Tim was on his way to the clubhouse via the costume hire shop. This month was his turn to pick up the outfits for the club. Usually, this was an exciting task; today, he was running late and worse, he didn’t know what the theme should be this month.

 At the shop, he parked the car and entered. He wasn’t surprised when he didn’t recognise the shop assistant as it had been nearly four months since he had a turn.

 “Good morning, Mr Hutchens, I have your costumes ready to go. Can’t have you arriving late,” the assistant said.

 “Thanks, I don’t have the time to make a choice,” Tim said, somewhat puzzled as to the familiarity of the man.

 As he was still a little late, Tim decided not to question the choices in the packs. There were four boxes which the assistant had loaded on a trolley, followed Tim out to the car and helped him load the packages in the boot.

 Repeating the thanks for the help, Tim drove to the small hall where he found his three friends waiting. Tim had rung ahead, excusing his potential lateness to be met with surprised faces as he was on time.

 “I thought we in for a wait?” Bob Harris asked. 

 “We were prepared for you to be tardy and told you the start time was seven-thirty to give you the incentive to be here by eight,” Kevin Vance said.

  Steven Turner laughed, “Trust you to arrive early, never mind I have the key to open.”

 “Ha, ha, very funny. The boxes are in the boot grab one each, the mystery this month is that I have no idea what is in them,” Tim said, as he popped the boot.

 “The first one has my name? And you don’t know what is in it?” Bob asked, “The next one is Kevin’s.”

 Steve selected his package; Tim grabbed the remaining package. In neat cursive writing was his full name including the middle name he disliked and rarely revealed.

 Steve led the way into the hall and laying his burden onto a table, opened it to reveal the contents. It was a sleek lycra hero outfit complete with gloves, boots and helmet.

 The others did the same revealing a multicoloured array complete with instructions on how to wear them. 

 “My guide says to wear it over my clothes then twist the belt disc clockwise,” Tim said, “Strangest costumes yet. I don’t recognise any as fictional characters.”

 The four followed the instructions and were soon attired in unique outfits. As each completed the task, they stood together to examine the result. They were disappointed as the view was of four odd-shaped and baggy outfits, hardly superhero status.

 “That’s disappointing. Perhaps twisting the disc is the key?”

 Tim twisted the disc clockwise, expecting nothing to happen. The suit smoothed over him to reveal an athletic form which none of them had in reality. The others performed the same move and became revealed as superheroes with opaque face visors. 

 “Magic?” Tim said, “Wonder if it does something for real? I suppose if I read the instructions further.” 

 Picking up the booklet Tim read the script, the story followed, [The bearer of this emblem has the power of the irresistible force. Care must be taken to use the power for the protection of innocents.] 

“It says an irresistible force; if I charge the wall, will I knock it down?”

“And if you don’t, it will scramble your brains worse than usual. Or if you do, we would lose the  deposit.”

 “Point taken, I will push the table,” Tim said, shoving the heavy table lightly with one finger.

 Surprise, it flew across the room and thudded into the wall. 

 “Hardly put any effort shouldn’t have moved at all.”

 Tim examined the table and wall, luckily no damage to either.

 “Steve, what does yours do?”

 “It says ‘power to fly’ and to imagine floating from the ground or how high I wish to soar,” Steve said.

 Steve concentrated and left the ground to float a few inches from the floor.

 “Have you guys shrunk? Or am I off the ground?”

 “You are floating a foot in the air. Can you land, or are you stuck there?”

 Steven subvocally instructed the suit to glide over to the window and towards the ceiling. He then returned to the original position and touched down with a slight thump.

 “Bob and Kevin, what does yours do?”

“X-ray vision, I will try to look through the wall,” Bob said, “Yes, it is like looking through a glass window.”

 “Fast running, I will walk to the wall and back.”

Kevin took two steps and ran to the wall then bounced back in a blink of an eye.

 “I think we need to find an open space to test the full performance. Do you know somewhere?” 

 “There is a quarry a couple of kilometres west. It should be empty at this Time of day; the bike riders generally come after lunch.”

 “We can’t drive there looking like this. We can dress once we get there.”

 Tim tried to find the zipper to remove the suit. Fumbling around, he couldn’t find it.

