PART II: Some Heros Come Along.
"Tell me again what you did to the Tank!" said Max.
"It wasn't my fault." said Trent. "Like I said, this diesel truck carrying toxic waste came
rushing at us the wrong way on a one way street."
"And now you all have superpowers." There was an uncomfortable silence in Max's garage as
the four tried to explain the unexplainable. "I find this pretty hard to believe."
"Well, believe it or not, that's what happened." Trent replied.
Oh great. thought Daria. Now the theme from The Great American Hero is going to be stuck
in my head all day.
/Look at what's happened to me./
/I can't believe it my self./
/Suddenly I'm on top of the world.
/Shoulda been somebody else./
/Believe it or not I'm walking on air./
/I never thought I could feel so free./
/Flying on a wing and a prayer./
/Who could it be?/
/Believe it or not it's just me./
"If you need proof," said Trent. "I guess we'll have to show you." He nodded to Daria. She
took the hint and went invisible.
Max started to see Daria disappear before his own eyes. "It-It's a trick!" Max laughed.
"I'm on one of those hidden camera shows, right? You-you used mirrors or something, it's an
illusion, right?"
"This is no illusion." Trent stretched his arm to the other side of the garage and picked
up a hammer lying on a workbench.
"How did you...?" Max started.
Jane scooped some charcoal briquettes into a grill. "Flame on." she said, shooting a thin
jet of fire at the coals. Immediatly, they flamed up brightly. "Anyone for a barbeque?"
Max's jaw was dropped in shock. Jesse took a charcoal briquette out of the bag. "I saw this
in a Superman movie once." he said and ground the coal into a rather rough diamond. "Here," he
said, giving it to Max. "That should pay for the Tank."
"Know something?" said Trent. "I kinda am in the mood for a barbequed burger."
"In the refrigerator." gasped a breathless Max.
In a brief amount of time the four friends discovered the grasp of their new powers. Daria
could make herself invisible at will and make items invisible with her touch. She soon learned how
to make and control invisible force fields. Jane learned to make her body a pillar of flame at will.
To her shock which quickly turned to delight, she discovered that her body of fire could fly. Not
only had she mastery of her body temperature, but she could also throw jets and balls of flame.
Trent learned his new stretching ability was almost endless. It seemed as though bones and flesh
had turned into infatiguable elastic, alowing him to stretch any part of his body into any shape
or size. Jesse soon learned that not only had he immeasurable strength, but his body was well
near indestructable.
They soon found opportunities to put their powers to work that summer. They started small
by foiling a bank robbery.They were all there so Trent and Jesse could cash the checks they got
for performing at a bar mitzvah. Later, they would all go to a movie. A large man suddenly pulled
a gun on the teller. "This is a stick up!" he yelled. "We'll be taking all the money we can carry!"
His three accomplices took out bags and began collecting cash.
Daria went invisible and snuck up on the first robber. To his shock, some force was trying
to pull his gun away. "What the Hell!" he screamed, dropping his gun in surprise. To the robber,
it seemed as if his gun was now floating in midair.
"Give the money back." Daria demanded.
The three accomplices decided to run for it. Trent stretched his leg across the room, tripping
them. "Have a nice /trip/?" he couldn't resist saying.
"Flame on!" Jane encircled two of the robbers with a ring of fire. The last one was quick
and made it out the door. Jesse followed. The last robber jumped into the gettaway car and gunned
the motor. He wasn't going anywhere. Jesse had lifted the rear axle of the car clear off the ground.
The headlines of /The Lawndale Picayune/ the next day read "Four super powered young people
foil bank robbery." Daria, Jane, Trent and Jesse were all in the photograph.
"Oh my God, Daria!" yelled Jake. "You could've been killed!"
"/Why/ didn't you tell us you had superpowers?" Helen demanded. "And what's more, did I
give you /permission/ to be a hero? Now, I'm glad that you're finally taking some interest in
other people, but this is just too much."
"I don't have to take this." said Daria, and went invisible.
"Don't think your superpowers are going to get you out of this, young lady!" Helen berated
an empty seat cushion. It truly was empty. As soon as she turned invisible, Daria got up and left
the room. I could get to like this new power. she thought.
The Lanes were always rather clueless as to their children's activities, so no change there.
Jesse's mother died when he was a child and his father only came home long enough to sleep off his
drinking binges. All he received at home was further hero worship from his brother, Danny.
Some weeks later, Max bought a new van; one in much better condition than the last. He
dubbed it The Tank II and invited the other three Mystic Spiral members plus Daria and Jane to
go on its maiden drive. They came to a barricaded road. An apartment building on that street had
caught fire.
