Master Exploder

[Badb†]

((Handler Swap Is Go.))

Warren, now satisfied that his strap was now at a satisfactory level of comfort, continued practicing to himself, trying to find a decent tone for all of the songs so he wouldn't have to keep changing between each song.

Wouldn't want to spend the whole gig messing around with your amp, would you?

After strumming a few times, Warren was pretty certain that he had the right tone for the job, and resumed practicing some more. After playing a few songs, Warren started moving onto practising Holiday in Cambodia, a song he'd always been able to do well, but never quite perfectly.

Beginning to play, he found that he wasn't doing as well as he normally would, like his nerves were getting the better of him, even though the show hadn't even started yet. This was going to be a problem. This was going to be a bi-

SNAP

Warren realised he was hitting the strings rather too agressivly moments too late, the D string snapping, hitting him in his right arm and leaving a large red mark.

Warren sighed, The mark would hurt in the morning, and he'd have to retune, but at least relieved that he hadn't cut himself, and he'd brought spares along with him.

"I'm fine." Warren said, not sure if anyone was listening or watched him break the string, but he felt a need to say it anyway "Don't worry, I have spares."

[Super Llama†]

SNAP

"Oh my God Zach Goldilocks just got hit by a semi!" Maria blurted out as the sound of Warren's D-string snapping. It was just then that she realized that as she was getting foked she had actually fallen asleep. Oops.

Wait a minute. Semis don't go "SNAP" when they hit someone. They go "VROOOOM-SPLAT!"

As Maria was startled by the SNAP sound, Zach was startled by her sudden outburst. But then again, it was more nonsense, so he didn't pay it any mind. "We should be on in just a-" Zach stopped as he overheard the band on stage finishing their last song. "Okay, it's go time! We've got five minutes to set up so let's move it!"

----------

Duncan couldn't help but stare in shock as Max described the process of moshing.

That's moshing? He makes it sound more like Thunderdome! Duncan thought to himself. And when the hell do people bring KNIVES to these things!? He was starting to have second thoughts about this when...

"Duncan!"

"Mom?" Duncan's mom appeared behind him, holding a pair of sturdy-looking boots.

"Here they are! You have fun now!" She said as she handed the boots over. "Call me when it's over, okay?"

"No, mom, wait!" But she was already out the door. Then he started to think about how she had gotten them so fast. Granted, the place was somewhat close to where they lived, but still. For a brief moment, he entertained the thought of her speeding down the road at 80 mph, a fleet of cop cars tailing behind her, but then he remembered that she wasn't cool enough for that.

[Yossarian†]

Max fought really hard with himself, to not laugh out loud right into Duncan's face, as he made his terrified and shocked look. 'The Mosh(ing) Pit' was probably his favorite joke of all time, and it never gets old, as long as at least one person is really scared.

Fortunately, Duncan's mom appeared, taking away newbie's attention. Maxwell spent those last few moments of free time before concert to tight his laces, and check once again, if he has no stuff that might bring him additional pain, like some random solid objects in his pockets. Fortunately, no.

In the meanwhile, Duncan got his boots from his mom (still not perfect, but at least they were solid enough). Maxwell wanted to say something more about them, but before he could say any word, the band on the scene finished their last song, and left. That meant, Blank Nation will be next in 5 to 10 minutes.

"All righ, Duncan. Put on your boots, and come on. They're going to start in a moment, and you don't want to miss anything, aye?"

[Namira]

Ohmanohgodohgodohgod we'vegottogooutonthestage andI'msinginginfiveminutes!

What if I screw up!?

Winston sat still as a rock for several long seconds as his head buzzed with mild panic. It wasn't exactly stagefright, not really... more, well, just a bit of anxiety. After all, it was something for a shy person like himself to go out there in front of a group of people. Sure, it was his release... but that didn't mean he never got nervous about it.

Okay, okay... chill out. What's different this time from any of the other gigs we've performed? Nothing, right? We might not be playing the same songs, but a crowd is a crowd, and they wouldn't care if the singer sang doing a headstand. They came here for music, not for appearances, right? ... Right, right.

"Alright, let's... let's go." Winston noted the slight tremor in his voice and scowled to himself. Nervousness in general he could handle, but if it started affecting his voice, that really would be cause for concern.

He tightly gripped his microphone stand for a few moments, then lifted it up and stepped through the door which led up to the stage. He smiled slightly as he heard the sound of the crowd, and all of his nervousness ebbed away as he planted the stand down in the centre of the stage, before looking back at the door. He ignored the crowd, despite the noise of it helping him out. He knew some people would be pointing, perhaps laughing, perhaps sharing jokes with one another. A 5ft 4" guy wearing smart white clothes toting the mic for a punk band? Yadda, yadda, yadda.