“A little help here, I can’t find my zipper.”

 Steve came over and looked, “Are you sure you had one? Try twisting the disc.”

 Tim laughed and did so, instead of the original baggy suit reforming, the suit disappeared. Tim felt for it, but it seemed to have evaporated though he could still feel the belt buckle.

“Good thing we put the suit on over our clothes, or it would be a bit breezy. I will twist the disc again wouldn’t like to lose the suit and not get our deposit back.”

 Tim reversed it, and the suit reappeared looking as before. Again reversing the procedure removed the suit.

 The other three tried this, and their suits disappeared as well.

 “Okay, still some mystery, shall we adjourn to the quarry?”

 With a nod to agree they went to the cars and followed Tim over to the quarry and parked.

  Making the way down to an open area away from casual spectators. The four heroes operated the discs and were covered in the suits.

 Tim stepped up to a boulder and punched it. The rock fractured into fragments which scattered across the area.

 “My turn,” Steve said, jumping into the air he streaked across the area before looping around and landing in the same spot.

 Bob said, “If it is the same as Superman, it can melt things as well.” 

 Bob stared at a football-sized rock which then slumped into a molten puddle, and then he looked towards the hill and said, “Telescopic vision as well.”

 Kevin then sped off and streaked around the same circuit as Steven had done on the ground, emulating the Flash.

 “It seems combined; we have the powers of Superman. If we interact with bad guys, it had better include invulnerability. But how would we test it safely?”

“When I hit the rock, It was like hitting a pillow,” Tim said, “Bob, you try punching the rock.”

 Taking the hint, the three in turn, did so, first tentatively, then harder without pain or moving the rock. 

 “Seems we all have protection to our knuckles, I will kick and elbow to confirm,” Bob said. He did so and reported, “The same result, like a pillow. Though don’t ask Tim to hit as it may not extend to his power.”

  “I will try lifting and throwing the boulder,” Tim said.

 Tim grabbed the boulder and quickly threw it across the open ground. In an afterthought, he picked up another one and tried jumping with it. He left footprints in the hard surface; as he lifted ten feet into the air. Landing again with another dent in the ground.

 “I have an idea; Steve, would you allow me to lift you the same way. If I let you drop, you can fly to the ground.”

 Steve laughed and came over. Tim picked him up and jumped. This time Steve took over at the top of the curve and lifted Tim higher before lowering him back to the ground.

  “So we can cooperate and combine our powers, eh?”

 “Seems so, Kevin try picking up Tim and see if he slows you,” Bob suggested.

 Kevin picked Tim up and ran the circuit without apparent effort. 

 “Kevin try hitting the rock many times as quick as you can. Flash can break things by doing that.”

 Kevin complied and destroyed the boulder.

 “So what do we do now? The suits are on hire from the costume shop.”

 “I suppose we can approach the shop and extend the hire? They are open for another hour.”

 They agreed and sent Tim back to the shop to ask.

 Tim arrived at the costume shop and entered. The helpful assistant wasn’t there and while the usual girl, Helen, was there.

 “Running a bit late today?”

 “I was here early and picked up a set. I was going to ask if we could keep the suits a bit longer?”

 “We opened a little later today and haven’t rented anything to your club, the only ones who come in early. There is no record of anything leaving the shop for your club.”

  Tim operated the disc and surprised the girl with the suit.

 “How did you do that? It is not one of our costumes.”

 “I picked up from here, though the man who gave it I didn’t recognise. He was about forty with wavy hair.”

 “The owner is the only man here and is sixty and bald. He isn’t working today. Are you sure that it was this shop?”

  “This is the only one I know of, and this is where I came.” 

 “I don’t know how to help you? I can’t extend the hire because the shop doesn’t have any documents or stock.”

 “Thanks, I am sure that if my assistant wants the suits back, he will find me. Here is my phone number if there is a problem.”

  “Okay, I will pass it on, I hope he comes in I want to see if he has more of these costumes as they would be a great line for the shop.”

 Still puzzled, Tim left to find the others at the hall.