"Holy crap!" said Max, getting out to see the conflageration. The firefighters were tending
to a hysterical woman.
"My son is up there!" She yelled. "He's on the top floor! He's only five!"
"I'm going in." Jane stated.
"Wait," said Max. "when you get there, look in the closet."
"Uh-sure." said Jane. "Flame on!" She soared into the air to the top floor window.
Jane entered the blazing room. She was not affraid of the fire- she was fire. She could
tell from the melting toys and the burning race car bed that this had been a child's room. Jane
could not see or hear a child, so she took Max's advice and went for the closet. The door turned
to ash with her touch. There, passed out from smoke inhalation, was a small child.
To late, Jane realized she couldn't touch the child in her flame form. "Flame off." she
muttered. She coughed, the heavy smoke already affecting her. "C'mon, kid, wake up!" she shook him.
He didn't. Jane wrapped her red overshirt over the child's mouth and nose. Now she was affraid.
Maybe if I can flame on everything but my arms and chest, she thought, I can get us to the
window. I don't know if I'll be able to fly. Well, I certainly can't stay here. Jane picked up the
child, flamed on anything that wouldn't hurt the child, and ran for the window. "Little help!" she
screamed.
Trent stretched his body up to the window and took the child."Jane, your arms!"
"I had to turn them off to pick him up."
"You've been burned. Flame off and I'll take you down."
Trent wobbled under the weight."Remember, Janey, I don't have Jesse's super strength."
"I'm not heavy!"
"Nope. You're my sister." Trent lowered himself to the ground. A greatful mother came for
her son. Paramedics put the boy on oxygen. Another medic tended to Jane's arms. Adrenalized, she
hadn't felt the embers strike her flesh. Now, the pain was getting to her.
"Max," she asked as they went back to the van. "How did you know about the closet?"
Nick had a theory. "Maybe he has some mutant psycic power."
"Nah," said Max. "When I was a kid my house caught on fire. I thought the closet was safe."
The next morning's headlines read "Super heroine injured in fire."
Lawndale, Massachusets was now the proud hometown of four superheros. Their helpful and
couragous acts made them local celebrities. Mystic Spiral was in more demand as a party band.
The Zen was packed everytime they played. /The Lawndale Picayune/ called them the Formidable Four
and hosted a contest to choose codenames for the heroes. Daria picked "Phantom" as her codename.
Jane took up the moniker "Flamin' Jane". Jesse's nom de plume was "Hercules". Trent would be
otherwise known as "Sir Stretchalot". The winners got a private meet and greet session complete
with photos and autographs.
"Just like the light of a new day," Daria sang as she sat on Jane's bed. "It hit me from
out of the blue, Breaking me out of the spell I was in. Making all of my wishes come true."
"What was that?" Jane asked, looking up from a sculpture she was welding together, using
her new fire control powers.
"Nothing." said the recently dubbed Phantom. "Just a tune stuck in my head ever since that
incident with the toxic waste."
But with fame and plaudits there comes a price, as the Formidable Four would soon learn....
IN THE NEXT ISSUE OF THE FORMIDABLE FOUR:
"They're still ugly and dressed funny."
"Sandi is a toad face!"
"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
"Think the punch is laced with cyanide?"
"Dry it UP! Dry it UP! Dry it UP! Dry it UP! Dry it UP! Dry it UP! Dry it UP! Dry it UP!"
"Go to Hell!!!"
"As corny as it sounds, that's actually a good idea."
(a/n) Believe it or not, Joey Scarberry wrote the theme to The Great American Hero. Other notes:
I've based this more or less on The Fantastic Four comics, property of Stan Lee and the other good
folks at Marvel. Daria is property of MTV.
OK, I think I've seen Johnny carry people in his 'flame on' mode, but I'm not sure how it
works. Remember, they're still getting used to their powers. They won't test the limits if it
means someone might get hurt.
The writers of Daria shortchanged Jesse's character, so I had to give him a backstory. Jesse's
mom died of breast cancer when he was 10. His father became an alcaholic soon after. Jesse has
been more or less raising his younger brother Danny ever since. Danny was mentioned in the Daria
Diaries. He seemed to really admire his big brother. Danny was never on the show, but it's rumored
that he's the same Danny that Quinn sold phone cards to. If you're wondering why I didn't make
Jesse completly like the Thing, it's like this. I decided Jesse has enough angst in his life
without throwing in 'boo-hoo, I'm an ugly orange rock monster and no one loves me.' Remember,
Jesse can be prejudged by his looks too. Someone may believe that because he's good-looking and
quiet, he must be stupid and shallow. I think we can do better than that. Keep reading.
