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Majorette 3: No More Masks By Lynn LeFey Gloria stood on a hillside of a cemetery, in the bleak gray of late autumn. Around her were her friends, gathered to say farewell to her brother. Wind blew and the air smelled of rain. She could hear the rumbling of far off thunder. The new stone at the head of the grave read 'Glen Camdon, loving son'. In the distance, lightning struck. ... Laura ran beside the stretcher holding the body of her best friend. The EMTs loaded the young woman into the ambulance. Laura followed along. 'Are you a relative?' one of the EMTs asked. 'I'm her sister.' Laura stated. They cut the uniform away from the victim, along with her bra. The layers of padding that Laura and Lisa had stuffed in earlier fell away. One of the paramedics hesitated, when he realized her chest was completely flat. Laura looked at him, nearly shocked. 'Get your ass in gear, jerk-off!' she ordered. The paramedic returned to his duties. The young woman had been intubated, and the EMT was performing chest compressions. Laura realized she couldn't see what was about to happen. She knew some time back that there were going to be gunshots. She could see slivers of the future even now, but she couldn't tell if Majorette... Glen... Gloria... would live. At this she finally snapped. It was a horrible sense of power and powerlessness. 'She's lost a lot of blood,' One of them stated, rushing to slow her bleeding. 'Sounds like one of her lungs is flooding.' another one said, listening to her chest with a stethoscope. 'These burns are pretty bad. Call ahead to the burn unit.' The first one yelled to the driver. Laura watched Gloria's eyes. They fluttered open briefly. They didn't look focused. The ambulance pulled into the circular drive at the emergency room. The stretcher was rolled into the hospital, with Laura following closely behind. ... Detective Yvette LeGraus was the first inspector on the scene. What she found baffled her nearly beyond belief. A bunch of high school kids had apparently stumbled upon a drug hit. The detective called in the address, and waited for info to come back. She clipped her radio to her belt and walked up to the scene. 'Good evening, Ma'am.' A uniformed officer approached her. 'There was one kid who took multiple gunshot wounds and burns. She and her sister are headed off to the hospital. The others are over there.' He motioned. The detective watched them load another man into an ambulance. A car in front of the house looked like it had been through a war. Her radio squawked something, she listened as best she could. 'Are any of you Gerald Johnson?' She asked as she approached. 'Yeah... that's me' Gerald said. He and the others sat on the lawn across the street from his trailer. 'You want to tell me what happened here?' she said sternly. ... Gloria watched the clouds roll in. The wind swept fallen leaves everywhere, and suddenly lightning cracked open the sky. For the briefest moment, Gloria thought she could see heaven. She wanted to walk with the others as they left, but she was being held at the foot of the grave by an unseen force. She looked down again. The dirt that should have covered the grave was gone. The lid to the vault was gone, and the coffin was wide open. The remains of Glen Camdon were leering up at her. His waxen hand was hooked around her ankle, the forearm bent in an odd direction. Finally the corpse spoke. 'You cannot leave me, dear sister.' It was a gravelly voice, sending chills through her. 'Without me, you cannot live.' Gloria shook herself free from the remains, turning to flee. Seeing her twin brother rise from the grave sent shocks of horror through her. Worse, the pallid face had contorted into near-animal fear. He truly did not want to die. Again, the lightning crashed, splintering a tree only a few feet away from her. To her horror... she realized that she began to fade as she wandered away from the grave. She knew what the corpse had said was true. She understood now that she was the ghost, and her brother only the shell of flesh. Finally she realized it was not Glen holding on, but her. This wasn't even the real world, it was a near dream-place. She let go of the remnants of the material world. Ashes to ashes... she thought. The cemetery faded, leaving only a blanket of pale fog. ... Detective LeGraus drove toward the police station. Beside her was a young man named Brandon Shay. He was apparently the only youth at the scene who had no paranormal ability. He had also turned over a video recording of the incident that had just transpired. Other than that, he was proving very uncooperative. Three cruisers followed her. Each carried one youth. All three of them were known paranormals. She had also received word that one of the people carted off was a known drug enforcer. His name was Harold Glade. He was known as Burner. He was wanted on suspicion of eight counts of murder one. The detective pieced together that the kids were there to stop him from attacking Gerald Johnson's mother. The youth were led into the station, and isolated. She started with Brandon, taking his account of the incident first. As before, he said little. 'Just watch the tape.' he finally said. 'Other than that, I refuse to say anything without the presence of a lawyer.' He finally went silent. After he was returned to holding, she hooked up the digital camera, and reviewed the footage. The entire incident was very brief, perhaps half a minute overall. Apparently, he'd been sitting in the car with one of the two young ladies who were ushered to the hospital. She seemed to be the sister of the girl that had been shot. He had called her 'Laura' on the tape. Detective LeGraus took notes, running the tape over and over. The audio matched the call made to dispatch, but it was before any activity had happened on the tape. Beside the name 'Laura' on her notepad, the detective wrote 'precog?'