 “It seems the costume shop didn’t rent them and didn’t have anything similar. I left contact details, and if someone wants them returned next month, they will chase me up. I didn’t pay or sign anything as we have an account. They were surprised as they had been expecting one of us to come in and grab something. They were running late and thought we had given up waiting.”

 “Yeah, I suppose we continue our game as we have paid for the hall,” Steve said.             

  They started the routine and had fun cosplaying until the end of the day.

  When the day ended, they headed home to meet again in the morning.

First test

 On the way home, Tim was stopped in traffic as he passed the bank downtown. Police had cordoned off the area.

 Halted in his car; a figure broke out of the onlookers and jumped into his car.

 “Drive,” A man snarled brandishing a knife.

 “Can’t, I am hemmed in,” Tim said, grabbing the belt disc he twisted it to assume the suit.

 His unwanted passenger did a double-take and slashed at Tim to no effect as the suit deflected the blade. Tim reacted by grabbing the knife hand bending to an uncomfortable angle, making the thug yelp and drop the knife.

 By then the police arrived and opening the door hauled the miscreant out to handcuff him. Tim let go as this happened and with the other restored his clothing.

 “Are you alright, sir?” A policeman asked as he leant in to recover the knife.

 “No dramas he dropped the knife when I couldn’t move the car.”

 The cars cleared the road while the police waved Tim over to give a witness statement and particulars.

 “Not much to tell the man jumped into my car and dropped the knife when I grabbed his wrist. Only on reflex before I saw the knife.”

 “If I need to know more, I will contact you. Thank you for your cooperation.”

 Tim thought nothing more about it until the incident was on the night’s news bulletin. The reporter detailed what happened to end with saying the suspect was in the hospital under guard to treat a broken wrist.

 “No wonder he dropped it, I didn’t think to be gentle.” 

 “I better get this off in case I need to change my daks.”

 Tim twisted the disc another notch counterclockwise, and the baggy suit appeared with the zipper accessible. Relieved, Tim removed the suit and hung it in the cupboard.

 Tim decided to ring Steve to see if they had worked out the fix.

As he reached for the phone, Steve rang to pass on that Bob and Kev had worked it out.

 In the morning, Tim headed to the hall and spread the news of his encounter.

 “I was on the way home, some clown jumped in my car and threatened me with a knife. I activated the suit and grabbed his wrist when he tried to slash me.”

“Where?” Steve asked and examed the area; no mark or damage could be seen.

 “Neat, eh?” Bob said, “I feel a little left out as cadging a lift is the only way to move quickly.”

“Check your directions. You have telescopic-vision, perhaps you could teleport?” Tim said.

  Bob located his manual, “It suggests I have wish-there, wish-hear and wish-lift. That could translate as teleport, telepath and telekinesis?”

 Bob looked at the table, and it drifted into the air, “I will try wishing myself to the end of the room.” 

 Bob vanished and reappeared five metres away.

 “With telescopic and x-ray vision, you should be able to move anywhere.” 

“ Next time we are at the quarry, you can try.”

 “You know, I was thinking. How many incidents like Tim had last night has happened to you guys?” Kevin asked.

 “None, now I think of it, how improbable is that Superman meets a super-criminal every week? It could be that superheroes attract villains as a dog attracts fleas?” Tim said, “That knifeman could have jumped into any car. One closer to being able to move would have been better, and there were plenty of innocent bystanders to use as hostages.”

 “If that is a fact, something should happen so we can perform? Isn’t that a funny idea? I wonder if the instructions cover that?”

 Tim picked up his copy and scanned the subparagraphs. 

 “Oh here is a caveat about revealing our identities to anyone except heroes. Yep, it advises us to be alert at all times and estimates an emergency once day.” 

 While they were digesting these gems, out in the car park, a commotion started. 

 Tim went to the window and saw the group of young men who thought it funny to poke fun at the club members. Today it seemed that they were still drunk from the last night.

 Tim said, “I will have a word with them.” Turning his suit to invisible.

 “Good day fellows, isn’t time you tucked yourselves into bed?”

 “Nup and what are you going to do about it? Put a Supergirl dress on and chase us?” The leader asked, “Push off; we are having fun.”

 Tim retreated inside, to the rowdies’ laughter. Then he remembered a different instruction; the suit can be varied according to need. 

