A DANGEROUS FUTURE 2

https://www.superhero-rpg.com/t12978-a-dangerous-future
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4 months later...

In the dingy rundown apartment otherwise known as THE DANGER ZONE! DANGER DAN! fussed around with a zipper. It was one of those back zippers that you just couldn't quite reach and could only be zipped with a class in Pilates or a friend lending a helping hand. Sadly in the world of true villainy, he had few friends to count on.

"Come on...Come on." He strained himself as he twisted and turned before he finally grabbed hold of the elusive thing and zipped up his costume.

It wasn't his normal costume, God no. His was stylish and sleek and was much easier to put on than this one. Instead of being in his eye-straining bright yellow hazmat suit, he wore a cheap ninja costume he bought at the local mall. He even had the authentic fake katana and everything!

He struck a few poses in front of his mirror and made ninja noises while doing some karate chops in the air.

'Oh yeah, I can totally be a ninja.' He mused.

He checked the time on his phone.

'Still got an hour to get there. Should I take the DAN MOBILE? Nah, parking is going to be too much of a hassle.'

He paced around his apartment, fidgeting with his hands before plopping himself on his worn-out couch and sighed.

'I hope the kids have a good time tonight. They deserve that much after what I've done to them...'

He browsed his phone opening various news articles chronicling the ongoing efforts of restoring the corrupted school database and bringing him to justice. They've been failing on both parts. He didn't think he'd succeed when he attacked the school, was more for the press coverage really. Still, if it wasn't for that freakishly strong girl blindly charging in, well, maybe things would have been alright...But it wasn't. Thousands of kids are now without hope for college, or even a job at McDonalds.

Regardless of how he wished things were different, he couldn't change the past but he could at least try to make them forget about their problems for the night. He donated 15 thousand dollars as a sponsor for the school's prom on the condition that it is a costume theme. Usually, schools would be suspicious but he just stole some random hero's identity and made the donation in their name.

With so much money being funneled into this, this should be one hell of a night to remember for them...But since he spent all this money, it would be a crime for him, the most DANGEROUS of villains to not crash it and join in on the fun.

The door to the Jordan family's townhouse was opened tentatively by an older Asian woman as she looked across a ragtag group of young girls in a menagerie of outfits. Reactively the woman let out a chortle of amusement before unlocking the bolt on the door and fully swinging it open to greet the teens.

"Is it Halloween or prom?" She asked with a pleasant smile on her face.

The girls before her were all in costume, and the question raised was far from unwarranted. Sam, a blonde girl in the back had gone with the sexy nurse outfit archetypal for her kind. Beside her in the back was a tawny woman in a mime costume, currently hunched over in embarrassment, checking streets around her to ensure no one else was laughing at her costume. There was a boy in a clearly hastily thrown-together mummy outfit crafted from many rolls of toilet paper, and another waiting in a car still whirring behind them in a shockingly realistic werewolf outfit.

In front of the whole gang was Chie's rival and confidant, a tall and well-built woman in a hazmat suit.
"Hello ma'am, is Chie home?" The girl asked, completely disregarding the question posed to her.

"Yes, she's just getting ready" Ms. Jordan responded and stepped to the side of the doorway, gesturing deeper inside.
"Why don't you come in while you wait"

Upstairs Chie groaned as she put the final stitches into the leggings on her costume. Between fighting crime and training with a mad woman, Chie had put off finding an outfit for Prom. With nothing else to wear, she had decided to just use her hero costume for the time being. The only issue was that it had been torn in her last encounter with a weeb possessed by a demonic katana. She just had to hope nobody recognized Shuriken, but she was a ninja after all. If they did, then she hadn't been a very good one.

"Chie, honey, your friends are here" The voice of her mother came through the door with a soft knock.

Moments later she was in uniform, having rehearsed putting the outfit on with speed. Climbing down the stairs she was met with looks from her whole gaggle of friends. She was just glad that none of them were pointing in shock. The group began to make their way out the door while Chie's mom prettied on like a mother should.

"Don't stay out too late" and "There better not be any drinking, and if you do just make sure to call for a ride" and all the other worried comments. Finally, they where in the car and the werewolf sent them driving toward the school. The car was crowded and the conversation was mind-boggling fast as they all murmured and mused. Someone had paid good money to give them a great time, the prom was catered like a wedding and they all speculated what sort of decor they had in store.

Chie could hardly concentrate on that. The closer they crept, to the school the more she remembered she had no reason to be going anymore. All her straight A's, all her scholarships, and AP credits were gone now. She tried to act nonchalant with the others but she was seething knowing she had failed to save her- all of their futures. With a heavy sigh, she forced a smile she decided to enjoy this moment for now. She had all of her life to worry about her future. For now, she was with good company and she needed to let herself have a day to be a kid while she still could.

Dan arrived at the school 20 minutes before the doors opened and it was already a party. The line of people waiting stretched on for what seemed like miles. He knew the school was one of the more prominent schools in the city with thousands of students, but seeing the number of people crowding the entrance and parking lot made him wonder how many were students and how many were crashers like him.

