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Authors: Edward Lazellari
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asked.
“Anything’s possible,” the woman answered. “At some point maybe … if they’re desperate.”
The sound of police running into the building echoed up the stairwell. Radios blared, footsteps pounded, threats were issued. Cal’s vision turned gray. The girl pulled an ornate compact from her satchel. Great time to do your makeup, Cal thought. Then everything went black.
CHAPTER 4
HARD-KNOCK LIFE
1
Daniel Hauer worked at his latest masterpiece: an ink drawing of the Green Lantern blasting away a Khund armada with his magnificent power ring. The hero’s primary weapon being in fact a ring and not a lantern never seemed odd to Daniel. What made a hero great was his strength of character; he must be a true paladin of virtue and honor. Although there were many manifestations of this hero, dating back to the 1940s, Daniel preferred the second variation, test pilot Hal Jordan. He suspected that other incarnations since Jordan had been designed by a marketing department that had read too much Spider-Man (a good character in his own right, but not appropriate for the Green Lantern).
The ballpoint scratched a groove into the varnished wood as it traced the pattern of the lantern logo on the hero’s chest. As Daniel put the finishing touch on it, a gray shadow sprawled across his desk. The young man looked up into the dour face of Mr. Palumbo.
“That’s a beautiful illustration, Mr. Hauer. Can you explain to the room how this drawing relates to societal class structure in precolonial India?”
Daniel glanced at his friend Adrian Lutz and flashed him a look that said, You should have warned me. Behind Mr. Palumbo hung a series of world maps showing the evolution of political boundaries over the centuries. Daniel locked on to India, circa 200 B.C. , and called up the proper information from his brain.
“Huh … sure.”
“Really?” said Mr. Palumbo.
“Yeah, see … Green Lantern is a Kshatriya warrior who takes his orders from the priestly Brahmans represented by the Guardians of the Universe on Oa. The Khunds are a warrior race trying to expand their influence, in much the same way as Alexander the Great. And this drawing is like … when the Indians fought off the Greek general Seleucus Nicator as he tried to invade Punjab.”
Adrian rolled his eyes in disbelief. Giggles erupted throughout the classroom. Mr. Palumbo, aware that few students were as well read as Daniel, nevertheless was not going to suffer any excuse for ignoring his lesson.
“I’m giving you a zero for the day. And, one other thing … all of your desks throughout the school are covered with these drawings. You’re destroying public property.”
“Destroying? You can still use them.”
More chuckles erupted.
“One of your pictures ruined Katie Millar’s white blouse after she rested her arm on it,” Palumbo said.
Daniel’s heart sank. Katie was one of the few kids to befriend him after he had transferred to George Fox Middle School two years earlier. They sat at the same desks in shared classrooms and left notes for each other (and the occasional test answers when one’s exam preceded the other). With the onset of acne and wet dreams, Daniel realized Katie was more than just a school buddy. Her skin had adopted a sweet fragrance, and he was extremely aware of her budding chest, especially when she innocently bent over in a loose top. He often woke up hard at the thought of her, something he wished he did not do because he was embarrassed to face her at school, but he didn’t have any control over it. Her eyes wandering toward older boys, especially with letters on their jackets, frustrated him, and now he was responsible for ruining her expensive clothes.
“Sorry,” he said.
“I’m not the one you owe an apology. We’ve discussed your drawings at the faculty meetings. Principal Conklin made it clear that next time you were to be sent to his office. Since you are not prepared to take my lesson seriously, please
“Anything’s possible,” the woman answered. “At some point maybe … if they’re desperate.”
The sound of police running into the building echoed up the stairwell. Radios blared, footsteps pounded, threats were issued. Cal’s vision turned gray. The girl pulled an ornate compact from her satchel. Great time to do your makeup, Cal thought. Then everything went black.
CHAPTER 4
HARD-KNOCK LIFE
1
Daniel Hauer worked at his latest masterpiece: an ink drawing of the Green Lantern blasting away a Khund armada with his magnificent power ring. The hero’s primary weapon being in fact a ring and not a lantern never seemed odd to Daniel. What made a hero great was his strength of character; he must be a true paladin of virtue and honor. Although there were many manifestations of this hero, dating back to the 1940s, Daniel preferred the second variation, test pilot Hal Jordan. He suspected that other incarnations since Jordan had been designed by a marketing department that had read too much Spider-Man (a good character in his own right, but not appropriate for the Green Lantern).
The ballpoint scratched a groove into the varnished wood as it traced the pattern of the lantern logo on the hero’s chest. As Daniel put the finishing touch on it, a gray shadow sprawled across his desk. The young man looked up into the dour face of Mr. Palumbo.
“That’s a beautiful illustration, Mr. Hauer. Can you explain to the room how this drawing relates to societal class structure in precolonial India?”
Daniel glanced at his friend Adrian Lutz and flashed him a look that said, You should have warned me. Behind Mr. Palumbo hung a series of world maps showing the evolution of political boundaries over the centuries. Daniel locked on to India, circa 200 B.C. , and called up the proper information from his brain.
“Huh … sure.”
“Really?” said Mr. Palumbo.
“Yeah, see … Green Lantern is a Kshatriya warrior who takes his orders from the priestly Brahmans represented by the Guardians of the Universe on Oa. The Khunds are a warrior race trying to expand their influence, in much the same way as Alexander the Great. And this drawing is like … when the Indians fought off the Greek general Seleucus Nicator as he tried to invade Punjab.”
Adrian rolled his eyes in disbelief. Giggles erupted throughout the classroom. Mr. Palumbo, aware that few students were as well read as Daniel, nevertheless was not going to suffer any excuse for ignoring his lesson.
“I’m giving you a zero for the day. And, one other thing … all of your desks throughout the school are covered with these drawings. You’re destroying public property.”
“Destroying? You can still use them.”
More chuckles erupted.
“One of your pictures ruined Katie Millar’s white blouse after she rested her arm on it,” Palumbo said.
Daniel’s heart sank. Katie was one of the few kids to befriend him after he had transferred to George Fox Middle School two years earlier. They sat at the same desks in shared classrooms and left notes for each other (and the occasional test answers when one’s exam preceded the other). With the onset of acne and wet dreams, Daniel realized Katie was more than just a school buddy. Her skin had adopted a sweet fragrance, and he was extremely aware of her budding chest, especially when she innocently bent over in a loose top. He often woke up hard at the thought of her, something he wished he did not do because he was embarrassed to face her at school, but he didn’t have any control over it. Her eyes wandering toward older boys, especially with letters on their jackets, frustrated him, and now he was responsible for ruining her expensive clothes.
“Sorry,” he said.
“I’m not the one you owe an apology. We’ve discussed your drawings at the faculty meetings. Principal Conklin made it clear that next time you were to be sent to his office. Since you are not prepared to take my lesson seriously, please
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