. It seemed pretty clear that the two men leaving the car had entered the residence forcefully, and the kids had only acted after that. One of the men that went into the trailer was obviously Burner. The poor girl on the tape, the one in the majorette uniform, had taken a pounding from Burner. It shocked the detective to see her get back up for a second round against that particular paranormal. Unfortunately, that decision might now prove fatal. She tapped the eraser of her mechanical pencil against the note pad, then called records. 'Hey, Jerry, this is Yvette. Could you send me everything we have on the incident with the 'Vandals' from last night... Thanks.' She leaned back in her chair, listening to it creak. This majorette showed up at the Marshal High game last night, and broke up some sort of hostage situation there. This case just kept getting more odd. ... In the emergency room, the defibrillator paddles were being charged, and Laura was escorted out of the room. An officer stood there, waiting to talk to her. 'Miss, we need to know your name so we can contact your parents, and tell them your sister's condition.' He said calmly. 'She's not really my sister. I just couldn't leave her like that. My name is Laura Sanders. Her name is...' Laura exhaled heavily. 'Her name is Glen Camdon.' At the mention of the name, the officer's expression turned quizzical, but he only asked for the spelling, and made no other comment. Laura heard from the room beyond 'Clear'. ... In the vast sea of white, Gloria felt lost. There seemed to be no up, no source of light, although there was light all around her. Somewhere she'd heard that as you die, your optic nerves fire as if seeing a bright light... causing the 'Tunnel of light' description given by so many near death experiences. Skepticism at the edge of death. She wanted to laugh. Her mind focused on the gravestone. Glen Camdon, loving son. It would be the only marker of her passing on earth once she was gone. She looked back at her life. Only in the last two days had she turned to face the truth of her feelings and their depth. It felt hollow, devoid of anything Gloria could take with her. A life absent of any true accomplishments, built on lies to placate the ones she loved... until last night. Gloria realized that in truth she'd only been 'Gloria' for less than a day. She had a life she needed to make right. In the white nothing, there came a blinding flash, and a knowledge that her body lay unmoving. It would not revive unless she wanted it. She didn't want to go to whatever lay beyond, with her life so unresolved. ... The phone rang, and Detective LeGraus picked it up. 'Yeah?' she said. 'Spell that?' she wrote it down, but found it hard to believe. Now the scratch pad contained a new name, 'Glen Camdon.' She did a search on the station's computers to see if there were any priors on him. Nothing. She did a second search, widening to the entire system. The name came up once. Yesterday's date. The detective read the report quickly. Apparently, he'd lifted a car off a young girl who'd been struck. He was escorted home after the event. She moved the video to a frame with a reasonable shot of the Majorette, and stared at it. She found it hard to believe that young lady had a name like Glen. She dug through the other tapes that had been brought up from detectives working the Vandals case. She popped one in the VCP, and watched the footage. Afterward, She called for Gerald Johnson. He came in escorted by a uniformed officer. Yvette flipped through his folder. 'Two misdemeanor counts of possession of marijuana. Three counts of illegal entry.' She said, as Gerald sat in the chair across from her. 'What were these kids doing at your place this evening?' She finally asked. 'Look, I did Majorette a favor last night, at the game. That van the Supers were driving, I messed it up before they could get away, and then I sucker punched the driver when he got out. I came to her asking for help. She got her friends together and they helped me out. There was some car that kept cruising past my house, so we just kinda waited there to see if something would happen. That leather dude came for my mom. He busted two of her teeth out... broke her jaw.' Gerald could feel his face growing red with anger, just thinking of the situation. 'I couldn't find any kind of weapon that I thought I'd have a chance against him with, but Majorette took him on, toe to toe. He knocked her through a wall, and when he came in again, I was determined to stop him, but Majorette came in a second time after him, forcing him out, but he... he shot her. By that time, I'd taken a handful of steak knives from the kitchen. When he came back in, I stuck one in his leg. By that time he turned to run, but I think Sparks... Steve hit him one last time.' He was looking coldly into the detective's eyes. 'Were you aware of the narcotics in your home?' She asked flatly. 'Yeah... Mom wouldn't go clean. She got strung out some time back. She was a small time dealer. Look... if this all comes out, Burner is going to come for her again.' He said, sincerely frightened for his mother. 'If your mother would be willing to testify against him, we may be able to get her into witness protection.' She stated. 'Can you get her into rehab?' he asked. 'I doubt the courts would want someone in their witness protection program to be strung out. What about you? Who are your nearest relatives?' She asked. 'Forget it. I'm four months from my eighteenth birthday. I want emancipation. I'll finish school and... I don't know... get the hell out of this shit-hole town.' He admitted. 'You know' he continued, 'This is the first time I've ever dealt with police where I didn't want to just throw up?' 'Thanks', the detective said flatly. 'Aren't you concerned Burner will come for you if he gets out of prison?' she asked. 