 After turning the suit on, Tim said, “Riot police outfit.”

 Tim then became resplendent in full police body armour complete with baton and shield. 

 “What do you reckon? Scare the pants off them?”

 “Yes, it would but isn’t that a little overboard?”

 “Point taken it would also blow the secret. I will try civilian mode?” 

 Now the suit emulated his T-shirt and jeans. The others laughed and joined him in mufti. As a group, they returned to the cars and confronted the louts.

 “Run along, boys, I hear your mother calling.”

 “You gunna make us?”

 Kevin reached into his virtual pocket and flashed a police badge. 

 “I could arrange a nice cool cell for you to rest in.”

  The badge filtered through and the gang stumbled off.

 Back inside, Tim asked, “Where did you get that I didn’t know you were a cop?”

“I’m not; I had an idea, reached into my pocket and found it.”

 “Defused the situation, it is consistent with secret powers. The ability to blend in with emergency personnel would be an asset. Whenever a Superhero turns up the first time, the authorities initially are suspicious and antagonistic to what they see as an amateur interloper.”

 “The law prohibits impersonating a police officer. We could join a volunteer service; while it may cut into our free time, it would be a good cover.”

 “We should do our homework and investigate.”

 “If the suits can become invisible, does that extend to hiding us as well?”

 Tim thought, disappeared, and asked, “Can you still see me? I asked the suit to hide me.”

 “Yes, you faded out, whistle to let me know where you are. Check if you can lift something, wouldn’t do to be invisible and powerless.”

 The table lifted and lowered.

 Tim reappeared, “Seems to be no hindrance.” 

 “My brother is a member of the SES; he was issued an orange uniform and helmet.  Could we sign up with them as a starting point? They seem to be in the centre of most incidents,” Steven said, “Sam says the meeting is in the technical college hall on Wednesday night at six. You need a medical certificate and attend a training course.”

 “Okay, I’m in, and if all agree, I will meet you there,” Tim said.

 As they all agreed, Wednesday found them at the SES office ready to be signed up as volunteers. To complete the formalities, the four provided their medical certificates and agreed to attend an introductory course starting the next weekend.

   After completing this course, the four were signed up as probationary members. The four mates were used to this as before they started the club they had been members of the army reserve. When they started the club, it initially had a dozen members, over the last free months it had dwindled to four.

 As initiates, the four joined an experienced team headed by Sam, Steven’s brother.

 “When we receive a callout, stay with me and listen. Heroics gets us all in strife,” Sam said, “I will have my eye on you especially, big brother.”

 “Very funny, remember the four of us had a spell in the Army reserves. We have had plenty of lessons of where not to stick a finger.”

 “I will depend on that. For now, I will show how to pack and store the emergency gear.”

 The team settled into the task of housekeeping; at first, it was interesting as the job was different. It had been one of the reasons that they had dropped out of the reserves as the lessons became repetitious.

Steve’s incident.

 Steve’s day had started normal, drive to work, find a coffee, desk and work the way through the paperwork which arrived at his desk as fast as he completed the last batch.

 This routine was why Steve looked forward to the club to divert his mind away from the humdrum.

 He was looking forward to the morning break when he could have a doughnut and cup while he caught up with the stories that his fellow workers told. Some were even interesting.

 As the clock approached ten, the fire alarm sounded. In the organised chaos, the office emptied into the car park. 

 “Damn I expect that the boss will count this as our break.” 

 Standing in the park, Neil, the fire martial did a headcount. 

 “Has anyone seen Susan?” Neil asked.

 “I think she was headed towards the bathroom when the alarm went off,” Anne said, “I will ring her.”

 “She is not answering. I hope she is okay.”

 Steve thought that was his cue, retreating the back of the park, he instructed the suit to render him invisible. 

 No one seemed to notice as he made his way back into the office and headed towards the bathrooms.

  The smoke meant that the alarm was genuine. Confident that the suit would protect him from the danger, he arrived at the door, knocked then listened. 

 “Help, I am stuck,” Came from behind the panel.

  Steve instructed the suit to assume a fireman’s uniform and called, “I am here to help, stand away from the door, and I will open it.”

