The Gold Wing Strikes: Chapter 3
PG 13
Over the next month, Laura and Tim suffered their daily abuse by the so-called 'cool people', and slowly bided their time. They expected that this was one Homecoming Dance that no one would ever forget. Putting both their talents together, the twisted teens were just about ready.
They were going to seriously screw with the school dance, however, they reassured each other that they wouldn't let it get out of hand. Ironically, Laura's eighteenth birthday was the day after the Saturday night festivities. This promised to be one heckuva celebration.
Two days before the dance, Tim and Laura snuck onto the Falcon Claw High Football Field. The team and the cheerleaders had just finished practice. In the darkness, no one picked out the two lone shadows creeping along the grandstand. The field lights had just been turned off. Laura knocked out the security cameras.
"Can I do anything to help?" Tim offered quietly. "Nope, Tim, this one's on me. Just sit back and watch." Laura replied, grinning evilly. The mischievous super hero zipped across the darkened field, grabbed a large metal trash bin, physically carried the five foot by five foot container, and subsequently dumped the bin and its contents in the middle of the field on the 50 yard line.
Tim snickered, as Laura went back to get another trash bin, and tossed it a good twenty feet upward onto the clubhouse roof. It clattered noisily, spilling its contents all across the roof and over the edge onto the parking lot entrance. It reeked. Laura wrinkled her nose as she sped back to Tim.
The troublemakers high-fived each other. "Phase one, complete!" Tim joked. The next night they snuck into the school itself. Laura quickly disabled the security cameras. Tim spiked the team's Gatorade with a mixture of hot sauce, horseradish, and black pepper.
Laura slunk through the darkened corridors. The football team was called the Falcon Claw Falcons, as written on a large hanging sign above the sports director's office. "Very original." Laura muttered, as she wrote with bright red lipstick across the sign: Death, Doom, and Destruction to All.
She chuckled, admiring her handiwork. Next she ventured into the girls' locker room. Thoroughly pleased with herself, Laura wrote in large red lipstick letters: I Know What You Did Last Night. Revenge! She giggled, heading next to the boys locker room.
She painstakingly wrote every cheerleader's home phone number on the walls above the urinals in the same red lipstick. Her sides began to hurt from laughing. She was thankful that she could still feel a little pain. Tomorrow, Laura would ingest one of the Loracite laced shakes to keep her strength up.
Tim was setting up the special effects for the dance. He'd created a life-sized animated monster, similar to a brown furred version of Carrie from Prom Night. The creature had been built with some robot parts he'd acquired on E Bay. It was unsophisticated, but coupled with the other effects would be fun. Tim installed the robot in the ceiling above the drama class stage.
With his jury-rigged
remote control, it would drop down through a trap door, growling and
shrieking. For added punch, he and Laura had splattered bright red
paint all over the monster. Tim had rigged a slave circuit to the
remote that would cause the sound system to malfunction, as well as
turn off the lighting in the gym briefly. The flashing strobe lights
he'd bought, would add to the confusion.
Their good friend,
Shana Springbrook, was also part of the plan, though she'd be an
unwitting accomplice. Shana was a nice senior girl from the wealthier
part of Falcon Claw. The area had been nicknamed Brat Flats. She was
in most of Laura's classes and a few of Tim's.
Laura and Tim tended to attract all of the fringe students at Falcon Claw, all of the geeks, nerds, Goth Chicks, and Goth Guys, as well as any other self-proclaimed outsider. They formed a bond based on abusive jocks, cheerleaders, and just generally rude people.
At last count, Laura and Tim had over twenty 'followers'. Shana was a bit odd, though Laura and Tim both liked her as a friend. Shana was obsessed with the occult. The Brat Flat teen enjoyed horror movies, and films about witches, ghosts, and goblins.
Laura and Tim decided to punk poor Shana. They encouraged her to bring her favorite occult book, titled "The Grimoire and the Dark Arts." It was an alleged spell-casting book, supposedly written by some Wicca Cult or another. Laura tempted her friend to 'raise a demon' before the Homecoming dance. At first, Shana was skeptical, claiming that they were making fun of her.