'Nope.' he stated without even thinking. 'Why not?' She asked, somewhat curious. 'You know I'm paranormal, don't you? He can't touch me.' He said. 'What makes you so sure?' she looked at him with skepticism. Gerald faded slightly, walking into the detective's desk, then stepping back out. 'Because, no one can touch me if I don't want them to.' He stated confidently. 'And when I said I stuck a knife into Burner's leg...' Gerald grabbed a pen from the table, faded slightly, sticking the pen halfway into the table's surface, and let go. Detective LeGraus stared at the pen, now fused with the desk. ... The officer outside the emergency room came in again for Laura. 'Miss... I'm here to take you downtown for questioning.' He said. She didn't want to leave, but had little choice. 'Sure...' She said absently. 'Have Glen's parents been contacted?' she asked. 'Not yet. That's my next duty.' The officer stated. 'I have their home phone number. This might sound like an odd request, but could I call them?' she asked. She didn't really stop to wait for an answer. She cleared her throat as the number rang. 'Camdon Residence.' It was Glen's Father. 'Mr. Camdon, this is Laura Sanders.' She said, trying to stay calm. 'Laura. Is Glen with you? We haven't heard from him all afternoon, and he's not answering his cell phone.' He said somewhat angrily. 'Mr. Camdon... first, I have to talk to you about Glen.' She started. 'Where is he, Laura?' Mr. Camdon returned in an authoritarian tone. She paused. 'He's here at Saint Luke's Mercy Hospital.' She said. Suddenly his tune changed. 'Is he alright?' He asked, rather nervously. 'No... Not really.' Laura finally admitted. 'He's been shot. I think you should...' she began, but the line went dead. She hung up. She felt very ill, and finally sat down on a seat. The officer with her stood, watching over her, and finally motioned her to come with him to his cruiser. ... Steve Andrews paced in a holding cell. He couldn't believe this. They'd done the right thing, and now were held by the police. This just wasn't how the world should work. In this large cell with him, a rather nasty looking man leered. 'Hey boy, what are you in for?' He said, looking Steve up and down. 'I'm being held for questioning', Steve returned, not looking at the man. 'Well, I hope they keep you in here a while. I could use me a new bitch.' The huge man said. Steve thought that this was most likely some kind of attempt at intimidation. 'Hey... you ever hear of an enforcer named "Burner"?' Steve changed the subject. 'Yeah, why?' the hulking prisoner returned, looking somewhat interested. 'Because I put him in a coma about an hour ago.' Steve said. His hand now began sparking white hot plasma. He grabbed a cell bar, and pockmarks melted in the steel from his energies. 'I want to be real clear on this, you ugly fuck. I've had a really bad day, and if you breathe at me wrong, I will make YOU squeal like a pig.' The man in the holding cell went silent. Steve thought that perhaps Majorette's attitude was rubbing off on him. Suddenly, he wished he knew how she was doing. He looked at the bar he'd just pocked, and drove the thought of escape out of his mind. Another uniformed officer entered the cell bay, and walked to the cell Steve was in. 'Okay, son. Let's go. The detective wants to talk to you now.' He said flatly. Steve noted the fear in the guard's eyes. He knew Steve was paranormal... maybe even saw what happened with the bars. He stood on a double-edged sword. The fear he could raise in others was often enough to keep him out of trouble, but when he saw in the eyes of normal people, people who only knew Steve as a rumor... It hurt. He felt like the boogie man. ... John and Alice Camdon walked quickly into the emergency room of Saint Luke's. 'I'm here to see my son.' Mr. Camdon stated. 'What's your name, sir?' The lady at the front desk asked. 'John Camdon.' he said. The woman typed something into the computer at her work station. 'Sir... your daughter was brought in about an hour ago with multiple gunshot wounds. I'll have a doctor come out shortly to inform you of her condition.' She stated, looking at the screen. 'Ma'am... I don't have a daughter. I'm talking about my son, Glen.' He said, now both confused and angry. 'Glen Camdon... That's right. I'm sorry about the mix-up. It must have been a typo.' She stated in a professional tone. 'If you'll please have a seat in the waiting area over there.' She motioned. Mr. Camdon nearly shook with rage. He had no other vent for the emotions he was feeling. He knew his son was a bit... effeminate, but to be mistaken for a girl was inexcusable. His only child lay somewhere near, suffering from a gunshot, and he had no control. It made him all the angrier. Where had he been to get himself shot? Where was Laura? She said she'd called from here. Mr. Camdon looked around, not seeing her anywhere. Finally, he spotted a police officer. 'Excuse me, sir' He said, 'Do you know anything of the whereabouts of the friend of the... gunshot wound victim?' He almost cringed at the thought. 'You mean the Majorette? Her friend was taken down town for questioning.' He stated flatly. 'What do you mean, "the Majorette"? I was told that my son, Glen Camdon, had been shot. His friend, Laura Sanders called us not half an hour ago from here. Please tell me this is some colossal mistake, and my son is fine.' The officer looked somewhat confused. He radioed into the station, asking for I.D. on the gunshot victim. 