 Steve shoulder charged the door and found it opened quickly. He found Susan looking disorientated and clasping her hand led her out to the car park to join the others. 

 Before Steve walked out, he reverted the suit to his office clothes. The firemen arrived and went into action. Steven’s involvement had gone unnoticed as Susan had her name ticked off. 

 The fire martial decided that Susan had found her way out, and there was no need to make a fuss about it. He was supposed to count everyone out before heading out himself.

 Even Susan decided that her rescuer was from the fire station and thanked the captain instead of Steven.

 “Okay first mission is done, secret safe,” Steven said to himself.

 Is Bob a hero?

  Bob was on his way to the demolition site when a cloud of dust erupted from the building, followed by a rumble of falling masonry.

 Parking the car, Bob ran to the building to find out what had happened.

 The foreman Neil called Bob over, “Good you are here, there has been an accident we will need every hand to clear the rubble. I think Brian is under that.”

 Bob grabbed a shovel and started moving the larger pieces; as he did, he cleared his mind and tried to listen for signs of life.

 After a few moments, he felt a trace, and he worked towards the sound. Bob thought about seeing through the rock pile and spotted a small cavity. He cleared a final few loose bricks and uncovered a slab with a hollow beneath it. By the creaking, the slab was settling further. Concentrating Bob wish-lifted the slab a few inches and a figure struggled clear. 

 When the victim was out of danger, Bob relaxed, and the slab dropped to the floor.

 “Thanks, I thought I was gone there,” 

 “Boss, I found Brian,” Bob called.

 “Great the ambulance is on its way, good work Bob,” Neil said, “By the time this mess is cleaned up we probably won’t get much work done today.”

  Neil was right. Once the investigation was complete, and the workers finished tidying the worksite, the light was fading, and Neil said, “Okay, see you in the morning. We will inspect the walls for further danger.”

 Bob waved and found his car to drive home content that his act had been unnoticed and the rescue was put down to a bit of usual luck.

Kevin’s turn.

 Kevin’s day started with nothing unusual. He arrived at the factory to start his shift as the day leading hand. The workers had already arrived at their stations, waiting for the components to move down the assembly line.

 Kevin made a cuppa and moved to his office to wait for any glitches. Most of the Time, everything ran smoothly. Of course, when it did, quick action was essential to unravel the mess before it hit the fan.    

 The morning flowed smoothly until near brew time as the bell went to signal the break. As the workers put their components down, another bell, this time with flashing red lights sounded. This signal was Kevin and his team’s cue to clear a stoppage.

 Hindered by the workers heading towards the brew room, Kevin made his way to the source of the alarm. As often happened when the assembly line paused, some components accumulated at pinch points. This time, parts of the conveyer belt had remained active and delivered components to be piled at the next changeover point. 

 “Darn, this will take a few minutes,” Kevin said, reaching for the override button of the offending belt.

 Looking around, Kev saw that he was by himself because the other team member was off on a sickie and the woman who operated this post was on the break.

 As it would waste time chasing Dorothy, Kevin decided to do it himself. Activating the suit his hands blurred with the action of tidying the pile. Some had to find a position further down the next belt, so he ran quickly and soon sorted it out.

  When the workers returned from the break, there was no evidence of a problem, with all the parts neatly aligned. 

 As he surveyed his handiwork, he noticed two things the floor was scuffed and had signs of heat. And the camera’s red light indicated that it had been actively monitoring the action.

 “Oops, better check the recording,” Kev thought. As it was his job to maintain the VCR, he made his way to the back room where it was kept and ran the tape.

 It showed that the alarm had activated the camera, and it was recording when Kevin arrived at the scene. Initially, nothing unusual then as he went into action the figure on the screen blurred and became an unfocussed picture as the camera swivelled trying to keep track of the action. 

 Kevin rewound the tape to when he started the tidy and erased the blurred section.

 “Well, as it is my job to report the incident, I will have to fudge and say no record was made.”

 Kevin made his way back to his office and to transcribe a semblance of what happened. On the off chance that someone followed the incident, he had a ready excuse to convey.

 When the four mates gathered before the next SES meeting, they compared notes.