Eventually they talked her into it. Shana complied, creating an elaborate séance. Laura and Tim joined hands with Shana, and she cast her spell. When nothing happened, Shana left, discouraged. It was still over a month until Halloween, so no one would be expecting their stunts.
"Phase two, complete!" Laura joked as she called Tim's cell phone.
The day of the dance, the Falcons played their archrivals, the Corn Huskers, and promptly lost the football game. The Lady Falcons, the cheerleaders, of course, brought the back up spiked Gatorade onto the field. Some drank Tim's concoction, vomiting frequently.
Laura and Tim were in the stands laughing hysterically. Brandi Meiser, the editor of the school paper, The Falcon Heart, noted Laura and Tim's amusement at the stricken cheerleaders and ballplayers. She would make it a point to investigate them later.
Shana had been chatting with her Goth friends, named P-Dawg, and Fox, about her alleged spell-casting adventure at the ballgame. They were quite impressed, vowing to hang out with Laura and Tim. Fox, a pretty brunette, with the traditional thick black eye makeup, black painted fingernails, and leather outfit complete with a silver chain, decided to meet the two troublemakers.
P-Dawg went along with her. Shana introduced them. Tim managed to talk the Goth kids into helping them prank the dance. Without sharing any details, Laura suggested that they all go in costume. P-Dawg offered to dress like a murdered teen, complete with a plastic 'bloody ax' taped to his chest.
Fox wouldn't be outdone, choosing to don a 'blood
soaked' used wedding dress. Laura laughed
appreciatively, and
Shana and the Goth kids left. It was time to get started on the rest
of their plan. At nightfall, Fox, P-Dawg, and a few others, toilet
papered the entire school grounds, hanging the bathroom tissue from
every tree and even 'decorated' the football field's
goalposts.
Laura would bring her Gold Wing outfit along, beginning the night in a common black strapless dress, with black heels, and she made it a point to sport her 'cat glasses'. Tim wore a simple black polo shirt and black Dockers. Most of his involvement would be behind the scenes.
The jocks and cheerleaders arrived first, looking worn and haggard from the Gatorade incident. The average kids arrived next, and the Goths, through papering the grounds, would arrive in a typically late fashion. Shana wore a striking red dress, which Tim had to admit, made her look sexy. Shana's long, stringy, blonde hair draped over her bare shoulders.
Mike Trent, Laura's longtime friend and first schoolgirl crush arrived next, with Brandi Meiser on his arm. This gave Laura the extra incentive to prank the dance and punk the kids. She sauntered right up to Mike, giving him a surprise peck on the cheek in front of Brandi, who gave her a dirty look.
By now, Laura had ingested her Loracite drink and was at full superhero power. After some pleasant conversation with Mike, she decided that it was time to get the real party started. Laura excused herself, and Brandi gave her a sarcastic wave goodbye. "Good riddance." She said arrogantly. Mike chastised her. "Was that nice? I mean Laura was trying to be civil."
"Whatever, Mike." Brandi ignored him and turned her attention to the announcement of the Homecoming King and Queen. She'd have to cover it for the school paper, of course. Brandi left Mike alone at the table, and headed up front to grab some pictures of the selected couple.
Laura immediately zipped in behind Mike. She suddenly got in his face. "Mikey, would you like to dance?" He was hesitant at first. "I'm with Brandi." Laura dismissed him with a wave. "So? She'll be busy for a while…" Maybe a long while, Laura thought lustfully. "Okay." Mike gave in and led her to the dance floor. The next song was slow and Laura made it a point to dance closely with him.
Brandi was getting some preliminary shots of the King and Queen's court, the rest of the jocks and cheerleaders, naturally. The next song was fast, and Laura made an extra effort to dance sexy with Mike, occasionally grinding up against him, and shaking her booty big time. Tim watched her angrily, growing jealous over time. Still he had to admit, the girl could move.