'Sir, I'm afraid it was Glen Camdon. When he was brought in, he was initially misidentified as a female. He was wearing the uniform of a Marshal High majorette.' The officer said. He had no hint of humor on his face. In fact, the officer had seen the girl they brought in, and was just as surprised to find out that it had been a boy. John Camdon wandered back to his seat. His wife sat there crying. He'd heard about an incident the night before at the high school football game, involving some majorette. All sorts of weird thoughts went through his head. He had plenty of time to run through scenarios as he sat there waiting. ... The third hit from the paddles had gotten a weak but steady heartbeat. They rushed to clear the flooding lung, and began applying salves to the burned throat and forearm of the teen. 'I thought the EMT said these were third degree burns?' a doctor commented. 'They're not more than second degree. Cancel the request to the burn unit. We can handle this here.' 'Doctor... she seems to be hypoglycemic.' An RN stated. 'Get her on a glucose drip.' The doctor ordered. 'Him...' another RN stated, as she cut away the remainder of the uniform. 'What?' the doctor asked, confused. 'Him.' The RN repeated, showing the anatomical evidence. The first RN set up the drip, moving it to the left arm. 'Doctor... what about the compound fracture?' she asked. 'It's not life threatening. Her... his coloration looks like maybe his kidneys shut...' The doctor stopped, looking at Glen's skin tone. 'Damn...' The doctor watched as the pale yellow skin began turning more pink. The burns around the neck were even less drastic that they had been when he first took note of them. 'Put in a call for Doctor O'Conner. I think we have a regenerator here.' He finally stated. 'Increase that glucose drip steadily. This kid will need as much available energy as we can pump in. Keep an eye on the vitals. If they start to waiver, cut the Glucose by 30% of whatever you have it at.' The doctor stood back for a moment. 'Bring in a camera. I want to record this.' he finally stated. He'd seen medical videos in college showing rapid regeneration in time lapse. But he could almost see the regeneration with his naked eye. 'Doctor, her... his temp is up to almost 100.' An RN announced. 'That's the accelerated metabolism. Don't worry unless it breaks 102.' He stared in fascination. He started to understand what gave this kid the courage to face someone with a high caliber weapon. The bleeding was slowing from the exit wounds in the back. Internal bleeding... at least into the lung had stopped within ten minutes. The doctor decided that the arm would need to be set soon, if it were to mend properly. ... Laura sat in the passenger seat of a police cruiser, headed back to the station. The officer beside her sat mostly silent, throwing occasional glances at her. 'You all right, miss?' He asked. 'I watched my best friend get shot tonight. How would you be?' she asked. Through the dim sea of pain in her heart, she was suddenly hit with an overwhelming urgency. 'Turn here!' she ordered. The officer turned the cruiser sharply on reflex. 'What the hell was that about?' he demanded. 'Quiet! Two blocks forward. Hurry... Turn left... Okay, here. Stop the car.' The cruiser stopped twenty yards from a small metal bridge, crossing one of the two small rivers in town that converged farther down stream. Laura got out of the car, running toward the rusty structure. The officer pursued. She looked through the latticework of the arching overhead girders. High up on one side, someone was climbing. Laura looked over the side below. There were rough boulders there. If someone jumped from that point on the bridge, they would... Then she understood the urgency of the mental command she felt. A man was climbing near the top of the structure. The officer caught up with her and grabbed her by the arm. She turned to look into his face, then looked up again. The officer followed her stare. 'Oh, shit...' the officer exclaimed unceremoniously. He backed away and radioed the situation in to the station. Laura began to climb. Her training in gymnastics worked to her advantage. The climb wasn't particularly difficult, but the rusted metal and thick chipping paint cut at her hands. The young man watched as she finally reached the top. Laura stopped, frozen in disbelief. Mike Mazzy sat on the edge of the bridge, staring at her through tear streaked eyes. 'Hi Mike.' She said softly. 'Hey, Laura. You ought to get back down. I don't think you want to watch this.' ... Doctor Barrette stripped his gloves and the rest of his disposables. The teen was stable now. He'd never seen anything like it. An hour ago, she had large pieces of multiple organs torn out through gaping exit wounds. Now... He honestly didn't know if it would be worthwhile putting a permanent cast on the broken arm. He'd doubt the teen would need it even before it was completely dry. He'd caught the last forty-nine minutes, recording the miraculous regeneration. He'd never worked on a regenerator before. He was calling up to records to see if Ms... The doctor shook his head. He kept thinking of the youth as a female. That's what he'd first heard, and first seen... It was in fact a male. He'd been certain the external anatomy was quite clear. 'One hell of a cross-dresser, though.' he thought. He ordered a copy of any DNA testing that had been done on young Mr. Camdon. He was surprised to find that two separate reports had been filed in the last month. The first, for a life science class at Marshal High School, testing for the Conrad Sequence. The second... a DNA version modifier 1.1, dated yesterday. The doctor's notes described fixing a faulty gene, then noted the sequence identifier. It marked body wide replacements of testosterone receptors. What was reported in the final modifier printing from the gene rewrite software was insertion of the Conrad Sequence. Dr. Barrette updated the patient's records... marking Activated Paranormal, then corrected the gender field. The information had been entered incorrectly. Not surprising, considering he'd come in looking very much like a teenaged girl. Her... his clothing had even spoken to the fact. Who inserted the DNA sequence if the doctor wrote up a request for testosterone receptor change? He headed out of his office, looking for the youth's parents. An orderly had told him they'd arrived some time ago. ... 