"Tell me again what you did to the Tank!" said Max.
"It wasn't my fault." said Trent. "Like I said, this diesel truck carrying toxic waste came
rushing at us the wrong way on a one way street."
"And now you all have superpowers." There was an uncomfortable silence in Max's garage as
the four tried to explain the unexplainable. "I find this pretty hard to believe."
"Well, believe it or not, that's what happened." Trent replied.
Oh great. thought Daria. Now the theme from The Great American Hero is going to be stuck
in my head all day.
/Look at what's happened to me./
/I can't believe it my self./
/Suddenly I'm on top of the world.
/Shoulda been somebody else./
/Believe it or not I'm walking on air./
/I never thought I could feel so free./
/Flying on a wing and a prayer./
/Who could it be?/
/Believe it or not it's just me./
"If you need proof," said Trent. "I guess we'll have to show you." He nodded to Daria. She
took the hint and went invisible.
Max started to see Daria disappear before his own eyes. "It-It's a trick!" Max laughed.
"I'm on one of those hidden camera shows, right? You-you used mirrors or something, it's an
illusion, right?"
"This is no illusion." Trent stretched his arm to the other side of the garage and picked
up a hammer lying on a workbench.
"How did you...?" Max started.
Jane scooped some charcoal briquettes into a grill. "Flame on." she said, shooting a thin
jet of fire at the coals. Immediatly, they flamed up brightly. "Anyone for a barbeque?"
Max's jaw was dropped in shock. Jesse took a charcoal briquette out of the bag. "I saw this
in a Superman movie once." he said and ground the coal into a rather rough diamond. "Here," he
said, giving it to Max. "That should pay for the Tank."
"Know something?" said Trent. "I kinda am in the mood for a barbequed burger."
"In the refrigerator." gasped a breathless Max.
In a brief amount of time the four friends discovered the grasp of their new powers. Daria
could make herself invisible at will and make items invisible with her touch. She soon learned how
to make and control invisible force fields. Jane learned to make her body a pillar of flame at will.
To her shock which quickly turned to delight, she discovered that her body of fire could fly. Not
only had she mastery of her body temperature, but she could also throw jets and balls of flame.
Trent learned his new stretching ability was almost endless. It seemed as though bones and flesh
had turned into infatiguable elastic, alowing him to stretch any part of his body into any shape
or size. Jesse soon learned that not only had he immeasurable strength, but his body was well
near indestructable.
They soon found opportunities to put their powers to work that summer. They started small
by foiling a bank robbery.They were all there so Trent and Jesse could cash the checks they got
for performing at a bar mitzvah. Later, they would all go to a movie. A large man suddenly pulled
a gun on the teller. "This is a stick up!" he yelled. "We'll be taking all the money we can carry!"
His three accomplices took out bags and began collecting cash.
Daria went invisible and snuck up on the first robber. To his shock, some force was trying
to pull his gun away. "What the Hell!" he screamed, dropping his gun in surprise. To the robber,
it seemed as if his gun was now floating in midair.
"Give the money back." Daria demanded.
The three accomplices decided to run for it. Trent stretched his leg across the room, tripping
them. "Have a nice /trip/?" he couldn't resist saying.
"Flame on!" Jane encircled two of the robbers with a ring of fire. The last one was quick
and made it out the door. Jesse followed. The last robber jumped into the gettaway car and gunned
the motor. He wasn't going anywhere. Jesse had lifted the rear axle of the car clear off the ground.
The headlines of /The Lawndale Picayune/ the next day read "Four super powered young people
foil bank robbery." Daria, Jane, Trent and Jesse were all in the photograph.
"Oh my God, Daria!" yelled Jake. "You could've been killed!"
"/Why/ didn't you tell us you had superpowers?" Helen demanded. "And what's more, did I
give you /permission/ to be a hero? Now, I'm glad that you're finally taking some interest in
other people, but this is just too much."
"I don't have to take this." said Daria, and went invisible.
"Don't think your superpowers are going to get you out of this, young lady!" Helen berated
an empty seat cushion. It truly was empty. As soon as she turned invisible, Daria got up and left
the room. I could get to like this new power. she thought.
The Lanes were always rather clueless as to their children's activities, so no change there.
Jesse's mother died when he was a child and his father only came home long enough to sleep off his
drinking binges. All he received at home was further hero worship from his brother, Danny.
Some weeks later, Max bought a new van; one in much better condition than the last. He
dubbed it The Tank II and invited the other three Mystic Spiral members plus Daria and Jane to
go on its maiden drive. They came to a barricaded road. An apartment building on that street had
caught fire.
