sally Avril to go out with you no sweat.
———
"Sally Avril, the cheerleader?" Harry asks, arms crossed, huge smirk on his face. "Really?"
You smirk, "Yeah, I stand no chance with Liz Allan, you got to be realistic about these things."
Ned shakes his head, smiles even wider than Harry's. "That's what every girl likes to hear, that they are your second choice. The runner up."
"The type of thing that totally woos them and stops them from throwing food and water bottles at your face when you get a question right in chemistry," Harry chuckles, elbowing Ned in the ribs. "Remember how she only stopped doing that because there was that pie at lunch and Hobbie said that Sally cre-"
"Stop! I mean it, this year is different!" You say, slapping your rock hard abs and then flexing your right bicep. "I started getting ripped at the end of last year, and now look at me! Perfection!"
Harry Osborn and Ned Leeds were your best friends at Midtown Magnet Technical High School. Oh sorry, Midtown Academy of Science and Technology. A preparatory school for New York's richest and brightest teenagers (sometimes either or, or sometimes both), that primes them for elite colleges like Columbia, Harvard, MIT and Empire State. For someone like you whose family is broke with a capital B, they were a godsend because they were also your only friends. Very few students really understand why you couldn't join them on their skiing trips or join them in Spring Break in Paris or some party town in Mexico, but they would be more understanding if you were on the football or baseball team or at the very least had a car.
Ned Leeds was like you, except not working class and just had two solidly middle class parents: a mother who worked for the Daily Bugle as a science and technology reporter and a father who worked for the government as a civil engineer. Heavy set Asian American who also didn't come from money and got here on the same scholarship you did? You better believe he was a bully magnate, probably worse than you. He was pretty cool and you'd still hang with him otherwise, but you really had to stick together here or you'd both be hung out to dry.
Harry Osborn was different; he might not be from the richest family, you think he might be, but it was close enough not to matter. Norman Osborn was in the first graduating class almost thirty years ago now and his endowments helped put Midtown's name on the map. Harry was far from the worst student here, he was on the honor roll, but even outside of the funds they got years from Norman that kept the lights on, he was the most famous alumni outside of Tony Stark and Dr Ted Sallis, or Victor Von Doom but uh while they hang his picture up and gave him a big special golden plaque, no one likes mentioning the the dictator for obvious reasons. So there was Harry who drives around in a car worth more than most people make in a year with a fancy Italian name, who has summer and winter homes in all the right places, but isn't a brain like you or Ned, nor is he the ace of the baseball team. He isn't a star in the theater program and Harry doesn't embarrass himself, but doesn't dress in the right way. Harry has plenty of hangers on, but they barely understand his love for Dungeons and Dragons and Dune, and don't understand a syllable about the Book of the New Sun or A Song of Ice and Fire book series he has been reading. He was just some short, scrawny nerd wearing designer clothing in a slightly incorrect way no one really notices outside of having someone to snowboard with occasionally
Outside of you and Ned.
So you were going to cut the two of them a bit of a break for pointing and laughing at you like a pair of baboons. Starting to strurt over to the cheer squad, you start strutting your stuff, flapping out your jean jacket and putting on your most winning smile. When Sally started swooning over you, you wouldn't even rub it in their faces. Too much, anyway. You'd be too busy rubbing…
"Hey watch this," Flash whispers to Hobbie Brown, you think, before belting a football from across the far side of the hallway.
You had to admit it, he had a canon for an arm. There was a reason he (and Hobbie and Kong) had turned a rich kids' joke of prep football team into a serious competitor for state championship over the past four years. Having the drop on you there was zero doubt he gotten a good crack at the back of anyone's skull. So instead of dodging it, you lean down and pretend to tie your shoes. The entire hallway bursts into laughter as the football slams into Sally's chest knocking her over, and as her arms fail, taking down Glory Grant and Cindy Moon with her like a bunch of bowling pins.
Flash looks horrified, as Hobbie Brown bails at lighting speed, but even you are chuckling until you see Sally get up, her hair now an overused broom and the look on her face as she glares at you and Flash. It looks scarier than any thug armed with a shotgun in your humble opinion.