Mike reddened as Brandi noticed the sexy moves. Laura had positioned them in the middle of the dance floor where everyone could see. Brandi was furious, snapping pictures rapidly, in a vain attempt to get back to Mike. The couple of choice surprised no one.
Brett Storm, the Falcons quarterback, and Karyn Warren, a cheerleader, had been named the winners, parading around the stage with their tacky crowns and scepters. It was about time for Laura and Tim to make their move. Tim edged away, heading behind the stage. No one noticed him. Laura excused herself, and pretended to go to the bathroom.
She'd cleverly hidden her Gold Wing costume, complete with mask, in a ceiling section above a stall in the washroom. She super sped the change, hiding her dress and shoes in the same spot. It was show time. Tim anxiously awaited the signal. Laura zipped up to the air conditioning control, and cranked it all the way down. It quickly grew cold in the crowded school auditorium.
Laura grabbed her other props. She zipped across the building, and returned with a large canister of whipped cream, a coconut cream pie, and a large, shaken bottle of soda. Using her blinding speed, Laura sprayed the whipped cream on Karyn's face, smashed the pie in Brandi's chest, and popped open the soda on Brett's suit.
No one saw her as she tipped over the punch bowl, spilling ice and sticky punch on the auditorium floor. At that moment, Tim released the monster. It dropped from the ceiling on cue, right in front of Karyn and Brandi. The girls screamed. The sound system went haywire, switching the pounding base into a series of amplified screams, shrieks, and howls. Kids began to run in every direction.
The moderators tried to restore order as the lights went off, and the strobe lights kicked on. The Goth kids laughed hysterically, soon getting into the spirit of the pranks. Fox and P-Dawg's friend, Rat, a cute red haired girl, grabbed the stage spotlight, and shone it on P-Dawg, who moaned and groaned as the supposedly bloody ax hung from his chest.
Fox screamed next, appearing in the spotlight with her blood soaked wedding dress. P-Dawg laughed heartily as the kids slipped on the ice cubes, punch, whipped cream, and coconut cream pie, falling over each other in a momentary panic. Laura noticed that, and didn't want the kids to get hurt. She picked up as many as she could with her hyper speed. Thankfully, no one was seriously injured.
Rat's date, Connor, had sprinted to the cafeteria and returned with moldy cheese, and old vegetables. He handed them out to the other Goth kids. The emergency lights came on, and the jocks and cheerleaders began to file out, cursing vehemently. The moderators had almost restored order.
The dance was due to go on for another hour, but it was going to be cancelled by the school staff. Moans and groans accompanied some applause and laughter, as the rest of the kids began to leave. Laura had returned, clad in her black dress, smiling appreciatively as the Goth kids scattered.
Tim was about to join her, when he slipped and fell, colliding with Max, a linebacker for the football team. "Watch where you're going, geek!" He growled, shoving Tim backwards into a table. This was about to get ugly. "What's your problem, jerk?" Connor challenged Max.
"What's it to you, weirdo?" Max and Brett chorused. The jocks and cheerleaders were outside in the parking lot, watching the possible confrontation. Tim got up and followed P-Dawg and Rat outside. Fox was trailing them, still chuckling, as a teacher frowned at her.
The Goth kids and their friends lined the edge of the parking lot. "Fire!" Connor yelled. Immediately the Goths pelted the jocks and cheerleaders with the moldy cheese, vegetables, and small balls of mud. Laura hadn't expected this. She considered heading back in to get the Gold Wing outfit.
To her left, Mike and Brandi were about to be hit by vegetables. She zipped over and deflected some of the debris from Mike, and let a few clumps of mud pass her to hit Brandi. Max and Brett had cornered Tim. "That's the geek that started all this!" Max pointed Tim out.
Laura zipped back in and donned her Gold Wing getup. "I guess it's time for my coming out party." She mumbled, replacing the dress above the stall. Max was about to deck Tim, and Connor was ready to charge Brett and some of the other ballplayers. The cheerleaders hid behind the cars, as cheese, mud, and vegetables rained down on them. The Goths would run out of ammo soon.