"Holy crap!" said Max, getting out to see the conflageration. The firefighters were tending
to a hysterical woman.
"My son is up there!" She yelled. "He's on the top floor! He's only five!"
"I'm going in." Jane stated.
"Wait," said Max. "when you get there, look in the closet."
"Uh-sure." said Jane. "Flame on!" She soared into the air to the top floor window.
Jane entered the blazing room. She was not affraid of the fire- she was fire. She could
tell from the melting toys and the burning race car bed that this had been a child's room. Jane
could not see or hear a child, so she took Max's advice and went for the closet. The door turned
to ash with her touch. There, passed out from smoke inhalation, was a small child.
To late, Jane realized she couldn't touch the child in her flame form. "Flame off." she
muttered. She coughed, the heavy smoke already affecting her. "C'mon, kid, wake up!" she shook him.
He didn't. Jane wrapped her red overshirt over the child's mouth and nose. Now she was affraid.
Maybe if I can flame on everything but my arms and chest, she thought, I can get us to the
window. I don't know if I'll be able to fly. Well, I certainly can't stay here. Jane picked up the
child, flamed on anything that wouldn't hurt the child, and ran for the window. "Little help!" she
screamed.
Trent stretched his body up to the window and took the child."Jane, your arms!"
"I had to turn them off to pick him up."
"You've been burned. Flame off and I'll take you down."
Trent wobbled under the weight."Remember, Janey, I don't have Jesse's super strength."
"I'm not heavy!"
"Nope. You're my sister." Trent lowered himself to the ground. A greatful mother came for
her son. Paramedics put the boy on oxygen. Another medic tended to Jane's arms. Adrenalized, she
hadn't felt the embers strike her flesh. Now, the pain was getting to her.
"Max," she asked as they went back to the van. "How did you know about the closet?"
Nick had a theory. "Maybe he has some mutant psycic power."
"Nah," said Max. "When I was a kid my house caught on fire. I thought the closet was safe."
The next morning's headlines read "Super heroine injured in fire."
Lawndale, Massachusets was now the proud hometown of four superheros. Their helpful and
couragous acts made them local celebrities. Mystic Spiral was in more demand as a party band.
The Zen was packed everytime they played. /The Lawndale Picayune/ called them the Formidable Four
and hosted a contest to choose codenames for the heroes. Daria picked "Phantom" as her codename.
Jane took up the moniker "Flamin' Jane". Jesse's nom de plume was "Hercules". Trent would be
otherwise known as "Sir Stretchalot". The winners got a private meet and greet session complete
with photos and autographs.
"Just like the light of a new day," Daria sang as she sat on Jane's bed. "It hit me from
out of the blue, Breaking me out of the spell I was in. Making all of my wishes come true."
"What was that?" Jane asked, looking up from a sculpture she was welding together, using
her new fire control powers.
"Nothing." said the recently dubbed Phantom. "Just a tune stuck in my head ever since that
incident with the toxic waste."
But with fame and plaudits there comes a price, as the Formidable Four would soon learn....
IN THE NEXT ISSUE OF THE FORMIDABLE FOUR:
"They're still ugly and dressed funny."
"Sandi is a toad face!"
"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
"Think the punch is laced with cyanide?"
"Dry it UP! Dry it UP! Dry it UP! Dry it UP! Dry it UP! Dry it UP! Dry it UP! Dry it UP!"
"Go to Hell!!!"
"As corny as it sounds, that's actually a good idea."
(a/n) Believe it or not, Joey Scarberry wrote the theme to The Great American Hero. Other notes:
I've based this more or less on The Fantastic Four comics, property of Stan Lee and the other good
folks at Marvel. Daria is property of MTV.
OK, I think I've seen Johnny carry people in his 'flame on' mode, but I'm not sure how it
works. Remember, they're still getting used to their powers. They won't test the limits if it
means someone might get hurt.
The writers of Daria shortchanged Jesse's character, so I had to give him a backstory. Jesse's
mom died of breast cancer when he was 10. His father became an alcaholic soon after. Jesse has
been more or less raising his younger brother Danny ever since. Danny was mentioned in the Daria
Diaries. He seemed to really admire his big brother. Danny was never on the show, but it's rumored
that he's the same Danny that Quinn sold phone cards to. If you're wondering why I didn't make
Jesse completly like the Thing, it's like this. I decided Jesse has enough angst in his life
without throwing in 'boo-hoo, I'm an ugly orange rock monster and no one loves me.' Remember,
Jesse can be prejudged by his looks too. Someone may believe that because he's good-looking and
quiet, he must be stupid and shallow. I think we can do better than that. Keep reading.