Suburban Fury

If you need something delivered, something transported, something explored, there's one guy to call, one guy who can go anywhere and do just about anything: Hal Cheng.

Oh, yeah, did we mention that Hal's in high school and only has a bike?

Suburban Fury is a short story that turns middle class adolescence into the stuff of Two-Fisted Tales. Sure, Hal goes to a bland high school, one perhaps not so different from the one you attended, but there's more to it. Like a suburban tract so big that nobody's been to the center in ages, where wild dogs and weird cults rule the rows of empty houses, and where bicycles can defy gravity if the cyclist is badass enough.

As you can probably guess, Suburban Fury is the sort of story that lives on Serial Escalation and runs on Rule of Cool. Hal's hired by Lewis, the richest kid in school, to get to the center of the abandoned Arcadia Meadows tract. This is a test; if Hal passes, more employment is sure to follow. Of course, that assumes he comes back alive...

Suburban Fury is by Destron, better known for writing Travels Through Azeroth and Outland. It's an original work, and very different in tone, taking itself a lot less seriously. He's also suggested that he plans to write more stories featuring Hal. Now that he's done with Travels, Destron hopes to get on that.


 * Affably Evil: Everyone knows that Lewis is involved in shady, and probably criminal, activities. Still, he's quite the gentleman (though a bit smug).
 * Anti-Hero: Hal's a Type 1 or 2.
 * Badass Driver: But with a bicycle instead of a car.
 * Cargo Cult: The folks living in the center of Arcadia Meadows.
 * Cool Loser: It's mentioned that Hal's alienated many of his peers, plus he eats alone.
 * Dumb Muscle: Patrick and Barry, Lewis' goons.
 * Hot Pursuit: A veritable army of improbable makeshift vehicles,, chase Hal.
 * Human Sacrifice: What pulp tale would be complete without ?
 * Scavenger World: In the middle of the suburbs, no less.
 * Serial Escalation: This is just the first (and the mildest) example.
 * Suddenly Ethnicity: Hal's Chinese surname is revealed in the beginning of Part 2.
 * The Rival: Andrew, though he's not an even match, being new to the game and in way over his head.