 “I rescued a girl from a fire, and changed my suit to a fireman outfit as a cover,” Steve said.

“I dug a workmate out of a cave-in at the building site, used x-ray, telepathy, and telekinesis to find him,” Bob related.

 “Mine was a little mundane; there was a hiccup on the line, and I used speed to clear it. I had to erase a videotape because it automatically turned a camera on,” Kevin said, “I will have to remember that in the future. Might not have the opportunity to coverup so easily.”

The meeting and lecture proceeded as usual, and when it was finished, the four made their way home without further incidents.

As the weekend arrived, each had a contact from SES headquarters calling them in for an emergency.

 When they arrived, Sam gathered them and briefed on what they would be doing, “There has been a request from the police to help search for an escaped prisoner who was last seen entering the forest. We will cover sector five in company with a couple of police officers. Mount up; I will take you to the start point.”

 Arriving at the commencement spot, Sam directed his team to form a line and waited for the senior constable to give the go-ahead to comb the scrub.

 “You four stay within sight of me, and I will pace your movement. If you see anything, raise your hand, and I will stop the line. If you spot our runner, the police will take over and do the tackling..”

 Our four heroes smiled and nodded to each other, content that they would have no trouble with this task if the criminal were within their sector.

  Quietly so Sam couldn’t hear, “Bob, see anything?” 

 “I did a quick scan and so far nothing, though there is a sense of panic about a kilometre ahead. Most likely an animal.” 

 “Okay in a line, let’s move forward,” Sam directed waving towards the hillside ahead.

 “I will give a high sign if I spot our quarry, and you can pass it on to Sam,” Bob whispered to Steve, who was closer to the leader. “I will hold up fingers to estimate how close in tens of metres we are to him.”

 The line of people trudged forward until Bob raised his fingers to attract Steven showing ten fingers to indicate that something was about one hundred meters ahead. Steven returned the thumbs up, and the four understood the need to be alert.

 A helicopter flew over the area and started to comb the path ahead. 

 Bob whispered, “The panicker has gone to ground to hide from sight. If it were an animal, it would have run away.”

 “Hey Sam, I think the helicopter has spotted something,” Steve said.

 “Okay, I will alert the boss.”

 Sam used his radio, and the uniform policeman waved to direct the line towards the hovering helicopter.

 Bob kept a running hand signal to show that the line was nearly on top of the hiding place. When he felt that the line was getting close, Bob shaded his eyes in the army patrol sign for an ambush.

 Steve raised his hand to notify Sam that he had seen something, Sam radioed the lead police officer who directed his uniform people. They stepped forward and poked into loose piles of vegetation. At first, they found nothing, but when they had stepped past a dense bush; it erupted as the quarry burst out to run back towards the SES people. 

 The figure ran towards Tim in the middle of the line. As he almost hit Tim, he gasped, “Not you again. Get out of my way, or I will cut you.”

 The man had a knife in his left hand as his right was covered in a plaster cast. 

 As Tim had his suit in the activated state as an SES uniform, he stood his ground. When the man slashed at him, knocked the knife from his grasp and grabbed his collar to restrain him. He was careful not to use too much force this time. The cops had been hard on his heels and laid hands on him to complete the arrest. 

 The Senior Constable said, “We will take over now.”

 “Okay guys, let’s pack it up; the job is done,” Sam said, then stepping up to Tim added, “Be more careful. It is the police who are trained to stop criminals.”

 “Sorry boss, he surprised me. I reacted instinctively; it was the same turkey who harassed me a couple of weeks ago.”

 “We are here to help, not be a hero. Never mind, I have some work waiting for you back at base if you have too much energy.”

 “That’s okay. I am cool,” Tim said, “I am looking for a nice frothy glass to enjoy.”

 “Yep, I am for that,” The other three agreed.

 Back at the base, they sought out the refrigerator to select a drink to cool down.

 “That exercise lasted just long enough to get a taste of SES life.”

 “Sometimes a search last for days with each day getting harder, lasting longer and at the end, no result as the cops call it off as it becomes clear that it is fruitless. Sometimes because the search is in the wrong place.”

 “I must say it went nice today almost as if we knew where to look,” Sam said.

