Datafile - Twilight House

Teenage Marvels have been around since Peter Parker slung webs around New York City in the 1960's. Growing up is hard enough without super strength or the ability to pass through walls. Many teams on both sides of the hero/villain dynamic were born because of teenagers looking for a place to belong. Not every kid with powers has the pull to go to Brimstone Academy or wishes to sign up for military training at Camp Hammond. Twilight House is one of a few dozen places across the country helping young Marvels keep their noses clean.

The owners of Twilight house have a costumed pedigree. Ty Johnson and Tandy Bowen once fought under the guide of Cloak and Dagger. Two runaways who found each other on the streets of New York, the duo fought crime for many years. They found some level of fame but channeled it back into the communities where they patrolled. Looking for a fresh start (and a part of the world not packed shoulder to shoulder with Marvels), they moved to Phoenix, Arizona. Twilight House came about about a year later.

Any Marvel under the age of 18 is allowed to come to Twilight House. Most of them come to hear tales of Spider-Man and the X-Men, but the duo strives to install a sense of responsibility into young Marvels. Johnson handles developing powers while Bowen teaches how to balance a normal life with a superpowered one.

Datafile - Stark/Stane

Courtesy of the Noto Archives

Most of the first generation of Marvels came across their powers by accident. Only one built his abilities by hand. Tony Stark, founder of Stark Industries, took on the persona of Iron Man to originally escape a kidnapping attempt. Stark soon became the personification of the swinging superhero. He enjoyed the celebrity that other Marvels often found uncomfortable. Stark Tower parties often rivaled the Playboy Mansion for eclectic mixes of people.

Tony's hard partying caught up with him fifteen years later. A battle with alcoholism weakened his control on Stark Industries. Much of the 80's was spent in a mixture of the boardroom and battlefield, fending off rival companies, buyouts, and a new wave of Marvels looking to make their name by taking down one of the few unafraid to reveal their secret identity. Stark stood tall through most of the battles, but they wore him down to the point where, in the mid-90's, he stepped down from both the company and his time in the suit. Stark Industries found a new leader in Tony's son, Shane Stark.

Shane Stark leaving a nightclub in London

Shane eliminated most of Stark Industries rivals by fighting fire with fire. He aggressively pursued them through buyouts, hostile takeovers and legal actions. Perhaps it was seeing his father driven to drink by the stress of being a CEO and a Marvel, but Shane's doggedness matched that of his father. With the merger of Stark Industries to long time rival Stane International in 1999, Shane began to build his own legacy. A legacy that didn't include being a Marvel. Shane never took on the Iron Man mantle and has commented in public several times that he has no interest or intention to step inside the suit.

Iron Man instead has become the public face of Stark/Stane, which continues to primarily manufacture technology for military organizations, SHIELD, and the Fantastic Foundation. This year marks the tenth anniversary of Citizen Iron, the reality show where contestants vie for a chance to be a Marvel for a year. While none of the Iron Marks have gone on to notoriety (outside of the tragedy that claimed the life of Iron Mark VI), every year thousands of hopefuls line up at tryouts across the USA hoping for a chance to step into the suit.

Tony Stark at Jim Rhodes's retirement party

As for Tony Stark, the toast of the town has now become the billionaire recluse.  Rumors of a falling out with Shane persist. He is rarely seen outside his mansion. The life of the party has been notably absent from retirement and funeral events from the first generation of Marvels. Tony Stark was once of the best and brightest humanity had to offer. But his demons may have finally defeated him.

Datafile - Brimstone Academy

Emma Frost, Headmistress
of Brimstone Academy

The death of Charles Xavier and disbanding of the X-Men caused a great fracture between the students who once believed in his dream. Mutants have multiple options of mentors, teams and schools to develop their powers and decide where they stand on the issues that trouble all mutantkind.

The Brimstone Academy offers many of the trappings of the Xavier School, such as a boarding school feel and mutant power training. But the philosophy is much different. Graduates of the Academy become heroes and villains because they are taught one simple lesson. You have a gift of powers and only you will determine how that gift will be used.

The Academy is run by Emma Frost. The name is a call back to her associations with The Hellfire Club, though Emma insists the school is not grooming new kings or queens for that mutant secret society. The Academy is not as high profile as Col. Summers Xavier Peace Force, nor does it wish to be.

The children are generally from well-off families. Mutant teams are often created by the natural cliques that teenagers set up on their own. Frost has no problem pulling together a team from the members of her school for a particular agenda. The extent of the use of her psychic abilities is unknown, but most members seem happy to be in a place where their powers are not feared.