Attack of the Klowns: Part 2 (Spidophile)

When we last left Ben Spencer, he had been forced into a circus date with his fiancee, Nicole Soapdish, and had just got a knock on the door. - Lauren

"What?" said Ben, opening the door. "Oh, hey Frank-the-delivery-guy."

"Package for you." said Frank-the-delivery-guy dully. 

"This must be my new jacket!" gasped Ben excitedly. "Thanks, Frank-the-delivery-guy!"

"I need you to sign here." said Frank-the-delivery-guy dully. 

"Oh, of course, Frank-the-delivery-guy ." Ben signed the paper.

"Okay, Thank you." said Frank-the-delivery-guy dully. 

"Bye, Frank-the-delivery-guy!" called Ben as Frank-the-delivery-guy walked away. 

"My name is Fred!" called Fred-the-delivery-guy dully. 

Ben's new jacket was of his own design ( well, he had actually got the idea from Verlierer the German) and he was planning to sell identical jackets as the "Dr. Spork Collector's Jacket" for a profit. The jacket was black leather with large silver spikes on the shoulders in order to make him look tough. A few weeks of wearing this, he thought, and it would outsell Harry Potter 8. Off he stepped into the wide, wide world, perfectly confident in his future. He was just planning how he would would hire men to kidnap him on his wedding day to Nichole when he ran into a familiar figure. 

"Hey!" greeted Marci Gray. "It's you again!"

"Hey!" said Ben.

"I like your jacket." she complemented. "The spikes make you look very tough."

Ben was flattered. "Just wait'll I get these on the market."

"I can't wait to buy one." 

"Sorry I missed my interview last night."

"It's okay. You were busy with that whole super-villain-team-up thingy, which BTW made a great story."

"That's...good." he had hoped that she had been looking forward to the interview.

There was an awkward silence as neither knew what to say.

"Congratulations on your engagement!"  said Marci half-heartedly.

"Yeah." he sighed. Marci noted his sad look.

"Lemme buy you a cheeseburger." she offered. "I'm on my lunch break, so we could go to O'donalds and get something to eat." 

"I'd like a cheeseburger." Ben smiled. "Oh, but I have to meet Nicole at the circus."

"Oh." she looked at her feet.

"But maybe I could..." Ben stopped. "...catch you later."

"Catch you later, tiger!" said Marci, waving as she walked away. Rain started to fall as she disappeared around the corner

"Doggone it!" he cursed, pulling his collar up as high as possible and hurrying off. He was trudging down a dark alley feeling wet and sorry for himself when four evil-looking men in black hoodies stepped in front of him. Deciding to go the other way instead, Ben turned around to face another four equally evil-looking men also in black hoodies. 

"Hey, you guys all match!" said Ben "I mean, what a kowinkidink, right?"

Instinctively, all the evil-looking men glanced down at themselves. One of them stopped Ben as he casually walked past.

"The Thumbtack has a message for you." he said scarily. All eight reached into their pockets and pulled out a thumbtack.

"Are you guys schoolteachers?" asked Ben, confused.

"The Thumbtack is the King of Crime, hero." continued the tack-wielding man scarily. "and he wishes to let you know that he's going after all the heroes in New Spork City. One. By. One."

"Ooooooohhhhhhh. I get it. You're bad guys."

"Yes. We are bad guys." the bad guys in hoodies advanced on Ben. 

"Uh, can we do this later?" said Ben nervously. "I have somewhere else to be."

He was forced to dodge as a fist flew toward his head. A hand grabbed his arm. 

"Let me go!" shrieked Ben, wriggling out of his jacket. The evil-looking man stood there for a minute holding the jacket and feeling the spikes.

"Dude," he said scarily. "these are stuffed spikes."

"Uh, yeah." Ben shrugged. "Real spikes would be too dangerous. Give me my jacket back, I'm getting all wet." he shivered.

"Oh, yeah?" Asked the evil-looking man. He took the jacket in both hands and tore it down the middle. "How d'you like dem apples?"

"Dem apples!" cried Ben. "I mean, my jacket! That was the prototype for my glorious future!"

The evil-looking men seemed not to care. They advanced menacingly toward the small sidekick who shook with cold and fear. 

Just before they reached him, eight small grappling hooks shot from a nearby building, snagging each of his attackers with a long white cord. The cords whipped back, throwing the evildoers in the air and bringing them back to earth with a sickening thud. 

As they scrambled to their feet a slender figure in white backflipped off a building, grabbed the nearest man, flipped him over in the air and threw him to the ground. Another man got up and lunged forward to be beaten back by kick in the ribs. 

Using the hunched man as a vaulting table the figure did a handspring off his back and threw her fists behind her, knocking back two men from behind. She dodged and returned a blow from another man before throwing two more men into a wall. 

The last one only needed a right hook to the jaw to stop moving. The white-clad figure held him above her head for a second before deciding he was too heavy and dropping him to the ground. From the shelter of the corner he had taken refuge in, Ben lost sight of the figure. 

"You have a knack for getting in trouble," came a voice behind him. Ben whirled around to find the White Spinster (for that is who the white-clad figure was) hanging upside-down from one of her grappling hooks. She grinned.

"You have a knack for saving my life," replied Ben. "I think I have a superhero stalker."

She gave him a blank look. 

"Sorry!" he said quickly. "Must have been some PTSD."

"I was in the neighborhood. Thought you might need a hand," the Spinster smiled. "Why don't you have your stethoscope?"

"I forgot it when I changed out of my pajamas."

"How long ago was this?"

"About half an hour ago."

"Wow."

"What?"

"It's Twelve-thirty in the afternoon."

"I got up late," he sighed. "You are... amazing."

"I know." 

"And you look really, really good upside down." 

"Thank you," she gave him a tiny upside-down kiss on the cheek. "Catch you later, tiger!"

She swung out of sight. Ben stared after her for a few seconds, breathing deeply. He looked up at the inspirational gray sky from which glittering drops of rain ran into his eyes and nose. 

Then he spread both his arms out wide and spun around, laughing.

What did the evil-looking men want? Will Ben make it to the circus? Find out on Thursday!

Read the next section: Attack of the Klowns part 3 (Lauren)