"I am so sick of both of you and your middle school crap! I have no idea why Liz Allen puts up with you, let alone thinks your sweet, but if you show up the Silver Spoon Cafe tonight with her and ruin my date with Robbie with this nonsense, I'll tell her your special shampoo wasn't for that type of lice!" Sally says, shaking her raven black hair side to side, nose snorting as she collects her books and pushes right through you. "And Parker, you should really wear a mask or something; seeing your ugly face is almost enough to knock me clean over by itself!"
You and Flash stand there stunned as the laughter grows louder but now directed at the two of you. Thunderous, powerful stuff that makes it feel like it's making the room shake. Thunder contained in the wing of a school.
"Thanks a lot dweeb, I'm not going to forget this!" Flash growls, pointing at you before lifting up his book bag and prowling towards whatever class he had in the morning.
Harry puts a friendly hand on your shoulder, "Yeah, looks like Sally's fallen for you."
"Ha-Ha," you say statically. "Great one, you get that from your grandfather or something?"
Alrightie, today didn't start off like you wanted, but this was far from the only thing on your list. The rest of your senior year was going to get better.
Right?
Question: Who was murdered by those burglars almost a year ago, today?
[] Uncle Ben, the man who warned you with Great Power comes Great Responsibility
[] Aunt May, the mother you never had, yet did.
What is Peter's schedule for the Second Week of September? This will help decide the events that pop up. You have Four Actions to choose at this stage, and during important Events, this will narrow down and become more specific to deal with what's going on at that moment.
Social Stuff
[] Hang out with Harry after school, he needed some help with Advanced Chemistry 401 anyway
[] Hang out with Ned after school, you were both building computers but he was doing something special.
[] Try out for the Drama Club, they were casting for Dracula this year just in time for October.
[] Try out for the Football Team, hey it was a little unfair...but that was the Parker luck reversing itself for a change!
[] Join the School Paper. Nerdy, but gives you something do outside of Science Club
[] Explore New York a little bit.
[] Go to the skatepark, go the movies or the arcade. Just do you for a little bit.
Caped Crusadering
[] Patrol in Queens
[] Patrol in Brooklyn.
[] Patrol in The Bronx
[] Patrol in Manhattan
[] Patrol in Staten Island
[] Practice using your Powers and Skills
[] Do some investigating online.
[] Improve your Spidey suit: You Currently don't have the money or gear for this.
[x]Write-in.
Life Stuff
[] Try looking for a Part Time Job. You need the cash
[] Study. You had a scholarship, you need to maintain it; plus it would help with the Caped Crusading. It got you those web-shooters after all
[] Do your classwork. You had a scholarship, you need to maintain it. Crucial actually.
[] Stay after class and take notes with your biochemistry Professor Jonas Harrow. He seems to like you and be taking you under his wing
Jessica Jones and Betty Brant Unlocked as Contacts/Cast. Both start out as aquitences. Your Study Action (Success) hasn't done anything yet, but might unlock something with your webbing in the future if you keep at it...
"Welcome to the Mid-Town Gazette, Peter Parker! Our newspaper isn't just for this school, but sent to our sister Middle-Schools and Arts Magnate High School, our family, and alumni. So our circulation is actually well into the thousands!" Betty Grant says cheerily.
Jessica Jones practically pounces on her, covering her mouth up like she was about to throw the poor nerd into a car trunk or dumpster instead of a mere locker. Which seems a little harsh, but you also couldn't entirely blame the editor and chief. You felt the temptation yourself, to be frank.
"Please stop spazing out for a minute, you're scaring him; hell you're scaring me!" Jessica hisses, before she wipes back a black strand of hair and offers you a more subdued smile. "Sorry about that, Betty gets a little…over eager sometimes. She has a reason to though: not only does this look great on college applications, but looks even better if you want to work in journalism. The Boston Globe, the Chicago Tribune, and the Daily Bugle all patron our paper, with the Bugle even hiring on as interns and even reporters. Not saying we are the biggest deal, but considering your already in the Chemistry and Engineering Clubs, this would be a smart way to diversify your record for your second and final year here."
