On the first floor of San Francisco State's Mary Park dormitory, an empty room exists. Almost everyday it is ignored unless, periodically on some nights of the day, residents hear noises from the inside.

Janitors of the residential community are aware of the fact the room is unoccupied.

Yet, in fear of spreading rumors, the unspoken history attached to the room is a traumatic memory that was thought best to never be mentioned.

The silence, however, could not stop the curiosities of the neighbors residing a door, or two away.

The questions began innocently,

"Does anyone live in there?"

"Do you know the resident of that room?"

"Is this room rented out?"

And the answers varied.

"Nobody."

"It's a storage room."

"They're making repairs."

And, sometimes, the responses weren't comfortably embraced.

"Is it true? I heard someone died in there."

"They can't rent out the room because a suicide happened in there a few years ago."

"I heard the last resident complained about weird stuff happening inside."

Occasionally, when someone happened to walk by, the slaming sound of a closet door or dresser drawer could be heard coming from the inside and the mystery of anyone occupying the room was assumed to had solved itself.

"See. I knew someone lived there."

But, the question remained:

"Who?"

_________________

October 24, 1996, Mary Park Hall, first floor of the all boys' hall...

Two familiar roommates begin walking down the hall, six doors from the empty room.

They are in disagreement to the possibility of Princess Leia and Luke Skywalker to ever conceive a child together.

"Isn't Luke the boyfriend of Leia?!" Daniel asks.

"No. That would be Han...Han Solo," El replies, clearly discouraged to the lack of 'STAR WARS' knowledge. "Didn't you watch 'Return of the Jedi?' Luke is her BROTHER."

"You're a dork. The point is, according to your palm, Mr. Baseball," Daniel continues, his passion for science fiction clearly not as great as El's, "you're going to have a son born in the year of the dragon."

El is confused. He wants to know more, but the fear of the future exceeds his curiosity. There is an unpleasant sense of dissatisfaction in El's eyes.

"But, what about my future as the first Asian baseball player in the Major Leagues?" he asks, doubtful of his capabilities as a parent.

"Let me describe the details in a way you can understand more easily."

There's a higher sense of urgency in Daniel's voice as he continues, "IF Han and Leia were to ever have a baby, then depending how good a father Han Solo is will determine the fate of the universe because their child, LIKE YOURS, will also become either powerfully good... or powerfully bad."

"You mean like Darth Vader bad, or an EVIL Superman kinda bad?"

"Stop with the dorky references! But, yeah. And, when you become a father."

Daniel pauses to makes sure he place more emphasis to the next point. "I recommend you complete your studies as a teacher with that same intent to do good in the world as you explained to me. Don't aspire for a better paying career. Becoming a teacher will help you as a parent. The field of education will not make you wealthy; there will be no amount of wealth more important for tomorrow than you becoming a good parent to your son."

"So, what you're telling me is...I'm Han Solo without a chance to play baseball in the future."

"Sure. Ok," Daniel replies, tired of trying to convey the importance of his future son.

"As long as you understand that your son is going to be a very important person then I've done my job," Daniel adds with a smile.

"Possibly," Daniel continues, "your son could be Superman."

"You're referring about Kal El?" El interrupts.

"Whatever. As long as WHAT I'm telling you gets into that space fantasy head of yours. YOUR son is vital to the future of humanity."

"But, what about me becoming the first Asian baseball player in the major leagues?"

Daniel sighs a breath of discouragement, frustrated at repeating himself. "According to your palm, you're an average guy who will be the father to the one that will save the world a generation from now. That's something more important than baseball, El."

"Wow! I'm like Joe El!" he exclaims, more satisfied.

"Who? Jor El? WHO is Jor El?! Your uncle?" Daniel asks.

"Jor EL," El answers, enlightened to the coincidental spelling in the names, "was the father of Superman. He imprisoned the three criminals of Krypton which included the infamous General Zod into the phantom zone, a place that looks like a window only it's a prison, before sending his infant son, Kal El, to earth moments before their planet was destroyed by their neighboring sun."

As they pass the door of the vacant room, their discussion fades behind the slowly closing hall door.

Inside the vacant room, an unseen darkness stirringly intensifies. However, this shade is slightly different from the shadows from the surrounding foliage.

There exists no light, manmade or natural, that is able to pierce through the intense blackness that extends beyond the shade of darkness conjuring from inside the room on a mid-day afternoon.

The cloud materializes into a dark, grainy and obscure figure that splits into the form of not one, but three figures. In the front, a girl stands with a white dress; her black, ruffled hair covers her face. To the right of her is a young man wearing a leather jacket. His gaze is affixed to the spot below him where a pool of blood had been replaced with a new carpet.

Lastly, a towering black shadow stands behind the couple. Underneath its deep, dark outline of a black hood are the exhales of a cold breath that seems to defy the controlled temperature of the dormitory. Seemingly, the intimidating figure becomes tied to the conversation outside involving a child who will be born in the year of the dragon.

What is equally important as this ominous moment is another instance which already occurred exactly a week before this day, the anniversary of the death of history's most honored athlete who wore number 42, Jackie Robinson.

On that day, an incident took place a few rooms down to the end of the all-boys hall from this vacant space. This incident marks a long, familiar encounter with the unseen demons that have plagued an ever evolving world, where vulnerability feeds the hungry, forgotten souls.

And, in this particular struggle, an unheard, meager contender, whose name happens to correlate with the symbol of hope from a planet destroyed by a solar explosion will stand between the light of life and the darkness that is death.

Far into the future, a struggle between good and evil will occur in a room on the first floor of Mary Park Hall located just before the emergency exit to the right.

Armed with the inspiration of character observed in 'a Spider-Man' comic book he read underneath his bed as a kid during one rainy night in 1987, with a Green Lantern lantern, this young man will make a choice that will determine the fate of both his future son and the future.

Somewhere within the now unfathomable depth of a vacant room where an ascending eclipse of a black cloud buries an unspoken past, is a vengeful longing to repossess what was taken by a boy who, long ago, chose to save his baby sister from the cold grasp of a crooked, desperate
hand that never forgot.*