Winnie scanned from her position on the balcony. Below her, scores of students milled around, chatting, flirting, engaged in the general dinnertime mob. She looked around to ensure everyone was in position.
All around the perimeter of the dining hall floor, she saw technical team members in position. At the front of the cafeteria, some Battlefront members were engaged in getting the distraction prepared. Sitting with three other girls, legs crossed, Hayley waited, surrounded by a protective barricade of Battlefront members.
"Everyone is in position on the outside," a calm voice alerted on her headset. She looked across the balcony. At the far end, their blonde haired head of communications, Bridget, gave her a thumbs up.
Excellent, Winnie though. Let's give the Student Body President something to get upset about.
"All right," she muttered into the headset. "Tell the diversion team that we're a go. And tell the safety team to be ready-once this starts, Angel's going to be on us like a dog."
The dining students talked and laughed in one continuous roar, the sounds leaping off the extensive walls and ceiling of the gorgeous, sweeping glass-and-steel cafeteria. Suddenly, they gasped as the lights all flickered out.
It was dark for a moment, and the room was alive with surprised murmurs. There was a click.
At the front of the cafeteria, the platform where the stairs led up to the balcony had been completely cordoned off. At the click, blinking, soaring floodlights zipped on, illuminating the figures standing posed on the platform.
"Hey-It's GirlDeMo!" came a cry.
On the stage, Hayley grinned an entrancing smile, lighting fingering her rhythm guitar in readiness. She glanced around her.
"You guys ready?" She questioned, red hair burning in the blinding illumination.
Beside her, the lead guitarist smirked, dark eyes dancing over the crowd. "You know it sister. Let's kill this."
"Ok. All right guys, on four. One, two, three…"
A wall of sound leapt out over the cafeteria, crashing drums pounding alongside the fly of guitar riffs, and the roaring chug of the bass. The crowd went wild; hands flying into the air, cries meshing into the music.
And then, Hayley's voice joined in, sounding over the vibrant roars.
"There's a wall of shutters behind me, I'll move ahead with steel fingertips, play through a crowded sea. Rock on, play on, all to find what I'm looking for. Won't you look at me, can you tell me there's NOTHING MORE!"
Mike craned his head, listening. Music came lilting out to him, dancing on the cool night air, still clear all the way from the cafeteria.
He rechecked his ammo for the 42nd time and glanced back at the area he had been assigned: a small, remote path a ways from the cafeteria. There wasn't much change of seeing any action here, he had been told.
I hope so, he thought to himself, shivering as a breeze blew through him. I wouldn't know what to do if-
The clouds shifted, and the moon slid out, filling the night scene will soft silver illumination. He frowned. There was some form of odd shadow growing on the bridge in front of him, a silhouette, with a twisting top. He looked up, and froze.
Angel stood calmly on the structure's other side, her breeze-tossed hair casting the twisting shadow. From across the expanse, she simply looked at him, her luminous hazel eyes glowing like a wolves. Then, she began to walk towards him.
He jumped back, shaking all over, gun trained on her. But the action did nothing to slow her.
Crap! He thought, cursing. She went for the weakest person… I, I can't shoot her, she's just a girl, she looks so normal, except…
Remember what she did to you, he reminded himself, clenching his teeth. This is no ordinary girl. And you have a job, you can't let her through.
With eyes almost closed in reluctance, he fired. His eyes flew open.
Angel had stopped. As Mike watched in horror, a pool of red formed on her stomach. She put her hand to the wound softly.
No! He had meant to shoot her in the leg! He hung his head, eyes burning. I, I suck… he cursed himself, shame swamping him.
"Guardskill: Hand sonic"
He looked up, unbelieving. Incredibly, Angel had straightened up. And she was walking towards him again, a glistening blade winking at him from her right arm.
Mike's shock quickly soured into terror. He stumbled back, firing, firing again. But Angel, she deflected the shots, her blade moving impossibly fast, metal screeching on metal as the bullet was taken out.
No, no, it was impossible, this girl was impossible! But she continued, steadily advancing, her eyes never leaving Mike's frightened oval face.