'Mike... Why?' Was all that Laura could manage. Mike stared down at the rolling water below. Laura had the dull sense that she was moving, even though the bridge was motionless. Her hands tightened on the steel girders. Mike just sat, shaking his head. 'I never wanted this, Laura.' Mike said. He was just in too much pain. 'There's just no way out, and I can't handle watching this wreck my life. I'm an all state wrestler. THAT's who I am. I'm not...' he stopped. 'Mike... I can't help you if I don't know what's wrong.' She inched closer to him, across the steel caked in rust. 'What? Like Glen didn't tell you already! I don't want your sympathy. It's not going to fix my life' Mike pulled his legs against himself. The water below didn't look so bad. Better than the alternatives. 'Mike... I've been with Glen most the day, and he never mentioned you. He's got other things on his mind, trust me.' She said, but she felt her emotions swell, and her lip began to tremble. She couldn't help the flood of feelings, seeing Gloria on the stretcher... and now, talking to another classmate, ready to end his own life. 'Please... I don't want to see you die. Whatever you've done can be undone.' She pleaded. 'No. Not this...' Mike stated, standing up. 'Tell Glen I'm sorry for everything.' Mike stepped back off the edge of the bridge. Laura stopped, frozen in fear. The cold autumn wind rocked the bridge, and far off, Laura could hear sirens. She was frozen. Seconds later, a strange motorcycle pulled up, almost silently. The officer ran up to the rider and spoke. Something about the rescue team getting to the man in time. The dark dressed rider came back moments later, firing a grappling line into the upper girders of the bridge, then leapt over the side, head first, toward the injured youth. She thought the guy was Talon, a paranormal that occasionally showed up in town. He also worked with a larger group near the coast. He was quick and efficient getting the young man on a backboard, and getting him up to the bridge. Talon's body armor hid any discernable features, and covered his face completely. The nature of his voice was masked with a voice modulator. As Mike was loaded into the ambulance, Talon expertly scaled the beams to Laura. 'Do you care for a lift, miss?' His odd, synthesized voice questioned. 'Um... Sure.' Laura said wearily. He swept her up in his arm, and repelled rapidly back to street level. 'How is he?' Laura asked. 'Do you know him?' Talon asked. 'Yeah... a classmate.' She said. 'Not the only one tonight, from what I hear.' He said again. Laura started losing it. To her utter shock... Talon held her, hugging her a bit, an odd expression of emotion from the armored combatant. Laura had imagined him taller. He was probably not more than five foot eight inches tall. 'Officer, I can get her to the station.' Talon finally said. 'Would you care for a ride with me?' Laura just stared at him... somewhat shocked. Gloria and Mike both... 'You might feel better knowing your friend is out of critical condition.' He said. 'The Majorette, I mean. We were informed of the situation less than an hour ago, and I came to see to it that Burner makes it to Orbit 9 without further incident.' Laura's eye's brightened. Gloria was all right. Talon handed her a helmet. They climbed onto his mag-lev bike. The wheels were still set for ground travel. 'Hold tight.' he said, throttling up. A streak of ions fired from the rear thruster, and the two of them tore off rapidly. Her helmet had a built-in headset. After a few moments, Talon's still-modulated voice spoke calmly. 'Laura... We don't always win, you know.' He said. Laura didn't want to talk, but it did help having someone sympathetic to her feelings. She guessed Talon had seen a lot worse things than this. 'What do you do when you see something like this?' she asked. He chuckled. It sounded odd through the synthesizer. 'I cry, I beat a punching bag, I meditate... sometimes I pray.' Laura knew he was probably talking just to keep her mind off the situation. Talon pulled up at police HQ. He pulled an odd electrical device from his belt, and pointed it at the bike as they walked in. He was silent during the ride in the elevator. He directed her to sit in the chair outside the office of Detective LeGraus. Talon was in with the detective for only a couple minutes before calling her in. ... Glen had several IVs in his left arm. The right arm was in an air splint. There were bandages across his throat. Glen was awake, and appeared to be in fair spirits, until his parents walked in. Glen's father stood beside the bed, holding his wife's hand. He thought Glen looked horrible. Glen's mother had the puffy look in her eyes like she'd been crying. 'What happened?' Glen's dad asked. 'I was trying to help a friend.' Glen stated. 'And you stepped in against someone with a gun?' His dad sounded controlled, but about to explode. 'Yesterday, I picked a car off of a young girl, dad. Last night, with the help of a couple other kids, I stopped four paranormal felons. I didn't know the guy I went after tonight had a gun. Honestly, it wouldn't have changed my actions even if I HAD known. He was trying to kill someone.' Glen stated truthfully. 'Glen... Are you trying to get yourself killed?' His dad bellowed. 'Does it matter to you? It's not like I've ever been your model son. You don't want me the way I am. You sent me to that fucking doctor yesterday and NEVER asked what I wanted. You just assumed it would be all right with me if you turned me into a "real man". Guess what dad? I'll never be the young man you want me to be.' Glen said, now feeling a slight flush of fear, finally confronting his father this way. 'No, I guess not. Not when you run around dressed like a fairy.' John Camdon said coldly. 