Westbrook Academy for Metahumans: Forums

The teacher was nowhere in sight as the students settled into their seats. This gave them more time to notice some of the paraphernalia laid out at the front of the lecture hall. The most eye-catching item was a life-size ballistics dummy containing a complete skeleton. Other items included a med-badge, a pair of hand-cuffs, three different types of comm unit, and a handful of Zig-Zappers. Standard hero kit. A laptop computer and a projection unit were also visible.

In the back corner was a padlocked steel case with a glass front. Inside was a gun-like tech weapon attached to a backpack. Some of the students with patrol experience were seen to wince at the sight of it.

At exactly two minutes past the hour the teacher arrived and strode to the front of the room without casting a sideways glance. He was tall, at least six foot four, with a build like a linebacker and muscles that were obvious even through his loose blue sport jacket. His hair was thick and blond and his eyes a very pale blue. Not as old as expected, no more than thirty at a guess, and very good looking if you liked them solid and serious.

After depositing his briefcase on the front table, he went straight to the podium and faced the class. For a long uncomfortable minute he scanned the crowd, observing and taking mental notes. Some of the students twitched, others giggled. There were a lot of nervous coughs. Finally he broke the silence, speaking in a clear authoritative voice with just a trace of Texas in his accent.

“Good day, students. My name is Martin Druce, and this is Introduction to Meta-human Crime Fighting. If any of you are in the wrong class, you’re late for your real one.” A couple students laughed at that, but most weren’t sure if it was meant to be a joke. You couldn’t tell from his face. He gave nothing away.

“In addition to teaching both here and at Rhode Island State, I am also a serving agent for the F.B.S.A. Does anyone here not know what F.B.S.A. stands for?” No one spoke up or raised their hand. Mister Druce didn’t look like he expected them to. “Of course, no one wishes to volunteer ignorance, so if I were to ask…” he scanned the room with a penetrating gaze, finally settling on a boy in the fourth row “... you. What’s your name?”

“Mallard, sir. Err… Francis Mallard.”

“Alright, Francis. What does F.B.S.A. stand for?” The boy squirmed in his seat, obviously not knowing the answer. The teacher waited patiently, silencing the odd snicker from the rest of the class with sharp glances.

“The uh… Federation of uh… no, Field. The Field Ba.. .Bu… Battalion? Umm… “. Druce cut him off with a wave.

“Never mind, Francis. How about you?” He pointed to a girl in the front row.

“The Federal Bureau for Super-powered Affairs, sir”.

“Got it in one,” he nodded approvingly, sort of but not quite smiling. “I’ll be talking about the role of the Bureau in future classes, but for now it’s enough that you know I’m a Federal Agent and that I know what I’m talking about when it comes to the legal aspects of meta-human crime and crime-fighting.

“But Law is only one of the subjects we’ll be covering in this class. Investigation and surveillance are others. We’ll also be discussing the actual tactics and methods of both using and combating metahuman abilities during confrontations with villains.” Many students smiled at that, and there were even a few ‘yeah!’s to be heard.

“The lesson today, though, is about learning where you stand. To that end we’re going to have a question and answer session. I want to learn how much you already know, and I’m sure you all have many questions for me.

“So how about it, who wants to go first? …”

Etienne arrived at the class early with his roommate Simon in tow. Simon had his hero license, but rarely went on patrol, more interested in getting into college than becoming the next Statesman. He started toward the front, where he and Etienne sat in every class they were in, but Etienne broke off, and headed for the back of the room. Curious, Simon followed his roommate, who sat in the second row from the back, as far away from the door as he could. Simon, as always, sat next to Etienne.

During Mr. Druce's introduction, Simon watched Etienne carefully, noticing how he sat as still as possible, his eyes fixed on the center of his desk. Simon got antsy just sitting next to him, and was relieved when Mr. Druce asked for questions. He raised his hand.

"Mr. Druce. Simon Peterson. When is it appropriate for a hero to step into a situation, and when is it best to let the Police handle things?"

• Monday May 9 Intro to Patrolling
  Marten Druce, Introductiun to metahuman crime fighting
  If in wrong class
  Teaches here and Rhode Island State. Serving agent for FBSA
  FBSA is Federation of Federal Buro of Superpower affairs
  Role of Buro in future classes
  Druce is federal agent and knows what talking about in legal aspics of metahuman crime and fighting
  Law one subject also investigation, survailance. tactics, methods of using and combating metahuman abilities with villians
  Question and ans

Jeremy looked up from his notes and raised an enthusiastic hand in the air. This class was going to be great.