"Second and final year…" Betty says, voice trailing off.
You crack an embarrassed smile. "Yeah, I kinda skipped a couple of grades."
"He's a senior like us," Jessica laughs, "A brain among brains. Petey is going to be beating colleges off with a stick as is, but if you're aiming for Empire State or MIT, or Yale even he's going to need all the advantages he can get. Or Mister Parker will wind up in Columbia, Brown or Miskatonic University or something."
Raising an eyebrow, you turn to her. "Those are all Ivy League schools you know. Nothing wrong about getting an education there."
Jones laughs again, this time heartily. "Sure, for us. And those are already high expectations. But come on Peter, you're the guy who is currently going to an elite private high school two years early, on a free ride! To most people and even us, it would be great if we wound up there. You? It's the bare minimum."
No point in arguing the points of that, your parents and Uncle Ben left Aunt May and you some money, more than enough for a college education; If you wanted to go to medical or law school, or get a graduate degree in something, you were all set. But for an elite university like any Jones just listed? Maybe a couple years. The only way you were walking through those doors was with a scholarship, like you had here. Possible, but there were a hundred or maybe hundreds of other brains like you out in America right now competing alongside you and they had only so many spots open for kids whose surnames weren't that of Senators, Prime Ministers, or CEOs, CFOs, and executives of Fortune 500 Companies. Landing a scholarship at any of them was going to be a big win, but it'd take time to explain that to her and frankly even then it would quite correctly come off as whining.
"So what's my assignment? I am going to be interviewing the principal about the dress code? Do some actual reporting talk to the school's alumni and guests? Probably cover breaking science and tech news from the bigger newspapers into more digestible and accurate articles, right?" you ask, actually getting a little excited.
Instead Betty Grant lightly drops a handbag on the table in front of you, a black knit one you had confused with her purse or bookbag up until that moment. She zips it open, revealing a huge camera, the size of two bricks stacked on top of one another, older than you, but probably worth a nice chunk of change even now given it had a brand name even you recognized. A serious piece of equipment used by professionals even if it was out of date.
"We got people for that; I know you'd be at least decent at what you really suggested, but our tech reporter is the co-chair of the science team: Alistair Smythe. He's doing a great job as is, and I see no reason to either replace or supplant him, but what we could always use is another photographer…" Betty starts.
Jessica Jones, gives a shy smile, something you didn't think was possible, "And I remembered you from our photography elective. It was a class almost no one tried in, you know it's an easy ass elective, but you cleaned the clocks of even those that did without breaking a sweat. You have a natural eye for this stuff and should use it."
You shrug, "Fair enough. So uh, what will I be doing though?"
Both of them beam at that, like they were sisters even if they were anything but. Betty Brant was your typical, WASPy nerd. Short, lean, mousey girl with freckles and carrot red hair to go with green eyes. Your Uncle Ben would have said, kindly, she was more salad than human. While Jessica Jones instead looked every bit the 'bad girl' even if she was just as much a goody two shoes. Jones was so pale white, you thought she might be using greasepaint; with eyebrow, ear, and nose piercings that were just small enough to avoid the school policies on that and had once had a tongue stud until they banned that last year over the winter break. Everything she wore was black, from her leather jacket to whatever death metal or punk band shirt she was wearing, to her flowing raven black hair and eyeliner. Goth to the bone, this one.
Yet, the look on both their faces equally scared you. Only sharks smile like that.
"Well with Betty being the editor of our off site reporting beat, and me being the editor and chief this year…wherever we tell you." Jessica says, false sweetness in her voice. "Though honestly it will mostly be Betty bossing you around and telling you how high to jump."
"So not a lot of work, you don't even have to show up every day like the rest of us…" Betty continues, voice trailing off. "Until it isn't and you end up super busy, like you will next week: we're going to need to someone to take pictures of the freshmen and varsity football teams when they're selected next week, as well Girl's Basketball, but more importantly someone needs to snag pictures of that computer convention happening next week or whatever. You know Tomorrowland, hosted by The Future Foundation, Stark Industries and Oscorp? Alistair is going to be interviewing his dad and Reed Richards, while you snap pictures. If you want that also means you can skip the field trip there the next day too and can just play video games or whatever you do in your free time. So yeah, I'll be a real taskmaster, but there will be some perks."