'Not like a Fairy. I was dressed like a girl. You want to know why? Because I am a girl, dad. I always have been. I've gotten nothing but a lifetime of subtle ridicule from you. Not only did you never come to any of my ballet recitals, but all you ever did was give me shit about it. You shoved me into what YOU wanted, not what I wanted. Yesterday, the vice principal suggested I should go through gender testing, but no, you knew best. You could never face the fact that your son might not be the macho star athlete you wanted. So you know what I did? I switched the doctor's scan sheet before he gave me the shot to "fix" your genetically fucked-up little girly boy. I can lift a car, dad! I can run as fast as my car drives and I can heal from virtually any damage.' Glen was beginning to cry. 'I'm not a coward. I'm not a wimp. Someday, I might even be called a hero... But I can't lie any more, and I'm sick of pretending I'm something I'm not.' 'Glen Camdon. I don't care what you think you are. I will not stand by watching my son traipse around my house in drag. Not while you live under my roof. I don't want to hear any more of this SHIT about you being a girl! I will not stand for it.' He shouted. Glen reached for the call-button, clicking it. A moment later a nurse arrived. 'Dad... this is what you just said feels like... Nurse, Get him out of my room. I don't want him in here again.' Glen said, staring his father down as the nurse escorted him out. ... Within minutes of being called into the office of Inspector LeGraus, Laura was no longer alone. Steve was ushered in, followed by Lisa. Gerald was last. Each looking in full wonder at Talon, seated at the far end of the table. 'They gave me a piss test', Gerald said indignantly. Talon stood when all the youth had arrived. 'First, let me say this. The Majorette is recovering nicely. She is awake and responding coherently. She will most likely be discharged some time tomorrow afternoon.' There was a collective sigh of relief. 'Second, the police have found you all in violation of only minor laws, mostly related to congregation of paranormals. I have requested that they drop those charges, and they have agreed... under the stipulation that any further meetings organized by you as a group be supervised by an appointed facilitator, under the jurisdiction of the D.O.D. Some half-wit bureaucrat has named this youth program Future Super-Heroes of America, or FSHA. So, if you are interested in participation, you and your parents must sign this release form. Gerald, you are free to join without parents' signature, under the assumption that you will be granted legal adulthood through the courts.' 'So... what? Does this mean we're now part of the side-kicks in training league or what?' Gerald asked. 'No... Golden Shield uses these groups as recruiting grounds occasionally, as does military special ops. Honestly, it's more for us to watch you, and keep you out of trouble like this. I'm not saying stop you, just give you the tools to do the job correctly.' 'You're sanctioning us as a paranormal group?' Laura asked. 'That's right. It allows legal right of assembly for paranormals. It requires an experienced adult in the community as an official facilitator, but I think I have the perfect candidate in mind.' Talon's modulated voice stated. 'For now, you will be released back into your parents' custody. Brandon Shay was released nearly half an hour ago. That's all, good evening.' Talon stated curtly. ... Glen woke with glaring sun in his eyes. A young lady sat quietly in a chair, reading something in a file. 'I'm glad to see you're up. I trust you're feeling better? My name is Patricia, and I'm here to administer a few tests, if you are feeling up to it.' She said brightly. 'I... guess. What kind of tests?' Glen asked still somewhat asleep. 'A battery of standard psychological tests, including several gender tests. It is my understanding that you entered these facilities last night fully crossdressed. It is the opinion of Dr. Barrette and your parents that perhaps these tests would shed some light on the subject.' She said professionally. Glen blushed, thinking of how he must have looked when the staff first saw him. He checked under the blankets, and found that he only wore a hospital gown. He had no visible scars. He checked under his gown closely, then opened and closed his right hand. He took the stack of papers and followed the instructions the young lady gave. After nearly half an hour, he buzzed the nurse, and requested solid food. It took another hour for it to arrive, but it appeared to be enough for four people. By that time, he'd finished testing, and the young lady took the tests off to be evaluated. Glen wolfed down his breakfast, and thought about what he'd said to his father last night. When the nurse came in to take his tray, he asked that his father be allowed back in. Within half an hour, Laura, Lisa, and Steve showed up. They brought 'Get well soon' cards, flowers, and candy. Laura brought a little teddy bear, in a majorette uniform. She didn't look like she'd slept at all during the night. Glen cried when he got the bear, and hugged her lightly. He still noticed a few twinges of pain when he moved. He realized he was not perfectly mended. They also handed him a paper. The front page covered the incident last night. Laura even pointed to the author of the article... Brandon Shay. After all the small talk was done, and they started to leave, Laura shooed the others on ahead, and turned back to Glen. 