In SPARK, the Pod is a group of runaways who have figured out the secret to staying overnight in the park. Every kid’s dream. An augmented reality version of Neverland. Janne, HVH, and Hodgins all know what’s going on. They are tidy squatters, so HVH decides to let it play out as an impromptu social experiment.
Will – WB – joins the Pod as the tenth member of the group. The others are:
Fantom
Mellew
Zen
Myranda
Hunter
Yennifer
DreadBot
DeadElf
Membership is transitory. People come and go for their own reasons. Some “age out” – hit the magic 18 and leave SPARK as adults. Some have used SPARK and the Pod as a refuge – fleeing horrible situations and pausing in SPARK to recuperate before going on to better, or worse, situations in SCAZ (the Southern California Autonomous Zone).
For the period of SPARK, I kept the membership stable. Five months seemed acceptable.
Avatar names or callsigns are interesting things and reveal things about the people who pick them. Or, perhaps about the author who assigns them. Your call.
Fantom: The avatar name here is twofold. First, it’s a nod to the first fighter I flew, the F-4 Phantom. Secondly, the spelling change is because so many traditionally spelled avatar names are already taken. I went to play some games at a Dave & Busters a while back and wanted to use Viper. Taken. I could have been Viper10532, but that didn’t feel terribly unique. I went with FluffyKitty. No competition for that one, plus it allowed me to shout out to Big Bang Theory. So, Fantom.
Fantom is described as ferret-faced with long, stringy hair that he rarely washes. He has a prominent, pointy nose and a receding chin and forehead. Not an attractive guy, but he has hopes. He looks a bit like a younger version of this guy from the Harry Potter universe.
Looks aside, he is not to be underestimated. Fantom is wickedly smart and was the first to figure out the big three of Pod life: 1) How to stay overnight. 2) Where and how to sleep safely in the Underground City. 3) How to eat free of charge.
Within a week, he became the first Unofficial Guide (UG) and the first to cosplay in that role, duplicating, as much as possible, his avatar’s appearance. He plays as a Rogue. If he’s not being paid to guide you, you need to keep an eye on your inventory because he is an accomplished thief.
He was the founder of the Pod and the only one to remain a member after turning 18. For reasons unknown, SPARK wasn’t interested in hiring him. For most of the book he is the unofficial Mayor of the Pod. Shortly before the end of SPARK, he leaves the Pod when he is hired by an off-property quest design firm that supports SPARK.
Fantom appears in Book 2: Fire