"I'll hold you to that, not that there isn't much I could do if you're pulling my leg," you say, taking the camera and slowly spinning it around, getting a good look at all of it. "So, is this mine until the end of the semester or something?"
"At the end of the school week, unless there is an assignment I send you on in the weekend, then you keep until the next Friday night. You get it back every Monday morning, an hour before first period. Just be careful with the thing, okay? It's an expensive piece of equipment. The school probably isn't going to charge you if you break it, but you might get kicked out of the paper, understood?" Jessica Jones asks, sternly again.
You offer up a quick nod, stuffing the camera back into the bag and than ring that across your shoulder. It just felt...right
*******
It wasn't until 9pm that you finish studying up and give some excuse to Aunt May about going for a jog that you get to some caped crusading. IT was late enough that you decided to stick close to home and just patrol Queens for a couple hours, see if anyone needs help getting a cat out of a tree or stop some purse grabber, unless something real big went down. That is what shocked you the most about starting this whole Spider-Man thing, you expected more 'saving the world type stuff', but in the year you started doing this, even bank robberies were freakin' rare.
Seems even in a world with radioactive or genetically modified bugs whose bites grant super powers, the world keeps up with it's regular schedule and routine. Kinda of a bummer in a way, but also a relief. Stopping guys with ski masks and panty hose over their face armed with shotguns was scary enough...
You were web slinging over Elmhurst, a few children and their parents coming off the subway stop mouths agape and starting pushing at each other, before pointing at you as you leap a few feet over their heads and pull on a street lamp to get some `more leverage and speed. A unlucky, middle aged Asian woman carrying her groceries isn't so lucky or happy to suddenly sees you, as she let's out a yelp and dropping her brown paper bags, and spilling vegetables and juice onto the street. People always caught sight of you, but usually like this: this neighborhood didn't have skyscrapers or high rises, just a few row apartment buildings and some warehouses and factories in the edge of it...
Speaking of which, as you are about to drop and help the poor lady pick everything up, one of the fences cordoning off one of the said warehouses or factories punts into the air right into and through a billboard with neon lights of the Chinese alphabet advertising a product you'd never know of now and a white van races onto the street at first following it and then taking a sharp turn left and as it races towards the highway. There were three or four people inside the dusty, old Ford Broncho and the one you got a good look at was wearing....a tribal mask? It looks like it's made of wood, and was had carved, with an undercoat of blue to the black mesh that it was with white lines depicting not just decorative lines, but drawings of eyes, horns and a fanged mouth. It would look a little scary maybe, if the facial expressions on each looked as much like Looney Tune expressions as scowls and snarls.
"Sorry lady, would love to help, but I got a ride to catch!" you yell down to the older woman, before yelping and shooting another web towards the closest corner of the factory's roof and propelling yourself forward like you were a rock in a sling shot and then again with a traffic light that leads towards the highway.
Luck was on your side today, the road was mostly empty giving them a lot of room to maneuver, but also a lot less people to put into danger as they zig and zag avoiding the cops when they showed up, or when they caught sight of you on their trail. Not a target rich environment to websling towards them, but it was not only enough, but the billboards and row buildings could act as cover or at least better positioning to get some real speed towards them.
All that mattered now was how you wanted to play it.
*******
[ ] Forgo subtly and openly chase them, trying jumping on their roof and ripping off the roof; criminals were starting to get scared of Spider-Man, adding to the drama would help that
[ ] The sooner they were off the road, the better. Chase them and try webbing up the wheels of their van to stop them in their tracks. It was less danger to you, you only hope they were wearing their seatbelts
[ ] Shadow them stealthily, wait and see if the cops show up and help them, or better yet where they were heading. If you were doing the caped crusader thing, you might as well do the detective thing too.