'There's something else you might want to read.' She said somberly. She turned the paper through about mid way, and pointed out a short article entitled 'His last words'. She kissed Glen, and walked out. The article was the suicide note from Mike Mazzy. He read the text of the paper. ... His Last Words By Michael Frasier It was an amazing night, as sirens blared, and criminals faced a new team of teen heroes. We saw a bright star of hope in the future of our youth. But not all the youth of Marshal High saw such beautiful possibilities for the future. The all-state varsity wrestler Michael Mazzy ended his life last night. We are all left stunned, never seeing the trouble signs, until we were struck by tragedy. We are only able to ponder his last words, found in a note saying goodbye. 'I have to go now. I have tried everything I know. I have prayed to God, but God didn't answer. I tried to hide what I was, but as much as I wanted it otherwise, I couldn't hide what I was to myself. Mom, Dad, I'm gay. I never wanted it. I can't fix it, and I don't want to disgrace you. I have tried to be the perfect son, but nothing I did fixed how I felt. I can't face the pain of destroying your image of me. I can't face the pain of losing your love. I can't face everyone at school. To GC and EK (You know who I mean), I don't even have words to say how sorry I am. Goodbye, Mike Mazzy' Current figures estimate that as many as one in three successful teen suicides are by gay youth. Michael's parents released this note in hopes that it may help prevent other parents from facing the same tragedy. Funeral services will be held at First Methodist Church at... ... Glen couldn't read any more. He couldn't see through the tears streaking his face. He knew his parents got up early every Sunday morning, and his father read the paper. He'd wondered what could possibly make his father come around so quickly. He laid in shocked silence. ... It was about noon when another knock on the door alerted Glen to visitors. It was Patricia again. 'Your birth Name is Glen Andrew Camdon. If you could give yourself a name, what would it be?' She asked pleasantly. Glen hesitated. 'Gloria.' he finally said, feeling a wash of elation at the word. 'May I call you "Gloria" through the rest of our interview process?' she asked. Glen's voice tightened, elevating to a feminine range. He... she smiled. 'Certainly.' Gloria felt something strange. She couldn't describe it. It was like butterflies. She was wheeled into a testing room, where her head was placed inside an EM resonance scanner. It would watch her brain activity. Her head was locked in with a series of padded clamp pins, and she was subject to various sexual stimulus tests. Afterward, she was taken back to her room. About half an hour later, there was another knock. Gloria realized she wasn't going to get much rest today. She smiled thinking about that. 'Come in.' she said softly, not knowing who was on the other side of the door. Ms. Lynn from school stepped into the room, with a beautiful arrangement of flowers, and a long thin package wrapped in glittery green paper. She smiled as she walked quietly into the room. She stopped at the foot of the bed, reading the chart. Her smile grew even bigger. 'Hello, Gloria Camdon.' She said, reading from the folder. Gloria smiled meekly. Ms. Lynn sat the flowers near the window. 'These are for you, dear.' She said brightly. 'I was contacted by... a friend, concerning your escapades last night. I have been asked to act as official liaison between the paranormal youth of Marshal High, and the FSHA program. The DOD is willing to sponsor your group. Your sponsor in Golden Shield is a man called Talon. Have you heard of him?' she asked. 'Oh my God... Of course I've heard of Talon.' Gloria said brightly. 'Well, he asked me to pass something along to you.' Ms. Lynn stated, handing over the package. Gloria thought it might be a couple roses, considering the shape of the package. That notion disappeared instantly upon grasping it. It probably weighed six pounds. Gloria tore the wrapping paper away, and opened the box. Inside was a pair of majorette batons. Each weighed much more than a normal one should. There was a small note attached. 'Dear Majorette, Inside you will find two batons. They are ceram-metal coated, and will not conduct electricity or heat. They withstand an upper threshold of nearly twenty thousand degrees. Their tensile strength is nearly ten times that of aircraft aluminum. They should hold up better than your last pair. You have shown unique courage and valor in the last two days. We here at Golden Shield are watching you with great enthusiasm. Keep up the good work. Talon' Gloria was beaming. Ms. Lynn took one of the batons appreciatively. 'Nice', she said. 'Yeah. God, I don't know if things could get any better today.' Gloria said. 'Considering what your chart says... you might be wrong.' Ms Lynn stated cryptically. 'You get some sleep, okay? The day's not over.' She stepped in, giving Gloria a hug. 'Ms. Lynn?' Gloria said as she stepped toward the door. 'Yes Gloria?' She smiled her warm inner-glow smile. 'Talon kinda has small hands and feet, doesn't he?' Gloria said in a wave of understanding. 'I guess so. I never really looked.' Ms. Lynn said softly. 'He has full body armor, with a voice synthesizer. Do you think it has thermal baffling?' Gloria asked. 'Perhaps.' Ms Lynn said, smiling slightly. 'How long do you think it would take to make something like this?' She said, waving one of the batons. 'For a group of Superheroes? I don't know.' She said. 'Talon uses Kama, right? And Nightsticks... Tonfa?' Gloria asked. 'And nunchuku, an electrified staff, and a variety of smokebombs and such.' Ms. Lynn stated from memory. Gloria smiled slightly. 'Do you think he knows how to use jo sticks?' Gloria continued. 'I would think so.' Ms. Lynn speculated. 'Maybe he could work with me Tuesday, after school.' Gloria finished, smiling. 'We'll see. For now... you need to get some rest.' Ms. Lynn smiled and stepped out of the room. ... At about 1:30, Gloria awoke to the light knocking on her door. Her parents peaked in. She was smiling and sort of crying at the same time. Her father came toward her. He didn't say anything. He just hugged her tenderly. She saw something from her father she'd only seen a few times in her life. He was in tears. 