"What does a serving agent serve? Is that like a tennis serve where you're hitting something or like a food serve where you're giving something? Does it mean you're a hero? What kind of powers do you have? How long have you been heroing? Oh! And will we get extra credit for patrolling?"

Cady was feeling terrible, but she was bound and determined to sit in on this class. Her paleness and just rundown look caused some folks to turn their head and sort of stare...and she did her best to try and blend in with the paint on the wall. She was in the back of the room, close to the door in the off chance she needed to leave early. She bit her lip, cast a glance over Etienne's way. She knew he was nervous, if not afraid. He'd told her how FBSA agents had treated Houghan back in New Orleans, and she couldn't blame him if he was afraid. She was trying to keep an open mind about the class though.

Normally she was the last one to chime in during class discussions. She hated attention being drawn her way. But when Simon spoke, for once she felt like she had a response.

"Heroes should step in when a situation is too dangerous for law enforcement to handle." The second eyes turned on her, she ducked her head, and added almost inaudibly. "And...when they do...they should...should use the least amount of force necessary to...to resolve the um....the situation."

...fine words coming from a girl who could light herself on fire and hurled fireballs around.

Milo walked into class on time. He sat in the first available seat, by the door on the back row, and began waiting for the class to be over.

Mister Druce watched and listened impassively as Cadence responded to Simon's question. He waited a full five seconds after she had trailed off before speaking himself.

"Thank you, Miss... ", he consulted the seating plan he'd drawn up during attendance before continuing "Calloway? That's a very reasonable take on the subject." His words were supportive, but his tone suggested that his answer was going to be different.

"There are two situations where a licensed Hero should step into a situation. The first is when they've received specific authorization to do so. This usually comes in the form of a request from a Law Enforcement officer or a civilian deputized to work with Heroes on behalf of Law Enforcement. The second is when civilians are in immediate danger.

"These are the only times a Hero should get involved. Otherwise the police should be allowed to handle things. However, it is permissable and in fact customary to identify yourself as a Hero to officers on the scene and let them know you're available to assist. Believe it or not, most PPD officers are grateful to accept help from Heroes.

"In the case of civlians in danger? That will always be a judgement call. The official policy is to err on the side of caution, but between you and me? Get in there and help those people. Isn't that why you became a Hero in the first place?

"By the way, that was a very good opening question, Simon. Thank you."

Mister Druce eyes widened a little at Jeremy's barrage of questions. For a moment it looked like he might even gape but clearly the FBSA agent was made of sterner stuff.

"Thank you, Jeremy," he began slowly, "let me see if I can answer your questions. A serving agent serves the public good. It's more like serving in the military than serving food or a tennis ball. I am a former active duty Hero and still carry a valid license. My powers are primarily electrical in nature, but cover some other forms of energy as well. I first began active Hero work in the early seventies. This class is meant to be informative for prosepective heroes and those merely interested, so no. No extra credit for patrolling.

"Did that cover everything?"

"That puts you at roughly fifty, if you started young." Ar didn't bother with the hand raising thing for this one. "What do you credit for your appearance? Strict skincare regimen? A series of impeccable surgeries? Do you have any tips for warding off aging?"

"I'm fifty-six, and my only advice for aging well is sunblock."

Roach had surprised everyone. Cleaned and in an ironed uniform, he sat in the front row with a notebook infront of him. And yes, as soon as the teacher started speaking, he began taking notes. Detailed notes. Chicken scratch to most but he could read it. And that was what mattered. He'd occasionally toss a glance up towards the teacher as he spoke, nodding along, but it seemed his focus was audio, his visual attention being on the page in front of him.

No snorts at the jokes. No laughs at Ar's attempt at humor. Just a mild expression that would give Milo's face a run for its money. Questions began firing, the teacher seeming to have an easy time tossing answer after answer. Roach just continued taking notes.

However, when the questions stopped for a few seconds, his hand was up, his focus towards the teacher. "You said that law enforcement should be allowed to handle things. I know that's cool in a lot of places, sir, but what about places like Etoile? The police are just a glorified gang with badges and attitude."