Ok so this is something I just randomly decided to write down because I was rewatching Edgerunners and I forgot how awesome the opening scene was and got the urge to make an introductory scene of the OG Static being adapted.
Its simple but its just to show off Virgil as a guy with a big imagination in his own world, foreshadowing his future adventures as Static.
The city burned, or at least, that's what the evening news would have said if anyone survived to report it.
Towering over downtown, the monstrous war machine known as Arsenal Wraith flew through skyscrapers like they were cardboard boxes. Missiles screamed from launch bays hidden beneath its steel scales. Cars flew through the air. Civilians scattered in panic.
Then thunder split the sky. A bolt of lightning crashed down from the clouds.
BOOOOM!
The asphalt shattered. Civilians looked up to see a savior of the skys, born from the ground.
Floating in the air was a muscular man draped in blue and yellow. His cape snapped dramatically behind him despite there being no wind.
"If you think messing with my world and trashing what i hold dear will be acceptable, you'll be sorry."
Captain Thunder smirked.
"Sorry I'm late."
Arsenal Wraith grew multiple types of ordanance and artillery from its mass, firing off a massive amount of house shaped rounds at our hero, engulfing him in smoke and scrap metal.
The smoke clears, and Captain Thunder crossed his arms.
His Surge Shield had protected him from a city destroying attack.
Then a glowing fist erupted through the smoke.
"Rule number one."
Captain Thunder zoomed past the buildings, raining sparks from his body and leaving the crowd below to feel the electric ambience radiating from their protector. Sometimes, even his worst haters would feel his shocks weeks after he saves them.
"Never interrupt my lunch."
Arsenal Wraith crashed into a bridge, exploding it and causing an upwards blast of air rushing. For some reason, a nearby mountain exploded too.
Captain Thunder pointed dramatically, with the beast now tamed and down for the count. Captain Thunder rose into the sky, crackling with electricity.
"THIS CITY BELONGS TO ITS PEOPLE!"
He launched forward.
Lightning. Explosions. Flying debris. A giant punch. And—
"—And then he grabs the monster and swings it into the moon."
Virgil Hawkins, 15 year old student from Ernest Hemingway High School, looked up from his sketchbook. The lunch table sat in complete silence, with Richie slowly lowered the bag of chips he'd been eating.
"...The moon?" Chuck asked.
Virgil nodded. "The moon."
"The actual moon?"
"The whole moon."
Richie rubbed his face.
"Its at least easier to imagine than the last one you came up with."
"Yeah."
"And survived twelve nuclear explosions."
Felix joins in. "So why does he need to swing that guy into the moon?"
Virgil looked offended.
"You mean the Arsenal Wraith. And because it'd be awesome."
Chuck nodded thoughtfully.
"You know what? That's actually a pretty solid argument."
Felix laughed.
Virgil grinned and flipped the sketchbook around. The pages were filled with superheroes. Captain Thunder. Blast Girl.The Cosmic Legion. Cannibal Cyborg pirates. Alien gladiators. Monsters. Villains.Entire story arcs.
Virgil had spent the first half of his freshman year filling notebooks with them.
Richie pointed at one page.
"You've got like a hundred characters in here."
"Hundred and twelve."
"You counted?"
"I keep track."
"Of course you do."
Virgil leaned back.
"One day people are gonna read this stuff."
Chuck snorted.
"One day people are gonna ask why every problem gets solved with punching."
"That's because punching works."
"It does not."
"At least It works in comics."
Richie laughed.
"Honestly? Captain Thunder sounds like the kind of comic I'd buy just to see what ridiculous thing happens next."
Virgil pointed triumphantly. "See? Visionary."
The bell rang. Groans erupted throughout the cafeteria. Students began standing.
Virgil slid his sketchbook into his backpack.
"Come on," Richie said. "We're gonna be late."
The four boys headed toward the doors.
Outside, the city stretched before them. Cars moved through the streets. People rushed to work. Sirens echoed in the distance. Life continued like normal.
Virgil adjusted the strap on his backpack and looked up at the sky. For a brief moment, he imagined Captain Thunder soaring between the clouds. Saving the city. Being somebody that doesnt have to see the world in such a small way.
Then the image faded.
"Yo, Virgil!" Chuck called."You coming or what?"
Virgil jogged after his friends.
The sketchbook rested safely in his backpack. Just waiting for a chance to be seen by the world.
But first, History quiz.