“Yeah, I got a feeling of where to look. Of course, the helicopter may have spotted the fugitive for us,” Bob said. Adding the last at a warning glance from Steven.

 “When you have finished packing up, stand down, and I will see you all on Wednesday,” Sam said as he started his routine.

 When Sam had drifted away, the four mates did high fives to celebrate. 

“Nice teamwork that we have going there. Do you reckon that this is life for us? I expect that if it cuts into the working day, we might be looking for another job,” Kevin said.

 “While the government subsidises any lost wages when we are called out, it may get in the way of promotion.”

 “Time will tell, job done. I am for home; I have a TV waiting for me to watch,” Tim said, “See you around.”

 “Yep rest day tomorrow. I am not holding my breath as these suits may find something to fill our day with excitement,” Steven said.

 “Don’t ask for something to do that,” Bob said as a retort.

 The next morning Bob opened his computer to see what was happening in the world. No surprise there was a bulletin announcing a protest march downtown demanding action about stopping the war in Afganistan. Typically, it wouldn’t have registered, but the new circumstances triggered an itch.

 Grabbing his phone, he rang Steven, “Have you seen the article about a march? It niggles me that something is going to happen.”

 “Yeah, the radio turned itself on and woke me, that has never happened before. It was all about the march and the possibility of a counterprotest.”

 “Do you think the suits are behind this? What could they do anyway?”

 “If the Police decide the marchers have to be separated. The SES could be called upon to set up barricades. What usually happens then is the anarchists and stirrers charge the fences to tear them down. Of course, we are then caught in the middle.”

 “Oh, you are full of it. Let us cross that bridge when we get to it,” Steven snorted.

 “I will ring the others and see what they have heard,” Bob said.

 Bob then rang Tim.

 “Good morning Tim, have you heard about the marchers?”

 “It is on the Television, no dramas I expect.”

  “Steve’s radio woke him up. It did it by itself. Anyway, heads up we could be called out to build fences,” Bob said.

 “Okay, I am for a rest until that happens, Seeya.”

 Bob hung up, ready to dial Kevin, but it rang.

 “Hullo, Are you ringing to tell me that there are marches on?”

 “Yes, my radio blasted it out, waking me up, a damn nuisance.”

 “The same happened to Steve. I am guessing that the SES may be asked to build fences to keep the opposing mobs apart. I will see you if that happens.”

 “Okay, see you then or Wednesday.”

 The wait was short as Bob received a call from Sam.

  “Sorry to get you a second time this weekend. The police have requested our assistance to set up barricades.”

 “Strange as may seem I have been expecting the call. As have the others.”

 “I will see you at the depot,” Sam said.

 Kitted out in their uniforms, the mates arrived at the depot to wait for Sam to organise the activity.

 The truck delivered them to street crossroads downtown where there were a couple of flatbeds with crowd control barricades and a forklift waiting.

 The forklift did most of the positioning; so the barricades were quickly in position.  Sam called a halt and directed them to stand by in case they barricades had to be repositioned by hand. From the West, the first marchers appeared holding placards moving and chanting orderly. 

 A louder sound from the South heralded the opposing marchers wielding signs on more substantial sticks.

 “Oh, oh, the South mob look a little agro, When they see the barricades expect them to take offence,” Tim said.

 “Sam, that looks like trouble. What is your suggestion?” Steven asked.

 “I will ask the Sergeant,” Sam said.

 Sam walked over to the police officer in charge and inquired. Before returning to the SES vehicle.

 “He said, no dramas and stay out of the way. If we sit in the truck, they should ignore us.”

 “Your call, if they break through I am all for sitting it out.” 

 Keeping an eye on the two streams, the team relaxed and waited for developments. This change happened quickly as the activists in both marchers saw the combination of the opposing barricades and police.

  A subgroup from each broke away and ran towards the offending obstacles. As they reached the fence, each chanted their slogans pushing the fences towards the opposite group. The police stood ready to grab any who climbed over.

 The barricade had been set up diagonally to divert the two groups down side streets where there were few crossroads for a distance. 