Nothing he hadn't heard before.

Come on then Nation, let's do it.

[Badb†]

Grabbing the spare set of strings from a bag he'd brought along with him, Warren took the replacement D-String and quickly removed the old, broken string, humming a little tune he'd just thought up.

Hm, That sounds good, I'll have to remember that.

When Warren was learning bass, his teacher had always drilled into his skull that you changed all the strings when one broke, which Warren would usually do whenever one broke. However, after he checked his watch, he realised there wasn't enough time to do so, and got to work replacing the string.

"Wait, Five Minutes, I thought we had te-"

Realising he'd accidentally said that out loud, Warren rushed to get the string tuned, unplugging his bass from the amp and into the electric tuner.

Brushing a few strands of his black hair out of his eyes, Warren unplugged the bass, and walked over to where the rest of the band was.

It was almost time to go. It was time to leave everything negative at the door, go in, and show the world that Nation meant business.

It's Showtime.

[Solitair†]

((Cassidy Wakemore continued from Roses Without Thorns))

"Mom, come on. I've seen Phyllis Diller drive faster than you!" Cassidy sat in the back seat of her mother's van with her arms crossed and her lips pouted, dressed to the nines in the best 'concert' gear she had. This meant a patched hoodie, cutoff jeans, and at least one belt around each of her limbs.

She held in one hand the bouquet of flowers she bought at the Promenade the day before from a store she'd already forgot the name of. Since she came home from that errand, she kept it watered in just the right way and made extra double special sure that nothing damaged the precious petals, giving her mother that job when she was at school or otherwise unavailable. But now the flowers were back in their original wrapping, slightly used, and on their way to get manhandled and torn apart in a mosh pit, probably.

Who knew what went through Cassie's head? Winona Wakemore sure didn't.

"Cassie dear, if the cars ahead of me were moving faster, I'd gladly speed up to match them. But right now I can't go any faster without causing an accident! So calm down!" Winona frowned. That was a harsher tone of voice than she'd intended.

Cassie didn't seem scared, though. She busied herself by looking out the windows at the other drivers on the road. "Hmph. You'd think they were just sightseeing and not in a hurry to go anywhere. Hey, look at that cocky cock!" She leaned forward and pointed to another car with her free hand. "Thinks he can change lanes without signaling!"

"I don't know why you're so intent on getting there early," Winona said, ignoring her daughter's outburst. "From what I can tell, we've got plenty of time before the headlining act starts." She used the term awkwardly. "So if worst comes to worst, we'll only miss the opening act."

"But the opening act is the reason I'm attending!" Cassie said. "It's Blank Nation, the band I've been a fan of since they were founded! I tried out for their bass slot! I designed their logo! So I'll be the Monkees' uncle if I miss their chance at making it big!"

The car was silent except for the rumble of the highway. After a few minutes, Winona asked, "Is that what the bouquet is for?"

Cassie didn't have anything to say about that.

Soon they reached the club, and Cassie began to smile, a smile which turned into a frown when she heard faint music coming from the inside. "Aw, man, they've started already!" she said, before listening a bit more. "Wait, that's not Winston's voice!"

"Who's Winston?" Winona asked.

"Well, mom, this is where I get off," Cassie said. "You can pick me up at... actually, I dunno. I'll call you." She took her phone out of her pocket and showed it to Winona, then put it back in. Then she rushed into the club, bouquet clutched to her chest, without so much as a backward glance.

Winona sighed, then pressed a button, shutting the door Cassie opened. She'd be more concerned if it was the first time Cassie went to one of these concerts, but she'd gone in with a similarly cavalier attitude and come out with nothing worse than a scraped knee.

She would have to have a talk about this Winston boy she mentioned, though. But for now, she could enjoy her easy listening in peace.

[Super Llama†]

"Woooo!" Maria wooed as their turn came up, hurrying her equipment out on to the stage in a somewhat haphazard manner, even coming close to tripping over her stool right out on the stage. They didn't have much time to set up, after all, though part of it was just the sheer excitement of performing in front of a crowd. She just wanted to get the set-up done and over with so she should show off.

Everything was set up in only a few minutes, the sound of drums and guitars audible over the buzz of the crowd as the final bits of prep work were finished. Finally, Zach grabbed hold of the mic.

"What's up, rockers?" A few members of the crowd responded with an enthusiastic cheer. "We got some brand new songs for you tonight."

"Did you guys write it in the back of mom's minivan?" A voice came from the other side of the stage. It came from the frontman of the Firehouse Sprinklers.

