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Ultiman, Megawoman, The Berserker, The Black Shadow, Eagleman, Fantasia, The Golden Comet, Sizzler... they are famous for fighting crime and saving the world. Just as famous are their enemies - supervillains like Dr. Destruction, Hellion, The Leech, Tarantula, and the notorious Underlord have jeopardized mankind in the past, and may do so again! When his father gets a new job, Farley Flynn and his family move from New York to Meekton. Young Farley can't believe how totally bland the town is - everyone is so plain, so ordinary, so normal. His father calls it a nice safe place to raise a family. Farley calls it boring! The family next door is a prime example of the kind of straight-laced extra-normal people that populate the town of Meekton. Mr. & Mrs. Shears are straight out of the 1950's, and their daughter Peggy has never left the town. Peggy shows Farley around the neighborhood, and the entire town looks about as exciting as rice pudding. Farley loves superheroes. He follows all their adventures and knows all their statistics. He keeps news clippings and photos, and he has spotted a few of them soaring through the skies... but he will never see superheroes in this town. This is the kind of place where nothing exciting ever happens. There's not even anywhere to skateboard. Peggy knows a place. She shows him a dry waterduct on the edge of town that's perfect for half-pipe. Farley shows Peggy his excellent skateboarding skills. Peggy is smitten with Farley. On his first day of Grade Nine at Meekton Consolidated School, Farley notices that some of the other kids are a bit out-of-the-ordinary, many of them are downright weird... which makes Farley feel better. At least some things are the same no matter where you go. Farley's marks are outstanding, placing him in the Advanced Curriculum Class. Many of the students in his class, like Peggy, are typical Meektonians; some of his classmates are introduced as "exchange students". Orion Starson has a golden-bronze complexion and a strange accent that he can't quite place. Raquel de Luna is a very beautiful girl from Spain, whose family drops her off every day, but where do they commute from? Felicia Doucette comes from Montreal, but her mother has settled in Meekton. Henry Smith is from England, and lives with a family that is boarding him for the school year. He is friendly to Farley but there is something strange about him. Farley makes friends with Dwayne, a bright science-whiz whose father, Mr. Minkledorff is the Custodian of Meekton Consolidated. In gym class, Farley notices a girl by the name of Abby Wright, whose father works at the company that his own Dad works at. Abby seems to be an incredible athlete, leaping huge distances and effortlessly hurling objects across the gymnasium. Peggy seems to be jealous of the attention Abby is getting, and slam dunks a basketball while doing a triple flip. Mr. Minkledorff seems very interested in this display, and uses some sort of communication device before slinking away suspiciously. Things are starting to get weird when the class is interrupted by the principal, a woman by the name of Mrs. Crankenbaum who seems to have a tough time keeping track of what time zone she's in. Farley notices that Mr. Minkledorff is very secretive about his broom closet. Suspicious? Maybe. Farley also notices hidden cameras in the school, and strange metal panels that open when no one's looking and let out little devices. Interesting? Possibly. Dwayne tries to discourage Farley from being too curious about these things, but Farley is like a bloodhound on the scent of a mystery. Dwayne asks why he's so intent on investigating this, and Farley chooses to share a secret with him. He pulls a trunk out from under his bed and shows him a costume - a mask and cape! Dwayne is stunned, but then Farley tells him a story... Farley was living in Washington Heights attending Eleanor Roosevelt School in Grade Eight when a terrible disaster struck. The villain known as Death Dealer was on a rampage through New York City, and was holding the entire school hostage, threatening to blow it up. Then out of nowhere, a figure in a black cape swooped in for the attack. It was the hero known as The Silver Falcon, master detective and terror of the criminal underworld. The battle was fierce, and much of the street was wrecked, but The Falcon was victorious and the school was saved. After the battle, there was a moment when The Silver Falcon looked straight at Farley, and he felt a connection, as though the entire battle had been fought just to save him. Then Falcon left without waiting for thanks or reward. That day he knew what he was meant to do on this earth. That day he started training in acrobatics and martial arts. He made himself a costume and equipment belt. That day the hero that would be known as Moondog was born. He's convinced that something sinister is going on at Meekton Consolidated, and he's going to find out what it is! Dwayne is impressed, and wishes him luck, but warns him not to get caught. That night after his parents go to sleep, Farley dons his costume, sneaks out and heads toward the school. A mysterious figure follows him. As he gets nearer to the school, the figure stalks closer. At the last instant, Moondog grabs his stalker by the wrist and flips them into the street. The figure of a costumed girl flips through the air and lands in the street, ready to fight! She announces that she is called Viper and no one messes with her. They have a leaping kung fu fight and is becomes appearent to Moondog that this Viper person is stronger than him, so he cuts the fight short and escapes using a smoke bomb and one of his patented skateboard moves. When Viper sees his skateboarding maneuver she seems a bit awestruck and lets him go. |
