May 02, 2011 15:06
It was 2000 and something-or-other. I was on staff at the Institute for Development of Aquatic Reactionary Forces, which is a fancy name for school for superheroes with aquatic tendencies. Part of the year I was just a monitor and scout for potential recruits. I gave regular staff trainings, appeased the aged patrons whose feats of yore had landed them lifetime memberships, took care of the parents who brought us their hopeful offspring swearing left and right that their 3 year old would sprout gills by the time puberty hit. It wasn't a bad gig, and I'd been doing it awhile, so I was near the top of the food chain. The thing is that these training facilities exist all over the country, in a number of disciplines, and the overseeing body wasn't too picky about who ran this one. In fact, they hired the last manager with the intent to sandbag the whole operation, in spite of the valuable services we offer. At least I thought they were valuable.
I guess when you get down to it, too much regulation can ruin things a little. Having these schools where we just train people to use the talent and skills they've already got in ways we want them to is a little superfluous. It provides a neat sort of apprenticeship though, and that's kind of invaluable, I think. That's funny. I'm supposed to be here influencing all these potential crime fighters and what have you, and look at what I've done. In a way, I think I've stayed true to this code of honor and I don't know, goodness, maybe, even if I've broken part of it.
I'm not trying to say that letting me in was a mistake, I don't have some kind of sneaky undercurrent that a more attentive man would have picked up on, in fact, I'm really good at what I do. And like I said, I'm one of the good guys. I'm sometimes just questionably good. I have always dreamed about being the geologist that nobody listened to about the volcano that's erupting who still manages to save the better part of the town. The rogue, I guess you'd say. I didn't aspire to it though, that kind always has to work harder than everyone else. It just sort of happened.
So for part of the year, I'm scouting and maintaining the facility. The rest of the year that falls by the wayside. For the better part of it I'm an assistant professor and then a professor in my own right. And that's the part I love. It's also the part that got me into crime.
Since actually going to battle results in actual casualties and for that matter, wars and villains aren't always readily available, we have simulations. We test our skills against other schools in the region. Sometimes we win, sometimes we lose. We're like the final evolution of a high school sports team, in a way, and I'm like a coach. I'm still young though, I'm still learning how to use my own superpowers and that's really been a blessing and a curse. Obviously I'm further along than the youngsters we train, and a good teacher is always learning, but sometimes I doubt myself and go into a frenzy of research and self-doubt. I don't enjoy saying that out loud, but in the spirit of full disclosure I will.