People were dressed in costumes of all kinds, some wearing hastily thrown together "outfits", and others who obviously put more time into theirs. There were generics like pirates mummies, and vampires to the more pop-culture ones. He hadn't even seen the entire line yet but he already walked by his 8th Superior Man.

The excitement in the air was palpable as people laughed and animatedly talked to each other. He ducked under people tossing a football at each other, flipped off a car that was stuck amongst the sea of waiting students, and snuck his way toward the front part of the line. Was it rude to line cut? Yes, yes it was but he is a supervillain. Did you really expect him to abide by social norms?

One guy did try to tell him off for line cutting but Dan just ignored him.

While he waited he wondered if that girl who tried to stop him would show up. He assumed she was a student given how quickly she came but maybe she wasn't. He wondered if he'd even say anything to her if he did see her.  She was quite mad given the numerous death threats she sent him on Twitter.  In any case, he hoped she was here having fun. Not great to stay mad months later after all.

The crowd filtered through the gymnasium doors like a flood of water. In mere minutes the mass of people splintered off into their own sections of the gym partaking in the festivities while loud music blared and strobe lights flickered. The prom was in full swing as Dan danced with strangers, munched on food, and talked with frat bros about which hero could beat whom in a fight. After a while, he sat at the backend of the gym at one of the few empty tables watching the crowds of people while he took a break.

The car ride with her friends managed to finally break Chie from her stoic spell. The group of teens had a rowdy, energetic excitement that was simply contagious. There was gossip that Chie had missed and jokes ranging from crass to genuinely clever. It definitely helped that a large blunt was being passed around the back of the car and Chie indulged herself and relished in the calm that came with it. Among her peers, she felt a sense of calm finally wash over her. It had been far too long since she had a moment to not feel afraid for her life, or ger future. It was dawning on her how much heroics had consumed her life since her first failure against Danger Dan! It felt like a weight off her shoulders now, and her friends seemed to feel it too. They eagerly pushed at Chie to speak her mind.

"So, what is your costume anyway?" Asked Sam as she finished the blunt and casually flicked the butt of it out the window.

Chie paused as she was asked, trying to decide how to respond without giving herself away. Unfortunately, Marissa, a girl who had figured out Chie's alter ego, had responded.

“It’s that new hero, haven’t you heard?” She said with a knowing glance and a wryly smirk.

“Uh, which one?” The lupine driver asked casually>

“Yeah, this is New York, there’s superheroes everywhere” Sam replied.

Chie’s face had gone from calm and mild to a bright red cocktail of emotions at the mention of her alter ego. Marissa had a laugh at the reaction, but Chie’s glower managed to stop her. It was reassuring that no one here knew her as a hero. She didn’t need anyone connecting the dots. At the same time, it was a blow to the ego to know no one here had even heard of her.

“And some super villains too” Sam added, looking disdainfully at a ninja amongst the crowd.

He was giving a middle finger to their car as the werewolf driver sighed in an admission of his sins. He had driven a car faster in an attempt to sneak past a waning yellow light and had nearly crashed into a surge of students and party-goers who had moved from the sidewalk and gotten stuck in line down the middle of the street. Now their car was wedged amongst the crowd as it swarmed around them, getting stuck in place inches from the grand, glistening hotel.

“You guys get out, I’ll get parked… eventually” The werewolf added as he slammed his face against the top of his wheel.

Chie, glad the topic had switched to the prom, saw a chance to exit this nerve-racking dialogue. As the others opened their doors to enter the thicket of humans, Chie did the same, but she moved into the fray and vanished into the crowd. An expert of being unseen, she knew that merely hunching over herself and weaving through the people was more than enough to disappear from her friend's sight. By the time they realized she was gone, she would already be far from them. When she decided to meet up, however, her keen eyes would find them easily. It was a talent that balanced on the supernatural level for her. Her eyes always seemed to pinpoint exactly what she needed to find.

Chie managed to get into the party rather quickly. For as large as the crowd was many of them were staying outside and the doors were all opened to let people funnel in rapidly. The hotel was already a glowing monolith of unbridled lavishness, but draped in the decorations of a prom it was a sensational look Chie knew immediately that she would never forget. She basked in the sights, weaving through the crowd. The Hors d'oeuvres were equally magnificent. Crackers with salmon mousse and caviar, Bacon covered dates with apricot glazes, and every type of chip with an accompanying dip that one could imagine. Chie was delighted by the entertainment, the music was being played live. After meeting up with her friends, mingling with her peers, and taking various pictures with her group of costumed pals, Chie once again dipped from the group. For some reason, as fun as her escapades were, she could not get rid of a strange sensation that was irking her. It left her when she was alone, but alone at a party was such a drag.

As Chie separated once more from her friend group, she found herself at the backend of the ballroom. Her hands were filled with a drink and a plate of plentiful hor duerves. Looking for a spot to sit and watch, she noticed a stranger sitting alone. A ninja no less.

“Mind if I steal a seat?” She asked the masked man, though she was already beginning to inch the seat out with her foot.
“Sick costume by the way!” She added, smiling widely at his uniform.