"No, actually, I wrote it in the back of YOUR mom's minivan, if you know what I mean." Zach retorted, punctuated by a 'badum-pssssh!' from Maria. "By the way, she told me to tell you to go see an optomitrist before that lazy eye of yours jumps out of your head and takes a cab to the next town."

There was no malice in the exchange. It was tradition at the White Stallion for the entertainment to take jabs at each other.

"Well, enough of that. What d'ya say we get started?" Zach continued, his query responded to with the cheer of the crowd.

Meanwhile...

ohcrapohcrapohcrapohcrapohcrapohcrapohcrapohcrapohcrap... According to Max, in just a few seconds it was gonna be utter mayhem. Duncan wasn't sure if he was ready for this yet.

"Alright!" Zach shouted, and the band went right into their first song of the night.

ohcrap...

[Yossarian†]

Zach's voice echoed enthusiastically through the crowd.

"What's up, rockers?"

"KICKAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Max was always one of the louder people on every concert he attended, but this was BLANK NATION. He had to be even louder this time.

Finally it was getting started. Max grabbed Duncan's arm quickly and shouted, so Duncan had actually any chance to hear his words in this wild, noisy crowd.

"Okay, dude. Stick nearby me, and you'll be perfectly fine! Also remember about your arms!" Max put his hands in almost boxer stance. "Remember: Elbows and shoulders are your friends!"

And then, Zach started the show. Of course, Max knew every song, Blank Nation ever written, so he knew exactly what was the song, and what was in it, in every second. This particular one was quick right from the beginning, but Max knew, that the real meat will start somewhere around 23rd second. He did several guitar playing gestures with his hand, as Zach's riff was getting louder and louder. Finally after 20 seconds, Max was pumped up completely to create a mayhem in the crowd. He raised his hands above the crowd, and used the full strength of his trained voice to start the crowds part of the concert.

"POOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOGGGGOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

And with that roaring battle cry, Max ran at the fellow fans and started bull rushing them. The reaction was obvious.

Chaos ensued...

[Namira]

The catcalls and insults went straight past Winston, perhaps because Zach was fielding the body of them adeptly. But here, on the stage... he was untouchable.

My place. The only place that it doesn't matter about what I believe in, or that I'm small. Just that I can sing.

As the vocals of the song the Nation were playing began, a smile was on Winston's face, and it persisted whenever he wasn't screaming at the top of his lungs.

This was what it was all about.

[Badb†]

As he walked on stage, Warren looked at the crowd, and felt a shiver of fear down his spine. He'd already messed up once, giving himself the mark on his arm, and he knew he couldn't risk the same thing happening during the show.

Then It hit him. He wouldn't mess up. He was on-stage, but there was no difference between him playing the songs there, his bedroom, Zach's garage, with his old band, or on the damned Moon. Warren'd done it a thousand times, and was ready to make it One Thousand and One.

Someone strangely familiar started heckling the band, and Warren remembered him to be the lead singer of one of the other bands that were playing that night. Zach shut him up pretty quickly, which brought a small grin to Warren's face.

"Well, enough of that. What d'ya say we get started?"

As the crowd cheered, Warren took a couple of seconds to remember the first song of the set.

Enemy Crab? Flaming Mastodon? a Cover? Death, Crime, Rage of a Beast?

Suddenly remembering, Warren looked at Zach, watching for him to start so he could stay in time. If he was right, this song was fast.

"Alright!"

"Let's do this!" he shouted, with a ferocity that even startled him, and began playing his part.

"POOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOGGGGOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

As one of the guys Zach was talking to before the show bull rushed his way into the crowd, Warren was glad he was on stage, not in the chaos that was unfolding a few feet below him.

[Solitair†]

Oh man. Look at that crowd. That shit is packed. It's ready to load up and get on the airplane and take a non-stop flight to Vancouver, that's how packed it is.

Cassie gaped a bit and wished she had some mosh arrows. Then she remembered that there were no such things as mosh arrows, and she didn't know what they'd do if there were. So instead she did the only thing she could think of: she pogo'd like a motherfucker.

In addition to the risks of such raucous and rancorous activities included in Max's explanation to Duncan that Cassie wasn't there to hear and thus didn't know about from that source, there was also the pressing matter of Cassie's height, or lack thereof. In all of her time at Bayview, she thought she recalled maybe one person who may have been shorter than her. She didn't quite qualify for size class S, but she could easily get lost in a crowd.

But there was no time to falter, for the voice of the Awesomesauce McDude (aka Winston Parry) could be heard, clear as glass, over the screaming crowd. She had to see him, she thought in blazing capital letters with a flashing red font. Spurred on by thoughts of love/lust/admiration, she found it rather easy to dip and weave through the chaotic crowd and towards the stage where Blank Nation rocked with their cocks and one pair of tits out.

