Anthology Two Presents

Millennium Man
"Perfect Timing"
By Aaron Baugh

The newscaster's perfect white teeth were bared in an even smile as he sat behind the newscaster's desk.

"...and those of you who are on our city's beaches, be sure to be on the lookout for the Baywatch van, with free give-aways and a chance to win a walk-on role. Stay tuned for a live version of KGPC's The Manly Side, with Michael Manly. Good night."

*Outside Mega-Hits Records, 11th and Morton Ave.*

"Okay, Mike. We've got the count. Three, two, one, and rolling."

The immaculately dressed man in front of the camera smiled big, raising his microphone to his lips as a crowd of teens and pre-teens behind him erupted in a loud, high-pitched shriek of excitement.

"Good evening, Pacific City. I'm Michael Manly, and this is The Manly Side. We're here at Mega-Hits Records where teen pop sensations N'Sync will be arriving to promote their newest album. Members of the band will also sign autographs and posters for the jubilant fans behind me."

Tracy Newman, a well-dressed woman standing behind and to the left of the cameraman, Jim Finnegan, brought both hands up to signal the crowd of young women, several of whom held up signs with messages like 'Manly is Manly Enough for Me!', 'N'Sync Rule' and similar messages. The crowd obediently dissolved into a feminine roar.

* * *

*Ten blocks away, 11th and Carnival St.*

The black panel van swerved around the corner, cornering at such high speed that the vehicle looked as if it were going to tip over. Behind it, police cars, sirens blaring, gave chase, sliding around the corner and narrowly avoiding a minivan sitting at the intersection. The second police cruiser miscalculated the turn and met the minivan broadside-to-broadside, effectively removing it from the chase.

"We got one!" said one of the three ski-masked men inside the van.

In the cargo area of the van, sat a veritable cornucopia of electronics, from VCRs and DVD players to computer CPUs and expensive flatscreen monitors. Emboldened by the turn of events, the driver floored the accelerator as the crook in the
passenger seat leaned out the open window, sub machine-gun in hand. With a wild burst, he fired at the pursuing police car and riddled its engine compartment with a hail of bullets. Five punctured the radiator, three went through, ricocheting off of metal and severing hoses and belts. With a smear of oily black smoke trailing from under their hood, the remaining police car dropped away and to the side, out of commission.

* * *

*Mega-Hits*

The wail of a distant police siren could hardly be heard as Michael Manly continued with his show, covering the recent events in Hollywood and expanding on fresh meat from the rumor mills. As the sirens got closer, Manly lost his concentration, and eventually looked away from the camera, towards the intersection.

From down the street came the crack of gunshots, and everyone in the crowd froze as three men dressed in black with ski masks over their heads came running. Each carried a sub machine-gun, as well as a sidearm holstered on their side. The last in the trio turned and fired a burst down the sidewalk, obviously at pursuing authorities.

"Jim! Get on that!" said Michael urgently.

Tracy was aghast. "What? We've got to get out of here!" Just as she said that, the crooks came closer, confused by the large crowd outside the record store.

With a glance exchanged between the two in front, they fired their weapons over the crowd's heads. A chorus of loud screams erupted as everyone tried to run in different directions at the same moment. The confusion was perfect for Manly to try and slip away to become his alter-ego and clean up this mess. He could hear Jim's voice, even over the din, as he let the crowd pull him back away from the street and towards the store's entrance. "Where's Mike!?" it said.

"Keep on the story, Finnegan! Keep the camera on the action!" screamed Tracy, suddenly realizing that the nature of the live feed would give the show big exposure.

Michael slipped into the now deserted record store, and spied a fire exit at the rear. While heading for it, he began to peel away the suit-coat and shirt he had been wearing, revealing his costume underneath.

Outside, the picture wasn't very pretty. The criminals had gotten behind a few of the crowd members and were using them as human shields while the police established a perimeter. Jim Finnegan and Tracy Newman were holed up in a storefront opposite the record store, camera running. Neither the hostages, policemen, or criminals were prepared to see Millennium Man swooping down, flying very close to the front of the record store building in an effort to get behind the criminals, placing them
between him and the cops. One raised his weapon, and got a bright bolt of energy in the chest for his troubles. He collapsed like a rag doll. The remaining two crooks retreated into the record store and immediately bolted for the rear exit. What they
didn't know was that Manly had thought of that, and had shoved a dumpster in front of the door. When they spun around, Millennium Man was striding through the door.

Jim didn't really know what was going on inside the record store, but his suspicions were confirmed as one of the crooks sailed through the front window, landing amid broken glass on the sidewalk. Police had moved in to secure the first criminal that Millennium Man had dropped, and they were just as surprised as the crook that came through the window, if their expressions were to be trusted. Sounds of a struggle inside the store reached the people outside, and then suddenly died.

A few tense moments passed before Millennium Man emerged, the last of the three slung over his shoulder like an oversized sack of potatoes. Two uniformed cops approached and relieved him of his burden. Many of the teen girls hadn't actually fled the area, though, instead scattering around behind the police cars and the hastily-thrown up lengths of yellow police tape. All erupted in a loud cheer, and Millennium Man smiled for them all, as well as for the camera that he knew was around somewhere.

The policemen were clapping as well, some of them, anyway, and with a wave and a wink to the girls in the crowd, he leapt into the air and soared away. Across the street, Tracy exited the boutique with Jim hot on her heels.

"Tell me you got all of that," she said in a near-whisper as her eyes followed Millennium Man until he was no longer visible.

"Sure did," replied Jim. "Most all of it, anyway. Should be great for a little wrap-up piece on the 11 o'clock news, plus the next Manly Side, right?"

Tracy smiled. "Exactly." She frowned. "Now where did Michael go? I bet he took off when that crowd dispersed. He's sure to be around somewhere. I'll ask the boys in blue. You ask the groupies."

Jim slung the camera off his shoulder and trudged back to the KGPC van, parked a block away. He opened the rear doors and nearly dropped his camera as his heart jumped into his throat.

"Michael! You scared me half to death! Are you okay?"

Michael kept his best poker face on as he looked at Jim from his crouched position among equipment and coils of wire stored in the van. "Is it over?"

"Yeah! Millennium Man showed up! You've got some great footage for tomorrow's show, let me tell you. He was just as good as usual."

"Really? And the crowd, were they okay?"

"Yeah, they're all fine. You got pretty far away pretty quick, man."

Michael shrugged. "The crowd pushed me along. I wasn't about to try and stop it. I might've gotten trampled or worse."

"Well, I guess the publicity thing for N'Sync will have to wait another day, huh?"

End