'I'm sorry, dad. I... had a really bad day yesterday.' She admitted. 'Glen... Your mother and I have done a lot of talking, between ourselves and with your doctor. We've gone over the test results from this morning. It comes down to what you want. Are you absolutely sure you... want to... you know.' Mr. Camdon still couldn't say it. 'Dad... I've been a girl from the time I knew there was a difference between boys and girls. I have no doubt now. It's not that big of a deal... or shouldn't be. I'll be the same child you've always known.' Gloria said softly. She realized her voice was in the feminine range. Her father only stared, his face contorting as he let out the pain. 'To you it might be the same, but to me it feels like my son is dying. I know you're not, but my son IS. I won't love you less, it'll just be different... and it hurts letting go of those dreams.' He said, trying to compose himself. 'But you're my child, and I'll take you any way you are. I know sometimes I'm an ass... but it doesn't mean I don't love you... Gloria...' The doctor had followed in behind them. He handed her a readout sheet from a DNA upgrade virus. Gloria looked at the sheet. Replace XY sexual chromosome with XX, regenerate gonads, reconstruct... God... Gloria thought... the list was extensive. Multiple muscular-skeletal modifications and glandular changes. She laughed when she saw increased protein production... no doubt for rapid hair and nail growth. There was also nothing about removing the Conrad Sequence. 'Oh, God...' Gloria said. Her face hurt from smiling. The doctor stepped in with a small syringe. 'This also includes a tranquilizer. If you feel any severe discomfort in the next couple hours, buzz a nurse. Are you ready?' He asked. 'Absolutely.' She said. The needle slid into her arm with the tiniest sensation of a pinch. A warm feeling crept through her arm, followed by a numb tingling. The doctor busied himself hooking her back up to the glucose drip. He was telling her about her diet, and what her caloric intake should be, but she was feeling detached and euphoric. That is, until the first cramps hit. It felt like someone putting her balls in a vice. Her insides were churning. And her head was splitting with pain. She clenched her jaw and tried focusing through the pain. She realized what the feeling had been when the lady 'Patricia', had called her Gloria. It was the excitement just before a new life began, and her pain now was that new birth. She forced herself to relax, and laid back. ... Gloria Camdon strolled through the halls of Marshal High. The last of the paperwork was completed, and she was released to return to class. The bell signaling the end of third period rang. She had at least ten minutes to make it up to her fourth period class. She walked up the steps caught in the sea of students. No one noticed her... at least not in the way she expected. A lot of boys had scoped her out. She couldn't help smiling. She walked down the hall toward Professor Mueler's room. Ahead of her, she saw Keith Patterson and Levi Adams leaning against the lockers. Both of them watched her unabashedly. They saw a very pretty seventeen-year-old young woman. She was about five foot five inches tall. Her dark hair was streaked with reddish highlights, and her eyes were a beautiful green. She wore a white blouse with a blue pleated skirt, and white tennis shoes. She carried her books against her left hip as she approached. 'Hi... you're Keith Patterson, aren't you?' Gloria said. Keith inflated somewhat. 'Yeah... Where have we met?' He asked, smiling. 'Oh... don't you remember? Levi here asked me if I had a date for the dance.' She batted her eyes at Levi, who took notice and straightened. 'And then YOU asked me if I was going to wear a jacket or a dress...' she continued, smiling as she spoke. Keith looked somewhat confused. From behind her, Gloria heard a voice... 'Why, Miss Camdon... you are so pretty when screwing with the tiny minds of your tormentors.' Laura stated. Gloria turned around. The look on Laura's face was eternal. It was the most beautiful moment of Gloria's life. Laura's face showed utter amazement. Keith and Levi stood staring in wonder. 'Dude... that used to be Glen.' Levi said. 'Glen's looking pretty hot these days.' Keith stated. 'To answer your questions... Yes, I have a date for the dance Friday. His name is Steven Andrews. You might know him as Sparkshower. And, Yes, I'm wearing a cute little off the shoulder dress with a skirt just as short as I can get away with.' Gloria stated, still standing directly in front of them. 'One last thing...' she said, still smiling sweetly. 'You may call me Gloria... you may even call me Miss Camdon...' She leapt up with blinding speed throwing a crescent kick over each of their heads, making sure to just graze their hair as her foot passed. 'But if you ever call me Glen again, I will feed you your own balls.' She turned and nearly skipped down the hall. As they approached the door to Professor Mueler's room, Laura turned to her. 'Um... Gloria... you might not want to do those kinds of kicks in skirts. I think you gave both of them a free show.' She said. At this they both broke into laughter. They stepped into the room just as the bell rang. Gloria handed a slip of paper over to Mr. Mueler. He sat down briefly to read it. He finished, and looked at his new student. 'Please take your seat, young lady.' He said in his usual curt tone. 'Ladies and Gentlemen of the class. I would like you all to welcome our newest student, Gloria. Gloria, if you would... I'd like to hear a short monologue by you entitled: "What I did this weekend to my genetic makeup".' Professor Mueler sat back in his chair, obviously as interested as the rest of the class. The End.