"I might as well enjoy myself." Laura muttered as she zipped up to the roof in her Gold Wing outfit. The auditorium's roof peak was roughly three stories above the parking lot. Laura struck a menacing pose, making sure that the moonlight reflected off of her shiny leather costume.
"Hey, who's that?" Shana, of all people, spotted Laura on the roof peak, pointing in her direction. A few of the cheerleaders spotted her as well. The boys were too busy posturing, ready to start a brawl. Tim leaned back against a pick up truck as Max and one of the other jocks, Carl, advanced on him.
Laura somersaulted elegantly off the roof's peak, landing solidly and gracefully, smack in between the jocks and Tim. Max stared at her. "What the hell are you supposed to be?" He scoffed. "Your worst nightmare!" Laura threatened, disguising her voice as best she could. "Cool!" Fox remarked.
The Goths stopped pelting the others with garbage, deciding that a melee would be much more fun. "Pick on someone your own size!" Laura snarled as Carl took another step forward. "Thank God!" Tim exclaimed quietly, though Brandi had heard him. She cast him a puzzled glance.
"Are you a student at our school?" Traci, a more moderate cheerleader asked. "Do I look like a schoolgirl, genius?" Laura growled. Brandi was hurriedly wiping the cake and soda off of her digital camera, intent on getting a shot of the new arrival. "What're you doing here?" Brett queried.
"I was summoned here!" Laura forced her voice to remain deep and controlled. For effect, Laura slowly glanced at the group, making eye contact with whomever she could. She focused her gaze on Shana, who began to shudder. The Goths were suddenly silent, unsure of what to make of Laura.
Tim stifled a gasp as Carl smirked. "Let's take off her mask!" He advanced towards her. Max sneered. "Why stop there? Let's take off her clothes!" He took another step, falling just within Laura's reach. "You guys are pigs!" Brandi, of all people, defended Laura.
"Bring it, big boy…if you think you're man enough!" Laura challenged, clearly relishing her performance. With that, Max came in closer. Laura quickly grabbed him by the arm and tossed the two hundred plus pound linebacker over her shoulder with ease. She was careful, no sense in severely injuring the oaf, especially since the Falcons had another ballgame next week.
Max crashed into the open garbage bin, spraying foul smelling debris in every direction. Carl stopped his move, but it was too late. Laura, using purely speed, grabbed the linebacker's arm, and twisted it behind his back. She spun him around, and kicked him square in the buttocks!
Carl flew forward into a couple of the other jocks, and eventually into the side of an SUV, instantly activating its alarm. "Anyone else want a piece of me?" Laura shouted at the crowd. The silence was deafening. Brandi finally snapped a photo of Laura, first from behind, then as she turned.
"Do you want an autograph, too, kitten?" Laura asked Brandi sarcastically, frowning at the overzealous school paper reporter. "Nope." Brandi gulped. Sirens began to wail in the distance. Someone had called the police. Laura faced the stunned crowd.
"You'll be showing each other a lot more respect from now on!" Laura spoke toughly and loudly. "If you don't, I'll hear about it, and return. I have spies everywhere, including your pathetic high school." She let her speech sink in. A few of the average kids nodded their heads in agreement.
Tim was busy sneaking away, deciding that now was
as good a time as any for a retreat. Laura made a show of bending her
knees, and vaulting straight upward, landing back on the roof's
peak. In the background she heard murmurs, wows, and some stray
applause as the kids scattered.
Brandi and Mike remained, as well
as Shana. The Goths had split up, heading for their cars and
motorcycles. Laura hung out on the roof for a few minutes chuckling.
This had been the most fun she'd had in years. Though she could
just picture Clark, giving her a stern lecture.
Laura admitted that nearly inciting a riot was not a particularly smart thing for a young superhero to do. Some of the kids, including Tim, could've gotten hurt, she mused. Still, Gold Wing had to make an appearance; Laura rationalized, thinking of herself in the third person for the first time.
Laura zipped back into her regular clothes, gathered her Gold Wing outfit, and quickly disassembled Tim's special effects show. By the time she'd finished, Tim was calling her cell phone.