Having slipped her way into the front row, she relaxed and turned her energies to jumping up and down and looking at the crowd. She'd have time to look at Winston later. She soon zeroed in on two familiar faces, right next to each other. First there was Maria's guy, Duncan, who looked scared out of his mind, much like any square would be when confronted with a stationary human stampede. Next to him was Maxwell Crowe, a handsome rich boy that Cassie'd attended several concerts with. He was a pretty nice guy; she might have fallen for him if Winston hadn't come along first.

"Hey Maxie!" she shouted, greeting her concert buddy. "How the hell are you, my man?"

[Super Llama†]

And then it was madness.

With all the jumping, Duncan was surprised someone hadn't stepped on his foot about a dozen times by now. Once the initial panic faded, though, Duncan was finally able to pay attention to the music, and it was actually pretty good. Maybe this wouldn't be as bad as he tho-

And then a rogue elbow hit him in the face.

"Oh shit! Sorry man!" The offender called out, and then returned to the pogoing without a second thought. Luckily, Duncan's glasses hadn't fallen off his face. If they did, he probably wouldn't be getting them back unscathed. He reached up and put them back on right. The side of his face hurt, but luckily it wasn't hard enough to leave a mark or anything. He'd surely catch hell from his mom if he came back with a black eye or something.

Meanwhile, Maria was having the time of her life. The cheering from the crowd encouraging her to put all her energy into the performance. Maybe she was overdoing it a bit, but with the sheer energy of the crowd she didn't think it was that noticable.

She breezed through the first two songs, and then the Holiday in Cambodia cover. Finally, the two stopped on the last 'Pol Pot' and were met with cheering.

Yep, it was a good day.

[Yossarian†]

Yep, it was a good night.

Max was wreaking havoc. He was jumping on other people, slamming them, occasionally punching and elbowing them, and sometimes even stomping on their legs (although those last three weren't on purpose). Of course, people were quickly repaying their debt. Max got hit several times, and he even fell on the ground once, though fortunately someone noticed it quickly, so people made an empty circle and helped him get up. And chaos continued.

In short break between two songs, Max went away from pogo for a while to fix up his ponytail, as his hair band fell of his hair during the pogo. While he was doing it, he heard a familiar voic.... erm, shout. It was Cassie, a nice girl with lots of spirit and energy. They attended several concerts already, and though she was very short, he always kept up with all those big boys in pogo. Bah! She was even more dangerous than the most of them, since small people are easy to miss in the crowd, and if they are very energetic, they are changing themselves into some kind of cannonball which wreaks everyone unfortunate enough to stand close to it.

"Hey Cassie! It's awesome!" Max shouted back to the girl. "It's even better than usual. Oh, and I'm teaching Duncan, you know that old friend of Maria, how to survive in here. So far he's doing good, he's still alive."

Maxwell smiled and turned his head toward the moshpit. Here he was, definitely confused, but still alive and well, but it seems like he got hit in the face. Meh, it happens.

And then, Max got an idea. Actually he planned to do it right from the start, but he forgot about it, when he was in the crowd. He turned his head back to Cassidy.

"Actually Cass... Can I get a little help from you? I think it's time to show Duncan, what 'Crowd Surfing' means, and I need second person to raise him above the crowd. You're with me?"

[Namira]

It was one hell of a good crowd, especially thanks to Max and his wild antics - something Winston had come to expect over the time Max had been following the band. Where things were roughest and wildest... well, that was where Max could be found.

Winston just hoped that Maria's friend would be alright sticking by the guy who loved to be in the thick of things...

However, concerns faded away as he continued to sing, as they always did, and by the end, even with his throat beginning to feel a little raw, a wide smile was still plastered onto his face. This was what he spent every moment waiting for. An outlet, a release.

There was no better than this.

[Badb†]

Even though the crowd were going wild, Warren tried not to let them distract him. However, he found himself occasionally straying to watch the unfolding chaos.

After the relatively easy first two songs, only stopping to tune inbetween songs, Holiday in Cambodia came up.

A pang of nervousness hit Warren through the mostly guitar intro. This was the song he'd always had trouble playing. Not through technical error, but the sheer fact that this was one of those songs you HAD to play loudly.

While still trying to mimic the original, Warren took care not to lapse into the same ferocity of playing that made him snap the strings.

He sang back up vocals as required, and when they got to the final 'Pol Pot' Warren calmly muted the still ringing strings and relaxed.

From the crowd's reaction, he guessed he'd earned it.