 Bob said, “There is a bad vibe coming from the North. The gist is, the person hates all people in uniform and intends to show the world what they do to innocent bystanders. Hate to point it out, but we are in uniform, between the mind and the police.”

 “Sam and the cops won’t take any notice of my feelings of approaching danger.” 

 “Distract Sam I will slip out and intercept the danger. Any idea what I am looking for?” Tim asked.

 “He, I think it is a man and is paranoid about someone spotting his package before he can use the contents. So I guess a longish bundle.”

 “I need to pee. I will nip across to the pub. Okay, Sam?”

 “You are a big boy. Do you need me to hold your hand? Make it quick and come straight back, don’t chat up the barmaid.” Sam said.

 Tim stepped out, and as soon as he was out of sight, activated the invisible mode and headed towards where Bob indicated. 

 It wasn’t long Tim spotted a likely man. He was moving furtively with a bag tucked protectively under his arm. The man seemed to be concentrating on innocently walking while approaching the back of the police cordon. Picking a position he knelt and unzipped the bag as Tim came within range, the man drew a rifle from the bag and cocked it. Before the gunman could aim, Tim seized the barrel and twisted it to the side before rendering it harmless by bending the barrel. The man still pulled the trigger with the unfortunate result in it exploding, sending the miscreant writhing in pain on the ground.

 The sound attracted the attention of the police, and they came running over to see what had happened.

 The lead policeman grabbed the rifle and secured it out of reach. The next pinned the offender and radioed for an ambulance.

 While this was happening, Tim took the opportunity to complete his stated mission and visited the toilet in the pub. Then came back seemingly oblivious to the incident.

 “What happened?” Tim asked.

 “None of your business, Move along.”

 “Rightio, boss,” Tim said as he moved on content that his involvement had gone unnoticed.

  Arriving back at the crew truck, with a big smile, Tim asked, “Did I miss something?”

 “Some idiot had a rifle that blew up. The cops dealt with him,” Sam said, though the team nodded knowingly.

“Really?”

 “Good thing that you were well clear. The ambos carted the bloke away.”

 “Darn missing that, I am left with the marchers.”

 “The two lots of stirrers are still trying to bait the cops; they are staying unmoved.”

 “Still time before the mob break up and go home. The rabble-rousers are still trying to incite the anarchists and bovver boys to overrun the police and attack the opposing marchers.”

 “Is there anything we can do to cool things?”

 Steve glanced at Sam, who had decided to walk over and have a chat with the Sergeant.

 “I have my book here; I will have a read.”

 After a few minutes, “I can fly invisible and cause a whirlwind by circling rapidly if that stirs up enough breeze to get them more concerned with keeping their skirts intact. The marchers will get too uncomfortable and go home.”

 “I could do the same for the other mob,” Kevin said.

 “Go for it just don’t let Sam or anyone else see you.”

 “Okay, back in a minute.” 

  Kevin and Steven stepped out and disappeared, soon after a wind started and built up scattering leaves and loose stones. It concentrated over the two groups avoiding the police and the team in the middle.

 The wind reached gale force and threatened to become a tornado as the two groups started to be more concerned with staying on their feet instead of chanting and waving the posters.

 Set with panic the mob broke into small clumps running to escape the weather reversing the direction and turning the march into a route. As soon as the last protestor left the scene, the wind abated, and everything became calm except for the discarded placards.

 Shortly after Kevin and Steve appeared back in the crew truck, they seemed to be returning after having a breather.

Steve gave a thumbs up, “Got a bit breezy, eh? Seems the parades have been blown away. I suppose we will now have a job of packing up?”

 “As soon as the Sergeant gives the word. I expected to have it last another hour or so. Nice to get an early mark.” Sam said, “Some of those noisy ones seemed intent in turning the event into a war. Lucky that wind came up, strange there was nothing forecast.” 

 “What a coincidence, must be one of those freak events?” Steven couldn’t help saying.

 After the police had sent a squad after each group to ensure they kept going. When the two squads returned; the Sergeant gave Sam the go-ahead to pack up the barricades and knock off.

 Back at the depot after securing the gear, the team farewelled with, “That should keep the fleas at bay until next weekend?

  “Yep, see you Wednesday.”   

 The team had a few days without incident and the training night went as usual.